AN: Yo, took me the last week to put this all together. Lots of parts fought me, but just as many flowed well.

This will be a 3 part chapter. Mostly because I can't fit the doc normally into Grammarly. So while I edit the next part right now, enjoy Part 1 of 3 for chapter 7.

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Disclaimer: I don't own any source material.

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Chapter 7: The Nekoshou

"Why do you smell like blood, gunpowder, and angst?"

"I thought I showered…. Angst?"

"Yup~."

"What does angst smell like?"

"Edge."

"….Why did I even respond?"

"Because you're an adorable teenage ball of angst." Leone smirked wide and smug. "You'll learn eventually. Or don't; it's more fun that way."

"I don't like you. You smell like stale liquor."

"Ha! That's cuz I'm fun. You just gotta warm up to me. I'm great at parties."

"I don't party."

"Well, there's your first problem."

"…." Hei deadpanned at his teacher. "Is there anyone else?"

"No." Mr. Lupa responded in amusement from where he looked on from the porch. "Leone, stop messing around. I expect him to be taught properly."

"Way to be a buzz kill, Lupa." The blond feline sighed and waved a hand lazily while resting an elbow on Hei's head. "You ready to go, brat?"

Hei's brow twitched at being used as an object to lean against. "Yes, ma'am."

His dry response had her hackles raising. "What did I say about calling me, ma'am? I'm not that old!" Her arm dropped around his neck as she head-locked him with a noogie attempt, only for Hei to twist in a way that would make a cat proud as he fought to put her in an arm lock.

"What did I say about calling me Brat? I have a name."

A growl built in her throat but quickly transitioned into a chuckle as she let go and stood with a hand on her hip. "Oh, we're going to have fun with you." Hei raised a brow at that, but she didn't answer his look and turned to face the old man standing a dozen feet away on the porch, leaning on his cane as he watched them. "I'll have him back in 2 weeks, Lupa."

"Mn, don't go easy on him."

"Ha, you don't have to worry about that, trust me." Leone responded with a fierce smirk, and Hei couldn't help but mutter.

"Thanks for the concern, Old Man."

Mr. Lupa must have heard him because his gaze turned Hei's way as a rare smile grew on his weathered face. "Hei."

"Yeah?"

"Take care of yourself."

Hei looked away with a flush. "Yes, sir."

"Adorable." Leone couldn't help herself and threw her arm back around Hei's shoulders more casually, shoving his head into her bosom. "So, you were just a little tsundere, were you? That's going to make this so much more fun~!"

"Personal space, woman." Hei futilely pushed her face away with a palm but was entirely ignored by the far stronger woman.

A golden-colored teleportation circle lit up on the ground beneath them, and half a minute later, they vanished from the courtyard, leaving the old man standing there staring at the same spot. 'Good luck, child. Those cats like to play with their food.'

A chuckle left his lips before transitioning into a harsh cough. 'And hurry, child. Before my time's up.'

00000

The Underworld.

Not the criminal underworld on earth, but the literal Underworld.

It was a dimension of untold secrets, far beyond a size that most could comprehend, teeming with rich wildlife, phantasmal natural environments, hundreds of magical species, and filled with mysteries and treasures.

The inhabitants that came to call the dimension home had fought many battles, seen many events, and eventually came to split the dimension into layers. Shaving off the supermassive size and giving territory to each faction that claimed a slice.

Long before most races were even born, the Underworld had been split into nine layers, starting wars and battles anew as each layer was fought over until eventually, as time passed, owners claimed each layer and made it their own.

Six were claimed by the death deities of the strongest remaining pantheons. Hades for the Greeks. Hela for the Nordic. Izanami for the Shinto. Anubis for the Egyptians. Yama for the Hindu. And King Yan for the Chinese.

Each of their layers were more than enough size for their needs, and so none argued against the two most extensive layers going to the Devils and Fallen, who had the numbers to inhabit lands of such sizes.

The last layer was technically unclaimed, yet the oldest knew it was the piece of the Underworld where the worst of demon kind and true Lovecraftian horrors rested, locked away from where they could bother anyone.

The Devils inhabited the largest and first layer of the Underworld, labeling it simply as 'Hell.'

Hell was a vast land with a supermassive continent three times the size of Asia, shaped into a disc-like circle, with a vast ocean spreading out from its edges.

It was initially ruled by 72 clans of devils known as the 72 pillars under the banner of the Four Great Satans, led by Lucifer the Morning Star, the Satan of Pride, King of devil kind, and son of the Christian God.

Said devils adopted the feudal system, naming Lucifer as king, with the Satan's being second in power to him, and the pillars gaining ranks depending on their contributions through war, encouraging the devils of old to fight.

And fight they did. Devils had fought in wars, battles, skirmishes, and incidents all over Hell and Earth for over three millennia. Wars ravaged the race known as Devils since their conception, taking the lives of their progenitor, the original Satans, and over half of their pillar clans, leaving only thirty-two pillars to hold things up on their own.

And yet, even missing so much, they remained the faction that owned the largest layer of the Underworld.

A single pillar, the Gremory clan, a family holding the noble title of Duke, owned land the size of Honshu, Japan. A single family, with less than ten members, owned so much land. It was populated by towns, villages, and small cities of Low-Class devils and various other races and species that lived on their land.

Other families owned similar amounts of land based on their noble rank, conquest, or monetary power, leaving many Pillars with much less than others. Still, a race like devils never believed in morality. Power was what mattered, in whatever form it came in.

Various ecosystems existed in such a vast land, popping up in different areas with dozens of environments. And in one such area, in the land owned by the Vassago Pillar Clan close to touching its bordering pillar clan, the Naberius Pillar, a unique ecosystem of thick forestry teeming with natural energy existed.

Like a fountain of vitality, the air was saturated in the power of nature, coming from what those knowledgeable enough to know as a nature hotspot. An area where the life force of nature gathered like a knot, dramatically encouraging growth in plant life.

Enough so that titan-like trees grew, towering high into the air like skyscrapers, with a width larger than modern homes.

And inside such a forest, a village existed. A village intertwined with nature, with homes blended into the natural beauty. Crystal-clear streams passed through the middle of the village, flowing under bright red tori gates placed at intervals.

Ropes hung from the trees, attached to gentle-sounding bells and chimes, ringing in tune with the warm wind.

Flowers of all colors bloomed throughout the village, creating a painting of colors as butterflies flapped their wings and danced between them.

And at the center of it all, a towering, aged Sakura tree stood tall, showering the village in year-round sprinkles of petals as the vibrant natural energy kept it in an eternal spring cycle.

It was a place of beauty, relaxation, and peace. Or as much peace as a village of Nekomata could have.

And beneath the towering Sakura tree, on a cleared-out platform, a golden magic circle appeared, bringing Hei to a world of wonder beyond his imagination.

In more ways than one.

0000

"Welcome, brat, to the largest village of Nekomata in the world, Sakura Village."

"Wow…" Hei could only reply speechlessly as he looked around at the fantastical sight.

Dozens of cat-eared and tailed women moved around, doing chores, talking, and having fun through the expansive oval-shaped village, with a central two-story tower surrounded by rows of single-story homes.

"Cat got your tongue~?" Leone teasingly called from where she still had an arm slung around his shoulder.

"It's beautiful." Hei answered honestly, taking Leone by surprise with a taken aback look.

"Huh, didn't expect you to be honest."

Hei huffed and pushed the unresisting woman off him. "How you see me is your problem."

She chuckled at that. "And there's the angst back. Thought I grabbed the wrong kid for a second there."

"I don't have any angst." Hei replied with grit teeth and took a calming breath. "You just showed up at a bad time."

Leone raised a brow at her young charge. "A bad time? You mean the old man?"

"Yes." Hei answered simply and didn't elaborate, but Leone got the idea and gave him a sympathetic look.

She patted his shoulder and walked past him with a wave. "Come on, brat, I'll give you a tour of our little slice of paradise."

"Mn." Hei silently trailed behind as the woman pointed to various things and commented on where things were while he took in the sights.

Throughout the idyllic village, he caught sight of numerous snoozing cat women laying in rays of sunshine on tree branches, rooftops, or even on the tori gates.

"It's hard to believe a place like this exists."

"What do you mean?" Leone looked down at the shorter Hei as they walked, taking in his complicated expression as he looked up at the purple sky.

"It's so….peaceful."

"Did you expect the underworld to be all fire and brimstone?"

"No, It's just…." His following words were cut off by the sound of rapidly approaching footsteps.

"Oh, it's Leone!"

"Leone's back!"

"Hm? Who's the small one?"

Hei twitched as a trio of young nekomata girls, no older looking than five at most, ran up to Leone in welcome, only to catch sight of him and use Leone as a lamppost to half hide behind.

The one who called him small even stuck out a hand like a paw to try and curiously claw at him.

But it wasn't the comment about his height that made him twitch; no, it was the fact that three small children just casually moved at speeds an Olympic human athlete would struggle to keep up with. 'That's just bullshit.'

Leone didn't notice his expression as she laughed in amusement. "Girls, this is my new disciple, his name is Hei, and he's a human."

Two of the little girls jumped off her and circled Hei while sniffing him without fear.

"Huh, so this is what humans smell like?"

"I've never seen a human before."

Then the third one, still clinging to Leone, tapped the older blond's face with a tiny hand. "I thought humans were bigger?"

This time Hei twitched at the comment while Leone bent over laughing. "Hahaha~, he's young, Li. Just like you."

"Like me?" The little feline hopped off and peered up at Hei's blank face. "How old are you?"

Hei's dry eyes met the curious little ones. "Eleven."

"Small."

'I don't want to hear that from you!' Hei shouted in his mind while restraining himself from responding as Leone reached over to grab the girl by her scruff.

"Don't tease him, Li. Humans don't grow as fast as we do."

"Really?" The little one looked up in shock.

"Yes, really." Leone chuckled and looked over at Hei. "Hei, these three little triplet troublemakers are Shi, Li, and Ni. They're the youngest of the village right now."

"Nu-uh! Miss Taki has a big stomach now. She said we're not the youngest anymore."

"Yeah, we're big girls now!"

"The biggest! Bigger than the small human."

Hei really considered reaching for his guns just then but instead focused on something else. 'Ni and Li? Why do those names sound familiar?' His gaze landed on the girls thoughtfully. 'Riser. It's been a while, so it's easy to forget this was an anime in my first life. I barely paid attention to canon, the focus on tits and Issei threw me off, but I read enough fanfiction to get an idea of some things. The Riser arc was always early, and he had twin nekomata named Ni and Li in his peerage.'

That thought bothered him immensely as he thought about the timeline of the world. 'I'm still nine years away from when the story started. How old were these two when Riser caught them?'

"Hei?"

Leone's voice broke him from his thoughts as he turned to see her giving him a concerned look. "You ok?"

Hei nodded stoically and stretched out a hand to the closest cat, rubbing Shi's head around her ears. "Yeah, random thoughts. They're cute."

Shi purred under his hand. "You're small, but you have good hands."

"…."

"Pft." Leone cracked up all over again, and Hei pinched the tip of the little girl's ear lightly.

"I'm not small, little one."

Shi stuck her tongue out at him and pushed her head back into his palm expectantly.

Leone found the whole thing hilarious, but they couldn't stay there forever. "Enough. Run along, girls; I'm taking him on a tour."

Shi pouted at that but fell in line with her siblings, who nodded obediently. "Kay! Bye Leone, bye Hei/Shortie!"

Who said what was evident as they ran off with smiles while Leone shook her head fondly. "Sorry about them."

Hei shrugged. "It's fine; I don't dislike kids."

"Huh, surprising to hear that from Mr. Angst."

"Will you ever let that go?"

"Maybe when you light up a bit."

Hei grumbled but stayed quiet while Leone chuckled and waved them forward.

Their journey through the village continued, with numerous curious cats dropping in to greet Leone and poke, claw, or sniff at Hei.

The fact that he smelled like blood and gunpowder wasn't missed by most, but none of them were overly bothered by such a thing.

Leone noticed his confused look and slapped his back with a laugh. "You really don't know much about cats if you think we're bothered by blood. You should see our hunting parties."

Hei wasn't sure how to comment on that, but he did recall that the typical house cat had one of the highest kill rates of most non-magical animals on earth, with it only being surpassed by bigger cats.

The two continued their tour until Leon took him all around the oval. "Outside the village line, numerous barriers and border lines exist, so try not to wander without clear directions. The main barriers are a little farther away, but numerous private areas or spots will end in a painful death if you get too curious for your own good."

Hei nodded, not at all new to the concept after training under the old man. "Curiosity killed the cat?"

Leone laughed in agreement as, just then, as they passed under a Tori gate, a black shadow dropped down on Hei's shoulder and took him by surprise.

'I didn't even sense it until it landed on my shoulder….' Red eyes stared into slit amber ones as the black cat sniffed him.

"Meow."

The feline rubbed up against his head until he started petting it, making it calm down and stretch across his shoulders lazily.

"You have normal cats here too?" Hei asked Leone, ignoring the feline that decided to use him as a rest stop.

Leone's ears flickered at the sight, but she just shrugged with a small smile. "Yeah, here and there. Come on, we're almost done."

She changed the subject and walked off with Hei and his new passenger trailing behind. The feline would tap his head if he stopped petting it, so he kept it up while idly looking around the fields Leone guided him to.

"We grow most of our own crops to eliminate the need for trade."

Hei looked over the various vegetables growing; some were recognizable, and others were utterly foreign to him. "Whoever takes care of them put a lot of love into it."

Leone raised a brow. "You know about farming, brat?"

"The names Hei, Leone. And I have my own garden."

"Oh yeah, you run that little side business, the one selling Bluefin Tuna, right?"

The black cat on his shoulder froze up with wide eyes, but Hei missed it as he looked at Leone. "Mn. I sell a variety of things. That reminds me, I have a gift for you."

"For me?"

"Or the village leader. It's rude to come empty-handed."

Slit gazes narrowed between Leone and the black cat on Hei's shoulder as Leone coughed. "Well, it's a good thing I'm one of the village leaders, then."

Hei deadpanned at her. "You?"

"What's that look for?"

"You? A leader?"

The black cat placed a paw over its maw in an attempt to hold back laughter as Leone's brow twitched. "I'll have you know that I'm a very special cat around here."

"Specially talented at annoying me?"

"…." Leone lazily swiped at Hei's head, letting him dodge it as he sent her a smug look. "Just wait till training starts, brat."

"Mhm. So, what makes you special?"

Leone matched her eyes with the black cat and got a nod in return before opening her mouth. "What do you know about Yokai, Hei?"

Hei thought back to his lessons. "The old man taught me about many of the races belonging to the term 'Yokai,' but it mainly contained Japanese animal hybrids and mythology."

Leone hummed thoughtfully. "For the most part. Yokai is a blanket term for dozens of races sharing the same growth system. In literal terms, Yokai is anyone who grows through nature's yin and yang forces."

"Aren't yin and yang Chinese terms?"

"It's just an expression, brat. Yin/yang, Positive/negative, solar/lunar, call it what you want. It's the forces of nature and the emotional energies generated by intelligent beings. Yokai races can look, act, and think completely different from one another, as well as have different strengths and weaknesses, but we're all considered Yokai because we rely on the energy of nature."

Hei tilted his head at that. "Ok? Not that it's not interesting, but what does it have to do with you being special?"

"I'm getting to that." Leone responded in irritation. "I hate explaining shit, so I'll make this simple. Nekomata are a race of cat Yokai, and among Nekomata are a sub-species known as Nekoshou. We're far more strongly in tune with nature and have unique abilities that make us far stronger than the average Nekomata."

"So you were born with a silver spoon." Hei gave her a look of contempt, making the black cat on his shoulder roll in laughter from his blind spot.

Leone's fists opened and closed as she contemplated beating the two before restraining herself. "I've worked very hard, brat." She responded with grit teeth. "And all supernatural races were born with a silver spoon compared to humans."

"How so?"

"A human lives just over half a century on average. Nekomata alone live multiple centuries without worry."

"So you girls get old, big deal."

"….You're really asking for it, brat." Leone took a calming breath. "I saw you notice the triplets before; what did you think?"

Hei paused at that. "They were fast. Far faster than a regular human."

"Exactly! They're five, Hei. A five-year-old Yokai moves faster than a peak human without using magic. Let that sink in."

Hei mulled over it but didn't deny the truth. "It's bullshit. I worked hard to get to where I am."

"And you should be damn proud of that, Hei." Leone said honestly, surprising Hei as she went on. "You got to where you are with a human starting point, there's no shame in taking pride in that, but you need to know that physically you're still very vulnerable to the real world." She pointed at the guns holstered at his side. "How well did those things work on me, huh?"

"Those were just 9mm's. Would you like to try a higher caliber?"

"That's not the point, brat." Leone poked his forehead with a finger. "You need to understand how weak humans are to everyone else. An assault rifle would shred a human, whereas it would tickle a High-Class target."

Hei shrugged. "I understand the point, Leone. But let me worry about my choice of weapons; I'm only getting started with improving them."

Leone grumbled but realized she wasn't going to make any more headway on the subject. "Fine, it's not my job to teach you there." She noticed the black cat tapping at the guns in interest and focused back on the subject. "We got off track. Nekoshou are special among Nekomata. Nekomata aren't that numerous to begin with; there are less than a thousand worldwide. And among them, you would be lucky to find a Nekoshou for every fifty Nekomata." Leone pointed off toward the Sakura tree in the distance. "And in this village, in Sakura Village, reside almost every single Nekoshou out there. I'm one of four leaders among those Nekoshou. Do you realize what that means?"

Hei hummed and looked down at the black cat that found its way onto his chest as he cradled it with an arm. "That you had all the responsibility thrown at you by a group of cats?"

"…." Leone couldn't even deny that as she swiped a bit more seriously at him, making him dodge while the black cat hissed at her. "It means I'm one of the strongest here, brat. Show some damn respect!"

Hei moved backward, dodging the woman's half-assed swipes as he asked. "What are you even the leader of?"

"Information gathering."

"A spy?"

"Among other things." Leone's fist tightened as she slammed the earth, creating a small crater and blowing Hei back as he backflipped to dodge the shockwave. "Including removing key targets from being threats to our kind."

Hei landed in a crouch at the apex of a jutting boulder. "Noted." He took in the damage in interest. "Is that from Touki?"

Leone opened her mouth to answer, but a new speaker spoke up faster.

"As if."

A scoff beside his ear has Hei responding instinctively as a blade left his sleeve and stabbed at the source.

The black cat jumped off his shoulder with a laugh, landing a few feet away with a playful tint to its gaze. "If she used Touki in the fields, I would have had her investigating Hellhound pens for the next month."

The corner of Leone's mouth twitched as she smiled down at the cat. "I was wondering when you would speak up, Yoru."

"I was getting a feel for our new guest." Yoru said in a deep voice as she turned back to Hei. "You need to work on energy sensing, boy."

Hei frowned at the cat who fooled his senses so easily. "I agree. That's why I'm here."

Yoru seemed amused by his answer. "Oh, is that so? Do you think you're worthy of being trained by one of us, boy?"

Hei narrowed his eyes. "I don't base my self-worth on the opinions of others. I'm here to train, and if that's not going to happen, I'll leave."

"Hmmm." Yoru hummed and stared him in the eyes with interest. "And you think you could learn what we have to offer elsewhere?"

"I'll learn however I have to."

"And why do you have to?"

"The weak don't get to choose the way they die, let alone be free."

"So it's freedom you seek?"

"Yes."

It was a very straightforward conversation between boy and cat. Direct questions and direct answers with no hidden intentions.

Yoru's tail waved slowly as she considered the boy before her. 'I like those eyes.' She turned to Leone. "You test him yet?"

"Of course." Leone responded as if she was offended. "You think I'd accept someone without seeing what they're made of?"

"What do you think?"

"Brats got a mouth on him and needs some of that angst slapped out hard, but he's an uncut gem."

"Truly? He's a human."

"You two know I'm right here, right?" Hei asked and was promptly ignored.

"I've seen his teacher in his prime; if the brat is half as good as him, he'll be a monster at the rate he's growing in a few years."

"A monster, hm?" Yoru hummed in thought as she looked at Hei with an unreadable look. "Interesting. Boy, come, I'll see what you're made of for myself."

She turned and beckoned him forward while Hei gave Leone a questioning look. "I'm supposed to fight a cat?"

Leone just laughed and put her arms behind her head as she followed Yoru. "Remember how I said I was one of the village's leaders?"

"Must have slipped my mind." Hei responded and fell in step.

Leone shot him an annoyed glare. "I'll have my turn with you later."

"Mn. So I'm assuming Yoru is one of the other three leaders?"

"So you were listening." Leone swatted at him and chuckled as he dodged. "Yeah. I might lead the spy network, but she's the official leader of the village and deals with domestic issues. I'll still train you no matter what happens, but whether that ends up being here or elsewhere is ultimately up to her, so give it your best shot to survive, brat."

Hei clearly noticed the mischievous tone of her voice as he followed but ignored it to prepare for the coming fight.

The trio walked past the village line and into the trees, where immediately the sounds of the village vanished, and all Hei could hear were the rich sounds of the forest and the creatures that inhabited it.

A large clearing appeared before them, fit with scars, indents, fallen trees, and craters in various spots all around.

Leone hung back while gesturing him forward to the center of the clearing, where Yoru sat on her haunches and waited for him.

A distant sound reached his ears, and Hei looked around, suddenly noticing dozens of curious eyes peeking through the branches of the tall trees as villagers looked on.

Hei frowned at seeing them as he unholstered his pistols. "Should they be there? They might get grazed."

"Heh, you have nothing to worry about; if one of those toys could hit us, let alone hurt us, I would be insulted."

Hei narrowed his eyes at the feline. "I hit Leone."

"I let you hit me!" Leone called from the side under the judgmental gaze of the others.

Yoru chuckled and waved a paw. "Go on, shoot me. I won't move."

Hei considered warning her that these weren't the smaller 9mm rounds he hit Leone with before deciding against it.

He drew, aimed, and fired fast enough to be a blur to the human eye, slamming dead center on his target over a hundred feet away.

And yet, the .45 super round that should have blown a human head into chunks crunched up into a ball of lead and fell to the earth smoking.

"…." Hei could only stare on while the feline licked her paw carelessly.

"I could have caught that if I wanted. Nice force, accuracy, and speed, I'll give you that. But even a mage-focused Mid-Class wouldn't get more than a bruise from that. If it hit them at all, that is."

"I'm aware." Hei answered calmly and lowered his gun. "I never expected them to harm anything beyond Low-Class."

Yoru hummed at that. "You should watch out; even Low-Class targets can surprise you." She looked into Hei's eyes and saw the doubt there at her statement. "You don't believe me, do you?" She turned to the trees and called out. "Kione. Come down here."

A figure flashed into the field, and Hei carefully took in the new addition. Pink hair, standing five foot seven, with a thin figure, and wearing a bright smile as she cheerily waved to Hei.

Yoru pointed a paw at her. "Kione here is only Low-Class. She's not even Tier 3. Try shooting her."

Hei's eyes flicked to Kione's in question, but the woman just smiled and urged him on. "Do it. It looks fun."

A flicker of irritation passed through him, but Hei silenced it as he shot at the woman. The bullet slammed into her shoulder and pushed her back with a wince, but otherwise didn't penetrate her skin.

'That should be possible…'

Yoru waved a paw again. "Shoot her again, this time dodge it, Kione."

Hei fired, and Kione's figure blurred in his vision as the bullet tore some bark out of a tree in the distance.

"Again but catch it."

Hei fired, and Kione's figure blurred again before she stopped with a pained grimace, opening her hand to show the bullet, although one of her fingers was crooked.

"Owie."

Yoru snorted in humor. "You trained your body, Kione, but don't forget the power of momentum. Go join the others and wrap that up."

"Yes, leader." Kione flashed back up into the branches, leaving a thoughtful Hei looking at Yoru.

"How? Low-Class shouldn't be beyond modern firearms."

Yoru smirked at him. "And how much do you really know about the limits of Low-Class? Or any class, for that matter?"

"Explain."

"How long have you been at Tier 2, boy?"

Hei internally winced at the pointed look she gave him as she said that. 'She probably felt out my energy levels while she was on my shoulder. Damn it, she was a perfectly normal cat to all my five senses. I really need Leone's energy sensing and suppression techniques. She could have killed me at any time without me even being able to blink, and she knows it.' Outwardly, he decided there was no point in posturing. "Less than a year."

"Not bad for a human at your age."

"I had a good teacher."

"Is that so." Yoru hummed, and suddenly the clearing was flooded with killing intent without a single warning.

Like a thick layer of miasma choking his senses with a weight pressing down on his shoulders, Hei grunted under the pressure, but he wasn't the naïve child from a year before.

He only froze briefly before biting hard on his lip to refocus himself and unload both clips, moving from his spot toward the trees to gain space.

Yoru stood at the same exact spot, taking the shots in interest as they all hit the same exact spot on her chest and watched him run. "Only froze for two seconds, huh? Someone has a decent body count under him already." Her form blurred as she appeared behind the running Hei. "Now let's see how you react if I limit myself to a peak Low-Class."

Hei bent like a gymnast around the casual swing of the feline's paw, idly noticing it cracked the earth when it missed as he kept running.

His shots never stopped, moving in a string that would make Yoru pause every time it hit her fur, but not buying him enough time to get away as she pursued with a fanged smile.

One strike after the next came at the fastest speeds Hei could manage, with her getting a feel for where he stood in reaction speed, reflexes, and skill.

None got through, but that was more due to Yoru playing than Hei's ability.

She stopped after five minutes with an analyzing gaze on Hei's panting sweat drenched form from the extremely high-speed movements. "Speed gets a C. Now let's test Strength." She kicked out at a tree, tearing it from the ground with a casual strike before tossing it head-on at Hei, fast enough that he had no room to dodge but slow enough for him to turn and brace himself.

He grunted under the blow and growled as he pushed back on the multiple-ton force trying to crush him, literally feeling things crack and snap inside his body as he heaved. The tree groaned as he managed to redirect the force at the last second and dropped to a knee with bellowing breaths as his whole body pulsed from the strain.

Yoru watched coldly and judged. "Strength gets a D, not surprising with the age and race. Last is Stamina and mental fortitude."

She blurred forward and came up with a swipe from the front, making Hei's eyes widen as he flipped out of the way and brought his guns up in a block. The reinforced steel groaned under her casual blows, and the ones that got through his guard were murder on his body as he felt bones give way under her attacks.

One of his knees snapped, and he pushed on using his other leg.

Ribs gave way, poking at internal organs as he coughed up blood and kept deflecting what he could.

A wrist was shattered as his pistol was knocked into the tree line, yet he still used the arm as a flail.

Back and forth they went, with Hei refusing to go down no matter how much the feline played with him.

She kicked him in the shoulder and felt the arm dislocate as he was launched backward, rolling over himself and digging his working heel into the dirt without making a sound.

His red eyes locked onto her with an inner fire raging within, without pain or anger, but cold analyzing logic looking for a way forward and adrenaline-filled excitement he had hardly felt before.

Yoru's own eyes watched in interest as that inner fire refused to go out. "How far will you go, boy? Will you give in to the pain and call it? Do you want to quit and go home? Just say it, and we're done here."

Hei's answer was to grip his dislocated shoulder with his working off-hand and snap it back into place with a wet crunch that made some of the watching Nekomata flinch.

Even Leone whistled with a smirk. "Damn, that was cold."

Yoru's eyes shined with approval. "Very well." She blurred forward and slammed into his chest, but after enough time getting his ass handed to him, Hei had begun to adjust to the cat's movements and slightly predicted her actions, moving with the blow and bleeding off the momentum.

With a single pistol lost in the skirmish and a single working hand, he continued undeterred by his current state or the lack of his primary fighting style.

It was wild, savage, and brutal, and it invigorated him in a way he had never experienced before, as Mr. Lupa always aimed to teach him skill and threaten him with lethal strikes rather than brutalize him to push his limits.

His blood pumped in his ears, his senses hyper-focused, and as his feline enemy came forward, he began to feel more than see the blows coming.

'I can see the pattern. Left shoulder.' He ducked and kicked out. 'Right knee.' He spun out of the way. 'Kidney shot.' He crossed his arms and took the next blow, feeling like a wrecking ball just smashed into him as his back slammed against the iron-like bark of a tree, forcing the air from his lungs before gravity took hold and dropped him to his knees, a broken mess.

Yoru paused a few feet away with a wide smile. 'He's actually adapting on pure instinct. I'm making my movements obvious, but I'm moving at three times the speed he can. Leone was right; he's a monster in the making.' She walked up to the wheezing Hei with a slow lazy swagger as she spoke up. "You've got spirit, boy, I'll give you that. But a cub should know when it's outclassed. Just give in and go home."

Her words rang out like a command as she hid her interest behind a cold demeanor. 'What will you do, boy?'

The pain was monumental; bones were poking at his organs, his nerves were flaring, and the extreme high-speed fight drained his stamina faster than any skirmish he ever had with the old man.

The old man, who found him when he was young, a step away from being found by those who would wish to harm, use, or manipulate him. Reaching out a weathered palm with only a single request to be better than he ever was.

To rise and make the name of Lupa ring around the world.

The burning flames deep inside Hei stoked further at that, and he spat a bloody tooth to the side as he stood tall on a single shaky leg, staring down his foe without fear as a fierce blood-filled smile stretched across his cheeks. "Bring it."

Yoru's eyes matched his own as she laughed openly. "Nyahaha! I like you, boy!" She blurred forward in an uppercut that rang his head like a gong, instantly making him go out like a light as he slumped. "And you can stay. Stamina is a solid B."

Leone stepped forward into the clearing with a disgruntled look, holding Hei's pistols in hand, having picked them up before one of the villagers got any ideas. "Did you have to push it that far, Yoru?"

Yoru morphed back into her human form, standing tall in the clearing as she looked down at Hei's sleeping form. "I like him."

"You knew that before you beat him to an inch of his life. I've seen you judge a book accurately by its cover within a minute of conversation." Leone responded in annoyance, kneeling by Hei's side to check his pulse. "At least he's alive."

Yoru smirked at the boy. "No, I mean, I like his spirit. His potential is high, but it's his will and instinct that excites the hell out of me."

Leone's tails shot up straight as she processed her friend's unspoken meaning. "Seriously, Yoru? You haven't taken a student in decades!"

Yoru shrugged and knelt down to pick Hei's prone form up, throwing him over her shoulder like a sack of potatoes. "I was getting bored. The boy might just liven things up around here."

She vanished in a blur, even to Leone's senses with Hei's body, and the blonde feline could only send up a prayer for his future. 'Sorry, Lupa, I'm not sure I can guarantee the kid will be back in one piece now.'

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AN: End of Part 1 of 3. Editing Part 2 now. Any thoughts so far?

Any thoughts so far? What did you think of the intro to the village? To my old readers, the Triplets have officially made their reappearance! And the intro of Yoru and Hei getting a supernatural reality check. He's still learning and has a long way to go.

Reviews Fuel Me.

Part 2 begins with Hei and Yoru having a very interesting conversation. Stay tuned and it's coming in...like an hour. I hate edits. :'(

Response to Reviews will come with Part 3.