The Ashen Saiyan Chapter 48, a Dragon Ball Z + Fire Emblem Crossover fanfic

Part 1: White Clouds

The Battle of the Eagle and Lion

"First of all, let me just say congratulations to you all. You have completed the training in record time and not only that, just before the big day too. I'm sure you must feel very accomplished."

"No offence Teach but I can't really feel much of anything these days…"

A few weeks had passed ever since the lesson of no shortcuts and Byleth hadn't relented at all when it came to the training, but she did allow some breathing days where they could just develop techniques. But right now, a very important day was fast approaching. In fact, it was tomorrow to be specific. It was the Battle of the Eagle and Lion, and it would determine just who would come out on top.

…If she can stop the students from collapsing from sheer exhaustion.

"Alright students, sit up, I have something important to announce."

"Is it the sweet release of death? Because I need that right now." Caspar groaned in pain, as Petra helped him sit up. But Byleth just smiled.

"Not quite. You all now can take off your weighted clothing."

…

"Did I just hear that?" Lysithea spoke up after the initial shock wore off.

"We can take them off?!"

"Yes. You have completed the training, and I'm sure that you won't want the clothing to hinder your performance tomorrow. So for the rest of the day, just relax. Get any last minute preparation that you need. And get a good rest before the big day tomorrow."

As soon as she finished, the students jumped up with newfound energy as some of them were already taking the boots off.

"Ah, it feels so good to have these off!" Hilda exclaimed.

"Oh my goodness, I'm going to take a long bath!" Annette squealed in delight as she wriggled her bare feet after being in those boots for so long. And she wasn't alone as the others were already sprinting to their dorm rooms to get a nice long bath. Byleth smiled and shook her head at their excitement before turning around and deciding to visit her father.

'It is quite humorous that they get that excited over such basic things. But I suppose they have been wearing those weighted clothes for so long, they couldn't even wash themselves properly. Do you think that they are ready?'

Byleth turned to see Sothis next to her and nodded. "We can only see. But I do wonder what their reactions will be to the newfound strength. I know it was a shock to me the first time I discovered it."

'….What do you mean?'

"Uh oh… I'm so sorry I promise I will fix this!" Leonie yelled to the shocked maids as she was holding the remains of the door handle she ripped clean off by accident. She looked at the handle in complete disbelief.

'I don't remember being this strong before. I really should be careful during the battle, otherwise I might accidentally kill someone.'

And she wasn't the only one. At the training arena, Dimitri was looking a lot more embarrassed than usual as he was holding the remains of a forged iron lance, which he accidentally shattered by grabbing it too hard.

"Oh no! I'm so sorry I truly didn't mean this! Oh, this always happens but the forged iron lances usually can handle it! Am I too strong for normal weapons now?!"

He quickly turned to Dedue who was standing to the side looking the same as he always does, but there was a noticeable nervous sweat drop running down the side of his head. But Dimitri needed to train!

"Dedue! Are there any other stronger weapons?"

"Your Highness… if you are too strong for regular weaponry nowadays then may I instead suggest you work on developing your techniques? Your Ki weapons don't break nearly as much."

Taking a second to think that over, Dimitri nodded to himself and smiled, now feeling a lot more calm than before. He walked up to Dedue and clasped his shoulder (VERY gently) and nodded.

"Thank you, my friend. You always know how to keep my head on straight. You're right, I should take this time to perfect my techniques."

"Then you need someone to keep you right, Boar."

Both men turned to see Felix standing there… holding the remains of an iron sword he accidentally snapped in half. Felix scowled at the weapon before looking at Dimitri.

"I finally know what it is like to be in your shoes. If we are to win this battle, then we don't need these weapons. We need our own."

"Yes, I believe you are correct. If we join forces, then perhaps we can make the weapons form faster."

"Don't get the wrong idea, Boar. I'm doing this out of necessity."

As the two discussed ways to harness their Ki more efficiently, Marianne and Annette were watching in the distance. The latter munching on a baked pastry courtesy of Mercedes. "Wow. They really are strong. Well, we all are. I felt so bad that I accidentally crushed Mercedes baking tray! But she said it was alright and put me on the bread making station. These grippers are good for that at least- Marianne? Are you okay?"

Annette realised that Marianne was a little zoned out as she stared at Dimitri's hands which she saw break those weapons like it was nothing.

'Oh, I wonder what else he could use his hands for… maybe around my-'

Her eyes suddenly snapped open as she quickly covered her red cheeks and turned away. "By the Goddess I can't think such impure thoughts! Foolish Marianne! What would they all think of you?"

"…Huh?" Annette said, still munching on the pastry, not quite getting what the other girls inner turmoil was.

"Haaaaaa, this feels amazing!" Hilda sighed in bliss sinking into the huge tub of hot water that was shared amongst the females. Some of the male students went to the designated male one because after all that gruelling exercise, they needed a bath to wash away their exhaustion. Hilda opened one eye to see Lysithea up to her chin in water and eyes closed almost in a hypnotic state. She really pushed herself too hard with the training.

"Do you mind if I sit next to you?"

Hilda looked up to see Edelgard in a towel and she smiled back.

"Yeah, come on in Edie! Water feels amazing!"

"Thank you Hilda." Edelgard smiled and dropped her towel. Before all of the training she would've been very self conscious about her body and the scars. But thanks to Byleth and the fact that she and the other students have seen each other naked a lot, it felt natural. As she sat in the water and leaned back, she felt her stress as well as the grease and grime wash away from her body.

"You know, it feels weird."

"Hm? What do you mean?"

"Well, we will be on opposite sides tomorrow. Us and the rest of 141. Just feels weird, but that doesn't mean that I will go easy on everyone. After all, Golden Deer need to win, right Lysithea?"

"Waaaaaaaarm….."

"…Right, she's kind of comatose right now."

Edelgard just smiled in return and leaned more into the water. "Yes, I suppose that you are right. But we all knew that this would happen, and it's all in good fun at the end of the day. Plus there's four of us on each house so it's still fair."

"Yeah, I guess. Oh! One more thing!"

"Hm?"

"Have you had trouble with… your strength? Because when I tried to sharpen my axe for tomorrow I may have…"

"Snapped the blade off? Yes, I did the exact same thing."

"It's so annoying! I mean, that was a gift for when I first started the academy! I'll need to send it back to my family for repairs and try to explain what happened but I don't think that they will buy me being too strong to break it since not even Holst could break his weapons."

"I have to agree, but perhaps this is an opportunity to better harness our Ki. But that is a story for another time."

"Oh hello everyone! I wasn't expecting to see you all here!"

The two ladies turned to see Flayn waving at them while also wearing a towel. "May I join you?"

"Of course, it's a public washroom you don't need to ask."

"How wonderful!"

As Flayn joined them, she was about to wave at Lysithea but found that she wasn't exactly in a mental state to respond. "Are the waters really that soothing?"

"No, I think this is just what she really needed. Professor Byleth pushed us all to our limits!" Hilda explained and leaned back, groaning as there were still aches in her arms. But Flayn smiled wider.

"Well, it appears that the results have been incredible. Look at yourselves!"

Both girls blinked and never actually noticed… but Flayn was right. Their arms were very toned and any fat that they may have built up at some point were completely gone. The muscles were big too but not too bulky, and Hilda stared in amazement at her body.

"Wow! I can't believe it! I guess I never noticed because I always had the training Gi on but seriously! No wonder I broke my axe!"

"Hmm… I always had faith in the Professor but I never imagined that the results would be this beneficial." Edelgard mused as she flexed her arm and smiled.

Flayn beamed and clapped her hands together at them. "This will be such a fun battle tomorrow! It's only a shame that I cannot join you, it was considered unfair."

"Yeah, I don't think I could contend with you, considering the fact that I've seen you when you get angry." Hilda laughed nervously, at the very thought of having to fight her.

The three all shared a laugh before slowly sinking into the water allowing the relaxing nature of the water to overtake them, with them all soon in the same state as Lysithea.

"Miss Byleth, a word if you please?"

In Jeralt's office, both father and daughter looked up to see Seteth had stepped inside with his hands behind his back.

"This isn't another lecture on taking the students away, is it?" Byleth asked nervously, to which Seteth closed his eyes and blew out a breath to try and relieve the rising stress.

"I was just beginning to forget that… but no, I wish to congratulate you. You have made remarkable progress with the students in this academy and the results have certainly shown… in more ways than one."

"They have broken things already haven't they?"

"I have had several complaints from various staff members and we will need to get the doors and ovens repaired."

"I'll handle the fundings." Jeralt let out a huge sigh. "It's technically my fault. I taught Byleth and in turn she taught the students. It's fine, just send me the bill to my desk and I'll make sure that it's all sorted out."

Seteth had a small look of surprise before he nodded. "I see. Thank you Jeralt. Will you be participating in the battle tomorrow?"

Jeralt just shook his head as Byleth leant on his desk. "No, with Manuela still recovering from the Death Knight incident, it didn't seem fair to battle while she sat in the sideline, so Hanneman and I won't be there. Then again, having me there would only make things work in the Black Eagles favour. Besides, I want to see how well the kid has trained the brats so I would prefer watching on the sidelines anyway."

"Flayn will be with me." Byleth continued. "It would be a nice learning experience to see how a team operates since she usually does things by herself. She's very eager to learn how to fight with the others but at their current power, not quite yet."

"Wonderful. It wouldn't be fair if she participated as I'm sure you are well aware. Well, I will be on my way then. I wish the members of 141 the best of luck tomorrow, if anything, I'm sure it'll be a battle to remember. Good day to you both."

As Seteth left, Byleth rubbed her head groaning a little which to Jeralt was a cause for concern. "You okay, kid?"

"I'm fine, dad. Just… headache. It's a good thing I'm just watching tomorrow."

"You sure that you're okay? Maybe you should take the rest of the day off-"

"Thank you, but I'm fine. See?" She gave an awkward thumbs up and a small smile which made Jeralt sigh and shake his head.

"Just… be careful, kid."

"I will."

'What's happening with us? My head is killing me.' Sothis said as she groaned rubbing at her temples.

"I'm not sure. Maybe I just haven't been sleeping well lately, or I'm under the weather or… I don't know. It'll be okay."

'Are you trying to convince me, or yourself? Because this has been a consistent thing for a while.'

Byleth averted her gaze and shook her head. "And they've been getting more and more frequent… change the cycle. What does that mean? I don't like not knowing things and I know my future self isn't being vague because she doesn't have time to tell me everything."

'Not to mention that thing said my name.' Sothis said, resting her chin on her hand. 'Maybe it's someone from my past? Oh who knows… this is a very complex puzzle.'

After sitting down on the chair in front of her mirror, Byleth pulled at her eyelids to check for bags and saw that they were quite prevalent and she sighed, closing her eyes. "My head hurts so much."

'As does mine. Let's just… go to bed. I need to sleep, as we have a big day tomorrow. You get to see how much the students have improved.'

"Hm. Yeah… you're right…" Byleth mumbled before sleep overtook and she collapsed onto the bed.

The next morning, the Monastery was practically empty as everyone had made their way out to the Adrestian Empire, where the Battle of the Eagle and Lion was taking place. Byleth would usually accompany the students and chat with them, but this time she chose to stay back so as to not distract anyone and instead was walking next to Flayn, Jeralt and Shamir. Flayn was practically vibrating with excitement.

"Oh this will be wonderful to watch! To see everyone working together, and to see how well their training has gone! You must be very proud, Professor!"

"I am." Byleth smiled in response. "They have been very dedicated to their training, despite the many complaints…"

"And the lectures from Seteth." Shamir chipped in which made Byleth groan.

"Don't remind me. I still have a headache from the last lecture. I didn't think it was a bad idea, all they did was miss a few classes…"

As she closed her eyes and grimaced at Seteth having to keep her there to lecture her. She had to miss out on dinner that day too…

"Ah, cheer up kid. You get to see all your hard work pay off today." Jeralt said, clapping her on the back. "You even managed to correct their stamina issues too."

"Yeah, but I'm not sure if it'll be enough. At least they won't drop unconscious in the first minute. It has been a while since we went to the Empire, hasn't it?"

"Yeah, I sometimes forget how nice the views look. Can't remember the last time we were here. You'd think me being the teacher of the Black Eagles, I would make the effort to actually stop by here from time to time."

"You're here now, even if it's under different circumstances." Shamir pointed out. But that's when Flayn looked ahead at the students and frowned.

"I wonder what is going through their heads right now. I can't imagine the pressure they must feel. They must be coming up with intense strategies, I can only think of the great ideas that they would be thinking of to achieve victory."

"Caspar, that is the stupidest idea I have ever heard."

"Come on Dorothea, just hear me out!"

Edelgard sighed loudly as she heard the rest of her classmates bickering back and forth. This had been a constant of Caspar trying to come up with a 'special' move to win the battle. And this time was trying to use the Songstress.

"It's simple! You cast a thunder spell on my hand, I jump up in the air and then slam down the ground like BAM! We achieve victory."

Dorothea shook her head and closed her eyes. "I'm not even going to entertain that idea. There's so much wrong with what you just said."

"Oh come on! Everyone has rejected my cool ideas! We need a good finisher!"

'I wish Hubert was still here… I wonder how the other two are getting along.'

"Come on Felix!"

"For the last time, no! It's a stupid idea!"

"I believe Felix is right Annie, it doesn't seem very safe."

"But it would be cool!"

Dimitri sighed as he heard Felix adamantly refuse and Mercedes trying to talk Annette out of her latest idea. Like Caspar, she also felt like they had to have a 'special' final move.

"Dedue! Can you do it?"

"Please do not involve me in these shenanigans." Dedue simply said as Annette whined and stomped her foot.

"Why won't people do my idea?!"

"Wait, what is your idea again?" Ingrid asked and Annette beamed.

"It's simple! Felix or Dedue or his Highness grab me by the feet and use me as a sword, while I use my Ki and wind magic."

"…Use you as a sword."

"Uh huh!"

"As in… they slam you into stuff."

"That's right!"

"…Yeah, no that is very unsafe."

"OH COME ON!"

Dimitri sighed once again and shook his head. He was less worried about Annette's antics and more worried about the other two house leaders. Specifically Claude. Who knew what kind of schemes he was plotting…

"This sucks!" Claude exclaimed. "Damn Edelgard and her bets!"

"Is.. he okay?" Marianne whispered to Hilda who just shook her head.

"He's upset because he and Edelgard made a bet on who would get the Elixir. Since he didn't get it, he can't use any tricks or sabotage during the battle."

"Curse me and my honour system! This isn't fair! I had so many plans that are going to waste!"

"Claude, grow up." Leonie chastised him. "I already didn't approve of your schemes and now I'm glad you don't get to do it."

"Leonie is right." Lorenz nodded. "This is highly unbecoming for someone of your status!"

"Indeed. We are not going to win this battle with petty tricks and deceit." Lysithea nodded and that's when Raphael then pointed at the distance.

"Hey! I see it!"

The three groups of students all saw the clearing of Gronder Field and all smiled to themselves, feeling pumped up now that their battlefield was in plain view.

"This victory will be ours." Petra said, her eyes glowing slightly feeling her Ki pulse through her.

"We will win." Ashe grinned, clutching his bow tight.

"No matter what." Leonie finished, with a clenched fist as specifically all the members of 141 looked at each other with fire in their eyes.

"Let's do this."

"You okay, kid? You can sit out if you want."

"I'm fine dad. Just a headache."

Jeralt looked at Byleth in concern as she was rubbing her head with her metal arm. Seeing his look, she forced herself to have a smile and a thumbs up.

"See? All good."

"Here, Miss Byleth! I got you some water!" Flayn said, holding a bladder of water up at Byleth who smiled again and took it before drinking the water that came out of it. She wasn't exactly thirsty, but she knew that everyone else was concerned about her.

'Keep it together, child.' Sothis chastised her. 'We can figure this out later. The battle is about to start.'

As if on cue, trumpets started sounding as the three sides all took their positions. It was quite an impressive display as not only were the three houses there, but also soldiers from the respective lands. At the top of a cliff, were Seteth and Rhea who both looked at the display in front of them. Seteth cleared his throat and then spoke loud and clear for all to hear.

"Students! Take your positions! The battle is about to commence!"

From his side, Dimitri stepped out from the soldiers alongside him and summoned a Ki lance before declaring to the opposition.

"Just so you know, I am not about to go easy on you today-"

BZZZZZZZZZT!

"I won't stop until I have your heads. The dead will have their tribute."

Byleth grunted and held her head as a sudden vision overtook her senses and she saw that same version of Dimitri with an eyepatch and looking rugged, eyes full of malice. She then shook her head and tried to focus on the three armies… students? Yeah, students. Not armies, there are no armies needed.

That's when Claude stepped forward and spun a small ball of Ki on his finger with his signature smirk as he looked around. "As long as we can pull off the win, doesn't matter how."

WHIIIIIIIIINE!

"As far as school reunions go, this has to be one of the worst…"

'What's going on?! My head feels like it's splitting in two!' Sothis groaned loudly in pain clutching her head as Byleth felt her head getting hotter.

"I'm not sure… is this my future self again?"

And finally Edelgard smiled and looked around, hands on her hips. "Our victory must be absolute, no matter what it may take."

CRRRRRRRZZZZZZZ!

"Years ago, we fought here as classmates… but not today."

"Kid! Are you okay?!"

Byleth suddenly saw that Shamir, Flayn and Jeralt were looking alarmed at how she was acting as she blinked and felt the pain start to subside. "I'm fine…. Really…."

Nobody else noticed the commotion with Byleth as Seteth looked at the field and nodded. "It is time!"

The three leaders nodded back and Edelgard extended her arm to give the signal. "Forward now!"

CRRRRRKT!

"And so we must press on…"

"Yeah! Let's do this!" Caspar whooped and charged ahead with the soldiers.

"Victory will be achieved!" Petra declared as she summoned a pack of Ki wolves alongside her.

"C-Can Bernie just stay behind? I don't think my technique is ready…" Bernadetta whimpered as she kept a tight grip on her bow, but was pushed forward by Linhardt.

"Sorry, I already claimed this spot."

On the other side, Dimitri raised his lance and pointed it forward. "For honour!"

BZZZZZZT!

"KILL EVERY LAST ONE OF THEM!"

"Just stay out of my way, Boar!" Felix huffed, summoning his Ki sword and charged.

"Let's do this! This'll be so much fun!" Annette giggled as she had her tome by her side, opening it up and using a wind spell to propel herself forward.

"I'll back anyone up! Don't worry!" Ashe said and readied his bow.

Claude said nothing and instead just raised his hand forward and signalled everyone to go forward.

"Can I just stay back? No? Fiiiiiiine!" Hilda groaned and slumped forward, dragging her axe behind her.

"Complaining won't let us win, Hilda." Lysithea huffed and like Annette, had her tome by her side and ran forward.

"Let's all work together!" Leonie yelled, and had a spare Ki lance at her side.

"Hmmm…."

"Well? Is anything wrong?" Jeralt asked. After seeing Byleth clutch her head in agony Flayn ran off to get Manuela so she could diagnose her. But when she got there, Manuela could only frown in confusion as she did her usual diagnostics.

"No. I don't see anything visibly wrong with her. Aside from THAT."

Jeralt nodded as he knew that she was referring to the fact that Byleth didn't have a heartbeat. But if that wasn't the issue…

"When we're back at the Monastery, I can give her a proper examination. But right now, I'm not seeing any visible signs of anything. Do you feel fine Byleth?"

"I feel fine. They just come and go."

"Hmmm. In that case, I'll stay by your side in case something else happens."

"That is a good idea. That way, we don't have to get you again." Shamir said as Manuela then sauntered up to Jeralt.

"Well, I have more than one motivation to stay here~"

"…Whatever, I don't care." Shamir shrugged, as they all went back to watching the battle as Byleth was speaking to Sothis.

'What in the world was that?' Byleth thought to herself.

'I'm not sure… perhaps this area here is where most of those visions take place. It's all coming in at once, and we can't deal with it. Ow, my head hurts so much… maybe we should leave and rest-'

'No. I want to see how far they have progressed. I'm staying.'

'You are such a stubborn child… very well then, we can watch.'

The battle was underway and the students had yet to meet each other for a one on one fight. Right now, they were dealing with the soldiers on the opposite sides which even for the ones that weren't in 141, were easy pickings. On the Black Eagle side, wolves made out of Ki pounced on the soldiers from the Blue Lion and Golden Deer side and while making sure to not harm them in anyway, tore their weapons out of their hands and threw them away. With them being defenceless, Petra swooped in and delivered a solid hook to their face which knocked them clean out.

"Thank you, my friends." Petra smiled at the wolves before sending them away. She had to preserve her Ki, as she hadn't been able to combat the drain that it did on her.

On the other side, Lysithea opened her Tome and had it levitate in front of her, before she she raised both her hands in the air and charged up a massive Luna spell mixed with her Ki, as the soldiers from the Kingdom and Alliance tried running away but due to the spells massive size, were blown away when she threw it on the ground and caused a massive shockwave. She then grabbed her Tome out of the air and huffed.

"You won't die, but you will be feeling it for a while."

"Well done Lysithea!" Hilda cheered as she charged an attack into her axe and swung in a wide arc making more soldiers get thrown into the floor and out of commission. "This'll be a piece of cake!"

And with the Blue Lions, Dimitri was back to back with Felix as they took out a bunch of soldiers.

"I thought I told you to stay out of my way."

"I can leave if you wish."

"Do not rush off alone, you fool."

Annette was next to them and frowned while throwing wind spells. 'I can never get a read on him.'

"Annie, look out!" Mercedes yelled.

She turned just in time to see an arrow soaring towards her as she quickly threw a shield in front of her to avoid taking damage but due to the urgency of the situation it threw her to the ground. Sylvain quickly helped her up and deflected a blow from an Empire soldier.

"Don't get knocked out! We need you to deal with the others!"

"Hey, this isn't easy! Ashe, back me up!"

"I don't want to get involved in this…" Ashe said, drawing his bow and firing a Ki arrow. As if on cue, another Ki arrow sped past his ear as that alerted the Blue Lion members of 141.

"Shit, that means one is nearby." Felix muttered.

"There's only two of them who use arrows, not including Ashe. Which one was it?"

"It isn't Bernadetta, I saw her on the other side at some point. That means it can only be…"

WHIZZ!

A grunt of pain sounded as a Ki arrow hit Dedue in the knee causing him to kneel down and try and pull it out, but it vanished when he touched it.

"Dedue! No!" Dimitri yelled and went to rush towards his friend but the larger man tried to stop him.

"Your Highness, don't! It's a trap-"

Dimitri managed to duck just in time as a Ki arrow whizzed past his head as he saw Leonie and Claude standing there, with the latter having his finger pointing at him.

"Dang it, I missed him."

"Let me at him, Claude." Leonie said and started walking. "I've always wanted to fight a royal."

"Okay, first of all, ouch. Second of all, very well. I need to preserve myself for later. But I'll let you off with a parting gift!"

As he snapped his fingers, both Dedue and Ashe looked down to see the ground beneath them glowing as Ingrid gasped. "Ashe, no!"

She then threw her spear at him which snagged his hood and yanked him away from the area as the area exploded around them. Though Ingrid managed to save Ashe, she wasn't as lucky to save Dedue who was laying in the ground groaning in pain.

"Don't worry, he isn't dead! But he will be feeling it for a week!"

"I'm sorry your Highness, but I must concede defeat. Please be wary of Claude." Dedue said, slowly getting up and allowing a Kingdom soldier to help him over to the medical bay to get patched up.

"I know, my friend." Dimitri replied, as he was ready to take on Leonie as revenge for Dedue as both of them readied their lances. Felix rolled his eyes and walked off… before spotting a patch of purple.

"You…"

'How interesting. The members of 141 are assembling a lot more quicker than I expected. But then again, at the rate that their training went I shouldn't be surprised at their skill level.'

Byleth nodded at Sothis' report but suddenly groaned when her vision got replaced by another peek at the future. Leonie and Dimitri were there, but they looked ready to kill. And Dimitri… had that eyepatch yet again. But when Byleth took a closer look, she saw… the Empire's sigil on her coat?

But just as quickly as she tried to piece together a thought, the vision ended.

'Even more peculiar by the minute… seems that my theory is correct. A good chunk of the visions resonate within this very spot. Let's keep observing. There are quite a few fighters I am interested in.'

"Oh Bernie, you've really done it now. You should've insisted on staying in your room more." Bernadetta squeaked as she dodged som Alliance soldiers and tried running away.

"I need help! Can someone please help me?!" But when she frantically looked around, she realised that she was alone. It was just her. But then when Bernadetta took a deep breath, she realised… this was an opportunity! These soldiers weren't nearly as scary as her fellow 141 members!

'Okay, no time for being a scared Bernie. Count them in your head… five soldiers. Perfect! Just what I need!'

She slowly narrowed her eyes and kept her hand hovering above her empty quiver, and one of the Alliance soldiers noticed that… her right iris was glowing?

"Be ready, she's up to something!"

But for Bernadetta, time seemed to slow down. The world turned into almost a still picture with a warm amber colour as she visualised an 'X' on the hands of each of the soldiers with the intent to disarm. This is what Petra helped her achieve. A way to use Eagle Vision to help better her shots.

And she slowly started firing arrow after arrow after arrow which struck each of her visualised targets, which disarmed each one as they stared in astonishment. Why? Because to them, she was a quick shooter to shoot five arrows in three seconds! Once she stopped, they quickly raised their hands in surrender and stepped away to announce they were done.

"I… did it?" She managed to squeak out, looking at her bow and her iris was no longer glowing either. She then slowly grinned and jumped up and down.

"YES! I DID IT!"

"I have to admit, you are a woman I can never get a read on. First, you have that weird disarming ability with your hands, now you did the same thing but at a distance."

Her joy slowly shifted to a bundle of nerves as Felix was slowly approaching her, summing a Ki sword and taking a stance. "No more interference. We are fighting right here, right now. Draw your bow, I want you to hold nothing back on me."

"…Oh, crumbs…"

"Edelgard, Bernie is in trouble!" Dorothea yelled, pointing to the distance to the oncoming matchup and Edelgard cursed, grabbing her axe.

"Dammit, I should've known they would try to isolate her. I expected this kind of underhanded tactic from Claude-"

"Awww, you're hurting my feelings, Princess."

She quickly turned around and swung her axe in a wide arc only for her axe to get stopped by a Ki shield as Claude smirked at her before both leaders jumped back to gain some distance between them. Dorothea raised an eyebrow and turned to Edelgard.

"What's the plan here?"

"…Go help out the others. I have a LOT of payback to implement on him."

"Ooooh, you have that look in your eye, Edie. That scary look. What has he done to piss you off?"

"How much time have you got?"

"Hm. Good point. Well, don't let me get in the way. Have fun, you two!"

As Dorothea waved them both off and ran away to help out the others, Edelgard narrowed her eyes at Claude, who just gave an innocent smile.

"Wow, you really do have a scary look in your eyes. What could I have possibly done- you know what? Don't answer that. I'll let ladies go first- WOAH!"

As Claude ducked away from Edelgard throwing her axe, he watched it clatter on the ground behind him and raised an eyebrow.

"Jeez, you feeling okay? That isn't like you."

But Edelgard just smirked, and extended her hand out… wait. Claude recognised that. She was practising that- SHIT!

He managed to narrowly avoid the axe that made it's way back to her hand, as the blade managed to slice off a part of his braid and Edelgard caught the axe before stepping forward.

"You aren't the only one who has picked up a few tricks Claude."

"…Alright then, Princess. Let's give the people what they came for!" Claude exclaimed and pointed his finger out, charging a Ki Blast.

'Already? I wasn't expecting them to be fighting so soon.' Sothis said as she had a hand on her chin observing Edelgard and Claude.

'So, Byleth. You know these children better. Who is the better fighter?'

"Hmmm…"

Yet again, her vision went static before it changed to another location. A harbour where Edelgard stood over Claude's collapsed form as she had a strange looking axe by her side. Hilda was trying to get to them in time but the vision cut off before Byleth could see what had happened.

She rubbed her head and said nothing else whilst the others kept talking.

"Looks like everyone else has their partners." Shamir commented. "They're being smart and realising that they have to take out 141 first."

"True, but you shouldn't count out the non Ki users. They have a few tricks up their sleeve." Jeralt said.

"LET'S GOOOOOO!" Caspar yelled as he threw a punch at Lysithea who summoned a force field to deflect his attack and sighed.

"Honestly, this is why I don't use my fists. Because it is a waste of time and energy."

"Don't count me out just yet!"

"Why? I have ten times the amount of magic prowess you do."

"That may be true! But magic isn't the only thing that matters!" Caspar then took his stance as he actually narrowed his eyes and Lysithea did the same. She couldn't keep up the shield for long, Byleth taught her not to waste her reserves on constant spells.

She realised this may be her worst matchup. An idiot who doesn't stop. As she dropped the shield and closed her Tome before becoming Caspar to come forward. He grinned and roared before charging Ki into his fists before slamming it forward as to his shock, it went straight through her.

"Oh shit! Did I kill her-"

But to his surprise, Lysithea suddenly fizzled out as he realised he was attacking an illusion. "Hey no fair! GAH!"

As he got a surprise attack to his back and turned to see Lysithea using Ki for simple attacks to try and get him to back down. But Caspar held his arms in front of him to brace for impact before to her shock, he charged Ki into his legs and used the momentum to launch himself into the air and like an asteroid, was crashing down at breakneck speed with his fists stuck out as he grinned and Lysithea had a scared look. She didn't plan for this! She had no way out-

"RECALL!"

Suddenly, she teleported away in the nick of time as Caspar crashed into the ground and left a massive crater as Lysithea landed next to… LORENZ?!

"Oh great…"

"Please, thank me later, my dear. After we win this fight." Lorenz replied as he stared down Caspar.

"I can do this by myself!"

"Clearly. And you weren't about to be knocked out? Lysithea, you may be powerful in offence but you are pitiful when it comes to defence. A glass cannon if you will. I shall keep him at bay while you charge up an attack. The ruffian is predictable with his moves."

"…Fine."

"Hey! Not fair! Two on one is cheating!"

As Lysithea was about to charge up an attack, Caspar made a T letter with his hands and screamed.

"TIME!"

"…HUH?! WE ARE IN THE MIDDLE OF A FIGHT- and he's gone…"

Lorenz tutted to himself and stood there as Lysithea was staring at the spot that Caspar was just at dumbfounded.

"Quite a character."

"…You have no idea."

As soon as she said that, Caspar came back with a disheveled Linhardt who just groaned.

"Okay! I have a partner to make it more even now!"

"Why are you dragging me into this? I hid myself for a reason." Linhardt mumbled at Caspar grinned at him.

"Come on! Let's just go over what we talked about! You don't even need to fight!"

"….Fine. I really hope this doesn't hurt…"

Very soon, all the students and members of 141 had their opponents lined up, and quite soon after a chaotic battle took place. Now, even though nobody has the ability to fly since Byleth refused to teach them until after the battle, that didn't make them any less powerful for what they are.

On one end, Hilda blocked an arrow from Ashe that was meant for Marianne. He was playing it smart. Hilda may be powerful, but it was people like Marianne, Mercedes and Linhardt who were the problem. They were the ones healing the stronger fighters and keeping them in. The sooner they got taken out, the more likely the stronger fighters would tire out, and Hilda knew this. Which is why she was protecting Marianne.

And on another, Petra was jumping from tree to tree avoiding attacks set upon her by Annette as the redhead was getting frustrated.

"Petra this isn't fair! I can't see you properly!"

"It is a battle, Annie." Mercedes reminded her. "You have to admit it's fun."

"Well it's fun IF I CAN HIT HER!"

As Petra jumped off a branch and showed off a new version of her techniques. She channeled her Ki and magic into herself… and transformed into an eagle which went soaring towards the two ladies who gaped in surprise. When she reformed she extended her arms upwards as the image of a bear manifested behind her and all Annette could do was whisper.

"So cool…"

Before Petra slammed the ground in front of the two and caused a crater to form, and the impact threw both of them into a wooden structure which caused it to collapse on top of them both. Petra slowly stood up as her tattoos stopped glowing before walking over to the collapsed structure and tossed away various broken and splintered pieces of wood to bring both Annette and Mercedes out, and despite a few scratches they seemed fine physically. But that attack took a lot out of them as they had to use all their magic reserves to dull the impact.

"I am very sorry for not showing the restraint. But it is a battle after all."

"No, it's okay Petra! It was super cool and- ow, ow, ow. Hurts… don't suppose you have any healing magic left, Mercie?" Annette asked her friend but she just shook her head with a shy smile.

"Sorry Annie, I'm afraid I'm all out from that attack. How incredible though, it was just one attack and you managed to drain my magic reserves!"

"Awwww does that mean that we're out?! No fair!"

'So she dies in the future? And by Petra's own hand, no less. How sad…'

Sothis and Byleth had just came back from another vision where rather than being knocked out of a fight, Annette and Mercedes met their end by Petra's attack.

'At least the headaches are starting to dull a lot.'

"Huh. She's getting better with her Ki animals." Shamir said. "Feels like yesterday when she was struggling to summon her wolves, now she's able to channel a bear."

"How fun! Maybe she can teach me how to do that!" Flayn exclaimed.

Jeralt just looked over at Byleth who was rubbing her head and then to Manuela who just gave a shrug.

'Hmm… Manuela can't see anything wrong… Rhea, what the hell did you do to my kid?'

"I apologise for taking you out so early, but I'm afraid I can't chance it. Especially with a healer." Petra bowed to Mercedes who just giggled.

"Oh don't worry! I actually wanted to watch the fight because I knew I wouldn't last long. But maybe Annie is taking it a little hard…"

As the girl in question was having a mini tantrum on the grass. "It's not fair! I wanted to show off my cool attacks!"

"Annie, would a batch of my cookies make you feel better?"

"…I mean, I guess…"

Mercedes slowly helped her up and nodded to Petra before the two girls walked off. Now Petra was alone, and she wondered what to do next.

'Should I hunt down more prey? No… no, that would be a bad idea, it would drain my Ki too quickly. Instead, I'll watch from a distance and provide assistance when needed.'

With that thought solidified in her head, Petra spotted a tree and jumped up into it to gain a vantage point and to find anyone that needs help.

'I hope Bernadetta is doing okay… and that her new technique is helping.'

"Stay still!"

"No! Get away from me! I'm sorry!"

The girl in question was currently having a dodging contest with Felix, who was getting increasingly annoyed with each missed swing of his sword. There was a very specific reason that he chose to duel the smaller timid Black Eagle girl. He has seen what she can do when enough pressure is placed on her.

But more specifically… that technique she uses. The disarming one. Nobody else seemed to have seen it, but he did. It's how she disarmed him during a sparring match, it's how she got that stupid water bottle that Byleth made them go mad over, and it infuriated him to no end that every time he tried to ask her how to do it, she ran away.

"Come on! Show me that technique!"

"I don't know what you're talking about!" As by instinct, she drew her bow and her iris started to glow again as the same familiar amber hue enveloped her vision. She marked an 'X' on his hand and she fired an arrow which scraped against his hand and forced the Ki sword to dissipate. He clenched and unclenched it to try and soothe the ache that came with the arrow and smirked.

"There we go… that's what I have been looking for." He said and then slowly approached her forming a new Ki sword.

"You have no idea how long I have been waiting for this, to finally challenge you. You hide yourself behind this fake persona of nerves and cowardliness, but I know the real you. We both know the real you. And I was right, because you used that technique again. As I expect from my greatest rival-"

"I give up!"

"…Okay, I must've misheard that. What did you just say?!"

"I give up! You win! Great fight!" Bernadetta squeaked out and gave a shaky thumbs up. And this just completely dumbfounded Felix.

"But we're not finished! I'M not finished! This isn't a victory, this is… I don't even know what this is!"

"N-No, it is a victory! Because I gave up. That means you win!"

A vein thickened in the Blue Lion's head as he then roared. "EVERY WORD YOU JUST SAID HAS MADE ME VIOLENTLY ANGRY!"

"Hey! She said she gives up. That means she's out of the battle!"

He then turned to see… Dimitri. And he scoffed and crossed his arms. "What do you want, Boar? I'm assuming that Leonie wasn't a challenge?"

"She put up a spectacular fight, but I managed to come out on top. But I must ask, why this obsession with Bernadetta?"

"Hmph. My goals are beyond your understanding… whatever, I'll get my fight another day now that I've seen a taste of her techniques and one day I will get her to teach me-"

BOOM!

"…Was that our team?"

"Come on, Boar. Don't be stupid, there's only two people who do that kind of destruction."

"…You're right. Come, let's regroup with Ashe and the others."

"Not bad Ashe! Unfortunately for you, I am STRONGER!" Hilda grinned as she slammed her axe right where the Blue Lion used to be standing as Ashe kept his concentration at a constant.

'This isn't good, I've been trying to get a good shot on her but even when I do, Marianne keeps on healing her. And then when I try to take her out, Hilda stops me. They're a good unit together.'

But he then looked around and gasped when he spotted the forest area and suddenly had an idea. It could work, but he just has to lead them. So he made sure to keep his distance and made sure to take pot shots at Hilda to

Keep her attention on him. As they kept on fighting into the forest, Ashe had to put his plan into motion and spotted Marianne directly under a branch. He aimed a Ki arrow and Hilda got into a blocking stance, thinking it was aimed for her.

…Only to see the arrow miss her completely and hit the large branch which made Marianne scream as it landed on top of her, completely pinning her down and making her drop her tome. Hilda gasped and tried to get to her freed, but grunted when a Ki arrow hit her in the back.

"The Professor always warned us to never keep our backs turned, Hilda. Now the playing field is even. Don't worry, she's not hurt. She just can't heal you anymore."

"Heh, really impressive, Ashe! Maybe I shouldn't underestimate you!"

As the two took their stance, both their senses went crazy as they narrowly dodged a projectile aimed at them both as they looked up to see Petra standing on top of a branch.

"You two managed to avoid danger. As I would expect. Are you both minding if I join in?" She then stepped off the branch and landed on the grass before summoning the image of her Ki bear behind her. Hilda narrowed her eyes and readied her axe and Ashe summoned a Ki arrow.

"No healing, just us and our training."

"Agreed."

"Let's do this!"

As the trio clashed, a massive explosion sounded in another part of the battleground as Caspar was punching against Lysithea's shields and blocking any of Lorenz's attacks.

"He just won't stay down!" Lorenz exclaimed in shock, and then let out a giant wheeze as Caspar managed to catch him directly in the stomach, and the shorter Black Eagle then kicked him away and charged towards Lysithea again and punched her shields as she scoffed under her breath.

"Are you stupid? How have you not learned that my shields are indestructible?"

"Yeah, but you aren't!"

"What?"

"I know there's a limit to what you can take, and your reserves are a lot smaller than mine! That means I just have to wear you out!"

Her eyes widened as she felt the sickness taking over slowly and realised that he was right, if she didn't try to finish him off soon she was toast! And then they narrowed as she actually angled her shield to throw off Caspar and then dissipated it and aimed switched to the offensive and she was joined by Lorenz who was jabbing at Caspar with his lance as he then grinned.

"You took the bait! LINHARDT, NOW!"

"Huh? Oh right, sure." LINHARDT said in the distance and to Lysithea's shock, his hand was coated with Ki and magic, before it launched towards Casper's and enveloped him.

"I'm gonna end this in ONE PUNCH!"

As he charged more and more Ki into his arm, Lorenz tried to stab at him with the lance but to his horror, it shattered upon contact with his body, being fully protected with Linhardt's healing magic and Ki. Lysithea frantically threw up a shield but due to not concentrating, when Caspar landed the blow, it cracked the shield and broke it completely and kept going until it collided with both of them.

"THIS IS IIIIIIIIT!"

A massive explosion rang across the entire arena with many combatants having to shield their eyes to stop wind and dirt from getting in. Once the dust had settled, Lorenz was on the ground with Lysithea on top of him, the remnants of her shield fading away as she used another one to protect them both from the impact. However, it used up the last of her reserves and she could feel a coughing fit happening and frantically looked for her handkerchief only to see Caspar hold it out to her… looking completely dishevelled.

"Heh! I managed to beat you! Told you that brawn's could be better than strategy!"

"…Yes, I suppose that you did-" Her eyes widened as she snatched the cloth and coughed violently into it and when she pulled away, Caspar saw blots of blood on it.

"Hey, are you okay? That doesn't look good."

"I'm fine. It's just something that I have to live with. Anyway, why are you here? You won, I'm all out of magic and Ki, you should go somewhere else."

"Yeah, I'm in the same boat." Caspar said and plopped down next to her. "Used all my Ki in that one attack. Knew it was a big risk so that's why I had Linhardt charge me up with his own Ki. Pretty effective though, isn't it? And it's only going to get better now that I've tested it out. Soon as we're done here and I'm all rested up, it's back to training!"

Surprisingly… Lysithea started laughing and shook her head. "You are hopeless. But I admire that tenacity. In that case, come on. We need to get off the battlefield. You may need to carry Lorenz."

"No problem, hey Linhardt give us a hand- Linhardt?"

Both saw Linhardt on the ground as Caspar ran over to him and checked for damage. "Huh, he must've gotten caught in the explosion too. No need to worry, I'll carry them both!"

As he hoisted both Lorenz and Linhardt over, Lysithea could've sworn she saw a small smile form on his lips but when she blinked it was gone. She narrowed her eyes at this and wondered if he just pretended…

'Oh well, that's two Black Eagles down, so I don't care.'

"Wow, they have improved so much." Shamir commented and Jeralt groaned.

"You say that, yet I warned Caspar to not use that technique. Guess he just couldn't help himself."

"It's very close!" Flayn exclaimed. "If I'm correct then we're slowly getting down to the thin numbers of 141. But I'm surprised that the other students are keeping up so well."

"The good thing for the rest of the students is that they know their fellow classmates flaws." Byleth mentioned, while rubbing her head. "Caspar knew that he could goad Lysithea into lowering her shield and overpower her. Though I really thought that Bernie would overcome her fear of…"

"People?"

"I wasn't going to phrase it like that."

"But you meant it."

"I'm choosing to say nothing."

Meanwhile, on the top of the hill, Rhea was staring with a level headed look to her as she witnessed the power on display. But inside, her anger was building.

'They shouldn't have power like this. Why did you teach them about this destructive power, Byleth? This can only lead to one thing, which is a repeat of the past… perhaps I should prepare. I know two of those future rulers who have… ambitions. Maybe it's time I make sure we and the Church have a clad iron defence…'

In the forest area, a bunch of tree's collapsed from Hilda's attack as Petra was hopping along the branches in an attempt to avoid her, even using her Ki Eagle to get to higher vantage points. But even then, Ashe was taking pot shots at her. But it didn't scare Petra. It filled her with pride. Because that meant those two internally agreed that she was the bigger threat of the three of them.

That didn't mean that she wasn't going down silently so she looked at the ground and jumped off the branch and dove towards the two and activated her bear powers and slammed her hands on the ground and it caused another shockwave which threw both of them away. Now that both of them were on the ground she targeted the archer who was preventing her from having a one on one fight. But then as she was about to delivering a heavy blow to Ashe, someone appeared in front of her and managed to block the attack but it caused it weapon that they were carrying to shatter to pieces and threw them back into a tree.

"Ingrid?!" Ashe gasped out as the blonde picked her self up, holding her left arm with a tired grin.

"Funny… you're stronger than me yet it seems I'm the one saving you a lot…"

"Hey! Not fair!" Hilda yelled, but then someone zoomed past her and aimed for Petra, only for her to block it and kneed the person in the stomach and then flipping them onto the ground.

"Raphael?!" Hilda screeched in surprise, and Raphael gave a wave while groaning in pain.

"Hey Hilda, how's it going? Petra is REALLY strong!"

"It appears that this barbaric display needs to be put down." They all turned to see Ferdinand on a horse trotting up to them, before getting off his horse and gently tapped it to send it away.

"I am grateful for your assisting, but I am asking you to not be too in my way." Petra said to him and powered up.

"Understood."

"We lost Marianne, so we don't have any healing." Hilda told Raphael. "This could lead to trouble."

"Ah, don't worry their healers have all been taken out too! I saw it!"

"Wait, Mercedes is gone?!" Ashe exclaimed and Ingrid nodded.

"Yes. Petra took out her and Annette. She's the biggest threat right now. I propose we take her out first."

"Easier said than done…"

"HAH!"

"YAH!"

"HRRRRRRRA!"

In the most open part of the field, Claude and Edelgard were trading blows and dodging more powerful ones. Edelgard jumped back and threw her axe at Claude again, and when he deflected it she used her Ki to return it to her hand and she used it to deflect a powerful attack into a nearby cliffside.

"Gotta admit, Princess. You're doing a lot better than I thought you would. Figured you would end up like Lysithea and your illness would render you unable to fight."

"And I would've thought that your schemes would catch up to you. You certainly aren't on a lot of good lists with people."

"Ah, details. It's not my fault people can't appreciate my genius. Behind you!"

"Wha-"

"SNEAK ATTACK!" Sylvain yelled, jumping from behind Edelgard to ambush her. But a well timed attack from Claude sent him flying and Claude just turned to the Princess.

"Now, where were we?"

"…Did you control your power?"

"Yeah, yeah, he won't die just will be feeling it for a week. Now come on, the crowd is hungry!"

"What?"

And that's when Edelgard looked around and blinked in surprise at just how much of a crowd had gathered. She did suppose that the match took place very early in the morning so this must be the crowd that have just shown up. Not only that, representatives from the various lands were there, including… him.

Her 'Uncle'. But then she saw Hubert next to Thales who nodded at her and she nodded in return. Okay, time to show everyone what she's made of.

"Let's dance, Claude."

"Gladly, Edelgard."

With those final words exchanged, both charged at one another before both vanished into an afterimage and then reappeared and intercepted each others attacks. Edelgard then jumped backwards and slammed her axe into the ground before channeling Ki into it and swung, not only tearing up the ground and dirt, but also forming a wave of Ki that launched towards Claude. But it wouldn't reach the target as Claude had already laid one of his Ki mines ahead of time and her attack collided with his causing a massive explosion that sent them both flying before they caught themselves. And Claude tried to peer through the cloud of debris before an axe came soaring through the debris and towards him only to be stopped by Claude coating his arm and Ki and actually PUNCHING it back towards her which Edelgard then caught and then dove through the smoke axe in hand and ready to slam it down on Claude.

"COME ON KID! DODGE IT!" Judith yelled from the sidelines.

Claude did just that and used the axe to push himself aside and used the momentum to throw Edelgard away… to which she smirked.

"Gotcha."

"What are you-" He quickly stopped when he saw… a Ki mine on his sleeve, covered in Reason Magic and Edelgard just shrugged.

"Picked up one of those when I used my last attack. It didn't detonate in time so I… delayed the explosion."

"Heh… clever girl." Claude said in response as her spell left the mine and it detonated right in his face and Claude just accepted it, knowing that he was outsmarted this time around.

BOOM!

When the smoke cleared, Claude was on the ground laying on his back as her axe pressed against his neck, her hair billowing in the breeze as in that moment she looked like the Emperor that she was to be.

"Do you yield?"

"…Yeah, I yield Edelgard. I got nothing left on me. You truly have outsmarted me this time around."

"CLAUDE VON RIEGAN HAS BEEN ELIMINATED! THE GOLDEN DEER IS DOWN TO THE LAST TWO!"

"WHAT?! HOW DID HE LOSE!" Hilda screeched after hearing Claude's elimination.

That's when Petra and Ashe looked at each other… and nodded. Before they, along with Ferdinand and Ingrid aimed their weapons at the Golden Deer, who looked surprised.

"You are outnumbered… I think it's wise if you surrender." Ashe said and Petra nodded.

"Indeed. There is no point in fighting if your leader is down."

Hilda looked at the two groups… before sighing and raised her hands in surrender. "Whatever, I don't care that much about the battle. I'm more just mad that Claude got eliminated."

"Yeah, I'm gonna check on Ignatz. I hope he's doing okay." Raphael chimed in as the Black Eagles and Blue Lions lead them out the forest and once they were in view they heard Seteth yell.

"ALL OF THE GOLDEN DEER HAVE SURRENDERED! PLEASE MAKE YOUR WAY TO THE SIDELINES AND HEAD OVER TO THE HEALERS IF YOU HAVE INJURIES!"

"What? All of them?" Edelgard said in shock, as she was alone after Claude hobbled away. But then she hummed and nodded to herself.

"After Claude's elimination, the only person in 141 would be Hilda. And she doesn't care that much and wouldn't want to get hurt even further. But this helps… it's just Blue Lions left to go. Wait, who's left?"

"I am here, Edelgard." Petra said, as she and Ferdinand walked up to her.

"Wait… THREE OF US LEFT?! WHAT HAPPENED?!"

"Well, something quite curious happened."

They all turned to see Dimitri walking up to them with Ashe and Ingrid in tow. But that just left Edelgard confused.

"What do you mean, Dimitri?"

"It all started when Felix and I were facing down the Black Eagles as well as some Golden Deer…"

"Come on Ignatz, we will do better as a pair!"

"I-If you say so, Dorothea…"

Dimitri readied his lance alongside Felix as they stared down Dorothea and Ignatz. "Now Felix, we must come up with a plan of attack."

"I have a plan, Boar. Attack!"

As he readied his blade and charged towards the pair, Dimitri frowned when he heard a distant scream slowly getting louder and louder.

"What in the world is-"

FWOOOOOOOOM!

A red blur completely engulfed Felix, Dorothea and Ignatz as Dimitri could only stare in complete astonishment as the debris settled to reveal… SYLVAIN?!

"Owww… I think I'm done."

"You are an absolute moron!" Felix grunted as the impact completely drained his Ki due to not expecting an attack like that. He was out. Alongside the two students as Dorothea groaned.

"Ugh, this is no way for a lady to be treated. Ignatz, are you okay?"

"Can't… breathe…."

"Ummm, perhaps you all can get off of Ignatz? I think he's choking in your… hold Dorothea." Dimitri tried to be helpful as Ignatz's neck was currently trapped between Dorothea's thighs as Sylavain groaned even louder.

"It should've been me, not him! It's not fair…"

"…Claude you idiot."

"What was that?"

"Nothing. Let's fight."

Meanwhile at the edge if the battlefield while the battle was going on, all the students gathered over at the medical bay to heal from any injuries as Felix sat in a chair with his arms crossed.

"So hey buddy!" Sylvain tried to say, but was immediately cut off.

"Do not speak to me for the rest of the day. Not only was I denied my challenge with my rival, but I was also eliminated by your ass colliding with my face!"

"Hey, at least you got to be in the fight as long as you did, I was one of the first eliminated!" Annette yelled, after being healed up and sent off by the nurse.

"Eliminated?! Hilda just flat out gave up!" Leonie yelled as the pink haired girl stood up to defend herself.

"It was two on one! And Claude had been eliminated because he tried to go after Edelgard! Which was a horrible idea!"

"Look, we can all point fingers and say who's to blame, but really who could've seen my great schemes collapse?" Claude said, smirking at Hilda who rolled her eyes.

"And besides, this is a good learning experience. Now next time, it'll go very differently…"

"I think we should all just watch." Dedue suggested as he watched Dimitri and Edelgard clash.

"I agree." Dorothea nodded. "It's about to end soon, and I think I know who's going to be the last two fighters…"

"Petra! Clear the area!"

"On it!"

As she jumped up in the air and used her Ki bear to slam on the ground and form a small crater, but Ashe and Ingrid knew she would do that this time… and the archer found a pretty big flaw when she uses that technique. When she finally stood up, she gasped when Ingrid charged at her spear in hand and she had to jump and roll out of the way.

"It's an impressive technique Petra!" Ashe called out, readying his arrow. "But I can tell you haven't had the chance to practice it. It's powerful, but there's a brief period where your Ki needs to recharge and that leaves you wide open!"

Petra's eyes widened. He figured it out! Curses, she shouldn't have been using it so recklessly like that! But before she could try to defend herself, a second spear clashed with Ingrid's and the blonde then had to dodge an axe being thrown at her before it made its way back to Edelgard hand.

"If we can take out those two, then Dimitri is easy pickings!"

"Not if I have anything to say about it!" Dimitri yelled and clashed with Ferdinand and used his superior strength to throw him away and Ashe used that opportunity to let his Ki arrow fly. Edelgard tried to deflect it but couldn't get to it in time as it struck Ferdinand and sent him flying to the ground and at that moment, Petra narrowed her eyes at Ingrid and the blonde readied herself.

'She's going to try and eliminate me so that it's just the 141 members left! Well, I'm not going to let that happen!'

After that, Petra dashed forward and activated her Ki Eagle ability to dash towards Ingrid and Ashe summoned another Ki arrow to wait for her to strike Ingrid… but to both their shock, Petra actually kept flying… and it was to Ingrid's horror that she realised that Petra wasn't aiming for her!

"Ashe! Stop her!"

He tries to shoot at her, but he didn't focus enough and it went whizzing past her eagle form before she went out of the form and summoned her bear… that was going to hit him point blank.

Ingrid tried to stop her but Petra managed to strike the ground which caused another shockwave which threw Ingrid against a hard rock and both Edelgard and Dimitri had to shield their eyes from the sheer power on display. Petra must have put every ounce of Ki that she had into that attack, like she knew it was now or never.

When the dust cleared, both Ashe and Petra were laying there groaning as they couldn't muster the energy to move. It didn't take much to know that they were completely tapped out. They were eliminated. Both Edelgard and Dimitri looked at each other and nodded, before calling over some soldiers to help take them away as the Prince then looked around.

"Ingrid, where are you?"

"I can… still fight… your Highness…"

As they looked over and Edelgard gasped at the sight. The shockwave from Petra's attack caused Ingrid to hit a rock, which must have hit her leg really badly as she was using her spear to prop herself up, but then she suddenly cried out and collapsed as the two rushed to her side.

"What are you doing? Were opponents!" Ingrid grunted out to Edelgard who shook her head.

"We can continue the fight once we get you to safety."

"No! I'm not done yet- AAARGH!"

Dimitri took a look at her ankle and cursed seeing it bent in an unnatural way. But he then shook his head and called over a guard to take her away.

"You have done your best, my friend. Please, leave the rest to me. You have done more than enough, and I couldn't be prouder to call you my comrade."

"Thank… thank you, your Highness…"

He then looked up at the guard who was about to lift her up. "Be careful, she has broken her ankle. Take her to Marianne, she can help."

"Or to the healer, Hellen." Edelgard chimed in. "Marianne may have drained too much of her Ki."

With that, it was just the two of them. They both looked at one another and nodded.

"To be honest, I was hoping it would come down to us two."

"Agreed. At least I know that you don't resort to cheap tactics and tricks to get the win."

*Song: Jiren's Theme (Dragonball Super)*

As the two slowly got into their battle stances and summoned their Ki weapons staring each other down. On the other side in the spectators are, Rodrigue was observing closely and nodded.

"I'm ready to see what this Byleth woman has shown you, your Highness. I look forward to this match."

"Yeah, well at least they're not like the boy and resort to dirty tactics." Judith said with a sigh and a shake of her head. "I knew that it would come back to bite him one day."

"What about you, Sir Volkhard?" Rodrigue asked, turning to Thales who was in his disguise.

"My dear niece has made impressive shows of gains in this training regime. As you say, it's time to see what she is made of. I look forward to the battle."

But Thales just smirked as he watched Edelgard's determined face while she stared down Dimitri. 'The Ashen Demon can try to change you all she likes, but you know your true nature. Crush him, Edelgard.'

Hubert just frowned and and chewed his inner cheek with some nerves bundling up. 'I need you to be strong, Lady Edelgard. You must have gotten stronger, you must have…'

"Is it strange that I'm oddly nervous about this?" Dorothea asked the other students who all nodded in agreement. And it was clear why. Those two were the strongest in the class, and it was clear why. Unlike Claude, they trained other various techniques to make themselves stronger. But Claude knew that and always had a gut feeling that he wasn't going to be victorious, and it seems his gut was right.

"Nah. I'm pumped to see this. Finally, I get to see how far those have gotten." Claude grinned as most of the students agreed.

"I'm more nervousited." Annette said. "You know, where you wanna jump around and yell 'yay, me!' But you also wanna curl up into a ball and hide?"

"I'm like that almost everyday…"Bernadette mumbled and Marianne nodded alongside her.

"What's stranger to me is that… I don't know who to root for." Lennie frowned. "They're both amazing fighters and leaders, I don't want either to lose."

"Well, there they are, kid. Your star students. Let's see how they go about this fight." Jeralt said to Byleth.

Byleth nodded but then groaned as her headache got even worse and saw brief glimpses of visions again.

'KILL EVERY LAST ONE OF THEM!'

'I wanted to… walk with you.'

'What is going on?! My heads on fire!' Sothis groaned clutching her head with a death grip as Byleth had to sit down yet again rubbing her head as Manuela checked up on her.

"This is the strangest case I've ever seen… there's no visible signs of any physical distress, I don't understand…"

As Shamir knelt beside Byleth and rubbed her back. "Maybe get some rest-"

"No. I want to see them. I need to see them. Please. Let me see this fight, I need to know…"

The adults all looked at each other uneasily… and relented as Byleth watched.

'Break the cycle… if they have mastered their training then maybe…'

"This will be an interesting spectacle." Seteth remarked to Rhea. "I had a feeling that it would go down to these two, as for who will emerge victorious however…"

"Hmmm." Rhea narrowed her eyes at the two students staring each other down. "You're right… interesting…"

*Song: Jiren vs SSJB Goku (Dragonball Super)*

After staring at each other for what felt like an eternity, Edelgard powered up with a yell and fired a Ki blast directly at Dimitri who managed to deflect it away without much effort. Edelgard was initially confused because it looked like he didn't even raise his arms… she had to investigate further. So she used her Ki to propel herself towards Dimitri and punched hard but the same thing happened again, with it being deflected and causing her to stagger slightly but something did catch her eye. A slight shimmer of Ki acting like a shield of some. Was this his new technique? Whatever it was, it was impressive. So while going in for round 2, she took out her axe and swung it against what she assumed was a shield and to her astonishment she was right.

Dimitri had to amplify the defence to withstand her axe and showed his technique for everyone to see. He was completely coated in Ki and on his chest was the Crest of Faerghus. Edelgard couldn't believe what she was seeing but had to admit it was amazing.

"How long did it take for this to develop then?" Edelgard asked, keeping her axe by her side and Dimitri smiled in response.

"It took a few months to properly develop. It still isn't quite ready but I am satisfied with it's current progress. It is a technique where I can be the protector for those who need it. I call it, Shield of Faerghus."

"Hm. Impressive. But you are correct when you say it isn't ready. Even now, I can see the cracks in this shield."

She then took a stance and charged her axe. "Which means I just have to break that shield!"

As Edelgard then yelled and threw her axe at Dimitri who dodged, but then blocked a punch from Edelgard and then had to duck to avoid the axe returning to her hand before he summoned his lance and both of them clashed their weapons and tried to overwhelm the other with gritted teeth.

But then Edelgard had an idea, as she started channeling not Ki, but magic as lightning crackled in her hands before she unleashed a lightning spell which was conducted by the armour Dimitri wore and he roared in pain as the lightning bypassed his shield and started shocking him, and with him temporarily stunned, Edelgard dashed forward and grabbed him by his arm and spun him round before throwing him into the wall of a mountain and now that he was temporarily stunned, Edelgard dashed towards him again and delivered a series of blows to his stomach as more and more cracks formed on his Ki shield before Dimitri suddenly caught her hand to stop her from hitting and then he kneed her in the stomach and delivered a high kick directly to her chin and caused her to soar into the air before Dimitri jumped up high in the air and clasped both his hands together and delivered a hammer like blow to her back and sent her crashing into the ground. The impact was hard and sent another small crater to add to the other ones that littered this battlefield and Edelgard slowly crawled out of the crater groaning.

"Well? What do you think?" Dimitri asked as he had his arms folded.

"You fight valiantly, Dimitri. But do not think that I will kneel."

"I would expect no less from you, Edelgard."

"They're both so strong… but I don't know who to root for. Dimitri is my Prince, but Edelgard is our ally in 141… oh, I don't know what to do." Annette said, biting her nails and looking at the match before her.

"I know what you mean, I mean our team is out so now we have two people to root for. But who do we root for? Dimitri or Edelgard?" Hilda wondered to herself.

"…KEEP GOING EDELGARD!" Bernadetta suddenly shouted and everyone turned to her in surprise as she shouted again.

"YOU CAN DO IT DIMITRI! YOU BOTH CAN KEEP FIGHTING!"

*Song: Mezase Tenkaichi (Dragon Ball)*

"GO EDELGARD!" Ashe yelled, joining in.

"GO DIMITRI!" Petra joined in too.

"GO EDELGARD! GO DIMITRI!"

The crowd started cheering and chanting for both as the Princess and Prince stared each other down… but this time, they had determined smiles on their faces. This may be a friendly competition, but it was one they intend to win.

"DO IIIIIIIIIIIT!" All three houses shouted as they all pumped up the remaining two fighters.

Edelgard then saw Dimitri slowly move his arm and wondered what he was planning on doing and was ready to defend herself against an attack, but to her shock he instead used his shoulder to barge right into her and sent her flying into the cliffside, but this time she was ready and used her feet to plant herself into it and saw Dimitri running towards her again.

"I'm not letting you get away!"

But Edelgard already formed a plan, using the stored energy from launching her into the cliffside, she used it as a makeshift trampoline and propelled herself high up into the air and Dimitri smirked and channeled Ki into his legs and launched himself up high in the air too.

"Woah! When could they do that?!" Judith exclaimed as she tried to get a good look at them soaring higher and higher into the air.

"Your Highness… you are incredible…" Rodrigue whispered in awe as the citizens of Faerghus all got to see the Prince show off his max power… but Thales narrowed his eyes looking at Edelgard.

'She's getting stronger at a faster pace than I thought. Perhaps there is more to the Ashen Demon than just strength. What drives you, my dear niece?'

And on the hill, Byleth was staring up at the sky and smiled warmly. It filled her with pride at how much they had progressed. And this was just them jumping into the air… imagine how far they will go when they learn to fly.

'I have to admit… this is a new feeling. Pride in these students.' Sothis smiled as the feeling of their heads pounding slowly eased away as they kept watching.

Back in the air, Dimitri looked up at Edelgard… and widened his eyes when she placed two fingers on either side of her face and shouted.

"SOLAR FLASH!"

And a bright flash surrounded the area as everyone had to cover their eyes to avoid being blinded, including Dimitri who got the full brunt of the technique. He yelled in pain and clutched his face trying to to blink away the harsh light before feeling a hard kick to his front as Edelgard took advantage of his vulnerable state and kicked him and caused to start soaring towards the ground and everyone wondered what he was going to do. What could he do?

"Yes! I did it!" Edelgard grinned, still slowly falling to the ground as she watched Dimitri and was ready for whatever he will do next. What he did next, did in fact surprise her.

He used the remains of his shield technique and channeled them to his feet and used it to take the full brunt of the force of his fall as he landed on the ground and several cracks formed at his feet. Unfortunately, doing so caused his shield to shatter as he had no more spare Ki to maintain the technique. She managed to take out his Shield of Faerghus technique… but now she was an open target as she slowly descended.

'Professor, it REALLY would've helped if you taught me how to fly! Okay think…'

And on the ground, Dimitri held out his hand and started charging a Ki lance with whatever reserves he had left. Lightning was crackling around him as the lance got bigger and longer along with the sheer power of condensed Ki causing cracks to form around the ground beneath him. Edelgard saw this and knew that she would need to counter it as she was a target with no reasonable way to avoid it. There was that technique that she used before. Around the time in Abyss.

'I haven't perfected it just yet… but I know that it can counter him!'

With that, she raised her hands above her head and started forming a small ball of Ki and started condensing it with extra Ki as she gritted her teeth under the immense pressure. She didn't have a lot left… but she knew the same could be said for Dimitri.

"Woah, the energy output is insane! Can everyone sense that?" Ashe exclaimed as he had to shield his eyes from the bright light coming off of the two attacks.

"Ashe, I can feel that!" Hilda yelled back.

"I taste that!" Bernadetta shouted.

"…What's that smell?" Yuri asked himself, looking up from his card game.

"They're even stronger than I thought…" Shamir frowned to herself, but Byleth shook her head.

"This isn't their usual strength. It's their last resort. Try and use whatever Ki they have left to try and overpower the other. I hope they don't overdo it. Excess Ki consumption can be straining on the body. We all know that."

"Come on brats… don't do anything stupid." Jeralt grumbled to himself.

"This is such a stupid idea! But I want to win!" Dimitri yelled, pumping more and more Ki into his lance as it got bigger and more powerful and Edelgard agreed, condensing more and more energy into this ball of Ki.

'I hope you are watching, 'Uncle'. I'm breaking free of the chains!'

Both their eyes widened when they felt their attacks stabilise which means it was ready. And with not a single thought of doubt, they unleashed their attacks.

"HOLY JAVELIN!"

"HAMMER OF DAWN!"

Dimitri threw the powerful Ki lance which soared through the air at breakneck speed while Edelgard threw her hands down and from the condensed ball of Ki, a line of our energy shot out and collided with the lance as the two grunted and struggled to try and one up the other.

"This is insane! What has that Byleth woman been teaching them?!" Rodrigue exclaimed.

"Why, this is only the best of the best!" Alois answered back. "But I have to admit… Dimitri's attack could be quite… SHOCKING!"

"For the love of the Goddess, stop!" Judith groaned, shielding her eyes from the dirt and debris being picked up from the force of the Ki struggle.

And Thales… just narrowed his eyes not being bothered by the display in front of him. 'This may be more bothersome than I initially thought…'

'Yes Lady Edelgard… yes! This is what you needed! You can do it!' Hubert had a small smile on his face as he watched the beam struggle.

"Gggggghhh! Give… up! Dimitri!" Edelgard managed to let out as she kept trying to put more Ki into the attack but Dimitri shook his head and tried to push the lance through her technique.

"No… you give up! I won't submit so easily!"

But before Edelgard could try putting even more in, she suddenly coughed and her eyes widened when a splatter of blood hit her sleeve.

'No… not now! Not when I'm so close!'

But during that moment of distraction, Dimitri let out a roar and pushed the lance through the Hammer of Dawn and Edelgard had to let herself fall to avoid being hit, the impact of hitting the ground would be less damaging. As she hit the ground, Dimitri also fell to his knees panting hard. That was way too close for comfort. Whatever happened to Edelgard, if it didn't happen he may have not been able to win against that struggle. Seteth looked between the two fighters but before he could speak, Edelgard suddenly got up and stared down Dimitri.

"SHE'S STILL STANDING AFTER ALL THAT?!" Felix exclaimed.

"That's our Edie! Always resilient!" Dorothea cheered.

"And I thought Leonie was stubborn." Hilda said to herself, which Leonie caught.

"HEY!"

"Be honest with me Edelgard… are you out of Ki?" Dimitri said, wheezing and panting heavily while getting on his feet again.

"Yes… but I can tell you that since I know you're the same." Edelgard managed to choke out, and coughed into her hand, her glove having blood on it. She saw the look he gave her and she shook her head.

"Don't give me that look of pity. If I'm going out, I'm going out with a fight. We may be out of Ki…"

As Edelgard talked, she slowly picked up an axe that was on the ground and gripped it tight. "So what do you say we settle this the normal way? No Ki, no special attacks. Just me, you, and our weapons."

"…I accept. Regardless of your condition I intend to win." Dimitri said and picked up a lance from the ground and the two stared each other down again… before running towards each other.

*Song: Mezase Tenkaichi (Dragon Ball)*

"Amazing! They're still going at it! It's been how many hours? How are they still standing?!" Lysithea exclaimed as the crowd all watched Edelgard and Dimitri dodge and deliver blows and slashes as much as they could before Dimitri managed to shove Edelgard a few feet and the two stared each other down while panting heavily, both desperate to knock the other one out as they didn't know how much time they had left. The sun had started to set, and casted an orange glow on the area of Gronder Field.

"Come on your Highness!" Ingrid yelled.

"Kick his ass Edie!" Dorothea cheered loudly.

Feeling like she had a new burst of energy, Edelgard started running forward and went on the offensive as Dimitri defended himself against her attacks, trying to find an opening. Around them, the crowd watched in awe at the sheer display of willpower and determination from the tongue rulers.

"Incredible…"

"It's insane…"

Dimitri thought he had found an opening, and stabbed his lance towards Edelgard, but to his surprise, she rolled to the side and dashed forward to deliver a knee straight to his face which caused him to fly in the air and then to the ground as Edelgard landed and panted heavily, and let out a few coughs and wiped her mouth, still not giving up. And neither would Dimitri, as he got back up and started going on the offensive and Edelgard was able to defend herself.

"They just keep going and they look like they can barely stand…" Catherine breathed out. But she folded her arms and sighed when Alois spoke next to her.

"Is it pure willpower or pure stubbornness…" Hanneman wondered to himself.

"Knowing those two, probably both."

"Come on, Dimitri! Fight until the end!" Rodrigue shouted.

"Go the distance, Edelgard!" Judith yelled and she grinned to Thales. "I like her! She is more stubborn than even me!"

"Yes, unfortunately that is a trait that was with her since she was a child…"

Back at the field, Edelgard kept deflecting attack after attack and finally found an opening, and after dodging an attack which left himself open, she drove her elbow straight into his gut and Dimitri retaliated by punching her in the stomach and then Edelgard, in an act of desperation actually bit him in the arm which made him yell and punch her in the face as the two then separated and ended up dropping their weapons from sheer exhaustion with the two staring each other down as Dimitri panted hard and looked at his arm.

'I need to finish this off, or else she's going to wear me down. And she's getting desperate too which shows since she's actually picking up Professor Byleth's bad habits… what am I going to do? Her smaller body and her height makes it harder to land attacks…'

That's when a glint appeared in his eye as he suddenly had an idea. 'Wait… her smaller body… that's it! I know what to do!'

And then he shouted to Edelgard with an exhausted grin. "Hey! How about we do one last final charge, Edelgard? What say you?!"

"…Fine!" Edelgard managed to let out, clearly at the end of her rope as the two started running towards each other with a war cry coming out of both as everyone waited with baited breath.

"This is it…" Shamir said.

"The final clash…" Byleth nodded.

The students all watched intensely as they couldn't tell who would win. And they all watched as the two drew their fists back for one final punch when suddenly…

BAM!

Both made contact… or rather, Dimitri made full contact with his fist in her face, while her own fist barely grazed his chin. His plan worked, but now both were stumbling after their charge as the crowd all gasped in shock as the two slowly stopped and turned to each other.

Silence fell upon the arena as Dimitri and Edelgard looked at one another… before she let out a small laugh and closed her eyes.

"Well… done… Dimitri…"

With those final words, she slumped to the ground, completely losing consciousness.

It was over. And then everyone heard Seteth speak from his place on the cliff.

"EDELGARD AND THE BLACK EAGLES HAVE BEEN ELIMINATED! THE MATCH IS OVER! THE WINNER HEREBY GOES TO DIMITRI AND THE BLUE LIONS!"

With that, cheers erupted from the crowd as the Blue Lion students all whooped and celebrated with some hugging each other.

Even the other houses were celebrating the victory as all in all, it was such a good fight. And the teachers all smiled, looking at Dimitri slump and sit down on the ground, clearly exhausted. But he was proud that he managed to prove his strength.

"Congratulations, your Highness!" Rodrigue cheered.

"Well, that's not a fight I don't think I'll forget for a long time!" Judith exclaimed.

'So… she still has weaknesses. Good… that illness of hers will keep her in check. It holds her back.'

'You may not have won, Lady Edelgard. But be proud. You are strong…' Hubert thought still with his small smile as he turned away to teleport back to base.

"Well, I think it's best we postpone the celebrations. The brats have worked themselves to the bone." Jeralt said and nodded in Byleth's direction.

"You agree, kid?"

No response.

"…Byleth?"

He turned to face her and gasped in horror when he saw her clutching her head and gritting her teeth. "Manuela!"

"Right!"

As in her head, Byleth was burning alongside Sothis. Like something was SCREAMING at her, trying to claw its way through as visions made its way through a rapid fire pace.

"You are just another failure…"

"KILL EVERY LAST ONE OF THEM!"

"I wanted to walk with you…"

"I'm ending this right now!"

"Break the cycle!"

"The Ashen Demon and I working together? I was never expecting this."

"Break the cycle!"

"In another life… maybe we could've worked together."

"Please break the cycle! Before he comes!"

"GIVE MY MOTHER BACK!"

"Break the-"

"SOTHIS…. I FOUND YOU…."

Byleth blinked and saw Jeralt, Shamir, Flayn and Manuela look at her with panic in their eyes…. As she felt blood start to trickle out her nose… and then she slowly collapsed to the ground, her vision going dark and all she could hear were the panicked yells of those around her.

"Who… is that?"

*Song: DBZ Ending Song*

'After a well fought battle between classmates, things have taken a turn. Can Byleth figure out the cause of these visions? Find out next time on, The Ashen Saiyan!'

Well, this has been a long time coming hasn't it? The Battle of the Eagle and Lion is a big battle that deserved more attention, and I think I'm happy with how it all turned out. Everyone in 141 got a chance to shine, even if for comedic purposes.

Yes, Bernie has the main ability of Red Dead Redemption, Dead Eye. It helps when she's an archer and can pinpoint ways to stop people hurting her.

And Dimitri was always going to win. In my mind, it's him and Edelgard who are the strongest, but her condition holds her down the most. And yes, I took heavy inspiration from the 21st and 22nd Tenkaichi Budokai. But now we're finally getting answers. Who is this mystery foe that Future Byleth keeps trying to warn her past self about? We'll find out next chapter.

Catch you all later!