The Power of One Dream (A One Piece x Fairy Tail Story)

Part 8: Battle 1

Sanji walked through the door and found himself outside again. Or by the blue night sky above several lanterns around him, it looked as though he was outside, even when he was sure he must still be within the dark churches interior. Something felt off. He took a moment to gather his surroundings, and seemed to be at the edge of an open plaza in the heart of a very latin-esque town square. All around the edges of that opening, tables with cream-white table clothes, lamp posts hung with lanterns, wires with bunting between the posts, and all decorated with beautiful flowers under the starlit night sky (even though he was sure it wasn't evening yet). The Magical Light doorway behind Sanji promptly closed, becoming empty air and the other side of the plaza behind him. And before him...

"Ice Mage???" the blonde exclaimed, genuinely surprised to find himself stuck in this mysterious new area alone with the bare-chested Ice Wizard. "Pirate??" Gray answered, likewise surprised by the situation, but no less on-guard around the pirate chef. Just then a wall of blinding white light emitted around the square, then faded away just as quickly. And though there were no visible loudspeakers (or Den Den Mushi (Transponder Snails) as Sanji was used too), a voice echoed loud and clear throughout the plaza.

"Greetings contenders! I am Head. And this is the 1:1 Fighting Face-Off!! The rules of this bout are simple. The first contender to touch ground outside the marked battle arena, lose consciousness, surrender, or of course.. die (both Gray and Sanji visibly tensed) loses the match. The winner will proceed to the next stage and their Grand Prize! There is no time limit. Everything else goes. Begin!!!"

The silence following this 'Head's' abrupt announcement was deafening. Sanji put a cigarette in his mouth and lit it, staring fiercely at the man who was clearly his opponent now. "Well, guess there's no choice then. If we've gotta fight to save Nami-san and Lucy-san-?" Sanji's speech was interrupted by a blast of Ice Magic, freezing the tip of his cigarette instantly. "Come on 'Black Leg'. We both know you've been looking for an excuse to throw down since you got here. And do you really think I'm gonna take the word of a pirate? If anyone is saving Lucy, it'll be Natsu! But I'll gladly clear a path for him, and deep-freeze ANYONE who gets in the way!!"

Sanji let the frozen cigarette fall to the ground as he glared back furiously. "Alright, that does it Frostbite! I'm sick and tired of your constant attitude!! And if I have to kick your ass to the other side of the country to save my friends then so be it!!!", "BRING IT SMOKEY!!!!" Gray bellowed back. Sanji wasted no time igniting his right leg (activating his signature 'Diable Jambe' fighting mode), then rushed forwards and jumped. "Basse Cotte!" he cried, aiming a flying kick

But neither was Gray going to waste any time. "Ice-Make: Wall!" Instantly, a large wall of solid ice appeared between the two, obscuring Sanji's view. Doubling back, Sanji pushed off the cobblestone floor beneath him and leapt forwards again, attacking the wall with a flurry of fiery 'Mouton Shoot' kicks. As the ice of the wall began to melt away under the heat of his kicks, Sanji noticed that the spiky-haired man behind it remained oddly still. When the pirate chef finally broke through, what he found was not the Ice Mage, but a nigh-identical ice sculpture. And then his Kenbunshoku (Observation) Haki flared.

"ICE-MAKE: HAMMER!"

Sanji looked up to an ice platform adjoined between a couple of buildings high above him. And a figure holding a large hammer-shaped ice object falling fast towards him. Not a second too soon, Sanji dodged to the side as Gray brought down his Ice Hammer, smashing the cobblestone where the blonde once stood, and virtually all the decorative finery around the plaza.

"FLAMBAGE SHOT!" In midair, Sanji launched a fiery kick from the side, which Gray narrowly blocked with an icy shield, but was still sent back several metres.

"ICE-MAKE: CANNON!" Recovering quickly, Gray had already gathered up some rubble from his hammer strike and promptly loaded it into a sleek handheld cannon made from his Magical ice. And determinedly fired the debris directly at Sanji. "Jenga-Ho!" The blonde jumped a little off the ground and effortlessly kicked the debris back at the Ice Mage. And though Gray was able to dodge or 'Ice-Shield' deflect most of the wreckage, those that did hit clearly left their marks.