Issei had arrived at the meeting together with the Gremory Group, the meeting room looked like a place customized from Kuoh Academy.
"It seems we meet again." (Azazel)
"It seems so." (Issei)
Azazel was wearing a very refined European outfit, he was no longer using a casual Japanese kimono like he did during his contracts with Issei.
Issei observed the room and saw Serafall dressed like a normal person, Sirzechs, Grayfia, Michael, Irina, and Vali at the far end of the room. The man was not wearing the white suit of the Balance Breaker, he was only wearing a white jacket and pants, his shirt was black with a dark purple tone.
"I'm glad to see you alive." (Vali)
"I can say the same." (Issei)
Issei and Vali stared at each other with smiles on their faces, the two approached for an encounter when they suddenly stopped. Hyoudou materialized two chairs with a small table, this table had a chessboard on it.
"We're going to ignore you while we have a match here." (Issei)
"Yes, don't interrupt us, we just want peace and no war." (Vali)
Everyone looked at the two eccentric emperors and thought that both were strange, that both had a certain arrogance and egocentrism rooted in them for some reason.
"It's the first time I see his weirdness acting." (Sirzechs)
"So he's just as strange as Vali." (Azazel)
"Issei will kill me one day with this." (Rias)
Issei and Vali played chess while the leaders talked about Kokabiel, about peace and many other things, the two were very focused on the movements of the pieces and victory.
Sometimes Issei got a little nervous because of the moves, sometimes it was Vali who got nervous with his rival's movements, but it was a balanced battle of minds until the final move happened after 20 minutes of match.
"I won." (Issei)
"Let's play another." (Vali)
Vali was about to grab the board to rearrange it, but something seemed to be going wrong when time was frozen and a barrier appeared around the meeting place, the location was being attacked by an unknown group.
"Are those idiots from Chaos Bridge??" (Vali)
"Are those idiots from the faction of the old Maou or heroes??" (Issei)
Issei and Vali already seemed to know what this interruption of their board game was about and neither of them liked it at all as they furrowed their brows.
Rias arrived next to Issei, the woman looked worried about something and the boy could understand why.
"Gasper, right??" (Issei)
"Yes..." (Rias)
Rias knew something must have happened to Gasper and Koneko for his power to be activated like that, the enemies attacked there and captured them.
"I recommend Rias and Issei go save the bishop." (Sirzechs)
"I recommend the same." (Michael)
"We'll deal with the people outside." (Azazel)
Issei and Rias said goodbye to everyone there when they formed a red circle with the Gremory emblem, this magic circle would take them to the Occult Research Club where Koneko and Gasper were.
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The two were at the club in an instant and there seemed to be several presences acting in that place, they tried to go to the location where it was most suspicious that Gasper and Koneko had been taken.
"Well... they're going to screw themselves badly for disturbing my peace." (Issei)
"I'm in the same situation, I'll evaporate them." (Rias)
Issei and Rias arrived at a place where there seemed to be strong signs of presence and found Gasper and Koneko trapped in some kind of spell, they were controlling the vampire's power with it.
"It seems you—" (Terrorist)
Issei didn't give her time to say anything when he punched her in the face and threw her out of the building, the boy was really irritated.
"Damn you!!" (Terrorist #2)
Rias let this woman speak before launching destructive energy at this terrorist and seriously injuring her with her powers.
Rias and Issei were an unbeatable duo in that place, the boy took care of close combat attacks and Rias provided support with long-range attacks. The blindfolded boy was not in the mood to joke when he struck those women, he always made sure to hurt them badly and didn't care if they died, and that terrified them. Rias Gremory used her powers of destruction to guard Issei's back and none of them had the chance to even injure him.
"It's funny when these idiots try to do something bad but end up getting destroyed." (Issei)
"They're just a troupe of loser idiots, they don't accept the result of the war and try to do this." (Rias)
Issei and Rias freed Gasper and Koneko, the health of both seemed very good when they were released and they didn't seem injured, only with slight traces of magic in their bodies.
"I was caught off guard." (Koneko)
"I was scared." (Gasper)
Gasper was more tearful when he thought about what happened and felt like isolating himself, Koneko was embarrassed for having been caught with her guard down.
"It's not your fault, it's theirs." (Rias)
Rias tried to comfort the two and Issei did the same with some pats on both of their heads, Koneko didn't refuse his affection this time.
"The strongest people must be at the meeting." (Issei)
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Issei and Rias returned with the group safe, the teleport location this time was outside the meeting place in the open sky, the attacking group was composed of several devils and even some prominent figures.
"It seems you arrived in time to see the show." (Kiba)
"I think we didn't miss anything." (Issei)
"Just the Fallen leader beating up a high-level demon." (Kiba)
Issei and Kiba laughed as they watched that army being defeated and Azazel doing well, today's attack was carried out only by a group of idiots who didn't know how to measure their power and attacked wherever there was an opening.
"What is that??" (Issei)
Issei heard the sound of something being slammed to the ground with great force and saw the fallen angel who was their Governor-General on the ground while smiling and supporting himself with his only remaining hand.
"It seems you're the traitor... Vali!" (Azazel)
Vali was in the sky while looking at Issei with a challenging gaze, the two seemed to understand what they wanted and that this should be the moment.
"This side is better, so I prefer to stay here." (Vali)
Vali was already clad in his Balance Breaker, Issei didn't waste time and walked toward his rival while being enveloped in a powerful glow, his Balance Breaker was also invoked.
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"Now we're going to see two monsters fight." (Xenovia)
Xenovia was eager to see that arrogant man fight, she had never seen him give his all, she had only seen the "easy" defeat Kokabiel suffered.
"I want to see Issei-kun giving everything." (Kiba)
Kiba was confident that his friend would win, because Issei seemed to never lose and this time would be no different.
"The fight of two destined rivals will happen now to determine who is the strongest." (Rias)
Rias was nervous about the fight, she trusted Issei a lot, but she knew things could go wrong since Vali possessed the same type of Sacred Gear as the man she loved.
"Let's trust them." (Sirzechs)
Sirzechs was behind them and didn't want to act for now, he trusted the potential of the man who would be his future younger brother-in-law.
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"Aren't you going to take off the blindfold?" (Vali)
"I had even forgotten about that." (Issei)
Issei removed his blindfold while his eyes shone brightly, he was very excited to fight the enemy in front of him and finally use his 100% against someone, Vali was in the same situation when he advanced with his trident toward him.
"Style of the Phlegethon River: Judgment of Fire." (Vali)
Vali made such a fast movement with his trident that the spear seemed to be on fire when it got close to Issei, the boy clad in Chinese garments quickly dodged instead of trying to counterattack and saw the flames being expelled and easily engulfing the building they were at.
"That turned to dust." (Issei)
Issei didn't waste time when his leg moved at high speed, the movement seemed even faster than usual when he tried to hit Vali's chest area.
"Style of Pegasus: Kick of the Celestial Horse." (Issei)
"You won't hit." (Vali)
Vali intercepted the kick with his trident and was pushed a few steps back, he was smiling when he felt the pressure of that strike and realized the fight could be fun.
"That was just the first exchange." (Vali)
"We still have a lot to give." (Issei)
Issei and Vali advanced toward each other with excited smiles, the man dressed in Chinese clothes delivered powerful kicks and punches in this combat while Vali attacked with his trident and his hair when necessary.
"This is exciting." (Vali)
Vali was hit by some of Issei's punches, punches that made him spit some blood and also reminded him what the heat of a good battle felt like.
"Definitely!" (Issei)
Issei was not left behind when receiving blows, Vali struck him with the handle of the trident in the chest and his shoulder was grazed by the sharp part of his rival's weapon.
"How fun!!" (Vali/Issei)
The two exchanged faster and faster blows while finding it very fun, they were excited to continue their clash, Vali seemed to be gaining the upper hand in this violent exchange.
"Style of the Monkey King: Right Arm of King Kong." (Issei)
Issei strengthened his arm with Ki and demonic power to attack Vali, this was a very powerful and heavy punch, it couldn't be defended with the normal state of the trident alone.
"Style of the Styx River: Invulnerability of the Heavens." (Vali)
Vali's trident emanated a pure light when the underworld symbol stopped Issei's powerful blow, the strike was intercepted by a mysterious graceful movement from the lower side of the weapon.
"I didn't expect that to happen." (Issei)
"Style of the Lethe River: Forgotten Memories." (Vali)
Vali's weapon spun rapidly at the same moment and struck Issei with the blunt part, the blow felt more like it was delivered with a Bo staff, sending the boy flying into the ashes of the meeting building.
"That hurt, it hurt a lot." (Issei)
Issei cursed a little from the pain before advancing again toward his enemy, he was determined not to retreat until he won.
The boy dressed in Chinese clothes advanced at high speed and seemed to be in a furious and rapid charge to attack the man in front of him as Ki and demonic power made the forward rush even more powerful.
"Style of Pegasus: Fury of the Winged Horse." (Issei)
Vali thought about taking this blow head-on, thinking he could defend it with his trident assuming another aura glow and underworld symbol, the movement his weapon made was to stay still and only move when Issei was close.
"Style of the Acheron River: Infernal Ferryman." (Vali)
The two blows collided with much greater force than the previous ones, the barrier made by Chaos Bridge was trembling as they clashed and an even larger cloud of smoke enveloped everyone due to the explosion and collateral damage.
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"The entire city could be destroyed just by the shockwave between those two." (Michael)
"They really are two monsters fighting there." (Azazel)
"I'm glad one of them is on our side." (Sirzechs)
The three leaders were excited about the duel that was happening despite knowing that Issei was being pressured, but it was still the beginning of the fight and it could be turned around.
"Issei..." (Rias)
Rias and the other members of the group were very worried, but they couldn't intervene because the leaders were stopping them.
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"My whole body hurts, this fight is wearing me down a lot." (Issei)
"Are you going to stop this?" (Qin)
"I'll only stop when I really have no chances or I'm exhausted, I'll endure my whole body hurting for the chance to win." (Issei)
"Then I'll do the same." (Qin)
Issei felt his entire body throbbing with pain, there was no explanation for the reaction of the Balance Breaker, but he chose to continue fighting anyway, because his master taught him to fight even if he had the heavens on his shoulders.
"Let's fight with everything." (Vali)
"I wouldn't expect anything less from those two." (Hades)
"Me neither, but they seem to be reaching their limits." (Vali)
"He must have awakened the Balance Breaker recently." (Hades)
Hades and Vali were ready to fight once more, they had superficial wounds on their bodies and still had energy to fight for a long time in Balance Breaker.
"Let's go!!" (Issei/Vali)
Issei ran toward Vali with his palm open, Vali advanced at the same speed as his opponent and his trident seemed to be on fire again as he approached Issei.
"Style of the Azure Dragon: Palm of Ao Kuang." (Issei)
"Style of the Phlegethon River: Infernal Fury." (Vali)
Vali's strike had flames even more powerful than his previous strike of the same style, the trident tried to pierce Issei's chest to kill him, but the man twisted slightly and it only managed to hit his shoulder, however it left a large part of the shoulder burned from the simple graze.
Issei's palm also aimed at Vali's chest, but it also failed to hit directly, only grazing his shoulder, this grazing blow fractured the bones in that area and almost broke them completely.
"I took more damage." (Issei)
"That strike was very powerful, I'm glad it didn't hit me directly." (Vali)
Issei and Vali tried to assess the damage they had suffered during this battle, the young Hyoudou had superficial damage all over his body, he had cuts, his right shoulder was almost completely destroyed and some ribs were broken due to the blow with the base of the trident.
Vali was in better condition than Issei, his left shoulder might have some bones almost broken, but they were still usable, his body was full of superficial wounds like punch and kick marks and he also had some broken ribs.
"This will be the climax." (Vali)
"The climax is perfect for what will happen now!" (Issei)
Issei and Vali raised their auras to the limit as the two struggled to see which would have supremacy over the other, this strike would be the most intense and powerful between them.
"Style of the Azure Dragon..." (Issei)
"Style of the Cocytus River..." (Vali)
The auras of Issei and Vali were taking shape now as they became increasingly dense and visible, Hyoudou's aura took the form of a Chinese dragon while the white-haired man's aura took the form of an Ice Sovereign.
"Inferno of Ice!" (Vali)
Vali's trident strikes became faster and faster and many afterimages were generated as his trident seemed like multiple infernal ice stakes of Cocytus.
"Rain of Fists!" (Issei)
Issei's fists moved with increasing speed, they moved even faster than when he fought Kokabiel, the punches didn't seem like a heavy rain falling to the ground, it seemed like something far more terrifying, a punishment from a celestial being.
"I will be the winner!!" (Vali/Issei)
The blows collided faster and faster, the "stakes" met the "rain" and had an insane result, sometimes the stakes were destroyed, sometimes the rain was, but it didn't change the terrifying power that was destroying the entire ground and surroundings with it.
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"They're really trying to kill each other." (Sirzechs)
"This confrontation between the two is getting more and more insane." (Azazel)
"This was expected from two emperors." (Michael)
The three leaders watched with some curiosity about when to intervene and end this fight, but they knew it was close to the end and they wouldn't need to be present anymore.
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Vali and Issei were hit a few times by each other's attacks, Vali had the left side of his clothes destroyed and seemed to have one eye badly injured, almost losing his vision.
Issei had the upper part of his Balance Breaker completely destroyed while his burned shoulder seemed close to falling off his body due to the pain.
"Now!!" (Vali)
Vali realized that the burned shoulder was a weak point for Issei at that moment and pressed with all his strength in that attack, an even larger explosion enveloped everything as the two were thrown far away.
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"Issei!!" (Rias)
"We need to help Issei-san." (Asia)
"Issei..." (Akeno)
"Win, don't lose to anyone." (Kiba)
Rias tried to jump in to intervene in the fight, but was stopped by Sirzechs, Asia fell to the ground while watching this and Akeno was nervous along with Kiba, the blow from now seemed to have been very heavy for both Vali and Issei.
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Vali stood up from the rubble sooner, he had lost the vision in his right eye from that final exchange, but he could still move.
Issei took a little longer to get up, his shoulder was hit again and he ended up losing not only the shoulder, but the arm in that battle.
"I only have strength for one more blow, you'll win if you stay standing after this." (Issei)
"I'll win either way." (Vali)
Vali and Issei no longer emanated such grand auras, they were dim as the two entered their stance for a final attack, the flames on Vali's trident were weak while Issei could only use one hand for the technique he was about to perform.
"Style of the White Tiger: Tyrant's Fury." (Issei)
"Style of the Phlegethon River: Judgment of Fire." (Vali)
Issei mimicked a fang with his remaining hand as he advanced toward Vali's shoulder, the man with the trident used the same technique that started the battle to clash with Issei.
"I will stay standing." (Vali)
"Fall!!" (Issei)
The two auras collided in that blow, the clash between them was enough to generate a crater where they stood and send Issei flying.
"How curious." (Vali)
"Very curious." (Issei)
Issei and Vali stared at each other as they began to laugh loudly and jumped in different directions, the white-haired man went with a newcomer dressed in brown armor and a Sun Wukong tiara, the two didn't say anything as they left through teleportation magic.
Issei jumped toward his friends while deactivating the Balance Breaker, he barely managed to stay standing before collapsing to the ground and needed medical treatment to recover.
"It seems I lost..." (Issei)
"Learn from defeat and become even better." (Qin)
The last thing Issei heard before passing out was his teacher's voice and the sound of everyone's footsteps coming to help him, the girls seemed very worried about him and the leaders as well.
"Issei!!" (Everyone)
The Gremory Group rushed quickly to reach where Issei was, they were very worried about the condition of the boy lying on the ground without an arm and with various kinds of bleeding.
"I'll save him, I'll heal him!" (Asia)
Asia began Issei's treatment while very nervous and even with tears in her eyes, she was extremely worried about the current situation.
Rias and Akeno seemed to have nervous ticks as they watched the man lying there, Koneko was showing a bit of weakness while Kiba was worried about his friend as he comforted Gasper, Xenovia was grinding her teeth at the scene and Irina did the same.