Chapter 9

The Hyoudou residence was relatively quiet that afternoon as it was peaceful and almost serene. The only sounds were the rhythmic scrape of a knife as Miki scaled fish in the kitchen, and the soft clacking of keys as Gorou sat at the computer, brow furrowed in concentration. He had several tabs open that had maps, church directories, community boards. England was large, far larger than he remembered from his business trips. Tracking down one family felt like searching for a single grain of rice in a field. It was a bit frustrating, but he persisted and figured that maybe his wife would know something.

"Hey, honey?" Gorou called out to his wife.

"Yes?" Miki cried out from the kitchen.Full novel: High School DxD: A Fighting Chance — read the rest free on N​o⁠v​e⁠l​C⁠o​d⁠e​x⁠.​o⁠r​g⁠

"During your girl talk with Mizuki-san, did she ever mention something about her goals?"

"Such as?"

"Like what she wanted to do with her life."

Miki paused mid‑scale, thinking of her talks with her friend. "She talked about wanting to own a restaurant. Why?"

"I’m trying to narrow down where they could have gone. From what I am seeing the more family-friendly cities are Oxford, Bristol, Liverpool, Brighton, and Cardiff."

"Well… at least we narrowed it down to five." Miki tried to speak some positive about their search.

"For now." His analyst instincts kicked in. He had already called twenty churches but only received twenty polite rejections, twenty dead ends. He rubbed his temples and kept going, also knowing that he was racking up charges on international calls. "Now, let's see..."

Looking at the cost of living, he did not believe that they moved to Cardiff, despite being a family-friendly city, it was too high, in his opinion. He eliminated Oxford next, so he started to call churches in Bristol, the city seems to have scenery. He was unlucky as they could not help him. He was about to move on to Liverpool when a comment on a forum caught his eye: "Try Brighton or Wales. There are some Japanese expats that open restaurants there."

He realized that he should have done that because the Protestant Church was in Wales, he even included looking at restaurants that specialized in Japanese cuisine. He continued to look into Japanese restaurants, and he choked on his drink, when he finally found one. It was located in Wales, and its owner was none other than Mizuki Shidou.

"We got something! Haha! Mizuki did it!" He called out with a smile.

"Did what?" Miki asked.

"She has a restaurant! Come look!"

Miki hurried over. On the screen was a polished website for King's Lantern, complete with staff photos.

"That's definitely her." Miki noted as she scanned through the photos and recognized the black-haired woman. "Well? Call them!"

"Alright, alright… I'm calling."

He grabbed the landline and dialed the number, switching to his rusty English. After several minutes of speaking with an operator, informing that he was calling a family friend, he was patched through. He couldn't help but think about the yen that it would cost him, since it was an international call, but a voice answered him, not one that he recognized.

"Hi, this is King's Lantern. How can I help you?" A receptionist answered.

Gorou replied, "Uh, hi… is Shidou Mizuki… there?"

"Are you calling about Mizuki Shidou?"

"Yes." He answered, facepalming about how it's different in other countries, when addressing themselves.

"I'm sorry, she's not here right now."

"Oh… um… could you… let her… know that… Hyoudou Gorou called?"

"How do you spell that?"

"H‑y‑o‑u‑d‑o‑u G‑o‑r‑o‑u." Gorou articulated as best as he could in English.

"Alright. I'll let her know."

"Thank… you." Gorou tried to respond, but the line went dead.

With a heavy sigh, he put the phone down and slumped in the chair. Miki was able to see that something happened.

"You didn't get her, huh?" Miki asked, seeing her husband's reaction.

"No, and it’s also been a while since I spoke English." Gorou sighed.

"Why don’t you take a drive or walk? You know? To relieve some stress." Miki suggested.

"You’re right, yeah... I could use the fresh air." He slipped on his shoes and stepped outside. "I’ll be back soon."

"Alright." Miki returned to the kitchen as the door clicking shut behind Gorou, gutting the fish with practiced ease.

She was going to cut some up for Issei to use, since he had left a note for his parents about using some of the fish to make something for lunch tomorrow. About ten minutes later, she finished scaling and was beginning to gut them, when the landline rang. She gave a huff of annoyance as she was disturbed in completing her task.

She sighed, wiped her hands, and answered. "Hello, Hyoudou residence. May I know who's speaking?"

"Miki?" A voice responded back in shock.

Miki's breath caught. "Mizuki-san?"

"It is you! It’s so good to hear from you! My receptionist said that a Hyoudou Gorou called and I had to call back. How have you been?" Mizuki replied back in Japanese with a slight English accent.

"I'm doing well. And I see you have your restaurant! Congratulations!" Miki cheered.

"Thank you. And what about you?" Mizuki asked.

"Well, I will be starting work again. It’s going to be an empty house here... until the evenings."

"Really? And how is Ise‑kun?"

"He's doing much better."

"Better? Was he sick?" Mizuki asked, showing concern for her surrogate nephew.

"No, no. He has moved on from his perversion after an incident that happened earlier in the year. He’s currently at work now." Miki answered.

"Ah... well, I would say that the church has suppressed Irina’s." Mizuki said, knowing that her daughter had been influenced by Juzo, Gorou's father, but it was more for Issei's sake. "And I see what you meant by an empty house. You’re all working. I guess it’s similar to our situation here."

"Yes. Some days, Ise goes straight from club activities to work."

"He's in a club? Wow, he must be busy." Mizuki said in surprise at the revelation.

"Uh huh. On the weekends, it’s work and train. Then on the weekdays it’s school, train, and work." Miki informed her.

"Train? What’s he training for?"

"He has a tournament coming up in about two weeks. It’s for martial arts."

"That sounds exciting! I wonder if they stream it..." Mizuki sighed. "I’d like to watch it, but then again... the time difference."

"Yes, Gorou mentioned that. He went out for a walk to relieve some stress after trying to find you."

There was a pause of silence on Mizuki's end.

"Which brings me to my question, what took you so long? I thought we were friends." Mizuki accused her friend.

"Don’t give that tone with me. You’re the ones who left without telling us where you would be staying. Oh, poor Ise was hoping for a postcard or something from Irina-chan."

Mizuki let out an exhale. "…You're right. Irina felt the same way."

"He didn't make friends until middle school since you all left."

"He was alone for that whole time?" Mizuki was shocked because Issei was such an optimistic child, despite that perversion.

"Yeah, the two 'friends' that he got were a bad influence on him. But it didn’t help that we were not able to discipline him after his perversion was reignited."

"Why didn't you?" Mizuki asked.

"You remember how I told you about my two miscarriages, right? I feared that I would lose my boy if I did discipline him, so I let him be, but... I also held him in a bit of contempt." Miki's voice softened. "We have been able to move on from it together as a family. Ise and Gorou went fishing yesterday and they caught six fish."

"That’s nice. Irina is following in her father’s footsteps as well, but back to my question... why are you contacting us after so long? Sorry for sounding rude."

"It’s fine, I could say the same thing to you about not contacting us, since we never moved." Miki took a breath. "Anyways, Gorou and I planned on sending Ise over to you guys on his next school break. It seems your daughter has had some influence on him."

"Do you have a paper and pen? I’d like to give you my personal number, so we can coordinate. Ara~ ara~ who knows, maybe we’ll be planning a wedding if all things go well."

"She never got over that crush, huh?" Miki chuckled, feeling that there was hope for her son still.

"I don’t think so, considering how Touji and I tease her about it. She hopes to see him again, though." Mizuki laughed. "And I always tell her that she should have faith."

"I better get that paper and pen, then." Miki hurried to the computer desk, tore a page from Gorou's notebook, and returned to the phone. "Okay, I'm ready."

Miki then began to scribble down Mizuki’s number and put the pen away, taking out her phone and sending a text.

"Alright, I just sent you a message." Miki informed Mizuki.

"I got it. This is going to be so much fun. It feels like our old days." Mizuki squealed in delight.

"I know." Miki was excited as well, being reunited with her friend again.

"Oh! You remember how I told you that Irina kissed Ise-kun, when he slept over at our house?"

"Yes?"

"I still have the picture." Mizuki giggled, remembering how she had crept in the room and caught her daughter in the act.

"Ooh, send it to me! I was talking with Gorou last night and he told me how Ise discussed about feeling envious of us. If Irina still likes him, then he’s got a girlfriend. However, I am worried about something."

"What's that?"

"Ise doesn’t know that Irina-chan is a girl, and I remember he had mentioned to me about how he has some doubt in his mind about his perversion being the cause of sending you guys away."

"It most certainly was not! It had to do with Touji’s work." Mizuki relented, she knew about the boy's perversion, but she had made him promise her to look after her daughter.

"I hope that is the case. Anyway, I’ll let you go, I have to finish cutting up some fish. Ise wanted to make something for lunch tomorrow."

"Oh? Ise‑kun can cook now?" Mizuki just getting more surprises from her potential son-in-law.

"Yes, I’ve been teaching him. It’s been part of his change and growth. It’s usually when we talk about things."

"Maybe when he comes here, he can help me in the kitchen." Mizuki pondered out loud.

"Irina‑chan doesn't help you?" Miki asked.

"She’s usually with her father and before she used to bake bread, but since she has been going to the church a lot more…"

"I understand. Well, Ise has been praying a lot more. He said that Irina-chan told him good things happen to those that do."

"Oh, that will make her so happy. You know she still wears that headband that he made for her. She wears it on her wrist."

"Ise still wears his and on his wrist, too, but he got it upgraded now. His boss’ wife is a seamstress, so she made it look better."

"Which wrist does he wear his on?" Mizuki asked.

"His left." Miki answered.

"Ha, Irina wears hers on the right." Mizuki laughed.

"I see. Well, if his sewing skills have improved, maybe he can upgrade hers, when he gets there. That boy literally put his blood, sweat, and tears into those things." Miki remembered how Issei would prick his fingers, but he was able to get the headbands done, thanks to his grandmother.

"And made my daughter fall head over heels for him. Although, I think she did beforehand, when he didn't run away and embraced her pranks. It'll be interesting to see whether he sees her as just a friend… or as a woman."

"It better be the latter. I want my boy to find happiness."

"Same here." Mizuki agreed for the sake of both of their children.

"It was nice talking to you, Mizuki-san."

"You, too, Miki. Thank you for reaching out and I mean what I said, if that tournament has a stream link, let me know."

"I will. Goodbye, Mizuki."

"Bye, Miki. Take care and have faith." Mizuki told her.

Both women placed their phones down, disconnecting the call as they both sighed in their respective locations. After twelve long years, finally bridged by a single call. Now it was only a matter of time before their children reunited. With a happy hum, Miki went back to finishing up the fish. She was in such a happy mood that she didn't even notice the front door open until Gorou stepped into the kitchen, sweat on his brow.

"What are you so happy about?" Gorou asked.

"We got lucky. It seems that the receptionist passed your message along, Mizuki called back."

"Really?"

"Yes, and I talked to her about sending Ise to England, so I have her number, so we can plan it out." Miki said gleefully.

"That's great news. When you have time, please ask her to send Touji's number too." Gorou requested as he wanted to talk with his old buddy again.

"I will. Looks like you went for a jog?"

"Yeah. Can't let Ise get ahead of his old man." Gorou chuckled.

"Well, hit the shower. I'm making dinner. Ise should be home in an hour or two." Miki told as she checked the time to see that it was six in the evening.

"Alright." Gorou headed upstairs.

Miki stored half of the fish for Issei to use, while she began to prepare dinner with the other half. She then gathered her vegetables of green onion, ginger, and a large red chili. She went to get the rice cooking as well and then proceeded to julienne the chili and ginger. She cut up the green part of the green onion, finely slicing it. She preheated the oven to 400 degrees and got some foil, along with some baking paper.

She placed the fish filets on the baking paper and sprinkled them with a pinch of salt and pepper. She then drizzled only the top with some cooking sake and wrapped the fish up in the paper. After the paper was wrapped around the fish, she wrapped that up in foil to form three packets. She placed the three packets on a tray and waited for the oven to signify that it was ready.

She grabbed a small saucepan and got some soy sauce, sesame oil, and peanut oil. She was not going to do anything yet, until the fish would be done being baked. Finally, the oven beeped, letting her know that it was ready, so she took the tray and placed it in the middle rack and set a timer for 12 minutes.

She noticed that she had received some texts from Mizuki, so she decided to text her friend to pass the time. Hearing the timer go off, she excused herself from her conversation with Mizuki and went to grab some oven mitts. She took out the tray and placed it on the stove in the back and took off the mitts. She grabbed 2 tsp of soy sauce and sesame oil and put 2 tbsp of peanut oil into the saucepan.

While the peanut oil began to heat up, she took out three plates and placed a fish packet on each plate. She opened up each packet, making them look like moats around the fish. The peanut oil continued to get hot, so she topped the fish with the vegetables that she cut earlier. With the peanut oil heated, she drizzled the soy/sesame oil over the fish and vegetables and then the peanut oil and watched it sizzle. Feeling happy with her work, she stored up Issei’s fish by closing his fish moat and trapping the heat within. She knew that he would have to use the oven to heat it up again as Gorou came down.

"Smells good. What is it?" Gorou asked.

"Thanks. Sizzling ginger fish." Miki answered as she went to dish the rice, she also looked at the time. "Looks like it’ll be you and me."

"Well, what man wouldn’t mind a nice dinner with his wife?" Gorou responded and gave her a quick kiss.

As they sat down and began to eat, they talked about what she and Mizuki talked about. They did discuss how interesting it would be and what sights for Issei to see in Wales. They could not wait to surprise him with this as they looked over his school calendar to know when to get him a ticket, they also noted that parents’ day was coming.

They were also ecstatic for that day because they would get to see their son’s change in a public place. They also had a feeling that Issei would show up the other students because they knew that he wanted them to be proud of him. They already were, since he had gotten past his perversion. Mizuki’s phone pinged with Issei informing that he would be home in 30 minutes.

True to his word, Issei did arrive home half an hour later and found his parents watching a movie. They had finished eating dinner but also cleared up any evidence of them looking up things about England, they didn’t want him to get suspicious. Issei greeted his parents before bounding up to the stairs to take a warm to cold shower. When he had finished, he came back downstairs and headed to the kitchen, when Miki called out to him.

"How was work?" She asked.

"Good, handled stock on and off the floor, kept things restocked, when no one was around. I also got to be in charge of the register, and the best part is Katase and Murayama didn’t come in either." Issei answered as he took out the fish Miki left for him. "I got to hang out with Renka-senpai at lunch for a little bit and then I got to training with Mitsurugi-shishou, I got to call him that, instead of “sensei”. He said that I improved on the speed of my strikes and we got to spar, but it was more like he was playing with his food. He would effortlessly block all of my strikes with one hand, then I got to putting more force into my strikes, and he just smiled."

"Is that good?" Miki questioned as she looked between her husband and her son.

"Yeah. He told me 'good' and to keep that same energy and not lose stamina. Easier said than done." Issei replied back.

"Well, that's good, right?" Gorou asked.

Issei leaned back in his chair, rubbing the back of his neck as he continued explaining his day.

"I thought so, but I began to grow tired. He told me to never hold back, otherwise I would lose because I may not have the stamina to continue going all out, so I need to consistently go all out, so I can sustain it longer." Issei informed his parents.

"I see. Well, you'll need to reheat your fish that you wanted to use for your lunch." Miki told her son as she watched him take a bite out of it. "It'll taste better that way."

"Alright." Issei nodded.

He grabbed a baggie and placed in a zest of lime, 3 tbsp of lime juice, a tbsp of chipotle powder and 1 tbsp of finely chopped jalapeno. He minced two garlic cloves and put that into a bag, along with 3 tbsp of olive oil and ¼ tsp of salt and pepper. He stopped himself and pondered about putting in the cilantro because if Renka wanted some, she could not have it as she didn’t like cilantro for some reason. However, it brought the flavor, so he added in the ¼ cup of cilantro and put in the fish filets.

He began to mix the fish around the baggie, marinating the fish into the spices that looked like a mush. As he finished, the oven went off to indicate that his food was heated, he put the fish away and went to turn off the oven. He set another timer for when the fish would be done marinating. He put on mitts to take out his food and set it on the stove to cool for a little bit.

"You seem excited about something." Miki noted about her son's attitude.

"Yeah. I get to learn a new style. It'll probably be a full‑body workout since I'll learn how to use my legs in combat."

"That's nice."

"I had to earn it. I beat one of my senpais in a spar, and now I get to learn something new. Maybe I can use it in the tournament." Issei told her with stars in his eyes.

"That's the spirit!"

"Yep. I'm excited… but I'll be learning the basics all over again."

"I'm sure you'll be fine." Miki waved her hand in assurance.

Issei went to the fridge and grabbed a red cabbage and scallion and placed it on the counter. He then went to eat his dinner, while it was still warm and it would give the fish more time to marinate.

"So what are you making?" Miki asked.

"Just some fish tacos for Raichi and me." Issei answered.

"Raichi?" It was another name that Miki was unfamiliar with.

"She’s my friend. She’s in my grade and also practices Chinese kenpo, but she’s on another level than me. So I guess you could say that she is also like my rival. I’m not really friends with anyone else in my grade, since everyone else is a year older." Issei replied, while eating his dinner.

"Oh? So when can we meet her?" Gorou asked, intrigued about this new friend of his son.

"I don't know… maybe during the tournament." Issei shrugged.

"That sounds wonderful. We've always wanted to meet your peers. Oh, and who's Renka again?" Miki asked, noting the other girl's name mentioned.

"She’s my mentor, she teaches me Chinese kenpo in the afternoons. There’s also Ikki-senpai, he’s the one that picks me up early to go to the gym in the mornings and to school. He also teaches me boxing as well, then you got Mizunuma-senpai and Kenichi-senpai, who teach me a little karate every now and then." Issei answered.

"I see." Miki nodded.

"Kisara‑senpai will teach me taekwondo. It's my first time dealing with her, so… who knows what to expect."

His parents looked at each other and raised their eyebrows, while Issei finished his meal and washed his plate. He went to go get the fish out of the fridge, since enough time had passed. He washed the cabbage and began to shred it as he got 3 cups worth of the cabbage. He cut up the scallions and put them in a bowl with the cabbage. He mixed in 2 tbsp of white wine vinegar and half tsp of salt, combining it with the cabbage and scallion. He sighed as he set it aside for 30 minutes.

"So, I noticed you have your hair in a ponytail." Miki took note of his hairstyle.

"Oh, that. Shigure‑sensei did it for me. She said samurais tie their hair back. I just stuck with it. If I'm changing my attitude, might as well change my hair too, right?"

"I guess so."

"A part of me thought that people would see that I’m changing, but now... I just feel like I’m doing it for me. I only need to compare myself against those that I want to fight, you know."

Gorou warned, "Hey now, don't go picking random fights for nothing."

"I won't, tou‑san." Of course, he was thinking something else. ‘I’ll only do it if necessary.’ he thought.

"That’s good. We don’t want you to become a delinquent." Miki informed her son.

"I won't, kaa‑san. I'm already a pervert, so don't need to add more negative names."

"You're right about that." Miki nodded in agreement.

Issei chuckled and leaned back, humming softly. The house felt peaceful. His parents also relaxed, just enjoying the Sunday evening, eventually, his mother left to go to the other room. He had no idea why, but he was not going to intrude on her private space. He had already done that to plenty of girls at his school. He figured that he should apologize at some point. However, it’s kind of tough to do, when their insults would make him lose his cool and he may lash out.

Seeing that the time was winding down, he got out a skillet and placed 1 tbsp of olive oil in it. He went and grabbed the fish and set off to the side of the stove, and then he went to grab the tortillas and bento boxes that he would store them in. He then went to the cabbage mixture and drained the excess liquid and began to scrunch the cabbage to soften it.

He turned on the stove to high heat and got the fish ready to be cooked, since it was the final piece. When the oil began to bubble, he placed the remaining fish filets in. The sizzling of the fish felt nice to Issei, when he’s not singing to himself, he felt that cooking was another sense of relief for him. It was another time for him to reflect on himself and see where he was at.

After about two minutes, he figured that it was time to turn the fish onto its other side. He got out two more plates and began to set out the tortillas on one plate and began to put the pickled cabbage on them. He turned off the stove and placed the fish on the other plate and began to flake it into large pieces. He then put the fish on top of the cabbage and squeezed some lime juice over it.

"And… finished." He declared.

He then began to pack up the tacos in some of the bento boxes to take for tomorrow. He packed up the boxes and stored them in the fridge and then began to clean up the equipment that he used. He took a small plate and placed two tacos on it, one for his parents each.

"Tou‑san, there's a taco for you and kaa‑san." He called out as he usually had his mother critique his cooking.

"Oh, thank you, Ise. I'll let her know." Gorou nodded.

"Alright. Tell her I said goodnight."

"Okay. Goodnight, sport."

"Good night, tou‑san."

Issei went up to his room and did his daily night routine, but he also pondered about something else that Mitsurugi told him. It was something that he did not tell his parents. Sure, he got to train with Mitsurugi, but he needed to do a better job at becoming mentally strong. Letting the outside noise get to him also ruins his composure, something that he was sure that Shigure would reprimand him for.

The first thing that Mitsurugi told him is that he needed to delay gratification, which seemed a little confusing to Issei. Mitsurugi explained that mentally strong people have the ability to prioritize the long-term over the short-term pleasure. Issei understood that he was referring to his dream, which was to be a strong warrior and his victory over Ukita was only a step in that direction. Mitsurugi told him that he was correct as Issei would also be learning a new style that would help reach that goal.

The next thing that Mitsurugi said was that he needs to show up on the toughest days. He noted that Issei has been doing this as he has shown up on tough days building up his resilience and mental strength. He went on to explain that Issei still goes to school, where his torment usually is. He has to deal with the whispers of people calling him a pervert and the rumors made by the other two perverts. His only time where he is at peace is at lunchtime because he would either be with people that are not giving him a judgmental eye.

The third thing that Mitsurugi mentioned was to give yourself a positive self-talk because one of the fastest ways to tear yourself down is by speaking negatively to yourself. Issei was shocked because there were times where he did this and could see that he would never progress. Issei knew that with the outside noise, he would continue to doubt himself. He hears all of the talk, he sees the looks that they gave him and it makes him doubt himself. As Mitsurugi said, mentally strong people understand the importance of being your biggest supporter. If there was one thing that his overly perverted self did right was that he supported himself and not let the naysayers get to him. He needed that part of him back, not the perversion side, but the one that never felt deterred by what others said.

The next thing that he was told by Mitsurugi was that he should not dwell on things. That was understandable as his perversion and what others said was a problem and it stuck to him. Mitsurugi explained that allowing a problem or situation to dominate his mind is another quick way to lose resilience. It tied back to all the other things as he could see that his resentment was holding him back. It was not just the resentment of what others said, but resentment of himself.

In his training, after Mitsurugi was giving him these lessons, he had become fiercer and more focused. Unknown to him, he was bringing out more of his ki, each of his strikes were still being blocked effortlessly, but Mitsurugi did smile at seeing him grow. He told Issei that mentally strong people focus on what is within their control, and take action on it as soon as possible.

That is what Issei did, he could not change people’s mind, he could only focus on his training and his dream and grow as a person. While he knew that there were people who wanted to see him crumble, he could not do that. Something that he was doing better, which was the final lesson and that is practice empathy. Mitsurugi had said that mentally strong people should not take things personally. They seek to understand the viewpoints of others and use them to form stronger relationships.

Mitsurugi said that Issei understood this in his spar with Ukita, but not only that but with others as well. He knows why the kendo club doesn’t like him, he knows why Ukita flipped him over on the first day. He understood that his perversion had shaped how people saw him and he had moved past it. He was rebuilding himself, piece by piece, through training, through discipline, through the bond he reforged with his parents and learning new skills. He got into cooking, thanks to his mother, who he would say is an excellent chef in her own right. He rediscovered interests he had before his perversion spiraled out of control.

He knew that he was perverted with Shido around, but they were both troublemakers at times, so he was glad that he had a friend like him. He would say Raichi was filling that role well as he found it funny at times, when she would tease about the other girls. So Mitsurugi believed that Issei was understanding the lesson of empathy well. He could only change what he could control and that was his perversion and he felt that he was in a better spot, going to sleep with that thought in mind.

Issei woke before dawn at 4 in the morning, as always. He stretched his muscles and washed his face. He didn’t want to disturb his parents, so he made sure that he was quiet in leaving. Outside, the air was crisp, and Ikki's car headlights glowed in the driveway, but today was a different day, he could feel it.

Ikki leaned out the window. "You ready?"

"Yeah. Would Ukita..."

"He’s cool. He knows he can trust you to not try anything, you certainly have proven that these past weeks."

"Yeah… let's just get this over with."

"Oh, I should let you know this now, but you’re not training with me."

"I'm not?" Issei was confused.

"Haha, you thought Kisara would only take over for Renka? Nope." Ikki laughed.

"I didn't expect it so early…"

"Let’s hope you got your legs warmed up."

They drove off toward the gym.

When they arrived at the gym, Issei scanned the area, looking for his new instructor.

"Oi, Hikari! How was the date with Mizunuma last Saturday?" Ikki greeted the receptionist.

"It wasn't bad." She noted.

Issei blinked. 'Mizunuma‑senpai got a date with the cute receptionist… alright, senpai!'

"Good to hear." Ikki nodded.

"He told me you guys have a tournament in two weeks. Guess that's why you're training so hard, huh?" She directed the question at Issei without glaring.

"Uh... yeah. That's right." Issei blushed in embarrassment.

"Well, good luck." She told him.

"Uh… thanks." He was surprised because this was the first girl outside of his school that actually wished him luck.

A hand suddenly clamped onto his head and ruffled his hair.

"There you are, kid!" Kisara made her presence known.

"Kisara‑senpai!"

She was already sweating lightly, wearing black shorts and a gray top, looking every bit the fighter she was but also showing off her feminine appeal.

"Ready to get started?" She asked.

"Yeah!"

"I'll take it from here, Ikki." Kisara nodded to the boxer.

"Alright. Good luck, Ise." Ikki waved before going back to talk with Hikari about her date.

Before Issei could react, he felt Kisara’s hand grab a handful of his hair, and he could see her predatory grin as she turned and dragged him over to where she had been kicking a body bag earlier. Issei gulped, but he could not back down, it would go against his dream of becoming a strong warrior.

Kisara began instructing her kohai. "Alright. Kick this bag. I need to see what we're working with."

"Okay."

He set his gym bag aside, stretched his legs, and took a stance. He remembered that time when he was trying on his gi pants and was practicing kicking. He took a deep breath, controlling his breath and gave the bag a kick.

Smack.

His foot made contact with the bag, Kisara simply stared and she clearly was unimpressed. Of course, Issei was not as nimble as her nor flexible, so she was not surprised at seeing his leg barely reached waist height. The impact of his kick was also lackluster.

"That's it?" Kisara raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah… sorry. I never really..."

"I know. Watch." She stepped forward, inhaled, and unleashed her kick. "Ha!"

SMACK.

The sound of her kick echoed throughout the gym and Issei felt like a wisp of wind went through his hair. Not only that, but her kick was angled higher than his own was. Plus, it was certainly faster than his own.

"You see... What you needed to do was drive your hips. I’m sure you should be fluid enough there from working with Renka." Kisara noted to Issei.

"Yeah, I am. It helps with dodging."

"Well, you’re more of an attacker from what I saw in your spar with Ukita. A calculating one at that, but you are willing to use brute force. The reason your kick was lame was because you didn’t drive your hips." She gave him her critique.

"Oh, like when I go for a downward slash with my bokken. I’m driving my arms forward, but with kicks, for more power... I need to step into it with my hips."

"Yeah, that’s right." Kisara nodded, somewhat understanding the correlation. "Another thing is we need to get you flexible a little, you see your kick only up to about my waist."

"I figured. Renka‑senpai's kicks can reach my head… and so can yours."

"And you could face taller opponents. Sometimes, a well-placed kick to the jaw could put someone down, especially if you got enough force to it."

"Oh yeah! Like in movies." Issei realized.

"Bingo. Now..." She crouched. "Put your leg on my shoulder."

"Huh?"

"Put your leg. On my shoulder. I’m going to help you with your flexibility on each leg. I will begin to stand, and you need to keep balance on your other leg. We can move closer to the wall for you to hold onto something. The higher I stand, you will feel strain in the leg on my shoulder." Kisara explained to him. "Eventually, you’ll get to the point of me being able to stand straight up with your leg on my shoulder. After that, you’re going to kick that bag until you can’t feel your legs, and you’re going to do it based on speed. So, when you send the first kick and when you go back to reload, you want to spring your next kick almost immediately, watch…"

She stepped back into stance.

SMACK

SMACK

Issei's eyes widened. ‘What the… I heard two smacks against the bag, but it only looked like she kicked it once.’

"You saw that?" She asked.

"More like heard it, your second kick was so fast!" Issei said in awe of the speed of her kick.

"That’s what I meant about the reload speed." She smirked.

"Whoa..." As he thought, 'It's just like when Ikki-senpai punches.'

"Good, now let’s head to that wall, so you can have something to steady yourself with."

Issei nodded. "Okay."

When they got to the wall, Issei had his back to it and placed his leg on Kisara's shoulder when she crouched again.

"Ready?" She asked.

He nodded.

She began to slowly stand, stretching his hamstring on a vertical base, he slightly winced at the strain. Issei noted that while he wasn’t as flexible, he could see that his leg went further up than before. Kisara was also noting that his leg could give someone a good kick to their ribs.

"And… hold." She stayed in a half‑squat, supporting his leg.

She knew that this was his limit for now, but it was only the first day. He would continue to stretch and grow from this. And Kisara would make sure of it.

Kisara slowly lowered Issei's leg from her shoulder, rolling her neck once as if warming up for the real lesson.

"Not bad. At this rate, I could even teach you the Pandal Chagi."

"What's that?" Issei asked.

"It’s basically a powerful kick to the side of your opponent’s body. Picture this..." She raised her hand and mimed locking arms with an invisible opponent. "You’re in an armlock with your opponent, neither one of you giving in and then bam! Remember what I said about driving your hips? It would apply here and from where your leg is stretched to, you can kick an impactful kick to their ribs. It would knock the air out of them. You remember how you made a weak spot on Ukita?"

Issei nodded, eyes widening as he imagined it. "Yeah?"

"You could do the same thing with that kick if your opponent doesn’t prepare themselves for it. It could also nullify that side of their body because they would be too focused on protecting that spot and you remember about reloading speed?"

"Yeah, I’m guessing if one kick doesn’t work, then I can blast them with another."

Kisara smirked, clearly pleased. "Look at you, kid. You’re soaking things in like a sponge. You’re correct, plus even if they let go after the first kick, you can apply additional damage to an already injured zone. Your first kick, if they let go, the intensity of the injury could be moderate. It may be enough to make them let go, since it would catch them by surprise, but they may not feel the need to protect it"

"But if my reload speed is quicker than their reflexes, I could turn a moderate injury into a critical one or worse." Issei deduced.

"There you go. I’m guessing you’re already fantasizing about using it in the tournament, huh?"

"Kind of." Issei answered.

"Well, I'll see what I can do with just six days."

"Six days?"

"Yeah, I’ll be here every other day to help you out. I come here in the evenings with Ukita, while you and Ikki come in the mornings, but you won the spar and I wanted to see if it was true." She placed his leg down and crossed her arms.

Issei raised his eyebrow. "See what?"

"If you’re still the same pervert that everyone thinks of you to be," She shrugged. "but you showed that you weren’t, when I first met you. You might have thought it was when Ukita challenged you, but I remember you from the first day. You looked like such a nerd, you had such a scrawny body, now look at you." Her eyes scanned him up and down.

Issei's face flushed. It was the first time someone complimented his body. "Uh… thanks, Kisara‑senpai."

"Plus, I get to be part of the action."

"Oh yeah, the action of reforming one of Kuoh’s biggest perverts into one of its baddest fighters with the martial arts you’re learning. You could be a powerhouse the more you train."

"You… think so?" He didn't want to doubt himself, but he needed to hear it.

"Yeah. You've got fire, kid. Not many people have that." She crouched again. "Now switch legs. We only have a couple hours, and then you're kicking that bag until your legs go numb. If your reload speed improves, I can teach you the Mikeyopuchagi."

"The what?"

"The Mikeyopuchchagi. It’s a series of rapid-fire kicks to your opponent’s body. You also can learn the Chatora Narechagi, it’s similar to the Pandal Chagi, a kick to your opponent’s midsection. You know how martial artists store their energies and release it in a blow?"

"Yeah, kind of like a finishing blow."

Kisara nodded. "Uh huh, that’s what the Chatora Narechagi is."

"Cool."

"Now change sides, gotta get your other leg. You’re going to need to learn how to be loose in your lower body."

"Any suggestions?"

"Hmm, I guess running. You work on your cardio, right?"

"Yeah, in the workouts that Renka-senpai and Kenichi-senpai gave me."

"I guess that should help for now, but I feel like you need something to be a little more active."

"I suppose." He put his other leg on her shoulder, and she repeated the process of slowly standing up and stretching him again.

"Yep, your legs are about the same in terms of flexibility. This is good as it means you can learn kicking on both sides." Kisara nodded to herself as she assessed his limit on both legs.

"So I shouldn’t have a dominant side in terms of fighting because my opponent could restrict that side of my body?"

"Uh huh, now let’s head over the bag, I want fifty kicks from each leg and you better hurry, time's ticking." Kisara commanded.

Issei stepped toward the bag but paused. "Oh, Kisara-senpai, do you think I should get ankle weights? I know Ikki-senpai has me wear a weighted body vest."

Her predatory smirk reappeared and Issei realized that maybe he should have kept his mouth shut. "You know that is not a bad idea as the more accustomed you become to the weights, your kicks will be faster, when you remove them. I can bring you some on Wednesday, since like I told you, I’ll only be with you every other day. Actually, I can give you them tomorrow, so you can wear them throughout the school day. It might even prepare you for what’s to come after the tournament."

"What's after the tournament?"

"More training, obviously."

"Go figure... Oh, and do you know where I can train in water? Shigure-sensei said that it would help apply resistance to my attack speed."

"The only place that I can think of is the school pool, but something tells me that you wouldn’t want to go there because of your previous antics."

"Yeah, when you’re considered a pervert, not many places that you’re welcomed."

Kisara shrugged. "Only thing you can do is keep pushing forward."

"…Yeah."

"Now quit sulking and hit the bag, we don’t have all day!" She yelled.

"Hai, senpai!"

He performed the kicks like Kisara had instructed, she would usually tell him to go faster on his reloading. It reached the point that she would begin to poke him in the ribs, when he was in the process of reloading his kick. The reason that she poked there is because she was demonstrating how opponents could exploit openings. However, when he is in rest mode or trying to reload, it leaves that spot open.

She was doing it at different intervals, showing how his potential opponents could have different recovery times. Some may take a few seconds to recover and some may not even be phased by the initial kick. Once he completed that, he worked on his other side, which she noticed that he kicked slightly slower with his left side than his right. However, from his spar against Ukita, she had seen that with his fists, he was faster with his left side than his right side.

She found that intriguing as it was a deceptive imbalance. If he kept that trait, he could mislead opponents about his dominant side and switch his offense. For example, if someone believed that his left side was the stronger side in boxing, Issei could switch to a new style, which would favor his right side, in this case, it would be taekwondo.

Renka already made sure that in Chinese kenpo, he had no dominant side and to remain ambidextrous. She also figured that it would only be time before he starts bringing his ki into his leg offense as well. When he finished the kicks, Kisara made him do frontal kicks now, telling him that he may need to be able to kick his opponent at different angles. She made him do the same amount, but she gave breaks for him to stretch his legs. The last thing she needed was for him to get a groin injury or a hamstring injury from overdoing something in his kicks and pulling a muscle.

Kisara finally raised her hand. "Alright. That's enough for today."

Issei collapsed onto his knees, panting.

"Man… I can see why Ikki was confident in you. Well, I could see why after you sparred with Ukita last Friday, but seeing it up close and personal? Yeah, it’s there." Kisara looked down at the boy.

"Still… got a long… way to go…" Issei breathed out.

"Oh yeah, you do. That’s the beauty of it. You got so much to learn, while you have a little time before this tournament. After that, you’ll learn from your mistakes and get better."

"Gotcha." Issei wiped sweat from his forehead. "Hey, Kisara‑senpai… Raichi told me she beat you once. Is that true?"

Kisara sighed. "Yeah. Why'd you ask?"

"You talked about getting better. I wondered if you had a rematch."

"Haha… guess you don't know much about her. She's different."

"How so?"

Kisara leaned against the wall, arms crossed. "We all come from different backgrounds. People like you and me, we had our parents, you’re more like Kenichi than me. I come from a pretty good family, but I chose to become a delinquent."

"Really?"

"Oh yeah. Ikki, Kōzō, and I were part of a gang called Ragnarok."

"Like from Nordic mythology?" He secretly gave his thanks to Yu-Mi for teaching him about some mythologies in history.

"Yeah, we even had members that were codenamed, eight of them. We were called the Eight Great Fists of Fist of Ragnarok. I was number eight, codenamed 'Valkyrie'."

"No way! What about Ikki‑senpai and Ukita‑senpai?"

"They were part of my gang, so they were my subordinates." She told him.

"Along with Taichi?"

"Yeah..." Kisara sighed. "I guess Ikki told you about him. You both had similar dreams, but I think he was a little worse."

"Worse how?"

Kisara's expression darkened. "The guys that he was in charge of... well, one of them groped the Cow Bimbo."

"Cow… Bimbo?"

"I mean Miu. One of the guys literally grabbed her breast." Issei visibly shivered in disgust, not out of jealousy because whoever that person was, did so without consent and Kisara smirked. "Just as I thought."

"Huh?"

"It’s why I believe that you’re different from Taichi. You’re more of a chivalrous pervert. Don’t get me wrong, while I think you may peep, I don’t think you would force yourself on a girl. Though, it could have been possible if you stuck with those two perverts. I’m quite shocked by your loyalty to them, you’re different from them. Why not find other friends?"

Issei lowered his gaze. "Well, my perversion got reignited by an old man that I had met in the park. My perversion was kind of inherent as my grandfather was also a major pervert. He was the one that bestowed that harem king dream in me." He paused, remembering. "I had a friend named Shidou. We did everything together, play together, go see hero shows, and even sleepovers. But eventually... they left for England. It sucked being alone and when my perversion got reignited, but who would want to be friends with me? I didn’t meet those two guys until middle school and the fact that I had friends. So, of course, I’d want to stay loyal because isn’t that what a friend does?"

Kisara's expression softened, just a little. "Yeah. You're right about that. Taichi thought the same about Kōzō and Ikki, but his methods weren't so appealing to them. I wouldn’t be surprised if those two former friends of yours wound up like Taichi. He’s still a delinquent from what I hear."

"Ouch…"

"Hey, he made his life." Kisara shrugged, not caring about her former subordinate. "Just be glad that there were people there to pull you out before it was too late."

"I guess you're right."

"Anyways, my mentor is Ikki’s girlfriend, Kaname. She was number three, her code name was Freya."

"Wow… I didn't know that."

"Yeah. And the number one guy actually knew Kenichi from when they were young. His codename was Odin."

"That seems expected. After all, Odin is the leader of Norse mythology."

"Uh‑huh."

"So… was there someone named Hela?"

"Huh?"

"Hela or Hel. She’s the goddess of the dead in Norse mythology."

"No. We had Odin at one, Berserker at two, Freya at three, Loki at four, Siegfried or Sigurd at five, Hermit at six, Thor at seven, and Valkyrie at eight." Kisara explained to him.

"Didn't think Thor would be so low."

"The guy who code named Berserker looked more like a Thor to some people. It’s just based on one’s perspective."

"One's perspective?"

"Yeah, some depict Thor with blonde hair, others depict him with red hair."

"I see..." Issei began to process this because Yu-Mi didn't tell him about the appearances of the mythology figures. "But what about the code names of Berserker and Hermit?"

"For hermit, I’m not sure. I thought it was a mispronunciation of Hermod. He was the messenger of the god, but there’s a likelihood that his name is a variant of hermaðr or “warrior,” or means “fury of war”. Since herr means “army,” and móðr means “excitement, wrath, passion. However, the guy that had the nickname was like a hermit anyways, usually kept to himself."

"I see, but what’s a Berserker?" He asked, likely missing when Yu-Mi possibly taught him about them.

"According to Norse mythology, Berserkers were a special group of elite Viking warriors who fought in a trance-like fury and worshiped Odin."

"Guess that would explain why he’s number two. Your 'Odin' likely never expected that guy to go against him."

"Yeah, Shōgo feared Ryūto. Those were the names of Berserker and Odin, respectively."

"I understand, but you had a guy named Siegfried. Pretty cool to be code named after a dragon slayer."

"You know about that?" Kisara was slightly impressed that Issei was actually smarter than he appeared.

"Yu‑Mi‑sensei tutors me during lunch."

"Yu‑Mi‑sensei?"

"She’s a professor in the university." Issei answered.

"Oh…" It now made sense to Kisara on why she never heard of the woman.

A voice called out from across the gym.

"Yo! Ise, ready to go?"

Issei looked to see Ikki calling out to him. "Uh, yeah. Thanks for training me, Kisara‑senpai." He bowed deeply, just like he did with Akisame.

"Don’t thank me yet, we still got five more days to make those legs of yours as weapons to your arsenal." Kisara smirked.

"Oh... Right." Issei shivered slightly at he was going to be worked, but it would be to his benefit.

"Haha." She ruffled his hair. "See you at the dojo, kid."

"Right." Issei blushed. "Um, let me go get my stuff, Ikki-senpai."

"No worries, take your time." Ikki told him as Issei left his two senpais to get his stuff, when he was out of range, Ikki turned to Kisara. "So..."

"They were right..." Kisara crossed her arms. "Kenichi’s masters."

"And your verdict?" Ikki asked her.

"I wouldn’t mind a little brother." Kisara shrugged her shoulders and walking away to the locker rooms, giving a wave to Issei as she walked by.

Ikki raised an eyebrow. "So… what do you think of Kisara?"

"She's cool. Tough, but cool. Ukita‑senpai is lucky to have her." Issei answered.

"Haha. Let's get going. School's another adventure."

"True."

They left the gym, and Ikki dropped Issei off at home for a quick shower and breakfast.

He was waiting in the car, when he heard a tap on his window. Opening his eyes, he saw a middle-aged woman with brunette hair. Rolling down the window, he asked her what she needed. He also knew that he shouldn’t flirt, since she was not bad looking for her age. He also didn’t want to get scolded by Kaname, he had to admit, Issei was right about that and he was glad to follow his kohai’s advice, hence why he didn’t flirt with Hikari anymore and hooked her up with Mizunuma.

He rolled down the window. "Hi, how may I help you?"

"I just wanted to thank you for helping Ise."

Ikki blinked in realization. 'Oh crap. This is his mom.' So, he answered, "Ah, no problem. He's my kohai after all."

"I mean you guys helped him overcome his perversion, which I know my husband and I didn’t do a good job on raising him, but…"

"Don’t worry about it. We understand that he’s your only child. It’s not a surprise for some parents to let their only child get away with some things, it happens."

Miki smiled gratefully and handed him a wad of yen. "Thank you, I wanted to give you some yen for gas, since I know you pick up Ise early and then take him to school."

"Uh... thanks." He had a feeling that she would have forced him to take it anyways.

"Kaa‑san?" Issei called out, when he exited his home.

Miki turned and smiled. "Sorry, Ise. I just wanted to meet one of your friends since you never invite them over."

"I see… Well, I'll see you in the evening." He hugged her before getting into the car.

"Alright, dear."

"Nice meeting you, Hyoudou‑san." Ikki gave a wave.

Miki gasped, "Oh, I never got your name."

"Takeda Ikki." He answered.

"Nice meeting you, Takeda-san. I hope I am able to meet more of the people that helped my son." Miki bowed.

"I'd say you will in time."

"You will at the tournament, kaa‑san." Issei replied.

"There you go. But we gotta get going." Ikki nodded to the woman.

"Oh, sorry! Don't let me delay you. Take care." She waved as the car pulled out of the driveway.

"Bye!" Issei waved back, Ikki doing the same.

Once the house disappeared in the rearview mirror, Ikki let out a low whistle. "Your mom's kinda like Kenichi's mom." Ikki noted.

"How so?"

"Well, she’s nice to strangers and she’s pretty good looking for her age. You got some good genes in you."

"And unfortunately, some perverted ones too."

"Hey, no need to fuss over that."

"It’s true, my kaa-san had always looked like that, but the stress of having to put up with my perversion made her age more than she should have. It’s been a breath of fresh air with me letting go of that side of me. It also helped us bond, she’s been teaching me how to cook. Raichi didn’t believe it, so I’m going to prove her wrong today."

"Haha, whatever you say."

The rest of the drive was Issei asking questions about the tournament, so he could get a gist of it. Ikki did his best to answer, but since he never really participated in the tournaments, he was not fully sure on the rules. He only knew from what he saw and told him that he should have asked Kisara earlier in the morning, but to not stress about it as Kenichi would likely explain more about either this week or the next.

"Alright, man. Take care." Ikki told him as he pulled to the front of the school.

"You, too. Enjoy time with your girlfriend."

"Hey, you got a girl waiting for you too. I'm sure of it."

"I..."

"Hey, Hyoudou." Another voice called out.

Both turned. Genshirou Saji and Momo Hanakai approached.

"Is there a problem, Saji‑san? Hanakai‑san?" Issei was confused by their appearance.

"Yeah. You're needed in the council office." Genshirou answered.

"For?" Issei raised an eyebrow.

"For using violence on a student." Momo replied back with a sigh.

"What? When?" As Issei looked between the two council members.

"Last Wednesday." Genshirou answered.

"Huh?"

"He didn't do anything like that." Ikki replied to the second-year students.

"Takeda-senpai, this has nothing to do with you. Unless you are an accomplice." Momo informed her senior.

"I'm not, but..." Ikki tried to protest.

Issei held up a hand. "It's fine, Ikki‑senpai. I'll go see what the issue is."

He couldn’t think of anything besides punching Takeshi, but that shouldn’t have warranted anything as that happened way after school hours.

"Good. Now move it, pervert." Genshirou shoved Issei roughly.

Issei gritted his teeth and clenched his fist, but he knew that is probably what they wanted. After all, the student council was corrupt in his eyes, now he wondered what they would do to punish him now. He released his fist, since he knew his lessons of being a mentally strong person as he walked away with the two council members, of course, Genshirou would try to show his superiority and would shove Issei every now and then.

Momo and other passing students would snicker, when he did it, some were probably believing that he would finally get expelled. He heard other whispers that it was a ruse and he was still perverted, but yet, no incidents involving him being perverted. Ikki could only grit his teeth as he watched Issei literally be blatantly bullied and no one was doing anything.

"Ikki, what's going on?" Kenichi walked up with a stern gaze, looking at the council members escort Issei away.

"Student council's accusing Ise of using violence last Wednesday." Ikki answered.

Renka exclaimed, "What!? How’s that possible?"

Miu asked, "Wasn't he with you that day?"

"Yeah, but he didn’t use violence on me. Unless someone caught us sparring and misunderstood the situation." Renka pondered out loud.

"I didn’t see anyone, when I left with Ukita and Kisara that day either." Ikki reported as well.

"Well, if someone did misinterpret the situation, it’s best that Renka goes to clear it up." Mizunuma informed them.

"We’ll all go. He is our student in martial arts and kohai." Kenichi said to all of them.

"Then let's go." Ikki said as he quickly texted Kaname.

"Wait! This could also be a ploy for the devils to try and recruit Issei." Miu noted.

"He's definitely not joining the student council. The blonde bastard was shoving Ise along the way, I could slowly feel his ki building up. One punch and the arrogant bastard would have been on his ass, lights out. I gotta give it to Ise, who was keeping his composure, but I knew he wanted to deck the guy." Ikki nodded, somewhat impressed.

"We’re going to be late, and I don’t think the student council will give us late passes." Mizunuma checked the time.

"That’s true and then they would be onto us as well.." Kenichi sighed.

"I'll go." Miu raised her hand in volunteer.

"Huh!?" Renka looked at the blonde in bewilderment.

"You’re the one that said I should take time to talk to him and I’m the fastest, so I can check it out and then dash to class and let you know how it goes." Miu explained.

Kenichi gave a nod. "Alright, then you better hurry."

Miu kissed him on the cheek which made Renka grimace and then sprinted off.

"Let’s go, we’ll let you know what happens, Ikki." Kenichi told the boxer.

"But I have free period, I should go and…" Ikki was pleading his case.

"If you go, you won’t be able to spend time with Kaname." Kenichi warned him.

"There’s other times that I can spend with Kaname." Ikki said, not phased as he had already texted Kaname about what was going on.

Kenichi nodded. "Alright, then go. If he gets suspended or something, he may need a ride back."

"Right." As Ikki quickly parked and took off after Miu.

Meanwhile Issei was still being shoved by Genshirou, reaching the student council office. They were surprised to see that Akeno was waiting outside for them. Seeing this, Genshirou stopped shoving Issei and Momo tried to look like she wasn’t giggling about it.

"Akeno‑senpai! What are you doing here?" Genshirou asked.

"I’m here to see Sona-kaichou about our trip that we are leaving for." Her eyes slid to Issei. "Why are you here, Hyoudou‑kun?"

Issei began to answer, "I..."

"He used violence on a student last Wednesday." Momo interrupted.

"Hmm. That can't be right." Akeno wondered out loud.

"What? But..." Genshirou began to retort.

He shut up when Akeno looked at him.

Momo sighed, "Let’s go inside and see what should be done about this."

"I think that would be wise." Akeno's tone shifted from being playful and replaced by cold authority.

Issei just remained neutral as they entered the office. Sona looked up and she was surprised to see Akeno, but she didn’t show it.

"Akeno, I’m surprised to see you here." Sona greeted.

"I wasn’t sure if Yuuma had informed you of the trip that the ORC was taking." Akeno answered, showing that she didn't trust the hybrid's word as Yuuma scoffed quietly.

"Yes, I am aware. Thank you for double checking." Sona told her.

Akeno nodded but made no point in leaving as she wanted to hear who Issei was accused of using violence. She stood behind him like a silent guardian.

"Is there anything else?" Sona noted, seeing that Akeno didn't leave.

"No, I just heard that my kohai is being accused of using violence." Akeno gestured towards Issei in curiosity.

"I don't see how that concerns you." Sona warned.

"It is when my kohai is being falsely accused." She answered as Issei was confused as to why Akeno was defending him.

"Right, well..." Sona exhaled through her nose. "Hyoudou Issei. We were informed that you used violence against a student last Wednesday."

"May I know who the student is, the one that I used violence on?" Issei requested.

"That would be classified." Sona informed him.

"Then how can I defend myself against my accuser? For all I know, someone could have seen me training with Renka-senpai, not knowing that she is my mentor. We go outside to train on the track. It also helps me get some cardio in as well. Someone could have misinterpreted us sparring as me using violence." Issei sighed in annoyance.

Sona shook her head. "It wasn't that."

"Then who was it?" His calm, indifferent tone surprised her.

"…Muzai Takeshi." She sighed.

"Oh." His expression didn't change. No anger. No surprise. Just a flat acknowledgment.

Akeno narrowed her eyes. "Hmm… that can't be right."

"What do you mean?" Genshirou looked at the Gremory queen.

"I mean that Takeshi-kun lied to you as Hyoudou-kun could not have done so."

"Takeshi said that Hyoudou punched him in the ORC last Wednesday. How can you say that he is a liar?" Genshirou was a bit confused at this revelation.

"Because Hyoudou-kun didn’t punch him, or maybe Takeshi-kun forgets that I was a witness and since Yuuma-chan had informed you of what transpired. Was it ever mentioned of Hyoudou-kun punching Takeshi-kun?"

"Huh?" Genshirou turned to his fellow pawn.

"She was also a witness."

Sona adjusted her glasses. "Is that true, Yuuma?"

"Hmm?" Yuuma questioned, upon her name being called.

"Did Hyoudou‑san punch Muzai‑san?"

Yuuma looked at Issei and Akeno, while Akeno looked at her as if challenging her. She was telling her fellow fallen that if she likes Issei, then she would be willing to lie for him. Yuuma merely glared at the Gremory queen for involving her in this mess. Issei simply had a blank face, but he didn’t want anyone to lie for him. Of all the student council members, he didn’t like any of them, but he could tolerate Yuuma only out of all of them as she was the only one that actually took time to talk with him.

He exhaled. "At what time did this incident supposedly happen?"

"Some time in the early evening, after club activities were to have ended, why?"

"Then yeah. I did it." Issei shrugged.

Akeno's eyes widened. Yuuma let out a sigh of relief that she didn't know that she was holding in.

"I appreciate you trying to lie for me, Himejima-senpai, but that would go against who I am." He stepped forward. "Though... I would like to say something. if you are going to punish me, then I believe you should punish Yuuma as well as these students." He pulled out his phone, scrolled, and placed it on Sona's desk.

A video played as the sound of fists and kicks were heard. It was Issei being beaten on the first day of school.

Sona’s eyes slightly widened as she could she watched the video. Everyone could hear the sounds, Genshirou stifled a snicker, while others were a bit nervous.

"Let's not forget your secretary's bullying tactics." Issei added on.

"What do you mean?" Sona turned towards Genshirou, who paled.

Akeno stepped forward, her voice cool. "I believe he is referring to this."

She held up her own recording of Genshirou shoving Issei repeatedly, only stopping when he noticed her watching.

"Looks like abuse of power to me." Issei snorted as he looked at the blonde.

"Just to throw in my own two cents. In addition to being provoked by Takeshi, he felt like he could get away with it, when Issei was defending himself." Yuuma spoke up.

Of course, since she did not like how she had been deceived by him, she was willing to see him get in trouble.

"Perhaps this should be reported to the school administration." Akeno spoke again.

If Sona could get any more pale, she would have as she knew that Rias’ father was part of the school administration. She also knew that Rias was intrigued about Issei as well, considering that she was looking for pieces. She would have proposed washing this all under the bridge, if he joined her peerage, but now that was a moot point.

She swallowed. "…No. That won't be necessary." She sighed, defeated. She was in a tough place and she knew it.

For not punishing the students that beat up Issei on the first day, it would look like she was pushing favorites. Considering that Yuuma lashed out physically on the two perverts for the rumors that they spread and she did nothing, it would not look good for her. She would lose another potential piece to Rias and there was nothing she could do.

"I’m sorry for the inconvenience, Hyoudou-san, let me write you a late pass for wasting your time."

"That's fine. Just one more thing." Issei shrugged again.

"What?" Sona wondered what else he needed but before anyone could react...

BAM!

"Gah!" Genshirou was sent crashing to the floor, as he unexpectedly received a swift left hook from Issei.

Sona was surprised by his speed, but not only that, they all witnessed him take down one of them with relative ease. Momo quickly went to check on Genshirou, who was moaning in pain. His jaw was likely to get swollen because like Akeno, Sona and Tsubaki felt that Issei used his ki. He was getting better at it, even though he didn’t know it yet.

Issei stared down at Genshirou coldly. "Never shove me again." He turned to Sona. " You can write me up for that one, if not, may I go now, kaichou?"

"Y‑yes. Have a good day." Sona slightly worried about him turning on her.

Like when he did it to Takeshi, Akeno and Yuuma licked their lips again in anticipation. Sadly, Akeno would be leaving, so Yuuma could smirk at the chance of getting Issei alone, considering that she now knew that Issei saw Renka as only a senpai. Issei simply took his late pass, turned and began to leave, since he could go to class

Akeno chuckled to herself. "I suppose I can leave now, thank you again, Sona-kaichou."

"R-right." She was still trying to process what she had just winessed.

Akeno smiled and followed Issei out of the student council office, both unaware that Miu and Ikki had been listening in, well more like Miu could listen in as she was more advanced in her hearing. The two seniors breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that their kohai was going to be okay. They left immediately after Miu heard Issei ask for permission to leave. They were gone before Issei ever opened the door and began to head to his class with Akeno by his side.

Sona glared at the groaning Genshirou. "Genshirou, you likely just cost us a valuable piece."

Normally, Genshirou would have been happy to hear her say his name, but this was definitely not one of those times.

"You were seriously considering reincarnating him?" Tsubasa asked, surprised.

"Yes. In case you didn’t realize, he just took down Genshirou. That is not something that a human should be capable of doing, even to a low-class devil."

"She’s right. Issei Hyoudou is a human that has unlocked his ki, likely thanks to his training in the mixed martial arts club. He would have been an acceptable rook to our ranks." Tsubaki informed the others.

Sona sighed. "Another thing is that you should not judge a book by its cover, keep in mind, he did not pay attention to any of you. He’s not the same pervert. I’d say that beating was an eye opener for him." She turned to Yuuma. "Yuuma..."

"Yes, kaichou?" Yuuma answered, wondering what her mistress wanted from her.

"I’d like you to befriend him." She ordered.

"Tch, you don’t need to order me to do that. I would have done so without your blessing. This only means that I would have to report to you, but I don’t plan on doing that because imagine if he joins... he would feel betrayed that I used him like those two bastards used him."

"Fair enough." Sona nodded and then gestured to Momo. "Go get him healed up."

"Yes, kaichou." Momo answered and then went to help her secret crush.

"Tsubaki, let’s prepare for the absences of Rias Gremory, Akeno Himejima, Yuuto Kiba, Takeshi Muzai, Asia Argento, and Koneko Toujou."

"Yes, kaichou, but... don’t you think that Akeno would try to recruit Hyoudou-san?" Tsubaki turned to her mistress.

"I don’t think he would be in the mood to listen, so she may make a last-minute attempt, but it is likely to fail. You’re all dismissed."

The council bowed. "Hai, kaichou!" They dispersed from the office, while Genshirou grumbled about this all being a waste of time, only to receive a busted jaw.

Yuuma lingered. "Kaichou... there’s something that I would like to talk to you about."

"What is it?"

"It’s about Azazel-sama. He’d like a meeting with you. I know you know that he was my superior and you are my mistress, but it’s important. It’s why I had hoped that you would suspend me for beating those perverts, so I could figure out what Freed is planning. He contacted me to see if I was 'in'' and Azazel-sama believes that this has something to do with Kokabiel." Yuuma explained.

Sona glared at her pawn, "And you're telling me this now because…?"

"They told me to pick a side and you are my mistress, so my job is to keep you safe as one of your pawns, so I have chosen my side." While she thought privately, 'And keeping you safe means keeping Issei safe, I'm not done with my new plaything just yet.'

"So you will act as a double agent? That is risky, you could die." Sona noted as she wasn't willing to lose a piece so soon.

"I’ve had a decent life and have done some horrible shit. If it’s my time to go then so be it." Yuuma shrugged.

Sona nodded slowly. "Very well, set up this meeting and I will see what we can do. I had a feeling that you would be loyal to Azazel, so I kept watch on you. However, I didn’t want to keep track of you, when you were with Azazel or that silver haired man, who is he?" This chapter was taken from NovelPing without permission.

"Not our problem, but he is the backup plan, if need be." Yuuma answered.

"Raynare." Sona said, making Yuuma bristle at the name, which was a reminder of what she had done.

It was another reason why she had chosen to go with the 'Yuuma' name as a means to start over.

"His name is Vali. He’s Azazel’s adopted son and he may be at the meeting." Yuuma informed her.

"Just great..." Sona sighed. "Set it up, we’ll consider this a temporary alliance and Yuuma?"

"Yes?"

"If you’re going to be an assassin again to help Freed... be careful." Sona replied back, showing some concern to her piece, which did surprise Yuuma as Sona pretty much expected Yuuma to be able to take care of herself.

Yuuma blinked, still in shock by the concern, was able to nod. "I will." She was about to walk away, when Sona had to remind her of something important.

"And don't forget your late pass. Again." Sona had a vein pop near her eyebrow in annoyance of her piece's forgetfulness.

"Hai." Yuuma sweat‑dropped as she turned around and picked up the pass from her mistress’ desk.

Akeno walked beside Issei, her steps light, her expression unreadable. Issei did not know what to do about his senpai, but he needed to make one thing clear.

Issei finally spoke. "You don't have to lie for me. It goes against who I am."

Akeno continued to walk beside him, but her expression turned soft. "I'm sorry. I just felt I should help you… after what you did for me." However, her thoughts on the matter were different, 'If I can be on his good side, perhaps, he would join Rias for the rating game.'

"I didn't do anything. I just gave you an apology gift."

"Which you're forgiven for, in case you forgot. But there was something else you said that day."

"What's that?" Issei asked.

"You said you were honest with yourself."

"Yeah. Because if I'm not, I'll just hold myself back."

Akeno's eyes lowered. "I've been holding myself back. There's a part of me I… hate."

"Don't." He interjected.

She blinked. "Huh?"

"Don’t hate yourself, not only will you hurt yourself, but also the people that care about you. I mean I hate my perversion and what it has done to my life, but..." He shrugged. "Maybe I’ll get lucky and meet a woman with big boobs and legs that will love me for me, what guy doesn’t want that? It’d be because of me, not because of how I look nor for my money, just me."

Akeno giggled, a hand covering her lips. "Is that so?"

"Uh… yeah. But for now, I'm focusing on training. Maybe become a strong warrior like Goku."

"I see. Well… you could join us and..."

"No. I've got a tournament in two weeks. That's where I can prove myself and the hard work that my seniors have placed on me. I didn't know the ORC was leaving, but I need to focus on my dream. So… why are you guys heading out again?"

Akeno smiled faintly. "I'm sure you remember the yakitori, as you called him."

"What about him?"

"We're leaving to prepare for a competition against him."

"Oh yeah," Issei's eyes lit up in recognition. "He mentioned that I should join her, but no can do. I mean no offense, but Gremory-senpai is a bit judgmental and I can see that Muzai-san likes her. So why not let him be the hero that she needs? I don’t need him glaring at me and thinking that I would steal his thunder."

"But you could spend time with me." Akeno offered, which made her wonder why she even said that as she didn't really like men all that much.

Issei nearly tripped, but he corrected himself. He was unsure if she was being genuine or just teasing him because of his perversion that he has been trying to limit, thus he declined.

"In another world, I would have gladly said yes. You’re a beautiful woman, Himejima-senpai, but I still get this uneasy feeling with you and the ORC. It’s the same with the student council. So... what about this competition?"

A part of Issei wanted to facepalm himself for rejecting the second hottest girl in school, but he would never know if she was being genuine because of her teasing in the past. He didn't want to get his heart played with, so he knew that it was best to step aside and simply have faith in someone coming along for him.

"The yakitori said I was capable of handling his people and..." Akeno noticed Issei staring at her, not at her chest, but at her in bewilderment. "What?"

"You can fight?" Issei was surprised by this revelation.

"Huh?"

"Well, I assumed that the competition would be physical. I’m not going to judge you and say that you don’t look like a fighter. I just didn’t know that you were one. Sorry, if you thought I was judging you." This time, actually scanning her body, but not for any perverse reason.

He was actually trying to look at her muscle tone and determine how she could fight, since looks can be deceiving as Setsuka has informed him.

Akeno smiled. "Oh, I can fight."

"Nice. Maybe I can use you as a sparring partner one day."

"Ara~ ara~, maybe. But he said because I hold myself back… we may not have a chance."

"Then don't do it. Don't hold yourself back." Telling her the words that Mitsurugi had told him.

"But..."

Issei placed a hand on her shoulder, which made her stiffened slightly. "Look… if you hold yourself back, you will continue to regret it and you won’t grow. While I say that I hated my perversion, it also held me back from a lot of interests that I had. Whatever part of you that you hate, let it out. Let yourself flourish and go kick ass in that competition. And if others don’t like it, then I will. If people don’t want to be your friend, then I will be that friend for you."

Issei had completely thrown all caution to the wind, but he didn't understand what was keeping someone like Akeno from being herself. Considering how many people lusted after her, he thought she wouldn't mind enjoying the attention. Of course, he had no idea why she was even interested in speaking with someone like him either as they weren't in the same social hierarchies.

Akeno's eyes shimmered. "You… really mean that?"

"Yeah, I don’t see why not." He shrugged. "It will probably also help me overcome this uneasy feeling that I get from you as well."

Akeno looked down, voice barely above a whisper. "This part of me is tainted. They're… dirty wings."

"We’re not all perfect beings, Himejima-senpai." He deadpanned. "Don’t see them as dirty wings, whatever it is that is holding you back. Those dirty wings are not Himejima-senpai, only Himejima-senpai is Himejima-senpai, don’t exclude a part of you as something else. For me, my perversion is still Hyoudou Issei and that will never change. However, my training is Hyoudou Issei, my job is Hyoudou Issei, I stand before you as Hyoudou Issei, just like you stand before me as Himejima Akeno, not Himejima Akeno with dirty wings. Seriously, don’t put yourself down. If they’re 'wings', use them to fly. Don’t stay grounded." He advised from a combination of lessons taught to him by Mitsurugi and Setsuka.

Akeno stared at him, breath caught. "Is that… really what you think?"

"Yes, I’ll tell you this... when I was going into the ORC to give you that artwork, I was afraid. I’m not going to lie because I did expect to get pranked, as you saw by the student council, no one cares about the school pervert. But I still went in and holy hell, did I feel uncomfortable, but I told Yuuma of how a true warrior is the one who confronts his fear and conquers it. You’re going to conquer that side of you and use it to help Gremory-senpai, if the marriage isn’t what she wants. I’m going to conquer my fear and aim to get a good standing in my tournament and make my senpais proud." He thumped his chest.

He also forgot about the fear that he had because of who he was talking to and if there were other students around, they would be on his case for even talking to Akeno.

Akeno smiled softly. "If you say so… then, if I do this… could we be friends?"

"Are you sure you want to be friends with me?"

"I was hoping you'd be on the rooftop so we could talk. So yes, I'm sure."

Issei nodded and held out his hand. "Alright then, Himejima‑senpai. Let's not hold ourselves back."

But instead of shaking his hand, Akeno stepped forward and wrapped her arms around him.

Issei froze, face burning. 'What the hell!? Why is an Onee-sama hugging me?'

"Akeno." She responded.

"H‑huh?" Snapping out of his thoughts.

She pulled back, smiling. "If we’re going to be friends, don’t call me Himejima-senpai. Call me by my name of Akeno, but if you’re still uncomfortable, Akeno-senpai is fine as well."

"Only if you win your competition." Stepping back from her. 'I'm not going to lie but because of her fanbase, I kind of hope that they don't win or she might use it as a means to make this backfire on me.'

"And in case you didn’t know... you can stop by the temple, while I’m gone. You can also house sit for me, if you could. I will pay you."

"To clean your house? Sounds easy enough." Issei nodded. 'That will definitely help with getting my gear or maybe some new components to build up my gaming PC.'

"Great, oh, and please do not hang the artwork. I’d like to be there, so I can see how it’s done, so I can do it for future art pieces." She requested.

"Er, alright." While thinking, 'She has the two princes in her club, they should be able to help her anyways.'

He was already thinking about the extra cash. House‑sitting sounded simple enough. To him, it would be small change, so he was not too worried as he did not think that a teenager would pay another teenager to house sit for them. However, he had no idea of the funds that Akeno had, since he did not know of her true nature that he had helped her gain some confidence in.

"I can also answer the question you asked me that day."

"The question I... oh no." He tilted his head. "I asked a bad thing, which I am regretting it now. I have insensitive points. You don’t really need to…"

"But I want to. Otherwise, you'll stay curious, and our friendship won't grow."

"I'm not forcing you..."

"I know, but I feel like I can tell you because I don’t think you will be judgmental. Since you have been judged yourself."

"You don't have to remind me about that." he groaned.

Akeno giggled. "Well, I better get going. And so should you. You're twenty minutes late."

"Oh shit, you’re right. Well, good luck, Hime…"

He stopped as Akeno grabbed his chin gently, lifting his face toward hers. Her eyes were half‑lidded, her smile dangerously sweet. Issei felt fear from the Onee-sama and was hoping that she would release him.

"Say it."

"Huh?"

"I won’t be calling you Hyoudou-kun anymore. Just as you should no longer call me Himejima-senpai, so say it." She leaned closer and Issei leaned back.

"Um… Akeno‑senpai?" He could see this dangerous gleam in her eye. 'I guess this is how she usually gets what she wants.'

Akeno's smile bloomed like a flower in spring and the danger dissipated. "Much better. If what you said is true… then I'll become a warrior too. And help my friend. Ara~ ara~… just thinking about it is getting me excited."

Her voice dipped into that sultry tone she used when she wanted reactions. Issei immediately stepped back, face flushing.

'She scares me, I was right about that dangerous feeling. I'm going to have to stay away from her, so I can somehow to avoid that fanclub that she and Gremory-senpai have.'

Akeno giggled behind her hand. "We'll talk again, Issei‑kun. Good luck in your tournament. Let's both win."

"Yeah, sure…" But he was thinking, 'I would say "fuck that", but I got other things to worry about as I should probably learn how to beat Raichi eventually…'

Akeno and Issei shook hands and went their separate ways. Of course, Akeno didn't get far before she spotted Yuuma leaning against the wall, arms crossed and went by to mock her. However, Yuuma did not look phased as much as Akeno would like.

"You know, there can only be one. He doesn't seem interested in a harem either." Akeno informed her, wanting to get under the hybrid's skin and take away Yuuma's target.

Yuuma didn't flinch. "Maybe. But either of us has a tall task ahead."

"Oh? And what's that?"

Yuuma smirked. "He has a childhood friend."

Akeno blinked. "And?"

"Well, that childhood friend is a she and she has been in love with him for the past twelve years, it doesn’t help that the parents are close."

Akeno's eyes widened slightly. "How do you know this?"

"I have my sources." She kept her tone casual, hiding the fact that her "source" was Azazel.

"So why tell me?"

"Because I can see that look in your eye. Quite surprising that you of all people have an interest in him. Why not the Sekiryuutei?"

Akeno's smile softened. "Sometimes it's not about power or looks. He gave me a reason to express myself."

Yuuma's grin sharpened. "Oh? So you're going to use that? I thought you hated the blood that goes through your veins?"

"Yes. If I didn't… Issei‑kun would be disappointed in me for holding myself back."

"Haha… Issei‑kun, huh?" Yuuma wondered when they became on a first name basis.

"Mhm. When we win this rating game, Issei‑kun and I will finally be friends."

Yuuma tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Then I don't see why your mistress would want him, if she has secured her safety from her marriage."

"Perhaps, but he could still prove his worth. I also don't think your own interest will work."

"Why not?"

"He's too focused. Romance isn't part of his dream. If you're going to be using him to make Takeshi-kun jealous because of your negligence, then you're better off backing out now."

"Then I'll show him that I'm interested. But I won't try to be his mistress."

"I figured. And remember... he's not part of the supernatural world."

"Not yet. But I think he'll get involved." Yuuma shrugged.

Akeno hesitated. "He could get hurt."

"Maybe. But would it bring him down?"

Akeno thought for a moment… then shook her head. "Perhaps not."

Yuuma extended her hand. "Until then... kick that yakitori's ass. If you're really going to invoke our power, I'll write you down some tips on creating light spears. You may hate me for what I've done to her club mate, but this would be part of my atonement. You good with that?"

Akeno looked at her hand, then took it. "I suppose. But… if I'm going to use the side of me that I despise. I will need to accept myself and win this rating game… then fine. Just don't overdo it."

"Very well. You know I can't help but wonder in my narcissistic mind, what would have happened if we met earlier in different circumstances. Would you have harbored that hate or would you have seen me as family, since Hyoudou thought we were related."

"Hard to say, but if you were still willing to show this same help and actually assisted Asia, then maybe I would consider you different from the rest of your kind."

"Fair enough. I also have to ask, if you did consider him with romantic interest, what about the childhood friend?"

"His choice. For now, I'm sticking to friendship and getting him to open up past that perverted exterior and go from there."

"Sounds like a plan to me." They shook hands. "Oh and since you plan on using holy lightning. I'm not sure if "he" has done this but maybe incorporate it into the light spears. They're effective." Yuuma stated.

"Hmm, that would be beneficial. Will do." Akeno nodded at the advice.

"Huh, out of all the people, I never thought you would be the one that I would spark a friendship with. I can't wait to see what you do in that game."

Akeno licked her finger, eyes gleaming. "The thought of it makes me excited of what I can do, when given ideas."

Yuuma mirrored her expression but hers a touch more sadistic. "You and me both."

As the two fallen hybrids fantasize about the pain that would be brought upon Riser and his peerage. While Akeno was willing to give in to her fallen angel side, she still had a glaring issue about it, that being her father. However, this was to help Rias, her best friend, so she could not hold herself back, when they needed to win this.

Meanwhile Issei handed off his late pass to his teacher, when he entered the classroom. It was a shock to some, since they had seen him getting pushed by Genshirou earlier. They believed that he had finally gone back to his perverted ways as noted by rumors spread by the remaining overly perverts of the school.

"Didn't Saji drag him earlier?"

"He's in trouble again?"

"Pervert's back at it."

While Issei heard the grumbling, he did not care as he could control what he could and was hoping to not miss a lesson as that could impact his grade. That was something that he could control as evident from the lessons given to him. He survived the glances and talk all the way to lunch, stopping by the nurse’s office to greet Elize as usual, staying until Yu-Mi showed up. They would catch up on Dragon Ball and Gundam manga, then he would depart to the gardening club to meet with Raichi.

Raichi was already there, watering a row of seedlings. "What's up, Ise?"

"Not much. But since you didn't believe me… try this."

He opened his bento box, revealing neatly arranged fish tacos.

"Ha, alright." Raichi raised a brow, took one, and bit in.

"It may be a little dry because I didn’t make the sauce that goes with it." Issei informed her.

She nodded and her eyes widened. 'This isn't store‑bought. And the fish is fresh. What the hell...he's actually decent. Oh, man, if only his parents stepped in years ago and knocked the perversion out of him. What the fuck.'

Issei watched her expectantly. "Well?"

Raichi finished chewing, swallowing, then fixed Issei with a mock glare. "Who taught you how to cook?"

"My kaa‑san… Was it bad?" His face tightened with worry.

"No! Dude!" She grabbed his shoulders dramatically. "You could've had girls all over you by now, if you learned this earlier. What happened!?"

"My perversion happened." He deadpanned so hard she snorted.

"Oh. Right. Well... more for me."

"Huh?"

Raichi slung an arm around his shoulders like a seasoned con artist about to pitch a deal. "Ise, Ise, my dear friend Ise… This is a gift. Your gift of making food should be shared with friends, and as your best friend…"

"Best friend?"

Raichi tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Hmm… maybe that's Ikki‑senpai? Or Renka‑senpai? Or Kenichi‑senpai? Or maybe that person you spend lunch with?" Her grin turned mischievous.

"Um… well…" He hadn't had a best friend since Shidou and he never thought of another one since then.

"Oh, right," Raichi remembered. "The childhood friend. Well, you can tell them that Raichi Li has taken that spot until further notice."

"But..." Issei was going to protest.

"If they come back, that's what 'further notice' is for." She puffed her chest proudly. "Until then, I will enjoy delicious meals from you. Best friend privileges."

Issei laughed. "Haha, best friend privileges?"

"Pretty much," Raichi shrugged, not worried about being friends with Issei. "I mean you and I are kind of going to be stuck together. I’ll get to hear everything from you, from when you get your first girlfriend to and let us forbid that this doesn’t happen, your first break up. Then your next girlfriend, maybe she becomes your wife. If Shidou’s not available, I can be your best man. I can even work as a double agent, you know make sure that she doesn’t something stupid on her bachelorette night or something."

"They do that?"

"In today's day and age? Oh yeah." She shrugged. "Maybe if Shidou is a decent guy, we can get together. Wouldn’t you like that? Your two best friends together and you being the godfather of our children. Although he would have to deal with my father." She laughed at that last bit, but more to herself.

Issei laughed again. "You have told me that your father is strict, so if you two hit it off, good luck to him."

He never thought of the prospect of his former best friend and self proclaimed best friend together. He also noticed how Raichi said if he was a decent guy, nothing about his looks or status. He was glad that she wasn’t as superficial as many of the students here at school. He also wouldn’t be jealous if she and Shidou did get together, he wasn’t romantically interested in her, so he didn’t see the issue. However, he didn’t want to be a third wheel, in case they do go together, but then he remembered something from this morning on his talk with Kisara.

"Hey, Raichi?"

"Yeah?" She finished up her taco.

"What do you do to keep your legs active?"

"Walking, running, stan..."

"No, I mean like keep them loose. I’m sure that you’re more flexible than I am, so what do you do?"

"Oh. I dance."

"Dance?" Issei raised a brow at that.

"Yeah, wait... let me guess, you've never danced before?"

"With someone? Well, not really..." Issei scratched the back of his head. "I mean I did joke around with Shidou, but it was playful dancing as we joked about ballroom dancing."

"You never did a celebratory dance after doing something perverted? Like OMG, I just saw what's her face's breasts! Or win a level in a video game that took a while for you to beat? What about dancing and singing in the shower?"

"I guess I sing in the shower a little bit... but never dance. I mean we all have sung in the shower once or twice before."

"Yeah, but not all of us are decent out of the shower like you are."

"Like me? But you've never heard me sing, wait... Who told you that?"

Raichi froze for half a second. "Told me what?"

"That I can sing."

At this, Raichi realized that she had a choice, she could lie about where she heard it from or throw Renka under the bus. She decided to use the third option to get something out of this.

"I'm not telling you unless you vow to keep making us best‑friend lunches." She held out her hand.

Issei stared. For someone so petite, she could be quite devious and terrifyingly crafty, Issei began to wonder if that devious streak was what made her get replaced by Koneko.

"Grr… fine." He shook her hand. "Now who was it?"

Raichi smirked. "Well, it was… you know what, I’m not going to say because it will be a secret that I will keep with me. But don’t you worry, I won’t hang it over your head."

"What!? But we agreed..."

"Relax, it’s just another secret of mine and no harm will be done. If it makes you feel any better, I’ll make sure that it doesn’t spread, so your secret is safe."

"Ugh, at least I can narrow it down to two options with those being Ikki-senpai or Renka-senpai, they talk a lot, though Ikki-senpai doesn’t know when to keep his mouth shut." He muttered. "Also, it’s not good to have a friendship built on secrets."

Raichi gave no reaction that it was Ikki, but also gave no reaction that it was Renka. She had a feeling that Issei would speak with them both after school and she knew Renka would cave in. So, all she did was simply shrug her shoulders as Issei muttered to himself.

"Haha, I have more secrets that I have yet to tell, you Ise. Anyway, getting back to the task at hand, you’ve done no dancing other than joke dancing with Shidou."

"Uh, yeah, pretty much."

"Have you seen MMD videos?"

"MMD?"

"MikuMikuDance. It’s an animation program that lets users animate and create 3D animated films, usually dance videos as the name says 'dance' in it." She explained to him, which Issei seemed to have an understanding.

"So that's how they could take a character from an anime and have them dance to a song?"

"Exactly! The songs are usually upbeat music."

"I don't really sing upbeat songs."

"You don’t need to, silly." Raichi chuckled. "But the dance songs are. It will really get the blood flowing through your legs.

"You got an example?"

"Of course!" She pulled out her phone and began to look for a video.

"Is it MMD?" Issei asked.

"Nope! It’s not even two minutes. I want you to watch it. Ready?"

"Yeah."

They huddled over the screen.

As the video played, Issei watched the footwork, the hip movement, and the rhythm of the dancers. Raichi took a side glance at Issei, she could tell that he was fascinated, which is not surprising. From what she has noted, similar to his perverted side, Issei could be like a child and get fascinated by many things. She could tell that Issei was watching the movements of the dancers intently and was understanding the benefits of dancing.

"So? What do you think?" She asked.

"That'll definitely keep the hips loose. And the footwork."

"Great. Now play it again. And watch me."

"Um… okay?" He hit the replay button.

As the music began to play and the lyrics began, Issei was surprised by what he saw. Raichi was mimicking the dancers on the videos fluidly. Her footwork was crisp, her hips loose, and her balance was flawless. Issei was impressed and could not help but wonder if he was capable of doing the same. As she finished up the dance, she decided to know what he thought about it.

"So?" She asked him, surprisingly, not out of breath.

"That was awesome! Where'd you learn to dance like that?"

"It was in my free time, the little that I have during my martial arts training."

"Can you teach me? It may help with my training with Kisara-senpai."

Raichi gasped dramatically. "Oh? She’s training you? I’m hurt, Ise. You should always come to your best friend, if you need help."

"You made that proclamation like five minutes ago." He deadpanned.

"Hmm? Whatever do you mean?" She waved him off. "With how we've bonded, we might as well be best friends. Unless you want Matsuda or Motohama as your best friend."

"Not in the slightest."

"Then what about Aika Kiryuu?"

"No, but then again, considering how you tease Kisara-senpai about her breast size, you might as well be the same."

"But I can fight. I'm more likely to have your back. Like I said... we stick together." She held out her fist.

"I guess you're right." He bumped her fist. "But you didn't answer my question."

Raichi flicked his forehead. "Well, duh, I can teach you. If I don't, you'll never beat me and achieve your dream, dummy."

"Hey! But yeah, that's true. I might face you in the tournament."

"Oh yeah..." She slowly nodded. "If we're in the same pool."

"Pool?"

"Mm‑hmm. Since the tournament's mostly for the third years, the second years are in two different pools of five fighters each."

"So I'll have at least four matches."

"Yep, as will I. If we each win our pools, they may have the winners face each other. Just to see who the better pool is."

Issei nodded thoughtfully. "Then I hope I'm not in your pool."

Raichi blinked. "Why not?"

"So, I can face you in the end and we’ll see which pool is the best."

Raichi smirked, leaning in. "You think I can win my pool?"

"I know it, and I need to beat you to move forward in my dream. Besides, you had faith in me beating Ukita-senpai, so of course, I’m going to have faith in my friend to kick butt and beat her competition."

Raichi's grin widened. "Haha, alright then. Let’s win each other’s pools and put on a show for our senpais and we’ll see who the better of us is. Just remember, I did beat Kisara-senpai."

"I still got two weeks to train myself. But for now, I need to learn the dance moves, so I can do better with Kisara-senpai’s training."

"I got you."

"I know."

They clasped hands and it was firm, confident, and warm. He had to admit that he felt like he could go back to his childhood days with Shidou with Raichi as his friend. He missed his friend, who was now in England, but he was going to continue to move forward.

"We should head back. Lunch is almost over." Issei said as he checked the time.

"Oh yeah. And I'll be looking forward to more meals from you."

"I forgot about that…" He facepalmed.

"Haha, come on, it’s not bad. You’ll be getting a second opinion, other than your parents on your cooking."

"That's true."

"Plus, you’ll have a skill that not many guys in this school have."

"What do you mean?"

"You really think those pretty boys have actual skills?"

"I think Kiba would. He seems like it, you never know with the European guys like him."

"Kinda weird though. He doesn't look like he's from here, but he has a Japanese name. Maybe he's related to Miu‑senpai like you said."

"Maybe. But remember, you're not from here either, you're Chinese." He pointed out. "But he definitely has skill. I've seen him with swords."

"Aren't you training in kenjutsu too? Wouldn't hurt to have a sparring partner."

"Haha, Mitsurugi‑shishou will push me. Kiba would probably go easy on me, and I don't want that."

Raichi shrugged as she packed her bento. "I guess… Oh! I just realized something."

"What now?"

"I don’t have your number. If we’re going to be friends, we’re going to need each other’s numbers."

"I guess that makes sense. Come to think of it, I only have Ikki‑senpai's and Kenichi‑senpai's numbers."

"Really?"

"Oh and Kiba's."

Raichi raised an eyebrow as they exchanged numbers. "You have Kiba's number?"

"Yeah, it was to let me know when I could give that artwork to Hime…" He froze as a cold dread crawled up his spine.

"Oh? Give it to who?" She already knew, but she wanted to hear him say it.

"To give to Akeno-senpai. Speaking of which, she had told the student council that the ORC was going on a trip, so I can’t ask Kiba to be a sparring partner."

"And you didn't get Akeno‑senpai's number, did you?"

"Uh… no. I wasn't thinking about that."

Raichi burst into laughter. "Man, so many guys are gonna think you're a loser or an idiot for not getting her number."

"They already think I'm a loser for my perversion and she's beautiful and worthy of her title, but I'm not interested in her like that."

"Why not?"

"I guess I'm in my 'Goku phase.'"

"Your what?"

"Goku is always interested in training and fighting and wanting to be the best. Not things like romance, sometimes it makes me wonder how he had kids."

"Well, sex, obviously." Raichi chuckled.

"No, that’s the thing. I think his wife tricked him into marriage at a young age. I wouldn’t be surprised if she put viagra or something in his food and rode him while he was passed out or something."

Raichi choked on air. "HAHA, you think so!?"

"I'm telling you, he wasn't into romance. Then again, Saiyans usually aren't. But regardless, he still does love Chi-Chi like Vegeta loves Bulma."

The two continued to talk as they headed back to their respective classes, just chatting. They looked a little like an odd pair because no one really expected the “school pervert” to be talking with a girl or rather a girl not named Aika Kiryuu to be talking to him. However, the two just shrugged off the quizzical looks.

Like he had told Yuuto before, he can have friends that are girls. Of course, another part of Issei kind of wished the two perverts started rumors about Raichi, he’d like to see what she’d do to them. Inwardly, he was snickering at the thought of his self proclaimed best friend beating them up as he headed off to class.