Chapter 10: The Might of the Third Years

The Himekagura Festival currently taking place at Tenbi Academy was becoming livelier by the minute as a flood of students made their way across campus to explore the various booths and shops. This year's opening day was easily the most successful in terms of sales by far when compared to the previous years. It made sense when you thought about it; the school had just recently become a co-ed school with the male to female ratio being slightly favoured towards the males for less than innocent reasons.

In other words, there were horny male students who wanted to get into a school with pretty young girls.

If this were a normal high school, that may have been a problem that could have led to legal issues but anyone who knew what kind of institute Tenbi Academy truly was would know that trying to force your "love" onto the girls here was the equivalent of sticking your head into an alligator.

Speaking of suicidal attempts, one had already been attempted by a naive male student who had fallen in love with a new female transfer student and challenged her to an official duel. What amounted from the "duel" was an instant knockout, courtesy of the female student who had gathered quite a few number of admirers from both genders as she cocked her head to the side in a confusing manner, apparently unaware of why or how she had gathered so much attention.

"Hey, who is that? She's hot!"

"I don't know man... but did you see here take down that guy with one kick? She's a badass"

"She's so beautiful... I want her to be my older sister"

Whispers and murmurs came from all around as she the woman in question sighed deeply.

"This is... quite troubling..."

Isabella Garett, the 1st princess of the Garett family and a new transfer student at Tenbi Academy had just defeated her first opponent with no problems and tried to leave the crowded area. She had only tried to look around the campus for a bit after having been formally introduced to the school and getting a good night's rest in her quarters. The first thing she wanted to do in the morning was locate her sensei and Nagi, but naturally she had no luck in either of those departments and somehow ended up in this duel with a buffoon.

"Wow, you're quite the fighter aren't you, Isabella-san?"

That voice came from Kimmy Sato who walked beside Isabella and had accompanied her throughout most of the day. Though she had her duties to fulfill as a member of the Maken-Ki, the student council president Furan had allowed her to show Isabella around for awhile and let her enjoy the festival.

Isabella briskly shook her head to deny the claim. "I'm nothing special. That man was just extremely weak so he made me look better than I actually am"

As always, Isabella was quick to showcase her humbleness but that's what made her more comfortable to be around. At least, that's what Kim thought.

"You don't have to be so modest, I can tell you've trained hard and your moves reflect it. I'm really envious of you"

An eyebrow was raised by Isabella. "Are you not a part of the student council? Surely you must possess impressive strength to have earned a spot there?"

Kimmy shook her head. "Everyone thinks that you have to be this super tough fighter to become a member but that's completely wrong. My skills rely more on my Maken and my talents outside of battle such as financing and managing. Really, those are the only things I'm good at"

She wasn't being modest; out of all the Maken-Ki members, Kimmy was easily the weakest in terms of pure combat. That didn't bother her in the slightest though, as with members like Haruko and Himegami who were both powerhouses, Kimmy's talents shined even brighter.

"Is that right? Well excuse me for assuming the way I did, I'm sure Kim-san is an remarkable and valuable member of the team in her own way"

A light blush was faint on Kimmy's face at such praise and she rubbed the back of her head and giggled. To her, it felt tingly inside when she was complimented. Especially from such a beauty!

Changing the subject, Isabella's eyes darted in various directions as she kept on high alert for any signs of her sensei or Nagi. "I wish those two would have told me where they were going yesterday" A tint of red then enveloped Isabella's cheeks "I really wanted to explore the festival with them"

Kimmy giggled. "I'm sure we'll find them, Takeshi-sensei's pretty famous around here and Nagi-san is... well, his fan club will probably try to find out what he's up to"

Isabella stopped walking.

"Fan club?"

"That's right; there are several fan clubs for high ranking students in our school that are both strong and beautiful. The normal students really admire and look up to them. If I remember correctly, Himegami-san and Haruko-san both have one along with Celia-san from Venus and Aki-sensei who's called the sexy nurse"

"That's amazing... wait, so Nagi-san already has one of those fan clubs?"

Kimmy smiled as she noted that Isabella seemed to be worried about the fact that Nagi could be surrounded by numerous girls. How adorable.

"Definitely. Nagi-san is really handsome after all so it's not a surprise. Everyone's talking about him, even how he was seen walking around with both the principal and Aki-sensei yesterday and looked awfully close with them"

A sense of worry clouded Isabella's face at the thought of such beautiful woman hanging around Nagi. She had been introduced to both the principal and Aki yesterday and was rendered speechless by their... rather endowed assets. She looked down at herself and was certain she wasn't lacking at all in appeal, but having seen those monsters... she was quickly losing confidence in herself. Not to mention, she wasn't even aware of Nagi's type so that troubled her even further.

Kimmy interjected while Isabella still thinking "As for me, I've never been interested in stuff like fan clubs. If they've got time to waste making a club about another person's life, they should be spending it reading some manga" Kimmy's eyes then seemed to start gleaming as she turned to Isabella with starry eyes. "By any chance, are you interested in manga?"

A cold sweat fell from Isabella's back as she recalled the words of advice she had gotten from the student council president regarding Kimmy's manga obsession.

"If Kimmy ever starts talking about manga, change the subject immediately. I'm warning you, you'll regret it otherwise"

"K-Kimmy-san, don't you think we should head towards the gymnasium where the match between our team and Otohime's team should start soon?"

"You're right!"

Kimmy suddenly grabbed Isabella's hand and dragged her off, unbeknownst of the sigh of relief coming from Isabella at having successfully dodged a bullet.

They weren't the only ones, more than half of the entire student population had began to gather behind the gymnasium where the official clash between the two teams was about to begin. The clock was ticking and everyone was becoming nervous on how the battle was going to turn out and who would emerge victorious.

Minori, Aki, and Gen had already woken up and left Nagi and Takeshi, both of whom had overslept, back at the dorms while they had begun the preparations of the duel. Gen mentioned he had some business to deal with and would Tenbi Academy for a bit, leaving Minori and Aki to sort out the team selection for the first event. Several members of the Maken-Ki had gathered in the back room of the gymnasium and were trying to think of their strategy for the game.

"So, is everyone satisfied with this line up?"

Minori asked that question to all those present as a resounding nod came from all of them to signify no disagreements. The battle would be a three on three competition so they were forced to choose their three most suitable combatants for the nature of the game known as "Net Ball". They had decided to compete fairly and chose the game they were participating in at random from a list of games collected by the student body.

Azuki Shinatsu, one of the competitors of the upcoming battle pounded her fist into her palm and grinned. "I can't wait to show that damn bitch Otohime how we at Tenbi get down. I'll knock that smug girl off her high horse"

Kai Kurigasa, who was also competing, nodded. "I agree Azuki-san, if we work together we'll be sure to win!"

"Hey, what about me? I'm fighting too ya know!" Takeru Oyama, the last and final competitor whined as he rubbed his head.

Aki, who still wasn't completely convinced that these three would be the best choices, whispered over towards Minori. "Hey, are you sure about this?"

"Sure about what?"

"The teams obviously, I can understand Azuki-san but Takeru-kun and Kurigasa-kun are both freshman. Those third years girls aren't opponents they can take lightly you know, especially since Otohime will be on their side..."

Minori seemed rather annoyed at Aki questioning her judgment and frowned. "Quit nagging me, you're not my father. Besides, those three have all become much stronger since the beginning of the semester, they'll be fine"

"But..."

"No buts Aki! Trust in my judgment, it's never been wrong!"

Minori grinned as she gave her friend a thumbs up, not noticing the continuing worry spread on Aki's face. How many times had Aki suffered through so much after Minori had given her the "smile and thumbs up" pose?

Then, a soothing voice came from the student council president, Furan Takaki who walked forward and smiled towards Aki.

"Worry not Aki-sensei, this battle is just a distraction from our main goal. Even if we don't win, we'll make sure to capture Otohime and her girls as soon as the opportunity presents itself"

"But isn't that kind of going against what the duel stands for?"

Azuki snorted as she crossed her arms. "And you think those bitches are going to play fair? They've probably got some kind of scheme ready as a backup plan so we should do the same"

Everyone agreed on that statement wholeheartedly after seeing what kind of person Otohime truly was.

With no more complaints, Aki deeply sighed as she rubbed her forehead and then smiled at her students. "Then good luck everyone and please remember that if you ever get hurt, I'll be right here to take care of you~"

As she said that while leaning forward, Takeru and Kurigasa blushed immensely at the exposed cleavage that Aki's low cut blouse was showing. Minori snickered at their reactions but Azuki didn't appreciate such behaviour right before a big game and knocked them both in their heads.

"Are you two okay!?"

Aki's worry was lost on the male duo as they were face down on the floor with bumps on their head.

"...Why'd she hit us?"

"Stay focused on the match you pervs"

Minori couldn't help laugh at Aki's innocent way of getting guys into trouble. It must have been some sort or talent, that or she was doing it on purpose and had the cunningness of a fox.

Sighing as she ignored the beaten boys on the ground, Furan calmly adjusted her glasses and turned to Minori. "By the way principal, I heard Takeshi-sensei and a friend of his came to the school yesterday. Where are they?"

"That's right, I also heard about that. Are they touring the festival?"

In the face of both Azuki's and Furan's questioning gazes, Minori scratched her cheek awkwardly and avoided their gazes.

"They... uh... kinda slept in"

"...Huh?"

She grumbled "...Those two idiots forgot to wake up and we left them..."

"..."

An uncomfortable silence passed within the hallway as Azuki and Furan both looked disbelieving at the principal who tried to ignore their stares.

"They slept in... on such an important day?"

"Well..."

Before Minori could answer, Aki had decided to intervene as a devious grin appeared on her face.

"It seem Nagi-san was incredibly tired after having gone a round with Minori last night, so you'll have to excuse his absence"

"A-Aki!"

The now flustered Minori immediately glared at her close friend who playfully stuck her tongue out of her mouth. Aki had been suspicious about Minori's attitude yesterday whenever someone mentioned Nagi and her reaction just now confirmed it. Her tomboy best friend finally had a crush on someone! Exploiting this golden piece of news was something Aki was prepared to do indefinitely.

Minori then turned her sights to Azuki and Furan who, for a lack of better words, looked exasperated by what she just said.

"Uhm... principal?"

"Don't listen to what she's saying; I never did anything of the sort!"

"Oh? So are you saying you and Nagi-san didn't clash yesterday in a bout of hot passion?"

She then grinned maliciously towards Minori who flinched at the rather accurate, if not misleading question.

"No! I-I-I mean we kinda did but, stop saying it like that! You're confusing them!"

Aki was having far more fun with this teasing session than she thought possible and laughed earnestly as Minori was freaking out. Azuki and Furan traded odd looks between each other, wondering what in the world was going on.

After Minori had calmed down and gotten Aki to shut up with a deathly glare, she crossed her arms and extended her fist towards the four students standing before her.

"Anyway! I'm counting on you brats so go out there and win!"

"Right!"

They met her fist bump with each of their own and proceeded to the open curtains behind the gymnasium, prepared to give it all they got.

With the festival's main event drawing closer and closer, the number of students flooding around the gymnasium was bound to increase as the students kept piling in. Shortly before that however, there were still many smaller but just as popular class events going on during the festival. The maid cafe hosted by members of the Maken-Ki was a smashing hit and in its glee of success, several other cafe's had opened to match them.

Among those cafe's, one of them in particular was becoming ridiculously popular due to the appearance of a heavenly beauty that had appeared not too long ago to enjoy a cup of tea. Her elegant figure sitting down gracefully, legs crossed over one another and hand on her lap was truly a sight to behold among the freshman students and even sophomores.

One male student gulped internally as he was too dazzled by her beauty to think straight. "O-Oi, who is that!?"

"I...I don't know but she's smoking hot..."

"Isn't she one of the third years participating in the battle today against Team Tenbi?"

"Oh! You're right, but what was her name again?"

Yes, the one sitting down and now sipping her warmly brewed cup of tea was none other than Love Espada of Team Otohime. Her sharp eyes which had been closed not too long ago slightly opened as they slid over to the several male students gazing lustfully at her, a seductive smile now appearing on her face.

"Ah! S-S-She's looking at me!"

"Get real idiot, she's glancing at me!"

As the two bickered, Espada let out an innocent chuckle as she continued to sip her tea.

"How precious, men fighting over my attention..."

Espada could never understand the inner workings of men such as them, arguing over such a trivial thing. As for why she was here at this particular moment, she had decided to check out the festival herself as Otohime allowed her and the rest of the third years to separate for a short while before the tournament. They were given free reign over what to do and Espada had chosen to drink some tea and look to see if any prospering candidates would appear.

And by candidates, she meant any suitable men that she could battle against in the hopes of making her heart burst into flames at the sheer excitement of fighting a worthy adversary. Just the mere thought of encountering someone like that made Espada tingle with glee and a wicked smile appeared on her face but she instantly regained her composure and sighed.

Having said all of that, her search had been rather unsuccessful so far as no one of interest had popped onto her radar since the moment she entered the classroom. Even though she was the center of attention and was approached by a countless number of male freshman and butlers, all of them smitten by her radiance; none of them were worth sparing a second glance.

Of course, the females that piqued Espada's interest were a different matter entirely as she had no qualms with having a little "fun" with any cute girl before her match began.

Suddenly, Espada felt a vibration coming from her inner thighs and slightly moaned as she savoured the invigorating sensation. Before she completely lost herself in her pleasure, she coughed and reached for the device, placing it next to her ear. It was a communication device given to all of Otohime's subordinates that allowed for quick and swift commands to be issued. As for the reason Espada had attached it to her thigh... well, that was a story for another time

"Espada, can you hear me?"

The voice that spoke was soft and reeked of nobility.

"Yes, quite clear in fact Otohime-dono"

"I trust you have taken care of your personal affairs?"

"For the most part, the festival has been enjoyable so far so am I grateful for you allowing me to take part in it"

"I'm glad to hear it. I called just to inform you that the match will begin shortly and you're the only one left that has yet to return"

"Oh? It seems that I had gotten carried away. I will return shortly"

"Please do so; I'm expecting great results from you, Espada"

"I live to please"

Just as Espada thought the communication was over and was about to end the signal, Otohime's reluctant voice came through again.

"...Espada... by any chance... you aren't putting the communication device inside your thighs again... right?"

"..."

"..."

"I'll be returning shortly"

The communication ended immediately and Espada got up from her seat, leaving a couple of tickets on the table and made her way out the door.

"Please come back again!"

Several maids and butlers bowed deeply towards the stunning beauty leaving their store, almost melting in admiration as the woman winked at them.

Espada's leave of the classroom caused a huge ruckus among the students standing in the hallway as they all moved out of the way to allow her passage. To them, Espada was a woman of untouchable beauty that very few could match in their school. Even if she was fighting for Otohime's side, there wasn't a man in the school who would hate her for it. In fact, it made her even more desirable as the idea of Espada being a "villain" had a strange charm to it.

As she ignored the passing glances of obvious lust and admiration thrown her way, Espada's eyes were darting all over the place as she observed the countless men gazing at her.

"It's a shame all of these men are not only weak but also plain looking..."

Espada wasn't a lesbian; she was just as interested in men as she was women, despite what the rumours might have said. There were just very few men that appealed to a woman of her tastes, as she preferred strong and confident men, with looks being a negotiable factor. Even if a man wasn't anything special in the looks department, if his strength was noteworthy, Espada wouldn't hesitate to bed him.

"I've heard rumours of Takeru Oyama and how he fought on par with Ouken-sama... I'll have to see for myself today if he's worthy of my attention"

Passing a nearby corner that would take her to the first floor where she would join her teammates, the gathering of a large group of girls piqued Espada's interest and she briskly walked towards them.

"What's this...?"

It was a strange sight to behold as they were all wearing the same coloured crimson t-shirts, with matching headbands, glow sticks, and a large banner sign that read in bold letters "NAGI FAN-CLUB".

"A... fanclub? Well that's not strange in itself considering even I have one... but I've never heard of a person with that name before. Is she a new student here?"

Fan clubs were indeed a common sight in Tenbi Academy and there were new groups made almost every year. When Espada was still a student, she had easily become the most famous maiden in the school and had gathered the largest fan club in the school's history. Even to this day, there were still members of that group that worshiped her as if she was some sort of goddess.

However, the amount of women gathered here in this hallway was enough to even rival her own fan club. She honestly didn't care about any of that but it was definitely an interesting sight for her, who could only guess what kind of beauty could produce such a thing.

Curious, she stepped forward and grabbed the shoulders of one of the girls in the back who was cheering the loudest.

"Excuse me; I'd like to ask you something"

"Hah!? Can't you see that I'm...Ehhh!? Espada-senpai!?"

The surprised woman nearly had a heart attack as the former idol and goddess of Tenbi Academy was standing right next to her, a beautiful and charming smile gracing her lips.

"I'd like you to answer my question, is that alright?"

Espada's sense of personal space had practically become non-existent as she was mere inches away from the flustered student who flinched when Espada has caressed her soft cheeks with her hand. She stroked it softly and leaned her face in, being close enough to see deep into the woman's' eyes.

"Y-Y-Yes? A-Anything you'd like, I'll do it!"

"Sometimes this is too easy..."

Espada had her right where she wanted and asked a simple question.

"Who is this fan club for?"

"Oh! Of course, t-this fanclub is for a new instructor called Nagi! W-Well, we actually don't have confirmation that he's a real instructor here but we saw him walking with a former instructor so that's where the rumour started. The ones who created this fan club are the only girls who have seen him so the rest of us are really curious to know what he looks like"

"Is that so..."

Well, that was a surprise.

For the person who Espada assumed was a gorgeous female that she could have possibly had some fun with too instead be a gorgeous male of all things. How... incredibly lucky!

A sinister smile crept upon Espada's face, as the thought of "devouring" a male after such a long time was an irresistible treat. The only thing left to confirm now was if this Nagi was as formidable as he was impressive to these girls in his appearance.

While Espada was thinking that, she barely noticed the female student who was still flustered at being this close with her. Deciding to "reward" the girl for her efforts, she leaned in and planted a wet kiss on the girl's forehead and stroked her cheek once more.

"You're a good girl; I'll play with you later"

"E-E-E-Ehhh!?"

She almost fainted after hearing those words and could only watch Espada walk away in a graceful manner, completely unaware of the true inner thoughts of the one who was known as the strongest maiden in Tenbi.

"Damn it!"

"Hey, slow down old man!"

As the festival's main event was only moments away from starting, two individuals were seen running across the school grounds in a flash. Since the battle between Tenbi and Otohime's squad was the talk of the school, nearly everyone had shut down their booths and finished playing their games to go and watch behind the gymnasium.

Unfortunately, that didn't include these two who had slept in and had forgotten all about it.

"Why didn't anyone wake us up!?"

Takeshi was noticeably grumpy this morning as he had planned to tour around the school festival before the main event began and visit all of the cute shops with maid girls. His plans however, had been utterly ruined thanks to no one waking him up so it wasn't a surprise that he wasn't in the happiest of moods.

A faint yawn escaped Nagi's mouth as he kept up pace with Takeshi. "Doubt it would have mattered, you sleep like a rock old man"

"I don't want to hear that from you!"

Nagi's attitude was far more lax compared to Takeshi's, as the red haired man didn't look troubled in the slightest. To him, getting a good night's rest after having traveled through another dimension after facing off against one of his monster like friends was much more important than some battle between school kids.

"[Attention all students!]"

Just then, the sound of a woman's voice echoed throughout the campus as Takeshi and Nagi stopped abruptly.

Nagi frowned. "What's that?"

"It's the school speaker; the person who's talking on the other side can transmit their voice all around Tenbi just by speaking into a microphone"

"Huh, how neat" A spark of interest escaped Nagi's voice as he listened to Takeshi's explanation.

"[The main event for today featuring the duel between Team Tenbi and Team Yamato Takeru will begin shortly. Please make your way towards the gymnasium; you don't want to miss this!]"

After the transmission had cut off, Takeshi's eyes wandered all over the place at trying to find where the gymnasium was. His memory was playing tricks on him again but he was too prideful to admit that too Nagi, who had long since figured it out himself.

"Old man..."

Takeshi gulped internally at the annoyed gaze coming from Nagi and frantically pointed in a random direction. "L-Look! See, I didn't get lost again!"

An annoyed twitch came from Nagi's eyebrow. "Oh? You want to explain to me then how the gymnasium suddenly got outside the entrance of the school?

Takeshi reluctantly looked in the direction he had pointed too and sure enough, his hand was aiming towards the entrance. An embarrassing silence followed as Takeshi ruffled his air and avoided eye contact with Nagi who was beginning to lose his patience.

Sighing, Nagi decided to screw what was considered "conventional" and grabbed Takeshi's shoulder, causing the older man to flinch.

"W-What are you doing?"

"Shut up, we're doing it my way now"

Activating his magic, Nagi's and Takeshi's bodies began to levitate off of the ground and in one quick burst; they took off through the air.

"W-Whoa!"

Takeshi was beyond amazed at experiencing such a thing as the wind blew in his face and he watched the ground beneath get further and further away.

"A-Are we really flying?"

Nagi turned back to Takeshi at hearing such a stupid question. "Well duh, didn't you see me floating in the air with Minori yesterday?"

"Well yea but still... this is amazing"

When Nagi was able to do things like these, he really did seem like a magician from the fairy tales that kids used to read growing up. Well, minus his personality and absurd strength.

As the two glided through the air, Nagi's eyes wandered aimlessly in search of the gymnasium that he had yet to visit. He didn't know what it looked like but he was confident that all he had to do was look for a large gathering of people and he'd have his answer.

Right on cue, Nagi's eyes found an enormous group of students standing behind a large building with several monitors placed on the walls.

"I'm guessing that's the place"

Takeshi, who was still enjoying his time in the sky, followed Nagi's eyes and nodded. "That's it"

Nagi grinned. "Awesome, we'll land over on that building to get the best seats in the house"

They landed on a building right beside the gymnasium and walked forward towards the building's edge; where they sat down to get a good viewing of the battle about to take place.

"Well I'll be damned, I didn't think there would be this many people here. Practically the entire school must be here"

"Is that so? Munch... Munch..."

"Can't you at least try to seem intereste-"

Takeshi paused for a second, eyes darting back to the figure of Nagi who was digging into a black bento with golden ornaments decorated all over it. The contents of the box were filled with scrumptious delicacies, such as rice cakes, sliced chicken, and baked pork buns.

Takeshi asked the obvious question.

"Where'd you get that?"

Nagi answered immediately. "It was in front of the door of our room when I left with my name attached to it. Dunno who made it but I'm not one to turn down free food"

"..."

As Takeshi stared blankly at Nagi, who continued to stuff his face, the rumour of Nagi having a fan club popped into the older man's head. Takeshi, for all of his popularity and reputation among those in Tenbi, never had a fan club of his own so it left a bitter taste in his mouth at seeing Nagi obtain one on his first day at the school alongside a homemade lunch, no doubt made by a bunch of cute girls.

He was shaken from his thoughts when Nagi shoved the bento in front of his face as he continued to munch on a rice cake. "You want some?"

Though Takeshi's pride would have made him reject it immediately, he was hungry so he told his pride to screw off.

"If you don't mind"

As such, the two enjoyed the wonderfully prepared meals of the bento and watched as both teams emerged from their respective base camps while the announcers began introducing them.

"[Alright! Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome the annual Himekagura Festival Main Event! We'll be starting off today's battle between Team Tenbi and Team Yamato Takeru with the event known as Net Ball!]"

"Oooh! Net ball is it? Haha, this should be exciting?"

Nagi wasn't following Takeshi's excitement and cocked his head. "Netball?"

"Oh that's right; you've never participated in the festivals before so you wouldn't know. I'll explain it simply so try to pay attention"

Though Nagi didn't appreciate the fact that Takeshi was treating him like an idiot, he nodded and motioned for him to continue.

"Net Ball is a game where there are three players on each opposing side, with the stage that they play on being marked by a large rectangle, kind of like soccer. There are three positions; jumper, attacker, and defender that all play different roles in the game but you'll see that soon enough. In the middle of the stage is a ball that will be launched into the air by an air compression machine, where the jumper has to get it and pass to their team mates. The ball can't touch the floor otherwise its other team's ball and you have to coordinate with your team mate to get the ball into the net that the defender is blocking"

"Hoh..."

If Nagi wasn't interested before, he definitely was now as he whistled in amazement at such a simple but fun sounding game.

Takeshi wasn't finished explaining as he grinned. "That's not all, as the ball is in play; physical combat is allowed to throw your enemies off. With the pressure of not allowing the ball to touch the ground along with watching out for enemy strikes, it truly is a fascinating game to watch"

"It does sound intriguing, I'll admit. Wait, isn't that kid standing over there your son?"

Nagi pointed towards the figure of Takeru smiling with his hands on his hips, causing Takeshi to smile contently.

"Yea, that little fellow is a chip off the old block. Let's go Takeru! Daddy's watching you!"

Takeru, who was itching to start the game, shuddered as his body squirmed and he looked in all directions to the source of displeasure he just felt.

As she was in the middle of her stretches, Azuki noticed Takeru's odd behaviour and raised an eyebrow. "What's wrong? You getting cold feet already?"

Takeru shook his head and pounded his fist. "Not at all, I'm ready to get started any time!" He then turned to Kuragasa, whose entire body almost filled the net. "Right, Kai?"

Nodding in agreement, the towering freshman known as Kuragasa Kai roared loudly. "If it's for Azuki-san, I'll devote my all to it!"

"Swell, now stop getting distracted and focus. Our enemies are just about ready"

On the other side, Espada, Kajiru, and Hoshii were all standing in a group and glaring down Team Tenbi as they were given orders by Otohime herself to win the match at all costs. Espada herself flicked a strand of her lavish blonde hair out of her eyes and smirked seductively.

"I'm excited to see what our opponents are capable of, especially that boy over there" She then glanced over towards her partner Hoshii who was sucking on a lollipop. "Hoshii, what's the data we have on him?"

"Hmm? Nothing much, I watched him over the past twenty four hours and aside from his power level being slightly above average and his blood pointer ability, there isn't anything else worth mentioning"

"Hmm..."

Espada's expectations for Takeru had slightly lowered upon hearing that but she still held onto some hope that he'd be able to match her once the game started.

"What's your take on him, Kajiru?"

Kajiru Sorana, the rather large and obese high school that covered just as much of the net as Kai did shrugged her shoulders. "He doesn't seem all that special, but Otohime-san said not to underestimate him as he has a troublesome ability"

Espada nodded. "Blood Pointer, the ability to absorb element from anyone standing close to the user. It is indeed a fascinating ability... but that won't matter as I will show him a strength he won't a chance to utilize"

"There's also that Nagi person I'll have to investigate once this match is over..."

As her thoughts drifted, the announcement table spoke once again.

"[Ladies and Gentleman! Are you ready to begin this year's Himekagura Festival Net Ball Event!?]"

The crowd watching through the monitor erupted into hysteria as they were eagerly anticipating the match to start. Among them, several of the Maken-Ki was gathered there, along with allies from both Yomatsuri and Venus.

Haruko was noticeably worried about her juniors going up against her seniors as she watched the figure of Takeru on the screen.

"I hope Take-chan will be alright"

"He'll be fine Haruko-san! Takeru-san is strong!" Inaho reassured her with a prideful smile on her face.

"Yea! Don't worry Haruko-senpai! That idiot is as tough as a cockroach, I'm sure he'll worm his way through!"

"T-Thanks Uruchi-san"

Despite being slightly put off by the way Uruchi had worded that last part about Takeru with that same innocent smile on her face, Haruko felt slightly better.

"Hahaha! Don't worry, Azuki's there with em so they'll be fine"

Chacha's brimming voice spoke as she looked just as cheerful and anxious as ever. Haruko couldn't share in her enthusiasm as her memory of how powerful her seniors were still lingered freshly in her mind.

"Takeru and Kai, those lucky bastards...!"

Usui's voice took Haruko's attention away as she noticed the obvious signs of contempt and jealously filling the younger boy's eyes.

"I wanted a chance to show off my good side to Himegami-senpai but why do they get all of the attention?"

Haruko gave him an awkward smile. "Is that the only reason you want to fight for our team?"

"O-Of course not, Haruko-senpai! I also want to fight for all of the cute girls and win their affections! Himegami-senpai just comes as a priority to me, ya know?"

"How lucky for me..."

That dry voice alerted everyone's attention as they watched Himegami herself walk towards them from behind Chacha.

Usui practically tried to tackle her as he jumped into the air. "Himegami-senpai! I missed you so- Uoof!"

Not a second later, Usui's face was buried into the ground with Himegami's leg firmly planted on top of it, with her neutral face conveying her disinterest in dealing with the pest. Rather, her eyes seemed keen of finding someone else as they darted from corner to corner in a hurried fashion, like a lost child looking for its mother.

"What's wrong Himegami-chan?" Haruko asked rather confusedly.

"Huh? Oh... nothing, I was just looking for someone... a certain idiot that I need to payback"

"...Who's that?"

No one seemed to know who she was talking about until light bulb went off inside Chacha's head and she pointed towards her.

"Ah! I know! You're looking for that Nagi guy, aren't cha?

"...!"

In the face of Chacha's rather accurate prediction, Himegami was tongue tied as she attempted to avoid confirming the energetic girl's presumptuous declaration.

"N-No... what would make you think I was looking for him...?"

"Oya? Did you forget already how Azuki and I watched you run off looking for him yesterday?"

"...Damn it"

Himegami was out of options as she couldn't refute the truth and sighed heavily, scratching her head as she crossed her arms.

"Fine whatever, I admit I was looking for him. That idiot promised me he would fight with us but then claims he won't be participating in the match! Are you happy now?"

"Hahaha, of course! It's nice to know Himegami-chan has got a crush on someone!"

"Eh?"

"Wha!?"

"Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaat!?"

The surprised voices of Himegami, Haruko, and the rest of the girls nearby were drowned out by Usui, who arose after being planted into the ground, and looked shocked to the core.

"My dear sweet Himegami is in love with that pretty boy asshole!? Damn it all to hell! This just isn't fair!"

"N-No! It's not like that at all you idiot!"

Himegami tried to shut him up as quickly as she could and landed a solid punch towards the hysteric Usui's abdomen, knocking the poor man unconscious as he laid flat on the ground.

"...Wasn't that a bit harsh?"

All those presently watching the spectacle wondered the same thing but their attention was then drawn towards the start of the match as the announcer's voice came back in.

"[Alright folks! It's time to begin the first round of Net Ball! I'm sure you all know how this game works already so we'll skip explaining it and get straight into the opening play! Remember, first team to score a point wins the first game of the series! Jumpers, take your positions!]"

After each team had designated their respective roles to one another, their jumpers stepped forward and faced each other on opposite sides, with a cylinder shaped machine standing in between them containing a white softball.

"Fufufu, it seems we'll have a chance to play with one another a lot sooner than I expected"

For Otohime's side, Espada was chosen as their jumper as she stood across from Takeru, who was the chosen jumper for Team Tenbi. Takeru gritted his teeth and took a deep breath, not just because a drop dead gorgeous woman was standing right in front of him, but also because he sensed how incredibly powerful she was.

"So this is Love Espada... the one who was formerly called the strongest maiden for Tenbi before Haruko-chan"

He felt something similar to this before, when he fought against Ouken Yamato during the summer along with Tesshin Kushiya in the underground cave. The presence of an individual with strength far surpassing an ordinary ability user; it was breath terrifying. Takeru wasn't stupid, he knew very well that the strength he displayed against Ouken wasn't something he could pull out anytime and his ordinary level was only good enough to be ranked at B class. He then turned around, watching his comrade's get into position as they noticed his worried gaze and gave him a thumbs up out of encouragement.

Takeru smirked, confident that he wouldn't let his friend's down as he squatted and prepared to jump.

Espada noticed the boy's change in demeanour and smiled, anticipating a good match between them.

"[It seems our participants are ready! Let's begin the first round! On your marks! Get set! Go!]"

The ball immediately was launched from the catapult and flew through the air at an alarming rate. Takeru immediately jumped afterwards and soared towards the ascending ball that showed no signs of slowing down as he reached his hand out to grab it.

"That's it, Takeru!"

"Nice! He's got this!"

"When did he get so fast!?"

The crowd's cheers were clearly in Takeru's favour as he seemed to have improved a great deal to most onlookers who recalled his previous level of strength. Azuki was especially pleased as she watched her junior, whom she took for nothing more than a useless fellow; grow in such a short amount of time.

"Look Haruko-senpai! That idiot is doing something useful! We can-

Uruchi shut her mouth immediately when she noticed Haruko's face produced a horrified expression. Quickly turning back to the monitor, Uruchi's eyes widened in disbelief as she couldn't believe what she was seeing.

Takeru, who had almost reached the ball that was beginning to slowly come back down, was confident that he was going to be the first to grab the ball. Just as he thought so-

Boing!

"H-Huh!?"

Instead of grabbing the dense and hard texture of a ball, the sensation that he was feeling in his hand was soft like a marshmallow and felt warm as he firmly grabbed it.

"Haah~❤ I must say Takeru, you're quite bold for playing with my buttons like that"

That sexy and sensual voice came from none other than Love Espada as she had blocked Takeru's reach for the ball and stood in his way right in the middle of the air.

"B-B-But how! I didn't even see her jump or approach! She closed the distance that quickly!? More than that, her breasts feel too damn good! I want to hold them foreve- no! I have to concentrate on the match"

Takeru wasn't the only one in for a shock as all those watching the screen were flabbergasted at Espada's little surprise.

"She's good..."

Even Takeshi wasn't expecting something like that as he momentarily lost track of Espada's movements before she reappeared in front of his son.

"Is she really?"

Takeshi side glanced over to the still munching Nagi who didn't seem fazed by Espada's speed in the slightest. Well, considering his level of strength, it didn't come as that much of a surprise to him.

"She's fast no doubt but your idiot son made the first mistake by not noticing she was trailing him the entire time"

"You could see all that?"

Nagi frowned as he scrunched his face.

"No shit, who hell do you think I am?"

"..."

In the face of Nagi's boasting, Takeshi could only produce a sigh at having met such a strange but unfathomable man as he continued to watch the match.

Takeru tried to snap out of his daze at grabbing Espada's lovely breasts before he let go and grabbed hold of her slender arm.

"You may have taken me for a surprise but I'll have to throw you out of here!"

"Oh? I'd like to see you try~"

Takeru gripped Espada's arm with all the strength he had and planned to spin her around before throwing her out of the arena. Even though he wasn't afraid to fight women anymore, that didn't mean he could still fight them as he would a man and found that the best alternative was too use grappling moves to defeat her.

Of course, such naive thinking was doomed to fail against someone of Espada's stature as she already predicted what he was going to do and moved accordingly. Before Takeru had the chance to throw her, her body twisted swiftly and in a heartbeat, both of her legs wrapped themselves around the boy's face as she had him in a leg hold, with her crotch right in his face.

"Canmfuu bremathe! (Can't breathe!)"

"Ahhh~❤ , you shouldn't speak. I'm giving you some extra service right now so you have to play fair, okay?"

In the face of such a lucrative woman, Takeru's mind was beginning to go blank as her hold on his face got tighter and tighter until it became hard to breathe. Despite this, Takeru had no wish for this paradise to end as he believed the pain was worth it.

Nagi smiled in a playful manner at watching the scene. "Hah, your son looks like he's enjoying that"

"Hahaha, I would expect no less from him"

Even though his son was in trouble, Takeshi was more concerned about the favourable position Takeru was in.

"Come on Takeru, shake her off!" Azuki shouted.

Hoshii had been rather neutral throughout the entire match but saw an opportunity to score the first point as she yelled at her team mate.

"Oi! Espada, stop playing around and pass me the ball!"

"Oh! That's right; I guess I got a little too excited. Forgive me but I'll have to begin to play seriously"

Takeru shuddered immensely as Espada's killing intent was so visible; he could practically feel it enveloping his entire body as her eyes gleamed dangerously at him. Before he could react, Espada's body twisted downwards as her legs carried Takeru's entire body with it and in one swift motion, she catapulted his body spiralling downwards, crashing into the ground with an enormous explosion that levelled a part of the stage.

"Takeru!"

Azuki and Kuragasa both threw their hands in front of their faces to block the incoming smoke enveloping the stage while they cried out for their no doubt injured team mate.

"Take-chan..."

This is what Haruko was afraid of as she watched the elegant figure of Espada slowly fall to the ground as she held the soft ball in her hand and spun it around on her index finger, smiling in the same seductive manner in which she used to ensnare Takeru. When Espada made a face like that, she was probably the most dangerous person you could ever face.

As the smoke cleared, Takeru's lifeless body was seen fidgeting on the ground as several cuts and bruises were spotted on his uniform. Thankfully, he was still breathing as he struggled to get up but was already forgotten by Espada who threw the ball the running Hoshii, ready to begin their attack on the remaining members of Team Tenbi.

"Alright you bitches, bring it!"

Azuki was prepared for their assault as both Hoshii and Espada ran towards her, passing the ball to one another to distract her. The rules of the game meant that only one person could carry the ball at a time, meaning one of them would try to face Azuki in combat while the other tried to take a shot at their net.

"Who's it gonna be? Espada or Hoshii?"

As her eyes darted from both of their figures trying to ascertain which one to attack, a smug smile graced Otohime's lips as she watched from the audience.

"What a stupid gorilla, does she honestly think we would use such an obvious strategy? My girls already have the winning strategy in place"

"What!?"

Azuki was taken by absolute shock when she saw Espada throw the ball high into the air and then charge at her alongside her teammate Hoshii.

"Ara, did you think we would split our forces? All we need to do is defeat you before the ball hits the ground, right?"

"Y-You...! Don't underestimate me!"

Azuki was furious as she stood her ground and threw a roundhouse kick at Espada who reached her first. Her kick didn't come close to hitting her mark as Espada effortlessly dodged it and closed the distance between them as her face was nearly an inch away from Azuki's.

"Hmm~ you're quite cute, you know that? Makes me want to give you a big kiss but unfortunately, I have to win right now"

"Bitch!"

Azuki tried to punch her but Espada proved that even at such a close distance, Azuki's blows would never hit her as she dodged it again and then flipped right over her. By using Azuki's head as a springboard, Espada's body leaped over her and was in position to land a perfect blow against her neck while Hoshii moved in and pulled back her arm.

"Shit, a double team!?"

"Azuki-san, watch out!"

Kurigasa's cry for his senior was futile as Hoshii and Espada both landed devastating blows against Azuki's stomach and neck simultaneously, causing the fiery red head to cough out blood and drop to the ground, utterly defeated.

"N-No... way"

All those presently watching were unable to comprehend what just occurred as even Chacha; the usual happy and cheerful girl was close to tears watching one of her closest friends be defeated in such a manner.

Only one person was enjoying the spectacle; Otohime was laughing in a condescending manner as she expected no less from her third year squad.

"What a bunch of idiots! Those girls aren't the same ones that they knew when they were still students. Thanks to the technology of Kamigari along with the brainwashing, their element levels have been amplified by over 200 %! At the moment, they're abilities almost exceed even S-Rank, there's no way that stupid gorilla woman could have had a chance against them!"

Listening to Otohime ranting on infuriated the surrounding students to no end but none of them dared to say a word to the granddaughter of Ouken Yamato.

As Espada landed gracefully on the ground, she raised her hand into the air and caught the thrown ball perfectly, with it continuing to spin on her index finger as she produced a frown.

"How disappointing..."

She was thoroughly let down as she expected Takeru and Azuki to have put up more of a resistance, especially after she heard Takeru was the one who had fought Ouken on equal terms. For them both to have been taken out so easily, clearly there must have been a grave misunderstanding on the data she received.

"Mannnn~ this is so troublesome, let's finish this already so I can invest in another stock"

Hoshii's greed was endless as she continued forward to the goal post where Kuragasa was standing. Espada joined her as the two of them slowly closed the distance on the trembling man whose confidence in guarding the net had taken a nose dive.

"Kuragasa-kun, his chances aren't looking too good..."

Aki Nijou, who was watching the match with both Minori and Furan nearby, was worried as she clasped her hands, hoping for his success.

Minori nodded as she ruffled her hair in frustration. "More like impossible, there's no way he'll last against those two monsters"

Even Furan, who was usually known for her composed and calm demeanour looked visibly worried as she had predicted Espada's strength from the beginning.

"It seems we have made a mistake assigning those three as our first wave"

"That's what I said, but Minori over here wouldn't listen to me!"

Minori avoided Aki's piercing glare as she whistled awkwardly. "Che, don't blame me. I didn't think Takeru and Azuki would kick the bucket so fast. Man, this wouldn't have happened if we had Nagi participate!"

Minori was still annoyed that the idiot had slept in and wanted to pound him for his tardiness. Didn't he realize that if they lost this match they could lose their only lead on finding Yamato Takeru!?

"Don't blame Nagi-san for this! He agreed to help us against Kamigari but that doesn't mean he has to fight in matches that we ourselves accepted"

"Well that's true but..."

"You both seem to have a lot of trust in this Nagi person. Is he really as reliable as you claim he is?"

Furan was doubtful of how reliable a man could be as her previous experience with the gender left her view of them a little lacking. However, she wasn't sexist as she would respect those who contributed and did their part.

"Huh? Well... he's a bit of a jerk and he's kinda weird but he's definitely strong! I've verified his strength for myself"

"Verified you say..."

A slight blush appeared on Furan's face as she remembered Aki's phrasing of how Nagi and Minori "verified" each other, causing Minori herself to refute her.

"Not in that way! Jeez, look at what you've caused Aki!"

Aki giggled innocently as her plan at teasing Minori was a success and just as the atmosphere around them was beginning to become light hearted, the sound of the announcer's voice came back on.

"[Goal! Team Yamato Takeru has scored a goal against Team Tenbi, which makes them the winners of the Net Ball event!]"

"What!?"

Minori, Aki, and Furan all hastily took a look back at the screen and gasped as they saw the defeated figure of Kuragasa on the floor, clearly unconscious while Espada and Hoshii both stood in front of the net. The match hadn't even lasted longer than a couple of minutes as the students watching couldn't believe how helpless their strongest fighters were against Otohime's squad. Instead of cheering, a dead silence followed those presently watching the screen as no one could believe the results of the match.

Instead, Otohime's laughing was the only thing that could be heard among the crowd of hundreds of students as she and her team had taken the first point of the series and were only one small step away from defeating Team Tenbi and securing the original eight Maken for Yamato Takeru once he had resurrected.

A/N: Things definitely aren't looking good for our guys, how will Nagi respond?