A conversation between cat and monkey

<< Previously on DGZ >>

"Alright, now that there's no one around to distract us, we can finally have a nice, decent conversation."

"What do you think, my little nekoshou?"

...

"And shouldn't you deactivate that transformation by now?"

"There's no need to hide anymore."

"After all, we're both from the supernatural world…"

...

"Ain't that right…"

"...Kuroka."

<< Presently >>

Regaining her composure and having heard Zero's words, the black cat, now identified as Kuroka, finally made up her mind to reveal herself to the person in front of her.

Poof!

A puff of white smoke appeared in the room as the neko deactivated her transformation.

"Hehe, it's definitely more comfortable this way, nya."

A soft, yet mischievous feminine voice with a strange cat-like verbal tic was heard from inside the smoke.

"That should be obvious. After all, even I would feel uncomfortable if I stayed in my beast form for that long."

Zero stated calmly as he heard her speak for the first time, though if one stared into his eyes, they would notice that his eyes contained a hint of anticipation as well as an inexplicable excitement while he waited for Kuroka to make her first, true appearance.

"Nya? I think I just heard something interesting there. You have a beast form too?"

Kuroka asked with a tone of interest.

'Ah, I probably shouldn't have said that.'

The saiyan realized he had let out some of his background information but only shrugged it off in the end as the cat would find out sooner or later, if she kept following him that is.

He took a moment to finish his glass of water as he watched the smoke slowly disappear to reveal the figure behind, only to end up spitting out the liquid contents in the next second.

Zero blinked a few times as he saw the beautiful picture in front of him.

There, appeared to be a young, mature female of around 18 years of age with golden slitted cat-like eyes, black cat ears and two black cat tails.

Her appearance could be described as heavenly.

There was also that soft, flawless white skin and those perfect curves which would make any woman from his previous world brim with jealousy.

The rise and fall of her 'impressive' chest as she breathed and the subtle shivering of her buttocks as she swayed her way towards him had left the saiyan spellbound for a moment, before he forced himself to return to his usual calm.

'A natural seductress' He thought.

Come to think of it, the girl was far and away the most beautiful woman he had met. The only thing that made him speechless was the fact that she was currently wearing nothing, quite literally.

"Why the hell are you naked?"

Zero deadpanned as he asked the question with a strange monotone. By this point in time, the neko had already arrived at his front.

"I don't have any clothes, nya. My previous ones were scrapped in battle. And I've been staying in my cat form for so long that I never needed clothes."

Kuroka blinked innocently.

Zero: "..."

He didn't know what to say. Was he supposed to believe her? The nekoshou was someone proficient in space magic and surely had some kind of storage space to keep her spare clothes in.

"Nya, I had wanted to tease you for a bit, but you seem to be very calm about this. Don't tell me nya… are you perhaps-"

Kuroka widened her eyes as if she had realized something.

"Yo-yo-yo! Now hang on a minute; you better hold that thought right where it is woman. I am in no way impotent."

Zero retorted immediately before the neko could finish her sentence. He had even jumped out of his seat and raised a palm as a signal to prevent the girl from speaking any further.

In fact, the saiyan was trying his hardest to remain calm and suppress his desires at the moment.

For a whole two years, Zero was mainly focused on training that he had subconsciously ignored the thought for women.

But after seeing a naked woman, not to mention one with a goddess-like body in front of him, his hormones which were suppressed for so long had finally broken out and he almost couldn't help but pounce if not for his <Protection of the Mind> which was there to help him, luckily.

Those perfectly rounded melons that defied gravity and the two pink cherries that lay peacefully on top, would make almost any man drool for them. And moving downwards, one could even see the small attractive mound, smooth without an ounce of hair in between the neko's supple thighs...

Now, Zero would be lying if he said he didn't want to just devour the female nekoshou at this moment, but the human morals that he had acquired in his previous world kept him sane enough not to do so.

"Nyahahah. At least I finally got a reaction out of you. I've never exactly seen you in a situation where you're 'not' calm. It's sort of unnerving, nya."

Kuroka laughed heartily at his response. Guess that particular subject was sensitive to all guys.

Zero smiled bitterly as he slumped back onto the bed. He should've known she'd try something like that considering her personality and character.

But he liked it; that mischievous, simple-minded and carefree personality of hers.

"Whatever. If you're done messing around, could you please put on some clothes? At least have some decency; I am a man after all."

The saiyan said in a gentlemanly manner though what he got in return wasn't the answer he was expecting.

"Hmmph! I'm not going to put on clothes, nya." Kuroka snorted in defiance.

"Wait, why?!" Zero asked in an exasperated tone.

"Well, for one… it is more comfortable this way." She explained.

"Okay… and?" The answer he got was reasonable, so he let her continue.

"And two… it's because you kept calling me a 'little cat' or 'little nekoshou' -nya!" The neko yelled unhappily.

Zero: "..."

"What's that got to do with anything?!" He raised his voice after a period of silence.

"What do you mean, nya? It has everything to do with this! I ain't 'little'! Look, do I appear small to you nya?!"

As if to prove her point, Kuroka held her breasts within her hands and squeezed them together for Zero to see.

"Cough-! Oi shitty cat, do you have no shame?!" Zero almost choked on his saliva.

Did this chick not realize just how erotic she looked currently?!

And even worse, was she not worried about him pushing her down?!

Fuck! The saiyan thought he was going to have a nosebleed! Didn't that only happen in anime?!

"What shame! When you're constantly on the run every day and get into fights that destroy your clothing, do you think you're going to have the liberty to attend to something so useless? In any case, I'm not wearing clothes, nya."

Kuroka retorted with her hands crossed under her ample breasts.

"Still… that's not exactly the poin-"

"Oh, stop it nya! It's not like I haven't seen your naked body before either. I've watched you take a bath plenty of times in the past while in my cat form."

"..." Zero was immediately silenced with that.

What could he possibly say? Now he actually wondered whether all supernatural girls in this world were like this, or maybe it was just Kuroka.

What the saiyan didn't know though was that the neko was only like this because she felt comfortable around him. After all, the two had been living together for a whole year already. If it was anyone else, they would've been killed by now.

There was also the fact that Kuroka had also subconsciously regarded him as a mate when she realized how powerful he was. The neko had a dream to accomplish and Zero was someone who could potentially help her.

"Okay whatever, do what you want."

Zero sighed. He had relented in the end, or rather, it was better to say that he gave up arguing with the neko. If there was one thing he learned in his previous life, it was that there was no way he could out-argue a female when she was being stubborn.

The saiyan closed his eyes and took a deep breath before opening his mouth to speak once more.

"Let's start over, shall we?"

Reopening his eyes, he raised an inquiring eyebrow at the neko while shuffling his way towards the center of the bed.

"Sure, nya."

Kuroka immediately agreed and sat across from him in turn, though she pouted when he gave her a pillow to hug as a way to cover the majority of her naked self from his view.

"Alright then. Although you already know, let me formally introduce myself once more. My name is Zero Akatsuki of the Saiyan race."

'The Saiyan race?' Kuroka thought as she shook her head inwardly. 'I've never heard of them before nya. Oh well, I guess I can always inquire later.' She listened to Zero continue.

"I'm currently 21 years of age, and I've been an orphan ever since I was 3. My hobbies are training, cooking and taking a dip in the spa every once in a while. I have to say, it's nice to finally meet you, the actual you I mean, Kuroka."

Zero smiled as he sent out his right hand for a handshake which Kuroka took with her own from under the pillow.

"Nya, it's nice to finally meet you too, with this appearance anyway. My name is Kuroka, Kuroka Toujou. As you may know, I'm a yokai; a cat yokai, otherwise known as a nekomata, specifically a nekoshou. I'm currently 18 years old and the only family member I have left is…"

Kuroka paused for a bit before finishing her sentence.

"...my little sister…nya..."

The female cat lowered her head while her ears drooped at the mention of her sister.

Upon noticing the sadness in her tone, Zero gave the neko's hand a firm squeeze with his own, which had brought her back to reality and in turn gave him a sweet smile as thanks for the small comfort he had brought her.

Kuroka then recalled that no matter what had happened in the past, at least she still had someone to call family out there, whereas the person in front of her…

Her thoughts were interrupted when a sudden voice entered her ears.

"Hey, don't give me that. I had gotten over the fact that I had no family years ago. Never exactly met my parents, so I don't exactly feel anything towards them."

Zero rolled his eyes as he noticed the look of sympathy on the neko's expression.

"Oh… nyahahaha…"

Kuroka chuckled sheepishly after her thoughts were seen through.

Taking back his hand without realizing the momental expression of loss present in the neko's eyes, Zero proceeded to speak once more.

"Well, now that the introduction is over…"

The saiyan assumed that the she-cat didn't want to introduce herself any further after recalling those sad memories about her sister.

"...is there anything you'd like to ask? Or rather, do you have anything you wish to know about me? I kind of feel guilty after leaving you in the dark for so long."

Zero stated calmly, before...

"Pfft-! Haha."

He suddenly laughed as he recalled some funny memories of being together with Kuroka in her cat form.

The neko was correct in her earlier speech when she had 'boasted' having seen him naked.

There was one time where he took a shower and Kuroka had entered to take a peek, thinking that he just viewed her as an ordinary cat and honestly, he had found it pretty cute, so he acted like he didn't know and let her do whatever she wanted.

Who would've known that the little cat repeated the same thing the very next day, and every day after that. It was to the point where he eventually learned to ignore the presence of the perverted cat in his future bathing sessions.

"Of course I do, nya! And what's so funny?!"

Kuroka glared at him with narrowed eyes. She had a gut instinct that the laughter was related to her, and it wasn't anything good either.

"Ahem. It's nothing, really. Just thinking about a certain adorable cat who seemed to be quite 'curious' about the masculine body."

Zero stopped his laugh with a cough, though he wasn't able to hide the noticeable smirk on his face.

"... You're the worst, nya."

Kuroka stared at him angrily with a bright shade of red covering her face, indicating her embarrassment.

How could she possibly not remember the perverted things she had done in her cat form? Especially when she recalled eye-ing Zero's perfectly toned body and peeping at the 'thing' in between his legs every time she entered the shower with him…

"Hey, you have some saliva leaking out of your mouth."

The saiyan suddenly spoke, waking her out of her daze.

Hearing his words startled the neko, but as she proceeded to wipe her mouth with one of her arms, she paused. What saliva?! Zero was clearly playing tricks on her and she almost fell for it.

"A shame, I thought I could get you back for the teasing earlier. Oh well. Next time; next time."

Zero ignored Kuroka's embarrassment and shook his head with a still visible smirk, making the neko roll her eyes in defeat.

"Anyways, you said you were a Saiyan? I've never heard of them before, nya. And you also mentioned having a beast form; Are you perhaps a yokai?"

Kuroka asked as she regained her composure. She had been meaning to ask Zero about his race for a while now.

"Mhm, I don't think anyone in this world knows who we are, so I'm not exactly expecting you to know either."

Zero nodded. Kuroka wanted to ask what the saiyan meant, but seeing as he didn't explain any further, she suppressed her curiosity.

"Like Azazel mentioned previously, my aura is similar to that of a yokai yet more tyrannical… and he isn't exactly wrong. We Saiyan's are a race of warriors after all."

He paused for a moment to catch his breath before continuing.

"As for the beast form, it's actually more of a transformation, like Yasaka's Nine-Tail Fox form. I'll let you guess which animal, though I'm surprised you haven't noticed all this time. Is your sense of smell not working properly?"

The saiyan finished explaining with a raised eyebrow.

"My sense of smell is working fine… nya? *sniff sniff*"

Zero's words had sparked a moment of realization in the neko as she sniffed the air, catching wind of a familiar, yet unfamiliar scent.

It was not until she finally saw a short brown furry-like thing swaying behind Zero that the neko finally became aware of what type of animal the saiyan was related to.

"You… are a monkey, nya?"

That's right, Zero finally turned off the concealment for his tail so Kuroka could see, otherwise, who knew how long it would take for the neko to guess. It wasn't that the saiyan was impatient, but if he was able to save some time, why the hell not?

Though… being called a monkey sounded… kind of strange, since he used to be a human.

"Mm, you are technically correct. I am actually an Oozaru, or Great Ape if you prefer to call it that."

Zero revealed. The saiyan then realized that Kuroka didn't seem to have any reaction, or rather, she seemed too stunned to react. The neko was currently looking at him with wide eyes, as if she had seen a ghost.

"Well? What's with the sudden expression?" He blinked in confusion.

"You… you couldn't be the descendent of that legend… could you?"

Kuroka asked with amazement in her tone, even forgetting her verbal tic.

"Huh? What legend?"

"Nya?! You mean you don't know?"

"Yeah… no idea…"

"Seriously nya? Have you been living under a rock all this time?"

"... Oi, how about you make things easier by explaining it to me rather than just questioning whether I know or not. I already made it clear that I don't…"

Zero deadpanned.

"Hehe my bad; my bad. Okay, since you don't know nya, I'll tell you. But before that, let me make sure of something first."

Kuroka took a breath to rearrange her thoughts before speaking up again.

"So, I assume you've heard of the Great Faction War at least?"

Zero nodded, and she continued with a nod of her own.

"Okay, then how about the battle that signified the fall of the two Heavenly Dragons, Ddraig and Albion?"

He nodded again, but this time the neko looked at him with a strange gaze.

"Nya, if you know that much, how could you possibly not know about the legendary beast that had made its existence known around the same time those events had happened?"

"Well? Is it somehow related to those events?"

The saiyan asked with some confusion.

"Of course, nya! That legendary existence was someone who had forcefully ended the Great Faction War relying purely on its power alone. There are rumours going around that the previous Four Great Satans' disappearance or death, was somehow related to it.

Apparently the beast was angry over the fact that the Devil Leaders had ganged up on the two Heavenly Dragons, who had only wanted to have a friendly brawl with each other, which led it to slaughter the faction leaders as a result."

Kuroka stated, though it only made Zero even more curious.

This wasn't how he remembered the story to be. The saiyan was pretty sure that the Biblical God was the one who had killed the previous Four Great Satans, not this beast… Wait a minute...

"Kuroka, you previously mentioned that I was a descendant of this supposedly legendary existence, right?"

Zero asked with some seriousness in his tone.

"Mhm. What's wrong nya?"

Kuroka blinked for a moment before nodding. She had already told him that it was the case, so why was he still asking? Did she happen to say anything wrong?

"Nothing's wrong, just… do you happen to know what the beast looks like?"

Zero asked because he wanted to make sure of something.

"I haven't exactly seen it in person, but there were a couple of vague images and descriptions recorded in an ancient historical book that my late mother kept. I just happened to read it at some point because it piqued my curiosity."

"Ah, sorry for reminding you of the past."

Zero apologized, but the neko just shook her head with a smile, indicating that she had already gotten over it.

"Anyway, if I recall correctly… the record mentioned that the beast was a staggering 60 to 70 meter tall colossal giant covered in golden fur, with eyes that glowed the bloody color of crimson red, though occasionally they flashed a fluorescent green as well.

It's appearance was similar to a giant gorilla, though with a tail, a more baboon-like head and razor-sharp teeth.

Another thing that was noticeable was the golden aura consisting of blue electrical sparks surrounding the beast… that's pretty much it nya."

Kuroka finished explaining, before speaking up again after noticing the dignified expression on Zero's face.

"So, anything ring a bell nya?"

"Yeah…if the appearance you just described to me is correct, then maybe that existence is my ancestor after all, though something I don't understand... is how another one appeared in this world."

"Nya? What do you mean?"

"Nevermind."

Kuroka wanted to keep asking but became silent when she saw Zero deep in thought.

In reality, the saiyan was conversing with a certain fairy over the previous matter.

"Gaia, what do you think? Is there really another Saiyan other than me in this world?"

Zero communicated with the system fairy using his mental connection. Although he only appeared calm on the surface, the saiyan was actually shocked when he found out the existence of another saiyan in this world.

Had the plot/ timeline changed when he entered this world? It shouldn't have… but he wasn't so sure in the end so he decided to ask Gaia for assistance.

[Replying to Master, there is absolutely no way another saiyan beside you could appear in this world.]

Gaia, who was floating around in Zero's Inner World, answered the question with confidence.

"Well?" Zero raised an eyebrow in surprise.

"Are you sure?" He asked again.

[Mn! Gaia is 100% sure. There is no possible way that someone possessing the saiyan bloodline other than Master exists within the DxD world.]

Gaia nodded her head cutely whilst flapping her wings.

"Then the legend?"

[...] The fairy stayed silent for a moment, as if hesitating whether she should tell her Master.

In the end, she decided to leave Zero with two sentences.

[All Gaia can say is that the legend itself is real. Master can figure out the rest himself.]

'Since the legend is real, and there is no possible way that someone other than me could possess the saiyan bloodline within the DxD world… doesn't that mean…"

Zero frowned in thought.

The saiyan had a speculation and wanted to confirm it with Gaia, but seeing as the fairy seemed to be ignoring the specific topic, he could only press the doubts he had at the back of his mind.

There was no point in thinking about it right now as it'd only mess with his head, so Zero figured that he should just let things come naturally. When the time comes, he will eventually get his answers.

"Sorry, I was lost in thought for a moment there. Did you wait long?"

Regaining his composure, he asked the neko with an apologetic smile as he stared right into her bright, golden-slitted eyes.

Being stared like this, and so close at that, the neko couldn't help but feel nervous all of a sudden. A slight blush appeared at the same time, making her already beautiful appearance enhance a few points.

Zero couldn't help but stare a little longer before a cough snapped him out of his daze.

"Ahem. T-there's no need to apologize, nya."

She stuttered.

"Hahah."

Zero couldn't help but chuckle, making the female cat pout slightly in return. It's not everyday you'd get to see a flustered Kuroka. Usually it's the other way around.

"Right, I got another question for you. By any chance, do you know how powerful the Oozaru back then was?"

The saiyan suddenly asked, he already had a rough guess, but still asked to make sure.

"Nya?"

Kuroka blinked, apparently wondering why he asked such a question.

"Just curious if you know or not. I also want to see how my current strength fairs in comparison to my ancestor."

Zero's expression turned strange for a moment as he mentioned the word 'ancestor' but quickly recovered without the neko realizing.

"Mmm, no one knows for sure nya… but there were rumours about how Ophis, the Infinite Dragon, had mentioned that the Great Ape was as strong as the Apocalypse Dragon, otherwise known as DxD himself."

After finding out that Zero was the descendent of the long lost Oozaru race, Kuroka finally knew the reason why her instincts had told her to believe him when he had told Azazel, that in a few years time, he was going to be stronger than Great Red and Ophis.

'If it was him… then it maybe it'd be possible.'

Kuroka thought to herself.

After all, ever since the beast made its first appearance, no one had seen it again, making it only a Legend, a Legend remembered to have struck fear into the hearts of each and every faction and shook the supernatural world with its mighty roar alone. That, was the Oozaru.

"So around Super Saiyan 2, huh."

Zero accidentally spoke out his thoughts.

"Super what-nya?"

"Uh…"

"It's fine, nya. You don't have to tell me; Everyone has their secrets after all."

Kuroka gave him a smile as she saw him hesitating, though there was a hidden sense of loss that flashed deep within her eyes after realizing that the saiyan didn't seem to trust her as much as she thought.

The neko quickly got over it though, returning to her positive mindset when she thought about how it was only their first time talking to each other, and not to mention that they were basically strangers other than the fact she'd stayed with him for over a year in her cat form, so it was natural for him to not trust her straight away.

Zero, who was still hesitant in revealing his prowess became determined when he noticed the hidden emotions within the feline eyes.

He was being too cautious, he felt.

The saiyan already had the strength to topple most of this world's supernatural beings, and the only thing making him refrain from telling Kuroka was the unnecessary trouble it'd bring him if word of what he said leaked out, especially when he found out that the older generation or leaders of every faction knew about the Oozaru race.

Kuroka might not have known, but Zero knew that Biblical God must've died along with the previous Satans too. He even had an intuition that it was the Oozaru who had killed the god, so there would be trouble coming his direction if anyone ever found out that he was related to the great ape in some way.

But hey, trust had to start from somewhere, and if trouble really came to his door… the one who should really be worried wasn't him, but his enemies.

"It's called Super Saiyan 2. You could say it's the ascended stage of one of my two transformations, with the other being the Great Ape form. And before you ask any questions, yes, Super Saiyan 1 is the first stage, and it's also the transformation I went into for a second to scare Azazel earlier."

Zero revealed with a smile.

Speaking of Azazel, the saiyan wondered why the guy didn't find out about his race when he had previously exposed his aura. Maybe the guy already knew, but pretended not to and didn't say anything since the subject was apparently taboo in the supernatural world. In any case, Zero made a note to ask the fallen angel the next time the guy paid him a visit.

"Nya?"

Kuroka's eyes became bright and her ears twitched a few times in happiness when she noticed Zero's change in aura.

The saiyan had suddenly become much more approachable and less conservative, something she had noticed with her sensitive Senjutsu senses.

And although the neko didn't know the reason for such a change, at least it meant that Zero was beginning to place his trust in her.

"So how powerful does that make you, nya?"

"Super Saiyan 1 would make the current me possess Super-Class strength, which is on par with the Super-Devils and all. Super Saiyan 2 on the other hand, if I'm not wrong, should make me as powerful as Great Red, that is, when I meet the conditions to use it. Unfortunately, I haven't reached that level yet, not to mention the later transformations..."

Zero replied with a slightly depressed expression on his face.

"..." Kuroka became speechless.

Did he just say, 'later transformations'?

There... was a transformation after Super Saiyan 2?

And it seems like there were… more than one?

If Super Saiyan 2 was as strong as Great Red, then what about Super Saiyan 3? ...4? ...Was there a 5?

Kuroka didn't exactly want to know but she still had a question to ask…

What kind of bullshit transformations are those?!

And hey, why does this guy's expression make her want to punch someone?

Recalling Zero's previous words about getting stronger to test his limits, the transformation the saiyan currently had, the transformations he'll possess in the future, and factoring in his age and how young he currently was, the neko was flabbergasted as she finally realized how much potential one man basically contained.

Now, looking at the saiyan's seemingly unsatisfied appearance as he finished talking about his strength, the current her only had one thought...

How much stronger did this guy plan to get?!