The morning sun streamed through the colorful stained-glass windows, casting light across the floor of the Fairy Tail guild hall.
The clamor from yesterday seemed to hang in the air, refusing to fade and the atmosphere still held the lingering heavy scent of spilled alcohol and celebration.
Ace had arrived at the guild early to soak it all in.
He and Gabumon, who was currently letting out a wide yawn at his feet, were slowly getting used to the unique rhythm of their new "home."
However, the peace was destined to be short-lived.
"Yo! Ace!"
A vibrant, deafening shout came from the entrance.
The guild doors were practically kicked open as Natsu burst in, overflowing with excess energy.
He wore his signature grin and his eyes burned with an uncontainable fighting spirit.
As always, Happy followed closely behind him happily gnawing on a raw fish.
"I've been itching to fight you since yesterday! Let's duel!" Natsu pointed a finger straight at Ace, smashing his fists together and sending out sparks of fire that popped and hissed in the air.
"Let me see just how strong that summon of yours really is!"
The guild members' attention was captured instantly.
They swarmed around, their faces lighting up with the anticipation of a good show to start the morning.
"So energetic this early in the morning? Seriously, Natsu?"
"Be careful, newbie. This guy is a certified maniac!"
Gray, who had already miraculously lost his shirt at some point between the door and the tables, stood with his arms crossed while scoffing.
By the bar, Mirajane didn't speak, but a distinct trace of interest flickered in her eyes.
She leaned forward slightly, wanting to see exactly what this "summoner" brought back by the Guild Master was made of.
Ace looked at the battle-hungry Dragon Slayer looming before him, feeling a mix of helplessness and eager anticipation.
He knew this battle was one of the "traditional rituals" for joining Fairy Tail—a rite of passage written in fist and friendship.
He crouched down and patted Gabumon's fur. "Gabumon, what do you think? Are you confident?"
"Gabu! No problem!" Gabumon stood up, its gaze sharpening instantly.
It faced the scorching, fiery aura radiating from Natsu without flinching an inch.
"Alright!" Ace stood up and nodded at Natsu, his own fighting spirit igniting. "We accept your challenge, Natsu. But let's not go too far and wreck the place."
"Haha, of course! Here I come!"
Natsu laughed heartily and charged forward without a second of hesitation as a burning fist shot straight toward Gabumon.
Gabumon reacted with impressive agility, leaping backward to dodge just as the fist connected with empty air, leaving a scorched black patch on the floor where the Digimon had been standing a split second before.
"You can't beat me just by dodging!" Natsu's assault didn't stop as he pressed the attack, his fists falling like a torrential rain of fire.
Ace focused his mind, feeling the invisible bond connecting his soul to Gabumon while mobilizing the shallow but potent well of magic power within him.
"Gabumon! Answer my heart—Digivolve!"
A dazzling, blinding light instantly enveloped Gabumon's entire body!
Its form rapidly grew, muscles expanding and silhouette elongating within the pillar of radiance!
"Gabumon—Digivolve to Garurumon!"
The light shattered and dissipated, revealing a creature that was no longer the small beastman.
Standing before everyone was a majestic, giant wolf covered in white fur with sharp blue stripes!
"Whoa!!" A collective gasp echoed through the guild.
"It... it transformed into a giant wolf?!"
"So cool!!"
"What kind of magic is this? I've never heard of anything like it!"
Garurumon let out a low growl, its cold predatory gaze locking onto Natsu.
Natsu was stunned for a brief moment, blinking in surprise, before his grin widened as he become even more excited!
"Ooh! You got bigger! Now this is interesting! Fire Dragon's—Wing Attack!"
He swung his arms outward, whipping up two streams of fire that formed a fiery tornado, sweeping forward to engulf the wolf.
Garurumon didn't dodge.
It charged straight forward, its body covered in fur as hard as Mithril, directly scattering the flames upon impact and Its sharp claws swiped toward Natsu!
"So tough!" Natsu blocked the swipe with his arm but was knocked back several steps by the tremendous force behind the blow.
He was shocked to find that Garurumon's fur was unimaginably hard, sending a numb, aching sensation shooting through his arm bones.
"It's not over yet!" Natsu steadied his stance, digging his heels into the floor, and took a deep breath.
His abdomen swelled visibly as powerful magic gathered in his throat, the air around him shimmering with heat.
"Take this! Fire Dragon's—Roar!"
A massive torrent of scorching flames roared out of his mouth, rushing straight for Garurumon like a breath from a volcano!
"Garurumon! Howling Blaster!" Ace ordered without hesitation.
Garurumon abruptly opened its massive jaws and spat out a blast of blazing high-temperature blue flames.
This stream of spiritual fire shot forward at an astonishing speed.
In the blink of an eye, a surging blue wave of fire over a meter high swept forth like a tidal wave, carrying endless power and freezing heat as it crashed directly toward the fire Natsu had unleashed!
One red, one blue—two completely different flames collided violently in mid-air!
BOOM—!
A massive explosion rang out, the shockwave overturning several nearby tables and chairs, sending tankards flying.
To everyone's surprise, Natsu's Fire Dragon's Roar was gradually being suppressed and consumed by the ghostly blue flames!
"This fire... it's so strange!" Natsu's eyes widened.
Instead of fear, his face showed a hint of... desire?
The moment the Fox Fire was about to engulf him, Natsu did something that left everyone completely dumbfounded—he threw open his mouth and actually began to suck in the azure flames!
"You dumbass! That fire doesn't feel right!" Gray exclaimed in shock, stepping forward.
Ace looked at Natsu with curiosity.
He was aware of the mechanics of Dragon Slayer Magic, but could Natsu actually eat the flames of the Digital World?
After swallowing the flames, Natsu's expression instantly turned a bit strange.
His face contorted and he let out a burp that released a wisp of blue smoke.
His body swayed slightly.
"Ugh... the taste... so cold... so weird... but it's still fire! I can do this!"
Despite his brave words, it was obvious that digesting this data-based fire wasn't easy for him, and his movements slowed for a fatal split second.
"Garurumon, go!"
As soon as the words left Ace's mouth, Garurumon shot across the room like a brilliant blue meteor, hurtling toward Natsu at incredible speed.
In an instant, it was right in front of the Dragon Slayer and ruthlessly slammed its incredibly hard body into his chest!
The blow contained unparalleled power and force, hitting him like a collapsing mountain and striking fear into the hearts of the onlookers.
After taking the hit dead-on, Natsu was sent flying backward, landing heavily on the ground in the distance and kicking up a cloud of dust and debris.
"Ugh!" The heavy blow made Natsu see stars, temporarily robbing him of his ability to fight as he sprawled on the floor.
"He... he won?"
"The newbie beat Natsu?!"
"That blue wolf is too strong!"
After a moment of stunned silence, the guild erupted into an even greater uproar.
The way everyone looked at Ace and Garurumon had completely changed, shifting from their initial curiosity to a look of appreciative recognition and respect.
Ace quickly walked over to the fallen Dragon Slayer and extended a hand.
"Are you okay, Natsu? Your flames are amazing."
Natsu shook his head to clear the dizziness, grabbed Ace's hand, and pulled himself up.
Although he had lost, his face was full of smile.
"Hahaha! That was a great fight! Your Gabumon... no, Garurumon, is so strong! Let's fight again after I get stronger!"
"Anytime," Ace replied with a smile.
This was Fairy Tail.
Winning or losing wasn't important; what mattered was the bond forged in the heat of battle.
Makarov had appeared at the second-floor railing at some point during the commotion.
Watching the scene below, he stroked his small mustache with meaningful smile on his face.
"Looks like another incredible kid has joined the guild."
Makarov glanced at the large crater on the floor, then his mind drifted back to recall the memory of the destroyed mountain forest where he had found the boy.
That blue wolf was strong, certainly, but it shouldn't be capable of causing such terrifying destruction on that massive scale.
This kid... could he be hiding something else?
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The evolution in this fic follow the anime and game, digimon can evolve using digivice and can evolve like in the digimon game when the digimon reach certain level, it can devolve and stay in its evolve state depends on the summoner magic power.