Chapter 13: Biblical Intros

The next morning, it was now Friday. Jiro and Irina woke up to Jiro's alarm, still in each other's arms, and looked at each other, wishing each other a good morning. They got out of bed to brush their teeth and go eat breakfast, consisting of bacon, eggs, and miso soup. After they ate breakfast, they got ready for school. Irina put on the Kuoh Academy girls' uniform, while Jiro put on his usual punk attire with his red leather jacket, black shirt, black leather fingerless gloves, black jeans, black boots, and ruby earrings. They grabbed their school bags and left the house, walking side by side.

"Can't you wear the uniform, or something more proper, Jiro-kun?" Irina asked, glancing over at him. Jiro chuckled slightly at the question.

"No way. This is my style. And that uniform is hard to move in." Jiro said simply, causing Irina to pout.

"Doesn't that outfit attract more unwanted attention?"

"Yeah, but it also diverts them, meaning people know not to screw with me."

"Hrm, you're such a big bad punk."

"Heh, I sure am. Oh, yeah, there's something I forgot to tell you last night," Jiro said, making Irina look at him curiously.

"You see this fallen angel girl, pretending to be a human, asked me out a few days ago... and well I accepted," Jiro said casually. Irina looked at him in shock and somewhat irritation.

"W-what?! What do you mean?! Why would you accept it?! Why would a fallen angel be interested in someone like you?!" Irina asked almost frantically. For reasons unknown to her, the thought of another girl being interested in him frustrated her beyond belief, and she refused to accept it.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?!" Jiro asked, turning towards her with an eyebrow raised. Irina looked at him, her eyebrows furrowing slightly.

"Oh, come on, I may be a bit clueless about their culture, but even I know that fallen angels are proud, ruthless, and haughty beings. So why would one of them be interested in a human?" Irina asked, annoyed.

"I think you mean dragon. Anyway, she's probably just trying to get close to kill me, or trying to assess what kind of power I have and recruit me to the fallen angels' faction," Jiro said, remembering his guess when he first met "Yuma".

Irina's eyebrows furrowed. "Yeah, that's what I mean... she's trying to get close to you to use you. You understand why I'm so surprised, don't you? Fallen angels are beings who want power and can use all kinds of dirty tricks to get what they want. They aren't beings who would fall in love, unless there is something they can use, a hidden power or something." Irina said worriedly. Being who she is, she hates seeing people around her, especially those she cares for, getting hurt and used like that.

Jiro then turns away from her and looks up as he elaborates. "Yeah, I know, and as for why I did it, I only accepted her 'confession' because I wanted to know her main plan, and... well, I was bored." Jiro said, sheepishly while scratching the back of his head.

"You were... bored? Are you serious? One of the reasons you accepted the confession of a fallen angel was just because you were bored? I'm speechless... I knew you were an idiot, but you're an even bigger idiot than I thought!" Irina said, looking at him in astonishment while pouting.

"Sheesh, take it easy. She isn't even a real threat to me, and I've been feeling bored since I haven't fought any supernatural threats recently. Therefore, I thought this might keep me entertained."

Irina sighs, unable to accept how irresponsible he can be sometimes. However, she can't help but also realize that it's something he does normally. She sighs again as she speaks.

"Why are you so carefree? Why are you okay with playing with fire? I can't believe you don't take this seriously. You may be a dragon, but you haven't become invincible or immortal. You can still get injured, you can still die... And I..." Irina said, stopping at that moment, realizing that she was being a little overprotective of him, a thought that makes Jiro's expression soften.

"Look, sorry to worry you again, but I don't know if you forgot about the stories of my past fights from last night, but I've gotten quite powerful in our time apart. I won't even need to go Dragon Force against her." Jiro said confidently.

Irina sighed again in contemplation, letting his words sink in. She did remember his stories of past battles and couldn't help but be a little surprised by this sudden change in him. Did the Boosted Gear really do this much for him?

"Yeah, I remember. I had no idea your power would increase that much. Did your Sacred Gear really do that much to you?" Irina asked, almost reassured.

"Well, we have been apart for 10 long years. In that time, I've done a lot of training and fighting supernatural threats." Jiro said, making Irina shake her head in disbelief.

"10 years. So much time has really passed... And you've changed. You're not the same Jiro-kun I used to know, on the outside, I mean. You've grown so much, and became so strong." Irina said, looking down with a wistful smile.

It makes her happy, but also sad. She felt that time went by so quickly. She didn't even realize how much he had changed, even though they were together from such a young age. It hurt a little, to think how much she had missed out because of what happened to her mother and that she had become an exorcist.

Jiro looked at her, his expression softening more. "Hey, now I'm still mostly the Jiro you knew, and don't feel bad. Everything that happened was out of your control," Jiro said reassuringly.

"Even so, I'm still worried about you. I don't know the full extent of what you can do. And that fallen angel girl could attack you at any time, and you wouldn't even be able to defend yourself." Irina said, stubbornly, hating it when he tries to play the hero.

Jiro looks at her, trying to reassure her. "Oh, I can defend myself. Like I said I won't even need to go Dragon Force. If she does try to attack me, I'll blow her away easily." Jiro said confidently.

Irina rolls her eyes at the over-exaggerated answer and his cockiness again. "Of course you would say that, you're so overconfident. You think you can take on the whole world all by yourself! You're not invincible, you know?!"

She then sighed, feeling a strange mixture of worry and relief. On one hand, she was worried about his safety, and he really made her feel on edge with that attitude of his. But at the same time, there was a part of her that felt relieved that he was able to defend himself, considering what she had felt when he showed her his true form, "Dragon Force," the previous night.

"Fine, I'll believe you... But please be careful and don't do anything reckless, okay? You promised when you told me that you fought Acnologia." Irina said, looking up at him with pleading eyes and pouts, giving him a cute puppy face. She just wants him to be safe, is that too much to ask?

Jiro chuckled at her expression. "Yeah, I know I promised. But if it makes you feel any better, you can follow us around and observe us while we go on our 'date' on Saturday," Jiro said, making Irina perk up.

"Yes, I'll do that. I have to make sure you're... not harmed." Irina said, determined. Secretly, she wanted to do so to make sure the fallen angel didn't make any... "advances" on him. Jiro chuckled at her response as they continued walking.

They arrived at school and walked through the front gates side by side. Not surprisingly, they immediately became the talk of the students. And as usual, the male and female students had opposite reactions.

Guys: "What?! He's walking to school with the new girl?!"

"Damn it, why?! It's not fair!"

"He walked home with her yesterday too! And we saw him with Rias-sama and Akeno-sama! C'mon, leave some for us, you bastard!"

"I'm starting to think you guys really do have a death wish."

Girls: "They walked home together yesterday and now they come together today."

"Now, even the new girl is with him. Why can't I be one of them?"

"Just imagine walking together with him, arm in arm. Those muscles must be rock solid and his handsomeness rivals Prince Kiba."

"Again are you really interested in the notorious gang leader?"

"Oh, for the love of- I think I really will rip their throats out." Jiro said in exasperation.

Irina chuckled at his annoyance. "Hehe, Easy lizard boy, save it for the fallen angels," Irina said, with a mock smile. On the inside, while she was annoyed by the guy's bad-mouthing him, she was especially irritated by the girls' attraction to him.

They approached the school building and heard a female voice call out. "Jiro!" said the voice of Rias, standing with her peerage, the student council near the entrance of the school building. Irina looked at them, eyes wide. She thought she sensed devils when she first arrived at this school, but now it was confirmed.

"Jiro-kun, why are there devils here?! And why do they seem to know you?!" Irina asked in shock.

"Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you about them. Those devils are students here too." Jiro said, matter-of-factly.

"What?! Devils attending a human school?! That's unusual, but are you friends with them?!" Irina said in slight concern.

"I'd say more acquaintances, but I don't think they'll harm you if we're together, and if they do, I'll beat them within an inch of their lives."

"Okay, but why are you hanging around devils? They're the enemy of my kind. They're the reason we were separated. And they took my... you know." Irina looked down, looking downcast.

Jiro looked at her with empathy. "I know and I feel your pain. But in my opinion, that's in the past. I know it was devils who attacked us and... took your mother away... but those devils are long dead. These devils haven't done anything wrong to us. I don't think it's right to let the worst of them speak for all of them and hold a grudge against their entire race forever." Jiro said, making Irina look at him contemplatively.

Deep down she knew he was right, but knowing that devils had caused them so much pain wasn't something to easily forgive, along with other things. "Y-your right, but I'm an angel exorcist. I was trained to fight against devils. You know that," Irina said, still concerned.

"Yeah, I know, but promise me you'll try to get along with them for now. I have a plan that involves all three factions," Jiro said confidently.

Irina looks at him curiously but knows he won't tell her right now, and plans to ask him later. She then sighed in acceptance. "Fine, since I made you promise me two things, it's only fair that I give you at least one. But if this goes south, I expect you to take responsibility." Irina said, pointing at Jiro while pouting.

Jiro chuckled in response. "Heh, heh, yeah, yeah, I will." Jiro said as they walked up to the devils.

They approached them and as soon as they stood in front of them, the four devil's eyes widened and then narrowed. "Jiro, what is the meaning of this?! Why is there an angel with you." Rias said, pointing at Irina.

"Relax, she's harmless. This is my childhood friend, Irina Shidou. She just transferred here yesterday," Jiro said, gesturing to Irina.

"Harmless or not, you don't expect me to let an angel live in my territory, do you?!" Rias asked, ignoring his introduction. Jiro's eyes narrowed in response.

"Oh yeah, well, I'll have you know, she lived here when we were kids for a few years before she moved, so this is just as much her home as it is mine. Besides, do we need to have another little chat about that "your territory" crap, Blood hair?" Jiro said as he glares at her while flaring his aura slightly, heating up the air around them, apart from Irina.

The devils shivered in fear as he did so and stepped back. "N-no, we d-don't. We're just... weary about a member of an enemy faction walking amongst us." Rias said nervously while putting her hands up, and Jiro brought his aura down.

"Well, I said you owed me a favor after dealing with that fried chicken, so that favor will be to let Irina stay here without complaint and treat her fairly. That goes for the rest of you." Jiro said, looking at all four of them, to which they all nodded while Rias said, "Very well."

"And well, Jiro made me promise to get along with all of you for now, so I won't cause any trouble. As Jiro said, my name is Irina Shidou. It's n-nice to meet you." Irina said with an almost forced smile. She was apprehensive about being friendly with the natural enemy of her kind but chose to do so for Jiro's sake. Plus she was also annoyed that Jiro was around three devil girls.

"Alright, Irina, this is Rias Gremory, Akeno Himejima, Kiba Yuuto, and Koneko Toujou. Rias is the student council president as well as their master." Jiro said, surprising Irina.

"Rias Gremory?! From the high-class devil family?! I've heard of them. To think their heiress would go to school here." Irina said, her eyes wide slightly.

Rias smirked slightly with pride that her name had reached the angel faction while the others greeted her. "It's good to meet you too, Irina." Kiba said. Koneko, in her usual deadpan expression, nodded silently, eating another chocolate bar.

"Fufu, yeah, it is. I hope we get along. And Jiro-kun said you two were childhood friends, right? So, when's the wedding?" Akeno teased, making Irina blush furiously and look down.

Jiro glared at her as a tick mark appeared on his forehead. "It'll be on the same day as your funeral, that's when," Jiro said, secretly feeling his face heat up slightly.

"Fufufu, easy tiger. I'm kidding. But that means you're available, right?" Akeno said, flirtatiously while giggling, which made Irina glare at her.

"I think you really wanna have that funeral," Jiro said calmly as he grabbed the top of Akeno's head and squeezed it while she yelled "kyaaaaa!"

The bell suddenly rang, signaling the start of homeroom. "Anyway, I think that's all for now. I have to deal with that fallen angel's 'date' tomorrow, so I'll tell you how it went after." Jiro said to the devils, who nodded as the group started walking into the building to their respective classrooms.

"Heh, You really are a force to be reckoned with. To think you'd have a devil heiress and her servants obeying you while shaking in their boots," Irina said playfully as they walked.

"What can I say, I got skills," Jiro said, smiling. "Just be careful, you don't want to make enemies with the devils now, especially not the Gremorys" Irina said, slightly concerned to which Jiro said "hmph, I know", although he wasn't really afraid of them.

They entered the classroom. They sat down at their seats as everyone stole glances at them, which Jiro noticed and shot a glare at them, making them turn away in fear as Irina giggled.

The day went on normally and soon it ended. Jiro stayed behind to finish some extra work while Irina went to the kendo club. As soon as they saw her, Murayama and Katase ran up to Irina again.

Murayama: "Irina-chan, we saw you walking to school with Jiro! What's the deal?!"

Katase: "Yeah, he forced you to join his gang, didn't he?! He's got some nerve!"

Irina giggled at their frantic questions. "Hehe, easy girls, he didn't force me to do anything. Me and him are actually childhood friends, and we live together now." Irina said, smiling casually, making all the girls in the locker room yell "WHAT?!" in shock.

Katase: "WHAT?! ARE YOU SERIOUS?! YOU'RE... WITH THE CRIMSON DRAGONS LEADER?!"

Murayama: "AND YOU LIVE TOGETHER NOW?! SO ARE YOU TWO DATING NOW?!"

Irina's face turns a bright shade of red at Murayama's question. "N-no, w-we're not dating! We're just roommates now," Irina said, waving her hands in embarrassment.

"Well, you can spill all the details while we spar," Murayama said, picking up a shinai and pointing it at Irina, who picked up a shinai of her own. They sparred for a good hour as Irina told them of her and Jiro's childhood and how they reunited to which they listened and swooned slightly at how romantic it sounded.

After they finished sparing, all the girls sat on the floor exhausted while Irina stood unfazed. They were all shocked by Irina's sheer speed, stamina, and skill with a sword. After they recovered, they immediately named her as the third kendo captain.

After club activities ended, Irina stood waiting near the front gate for Jiro, just as she had done the previous day. Two students she recognized as the "pervert duo" suddenly approached her. One was Matsuda, a lean, muscular boy with a bald head, and the other was Motohama, a more slender boy with large glasses. Both of them wore the Kuoh Academy boy's uniform but had their blazers open, revealing red t-shirts, and leather gloves.

"Hey, new girl, what are you doing standing here by yourself?" Matsuda asked with a goofy smile. Motohama walked up right next to him.

"I'm waiting for someone." Irina said bluntly, already knowing where this was going. "What, no way you found yourself a boyfriend already? Why don't you have some fun with us?" Motohama asked, his gaze clearly on her chest despite the light reflected on his glasses.

Irina glared at them, unfazed by their half-hearted flirting. "I said I'm waiting for someone, so can you leave me alone please?" Irina asked, in a low, almost threatening tone.

"Come on, don't be like that. I like 'em feisty," Matsuda said as he slowly reached out to grab Irina's hand. She was about to slap it away when someone else grabbed it.

"I'll kindly ask you not to touch her, Matsuda." Jiro said as he suddenly appeared next to them, gripping Matsuda's wrist. The three of them turned to him in surprise.

"BOSS JIRO?!" Matsuda and Motohama yelled in unison as they jumped back, in surprise and fear. Irina looked at them in surprise at their calling him "boss".

"Jiro-kun, do you know these two?" Irina asked, making Jiro turn to her. "Yes, I do. They're members of my gang." Jiro said as the two stood at attention saying, "That's right, but we'll always be jealous of Boss Jiro's good looks."

"Yeah, these two perverts are somehow members of the gang. Sorry about them," said a new voice to Irina as he approached them. He was almost as tall as Jiro, had a more lean muscular build than Matsuda, short spiky brown hair, with two short locks of hair behind his head, light brown eyes, shirtless, but wore a red short-sleeve leather jacket that emphasized his muscles, black jeans, black sneakers, and red fingerless leather gloves.

"Like you're not a pervert as well, Issei," said a new female voice who approached and patted Issei on the back playfully. He responded, "WELL, I AIN'T LIKE THEM, DAMMIT, AIKA!" to which she giggled. She wore pink spectacles, had gold-colored eyes, lightly messy brunette hair tied into braids on each side, wore black sweatpants, black boots, a red coat that was opened, showing her torso, had a red turban wrapped around her chest, and wore black leather gloves.

Irina giggled at the antics between them. "Hehe, are they all members of your gang?!" Irina asked, turning back to Jiro.

"Yes, they are. This is Issei, Aika, Matsuda, and Motohama. Somehow, these four idiots are the four strongest members of the Crimson Dragons, just under me, of course." Jiro said, gesturing to them.

"That's right, we're the 4 salamanders." They said in unison while doing dramatic poses side by side. Irina giggled again while Jiro's eyebrow twitched as they looked at them.

"Anyway, this is Irina, my childhood friend. And If I catch you two trying to harass her again, you'll be looking at your own organs." Jiro said, gesturing to Irina and then glaring at Matsuda and Motohama, who responded in unison, "Yes, sir!" while shivering in fear.

Issei laughed at their misfortune while Aika walked up to Irina and put her arm around her shoulder. "So you're the boss's childhood friend, eh? Guess that makes you our vice-boss. Tell me, how is he in bed?" Aika asked, poking Irina's other shoulder with her free hand.

Irina blushed furiously at her last question. "Knock it off." Jiro said, calmly as he grabs the back of Aika's head and squeezes it. "Gaaaah, sorry." Aika said, backing away from Irina.

"Anyway, so what are you two doing here?" Jiro asked, looking between Issei and Aika. "Oh, we're transferring to this school on Monday, so we came to get a good look at the place. Did you forget?" Issei said, to which Jiro responded, "Oh, yeah, right."

"Wait, they're transferring here?" Irina asked in surprise. "Yup, we're doing so to support Boss Jiro and to keep an eye on these two idiots." Issei said, gesturing to Matsuda and Motohama, who glared at him.

"If that's the truth, I expect you to treat Irina with the same level of respect you treat me. Got it?" Jiro said, to which they said "yes, sir" in unison.

"Alright then, enjoy your tour." Jiro said as he and Irina started walking away. "Got it, good to meet you, Boss Irina." They said in unison, waving at them while Irina waved back.

"Well, they're a colorful bunch, both figuratively and literally. And they're calling me "Boss" now huh?" Irina said playfully, walking side by side with Jiro.

"Yeah, they can be a pain in the ass sometimes but they're capable." Jiro said with a hint of smile on his face. Irina chuckled at his assessment.

"You said they're the four strongest members of your gang, right? The "4 salamanders," eh? So, how many members do you have?" Irina asked curiously.

"I'd say about a hundred. The four of them each lead their own divined group of 25." Jiro said thoughtfully, surprising Irina.

"Wait, your gang has a hundred members?! And they each lead their own division?! You defend the country and lead a gang that big?! You've got quite the following, Jiro-kun." Irina said playfully. Jiro chuckled at her words.

They walk alongside each other, enjoying the peaceful ambiance for a few minutes. Then Irina glances over at him and breaks the silence.

"You know, I've been thinking. Maybe we can go out sometime, just for fun, have a chat, and grab some good food. After a long school day, I feel like we deserve to enjoy ourselves. Besides, it'll give us a chance to... deepen our bond. What do you think, Jiro-kun? Wanna go out with your best friend?" Irina said, glancing at him with a smile and a small blush on her face.

Jiro blushes slightly in response as well as he glances back at her and smiles, saying "of course". They start walking to the cafe they went to before. While on their way there, they pass by an alleyway, then suddenly hear someone scream, catching them both off guard.

When they turn around and walk back towards the alleyway, they see a young girl on the ground and two large men in black cloaks standing over her. "Well, well, looks like we finally found her," one of them said. "Yeah, bout time. Let's bring her back already," the other one said as he pulls out anti-magic handcuffs from his cloak and starts approaching her. The girl tries to crawl away backwards and covers her eyes.

Jiro and Irina looked on in horror at the scene, sensing that they were human but had unholy auras. "Those are stray exorcists. What do they want with that girl?" Irina said, about to summon a light sword.

Before Irina could act, Jiro already sprang into action, zipped forward, and grabbed the exorcists' shoulders. They both turned their heads to look at him and glared. "Hey, what the hell do you think you're doing?" The exorcist on Jiro's right said.

"That's my line," Jiro said as he gripped their shoulders, making them wince in pain. He then spread his arms, throwing them against the walls of the alleyway with enough force that the walls broke, killing both of them and shocking Irina.

Irina approached him slowly. "Y-you didn't have to go that far," Irina said, still shakily in disbelief. "They were attacking a defenseless girl and would've done God knows what. And if I left them alive, again God knows what they would've done to other people, I didn't sense an ounce of good in them." Jiro said in a low voice.

Irina looked at him in surprise at his answer. She started to think that Jiro had actually changed on the inside far more than she thought. She pushed her thoughts to the back of her mind as they approached the girl.

When Jiro and Irina looked down, they saw a young girl in a green nun's outfit, wearing a similar silver cross necklace to Irina's around her neck. She had long blonde hair, emerald green eyes, and was wearing a brown backpack. She looked up at Jiro and was intimidated by his red eyes and scowl.

She stutters nervously as she notices the two men on the ground against the walls on either side of the alleyway. "Eek, w-who are you? W-what's g-going on?" The nun said, shivering in fear.

Irina looks at the blonde nun with a mixture of curiosity and concern. She helps the nun to her feet. "Are you alright, sister? You must be terrified," Irina said kindly.

"And we just saved you from these guys," Jiro said as he walked over to the exorcist on the right and picked up the anti-magic handcuffs, believing they could be of good use in the future and put them in his pocket.

The blonde nun, a bit embarrassed, brushes off her clothes and gives them a small bow. "T-thank you for your concern, but I'm fine, really." She glances at Irina, noticing her necklace, then looks at Jiro, noticing his demeanor and attire. Her curiosity is piqued, but she also seems a bit intimidated by Jiro.

"Relax, no need to be scared, I ain't gonna hurt you." Jiro said, noticing her on-edge look. He also secretly studies her appearance, sensing some kind of power from inside her. The nun looks slightly relieved at Jiro's words.

"Oh, um, I'm not scared. It's just, well...your appearance. No offense, but I'm not the best at dealing with intimidating people. What are your names, by the way?" She said, chuckling nervously, her cheeks turning slightly pink as she looked between them.

"My name is Irina Shidou, and this is Jiro Natsuo," Irina said, gesturing to herself and then Jiro, with an Akeno-like smile. The nun smiled back in response.

"Nice to meet you, Jiro-san and Irina-san. I'm Asia Argento."

To be continued