Weaving together

A ninja moment

"Issei," 

"Yes, boss?" Issei asked, looking at the black-haired woman in front of him dressed in a kimono. 

"You see, there is a party but Gakuga and I won't be able to go," Kayo said with a shy smile. "If possible, would you take Chiori with you to the party in our place?" 

"I don't mind, where is this party anyway?" 

"It's a party by the Phenex industries, their oldest son is hosting the party," Taking the letter from Kayo, Issei's eyes narrowed slightly at the invisible seal in the letter. It reeked of darkness and flames... House Phenex of the Underworld. This will be fun. 

It hurts... Issei

"Issei? Are you alright?" 

"Huh? Sorry, I spaced out but yeah, I can go... I can finish a new tuxedo in time for the party," Issei replied. 'Hm, it seems like the party is a day before the Rating game,' The young man thought. Arriving from the training ground and his home took only a few moments with his abilities and he already helped the Occult Research Club along with Saji. 

"Issei... Money for snacks," 

"Ophis? What are you doing here?" Looking at the black-haired little girl, the Dragonlord saw her new set of attire making her look like an ordinary little girl. 

"Elysia said I should go to you for snacks," Ophis replied with a blank tone making Kayo giggle slightly. "Now, snacks." 

"No," 

"Why?"

"You're being rude," Issei countered with a shrug. 

"..ry..."

"What was that?" 

"I'm sorry..." 

"Well, why don't you sit by one of the chairs, my shift ends in fifteen minutes," 

"Okay..." 

"Sorry, about Ophis, boss," 

"It's fine, here you go, Ophis-chan," Pulling a candy bar from under her sleeve, the Dragon god of infinity looked at the candy bar with some drool spilling out of her mouth. holding her hands out for the candy, the Dragon god beamed a small smile. 

"Thank you!" She said with a slight cheer in her monotone voice before sitting back on her chair and opening the candy bar. 

———

A katana colored like ice clashed with a blade of flames as Kiba Yuuto, Knight of Rias Gremory put more force on his strike only for the katana to not budge even for a single centimeter. Streaks of cyan blue flowed like a spring, elegant yet holding mastery that only a master of several decades could attain. Several more blades appeared on the knight's hand as the Katanaof ice blue broke each one with ease while leaving light cuts on his arms, torso, and leg. 

Without missing a beat, the user of the Katana wrapped a chain of ice blue on the body of one Koneko Toujo, the rook of Rias Gremory, and yanked it with enough force to use her as a shield from a thunderbolt sent by Akeno Himejima, the queen of Rias Gremory. The last member of their group, Rias Gremory, paled as she saw the ball of concentrated destruction be cut in two before a fist caught the cheek of her knight, sending the blonde a few meters away.. 

"Not bad," Issei said with a smile while his katana disappeared with the spirit of Valor floating on his side. "You guys are already at an acceptable level in terms of teamwork," 

Those words brought a smile on their faces. 

"But, you all are subconsciously holding yourselves back," And with those words, the group of four paled while they looked at Issei. "Kiba, you're a swordsman of great skill but you're too lax and too angry about something, keep practicing and break that habit of yours of using textbook swordsmanship styles. Stick to the basics and focus on making swords as quickly as you can. Akeno-senpai, you're a skilled mage but you're too sadistic, you're wasting too much time and energy that can be used in other battles. Koneko, you're a damn good tank but you're holding yourself back both subconsciously and consciously like you're only using around half of your senses. Lastly, Rias-senpai, you need to start training yourself properly. Not everything can be solved with pure firepower alone," 

The words of the lone human that tore their group apart made the devils wince. Even if they fought for the better part of an hour, not once did Issei get serious or even break a drop of sweat. He looked BORED. 

"Pervert, let me out," Koneko ordered, glaring at Issei while she laid on her stomach with a set of cyan-blue chains wrapped around her arms and body. By her condition and the twitch of her arms, she was trying to get out. "Damn it, how hard is this?"

"It's a metaphysical binding construct connected to both your physical body and soul," Issei said with a smile before snapping his fingers, making them disappear. "Well, not bad but you'll be in trouble with endurance-based enemies. All of you, except for Koneko, are glass cannons, but there are ways to defeat stronger enemies. Let me ask you this, what are your enemies known for?" 

"Huh? What are you talking about Issei?" Rias asked, a bit confused by the question while she nursed some bruises on her torso under her clothes. "They are known for mastery of fire magic and vitality. The Immortal clan of Phenex," 

"You're focusing on the immortal part, what are they known for?" Issei asked again while Aegis, the elemental Spirit of Valor, looked at Issei with a glint in his eyes. 

"I told you, they are known for using fire... damn it!" Rias cried out in frustration. "Yuuto, I want you to give all of any anti-fire magic weapons!" Rias ordered while she laughed a bit. 

"President?" 

"Well, you finally got it," Issei said with a smile while looking at them. "Fighting is not all about having the bigger stick, it also includes knowing what tool to use according to the situation. Also, make some weapons to detect your enemies or even a sword to protect you, Kiba. Your sacred gear is only limited by your imagination, open your mind and you will be stronger," 

"Y-yes!" 

"Good. Saji! Give me ten laps around the castle!" Issei ordered, looking at the panting holder of Vritra. 

"Y-yes!" 

"When did you get a castle?" Akenoa asked, looking at the impressive castle in front of them filled with a moat and some dragons can be seen perched on the tower wall. 

"Well, Sera had it built for me in exchange for several new dresses," Issei said with a shrug. "Something about slapping it on the face of Gabriel or something. Not my problem though but it's nice that it's modeled after my old castle, right Lys?" 

"You can't prove it was me, Issei!" Elysia replied with a giggle while she put a flower crown on top of Ophis' head. 

"You're the only one who has been to my castle," 

"Damn it, Issei! How did you get Isekai'ed and why didn't you take me?!" Rias cried out with a pout. "It's Isekai, Issei! Issei! You even have a stand!" 

"Aegis is not a stand!" 

"Oh yeah? You and Aegis do a pose when using some of your abilities! He fights better near you and his name is a musical reference!" Rias pointed out. 

"He is not a stand, he's a Soulally," 

"Potato Potato," Rias replied with a pout. Other than his parents, Rias knew he had been to another world. He trusted her enough with this but not enough to tell her everything. "But seriously, I want to thank you for helping us, Issei. I appreciate it," Rias said with a smile while looking over at the young Dragonlord. 

"It's fine, glad to help," Issei said with a smile before blinking away from the group, leaving only a cyan flash behind. The act made the Gremory group look at where he used to be with wide eyes. "Besides, training isn't over yet," Issei said with a smirk as he showed them several ninja stars spread like a fan on his hands. "Dodge," 

"DAMN YOU, ISSEI!" Rias cried out as she tried her best to dodge the Shurkens being thrown at her by the human who laughed while sliding back into the shadows. Elysia just shook her head at the antics of her Dragonlord while Ophis slept in her lap.