Issei Hyoudou (Solarverse)/Relationships

Despite being a person who is content with being left alone to his own devices, Issei has developed a few relationships throughout his life, both upon the planet Earth, and the Supernatural World. He has also unintentionally attracted the attention of most of the supernatural creatures, in part due to him being a God, and a possessor of Dragons.

Sachiko and Mitsuru Hyoudou
The adoptive parents of Issei, who found him in the Grand Ise Shrine. Both Mitsuru and Sachiko deeply love and cherish their son, and Issei himself returns the same love towards his parents. Sachiko in particular is deeply affectionate towards her son, and is one of the few beings who understands Issei's nature.

Despite this close bond however, Sachiko and Mitsuru are unaware of Issei's adventures within the world of the supernatural, with the latter preferring to keep it that way, so that they remain safe from danger.

Leiko Hyoudou
"It's her! It's always been about her! Think back to your first fight in the supernatural world. Your battle with Riser Phenex. Why did you fight him? Because he ordered his peerage to kidnap Leiko Hyoudou! And let me ask you this question, Issei Hyoudou. How did your first solar transformation occur?"

- Amenominakanushi reviewing Issei's relationship with Leiko.

The adoptive older cousin of Issei. Supportive and caring towards her younger cousin, Leiko is an extremely loving person, serving as the allusion to Issei’s humanity and morality, as well as being his voice of reason. She is a benevolent young woman who deeply adores her cousin, to the point of developing subtle but clear romantic feelings towards Issei, an observation the Great Red, Ophis and even Vali Lucifer point out. Great Red in particular notices Leiko's affection for Issei, and often accuses Leiko of having a 'cousin-complex', to which the latter vehemently denies.

Despite that, Leiko often conceals these feelings towards her cousin, with Issei being the only one who is unaware of her feelings. In reciprocation, Issei is very protective of his cousin, which only strengthens Leiko's affectionate feelings towards him. Leiko can also be somewhat overprotective and worrisome in regard to uncertain situations, especially when Issei is involved.

Little Sister
The merged spiritual form of the deceased children lost by Mitsuru and Sachiko Hyoudou, making her the adoptive younger sister of Issei. Fueled by the grudges of the Hyoudou children, Little Sister manifests on Earth in order to antagonize Issei, due to the children's misguided belief that their parents replaced them with Issei.

However, after Issei discovers who she is and why she came to Earth, he manages to successfully resolve their conflict. This allowed the child spirit to finally be put to rest, and pass on to the Third Heaven.

As her personality is an amalgamation of the Hyoudou children, Little Sister harbors a complex relationship with Issei. She inherits the hateful and quick-tempered disposition from the First Child, while possessing a sweet and clingy nature around Issei, a personality that derives from the Second Child. Despite the differences in the children's traits, it is shown that they genuinely adore Issei. On Issei's side, he cares greatly for the Hyoudou children, and despite them antagonizing him, he still aimed to put their spirits to rest.

Amaterasu, the Goddess of the Sun
The biological mother of Issei, and the Shinto Goddess of the Sun and the Universe. Due to the malevolent presence of Izanami-no-Mikoto's soul in Yomi, along with the dangers of the supernatural world, she sent the infant Issei to Earth, but watched over him as the personification of the Sun.

When she and Issei meet for the first time in seventeen years, Issei is distraught at the sight of her, unable to comprehend why Amaterasu sent him to Earth. Despite this initial animosity, Issei eventually moves on from his anger, and comes to accept Amaterasu as his mother, much to the latter's great joy.

Despite her status as a Goddess, Amaterasu is an extremely affectionate mother, and has been shown to gush and dote shamelessly on Issei, often referring to him as her 'Little Sun'. In reciprocation, Issei is often flustered and embarrassed by his mother's displays of affection, but nonetheless has the same love towards her, much like his relationship with Mitsuru and Sachiko Hyoudou.

Izanami-no-Mikoto, the Matron of the Dead
The Shinto Goddess of Creation and Death, and the grandmother of Issei. After being trapped in Yomi by her husband Izanagi, Izanami vowed to get her revenge on Izanagi by targeting his descendant; Issei Hyoudou. The Goddess then merged her consciousness with the Supernatural World, and began to subtly disrupt Issei's life.

Despite Izanami's attempts to bring his life to ruins, Issei has only pity for the Shinto Goddess, as he is fully aware of her origins and how she came to be trapped in the Underworld. Conversely, Izanami, who was fueled by her animosity against Izanagi, along with her sanity deteriorating, wanted nothing more than to exact her revenge on her husband by hurting Issei. This battle between the two ended with Issei ejecting Izanami out of Yomi, fully purifying the Goddess from the essence of the Shinto Underworld.

After she is purified, Izanami's former personality resurfaces, and her feelings towards Issei gradually changes to that of familial affection. She harbors gratitude towards Issei for setting her free, and begins to show genuine concern for his well-being after finding out about the battle between Issei and Amenominakanushi.

Gabriel, the Beauty of Heaven
Much like Ophis and many of the other supernatural creatures, Gabriel was very much aware of Issei's existence and the moment of his birth. Upon sensing Issei's latent power, she referred to it as not only vast and overwhelming, but pristine as well. When she and Issei meet for the first time, Gabriel exhibited a deep amount of fondness for him, and thanked him for (inadvertently) preventing a second Great War when he defeated Kokabiel.

Gabriel's affection for Issei deepens even more, with Irina Shidou stating that every time Gabriel began to think of something that reminded her of Issei, her wings would flicker on and off to black.

Serafall Leviathan
Serafall is shown to be very fond of Issei, often referring to him as 'Ise-chan'. Though she had initially maintained a cautious judgement of Issei after seeing his battle against Riser Phenex, Serafall's opinion of him changed when she learned of his fight against Kokabiel.

After hearing about what Kokabiel was planning to do, and what had happened to him, Serafall thanked Issei for (inadvertently) saving the lives of the Occult Research Club and the Student Council Club, and the Kuoh Academy school, despite Issei being unaware of Kokabiel's true motives.

Later on, Serafall's affection for Issei continued to grow, to the point that she often kisses Issei on his cheek whenever they meet.

Vali Lucifer, the greatest Vanishing Dragon
While Issei and Vali are the hosts of the Two Heavenly Dragons, the two share a friendly relationship. Although Vali seems to think of Issei as a rival and fellow Dragon, Issei considers Vali to be a close friend, a fact that sometimes puzzles the descendant of Lucifer.

Nevertheless, Vali has been shown to reciprocate his own feelings of their friendship and doesn't hesitate to help his rival in troublesome situations. The two also share a deep mutual respect, and look out for each other without a second thought.

Vali has also shown to be one of the few individuals who appears to find humor in Issei's naivete, as he nearly lost his composure and tried to suppress his chuckling during their encounter with Pluto. Vali has also shown a consistent desire to engage in battle with Issei, with the latter eagerly returning the same feeling.

Sona Sitri
Initially like Rias Gremory, Sona desired to claim Issei as a piece for her peerage, only to quickly discover that she was unable to use any of her Evil Pieces on him. After Issei's battle against Riser Phenex, Sona developed somewhat of a cautious disposition towards him, and as such, suggested that she and the rest of her peerage keep their distance. However, this changes once Issei reveals to her that he had no personal vendetta against her and the rest of the Devils.

Over time, the relationship between the two gradually evolves to a cordial friendship. Issei has also shown genuine respect towards Sona for wanting to pursue her dreams. On occasion, Sona has demonstrated a subtle but friendly affection towards Issei.

Genshirou Saji
Similar to his relationship with Vali, Issei considers Saji to be one of his closest friends. In fact, Saji was the first person to become Issei's friend, with the former's presence being one of the few reasons for the latter's belief that not all Devils were the same. Though he greatly values Issei as his best friend, Saji has nonetheless become somewhat exasperated with the former, due to many dysfunctional events that surround the Solar God.

As a sign of their friendship, Saji refers to Issei as "Newby", due to the latter (at the time) arriving to Kuoh Academy for the first time as a new student.

Riser Phenex, the Phoenix Prince
The third son of the Phenex Clan, and the first of many who would become an enemy of Issei. Upon sensing Issei's growing power, Riser gave into his pride and initiated a fight in the Underworld in order to see the full extent of the former's strength. In order to bait Issei, he sent two members of his peerage to bring him to the Underworld, and captured his adoptive cousin Leiko. Riser also belittled Issei, in an attempt to frustrate the latter into fighting him.

Riser's wish to fight Issei was granted when he tricked him into believing that Yubelluna had killed Leiko, causing the Solar God to undergo a murderous rage, which then led to him achieving the first evolution of his solar transformations. Overcome by uncontrollable rage and grief, Issei quickly overpowered Riser and destroyed him, completely eradicating his physical form.

After killing Riser, Issei showed immense grief and regret for the act he committed against the Phenex Devil, to the point of crying genuine tears. While he continued to hold thoughts of disdain for Riser, it was not enough for him to banish his guilt.

Upon reuniting with Riser's soul in the Realm of the Shinigami, Issei exhibited a silent but regretful aura about him, with the former having the same emotion. Riser himself explained the reason for why he wanted to fight Issei in the first place, and apologized to him for kidnapping Leiko and putting her in harm's way. On Issei's side, he revealed that killing Riser was one of the worst things he had ever done in his life.

During the battle between DxD and Qlippoth, Riser's spirit (with the permission of Death) allied himself with Issei against the latter's cousin and opposite Yoru-no-Mikoto, and the Crescent Circle Dragon Crom Cruach; shocking Issei entirely. During the end of the battle, as Crom Cruach was about to deliver the finishing blow, Issei quickly intervened to shield Riser from the attack, showing a new dynamic in their relationship.

After recovering from his injuries during his fight against Yoru, Issei opted to ask about the whereabouts of Riser, and was relieved to hear that the Phenex Devil was resting in Death's Domain.

At some point during the six-month time period, Issei asked Gabriel and Michael to allow Riser to ascend to the Third Heaven, with the Angels happily granting his request, due to the Phenex Devil's brief participation in the battle against Qlippoth.

Throughout their various interactions, the two appear to share a mutual complex relationship, with neither of them calling the other friends or enemies, and being unable to forgive themselves for what they did to the other. It should also be noted that out of all the beings Issei has harmed or destroyed, Riser is the only one he regrets subjecting it to.

On Riser's behalf, Issei has also made it his responsibility to watch over the former's peerage.

Cao Cao, the Strongest Human
<p style="font-weight:normal;font-size:14px;">Cao Cao and Issei initially start off with a somewhat antagonistic relationship, at least on the former's side, with Issei's side being more curious yet impersonal. These first impressions were due to Cao Cao being summoned by Hades, the God of the Dead, in order to challenge Issei.

<p style="font-weight:normal;font-size:14px;">The two encounter each other again, moments after Issei's battle against the Lord of Heaven Indra. Despite knowing the Hero Faction's involvement with Indra's plans and the terrible events that occured, Issei chose to let them go and evade the destruction of Svargam, showing that he holds no ill-will towards Cao Cao.

<p style="font-weight:normal;font-size:14px;">They meet again in Hades' Realm, the Depths of Hell, after Issei was released from the Supernatural World's consciousness. During this interaction, Cao Cao displayed a more affable, if not snarky disposition towards Issei, and was prone to subjecting himself to idle conversation and inane arguments with him. Cao Cao admitted that after everything he and Issei had been through together, he considered him to be a friend, though it was said in jest more than anything. He also showed frustration at Issei's inability to comprehend well-known phrases, and his varying lapses of common sense.

<p style="font-weight:normal;font-size:14px;">Nevertheless, Cao Cao harbors a degree of respect for Issei, well aware of his power and what he is capable of, and even mused to himself that he was lucky and somewhat surprised that Issei didn't view him as an enemy.

Ddraig, the Welsh Dragon
The Red Dragon Emperor that is sealed inside the Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi. He and Issei initially share a teacher-mentor relationship, which later on evolves into a mutual camaraderie. The two get along fairly well, with Ddraig at times adopting a rather snarky attitude, often making sarcastic remarks towards his host's daily lifestyle.

The Red Dragon Emperor is also shown to respect Issei for his determination, and his desire to protect the ones he loves. Ddraig is also one of the few Dragons who is affiliated closely with Amaterasu, as she was the one who sealed him in the Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi.

Yamata-no-Orochi, the Venom Blood Dragon
Yamata-no-Orochi, or rather the fragment of the original's soul, is the Dragon that is sealed inside the Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi. She was initially an enemy to Issei, as a result of her instability from being sealed in the Kusanagi sword. When she meets Issei in his inner world for the first time during the latter's battle with Susanoo-no-Mikoto, she attacks him in a blind rage. However, after her memories of her original self's hatred for Susanoo resurfaces, she assists Issei in defeating the storm God.

After the battle, Yamata-no-Orochi affiliates herself with Issei, and takes a liking to the Solar God. Due to being a Dragon that has snake-like characteristics, the Yamata-no-Orochi often displays her affection for Issei by licking his cheek. On Issei's part, he refers to the Dragon as "Orochi-chan", showing that he cares for her greatly. Yamata-no-Orochi has also shown to be protective of Issei, as she manifested outside of the Kusanagi to defend him from the Evil Dragons.

Ophis the Ouroboros Dragon
<p style="font-weight:normal;font-size:14px;">At the moment of Issei's birth, Ophis was one of the first beings to sense him. At the age of six, Issei was encountered by Ophis, who proceeded to mark the child as her mate. Approximately eleven years later, Ophis comes in contact with Issei once again, and the two gradually start a relationship deepens into one of genuine love and deep affection.

<p style="font-weight:normal;font-size:14px;">Perhaps due to her draconic nature, along with her being an aspect of ∞, Ophis harbors possessive feelings over Issei, but is nonetheless doting of him, often referring to him as "My Issei", or "My Foolish Little Mate". She refers to Issei as the one who exists to burst within the Nothingness of Infinity, and to completely surpass the trenches of Nothingness. Ophis has also stated that her true desire is to claim Issei within the boundless depths of infinity.

Great Red, the True Red Dragon God Emperor
<p style="font-weight:normal;font-size:14px;">The relationship between Great Red and Issei can best be described as a bond akin to a brotherly friendship, with the former taking the role of a mischievous yet gruff older brother.

<p style="font-weight:normal;font-size:14px;">When Ophis brought Issei to meet Great Red in the Dimensional Gap, the two immediately got along, much to Ophis' dismay. Even as 'Girly-Red' (Great Red in female form), the two's sibling-like relationship hardly deviates from what it normally is. Issei has also been somewhat of an influence on Great Red, as the latter's usual boisterous and delinquent personality has marginally mellowed down to a mischievous demeanor.

<p style="font-weight:normal;font-size:14px;">During Issei's free time, he often partakes in motorcycle riding with Great Red, with the former having to make sure the Apocalypse Dragon doesn't cause any trouble.

Tannin
<p style="font-weight:normal;font-size:14px;">Tannin served as a brief mentor to Issei after Azazel made a personal request for the Dragon King to train Issei into composing himself in battle. The two are shown to have no trouble getting along, with Tannin acknowledging Issei's strength and determination while the former put the latter through twenty days of grueling training sessions. On Issei's side, he deeply respects Tannin, and was honored to be trained by a Dragon King.

Amenominakanushi, the Progenitor of Shinto
<p style="font-weight:normal;font-size:14px;">The first Kami and the progenitor of the Shinto Faction. Out of all the beings Issei has encountered, Amenominakanushi is without a doubt the greatest antagonistic force, and the one who Issei would come to regard as his arch-enemy.

<p style="font-weight:normal;font-size:14px;">He and Issei harbor a strong hatred towards one another, with both of them finding the other mutually contemptible. After Issei freed Izanami-no-Mikoto's spirit from Yomi, Amenominakanushi manifested for the first time in over millennia, and made a declaration to punish Issei for what he did. While at first, Issei showed some level of respect and consideration towards the Kami and his pride, these emotions are quickly replaced with immense hatred and contempt. During this encounter, Amenominakanushi belittled Issei, and constantly underestimated him. He even went so far as to make subtle threats towards him, Amaterasu, and even his family on Earth in order to punish Issei further. Amenominakanushi then destroyed the Sun, which not only heavily weakened the solar deities along with Issei, but also slowly affected the Earth and its people.

<p style="font-weight:normal;font-size:14px;">The two's mutual contempt for each other would eventually lead to them battling, which then lead to Amenominakanushi attempting to destroy Issei by sending him into a black hole. Though the attempt failed, Issei's hatred for Amenominakanushi grew to its absolute peak, while the Shinto Kami's opinion of Issei heightened from fearful paranoia to absolute loathing.

Kami-Musubi, the Divine Producing Kami
<p style="font-weight:normal;font-size:14px;">Although he has not interacted with Kami-Musubi enough to establish any type of deep connection or relationship, Issei nonetheless considers the Divine Creator to be a part of his family, and treats her with the utmost respect. As such, he affectionately refers to her as "Grandma Musubi", a title that invokes genuine amusement from the Shinto deity.

<p style="font-weight:normal;font-size:14px;">On Kami-Musubi's part, she refers to Issei as a "small, feeble little star", though it is difficult to tell if the title is her way of expressing either mockery or a semblance of faint but sincere affection towards him. Due to Kami-Musubi's manipulative nature, it would be likely for her to take advantage of Issei's naivete, though given that she is also apathetic and cold, Issei would always maintain a cautious mind when near her.

Takami-Musubi, the High Creator God of Conquest
<p style="font-weight:normal;font-size:14px;">Much like his relationship with Kami-Musubi, Issei's interactions with Takami-Musubi have not been frequent enough to form a profound connection. However, he is shown to consider her family by calling her "Grandma Takami". Despite this acceptance, Issei would likely be very uncomfortable with Takami-musubi's excessively cruel and sadistic nature, along with her tendency to speak about unsettling topics.

<p style="font-weight:normal;font-size:14px;">As of now, Takami-Musubi's feelings and thoughts towards Issei are somewhat ambiguous at best, though given that she willingly responds to his familial title for her, it can be assumed that at the very least, she does not mind Issei's presence. Similar to Kami-Musubi, Takami-Musubi refers to Issei with an affectionate but somewhat belittling title, with the nickname being "Little Light".

Amatsu-Mikaboshi
Similar to the cases above, Issei's interactions and communication with Amatsu-Mikaboshi are far too small for them to develop any state of affair, whether its familial or friendly on a neutral level. The two's feelings towards each other are quite mixed, as well.

Issei, on one hand, shows deep respect and feels slight empathy for it, due to how lonely it seems to be, showing that he holds genuine worry for the entity. Like Musubi and Takami, Issei considers Mikaboshi to be a part of his family and as such, affectionately refers to her as "Grandma Mikaboshi". On the other hand, Issei's also quite frightful of Amatsu-Mikaboshi and its powers, but more importantly- its nihilistic intents. He keeps a cautious and equally nervous mind when around it, because he knows he can be destroyed effortlessly. This leaves Issei's opinion on the dark entity a bit conflicted and confused, so for him, the best option is to try and leave it be, as long as it kept its neutral role, that is.

Amatsu-Mikaboshi's opinion on Issei is as equally conflicted as his on it, but much simpler. Because of its apathetic nature, Amatsu-Mikaboshi doesn't have much to say about Issei. Issei's existence slightly invokes its ire, as he is a semi-embodiment of the element that is in its opposition - Light. Also, because of how far below it Issei is, Amatsu-Mikaboshi often views him as a tiny speck of light, an atom. However, Mikaboshi finds his familial way of speaking towards her quite bemusing and holds a small niche of favoritism towards the young Solar God. It wouldn't mind conversing with him. Like many of the other primordial entities who have interacted with Issei, Amatsu-Mikaboshi also prefers to refer to him with a belittling nickname -'Little Twinkling Star'.

God from the Bible
<p style="font-weight:normal;font-size:14px;">Though their interactions have been brief and rare, Issei and the spirit of the Biblical God show respect and friendliness towards one another. They have a relationship that borders on one between a temporary mentor-student bond. Issei is shown to have great respect towards the God from the Bible, with the latter carrying a semblance of acknowledgement for the former as well. During the battle between Team DxD and Rizevim's army along with the Trihexa, it was the God from the Bible who assisted Issei in purifying the Trihexa's malevolent nature.

<p style="font-weight:normal;font-size:14px;">After the battle, God's spirit presumably disappeared, but continued to have an blessing influence on Issei despite not being present with him. This influence manifested itself when Cao Cao attempted to stab Issei with the True Longinus, only for the latter to remain unaffected by the spear. This is due to the True Longinus, according to Cao Cao, carrying the "will" of the God from the Bible.

The "Above" Entity
The being that is responsible for the existence of all life, the "Above" Entity is the progenitor of the Omniverse as well as the overseer of the vast Universe.

Issei first comes in contact with the entity when the latter summons into the Omniverse, telling him that she was intrigued by his experiences within his Universe, and goes on to state that from now on, it would be beneficial for Issei to not disappoint her. She also demonstrated a glimpse of her interest in Issei by blowing him a kiss full of energy.

The "Above" Entity has more often than not displayed a degree of affection for Issei the longer she continued to watch over his Universe. She starts to refer to him as "precious interest", and much later on, "little darling". As a result of growing accustomed to observing the Solarverse, the "Above" Entity slowly began to feel brief but powerful surges of emotion towards Issei.

The Supernatural World
<p style="font-weight:normal;font-size:14px;">The relationship between Issei and the Supernatural World can best be described as a living world who wants its 'Visitor', a.k.a. Issei, to stay, ideally forever. When the Supernatural World becomes sentient, it manifests itself in the form of a mature human woman, and shortly thereafter, wastes no time in trapping Issei within the depths of her own consciousness.

<p style="font-weight:normal;font-size:14px;">Upon meeting the female incarnation of the Supernatural World, Issei is immediately fraught with anxiety, not knowing how to deal with her lascivious behavior towards him.

<p style="font-weight:normal;font-size:14px;">Despite this obsessive behavior, it is eventually revealed that the one thing the Supernatural World truly desires the most, is for Issei to acknowledge her as his home. Later on, the two slowly but successfully come to an understanding, and Issei begins to gradually accept the Supernatural World as his home. As a testament to the new dynamic in their relationship, Issei starts to refer to the Supernatural World as Suu, utterly delighting the world.

<p style="font-weight:normal;font-size:14px;">While Issei is still wary of the Supernatural World, he nevertheless demonstrates genuine care and concern for its well-being, often taking time to reassure the world that he will always protect it and the Earth. The female incarnation of the Supernatural World is deeply obsessed and genuinely in love with Issei, and while she maintains her desire of wanting to lock him away forever within the boundaries of her true form, she has yet to act upon those impulses.

<p style="font-weight:normal;font-size:14px;">After her mental state is partially healed by Issei, the Supernatural World's obsession with him is gradually tempered, allowing the sentient world to express her emotions on a more healthier level.