Natsu Dragneel

Natsu Dragneel (ナツ・ドラグニル Natsu Doraguniru) is a Fire Dragon Slayer, and a former member of the Fairy Tail Guild and Team Natsu. He is the main male protagonist of Fairy Tail.

Appearance
Natsu is a lean, muscular young man of average height with a slightly tan skin tone, black eyes, and spiky pink-colored hair; Natsu has a scar on the right side of his neck, hidden by his scarf. Following his titanic battle with the Rogue Cheney of the future, Natsu gains a cross-shaped scar on the left side of his abdomen, a result of the two fatal wounds the man dealt to him during their several altercations. His red guild mark is located just below his right shoulder. Natsu's main outfit consists of a sleeveless, gold trimmed, black waistcoat, often left open and untucked, exposing his bare chest, white knee-length trousers, a thick black wristband on his left wrist, black open-toed sandals and the scale-patterned scarf he received from his adoptive father, Igneel. He has also been known to wear a rolled up comforter strapped across his back, though he rarely carries it in battle.

In the year X791, Natsu's attire receives minor changes. He now wears an open-collared, one-sleeved version of his original waistcoat, which is instead tucked in and zipped. The sleeve covers Natsu's left arm, leaving his Fairy Tail mark, as well as his entire right arm, consequently exposed. Natsu continues wearing Igneel's scarf and retains the same lower clothing. He now wears his wristband on his right wrist.

In the year X792, Natsu is seen wearing a large, tattered, dark cloak with his trademark scarf. His pants are torn and patched and his arms and legs are wrapped in bandages. Later, he discards this outfit in favor of his old one, although he keeps the bandages on his right arm.

Personality
Natsu is carefree and reckless in nature, and, despite his consistent brawls with the other members of Fairy Tail, he is a fiercely loyal and protective friend. He is willing to go down fighting for his friends, regardless of how futile it might seem. Natsu has a straightforward mind, and often tackles issues with a "hands on" approach. His solution to problems often involve violence. Even when disrespected or faced with obvious hostility, Natsu rarely ever reciprocates the feelings, and often forgoes grudge-holding. He did, however, for a short time, hold a grudge against Jellal Fernandes, but eventually forgave him and considered him an ally. He occasionally shows compassion for his enemies, such as when Cobra was betrayed by Brain. Natsu rarely exhibits any perverse tendencies towards the opposite sex, there only being two noted instances. The first is seen prior to the Grand Magic Games, when he is seen trying to peek, along with several other of his male Guild mates, on the women as they bathed. The second is when Lucy comes crashing into him while nude, and he stares at her body, even groping her breasts for a moment.

Natsu continuously tries to prove his strength to others. At various points in time, he has challenged Erza, Laxus, Mirajane, and even Gildarts (in short, all of Fairy Tail's current S-Class Mages), to fight him, albeit, he was beaten every single time. Despite his losses, Natsu bears them no ill will, as he considers everyone in the Guild to be his family. He demonstrates this attitude even towards former enemies. Natsu has even gone as far as defending Laxus from being expelled, despite his attempt at taking over the Guild. Due to his reckless nature, Natsu's fights usually ends with widespread destruction. Natsu's love of fighting has allowed him to develop a rather strategic mind, helping him to, on various occasions, find weaknesses in his opponent's techniques, or simply weaknesses his opponents themselves possess. Natsu has also defeated his opponents with pure wit, rather than brute strength. Natsu, befitting his recklessness and love of fighting, never backs out of a fight.

Natsu was very close to Lisanna, and, because of this, after her supposed death, no one in Fairy Tail mentioned her out of respect for his feelings. However, after Lisanna's return to Earth Land from Edolas, this is no longer the case.

As a Dragon Slayer, Natsu suffers from motion sickness. Natsu becomes sick from riding on any form of transportation, even if the transportation happens to be other people, as shown when he was carried by Lucy. This, however, does not apply to Happy, as he considers him family, not transportation. Natsu can become sick from looking at, or simply thinking about, any form of transportation. In spite of his naturally dense nature, Natsu is quite perceptive and understanding of his friend's feelings. After his battle with Gildarts during the S-Class Mage Promotion Trial, Natsu came to understand and accept fear, and has used this acceptance to help his guildmates and himself emotionally grow. Prior to this event, Erza’s wrath (albeit for comic relief), transportation, and the Magic Council were the only things that Natsu feared.

Magic and Abilities
Fire Dragon Slayer Magic (炎の滅竜魔法 Honō no Metsuryū Mahō): Natsu is adept with his Dragon Slayer Magic and makes use of it in many different ways in combat. As with all Dragon Slayers, he can consume his respective element, with the exception of that which he has created, to replenish his energy reserves. The heat of his fire can increase in temperature, which is proportional to Natsu's emotional state. Natsu subconsciously used this against Erigor; his flame's heat significantly rose as he got more enraged. This is also called the Flame of Emotion. He incorporates the flames he ignites into his fighting style, greatly increasing the damage of his blows. As such, Natsu's Magic revolves around the usage of fire that can spout from any part of his body. Natsu's ability to eat flames gives him immunity to most types of flames and allows him to spew fire from his lungs. This fire is exceptionally strong - equivalent to a Dragon's fire - being able to burn even through metal. He can even use his flames to create a propulsive effect. The type of fire he uses can be changed. For example, it can be solidified to cling to surfaces. By the year X792, after one year of training, Natsu has shown improved mastery over his Dragon Slayer Magic as he is now capable of taking out multiple opponents with just one attack, as shown when he challenged and easily defeated the team of the newly announced No.1 guild in Fiore, Scarmiglione, and later was able to defeat Bluenote Stinger in one hit.


 * Fire Dragon's Roar (火竜の咆哮 Karyū no Hōkō): Natsu's signature Dragon's Roar in which he quickly gathers and releases a large quantity of flames from his mouth at his target.
 * Fire Dragon's Claw (火竜の鉤爪 Karyū no Kagizume): Natsu ignites his feet in flames, thereby increasing the power of his kicks. The flames can also be used for jet-propulsion purposes.
 * Fire Dragon's Iron Fist (火竜の鉄拳 Karyū no Tekken): Natsu engulfs his fists in flames and punches the target. While he was wearing a cat mask, Natsu renamed this ability Cat Fire (猫ファイアー Neko Faiā).
 * Fire Dragon's Wing Attack (火竜の翼撃 Karyū no Yokugeki): Natsu rushes towards his target and grabs them, before subsequently setting hands ablaze, sending them flying.
 * Fire Dragon's Sword Horn (火竜の剣角 Karyū no Kenkaku): Natsu lights his entire body ablaze and headbutts the target at a high speed.
 * Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame (火竜の煌炎 Karyū no Kōen): Natsu ignites both his hands in flames and then brings them together, creating a fiery explosion. In the anime, rather than generating an explosion, Natsu creates a large fireball to throw at his enemies.
 * Fire Dragon's Flame Elbow (火竜の炎肘 Karyū no Enchū): Natsu creates a stream of fire from his elbow, propelling him forward and increasing the strength of his punches.
 * Fire Dragon's Crushing Fang (火竜の砕牙 Karyū no Saiga): With his hand lit ablaze, Natsu swipes at the target in a claw-like fashion, burning them.
 * Fire Dragon's Grip Strike (火竜の握撃 Karyū no Akugeki): Grabbing his enemy and supporting his arm with his other, Natsu blasts the foe at a close range.


 * Dragon Slayer's Secret Art (滅竜奥義 Metsuryū Ōgi):
 * Crimson Lotus: Fire Dragon's Fist (紅蓮火竜拳 Guren Karyū Ken): Natsu rapidly punches his target, with his hands lit ablaze, creating a fiery explosion after each subsequent contact. Such a spell was shown to be able to defeat Gajeel Redfox, the Iron Dragon Slayer, who, at the time, was utilizing his Iron Dragon's Scales, and destroy the entire Phantom Lord Guild Building. In the anime, Natsu also used this spell to defeat Erigor.


 * Crimson Lotus: Exploding Flame Blade (紅蓮爆炎刃 Guren Bakuenjin): Natsu swipes his arms in a circular fashion, creating a powerful, and highly destructive, torrent of flames that barrages his target. Natsu habitually uses this spell as a finishing move, having employed against Laxus Dreyar at the end of their battle, used against Gildarts Clive as a finisher, which, notably, caused the mighty Mage to take a few steps back, and once more against Sting Eucliffe and Rogue Cheney, with which he completely overpowered the two, who were in Dragon Force, defeating them.


 * Dragon God's Brilliant Flame (竜神の煌炎 Ryūjin no Kōen): An alternate version of Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame, Natsu engulfs one hand in the flames from his Fire Dragon Slayer Magic, and the other in flames from Flame God Slayer Magic, and brings the two flames together, generating a highly destructive blast that is capable of destroying a large area, and defeating Zancrow, a member of the Seven Kin of Purgatory in one hit.


 * Planetary Flames: Exploding Flame Blade: An enhanced version of Crimson Lotus: Exploding Flame Blade. After consuming the core of Eclipsed Celestial Spirit King, the user ignites their fists with fire, as well as the aforementioned consumed energy, and then throws it towards their desired target, creating explosions upon colliding.

Lightning Flame Dragon Mode (モード雷炎竜 Mōdo Raienryū): After eating Laxus Dreyar's lightning and having the flames and lightning inside his body fuse together, Natsu gained the ability to use his Fire Dragon Slayer Magic enhanced with lightning. When in a state of anger, Natsu is able to summon forth this power, however, it leaves him heavily exhausted afterward. After unlocking his Second Origin, Natsu experiences a noticeably less amount of strain.
 * Lightning Flame Dragon's Roar (雷炎竜の咆哮 Raienryū no Hōkō): Natsu's alternate, lightning-enhanced version of his Fire Dragon's Roar. Natsu gathers and combines lightning and fire in his mouth, subsequently releasing them in a large, destructive, sparking blast. This spell is capable of traveling great distances, wreaking havoc wherever it passes, as shown when it crossed half of Tenrou Island, generating a large explosion. In spite of the fact that this spell is potentially powerful enough to kill a person, a single use is enough to heavily strain Natsu's body and completely drain him of all his Magic Power.


 * Lightning Flame Dragon's Fist: Natsu's alternate version of his Fire Dragon's Iron Fist. Natsu engulfs his hand in lightning and flame, and, in addition to being burned after being struck, his opponent's are also struck by a bolt of lightning. (Unnamed)


 * Lightning Flame Dragon's Firing Hammer (雷炎竜の撃鉄 Raienryū no Gekitetsu): Natsu engulfs his fist and forearm in fire and lightning and devastatingly strikes his opponent. Even with its power diffused by Minerva's defense, it was still strong enough to blow away most of the top floor of a large building.


 * Lightning Flame Dragon's Brilliant Flame: Natsu's alternate, more powerful version of his Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame. Natsu engulfs his left hand in lightning and his right hand in flames, and, after bringing the two together, generates a large, destructive, sparking blast around his opponent. (Unnamed)


 * Dragon Slayer's Secret Art Revision (滅竜奥義 改 Metsuryū Ōgi Kai):
 * Crimson Lotus: Exploding Lightning Blade (紅蓮爆雷刃 Guren Bakuraijin): Natsu's alternate, lighting-enhanced version of his Crimson Lotus: Exploding Flame Blade. Natsu engulfs one hand in lightning and the other in flames. By swinging his arms around, Natsu creates a highly destructive vortex of fire and lightning, which greatly damages the opponent and pushes them away with tremendous force. This spell is powerful enough to defeat the almighty Guild Master of Grimoire Heart, Hades, in a single hit.

Black Flame Dragon Mode: After absorbing the flames of Dark Regulus, Natsu is capable of combining these flames with their own for destructive effects. However, consumption of the flames of Dark Regulus rendered Natsu temporarily immobile, he soon recovered and became able to use the Dragon Mode at will.
 * Exploding Flame Blade of Darkness: After absorbing the flames of Dark Regulus, Natsu can use Eclipse Leo's spell to blast away his opponents by combining his own flames with the dark ones.
 * Darkness Phoenix Blade: An alternate version of Crimson Lotus: Phoenix Blade, Natsu gathers the flames of his Fire Dragon Slayer Magic and the dark flames of Dark Regulus in his hand, and then cloaks his body in the aforementioned flames before rushing at his target of desire.

Dragon Force (ドラゴンフォース Doragon Fōsu): By consuming Etherion or the Flame of Rebuke Natsu has been shown to be able to enter Dragon Force. This ability is said to be the final and most powerful state a Dragon Slayer can attain, and it has been said that their power becomes comparable to that of a real Dragon's. Natsu is the only known First generation Dragon Slayer to enter Dragon Force without consuming external sources.


 * Hidden Fire Form - Crimson Lotus: Phoenix Blade ("不知火型" - 紅蓮鳳凰剣 "Shiranui Gata" : Guren Hōō Ken): Natsu ignites his entire body with fire, and then charges towards the target, sending them into the air with a sharp uppercut. Natsu then, in a similar manner to Fire Dragon's Sword Horn, headbutts his target. This spell appears to be Natsu's strongest, as it was able to overpower Zero's strongest spell, Genesis Zero, something that Crimson Lotus: Exploding Flame Blade could not, although, this could be because Crimson Lotus: Phoenix Blade relies on piercing power, rather than explosive power. This destructively unstoppable spell was used to defeat Zero.

Transformation (変身魔法 Henshin Mahō): Natsu has mastered the rudimentary skills of Transformation Magic. He was able to successfully transform into Lucy on his first try.

Enhanced Smell: Natsu has a very keen sense of smell. Natsu could easily distinguish Kaby as a poor man, rather than a rich one, from his smell, even though he was temporarily living in his friend's expensive house to appear otherwise. Natsu could also, as a result of their prior encounter, track Ultear via scent, despite the large distance between them.

Enhanced Hearing: Natsu, according to himself, possesses exceptionally good hearing, something which, during the Grand Magic Games, was proven true. During Lucy Heartfilia's fight with Flare Corona, the latter was threatening Asuka Connell with the help of her hair. Natsu was seemingly the only one who could hear their low conversation, and thus reacted accordingly by protecting the girl from the threat, allowing Lucy to continue fighting.

Immense Strength: Natsu has shown on numerous occasions to possess a high degree of strength, enough for him to perform a number of physical feats, among which are freely swinging around the mast of a ship as a makeshift weapon, doing the same with a palm tree he personally broke, bare-handed, shattering a billiard table and cracking most of its balls simply by hitting one of them with the cue, and stopping the gargantuan Dorma Anim's foot, which was going to crush him and his fellow Dragon Slayers, all by himself, subsequently throwing the robotic Dragon off balance by rapidly pushing it away. Furthermore, he was capable of battling both Sting Eucliffe and Rogue Cheney, alone, while they were in Dragon Force, easily over-powering the two with his sheer physical strength. Furthermore, Natsu is able to lift a very large boulder, given the fact that he is already injured from Franmalth's Curse, and use it in order to defeat the Demon. After a year of training, Natsu has also demonstrated the ability to move under the influence of Bluenote Stinger's gravitational field, something eight years before which he was not able to do.

Enhanced Reflexes: Natsu possesses fast reflexes, having been capable of dodging attacks from Erza, Laxus and, most recently, attacks from Sting.

Enhanced Speed: Natsu's speed and reflexes are impressive, enough for him to close great distances in a blink of an eye and dodge swift attacks.

Immense Durability: Natsu has proven himself to be incredibly durable. He has managed to take continual, deadly assaults from foes and continue fighting. Such impressive resistance was first shown during his battle with Erigor, in which he received wounds from his opponent's strong, sharp wind, and kept fighting on, nonetheless. Also, during his fight with Cobra, Natsu displayed a natural resistance against the Oración Seis' member's poison, described as lethal and corrosive. A true testament to his durability was shown when he blocked one of Sting Eucliffe's strongest attacks, Holy Nova, with a single hand, and emerged completely unscathed from the enormous explosion that followed the impact.

Immense Magic Power: By the year X792 after one year of training, Natsu's Magic Power has increased to the point where it was unrecognizable to Lucy, but great enough that it prompted her to evacuate everyone out of the Domus Flau despite the presence of many powerful Mages. Natsu can exert his Magic Power in the form of an enormous scalding aura that can generate heat of such magnitude that it is capable of melting the entirety of the stone coliseum, as well as burn off the clothes of any nearby individuals. This displays some level of control of his aura, however, as nobody was actually harmed by the heat, and his and Happy's clothes remained untouched.

Master Hand to Hand Combatant: Natsu is an extremely proficient unarmed fighter, often using his Dragon Slayer Magic in combination with punches, kicks, and even headbutts, to combat his opponents to great effect. Such skill is paired with amazing physical prowess: aside from his strength, Natsu has displayed high degrees of speed, agility and reflexes, enough for him to match melee-specialists of Erza's caliber in battle.

Former Magic and Abilities
Ushi no Koku Mairi (丑刻の参り Ushikoku no Sanri): During his fight with Kain Hikaru, Natsu briefly gained possession of Kain's doll, Mr. Cursey, and utilized its abilities.
 * Fire Dragon Slayer Doll: Natsu uses his Fire Dragon Slayer techniques and ignites Mr. Cursey, which, at the time, would need to have Lucy's hair, causing the fire to appear on Lucy, herself. Lucy, however, is unharmed by the flames and can use them to her own advantage. (Unnamed)
 * Fire Dragon's Iron Fist (Lucy Version): While using Fire Dragon Slayer Doll, Lucy, under Natsu's control, punches her opponent with great force. (Unnamed)
 * Secret Attack: Lucy Fire (必殺・ルーシィファイア Hissatsu : Rūshi Faia): While Mr. Cursey has been lit with Fire Dragon Slayer Magic flames, thereby causing Lucy herself to become ignited in flames, Happy, holding Mr. Cursey, flies at the target, using Max Speed, causing Lucy to do the same, hitting the intended target with great force.

Equipment
Sealed Flame Blade (封炎剣 Fūen Ken): When Natsu could not employ his Dragon Slayer Magic in Edolas, he fought using a Magic Item from Edolas that manifested its power as a destructive blade of flames. However, the blade's Magic was depleted after one use, due to Natsu's lack of skill with it and his habitual carelessness. (formerly)

Igneel's Scarf: It is a scarf given to Natsu by his foster father, which he always wears to remember him by. The scarf is white, decorated with scale-like patterns, and serves as good-luck charm of sorts, warding off misfortune. When Natsu was hit by Zeref's Ankhseram Black Magic, the scarf served as his shield, but the exposure to the Magic caused it to turn black. During the time it was tainted, Wendy was unable to heal Natsu, so, in order to heal him, she had to reverse and remove the evil spell on the scarf.

Trivia

 * In the short-story version of Fairy Tail, Natsu wasn't a human, but a spirit with horns.
 * The original color of Natsu's clothing was supposed to be red. However, Hiro Mashima decided to change it to black because he wanted a better contrast between Natsu's fire and his clothing.
 * Natsu and Happy collect items to preserve the memories of their missions (i.e Lucy's maid costume, the fake Salamander signature, a souvenir from Galuna Island, etc).
 * Hiro Mashima said that Fire Dragon's Iron Fist is Natsu's signature move.
 * According to Volume 16 Limited Edition: Sorcerer Interview:
 * The best quality of Fairy Tail according to Natsu was "There are a lot of strong guys there".
 * He wishes to defeat Erza and Laxus, and find Igneel in the future.
 * He has a good relationship with Happy and Lucy.
 * Natsu claims that he hasn't found a job yet that is difficult for him to handle.


 * In Volume 32's extra content, Mashima provided the battle statistics for 31 of the 40 X791 contestants in the Grand Magic Games. The stats, however, were provided not from Mashima's point-of-view as the author but from the view point of Sorcerer Magazine reporter Jason. Which explains why some stats are missing and why others may be inaccurate. According to Jason from the Sorcerer Magazine, during his participation in the Grand Magic Games of X791, Natsu's stats are:

Quotes

 * (To Gray Fullbuster) "Don't feel insecure just because you lost!! We are Fairy Tail! We're from the guild that doesn't know when to stop! We won't survive unless we keep running!"
 * (To Gray Fullbuster after he stops him from killing himself) "So you're gonna end this by dying, huh? Stop running away!"
 * (To Jellal Fernandes) "Erza belongs to Fairy Tail, I won't hand her over to you!"
 * (To Jellal Fernandes) "Erza was crying, her voice was shaking, and she was giving up. I don't want to see Erza like that. Erza should always be strong and courageous, that's why... I'LL FIGHT!!!"
 * (To Zero) "I am already used to taking on the same sins. For a Fairy Tail Mage, the true sin is averting one's eyes... and no longer being able to believe in anyone!"
 * (To Zero) "I am not alone. I can hear them... I can hear everyone's voices... I can sense everyone's feelings... I am not alone... everyone's feelings... they support me... they are what give me the will to stand and fight!"
 * (To Hughes)"You bastards lay one finger on Lucy and I'll turn all of you to ash."
 * (To Hughes)"My comrades are alive right now!! The Exceeds are alive too!! Whether they've got magic or not, the important thing is that they're alive! These are lives, dammit!"
 * (To Pantherlily)"We'll stop it, even if my body crumbles to bits I'll stop it with my soul!"
 * (To Faust) "We joined a guild so that we could live. I might not know much about this world, but for the sake of all living things of this world, I'll defeat you!"
 * (To Faust) "Don't give up. It's not over yet. Bring it on, bastard... I'm standing right here!"
 * (To Makarov Dreyar) Gramps, lets fight. I know there are times when you have to fall back, Gildarts taught me that. But this ain't one of those times. The bastard who makes an enemy of Fairy Tail, we need them to remember the power of our guild with all its heart and soul. Lets fight gr...gramps!"
 * (To Hades) "That is our Fairy Tail!! We don't live like we have already died, like you do!! We live with our lives on the lines, you bastard!! If you don't have the courage to change things then you might as well just die!!!"
 * (To Team Natsu) "When we're all alone, it might be to frightening to bear... but we're all right beside each other. We've got our friends close by! Now, there's nothing to fear! Because we're not alone!!!"
 * (To Midnight) "Is it that funny to you when someone's sad? In that case, I'll beat you 'till you won't even be able to crack a smile!"
 * (To Sting Eucliffe) "It's for our comrades. For seven years... Always... They were waiting for us... No matter how tough it was, no matter how sad; even if they were made fools of, they endured and endured... and protected the guild. For our comrades, we'll show you... The proof that Fairy Tail has kept going! And that's why we'll keep moving forward!!!"
 * (To Sabertooth) "If you're a guild, take care of your friends. That is all I have to say."
 * (To Kama) "Are we prepared to make an enemy out of the Kingdom? The question is, are you bastards prepared to make an enemy out of Fairy Tail?
 * (To Jackal) "Is that your reason for fighting?! We're different!!! We fight for the sake of our injured friends!!! No matter if our opponents are humans, demons, or even gods!!!"
 * (To Tartarus Prison Guards) "Actually... I don't really need my clothes! But my scarf! Gimme my scarf!"
 * (To members of the Nine Demon Gates) "Well now, lookie here? Some pretty strong lookin' dudes all lined up for us... Now that's what I call hospitality."