"You know, when you ask me to come drink on the porch, I thought you meant it in a 'Last Supper' kind of way." Gorou said with a sheepish grin as he & Kojiro sat on the porch, to which the old man glanced at him before smirking as he looked out at the neighbourhood.

"Eh, I tried that the first dozen or so times and you kept getting away, so I decided to stop."

"…That doesn't make me feel any better."

"Wasn't supposed to." The old man answered while taking a swig from his can, to which Gorou sighed as he took a sip from the can in his hands.

"…Thanks. For playing with Issei for the day."

"It was of no worry. The kid was a treat to hang out with and these old bones needed the exercise."

"Already missing your hunting job?"

"Ha! Not in the slightest!" Kojiro spoke with a bellylaugh, to which Gorou smirked before blinking as he took a sip only to find his can already half-empty.

'Huh? How? I just took one sip.'

"Anyway, the kid seems to have a love for books." Kojiro's words drew Gorou from his confused thoughts before he processed the man's words and shook his head.

"Love is quite the understatement there. If I didn't know for sure that he was my son, I would have thought that he was adopted." Gorou said with a chuckle, missing Kojiro's look as the old man smiled softly & rubbed the purple sheath of the katana next to him.

'If only he knew, eh Risa?'

"Truthfully, Miki & I were thinking of just making up one of the spare rooms into a small library for him where he can put all the books."

"How many books does he have?" Kojiro asked with a surprised look before shaking his head as Gorou looked at him with a sheepish grin.

"Uh, let's just say it's in the triple digits."

"…Are you sure you're not forcing him to study?"

"Oh, not at all! Believe me, I've tried getting him to do sports or even go outside to play, but like Miki said, it's a bit of a hard struggle."

"Hmm, I think I have something to keep him busy with and since you guys are here for the holidays, it's the best opportunity to see if it might work with him."

"Is my son still going to be the same after the week?"

"Oh, not at all."

"Hah, that's what I expected."

"Wake up!" Issei groaned before yelping as he felt cold water splashing onto his face, jumping off of his bed & falling to his feet while Kojiro simply parried the small shockwave out the open window to the side with the hilt of his katana.

"Rise & shine, my dear boy! It's time for your training!"

"…I hate you." Issei grumbled as he stood back up, using his blankets to dry off his face & hair while glaring at his grinning grandpa.

"What's wrong with you, Gramps?"

"You know, I never figured that out. Anyway, it's 5:30 am and breakfast is at seven so get up, get dressed in and meet me on the porch. We're going on a little adventure."

"Wait, what do I wear?" Issei asked before blinking as his grandpa simply pointed at the pair of shorts, white tank top and sneakers sitting on the dry side of his bed.

"That right there. Make sure you wear ankle socks 'cause I don't want you to get some kind of foot infection. Believe me, those are not fun. Anyway, you have ten minutes!" Kojiro spoke with a happy smile as he walked out, Issei watching his grandpa leaving his room before grumbling as he walked around & picked up his clothes.

"I'm 7 years old. Why the heck am I even doing training at this age?"

"Gramps, where-ah crap, it got in my eye. Where are we even going?" Issei asked as he stumbled through the forest after his grandpa, who looked at ease as he simply chopped down the few branches in his path while grinning as he turned to look at his grandson.

"Glad to ask, my boy! You see, I have this little area near the edge of Kuoh Town that no one other than your grandma knows about since it's also the first spot I took her to on our first picnic date."

"Really?…Grandpa, what is a date?"

"Well, when you like a girl very much, you go pick her up at her house and then you two go out & either eat at a restaurant or just spend time with each other."

"…Gramps, if I've been hanging out with a girl but I haven't asked her out, is that a date?"

"Depends. Does she like you?"

"I don't know."

"Do you like her?"

"She's the only girl in my class that isn't annoying and Mom makes me hang out with her."

"Then you're just close friends and not dating."

"I…see. Gramps?"

"Yes, Issei?"

"Why does Grandpa Juzo love big boobies so much?"

"…Hah, don't worry about that idiot." Kojiro muttered while shaking his head, Issei blinking at the response before shrugging as he continued on with the walk.

"…Gramps?"

"Yes, my boy?"

"Are we there yet?"

"Another ten more minutes."

"Urgh~"

"Whoa~" Issei muttered in awe as he & a grinning Kojiro stood on the edge of a cliff, a beautiful green forest stretching out below them as far as the eye can see while a small river flowed to their right & formed a small waterfall down into the moderately-sized lake below them.

"This is awesome."

"It is indeed and with this open space, you won't have to worry about hurting anyone."

"Cool. So, what are we doing first?" Issei asked and Kojiro grinned as he placed his backpack down, Issei looking confused as the man opened & rummaged inside it before blinking at the pair of ear muffs the man handed him.

"Here you go."

"Thank you, but what are they for?" He asked while putting them around his neck, Kojiro grinning as he took out his own pair while pointing at the open air in front of them.

"Simple. We're going to put these on and then I want you to give me the loudest & most powerful shout you can."

"Y-You sure, Gramps? Won't the cliff fall down?" Issei asked while looking at the ground below them in concern, to which Kojiro chuckled as he shook his head.

"It won't and even if it does, I'm fast enough to get the two of us away from here before anything can happen. Now, go and give me your best shout, my boy!" Kojiro spoke as he clapped Issei on the back before taking a few steps back, Issei looking a bit unsure before giving a hesitant nod as he put on his ear muffs & turned to face the cliff side.

"Are you sure I should shout as loud as I can?" Issei asked while taking off his ear muffs, frowning a bit at his grandpa nodding before giving a sigh as he turned back & put on the ear muffs once again.

'As loud as you can, Issei. As loud as you can.' Issei thought to himself as he took slow & precise deep breaths, closing his eyes and feeling the wind brushing against his body before his eyes snapped open and he took the deepest breath that he has ever taken.

"HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHH!" The roar that erupted from Issei's mouth was not unlike that of a feral beast, the animals in the forest below the cliffside scattering while Kojiro's eyes widened as he saw the air in front of Issei bending & warping from the shockwaves.

Not saying anything until Issei was done, it took the young boy nearly ten seconds before he finally needed to take a breath, Issei gasping for air while Kojiro just slowly took his ear muffs off and looked at the crater in front of him that led off the cliff & into the sky in front of them.

"That…was pretty amazing. Not bad there, my boy."

"T-Thanks, but…my throat…feels dry." Issei wheezed before groaning as a water bottle bounced off of his head and landed on the ground, glaring at his amused grandpa before he twisted off the cap & practically drank up the water in mere seconds.

"That bad, huh?" Kojiro asked as Issei finally dropped drinking to take a breath, the young boy nodding while wiping away the water around his mouth.

"Oh yeah, it felt like I had sand in my mouth."

"Well, it was your loudest shout yet so I'm assuming that the more powerful the shout, the more it strains your throat. Actually, try & give a sharp whistle to the air." Kojiro said and Issei frowned as he turned & let out a sharp whistle, his grandpa humming as he saw the invisible slash cutting through the air.

However, he noted how weak it was compared to the first time yesterday when Issei let out a yelp/ whistle as well as how it seemed to travel only a few meters before dissipating instead of the expected dozen or so meters.

"Okay, I think I get it."

"You do? Because I have absolutely no clue." Issei admitted with a shrug and Kojiro snorted as he reached into his backpack once more before Issei was once more confused as his grandpa took out a tea kettle along with two cups and a jar of tea leaves.

"Uh, Gramps? What's with the tea?" Issei asked and Kojiro smiled as he cut down a few dry twigs & branches with his katana, igniting it with the matches in his backpack before Issei watched as his grandpa walked past him & towards the river.

"Tea is known to soothe the throat and open the vocal cords."

"And we're going to be drinking tea? That's the training you bragged so much about?" Issei asked with a blink of his eyes and Kojiro snorted as he shook his head.

"That's only step 1. We still have to make you learn breath control, how to shift your tone of voice as well as its intensity and a dozen other things."

"And I'm guessing I won't be doing all of it today, huh?"

"Nope, but thanks to me, your mom thinks we're out on a camping trip for the next four days so by the end of it, I'm going to make sure you can shout at the top of your lungs & not send out a single shockwave."

"…Am I going to even sleep?" Issei asked before groaning as Kojiro grinned & shook his head.

"Not unless you tire yourself out & fall asleep like that. Now, walk over to that cliff and start giving out shouts. It's time to start your training."

"How do you feel after your first day of training?" Kojiro asked with an amused smile as he sat next to a small campfire, Issei groaning from where he was lying in his sleeping back whilst waiting for the fish his grandpa had caught to finally be finished.

"Sore." Issei's voice sounded hoarse as he spoke, Kojiro smirking as he reached down & picked up the cup of tea he had just poured.

"Here, that one should taste better than the ones before."

"I doubt it, gramps, but if you say so…" Issei trailed off with a shrug as he took the cup handed to him, Kojiro chuckling as his grandson took a sip before his eyes widened.

"It's…sweet…and nice."

"That's because I finally remembered to add the honey."

"Wait, you mean you had honey this whole time and only now remembered about it?"

"Funny, isn't it?"

"…Are you going senile, Gramps?"

"…Who knows?" Kojiro answered with a thoughtful look, hiding his smirk as Issei giggled and continued sipping at his tea.

"Gramps?"

"Yes, Issei?"

"Do you think that reading a lot is bad?"

"Why do you ask?" Kojiro asked and Issei frowned as he looked at his hands while slowly rubbing the tea-cup in his hands.

"Well, Dad & Mom won't tell me, but they always look so worried when I want to read instead of going outside to play with the neighbourhoods."

"And you think that's not normal for a kid your age?"

"Have you heard me talking, Gramps? I don't sound like a kid."

"I'll admit that you're more knowledgeable than those your age, but I believe your parents are just scared that you might not have any friends by the time you're like 15 or 16 years old."

"But that's so far away~ I mean, I could probably make a few friends when I'm older, right?"

"Heh, you'd be surprised by how fast time can pass you by. Besides, while I do believe that reading a lot is not a bad thing, making friends when one's your age leads to some of the best friendships when you're getting close to my age. One could even say that is when you truly find the brothers you never had."

"…So, I should make more friends?" Issei asked with a confused frown and Kojiro chuckled as he shrugged.

"Like I said, it's all up to you."

"Thanks, Gramps. You're not so senile, after all."

"Oh, you're lucky you just finished training or I would have forced you to start shouting again."

"Hehe~ …hey, Gramps?"

"Issei, go to bed." Kojiro said to his grandson with an amused smile, to which Issei gave a sheepish giggle & nodded.

"I will. Just…can you tell me a story? Mom told me that you have some cool stories from your job." Issei said and Kojiro smiled as he nodded and looked up at the stars.

"Oh, I have many. Let's start with my very first job, which was supposed to be a simple job but turned out to something much, much worse."

"A-And then he dove from the rooftop and stabbed his katana into the rabid wolf's skull! Isn't he awesome?!"

"…So, your solution was telling him horror stories?" Gorou asked with a raised eyebrow as they watched Issei excitedly re-telling Kojiro's stories to Miki & Otoki, who simply listened with amused smiles while Kojiro nodded.

"Yep! That and making him tell me a few of his stories. I wanted to do something else, but I found that the boy has a love for stories & books just as much as I have a love for my katanas."

"So, we shouldn't do anything? Just let him live his life as he please and he'll change over time?" Gorou asked as he turned to his father-in-law, who nodded as he tapped his sheathed katana against the ground.

"Yep. Books train his mind & imagination to think big and for someone like Issei who adores them, it is the key to unlocking his dreams & creativity. All he needs is to know that his parents support him every step of the way."

"…You know, when you're not trying to kill me, you're actually a pretty chill guy."

"That's just my way of showing love."

"By trying to murder me?"

"Exactly, my dear son-in-law. Now, drive safe and make sure to think about what I just said." Kojiro spoke with a smile as he patted Gorou on the back and walked forward, Gorou simply watching as the old man hugged Miki & Issei before shaking his head with a smile as he walked towards them.

And that is how the Hyoudou-Ichikawa family had spent their first holiday gathering.

A/N: Another slice of life chapter. To be honest, I think up to chapter 7 or chapter 10 is just going to be calm & silent up until he turns 10 or 11 years old and then after that, we'll kick off with the action & the chaos that is being part of the supernatural world.

Hope you guys understand and I hope you all enjoy.

Like always, you can go to my Pat-reon-.-com-/-KingCrimsonNova to read ahead on this as well as many other stories & even some that haven't been released out to this site yet. If you want to, you are free to, but if you don't want, all's good as I will still be uploading here. This is just me trying to get some extra cash.

Now, as always, read, enjoy, review and until the next one...

Ba-Bye~!