A/N: Sup everyone! wiErD here and I got a new chapter for this story.
Hope ya like it!
Have Fun and Happy Reading.
Disclaimer: I don't own FT and HSDXD. All goes to their respective authors.
- Training -
It's been a day ever since the incident between Riser and Rias. Everyone was quite rattled and surprised at the little skirmish between both sides but luckily, Natsu was able to fend off Riser's threats and towards his friends with his own.
It might be considered as a praise though he did get a light punishment from Akeno who was worried at him after that scene against Riser. It was just a collection of reminders and words from her in which he finds it annoying to some extent since she was never the person to be doing such a thing. Asia might be a better person in holding out punishment. Probably because of her innocent and caring nature towards him.
Even so, they were fortunate enough that the fight never escalated that much to the point where they would want to beat each other before the Rating Game could even start. Nevertheless, they were just glad that everything turned out to be fine... for now it seems.
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..
Leaving those aside, everyone had already undertaken a trip to the mountains as Natsu carried a seemingly large backpack together with Koneko who also had the same size as they walked alongside with each other together with the rest of the group.
Trailing far behind the group was Issei who had been panting from exhaustion for quite some time now despite only carrying a normal backpack. After seeing the lack of endurance and other capabilities from the Booster Gear holder, Rias had thought of a plan to improve his stamina in order to last long in the course of a battle.
And witnessing his already tired figure shows his current abilities despite being reincarnated as a devil.
Natsu never had any problem with physical abilities as he has a fairly muscular built.
"How long are you gonna keep on stopping? Let's go!" Natsu shouted from afar towards the brownette.
"Shut up! Just because your buff and all, you show off with the others!" He shouted in annoyance but Natsu could only tilt his head in confusion towards his statement.
"I don't get what you mean..." He added.
"You're so slow, Issei!" Happy teased.
"Shut up, you damn cat!" Issei hissed.
With the rest of the group moving up on foot in exception for Happy because of his flight, they have all the allotted time they needed to shape up the two for the upcoming battle. After a few more minutes of traversing their way up to the top, they finally reached into a secluded villa surrounded by green lush. Asia, Natsu and Issei were only the ones who were taken aback of such a sight since they never thought that their training camp would be this grand.
Natsu was expecting for a hellish training with a whole set of tent under harsh weather condition but it seems packing all that unnecessary preparations on his backpack was a waste. Well, he doesn't seem to mind all that as long as he gets a fair training course to hone his skills and magic further.
"Woah..." Both boys awed.
"Aye! Look a pond! I wonder if there are a lot of fish swimming around!" Happy drooled in delight.
"It's beautiful!" Asia smiled in delight.
"And here we are... We finally reached our training camp." Rias proudly spoke.
"I suppose we should settle our things first before we proceed with our own training sessions... Getting accustomed to this place will also help us give a good mindset to start our training in earnest, don't you think?" Akeno proposed.
"That's a good idea... Well then, we should meet up at the front of the villa later... For now, let's settle down and rest for a bit before proceeding with training. Every minute is a precious time for us. We need to use every bit of it to bring out the best of our abilities, alright?" Rias added as the whole group simply gave a nod as a response before they started heading inside and began to settle their backpacks into their respective rooms.
Natsu and Issei have their own separate rooms since the space inside the villa is big enough for ten or more people to live inside though with the former having Happy to lodge in together with him. It was also their first time settling into a luxurious house since they usually live their lives as normal as they could until this unexpected meetings with the devils came about.
Nevertheless, living your life in luxury sure could make yourself lazy to do anything at the moment, especially when you're tired. But both Natsu and Issei had no time to be relaxing, they came here to train for a reason and they wanted to spend this precious time to develop their skills for the upcoming battle.
While all the girls are all having their own bath to refresh themselves, the boys on the other hand, simply changed their outfits to track suits as their training gear for today's training. All of them are settled on an open room as Kiba, Natsu and Issei had changed into their track suits before walking towards outside to wait for the girls.
"Where's Happy?" Issei asked after noticing the lack of a blue cat beside Natsu.
"He stayed at the room, probably preparing his own fishing rod to catch fish near the pond." The pinkette replied.
"That cat sure loves fish... It's a good thing I didn't become his master."
"Well technically, he's a stray familiar but he hangs around with us so it's not a problem. He's good at flying though." Natsu reassured.
"Yeah but it's sounded kinda useless since all he can do is fly around and eat almost everyday... Do you know that he emptied our fridge the other day... We had to waste all our money to buy it all again." Issei spoke in irritation.
"Give it a break... I don't mind too much about it." He brushed off his brother's displeased face.
"Yeah but mom will." He added and it was not long before Natsu tried to change the subject.
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..
"I wonder what kind of training we're going to have." He pondered in thought.
"If Buchou is anything, she might give a lot of work without any breaks." Issei guessed.
"No... That's exactly what she's going to do." Kiba added.
"Well, she surely is a strict training instructor... Did you suffer the same thing?" Natsu asked.
"I had no problems with it... I grew accustomed to it so it doesn't matter that much to me." A scoff went from Issei as he glared at him in irritation before muttering something underneath his breath.
"Show off..." He clicked his tongue in irritation until he realized something about Kiba. "Oh that reminds me, you said something about hating on fallen angels?"
There was brief moment of silence between them as Kiba momentarily stopped what he was doing as if he began to think deeply on what Issei had just said.
"You're right... I do hate- No, more like I despise them."
"That's a pretty deep grudge." Natsu blurted out.
"All of us had our history before we became devils... Those fallen angels tried to harm both you, Issei and Asia. We're all the same here as Buchou saved us from them. That's why we'll do everything in our power to win for her, right?" He looked at them with a reassuring smile.
"Of course, I'm not going to lose!" Issei pumped his fist in the air in determination.
On the other hand, Natsu couldn't feel the same as Kiba felt against the fallen angels. After all, they were also the ones who saved him, specifically to one person. He just realized that he was the only one who knew of the real situation however, he did not want to reply back to refute, seeing that he doesn't want to start an argument.
He saw how Kiba greatly despises them and he could not blame him for that. He doesn't know anything of his past nor what made him to hate on them so much. All he can do is just watch.
It was then, he realized that the two were already calling him from the door which soon got him out of his thoughts and decided to set them aside before sprinting towards them and head their way outside to meet with the others.
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..
Minutes later, the group had finally gathered together outside as they all changed into their different color track suits. Everyone seemed prepared and eager to start the training as Rias soon began her speech.
"I suppose everyone is already here so we'll start out first training session of the day."
"Is it a duel?" Natsu quickly asked.
"No... Not yet... First, we need to give some different training sessions for each of you before we could go for short duel to prove our abilities. Kiba?" Rias looked over to the blonde-haired knight who nodded in response as he tossed two wood-crafted katanas towards the two boys to use as a weapon for the incoming session.
"What's this?" Natsu stupidly asked as he held the wooden sword up high in confusion.
"It's for our first lesson. You need to learn to track the enemy's movements depending on the weapon he uses."
"I'm not comfortable to use a weapon, you know. Can't I just use my powers instead?" He protested.
"Alright... As long as you get to understand the lesson then it's fine. However, this is not a battle yet so don't get too attached on the battle." She advised.
Issei took the weapon at hand and moved into a battle stance as he held it in his two hands and faced Kiba with Natsu who only raised his fists in compensation for his lack of weapon. Without calling out his flames, Natsu simply narrowed his eyes in attention and focused on the blonde-haired knight as he began to speak.
"Lesson one... As per what every battle we encounter, we all need to track our enemy's movements and predict on how we could avoid them and eventually think of a plan to counter them to boost our advantage towards the situation. I think we should start by gauging out your senses before going in for the next subject." He spoke as the two boys nodded in response before preparing themselves against him.
The rest of the group stood at the corner, observing as Asia watched the spar in worry since she was never the person to see violence that much often but with her experiencing the reality of battle and conflicts will somehow help her to understand the situation and will also prevent her to panic at first sight.
She needs to learn to analyze the situation instead of cowering in fear. It's probably one of Rias' plans for the training to boost her self-confidence towards the upcoming Rating Game.
Back at the two, both Natsu and Issei wasted no time to stand by as they simultaneously charged in to fight Kiba with their own capabilities as the brownette swung his wooden sword carelessly which was noticed by Kiba before commenting on his movements.
"You charge to recklessly... Try to observe your enemy's movements and use that to predict his next move."
Shifting his glance to Natsu, he shoved off Issei away with the back of his wooden sword and quickly raised it to guard the pinkette's incoming kick to the face. A brief power struggle came between them as Natsu tried for a roundhouse kick in which Kiba took notice and simply leaped away from the two as he began to observe their attack patterns.
"You also share the same recklessness but your fighting style is commendable..." He commented on the last boy who nodded in response until Rias finally stopped them for now.
"That's enough for this lesson. This is just an evaluation as well as a learning lesson for the two of you in order to improve your weaknesses." She spoke.
"I guess I still have many ways to go, huh?" Issei frowned slightly as he got back on his feet and took a mindful look on his current abilities. Unlike Natsu, he had nothing to prove at the moment, seeing that he easily went down while Natsu managed to keep his own stance throughout the short spar.
"Don't feel too bad about it... Acknowledging your weaknesses and finding your own specialty within the group is the first step in becoming stronger. Remember, you have the Boosted Gear in you, hosting the soul of one of the legendary Heavenly Dragons. Riser recognizes it to be a threat towards the upcoming battle together with Asia's Twilight Healing." Rias reassured.
"How about Natsu? Is there something needed for him to improve on?" Issei turned to ask his brother in question which only made Rias and Akeno to ponder for a moment.
"Without any knowledge regarding the nature of his powers, we can't say for sure of how he is capable in fighting devils in the Rating Game." Rias bit her lip to think.
"Well, we did see him standing up against fallen angels the other day... I think he's more than capable of facing one of the devils in Riser's peerage." Akeno noted.
"True... Aside from his usage of flames, I think his power will be rendered useless since we're facing Phenex... The embodiment of immortality and flame."
"I can say the same for Riser though." Issei interrupted which caught their attention of what he just said.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, Natsu is immune to fire... That would mean they'll have to fight in terms of physical combat against him since fire also doesn't work on him." He noted which surprised the two since they never thought of it like that until now.
"There's still a problem though..." It was then Akeno spoke.
"And what's that?"
"Their queen, Yubelluna also known as the Bomb Queen... Just as the name states, she specializes in explosions and is known in blowing her enemies away with her powers. While I believe at Natsu's physical strength, explosions will probably wear him down if he faced her."
"That's why I'll have you to fight her once that happens." Rias smiled before looking back to her peerage. "No one is going to fight alone... We all have each other to protect our backs. I put my faith on it."
Everyone was just surprised at her speech but they all soon smiled afterwards as they understood what she was meaning to say to them.
"Yes, Buchou!" Nodding simultaneously in response, the group took her words to heart as they all felt better after that.
Despite facing an overwhelming number of opponents, they all believed that they're gonna pull it through. As long as everyone is together and working very hard, there's nothing to lose.
They all have to pour everything in their power to fight for their president. This is what friends are for.
"Alright, we'll discuss our strategy some other time... For now, we proceed to lesson two... Akeno." Rias turned over to her queen who nodded briefly before leading the two boys together with Asia inside, leaving the the others outside as Kiba and Koneko stood beside Rias with a renewed determination.
Thus, their training continues.
Several hours later...
Their first day in training has finally come to an end as the night crept over to the day and covered the half of the world in nocturnal darkness. The group had settled over to a large dinner table as they all ate merrily to their hearts' content.
After training with several members of the peerage and gauging their own strengths and weaknesses, everyone had a view of their own current powers and standings of how they differ from one another.
Kiba dominates speed and maybe even agility, Koneko had her own super strength, Asia had her affinity with magic and healing abilities, Akeno and Rias were exceptions, seeing that their powers held above the rest of the peerage. Natsu seemed to balance in all categories though with his strength becoming a bit more top-notch from the rest of the others. Issei, on the other hand had some things to consider about his current skills.
After being relayed with several lessons, he knew he was the weakest of the group. Despite having the Boosted Gear which temporarily increases his strength into certain high levels, his defense and other abilities lacked training.
Both of the two brothers have huge advantages over offensive attacks once the situation calls for it but Issei needed to sharpen his own skills in order to survive long enough in the future battles.
Rias already advised him to train with Kiba and Koneko tomorrow in order for him to train his body to last long enough in the Rating Game and also develop his skills in the process. Asia will remain free at the moment since she already achieved a level of magic affinity during her first try while Natsu will have to train with Akeno for his powers' development.
That plan pretty sums up for the whole training camp and Rias knew that it would be enough to prepare themselves in the upcoming battle.
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..
While eating on the table, everyone had their share of conversations at each other as they began comment on their first training day.
"So how's the first day?" Rias asked the group.
"Fine, I guess... I just hope I can get stronger by the time we get to fight that guy." Natsu replied.
"There's still a lot of time to develop those abilities so don't push yourselves too hard. All of us will have to remain prepared both mentally and physically." She advised.
"Yes..."
"How about you, Issei?" The redhead turned to the Boosted Gear wielder in question.
"Well, I think by now that I'm the weakest of the group but I suppose I need to know it in order to improve all of my flaws..." He slightly frowned at the thought.
"Don't worry about it... It's a good idea that you know your strength at the moment... That's why we'll have to improve all that in this training."
"Are you really sure that I have to train with Kiba and Koneko tomorrow?" He asked doubtfully.
"Yes... Two at the same time." She smiled.
"You're a monster... Buchou." Issei cried in tears.
"Don't forget about, Natsu though... He's also sharing the same situation as you." Rias darted her attention over to the preoccupied pinkette who was entirely oblivious about the conversation alongside with Happy.
"Ara, ara... I get to fight with Natsu-kun tomorrow... I wonder how will he fare with me?" Akeno joined in the conversation with a smile.
"G-Good luck to you two, Issei-san... Natsu-san!" Asia shyly spoke. Knowing how hellish their training is going to be tomorrow, she could only show her moral between the two since they've been doing their best in order to win for Rias.
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"Oh that reminds me, I have something get in my bag... I'll see you guys in a minute." It was then Issei changed their topic and decided to head back to his own room, earning a brief nod from the whole group as he walked back to the lobby and into the room to search something in his bag.
It didn't take long for him to finish his errand as he found his set of clothes for tomorrow and decided to place them right beside a nightstand near his bed to prepare for his training with Kiba and Koneko.
Knowing the two's capabilities towards combat, he might think that he's not gonna walk out unharmed tomorrow, seeing that he'll have to adapt to their attacks and think up a way to counter them and eventually form up some kind of power-up to win.
Thinking about that makes his head spin as he tried shaking off his doubts aside since he might see himself as useless in the group. Not to mention Natsu has more skills than he is despite him being entirely human.
Issei could only release a sigh of slight depression as he continued on his own doing and tried to focus on the training at hand. It's pointless to just mope around and think deeply about it.
If he's going to be as strong as anybody within the group, he needs to work hard like the others.
"At this rate, I'm never gonna be the person Buchou wanted me to be..." He muttered into himself before releasing another depressing sigh.
[It seems like you got quite a problem there now, boy...]
It was then a mysterious and ominous voice resounded through his ears as Issei widened his eyes in surprised and tried to look around but found no one. His instincts kicked up almost instantly as his eyes searched around the empty room warily.
The voice itself was otherworldy, judging from its tone and Issei knew that it's human.
"Who's there?!"
Moments later, a green light soon glowed on the back of his hand which caused him to gaze at it in confusion until the same voice appeared yet again, emanating through it.
[It looks like you've finally noticed me... Since you were inexperienced, you failed to notice my presence at first...]
"Who are you?" He asked.
[Shouldn't it be you who would already know my name? After all, we're now partners.]
"Like hell I would know...! I never even expect that my gauntlet could speak!"
A grunted sigh came afterwards from the voice itself which is pretty unusual for Issei to hear in the process.
[Have you been listening to your Master? You should know by now that you're holding onto one of the souls of the Heavenly Dragons in your Sacred Gear.]
A sudden realization struck inside his head as he began to put the pieces all together.
"Then you're-
[Ddraig... Welsh Dragon... Although it's been long time since your Sacred Gear appeared, you still aren't strong enough to detect my presence in you.]
"Well, I'm sorry for being weak! I'm trying to train myself, dammit!" Issei could only retort back at the glowing orb on his left hand before changing the topic. "So what did you came here for?"
[Isn't it not allowed for the Sacred Gear to meet its host?]
Somehow that caught the brown-haired boy to stop talking as he stuttered at his reply.
"Well that's-"
[In any case, I don't plan to stay around for long... I've only come here to give you a warning.] Without giving him time to build up a reply, Ddraig continued his conversation in which got Issei to turn back into attention after hearing a warning coming from him.
"Eh?"
[That human brother of yours... You watch yourself around him.] Hearing about the mention of his brother, Issei immediately narrowed his eyes in seriousness.
"What about my brother?"
[I don't want to give you a long answer but something about his power makes me uneasy... Even though you're still not feeling it, you best watch yourself from now on... His power is something different and it's best to keep a mindful eye for the time being even if he's your ally.]
"O-Oi! What's that suppose to mean?"
He tried to answer back but the glow immediately faded as the voice eventually vanished along with it, leaving the brownette confused at the moment.
"What the hell is he talking about?" He muttered underneath his breath before trying to think about what Ddraig had just said to him.
Although it was too early to suspect something, it's best to keep it to himself for now and try to process things slowly. He doesn't know the nature of his brother's powers but if Ddraig's having a bad feeling about it, he'd best prepare himself in the future.
Right now, he should ignore his warning for the time being and wait for it all to unfold. Plus, he knew Natsu for too long and he knew that he would not do anything to hurt anyone precious to him.
Knowing that he wasted too much time on his room, Issei went back to the dining area and resumed his conversation with his friends while hiding the truth behind his encounter with the Welsh Dragon.
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The next day... (Day two of the training camp.)
Natsu and Happy stood in confusion as they found themelves in an open field facing Akeno who on the other hand, had worn a rather shrine maiden outfit in which the former saw for the first time since he usually sees her in her school outfit at the academy.
Nevertheless, Natsu was also confused to their current training area since the two of them transported far away from the villa which somehow got him to suddenly feel sick in the process after being transported.
He also had this same feeling back when he was teleported together with the others but he didn't knew that it would become worse than it had been before. It's quite mysterious to when this kind of sickness appeared unto him since he doesn't usually feel it during the first couple of tries but now, it seemed like he going to feel sick whenever they tried teleporting once again.
And judging from it, he might have developed a sickness in motion.
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..
Now that's something new.
Putting that aside, he turned his attention to the black-haired girl in front of her who was patiently waiting for him as she stood silently at a distance and soon sported a warm smile towards him after noticing his gaze.
"Hey, Akeno-senpai... Isn't it okay to be not near the villa... Buchou never mentioned about training far away since she's observing our progress." He asked curiously.
"Don't worry about it... I'll just report of our own progress since I'm personally training you, Natsu-kun." She smiled.
"Well, okay... By the way, it's my first time seeing you in that outfit." He spoke about her outfit in which she was briefly surprised before giving a light twirl on herself to show more of her dress from all sides.
"Do you like it?" She smiled seductively.
"Yeah... It suits you perfectly, Akeno-senpai." He complimented in which got her flustered in the process since he openly stated out his opinion rather bluntly towards her with sugarcoating it.
"W-What are you talking about?" She stuttered.
"What? I'm just saying that it looks good on you... Isn't it bad?" He replied worriedly, completely oblivious at the atmosphere between them.
"N-No... It's just that it's my first time seeing a man saying his opinions freely without doubts." She admitted.
"Is that so? Would it be better if he were to just say what he thinks than hiding it?" Natsu simply tilted his head in confusion.
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Akeno would need to watch herself from now on, knowing that Natsu is a bit of a straightforward person. She cleared her throat for a moment to change the topic as she easily recomposed herself and looked at the pinkette with a renewed gaze.
"Leaving that aside, are you ready, Natsu-kun?" She moved into her battle stance.
"W-Wait! Are we going to start now?" He asked doubtfully.
"Of course... The more time we could spare, the more progress we'll be able to accomplish."
"Well, I know about the fights and all but can't we just talk a few moments before starting... I barely got enough sleep." He reasoned.
"That's no excuse for postponing the fight..." She smiled in a discreet way as Natsu could feel her sadistic nature kicking in despite not having to start any battle between them.
She must be eager to hurt him to death... That one thought made the pinkette shiver in fright.
"In that case, can I have Happy to help? You know, I can't fly, right?"
"Alright... As what Buchou had said yesterday, we're having a spar with each other... Don't hold back. Give it everything you've got, Natsu." Akeno proposed.
"Of course... I'm all fired up!" He declared with a fiery attitude as Happy carried him into the air in which Akeno used her own devil wings to gain flight and attained the same distance and height between each other from the ground as the two friends looked at each other with determination.
"Here I go, Natsu-kun!" With a sly smile on her face, Akeno instantly formed a ball of lightning on her right hand and threw it towards the two without a moment to spare as Happy narrowly dodged it after pulling the two of them to the side.
"Lightning... Akeno-senpai sure looks strong." Natsu complimented.
"So what are we going to do?" Happy asked his companion as they float in mid-air, trying to analyze the black-haired girl's powers.
With a wide grin plastered on his face, Natsu coated his fists in flames as he gazed at her with excitement. This is going to be a good fight between them. Who would've thought he would get to face with Akeno in such a battle.
Aside from her unusual sadistic side, he wanted nothing more than a fierce fight between them.
"We'll give it all we've got, Happy... Let's do this!"
"Aye!"
And in just like that, the two partners began their assault towards Akeno as Happy used his Aera to close their distance with her in just a matter of seconds which somehow surprises her since she never expected the blue cat to use his proficiency in flying this good. Natsu locked up his right fist in determination as flames grew larger before trying to connect it right to Akeno who immediately dodged away with her devil wings and regained her distance away before summoning lightning right on her fingers.
"Lightning Strike!" Soon afterwards, a large yellow circle appeared right above the two as lightning began to struck down below as Natsu and Happy stared wide-eyed in surprise at the large scale attack towards them.
"You kidding me?!" Happy panicked.
"Fire Dragon's Roar!" Without hesitating, Natsu let out a large burst of fire from his mouth as it shot out towards the circle, easily cancelling it before it could even do its spell on the two.
"Wow... You're awesome, Natsu!" Happy blurted out of amusement at his partner's display of power.
"Ara, ara... The fight is just getting started, Natsu-kun... Don't let your guard down." At the same time, Akeno replied with calm expression as she flicked her finger up above her and summoned another series of magical circles around the two as lightning struck everywhere in the vicinity in which Natsu and Happy hastily dodged before flying towards the black-haired devil with the former's counterattack.
And in just like that, the two began to trade blows of magic spells against each other as the field around them was simply treated by both lightning and fire that soon ravaged the entire area as they clashed with each other without holding back.
Shockwaves of force from their blows and surges of two destructive elements destroyed the forest below them as Natsu and Akeno continuously poured onto their powers to defeat the other.
Surprisingly, Natsu was able to fight toe-to-toe with her despite her status as the Queen which supposed to be the strongest piece in peerage. Akeno couldnt deny it either as she was also having a hard time dealing with him since his powers were as destructive as hers though with him being more common and powerful.
Despite those odds, she never lost her composure and continued to fight against him for long periods of time.
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..
Eventually, a couple of minutes had passed and the two never even broke their stalemate as Natsu alongside with Happy panted with their breaths as they felt extremely tired from using up all their powers at once while Akeno only showed signs of slight exhaustion, seeing that she had better stamina than him.
If he happens to develop the same amount of stamina as hers, there's no doubt that she would win this fight.
Feeling the need to take a break, Akeno retreated her stance back and raised a hand towards the two.
"Let's give it a break for now, you two..."
"Eh? Now?" Natsu whined.
"Of course, we should rest a little and recover our magic before using it again until we get accustomed to it. It's one way to develop your powers further in this training. Plus, I think your buddy sure needs a little break also." She pointed over to the tired Exceed behind him as Natsu saw his already worn out expression in a comical way.
"A-Are we winning, Natsu?" Happy spoke, not knowing of what was happening in the situation since the two were fighting like otherworldly beings which insane powers that he can't handle.
"Oh, sorry about that... I guess, we should take a break then." Natsu apologized and the two soon began their descent towards the ravaged ground below them and settled together with Akeno who prepared a jug of hot tea to recover themselves from their fatigues.
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The three settled onto a spared area of their battle as Happy took the hot tea first and relaxed himself from the stress. Natsu and Akeno went along as well as they brew on their tea to drink.
"So how's your body doing? Are there other abnormalities happening while training?" Akeno soon asked about his body in which he pondered for a moment as he whacked his thoughts about the things that might happen to bother him over the past few days.
"No... Not at all, I think..."
"I see... I'm glad." She rested in a relieved sigh.
"Hey Akeno-senpai, can I ask you something?"
"What is it?"
"By the time we're facing off this Riser guy, what do you think what will happen?" He asked.
Hearing that kind of question from him, Akeno felt slightly troubled for a second but retained her composure as she slowly sipped onto her tea before replying to him.
"I don't think anyone would be able to predict of the outcome but I do know that our actions and our strength to stand and fight against him will determine the future."
"Is that so?" He stammered for a second before releasing a sheepish expression towards her.
"Why do you ask?"
"W-Well, I'm just wondering if I would somehow be able to protect you if something bad happens..." He replied with a frown as his eyes gazed on the ground below him in thought, wondering about if his powers would be enough to protect her and everyone. Akeno immediately understood of what he was trying to say. He was just worried about them. Even before he joined in the club, he became friends with them and that was the source of his reason to fight for their sake no matter how complicated the situation is even until now.
He always stands up for his friends and fights his way out of it without listening to reason. Like a brute who would punch through anything without a second thought until he finds the solution right infront of him. He's always been like that and it somehow made her happy, seeing that he greatly cares about them even if they're no humans.
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She had to wonder... if he would be able to accept her true self once she revealed it to him. Will he still able to see her as the same? There are also some secrets that are not meant to be shared among friends but she knew that she don't want to hide it to everyone, especially to him.
However, that time has not yet come. Maybe some day, she would be able to tell him that and let him decide on how he would see her as who she is in the future.
Right now, the only thing worth doing is fighting to get stronger and staying by his side.
"I think you're more than enough to protect everyone, Natsu... You might not realize it but you're stronger than what you think. The strength to keep on fighting for others' sake is what makes you a strong person and everyone knows that. So don't feel that you're not strong, you're actually better than that. Even far from what I first saw in you, Natsu." She smiled warmly as she reached out her hand and touched his cheek with a reassuring expression.
"You really think so?"
"Mmm..." She nodded in response. "That's why no matter what happens in that battle, I'm always right beside you."
"Thanks, Akeno-senpai." His doubts have finally cleared. Somehow talking things with her surely calms his mind all the time.
"By the way, Natsu..."
"Yeah?"
"Can you call me Akeno from now on?"
"I-Is it alright? I mean, you're my senior so I had to..."
"Being a senior has nothing to do with it... Plus, I've taken a liking to you so at least, let's not be strangers with each other." She smiled but Natsu felt confused of the meaning behind her statement.
"What do you mean by that?" He asked confusingly.
"Nothing... Anyways, would you call me just by my name?"
"S-Sure... Well then, A-Akeno..." He stuttered.
"See, it's more easy..." She smiled in glee before standing up as she returned the jug back to the bag, leaving Natsu still confused though it was not long until he saw the face of Happy, deviously smirking from the distance with a mischievous intent.
"What?"
"Fufufu... She liiiiikkkkkeeeeessss you..." Happy hooted.
"Shut up..."
Brushing off his partner's tease, Natsu turned his attention back to Akeno who finished putting back all their tea and finally gazed back at the pinkette with a sincere smile.
"Let's go, Natsu..."
"Sure!"
And with that, the two continued their training together as the day came to an end.
Somewhere in an unknown desolate forest...
A man is seen walking towards a rugged path as the scorched landscape before him stretched as far out the eyes could see. Everything is simply left nothing with burnt trees and shrubs and a dead land which is all devoid of any life within it. The stretching night sky was eerily blue as the moon shone bright on the same color down to the wasteland, casting shadows that creates the illusion of entities that surround the area itself.
From the center was a small open area with a pond, completely devoid of dead trees as it looks like to be unaffected from the rest of the forest itself. It was the only area in the forest to be left untouched by the disaster that struck here as the hooded man came to a abrupt halt between the dead soil and the one from the other side.
He waited for a few moments as if he was expecting something would happen.
It was then, a burst of water erupted from the pond as a naked female figure rose from the pond, slowly arching her body up high with her face facing the blue night sky with drips of water sliding from her smooth skin. Her long pale blue hair majestically sways on her back as the night sky reflected on it, giving off a cold but somewhat enticing atmosphere. Her face resembled that of a beautiful woman that might rival that of female deities from mythological legends.
Soon afterwards, she began to lower her head down towards her breasts, adorning it in a few moments before eventually turning towards the hooded man who was waiting at the other side.
"Pardon my intrusion..." The man spoke briefly but the naked woman only stared oddly for a moment before gazing to another direction and ascend from the pond waters which soon reveals her true body drenched in water as the illuminating blue light reflected some of it from her skin.
"It's quite unusual for a Maou like you to walk into this place... An arising problem, perhaps?" The woman spoke with dignity as she proceeded to change into her new set of clothes settled on the side of the pond.
"No... I'm afraid that's not the case... It's about the Rating Game system." The man continued in which the woman quirked her brow in curiosity as she took a short glance at the man before returning back to her doing.
"What's this about the system? Does it require my presence? Or my intervention?" She replied.
"More to the former it seems... There's no problem regarding the system."
"How unusual... For you to just walk all the way here to call my presence in some Rating Game. Have the world started to stir its problems towards here, Beelzebub?"
"No, I think not... At least, not yet... But I'm sure this will find you curious as well since this has just came from one of Sirzechs' subordinates as it has also been the first time an issue like this was reported in request for a Rating Game." The man called Beelzebub replied.
"A request?" The woman asked in confusion.
"Exactly... A request to temporarily change the system of bringing out beings aside from devils to the Rating Game..."
"Bringing out beings aside from devils? What does it have to do with me, Ajuka Beelzebub?" The woman asked in suspicion.
"I thought it would be interesting to require the presence of the Chaos Karma Dragon on this specialized Rating Game between two pillars of the household. And since this will be our first time changing the system for allowing other beings to enter to the Rating Game, I thought it would be also convenient to have you come along in case of a problem arising from it." Ajuka reasoned.
"You devils sure know how to cause trouble... It would be unpleasant if the other factions knew of my current standings in these world... These past few centuries have gone quiet on all sides due to your pointless war against each other... and the death of God. What more is needed to this silent world to be worth gazing upon at?" The woman spoke in displeasure.
"The war was unavoidable and the appearance of the other Sacred Gears that housed other beings such as the Two Heavenly Dragon Emperors have already surfaced-
Before he could even continue, he was cut off as the woman shot off an intimidating voice that slightly trembled the earth around them.
"Don't make me talk about that Dragon Emperor..." For what it seemed like an otherworldly voice, the woman showed signs of resentment for mentioning such an unpleasant name before her.
"My apologies... Tiamat." Ajuka sincerely apologized.
"I presume you came here to talk about this specialized game in which required my immediate attention."
"Yes... That is correct."
"So what being are they going to place on that Rating Game...?"
Ajuka paused for a moment before finally speaking.
..
..
"A human."
A/N: And stop. How did you like the cameos? YEAH! Tiamat is finally appearing on the story! I kinda pictured her to be a woman with high standards and a very resentful attitude towards Ddraig since you know, that's what it said in the canon but nevertheless, by the time she meets and recognizes Natsu, she will change eventually. Oh, and don't forget about Ajuka.. He needs attention too guys. :)
Well, I guess training is over but I kinda felt like I should add a bit more scenes of the training for the whole characters as well but I suppose I will give them a lot of screentime on to the next chapter which will be the Rating Game.
Yes, the moment you've been waiting for is finally here. Let's go kick some Phenex ass, in exception for Ravel lol. Anyways, I post it all on the next chapter. Thank you guys for waiting and see guys again soon.
- wiErD SpeCtrumz blacking out... ... ...