You know, this is actually a very tough one. Not tough in the sense of the battle per se, but tough on calling where BS stops on Natsu's end. To be fair, I would say Natsu as depicted in the manga so far can probably actually fight Acnologia for an extended period of time, probably take a few limbs as well before losing. Natsu's feats are simply ridiculous because going by the manga, he literally does not have any competition besides Acnologia. Heck, even FH Zeref was not a match for him. Natsu will obliterate anyone that is not Acnologia (or a Dragon at least), and I mean this literally. So what I'm thinking is, where to draw the line. I would say the Natsu vs FH Zeref fight was a load of crap to put it mildly, but even before then, he did erase Zeref. Then again, my opinion on that attack has always been that Zeref did not bother dodging or countering the attack because he knew it didn't matter anyway so even though it is a OHKO shot, it doesn't mean Natsu can get his opponents that easily (imo anyway), but even with that, Gildarts will have to engage in a battle without getting hit by such an attack, which, to be fair, is going to be incredibly difficult. Gildarts still has a chance though as Natsu is not unkillable. If he can lethally disassemble him, then he would win, and I don't think that is too far fetched for him to do. In truth, Gildarts is one of the few characters than can fight Natsu, not because of his strength, but because of his magic.
Natsu is clearly stronger when you look at it in a general sense, but both possess means to defeat each other. I wouldn't say Natsu's physical abilities or combat abilities are overwhelming though. Gildarts can match (and likely best him) in that area, but coupled with his flames, Natsu is quite a machine. Gildarts will have to avoid taking the big hits, but he could probably fight well asides that.
I would also say Gildarts is smarter and more composed in battle. I believe he could evade the major attacks, engage in more basic combat without losing ground and potentially disassemble Natsu. With that said, I'm going for Gildarts, though I could change my mind at any point.
Natsu is clearly stronger when you look at it in a general sense, but both possess means to defeat each other. I wouldn't say Natsu's physical abilities or combat abilities are overwhelming though. Gildarts can match (and likely best him) in that area, but coupled with his flames, Natsu is quite a machine. Gildarts will have to avoid taking the big hits, but he could probably fight well asides that.
I would also say Gildarts is smarter and more composed in battle. I believe he could evade the major attacks, engage in more basic combat without losing ground and potentially disassemble Natsu. With that said, I'm going for Gildarts, though I could change my mind at any point.
