Chapter 8: Lessons

The following morning Kazuki awoke with a massive hang over. He knew that getting involved in that explicit game of Mahjong was going to bite him in the ass later. As looked around Kazuki noticed that Ayumi, Maki and Leon were still passed out and all he could think of was that they got what they deserved. As Kazuki got up to put on a pot of coffee, he noticed the time on the clock and instantly he was sobered up.

"Shit, we're going to be late!"Shouted Kazuki as he then ran over to Ayumi and tried to wake her up but instead he found himself be grabbed a hold of a smothered in her breasts.

"Oh Kazuki you naughty boy, we can't do that here…"Ayumi mumbled in her sleep.

"What the hell is she dreaming about?"Kazuki wondered as he pried himself away and then went over to check on Maki.

"Mmm Kazuki, you can do whatever you want with me…."Maki said in her sleep.

"Not you too…"Sighed Kazuki before looking over at Leon.

"I don't even want to know…"

Kazuki then stood up and gave a little sigh, it seemed like he'd have to do something to get them all up and quick like at that. Kazuki then placed his hands on the ground and a purple magic circle begun to surround him, Kazuki may have an affinity for fire magic but that didn't mean he couldn't use others.

"Jolt!" Kazuki shouted under his breath thus causing small amounts of electricity to shoot out and shock Ayumi, Maki and Leon thus waking them up.

"W-what the hell is going on?"Asked Ayumi as she woke up.

"That's weird, I just felt as though I had lightning running through my body."Commented Maki.

"Huh, what just happened?"Leon asked.

"It's about you three woke up, if we don't get a move on we'll be late for classes."Announced Kazuki.

"A-are you serious?" Ayumi asked frantically.

"Quite, in fact we only have….thirty minutes to get ready."Replied Kazuki as he glanced at the clock.

"Damn it, Maki we've got to hurry!"

As Ayumi and Maki ran off to their rooms to get dressed, Kazuki let out a sigh, this was precisely the reason he didn't want to get dragged into their game last night. Kazuki then followed suit and within minutes was ready to go while on the other hand the girls were still getting ready, this of course made Kazuki sigh and look over at Leon who then just gave him a shrug.

"I'm going on ahead, I'll see you both in class."Announced Kazuki as he started to head towards the door, but as soon as he was about to reached for the door knob, he found both his arms hooked on the right by Ayumi and on the left by Maki, it looked as though he had two affectionate girlfriends clinging to him.

"Kazuki you lucky bastard...let's just hope you don't do anything to break the hearts of any of these girls." Thought Leon as he watched them leave just before getting up and getting dressed and looking out the window.

"I can sense…something ominous…."Leon uttered before deciding to leave as well.

Once Kazuki and the girls reached their first class, Kazuki decided to rest his head on his desk before getting up and sitting by his easel. Kazuki groaned lightly as he thought about the fact that Ms. Momichi would surely have something outrageous planned, so when she approached him Kazuki was little more than hesitant to look up at her.

"What's wrong Kazuki, you look like you had one hell of a night."Commented Ms. Momichi as she down in front of him.

"That would be putting it lightly."Kazuki sighed mentally.

"Hey I know, why don't you do me a favor and do some modeling for the class today, what do you say?"

"…Do I really have a choice?"

"Glad to hear you're willing to help out, now strip and stand in front of the class."

Kazuki sighed before standing up and standing in the middle of the classroom where all the girls would be able to get a perfect view of him. Kazuki sighed once again as he then undressed and was soon completely exposed for everyone to see. Kazuki actually had more of muscular build than one could tell from when he was wearing clothes. The room became silent and Kazuki could feel the sharp attentive stares the girls gave him as they saw his naked body. Kazuki could also feel some intensity coming from Ms. Momichi.

"Damn it, if only I was ten years younger…."Ms. Momichi thought as she got up and made her way towards Kazuki and begun to caress his body.

"Now listen girls, I want you to do your very best to draw out every inch of Kazuki's body, genitals included, we aren't little girls here so a task like that shouldn't make any of you nervous."Announced Ms. Momichi as she placed a hand just below Kazuki's belly button.

"She's enjoying this, isn't she?" Kazuki wondered.

As Kazuki stood there his mind started to drift towards what had happened yesterday with Tsubaki and the fact that Seito wanted to teach him the Infinity Blade, a technique that had been mastered by his father. This of course eventually led to him thinking about how he said that he'd train with Kitsume and promised Shizarou that he'd teach her about magic….and then there was the training he'd have to go through with Satoshi and Leon, what sort of mess did he get himself in. Just when it seemed that he was thinking too much Kazuki remembered what both Ayumi and Tsubaki had told him and suddenly he felt as though he could calm himself down.

Classes went by quickly and once everything was done kazuki headed over to the campus dojo where kitsume said she would be if he had the time to train with her. However when he entered , Kazuki found Kitsume frantically training while completely naked and with water dripping from her body. Kazuki had to quick compose himself and come in with a clear mind.

"Oh hello Kazuki, I didn't hear you come in."Greeted Kitsume as she struck a pillar and sent it flying across the room.

"That much is obvious, I don't think you would have acted so calmly otherwise."Kazuki thought as he gave Kitsume a blank stare.

"Oh I'm sorry you have to see me like this, I recently had a shower and then for some reason a desire to do some training came over me."Kitsume explained as she got dressed.

"I see…well I said I'd come here t train under you so that's why I'm here."Replied Kazuki.

"Ah yes, there should be a spare training garb in the locker room, get changed and come back here."

"Alright, I'll try to not take so long."

Once Kazuki left the training room and entered the locker room he soon found that was completely fogy thus meaning one of two things. The first was that it was caused by the steam from the shower Kitsume had or that know she was part of a ninja clan, this was a cleaver trap in order to test him. Kazuki took a deep breath and moved forward thus triggering a trap and solidify the latter reasoning for the fog. Kunai knives then came shhoting out from the walls and kazuki had quickly dodge and use his hands to daftly knock them down all the while trying to make it to one of the lockers. He was successes full in doing so but when he reached the locker he noticed that there was absolutely nothing in there thus making him come to the conclusion that this was all part of his training. Kazuki let out a sigh before head back to the training room.

"Very clever, I guess I should have expected something like that from you."Announced Kazuki as he made his way through the door but then he had to take a quick step back in astonishment for the room was filled with naked copies of Kitsume.

"This must be another test, after all a ninja can't get distracted by such things like this."Kazuki thought as he walked forward calmly thus making the clones dissipate until he bumped in to the real kitsume who was once again naked.

"Very good kazuki, you passed the first two tests after all, for a ninja their senses and awareness of their surroundings can lead to matter of life or death."Kitsume announced.

"Wither you're a ninja or not, that is something all people should have a grasp of since a person's life could be at danger at any time."Replied kazuki.

"Hey no fair, aren't I supposed to be the teacher her, not you?"

"Sorry about that."

"Don't worry about it, I was only joking with you…now, you see those pillars over there, I want you to strike them and send them flying like I did just a little bit ago, I'm sure you can do it since I saw the pure strength of your fists."

Kazuki silently nodded and then stood in front of the pillars as Kitsume watched him. Once he was there kazuki took up a fighting stance that Kitsume recognized and instantly her jaw dropped. Kazuki then slowly inhaled as he drew back a fist and quickly exhaled as he struck the pillar with a forceful and devastating blow. The impact didn't just send the pillar flying but caused it break in to multiple pieces. After seeing this Kitsume had to walk over and looked directly in to Kazuki's eyes.

"Kazuki, where did you learn that stance?"Kitsume asked.

"From my father, while I was kid and still living in my home village, he taught both my brother and myself how to fight via hand to hand just so that we have way to protect ourselves…and then after I landed in an orphanage my big brother Matsuo continued to train me."Replied Kazuki.

"Matsuo….as in Matsuo Inarei?"

"Yeah….wait, you know him?"

"Yes….you know how I told you that I'm the last in my family to learn the ways of the ninja, well that's because my father gave up on the old ways because he felt it was unnecessary for it to be passed on…however I thought otherwise, eventually I met Matsuo and he begun to train me and so for the next ten years every three months he'd come and teach me more and more while leaving me to practice on my own while following a training guide line he developed."

"Well that would explain the extended business trips he always mentioned."Thought Kazuki as he then struck another pillar and netted the same result as before.

"So now I have another reason to feel compelled to be close to you, after all we have the same master."Chuckled Kitsume.

"Did Matsuo ever mention to you the origin of this fighting style?"Kazuki asked.

"Nope, not once."

"That's what I thought….this fighting style is called Takaendo, my father told me he developed it when he was young which from I had recently learned was a very long time ago."

"So your father must have passed the teachings down to Matsuo."

"Yes, however my father did use a teaching that was already established in order to create Takaendo….I have reason to believe this is how your family is connected to mine."

"Wait, you're trying to tell me that the Nadea family has something to do with your father Kaziharu Takashiro, a man who was responsible for defeating Ouroboros?"

"So you know about that?"

"Yes….I heard that my father was also one of the members who helped your father defeat Ouroboros."

"I see so now I get it, your father joined later on after Matsuo, Seito and Shizune joined and as such his skills as a ninja were quite useful….wait, does that mean that my father learned the basic fundamentals to develop Takaendo from your father?"

"It's very possible."

"Well then if what your saying is true then there a more missing pieces….everything seems to be connected, the two worlds, my father's past and our present all seem to be linked together almost as though it's part of a grand design."

"Okay kazuki lets move on, all this talk about how it seems we are all puppets is creeping me out."

"Right sorry, I guess my over thinking really is going to become a problem for those around me."

"Kazuki, it's okay to over think from time to time but doing it constantly and thinking about negative things aren't healthy for your psyche."

"Just what I needed, another person pointing out my habit of over thinking is a bad thing…"Kazuki thought.

"Kazuki, you're doing it again…"Commented Kitsume.

"God damn it, I REALLY need to stop doing that!"Shouted Kazuki as he pulled at his hair.

"Hey don't do that, you're too young to be bald."

"Yeah you're right."

"Kazuki…why don't we call it a day, we went of track with our training and it doesn't seem like your mind set is going to be able to focus any time soon."

"Alright, sorry about all this."

"Don't worry about it."

"Well I guess I'll be heading out, oh, and please put some clothes on, this whole time we've been talking I've had to stop my eyes from gravitating towards your breasts."

"My breasts huh, so I'm guessing you like them?"

"….Lets just drop it."

"I'm not hearing a no."

"I said lets just drop it!"

"Alright alright, I was just trying to have some fun."

"Fun my ass, maybe she'd get along well with Leon….that reminds me, I still have other arrangements to attend to." Kazuki thought as turned to leave.

"See ya later Kitsume."kazuki announced as he waved her farewell and walked off.

As kazuki left he had to let out a sigh. He had feeling deep down in his gut that by the end of the day he'll be so worn and ragged that he'd have to rely on Satoshi and Leon to handle any sort of monster attacks. Kazuki pondered for a moment as to whom he should visit next before deciding that he'd go and see Shizarou and start her first lesson and such he headed in the direction of the school with the intent of dropping by the classroom where the news paper club normally was ran. Along his way, Kazuki noticed something off in the distance that caught his attention, it was Ririsu Katori and she seemed to be surrounded by a bunch of men who had less then decent plans involving her. Feeling the need to be the hero, Kazuki rushed in to rescue her.

"Well well what do we have her?"Chuckled a tall thin man with wearing a biker jacket.

"She seems to be the doll the eccentric doctor asked us to grab for him."Answered a short chubby man wearing the same type of jacket.

"Who the hell cares what he wants, he may be paying us to bring her back but I say we have little fun with her first."Announced a broad midsized man wearing the same clothing as the other two.

"Hey, you'd better keep your hands off of her if you know what's good for you."Warrned Kazuki as finally made his appearance.

"Oh is that right, and what if we don't?"The tall one asked.

"I'll just have to beat your asses to a bloody pulp."Replied Kazuki.

"You hear that boss, that little punk thinks he can handle us."Laughed the chubby man.

"Heh, well if you think you can stop us then give it a try." The midsized man taunted as he picked Ririsu up by the hair and liked the tears that were pouring down Ririsu's face.

Kazuki clenched his teeth in anger before rushing in to attack. He quickly took them down one by one by first knocking out the tall one by kicking him square in the jaw then taking out the chubby one by throwing him over his shoulder and then finally taking out the midsized one by striking him squarely in the gut and then finishing with a big uppercut . After the three men were incapacitated, Kazuki quickly picked up Ririsu and carried her out of harm's way.

"Now, can you explain to me as to what exactly is going on?"Kazuki asked as soon as they were in a safe place.

Ririsu then quickly wrapped her around kauki and begun to cry uncontrollably. Kazuki was both shocked and confused, it would seem that Ririsu was involved in a horrible situation and that the fact that he rescued her was too much for her to handle.

"Ririsu please, you must tell me what's going on."Kazuki demanded.

"Very well."Ririsu said quietly as she wiped away her tears.

"I am Ririsu Katori, a doll created by Dr. Satarou Otara five years ago in order to keep an eye on young master Kazuki Takashiro."

"Wait you created to watch over me by Dr. Otara, but why?"

"Do to abnormalities in your family genus, Dr. Otara thought it would be in his best decision to monitor you."

"So taking constant blood samples wasn't enough, that jackass."

"Please don't talk ill of Dr. Otara, after all he felt a great deal of regret for not being able to do anything to help Kuzaki, that is why his dying wish was for me to follow you and continue to keep records on your growth….however there was an abnormality regarding myself…..I soon found myself obtaining this emotion I have learned to be known as love."

"Hold on a sec, the way you're saying it it's almost as though you're a machine."

"That would be incorrect, I am an organic life form and such can perform functions such as reproduction."

"Then why do you talk the way you do?"

"It is because despite being an organic life form I didn't possess any emotions until recently, I think it is because of my constant observations of you that I've been able to develop them."

"Alright I think I get it but who was this other doctor who hired those men to capture you?"

"I don't know, all they said was that his name was Dr. Shinji Yamada."

"I knew it, there was something wrong with that guy, so he wants not only my blood samples but the information regarding me that Ririsu has…this all boils down to me, I'm starting to think he has a connection with the Black Order." Kazuki thought.

"Is something of the matter Master Kazuki?"Ririsu asked.

"It's nothing, also can you knock it off with calling me master, it makes me rather uncomfortable."Replied Kazuki.

"If that is what you wish."

"Now do me a favor and tell the headmaster everything you know, I have important matters to tend to."

"I'll do as you order."

Kazuki then continued along his way to the newspaper club in order to see Shizarou. When he got there, Shizarou was all alone in the middle of the room working on a recent article. Her fingers moved swiftly as she typed up the news that had been floating around, it was up to her to set things straight.

"Mysterious and unknown accounts of destruction of property all across Majinku City….mysterious and unknown my foot, there's a whole lot of incidents that occur in this world that normal people wouldn't be able to understand."Shizaoru thought as she finished typing up her article.

"Hmm, I suppose that this would be for the best, I mean people who don't know about the world we live in are better off left in the dark, right?"Kazuki asked after coming up behind Shizarou and reading her article.

"W-whoa, when did you get here?"Shizarou asked.

"I just got here, I figured I'd go about teaching you your first lesson towards becoming a Magi-Knight, but answer me this, how much do you know already?"

"Well when my father was still alive and my brother was still around I was taught how to draw out my mana and use low level magic, after my father died my brother did his best to teach me but after he disappeared I had to rely on the books my father left behind, I guess I'd be at level of senior student at a school that would provide lessons in this sort of thing."

"Hmm, so you'd be at the same level I would have been at when I was fourteen."

"Is that a good thing?"

"Actually yes it is, however I'm willing to bet my mana levels are much higher, from what I've been told my blood line is very special."

"So in terms of actual skill I'm on the higher end, glad to hear that."

"Then I guess all I really need to do is train you to the point where you'd be able to handle yourself on the battle field, hopefully by then you'll be recognized by a Magicite and you'll obtain your own relic."

"Are you sure that I'd be able to?"

"With me as your teacher there's no doubt about it."

"Well aren't you the confident one."

"As soon as one starts to doubt themselves, that's when they truly lose the battle."

"….Are you seriously only seventeen, you sound like you'd be old enough to be my father, it's a little unnerving when someone so young talks like that."

"I'm sorry about that, I keep doing it without realizing it."

"….Anyways, is there anything you can teach me as of right now?"

"Sorry but no, you seem to be far enough ahead that all you really need is to practice your magic and fine tuning your skills and the best way to do that is to be in a practical situation that calls for it, however with the lack of Mana in this world, using your magic to its full potential may be problematic….I'll ask the head master if there is anything we can do about this."

"That's if there is anything he can do about it."

"…True…well I guess I should be heading out, I still have other things o take care of."

"Alright, I'll see you later Kazuki-sensai."

As Kazuki left there was a smile on his face as Shizarou called him that. He had a warm feeling in his heart, the sort of warm feeling a teacher gets when they pass their knowledge down on to their student, Kazuki now understood why Matsuo always seemed to have a smile on his face whenever he was around him. Kazuki still had one more appointment to attend to and it was an important one. Earlier in the day, Kazuki asked to gather Satoshi and Leon and meet him in the forest near that sealed door that they had their picnic at the other day, however at this point they probably would have been waiting on him for quite some time. By the time Kazuki arrived, Ayumi was pacing back and forth, Leon was taking a nap and Satoshi was leaning against a tree with Saya at his side.

"Sorry everyone, I got caught up in some things and…."Kazuki was explaining before he was tackled down and found Saya on top of him.

"Finally, what took you so long?"Saya asked while shaking Kazuki frantically.

"Hey, get off of him!"Exclaimed Ayumi as she threw Saya off of Kazuki and helped him on to his feet.

"Thanks Ayumi."Kazuki said with a smile.

"I-it's nothing."Replied Ayumi while turning beet red.

"Man, you guys are loud."Announced Leon while yawning and getting up.

"Happy to see you're back from dreamland, now get up, we have training to do."Replied Satoshi as he pushed himself off from being against the tree and walked on over to the center of the area.

"What's his problem?"

"Satoshi takes his training very seriously, after all it is his goal to one day out do Kazuki and become the strongest Magi-Knight out there."Explained Saya as she got up and dusted herself off.

"So, Kazuki's the greatest Magi-Knight huh?"Chuckled Leon.

"Honestly I think Satoshi is thinking far too highly of me, from what I've learned over the last few days my father is the pinnacle when it comes to being Magi-Knight."Sighed Kazuki.

"But Kazuki, you're the only person I know who has been able to become a Magi-Knight before the age of fifteen."Commented Saya.

"Why is it that when Saya mentioned that I got one of those strange all too realistic flashes?"Ayumi thought.

"Well we better not let Satoshi wait anymore."Announced Kazuki as he then nodded at Ayumi who then threw the contract card into the air thus allowing Kazuki to take on his Magi-Knight form.

"Heh, you're not the only one who can transform here, Saya!"Exclaimed Satoshi and then Saya also threw a contract card in to the air.

"Magi-Knight, Satoshi Inarei, Awaken!"Shouted Saya thus allowing Satoshi to change as well.

Satoshi's armor was very similar to Kazuki's except it was dark blue and seemed to be more streamlined thus allowing more maneuverability as opposed to being thicker and having more durability. In Satoshi's hands was a double bladed sword known as a butterfly sword, this sort of weapon would allow it's wield to strike enemies in a wider range but lacked the pure raw power that Kazuki's claymore possessed. Satoshi stood with his back towards everyone and ice begun to form around him.

"…And you say I showboat."Sighed Kazuki.

"Hey shut it, I believe I'm entitled to at least a moment where I can feel on top."Replied Satoshi.

"Oh man, those two get to have all the fun with all the being able to make dramatic poses and all, I'm a little jealous." Leon thought as he cracked his knuckles and walked up beside Satoshi and Kazuki.

"Alright fellas first things first, we need to come up with an overly awesome team entrance, you know, something so outstanding that even our opponents will know that we are totally badass." Suggested Leon as he wrapped an arm around each of his companions.

"Kazuki, do we really have to work with such an idiot?"Satoshi asked.

"Trust me, this guy is quite the fighter, plus I don't think he's going to go away just because I ask him to."Replied Kazuki.

"Well whatever, can we seriously get to the training already?"

Kazuki, Satoshi and Leon then stood in a triangular formation and then proceeded to close their eyes. As they did so, their bodies begun to glow and release short bursts of power. The area begun to heat up while snow and lightning surrounded the three of them, watching this Ayumi's jaw dropped in astonishment. She could understand the heat and ice since those seemed to represent Kazuki and Satoshi's primary elements as Mgi-Knights but why was there lightning, Leon wasn't a Magi-Knight.

"A little confused aren't you?"Saya asked.

"Well yeah, I know that Kazuki and Satoshi have a preference for fire and ice but why is there lightning, Leon isn't a Magi-Knight."Replied Ayumi.

"Hasn't Kazuki explained to you that even if someone isn't a Magi-Knight they still possess Mana, well what you are seeing is their prominent elements, Kazuki's fire, Satoshi's ice and Leon's lightning, each and every time we visibly see their element is when they clash during a mental duel."

"A mental duel?"

"It's a type of battle where the participants go at each other on mental plane; this style of training was developed to allow people to go all out against one another without worrying about damaging the area around them."

"Sounds quite convenient."

"Oh trust me, it is."

As Ayumi and Saya chatted away, the energy bouncing between Kazuki, Satoshi and Leon begun to build drastically almost to the point of explosion before it dispersed and the three of them opened up their eyes with smiles on their faces. Afterwards the three of them powered down to their normal state and sat down to relax, Kazuki was particularly pleased with the training, he felt as though they had really accomplished something.

"Wow you're right Kazuki, Leon may be an idiot but he's one hell of a fighter."Announced Satoshi.

"Thanks pal, I'd have to say you are quite powerful yourself."Chuckled Leon.

"I must admit, from just that little bit of training it would seem that the three of us were meant to be a team, that's for sure."Replied Kazuki cheerfully.

"Yes…the three of you are quite impressive; however I will be the final judge of your capabilities."Announced a large bulky figure wearing a black cloak that had appeared out of nowhere.

Kazuki, Satoshi and Leon were instantly on their feet and once again ready to fight. As Kazuki looked upon their new opposition he could tell that he belonged to the same Black Order that Koga did which meant he was there for him, but why would he come after Satoshi and Leon as well? They may have been his allies but in the end they had nothing to do with all of this. The man was topless and covered in tattoos, his hair was an earthy shade of brown and short and spiky, his eyes were small and of the same colour. He wore khaki shorts similar to Leon's, a pair of heavy duty boots, a beaded cord around the neck and a pair of thick chains around his wrists.

"That Black Cloak, you're part of the same group as Zeal, aren't you?"Satoshi asked.

"Hold on, you already had a confrontation with members of the Black Order?"Kazuki responded to Satoshi's question.

"Yes, yesterday I was attacked by a young man with spiky red hair and rather slacker like mentality."

"Yes that sounds like Zeal alright."Announced the brute.

"More Black Order bullshit huh, who are you anyways?"Leon asked.

"I suppose you all at least deserve to know the name of the man who'll test your skills, my name is Torou, within the Black Order I am known for being the most powerful n terms of strength."

"So a straight out test of strength would be foolish here, great we're going to have to rely on more than pure strength."

"Leon's right, normally the three of us could over power an opponent easily, but I can sense that this guy's power level is through the roof."Announced Satoshi.

"An opponent whose pure physical strength is greater than the three of us combined huh, there has to be a weak point somewhere."Thought Kazuki.

"Well then, shall we begin?"Asked Torou as he produced a relic in the shape of hammer and proceeded to change form.

Torou's armor seemed to be made of thick, craggy stone that mountains would possess and had an abundant number of ores and crystals sticking out. His hammer was massive; almost as big as him and had two large protruding spikes at each side of the hammer head and it too had crystals and ores imbedded in to it. Combined with the bulky helmet he wore, Torou looked like a giant living stone golem.

"I must admit, impressive."Announced Satoshi.

"Impressive my ass, we'll reduce him to nothing but pebbles."Commented Leon arrogantly.

"Guy's we have to think this one through carefully, look for a weakness and exploit it."Suggested Kazuki.

Suddenly Torou charged in and struck Kazuki hard enough he smashed through some nearby trees. No one expected someone as large as Torou to be able to move so quickly and as such the boys were left defenseless and one by one they were flung about. Ayumi watched in disbelief, her hands begun to tremble in anger as she saw how pathetic the three of them looked. She took one step forward and gave out a great yell.

"YOU THREE ARE PATHETIC, WHAT WAS ALL THAT TRAINING YOU JUST DID GOOD FOR?"Ayumi shouted.

"Ayumi's right, we really must look pathetic right now."Kazuki thought.

"This is a damn shame, and here I thought I was going to face some powerful warriors, oh well, Earthquake!"Shouted Torou as he created a large fissure.

"It's not over yet!"Kazuki mentally shouted as he charged in and struck Torou hard enough to knock him back.

"What the hell, I never expected a pipsqueak to have that much power."Torou thought in amazement.

"Alright guys let's get in to formation, we're going to finish him off with a delta force."Ordered Kazuki.

"You got it bro."Agreed Leon.

"I don't like the idea of you ordering me around, but if this is what it'll take to bring this lard ass down then so be it."Replied Satoshi.

The three then stood in a triangle formation and begun to charge power throughout their bodies. Leon then took on a battle stance and formed his energy in to a sphere within the palms of his hands in which he fired towards Satoshi. Satoshi grinned before holding out one end of his butterfly sword and absorbed Leon's attack, this sort of ability belonged to Kazuki's Burning Heart, however, Satoshi's Eternal Rival possessed the capability of mimicking the special traits of another Magi-Knight's Relic thus allowing him to always be on par in terms of abilities. Satoshi then flung the energy towards Kazuki as he held his Burning Heart in to the air and absorbed the already amplified attack, the result being a massive energy force that would surely devastate the target it struck.

"Unbelievable, so this is the result of their training…."Gasped Ayumi as she watched what was occurring before her eyes.

"It would seem that minor training of theirs was able to produce this, now try and imagine what they could accomplish if they trained even more so together."Commented Saya.

"….Hold on a sec, how are we going to cover up the damage this will cause if somehow Kazuki misses?"

"You honestly think Kazuki is going to go range with all that power, he's not stupid, he's going to go straight in for the attack."

Kazuki then closed his eyes and quickly vanished before reappearing and striking Torou aggressively. Unfortunately only the tip hit Torou before he was sent flying and a large gust of wind followed due to the mere force of the impact, in fact it was strong enough that everyone else had to find a way to hold their grounds in order to stop them from flying away.

"No way...that was...awesome!"Leon thought as he got up to his feet for he had been frantically hold on to the ground with all his might.

"This power, is this really what the three of us can produce at such a base level?"Pondered Satoshi as he thawed out the ice around his legs that he was using as an anchor.

"I can't believe it, you three were actually able to pull it off."Commented Torou as he got up and powered down.

"To think that was only the tip of the blade, if it was the full thing I think I would have been a goner for sure, I'm starting to think my master's plans are coming to fruition."

"What do you mean by that, I know I'm important but what does Satoshi and Leon have to do with this?"Kazuki growled.

"Ever heard of the saying that one doesn't become strong on their own, well this is a prime case of that, both Satoshi and Leon are essential to your growth and as such are important to my master's plan."

"Once again this boils down to my unique mana again doesn't it, all my training wither it's going to be with Satoshi and Leon or with Seito and Kitsume; it's all become a part of the leader of the Black Order's plan…no matter how I look at it I've become a pawn in a massive chess game and I have no way out of it."Kazuki thought with an obvious look of anger on his face.

"Well then, I suppose my purpose here is done and over with, I shall be making my leave."Announced Torou.

"Hold on, wait a sec…."Kazuki was saying before his sentence was cut short as Torou disappeared.

Kazuki then got on his knees and smashed the ground with his fist thus causing a rather impressive small scaled crater in the ground. He was getting pissed with the Black Order, if they wanted him so badly why didn't they just approach him instead of getting others involved. Torou said that Leon and Satoshi were important but what about the girls, sure he knew that some of them had a connection to his bloodline but he doubted that that would be enough for them to be a part of the so called plan. Ayumi could tell how much this was frustrating Kazuki and as such walked over to him and wrapped her arms around him while resting her head on his shoulder. She could feel the heat coming off of Kazuki's body even through his armor, the Black Order was pushing him and bringing out his anger and from what she could tell, if Kazuki were to completely lose it there may not be anyone who could stop him.

"Kazuki, please calm down."Ayumi pleaded.

"You're no good like this for me, yourself or anyone, please just take a moment and relax."

"Ayumi, I…."Kazuki replied, his anger was slowly coming down.

"We have a date tomorrow, why don't we just forget about all this stuff about being a Magi-Knight, the Black Order and trying to protect the world and it's people, let's just have fun, okay?"Ayumi suggested.

"….You're right, getting angry won't make things better, in fact it'll just do the opposite."Replied Kazuki.

"Alright, I'll forget about everything regarding being Magi-Knight, the Black order and trying to be a hero, tomorrow I'll just relax and have fun."

"You better damn well, it's not very often I let some new guy take me out on a date."Replied Ayumi.

"Wait a second, you two are going on a date?"Asked Saya in astonishment.

"Oh for Christ sakes Saya, don't start…."Sighed Satoshi.

"Shut it Satoshi….are you two….lovers?"

"L-lovers, no way, we're just going out as friends, that's all."Replied Ayumi turning beet red.

"Ayumi's right, there's nothing more to it than that."Added Kazuki.

"Good, this means I still have a chance."Saya sighed in relief.

"So what are your plans?"Leon asked.

"I'm not quite sure, I was thinking of winging…."Kazuki was about to reply before being cut off.

"Kazuki hasn't really had much of a chance to see what Majinku city has to offer so I decided I'd show him around."Answered Ayumi.

"I see…."Replied Saya with a look on her face as though the gears in her head were starting to turn.

"Oh no, Saya's going to come up with some sort of plan for us to follow them isn't she?"Satoshi mentally wondered.

"Well I don't know about you guys but I'm exhausted, I think I'm going to head off and get some sleep."Announced Leon while he stretched and yawned.

"Alright, I guess I'll be seeing you tomorrow."Replied Kazuki.

"I think we'll be doing the same."Said Satoshi as he walked off dragging Saya along with him.

"Those two…"Sighed Kazuki.

"Shouldn't we be heading off as well?"Ayumi asked.

"Yeah, sounds like a good idea."Agreed Kazuki.

As they begun to walk off Kazuki begun to get an all to familiar sensation in his head. The voice from before was about to contact him.

"Very well done, just as I would expect from the chosen hero and his comrades."Congratulated the voice.

"Enough with the games, one moment you come off as an enemy the next moment you're giving me helpful info, are you really someone I can trust?"Kazuki asked.

"Wither or not you can trust me doesn't matter, I think the real question is that can you make use of the info I have given you, correct?"

"….I'll admit this much; because of you I've been able to learn that the Black Order is an organization is obsessed with obtaining my mana, but what I want to know is why everyone I care about is somehow getting involved in all of this?"

"Recall Torou's words, one doesn't become strong on their own, the Black Order is indeed aiming for your mana however at the stage it is now it would be of little use to them, I'm willing to bet that by involving your friends and forcing you to fight under such conditions they are aiming to maximize your mana."

"I think I get it now, the Black Order needs my mana but at its current state it is insufficient and as such it needs to be brought to its peak, in order to do this they have resolved to take less than noble actions and started to attack my friends thus making me angry, also by introducing tough and tough challenges it'll naturally increase as well."

"Still, their need for your mana is unclear, all we know that it's some awfully powerful stuff, powerful enough that they'd risk themselves to obtain it."

"Trust me, if I could give it to them I would, I'd rather not get others involved in my battles."

"I can understand your reasoning however I'm willing to bet this was something that was established well before you were even born."

"Well before I was born….right that reminds me, could any of this have anything to do with my father?"

"...Why do you ask?"

"Well my father was involved with a woman named Shizune Otara, the sister of Dr. Satarou Otara, a man who has been researching my blood and developed a doll named Ririsu Katori to keep an eye on me and as such she has some very important regarding me that the Black Order may want, now tell me…is there a Dr. Shinji Yamada amongst them?"

"….I've heard of this man's name before but nothing I know of him says that he has any association with the Black Order."

"So what you're trying to say is that the Dr, Yamada I've met is quite possibly a fake, am I right?"

"Quite possible, however that would require someone knowing transformation magic or be in possession a morph sphere; a magical trinket that allows It's owner to change form."

"Hmm, when I saw Dr. Yamada the other day he didn't have anything that struck me as a trinket…wait, is it possible to transfer an objects magical properties to another object?"

"Of course, that sort of magic is quite simple really although mastering it is quite difficult."

"Hmm, well from what I can tell the members of the Black Order are quite capable of possessing some awfully powerful magic, something like this should be simple for them."

"Kazuki, are you planning on finding the true identity of Dr, Yamada?"

"Yes, he may be my first step towards figuring out exactly what the hell is going on."

"Then I wish you the best of luck, just don't underestimate your opponent."

Kazuki let out a sigh as the voice left his head. He had gained some answers but as usual he was left with the daunting task of trying to figure out how it all was connected. Some of it seemed to lead back to his father and the battle that he and his companions were involved I long ago, but there were also parts he didn't understand, such as to how this voice seemed to know so much about what was going on around him yet refused to divulge any information regarding as to why that is. Kazuki's thoughts were derailed as Ayumi grabbed a hold of his hand and looked directly in to his eyes, it was then that he realized that he was once again thinking too much and should really follow the advice everyone was giving him.

"Hey Ayumi, why don't we take a bath when we get back?"Kazuki suggested.

"Are you sure you're alrght, I know you've come over your fear of water a fair bit but it' still there."Replied Ayumi.

"Well Ayumi it's as you put it, I can't let small things get to me and let it become something to worry about, if there becomes a problem I need to deal with I'll handle it when the time comes; for now I need to relax and enjoy myself."

"Wow, that's the first time I've heard you admit that to yourself, alright, but no funny business, you got that?"

"What the hell is that suppose to mean?"

Things have cleared up a bit for Kazuki and his mind was starting to become at ease. However in other places dark clouds were beginning to form and distrust amongst allies was starting to become more and more evident. There was more occurring in this world than Kazuki could start to understand.