Amazing find by both you and Scarlet.
It may be two things: unrelated stuff or....plot stuff. Hiro isn't, however, very subtle like that. Dunno if those are intentional as you hint. However, it opens up a nice plot line. Though not very logical for me. Wendy and Gajeel are, for all intents and purposes, equal to Natsu. Not in character importance or plot or wtv but what happened to one, happened to the other. All their dragons were related and somehow connected as we saw with Grandine speaking with Igneel. If Natsu is END then he's different from all the other DS which doesn't make much sense somehow. Hiro created 3 DS which all share the same background and relation to dragons and all ended up in FT, the guild that names the series. I don't think he'd make Natsu different from what the others. However, if Natsu is END, it would explain Zeref's reaction to Natsu. It would mean that Igneel somehow diminished END and transformed it into Natsu and raised him, eventually sealing himself inside Natsu to watch over his progress but also make sure he wouldn't do harm to others. It would make sense that Igneel couldn't defeat END so he instead would do something else to it. Think about it. If igneel couldn't defeat END, where is END now? They say they need to awaken END which hints that he is sleeping or somehow surpressed or something. Which wouldn't make sense. If igneel couldn't defeat him, why would he go to sleep instead of ruling the world at this point? It could possible be that it couldn't be defeated so something else needed to be done to it. In this case, transforming it into a child and raising him differently to try and create a new entity; someone who would do good instead of evil. Its also possible that Wendy and Gajeel are the same. Or that all DS are somehow, not fully human. It has been said that dragons are much more powerful than anyone knows so such feats of magic should be possible.
Other lines of reasoning can also be made at this point. Igneel can, just like acnologia who was a human, had been a human at some point. Perhaps even Natsu's bio father. We know nothing about Wendy, Natsu and Gajeel's parents except that they describe the dragons as their parents. They were never fully described as orfans in the true sense of the word nor did anyone up to this point ask them when or how they met their dragons. Its hinted that they were raised by them from babies and that they are their parents. But that can also be literal. These dragons that taught DS Magic may be the real parents of those DS. By either have been human at some point or having some other means to create these children.
The skull is intriguing as I don't remember seeing it in Natsu's back in this arc. More than seeing it in small details here and there, I'm curious about the END circle with the skull and the Skull on Natsu's back at this point. Conjecture but I think Hiro might do his first real omega plot twist in the next few chapters if Igneel survives to explain it all.
So Gajeel became your Fav.Gajeel Sig & Profile Pic XD
