Starting in One Piece, I'll Build the Strongest Fairy Tail!

"That makes no sense."

After listening to Nami's explanation, Robin fell silent for a long while before finally shaking her head.

BOOM!

At the same instant...

The ceaseless storm of magic power raging within Laxus and Eden finally subsided.

"Well, well, look who it is."

"Isn't this Laxus, the one who got his ass handed to him by Natsu and Gajeel teaming up?"

"Isn't this 'Little Laxus,' the one who got kicked out of the guild by Gramps?"

"You're really something else, aren't you?!"

"We haven't fought in a few months, and your magic power is already catching up to mine?"

"Looks like you finally learned to work hard after being thoroughly humiliated by Natsu during the Harvest Festival, huh?"

"Ahahahaha..."

Eden's voice dripped with mockery as he taunted Laxus.

In truth, Eden and Laxus were not only close in age, but their magical power had always been on a similar level.

Their rivalry had been a long-standing one, stretching from their S-Class Mage trials to the countless quests they competed over.

So, what about Eden's history?

Back at the start of the original story, on the fateful day Natsu met Lucy—July 2nd, X784...

His magic power was slightly above that of a newly-inducted Wizard Saint, comparable to Jura around the same time.

Then, during the Phantom Lord arc...

While Makarov was recovering in his sickbed, Eden, in a pyrrhic victory, soloed Jose Porla—the guild master of Phantom Lord, Fairy Tail's rival for the title of Fiore's strongest, and a former Wizard Saint.

After that battle, Eden's magic power broke through to the next level, reaching that of a veteran Wizard Saint.

During the Harvest Festival...

Eden was away on an SS-Class quest and didn't make it back in time for the civil war between Laxus and the Thunder Legion against the rest of Fairy Tail...

When he returned and heard that Laxus had been defeated by a combined effort from Natsu and Gajeel and was subsequently expelled from the guild, he was first shocked by Laxus's rebellion. Then, he was simply baffled. How could Laxus possibly lose?!

After finally, reluctantly, accepting the facts, Eden proceeded to laugh at Laxus for a very, very long time.

You see, every single Monday, Eden would mail Laxus a "taunt letter." The contents were simple, just two sentences: "Yo, Laxus. I heard that you, an S-Class Mage of our guild, actually lost to Natsu?! Hahaha, can you tell me how you lost to someone with so much less magic power than you? Don't worry, I won't tell anyone..."

Naturally, Laxus never replied to a single one.

This left Eden "heartbroken" for quite a while.

Next came the S-Class Mage Promotion Trial on Tenrou Island.

It was the day of the decisive battle between Fiore's strongest light guild, Fairy Tail, and Ishgar's strongest dark guild, Grimoire Heart.

(A side note: Grimoire Heart was indeed the strongest dark guild in Ishgar; Tartaros was just the most mysterious. For reference, in the 100 Years Quest arc, even an upgraded Oración Seis was only about as strong as Precht in his base form, and Precht was a genius of Black Magic whose power never fell far behind the times.)

Eden was quite disappointed that he couldn't join Natsu and the others to take on Master Hades. After all, Precht Gaebolg was likely the strongest mage in Ishgar at the time (since Gildarts was crippled).

Incidentally, on Tenrou Island, Eden entered a state of pure will and single-handedly defeated Grimoire Heart's vice-commander, Bluenote Stinger. (Gildarts had gone to help Natsu and the others fight Hades.)

It was after his battle with Bluenote that Eden's magic power officially reached the peak of human potential (on par with Jura seven years later), just a hair's breadth away from the inhuman domain of the Heavenly Kings.

And yet, today...

Upon meeting Laxus again, Eden was stunned to find that Laxus's strength had also reached this peak of human potential!

Like him, he was stuck right at the threshold of the Heavenly King tier.

This was an immense shock to Eden.

Clearly, that bastard Laxus must have had some kind of fortuitous encounter in the world of One Piece.

Eden: "Wait a minute, between me and Laxus, who's the main character here?"

"Eden, you listen to me!"

"You're not the only one in this world who's been getting stronger!"

As Laxus spoke, he pulled a thick stack of envelopes from his coat.

Every single one was a letter handwritten by Eden.

These letters were the fuel that drove Laxus's progress. He had never thrown them away, keeping them on his person like a vow of vengeance, all for the day he could beat the ever-living crap out of Eden.

"Yo! Laxus..."

"I can't believe you kept all the letters I sent you."

"It moves me so much, brother. I think I'm gonna cry~"

Watching Laxus hold the stack of letters, Eden put on a show of being deeply touched, theatrically wiping a tear from the corner of his eye.

CRACKLE!

Before Eden could say another word...

A brutish aura flashed across Laxus's face. He clenched his fist, and a bolt of lightning incinerated the entire stack of letters, turning them to ash.

In reality, ever since his defeat by Natsu, Laxus had matured considerably. It had been a long time since he'd been this furious.

After destroying the letters, he glared at Eden and roared, "Eden, since you're so damn curious about what happened between me, Natsu, and Gajeel during the Harvest Festival, why don't you experience it for yourself?! Did you really need to ask me every single Monday?"

"Hahaha..."

"I'm telling you, Laxus~"

"If you're going to fight me with the same strength you used when you lost to Natsu and Gajeel, then let's just forget it~"

"After all, even if I were drunk, or critically injured like Gildarts—missing an arm, a leg, and half my organs—I still wouldn't lose to Natsu and Gajeel combined..."

Eden cackled, his honeyed words dripping with venom.

"Haha, you said it yourself."

"DIE!"

"DRAGON SLAYER'S SECRET ART: RAGING BOLT!!"

Eden's words had pushed Laxus past his breaking point, making him laugh in pure rage...

There was no more trash talk, no wasted movements!

He immediately greeted Eden with a Dragon Slayer's Secret Art as a welcome-back gift.

This was a finishing move that required Laxus to bet all of his strength and magic power.

He hadn't even used this move when he fought Enel.

"You're the one who's going to die!"

"DRAGON SLAYER'S SECRET ART: RIPTIDE FUNERAL!!"

Eden had no intention of wasting words either. They were bros, after all!

Instantly, Eden transformed the temple floor into an infinite sea. Harnessing the power of the raging waves, he slammed his fist towards Laxus.

BOOM!!

In that moment, their fists collided with an unprecedented force...

The entire cloud foundation of the Upper Yard began to roil and churn under the force of their clash.

The temple itself started to crack and crumble.

"Ah..."

In a daze...

The Shandians and Priests, who had assumed Laxus and Eden would get along as comrades, were completely dumbfounded. They exclaimed in shock, "Are you sure these people are Lord Laxus's companions?"

"You could've told me they were mortal enemies and I'd believe you!"

"Lord Laxus wasn't even this serious when he fought Enel, was he?"

Nirvana remembered it well. When Laxus fought Enel, he had simply rushed forward and hit him with a Breakdown Fist.

If Laxus had used this move against Enel back then, Enel would have likely been obliterated on the spot.

BOOM!!

Elsewhere...

Natsu and Happy stared up at the roaring lightning in the sky and the churning clouds on the ground. Natsu couldn't help but say, "Are Laxus and Eden really that strong? Not even my Lightning Flame Dragon Mode can compare to that!"

"No, no, no."

"Is this really the time to be shocked by their strength?"

"Shouldn't we be trying to break them up?"

"Is it really okay to just let them keep fighting like this?"

At Natsu and Happy's shock, Robin's carefully constructed persona was on the verge of shattering. She turned to her new 'seniors' and asked desperately.

"It's fine!"

"It's just a friendly spar."

"The last time I 'sparred' with Laxus, we nearly blew up all of Magnolia."

"Ahahaha..."

Natsu declared, bursting with pride.

To this day, Natsu still believed that the civil war Laxus started during the Harvest Festival was just part of the event...

He also felt that Gramps' punishment had been way too harsh.

"No, blowing up a city isn't something to be proud of, is it?"

This time, it wasn't just Robin...

Even Nami couldn't take it anymore, retorting, "I really don't understand how you guys think."

"Lightning Dragon's Roar!"

"Sea King Dragon's Roar!"

"Lightning Dragon's Breakdown Fist!"

"Sea King Dragon's Breakdown Fist!"

Meanwhile, the battle between Laxus and Eden raged on. Their magic power clashed violently, neither willing to back down until the other was on the ground.

"So what should we do now?" Robin asked Natsu and Happy.

Robin, who had been living cautiously on her own since she was eight, felt like a newborn infant in front of Natsu and Happy, completely clueless about everything.

"Cheer for them, of course!"

"Just shout out for whoever you're rooting for. It's totally fine," Natsu said with a grin.

"Huh?"

"Is it... really fine?"

Robin was going numb. Her mind was racing.

She was seriously starting to doubt which wire in her brain had crossed to make her think that this group of mages from another world, this Fairy Tail guild, was the family she had always dreamed of.

"Is it too late to..."

Robin took a deep breath, looked at everyone present, and asked tentatively.

"It is."

"Way too late. If I could have left, I wouldn't be here," Nami said, patting Robin's shoulder with a wry smile. "Now that you're here, don't even think about leaving! From now on, we're all partners. We're family."

"This isn't the family I imagined," Robin stated numbly.

But it was too late. No amount of regret would change anything now.

"To be honest,"

"Logically, I should be cheering for Eden."

As for Nami, she had already been completely assimilated by the Fairy Tail way.

She sized up the two figures relentlessly pummeling each other in the distance, muttering to herself.

Logically, she couldn't support Laxus, whom she had just met. But if she didn't know Laxus, she definitely knew Eden.

Just look at how pissed Eden had made him! You didn't need to be a genius to figure out what kind of horrible things Eden must have done to provoke such a reaction.

So, Nami cupped her hands around her mouth and yelled, "GO, LAXUS! FOR EVERYONE WHO'S EVER BEEN TAUNTED BY EDEN, GO PUNCH THAT SMUG MOUTH OF HIS!"

Indeed, when a crisis arose, Eden was always someone you could rely on.

When there was no crisis, however, you'd better watch out for that sharp tongue of his.

Typically, Eden would first infuriate someone to the point of a rage-induced stroke.

At that point, the person he provoked would fly into a rage and attack him.

Then, Eden would proceed to beat them half to death.

Eden: "I just love watching you guys, unable to win an argument against me and unable to win a fight against me either."

CRASH!!

After a "friendly" exchange of magical blasts, Eden and Laxus descended into a brawl of flesh and blood...

Both were Dragon Slayers with superhuman physiques, so it wasn't long before they were both covered in cuts and bruises.

"Hah... hah... hah..."

"Eden, I've seen all your moves a hundred times over the years. Even if you're not sick of them, I am! You can't beat me with just that magic," Laxus panted, taunting him back.

"Then I'll show you something you've never seen before."

As Eden spoke, his eyes narrowed. His spiritual and mental fortitude, forged through traversing two different worlds, surged in that instant.

In a flash, a pitch-black energy coalesced and wrapped around both of his fists.

"What... what the hell is that?"

Laxus stared at the strange energy enveloping Eden's hands, completely baffled.

"It's Haki," Eden replied matter-of-factly.

WHAM!

In the same breath, Eden's fist slammed viciously into Laxus's face, sending him flying.

"See, Laxus..."

"I used a new ability, and now you're unhappy again," Eden said with a grin after knocking him away.

"Hah..."

Laxus lay amidst the ruins of the temple, his chest heaving as he gasped for air. He stared at the gloating Eden in the distance and thought, 'Did I... lose again?'

Though his face was still a mask of defiance, his spirit and magic power were utterly depleted. He had no strength left to fight.

To continue, Laxus would need to consume a massive amount of lightning, but where on this Sky Island was he supposed to find lightning to eat?

Oh, wait. There was some!

KRA-KOOOM!!

Just as Eden was about to seal his victory, the sky above suddenly filled with dark, churning clouds. Streaks of immense lightning crackled within them, roaring with power!

"GYAHAHAHAHAHA...!"

High above, aboard the fully restored Ark Maxim, stood Enel. He laughed boisterously from the deck, looking down at the mutually wounded Eden and Laxus. "You've worked hard, invaders from the Blue Sea! To have come this far is no small feat."

"Now, as a reward for defeating the false god, Laxus!"

"Allow me, the true God, the great Enel, to use the power of Raigo to blast all of you, along with this entire island, into dust that will rain down upon the Blue Sea!"

Enel had waited for this day for a long, long time. He couldn't wait to unleash his great and supreme divine power...

To utterly destroy all who opposed him, all who betrayed him, all who simply displeased him.

To wipe every last one of these ant-like beings from the face of the world.

"Speak of the devil, and he shall appear."

Just as Enel was gloating, Laxus, who had thought his defeat was certain, suddenly began to smile.

Well, well. His personal power-up had just delivered itself.