Chapter 362

Natsu vs. Jackal is the 362nd chapter of Hiro Mashima's Fairy Tail.
Shocking Jackal by surviving the Demon's Curse, Natsu eagerly resumes their fight. Forcing Jackal to assume his bestial Demon form out of fear and hatred, Natsu is put on the defensive as their fight begins to tear up the town. Defeating Jackal with a Lightning Fire Dragon Mode attack, they are then threatened by a final, all-consuming explosion. Happy intervenes and carries Jackal into the sky where the Demon finally explodes, narrowly escaping with his life and saving the town and his friends.
==Summary==
Left in a state of disbelief as Natsu defies his Bomb Curse, Jackal is left questioning who the Mage is. Declaring his name, Natsu leaps forward and knocks the Demon onto the ground. Enduring another explosion due to coming into contact with Jackal, Natsu chastises the Demon about not listening to him before when he explained that he has worked out the Curse, and that the Demon's bombs were no longer effective on him.
Fearing the human standing before him, Jackal begins to writhe as a his newfound panic triggers a transformation in him, changing his body into that of an enormous, demonic jackal. Wendy warns Natsu about the change just as Jackal closes the distance between them, striking the Mage directly and causing a destructive explosion which engulfs them both and destroys the nearby buildings. Lucy, Wendy and Michello are sent careening in all directions as the battle between Natsu and Jackal continues, threatening the entire town in the process.
As Natsu struggles to endure the transformed monster's blows, Jackal berates him for thinking a human could defeat a Demon, to which the Mage replies by asking if they were all Demons. Demanding to know if that's the reason they're fighting, Natsu counters Jackal's next blow with a flame-enhanced kick, shouting that their reasons for fighting are different. Explaining to the Demon that they would fight humans, Demons and even gods for the sake of their friends, Natsu taps into the power of his Lightning Fire Dragon Mode and strikes Jackal with Lightning Fire Dragon's Firing Hammer, devastating the town and defeating the Demon once and for all.
While Jackal collides with the town wall and collapses, Lucy teases Natsu about destroying the town himself with Wendy in agreement. Taking damage from the last of Jackal's contact bombs, Natsu collapses as his friends convene on his location. Lucy comments that he must have been strong if Natsu had struggled, only for the Fire Mage to claim his victory nonetheless. As Wendy suggests they try to use the Demon for information, Jackal then chuckles as his body and the surrounding area begins to glow. Apologizing to Kyôka for losing, Jackal vows to take them all down with him as several more of his explosion marks begin to glow around the city. 
As the Fairy Tail Mages realize his intent, Jackal explains that this time he is the explosion itself, and with his death even he cannot stop it. Despairing, Happy surprises everyone by grabbing hold of Jackal and flying the Demon into the sky. Ignoring his friends' plea to get away, Happy laughs at Jackal for thinking he could beat them like that before disappearing inside an incredible explosion. Looking on in shock, Natsu and the others are then relieved to see Happy emerge from the dust, seriously burnt but otherwise alive. As Happy comments that it was a close call, the others laugh at his ruffled fur.
==Characters in Order of Appearance==
#Lucy Heartfilia 
#Wendy Marvell
#Natsu Dragneel
#Jackal
#Michello
#Happy
#Carla
==Battles & Events==
*Natsu Dragneel, Lucy Heartfilia & Wendy Marvell vs. Jackal (concluded)
==Magic, Curses, Spells, and Abilities used==
===Magic used===
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===Curses used===
*Bomb Curse
===Spells used===
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===Abilities used===
*Hand-to-Hand Combat
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==Navigation==