User blog comment:FairyRaven/Fairy Tail Chapter 416: Tartarus Arc: Final Part, Review and Commentary/@comment-162.207.38.121-20150120001811/@comment-9595671-20150120203507

Yeah, no one should be surprised if someone takes his example. So if Mashima did then I'm not surprised, after all Fairy Tail's art did kinda look like One Piece's at first according to some people so he very well may have.