Kindred Hearts x Zenkai Heroes Chapter 1: The Hero of Zenkai is Kikikaikai!

Months later after the events of Omega Fury, Daiki and the Minato siblings finally lived in peace after the defeat of both Brittany and Lukretia. They enjoyed their time together in the Minato residence along with Gabbie's loving grandfather, who was once the prefect of Niigata prior to his retirement. Daiki was reading books at the mini library, while Gabbie and Rei were exercising outside while catching some fresh air and morning sun rays.

"Hmm, what's this?" said Daiki as he was intrigued by a book he found on the shelf.

The book looked pretty arcane and old to him, with research regarding the Angelus Warriors and the Transcendents. He knew that Gabbie and Rei were the descendants of Aurora Angelus, but he decided to dig deeper into it. The book was authored by none other than Mizuki Takahitsuji, the deceased mother of Alfredo and Marika and the 1st CEO of Lazuline. He flipped around the pages while reading through the book.

"To think my soon-to-be wife, is the descendant of this realm's guardian. Looks like I'm quite the lucky person" said Daiki.

He saw images of the stone tablets that were salvaged from Sagami Bay, Yonaguni Monument and Hudson Bay. There were seven major Angeluses and around 12 minor Angeluses. Their leader was Lumino Angelus, the ancestor of the Takahitsuji clan. He sacrificed himself to seal Dark Nightmare within the depths of Sagami Bay and before he succumbed to his wounds, he married a woman, who would give birth to the first Takahitsuji. Meanwhile, Gabbie's ancestor, Aurora Angelus spent her final days in the cold wilderness of Canada, where she married a man there and the people built a tower as her final resting place, the Ephemeral Sky Tower.

Daiki cried a bit as he read the fates of the Angeluses, and he honored them as heroes. However, just as he was about to check out his girlfriend and his younger sister, the two were nowhere to be seen. That is, until he saw a white-haired man with a white overcoat holding the Minato siblings captive.

"Go no further, I shall start what my beloved Lukretia should've started.." said the man.

"You ain't starting shit! Give my girl and her sister back!" said Daiki angrily.

"You are nothing but a hindrance to my beloved one's great plan. Prepare to die!" said the man as he prepared to attack Daiki.

Daiki was only armed with his Draco Blaster and Draco Blader, though they don't do as good as it was since Draco Piscis and Aevis Aerios' spirits has left him and departed back to Afilia. He aggressively slashed at the mysterious person, only to be countered by the man's own hands. He then effortlessly defeated Daiki by throwing him into the ground, stepping on his chest and slashed his body with a mantis-like arm.

"Tch… I should've remembered I couldn't fight well anymore…" said Daiki as he writhed in pain.

"Not even an alien from another world like you could protect your loved ones. And now, for the finishing blow.." said the man before he grabbed Daiki by his jacket's collar. He then hurled the Afilian boy away, sending him flying towards the sea. Afterwards, he smashed Daiki's weapons and knocked out both Gabbie and her younger sister and carried them away. Daiki drifted through the sea, though he could not drown thanks to his special organ that enables him to breathe underwater, a specialty to his own Afilian tribe.

The unconscious Daiki washed ashore at a beach located in the southern islands of Japan. A person with fox ears and tail prodded a stick on his face, which woke him up. Daiki opened his eyes and saw the boy. He thought he was dreaming or carried back to his world, only for the boy to reveal that he was still in Japan.

"Wake up! You're in Kitsunegahara Village! I'm Tsubasa Ijuuin, heir of this village's protector, the Ijuuin clan! And you?" said Tsubasa.

"Oh.. I'm Daiki Higurashi. I was trying to save my girlfriend and her sister, but I was defeated by this powerful man in white and I lost my weapons. Can you help me?" asked Daiki.

"Sure thing, I'll take you to the Ijuuin residence. Hope you won't mind our hospitality" answered Tsubasa.

Tsubasa and Daiki walked through the village. The village was inhabited by Youkais, benevolent creatures of Japanese myth. Some appear to be half-animal and half-human, and some are fully animal or even a monster or a ghost. The village itself is pretty secluded, far from human populations, as some Youkais still consider mankind as enemies and some prefer for their identity to be shrouded in mystery. The buildings looked very traditional and old, with some dating back as far as from the Nara period. After a few minutes later, the two finally arrived at Tsubasa's house.

"Welcome.." said Tsubasa's mother, Tamako as she opened the door.

Daiki removed his shoes and walked into the Ijuuin residence. There, he met Daiki's twin brother Mitsuki, his adoptive sister Mekuru and his younger sister Natsumi. Tamako was a rather busty and lady-like Kyuubi, a Kitsune who has reached ascendancy on a certain age and gained nine tails as a sign of their higher status. She was also the descendant of the famous Tamamo-no-Mae, a courtesan of the Japanese Emperor who happened to be a very powerful Kyuubi.

"What brings you here, young man?" said Tamako.

"I was stranded here after I tried to save my girlfriend, but I was defeated by a mysterious man, and now he's taking her away from me.." answered Daiki.

"Well, it seems you might need our help to get her back. At least we'll try to help you out this time" said Mitsuki in a rather cold tone.

"Come on, don't be too cold like that!" said Mekuru to Mitsuki.

"Not only that, but I lost my weapons. Can you make a new one for me?" continued Daiki.

"Sure thing. Long ago, the elders of the Ijuuin clan created artefacts known as the Youkai Regalia, which were used to defeat the evil demonic serpent lord Yamata-no-Orochi and his army of Youmas, evil Youkais from the underworld. My two sons and my adoptive daughter, along with a friend of Tsubasa gathered them all, defeated Orochi and his army and banished them for good. And now, you may pick one out of the many Regalias they gathered" said Tamako.

Daiki was taken by Tamako to the house's arsenal, where the Regalias are stored. He saw a rather peculiar-looking sword, with a dragon-like hilt and a curved blade. He thought it looked awesome, so he decided to grab it. However, he could not use it much as it turned out, it required a special power known as Kiryoku, energy harnessed from the hearts of the Youkais. Daiki used to had mana when he arrived into the Espers' Homeworld with Draco Piscis' spirit, then he thought of using Kiryoku to replace it.

To do so, Tamako used her Youjutsu skills to embed an empty Magatama into Daiki's heart, which enables him to store and use Kiryoku. She then transferred some Kiryoku into him, turning Daiki into a pseudo-Youkai. With it, he could fight using his sword well and channel his Kiryoku into it. To replace the lack of Draco Piscis, Daiki looked for a suitable beast spirit. He browsed through Tamako's scrolls and found something that piqued his interest: a dragon with sharp claws, jagged fangs and a bipedal gait. The locals called it "The Stalker of Kitadani, Fukui Prefecture".

"Hey Tsubasa, channel its spirit for me!" said Daiki.

Tsubasa focused his Kiryoku into the ground to summon said spirit. The dragon's spirit then rose up from the earth, possessed Daiki by force. He felt a surge of Kiryoku and spectral energy from within, and his jacket turned from navy to carmine, with an emblem of the dragon replacing the Spinosaurus emblem.

"Wow… I feel stronger than before. I can fight again!" clamored Daiki as he finally gained the power of the dragon, which gave him Wind element.

"Oh yeah I almost forgot, my pal Kiara isn't around since me and her just got married a few months ago and she's very busy with maternity-related stuff, so I want you to be in her place. We can't fight if we can't have all four elements combined. Water, Wind, Earth and Fire must always stick together!" said Tsubasa.

"I will replace this Kiara person for a while, and you three must help me find my beloved one and defeat that scumbag!" said Daiki.

And so, the Afilian and his three Youkai pals embark on a quest to stop the mysterious man and to save Gabbie and her younger sister before it's too late. The four traversed through forests, sailed through seas and even ventured into the Tottori Sand Dunes to look for the missing siblings. There, they were beset by an army of Cockroach Deviants. They were sent by the mysterious man to stop Daiki and his new friends from impeding his plan.

"Crap! Where are all these roaches came from?!" said Tsubasa.

"Time for me to unleash my new powers! Let's go, Fukuiraptor!" said Daiki before he swiftly moved like the wind and slashed the Deviants left and right. They all screeched and exploded afterwards.

The Ijuuin siblings joined the fight. Tsubasa used his feather fan to whip up tornadoes of fire to burn the Cockroach Deviants, Mitsuki used his Youjutsu to freeze them while Mekuru used her staff to strike into the ground and create stalactites that skewers the Deviants from below. They all eventually worked together to finish off the remaining Deviants alongside Daiki, and none were left behind.

"Hey, what's this?" said Daiki. He discovered what appeared to be a piece of a stone tablet lying in the sand.

Tsubasa analyzed the stone tablet. It has the image of a dragon with claws and fangs, like what Daiki saw in the scrolls. Not far from there, they met a mysterious bespectacled person with a jacket. Daiki gave the stone tablet to the person, and he agreed to analyze it.

"Hmm.. this looked pretty intriguing. It says that this was the guardian of these lands from the ancient times. Where did you find this?" said the person.

"I found it lying on the sand" Daiki answered.

"Looks like I'll be taking you and your friends somewhere. Come.." said the person. He then used a teleportation skill to teleport Daiki and the Ijuuin siblings to a museum in Fukui. Inside the museum, there were a lot of dinosaur skeletons displayed there, along with fossils of other prehistoric faunas. There, he saw the skeleton of the dragon that was told by the scroll and the stone tablet. It was not a dragon, but rather a dinosaur. The name plate on its display says "Fukuiraptor kitadaniensis". Daiki knew such creatures roamed in Afilia, but they were dragons.

"Fukuiraptor, a beast that once roamed the land from millions of years ago during the Early Cretaceous Period. What your friends channeled was not the soul of a dragon, but the soul of an ancient beast" said the mysterious person.

"An… ancient beast? You mean a dinosaur, right?!" asked Daiki as he was surprised upon the discovery.

"Yes, unlike dragons of your land, this creature was nearly untamable and known for their fearsome appearance and their near-insatiable hunger. Despite its size, it was a formidable predator, though it preyed upon fishes and other dinosaurs such as the Fukuivenator and Tyrannomimus. I'm afraid if you use that creature's soul for too much, you might act and become like one. You will become half-dinosaur!" said the person.

"How did you know?" asked Daiki again.

"Haha, we used to be friends back in our childhood. I am like you, a Commandant General. Except I served my great kingdom of Aselia, which still stays strong until now. In case you forgot, my name is Yuito Phoenix, the Commandant General of the Crystal Phoenix Bladers. The power of Zenkai flows within me" said Yuito. Daiki was shocked that the person was actually his childhood friend.

"How did you came here?" asked Daiki again.

"I flew into the Multiversal Continuum from a rip that happened to be located within the kingdom. I came here out of curiosity, only to be surpised to see you again. What brought you here?" asked Yuito back.

"Well, it happened when the Revenant, or formerly was my Lord's right hand man, Lansil Bloodswitch brought ruin to the kingdom and killed my family. I had no choice but to live on by escaping my homeworld. I fought alongside a girl named Gabbie, whom I saved and adored. And now she needs my help, and not only her but also her younger sister as well. And after I read a book or something, they were actually not just normal humans, but they were Transcendents, descendants of this realm's guardian angels known as the Angeluses. You gotta help me, pal!" said Daiki.

"I will.. but I am not responsible if that power you got turns you into a beast" warned Yuito.

"Understood.. Man, I really miss my Draco Piscis" said Daiki as he saw a Spinosaurus skull on display.

Daiki heeded Yuito's warning and he felt pretty worried. For now, he felt nothing but a burst of energy from within that helped him fight against the Deviants. Just as they left the museum, they were beset by a familiar figure. It was none other than Zaphiel himself, thought to be killed back during the Serpentine Cartel's takeover of Polaris Sanctuary. Daiki never thought he would come across an old adversary of his again.

"Hahahaha… You gullible little brat! You'd think I'll be defeated that easily?! Well, Lord Hideo has given me a second chance to put you back into the ground and skin your furry pals alive! Since you're here without that traitorous blondie that was supposed to be Ms. Creuzfeldt's subject as part of her henchwoman program, you're all going to die here!" said the revived Zaphiel.

"By the name of the Crystal Phoenix, me and my friends shall slay you! Prepare yourself, for I am the Honorable Crystal Phoenix Blader, Yuito Phoenix!" said Yuito as he brandished his sword.

"The Ijuuin siblings are here to kick your ass!" said Tsubasa, Mitsuki and Mekuru in unison.

"With the power of the Fukuiraptor, I shall put you back in the ground again with that bitch you call wife named Brittany!" said Daiki angrily as he held his new weapon, the Kyoryutou. A sword forged with the Fukuiraptor's likeness, speed and and ferocity in mind.

Zaphiel snapped his fingers and summoned some Cockroach Deviants to assist him. Whilst Daiki is duelling Zaphiel, his friends including Yuito were fighting the Cockroach Deviants. Yuito summoned his sword, the Pinion Saber and effortlessly cut several Deviants down with it. The Ijuuin siblings used their Elemental Trigram Formation to finish off the remaining Cockroach Deviants, blowing them up. Daiki still clashed blades against Zaphiel, who appeared to be stronger than before thanks to Hideo. His Kyoryutou constantly parried Zaphiel's Nair Slasher, though Daiki tried to keep up with Zaphiel's speed.

"What's the matter? Getting tired? You're not going to see your beloved Gabbie again anyways!" taunted Zaphiel.

"No.. I'm NOT!!" said Daiki angrily. His new elemental power bursted and he roared like a Fukuiraptor. He used his Kyoryutou to knock Zaphiel's Nair Slasher out of the Vampire Bat Deviant's hand. Out of rage, Zaphiel turned into his monster form and flew up, in an attempt to dive bomb at Daiki. Just before he do so, the former Commandant General of Afilia's White Leopard Cavalry stirred up a cyclone. Zaphiel was sucked into it, causing him to lose his flight and fall into the concrete ground. He became groggy and half-unconscious as a result.

"Let's finish him off for good!" said Daiki.

Daiki, the Ijuuin siblings and Yuito combined their powers into one powerful finisher: the Zenkai Gosei Hurricane. Yuito jumped and shot the ball of energy they created mid-air towards Zaphiel, which caused him to be immolated by light.

"Ugh… At least I got to reunite with my bad bitch Brittany… Gyaaaaargh!" said Zaphiel as he left his last words. He flopped into the ground head first and exploded, and nothing was left behind except for black smoke and ash, as all Deviants turn into it upon dying. Zaphiel has finally met his demise for the second time, thanks to Daiki and his new crew. After the fight, Daiki felt a headache and suddenly he started to growl a bit from his throat.

"What's wrong, Daiki?" said Yuito.

"Nothing, maybe I went a bit too hard against Zaphiel. Let's go grab a bite to eat" said Daiki.

The five then went to a mall's food court to eat together. Yuito began to notice that Daiki grew an incessant craving for meat and fish, as well as a ravenous appetite. He ate a lot of beef skewers for lunch, and he burped a lot as a result. Yuito felt concerned about it, since he already warned Daiki not to use the power of the Fukuiraptor for too much.

After a nice and sumptuous meal, the five traveled from Fukui Prefecture to the Canadian wilderness, where they will find more clues about Gabbie and her clan, and to save her and her younger sister from Hideo's clutches. Before doing so, Yuito wanted Daiki to come back to the Minato residence to get the book from Toshiharu's mini library. Once he do so, they traveled to Canada using Yuito's Suzaku Shuttlezord, a phoenix-shaped mecha that could shrink into the size of an action figure at will.