"W-what the hell? Who is this guy?"
When the man who had suddenly appeared beside Issei gave off an intensely dangerous aura from his red eyes, Raynare instinctively stumbled backward. This was the first time Issei had ever used a Shadow Clone in front of anyone, and it was also the first time he had brought out the [Sharingan]. So Raynare never even considered that the man in front of her was a clone, much less that such a technique existed. To her, he was simply a very dangerous man.
And Issei, fully embracing the idea that if you want to deceive the enemy, you should deceive your allies first, said, "He's just an acquaintance."
"So? Why did you deliberately summon this Uchiha Madara?"
He had started a little one-man show with himself.
"There's only one thing to do. Rampage as much as you can here. Until the devils are terrified."
"You called me out just for that? Hmph. But battle is the reason I live, too. If there are plenty of strong opponents, I won't complain."
The clone was doing its best to act like Uchiha Madara. Normally, a clone would vanish the moment it took damage. But in the shinobi world, there were tricks like Naruto's clone surviving Kaguya's attack as if it were the real body, so a clone of a sage-transformed being was special. And with the chakra of the Ten-Tails, there was effectively no limit on its duration, so he could let it rampage in the demon world for as long as he liked.
"Everything I can sense around here is nothing but trash-level weaklings. This won't even be a warm-up."
"What is that man saying...? Trash? This place is..."
This was the famous territory of House Astaroth. By sheer coincidence, the random gate had opened in Astaroth's domain, and it was packed with powerful devils known throughout both the demon world and heaven. To call them trash—just what kind of monster was he?
"What the hell is that guy?"
"He's just an acquaintance."
"But..."
Raynare, for once hiding behind Issei in the form of Amano Yuuma, stared at Madara. The moment their eyes met, she quickly ducked back behind Issei.
"Why did you deliberately bring something like that?"
"Ah, I need him for when we go back. So, go ahead and rampage as much as you want."
"Don't order me around. If there aren't any strong opponents, then you'll be the one fighting me. You must have been prepared for that much when you called me here, right?"
This guy is way too into the role! Is he in chuunibyou mode!? No, actually, that makes it more convincing, which is better for fooling people—but when his real memories come back, he's going to remember all of this!
Yes, if the clone kept spouting embarrassing lines and then returned to the original body, it would be a serious generator of future cringe.
Madara leaped high into the air in an instant, then hurled himself into the center of House Astaroth's territory visible below the hill. And then—
Boom!
He made a spectacular entrance, causing a massive explosion in the middle of the village.
The guards rushed in.
Madara rose from the smoke and looked at the soldiers gathering around him.
"Two hundred... no, maybe three hundred? Not even good enough for a warm-up."
"Who are you!?"
"Capture him!"
He scoffed at the number of guards, and the soldiers of House Astaroth charged all at once. But—
"!? What? Where did he go!?"
"Guh!"
Madara slipped into the gaps between them in an instant and subdued them using nothing but his fists and legs. One soldier attacked with a spear, only to have it stolen and be stabbed with his own weapon, then sent flying into his comrades. Another, proud of his swordsmanship and challenging him head-on, had every strike evaded and was kicked into a building, collapsing it. Fire, lightning, wind—every kind of attack magic was unleashed, but he dodged them all by a hair's breadth and redirected them into his own allies, while continuing to break through and knock soldiers down with nothing but his fists and legs. Soldiers kept falling in an instant, yet more and more kept pouring in—one hundred, three hundred, five hundred, a thousand—but numbers meant nothing before the strongest man of the Uchiha.
And in the end...
"This isn't even enough for a warm-up. Bring me someone stronger!"
He shouted with more than a thousand soldiers beneath his feet. The soldiers began to tremble and retreat.
"Is this the one!?"
"Yes! Please help us, General!"
This time, a devil who looked strong enough to be called a general appeared—over three meters tall, with muscles so massive they looked ready to burst. More general-class devils of similar caliber followed.
"What are you? You suddenly show up and wreck our territory like this! You must not value your life!"
"That doesn't matter. Is there anyone strong?"
"You bastard..."
Even with a general standing before him, Madara was still looking for stronger opponents. The general devil's blood rushed to his head.
"Die!!"
Without thinking, he unleashed a vast amount of magical power and spewed out a colossal blaze that could have blown away the entire territory. But Madara turned most of the domain to ashes in one sweep.
Then—
"Hahahahaha! How do you like that! Trash should know its place and stop acting up! The moment you crossed paths with me, the so-called right arm of Lord Beelzebub, your luck was already over! Hahahahaha!"
"That's too much..."
"As expected of the Demon Lord's sworn brother..."
The soldiers, convinced that no one could survive the general's ultimate technique, all let out sighs of relief. But—
"What is this? That was all?"
From within the flames, a being beyond their understanding strode out proudly. Madara emerged from the blazing inferno without a single scratch, a blue giant enveloping his body.
"I-it's impossible!"
"What is that!?"
"You bastard!! So it's some kind of armor, huh! Then I'll blow the whole thing away with an even bigger one!"
"A flashy piece of trash. It doesn't even compare to the flames of the Sarutobi clan."
"Guh!!"
Before he could even use his technique, the Demon Lord's right arm was pierced by the light radiating from the blue giant and collapsed on the spot.
"N-no way! Lord Beelzebub's right arm!!"
"Run!!"
"He's a monster!"
"You bastard!! How dare you do that to the general!"
With the Demon Lord's right arm down, the generals who had appeared with him charged all at once. But—
"You fools don't know your place. Fire Release! Dragon Flame Song Technique!"
He released the blue giant, and dragon-shaped flames poured out in every direction, swallowing soldiers and generals alike.
"Not yet..."
"I don't know where you came from, but you alone—!"
The remaining generals refused to give up and kept resisting, but—
"Pathetic."
Even the last of them collapsed foaming at the mouth after merely meeting his eyes.
Madara simply walked onward, leisurely searching for stronger prey, and the once-quiet territory was left in ruins after the intrusion of a single man.
Watching from the hill, Issei said, "Yeah, that's how it should be."
The clone's experience was his own experience, and after letting loose to his heart's content, he felt as if a weight had been blown clean out of his chest. Raynare, watching beside him, was utterly speechless.
"Um... Hyoudou Issei... this isn't a dream, right?"
She pinched her own cheek as if she couldn't believe it.
"If you're this shocked now, you'll probably have a heart attack later."
"There's more!? Just how strong is he!?"
"Who knows. How strong were the guys he just beat?"
"I don't know about the others, but the one he just defeated was called the right arm of the Demon Lord. He had the power of a high-ranking Fallen Angel... and the generals around him were all several times stronger than me, and he took them down as easily as if they were foot soldiers..."
She was starting to feel less impressed and more afraid of someone who treated even high-ranking officers like trash. If he turned on her, she thought, she wouldn't even have bones left to pick up.
"Um... he's not going to attack us, right? He said something earlier about fighting if there weren't any strong opponents..."
Indeed, Madara had said he would fight Issei if there were no strong opponents. In other words, that meant becoming an enemy. Raynare was certain that if they made an enemy of something like that, they'd be erased in an instant.
"Can I go back now...? I don't want to die in a place like this!"
"Don't worry. As it happens, I'm stronger than that guy."
"There's no way that's true! Not against someone who beat a high-ranking officer that easily!"
"You think I can't do it?"
"Y-you're strong too, but..."
Since he had never properly shown his ability in front of her, she couldn't quite believe him. The one who had clearly demonstrated his strength right before her eyes was Madara, and he was the true object of awe.
"Well, don't worry about that part. The guy I summoned isn't going to hurt me. He was just talking big."
"I guess that might be true..."
She let it go after hearing Issei say that, but her unease remained.
Well, I guess I succeeded in letting him loose. Maybe it's time to head back.
Seeing that he seemed to have reverted to Amano Yuuma's appearance, and because she was softening up thanks to her first love, she decided to stop watching and go back.
"We've done what we came to do, so let's head back."
"Okay!"
As if she had been waiting for it, Raynare hurriedly opened a gate, then threw herself inside. Issei also left the demon world, abandoning the monster he had unleashed there, and moved through the gate.
.
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.
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"Sir Serafall, this is bad! Right now, House Astaroth's territory—!"
"What is it?"
The man in elegant formal wear with red hair like Rias's received an urgent report in his office. He was the man called a Demon Lord.
"House Astaroth's territory has evaporated? What in the world..."
"It says exactly that!"
"What on earth happened!?"
"A man calling himself Uchiha Madara suddenly appeared and devastated the entire territory. And now he's heading toward House Gremory's territory!"
"What!?"
Hearing that the monster who had turned Astaroth's domain into a wasteland was heading for his own homeland, House Gremory, Serafall stopped everything he was doing and hurried there at once. What met his eyes was...
"This monster... just where did he come from..."
His own father, Lord Gremory, who had already been beaten down by Madara, was barely holding on against him.
"Ho? So at last, someone worth fighting has appeared."
The moment Serafall appeared, Madara looked straight at him. Serafall was certain this monster had sensed his presence instantly.
"Are you Uchiha Madara? What is it that you want?"
He assumed there had to be a purpose behind all this and tried to move straight into negotiation.
"I want nothing. I simply want to fight strong opponents! Now, entertain me, you one called a Demon Lord!"
Madara had seen through his existence in an instant, and Serafall quickly began activating his magical power.
"Fire Release! Great Fire Annihilation!"
Madara struck first. A flame that would annihilate everything surged forward, threatening to burn Serafall and the territory behind him to ash. But—
"!! I won't let you!"
Serafall spread red magical power in all directions, then collided head-on with Madara's flames.
Boom!
The attack exploded in midair, and a tremendous cloud of smoke swallowed the surroundings. At the same time—
"!? Since when!?"
Madara was already right in front of Serafall.
Once it turned into a close-quarters battle, Serafall was beaten without being able to do a thing. Abdomen, face, thigh, arm, side—there was an overwhelming difference in skill, and Serafall was pushed back more and more, as if a martial arts master were brutally beating down a novice. Realizing this was dangerous, he exploded with magical power and quickly created distance.
"The one called a Demon Lord is foolish."
Madara had already found him through the smoke and closed in, so trying to escape by creating more smoke was a stupid move. He appeared directly in front of Serafall's retreat path and branded that mistake into him.
"If this is the level of the one called a Demon Lord, then the demon world is finished. I'll destroy it with my own hands!"
"Guh... what do you really want!?"
"Didn't I already say it? Strong opponents. Still, since I suddenly appeared on your side, you'll need time to prepare. I'm starting to get hungry myself, so I'll grant you a little grace. Three days from now, bring me only the strongest among you. The number doesn't matter. If you fail to satisfy me, the demon world will be brought to ruin."
With that, Madara strolled away as if to say he could kill them whenever he pleased. And Serafall Lucifer was left staring at the worst crisis in history since his ascension.