In Fairy Tail, there isn’t much in the way of training montages. When characters get more powerful, they do so through the hard work of fighting battle after battle, getting stronger because they pushed themselves. Other characters achieve their goals through meticulous planning that can sometimes last for generations.
But regardless of what someone’s methods were, sometimes none of it matters. Sometimes a character is simply vastly more powerful--not because of training, and not because they’ve been counter-planning behind the scenes, but purely because they’re just naturally gifted. It’s not a problem that’s as prevalent in Fairy Tail as it might be in other anime, but it’s still present.
8 Gray Was Outmatched When He Met His Rival Lyon
Gray’s very first match against Lyon showed Fairy Tail's Ice Make mage completely overwhelmed. Lyon Vastia had trained under the same Ice mage as Gray, at the same time as Gray, but Gray was never quite on Lyon’s level. Lyon wasn’t just talented enough to create Ice Make magic with a single hand, but he could create dynamic ice structures that could move on their own. It was with this power that he was able to defeat Gray on his way to resurrecting Deliora to defeat him in battle.
7 Mirajane Defeated Freed With Ease After Years Of Not Training Or Fighting
Freed had been one of Laxus’ closest allies for much of the series, and with his powers he was able to defeat several members of Fairy Tail during the Battle of Fairy Tail arc. However, despite Freed having been a dutiful member of the group, none of that mattered in Mirajane’s presence. Despite not having trained in ages, despite not having been an active member of the guild for years, the moment her powers awoke she was too much for Freed to handle. She didn’t just defeat him, she completely destroyed him, leaving him helpless in the face of her strength and begging for his life.
6 Gildarts Crushed All Of Natsu's Hard Work And Forced Him To Quit
Gildarts Clive was never shown to spend a bunch of time honing his abilities--he was just more powerful than everyone else. His Crush magic is so powerful he’s never even learned how to control it very well, instead making everyone else get out of his way. On the other hand, Natsu is constantly fighting to hone his abilities, and by the Tenrou Island arc he’s overcome multiple difficult opponents.
But in the face of Gildarts’ overwhelming power, not only does Natsu lose, he’s forced to surrender from just feeling the sheer magic energy Gildarts is capable of putting out, as the lesson Gildarts was trying to teach him was to know when it’s the best time to run from an opponent.
5 Natsu Defeated Sting And Rogue Despite Their Years Of Training While He Was Gone
Natsu usually gets by on his own hard work and effort...but there was one exception. After he came back from being sealed during the Tenrou Island arc, he and the rest of Fairy Tail were years behind in terms of training and power. They were no longer the strongest guild, and in fact Sabertooth had surpassed them.
Everything built to a battle between Natsu and Gajeel against Sting and Rogue during the Grand Magic Games...but with the power of Second Origin, Natsu had his latent ability unlocked to become stronger. Despite Sting and Rogue both spending years training for their moment against the Dragon Slayers they looked up to, Natsu didn't even need Gajeel's help to easily beat them both.
4 Dimaria Yesta Embarrassed Kagura Thanks To Her Connection With A Time God
Kagura spent years developing her power as a swordswoman after she lost her brother to Jellal's machinations. She’s mastered a unique sword style that allows her to cut things without even drawing her sword, and she was one of the most dangerous women to fight in the Grand Magic Games.
Kagura gave Erza a run for her money, destroying Erza's Adamantine armor, and also managed to match up well against Sabertooth's Minerva. But Dimaria had a relationship with a time god that allowed her to stop time itself. It was not only never a fair fight, but Dimaria kept using her powers to embarrass Kagura for her own amusement.
3 Larcade Dragneel Took Advantage Of His Pleasure Power To Keep Kagura Off Guard
Kagura had a rough go of it during the Alvarez Empire storyline. She went up against Larcade Dragneel and found herself struggling to handle even his basic attacks. Unlike many members of the Alvarez Empire, Larcade was simply built to be as strong as he was by his creator Zeref.
He had the ability to inflict massive amounts of “pleasure” on anyone, but to Kagura's credit she learned a method to get past that. But despite her rigorous training and discipline, Larcade was able to put her down after stopping the power of her Archenemy attack not once, but twice.
2 Natsu Dragneel Put An End To Centuries Of Hard Work By Zeref
Zeref spent the better part of several centuries creating a perfect plan that would allow him to defeat Acnologia and rid himself of his own curse. He’d conquered an entire country to accomplish his task, and at the end of the Alvarez Empire arc, he actually achieved gaining Infinite Magic thanks to stealing Mavis’ power.
And yet, because Natsu had been built to stop him, he was able to tap into his own energy and stop Zeref after he had gained all the power he believed he would need to put an end to Acnologia. Natsu didn’t even need to achieve a new form—he was simply designed to be more powerful.
1 When Cana Used Her Magic To Score The Highest On The MPF
In a rare non-combat example, the Grand Magic Games had plenty of games that came before the actual tournament. One of them involved discovering who had the highest amount of magic among the mages participating in the tournament. After everyone tested the device, Cana went last and shattered it with her own magic spell. But Cana only had that power because she had been taught the Fairy Glitter spell by Mavis, something she could only learn because of the large amounts of mana she had from being Gildarts Clive’s daughter.