.

Despite the fear Shishio showed towards Kouzuki Kou, in both Kyouko and Kazuya's eyes, this old man looked quite haggard. His clothes looked dirty and worn out as if he had crawled out of a cave after living there for a long time.

"We can talk inside" after Shishio left, Kou quickly entered the home that felt like he hadn't seen in ages. He didn't waste any time and took a long and relaxing bath before coming changing into a fresh set of new clothes that Akane had placed meticulously inside his bedroom.

"Took you long enough" Kazuya was quite displeased since they waited for this old man for a while. He wanted to know what he meant when he said that his friend Tsuna was going to visit the Kurogane estate. "Where is.. godfather?"

"Didn't I already say that he would stop by to pay that old rat Tenma a visit?" He sat down comfortably and drank the tea that Yui served. "He knows his way around town so he'll head here once he finishes his business there"

"What took you so long, Dad?" Kyouko asked. "It shouldn't have taken both of you long after you had left the mountain"

"That's the thing.. Tsuna wanted to teach me a couple of things so we actually walked all the way back" Kou scratched his head feeling embarrassed. Two old men walked all the way north just as summer was coming in modern times. This was something even he would never do.

"I see.. so that's why it feels as though you've improved a lot" Kazuya casually commented. He was able to tell immediately the moment this grandfather of his tried to intimidate his father. His mana was stronger compared to when they first met which was not a small feat because they weren't in the vicinity of his mana formation.

"Really!?" Kou almost leaped in surprise. "I really can't tell but now that you say so, I don't feel so bad about walking here now" he laughed out loud.

"It's true. I was wondering what had been different but it looks like it was Dad improving" being more sensitive to these changes, Kyouko was able to tell as well.

Kazuya was amazed. He was a little envious of both his mother and grandfather because of their natural affinity to mana. It felt a little unfair that he was the only one related to them that didn't have the natural talent that both of them had. Though he had his ways when compared to the two of them, he would most likely not be able to catch up if they trained the same way without him having the knowledge of his previous life.

Their current capabilities already let them stand apart from the others. There would hardly be any threats to them if they continued living normally. Even for Kazuya himself, the abilities he possessed were already more than enough to fend off any danger he was bound to experience in his life. The only reason he was still pursuing greater heights was that he knew he would face something that was literally not of this world.

"I'm all packed up" Mei arrived and joined them.

"Packed up?" Kou's ears twitched. He was surprised to find out that this reliable assistant of her daughter had not only moved into his house but was also treated as one of the family members even to the point that he almost got himself killed over pulling a prank on her. "Are you going on a business trip?"

"Not exactly, Grandpa Kou" Mei shook her head. "You shouldn't act so familiar towards me when we're seen outside. I am considered as someone who would have betrayed the Kouzuki corporation once the Kuroganes spread the word. They will try to make it so that Kazuno Technologies and the Kouzuki Corporation wouldn't be able to work together" Mei smiled mischievously after seeing the confused look on the old man's face.

"There are a lot of things that happened that you need to know about, Father" Kyouko began to give him an update of what happened while he was gone.

They started with how the Kazuno corporation was actually the property of none other than his grandson. Followed by the events that led to their attack and the people behind it. Kyouko already knew that he had a vague understanding of Kazuno Tech because of his friend Jirou so she really didn't need to explain much.

Kou was shocked at the number of shocking events that happened in the short span of time he was away. He truly didn't believe Tsuna when this wise friend of his mentioned that if Kazuya was really the person who sent him that note, then the boy would probably be able to reach his heights if nothing went wrong. He, of all people, knew just what his friend Tsuna was capable of but he once said that his grandson did not inherit his affinity for mana.

His grandson sat there and added bits of information as he was being updated so Kou couldn't help but wonder just how much his friend Tsuna was accurate this time. This barely a decade-old boy already attacked and destroyed an underground clan that had some reputation. It reminded him of Tsuna who declared just a few hours ago that he was going to waltz in the Kurogane family estate to wreak some havoc.

It didn't end at that. He was also informed of the existence of Domyouji Kuuga and what his friend Gakuto had neglected to inform him. He felt disappointed that such a thing happened and couldn't blame his old friend from trying to hide it. He initially wanted to confront Gakuto but after hearing the continuation of the story, he had mixed feelings over it.

Gakuto lost a grandson and has taken it upon himself to correct his grandson and his own mistakes. Even so, their current predicament was caused by his grandson. Kazuya informed him that the person who leaked the information that Mei was connected to Kazuno Technologies was, according to Suzaku, none other than Kuuga himself.

Kurogane Shishio's arrival today was a bit of a surprise but they slowly figured out his intentions after they finally had the time to review it. He successfully pinned all the blame on his nephew after being present on the day that Kazuya had squabbled with him. Suzaku had been used cleverly and none of the people present admired the clever way Shishio used his own nephew.

"How are you so sure that he was present at the scene?" Kou curiously asked.

"That man is a little capable. He can most likely make use of internal energy but the way he tries to use it is unique. I think he tried to teach himself and experimented on ways to use it. Because of that, he releases a unique kind of fluctuation that I also felt that same day" Kazuya explained.

He was finally able to figure out the source of that strange feeling he had that day. Kazuya initially tried to shake off the ominous feeling because it felt too akin to the cult magicians he faced back in Edea. They couldn't have existed here on earth which was why it bothered him. He was afraid that he would have to deal with an additional problem but it turned out to be no one else but his own father.

If it was before they knew about Kazuya's abilities, they would have thought that calling Kurogane Shishio 'a little capable' was quite arrogant. The man was well known for having been capable of dealing with those that were against him in a brutal manner. Though many people targeted him, those who actually tried would never be able to come back in one piece.

Shishio may have been afraid of Kouzuki Kou but it was not because of his prowess. It was mainly because he knew that behind Kou was a friend that would have most likely destroyed his own clan on a whim. This was why no matter how advantageous they were, they had to be really careful when dealing with the Kouzuki clan and their affiliates.

"It's a good thing that you were all able to figure out what he knew" Kou felt relieved. He shuddered at the thought that they would have been caught off guard. "So what are we going to do now?"

"Unfortunately, I will have to move out" Mei stated. Though it was a bit early, they already discussed countermeasures in case Shishio did try and make use of his knowledge to cause a rift between her and Kyouko. "We have to make them think that he indeed has caused a rift. That scumbag can focus his resources on making sure that there won't be any cooperation between the two companies so that the Kouzuki Corporation wouldn't rise up above their own Kurogane Conglomerate"

"That's not all. With the Muimina family crumbling down because of uncle Gakuto, they will lose the most profitable ally they have" Kyouko added. "I assume that Shishio wants to play the long game and try his hand at manipulating the only heir our family has. I think he wants to consume the corporation from the inside using Kazuya"

"I agree" Mei looked at the Kazuya and gave a mischievous grin. "Is that why you agreed to interact with that scum? Are you going to eat the Kuroganes from the inside?" She was confident that she knew more about Kazuya than his own mother.

"It depends on how Kurogane Shishio acts from this point on" Kazuya had various considerations in his mind. He initially didn't want to have anything to do with his father but he had been so persistent that Kazuya thought of specific benefits to be gained if he accepted.

Shishio thought that he had a good and accurate read on Kazuya. He was trying to get close to him for various amounts of reasons but it mainly had to do with his own benefits. He wouldn't have even spared him a glance if Kazuya had been like what he was in his first life. From this point alone, Kazuya really was curious as to how this man thought.

Though Mei's initial analysis was mostly correct, Kazuya would not have bothered to do so if he didn't want to. From his understanding of Kurogane Shishio, he was one of the lowest types of people that could be compared to the fame-seeking nobles back in Edea. If Kazuya studied the inner-workings of Shishio's mind, he could have a greater understanding of how devious and sinister people would consider things.

Kazuya wanted to learn. He wanted to get inside the minds of the people he wanted to destroy so that he will be better prepared to deal with them when he gets there. He may have studied and thought of various ways to deal with them but he lacked a way to read their minds. With Kurogane Shishio's help, he would at the very least, understand how those people perceived things.

Do they immediately calculate the gains and losses whenever trying to meet new people? Are they thinking about how to effectively kill a person when they are starting to get to know them? These were only some of what Kazuya had been thinking about. Though he could rely on his memories to pick out the bad guys from the good, taking a different route would make him meet different kinds of people so his past experiences were hardly enough for everything to go smoothly.

"Where are you going to stay?" Kou was concerned. This young lady was greatly spoiled by his grandson so seeing Kazuya calm as she left made him think that they have prepared themselves for this.

"Kazu already had the office that was intended for him renovated for my use. I will be staying at Kazuno Tech's headquarters so that there wouldn't be any additional risks after I leave this house. Mei giggled as she remembered Kazuya being so adamant about her safety when she showed him a couple of places she was interested in when they were discussing her departure.

"The headquarters itself will be upg—" Kazuya stopped and instantly rushed to leave the room. He headed towards the gates where he had felt a presence breaking into the detection formation at great speed.

"Huh?" He found it strange because such a presence disappeared from his senses. It couldn't have been a bird that passed by because it hand jumped through the gates and landed directly in front of their house.

"Kazu?" Mei called out looking a little concerned. It was at that moment that a shadow blew past her vision and headed directly for his back.

"KAZUYA!" Kyouko, who sensed the murderous intentions, immediately called out. Her son already noticed the moment it had been directed towards him and activated the ring on his finger instantly.

*CLANG* A surge of energy caused the wind to blow strongly. The impact of the katana that Kazuya pulled out versus the weapon the intruder had caused the ground to cave in a little.

"(Mana!?)" The amount of mana shocked him. There was only one person who would visit their home that was at this level.

"Really impressive" the man laughed before jumping backward.

"You're not too bad yourself" Kazuya sheathed the katana no one knew where he pulled out of and smiled.

"Looks like you really are who you said you were in the letter" he took off the hood that was covering his head. He spoke in the elven tongue so only Kazuya was able to understand.

"It's nice to meet you, my hero successor"

.