The sun was at its highest point, casting scorching rays over Kuoh.
In the spacious backyard of his house, Daniel trained with determination, his bare torso glistening with sweat, muscles tensing with each repetition of weights. The routine was demanding, even for him, but he didn't stop. His body moved fluidly, almost mechanically, as if part of an intense dance between strength and endurance.
—"Twenty more, Daniel. Keep your breathing steady. Don't sacrifice form," ordered Ddraig's firm voice, acting as his most demanding personal trainer.
—"Haaa...! Yes... sir!" Daniel grunted, lifting the weights with effort.
The red dragon watched every movement from the gauntlet, calculating, correcting, adjusting. He wasn't just training his physical strength, but the synchronization of his energy, its internal flow, and his concentration.
However, not all spectators were invisible or mythical.
From a tree in the distance, hidden among the branches and shadows, Hikari and Hibiki watched him in silence.
—"Wow..." Hikari whispered, her cheeks slightly flushed. —"I didn't think a human could have a body that defined without genetic modification."
—"Mhm... and that sweat... that focus... that bearing..." Hibiki added, biting her lip softly.
—"He's going to feed us very well once we wing ourselves," Hikari murmured, her voice laced with double meaning.
—"Too well," Hibiki laughed mischievously.
Both hidden Sekirei stifled giggles as they continued spying on him, like two hunters observing their ideal prey.
Daniel, unaware of the pair of eyes intensely scanning him, finished his routine with a set of explosive push-ups and then fell backwards onto the grass, panting.
—"Good work," Ddraig congratulated. —"You've increased your base strength another small percentage. But... there's still more."
—"'Still more'?" Daniel sat up, sweaty and confused. —"What else is missing?"
Ddraig paused.
—"Within you, there is a different source of power. It doesn't come from me, nor from your Sacred Gear. I noticed it while you were training: a dense energy, clinging to your life aura, like a natural extension of your spirit."
Daniel narrowed his eyes.
—"Do you know what it is?"
—"No," Ddraig admitted. —"But it's yours. It doesn't come from me, or any external force. It's like a 'heartbeat' you haven't learned to use."
That got Daniel thinking. He went straight into the house, to the bathroom. Steam filled the room as the hot water relaxed his muscles. But his mind didn't rest.
> "A natural, inherent energy, tied to the soul and will..."
—"Could it be...?" he whispered.
Only two things came to mind:
Nen from Hunter x Hunter... and Haki from One Piece.
Both required a connection to the life aura, but...
—"Nen is complex. You need someone to open your nodes. I don't think I'll find a teacher that easily..."
—"But Haki... Haki can be trained alone. In theory."
Ddraig stayed quiet while his bearer organized his thoughts.
—"If it's Haki..." Daniel said, stepping out of the bathroom and drying his hair, —"that gives me a huge advantage. Even if it's barely perceptible, I can train it little by little."
> "I have to try."
Night fell, and Daniel packed his backpack for the next day, a new resolve shining in his eyes.
> "Tomorrow, after school, I start. I have to test if this thing I feel inside me... can become one of the most powerful forces that exist."
And unknowingly, in some corner of Kuoh, two Sekirei were already planning how to intercept him.
The day passed with an almost deceptive calm.
Daniel attended school like any other student, chatting with Alya during breaks, sharing lunch as had become routine. Nothing out of the ordinary. No strange incidents. No dark energy, talking dragons, or girls with hidden powers...
At least for a few hours.
When the final bell rang, Daniel said goodbye to Alya at the school entrance, and they both went their separate ways. Upon arriving home, without wasting time, he shut himself in his room.
—"Today's the day..." he murmured, sitting in a meditative posture. —"It's time to try."
> "Focus on your breathing. Empty your mind. Seek the flow that runs through your body, beyond chakra, beyond my energy. Seek your very soul."
—said Ddraig, his voice deep but patient.
Daniel closed his eyes, letting his breath become deeper, slower... more steady. And then, as if a veil lifted, he felt it.
A warm, pulsating, dense core... vibrating in the deepest part of his being.
He approached that energy, touched it.
And then... everything exploded.
His body filled with a brutal force, his life aura doubled in power in a matter of seconds. His senses sharpened abruptly: he could hear the sound of trees moving in the wind, feel the heat in every inch of his skin, even his heartbeat thundered like war drums.
—"What the hell?!" he exclaimed, his eyes wide open. —"Is this... Nen?!"
He panicked, remembering the details of Nen: if you opened your nodes and didn't close them, your aura would leak until you died of exhaustion.
He tried to return to his consciousness and examine his aura points, but there was no leakage. Nothing was escaping. His energy flowed; it didn't drain.
—"...Then..." he said slowly, a smile spreading across his face. —"It's Haki?!"
> "Exactly."
—Ddraig responded, proud—.
"You have awakened a technique that doesn't even belong to this world. Your life aura was the catalyst. And now, you are even stronger."
Daniel jumped to his feet, feeling light, fast, sharp as a newly forged sword. His skin vibrated with energy, and his senses were on constant alert. He noticed every corner of his surroundings... even unintentionally.
> "This... is Observation Haki. But I also see how your body has changed: you have the beginnings of Armament Haki. You can't coat your skin yet, but your resistance has increased. Soon you'll be able to harden like steel."
Daniel let out an excited laugh.
—"I did it... I have Haki! Damn it, I have Haki!"
Inspired, excited, he launched into training. Explosive jumps, one-handed push-ups, strikes against the training log, weight throws... as if he had unlocked a new level of his body. Sweat poured, but his energy didn't wane. It was as if his soul were burning.
However, something else was happening... far from his sight.
---
About 300 meters away, hidden behind trees on the edge of the neighborhood, Hikari and Hibiki were back, as was now their habit. Their observation routine had become part of the day.
But this time... it was different.
—"Do you feel that...?" Hibiki asked, stopping dead in her tracks.
—"Yes... yes I feel it," Hikari said, pressing her lips together, blushing. —"It's... overwhelming! His Ashikabi aura... it skyrocketed!"
The awakening of Haki had amplified his vital essence.
His energy, which was only attractive before, now became dominant, intoxicating, almost irresistible to them.
Both flushed violently. Their bodies trembled slightly, as if something deep within them reacted uncontrollably.
—"We can't... resist much longer," Hibiki said, biting her lip. —"If we keep waiting... we're going to go crazy."
—"Tomorrow," Hikari declared firmly. —"Tomorrow we wing ourselves to him. Whether he likes it or not."
And so, between ragged breaths and racing hearts, the Sekirei twins made their decision.
---
Meanwhile, at his home, Daniel collapsed onto the floor after his most intense workout yet, panting but happy.
—"Haki... dragon in my arm... a crossover world with anime... this is starting to feel like a fanfic," he murmured with a mocking smile.
> "And it's only the beginning."
—Ddraig replied with an amused tone.
Daniel, unaware of what awaited him the next day, closed his eyes, satisfied.
Tomorrow, his world would change again.
The sun was barely peeking over the horizon when Daniel woke up with a smile on his face.
The previous day's training had been the most intense he'd ever had, and yet his body barely felt tired. He felt stronger, more alive... more complete.
—"Today will be a good day," he murmured as he stretched. —"Let's go all out."
After his morning routine and an energizing breakfast, he put on his school uniform and grabbed his backpack.
As he opened the door and took the first step outside...
—"Ah!"
Two female figures fell upon him with sudden speed.
—"What the...?" he managed to say before one of them grabbed him by the collar of his uniform.
It was Hikari, her blue-black hair disheveled from running. Her eyes shone with contained desire and fierce determination.
—"I'm sorry, but I can't hold back anymore," she said in a husky voice.
And without giving him an option, she kissed him.
The kiss was wild, intense, full of need.
Daniel froze, surprised by the emotional and physical assault. But the most shocking thing wasn't the kiss... it was what came next.
A pair of bright, shining wings sprouted from Hikari's back, extending majestically with a bluish-white glow.
—"What...?" Daniel whispered, breathless.
Hikari released him for only a moment, her breathing ragged and her cheeks flushed.
—"Now I am your Sekirei... and I will never leave your side."
But before Daniel could process what was happening, Hibiki approached him. Her expression was shyer, more restrained... but her body trembled with anticipation.
—"I'm sorry too..." she said sweetly, before rising on her tiptoes and kissing his lips softly, but with an emotional intensity just as deep.
Daniel felt how that kiss filled him with warmth, as if an electric current ran through his body.
And then, just like with her sister, wings of light sprouted from Hibiki's back, equally radiant, but with a slightly pinker hue.
—"Now... I am also your Sekirei," she whispered, pressing her forehead against his, her eyes moist with emotion.
Daniel was completely speechless. His heart was racing wildly, not just from the unexpected kisses, but from what he had just witnessed.
> "Two Sekirei.
Their wings.
Their bond.
Their destiny."
And then, as if rehearsed, both girls positioned themselves at his sides, each taking one of his arms, and in unison, recited the words that sealed their eternal bond:
—"From this moment, my body, soul, and heart are yours, Ashikabi-sama. I will walk by your side, fight for you, and live only for you."
Daniel swallowed.
—"This... is getting more unreal by the moment..."
> "Congratulations."
—Ddraig's voice resonated from the gauntlet with a deep laugh—.
"Now you have more than muscles... you have absolute loyalty. Fate is starting to move, kid."
As the girls clung to him, one on each side, Daniel could only sigh internally.
—"And I just wanted to go to class..."
The scene at his front door still burned in his mind.
Daniel watched Hikari and Hibiki, now sitting in his living room, their faces slightly flushed, avoiding his gaze while playing with their fingers, as if they were teenagers caught playing a prank.
And in a way... they were.
—"So..." Daniel said, gently breaking the silence, —"are you going to explain to me exactly why you ambushed and kissed me this morning? I know very well what it means to be an Ashikabi. It's not just anything..."
Both girls looked up. Hikari, true to form, was the first to speak, her voice firm though still tinged with a blush.
—"We know. But when your aura changed yesterday... it was like an explosion. We felt it from over 300 meters away. It was... impossible to ignore."
Hibiki nodded softly, her tone much sweeter and more apologetic.
—"And we... had been watching you for days. We observed how you were. How you treated others. How you weren't like the men we feared we would find. We knew we could trust you."
—"We decided to do it of our own free will, Daniel. No one forced us," Hikari added, more serious now. —"And we don't regret it."
Daniel was quiet for a few seconds. He took a deep breath and then, with a slight smile, approached them.
—"Then... welcome to my life," he said warmly. —"If you're going to be with me, then I'll do my part too. I'll protect you, respect you... and love you as much as you love me."
Both girls fell silent for a second, until emotion overcame them. Hibiki was the first to launch into a joyful hug, and Hikari followed right after. The two clung to him with radiant smiles.
—"You idiot...!" Hikari murmured, her voice choked. —"Don't say those things so easily...!"
—"Daniel-sama..." Hibiki whispered with glassy eyes.
Daniel smiled and returned the hug with sincerity. The moment was sweet... intimate... true.
But he knew he couldn't leave them in ignorance.
—"Girls... there's something I need to tell you. About me," he said seriously, pulling away slightly.
The two looked at him expectantly.
—"First... there's something in me called the Boosted Gear. A sacred gauntlet that houses the Red Dragon Emperor: Ddraig."
—"I myself am a Sacred Gear bearer. I am tied to the supernatural world," he explained firmly. —"All of this... is part of the supernatural world."
The sisters looked at each other, not completely surprised... but still processing it.
—"Supernatural?" Hibiki repeated quietly.
—"But... that's not all. Yesterday, I awakened another power. One that doesn't belong to this world. An energy based on my life aura. That's what caused the sudden increase in my presence. Its name is... Haki."
Both girls fell silent.
And then, it was Hikari who spoke:
—"That explains everything... your presence was screaming at us. Calling us without respite."
Hibiki nodded, a bit more flushed.
—"And now that we are with you... our connection made your Ashikabi aura even stronger. It's likely that... other Sekirei will feel it too."
Daniel sighed, massaging his temples.
—"Great. Now I don't just have to worry about devils, angels, and dragons... but also girls who might literally fall from the sky."
The twins let out a small, amused laugh at his resigned expression.
—"It is your destiny, Ashikabi-sama," they said in chorus, causing Daniel to look at them with a mix of surprise and tenderness.
—"Well, be that as it may, I must get to school. I'm late now," he said, getting up. —"You can't come with me, at least not yet. You're not enrolled. But... I'll talk to the student council president. Maybe she can help."
—"The one with glasses?" Hikari asked.
—"Yes, that one. Souna Shitori," Daniel replied with a lopsided smile.
Before leaving, he turned back to them.
Both approached without him having to say anything.
First, he kissed Hikari, with affection but firmness.
Wings of light bloomed behind her again, radiant.
Then he kissed Hibiki, soft and full of tenderness.
Her wings also reappeared, enveloping the room with a warm pink light.
—"See you later," he told them before leaving.
The two stood at the door, watching him leave... their hearts beating strongly, knowing they had found the one they had been waiting for their whole lives.