War and bloodshed...they go hand in hand, like fish to water...moths to flame...life and death. Issei was the son of the last of the gunner magicians...one of the mercenary groups of old that dissapeared during the sengoku era and only appeared some few times...their decendents becoming less and less until the last...Issei Hyoudou, the gunslinger. He came into existence because of his mother, one of the few of the remaining group of low class devil mercenaries and a devil, one of the 72 thought to have dissapeared or have gone extinct during the war...he was a Vine or rather Vinea.
"Issei my son come here, I must teach you this." said Isseis father Jiro, Issei came closer, no more than four years old Jiro decided to teach his son his true origin with permission from his mother Miyu Hyoudou who gave Issei her last name to help hide him from the supernatural world. "I am going to teach you about your true origins, and your mother is going to give you something that will help you in the future." Jiro said in a serious tone, "Your true origins on my side is demonic...you are as my son the last heir of the Vinea clan, but until you are 15, you are to not reveal this to anyone especially where we are going." "We are leaving papa?" "Yes, we are moving to Kuoh that is where we will live from now on, our new home."
His mother came from around the corner and opened a box in front of Issei. "This was mine, it helped me live through war and pestilence, it has decided to chose you as its next weilder. You are the last of a special family bloodline that could use magic but we decided to go into hiding and dissapeared when Oda Nobunaga and the rest of Japan brought gunpowder and guns into warfare. Each gun is handed down from ancient times and was originally rare to have this piece but thanks to someone in the past...no one knows who he was the gun could be passed down through thr bloodline as long as the gun viewed you as worthy of weilding it." Isseis mother said. The gun shined in the light, the grit on it shimmering and the beautiful color black with golden engravings and a green jewel on the bottom of the grip which seemed to shimmer in the light. "Go ahead and touch it, it's meant to be yours" Issei listened to what his mother said and ran his hand down the barrel of the gun towards the trigger assembly and grabbing the grip and holding it. "Its heavy." said a young Issei "Of course, that is the weight of taking a life...the will to carry and draw this will be ultimately up to you...but there is one rule" said Jiro, "no showing it or using it on normal humans, it is an ability which must remain secret unless you really do need it." the gun started glowing an orange color and flames radiating off of it, Issei felt the flames and they seemed cold to him, the gun wasn't burning him. "Absorb" Jiro casted a spell on him and permanently binded the gear to Issei and the gun dissapeared from his hand and Issei was confused. "Now it's yours, but be careful with your emotions, it will trigger whether or not it appears in your hand. One of these days, I will take you to the underworld and our exalted house will finally return to our brethrens side, for now we head to Kuoh, stand my son." He followed what his dad had said and they were all moved in an instant to their new home in Kuoh, modest house small as it was but it was very neat and clean. "Go on son, explore a little bit but be back home by sun down" said Jiro. This excited Issei and he went and explored the surrounding area, a playground and much more in the area, then he found the one place he ended up loving, an overlook with a view of the entirety of Kuoh, his home at the base of the hill and Kuoh Academy, the all girls school out on the distance. "Beautiful isn't it son?" Issei jumped when he heard his father's voice behind him and Jiro patted his head "Lets go home son, your mother is waiting."
The next three years flew by and multiple training sessions with his parents with school on the side as well, his skills grew and branched and weaved into a perfect unison allowing him to make bullets that were of normal human design, he even came up with holy bullets something he could used to kill rogue demons he also made demonic rounds to fight fallen and regular angels as well, but those bullets had a diminished effect on hostiles above his ranking as a devil in terms of power for example he would have an extremely hard time killing SirZechs if he tried it and on the inverse the same amount of trouble against a high ranking angel like Archangel Michael, this made him almost untouchable...almost. "Alright son, show me what you have got." said Jiro and Issei obliged reloading holy bullets and advanced while firing but Jiro instantly countered it as if he saw the bullets path on their way to make impact and got behind Issei and shoved him. "Thats one hit, remember you have to get clever with your attacks son, when it comes to firearms their paths are linear unless an outside force affects them." said Jiro Issei remained quiet and attempted to use the geography to his advantage and ran into the forest, Jiro lost him and smiled, he knew that his son was suppressing his aura like he taught him to and slowly moved through the forest looking for him but Issei struck first and he intentionally missed and fired two more rounds and one missed while the other grazed him to avoid causing his father too much damage and left a cut on his father's leg making him kneel and Issei decide that then was the time to strike and came up behind his father with his gun and said "Checkmate." and that ended it, his father got up limping a little bit but was proud of what his son was capable of and went back home, Issei dispelled his gun before he had went but it still seemed quite heavy despite his increase of strength with age.
"Hey papa what was that move you used?" asked Issei "Which one?" asked Jiro in response to Isseis question. "Its like you could tell the path of the bullet heading for your leg and then earlier you completely dodged the bullets I sent at you." said Issei "So you noticed." Jiro came in closer to Issei and kneeled in front of him and said: "It's a special power that only you and I since we are blood can use. Our minds can predict enemy attacks however as you can see like what you did in the forest it still has a weakness. We can predict attacks but we can't avoid them all if swarmed. With time it will come to you as it did for me." said his father. Jiro walked in and Isseis mother healed the injured leg and noticed something, her sigil was different from his own and his father's but he didn't ask about it. "Go have fun at the playground or something son, I will be along soon to watch you, but I trust you will go straight there and no where else yes?" asked Jiro and Issei nodded and headed out the front door and on the way to the playground he heard something...singing...sweet singing like his mothers when he was a baby and he followed it leading him straight to a church and in it a lonely girl was singing. He moved silently knowing that he wasnt supposed to go anywhere near the old church but he went there anyway. "I hear you, who goes there!" her singing stopped and she seemed to have noticed Issei enter the church and he figured it was pointless to hide. "I am Issei Hyoudou...I noticed your singing and your voice is really pretty, I am sorry if I interrupted." He couldn't see her face but she was still looking at him.
"T-thank you..." the girl stuttered and she came out of the dark and her hair was dark and her dress was the same color and her eyes were a mix of brown and yellow. "Why do you sing such a saddened tone though?" Issei asked and the girl turned back around and when Issei got closer he noticed she had a pair of cat like ears on her hair. "Are those...real?" Issei asked and she turned around again and she approached him this time but he saw even more she was slightly more mature than he was telling by her height and the size of her bust and she looked at him directly. "You are devil spawn...but your not trying to kill me...what is your name...your true name..." he composed himself but everything in his head was screaming at him to run but he knew that he probably wouldn't be able to outrun her and so he answered her. "I am Issei Hyoudou but my true last name is Vinea."
She stopped and was stunned hearing that name and she seemed to have spaced out. "Your family name...your part of the missing part of the 72 pillars..." she said her hair covering her eyes and then they heard footsteps "Son, are you in h-" Jiro started but paused after seeing the cat-like person in front of Issei and she looked at him. "Is that your father Issei?" asked the cat woman "Yes...he's really strong however I have heard about the underworld and how the devils reside there but I never asked him why do we not go back?" asked Issei "Its something I was hoping not to put on you as a responsibility son...not yet...I intend to get us back myself. But that is not important who is this?" asked Jiro and the cat woman answered before he could speak "I am Kuroka...a Nekomata...I am a stray...but hear me out...I didn't attack my master for no reason." said the now self introduced Kuroka.
"Son...get behind me." Jiro said in a low tone, Issei had only seen his father like that once before when he was five...when a stray had been in the neighborhood and he and Issei had came across it while walking back home...that night the building was leaking blood...and in the rain it flowed in the gutters. "Father, wait lets hear her story first...if she wanted to kill me, I feel she would have done it already." Issei said getting in between the Nekomata and his father, Kuroka was suprised by how Issei would stand in between his father the one who could kill her and have his back to her...trusting her not to stab him in the back. "Would you listen?" asked Kuroka and Isseis father looked like he just wanted to get it over with but in the end he ultimately accepted. She explained her story and then Isseis father changed his mind. "Sorry about earlier." said an apologetic Jiro and Kuroka seemed to put the earlier complication aside. "Do you have a place to stay until your plan can be panned out?" asked Jiro "No...I have been staying here." said Kuroka and Jiro smiled seeing his chance. "Then how about this, we take the short route instead of the long one, once my son and I return to the underworld we will likely recieve our evil pieces, become one of my sons peerage, be his shield while he is the sword." offered Jiro and Kuroka had to think about it, her past haunted her because of what her past master was doing to her but she was watching over someone younger, someone pure of heart and one that would likely not do what her past master had done. "...I accept...but I have one condition," said Kuroka "clear my name and help me find my sister...and I will be yours permanently." "Deal." said Jiro.
Over the next five years, Kuroka helped take care of Issei with his mother and Issei started to mature to a point, respecting his future peerage member and the two trained together and their relationship deepened until it came to a head. "I am going to go to Kuoh Academy when it becomes a co-ed school." said Issei and he was doing pull ups and his well developed body was on show for the world to see in the backyard and Kuroka seemed to be charmed by the sight of Isseis body but didn't let herself get intoxicated by the sight. "Once I go, since my father had done some investigating, I will look into if your sister is in the local peerage," said Issei and he let go after finishing his third set and he put a shirt on and went back inside, "just remember to hide those echo locators of yours when we have people over, it will be a serious issue if we have to wipe someone's memory. I believe Katase is coming over and she has no attachments to the supernatural...speaking about that, could you check on dad? I need to know what my first move will be after I find out if there is indeed a devil contact there." "I will have a look Issei-sama~." said Kuroka, the way she said it was kind of a turn on but he had to supress what he felt until the plan was completed.
He walked to the main living room and sat on the couch and not a moment too soon the doorbell rang and he got up and and he opened it Katase and her father were standing on the porch. "Issei Hyoudou?" asked Katases father and Issei nodded yes "Is your father home?" asked Katases father and Issei nodded yes and he went to go get Jiro, and in a moments notice Jiro was at the door and invited Katase and her father in and Katase and Issei played together until the meeting between Jiro and Katases father had ended, they saw them off and went back inside...they spoke all through elementary school and jr. high and were friends but knew of Isseis emerging pervertedness...they will meet again in Kuoh Academy...as friends, but then more.