Edea: Hero Summoning Conspiracy 129 Internal Strife

Because of the recent turn of events, Kazuya started his extended stay at the Kurogane Clan's estate. This surprised Kyouko and Kou who didn't know what to say when Kazuya called to inform them because they couldn't say anything too sensitive over the phone.

It wasn't just the Kouzuki side who were surprised at this sudden development, even the side that was against Shishio taking over their clan as the next successor was alarmed at the development where Tenma himself started to mentor Shishio's illegitimate child. Those who even went to see what was happening were shocked to see the head of the family grinning and looking like he enjoyed himself while conversing with the boy.

Though it looked extremely bad for their side, it wasn't that beneficial to Shishio's side as it seemed. It may have appeared that because Kazuya was spending time with his father that he was leading when it came to his father's favor, Shishio himself was actually barred from interfering with the two just like everyone else who held no interest in what the two were doing.

"Looks like you actually have quite the amount of free time to be lounging about here instead of doing work" Sousuke arrived outside the firing range where Shishio was waiting for the two to take a break and have their lunch. "Should I praise you father and son to be alike? While you skip work he is in there with father skipping school" Shishio glanced at his brother and smiled.

"And you're like… oh right, my apologies. I forgot that you don't have any descendants because your wife lied to you by bearing another man's child" Shishio shrugged his shoulders. "You really do have to change your habit of not looking into matters before putting your dirty claws on them you know"

"What do you mean by that?" Sousuke held back his anger. This was a low blow but was always effective to someone as prideful as this elder brother of his. It wasn't like they held anything back against each other so why should Shishio?

"Who says Kazuya is skipping school? My son already joined Saint Forest Academy's illustrious S class when he was in 6th grade. The class that you were kicked out from when you studied there because of your negligence" Shishio informed. "You shouldn't gauge people by using yourself as an example, that's only setting yourself up to suffer" Shishio laughed.

"You…" Sosuke's expression turned ugly. This younger brother of his sure had a way with bringing up the past.

"This is serious advice from your younger brother, You should learn to invest time In finding and gathering information than taking things by how profitable it seems lest you make a fool out of yourself or ever worse the family" Shishio obviously meant his brother's blunder with the Ringo corporation which made his personal assets plummet and made him lose a lot of supporters.

"If you two are going to bicker then it's better for you two to get out of my sight" Tenma arrived with Kazuya who didn't bother to glance at this distasteful uncle of his. There had been no good that happened whenever they met so he treated him like any other member of the Kurogane family who didn't try to be polite with him.

"Father I was just concerned about you hanging around with this child. He is not a Kurogane after all" Sousuke's main reason wasn't to banter with Shishio but to remind him that Kazuya was ultimately a Kouzuki despite him being the son of his younger brother.

"Do I look like the type of person who would need to be reminded by someone like you?" Tenma of course didn't hold back because he had been utterly disappointed by this eldest son of his. He had the gall to remind him of something obvious even after his constant chain of failures. "He may not be called Kurogane but it is obvious that our blood is strong within this child. If you even had half of the capabilities of Kazuya here then you wouldn't have turned out to be such a failure" he sighed and looked at Sousuke with disappointment.

"Father… I…" Sousuke didn't expect to be rebuked heavily. Was his father really rebuking him for his younger brother's illegitimate son of all people?

"Don't try and interfere with my teaching this grandson of mine the skills all of you failed to inherit" he glanced at Kazuya who didn't look like he cared at all about Sousuke's remarks. This was one of the aspects that impressed him about Kazuya. The boy was even better at ignoring such obvious taunts though he knew that he had more than his fair share of mud to fling around if he so desired.

Kazuya had spent enough time in the Kurogane clan to have already gotten used to the internal strife it had despite its incredible influence amongst those outside of their clan. There were three main factions and they were the Shishio's faction, Sousuke's faction and those who were loyal to no one else but Tenma. They would follow anyone Tenma named as their successor but they would still be loyal to this family head who brought their clan to great heights.

To the elders who supported Sousuke, what they saw was a puppet that was easy to manipulate. They joined that faction because they had more than enough confidence that they could reap benefits by secretly controlling someone like Sousuke from behind. Shishio was the direct threat to that ambition because he was one who wanted to reform the family and chase away those who didn't deserve their current positions.

The Kuroganes had a unique structure and numerous members that help the seemingly dysfunctional clan work as if it was a harmonious clan from the eyes looking at them from the outside. The clan rules were absolute but that didn't stop the infighting amongst those who were ambitious. To them, there was an unspoken clan rule which every person of the Kurogane clan applied even in their daily lives.

[As long as it doesn't cross the line it's fine] was something that even Tenma couldn't deny.

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Kazuya had learned a lot after spending time in with this clan and finding out how it worked. It gave him great insights on how people who only cared about their own profits thought. The way they operated was an eyeopener for him and their methods even more so.

It was simple to call someone devious and underhanded but it was only until he got to learn all about the Kurogane clan's innerworkings did Kazuya understand that those were just things that were on the surface. There had been so much more things that he never thought of or imagined that was common practice amongst those in the Kurogane clan. The bad reputation and deeds that the Kurogane Clan was looked down for was merely the surface of the black iceberg that was this clan.

"You may have your meal first Kazuya" Tenma turned to Kazuya with a smile before turning towards his other son who sired this excellent grandson. "Come with me, we need to discuss a few things"

"Yes father" Shishio followed closely behind Tenma but not before he flashed a grin towards Sousuke who seemed to have come only to be shamed. He had no problems leaving Kazuya with this elder brother of his and wished that he would act like he expected and make trouble so that Tenma's opinion of him would go even lower.

Kazuya acted as if he was interested in the meal that was presented by the maids who served exquisite food after Shishio and Tenma stepped out. What those two didn't know was that Kazuya had already attached a listening device on Tenma when they started today's activities. He wondered what those two could be talking about so he paid no attention to the glare of Sousuke who had no one else to vent his anger on.

"Tell me kid, what would it take for you to get lost?" Sousuke decided to change his tactics. Seeing as his father gave this kid some favor, he started to negotiate.

"What would it take?" Kazuya repeated his question and looked at Sousuke from head to toe before grinning. "After your consistent blunders? You wouldn't be capable of having anything that would make me raise an eyebrow" Kazuya gave a light laugh before reaching for the soup in front of him.

"You conceited little…" he stopped his words as he remembered who this kid was. He knew just how much his younger brother gave to this kid to get on his good graces. What about his mother then? The head of a corporation that was on the same standing as his father who was known for pampering her only son. He swallowed the arrogant words he was just about to spout because even though the was the eldest son of Kurogane Tenma, he really had invested his money in a lot of dead ends.

"Why are you still here anyway? Grandfather is gone and you have already failed in whatever you were planning to do" Kazuya gave him a condescending look. "You're making the food taste bad so can you leave?" he didn't hold back because after what happened to Suzaku when he first tried to suppress Kazuya, no one dared to approach Kazuya with similar intentions.

But who was Sousuke? How could he compare himself to a mere youngster like Suzaku? Though he knew about the incident at that time, he paid no heed to it because he thought that any possible relationship between his father and this kid would never blossom.

"Remember kid, you're not a Kurogane. The rules of the clan don't apply to you or… let's say your mother" as a grin was growing on Sousuke's face, he watched the boy slowly rise from his head and move closer to him.

*SHUUP* Kazuya lightly kicked the spot behind Sousuke's knee which caused him to lose his balance. He was still taller than Kazuya who was only a middle schools student so Kazuya did this so that he could grab this arrogant man's head.

*BAM* Kazuya held Sousuke by the hair and slammed his head on the table before grabbing a fork on the table and stabbing it towards his left eye.

"You're right" Sosuske didn't dare blink as he could feel the points of the fork almost hitting his eye. "I'm not part of the Kurogane clan as you said so I'm not bound by its rules as well" Kazuya emitted a cold pressure that made the maids lose their balance and look at him fearfully.

This was not the first time they served Kazuya and when the servants compared them to the other members of the family, he was the nicest and politest they have ever met. They couldn't believe that this was the son of someone like Shishio but after witnessing what was happening, there was no doubt in their minds that this boy was indeed a member of the Kurogane clan.

"I-if you hurt me—" Sousuke stuttered but he mustered up his courage to speak.

"Nothing will happen to me" Kazuya laughed coldly. "A useless waste of a son versus the illegitimate grandson that has Nagato Tsuna behind him, who do you think a man like grandfather would choose?" Kazuya raised the hand that was holding the fork and immediately slammed it down.

*BAAM!* the fork stood upright just beside Sousuke's head. Kazuya moved his face close to Sosuke's ear so that no one could overhear what he said.

"The only reason you're alive after uttering the words you just said is that there is a camera in this room. I would be suspected by grandfather if you died too early so take care of that dog life of yours while I still care about what this stupid family thinks of me because even someone with your stupidity should understand that it's your clan that needs me and not the other way around"

Kazuya shoved Sousuke's head to the side before returning back to his seat. He wiped his hands with a wet towel that was presented to him by one of the butlers before turning to see Sousuke's back who scurried away in panic.

The servants pulled themselves together and continued to serve Kazuya who was impressed by their professionalism. Because of Kurogane Tenma's paranoia, most of the servants that served the Kurogane estate were members of branch families or those who are distantly related that failed to meet the main family's standards. They were indoctrinated of how the family worked since they were young and knew the consequences of going against the main family.

They were the reason why the head of the family knew what happened inside their estate and therefore knew what everyone was up to. Kazuya knew that this incident would reach Tenma's ears so he didn't go too overboard.

"Why did we go all the way here father?" Kazuya heard Shishio's voice over the small device in his ear and knew that those two had arrived at their destination. It was inside Kurogane Tenma's office which was safe from any person who would try to eavesdrop.

"We can never be too careful. After all, your son is still the apprentice of someone like Nagato Tsuna so there would be no way of telling how sensitive the boy's senses are" Tenma sat on his chair and faced the son of his who gave a silent agreement to his explanation.

"Does this conversation have something to do with Kazuya?" Shishio couldn't hide the expectation on his face. The past few weeks that those two spent together was finally showing its effects. The seed that Shishio planted were finally bearing fruit.

"The rest of your siblings would be returning soon but all of you should be aware of who has been the most successful by far" Tenma's eyes narrowed towards Shishio who gave a proud look. "The Kurogane Banquet that is held once every ten years is soon going to be upon us and I'm planning on naming you as the temporary head of the Kurogane Clan"

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Chapter end