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Chapter Text

Cheering crowds. The sound of it would never lose the magic from all those years ago when she made her debut. The spotlights burned bright around the stadium, appearing as a blinding, white veil obscuring the field from inside the pitch black corridor. She walked slowly, taking in sounds with anticipation building on every step.

This was it. Her entire career - maybe even her entire life - had been leading up to this moment. She would either become the champion or go home with second place. She stopped at the edge of the light leading out of the tunnel to adjust her glasses, then to check through the collection of forty cards she'd use for this final game. Some of them had changed over the years, this last configuration representing the culmination of all her experiences and skill.

Satisfied, she placed the cards into the holder on her wrist, stepping out to roaring applause and enthusiasm from the spectators. Some of them even held signs of encouragement (and one for a glass of milk, whatever that meant). Brushing a stray hair out of her face, she traced across the long scar set into the right side of her forehead with the side of her finger. This was all really happening. It wasn't just a dream. Feeling it brought back memories; some of them painful, others happy, but all milestones on the journey to right here and now.

It was a hot July morning in Chiba. Cicadas screamed from the trees as the sun beat down on top of a small house and the accompanying garden beside it. Windows and doors had already been propped open to compensate for the lack of air conditioning system in the traditional-style home. Inside lived a young girl, seemingly unfazed by the weather as she pulled up her orange hair into two pigtails.

Adjusting a pair of white goggles on top of her head, she grabbed a weathered messenger bag off the floor of a cluttered bedroom and headed for the open front door. "I'll be back later, grandma," she called to the old woman loudly snoring in front of a baseball game on TV. Practically sprinting down the dirt path along the side of the house, she picked up the bicycle propped against the building and walked it to the dirt road leading towards civilization. It was a rusty old thing and the original red paint was all but chipped and worn off, but it still held strong in the face of adversity. Giving the tires a couple kicks to ensure they were in riding condition, she hopped on and began to pedal.

"This time I'll do it," she thought, silently mouthing the words to herself as she did. "I'll make it to the top. This is the summer when Takano Yumi becomes Duel Champion!" It had been her dream since she was a child, spurred on by her parents' stories of their careers as professional duelists. They were her heroes even to this day, and she was certain that this would be the year she'd make it big. Never mind the fact she hadn't even come close to winning a single tournament in the past, let alone anything as big as the World Championship title match. This was going to be the year no matter what.

It was only a couple minutes bike ride to the train station, giving her a relaxing voyage and plenty of time to fantasize about all the possible opponents she could fight today. Forty cards rested in an awkward pile inside the front pocket of her faded overalls, cut off at the knees for staying cool in the heat. Given she had very little money to spend, these would be about all she'd be able to use over the summer. They would do, though. She'd trained hard during the school months and felt more than ready to strike out into the official circuit. She believed in her cards.

Making good time, she arrived in the city proper earlier than expected, though nearly missing her stop after becoming distracted by her fantasies and a particularly cute baby one of the other passengers was holding. She coasted along until she arrived at a local park not too far from her junior high. With how often she'd been commuting to the city and back for things like school, it was sort of amazing she hadn't actually learned its name by now. This wasn't the time for names, though. This was the time for duels. Something like that, at least.

She'd arrived just at the end of one, in fact. A dinosaur creature was in the process of ramming a young boy, tossing him across the field as a Life Point counter ticked down to zero. From the looks of things and the happy crowd, it seemed like it had been a good match.

There was no one she knew from school at the park today. That was probably a good thing, since there weren't many people there that actually seemed to like her, and the few that did already had plans for the break and left the city for some grand adventure or another. Starting off the summer fresh would be nice for a change. Immediately, she pulled open her bag and produced a weathered duel disk, challenging the victor after some enthusiastic praise, then the loser from before, being defeated by both of them after many misplays and mistakes piled up on top of her.

The day went on, everyone at the park eventually getting a turn as the center of attention. Despite an impressively bad beginning, Yumi managed to scrape out a few victories during her next ten duels. If it was any indication of what was to come, this year was definitely looking up from the last few.

In an instant, though, the first day of summer fun came to an end. Everyone suddenly became hesitant to play, turning their attention sheepishly to the top of the slope leading down into the park from the sidewalk. On top of it stood a pink haired girl in a blue dress and matching beret, flanked by two other, seemingly less important girls.

"Who's that?" Yumi whispered to an equally unimportant child near her, not really understanding why everyone was suddenly so afraid.

The other kid was taken aback by her ignorance. "Don't you know? That's Ishikawa Sakuya! She's the best duelist here and has been since forever."

"But I came here all the time during school. Why haven't I seen her before?"

"Because I just returned from studying abroad in France, perdant." Without either of them noticing, Sakuya and her entourage had made their way to the two mumbling children standing out in the open away from everyone else who'd wisely backed away. "The better question would be, 'Who are you and why do you think you can come to my park without permission?'"

Foreign language wasn't Yumi's strong suit. She'd barely learned English at this point and one of her parents was even from America. Deciding to overlook the mysterious(ly insulting) word, she went on to answer the rest of the sentence. "Takano Yumi, and no one ever told me this was your park. I thought it was for the public. I never even learned the name, actually. Do you know what it's called? Also, wasn't that two questions?"

Sakuya was at a loss for words. Pointing towards the entrance, she highlighted a large, multicolored sign with writing on it. "Chiba Park," she said dryly.

Yumi knocked herself on the head. "I forget to read sometimes!" After a brief moment of total silence, Sakuya surprised everyone by breaking into a small chuckle. Nervously, most of the other kids joined in, Yumi deciding to on her own since she thought herself funny.

"You're alright," she said. "I'll forgive you for not knowing the rules this time." Her temperament suddenly snapped into grave seriousness. "Don't let me see you here again or there's going to be trouble."

She turned to leave, only to freeze in place upon hearing, "But I like this park." Her head whipped back over her shoulder. "Everyone here is really nice and we have fun playing together. I don't want to leave." And the most inflammatory statement yet: "Maybe we could duel sometime, too."

Everyone gasped in the way only a group of children placing far too much value onto meaningless playground antics could. Whatever tolerance she had for the newcomer had vanished at the end of that sentence. "If you knew the first thing about how it works around here, you'd know I would never lower myself to the level of someone like you. None of them are worthy to duel me, and some brainless country bumpkin like you certainly isn't any better."

"But how would you know if you don't even try? I bet you're just afraid to lose." Yumi was starting to get frustrated. She had just as much right to be here as anyone else, and all those things Sakuya kept saying about her were mean. It had always been her belief like her parents before her that people could understand each other through things like Duel Monsters. Maybe if they could just settle this the right way, they could come to some kind of understanding, too.

One of the girls flanking Sakuya barked about disrespect and deanding apologies, but was cut off by their seeming leader raising a hand. "If that's how you want to settle this, then fine. I'll give everyone the privilege of watching my duel as I stomp you into the ground." Reaching into a navy and black backpack one of her supporters had been carrying for her, she produced a custom blue trimmed duel disk, sliding it onto her right arm and fastening the clasps. "I'll warn you before we start that I only play with a special Ante Rule. The winner can take any card they want from the loser, so I hope you're not too attached to whatever it is you have there."

"That sounds exciting!" Yumi proclaimed, confident in her win and anticipating being able to add something new to her collection, though not really putting the pieces together that it would mean taking it directly from someone else (she could be a bit slow on the uptake from time to time). After a quick shuffle, they both inserted their decks into the holders on their machines, activating them in unison as they shouted, "Duel!"

Five cards for each of them to start. "I almost feel bad for you carrying around that piece of garbage on your arm, so I'll let you take the first turn." She wasn't exactly wrong in that regard. Yumi's duel disk was a relic by modern standards. A first generation model with chipped paint and several lights gone completely dark. It still worked well enough, though, and she'd managed to find help in keeping it from falling apart. She didn't really have the option to replace it, but it held a great deal of sentimental value that wouldn't allow her to do so, anyway.

"Thanks for the help!" Yumi took a card from her hand and slapped it onto the board. "I summon Flame Viper!" A tiny, orange snake with a single eye in its head materialized between the duelists, a display showing it only possessed a measly 400 ATK. Everyone in the crowd was visibly distraught as such a bad play right out of the gate. "I'll set one card and end my turn."

"This should be over quickly," Sakuya thought to herself. "Draw!" With a small chuckle, she added her new card to her hand, taking another to lay onto the field. "I summon Wiener Dragon in Attack Mode!" In front of her appeared a small dragon creature with stubby legs and wings far too small for its body.

"It's so cute!" Yumi screamed, a small laugh passing through the crowd.

"It is not cute!" Sakuya yelled back. "I'll show you how dangerous it is when I use its effect." The little dragon began to glow a pale orange, then made a sound partway between a roar and a bark. "When I summon this card, it lets me add another copy of itself to my hand." She was already off to a much better start than her opponent, playing a 1700 ATK monster on her first turn and maintaining a six card hand. "I'll activate this card next - Stamping Crush!"

The dragon raised up the tiny legs on the left side of its body, stomping the ground and opening a fissure across the field. It traveled to Yumi's side, exploding outwards and tearing the image of her card - Justi-Break - to pieces. "When I have a Dragon-Type monster on my field, I can use this card to destroy one of your set Magic or Trap Cards, then inflict 500 damage to you." As she said that, the debris organized itself in the air and rained down on the card's owner, reducing her Life Points to 3500.

"My turn isn't over. Now I'll attack your worthless monster with my dragon! Overheat!" From its furry mouth came a blast of fire headed straight for the snake. The reptile let out a panicked shriek before being engulfed, bursting into pieces and further reducing its owner's Life to 2200. "I told you this was a waste of time. I'm feeling generous today, so if you get down on your knees and beg, I might let you walk away from this."

Yumi only smiled despite the devastating loses from this turn. "But we only just started. You can't know how a duel is going to end after the first battle.

Sakuya was unamused by the optimism and only scoffed. "If that's how you want this to end, then fine. I won't hold back at all. I'll play another card from my hand after that, Begging!" A green-bordered projection rose from the ground, depicting a sad basset hound looking up at a hand holding a bone. "By Releasing one of my monsters that's both a Dragon and Beast-Type, I can look at your hand and take a Magic or Trap Card for myself."

That card made no sense to Yumi. "But how can you use that? You only have a Dragon-Type on the field."

Sakuya scoffed again. "My monsters have a special ability that allows them to be both at once as long as they're on the field or in my Graveyard. Now show me your hand." The monster shattered to pieces as Yumi sighed and held out the three cards left to her for her opponent to take. Critter, Sunlight Unicorn, and Gizoku no Gokuisho. Sakuya blinked at the revelation coming upon her. "You really don't have any good cards, do you?" Nevertheless, she took the Trap among them per the constraints of her card.

"I'll set two cards and end my turn," she concluded, placing them face-down on her otherwise barren field. As bad a start as she'd had, Yumi's situation could improve dramatically depending on the next turn's fortune. Her opponent had no wall to block a direct attack and Sunlight Unicorn would more than make up for the gap between their Life Points if it could succeed.

"I'll draw!" she declared, taking the top card off her deck. Things really were about to get much better if this was any indication of what was to come. "Lucky! I play Pot of Greed, which lets me draw two cards!" An ugly, green jar appeared on the field, a deep laugh emanating from the hole at its top. After completing its effect and adding two new cards to her hand, it shattered.

"I summon Sunlight Unicorn!" she proclaimed, a beautiful, white equine with a long horn and blue mane appearing on her field with a loud whiny. "Now I can use its effect, which lets me excavate the top card of my deck, and if it's an Equip Magic, I can add it to my hand." The Goddess of Victory (or something like it) was smiling on her for this match, since her chance met its mark. "I got Fighting Spirits," she declared, adding the card to her hand with the faintest hint of smug satisfaction.

She outstretched her arm with a smile. "Direct attack! Rainbow Dash!" The monster whinnied a second time, charging forward with head bent to spear Sakuya's undefended body.

"And here I thoght you'd make a better move than that with all the luck you'd been having." This only left Yumi confused, as her situation was obviously far superior at the moment. "I activate my Trap Card," Sakuya declared, "Call of the Living Dead!" Fog began to shroud her side of the field. "This Trap Card lets me take a monster in my Graveyard and summon it back to the field," she explained, just in time for Wiener Dragon to make its triumphant return by bursting from the ground.

Though a bit shaken, Yumi continued her attack. "Sunlight Unicorn still has more ATK, so it won't even matter!"

"You're wrong again," Sakuya declared in defiance. "Did you forget that I set two cards? I activate Roar of Pride!" Her second card flipped up, engulfing her dragon in a white aura. "When my monster battles with one of yours while it's outclassed, I can pay Life Points equal to the difference and add them to its ATK, plus another 300." Her Life Points dropped for the first time, landing at 3900 to make up for the 100 point deficit between the two cards. "Overheat!" she called out, the powered up dragon releasing a beam of fire onto the unicorn, shattering it like the snake before it and reducing Yumi's Life Points to 1900.

Her initial optimism was finally starting to wain, a sharp exhale fro frowing lips signifying her growing dread. "I'll set a card and end my turn," she said in a defeated tone.

"You're outmatched," Sakuya said. "You were a hundred years too early to challenge me, so just give up and save me the trouble of beating you even more.

Despite her tight situation, Yumi refused. "I won't give up until the end!" she declared.

Sakuya shook her head. "Have it your way. Draw!" She placed another monster onto the field. "I summon my second Wiener Dragon and use its effect to add a third copy to my hand." After resolving the effect, she looked to Yumi, her icy blue eyes locking with the other girl's burning red. "This is the end. Both of my dragons will attack you directly." Without any fanfare, the monsters charged twin fireballs in their mouths, blasting the into a single stream headed towards their target. "I told you this is how it would end."

"You say a lot of things, but that doesn't mean they're true," Yumi replied, pressing a button as hard as she could on the inside section of her disk (it was prone to sticking and she had to be sure). "I activate Attack Nullification! This ends the Battle Phase and stops your monsters from attacking me for the rest of this turn."

This caught her off guard. While not a rare card, given the pitiful display before this, it surprised the pink-haired girl to see her opponent putting up any sort of resistance at this point. "So that's how you'll be. Fine, then. I set a card and end my turn."

"Now the fun can really start!" Yumi declared, drawing her card and immediately placing a monster down. "I summon Rusty Swordsman in Attack Mode." A cartoonish little knight with rust-stained armor appeared on her field.

"What do you expect to do with that garbage?" she questioned. It was a valid concern. Rusty Swordsman was nothing more than a Normal Monster with 1500 ATK.

"There's no such thing as a useless card," Yumi said with confidence. "You just have to know how to use it in a way that can make it stand out. I'll equip Rusty Swordsman with Rusty Sword!" The feeble, broken weapon the knight had previously been carrying started to glow, transforming into a large, rust-coated broadsword, filling the monster with determination.

"I can only equip Rusty Sword to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster that's ATK and DEF aren't higher than 1500. While it's equipped, Rusty Swordsman gains an effect!" It's ATK state began to climb as the little warrior flexed. "Now it's original ATK is increased by its DEF!" This added up to 2500.

"That's not all! Now I equip Fighting Spirits from my hand!" The already empowered warrior began to glow bright white as its ATK grew to 3100. "Thi card increases my monster's ATK by 300 for every monster on your side of the field. Now I attack your second dragon and activate Rusty Swordsman's second effect!" Yumi's Life Points reduced to 1400, the missing values adding to the swordsman's ATK, boosting it to 3600. "I can pay up to 500 Life Points to increase his ATK by that same amount. Rusty Slice!"

The attack connected, Wiener Dragon letting out a whimper before shattering into pieces and taking 1900 Life Points with it. Whether it was luck or hidden skill, she'd managed to nearly even them out at 1400 and 200 Life Points, respectively. Her field was far superior now, too, even if Swordsman's ATK fell to 3300 after the fact. However, Sakuya was not disturbed by this.

"I didn't give you enough credit. That whole idiot persona is just an act, after all. The bad plays, the terrible cards; you use all that to throw your opponent off before you go in for the kill. I won't be falling for it anymore." She pressed a button to activate her set card. "When you destroyed my monster, I activated my Trap Card, Beast Unleashed!" A violent-rimmed card flipped up, portraying a violent gorilla tearing out of a suit and tie.

"When one of my Beast-Type monsters is destroyed, I can add its ATK to another Beast monster on my field until the end of my turn." The remaining dragon's ATK strength grew to 3400, overtaking the knight by a mere 100 points.

"I end my turn," Yumi said, disappointed that she was once again outmaneuvered by her opponent despite the comeback she'd just achieved.

"Draw!" Sakuya shouted, smiling slightly at seeing the Fusion card in her hand. "I play Poison Fang from my hand. This is a Permanent Magic Card that inflicts 500 damage to you every time one of my Beast-Type monsters damages you from battle. Attack! Overheat Plus!" The addition to the attack name soon became clear, as the dragon's ATK grew by another 100 points. "Whenever my dragon attacks, it gains 100 ATK for every other Dragon-Type monster in my Graveyard, so I have you to thank for finally letting me use this ability."

The swordsman hid behind its sword, enduring the heat as best it could. "I use Fighting Spirits' second effect to destroy itself in place of my monster." The aura around the knight vanished as its equip card disappeared. It's ATK would drop to 3100 following the battle.

Damage was still to come, though. "Because of my Beast Unleashed effect, all Battle Damage is halved until the end of this turn, so you'll only take 100 from my attack, plus the 500 from my Poison Fang." Yumi's Life Points dropped further, leaving her at 800. She couldn't afford to be hit anymore. That effect damage would be too devastating now. "I'll end my turn with that."

The thought of losing hadn't crossed her mind at all today. Losing had always seemed like an inevitable part of playing the game. It didn't matter. It was just another way to grow and learn. But this duel had stakes. For the first time, she was afraid to lose. If she lost this, she'd lose one of her cards. Every single one of them was precious to her and she couldn't imagine parting with any of them. She had to win at all costs.

Drawing for her turn, she saw her out. "I'll attack with Rusty Swordsman and use its effect to increase its ATK by 500!" Her Life Points fell to a dangerous 300, in turn raising the knight's ATK to 3600. "Your dragon's ATK went back to normal after you ended your turn, so now you'll take 1900 points of damage!" She was right, and the look of irritation on Sakuya's face said she had no counter. As her monster shattered, her own Life was reduced to 100. "I set once card and end my turn."

"I've played with you long enough." Sakuya began her turn by drawing. "I summon my final Wiener Dragon in Attack Position. Now, I activate the Magic Card, Fusion!" Red and blue colors began to spiral in the air, drawing in her monster on the field and the Emerald Dragon from her hand. "I use my Level 5 or lower Beast-Type monster on my field and the Level 6 or higher Dragon-Type monster from my hand to create my ultimate monster! Fusion Summon!" She clasped her hands together above her head, then brought them down in a swift motion in front of her. "Appear before me, Level 8! Sad-Eyes Hound Dragon!"

From the spiraling energy appeared a massive dragon creature covered in brown and white fur. True to its name, its eyes were that of a big, lovable hound dog, though the fangs poking from its jowls betrayed any innocence. Despite the theatrics, though, it only possessed 3000 ATK, 600 shy of matching Rusty Swordsman after its multiple buffs.

"I activate Sad-Eyes' effect, Draining Eyes!" The dragon's eyes began to glow, sending out waves of light towards Rusty Swordsman. They appeared harmful, electricity crackling around it as they impacted. "Once per turn, Sad-Eyes can drain 1000 ATK from any monster on your field until the end of my turn, bringing your monster to 2600 ATK."

The dragon changed positions. Previously, it had laid its head on its paws as if begging for some kind of gigantic treat. Now it raised up, towering over the field and decidedly ready to attack. "This is the end!" Beam Eyes of Destruction!" The dragon fired two yellow blasts of energy from its eyes, targeting the knight.

"I have one more card, or did you forget about that?" As Yumi tried to repeat her opponent's previous words back at her, she activated her set. "I use Intrigue Shield!" A gold and black shield appeared in Rusty Swordsman's hand. Hiding behind it, the eye beams found their mark on the newly created defense, dissipating and accomplishing nothing.

Sakuya was taken aback at this. "When I activate it, Intrigue Shield becomes an equip card to one of my monsters. I don't take any damage from battles with it, and it can't be destroyed in battle once per turn while it's in Attack Mode."

Seeing no other options for the time being, Sakuya set one card and ended her turn. "Draw!" Yumi said, finding nothing useful or needed on that draw. "Rusty Slice!" she commanded, the knight charging forward now that its ATK had been restored.

"That won't work. I can activate Sad-Eyes' effect during either turn." The scene repeated itself, but in reverse. The swordsman's blows were swatted away by the dragon, whose own counterattack was blocked by the shield. In the end, it was a stalemate. Yumi ended her turn after that with nothing else to do. Sakuya did the same drawing an unusable monster.

The next turn, however, changed all that. Yumi's demeanor shifted. She was far less excitable, a calm rushing through her mind. She no longer felt afraid. A wave of relief and happiness washed over her as she looked at the card she'd just drawn. "This was a fun duel. We should do this again sometime. Yumi was sure of herself again. She knew she would win now.

"I Release Rusty Swordsman to Advance Summon! Make your debut, Majesty Magician!" The knight transformed into a ball of white light, flying upwards until it exploded into red, blue, and green fireworks. From out of the explosions appeared a white-suited humanoid in a top hat, half its face covered by a black mask with a white star over the right eye. It adjusted its black bow tie and gave a bow after landing on the field. "If the monster I use for Release was originally a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 ATK and DEF or less, I only need one Release to summon him."

"What do you expect a monster with only 2500 ATK to do for you?" Sakuya asked, skeptical of anything that seemed to be nothing but fanfare in place of an actual strategy.

"Majesty Magician has a special trick just for situations like this," she answered. With a flick of its wrist, a puff of smoke appeared, allowing it to grab a black cane from within despite the physical impossibility. "It's treated like one of the monsters I can use to summon it for card effects!" She slipped a card onto the board. "Instant Magic, Grandeur! This lets me take an Equip Magic Card from my Graveyard and equip it to a monster on my field. I choose Rusty Sword!"

The magician swung its cane around on its forearm, tossing it into the air where it exploded into another puff of smoke. Out fell the sword from before, which it caught in hand and swung onto its shoulder. "Now Majesty Magician's ATK increased to 4500!" There were gasps from the crowd, most of which had remained silent for the majority of the duel after how surprisingly engaging it turned out to be (rather than the curbstomp most of Sakuya's matches ended as). Not only did it reach such a high number, it comfortably overtook Sad-Eyes with room to spare. Was this newcomer really going to beat Sakuya?

"I activate Sad-Eyes' effect to reduce your monster's ATK by 1000." Even with this, it was still 500 points too high, and 400 more than her remaining Life Points.

"That won't do any good, sorry. Majesty Magician, it's time to end the show. Majesty Strike!" Turning the sword over in its hand into a reverse grip, the monster rushed forward, intending to cleave the dragon in half. It went low, striking up as Sad-Eyes charged forward to try and bite its opponent. They were about to connect. She was about to win.

"Reverse Card, open." A hush fell over the entire park as the monsters clashed. They stood still, neither making a move. Finally Majesty Magician twitched. Then it groaned. Finally, it shattered into pieces, taking the last of Yumi's Life Points with it.

"I activated my Trap Card, Castle of Dragon Souls. By banishing a Dragon in my Graveyard, I can increase the attack of another Dragon on my field by 700. That put Sad-Eyes' ATK at 3700, 200 points higher than your magician."

Yumi fell to her knees in despair and defeat. How could she lose here? It actually mattered this time. How could she lose when it mattered this much? With every ounce of willpower, she fought back the urge to cry as Sakuya Approached her. "This one will do," she said coldly, taking the Majesty Magician off Yumi's duel disk and dropping the borrowed Trap Card from before in its place. "Get out of my sight."

She walked away in defeat, pulling her goggles down over her eyes in shame, a few members of the crowd whispering among themselves about how this was inevitable from the start - this is what happened when you dueled Sakuya. Without even the motivation to ride her bike, she plodded along the sidewalk with it aimlessly until dusk. Her grandmother would be expecting her back soon, but she didn't want to go home. She'd lost something today that she could never replace.

Eventually, she wandered along to a hillside overlooking a road. Not quite as romantic as a pier or a riverside, but it would have to do. Her mind started to wander as she watched the cars go by, too distracted to notice that someone had sat down beside her for a good few minutes. Once her consciousness returned, she was shocked to see Sakuya next to her.

She pushed away on the ground, tumbling over a bit as she lifted her goggles up. Tears fell all over her face and her dull gray t-shirt, not even realizing she'd been crying. "Oh, c-crap. Sorry, I-I'm...sorry. I'm sorry." The other girl raised an eyebrow. "I won't come back. I promise."

"I'm not here to scare you off again," she said. Reaching into her backpack, she pulled out a card. "Take this." It was Majesty Magician.

Yumi looked at it, not daring to reach forward. "You won. It's yours now.

Sakuya scoffed. "Like I have any use for a card like this. It's meant for you." She paused, waiting for Yumi to finally accept it, which she eventually did. "I'm sorry about all the stuff I said before. I kind of have a reputation here. It's why I don't duel. If I had to go find everyone I beat and give them their cards back, someone would let it slip eventually and then that would the end of me."

"But why do all that in the first place?" Somewhere between the park and this hill, an evil(?) clone must have assumed Sakuya's identity. She'd completely changed personalities.

"When I was younger, I used to get bullied a lot. One day I finally stood up for myself and I started fighting people, but I didn't to keep hurting everyone like that. That's why I switch to Duel Monsters. All I had to do was beat whoever was best around the city and everyone was too scared of me to start anything. Have to keep up appearances, though."

"You do all this so people won't pick on you?" she asked to confirm.

Sakuya nodded, pulling her knees up to her chest. "Yeah. I hate what I do, but I'm too weak to try and change at this point. It's okay if you don't forgive me. I get it."

"That's not true!" Yumi blurted out, nearly causing Sakuya to jump out of her skin. "My parents used to say that you can understand people through dueling, and I think I understand now. You think you need to hurt people so they don't hurt you back, but I know if people could see you like this, they'd like you, too. And you're not weak at all. You're one of the strongest duelists I've ever seen, and your deck is super cool and cute. And you came all this way just to explain everything to me and give my card back."

Sakuya laughed quietly, even smiling a bit. "You talk really fast sometimes." She paused for a second. "Wait, you like me?"

Yumi laughed nervously, scratching the back of her head. "Well, yeah. You can't be all bad, right? And I still want to play again sometime like I said before."

Sakuya couldn't help but laugh harder. She placed a hand over her mouth, trying to hide the fact she was blushing, too. "You're not all bad either, Miss Takano," she said with a sigh.

"You can just call me Yumi. I don't mind."

"Then I guess you can call me Sakuya." She got up after that. "You can come back to the park if you want. I'll think of a story to explain it, so just play along." She paused, looking to the side and shifting back and forth. "And maybe we could...do something together sometime. Since you 'like' me, and stuff. And people do stuff together if they 'like' each other. Like I could give you some cards if you want to try and make your deck better, and we could practice without a bunch of people watching. Or something. I don't know."

Yumi stared up at her with starry-eyed amazement. "I have to go home now, " Sakuya said abruptly. "Bye, I guess." She took off down the sidewalk at the closest thing to a sprint her sandals would allow. All Yumi could do while she watched was grin. She made a friend on the first day of summer. If that wasn't a sign of good things to come, nothing was. She replaced Majesty Magician back with the rest of her cards, hopped on her bike, and pedaled towards home.

He cracked his neck, flipping the matted locks of hair attached to his head in every direction. Darkness was all he could see. That was fine, though. This was home. "Home" as far as a word like that meant anything to him, though the form he was in was decidedly not what he'd consider casual wear. "Almost time to start," he said lazily, cracking his neck a few more times. "Five more minutes won't hurt." Returning to rest, his slumber would continue for now.

\Next: Truth and Takoyaki - What's She Hiding?/

Cards Used in Order of Appearance

Flame Viper
EARTH
Level 2
Pyro
400 ATK/450 DEF

Wiener Dragon
FIRE
Level 4
Dragon/Effect
1700 ATK/1200 DEF
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. When this card is Normal Summoned: You can add 1 “Wiener Dragon” from your Deck to your hand. While attacking, this card gains 100 ATK for each Dragon-Type monster in your Graveyard.

Stamping Crush (Stamping Destruction)
Normal Spell Card
If you control a Dragon-Type monster: Target 1 Spell/Trap Card on the field; destroy that target, and if you do, inflict 500 damage to its controller.

Justi-Break
Normal Trap Card
Activate only when your opponent declares an attack against a face-up Normal Monster you control. Destroy all monsters on the field, except face-up Attack Position Normal Monsters.

Begging
Normal Spell Card
Tribute 1 monster that is both Dragon-Type and Beast-Type; add 1 Spell or Trap card from your opponent's hand to your hand.

Gizoku no Gokuisho (Secrets of the Gallant)
Normal Trap Card
Select 1 Normal Monster you control. When the selected monster inflicts Battle Damage to your opponent this turn, your opponent discards 2 random cards.

Critter (Sangan)
DARK
Level 3
Fiend/Effect
1000 ATK/ 600 DEF
When this card is sent from the field to the Graveyard: Add 1 monster monster with 1500 or less ATK from your Deck to your hand.

Sunlight Unicorn
LIGHT
Level 4
Beast/Effect
1800 ATK/1000 DEF
Once per turn: You can excavate the top card of your deck, and if it is an Equip Spell Card, add it to your hand. Otherwise, place it on the bottom of your Deck.

Pot of Greed
Normal Spell Card
Draw 2 cards.

Fighting Spirits (Fighting Spirit)
Equip Spell Card
The equipped monster gains 300 ATK for each monster your opponent controls. If it would be destroyed in battle, you can destroy this card instead.

Call of the Living Dead (Call of the Haunted)
Continuous Trap Card
Activate this card by targeting 1 monster in your Graveyard; Special Summon that target in Attack Position. When this card leaves the field, destroy that target. When that target is destroyed, destroy this card.

Roar of Pride (Prideful Roar)
Normal Trap Card
During damage calculations, if your monster battles an opponent's monster with a higher ATK: Pay Life Points equal to the difference in ATK; your monster gains ATK equal to that difference +300, during damage calculation only.

Attack Nullification (Negate Attack)
Counter Trap Card
When an opponent's monster declares an attack: Target the attacking monster; negate the attack, then end the Battle Phase.

Rusty Swordsman
EARTH
Level 4
Warrior
1500 ATK/1000 DEF

Rusty Sword
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: This card's original ATK increases equal to its DEF. When this card attacks, during the Damage Step: You can pay Life Points in multiples of 100 (maximum 500); this card gains ATK equal to that amount.

Beast Unleashed
Normal Trap Card
Activate only when a Beast-Type monster on your side of the field is destroyed while there is another Beast-Type monster on your side of the field. All face-up Beast-Type monsters on your side of the field gain ATK equal to the ATK of the destroyed monster, until the end of your next turn. Any Battle Damage inflicted to your opponent during your turn is halved.

Fusion (Polymerization)
Normal Spell Card
Fusion Summon 1 Fusion Monster from your Extra Deck, using monsters from your hand or side of the field as Fusion Materials.

Poison Fang (Poison Fangs)
Continuous Spell Card
Each time a Beast-Type monster inflicts Battle Damage to your opponent, inflict 500 damage to your opponent.

Emerald Dragon (Luster Dragon #2)
WIND
Level 6
Dragon
2400 ATK/1400 DEF

Sad-Eyes Hound Dragon
EARTH
Level 8
Dragon/Fusion/Effect
3000 ATK/2500 DEF
1 Level 6 or higher Dragon-Type monster + 1 Level 5 or lower Beast-Type monster
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. Once per turn, during either player's turn: You can target 1 face-up monster on the field; it loses 1000 ATK until the End Phase. If this Fusion Summoned card is sent to the Graveyard: You can add both cards used as Fusion Material to your hand.

Intrigue Shield
Normal Trap Card
Target 1 face-up monster you control; equip this card to that target. Once per turn, while the equipped monster is in Attack Position, it cannot be destroyed by battle. You take no battle damage from attacks involving it.

Majesty Magician
DARK
Level 8
Spellcaster/Effect
2500 ATK/2000 DEF
You can Tribute Summon this card by Tributing 1 monster that was originally a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. This card is treated as an appropriate target for a card that specifically designates a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF while face-up on the field or in the Graveyard (its Level and ATK/DEF do not change).

Grandeur (Swords at Dawn)
Quick-Play Spell Card
Target 1 Equip Spell Card in your Graveyard and 1 appropriate monster on the field, equip the Equip Spell Card to that monster. Destroy that Equip Spell Card during the End Phase. If you activate this card, you cannot Special Summon for the rest of this turn. You can only activate 1 "Swords at Dawn" per turn.

Castle of Dragon Souls
Continuous Trap Card
Once per turn: You can banish 1 Dragon-Type monster from your Graveyard, then target 1 monster you control; it gains 700 ATK, until the End Phase (even after this card leaves the field or the monster becomes unaffected by card effects). When this face-up card on the field is sent to the Graveyard: You can target 1 of your banished Dragon-Type monsters; Special Summon that target. You can only control 1 "Castle of Dragon Souls".

Chapter Text

A little more than a week had passed since the incident at the park. Yumi and Sakuya had only grown closer despite being forced to pretend to hate each other, though this was fairly one-sided on Sakuya's part. So long as the details of their relationship and the truth to what had happened afterwards weren't mentioned, Yumi continued to treat her as her friend in public.

“Just tell me what you said to everyone,” Yumi prodded with a mouthful of rice. She'd invited Sakuya over to have lunch for the first time that day. Mostly because someone coming over to visit was exciting and spending time with her friend was nice, but also to try and force the truth out of her. The entire week, she'd ask (in increasingly more direct and perturbed manner) what their story was supposed to be to explain how Magician had ended up back in her deck and why she was allowed to come to the park once again.

Sakuya laughed nervously, trying to deflect like she'd been doing since the first time Yumi asked. “Don't worry about it,” she said. “Just keep doing what you're doing and it'll be fine.”

“Tell me!” Yumi insisted, pouting and bouncing up and down in righteous fury while still seated at the table. The sight of her ridiculous-looking anger nearly broke Sakuya's stoicism, forcing her to hold in any more laughter. There were no signs of stopping in the near future and there was a limit to how long she could look at that before cracking, so she was forced to relent.

“Well,” she began, Yumi pausing mid-bounce to listen. “I might have told them you started crying and begging to have it back, and I felt bad at how pathetic you looked and gave it to you.” Quickly trying to change the subject as Yumi fell over in shock, she announced, “Everything tastes really good, ma'am. Thank you for having me here.”

From the next room came a cackle. Sliding open the door, out walked a long haired, skinny old woman puffing on a crumpled cigarette and wiping something from her hand onto a pink apron. “That's kind of you to say. That granddaughter of mine never brings anyone over here, so it's always too quiet. Come back whenever you want.” She gave Yumi a pat on the head despite her grumpiness and glares directed at Sakuya.

“I still think you should just tell everyone the truth,” Yumi grumbled after her grandmother had left the room. “Everyone would like you a lot more if they got to see you like I do.”

“No, they'd just hate me.” She said it with a degree of certainty that seemed to imply she'd considered this idea plenty of times before. Finishing the last bits of food left, she put down her chopsticks and placed her hands together.

“Why? You're really nice when you don't boss everyone around and call us mean names in other languages.”

“Not everyone forgives as quickly as you do,” she answered while getting up from the floor. “Thank you for inviting me today. I guess I should go home now.”

Yumi took her hand, turning Sakuya's face a bright red. “No, don't go yet! I haven't even shown you my room, and stuff.” She took off running through the house, dragging the other girl's embarrassment-frozen body along with her. Nt until they made it to the other part of the house did she finally let go.

“L-lewd...” Sakuya grumbled, trying to compose herself at the unseemly amount of touching.

“My room's not that messy,” Yumi replied, missing the point of her statement. Despite this, she still pushed a pile of dirty overalls into a corner to try and tidy up. Most out of place among the various trinkets and clothes scattered around the small space was the completely clear area in front of the closet. “I wanted to show you my cards, too.” Opening the door, she pulled out a long, paper box from the floor that had previously been resting under a heavy coat.

Opening the lid, she scooted over across the floor to let Sakuya take a look through it. The box was nearly full, but even that wasn't saying much. There was only about 300 cards, at best. Suddenly, she felt almost guilty about accepting the offer for lunch. Sakuya was fairly aware of how poor her friend was based on the state of her duel disk and bike alone, but looking around at just how old all the appliances were in the house and how few things Yumi actually called her own, it started to set in just how bad their financial situation had to be.

Even more so, most of her cards weren't great and it was fairly obvious the majority were leftovers other people didn't want; so much so she might have even fished them out of the trash. There were a few here and there with some value, but the longer she looked, the more she understood that Yumi's deck contained virtually every powerful card she owned. “This just reminded me,” Sakuya said, opening her own card hold. She sifted through her deck and pulled out a card. “I said I'd give you some stuff to help you improve your deck, so you can have this.”

Yumi's eyes went wide as she held it in her hands. “Holy Barrier – Mirror Force!” she read. “But this is a super rare card. Don't you want it?”

Sakuya only smiled, shaking her head. “It's okay. I have one already. I brought that for you.” She was lying, but it didn't matter. It was just a card, and if it could make her friend happy and repay her in some small way for all the kindness she'd shown in such a short amount of time, it would be fine to part with.

“You're so cool!” She dove in for a hug, but was nimbly dodged at the last second, running into the floor.

Sakuya crossed her arms and turned up her nose. “You're too eager to keep touching me.”

“You mean you didn't like holding my hand before?” Yumi asked with a laugh.

“Of course not,” she replied. “Your hands are too rough. It's like you work in the fields, or something.” The blush had returned.

“I do. Grandma makes me tend the garden we have in the backyard when it's planting season. We try to grow most of our own food, so it was really cool that we got to eat shrimp when you came over.” Yumi traded out one of the cards from her deck to include the Mirror Force she'd just been given, then dropped them back into her pocket. “Hey, we should go to your house next time. I bet you've got a big mansion with all kinds of food, like takoyaki. And horses.” Takoyaki and horses were Yumi's favorite, though in vastly different categories.

“Why would I have any of that?” she asked, trying to ignore the fact she'd inadvertently mocked her friend's actual chores like a careless ass.

“Because you're all rich, and stuff.”

“Oh, right. There aren't any horses at my house, and I'm not really allowed to have friends over. Sorry.” Biting her bottom lip, Sakuya searched for something else to talk about. “I never asked, but are you visiting here for the summer? I still never saw you in the park before the other day.”

She shook her head. “No, I live here. I just didn't find that place until 7th year because my old school wasn't anywhere close to it. My whole family used to live here before my parents went away.”

Sakuya's expression dropped. “What do you mean? Where did your parents go?”

“We're not sure,” Yumi admitted, suddenly looking very contemplative and serious. “I was really young at the time, so I don't really remember the details too well. Grandma won't talk about it with me, either. I just know they had something important to do and haven't come back yet.” She wasn't sad saying this. She missed them, for sure, but she respected their dedication to whatever task they were out there trying to accomplish. “Before that, though, they were pro duelists, just like I'll be one day.”

“Really?” Sakuya asked, the mood whipping back around to positivity suddenly. “Are they anyone I'd have heard of?”

“Of course! My dad is 'White Tiger' Bunta, the three time Japanese National Championship best of eight and one time champion, and my mom is Stella Gallardo, the two time American National Champion. They met by accident at the World Tournament when they thought they were paired for a duel, but then they both lost when they found their real opponents.”

For the first time in a long while, Sakuya was amazed by something. “Your parents are really that good?” she asked, almost intimidated by her friend's lineage. It sort of begged the question of why she wasn't a lot better at the game, unfortunately.

“They're amazing! I bet they could even win the World Championship when they come back now.” Despite how worked up Yumi could get, this was the first time Sakuya was seeing her feel this much pride in something. She loved her parents a lot, which is why she had already started preparing for what would come next. “What do your parents do?”

Sakuya sighed slowly. “My father is a businessman and my mother...isn't here anymore.” She remained stoic while saying this. It hurt to think about, but she knew she'd have to talk about it after foolishly starting the parent topic herself.

“I'm really sorry,” Yumi said. She had no idea this would happen. Reaching out to touch her friend's hand in condolence, she recoiled at the last second. Sakuya didn't like being touched. She didn't want to make another mistake.

“It's okay.” She smiled weakly to try and convince Yumi she was fine. “I actually have a scar from it. The accident, I mean.” She pulled up her t-shirt to reveal a jagged line along the left side of her stomach. “I only have one kidney now, too.” An unconvincing laugh punctuate her statement, memories start to flash back to her. The sound of the horn, her body shifting in an instant and being tossed through the side window, the pain that literally blinded her at one point and the feeling of crawling along the pavement, all ending on the sight of deep, red blood pouring out of the leg next to the car door.

She smiled wider this time. “Hey, do you want to have a duel? You should probably test how your new card works in your deck.” Something to take her mind off the images. Just something to get them out of her head again. This was a good day with a friend. She didn't want to ruin this.

“Oh. Sure, yeah. One second.” Yumi pulled a small table out of her closet, just big enough for something like Duel Monsters to fit on. Worried as she was, she didn't dare push the subject any further. If Sakuya wanted to talk about it, she'd let her. “You won't beat me this time,” she said, placing the table down and taking out her deck to shuffle. “I learned all your strategies last time.”

“We had one duel,” Sakuya said with a chuckle. “A peasant like you can't hope to defeat me. You're a thousand years too early to challenge me.”

“You used that one already. And how did I get even worse than the last time?”

“I just overestimated your skill. That's all.”

They laughed and set down their decks. “Since you're a guest here, you can go first,” Yumi told her with a dramatic flourish of her hand.

“Still making simple mistakes, I see. Fine, I'll teach you not to underestimate your superiors.” They were able to play several times before dusk. Needless to say, it was much more fun than their original encounter now that nothing was at stake and they were allowed to enjoy the duel. Despite how many close matches they had, though, Yumi would always end up losing. It didn't matter, though, as she'd always come back ready for more.

While picking up for another, Sakuya looked out the window. “I should be home by now,” she said worriedly. “My father's going to be upset.”

“It's going to be dark soon, so you should probably stay here tonight. We don't have a car to take you home.”

“Are you sure that's okay? I never asked.” She shifted back and forth, wringing her hands out of sight.

“Of course it is. Grandma loves company. I'll go tell her you're staying with us, and you can use the phone in the sitting room to call your house.” Yumi took off down the hall as Sakuya pulled a cellphone out of her pocket and confirmed the arrangements with her father.

“I'll be back in the morning,” she said. “It's just not safe for me to walk all the way home at this time. I' sorry for not realizing the time and being back sooner.”

She could hear a groan from the other end of the phone. “Okay, I guess. You be safe out there. It's the wild.” He paused, holding in a burp. “It's country, and all that. Come home in the morning.”

“I will, father. Don't worry.”

“Okay, then. I love you.”

“I love you, t-” He'd hung up before she could finish. With a sigh, she put her phone away and stood up to go check the hall for Yumi. On time as ever, she nearly crashed into her as they both tried to walk through the door. “Is it okay for me to stay here?” she asked.

“Yep. I can give you some of my pajamas if you want to change. They're in the drawer over there. Grandma said we can sleep in here, so I'm going to go get the futons.” She shot off again to get their beds, forcing a smile out of Sakuya. Yumi was a bright person. It made her happy to spend time with her. For a little while, she didn't have to think about home or keeping up an act and could just enjoy life with a friend.

She was back in not time at all, dragging a rolled up cot into the bedroom, joined by another not long after. Sakuya had changed by then, as well. “They're a little tight, but we're about the same size, after all.” She'd accidentally taken Yumi's favorites – red, really soft flannel – and she wasn't too pleased about it.

“I guess I'm stuck with mid-tier,” Yumi grumbled under her breath. She pulled out a green, far less soft set and unbuttoned her overalls.

“What are you doing?” Sakuya asked in mild distress.

Yumi blinked in confusion. “Changing,” she answered slowly

“Don't do it here!” she exclaimed, her face matching the color of the sleepwear. “Why are you laughing?” Sakuya asked while covering her eyes, hearing Yumi burst out into a fit of giggles.

“You're so weird and shy,” she answered, taking her hair out of its tails and dropping the overalls on the floor. “I'll go change outside if it makes you feel better.” Still laughing, she walked to the hallway to finish undressing, Sakuya not daring to put her hands down until she heard the door close.

It took her no time at all to come back. “Better?” Yumi asked, now fully clothes and taking her goggles off to place on the dresser next to her hair ties.

“Only slightly,” Sakuya answered, turning up her nose in defiance.

“So fickle,” she said, pulling herself under the covers. Sakuya did the same with hers, placing her hat nearby on the floor. “Sorry if this isn't what you're used to,” Yumi said, starting to feel slightly ashamed at how someone who grew up in a city must see their simplistic living. “We always go to sleep around the time it gets dark here, and we don't have a Western house, so we use these for beds. It's probably different from where you live.”

Sakuya was unfazed by the changes. “It's kind of nice, actually. Your house is cozy.” They laid in silence for a minute before she spoke again. “I like to get away from home sometimes. It can be stressful there. You're really nice for letting me stay here.”

“It's my first time having a sleepover with someone, so it's a lot of fun. I hope we can do it again sometime.”

“Just don't undress in front of me again and I think it could happen.” She laughed to herself after that. “It's actually my first time, too.”

“I don't believe that for a second,” Yumi contested. “I bet you have plenty of friends to go sleep over with all the time.”

“All of my 'friends' are just afraid of me, or stick around because other people will be afraid of them. Except you, I guess.” She shifted under her blanket, suddenly feeling a bit self-conscious about uch information she'd dumped in a single day. She wasn't all that used to telling the truth, either.

Yumi only laughed. “I guess we're kind of the same, then. I have people at school that I talk to, but I don't think I've ever really made a friend like you before. I think I scare most of them before I get the chance.”

“But how could anyone be scared of you?” Sakuya exclaimed, almost offended at the idea. “You're the least threatening person I've ever met.”

“Not everyone lets me keep talking about Duel Monsters the way you do. I start to annoy most people after a while, and I think they all don't believe me when I say I'll be the champion one day.” Despite still laughing, this time it felt a bit hollow, like she wasn't really as unaffected as she pretended to be.

Suddenly, Sakuya's expression snapped into seriousness. She crawled out from under her blanket and leaned over Yumi, looking her directly in the eyes. “Is that really your dream?” she asked with an intensity uncharacteristic even to her.

Yumi blinked, then tried to laugh again. “That's awful sudden of you to ask. Weren't you telling me about manners earlier?”

“I need to know,” she insisted, not letting up.

After a brief pause, she swallowed hard and said, “Yeah, of course it is. I want to make my parents proud, and I want to make other people happy when they see me play and inspire them to do stuff they got told wasn't possible, too.” She couldn't fake another laugh at this. It was too important for her to act like it was a joke.

Sakuya smiled and nodded her head. “Then it's decided,” she said decisively.

“What is?” Yumi was starting to become even more confused.

“If you really want to become the World Champion, then I'm going to help you.” Her inflection was so matter of fact that it was impossible to see it as anything other than completely sincere. It left Yumi stunned and unable to speak. “If you're as dedicated as you say you are, then there shouldn't be a problem. I believe in you.”

Someone believe in her. Believe in her dream. No one had ever said that before. It made her feel things inside her. Weird things. Nice things, but weird things all the same. All she could think to say was a simple, “Thanks,” before falling silent.

Sakuya began to move back to her bed, only for Yumi to suddenly think of something else. “Wait, Sakuya.”

“What?” she answered, turning back.

Without warning, Yumi poked her friend's button nose with her index finger. “Boop,” she said simply.

“Don't boop me!” Sakuya ordered, embarrassed and rubbing her nose. Yumi only laughed, Sakuya finding it hard not to at least smile herself. “You're weird,” she said quietly, settling back in. Not long after, they were both asleep.

Morning eventually came with the sound of birds chirping outside. Or maybe it was inside, given all the open windows and doors to try and keep the place cooled. With a quiet sigh, Sakuya shifted over, slowly opening her eyes to confirm that, yes, there was a plump little brown bird inside the room, chirping at her like she'd committed some great offense to all of birdkind (maybe it was feather pillows). It was almost funny how this seemed like a something that would be a typical occurrence in the house.

“There's a bird in the house,” she said anyway, laughing quietly. Rolling over, though, she discovered there was no one besides the bird in question to hear her speak. She glanced around the room with a frown, but still couldn't find Yumi. Standing up, she walked out the door and down the hall, glancing into whatever open doors there were and only finding the grandmother snoring and gargling some spit.

It wasn't until she made it to the front door did she find Yumi doing stretches on the porch. “I was worried when you weren't there,” she said in relief. There was no fear to be had rationally, but her friend's absence was still scary to think about so suddenly. Any number of things could have potentially happened to cause the disappearance, so it was comforting to know she just liked morning yoga.

“Sorry, I thought I'd be done before you woke up.” She arched her back inwards while on her hands and the tips of her toes with an inhale, then curved her spine out while exhaling, tilting her head upwards. She jumped to her feet and twisted her body side to side a few times after that. “Grandma won't be up for about an hour, so do you want me to make breakfast for you?” Her offer was met with a suspicious leer. “What's that for?”

“Somehow, I don't trust you in the kitchen.” She ignored the protests and went there on her own. “I'll make something so you don't burn everything to the ground.”

Much to Yumi's surprise, Sakuya seemed to be quite experience at all of this, finding ingredients and setting to work almost immediately. “How do you even know how to cook?” she asked as Sakuya went about chopping some green onion and chunking tofu for miso while eggs began to fry in the background. “Don't you have, like, hundreds of chefs and stuff at your house?”

“We try to live simply where we can,” she replied, placing some rice from yesterday into the microwave. “We don't actually have any servants, in fact.”

Yumi blew a raspberry at that. “That's a waste of good richness.” Sakuya rolled her eyes, nudging the eggs as the water began to bubble, dropping in the seaweed and bean paste.

“I'm sure it's just terrible to have a friend willing to make you food so you don't accidentally kill yourself trying to do it on your own.” Yumi made faces while Sakuya explained the steps for perfect miso soup. Soon enough everything was done and they'd sat down to eat, Yumi starting to shovel down her food as soon as it hit the table while Sakuya placed her hands together for a moment.

“I take it back,” Yumi said between bites of food. “Thank you for wasting your richness. This is good.”

Sakuya looked proud of herself for cooking a meal worthy of approval. “I should be getting hoe soon, so we can't start your training until tomorrow. Sorry.” Yumi was confused. “You remember last night, right? I said I'd help you become World Champion, so we're going to have to train for it.”

“I thought that was just tired talk,” she admitted, surprised at the actual dedication to what would see like an impossible goal to a normal person.

“Nope. I decided you're going to be Champion now, so you can't back out.” She took a bite of her rice and chewed thoroughly, then continued. “So to make up for that, you're going to have to start learning about the other summoning methods without me.”

“You mean like your Fusion?” Yumi asked, slurping from her soup bowl directly and noisily chewing the solid bits.

“Exactly. Advance Summon is good in certain situations, but you'll need more versatility and power if you hope to win against someone who can use them without a lot of luck. Your Magician is your only strong monster, too. If someone locks down your equip cards, it's over.”

“Have you been analyzing my deck every time we duel?” Yumi asked timidly, pausing from her food for the first time.

“A little bit,” she admitted. “I can actually list the whole thing now, I think.”

“That's so cool!” Yumi shouted. “I always heard about people like that It sounds so useful and good. I bet you can even predict what cards I'll play now, too.” Sakuya sat with a smug smile, absorbing the praise as it was piled on. “What do you mean by saying I need to learn about them, though? I know what they are. Fusion, Synchro...Xyz! See?”

She shook her head, collecting their dishes after Yumi finished the last of her food and walking to the kitchen as she explained. “It's more than just knowing the rules to the game. It's a mindset you can only obtain by practicing and fully understanding what it means to use those cards.” Washing out the dishes, she began to dry and stack them back in the cabinets. “Besides, you only listed three of them. There's a lot more, silly.”

Yumi's face signified total perplexity, so Sakuya had no choice but to explain. “Fusion, Synchro, and Xyz are only the three Extra Deck summoning methods. There's Advance Summon, which you seem pretty proficient with, but there's also Ritual and Pendulum Summon.”

“I've never heard of that second thing,” Yumi interjected, starting to listen more intently now that a mysterious new kind ability was mentioned.

“Ritual Summon involves Ritual Magic Cards to summon monsters with Release from your hand or field. They're hard to use, but usually have a lot of power and good effects. Pendulum Cards are both monsters and Magic Cards, and you can pair them to summon a lot of monsters all at once.”

“Show me! I want to see how it works!” She jumped up and down while she pleaded for a demonstration.

“Sorry, I don't have any.” Yumi's disappointment was overwhelming, making Sakuya feel like a failure of a teacher without even officially starting their training. “Pendulum Cards are too rare. Almost no one has them. I've never even seen one in person, just heard stories.”

“Where do you get them? I want to try to find some.”

She shook her heard. “I don't know. They don't come in normal booster packs, and the scarcity would indicate they might be prizes for winning tournaments. All the more reason to get you to become the new Champion.”

“Then I need to start training!” Yumi declared, running to get her deck. Sakuya smiled, following her. “Are you sure you can't stay to teach me? I don't even know what to use. Fusion, like you?”

Taking her clothes folded from under her backpack, Sakuya rubbed her chin to consider. “I don't think Fusion would be best. I can't think of anything powerful you could make. And you don't have any Tuners, so Synchro isn't available. I guess Xyz would fit you best. Most of your monsters are Level 3 and 4, too, which are the most popular kind.”

Yumi nodded, looking through her deck card by card. “Do you have any I could borrow until I can get my own?”

“Not with me, sorry. I'll bring some to the park tomorrow, so come there and I'll give them to you. You might to...beg, maybe. Sorry.” She looked to the floor, scratching her head before leaving the room to go change.

“I still think you should tell everyone,” Yumi called behind her. “It would be a lot easier for you not to have to pretend all the time.”

Sakuya took a deep breath and let out a slow sigh. “I'll think about it,” she said before going to get dressed. It was sufficient for Yumi, at least. As long as she really planned to consider it, that is. She trusted her, though, so maybe everyone else could, too.

After getting dressed for the day, Yumi met Sakuya outside to see her off. “Thank you so much for letting me stay here. I had a lot of fun.” She was bowing almost parallel to the ground while saying this.

“It's okay. You don't have to be so formal all the time. We're friends.”

“Okay, I guess,” she replied, a bit self-conscious. “I'll come back some time, pal.” Forcing a smile, she punched Yumi's arm lightly. “This feels wrong.”

“Yeah, forget I said anything. Don't do that again.” They both laughed. “Get home safe. I'll see you tomorrow.”

“I will. Promise me you'll start studying for your training tomorrow.”

“I promise, see?” She held out her pinky finger. At first, Sakuya was confused by this and not sure what it was supposed to indicate. A hangnail, maybe? Then she remembered seeing it before in a manga. That particular manga started o get weird after a while, though, when the two girls started kissing and doing other stuff that didn't seem appropriate, so she stopped reading, but it was in there. Slowly, she held out her own hand, wrapping her finger around Yumi's, which made her start smiling. They weren't going to start doing that weird stuff now, right?

Yumi waved to Sakuya as she walked off down the road. She'd offered her the use of her bike, but she refused. After Sakuya was out of sight, Yumi immediately went to her room to start reviewing the strategy books she'd gotten from a second hand shop. One was too old to include Xyz, but the others did. She practiced playing it out and setting up fields to perform the summoning for most of the day. She didn't want to let her friend down when they saw each other again.

\Next: Preparations for the Tournament – Synchro's Revenge/

Cards Used in Order of Appearance

Holy Barrier – Mirror Force (Mirror Force)
Normal Trap
When an opponent's monster declares an attack: Destroy all Attack Position monsters your opponent controls.

Chapter Text

Yumi pumped the handbrake on her bike, skidding to a stop along the sidewalk. She placed it against the hillside as normal and rolled down to join the other children who'd come to visit the park today. In the middle was Sakuya, seemingly saying something important. “You're late,” she said to her in response to a friendly wave.

“Oh. Sorry. I didn't know I had to be here at a certain time.” She was honestly unaware, but figured it was probably just for show.

“It doesn't matter,” Sakuya said, cutting off any further excuses. “As I was telling the rabble, today marks the day you officially become my apprentice, per our agreement. As the only one in this town who's ever come close to defeating me, you're almost worthy of my tutelage.”

Yumi's face lit up as she bounced up and down. “I won't let you down!” Even with the facade the other girl insisted on them playing, it was still more than pleasant to be taught by her friend. Outside of the pro leagues, the surly twelve year old was the best duelist she'd ever seen. They'd get to spend a lot ore time alone, too, which meant they could talk like they normally do without pretending for other people.

“We'll see about that. I have some private instruction planned, so take these and prepare yourself for my training. It won't be pleasant.” She held out two cards, which Yumi grabbed and looked over. They were Xyz just like she promised. One Rank 3 and Rank 4 to start with. “No one disturb us. We have a lot of work to do.”

They walked to the other end of the park where less people (duelists, at least) had established themselves. “Thanks for letting me borrow these,” Yumi said, still gazing at the cards like some kind of treasure.

“You can have them if you want. I'm not really big on Xyz, anyway. I'll try to get you some more later on, too.”

“I can't take cards fro you! That's not fair!” Yumi stomped her foot indignantly. She'd already been given a Mirror Force the other day. Anything else would just be too much.

Sakuya smiled her natural, kind smile, feeling safe to do so now that they were out of sight from anyone who would see it as suspicious. “I'll let you return them if you can beat me today. That sounds fair to me.”

“Is not!” Yumi protested. “You're too good! I'll never beat you until I get a lot stronger.”

“Already planning my downfall from the sound of that.” She smirked. “Maybe it was a mistake to make you my student if you're just going to stab me in the back.”

“Stop realizing your mistakes and let me get good enough to beat you already!” They began the training after that, Sakuya coaching her on the proper form for Xyz Summoning and how to perform it on her duel disk, as well as drilling her on different situations to use them and setting her up to bring them out in a series of test duels.

“You're a pretty quick learner,” Sakuya said after about half an hour of practice. “You've got the basics down and you're starting to understand your cards' potentials. I might even be a little impressed.”

“Does that mean I can sleep over at your house next time?” She was really wanting to see what a rich person's home looked like. Still wasn't entirely convinced there wouldn't be horses.

Sakuya frowned with a short sigh. “I told you I'm not allowed to have friends over. I don't think you'll be able to come to my house anytime soon. Sorry.”

“Fine,” Yumi conceded with a pout. “Is your dad really strict, or something?”

“You could say that, I guess.” Yumi was beginning to realize her mistake in pressing the issue. Sakuya was getting more and more upset the longer they stayed on the topic. Home life seemed to be a difficult subject for her, and it was making her feel like kind of an awful person for continually bothering her about it.

“It's okay. You can just come over to my house again. I'll get grandma to make us takoyaki this time. You like it, right?”

“A lot, actually. How did you know that?”

Yumi laughed. “I didn't. I just really like eating octopus.” She turned away slightly with a far off look, imagining the countless cephalopods she'd eaten over her lifetime. It's what they deserved.

Before they could continue their discussion on how best to destroy those terrifying abominations and turn them into food, another person approached the two. He was an older teenager of about high school age with an angry look in his eyes and a comb running through his black, greased pompadour. “Ishikawa!” he declared with an accusatory point towards the girl, gruff indignation in his voice. “I challenge you to a rematch!” A red duel disk was already present on his left arm.

“Who's the weird guy?” Yumi whispered in total confusion.

“I'm not a weird guy!” he complained, legitimately hurt by the benign assessment of a stranger several years younger than him.

“We're sorry,” one of Sakuya's two lackeys said as they ran up behind him. “We couldn't stop him. He just kept yelling about revenge and his hair.”

She sighed, holding the bridge of her nose. There was definitely no stranger to this person or his attitude. “I guess it can't be helped. Leave us while I settle things.”

Yumi began to hop up and down in frustration. “Is anyone going to tell me who he is or not?”

The intruder chuckled, dramatically running the comb through his hair once more and sticking his arm out like a Kabuki actor. “My name is-”

“Kazuhiko Mitsuru,” Sakuya interrupted, sighing through it like it was of little importance. “A second rate duelist I beat years ago when I first established myself as the strongest in Chiba.”

“What?” he exclaimed. “How can you call me second rate after the duel I gave you? We were neck and neck the whole way!”

She turned up her nose at him. “I was toying with you the entire time. In fact you were one of the easiest victories I've ever had. I thought that much was obvious, but I guess all that hair gel must have seeped into your brain.”

Clenching his teeth, he raised his arm, the duel disk springing to life and readying itself for combat. “Whatever! I've gotten stronger now and I'm ready for a rematch! Or are you going to back out and let me have the title without a fight?”

“No matter how strong you might have gotten, you're still no match for me. As it stands now, you couldn't even defeat my apprentice.” Suddenly, she had a thought. “Yumi, as the first step in your training, I order you to crush him with your Xyz monsters.”

Both of them were shocked. “But I don't want to duel him!” she wailed. “He's old and scary looking.”

“I'm only sixteen!” Kazuhiko shouted, still finding ways to be upset over the comments of children. “And don't send your understudy to do your dirty work for you! She won't ever want to duel again if she faces my new Super Mutant Deck.”

Sakuya took Yumi aside to whisper to her. “He's a pushover, I promise. This would be good training for you. Besides, look at him.” They both turned their heads to do so. “What kind of scary guy wears his black school uniform in the middle of summer? He's obviously trying to look way worse than he actually is.”

Yumi thought for a moment, then nodded. “Then it's decided,” Sakuya declared. “You'll be facing Yumi in my place while I observe.” She sat down on the side of the hill and inspected her beret for damage while waiting for the match to start.

“Let's do it!” Yumi shouted, suddenly feeling a burst of confidence as she placed her deck into the holder. If he was really as weak as she was saying, then there'd be no problem in defeating him. It would be good training, and she might even make Sakuya proud of her.

“I never agreed to this!” he complained, though he still went along with it and synced for the coming battle. He placed his own deck into its position, saying, “Once I beat her, you'll have to duel me next, Ishikawa.” She ignored him, taking a pair of sunglasses from the front of her dress to show her utter lack of concern or recognition for him.

“Duel!” they declared in unison. “I'm going first!” Yumi announced, drawing her hand. “Don't worry, I'll make your proud, teacher!”

“D-don't call me that!” Sakuya demanded, momentarily breaking character and trying to hide a faint blush along her cheeks. To her dismay, more people began to come and watch, apparently emboldened by Kazuhiko's arrogance. She looked towards the two girls who were meant to prevent something like this with irritation.

Both of them laughed nervously. “It was all Miyuki's fault!” the one with longer hair and glasses suddenly blurted out, pointing to her short haired companion. “She was telling everyone about your rematch with him!”

“Liar! You were the one who kept saying how much you wanted to watch! You made everyone else want to go over here, too! Blame Michiko, not me!” Sakuya shook her head at them, then turned her attention back to the duel. They were here already, so it couldn't be helped at this point.

The spectators only made Yumi more excited. The performance aspect of dueling was part of the attraction to professional play, after all. She looked over her hand and smiled; she'd drawn Mirror Force on the first turn. “I'll start by playing two cards face-down. Then, I summon Flame Viper in Attack Mode!” The whole crowd groaned as the tiny snake appeared on the field Sakuya slapping her forehead in frustration. Kazuhiko was utterly confused. “Now I end my turn.”

“Whatever crappy cards you throw out, they won't help! My turn, draw!” A wide, disconcerting smile spread across his lips. “You're about to see real hell,” he proclaimed in as sinister a way as humanly possible, grabbing a card from his hand.

“Are you really threatening a twelve year old like that?” Sakuya asked with a sigh. “You're pathetic.”

Before he could make his play, Kazuhiko flopped over onto the ground. “I'm just being dramatic!” he yelled back, shaking his fist. “I summon Mutant Bite Hound!” In front of him appeared a large bulldog-looking creature. However, it was horrifically disfigured with scales covering half its face and front leg, tumors hanging off its back, and patches of missing hair, less akin to man's best friend and more a movie monster.

Several people in the crowd expressed their disapproval with screams or vocalizations of disgust. “That thing is really gross!” Yumi complained, nearly jumping back as it stood there, tongue hanging out of the only half of its mouth that could open.

“His cards aren't pleasing to look at, yes. All the more reason to finish him quicker.” Sakuya was unconcerned, having gone through any initial gross out years before when they first dueled. She was much more worried about the incredibly poor opener of Yumi's; an obvious ploy to be spotted by an experienced duelist or a grievous mistake of her amateur tactics.

“Forget you people!” Kazuhiko shouted, now angry at the crowd. Surely, this would win them over to his side. “Mutant Bite Hound, attack Flame Viper!” The monster let out a guttural howl as it charged the snake, which began to screech in fear at the opponent's 1500 ATK.

“You fell for it!” Yumi said, pressing a button on her duel disk to activate a card. “Holy Barrier – Mirror Force!”

“What? A novice like you has a card like that?” He was genuinely shocked at the revelation, which seemed to implicate the root of his careless assault.

“When your monster attacks, it destroys everything you have in Attack Mode by reflecting it back at you! Get that gross thing out of here!” The Mutant charged, lunging to pounce on Flame Viper, only to be met with an invisible wall. It hung in the air as the space in front of it shimmered across as rainbow of colors before shattering the beast into nothing. Yumi's monster breathed a sigh of relief for making it one more turn.

She was pleased with herself, turning to Sakuya with a smile. “I used your card!” she said, hoping to be praised for clearing her opponent's field.

The other girl only sighed. “You wasted resources. Even the most amateurish player could have spotted that as a trap. Mirror Force is a card used to destroy large numbers of monsters at a time, but you played it on a single card with low ATK, all to save an even weaker monster from destruction.” Yumi's expression fell, driving a spike right through Sakuya's heart. “But,” she continued, “as bad plays go, that was one of the betters ones. Your next move may compensate for it well enough.”

This forced a smile out of Yumi, relieving Sakuya's fears of hurting her feelings. It was becoming harder and harder to talk coarsely to her friend in public. As they had their char, though, Kazuhiko began yelling. “I'm the opponent here! Focus on me!” They both turned back to him to avoid furthering his tantrum. With eyes back on him, he returned to his previously creepy disposition. With a series of low chuckles, he slapped a card into his duel disk. “Instant Magic, Mutant Return, activate!”

A green-bordered card appeared on his field, presenting the image of a shadowed monster in the doorway to a laboratory, much to Magical Scientist's horror. “When you destroy one of my Mutants, I can summon it right back to the field and treat it as if it's been there since my last turn!” Bite Hound returned to the field, much to everyone's disappointment.

“What does that matter?” Yumi asked, not understanding the benefit.

“My Monster's DNA is unstable,” Kazuhiko explained. “This lets them evolve at a much faster rate than other organisms.” As he spoke those words, the tumors on the monster's back began to pulsate, lizard-like tails exploding out of them as its ATK raised to 2000, as well as becoming Level 5. “During each of my Standby Phases, my Mutants evolve to become stronger than before!”

Yumi flailed her arms and stepped back. “That's disgusting!” she whined.

“Shut up! My monsters are cool!” With a growl, he pointed forward. “Bit Hound, destroy Flame Viper!” The snake screeched once more as it was pounced upon and slapped with the tail appendages, destroying it and dropping Yumi's Life Points to 2400. “I end my turn. Show me what you can do!”

Taking such a large attack wasn't in the plan for this turn. Even so, she couldn't give up yet. It was only her second turn. “Draw!” she declared, pulling the top card off her deck. She smiled at its appearance. “I summon Hat-Trick Magician! A diminutive wizard in purple robes and a matching hat covering its entire face and head appeared on her field, two large eyes sticking out through the fabric. “Now, I equip it with Broken Wand, which changes its original ATK to 500 more than normal.” A small, wooden wand topped by a sparking, golden star appeared for the monster to grab, raising its 1200 ATK to 1700.

“What do you expect to do with something that weak?” Kazuhiko scoffed.

“Just watch. Hat-Trick Magician, attack! Smoke and Mirrors!” The tiny magician raised the wand, twirling it in the air until it created a cloud of smoke to blast at the enemy.

“Too weak!” he declared. “Bit Hound, counter attack!”

Yumi only smiled. “Reverse Card, activate! Strike Shot!” The mutated beast jumped into the smoke cloud, appearing out the other end without its prey.

“What?” Kazuhiko was at a loss as to what had happened. “Where is it?”

Yumi pointed up, showing the magician hovering in the air above the dog. “Strike Shot is a Trap Card that increases my monster's ATK by 700 and gives it the piercing ability until the End Phase.” Magician's ATK rose to 2400, falling to the ground with a blade of magical energy that cut through the midsection of the Mutant, lowering its owner's Life Points to 3600. Much to his annoyance and the crowd's applause, she stuck up her fingers in the victory sign.

“Luck and nothing more,” he said, dismissing her play of any skills. Drawing his card, he place it into a slot below the monster zones. “I activate Allure of Darkness! This card allows me to draw 2 cards from my deck, but forces me to banish a DARK monster or discard everything.” He took the cards from the top of his deck, then held up another monster. “I banish Mutant Venom Cobra.”

With a smile, he summoned another monster. “I play Mutant Scavenge Raccoon from my hand!” It was a weak monster with only 1000 ATK, a furry creature with gills along its neck and fins for hands. “Now I activate the Instant Magic, Mutagen!” A canister of green ooze appeared from out of the card and broke on top of the raccoon, causing it to snarl and foam at the mouth. “This card allows me to use the second effect of my Mutant monsters without waiting for the rest of the turn.”

“Second effect?” Yumi questioned.

“When my monsters reach the pinnacle of their evolution, they gain a new ability like you've never seen before. Raccoon, take Holy Barrier – Mirror Force!” The beast shrieked, lunging at Yumi's duel disk and clawing at the Graveyard area. She tried to shake it off, forgetting for the moment that it was merely a hologram and could do her no harm. It returned to its own side of the field soon after, holding a replica of the Mirror Force card in its mouth.

“You can't take that! Sakuya gave it to me!” She looked to her friend, afraid she'd lost the gift after only a day.

“Yumi, it's okay. It's just the effect. Your card is fine, now continue the duel.” A quick glance inside her Graveyard revealed it to be true, and she was instantly relieved.

Kazuhiko set his Mirror Force onto the field. “Raccoon's second effect allows me to take a card from your Graveyard and add it to my hand. Now, attack me and see what it feels like to be on the other side.” He laughed loudly. “Turn end.”

Yumi added a card to her hand, looking over her choices. “I activate Restraint Release Wave. With this, I can simultaneously destroy an Equip Magic and all set Magic and Trap Cards you have on your field!” The Broken Wand began to spark with more intensity, Hat-Trick Magician tossing it into the air and crouching down with its hands over its head. The wand exploded, taking the set Mirror Force with it and returning the magician's ATK to 1200. “Attack the Raccoon!” she declared, destroying Kazuhiko's monster with her own with twin trails of smoke from its hands.

Kazuhiko sneered as Yumi ended her turn. Despite losing another 200 Life Points, he was still 1000 ahead of her 2400. Drawing his card, he laughed again. “This brings me one step closer to victory. Field Magic, Dark Zone!” As he placed the card into the end of his duel disk, clouds began to form above them, thunder rolling as a bolt of lightning struck the ground.

Unexpected as it was, it surprised Yumi enough to scream and leap back far enough to end up in Sakuya's lap. “Hey,” she greeted casually. “I don't like thunder.” She was pushed off immediately.

After his opponent had returned to her spot, he explained his card's effect. “Dark Zone increases the ATK of all DARK monsters by 500 points at the cost of 400 of their DEF.”

“That doesn't even help you. What's even the point?” Hat-Trick Magician, being DARK itself, boosted its ATK back to 1700. Kazuhiko, on the other hand, had no monsters on the field.

“I activate Dark Burst!” Red and black energy charged on the ground in front of him, exploding as a card flew into the air. “This lets me add a DARK monster with 1500 or less ATK to my hand from the Graveyard.” He grabbed the card from the air and revealed it as Mutant Bite Hound. “Now I'll summon it! Mutant Bite Hound!”

It appeared again in its base state, tumors and all. Its ATK rose to 2000 due to the field bonus, pushing it over Hat-Trick Magician. “Attack her monster!” he commanded, the beast pouncing on the humanoid and crushing it. Yumi's Life Points fell to 2100.

“Now do you see?” he asked. “No matter how many times you destroy them, my monsters will keep coming back! Mutation is evolution! Evolution is survival! And I will always survive until the end!” After another chorus of dramatic laughter, he ended his turn.

“It doesn't matter how many times you revive those ugly whatevers, I'll just keep beating them!” Yumi drew another card to start her turn. “I activate Pot of Greed to draw two cards.” Fulfilling the effect, she activated another card from her hand. “Now, I use Fissure to destroy your monster!” The ground began to shake, splitting open under Bite Hound, dropping it into the abyss.

“Now, I summon Violentist in Attack Mode!” A brown haired man in a slick, black suit appeared on her field, drawing the bow across its violin softly. “I equip Violentist with Golden Fiddle, giving it the ability to raise its ATK by 200 points for each Level it has.” Violentist's own violin turned a dazzling gold as its ATK rose to 1250. “Direct attack” she declared. On her order, Violentist suddenly began to saw at its instrument with reckless force, biting its bottom lip with an intense expression as waves of sound bombarded Kazuhiko.

He guarded himself as the attack hit, lowering his Life to 2150. “Turn end,” she declared, her monster returning to normal after workout out its anger. Drawing for his turn, Kazuhiko smiled his disturbing smile once more.

“I set one monster and one Reverse Card. End turn.” It was quite clearly a trap. If his total lack of poker face didn't give it away, the fact he literally set what was most likely a Trap Card did. Only a fool would fall right into it, so Yumi decided to do just that after drawing for her turn. Preemptive foolishness to avoid a bigger mistake later.

“Violentist, attack his monster!” It sawed at the strings again, sending the sound waves into the back of the opponent's card. “I also activate the Instant Magic, Twister, from my hand to destroy your Field Magic!” Yumi's Life Points were reduced to 1600 as a cyclone whipped by and cleared away the clouds. Tactically, it was a terrible move, potentially increasing her opponent's DEF strength and lowering her Life Points for no real reason, when saving it could have given her an edge as a counter to another monster's attack. Sakuya was fuming.

From the face-down card appeared a small, brown creature with three eyes. It growled before exploding, causing Kazuhiko to laugh maniacally once again. “You fool!” he shouted. “You destroyed my Critter card, which I'd infected with the Deck Destruction Virus of Death!” Pressing a button on his duel disk, his face-down card was activated, sending spores across the field to Yumi's dec. “In addition to Critter's effect letting me add a card to my hand, my Deck Destruction Virus destroys all monsters in your hand and deck with 1500 or more ATK! Your deck is finished!”

For a moment, Yumi was utterly terrified. Then reality showed its head once more. She quickly sorted through her deck, sending Majesty Magician, Rusty Swordsman, and Sunlight Unicorn to the Graveyard, then shuffling and replacing her deck in the holder. “Wait, seriously? You only destroyed three monsters! How is that even possible?”

Sakuya burst out in laughter so hard she was almost rolling on the ground, startling everyone. “You idiot,” she managed to say through the tears and hiccups. “Yumi has no strong monsters. She relies on Equip Cards because of it. You really didn't notice this entire time?” She kept laughing at just how utterly pointless such an otherwise detrimental card was against this one specific person. Yumi only scratched her head, slightly embarrassed.

After the disbelief had subsided, Kazuhiko steeled himself once more. “Critter's effect still activates, letting me add Mutant Zero Rat to my hand. Now hurry up and end your turn.”

“Fine, fine. Turn end.” Sakuya had finally stopped laughing and was blotting at her eyes. Kazuhiko drew his card, placing it in his hand to consider his options. He had to make his next plays count, otherwise it would be the end for him. He was humiliated once by a grade schooler and he wasn't about to let it happen again with her weak apprentice.

“I use the Magic Card Resurrection of the Dead!” A turquoise ankh appeared above the duel field. “Be revived, Mutant Bite Hound!” For the latest of many times this duel, the dog monster was once again on the field. “Attack, Bite Hound!” The monster charged forward, but was resisted after being swatted out of the air by the furious Violentist.

“What the hell?” Kazuhiko exclaimed as his Life Points dropped to 1550. “My monster's ATK was higher! What happened?”

Yumi smiled and wagged her finger. “Charging in recklessly is only going to turn out bad,” said the girl who had previously charged in recklessly and forced the activation of the Virus card. “When Violnetist is attacked, it can shift to Defend Mode, and while in Defense Mode, its DEF increases by 300 points for every Level it has.” Violentist was now sitting at 2100 DEF, 600 higher than Bite Hound's ATK.

Gritting his teeth, Kazuhiko set a face-down. “I summon Mutant Zero Rat and end my turn,” he declared, a white rat with a human ear growing from its back appearing on the field. The crowd was visibly disgusted, one boy running to throw up somewhere off to the side.

“Why is everything in your deck so gross?” Yumi asked, trying hard not to look at the abomination. His response was typical of him at this point, screaming about how there was nothing wrong with the crimes against nature that were his monsters. Persevering, she drew her card and smiled. “Sauya, I'm about to do it!” She was met with a pleased nod from her friend behind her. “I summon Butter Fly!” she declared, slapping another card onto the field. An actual stick of butter with a happy face appeared, flying with the help of two orange and black butterfly wings.

She pointed her finger upwards, the ground beginning to swirl into a spiral. “I overlay the Level 3 Violentist with my Level 3 Butter Fly!” A purple and gold galaxy had formed above them, both monsters flying into it as balls of light. “Xyz Summon!” she said, the galaxy exploding at its center. “Rank 3, Gurensaurus!” A crimson dinosaur materialized from the light onto the field, flames spewing from two metal apparatus on its back as a pair of red Overlay Units orbited around its body.

“I did it!” she squealed, jumping up and down. “I Xyz Summoned in a real duel!” Everyone else stood awkwardly waiting for her to stop, thankful for the first time that Kazuhiko opened his mouth to complain. “Gurensaurus, attack Mutant Zero Rat! Volcano Bite!” The dinosaur rushed forward, flames spewing from its mouth as it went to crush the tiny mammal in its jaws.

“I activate my Trap Card, Tuner's Barrier!” Gurensaurus impacted with an invisible forcefield around Zero Rat, sending ripples towards Kazuhiko which knocked him away. His Life Points dwindled to only 50 as he stood back up. “Until the end of this turn, one of my Tuner Monsters can't be destroyed.”

Yumi stomped her foot and pursed her lips. “Don't be a jerk! I was going to use its effect and win this turn! You're making me look bad in front of teacher!”

“Stop calling me that!” Sakuya interrupted, blushing once more.

“Quiet! Just end your turn already!” He seemed slightly more angry than normal, though it was pretty hard to tell given how angry he always was.

“Fine, I end my turn.” Yumi stood pouting, waiting for him to finally make whatever move was so important he had to hang on by 50 Life Points to do it.

“Draw!” he yelled. “Standby Phase. My monsters mutate!” The lizard tails exploded from Hound's tumors, with an entire human head growing on the back of Rat. The boy from before returned, only to immediately run back off upon seeing the new developments. Hound's ATK grew to 2000 – enough to match Gurensaurus in a crash – while Rat's was only at 600 now.

Kazuhiko slid a Magic Card into his duel disk. “Pot of Greed, activate!” The familiar pot was once again in play, allowing him to draw again. He closed his eyes to concentrate. “Come to me, cards!” He pulled the top two from his deck, pausing for a moment intended purely to build suspense. “I set two cards and switch Mutant Zero Rat to Defense Mode. Turn end.”

Either he was playing it cool for the first time in history or his last ditch effort was in vain. Regardless, Yumi wasn't going to let him have another turn. If she waited, Bite Hound would mutated again and overcome Gurensaurus. Drawing, she declared her attack. “Destroy Zero Rat!”

“Reverse Cards, open!” Two Traps flipped open from his field. Neither had been feints as predicted. “Urgent Tuning and Evolution Accelerator!” Even Sakuya was surprised at this development. He succeeded in bluffing, but not in the way they'd expected. He actually fooled everyone into thinking he wasn't prepared simply by remaining stoic.

“Urgent Tuning is a card that allows me to Synchro Summon during the Battle Phase with monsters I control, and Evolution Accelerator speeds up the evolution of my Mutant cards by one turn.” His monsters convulsed again. Bite Hound's face was covered in scales to resemble a reptile, an extra mouth opening up along its right side. Zero Rat's extra head had now become conscious, sprouting two human arms to hold itself up with. In addition, their Levels increased to 6 and 3, respectively.

“I tune my Level 3 Tuner Monster, Mutant Zero Rat, to my Level 6 non-Tuner monster, Mutant Bite Hound!” Zero Rat's body glowed, dissipating into three green rings rotating in the sky. Bite Hound's body became a transparent shell for six Level stars inside it, riding through the rings and becoming a bright light. “Synchro Summon, Level 9! Show Yourself, Super Mutant Hellraiser!”

From a beam of light appeared a bulky monstrosity. It roared into the sky, its black, leather smock pulling into its flesh as it moved. It was obviously in immense pain, tugging at the tight outfit and the pipes running through its flesh.

Gurensaurus was forced to stop its attack. Yumi went to change it to Defense Mode but remembered she wasn't allowed. She'd declared an attack. It was too late to turn back. “I set one card. Turn end.” She swallowed hard, fear building in the pit of her stomach. Even Sakuya was afraid at this development.

Kazuhiko added a card to his hand. “It's my Standby Phase, so my monster mutates to a further stage!” Unlike the others of its archetype, the Synchro simply roared as a red aura glowed around it, raising its Level to 10 and its ATK to 3500. “Hellraiser, mow down Gurensaurus. Nemesis Strike!” The chaingun mounted on the monster's right forearm began to spin, spitting a shower of bullets to utterly annihilate the dinosaur. Yumi's Life Points dropped to 100, nearly tying her with her opponent once more. “Turn end,” he declared, a satisfied smile on his face.

It mattered again. If she lost here, Sakuya would lose all respect for her. She'd abandon her. Worst of all, Sakuya would have to duel this guy next. She didn't want that to happen to her, and she definitely didn't want to be alone again. She had to win this duel no matter what.

“I activate Charity of the Ordinary,” she declared, her previously set card flipping up. “I draw two cards and banish a Normal Monster, or else I discard my entire hand.” A familiar variation on the Allure of Darkness from earlier, she added the cards, then banished Rock Warrior. Neither card she'd drawn was particularly useful. “I set one monster and one Reverse Card. Turn end.”

“My turn, draw!” Fire in his eyes once more, Kazuhiko added another card to his hand. “Hellraiser mutate!” The monster's ATK increased to 4500 as its Level reached 11. “Nemesis Strike!” Her wall monster (Scaredy Lion) was obliterated in an instant. “Does it scare you knowing that all I need to do is draw a monster to win this duel? Does your hand hesitate when you realize drawing a dead card would mean you lose?” He laughed again, somehow sounding legitimately sinister this time. “Turn end,” he said in an even voice.

Yumi's breathing turned heavy. Her hand was shaking as her fingers touched the top of her deck. As hard as she tried, she couldn't will herself to draw another card anymore. She was too scared of seeing it. She was too scared of losing and everything that meant. She wanted to hide. She wanted to cry. She just wanted it to stop. She didn't want to be abanadoned again.

The crowd started to murmur, wondering what was happening. One of the players had frozen in place and refused to take her turn. Was it some kind of strategy, or was she just a sore loser and trying to prolong the ending for as long as possible. They were starting to become irritated with her, some of them even turning to support the once-reviled Kazuhiko.

“Yumi!” she heard from behind her. She hadn't even realized she covered her ears until that moment. Slowly, Yumi turned around, looking to Sakuya's stern expression as it turned to one of genuine caring and kindness, smiling at her as they did when they were alone. “Just breathe. It's okay.” For a moment, she didn't react. Then, bit by bit, her fears left her, a smile slowly reappearing on her face. Grinning from ear to ear, she realized the truth. Win or lose, her teacher was proud of her.

“I'll win!” she declared, sliding her goggles down over her eyes. No longer afraid, she drew her card. “Dark Factory of Mass Production, activate!” A Magic Card appeared on her field. “I can add two Normal Monsters from my Graveyard to my hand. I choose Hat-Trick Magician and Scaredy Lion.” The selected monsters were dispensed from her Graveyard and she added to her hand. “I set one and end my turn.”

“Useless, useless, useless!” he cried. Hellraiser mutated again, growing to 5500 ATK and Level 12. “Nemesis Strike!”

“I activate Attack Nullification! Your monster's attack is negated and the Battle Phase ends!” Still unable to find another monster to play, he ended his turn, as well.

“Everything is riding on this draw,” she thought to herself. “I can't lose. I'll win...for Sakuya!” Drawing, she'd finally found the card she needed to win. “I summon Scaredy Lion from my hand, and Reverse Summon Hat-Trick Magician!” The galaxy began to form once more. “I overlay my Level 4 Hat-Trick Magician with my Level 4 Scaredy Lion.” Both monsters became light, flying into the galaxy.

“This is the monster that will bring you down!” she declared. “This is the monster m hope and the hopes of my best friend are riding on! Xyz Summon, Rank 4! Kachi Kochi Dragon!” The galaxy exploded, a rocky, silver dragon appearing on the field. It screeched at the imposing monster, ready for battle.

“A monster with only 2100 ATK points can't defeat my Hellraiser!” Kazuhiko boasted. “All you've accomplished is going out with a bang!”

“I set one last card and end my turn.”

Finally, he drew what he needed. Call of the Living Dead would end this next turn if something were to happen. It wouldn't, though. He'd already won. “Mutate to your final form, Hellraiser!” From the monster's back sprouted four long spider legs, hoisting it into the sky. “Whenever Hellraiser attacks now, all set cards on your field are automatically destroyed, and no card effects can touch it while it attacks.” It grew in strength, as well, raising to 6500 ATK and a normally impossible Level 13.

“I declare my attack! Effect activate, Gene Bomb!” The mutant blasted sludge from its mouth, firing at the face-down card on Yumi's field.

“I activate my Trap, Unbreakable Spirit!”

Kazuhiko laughed. “It's useless, remember? Nothing you do can touch my monster while it's attack!”

“That's why I'm not using it on your monster,” she replied, pointing to her dragon. “Unbreakable Spirit is a Trap Card that I can only activate when I have a single monster on my field. Until the end of this turn, its ATK is increased by the lowest ATK value on your side of the field.”

His face turned from that of a smug victor to one of pure horror. “What?”

“And the only monster on your field is Super Mutant Hellraiser, which means Kachi Kochi Dragon's ATK increased by 6500!” The dragon screeched again, its ATK swelling to 7600.

“No... No! Hellraiser, stop your attack!” It was too late, of course. The mutant fired from the sky, its bullets bouncing off the tense, rocky surface of Kachi Kochi Dragon.

“Kachi Kochi Dragon, finish this duel! Silver Breath Shot!” It screeched again, firing a blast of silver shards from its mouth. The pieces impacted against the Synchro Monster, causing its body to bulge and pulse in random spots. It let out one last roar before exploding, debris raining down upon Kazuhiko as he wailed in turn, the last of his Life Points trickling to nothing.

The crowd cheered as the winner was finally declared, Yumi jumping in the air to celebrate her victory. Kazuhiko was slumped over on his knees, trying to process his loss. “I won! Sakuya, I won!” She reached out to hug her, but stopped just short, remembering her friend's aversion to being touched.

Rolling her eyes, Sakuya sighed. “I'll allow it,” she said, much to Yumi's joy. Trapped in another hug, she tried not to fight against it. Admittedly, it wasn't quite as unpleasant as she expected it to be.

Everyone began to disperse, Yumi taking a rest by sitting on the hill, which eventually turned into laying down. Sakuya approached Kazuhiko. “You lost. Get out of my sight.”

Slowly, he stood up. Taking his comb out, he ran it through his pompadour once more. “Fine, but I'll be back. We still have to settle our score, Ishikawa.”

“Not on your life. I won't lower myself to dueling someone who can't even beat my apprentice.” he scowled, then turned to leave with his head down.

“Wait a second,” Yumi said, forcing herself up and running over to him. “Even if your cards look really gross, you're still pretty strong. Maybe we can play again sometime without all the pressure and creepy faces.” The other two were surprised by her actions. Even if it was supposedly just for fun, he'd been taunting her the entire duel and was the self-declared rival of her best friend. She owed him no kindess, yet still she held out her hand – literally and figuratively.

He was about to argue over the merits of his expressions, but ignored it. “Yeah, sure. Thanks. I guess we could.” He shook her hand, much smaller than his own. The goofy smile on her face was getting to him as he tried to keep from pulling one himself. “I'm going now. I'll see you around, I guess.”

“What was that about,” Sakuya asked with an eyebrow cocked.

“He seemed sad, so I wanted to cheer him up a little.”

She scoffed. “What for? He should be sad for being such a chump.”

“Dueling is meant to make people happy. You shouldn't have to walk away from it upset.”

Sakuya shook her head slowly with a smile. “Whatever you say, apprentice.”

“What do we do now, teacher?” She emphasized her words to make Sakuya blush a third time.

“Stop calling me that!” Chopping her on the forehead, Sakuya composed herself while Yumi rubber the non-wound. “Based on how you did in training today, I was going to decide whether or not to tell you this. You performed better than I could have expected, so here's the news.” Her tone was much more serious than before. “One month from now on the 25th, there's a prefectural qualifying tournament happening in the city. If you think you can handle it, then we need to start training even harder than we did today so you can get ready.”

Yumi's eyes lit up. “Of course I can handle it! Let's keep going!” She started hopping up and down again, any fatigue from the last duel having vanished under the effects of her second wind kicking in.

Sakuya nodded with a smile. “I hoped you'd say that. We can't waste any time, then. Let's get started.”

\Next: Ultimate Insect Takes Flight – Is That A New Rival?/

Cards Used in Order of Appearance

Flame Viper
EARTH
Level 2
Pyro
400 ATK/450 DEF

Mutant Bite Hound
DARK
Level 4
Reptile/Effect
1500 ATK/1200 DEF
During your Standby Phase: Increase this card's ATK 500 and Level by 1. If this effect is activated three times while this card remains face-up on the field: This card cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects.

Holy Barrier – Mirror Force (Mirror Force)
Normal Trap Card
When an opponent's monster declares an attack: Destroy all Attack Position monsters your opponent controls.

Mutant Return
Quick-Play Spell Card
Activate when a “Mutant” monster on your side of the field is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard, except during the Damage Step. Target that monster; Special Summon it, and if you do, it is treated as having been face-up on the field for one of your Standby Phases.

Hat-Trick Magician
DARK
Level 4
Spellcaster
1200 ATK/1500 DEF

Broken Wand
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: This card's original ATK increases by 500. When this card attacks or is attacked by a monster with higher ATK: You can return this card to your hand and end the Battle Phase.

Strike Shot (Strike Slash)
Normal Trap Card
When a monster you controls declares an attack: Until the End Phase, that monster gains 700 ATK, also, if it attacks a Defense Position monster, inflict piercing battle damage to your opponent.

Allure of Darkness
Normal Spell Card
Draw 2 cards, then banish 1 DARK monster from your hand, or, if you do not have any in your hand, send your entire hand to the Graveyard.

Mutant Venom Cobra
DARK
Level 3
Fairy/Effect
1200 ATK/800 DEF
During your Standby Phase: Increase this card's ATK by 300 and Level by 1. If this effect is activated three times while this card remains face-up on the field: When this card inflicts battle damage; inflict 300 damage to your opponent.

Mutant Scavenge Raccoon
DARK
Level 3
Fish/Effect
1000 ATK/1500 DEF
During your Standby Phase: Increase this card's ATK by 300 and Level by 1. If this effect is activated three times while this card remains face-up on the field: Select 1 card in your opponent's Graveyard; add it to your hand. You can only use this effect of “Mutant Scavenge Raccoon” once per turn.

Mutagen
Quick-Play Spell Card
Target 1 “Mutant” monster on your side of the field; apply its second effect until the End Phase.

Restraint Release Wave (Release Restraint Wave)
Normal Spell Card
Target 1 face-up Equip Spell Card you control; destroy that Equip Spell Card and all face-down Spell and Trap Cards your opponent controls.

Dark Zone (Mystic Plasma Zone)
Field Spell Card
Increase the ATK of all DARK monsters by 500 points and decrease their DEF by 400 points.

Dark Burst (Dark Eruption)
Normal Spell Card
Target 1 DARK monster with 1500 or less ATK in your Graveyard; add that target to your hand.

Pot of Greed
Normal Spell Card
Draw 2 cards.

Fissure
Normal Spell Card
Destroy the 1 face-up monster your opponent controls that has the lowest ATK (your choice, if tied).

Violentist
LIGHT
Level 3
Fiend
650 ATK/1300 DEF

Golden Fiddle
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: This card gains ATK equal to its Level x 200 while in Attack Position and DEF equal to its Level x 300 while in Defense Position. If this card is selected as an attack target while in Attack Position: You can switch this card to Defense Position.

Twister
Quick-Play Spell Card
Pay 500 LP, then target 1 face-up Spell/Trap Card on the field; destroy that target.

Critter (Sangan)
DARK
Level 3
Fiend/Effect
1000 ATK/ 600 DEF
When this card is sent from the field to the Graveyard: Add 1 monster with 1500 or less ATK from your Deck to your hand.

Deck Destruction Virus of Death (Crush Card Virus)
Normal Trap Card
Activate only when a DARK monster with 1000 or less ATK is destroyed by battle from your side of the field. Your opponent destroys all monsters with 1500 ATK or more on their side of the field and in their hand and Deck. (Damage Calculation is applied normally.) Those monsters cannot be Special Summoned from the Graveyard. If this card is not in your Graveyard, negate this effect.

Majesty Magician
DARK
Level 8
Spellcaster/Effect
2500 ATK/2000 DEF
You can Tribute Summon this card by Tributing 1 monster that was originally a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. This card is treated as a Level 4 Normal Monster with 1500 ATK and DEF for card effects while face-up on the field or in the Graveyard (its Level and ATK/DEF do not change).

Rusty Swordsman
EARTH
Level 4
Warrior
1500 ATK/1000 DEF

Sunlight Unicorn
LIGHT
Level 4
Beast/Effect
1800 ATK/1000 DEF
Once per turn: You can excavate the top card of your deck, and if it is an Equip Spell Card, add it to your hand. Otherwise, place it on the bottom of your Deck.

Mutant Zero Rat
DARK
Level 1
Warrior/Tuner/Effect
500 ATK/0 DEF
During your Standby Phase: Increase this card's ATK by 100 and Level by 1. If this effect is activated three times while this card remains face-up on the field: Select a number between 1 and 12 (inclusive); this card's Level becomes that number.

Resurrection of the Dead (Monster Reborn)
Normal Spell Card
Target 1 monster in either player's Graveyard; Special Summon it.

Butter Fly
WIND
Level 3
Insect
900 ATK/700 DEF

Gurensaurus (Grenosaurus)
FIRE
Rank 3
Dinosaur/Xyz/Effect
2000 ATK/1900 DEF
2 Level 3 monsters
When this card destroys an opponent's monster by battle and sends it to the Graveyard: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; inflict 1000 damage to your opponent.

Tuner's Barrier
Normal Trap Card
Select 1 face-up Tuner monster you control. That monster cannot be destroyed by battle of by card effects, until the End Phase of the next turn.

Urgent Tuning
Normal Trap Card
During the Battle Phase: Immediately after this effect resolves, Synchro Summon 1 Synchro Monster using monsters you control.

Evolution Accelerator
Normal Trap Card
All “Mutant” monsters on the field are treated as if they have been on the field for an additional Standby Phase of this card's controller.

Super Mutant Hellraiser
DARK
Level 9
Insect/Synchro/Effect
2500 ATK/500 DEF
1 “Mutant” Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner “Mutant” monsters
During your Standby Phase: Increase this card's ATK by 1000 and Level by 1. If this effect is activated four times while this card remains face-up on the field: You can destroy all set cards on your opponent's side of the field when this card declares an attack, and it is unaffected by other card effects while attacking. This effect of “Super Mutant Hellraiser” can only be activated once per turn.

Charity of the Ordinary (Common Charity)
Normal Trap Card
Draw 2 cards, then remove from play 1 Normal Monster Card from your hand. If you don't have any Normal Monster Cards in your hand to remove, send all cards in your hand to the Graveyard.

Rock Warrior (Minomushi Warrior)
EARTH
Level 4
Rock
1300 ATK/1200 DEF

Scaredy Lion
EARTH
Level 4
Beast
1300 ATK/1000 DEF

Dark Factory of Mass Production
Normal Spell Card
Target 2 Normal Monsters in your Graveyard; add those targets to your hand.

Attack Nullification (Negate Attack)
Counter Trap Card
When an opponent's monster declares an attack: Target the attacking monster; negate the attack, then end the Battle Phase.

Kachi Kochi Dragon
EARTH
Rank 4
Dragon/Xyz/Effect
2100 ATK/1300 DEF
2 Level 4 monsters
Once per turn, when this card destroys an opponent's monster by battle and sends it to the Graveyard: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; it can attack once again in a row.

Call of the Living Dead (Call of the Haunted)
Continuous Trap Card
Activate this card by targeting 1 monster in your Graveyard; Special Summon that target in Attack Position. When this card leaves the field, destroy that target. When that target is destroyed, destroy this card.

Unbreakable Spirit
Normal Trap Card
If you control only 1 face-up monster: Target that monster; until the end of this turn, it gains ATK equal to the ATK of the monster your opponent currently controls with the lowest ATK (your choice, if tied).

Chapter Text

Yumi's training had been going on for what felt like three decades, but it was really only eight days so far. Every morning at 8:00, she had to be at the park to prepare for whatever grueling drills Sakuya had come up with the night before. Sometimes it was rapidly listing off cards and effects, other times it was forcing her to fight her way out of an impossible situation, and still others it was facing several opponents all at once with no buff. It was starting to become exhausting.

For the first time since the start of the summer, she was glad to take a day away from dueling, since Sakuya was preoccupied for the day doing something with her father. Probably some big yacht trip, or something. “Don't forget to study up on popular decks while I'm away, and rehearse your plays like I taught you, and practice shuffling so you don't fling your cards everywhere, and stop picking your nose, that's disgusting!” So many orders even for a day off.

Naturally, the best place to get away from card games was to go to a card shop. She couldn't buy anything, of course, but she could still look at everything they had on display and read some of the manga they had out on magazine racks. Maybe she could even say this was “training” at the end of the day. That was for later, though, since marveling over how shiny and rare all their singles were came first.

As she fogged the glass on a case of Ritual Monsters, a stranger approached from behind. Except, he really wasn't a stranger, just Kazuhiko creeping about and trying not to draw attention to himself as he crab scuttled past her. Unfortunately for him, Yumi happened to keep a portion of the case unfogged enough to notice his reflection.

“Kazuhiko?” she said bewildered, turning to face the boy frozen behind her with his legs spread wide and arms in the air. He stood in silence, unable to keep himself from locking eyes with the girl no matter how hard he tried not to. Finally, Yumi broke and started laughing. “What are you doing?”

He looked side to side nervously. “Stretches,” he finally said, squatting up and down and placing his hands on his hips. “It's important to stay limber at all times. That's a lesson I learned the hard way during gym class three years ago.”

“Just because I'm young doesn't mean I don't understand things. You don't have to be ashamed of losing to me. Everyone loses sometimes. We can still be friends.” She pointed her finger at his nose after that. “And I do stretches every morning, so check your facts.”

He scoffed. “I feel no shame in my loss. Only the desire to grow stronger and take my revenge.” His confidence didn't exactly seem to match up with his escape attempt.

“Why not just be friends, though?” Kazuhiko was perplexed by this notion of “firnedship”. “I think you're really strong and I want ot be able to duel you again without all the pressure. Just because we fought before doesn't mean we can't get along now. When me and Sakuya first met, she didn't like met at all. She even took my favorite card.”

“I can see why you'd want to be friends,” he replied sarcastically.

“She gave it back and said sorry afterwards. I know she seems mean sometimes, but she's really nice when we're alone. Don't tell anyone, though. I'm not supposed to let people know that.”

“I knew it,” Kazuhiko said with satisfaction.

“Please don't tell anyone,” Yumi pleaded, starting to worry. Sakuya trusted her to keep that a secret. They built their friendship on it. She'd never trust her again if she found out about this.

Kazuhiko turned his back, crossing both arms in dramatic fashion and hoping someone would open the door to let in a stray wind current to blow his coat back. “I have no interest in attacking her reputation. I'll defeat Ishikawa honorably as a duelist. Whatever her reasons are for keeping secrets like that are none of my business.”

Yumi breathed a sigh of relief. “I knew you were nice, too,” she said, grabbing the ends of his coat and waving it for him. “Did you come here to buy cards?” she asked, letting go as he shooed her off him.

“I'm considering what to get. A duelist has to think critically about the most advantageous purchases to maximize their potential for optimal pulls while minimizing wasted capitals.” Sparks were practically shooting from Yumi's head as his wall of words bashed her brain in with a metal chair. “I don't know what to get yet,” he simplified. “Which booster packs do you usually pick?”

She laughed. “I never come in here to bu stuff. I don't have any money, so I just like to look and read the stuff on the rack.”

“So that was true, then? You actually made your deck out of trash cards on purpose?”

“I found some of them in the trash if that's what you're asking.” She started frowning, crossing her arms. “That's so mean. I don't know why anyone would throw away their cards. Even if they don't want them, I'm sure someone would be happy to take them.”

The girl's plight was breaking even Kazuhiko's hardened and mutated heart. With a look of frustration, he pulled out his signature sheep wallet and retrieved some coins. “Go get us two packs,” he told Yumi, handing her the money. “I'll bet my luck on your choice, and you can keep the other for yourself.”

She looked at it in shock. “I can't take that from you,” she said plainly with a shake of her head. “That's your money, not mine.”

“Just take it,” he urged. “Pretend it's a video game, or something. You beat me before and this is what you earned for it.”

Slowly, Yumi took the money, almost like she was expecting it to bite her. “Are you sure it's okay?” she asked once more, looking over the shimmering coins and the numbers printed on them. He shooed her again to do as he'd told. Excitedly, she ran to the counter, looking at the store's large collection of packs. Eventually, she decided on two green ones, since it was her favorite color for the moment, and asked the owner to get the off the shelf for her. He put down his manga and did so with slight irritation; not for lack of business sense or to be an asshole but because he'd just gotten to a really important chapter and didn't want to stop.

“Got it,” she said, returning with a smile and holding out two packs to Kazuhiko. “Here's your change, too.” It was only a 50 yen piece, but she was still compelled to return it.

“Keep it” he told her, grabing one of the packs and tearing off the top of the plastic. Sorting through the cards, he grinned and held up a Trap. “Divided Wall,” he declared. “Our duel taught me that I can't focus only on power. Without a proper defense, I lost, so I've been looking for a card like this.” As he moved through his deck to replace a card with his new one, he looked over to Yumi who'd started to focus on one of her own. “What did you get?”

“I don't know. Is this any good? It's shiny.” She held up a Trap of her own for Kazuhiko to take a look at.

“God's Providence!” he read aloud. “That's a super rare card!”

Yumi looked back at it in amazement, then started to feel guilty. “Here, you can have it.” she held it out for him. “It was your money, so it's only right you get the best card.”

He shook his head. “What kind of man would I be if I stole cards from a kid? I told you before that you can have whatever you pick, so take them and become stronger.” He turned around again, having the fortune for someone to enter the shop and cause his acket to blow in the wind. He smiled at Yumi's amazement.

Quickly, though, their attention was drawn to the person entering the shop. They were hunched slightly a gray hoodie pulled up over their head despite the sun beating down on everything right outside the door. The light always managed to catch their glasses in just the right way to make a complete shine across the lenses, too; no one was sure how that was possible. “Weird,” Kazuhiko said a little too loudly.

Yumi tried to shush him despite the fact she, too, was observing the stranger while partially hidden behind a shelf. They didn't seem to notice either way, though. Or, if they did, they chose to ignore it. Reaching the counter, they took out their cellphone and typed a message for the clerk. He read it and nodded, reaching up to take down two boxes worth of booster packs. Paying promptly, the stranger took both and shoved them inside the black messenger bag they wore on their hip.

As they went to leave, Yumi pushed Kazuhiko forward. He grumbled, but accepted her instructions. “Yo,” he called out to the stranger. “Sorry about saying that before. I guess it was mean. I'm sure you're plenty cool.” They only stared at Kazuhiko, who was having difficulty keeping eye contact. It bothered him normally, but not even being able to see this person's eyes was even more worrying.

To try and break the tension, Yumi emerged from behind him and waved. My name's Yumi, and he's Kazuhiko. What's your named?” Their gaze shifted slightly to Yumi, boring holes into her, though she didn't seem to notice. Slowly, they began typing on their phone, still not breaking eye contact. They held it out for Yumi to read. “Hideo,” she recited. It was easy to read in hiragana without any kanji to decipher. “That's a nice name,” she complimented.

“Hey, what's the deal here? Why aren't they talking to me? Why do you get all the attention?” Hideo began to type again, holding their phone out to Kazuhiko. “There we go,” he said with a pleased smile, only for his expression to drop when he read the statement saying how they don't typically enjoy associating with delinquents with terrible hair. “What the hell did you say about my hair?” he yelled, raising a fist.

“My hair is cool and arranged perfectly, and most of all manly! Insulting my hair is insulting me as a person! I can't accept something so blatantly wrong and ignorant!”

Before he could continue, the shop owner cut in. “Hey! If you're going to fight, do it outside. I'm not about that in my store.”

He blinked. “What? No. We settle this like duelists – with a card game!” He poked Hideo in the chest. “I'll be in the park in twenty minutes. We'll decide this there. And if I win, you have to apologize and say how cool my hair looks.” He marched out of the store as Yumi groaned.

“This got out of hand,” she said, Hideo brushing off the spot where they'd been touched. “You don't have to show up if you don't want to. He'll just stomp around making a speech until he gets tired.” They showed her their phone with a message explaining that dueling him was the intention in the hopes of being able to test their new deck. “If you want to, I guess. He's kind of sensitive about his hair, though, so you might still want to apologize.”

They nodded slightly, then sat down behind a shelf to open up the boxes they'd bought before. “Do you want help?” Yumi asked. She was talking more quietly than normal and she wasn't entirely sure why. It was like Hideo had some sort of aura about them that brought out a sense of calm to everything in the area, like a capybara. Except Kazuhiko, since nothing ever seemed to make him calm. Despite only knowing him for two days now, she could say that with complete certainty.

They broke the plastic seal around the boxes and began to open them. Yumi tried to reach in for a booster pack, but Hideo placed a hand over it. They opened the first one and sorted its contents into Monster, Magic, and Trap Cards. “Okay,” she said in confirmation. The stacks grew quickly with both of them sorting cards. Yumi kept anything she had to say short, since Hideo didn't seem like they'd be much for typing while in the moment.

“My friend Sakuya's doing stuff with her dad today, so that's how I got here. She's training me to be in the prefectural tournament.” Hideo glanced over at her for a moment before returning to unpacking. “She's the strongest duelist I've ever met, so if anyone can help me get good enough to stand a chance it's her. Do you ever enter tournaments?”

They shook their head. “I bet you're pretty strong, too. Is it because you don't like talking?” They nodded matter-of-factly. “That's okay. Is there a reason you don't want to?” She immediately tried to take it back. “I'm sorry! I didn't mean to be rude.”

They shrugged, picking up their phone to type, “Non-verbal, too hard.”

“Okay. Sorry for being rude.” It didn't bother them either way. As long as they weren't having someone trying to force them to speak, it didn't really matter whether someone wanted to know their reasons or not. Some people were even a bit more understanding if they told of all the mockery and difficulty that came with trying to be verbal, though you could only expect so much from allistics (though they were fairly convinced both these new people were on the spectrum themselves).

Placing the last card into its respective pile, Hideo stacked up all three in their proper order and felt around the edge of the enormous collection. The soft, cool texture of the cards was a comforting sensation, the tiny ridges snagging along their fingers as they did.

They placed them into one of the boxes and packed up all their things, tossing out the trash into a bin as the two walked out the door. “Do you need me to show you where he is?” Yumi asked, receiving a nod. “Okay, then. It's this way. I finally learned it was called Chiba Park a couple weeks ago.”

They were only a few minutes away. Kazuhiko was already standing, running a comb through his hair as he normally did. “So, you actually showed up.” He lifted his arm into the air above him to activate his duel disk. Let's not waste time on introductions! Get ready to compliment my hair!”

“Don't take him too lightly just because he's a goof,” Yumi said. “He's strong, so make sure you do your best. I want to see what your deck is like, too.” Running over to the side of the hill, she took a seat to watch the action.

Hideo set down their bag and rummaged through it, removing a specialized duel disk sized for their right arm. It was a shiny black with gold trim around the edge of the blade highlighting an enlarged touch screen in the center. Shuffling, they placed their deck into the holder and tapped a few buttons.

“Duel Mode on,” a speaker in the front of the device said. “Turn randomize.” An arrow spun on the screen, shifting between its controller and the opponent standing across from them. It gradually slowed, pointing decidedly at one of them. “Opponent's turn.”

“So cool...” Kazuhiko blurted out. “I mean, pretty impressive having your own kind of duel disk and all. A bunch of fancy gadgets won't save you from my New Super Mutant Deck, though!” He drew his hand. “I'll start my turn by summoning Mutant Venom Cobra!” A large snake appeared on the field, what looked to be a white, feathery wing protruding from its back and a dim glow coming from its mouth as it hissed. “I set two cards and end my turn. Let's see what you can do now!”

“Turn start. Draw card.” Hideo drew from their deck, looking over the hand they'd been dealt to start the game. Permanent Magic, Great Sea of Tree, activate.” The machine was reading the plays made by its owner. The ground around their play area erupted with life, mossy trees forming a canopy above Hideo's field. “Monster set. Equip Magic, Meteor Strike, activate. Target: Mutant Venom Cobra.”

“What? How can you equip your cards to my monster?”

“Oh! I know about this!” Yumi raised her hand like she was in a classroom. “As long as the target is face-up on the field, it doesn't matter which side it's on, you can equip any appropriate card to any monster.” Hideo gave a thumbs up, approving of this explanation. “Being an Equip Magic expert, you kind of get to knowing these things.”

Kazuhiko scoffed. “Fine, then. I don't know what powering up my monster is going to do, but please continue.”

“End Phase. Pass turn.”

“That was a lot of nothing. My turn, draw!” He smiled, look at his new card. “During my Standby Phase, Mutant Venom Cobra achieves its next form through mutation!” The snake's skin began to bubble, a second wing bursting out of its back. “My monster is now Level 4 with 1500 ATK. Attack, Cobra! Destroy that set monster!”

The monster raised its head, shooting its venom at the card across from it. Materializing before them was a large, blue grasshopper making a wailing noise. It melted upon being hit with the attack, Kazuhiko's Life Points reducing to 3800. “What?” he griped. “I destroyed it!”

He turned to Yumi for explanation. “Well, Meteor Strike belongs to Hideo, so even though it's equipped to your monster, the effect still applies like it's on their field, so any piercing damage is still inflicted to you.”

Hideo gave her another thumbs up. Kazuhiko grit his teeth and growled. “Using cheap tricks like that won't beat me!”

“Great Sea of Trees, effect activate. Howling Insect, effect activate.” Hideo opened their deck and picked through it. “Howling Insect: When this card is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard: You can Special Summon 1 Insect-Type monster with 1500 or less ATK from your Deck. Danipon, Special Summon in Defense Position.” A hairy, yellow bug bounced onto the field wearing a green handkerchief for a cape.

“Great Sea of Trees: When a face-up Insect-Type monster is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard, its controller can add 1 Insect-Type monster with the same Level as the destroyed monster from their Deck to their hand. Adding Howling Insect to hand.” Hideo shuffled their deck and placed it back in its holder.

“So this was all just to search for cards?” Kazuhiko questioned, receiving a very nonchalant shrug in response. “Wasted effort! I'll run your cards over in no time! I summon Mutant Saw Ant and set one card! Turn end!” A grotesquely large red ant appeared on the field, half its head engulfed in fire with two rotating saw blades for pincers.

Hideo began their turn once more. “Permanent Magic, Burden of the Mighty, activate.” A green-bordered card appeared on Hideo's field beside the card representation of Great Sea of Trees. “Each face-up monster your opponent controls loses 100 ATK x its own Level.” Cobra's ATK fell to 1100, while Ant's became a tiny 650.

“Crap, that card's unfair!” Kazuhiko complained. “All my monsters Levels keep growing, too. It's going to punish me for using my main strategy!” Silently, Yumi was a bit thankful she wasn't going to have to duel Hideo. Even though her Xyz Monsters weren't affected by having Ranks, all her other monsters were, and their ATK was low enough as it was. Her guess had been right; they were really strong.

“Banish Howling Insect to Special Summon Giant Worm in Attack Position.” An image of the Howling Insect card resting in Hideo's Graveyard vanished into a flash of light. From underneath where it once stood, the ground began to crack as an enormous worm creature burst upwards, boasting a formidable 1900 ATK.

“Howling Insect, Normal Summon in Attack Position.” A second grasshopper appeared, howling like its fallen companion. “Battle Phase. Giant Worm attacks Mutant Saw Ant.” The worm roared, then dove into the ground, clearly digging underneath the field for a surprise attack on its target.

Kazuhiko appeared panicked. “This isn't good,” he said with a worried looking, only to quickly shift into a sly smile. “Or, it wouldn't be without my set card!” Trap activate, Mutation Change!” His card flipped up, portraying a pale human looking down at a pair of eyes and a mouth growing onto their right forearm from a tumor. “By releasing a Mutant on my field, I can take control of one of your monsters!”

Kazuhiko burst from the ground, grabbing the ant in its jaws. It burst apart, but not by the card's attack. The worm struggled against the creature's innards, which were melting into the monster's own body. It was futile, though, as growth began to appear on its surface as the monster traded sides. “As an added bonus, any monster I take with Mutation Change is treated as a Mutant as long as it's face-up on the field.”

Hideo was unfazed, only sighing at the shift of their monster. “Howling Insect attacks Mutant Venom Cobra.” The bug began to howl, sending shockwaves towards the snake. “Looks like this is an unlucky day for you. Trap activate, Evolution Accelerator!” His Trap went to work, increasing Venom Cobra's Level to 5 and ATK 1400, dropping it to 1300 after Burden of the Mighty's effect applied. “This card treats all my Mutants like they've been on the field for another of my Standby Phases, meaning my Cobra's ATK is 100 points higher than your bug!”

In response to Howling Insect's attack, Venom Cobra's wings grew in size, the light emitting from its mouth growing brighter. It shot a burst of that light back at its opponent, blasting through it and lowering Hideo's Life Points to 3900. Kazuhiko chuckled. “How's that? Do you see your mistake in offending my hair now?”

“Great Sea of Trees, effect activate. Howling Insect, effect activate.” Just as before, Hideo summoned a second Danipon and added the third Howling Insect to their hand. “Setting one card. End Phase. Pass turn.”

“My Mutants will enjoy the snack you're setting out for them. Draw!” Venom Cobra began mutating again, this time shedding its snake form entirely to become a glowing, muscular humanoid posing in the air with its arms spread wide and one leg raised to hip level. It's Level raised to 6, with its ATK settling at 1500. “I summon Mutant Zero Rat in Attack Mode!” The tiny monster appeared on the field, quickly jumping into the air. “Now I tune my Level 1 Tuner monster, Mutant Zero Rate, to my Level 6 non-Tuner monster, Mutant Venom Cobra!”

An arc of light flashed above their heads. “Synchro Sumon, Level 7! Descend, Super Mutant Butcher!” A reptilian monster landed on the field, screeching and ready for battle. Its base 2000 ATK dropped to 1300 but it was more than enough to satisfy the turn's needs. “Giant Worm, Butcher, attack! Destroy both those monsters!” The bugs screamed in terror as the Mutants descended, blasting them apart in an instant.

“Great Sea of Trees, effect activate. Danipon, effect activate.”

“Ah, crap. I forgot about that stuff.”

“Danipon: When this card is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard: You can add 1 Insect-Type monster with 1000 DEF or less from your deck to your hand.” Hideo looked through their cards, picking out three instead of four. “Great Sea of Trees activates once. Only one target.” Adding the cards to their hand, the machine read out the list. “Cards added: Danipon, Giant Worm, Ultimate Insect LV1.”

“Ultimate Insect...?” Kazuhiko wondered. “What's the ultimate form of a weak little bug supposed to do?” He laughed to himself. “I'll end my turn. Give my monsters something else to chew on next turn!”

Hideo began their turn, drawing and sorting through their hand to decide what to play first. “Banish Danipon to Special Summon Giant Worm in Attack Position.” A second worm burst from the ground after the disappearance of a Danipon card. “Battle Phase. Giant Worm attacks Super Mutant Butcher.” The worm moved underground, grappling the Butcher as it burst from underneath it. Kazuhiko's irritated look indicated there was no counter this time, watching helplessly as his Synchro was devoured and his Life Points reduced to 3200.

“Giant Worm, effect activate. If this card inflicts battle damage to your opponent: Send the top card of their Deck to the Graveyard.” Kazuhiko scowled but complied, taking his top card and tossing it into the discard slot. His luck having turned, it was the Virus card.

“Main Phase 2. Normal Summon Ultimate Insect LV1 in Attack Position.” A small, blue grub writhed on the field, its abdomen a pulsing red. Kazuhiko observed the monster's 0 ATK and DEF. What could it be hiding? Based on his own deck, he knew all too well what underestimating a monster that seemed weak could do, regardless of his bravado.

“Permanent Magic, Divine Protection of the Neglected.” A bamboo cage appeared around the Ultimate Insect as its card manifested. “End Phase. Pass Turn.”

Kazuhiko drew his card, trying to think of what the best move would be. He had one set card and a stolen Giant Worm with 1500 ATK; not a lot to go on. “I'll set a monster and another card, then attack Ultimate Insect with Giant Worm!” Kazuhiko's Mutant Worm charged forward to grab the larva in its jaws.

“Divine Protection of the Neglected, effect activate.” The worm smacked its head into the cage surrounding the monster, its attack unsuccessful. “When your opponent's monster declares an attack, you can remove from play 1 Insect-Type monster from your Graveyard to negate the attack. Banishing Danipon.”

“Damn it,” he cursed. Kazuhiko was in a bad situation now. The next turn, Hideo's Giant Worm would be able to run his over, and there was no telling what Ultimate Insect would end up doing. “Turn end,” he declared with a frown.

“Turn start. Draw card.” Hideo pressed a button after performing the draw. “Standby Phase. Ultimate Insect LV1, effect activate.” The grub began to glow, exploding in size to become twice as large and gaining a more purple coloration. “During your Standby Phase, by sending this face-up card to the Graveyard, Special Summon 1 'Ultimate Insect LV3' from your hand or Deck.”

Kazuhiko's Giant Worm's ATK dropped to 1200. “What the hell?” he exclaimed.

“Ultimate Insect LV3: If this card was Special Summoned by the effect of "Ultimate Insect LV1", while it remains on the field all of your opponent's monsters lose 300 ATK.” They placed another monster on the board. “Normal Summon, Cross-Sword Hunter in Attack Position.” A brown bettel creature with a set of four golden pincers appeared on the field. “Battle Phase. Cross-Sword Hunter attacks Giant Worm.”

The bug launched itself forward, locking heads with mutated worm. They pushed back and forth, struggling to gain control and destroy the other. “Trap Card, activate! Divided Wall!” Kazuhiko's new card appeared on the field, Yumi pointing and smiling. “When you declare an attack, all your monsters lose 800 ATK for each monster you control, making 2400 in total!”

All of Hideo's monsters dropped to 0 ATK. Giant Worm pushed Cross-Sword Hunter back, lurching forward to slash through its abdomen and split it in two. Hideo's Life dropped to 2700, marking the first major damage of the duel and a potential reversal for Kazuhiko. “Now, I'll use Giant Worm's effect to make you discard the top card of your deck.” They complied, sending the card to the Graveyard.

“Main Phase 2. Shifting Giant Worm to Defense Position. End Phase. Pass turn.”

“This is where the duel really starts! Draw!” Immediately, he played the card he'd just drawn. “I activate Resurrection of the Dead! This lets me choose a monster in either Graveyard and summon it to my field. I choose Super Mutant Butcher!” The reptilian rejoined the fight, its ATK at 1000. “Battle! Super Mutant Butcher, destroy Giant Worm! Psychic Cleaver!” The Mutant charged a ball of pink energy between its hands, firing it out as a thin beam that bisected Hideo's defending Giant Worm.

“Great Sea of Trees, effect activate. Adding Cross-Sword Hunter to hand.”

“It won't help! Giant Worm, attack Ultimate Insect LV3!”

“Divine Protection of the Neglected, effect activate. Banishing Howling Insect.” The cage appeared again, blocking Giant Worm's attack.

Kazuhiko smiled. “Struggle all you want. Next turn, you'll start running you out of monsters to banish. Then, you'll be wide open! Turn end!”

Hideo added a card to their hand. “Standby Phase. Ultimate Insect LV3 effect: During your Standby Phase, by sending this face-up card to the Graveyard, Special Summon 1 "Ultimate Insect LV5" from your hand or Deck.” Kazuhiko swore under his breath, forgetting in all the excitement that a Level 3 monster probably wasn't the end of a series. The insect evolved again, standing on hind pincers and developing spikes over a new, silver body. “If this card was Special Summoned by the effect of "Ultimate Insect LV3", while it remains on the field all of your opponent's monsters lose 500 ATK.” Kazuhiko's monsters dropped another 200 points, leaving them at 1000 and 800.

“Battle Phase. Ultimate Insect LV5 attacks Giant Worm.” Whether out of desire to remove their own monster from the opponent's clutches or to get rid of a potentially annoying effect, Hideo went for the monster with more ATK, inflicting 1300 damage to Kazuhiko and dropping his Life Points to 1900.

He held up his arms to block as an explosion erupted following Giant Worm's defeat – being slashed to pieces by Ultimate Insect's pincers. “Pass turn,” the duel disk declared.

“Draw!” Kazuhiko's hand was non-existent. The card he'd just drawn – Dark Burst – wouldn't be of any use right now. “I switch Butcher to Defense Mode and end my turn.” Despite its mutation, it was only at 1500 ATK following the extra 100 drop with its increased Level. This debuff deck was his worst match up to date, and it was really getting him pumped up.

Hideo began their turn by drawing. “Standby Phase. Ultimate Insect LV5 effect: During your Standby Phase, by sending this face-up card to the Graveyard, Special Summon 1 "Ultimate Insect LV7" from your hand or Deck.” The ground shook, leaves falling from the trees of the Permanent Magic. The LV5 monster spun itself a cocoon. It hardened into a silvery barrier around the bug, small cracks forming on its surface moments later. Chunks of it began to break off, pieces of what hid within appearing to the players.

Wings began to buzz from inside. The monster was anxious to make its appearance. With a few more cracks, it broke free, a gigantic moth-like insect flying into the air. Its body was divided between a blue head and limbs with a red abdomen and thorax. Floating above its master, Kazuhiko's monsters lost more strength. “Ultimate Insect LV7 effect: If this card was Special Summoned by the effect of “Ultimate Insect LV5”, while it remains on the field all your opponent's monsters lose 700 ATK and DEF.” His cards were no longer safe even in Defense Position.

Butcher's stats dropped to 1300 and 0, the latter sending a shiver of terror through its owner's body. He could feel something bad was about to happen. Slowly, Hideo typed out a message onto their duel disk for it to read. Their finger stopped, hitting the send button. “This is your last turn,” it said simply.

“Cross-Sword Hunter, Normal Summon in Attack Position.” This was it. “Cross-Sword Hunter effect: While you control an Insect-Type monster (other than this card), if an Insect-Type monster you control attacks a Defense Position monster, inflict piercing battle damage to your opponent.” For good measure, Hideo activated another card. “Equip Magic, Firearms-Attached Insect Armor, activate. Target Ultimate Insect LV7.” The moth landed, folding its wings onto its back as spiked armor appeared on top of it. A cannon rested between its shoulders, prepped to fire.

Yumi looked on in shock. Hideo was really this good? In their duel, Kazuhiko had nearly defeated her numerous times, but now he was being tossed around like it was nothing. Could even Sakuya defeat someone like this?

“Battle Phase. Armored Ultimate Insect LV7 attacks Super Mutant Butcher.” The moth set its feet into the ground, the laser cannon charging. Then, it fired, sending the full force of its 3300 ATK straight into Kazuhiko's Life Points.

His set card, Flash of Darkness, could do nothing. He no longer met the conditions to use it with the new Insect's debuff ability. With piercing damage, Butcher's 0 DEF would hold up about as well as a singly ply sheet of toilet paper against a typhoon. He accepted defeat, being blasted back from the residual attack, screaming as he was tossed to the ground.

“Kazuhiko!” Yumi called as she ran to help him up. With a groan, he was pulled back to his feet. He rubbed his head as Hideo approached the two of them. “Please don't start fighting again,” Yumi pleaded to him, really hoping he could accept this defeat as well as he accepted the one against her. To her surprise, Kazuhiko instead fell to his knees.

His head bowed, he began another speech. “Please forgive my insolence. You've proven yourself stronger than I am. You've insulted my hair, but I hold no grudge against you. My defeat was absolute and there is no point in me trying to fight back at my current level.” Yumi and Hideo were slightly embarrassed by his dramatics.

Not sure how to respond, Hideo looked around the park and into the air. Eventually, they settled on a shrug. “You'll grant me mercy?” Kazuhiko asked, only furthering the confusion. Hideo began to nod apprehensively, looking around more, then finally shrugging. “Thank you. You're generous in victory.”

“Kazuhiko, are you okay?” Yumi asked in concern. Even in the short time she'd known him, she could already tell this stern and serious (and, most of all, quiet) demeanor wasn't normal. Had this loss demoralized him completely?

“Thank you for your concern, Miss Yumi. I just need to think.” Kazuhiko walked to the top of the hill leading up from the park, leaving her to wonder why he felt the need to add the honorific to her name.

Kazuhiko was a gracious loser. Even with his bombastic personality, he never felt any ill will towards those who defeated him in a fair duel. This was different, though. Hideo's LV monsters were so similar to his own Mutants. He'd been beaten at his own game, so to speak. It had made him start to wonder whether or not he was capable of bringing out the full power of his cards, after all. Did he deserve them after such a crushing loss?

His doubts were interrupted by a black cellphone in front of his face. It was Hideo's, with a message. “Your hair is okay,” it said plainly. Unsure at first, Kazuhiko decided to take it as an attempt to mend bridges. He started laughing; slowly and quietly at first, then louder. Finally, his hearty and somewhat sinister laugh returned to normal.

“I've decided,” he said after he finished, Yumi having arrived to see what had changed in their situation. “Hideo...” He paused. “Wait I don't know your surname. What is it?”

Hideo held up their phone, explaining that it was fine without one. “Okay, then. Hideo! From this day forward, you are my official rival! We'll fight from daybreak to sunset, high tide to low tide, from creation to infinity, improving our skills with the sole desire of defeating each other! What do you say?”

Hideo blinked twice, then shrugged. It seemed okay. He was pretty loud, but Kazuhiko was undeniably a powerful duelist, just as Yumi had said. He'd make a decent enough rival. Secretly, they'd always wondered what something like that would be like. Yumi was pretty okay, too, so hanging around with these two would make for a more interesting summer than most.

“Perfect! We'll start now with a rematch!” Hideo shrugged again. They felt up to one or two more games before they'd have to go home and rest. Yumi slid down the hill as they took their positions once more to begin another duel. She cheered for both of them, Kazuhiko promising to deliver “real hell” upon his bugs this time with most powerful Synchro Monster, bringing back his threats from his duel with Yumi.

At the entrance to the park, Sakuya watched the three of them enjoy the day. For a moment, she considered joining them, since her previous engagement had ended earlier than expected. That idea was quickly abandoned, though. Her acting would just ruin everyone's fun.

With as insincere a smile as she could make, she took one last look at the group, seeing how happy Yumi seemed to be without her there to act mean at every turn. How much longer could she kep this up before she ruined the best friendship she'd ever had over something as worthless as a reputation among strangers?

She left the park to return home, hoping no one had noticed her there. She wouldn't be there to make Yumi sad today. At least that was good, right?

\Next: Lazy Day at the House – Shouldn't We Be Training?/

Card Used in Order of Appearance

Divided Wall (Wall of Disruption)
Normal Trap Card
When an opponent's monster declares an attack: All Attack Position monsters your opponent controls lose 800 ATK points for each monster they control.

God's Providence (Ultimate Providence)
Counter Trap Card
When a Spell/Trap Card, or monster effect, is activated: Discard the same type of card (Monster, Spell, or Trap); negate the activation, and if you do, destroy that card.

Mutant Venom Cobra
DARK
Level 3
Fairy/Effect
1200 ATK/800 DEF
During your Standby Phase: Increase this card's ATK by 300 and Level by 1. If this effect is activated three times while this card remains face-up on the field: When this card inflicts battle damage; inflict 300 damage to your opponent.

Great Sea of Trees (Verdant Sanctuary)
Continuous Spell Card
When a face-up Insect-Type monster is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard, its controller can add 1 Insect-Type monster with the same Level as the destroyed monster from their Deck to their hand.

Meteor Strike (Fairy Meteor Crush)
Equip Spell Card
If the equipped monster attacks a Defense Position monster, inflict piercing battle damage to your opponent.

Howling Insect
EARTH
Level 3
Insect/Effect
1200 ATK/1300 DEF
When this card is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard: You can Special Summon 1 Insect-Type monster with 1500 or less ATK from your Deck.

Danipon
EARTH
Level 2
Insect/Effect
600 ATK/600 DEF
When this card is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard: You can add 1 Insect-Type monster with 1000 DEF or less from your deck to your hand.

Mutant Saw Ant
DARK
Level 2
Pyro/Effect
850 ATK/400 DEF
During your Standby Phase: Increase this card's ATK by 200 and Level by 1. If this effect is activated three times while this card remains face-up on the field: You can tribute this card and target 1 monster on your opponent's side of the field; that target loses ATK and DEF equal to this card's ATK on the field, until the End Phase.

Burden of the Mighty
Continuous Spell Card
Each face-up monster your opponent controls loses 100 ATK x its own Level.

Giant Worm (Aztekipede, the Worm Warrior)
EARTH
Level 4
Insect/Effect
1900 ATK/400 DEF
Cannot be Normal Summoned/Set. Must be Special Summoned by banishing 1 Insect-Type monster from your Graveyard, and cannot be Special Summoned by other ways. If this card inflicts battle damage to your opponent: Send the top card of their Deck to the Graveyard.

Mutation Change
Normal Trap
Tribute 1 “Mutant”monster on your side of the field and target 1 monster your opponent controls; take control of that monster. That monster is treated as a “Mutant” monster while face-up on the field.

Evolution Accelerator
Normal Trap
All “Mutant” monsters on the field are treated as if they have been on the field for an additional Standby Phase of this card's controller.

Mutant Zero Rat
DARK
Level 1
Warrior/Tuner/Effect
500 ATK/0 DEF
During your Standby Phase: Increase this card's ATK by 100 and Level by 1. If this effect is activated three times while this card remains face-up on the field: Select a number between 1 and 12 (inclusive); this card's Level becomes that number.

Super Mutant Butcher
DARK
Level 7
Psychic/Synchro/Effect
2000 ATK/500 DEF
1 “Mutant” Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner “Mutant” monsters
During your Standby Phase: Increase this card's ATK by 800 and Level by 1. If this effect is activated four times while this card remains face-up on the field: You can tribute this face-up card at the end of your Battle Phase after this card destroys another monster by battle; Special Summon 1 “Mutant” Synchro Monster from your Extra Deck that has a higher Level than this card. The monster summoned by this effect can activate its second effect.

Ultimate Insect LV1
WIND
Level 1
Insect/Effect
0 ATK/0 DEF
While this card is on the field, it is unaffected by the effects of Spell Cards. During your Standby Phase, by sending this face-up card to the Graveyard, Special Summon 1 “Ultimate Insect LV3” from your hand or Deck. (You cannot activate this effect the turn this card is Normal Summoned, Special Summoned, or flipped face-up.)

Divine Protection of the Neglected (Insect Neglect)
Continuous Magic Card
When your opponent's monster declares an attack, you can remove from play 1 Insect-Type monster from your Graveyard to negate the attack.

Ultimate Insect LV3
WIND
Level 3
Insect/Effect
1400 ATK/900 DEF
If this card was Special Summoned by the effect of "Ultimate Insect LV1", while it remains on the field all of your opponent's monsters lose 300 ATK. During your Standby Phase, by sending this face-up card to the Graveyard, Special Summon 1 "Ultimate Insect LV5" from your hand or Deck. (You cannot activate this effect the turn this card is Normal Summoned, Special Summoned, or flipped face-up.)

Cross-Sword Hunter (Cross-Sword Beetle)
WIND
Level 4
Insect/Effect
1800 ATK/1200 DEF
While you control an Insect-Type monster (other than this card), if an Insect-Type monster you control attacks a Defense Position monster, inflict piercing battle damage to your opponent.

Resurrection of the Dead (Monster Reborn)
Normal Spell Card
Target 1 monster in either player's Graveyard; Special Summon it.

Ultimate Insect LV5
WIND
Level 5
Insect/Effect
2300 ATK/900 DEF
If this card was Special Summoned by the effect of "Ultimate Insect LV3", while it remains on the field all of your opponent's monsters lose 500 ATK. During your Standby Phase, by sending this face-up card to the Graveyard, Special Summon 1 "Ultimate Insect LV7" from your hand or Deck. (You cannot activate this effect the turn this card is Normal Summoned, Special Summoned, or flipped face-up.)

Dark Burst (Dark Eruption)
Normal Spell Card
Target 1 DARK monster with 1500 or less ATK in your Graveyard; add that target to your hand.

Ultimate Insect LV7
WIND
Level 7
Insect/Effect
2600 ATK/1200 DEF
If this card was Special Summoned by the effect of “Ultimate Insect LV5”, while it remains on the field all your opponent's monsters lose 700 ATK and DEF.

Firearms-Attached Insect Armor (Insect Armor with Laser Cannon)
Equip Spell Card
Equip only to an Insect-Type monster. It gains 700 ATK.

Flash of Darkness (Darklight)
Normal Trap Card
Tribute 1 DARK monster with 1500 or more ATK; destroy all monsters that were Special Summoned this turn.

Chapter Text

It was good to have friends. Yumi thought this while laying despondently on her bedroom floor in the least amount of clothing possible. A heat wave had just swept over the entire city and moved in on her tiny house on the outskirts. The best part, of course, was that their proximity to the ocean meant it turned the air into a thick, soupy death paste that clung to her and everything she loved while roasting them, as well.

Thinking of friends was about the only thing keeping her alive at this point. She'd met three great people in only a few days, and it was only the start of summer. It was the first time she met anyone she really felt a connection to like this, and it made her happy beyond words.

That isn't to say she'd had no friends before this point. There were people she knew at school who she was acquainted with, but none of them ever really made the jump to true friendship. Through a combination of living so far away, differing interests, and her slightly overbearing personality, she'd just failed to form the same kind of bond with almost anyone as she had with Sakuya, Hideo, and Kazuhiko.

She couldn't pinpoint why it had gone this way, especially given how short the time between meeting and befriending the latter two was, but she was grateful for it nonetheless. Even after the dueling stopped yesterday, they all managed to hold a conversation for close to two hours about the science behind magical girl transformation sequences and the proper toppings for the perfect ice cream sundae. That last subject inevitably led to another speech about how toppings had to coincide with the same texture as the ice cream and it was blasphemy to try and mix things that don't go together, but even Kazuhiko's blustering was starting to become amusing for her.

Yumi jolted upright, suddenly remember the piece of paper in her overalls' front pocket. Scrambling around the room, she dug into a pile of the garments before finding the right pair from the other day. Inside it was a short, crumpled list of numbers with crude drawings of the owners' faces. She'd made sure to have a way to get in contact with them if the need ever arose, and extreme heat seemed like enough of a reason.

Walking to the phone after a failed attempt at trying to run and falling over her own legs, she began to dial for Sakuya. It rang a few times before she finally heard it pick up. “Hi!” she yelled into it, not even bothering to confirm who it was on the line.

“Hello, Yumi,” Sakuya said with a small laugh. “If you're calling to say you can't go to the park today, I get it. It's miserable outside and even I'm not going to make you train in this kind of weather.”

“No. I mean, yeah, but no. I just wanted to call and say hi to you.” She took a seat against the wall, wrapping the cord around her finger while she talked. “I didn't get to see you at all yesterday and I probably won't get to today, either, so I wanted to see how you're doing.”

She laughed again. “I'm fine. I hope you managed to take care of everything without me.”

“Yeah, it was fun! I saw Kazuhiko again, and he bought me a booster pack, and I got a rare card out of it, and then we met Hideo, and they dueled Kazuhiko, and they won and became each others rivals, and-”

“Slow down,” Sakuya told her. “I'm going to assume you did your training like I told you during all that.”

“Oh, yeah, totally,” she lied, trying not to break.

“Good. Then tell me who Hideo is. Have I met them at the park?”

“I doubt it,” Yumi said, laying down in the hallway. “They don't go out much, so it was kind of just an accident. They said Kazuhiko's hair was bad and he got upset.” She giggled remembering his overreaction, able to do so with how well everything ended.

Sakuya seemed to approve. “I think we'd get along,” she joked. “I'm glad you called. It was nice being able to talk to you after being away yesterday. Maybe it won't be so hot tomorrow and we'll be able to go back to the park.”

“Maybe I could come over later when it's a little cooler,” she suggested.

“You'd die out there,” Sakuya stated in complete seriousness.

Yumi humphed at the lack of faith. “I could make it,” she said quietly.

“I doubt it. It wasn't nearly this hot the other day and you almost passed out from dehydration. You kept talking about how everyone in your family is a heavy sweater after it reaches about 30 degrees. Quite distastefulness, if you ask me.”

“I can't help it!” she complained, starting to blush. “It's not my fault my genes are weird.”

“I'm just teasing you,” Sakuya told her. She thought for a moment, then said, “I'll tell you what. If it gets a little cooler, I'll come over if that's alright. How does that sound?” She received no answer for a several minutes, Yumi having sprinted off to go wake her grandmother who'd passed out in front of the TV.

“Yes! You can even stay over again if you want!” She was bouncing up and down on the other end of the line after finally returning to the call.

“Good. I'll tell you if I can make it in a little while. Talk to you soon.” Yumi had already hung up after forgetting to say goodbye. Running back to her room without incident, she went to organize her deck to prepare for Sakuya's hopefully imminent arrival. She was excited to be able to show off some of her new cards from the other day and display the results of her training. Maybe she'd even manage to eke out a win once or twice at this point.

Then she had another thought: One friend is good, but wouldn't more friends be better? Another trip to the phone had her dialing another number off the scrap of paper. It rang several times, but ended without an answer. Puffing out her cheeks, Yumi tried once more with the same result. She called one last time, jumping up and down for good measures.

Finally, there was an answer. “Who the he-”

“Hi!” she screamed into the phone, having learned nothing from the previous conversation.

“Oh, right. Forgot to put your number in my phone and thought you were some stranger.” Kazuhiko was in the midst of organizing his hair care products when she called, trying to stay cool and succeeding much more thoroughly given his house had a central air system. “Did you need something?”

“Not really,” she answered honestly. “Want to come over to my house? I'm bored and hot.”

He laughed haughtily. “Are you serious? How uncool would it be to have a play date at a little kid's house? Besides, I have a ton of important stuff to do today, so it's not like I could even make it.”

“Like what?” she asked. There was a long period of uncomfortable silence as Kazuhiko's intense lack of a social life was brought to the forefront of the conversation. “Are you coming over, then?” she said again.

“Fine,” he relented with a sigh. It was more about saving face than anything else. Of course he wanted to go hang out with a friend on a boring, miserable day like this, but he had a reputation to uphold, too. More to himself, honestly, in that he would always remain thoroughly convinced of his badassitude and manly coolness befitting a delinquent of his stature.

“Do it in a couple hours so it's not as hot,” she said, moving on from his acceptance fairly quickly. “Oh, and see if Hideo wants to come. I only have a landline, so I can't text.”

“Yeah, yeah,” he said with a grumble. “You sure your grandma's okay with a bunch of scary older kids coming over like this? I could be part of a gang, or a kidnapper, or a guy who does tax evasion.”

Yumi laughed. “You're not scary at all.” Kazuhiko fell silent again as she continued to giggle. “See you later, then.” The phone disconnected, leaving him in yet another period of contemplation over how soft he really was. Even his pompadour seemed to be drooping to match his mood. Or maybe it was just the heat.

Plans made, Yumi hopped up and down and flapped her hands in excitement. This was twice she'd managed to have friends over this summer, and they'd more than doubled today. Now all that was left was finding a way to pass the time before she could expect anyone to show up.

At first, she tried to make changes to her deck, but that proved fruitless after only a few minutes. She'd remade earlier that morning, so there was nothing much she could accomplish without being able to even test it. Instead, she tried to practice doing somersaults across her floor. It took her approximately fourteen seconds to hurt herself and give up.

Her next instinct was to pull herself across the ground with her feet while sitting. It made a horrible squeaking noise against the wood and was starting to burn her from friction, but she was successful with that, at least. Already running out of ideas, she tried to somersault again continued to fail at it. After that, she just gave up and found a piece of paper and a pencil to draw with.

Now there remained the question of what to draw. In this situation, like with many others, she consulted Duel Monsters to find the answer. She spread out some of her cards across the ground, knocking her ankles together in the air as she lay on her stomach trying to force some inspiration onto the canvas.

Eventually, she just started drawing, not really focusing on anything in particular and trying to see what she could come up with just on instinct. After some carefully sketched lines, she produced what was definitely a circle. Progress.

“Why does time have to move slow?” she grumbled to herself. She dotted a pair of eyes into the circle and made a smiling mouth before moving on to another part of the paper. With a sigh, she let her hand run free and do as it pleased, scratching marks into the page with reckless abandon to create what would hopefully turn out to be something close to an actual picture along the way.

After a few minutes of unfocusing her eyes at whatever it was taking shape in front of her, she blinked a few times and studied her work. It was definitely a person. And it was definitely a person she knew. And it was definitely Sakuya.

She wasn't sure whether to be embarrassed to be doodling her like some lovelorn shoujo character or proud of how well the actual drawing came out. It was amateurish, of course, but genuinely recognizable as her friend. Maybe if being a professional duelist didn't pan out how she wanted, she could go to art school and try to make a career out of this.

Rather than dwell on it for any length of time, she took the paper and folded it away into a drawer, hidden forever until she ran out of socks. That was probably enough drawing for the day. Now she was back to square one, though, and not much closer to when something fun would happen.

Finally, she gave up. The only option left was to go to sleep. She couldn't be hot or bored if she was taking a nap. Plopping face first onto a pile of soft clothes, she reached around until she could find her alarm clock, completely unused the entire summer – she always woke up early enough to where it wasn't really necessary. She set the time for a few hours into the future. If she was late, someone would surely come to wake her up, so it wouldn't be that big of a deal.

Settling back into the makeshift pillow, Yumi tried to relax long enough to give in to any residual sleepiness she was feeling, only to begin moving her body trying to dance to an extremely catchy anime theme song she'd heard the other day. Mercifully, her brain got tired of it rather quickly and she was allowed to resume laying prone once more. With a loud sigh, she focused all her energy and every last bit of her tiny amount of patience into sleep. Amazingly, it worked after about forty-five minutes.

By the time she woke up, there was only one dream she could really remember. Maybe it was the only one she'd had in such a short amount of time. Regardless, it was a bit disturbing. She'd found herself within a void of darkness stretching out far beyond anywhere she could see, sketching in white onto some kind of surface in front of her.

In an echo, she could hear someone calling her name. It almost sounded like Sakuya – probably remembering the drawing she'd made by accident earlier and linking these two things together in her dream. She could hear the voice growing louder over time but no less distorted. Either way, she was apparently ignoring it in favor of the expansive drawing she was creating.

After some time, it seemed to be an approximation of a Duel Monsters card, if a bit sketchy and lopsided. Nothing was written on it to indicate any sort of distinguishing features she could use to name it. Standing back from it, the echo had faded away some time ago, leaving her in silence with her drawing.

From the darkness, she heard another voice, though it was much clearer than the last. “Almost time,” it said in a slippery, hissed tone. She had no idea what that could mean whether she was dreaming or waking, though it filled her with a dread she couldn't begin to explain. Luckily, her alarm went off soon after, allowing her to explain it away as nothing more than a strange, heat-induced nightmare. Now was no time for dwelling on terrifying dreams, though. She had to start getting ready.

The first step was to get dressed. She looked down at herself and the dingy gray T-shirt she wore like a dress over the only pair of shorts she owned that weren't cutoff overalls. It was...passable, and she wasn't about to wear more clothes in this weather. She couldn't even afford to put her goggles on; the lenses would fog up and get all sweaty on her head. It was just a bad time all around.

Next, she had to wake her grandmother again. Perhaps it was genetic, since the heat would always put the both of them to sleep after a time. This would also involve explaining she invited over two more people without asking permission, as well, so she could only expect the best. And, surprisingly, the best she got.

“I'm just glad you've finally got some friends. This house was always so quiet before.” Yumi received a firm pat on the head, feeling relieved that she wasn't about to be scolded for her irresponsibility. “Think those kids are going to want food when they get here?”

“Probably,” Yumi responded, mostly thinking of herself now that she was feeling the post-nap hunger. “Can we make takoyaki?” she asked excitedly. “I promised Sakuya we'd have it the next time she came over.”

“Sure,” her grandmother replied. “I got a good deal on fresh tentacles the other day, so I've been looking for something to do with them.” Without even being asked, Yumi was already sprinting to the kitchen to start helping to prepare the food. With her lack of skills, that could prove disastrous in any number of ways.

Luckily for everyone, the phone began to ring before she could start the cooking process. “I'll get it!” she declared, running off once more to find out who was calling. “Hello,” she greeted in a much more restrained way.

“You sound like you calmed down,” Sakuya said with a chuckle from the other side.

“Hi!” Yumi screamed for no other reason than to be obstinate.

“I was just calling to let you know I'll be coming over soon. The temperature's been dropping a bit, so it should probably be a lot better by the time I leave the house. It's so boring here all by myself.”

Yumi held in a squeal before replying, “Hurry before I eat all the food. We're making takoyaki just like I promised.”

“You'd better not,” she said in a huff.

“I don't know how long I can last. They're just so good. You should just get here faster.”

“I'll pull on your ears if I get there and there's nothing left.” Yumi blew a raspberry into the speaker, forcing Sakuya to make some sort of odd growling noise before hanging up. Payback for calling her a sweaty mess earlier. It was true, but she didn't need people talking about it.

As soon as she put down the phone, there was a knock at the door. Sakuya really must like takoyaki, too, if she came that quickly. Opening it, though, she was greeted by the sight of Kazuhiko and Hideo (dressed in black and dark gray, respectively) pouring sweat and panting on the doorstep.

Upon seeing their chance, both of them fell face-first into Yumi's house, with only slight relief upon getting out of direct sunlight. “Water,” Kazuhiko muttered weakly.

“O...kay,” Yumi replied with concern. “Grandma, I think those two are about to die. What do I do?” She was already filling two cups from the tap as she said this, her grandmother continuing to chop vegetables and prep the takoyaki pan with oil.

“Keep them hydrated,” she replied, wiping her hands on a rag and following Yumi to the front of the house.

Yumi knelt down to hand Kazuhiko his glass, which he immediately guzzled like someone who'd wandered through the dessert for three days and was finally being given some relief. “You know you two don't have to wear all those clothes when it's this hot.” She tried to hand the other to Hideo, but they only pointed to their head. With a shrug, she dumped it on top of the hood, receiving a very casual thumbs up in response.

“Got to...until...inside...” Kazuhiko said between breathes. He dragged himself and his companion over the threshold of the door, immediately throwing off his coat and breathing a sight of relief, beginning to comb his hair back into its familiar shape. “Better.”

“At least you're getting to know some interesting characters,” the older woman said with a smile as she hung Kazuhiko's discarded school jacket onto a shabby coat rack. “I'm Yumi's grandmother. I don't think I've met either of you two before.”

Kazuhiko slowly made it to his feet, rolling up the sleeves on his green T-shirt and running a comb through his pompadour one last time for dramatic flare. “My name is Kazuhiko Mitsuru! Strongest in Chiba and friend to Miss Takano Yumi! This is my rival, Hideo!” Hideo was shakily making it as his speech continued on. “We braved the harsh and unforgiving landscape of this town during the heatwave for the sole purpose of restoring our friend's smile! No gods or monsters could ever hope to stop us once we set our mind to something!”

“I like that one,” her grandmother whispered as the boy continued with his flowery introduction. “Reminds me of your grandfather.”

“I know, right?” Yumi replied. “Hideo doesn't talk, by the way. They'll show you their phone to read if they have something to say.” She received a nod in reply before making the dangerous move to interrupt the ever-growing monologue. “Hey, you all want to sit down? It's a lot of walking to get here without a bike.”

Pausing mid-sentence with his right arm pointing dramatically into the air, Kazuhiko straightened to a normal posture. “Sure, where do we go? Nice house, by the way.” Leading them to the sitting room past the kitchen, both guests took a seat on the mat flooring.

Yumi went to get everyone more water, which the two gratefully drank as soon as it arrived. “You should have stayed home if it was that much trouble. Don't die just to come to my house.”

“Not like we had anything better to do,” Kazuhiko replied while cracking his neck. This was a lie, at least on Hideo's part, since they were currently embroiled in finding more shows and comic books to add to the infinitely expanding Westphall Universe. Either way, going to Yumi's house seemed more interesting. They'd already linked Dragon Ball Z to Doctor Who, Marvel Comics, and every show on Cartoon Network circa 2003, so there wasn't really anywhere to go from there, anyway.

Opening a small holder attached to his belt, he retrieved his cards and started to look through them. “Hideo, do you remember what I said I was going to change after that last duel?” Only a shrug was given in response as they were already plunging into more connections, this time involving Puff the Magic Dragon. “Damn it. Miss Yumi, take a look for me.”

She blinked as Kazuhiko handed her his deck. “You're going to let me see it?” she asked perplexed.

“Yeah, why not? I trust you enough not to use it against me in a duel. That's not the kind of person you are.” He stood up, placing the cards on the table. “Hey, which way's your toilet? I've been holding it for half an hour the whole way over here.”

“Down the hall. Go straight forward like you're coming in the door and it'll be the first door on the left near the phone.” Yumi was already looking through his deck in amazement at how rare some of the cards were. There were even a few other Synchro Monsters besides the two she'd already seen him use in the several duels she'd viewed or been a part of and was really hoping to see them in action at some point soon.

After several minutes of relief, Kazuhiko exited the hallway and came to the kitchen, watching Mrs. Takano at work making them some food. “Excuse me, ma'am,” he said, scratching at the back of his head with a bit of apprehension. “Need some help with that? I'm a pretty good with kitchen tools, so maybe I can chop some stuff, or something.”

With a chuckle, she shook her head. “That's sweet of you to offer, but I've got it covered. I like cooking for a group. You're a guest here, and I couldn't make you do work for me.”

“Are you sure?” he asked again. “It's really not any trouble. I help my mom out all the time.”

Looking him up and down, she gave another laugh, moving over to allow him space at the cutting board. “If you really want to. Just keep chopping those for me.” With a small grin, Kazuhiko picked up the knife and began to quickly chop up some green onion root to go with a small pile of cabbage. The ease with which he did this proved his claims.

“Ever made takoyaki before?” she asked, filling the holes on the griddle with the prepared batter now that it was up to temperature.

“Nah, the flip always seemed complicated. Afraid I'd mess up.” She handed him a tentacle to begin cutting into small pieces, taking them as he finished to place into the holes and sprinkle with the vegetables and some pickled ginger.

She laughed again. “It's not too hard. Let me show you.” She took a pair of chopsticks and handed them to Kazuhiko, who timidly grabbed them. “Use two, since you're a beginner. The trick is a light touch and proper timing. They should be about ready, so put both stick into the sides and turn it over on its side.” With an expression of utmost seriousness, he slowly approached the barely formed food, clumsily poking beneath the excess breading frying outside the holes until he reached the hole. With one swift motion, he managed to turn it on its side just as instructed.

“Good work,” she congratulated as he pumped his fist in the air. “Now, what you're going to want to do is tuck all that extra into the hole, too, so it gets nice and round when you're done.” He nodded, doing as instructed and repeating it on the balls. “We just keep turning them until they get the right shape and turn a golden brown color, and they're done.”

“That really wasn't that hard,” Kazuhiko said while turning the forming spheres. “That's really all there is to it?”

“See? They are simple. Let them cook a little longer, then pull them out and plate them.” To punctuate this, she pulled out a large plate from a cabinet above the stove, then moved to the refrigerator. “Yumi's always asking me to make these for her, so we've always got the ingredients.” She placed bottles of mayonnaise and takoyaki sauce onto the counter as Kazuhiko began to pull them onto the plate with a bit of difficulty.

With the last ball set out, they'd made a perfect set of nine takoyaki balls in a three by three grid. “Good work, Kazuhiko. You were a big help.” He resisted the urge to roll his eyes at the little kid-sounding praise, but it was still making him feel pretty good about himself. Topping them with alternating lines of the condiments and some ground nori and bonito flakes, they were ready to eat. “Would you mind carrying those into the other room for me? I'm getting some toothpicks to eat them with.”

“Sure thing,” he replied with a nod. Bursting into the sitting room, he stomped his foot while holding the plate above his head. “Behold, my greatest creation! My talents now extend beyond Duel Monsters into being a culinary master!” Yumi and Hideo looked up from a video playing on the phone. It was about a manga artist's process in creating his work based on the struggles with his own mental health, but that was nothing compared to the prospect of food.

“Takoyaki!” Yumi squealed, grabbing one of the smaller plates her grandmother supplied as she walked into the room with a set of three and a small jar of toothpicks. Stabbing into one of them, she moved it to her mouth, only to pause before taking a bite.

“What's wrong?” Kazuhiko asked, putting his down onto a plate. “Better not just be refusing to eat it because I helped make it. I actually tried on that and it would hurt my feelings a little.”

Surprised at his blunt honesty, Yumi couldn't respond for a couple seconds. With a blink, she explained, “It's not that. I just promised there'd be plenty here for when someone else showed up, and I'm afraid she'll get mad if we end up eating all of them before that.”

“That makes sense,” he agreed with a sagely nod. “Then it's decided. We'll wait for your friend to show up. Right, Hideo?” Turning to the third person in the room, both of them were immediately floored as they'd already begun on a second ball while the two of them had been talking.

Before anyone could begin to protest, there was a knock on the door. The door frame, more accurately, given every shutter in the house was wide open to help the airflow through the house. “Sakuya!” Yumi screamed, racing from her seated position to the front of the house at world record pace.

“Hello, Yumi,” she greeted as a pair of arms encircled around her neck.

“Ishikawa!” both of them suddenly heard from the other room. Surprisingly, he decided not to storm in this time, more content to eat his share of the food as quickly as possible as some kind of personal victory.

“I'm glad you made it,” Yumi said.

Sakuya, in a move she'd been calculating since the first call this morning, decided to try returning the hug. It wasn't an unpleasant experience, surprisingly enough, though she was quickly in need of personal space again. Releasing and moving back a bit so Yumi would do the same, she walked into the house and sniffed the air. “I smell something good. Is it takoyaki?”

Yumi nodded. “Yep. You came just in time. It just finished a little bit ago.” Taking her friend by the hand, Yumi led her through the kitchen where her grandmother was turning another batch in the griddle. Arriving in the sitting room, they were greeted by an obstinate Kazuhiko standing with his arms crossed and an unenthusiastic wave from Hideo as they restrained themself from taking another, less out of courtesy than for an unspoken dedication to equal distribution.

“Ishikawa, don't think the bad weather and a delicious meal can save you from my wrath! Our business isn't concluded until I get my rematch!”

“Yumi, when did your hands get this soft?” Sakuya asked, completely ignoring the boy's blustering.

“I remembered what you said about my hands being rough, so I've been using lotion for a couple weeks now so they're not as bad.” A devious smile spread across her face. “Now you don't have any excuses left not to hold my hand.”

Sakuya turned up her nose while holding back a blush as best she could. “I haven't even been here five minutes and you're already acting lewd. You're lucky there's food.” They both tried a takoyaki ball for the first time, thoroughly satisfied with the flavor. “Fine, these are worth some hand holding.”

“Kazuhiko, these are really good!” Yumi told him. This was enough to stir him from his lethargic moping after he'd given up being noticed by either of them before.

“You actually made these?” Sakuya asked in surprise.

With a sneer, he placed a hand to his chin. “Bet you didn't know I had so many talents, Ishikawa.”

“Look at that, you actually did something right. Maybe you should give up Duel Monsters and try to become a chef. Seems more your speed, anyway.”

He raised a fist with the intent to argue, but slowly lowered it and returned to his smugness. “I'll take that as a compliment,” he said in equal parts denial and pride. After the girls had finished off the last of them, he grabbed the plate and stood back up. “I'll see if there's more ready,” he announced while walking into the kitchen.

“By the way,” Yumi began, “this is Hideo. They're cool and a really strong duelist. We met the other day in the card shop.”

“Hello, I'm Sakuya,” she greeted, curiously picking up the phone that was passed across the table for some reason. It was nothing but a compliment on her hat. “Thank you,” she said, the faintest hint of a smile sneaking its way onto her lips after reading.

Hideo typed a quick message about not speaking and communicating through texts as Kazuhiko returned from the kitchen. “One more coming after this,” he told the group as he set it in the middle of the table. “Oh, Miss Yumi,” he said through a mouthful of octopus. “Did you have any advice on my deck?”

In truth, she'd nearly forgotten about that. “I'm not sure,” she answered. “Maybe...a little more defense? You're still lacking many Magic or Trap Cards that can protect you in case your monsters leave the field.” He nodded in response.

“Is that your deck?” Sakuya asked, pointing to a stack of cards off to the side. “Let me see,” she said with a sigh, not waiting for a response.

“Hey!” he yelled. “That's low, even for you! I'll just remake the entire thing if you try to get an advantage by spying on my cards!”

“I don't need an advantage to beat you,” she told him bluntly. “Besides, if I tell you how to improve it, then you can pretend to understand how I plan, so I'm actually giving you the advantage here.”

He thought for a moment before crossing his arms. “Fine, then,” he said, resigning to eat more takoyaki while he waited for her to finish looking. Yumi watched over her shoulder.

Even Hideo looked up from the food and their phone for a moment, seemingly catching a sense of Sakuya's true nature as an elite duelist. They'd put a bit of effort into helping Kazuhiko refine his deck the other day, but it was a very halfhearted attempt with a short amount of time to go on. It didn't help that they honestly forgot what they'd said, either. A fresh set of what seemed to be equally skilled eyes would be interesting, to say the least.

After reaching the end of the stack, Sakuya paused for a moment before gathering them together and handing them over to Kazuhiko. “On one hand, I agree with Yumi. You do lack substantial defenses for when something goes wrong. Using a Synchro deck, if anything happens to disrupt your summons, you've wasted resources and left yourself open without any hope of recovery.

“On the other,” she continued, “I don't think you've gone aggressive enough. Your monsters have the potential to turn into something strong, but the fact remains that they're very weak to start off, and it takes several turns before anything can be accomplished. Even your Synchro Monsters rely on raw power until their effects trigger. Without a way to speed up this process, you'll be left in the dust by a faster strategy.”

She nodded to emphasize her point. “Doubly so if they leave the field. That stipulation can be troublesome, especially early on when their longevity isn't assured. As it stands, your deck is unfocused and relies too much on general utility instead of a concentrated strategy. My advice is to focus on a few of those Synchro Monsters that will win you the duel and base your strategy on summoning them with the others as backup. Find a way to move your monsters effect timing forward at a faster pace and bolster your defenses to support them staying on the field.”

The room was completely silent after she finished speaking. Turning up her nose, Sakuya added, “But that's just my opinion,” a distinctive edge to the words as they left her mouth.

In a day full of surprises, this one hit the hardest. Kazuhiko actually found himself agreeing with the words of his self-proclaimed rival. Rubbing his chin, he took a glance at his cards before placing them back into the holder from where he'd originally taken them. He cleared his throat, preparing himself for immense pain. “Thank you...Ishikawa.”

“There's no reason to thank me,” she said dismissively. “If you ever do manage to eke out a win against Yumi and I have to fight you, I'd like it to be at least a bit of a challenge.” He restrained himself once again. He was a guest in this house and didn't want to make a scene. Plus, he owed her for the genuinely good advice. Their quarrel was on hold for another day.

“Friendship!” Yumi declared with her arms raised and mouth full of food.

“In her dreams!” Kazuhiko protested.

“Yeah, not really. We're just not fighting today.”

“(Almost as good as) friendship!” she corrected herself, whispering the beginning. The two of them decided to agree on something else in the eye roll given to Yumi. Her heart was in the right place, but they'd never be friends. Not ever.

Suddenly, a tapping came from the other side of the table. Hideo gestured for them all to come see something. A video, apparently. Flipping their phone sideways, they pressed play. Immediately, they were confused. “What's this supposed to?” Sakuya said, trying to figure out the purpose behind it. “It's just someone raking sand.”

“Yeah,” Kazuhiko added. “I don't get it.” Hideo simply gestured for everyone to remain silent. A minute passed before the tingling took hold, phone speakers be damned.

“I still don't...” Sakuya tried to say. “It's just...raking...”

“Yeah...” Kazuhiko said once more. Yumi was entirely silent, having been sucked in shortly after it began playing. In no time at all, the four of them had been completely entranced by the magic of ASMR, staring transfixed at the screen without making a sound. Yumi's grandmother returned to get their plate for the last of the takoyaki, unsure of what to make of the gathering.

They'd surely break up after more food was put down, she thought. But even this was proven untrue. Walking around to see what it was that had hypnotized them all, she was utterly lost by whatever enjoyment was being found in raking sand and moving tiny rocks around. With a shrug, she let them go about their business, stealing a single takoyaki for herself.

Forty-five minutes passed before the video reached its end. Life returned to them as soon as it did, Kazuhiko looking around like a startled animal trying to figure out what happened. Yumi wiped some drool from her mouth as Sakuya rubbed her eyes. None of them were sure of what to make of that phenomenon, or of Hideo's disconcerting thumbs up afterwards.

“That was a thing,” Sakuya concluded, definitely speaking for the three of them. It was far from unpleasant, just very unexpected and hard to explain.

“Oh, hey, more food,” Kazuhiko noted after seeing Hideo snag another ball. Despite all that had happened since they'd arrived at the house, it had only been a little over an hour in total. With full stomachs and brains still trying to process that video, they all settled in for the afternoon of polite (and eventually very impassioned) conversation.

Yumi wasted no time in showing off some of the cards Kazuhiko had bought for her yesterday to Sakuya, who was still captivated by her immense luck. Hideo proceeded to explain the finer points of their newest connection theory from that morning after Kazuhiko made a comment about it offhandedly. No one really understood it, but it was amazing nonetheless.

Eventually, it was brought to everyone's attention that Sakuya was the only one of them not at least mildly covered in sweat. She had no real explanation besides being “used to” the heat, though Kazuhiko's theory of, “Fire can't harm a demon,” was immediately accepted by the rest.

The rest of their time was spent playtesting against one another in less-than-serious and less-than-official duels (Kazuhiko's specific demands, of course) in between talking about nothing in particular. Most startling to Sakuya was the fact she was genuinely having fun with a group of people.

It was unusual and nearly impossible. Keeping up the lie usually meant cutting off the ability to laugh and experience joy, but these three just wouldn't let that happen. Yumi, obviously, was her only true friend, but she was meant to hate and antagonize Kazuhiko. Hideo she'd just met and barely knew. Logically, it didn't make a lot of sense. Not to her, at least.

But the longer they'd been there, the more her facade began to fall apart, the more she'd been able to be happy. And now she was forced to ponder: If she could feel like this all the time, then why keep up the lies? They were exhausting and unpleasant. Not everyone would be this agreeable upon finding out the truth, but it was seeming more and more to be worth the risk.

That was for another day, though. The sun was beginning to set after they'd finished the final duel of the day. “Guess it's about time to go home,” Kazuhiko said. “You ready, Hideo?” He received a nod in response, as well as an unexpected hug from Yumi.

“I'm happy everyone came over today,” she said. “We should do this again sometime.”

“Yeah, sure,” he replied, trying to keep a straight face with embarrassment spreading across him like the plague. Wriggling out of her grip, he walked to the entrance and grabbed his coat.

“It was nice to meet you, Hideo,” Sakuya said with a smile. They gave a thumbs up in response, typing out that they'd have to test their skills against each other when she decided to be honest about her potential. “Okay, then,” she replied, not entirely sure what they were talking about. “Kazuhiko, it wasn't entirely bad. Good job not being so obnoxious today.”

“You, too, demon lady.” With that, the two of them left, hoping to catch the train before the next circuit.

“Can I use your toilet quickly?” Sakuya asked after they were out of sight. “I'll leave right after.” She was allowed, obviously, though she didn't actually need to. It was mostly so Kazuhiko and Hideo would be long gone by the time she left the house. She had a great many things to think about after today and she wanted to be alone to contemplate in silence.

She returned after a few minutes with Yumi bouncing over to see her. “I asked my grandma if it's okay and she said it was, so do you want to stay over again tonight?”

Caught off guard, Sakuya didn't have a pre-prepared response to that. “Well, I...I guess I should ask...” She paused. “Yes, I'd love to,” she said definitely. “Can I borrow your pajamas again?”

“Yeah!” Yumi led her by the hand down the hall, going to retrieve the futons for them to sleep on. Her grandmother watched with a smile, more than happy to see her finally making friends. She hid it well, but it was fairly blatant that Yumi was deeply hurt by her parents' disappearance. For one reason or another, she'd never really managed to bond with any of the other kids she'd met, either, and it hurt to watch as much as it did to live it.

That seemed to be changing, though. Yumi had found people who understood her now. They were good kids, she could tell. Whatever the future held, it seemed like good fortune and happiness for her granddaughter. Sighing contentedly, she returned to watching TV.

\Next: The Dueling Heiress – This is All Happening at a Library?/

Chapter Text

Yumi's bike coasted to a stop on the sidewalk, dismounting and pushing it down the hill as she rolled down. Sakuya would show up in a few minutes, but right now was prime cloud watching time. There was a nice breeze, too, so she didn't have to worry about boiling alive in the heat, either. It was just a peaceful, warm morning with plenty of weird shapes to stare at in the sky.

A few minutes turned into a lot of minutes without her even noticing. By the time she finally looked around, almost a half hour had passed since she'd arrive. Strangely, Sakuya was still nowhere to be found.

Hopping up, Yumi started to pace back and forth. Sakuya was never late to anything. Was traffic really bad today? Did traffic even matter, since she generally seemed to walk most places? Was there a problem leaving the house? Maybe there was an accident on the way, like one of those falling pianos in old cartoons.

Or maybe she was kidnapped. Yumi tried desperately to remember any of the local news stories from the morning and anything having to do with children disappearing. She couldn't remember any off hand, but that just meant it was too recent to even be reported. Sakuya was probably tied up in a dark warehouse being held for ransom and there was nothing she could do. Should she call the police? Did Sakuya's father know? What would they even be aiming for with this?

“Sorry I'm late,” she heard from behind her, her near-panic attack subsiding in an instant. “I had some stuff to take care of at home and got held up.” She was quickly assaulted by a smothering hug. “Good morning to you, then,” Sakuya replied, pulling a blade of grass out of Yumi's hair.

“I totally thought you were kidnapped!” Yumi screamed. She sniffed, then grimaced. “What is that? Did you fall in something?” There was some kind of old, sour, citrusy smell on Sakuya's dress.

She laughed, waving a hand. “It's nothing. Just a spill. I didn't have time to change since I knew you'd start worrying. And, look at that, I was right.” She tapped Yumi on the forehead and brushed at a small spot on the front of her clothes for what good that would do. As she did, she started to look around, noticing a distinct lack of the usual kid crowd. There weren't even that many adults today, either. “Do you know why there's no one here today?”

“Didn't notice, actually.” Yumi scratched the back of her head, trying to think about her trip over for any clues she might have passed. “Maybe there was something goin on down the road, but I don't really remember.” She shrugged, dismissing it. “Oh well. I guess that means you don't have to pretend for everyone today, so we can act like friends, right?”

She smiled, taking a seat on the grass. “Suppose so,” she said. “I am a little curious as to what all the commotion could be about. It might be interesting.” Immediately, she regretted saying that. The slight drop in Yumi's smile told her everything she needed to know. Yumi was desperate for the two of them to be able to have a normal, friendly relationship around other people and not have to keep up all the performative crap. Suggesting they go chase after all the people they'd normally have to hide from just made her feel like a giant asshole.

“But it's fine,” she said quickly. “I bet it's nothing, honestly. Probably just...” Sakuya had to think for a minute. “Some kind of gross food truck drawing all of them in with the novelty and sending them home with indigestion.”

“Wait, food truck?” Yumi quickly forgot her disappointment in having to carry on the act for yet another day, swayed by the promise of food. “We should go! There's plenty of time for other stuff today.”

Sakuya was only feeling more and more guilty with every passing second. “Are you sure? We really should get back to training. We took two days off in a row now.”

“It'll only be a minute,” Yumi countered, grabbing her bike from the ground and walking it up the hill. “Come on, I think I know where I saw the signs.”

With a sigh, Sakuya followed. “If you're sure.” Yumi took a seat on her bike, then looked back expectantly. “I guess I'll follow you, then.”

She scoffed. “Just hop on. I've got pegs, see?” She points to a pair of rusty cylinders attached to the end of the rickety contraption.

“Are you sure that's...safe?” Sakuya asked.

“Too scared to ride a bike?” Yumi said with a smug look.

“I am not!” she protested. Crossing her arms with a pout, Sakuya turned up her nose. “I just don't think it's safe to be standing up on a fast vehicle.”

Yumi only laughed. “It's totally fine. You can even wear my helmet if you want.” She handed a worn bike helmet to her friend. There was no real indication of what color it used to be, all defining features being bleached away by the sun. The numerous dents and scratches across its surface did nothing to soothe her anxiety, though it did suddenly make Yumi's story of headbutting the side of a house with it a tad more believable.

With a deep breathe, she channeled her hate (not at anyone or anything in particular, just the general kind) and pushed down her fears, strapping the beaten head protection to herself and holding her breath as Yumi took off down the sidewalk. She made sure to secure her hat underneath it so as not to accidentally lose grip while they were in motion. It might even give her an extra millimeter of padding when the breaks gave out on this prehistoric mess and they went crashing into a wall.

It was a quick ride, the bike grinding to a halt near a large crowd of people at the doors to the public library a short distance from the park. “Guess that's where everyone went,” Yumi said to herself. “You can let go now.” Sakuya had kept a vice grip on Yumi's overall straps the entire ride, frozen in place and not daring to so much as breathe for fear of shifting their weight and causing a disaster.

“Wait a minute, this isn't a food truck,” Yumi declared rather obviously. “I thought you said there would be food?”

“I was only guessing,” she replied, handing the helmet back to Yumi and attempting to hide her quaking knees. “Besides, you're the one who actually saw this as you were coming over. How didn't you know where we were going?” She fixed her hat back in place after fluffing it up a bit.

Yumi thought for a second before bursting into a short laugh. “Oh, good point.” She pulled a bike lock out of her backpack and chained up her bike and helmet next to a row of others in the library's stalls. “What do you think this is all about?” she asked Sakuya.

“I have a sneaking suspicion it involves books,” she replied. This was proven to be an incorrect assumption rather quickly. Their attempt at entering the building was impeded by the crowd shoving them back.

“Quit cutting!” one man shouted at a volume completely unfit for a library. “Wait your turn like the rest of us!”

“What are we waiting for?” Yumi asked innocently.

He scoffed several times for emphasis. “Are you dense? We're all waiting to see Rio. Why are you even here if you don't know that?”

“Well, most people come to a library to read books,” Sakuya shot back, stepping in front of Yumi. She wasn't about to let some grown man yell at her friend like that. What was wrong with people these days? “We don't even know who that is to begin with.”

“Everyone knows who Rio is!” he contested. “Mabuchi Rio! Heiress to Critical Games and future World Champion of Duel Monsters! Don't you know anything?” They both remained silent. “She's here today making a public appearance after winning her regional qualifier ticket, and one person might even get to duel her. So get in line and don't try to cut. Or, better yet, just get lost.”

“Okay,” Sakuya replied dismissively. “Let's go, Yumi. This was a bust.”

Yumi laughed nervously in response. “Well, actually...I kind of want to meet her now. I want to see what kind of person someone that strong is, and getting to duel her would be good training, too. She's already beaten the tournament I'm going to enter, so if I can beat her, then I'll definitely win when I enter.”

The adult from before started laughing. “Like you could ever beat Rio. Don't make me laugh! But you already have, because it's so absurd! A couple little kids could never reach her level!”

“Isn't she also a kid?” Sakuya asked. “Wait, how old are you, even?”

“T-that's none of your business!” He turned his back and refused to talk to them any further. Point out the uncomfortable implications of his gatekeeping seemed to hit a nerve.

Yumi looked to Sakuya, pleading for the chance to test her skills against this new opponent. She was even doing the lip quiver. With a sigh, she relented. “Fine, we'll stay. Don't complain if it takes a while, though.” Yumi cheered and hugged her friend with all her might. It was going to be a long day.

More and more people joined the line behind them the longer they stood there. At least it moved quickly enough, they thought, right before actually making it through the doors and seeing an even longer wait up a set of stairs and around a corner to where the person of such huge renown apparently waited.

“Are you sure we can't go?” Sakuya asked after an hour had passed, taking another longing glance at a parent and child exiting through the completely unguarded exit doors. She had no interest in meeting this Rio person or standing around in a line full of a disproportionate amount of adult men. Hopefully Yumi would be feeling the same way after so long.

“It'll be fine,” she replied, waving a hand dismissively. “We're inside now, so we'll get there soon. Just be patient like you're always telling me. It'd be a waste to just give up after we've already spent so much time here.” Unable to crush her friend's dreams, Sakuya steeled herself for more standing and waiting. If this crowd wasn't a shove away from a riot, she might have been able to step out of line and grab a book to read, but she had a pretty good feeling anyone trying to reenter would be beaten to death and tossed into the street.

Two more hours passed before they were finally within sight of the table. Two large men in black suits stood on either side of a thin little girl about their age wearing a violet sweater in spite of the weather. Her eyes were the same color, giving off a friendly vibe to match her smile. Her hair was a light brown and cut into a bob, two strands hanging down on either side to highlight her face and bring attention to her button nose and the perpetual blush on each cheek. She was positively, sickeningly adorable.

“Fight hard and do your best!” she proclaimed to the obnoxious man who'd previously been berating the children behind him. He took off with a smile, clutching a card with Rio's signature on it. “As if you could ever stand on my level with garbage like that,” she thought to herself without her expression cracking even a bit. “Nothing but trash duelists and perverts here. If I have to sit through much more of this I'm going to kill someone.”

“Sakuya, I can't go on! Let me rest, just for a moment. Be my pillow!” Yumi was aggressively trying to lay her head on top of her friend while slowly sliding towards the ground, having to be dragged along in the line.

“Why am I the one carrying you?” Sakuya yelled back. She didn't even want to be here, yet she had to be the one to keep them from being trampled by the line. “Oh, it's your turn.” Yumi perked up after noticing their position, scrambling to her feet and running over to the table.

“Hi, my name's Yumi!” she said while jumping in place. “I've never heard of you before, but if you're as strong as everyone is saying, it's really nice to meet you!”

Rio laughed, screaming internally for having to deal with another of them. “It's always a pleasure to meet a new fan,” she lied with a smile. “Go jump off a bridge,” she wanted to say, doing her best not to explode the longer this meeting went on. Why couldn't she just be the mysterious champion that never meets with the peasants, hidden away in a tower until it was time to reign terror upon any attempted usurpers? Something like that, at least. That sounded kind of cool.

“Next month, I'm going to enter the prefectural tournament, too, and I'm definitely going to win, so I might see you at the regional tournament. I hope we get to duel sometime.” This girl's optimism would be cute if it weren't so annoying. Well, not cute. She definitely wouldn't call her cute in any way, shape, or form. Look at those dopey goggles; not cute in the least.

Sakuya had joined her friend by now after a long sigh. Whether it was her fowl mood after standing around for hours or being grabbed at by less-than-subtle creepers in line, she decided to start something she probably didn't need to with this girl. “This is just my opinion,” she began, interrupting any further gushing from Yumi, “but isn't it kind of unfair for you to act like you're some celebrity when all you've done is win the lowest level of tournament out there? And you kind of are being supported by an infinite supply of money, so that's not really all that impressive. Just my opinion, though.”

The crowd fell silent, the hush spreading throughout the line past the initial few that overheard and all the way through its ranks until even those out the door stopped talking, unsure of what had happened but afraid to make a fuss. Both the men suppressed their gasps. “Your time is up,” one of them said sternly. “Please leave or we'll have to escort you out.”

Rio raised a hand with a chuckle, smile never faultering. She loved it when this happened. This little something or other (her parents didn't like it when she used impolite language like that) thought she could walk up and insult her without any kind of repercussions. Her money was what it was, but her skills were all her own. She didn't study this game day and night just for show. She didn't win the prefectural tournament without ending a duel with less than 4000 Life Points because of luck.

“Well, that's certainly an opinion,” she said with the most jovial attitude she could muster. “Maybe you'd like to see how it holds up? I was wanting to duel someone today, and I think you might be the perfect opponent.” She'd grind her up under the heel of her shoe and use that ridiculous hat to wipe it off.

Sakuya rolled her eyes and sighed. “If I have to,” she said with disinterest. Honestly, though, it was kind of what she wanted. As someone who'd perfected the art of faking an attitude, she could see right through Rio's disguise. Upon further consideration, that might have been why she was so pissed off in the first place – seeing too much of herself in this girl. Something about knocking her down a peg was really appealing, and maybe Yumi would do that thing were she praised her up and down again for a little bit. She'd kind of gotten to liking that.

“Wait!” Yumi called out. “That's no fair! You didn't even want to be here! I wanted to duel her from the start!”

“I don't thin that's a good idea,” Sakuya said, the shadow of concern passing over her face. Spoiled and arrogant as she was, her record spoke for itself. While she'd have minimal trouble beating Rio on her own, she wasn't that confident about Yumi's chances, at least at this stage of her training.

“It's fine,” she assured her friend. “I'm your apprentice, so it's basically the same as if you were dueling. It's not like losing matters, or anything. It would still be a lot of fun to get to duel someone who's won a big tournament.” Her bouncing optimism said she wasn't going to back down.

With hesitation, she looked towards Rio. “I don't care if you don't,” she said, feigning apathy so as not to let onto her worry.

“Oh, that would be just fine!” she answered with genuine happiness. An apprentice would be an even better victory. She'd crush this weird little girl to the point where she never wanted to look at a card again. And in front of this crowd of people, too. She'd be too ashamed to ever be seen in public again. It brought that special kind of joy to her blackened heart that only completely destroying the dreams of another adorable human being could.

Reaching into her pocket, Rio produced a small, red ticket. “I do a raffle at the end of the meeting to decide who I duel, since just picking among the whole crowd would be an issue. Sometimes I'll find someone extra special that I really want the chance to duel, so I'll give you this half and pick the matching one when it's time. Should only be a couple more hours, so keep it quiet until then.”

Yumi took the tiny piece of paper in her hands and shoved it into her front overall pocket. “Okay! Thanks!” The two of them finally left the table, walking to the left to be greeted by a woman handing each of them a ticket stub, placing the second halves into a box full of them. Sakuya crumpled hers up immediately and tossed it in the trash, doing the same for Yumi to make sure she didn't get confused.

“That was long and unnecessary,” she complained, taking a seat on a padded bench next to a large window. “Do we really have to wait around for this to be over?”

“Yep,” Yumi said decisively, flopping down next to her friend. “I'm sure it won't feel that long after waiting for as long as we did. We could read, or practice strategy, or talk about why cake is better than pie, or go see Hideo over there.” As if on queue, Hideo (who was sitting at a table not far from the two in front of a number of papers and books) gave them a thumbs up after turning off some music and removing a pair of earbuds.

“Were you here to see Rio, too?” Sakuya asked after they'd both taken a seat near them. They gestured to the work spread across the table. “Oh, I see. Summer homework. I almost forgot, since I took care of it pretty early on. What about you, Yumi?” More than half the summer flashed before her eyes. Every instance of goofing off, of going to the park, of napping, of looking at that ugly envelope and leaving the room; it all came flooding back to her. Her eyes widened, head slamming into the table. “I guess you have something to take care of when you get home tonight.”

“I would have thought Kazuhiko would be here, too. I mean, he seems like the kind who just wouldn't do the work, but still.” According to Hideo, he was currently at school rehearsing with the theater club. It made a disturbing amount of sense, frankly.

Yumi stirred from her depression, poking Sakuya in the arm. “I'm bored. What do we do while we're waiting? You still smell, by the way.”

“Well, let's see,” she began, attitude seeping through in every word. “Considering we're in a library surrounded by thousands of books, you could pick one of them to read.” She received a very angry borp in return.”We're stuck here until all that nonsense is finished so Yumi can duel Rio,” she explained to Hideo.

Hearing this, they set down the mechanical pencil they'd previously been spinning like a helicopter rotor. That was a serious challenge, they typed out, asking why Yumi felt the need to try to take her on. “It seemed like fun,” she answered bluntly, unfocusing her eyes so it looked like the tips of her index fingers were floating between her hands as a little sausage.

With a shrug, they decided that was an acceptable enough answer. Any doubts would be kept inside. It was just a game, anyway. Without a hint of anxiety from anyone but Sakuya, the trio spent the next two hours whittling away the time in any way possible besides actually reading a book.

Finally, it was over. The line was all but gone once the clock struck the top of the hour, the appointed time for when the meet-and-greet would end. There was to be a fifteen minute break between then and announcing who Rio would choose as her opponent this time, mainly so she could recover from having to deal with so many people at once. Secretly evil or not, it was stressful for a child.

“Do you think Rio's, like, into me?” Yumi said as she leaned her head over the back of her chair. “She keeps looking over here with this weird smile. Kind of giving me the feelings.”

“Yumi!” Sakuya exclaimed, almost above the appropriate library volume.

Hideo simply asked whether she had a crush on Rio in return. “Well, I don't know.” Yumi chuckled coyly. “I guess she's kind of cute, but I usually like people who are taller than me. Maybe if we got to know each other some first.”

Sakuya had turned a bright red. “Why are you talking about this so casually?” she asked the both of them. Hideo, of course, just shrugged their shoulders in response, as did Yumi. “But that's so shameful! You're talking about it like it's no big deal. Someone having feelings for someone else is a big deal, even if you don't like it. You can't just speculate on things like it's nothing!”

Yumi grinned and pulled Sakuya into a tight hug, rubbing her face on her friend's neck. “It's okay. You don't have to be jealous. You know you'll always be the one for me.” In an unprecedented move, Hideo gave the fabled double thumbs up to show their approval.

“You're both terrible people,” she said, blush deepening as she resigned to her fate. Suddenly, they began to hear a loud vacuum noise, drawing everyone's attention to the circulating box of tickets randomized themselves. It was entirely pointless, of course, given the decision had already been made beforehand.

After a few more seconds, it stopped. “Okay, everyone!” Rio said, addressing the crowd. “Now I'm going to choose who my opponent is for the day!” Slipping the second half of the winning ticket from her pocket, she pretended to dig around inside the sea of paper before pulling out her hand and raising it into the air.

Handing it off to the woman who'd previously been giving them out, she read, “The winner is ticket number 040418!” Murmurs spread throughout the library as everyone tried to find which ticket was the right one. With a nudge from Sakuya, Yumi pulled out hers and looked over the numbers. Sure enough, they matched.

She calmly walked to the woman, holding out the piece of paper to her. Another check of the numbers and it was decided. “We have a winner!” she declared. “It's- what's your name?”

“Yumi,” she said.

“Yumi! You've got the once-in-a-lifetime chance to duel Miss Mabuchi Rio! Are you ready?” Rio looked on with a smile, suppressing the excitement she felt inside. She was determined to break this girl in half.

“Sure!” Yumi answered optimistically. Given Sakuya's lack of desire to start some sort of fight, she never told Yumi about the suspicious feelings Rio gave off to her. All the same, none of that would have had a realistic chance of dissuading Yumi from the duel. She'd just say it was too much fun to pass up and go on with it, anyway.

Rio addressed her fans next. “Thank you all for coming to see me today! I hope everyone had fun during the meet! To end the day, I'm going to be dueling Yumi here, so if you'd like to watch, we'll be moving outside so we have more room!”

The group made its way out of the library to the sidewalk. Rio took a position on the side closest to the building, Yumi across the street with Sakuya and Hideo behind her. The crowd had assembled into a large mishmash of bodies taking every square inch of ground they could get in order to view the upcoming game. Some even watched from inside through the windows. Even with a chunk having left after the announcement, there were still a good few hundred hanging around.

Yumi activated her duel disk after taking it from her backpack, shuffling her deck. “Are you sure you want to do this? There's still time for me to take over.” Sakuya was wringing her hands to try and relieve some stress.

“It's fine, I've got this.” She placed her deck into the holder and readied herself across from Rio. Hideo unenthusiastically held up a sign reading “Go Yumi!” they'd made earlier.

Every second of anticipation was torture for Rio. The shabby clothes, that ancienty duel disk, that adorable little bounce in her step as she walked out here; it was all too precious. Beating her might even make her cry. She wanted so badly to shout at the slow bodyguards as they unpacked her own device from its suitcase. It was a sleep, teardrop-shaped custom model in a deep violet, featuring one of the newest and clearest touch screens still in the testing phase at her parents' company.

After they finished strapping it to her left arm for her, one of the men presented her with her deck, which she quickly shuffled and placed into the holder. She couldn't wait much longer for the humiliation to begin. Activating the disk, one side of the device unlocked from the main body, springing forward as five glistening white card zones ejected from it to form the blade and ending without an edge. “Duel!” they said in unison, drawing their cards and beginning the game.

“Thank you for sticking around to see the show!” Rio told the crowd, her words met with thunderous applause loud enough to make Hideo cover their ears. “I hope everyone enjoys the show we're about to put on!” She turned towards Yumi and gave a theatrical bow complete with hand flourish. “As always, I'll let the challenger take the first move. I can't wait to see what you can do!” That wasn't even a lie; she was dying to know what terrible cards this girl would throw at her.

“My turn!” Yumi declared, searching through her hand and taking a monster. “I summon-”

“Yumi, I swear to God, if you summon Flame Viper again, I'm going to to talk to you for a whole week!” Sakuya was genuinely upset while saying this, still worried over what this duel could mean.

With a pout, Yumi put the card back in her hand. “Another time, friend,” she said to the snake. “I summon Scaredy Lion in Attack Mode and equip it with Expert Heart!” A shivering lion man appeared on the field, looking side to side for an threats. Its demeanor quickly changed, though,as a bright red heart appeared in the center of its chest, its muscles expanding as it flexed and roared. “Turn end,” she declared.

Rio was ecstatic. It was better than she ever could have hoped. Worthless common cards with no effects and her skills were so poor she had to be coached from the sidelines. She could practically taste the despair coming after this duel. “I'll start my turn, draw!” She made sure to strike as cute a pose as possible while doing it, eliciting more applause from the audience. Given her hand, she could easily go in for the kill right now and end the duel on her first turn, but she wanted to play a bit first.

“I'll start by playing Girzerker Grumpy Dinosaur in Attack Mode!” she declared, placing a card onto the board. In front of her appeared a small, green Tyrannosaurus Rex, crossing its tiny arms and pouting. The crowd immediately began to coo over how cute it was. “Grumpy Dinosaur, attack Scaredy Lion, please!”

The monster gave a weak roar, then ran forward, bashing its skull into Scaredy Lion. With its arms raised, it blocked the attack and stayed on the field. Yumi's Life Points fell to 3700 at the same time as she explained, “Expert Heart lets the monster equipped with it resist destruction by battle once per turn, and whenever I take damage from an attack with that monster, it gains ATK and DEF equal to the damage.” Lion gave another roar, its ATK matching Grumpy Dinosaur's at 1600.

“Oh no!” Rio wailed in fake concern, all the while thinking how pointless the struggle would be for her opponent. “I didn't plan for that!” With an exaggerated sigh, she placed two cards face-down. “I set two cards and end my turn.”

“Don't let her fool you,” Sakuya said from the sidelines. “She didn't make that move by mistake. She's planning something.” The two set cards were obviously Traps, Sakuya hoping Yumi could figure out a way to work around whatever was coming. For the time being, at least, the field was in her favor.

Yumi nodded, drawing to start her turn. Wasting no time, she moved to the Battle Phase. “I attack with Scaredy Lion! Because of Expert Heart, Lion won't be hurt by this battle, but now that our monsters have the same ATK, Grumpy Dinosaur is going to be destroyed!” The lion man rushed forward, clawing at the dinosaur as it headbutted. The opposing monster shattered into pieces, leaving the lion victorious.

“No!” Rio screamed, eliciting a chorus of boos from the crowd aimed at a confused Yumi. Switching reactions quickly, Rio chuckled. “Just kidding! I activate Grumpy Dinosaur's effect and my Trap Card, Telepathic Power!” From her field, one of the two set cards flipped up, revealing the Trap. “With Telepathic Power, I an destroy a monster that's beaten one of my Psychic-Type monsters in battle, then gain Life Points equal to its ATK.”

The ghost of the dinosaur appeared from the Graveyard. Its eyes took on a glossy white color, a third eye appearing on its head to emit waves of green energy around Scaredy Lion. Yumi's monster struggled against their influence, crying out in pain as it was torn apart. Rio's Life swelled to 5600 as a result. “Grumpy Dinosaur's effect goes off now when I pay 800 Life Points to activate it,” she continued, her Life Points being lowered to a still impressive 4800.

“When Grumpy Dinosaur goes to the Graveyard, I can add a Girzerker Ritual Monster to my hand from my deck.” She fanned out her deck, selecting a blue-bordered card and holding it up for everyone to see. “I'll start with one of my favorite cards, Girzerker Bronze Tiger.” Shuffling, she returned her deck to the duel disk and added her card to her hand.

Despite losing her monster, Yumi had actually planned for this to happen. Her strategizing had surprised even herself, frankly. With nothing to get rid of either of the set cards, the best move at the time seemed to be to bait them out with Scaredy Lion. Even with the pluses given to Rio, it was still worth it not to run into Telepathic Power with something stronger.

“I summon Big Bat Knight!” she declared, a small baseball batter with a knight's breastplate appearing on the field, tapping an aluminum bat against its cleats. “Next, I equip it with Broken Wand, increasing its original ATK by 500!” In an instant, the batter's sports equipment was replaced with a very dissonant magic wand, taped together in the middle and sparking, increasing the very irritated monster's strength to 1600.

“When a monster on my field is targeted by an Equip Magic, I can activate the effect of Komboriboh from my hand.” She held up a monster, the card glowing and producing a small, spherical creature that let out a tiny “Boo!” noise as it ruffled its black fur. As with Grumpy Dinosaur before it, the crowd was immediately overcome by how adorable it was, Yumi sticking up her fingers in a V shape with a smile.

“I can discard Komboriboh to target another Equip Magic in my Graveyard that would have a target on the field and add it to my hand. I return Expert Heart!” The monster began to spin faster and faster, stopping abrupl while holding the hand of an identical copy of itself. The two monsters moved apart, Expert Heart's card materializing between their tiny clawed fingers. Yumi retrieved the card from her Graveyard as it happened. “I'll end my turn with that.”

“Wow, great move!” Rio complemented. It was a lie, obviously. A child could have done all that, she thought. More trash cards for a trash duelist trying to pick up the pieces after a mistake.

Sakuya, however, was much more optimistic. “It's true. You baited a Trap Card and recovered your losses well. You played cautiously and have another monster on the field to protect you as a result. Well done.” Hideo gave a thumbs up, as well, approving of the strategic use of resources.

“Oh, it was nothing!” Yumi said with a blush. “I just learned from you.” Rio's eye twitched slightly, being careful not to broadcast her annoyance to the fans. She couldn't very well make her turn while her opponent wasn't even paying attention, so their antics were slowing down the game. Look at that annoying, blushing, taller than her and not at all attractive failure of a duelist. No serious player would turn their back to the enemy like that.

Finally, their banter was finished and the duel could continue. “Time to show you what my deck can really do!” she announced, drawing her card. “I activate the Ritual Magic Girzerker Ascending Ceremony!” Fog spread across the ground, four golden pots rising in a circle in the middle of the field. “By releasing monsters with Levels equal to the Level of a Girzerker Ritual Monster in my hand, I can Ritual Summon it to my field. But Girzerker Ascending Ceremony isn't a normal Ritual Magic.” Rio's Life Points quickly began to drop. “I can substitute for Levels when summoning my monsters at the cost of 500 Life Points for each one.” Eventually, it settled on 2800, meaning four Level stars. Each of the pots produced a crimson flame as Rio raised her arms into the air, a six pointed star drawing between them in green energy. “At the cost of four Levels, I call out my monster!” The flames rose higher as a monster began to materialize in the center. “Ritual Summon! Level 4, Girzerker Bronze Tiger!”

Appearing on Rio's field was a hulking, brown tiger beast, its brain exposed out of the top of its skull with various electrodes sticking into it. It roared at the knight across from it. Even so, it had only 1700 ATK; just 100 more than Big Bat Knight itself.

“Rio Ritual Summoned!” one excited crowd member exclaimed. “It's over now!”

“Bronze Tiger, attack Big Bat Knight! Brain Claw!” The monster roared again, sending out shockwaves in the shape of a giant claw towards Yumi's monster. Upon impact, a cloud of smoke obscured her field from sight.

“Because of Broken Wand's effect, I can return Big Bat Knight to my hand if it's being attacked by a monster with higher ATK and end the Battle Phase.”

“What?” Rio exclaimed, quickly correcting herself. “I mean...wow, what a good move!” Had to stay positive. Couldn't let these failures learn the truth. “I'll set another card and end my turn.”

Yumi was excited to see her next draw. She'd been waiting to use this card ever since she got it yesterday. “I summon Big Bat Knight again!” she declared, the monster reappearing on her field. “I'll equip it with Expert Heart now!” Like the lion before it, a large heart appeared on the monster's chest, covering it in an orange glow and increasing its strength and bravery.

“Attack Bronze Tiger!” she commanded. It would cost her some Life Points, but building up ATK again was crucial. 600 points was a small price to pay for tying their monsters once again. She noticed too late that Rio was completely unfazed by the attack and remained smiling.

“I guess I'll have to use this card,” she said, tapping an icon on her duel disk's touchpad. “Permanent Trap, Imperial Order of the Royal Palace, activate!” Yumi actually knew what that card was from all her studying, which only made her horror all the more intense. “This card negates the effects of all Magic Cards on the field forever!” Rio explained happily. “So now your Equip Cards are completely useless.”

In the middle of its attack, Big Bat Knight suddenly began to droop. Its run quickly turned into a hobble. It was panting intensely as it reached Rio's monster, tapping it lightly with its bat. “Bronze Tiger, counter attack!” Yumi's card was blasted away immediately, bringing her Life Points down to 3100 with no benefit to herself.

With a grimace, Yumi placed another card onto the field. “I set one card. Turn end.” In an instant, her lead had vanished. She was down to a single card in her hand with only one on the field. Depending on the next draw, it was entirely possible she could lose next turn. Was this the power of a real duelist?

“At the end of your turn, I activate my Trap Card! Life Absorbing Machine!” Rio's second set card activated, revealing a gruesome mechanical parasite siphoning the energy from an old man. “During each of my Standby Phases, I'll gain half the Life Points I paid during my last turn back from now on.” To demonstrate, she began her turn, her Life restoring to 3800 because of the 2000 she paid for the Ritual Summon the turn before. “Imperial Order of the Royal Palace forces e to pay 700 Life Points to stay on the field, otherwise it's destroyed.” 3100, but even that wouldn't stay for long.

“I summon Girzerker Tiny Panda!” she declared, materializing a miniature black and white bear onto the field. It sat quietly for a few seconds, then sneezed loudly, sending the crowd into an uproar. “Now, I pay 1000 Life Points to activate its effect!” Rio's Life Points dropped to 2100 as the panda yawned.

Yumi wasn't prepared to let it happen, though. “I activate my Trap Card, God's Providence!” Rio was in utter shock. How could such a weak duelist have a card that rare? “When you activate a card effect, I can discard the same kind of card and negate it! Then, your card gets destroyed!” Flame Viper appeared in the air above Yumi, engulfing itself in fire and plummeting towards the panda. They smashed into each other, exploding on the field. “Thank you, Flame Viper,” she said with a dramatic salute.

Rio's patience was wearing thin now. How dare such a pathetic duelist destroy her monster. Even the fact she had such a rare card was almost insulting. “Bronze Tiger,” she began, “direct attack! Brain Claw!” Psychic energy blasted Yumi to the ground, reducing her Life Points to 1400.

“Are you okay?” Sakuya asked while she and Hideo helped Yumi to her feet.

Yumi just laughed, nodding. “Your cards are really strong,” she said to Rio. There wasn't any indication of how to escape this situation, but that only made her more excited. Her next draw could easily lose her the game. Slowly, she pulled the top card of her deck. With a smile, she placed it on the field. “I set one monster and end my turn.”

The duel was all but over. It was obvious that set card was nothing more than a wall. All Rio had to do was draw a sufficiently strong monster and it would be the end. “Draw!” Rio said, striking another pose. “Standby Phase. I'll gain back 450 Life Points, and I choose not to pay the 700 Life Point cost for Imperial Order of the Royal Palace.” Rio's Life Points increased to 2550 as her Trap shattered.

“I activate Girzerker Ascending Ceremony from my hand!” she announced, playing a second Ritual Magic onto the field. Nine pots appeared onto the field this time, the fog returning. “When I Ritual Summon a Girzerker monster, I can Release Girzerker Jump Puppy as the entire cost for the summon!” From her hand, a brown puppy with floppy ears bounced into the air to the adoration of the spectators. It was quickly swept up by the fog, being used to light the fires.

“Ritual Summon! Level 9, Girzerker Killer Crocodile!” From out of the fires appeared a hulking, green lizard creature, its head similarly opened up to a throbbing brain. It roared, boasting its massive 3000 ATK. “I guess this is the end now,” she said with a smile. “It was a whole lot of fun, so I hope you aren't too sad!” Pointing forward, she commanded her monsters to attack. “Crocodile, destroy that face-down monster! Devil Press!”

With another roar, the monster sent out waves of energy to pelt the card before it. The card was turned face-up to commence battle, revealing a large, brown insect with sharp teeth and claws. “Reverse Monster, Man-Eater Bug!” Yumi announced. “Effect activate!” Resisting the attack, the bug charged forward, lunging at Bronze Tiger and swallowing its entire head. “When my monster gets flipped, its effect allows me to destroy one monster on your field!”

Both players' monsters were destroyed, leaving only Killer Crocodile on the field next to Life Absorbing Machine. Yumi had bought herself another turn, much to Rio's continued annoyance. She couldn't even use Killer Crocodile's search effect, since Man-Eater Bug's ATK was lower than anything in her deck. “Turn end,” she said, uncharacteristically irritated.

Yumi's hand quivered as she drew her next card – not out of fear, but excitement. There was nothing on the line in this duel, so she could enjoy it to the fullest. Rio was such a strong opponent; it was clear she earned her position at the regional tournament. Win or lose, she was having so much fun.

“Yumi! You can do it!” Without any warning, a boy in the crowd started to call out to her. He was one of the frequent park-goers she'd gotten to know over the summer.

“Do your best!” another called out. The sentiment began to spread, the children of Chiba rallying behind their friend despite their admiration for Rio. Even a number of unrelated people began to join in, won over by her incredible survival skills and plucky demeanor.

Finally, Sakuya joined in. With a smile, she said, “You really might be able to win. Do it.” To both her and Yumi's surprise, Hideo's phone suddenly made the sound of a train whistle, which they pumped their arm to; a message of encouragement, obviously.

“Draw!” she declared, glancing at her card and starting to smile even harder. Pulling down her goggles over her eyes, she slid the Magic Card into her duel disk. “I activate Pot of Greed! This card lets me draw two new cards from my deck!” Placing her hand back on her deck, she took a deep breath. There were people really, genuinely rooting for her now. She couldn't disappoint them with a loss, at least without putting on a good show first.

“I'm betting everything on this next draw!” she announced, Rio suddenly becoming a bit worried. Yumi had stayed in the game this long against her Ritual Monsters, so could she manage to reverse the situation, too? Logically, it was extremely unlikely, but something about this girl and the feeling she gave off said logic wasn't a very important part of the equation.

Beaming, Yumi played one of the cars she'd just drawn. “I summon Wallrus in Attack Mode!” A brown walrus creature made f bricks appeared on her field slapping its blocky fins together. It was a very unimpressive card with only 400 ATK. Had she given up and this was her way of taking herself out quickly?

Not in the slightest, of course. “I equip Wallrus with Necklace of Supplantation!” she declared, a golden, star-shaped necklace with a large eye materializing around the monster's neck, causing it to pose and show off its new jewelry. “When the equipped monster battles something with a higher Level than it, it'll gain ATK equal to 500 points for each Level lower than the other monster it is.” She pointed to Killer Crocodile. “Your monster is Level 9, and Wallrus is only Level 2, meaning there's a difference of 7 between them.”

Rio was baffled by this girl. How was someone this weak, this uncoordinated, with such worthless cards making such a dramatic comeback? It was unthinkable, but it was happening right in front of her. What's worse, she was even winning the crowd to her side. No one was allowed to do that to her.

“Wallrus, attack Killer Crocodile! Armageddon Crusher!” As if responding to the completely inappropriate attack name, the monster began to wale loudly, bouncing on its stomach to reach its opponent. The much larger beast lunged to bite it, but was struck in the chest by an immensely powerful headbutt, shattering to pieces after Wallrus' ATK increased to 3900.

Rio's Life Points fell to 1650, leaving her and her supporters at a loss for words. Yumi's fans, however, exploded into a chorus of applause, managing to sway a few more into clapping for her impressive showings. Starting to sweat, Rio tried to play it cool for the time being. “Wow, what a strong attack. I wasn't expecting that.” It was the first honest reaction she'd had all day. “I'll draw!” she said with slightly less enthusiasm than previously.

“I activate Resurrection of the Dead,” she announced. “I revive Girzerker Bronze Tiger from my Graveyard.” The previously devoured monster appeared back to the field with a roar. “Since Bronze Tiger is only two Levels above your monster, it still has enough ATK to destroy it!” she explained with a smug smile. “Mind Claw!”

Yumi wasn't fazed in the slightest. A wall of black, hairy monsters appeared, exploding as the psychic energy bombarded them, but leaving Wallrus unharmed. “What happened?” Rio questioned, demanding an explanation.

“When you attack one of my monsters that's equipped with an Equip Magic, I can banish Komboriboh from my Graveyard to make the damage 0 and negate destruction until the end of the turn.”

Rio couldn't do anything. If this continued much longer, her facade would be at risk of breaking. She couldn't afford to let this go on much longer. “I pay 1000 Life Points to activate Girzerker Jump Puppy's effect in my Graveyard.” Her Life dropped to a dangerous 650, but it would restore come next turn. “I can add another copy of Jump Puppy to my hand now.” Completing the effect, she ended her turn.

Much of the audience was confused by Rio's decision to purposefully lower her Life Points only to add a card that couldn't be used that turn. Sakuya was well aware of the reason, though. “That being: She was desperate. Yumi controlled the game right now, even if Bronze Tiger overtook Wallrus' boosted ATK. Neither of them had a hand, and being able to stall for the turn put Yumi into a much better situation. She'd get to draw this turn, which could potentially give her the card she needed to win the duel. Rio's only course of action was to thin her deck in the only way she could to hope for something better come next turn, even if it cost a substantial chunk of her Life Points.

Yumi began her turn, immediately summoning her newest card. “I play Sunlight Unicorn in Attack Mode!” The majestic beast of legend appearing on the field with a loud whinny. “Once per turn, Sunlight Unicorn lets me excavate the top card of my deck and add it to my hand as long as it's an Equip Magic. Otherwise, it goes to the bottom of my deck. Everyone needs to believe in me so I can get a good card!” To both girls' surprise, a large portion of the audience began to clap and give their support in response to Yumi's jest.

While it might have been a joke at first, she really did feel emboldened right now. Taking the top card of her deck, Yumi revealed it. “Fighting Spirits! Equip Magic!” Immediately, she placed it onto her duel disk. “I equip it to Wallrus, giving it 300 more ATK for every monster you control. Now it can match your Bronze Tiger again! Attack!”

As the walrus bounced forward, Rio grit her teeth and raised her hand. “I activate Bronze Tiger's effect! By paying my Life Points 100 at a time, I can reduce one of your monster's ATK by that much until the end of the turn. Wallrus loses 100 ATK, putting it just below my monster!” At 550, Rio was in dire straights, but her defense held strong.

“Crap! Then I'll have to use Fighting Spirits' other effect! If the monster it's equipped to would be destroyed by battle, I can destroy it, instead!” Her Life Points were hit, but not by much. She was now at 1300; still far above Rio's. Wallrus survived the encounter its ATK falling to 400 now that it was out of battle.

“Sunlight Unicorn, attack!” Unlike its companion, the unicorn's horn pierced the tiger's body, destroying it and lowering Rio's Life Points to 450. She was left with no monsters now, facing down two decently powerful cards on Yumi's side of the field. “Turn end,” she declared with a smile.

Rio added her card to her hand, smiling in relief and gaining back 500 Life Points, putting her at 950. “I activate Pot of Greed to draw two cards from my deck!” Her luck was turning now, having drawn exactly what she needed. “I activate my Ritual Magic, Revealed Girzerker!” Appearing on her field was a new Ritual Card, showcasing a large ape-like monster presiding over a legion of brainwashed human servants. “I discard Girzerker Ascending Ceremony in my hand to Ritual Summon a Gizerker Ritual Monster from my deck, and I use Girzerker Jump Puppy for the Release!”

“A Ritual Summon from the deck?” Yumi exclaimed. “You never told me they could do that!” she said, turning back to Sakuya.

“Even I didn't know!” she shot back as the fog rolled in once more. Jump Puppy was drawn into the circle, ten fires being lit in the circle around the hexagram.

“There it is,” Rio said. “It's been a long wait,” she announced to the crowd, “but now it's time to present my most powerful monster! Let's show everyone what you can do!” The flames erupted into the sky after she said that. “Ritual Summon! Level 10, Girzerker Grodd Ape!”

\Next: Ritual Onslaught – Planting the Seeds of Hate/

Cards Used in Order of Appearance

Scaredy Lion
EARTH
Level 4
Beast
1300 ATK/ 1000 DEF

Expert Heart
Equip Spell
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: Cannot be destroyed by battle once per turn. When you take damage from an attack involving this card: This card gains ATK and DEF equal to the damage you took.

Girzerker Grumpy Dinosaur
EARTH
Level 4
Psychic/Effect
1600 ATK/1000 DEF
When this card is sent to the Graveyard: Pay 800 LP to add 1 “Girzerker” Ritual Monster from your Deck to your hand. You can only use this effect of “Girzerker Grumpy Dinosaur” once per turn.

Telepathic Power
Normal Trap Card
When a Psychic-Type monster you control is destroyed by battle with an opponent's attacking monster: Target the opponent's monster; destroy that target, and if you do, gain LP equal to the destroyed monster's ATK on the field.

Girzerker Bronze Tiger
EARTH
Level 4
Psychic/Ritual/Effect
1700 ATK/1000 DEF
You can Ritual Summon this card with any “Girzerker” Ritual Spell Card. Once per turn, during either player's turn: You can target 1 face-up monster on the field and pay LP in multiples of 100; that monster loses ATK and DEF equal to LP paid until the End Phase.

Big Bat Knight
EARTH
Level 3
Warrior
1100 ATK/500 DEF

Broken Wand
Equip Spell
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: This card's original ATK increases by 500. When this card attacks or is attacked by a monster with higher ATK: You can return this card to your hand and end the Battle Phase.

Komboriboh
DARK
Level 1
Fiend/Effect
300 ATK/ 200 DEF
When a monster is targeted by an Equip Spell Card: You can discard this card and target 1 Equip Spell Card in your Graveyard that could be equipped to an appropriate monster on the field; add that target to your hand. When a monster you control is targeted for an attack while it it equipped with an Equip Spell Card: You can banish this card from your Graveyard to target that monster; this turn, that target cannot be destroyed by battle and you take no battle damage from attacks involving that target.

Girzerker Ascending Ceremony
Ritual Spell Card
This card can be used to Ritual Summon any “Girzerker” Ritual Monster. You must also Tribute monsters from the field or your hand whose total Levels equal the Level of the Ritual Monster you Ritual Summon. You can also pay LP equal to any number of Levels x 500, in addition to any Tributes used to equal the Level of the Ritual Monster. While this card is in your Graveyard, except the turn it is sent there: Pay 1000 LP; shuffle this card into your Deck and draw 1 card.

Imperial Order of the Royal Palace (Imperial Order)
Continuous Trap Card
Negate all Spell Card effects on the field. During each of your Standby Phases, pay 700 Life Points or destroy this card.

Life Absorbing Machine
Continuous Trap Card
During your Standby Phase, gain Life Points equal to half the Life Points you paid during your last turn.

Girzerker Tiny Panda
EARTH
Level 3
Psychic/Effect
900 ATK/500 DEF
This card cannot be targeted for an attack while you control another face-up monster. Pay 1000 LP; add 1 “Girzerker” Ritual Spell Card from your Deck to your hand. You can only use this effect of “Girzerker Tiny Panda” once per turn.

God's Providence (Ultimate Providence)
Counter Trap Card
When a Spell/Trap Card or monster effect is activated: Discard the same type of card (Monster, Spell, or Trap); negate the activation, and if you do, destroy that card.

Flame Viper
EARTH
Level 2
Pyro
400 ATK/ 450 DEF

Girzerker Jump Puppy
EARTH
Level 2
Psychic/Effect
500 ATK/300 DEF
When you Ritual Summon a “Girzerker” Ritual Monster using this card as a Tribute; this card can be used as the entire Tribute. While this card is in your Graveyard, you can pay 1000 LP; add 1 “Girzerker Jump Puppy” from your Deck to your hand.

Girzerker Killer Crocodile
EARTH
Level 9
Psychic/Ritual/Effect
3000 ATK/3000 DEF
You can Ritual Summon this card with any “Girzerker” Ritual Spell Card. Once per turn, when this card is targeted by your opponent's card effect: You can pay 1000 LP; change the target to another appropriate card on the field. When this card destroys an opponent's monster by battle and sends it to the Graveyard: You can add 1 “Girzerker” monster from your Deck to your hand with ATK less than or equal to the destroyed monster's original ATK.

Man-Eater Bug
EARTH
Level 2
Insect/Flip/Effect
450 ATK/600 DEF
FLIP: Target 1 monster on the field; destroy that target.

Pot of Greed
Normal Spell Card
Draw 2 cards.

Wallrus
WATER
Level 2
Beast
400 ATK/800 DEF

Necklace of Supplantation (Amulet of Ambition)
Equip Spell Card
Equip only to a Normal Monster. If it battles a monster with a higher Level, the equipped monster gains 500 ATK x the difference in Levels (during that battle only). When this card is sent to the Graveyard, you can return it to the top of your Deck.

Resurrection of the Dead (Monster Reborn)
Normal Spell Card
Target 1 monster in either player's Graveyard; Special Summon it.

Sunlight Unicorn
LIGHT
Level 4
Beast/Effect
1800 ATK/1000 DEF
Once per turn: You can excavate the top card of your Deck, and if it is an Equip Spell Card, add it to your hand. Otherwise, place it on the bottom of your Deck.

Fighting Spirits (Fighting Spirit)
Equip Spell Card
The equipped monster gains 300 ATK for each monster your opponent controls. If it would be destroyed by battle, you can destroy this card instead.

Revealed Girzerker
Ritual Spell Card
Discard 1 “Girzerker” Ritual Spell Card in your hand; you can Special Summon 1 “Girzerker” Ritual Monster from your Deck (this Special Summon is treated as a Ritual Summon). You must also Tribute monsters from the field or your hand whose total Levels equal the Level of the Ritual Monster you Ritual Summon.

Girzerker Grodd Ape
EARTH
Level 10
Psychic/Ritual/Effect
2000 ATK/2800 DEF
????

Chapter Text

Yumi was facing down yet another Ritual Monster from Rio's deck. She could pop them out like it was nothing, which only confirmed the level of skill she'd need to be at if she hoped to win the prefectural tournament on her own next month. As daunting as it was, she was oddly inspired to train even harder. Far from her intention, but it seemed like the other girl had ended up becoming a motivator for her.

The ape monster from the Revealed Girzerker card appeared on the field, pounding its chest as lightning shot out of its exposed brain. Compared to the Killer Crocodile from before, its 2000 ATK was a bit underwhelming, especially for a Level 10. “This is a really special monster,” Rio explained. “Battle! Grodd Ape, attack Sunlight Unicorn! God Crusher!”

Unlike the other Girzerkers, the ape charged forward, drawing lightning into its right hand and slamming it into Sunlight Unicorn, destroying it and lowering Yumi's Life Points to 1200. “Now, Grodd Ape's special ability activates. Whenever it destroys a monster and sends it to the Graveyard, it increases its own ATK by that monster's!” Any doubts over the card's power disappeared as it grew to 3800 ATK in an instant, pounding its chest and screeching. “Turn end! Don't give up just yet! Keep fighting!”

As impressive as the monster was, it was still underpowered compared to a Necklace-enhanced Wallrus. “Draw!” Yumi declared, adding a new card to her nonexistent hand. It was Rusty Swordsman. Destroying Grodd Ape with Wallrus, then attacking with it would win her the duel. She couldn't be that careless, though. Rio was too confident in that card to overlook such a glaring flaw in her plan. “I set a monster,” she said, placing Rusty Swordsman in Defense Position for the time being.

“Wallrus, attack Grodd Ape! Majestic Tornado Cutter!” With a deficit of eight Levels, Wallrus' ATK climbed to 4400, obliterating Grodd Ape and lowering Rio's Life Points to 350. She shielded herself from the backlash. Rather than upset, she looked positively happy. She was even laughing.

“Now, Grodd Ape's true effect can activate!” She raised her arms into the air as a shower of golden particles rained down. “When Grodd Ape is destroyed, I gain Life Points equal to its ATK while it was on the field!”

“That's impossible!” Yumi exclaimed, watching Rio's Life Points restore themselves to 4150. After all this time and coming so close, her opponent had just put herself back to the starting point while she was barely keeping her head above water.

“That's how she did it,” Sakuya said to Hideo, who nodded in response. “That's how she kept her Life Points from dropping below 4000 at the end of all her duels. It was true.”

“My monsters don't like it that I have to sacrifice my Life Points to use their effects, so they want me to have it all back!” With Yumi's turn at an end, she began her own. “I activate Jump Puppy's effect to add another copy to my hand.” Rio's Life fell to 3350 as a result, but it was far from a problem at this point.

“Now, I summon Girzerker Little Bear from my hand!” A tiny brown bear appeared on the field, giving a weak growl and clawing at the air, only to fall over. “When I summon Little Bear, I can pay 1000 Life Points to add a Girzerker Ritual Monster to my hand from my deck.” Her Life Points were now 2350 as she sorted through her deck. “I choose Girzerker Queen Bee,” she said, adding the card to her hand.

With a playful giggle, she pointed towards Wallrus. “Attack, Little Bear!” The bear charged, biting into Wallrus and destroying it, taking Yumi to 1100 Life Points. “Turn end,” she declared, passing to Yumi as the crowd cheered.

Yumi began her turn, put at ease by her newest draw. “I release my face-down Rusty Swordsman to Advance Summon Majesty Magician!” The swordsman was swept up in a column of wind, the magician appearing out of it. It tossed its cane into the air and took a bow, raising up just in time to catch it.

“Normally, I'd need to Release two monsters to summon a Level 8, but Majesty Magician only needs one if it's a Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. But that's enough introduction. Majesty Magician, attack Girzerker Little Bear!” Spinning its cane, the monster pointed towards the bear, firing a jagged burst of blue electricity to destroy the monster. Rio's Life Points were reduced to 1350 from that attack. “That ends my turn.”

Why wouldn't she just go down? Most trash duelists would have just given up after her Life Points reset, and the rest would surrender after the monster that had carried them through half the game was destroyed. Why did she keep fighting? It was infuriating by this point.

Rio's Life Points returned to 2350 after her draw. With a satisfied smirk, she set one single card in her backrow. “That'll be all.” Nothing about the move made Yumi comfortable. “I guess this is the end of my winning streak,” she said with a smile, horrified gasps coming from several members of the crowd. “Come attack me now, since I'm defenseless.”

umi's draw showed her only a Trap Card that would be no use without something on the opponent's field. She couldn't afford to wait another turn, though. She knew for a fact Rio's hand had a Ritual Monster and the fodder to summon it. If the game was waiting for her to draw some new Ritual Magic or a way to recycle the ones in her Graveyard, she'd lose this eventually. Attacking was the best option, even if she couldn't tell whether that face-down was a bluff or not.

Pushed on by the cheers of encouragement from several audience members, Yumi decided to go for it. “Majesty Magician, direct attack!” The spellcaster twirled its cane, dashing forward to jab at Rio. Unexpectedly, she stuck her tongue out.

“Just kidding!” she said, activating her set card. “Trap activate, Urgent Ritual Art!” The trap was sprung, revealing itself to the world. “I can banish a Ritual Magic from my hand or Graveyard to use this card in its place for the turn. Naturally, I'll pick Girzerker Ascending Ceremony, Releasing the Girzerker Jump Puppy in my hand as the cost!”

Seven flames this time. “Ritual Summon! Level 7, Girzerker Queen Bee!” At first glance, the statuesque bee woman wasn't very impressive. With only 2200 ATK, Majesty Magician could plow right through it. At least, if one only looked at Queen Bee.

“Stop the attack!” Yumi commanded, taking advantage of the battle reply to end her action. Majesty Magician's cane produced a white parachute out of the end, slowing it down and allowing it to jump back to her field.

“Great call!” Rio said in complete mockery. “Queen Bee's effect reduces the ATK and DEF of all monsters that aren't Psychic-Type by 100 points for every Level they have, so your Magician only has 1700 ATK now. It's a little sad, honestly.” With no other options, Yumi set her card and ended her turn.

Rio's turn began with her smiling at the card she'd just drawn. “Lucky draw!” she proclaimed. “I activate Cyclone to destroy your set card!” A vortex of wind emerged from the card face, spiraling towards Yumi's field.

“I'll activate it! Trap Card, Unbreakable Spirit!” Her card opened, imbuing Majesty Magician with new strength. “Until the end of the turn, Majesty Magician gains ATK equal to Queen Bee's. Now you can't touch him.”

Rio tutted at Yumi. “You're delaying the end of the duel. That's bad form!” She very much wanted to say numerous more violent things to her opponent, but scolding was all she could get away with for now. “I'll just activate the effect of my Girzerker Ascending Ceremonies, then.” Her Life Points took a startling drop to 350. “By paying 1000 Life Points, I can return one to my deck to draw a card. I'll do it twice, just for fun.” Seemingly pleased with her two new cards, she set both of them and passed turn.

“Draw!” Yumi's hand wouldn't help her much in overcoming Queen Bee. “I'll set one card and end my turn.” A trap would hopefully deter any attacks, but she could never be too sure. There was no telling which direction this duel would go next.

“At your End Phase, I'll activate one of my cards. Permanent Trap Card, Life Absorbing Machine!” A second copy of her irritating Trap appeared on the field. “Now, I'll get twice the benefits back from my effects!”

Moving to her turn, Rio's Standby Phase appeared. First, 1000 Life Points. Then, another 1000. Finally another set of 1000 Life Points, leaving her with 3350. “What happened?” Yumi asked. “You've only got two of those on the field. Why did you get another 1000?”

“Did I forget to mention Queen Bee's other effect? It's pretty familiar, so you should be able to understand. She gives me half of what I paid as cost during my last turn, just like Life Absorbing Machine. That gives me three ways to replenish my Life Points, so from now on, I'll be gaining every time I pay!”

“Queen Bee, attack Majesty Magician! Death Swarm!” Thousands of bees began to fly towards Yumi's monster, preparing to sting it until it was destroyed, taking a hefty chunk of her Life Points with it.

“Attack Nullification!” she declared, activating her Trap and stopping the bees' advance. Safe for another turn, Yumi only grew more anxious and excited, enough so to begin a small hop as she waited for her turn. “Now your Battle Phase is over!” she added as the card resolved.

Rio didn't let herself become annoyed by this. The game was hers for the taking. These were just the last struggles of a dying animal. “I'll end my turn, then,” she said with an exaggerated pout.

Yumi's next draw would decide the entire duel. Taking her card, it was exactly what she was looking for. “I activate Grandeur!” she declared, the card appearing on the field. “This lets me equip an Equip Magic from my Graveyard to a monster on the field, but its gets destroyed at the end of this turn. I'll use this ti equip Majesty Magician with Broken Wand!”

Rather than a simple wand, Majesty Magician's cane transformed into an elegant wooden staff, its ATK increasing to 2200. Now it was on the same level as Queen Bee. “Attack, Majesty Bolt!” she commanded, capitalizing on the momentary equality to take out Queen Bee. She'd be vulnerable, but if she did nothing, she'd lose for sure. Like this, she'd have a shot. Her card sent out a blast of red energy directed at its screeching opponent.

“Looks like you made the wrong choice,” Rio said. “Trap activate, Holy Barrier – Mirror Force!” The familiar shield was disheartening, to say the least. Yumi was out of tricks this time. All she could do was watch as Majesty Magician's attack was sent back at it, destroying it alone and leaving Queen Bee on the field.

Yumi sighed, still smiling. “Turn end,” she declared, ready to face defeat.

“Thanks for watching, everyone!” Rio said to the crowd. “I hope everyone had fun during the duel! Now it's time for it to end!” She pointed forward. “Death Swarm!” The insects emerged from their leader, flying into Yumi with thousands of tiny explosions. She was knocked back as her Life Points dwindled to 0, caught by Hideo before she could fall to the ground. “Happy win!” Rio proclaimed, winking and striking a victory pose.

“Yumi!” Sakuya shouted, rushing to her side. “Are you okay?”

Yumi laughed as she regained her footing. “That was so much fun!” she said, catching Rio off guard. Normally, people were sad when they lost, but even the common courtesy of falling into despair was lost on this girl. “You're really strong, Rio. I hope we get to duel again someday. “I'll be even better next time, I promise!”

And it was at that moment she realized she had a problem. This incompetent, annoying, terrible duelist was making her blush. Not the forced kind she usually had, but an actual blush. That optimism and joy was making her feel...weird.

She had to get out of this situation. “Thanks for coming!” she said, turning to address the crowd and ignoring Yumi. “I've got to go home now. It was a lot of fun getting to meet everyone! Goodbye!”She handed off her duel disk to one of her bodyguards and walked to a black limousine parked within a few meters of her, leaving Yumi behind and pushing down any more uncomfortable thoughts.

“Well, that happened,” Sakuya said, patting Yumi's shoulder. “Sorry you lost.”

“It's okay,” Yumi assured her. “It was still a lot of fun.” She put her cards away and stored her duel disk into her backpack. “Ready to go back to the park?”

“Sure, but...” Sakuya hesitated slightly. “Can we walk this time?”

“Knew you were scared,” Yumi mumbled. “Hideo, do you want to come? We're going to be doing some more training and going to try to find a food truck Sakuya said was around here. They declined, though, citing their homework as a priority now. “Too bad. If you get done early, we'll still be there, so come find us.”

“Don't you think you should start working on that homework, too?” Sakuya asked with a raised eyebrow.

Yumi forced out a wave of laughter. “I'm choosing to ignore that until the last minute!” she declared. With a sigh, the girls began down the sidewalk to return to the park, Yumi changing the subject over to her amazing musical skills on the triangle.

Hideo, however, was already hard at work scribbling into a notepad. Since meeting those three they could not call friends, they'd been collecting notes on their dueling skills and decks. Sakuya still remained the greatest mystery of all of them, though. She held herself back for some unknown reason, even past the normal point of the practice duels from the other evening.

With the data they'd collected so far, they were all but certain that a serious duel against her, even at this level of restraint, would end in their defeat. Whatever the truth to this girl was, she was an amazingly, absurdly talented duelist; possibly the best they'd ever seen. Now, based on the notes taken from watching Mabuchi Rio duel firsthand, could she possibly defeat her? Those were questions for another day, though. Now was homework time.

Elsewhere, Yumi and Sakuya made it back to the park after a short walk, sliding down the hill and laying on the grass. There were still none of the regular kids these, some likely going home after a long day, others simply milling about the library checking out books and the like. Either way, there was no pressure to perform for anyone and the two of them could relax as their selves for the time being. “I'm proud of you,” Sakuya said, watching a cucumber-shaped cloud float across the sky.

“What for?” Yumi asked in confusion. “I still lost.”

“Winning and losing aren't the most important things. You fought well and played like a true duelist to the very end. You almost had her a few times, too. So, I'm proud of you.” It was a bit embarrassing to heap praise onto her, but it was well-deserved after such an exciting game. In the short time since their first duel, she'd watched Yumi's skills improve dramatically. With cards others would dismiss as nothing but trash, she was fighting on the level of tournament winners and even catching up to Sakuya herself.

Yumi grinned, jumping on top of Sakuya and giving her an uncomfortably tight hug. “I only got so good because you're my teacher, so be proud of yourself.”

“You're always so physical,” Sakuya complained, blushing as Yumi rubbed her face against her.

As soon as she said that, Yumi let go and moved away. “Oh. I forget that you really don't like it when I do that. Sorry.” She took her index finger from her right hand and gripped it tightly in her left. “If I noticed sooner, I would have stopped. I'm sorry. I won't anymore.” She assumed Sakuya was just playing along with the joke when she acted annoyed, but that didn't seem to be the case. Yumi had always had trouble reading inflection, so it was a mistake easy for her to make.

With a sigh, Sakuya pulled her towards her, being the initiator for a change. “I don't mind it,” she said truthfully. “It's just a little sudden sometimes. It's okay, though.” No one in her home had been very much for hugs for quite some time. The sensation of being touched or held in any of the ways Yumi was comfortable doing were overwhelming at times, but not all that unpleasant.

Pulling Yumi's goggles down over her eyes after she'd previously moved them back, she added, “So stop being sad. You can't train if you're sad.

Yumi's smile returned, hugging Sakuya as tightly as she could and nearly lifting her off the ground. “Let's do it, then,” she said. And so they did, burning through the hours together without a care, even after the other children finally began to arrive and congratulate Yumi on her performance against Rio. They had no idea what the future had in store, but that wasn't really a concern at the moment. Not even the homework. They were happy just like this.

Across the city was a different story, though. Within the Critical Games skyscraper lived Rio, currently screaming and throwing plates against a wall. Fukuro, the aging family butler, stood outside the room, sighing in dismay at the destruction of property. Two other members of the family's staff began to walk by the unused guest room, but promptly turned around after hearing the noises coming from within.

“Another tantrum?” the maid asked listlessly as they fled. The cook nodded, only hoping to make it another day in this household. Nearly everyone in the Mabuchi family's employ despised Rio. Without her parents around (and that was quite often, given their busy work schedules), she was given free reign of the building and could wreak havoc in whatever way she saw fit. Even if her parents were there, it was unlikely to change anything.

“I don't know how the old guy puts up with it,” the cook said, helping the maid tidy a few things that had been shoved over after their employers' child returned home. “She treats us like dirt, but him...I can't even imagine half the stuff she's done to that guy that we don't even know about. Why hasn't he quit yet?”

“Who knows?” she answered. “He's been here longer than the rest of us. Maybe he's got some huge salary.”

“Or what if they have some blackmail on him and they're forcing him to stay?” They both had a chuckle at inventing the butler's backstory, though whatever joy they could feel quickly faded as they finished up their tasks and returned to the normal routine of counting down until the were allowed to leave for the day.

Another plate shattered against the wall, Rio panting in rage from across the room. Breathing deeply, she exhaled slowly and closed her eyes. Fixing her hair, she walked towards the door. “I'm done with this,” she said bluntly, leaving the butler to clean up after her.

Ever since the duel this afternoon, she couldn't get Yumi out of her head. Why couldn't she stop thinking about her? She was a trash duelist like all the rest. No amount of lucky draws changed that. Neither did how tall she was compared to Rio, or how soft her skin seemed to be, or the way she looked when she smiled. None of that mattered, especially the last parts.

So why couldn't she stop? It made her angry, and when she got angry, she broke plates. Whatever nonsense was going through her head right now, it all led to one thing: Yumi must be utterly destroyed for her to find peace. She'd beat her so badly she'd never want to pick up a card again. She'd prove to herself there was nothing more to that girl than any other worthless peon out there.

She went to the family's lounge with its fake fireplace roaring on a screen, sitting in a gilded, plush chair in front of it to contemplate her next move. Clapping her hands lazily, the maid appeared after a few second with a glass of orange juice, a straw inserted and bent. “Leave me,” she ordered after taking it.

How could she best humiliate Yumi? It was a tough question to answer. Anyone who used a deck that pathetic obviously had no shame, so it would be hard to pull off. Slurping down juice, she looked around the room at all the different mementos from various companies and publishers her family had teamed with or bought out in the past, along with some of their more famous investments in the way of professional game players. They all represented the work her family had done and the power they possessed. At the very least, she had many options.

\Next: The Biker Duelist – Is This What Love Feels Like?/

 Cards Used in Order of Appearance

Revealed Girzerker
Ritual Magic Card
Discard 1 “Girzerker” Ritual Spell Card in your hand; you can Special Summon 1 “Girzerker” Ritual Monster from your Deck (this Special Summon is treated as a Ritual Summon). You must also Tribute monsters from the field or your hand whose total Levels equal the Level of the Ritual Monster you Special Summon.

Girzerker Grodd Ape
EARTH
Level 10
Psychic/Ritual/Effect
2000 ATK/2800 DEF
You can Ritual Summon this card with any “Girzerker” Ritual Spell Card. If this card destroys a monster by battle and sends it to the Graveyard: This card gains ATK equal to that monster's ATK on the field. When this card is removed from the field: Gain LP equal to its ATK on the field.

Rusty Swordsman
EARTH
Level 4
Warrior
1500 ATK/1000 DEF

Sunlight Unicorn
LIGHT
Level 4
Beast/Effect
1800 ATK/1000 DEF
Once per turn: You can excavate the top card of your Deck, and if it is an Equip Spell Card, add it to your hand. Otherwise, place it on the bottom of your Deck.

Wallrus
WATER
Level 2
Beast
400 ATK/800 DEF

Necklace of Supplantation (Amulet of Ambition)
Equip Spell Card
Equip only to a Normal Monster. If it battles a monster with a higher Level, the equipped monster gains 500 ATK x the difference in Levels (during that battle only). When this card is sent to the Graveyard, you can return it to the top of your Deck.

Rusty Swordsman
EARTH
Level 4
Warrior
1500 ATK/1000 DEF

Girzerker Jump Puppy
EARTH
Level 2
Psychic/Effect
500 ATK/300 DEF
When you Ritual Summon a “Girzerker” Ritual Monster using this card as a Tribute; this card can be used as the entire Tribute. While this card is in your Graveyard, you can pay 1000 LP; add 1 “Girzerker Jump Puppy” from your Deck to your hand.

Girzerker Little Bear
EARTH
Level 4
Psychic/Effect
1500 ATK/900 DEF
When this card is Normal Summoned: You can add 1 “Girzerker” Ritual Monster from your Deck to your hand. You can discard this card; add 1 “Girzerker” Ritual Spell Card from your Graveyard to your hand. You can only use each effect of “Girzerker Little Bear” once per turn, and only once per turn. To activate these effects, pay 1000 LP.

Girzerker Queen Bee
EARTH
Level 7
Psychic/Ritual/Effect
2200 ATK/1100 DEF
You can Ritual Summon this card with any “Girzerker” Ritual Spell Card. All monsters on the field lose ATK and DEF equal to their Level, except Psychic-Type monsters. During your Standby Phase: Gain LP equal to half of any LP paid during your last turn.

Life Absorbing Machine
Continuous Trap Card
During your Standby Phase, gain Life Points equal to half the Life Points you paid during your last turn.

Majesty Magician
DARK
Level 8
Spellcaster/Effect
2500 ATK/2000 DEF
You can Tribute Summon this card by Tributing 1 monster that was originally a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. This card is treated as an appropriate target for a card that specifically designates a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF while face-up on the field or in the Graveyard (its Level and ATK/DEF do not change).

Urgent Ritual Art
Normal Trap Card
If you control no Ritual Monsters: Banish 1 Ritual Spell Card from your hand or Graveyard; this card's effect becomes that card's effect that Ritual Summons a monster when the card is activated.

Girzerker Ascending Ceremony
Ritual Spell Card
This card can be used to Ritual Summon any “Girzerker” Ritual Monster. You must also Tribute monsters from the field or your hand whose total Levels equal the Level of the Ritual Monster you Ritual Summon. You can also pay LP equal to any number of Levels x 500, in addition to any Tributes used to equal the Level of the Ritual Monster. While this card is in your Graveyard, except the turn it is sent there: Pay 1000 LP; shuffle this card into your Deck and draw 1 card.

Cyclone (Mystical Space Typhoon)
Quick-Play Spell Card
Target 1 Spell/Trap Card on the field; destroy that target.

Unbreakable Spirit
Normal Trap Card
If you control only 1 face-up monster: Target that monster; until the end of this turn, it gains ATK equal to the ATK of the monster your opponent currently controls with the lowest ATK (your choice, if tied).

Attack Nullification
Counter Trap Card
When an opponent's monster declares an attack: Target the attacking monster; negate the attack, then end the Battle Phase.

Grandeur (Swords at Dawn)
Quick-Play Spell
Target 1 Equip Spell Card in your Graveyard and 1 appropriate monster on the field, equip the Equip Spell Card to that monster. Destroy that Equip Spell Card during the End Phase. If you activate this card, you cannot Special Summon for the rest of this turn. You can only activate 1 "Swords at Dawn" per turn.

Holy Barrier – Mirror Force
Normal Trap Card
When an opponent's monster declares an attack: Destroy all Attack Position monsters your opponent controls.

Chapter Text

It was your average, intensely hot summer day in Chiba. Birds were singing, flowers were blooming, Kazuhiko was making a speech – all was right with the world. “And,” he continued to the group, “that's precisely why we need more pet-accessible housing in Japan. There's plenty of scientific study on the subject as far as it's related to reducing stress and helping people deal with their lives, but the majority of apartments won't allow them.” All three of his listeners stared blankly, unsure of why he chose this topic, in particular, to rant about today.

“Fine, thin of it this way. Hideo, wouldn't you like a cat or something to help you manage your anxiety disorder outside like this?” They simply shrugged, letting a few dozen ants crawl around on their hands as they went about their tiny ant lives, evidently being the only pet that really interested Hideo.

“I want all pets,” Yumi said in complete seriousness to try and support Kazuhiko.

“I mean, what you're trying to say isn't entirely wrong, but there's not all that much any of us could do about it, so I don't know why you're making a big deal out of it.” Honestly, Sakuya would really enjoy having a cat. She couldn't let on to that, though, or else he'd win somehow.

Taking a seat on the grass next to Yumi, he sighed in contempt. “Whatever,” he concluded.

“What do we do now?” Yumi asked, the void left by their lack of animal companions weighing heavy on their hearts.

“We could go to the arcade,” Kazuhiko suggested, met by a few shrugs from the group. Before anyone else could speak, the otherwise fairly peaceful afternoon was pierced by the sound of a loud engine roaring in from down the street. Much to the irritation of everyone in the park area, it only became louder over time. The source of the noise, a pink motorcycle with some serious modifications to the engine, quickly revealed itself as it tore across the pavement.

With a loud skid, it stopped by the sidewalk the driver removing her sticker-coated helmet. She was a tough looking high school girl, half her hair dyed a turquoise and falling to her right shoulder, while the other was a deep purple and nearly shaved against her head. Several gold piercings dangled from each ear, a few studded with diamonds to match the rhinestones on her bubblegum-colored jacket. “Hey!” she called down to the four nearest to her, other parkgoers looking on with concern despite having no intention of intervening. “Any of you kids know where the library is? Got something to take care of there.”

“Who the hell are you calling a kid, you flashy joke?” Kazuhiko yelled back, shaking his fist in the air.

“What do you think you're doing,” Sakuya whispered in a panic. Even Hideo was afraid at the idea of a potential confrontation.

“I'm not going to let her ride in here and take that tone with my friends!” he replied.

“Shut the hell up!” she yelled from up the hill. “Just tell me where the goddamn library is before I kick your teeth in!”

“Why don't you get off that rusty hunk of scrap and try it, asshole!” To everyone's shock, she did just that, tossing her helmet onto the grass and marching towards Kazuhiko as he advanced. They leaned into each other, their faces separated by barely a millimeter as they stared each other down.

Both their right hands cocked back, poised to strike. They flew forward as everyone looked on in horror, suddenly smacking together in an open palmed handshake, resulting in a gripping battle to try and outdo each other as they both laughed.

“You're a real asshole!” she said to him.

“You, too!” he shot back. “I think I've heard of you before. You run with that girl gang on the north side of the city, right?”

“You damn well better have heard of me! Better question is why I haven't heard of you before. Most guys shrivel up and piss themselves as soon as I take a step near them. Who are you with?”

Kazuhiko scoffed, puffing out his chest. “No one. The way I do things, a gang only gets in the way. They're the closest thing I have at the moment. Hideo, Sakuya ('Please don't give her my name.'), and...” the group turned to look at Yumi. Unlike the others, she'd remained perfectly silent since the moment this woman appeared, standing transfixed in the same spot with her mouth hanging open. “Miss Yumi? You okay?”

He waved his hand in front of her face and snapped a few times before she responded. “Y-yes! I'm fine! I-I'm T-T-Takami Yuta- Tako-” She forced out an uncomfortably loud laugh to try and steady herself. “T-Takano Yumi, m-miss!”

The biker grinned, patting her on the shoulder. “That's probably the best introduction I've ever heard, Yumi. My name's Kyoko.” She addressed the group for the last part, Yumi still reeling over being touched by someone she found so immensely attractive.

“T-thank you for the compliment!” Yumi said, bowing despite how out of character that was for her.

“And the library is down the street and to the left,” Sakuya declared, interrupting the conversation. “And if that's all you need, maybe you should go.”

Kyoko chuckled at her boldness. “Thanks for your help.” She turned to Kazuhiko and punched him in the arm. “See you around, kid. Come find me sometime and we'll raise some hell.” Glancing back with a wink, she added, “Take care, Yumi.”

Yumi watched her leave until she was completely out of sight, burning the image of the intricate pink rose etched onto the back of her jacket into her brain. “Wow,” was all she could say.

“Are you okay, Yumi?” Sakuya asked her.

“Yeah, I'm fine,” she said with a laugh. “That was just a little...wow.”

Sakuya turned up her nose. “I'm glad we managed to settle that as quickly as possible. People like that are just so...”

“What do you mean by 'people'?” Kazuhiko questioned with a frown.

“People like you, yes. Delinquents. I can't stand them.”

Forehead vein near busting, Kazuhiko clenched his teeth in rage. “You don't know anything, Ishikawa. She's pretty cool, and I'm just plain awesome. You're too uptight about everything.”

“Hideo agrees with me,” she said defiantly. “Right?” They merely shrugged in response. It wasn't so much the fact she was part of a biker gang that they found offensive, but more the threat of violence. After it turned out she was just messing with Kazuhiko, they had no real opinion one way or the other. With a huff, she crossed her arms. “Whatever. It's over now. Come on, Yumi. Let's get back to training. We've had enough of a break for today.”

“Actually, I was thinking about going to the library,” she said innocently with another laught. “I've got all that homework, you know. And we've already been training for a couple hours today.” Sakuya glared, not believing her excuses. “It's true! I even brought my homework with me today!”

Yumi reached into her backpack and pulled out the brown envelope full of summer assignments, untouched save for having written her name at the top of the first page. “Told you I had it.”

Rolling her eyes with a sigh, Sakuya was forced to relent. “Okay, sorry for not believing you. And homework is important.” As much as she hated the idea of Yumi sneaking off to see that girl given how impressionable and naive her friend was about the dangers of associating with gang members, she also had to trust her to take care of herself. “I still don't think you should be talking to that girl while you're there.”

“It's fine,” Yumi assured her, already zipping up her backpack. “I'm just going to do some homework. I'll be back later if you guys are still here.”

“Wait, do you want me to come with you?” Sakuya asked quickly. “I could help you stay focused. You always get distracted when there's lots of reading to do.”

“I'll be okay,” she responded, hopping onto her bike. “Besides, you could use a break from teaching me today. You can, like, reign over the park like you used to, or something.” She was already peddling away. “See you later!” she said with a wave to the group.

After Yumi faded into the distance, Kazuhiko scratched his head, saying, “It's none of my business, but jealousy doesn't look good on anyone. Just saying.”

“I'm not jealous!” Sakuya said in jealous frustration. “She just shouldn't be talking to someone like that.”

“What's the worst that could happen?” Kazuhiko asked, taking an unusually even and levelheaded tone.

“She could hurt her or steal from her, or maybe force her to join that gang, and then all sorts of bad stuff could happen.”

“See, you probably don't know this since you're not a 'delinquent' like me,” he said, running a comb through his pompadour, “but the girls around here aren't really in the business of beating up little kids. The whole thing is a big act of rebellion against the conformity and sexism ingrained in Japanese society, so hurting a little girl wouldn't really make a statement they're proud of.”

With a chuckle, he added, “And, yeah, the girl who almost cried when she sat on a butterfly is definitely going to grow up to be a hardened criminal. About as likely as you turning into a tree because you've always got that stick up your ass.” He sneered at the resulting glare, putting his comb away and turning his back to her.

“Anyway, Hideo. Want to go to the arcade like I said? They got a new dance machine in last week and it's got a bunch of funk and disco on it like you like.” With a shrug, the two departed, Kazuhiko looking back over his shoulder. “You coming?”

With a heavy sigh, Sakuya took a seat on the grass. “No, I think I'll stay here. I don't really like all the flashing lights in arcades.”

“Suit yourself,” he replied as they continued down the sidewalk. Now everyone was gone, leaving her there all by herself. After so long with Yumi by her side, it felt wrong. The other two had slowly made their way into being fixtures of her daily life, as well, so the solitude was only made more pronounced. The worst part was that she was sure it was entirely her fault.

She didn't seem to have much of a choice in what to do now, as she could either sit on the grass moping or reluctantly take back command of the park as she had before. No one would be happy about that, not even her, but retreating into her shell was the best defense against the loneliness.

Things were going much better for Yumi at the library. She parked her bike out front, spying Kyoko's motorcycle on the street. From behind the building, she could barely hear a strange thumping noise interspersed with a metal clanging. Before she had time to investigate, her target emerged from behind the corner, dusting off her jacket and putting her earrings back in.

The two locked eyes, causing Yumi's face to go red as she gave a weak laugh. Kyoko grinned, walking up and patting the younger girl on the head. “What are you doing here?” she asked. “You didn't follow me, did you?”

“I-I-I might have, yes. That's not weird, right? I-I mean, I just do that sometimes. Uh, follow someone. If I like them. N-not in the really like kind of way, but the normal liking way, you know? Not that I couldn't really like you! You're so pretty and cool, and your hair is neat and you ride a motorcycle.” She paused in horror as her spoken words started to process in her brain. “I have a lot of homework to do!” she screamed, running into the library.

The whole scene amused her more than anything. Taking a glance over to the bike rack, Kyoko leaned against the hand rail to wait for Yumi to return. To her surprise, she had to wait an entire eight minutes before something as obvious as a huge lock sitting inside her backpack came to the girl's attention.

Yumi's blush returned as she walked back outside. “I-I forgot to chain up my bike,” she said timidly, locking it for security. As she went towards the library doors to try and begin her work, she froze in place. “You know...” she began, turning nervously to face Kyoko who'd stayed silent the whole time with only an amused smirk as evidence of any engagement with what was going on around her.

“I don't really have that much homework,” Yumi lied, her statement being especially false considering she hadn't so much as touched the packet since the last day of school prior to this morning. “So if you wanted to h-hang out, or something, we could...do something? I know I'm a kid, but I'm pretty cool.” Feeling a bit of apprehension after that last line, she laughed nervously. “My friends think so, at least.”

Kyoko began to laugh deeply and loudly. The confidence Yumi had worked up on the way outside shattered to pieces, assuming the near-cackle meant she'd made a total fool of herself in front of the older girl. “You're amazing,” Kyoko said, trying to catch her breath. Yumi immediately went starry eyed at the compliment. “You know what, I like you. You want to hang out? Let's do it.”

“R-really?” Yumi asked, trying to keep her cool and not hop or flap like she normally did when she was happy.

She nodded. “Sure. What are we going do?” Yumi's dreams came to a screeching halt at that moment. Truthfully, she hadn't actually planned this far ahead. Didn't really expect to get to the hanging out portion of the conversation.

Sensing that the tiny lesbian in front of her had frozen (not so much “sensing” as it was listening to a loud, “Uh...” noise), Kyoko took it upon herself to try and find a solution. This crush was positively adorable even if she couldn't return those feelings, so being a friend to this girl was the next best thing. After all, who'd be a better role model than her?

“How about this,” Kyoko began, patting Yumi on the head. “I'm pretty hungry now, so why don't we go get something to eat and figure things out from there.” Yumi could only nod, overcome with feelings she could barely understand. “Cool. Got an idea of where we could go. Hop on my bike.”

Yumi followed her like a baby duck, containing her excitement as best as possible as Kyoko helped her up to the rear of her motorcycle. “Put this on and hold my waist,” she said, handing Yumi the helmet she'd previously worn, far outclassing her worn out bike helmet. It was a tad bigger than a good fit, but it would keep her protected in case anything went wrong.

“I-I've never...I mean...motorcycles, I haven't...” Yumi was far too flustered to form coherent thoughts at the moment as she used her position on the bike as an excuse to hug Kyoko as tight as possible.

Regardless, the message came through. “I'll drive safe,” she said with a small chuckle. “You've got all your homework to do, so I'll take you back here in an hour. How's that sound?” She received an affirmative yelp in response, taking it as a sign to head out. Making sure the road was clear, Kyoko loudly peeled out from the side of the street to turn around and circle around the park, heading north.

Business as usual had finally returned to the park, Sakuya overseeing the other children as the pseudo-dictator she played at being, Miyuki and Michiko more than happy to have Yumi out of the picture, solidly placing them back at a step below the top of the totem pole. Kazuhiko and Hideo, as they said, were gone and off at the arcade. It was shaping up to be an extremely boring day.

The sound of an engine buzzing along the street drew everyone's attention towards the road for a brief moment, though it was more out of reflex than any actual care. All except for Sakuya, at least, who felt a wave of terror crash into her as her mind registered that the smaller body on the back of the motorcycle she'd just seen was Yumi. “I have business to take care of,” she said, standing abruptly and preparing to walk out of the park. “As you were.”

After a good deal of walking and getting lost in an unfamiliar area of the city, Sakuya dramatically pushed through the doors into the arcade. Several people instinctively moved out of the way as she marched towards a flashing dance machine, sensing a murderous intent completely disproportionate to her short stature and festive headwear.

Just as they'd said, Kazuhiko and Hideo were at the machine performing a perfectly coordinated routine in time with Prince's Soft and Wet. After four tries, they'd gotten the the pattern down and had constructed an entire dance to go along with it. “What do you want?” he said, feeling her eyes bore into him from behind.

“I want you to pull your pompadour out of your ass and avert this disaster,” she said coldly.

“Kind of busy,” he answered, the two dancers slamming their feet onto the left and right pads, then raising to the tips of their toes and pointing towards the screen with one hand in perfect synchronization.

“I don't care! Yumi's in danger!” Half the arcade went silent, turning their attention to the screaming.

Kazuhiko scoffed, doubting the validity of her statement. “Of what? Not spending enough time with you? Everyone needs a break from that sometimes.”

“I saw her drive off with Yumi. She's going to hurt her, I know it.” Sakuya was beginning tp get even more angry at the total lack of care these two were paying her. Fortunately, the song ended, complete with victorious poses from each of them as “PERFECT” and “S Rank” flashed on the screen.

Kazuhiko wiped some sweat from his forehead, turning around and leaning against the game console. “And is there any actual reason for you to believe that, or are you just making assumptions and being jealous again?”

“I'm not jealous!” she argued, somehow managing to make it even less convincing than before. “Just what do you think someone that old would be doing with a girl her age? Nothing good could come out of it and Yumi's going to be hurt. We need to stop her.”

“She's, like, a year older than we are,” he said, gesturing to himself and Hideo who'd begun to bob back and forth to an Earth, Wind & Fire song playing quietly on the idle menu. “It's not a hell of a lot more shady than who she's normally with. And you might not know this since you're not even in the damn country for most of the year with your fancy boarding school, or whatever, but the gang she's part of goes out of their way to protect other girls, especially the young ones. So it's not all that likely she's going to do anything to hurt Miss Yumi.” He scowled then, becoming legitimately irritated with her attitude.

“But,” he continued, taking a breath, “even if we put aside all that and the fact you're just exploding with jealousy, because maybe she's allowed to like someone who doesn't act ashamed to be seen in public with her, what are you suggesting we do? Just magically figure out what they're up to, go kick in some doors and bust heads like a bunch of thugs, then kidnap our friend away from a good time that doesn't include you?”

It would be incorrect to say his takedown had knocked the wind from her sails; at this point, the sails were nothing but shredded bits of cloth hanging from a broken mast. Hideo, as stoic as they always were, was surprised at just how passionately incensed Kazuhiko had gotten near the end, typically remaining unfazed by any level of outburst from him.

“You know, Ishikawa,” he added, narrowing his eyes. “I used to say we were rivals. I'd play up the whole thing, let you get in some jabs about me as a duelist or even my hair, and it'd be a good time. And I'd always think you were just a kid being tough, and the way you've been treating everyone lately made me think there might be more to you than you let people see. But then you pull stuff like this, and it makes me realize: You really are an asshole.”

He tapped Hideo's sleeve lightly. “Yo, let's bounce. We can go weave some baskets like you were talking about earlier. That sounds kind of interesting.” With an uneasy look back to Sakuya, they nodded, the two leaving as the rest of the arcade resumed its activities. Sakuya herself was left at the dance machine, biting her bottom lip as she tried to shake the churning, uneasy, guilty feeling in her stomach and figure out what to do.

Across town, Yumi slurped down the last of her ramen, sighing loudly as both Kyoko and the brown haired woman working the kitchen looked on in amazement. “You ate for, like, three of you,” Kyoko said in genuine awe.

“I was really hungry,” Yumi said contentedly, almost wanting to take a nap at the counter. “Thank you for buying me lunch,” she added quickly, having mostly overcome her shyness now that she was suitably full and a bit more comfortable with her new friend.

“No problem,” she said, slowly turning to the chef with a mischievous smile. “Hey, Haru, you're going to cover for me this time, right? We're friends, right? So you can take this one for me?” With a very articulated refusal, Kyoko was smacked on the head with a ladle. “Asshole!”

“I can't keep covering for you!” she said, wiping some soup from her hand onto a smudged white apron. “I only make so much, too, and my dad's going to fire me if I keep giving you free meals. What are you even using that money on?”

Kyoko spun on her stool slightly, pursing her lips and looking off in the distance. “You know...things.”

Haru rolled her eyes, placing a bill onto the counter. “Just pay up. I know you've got a credit card.” Kyoko cursed inwardly, unable to pull the “short on cash” trick with her friend. It wasn't a problem, though. This was just how they were, digging at each other over things like money and clothes and rides. Even so, Yumi's four bowls was more than she expected to have to cough up when she invited a middle schooler out to lunch. Reluctantly, she handed over her credit card. “By the way, I forgot to ask who your new friend is.”

“Yumi!” she introduced herself, spinning in place several times with her arms raised.

With a laugh, Haru turned to Kyoko with eyebrow raised. “New girlfriend, or something? So desperate you're even going after little kids now, I guess. No dignity.”

“You're just jealous you can't get someone as cute as Yumi here,” she joked, patting Yumi's head as she was overcome with joy by the compliment. “We just met earlier at the library and she was brave enough to ask if I wanted to hang out. Figured she deserved something out of that boldness.”

“You be careful around this one,” Haru said in a hushed tone to Yumi. “She's a no good delinquent. I've heard she doesn't even brush her teeth at night.”

“That was one time because you wouldn't let me use your toothbrush!” Kyoko yelled, shaking her fist.

Yumi laughed, returning to spinning her stool. “It's okay. My friend Kazuhiko's a no good delinquent and I don't think he ever changes out of his school uniform.”

“You ever been bowling, Yumi? There's a place down the street if you've still got time.” Kyoko took back her card, putting a black and red wallet back into her inside jacket pocket.

“I'd like to try!” she answered excitedly. She had absolutely no time to be distracted, though. In fact, this entire afternoon was terrible for her schedule. Training for the tournament was one commitment that she was more than seeing through, but the homework was still there hovering above her head. She was choosing not to think of it once again.

“Let's get going, then.” Kyoko stood up, Yumi hopping to the ground with her. “I'm leaving my bike here since they don't have parking. If you touch it, I'll shove that ladle up your ass.”

Haru smirked. “We can talk about that later when there's not a kid around.” Yumi laughed along with the other girls despite not really understanding the implications of what had been said. Probably just grown up humor, she thought.

\Next: Feelings Laid Bare - Riding Off Into the Sunset/

Chapter Text

Yumi and Kyoko emerged from the bowling alley, several games in and over an hour past when they'd planned to stop. “Haven't been bowling in forever,” Kyoko said as she stretched her arms.

“I've never been bowling!” Yumi added. “What do we do next?” she asked excitedly, hoping to keep the momentum of their 'date' going.

“Sorry, Yumi. Already getting kind of late. You've got to go back to the library so you can finish your homework.” She started off down the sidewalk to return to the ramen shop, Yumi keeping pace behind her.

“There's still time!” Yumi said. “It's really not that much homework! We can still do more stuff together right now, right? School doesn't even start again for a few weeks.”

“Nope, none of that. I'm a punk, but no one calls me a bad role model.”

Seeing as her friend had already made up her mind to do the responsible thing, Yumi could only sigh and hope this wouldn't be the last time they'd see each other. “We can still do this again some other time, right?” she said timidly.

Kyoko chuckled. “Sure thing. You're a pretty cool kid.” Yumi walked the rest of the way back to the shop in a daze, overwhelmed by the compliment and the knowledge she'd managed to impress a cute older girl enough that they'd already made plans for another outing at some point in the future.

She gave Haru a wave as they drove off, clinging to Kyoko's waist as the engine roared, leaning her head on her back in blissful euphoria. A disappointingly short time later, the bike came to a stop by curb. “Back at the library.” Kyoko sat for a few seconds before looking behind her. “Yumi, ride's over. You can let go.”

“Oh, sorry!” She laughed to try and make things seem less award, hopping down from the bike and handing the helmet she'd been wearing back to Kyoko. “Thanks for taking me out. It was a lot of fun.” She swallowed hard, trying to keep herself from blushing again now that her face wasn't covered by a visor.

It was a fruitless effort, though, as Yumi's cheeks had already started to turn pink. Kyoko grinned, patting her head. “Same here. I'm usually more up north, so I don't know if we'll see each other around too much. Text me whenever, though. What's your number?”

She froze, trying to process the request. It was something she'd initially thought of, but pushed to the back of her mind. Something to deal with when it came up, she told herself. It certainly came up now and she had no idea how to deal with it.

As ineffectual as it was, Yumi tried laughing again. “I...” She swallowed again. “I don't really...have a cell phone.” This would be it, she was sure. What kid didn't have a cell phone? Loser kids, that's who. Did she really expect this girl to give her the time of day after realizing how sucky she was?

Kyoko just gave a small laugh. “No problem. You got a piece of paper I can borrow? I'll just give you my number.” Nodding furiously, Yumi scrambled to grab anything suitable to write on from her backpack, shoving things around frantically until she grabbed her homework envelope.

“Cool duel disk,” she complimented, taking the folder and printing a few numbers on the side. “Can I see?” Taking back the now precious papers, she traded them for her duel disk. Yumi could practically hear wedding bells now. Strong, funny, pretty, rides a motorcycle, and a duelist. Kyoko was truly the perfect woman.

“Holy crap, this thing ancient! I love it!” She turned it over in her hands, rubbing a spot of rust along the blade. “I think I've seen pictures of ones like these before. Doesn't even fold into the base. Where'd you find this?”

Her heart was thumping. Things were going well and she couldn't afford to blow it. “From my parents,” she said, her voice making a small, painful crack at the start. When the hell did that start happening? “T-they left it for me when they went on their trip.”

“When did they leave? 1983?” She had a laugh at her own joke, handing the device back to Yumi.

Yumi laughed along with it, not understanding entirely but reading the room well enough to know it was meant to be funny. “No, when I was 6, so...2010? They just weren't really into upgrading and had it for a long time.”

“Wait, your parents have been gone for six years?” Suddenly, Kyoko found this a lot less funny, including Yumi's seemingly non-nonchalant nod. “Well, that's...something.” There was an uncomfortable pause lasting about three full seconds. “Yeah, but anyway, that's pretty cool. You should come play with me and the girls sometime. Keep trying to figure out some way to duel while riding our bikes, but it hasn't worked yet.”

Yumi lit up, hopping up and down with excitement. “That would be great! I've gotten really strong over the summer because I'm training for the tournament, and Sakuya's been teaching me a lot of good tricks and helping me make my deck stronger. She's really strong, too. Probably the strongest duelist I've ever met.”

“Right, the grumpy kid. Seems like she doesn't like me too much.”

“No, she's okay. She's just a little jealous.”

Kyoko chuckled. “Jealous of me? What am I going to do? Snatch you up and take you off to do nothing but eat ramen and play card games together forever?” Her laugh grew stronger, leaving Yumi's quiet 'yes please' to go unnoticed. “Got to save that for later, though. You go get your homework done now. See you around, Yumi.” With helmet secured, Kyoko drove off, Yumi trying her hardest not to pass out then and there from her infatuation.

As the sound of the engine faded into the distance, Yumi chose to bypass the library entirely and head straight back to the park. That homework would keep for another day. She had to go tell her friends all the good news. They'd be ecstatic to know she found her soulmate.

Sakuya had also chosen to return, simply going through the motions of her self-declared job as ruler of the children now that she couldn't control the situation. She was in the middle of looking through some kid named Yosuke's deck – a weird, kind of creepy kid around her age perpetually breathing through his mouth – trying to figure out why he was such a bad duelist when Yumi came into view. Immediately, she abandoned her position once more, nearly running off with the deck before handing it back and saying, “You have eight copies of Desertapir. I don't know why you're using it to begin with, but that's illegal regardless.”

Bolting to the other side of the park, she intercepted Yumi near the sidewalk. Unsure of what to say, she was held back a sigh of relief after her friend decided to speak first. “Sakuya!” she squealed, hopping over to her. “I had the best day ever! Kyoko is so fun!”

“Oh. Really?” As hard as she tried to sound supportive, Sakuya found it unable to be anything but scared and irritated by this development.

“Yeah! First we got some ramen, then she took me bowling and I've never done that before, and I got to ride her bike, she wants to duel me, and look!” She pulled off her backpack, unzipping it and taking out her homework folder. “She gave me her number! I think that means we're basically engaged now.”

Sakuya scanned the number, feeling like she'd taken a punch to the heart at that last (hopefully joking) comment. Kyoko felt so unsafe to her and she couldn't accept Yumi spending time with her. Maybe she really was a little jealous, but it shouldn't matter. That girl was a gang member and probably using Yumi for something. And the thought of if they really did start dating, if she tried to...to...

She coughed, changing the subject. “That's nice, but this packet looks completely unopened. You didn't do any of your homework, did you?” Yumi froze, trying to think of some excuse or explanation and drawing a complete blank. Sakuya took the folder and bopped her friend's head with it. “Go do your homework now before you forget. I don't want to have any blame in you getting bad grades.”

Pouting, Yumi took the folder and shoved it into her backpack. She was about to lodge a complaint, but was suddenly struck with a reminder. “Oh, crap, I left my bike at the library!”

“You can get it back when you finish your homework.” With a groan, Yumi relented, marching off down the sidewalk. “Are we going to be able to do more of your training tomorrow?” Sakuya asked before she was too far away, suddenly feeling a bit embarrassed as the words left her mouth.

“Oh, yeah. Sorry for skipping today! Bye!” Yumi would hopefully do as she said and start work on her summer assignments, meaning the rest of the day was left to Sakuya herself. She took out her phone, dialing the number she'd memorized off that folder, waiting for someone to pick up.

“New number, who this?” Kyoko said brusquely, wasting no time at all.

“Ishikawa Sakuya,” she returned in similar fashion.

“Oh, grumpy girl. What's up? Yumi give you my number?”

She paused. “In a way. I'm calling to challenge you to a game of Duel Monsters with the following conditions: Should I-”

“Slow down. What?” Kyoko held back a laugh, not understanding the absurdly formal fashion this girl was calling her out in.

“It's as I said. I'm challenging you to a duel. If I win, you'll leave Yumi alone and won't come near her. If you win, I'll do the same.”

So much for holding anything back. With a loud snort, she answered, “Why do I care if you want to hang out with Yumi? She seems pretty cool with you. Hell, why are you so mad at me for hanging out with her? What's your problem?”

Sakuya cleared her throat. “Because you're a bad influence and I don't want you to hurt my friend.”

“I'm not hurting anyone who doesn't deserve it.” She was honestly a bit offended at the insinuation she or anyone in her gang would harm a small kid like Yumi. “If anyone's a bad influence, it's you for trying to sabotage someone's friendships behind their back.” Sakuya had no response to this, getting more and more flustered and upset. With a scoff, Kyoko continued. “But you know what? Fine, sure. Yumi got me in the mood for playing cards, so let's do this. Let's meet at the Costco up north in an hour and we'll settle this. You know how to get there?”

“Yes, I'm well aware,” Sakuya snapped. She wasn't entirely sure why.

“Good. Make sure you're ready.” Kyoko hung up after that to prepare her deck and make the short ride over to the store. Might pick up a snack while she waited in the parking lot for that salty little girl to show herself.

Sakuya breathed heavily before calming herself. For some reason, that call had distressed her far more than expected. But this was it. She'd show up, beat that woman, and that would be the end of this whole mess. She wouldn't have to worry about Yumi's safety anymore and things could continue like they had been. It would be okay.

“Miyuki, Michiko,” she called to the two girls seamlessly running the show during her countless absences that day and previously. “I have more business to take care of. Keep everything under control until I get back.”

“Sure thing, ma'am!” Michiko said obediently.

“You won't have to worry about a thing!” Miyuki agreed. With a nod, Sakuya left the park, heading for the train station to begin the journey to her opponent. As soon as she was out of sight, both of them sighed heavily. “You ever get the feeling we're, like, two-dimensional extras in someone else's story?”

“Yeah, sometimes.”

Miyuki grunted. “It's so frustrating! I want to be all cool going, 'Watch my stuff, I've got teeth to kick in somewhere else,' too! But I never get to.”

Michiko nodded. “I always wanted to be the protagonist of a cooking anime.”

“You could totally be the protagonist,” she assured her sister. “You made those awesome cupcakes last week. It could be your signature dish, or something.” They wandered back to the other kids, never to be heard from again until it was narratively convenient.

As to be expected, Sakuya was early for the meetup, allowing her to wait impatiently while Kyoko emerged from the store with an industrial sized bucket of pretzel bites. How would she get that home with only a motorcycle? That was a question for someone less awesome. Or someone who planned better. Regardless, she was neither.

“You're here early,” she greeted the scowling toddler tapping her foot near her bike.

“I figure we both have things to do today, so we should finish this as quickly as possible.” They stood around awkwardly as Kyoko tried to figure out what to do with her giant back of snacks. She tried to shove them into one of the bags placed on the side, but it was too large even without anything else she was keeping inside. Leaving it on the seat wasn't an option, since it would likely be stolen. “What are you doing?”

“Making a mistake, apparently. Want one?” She pulled off the lid and pointed the salty snacks at Sakuya who shook her head. “Whatever,” she said while shoving a handful into her mouth. “Guess I'm taking these with me.” Kyoko slipped a crimson and white duel disk onto her left arm, holding her food under her arm.

“Are we doing this in the parking lot?” Sakuya asked, a bit put off at the notion of interrupting traffic or being run off the property by the store owners.

“There's a park right over there,” Kyoko said, pointing a thumb over her shoulder. “Plenty of room.” They walked in silence until they reached their destination, selecting a spot near a small lake as their battle ground. Kyoko lowered her pretzels to the ground behind her, raising her arm to the side and activating her duel disk. The blade extended from the base in a hook shape, red along the edge with bubblegum pink zones, as well as her gang's rose painted on the bottom. “We probably could just talk about whatever your problem is,” she said, making one last attempt to settle their dispute peacefully.

Sakuya turned up her nose, sliding on her own duel disk and shuffling her deck. “We have nothing to talk about. Just agree to the terms and that will be the end of it.”

Kyoko sighed. “Fine, if that's how you want it. Let's do this, I guess.” With a quick shuffle, she placed her deck into her wrist holder, raising the disk to chest level and drawing her first five cards at the same time as Sakuya. “Duel!” they both shouted.

“You won't mind if I start this, right? Considering you're the one who called me out, and all.” With a slightly condescending smile, Kyoko began her turn. “I Special Summon Stargazer from my hand in Attack Mode!” Placing the card onto the field, a towering, broad-headed brown owl draped in velvet robes appeared on the field. Its black, round eyes were flecked with white, tiny streams of light shining from each one. “If neither of us has a monster on the field, I can summon it from my hand without Release. It can't attack, though, so that's good for you.”

Sakuya pursed her lips, puzzled at the card that was just played. “Something wrong?” Kyoko asked.

“No, it's just...I was honestly expecting a motorcycle theme.”

“Just because I like riding a motorcycle doesn't mean I don't have other interests. What's your deck, then? Weird, foreign hats?” Sakuya's cheeks flushed, causing her opponent to laugh. “I set one monster and two other cards. Turn end.”

As she declared the turn change, Stargazer let out a screech, exploding for seemingly no reason. Kyoko merely chuckled, explaining, “At the end of the turn I use its summoning effect, Stargazer gets destroyed and I can add another Psychic-Type monster to my hand with a Level less than it. Stargazer is Level 8, so I choose my Level 4 Mind Reader.” Her turn passed after shuffling her deck.

“Draw!” Sakuya declared, beginning her turn and looking over her options. “I summon Wiener Dragon in Attack Mode and activate its effect to add another copy of itself from my deck to my hand!” She braced for the incoming laughter over her card's name, though was slightly relieved to find her opponent stayed stoic and serious through the exchange. Adding the extra card to her hand, she continued her turn.

“I'll discard the extra copy I added to my hand in order to Special Summon Terrier Dragon in Attack Mode, as well!” A scruffy, long-faced dragon appeared next to her first monster, howling loudly and baring its fangs. “When I summon it this way, though, its ATK and DEF are halved.” As she explained, its stats dropped to 1100 and 600, respectively.

“Then, I'll activate the Permanent Magic Card, Poison Fang! Now, whenever a Beast-Type monster inflicts damage to you, this card inflicts another 500.”

“Really pulling out all the stops on your first turn,” Kyoko observed. It wasn't entirely incorrect, though, as Sakuya hoped to finish things as quickly as possible and be done with it. Expediency shouldn't be taken as recklessness, however. She always had a plan in case things went wrong.

“Wiener Dragon, attack her monster! Overheat!” The dragon launched a stream of fire at the enemy, the card flipping up to reveal a bespectacled man in a lab coat, head covered by a metal helmet with wires coming from it. He screamed as his body was incinerated.

“When it's destroyed, I use the effect of Prophetologist, and I activate my set card Option Hunter!” Her Trap showed itself, showering her in golden light. “This card adds the ATK of a monster you destroy in battle to my Life Points.” Kyoko's Life Points, in turn, raised to 5800. “Now, Prophetologist activates! When it's destroyed by battle, I can look at cards on top of my deck equal to the number of Psychic monsters, then add a Psychic-Type monster from those cards to my hand.”

She picked up the top two cards of her deck, considering them briefly before holding up one of them to her opponent. “I choose Stargazer.” The second card was replaced on the top of her deck afterward.

“Adding cards to your hand will do little to help you,” Sakuya said, pointing forward. “Terrier Dragon, attack! Magma Fang!” Her monster lunged forward, biting Kyoko's arm as she raised to guard herself. The attack lowered her Life to 4700, then to 4200 with the effect of Poison Fang. “I set one card and end my turn.”

“You're pretty good. I guess Yumi's really getting her money's worth with you as a teacher. I draw!” She smirked, placing down a card. “I activate Thunder Bolt!” Sakuya shielded her face as thunder clapped above them, an enormous lightning strike impacting her side of the field. Both dragons screeched in pain before breaking to pieces.

“Since neither of us have monsters on the field, I Special Summon Stargazer from my hand!” The owl reappeared as before, staring blankly into the sky knowingly. “Then, I Normal Summon Mind Reader in Attack Mode!” A green, reptilian creature with a bulbous cranium appeared, its lack of legs seemingly no issue for it as it floated slightly above the ground. “When I summon Mind Reader, I can look at your hand.”

With a frown, Sakuya revealed her two cards. Kyoko hummed over them mockingly. “Looks like you're using Fusion,” she deduced. “Now, then. I activate Mind Reader's other effect, letting me Banish a Psychic-Type monster in my Graveyard to add one with a Level less than it to my hand from my deck.” Her target was the other Stargazer, taking out her deck and sifting through its contents.

“I'll pick Overmind Prince,” she declared confidently, adding the card to her hand and shuffling her deck. “Mind Reader, attack! Brain Invasion!” The creature projected waves of psychic energy from its long, fat fingers towards Sakuya, though she seemed unfazed.

“Trap activate, Reactive Armor.” As expected, she had a counter. “When your monster attacks, I can destroy it before it has a chance to damage me.” Metal bits blasted out of the card's portrait, wrapping around Mind Reader in a makeshift armor before crushing it.

“Too bad, I guess.” Kyoko simply shrugged. “I end my turn, activating Stargazer's effect to add Prophetologist to my hand.”

“You've left yourself open now,” Sakuya said, beginning her turn and drawing a card. “Knowing my cards won't help you. I activate Pet Cemetery!” A Magic Card rose up on her field, depicting a rounded tombstone with a cartoonish dog's face etched into it against a stormy background, the eyes in the shape of X's. “By Banishing Beast-Type monsters from my Graveyard, I can Fusion Summon a monster with the same number of materials using monsters in my deck!” She chose one of the Wiener Dragons and Terrier Dragon to Banish, sending Emerald Dragon and her final Wiener Dragon to the Graveyard in their place.

“I use my Emerald Dragon and Wiener Dragon from my deck as material! Fusion Summon!” She clasped her hands above her head, bringing them down as a monster began to take shape on her field. “Sad-Eyes Hound Dragon!” Her ace monster appeared, landing on the field with a small grumble.

Kyoko whistled with approval. “Nice card.”

Ignoring the compliment, Sakuya charged ahead. “I set one card, then summon Pointer from my hand!” An oddly humanoid monster appeared on the field, sniffing the air with its long snout as it stood on two legs. “Pointer's effect allows me to pick a Level 6 or higher Dragon-Type monster in my deck and place it on top.” Seemingly finding a scent, the monster extended its index finger, pointing repeatedly at Sakuya's deck.

“I choose Chow Chow Dragon,” she declared, raising her arm. “Attack! Beam Eyes of Destruction!” Two yellow energy beams struck Kyoko, draining her Life Points to 1200, lowering to 700 with Poison Fang's effect.

“Now that you attacked me directly, I activate Psychic Wall!” A Trap flipped up, showing a young man waving his hand and blowing away a group of attackers with mental energy. “This ends the Battle Phase immediately and halves your dragon's ATK.” Sad-Eyes ATK fell to 1500 as she explained, Pointer looking almost disappointed it couldn't finish the duel.

Sakuya cursed under her breath, though she was far from discouraged. “I'll end my turn, then,” she declared.

“Then I'll start down the path to victory!” Kyoko announced, drawing. “When I have at least three Psychic-Type monsters with 0 DEF in my Graveyard, I can Banish them and summon Overmind Prince from my hand!” Banishing Mind Reader, Prophetologist, and Stargazer, a void opened above her field, a flaming meteor launching into the ground. From out of it, a regal-looking gray alien stood up. Despite its extraterrestrial origins, it looked as though it was dressed in the European Dark Ages.

“When Overmind Prince is summoned while I've got at least three cards in my hand, too, I can discard all of them and add Overmind Invader Dragon to my hand.” Kyoko discarded her cards, adding the dragon to her hand. “Now, I'll attack Sad-Eyes Hound Dragon! Overmind Crisis!” Charging a ball of crackling purple energy, the monster launched it towards Sakuya's dragon.

“In that case, I activate Sad-Eyes' effect, as well as my set card. Permanent Trap, Beast Riser!” Sad-Eyes began charging its effect as the cards went on chain, Pointer acting startled at seeing the Trap. “I can Banish a Beast or Beast-Warrior-Type monster I control to add its original ATK to one of my other Beast-Type monsters. In addition, Sad-Eyes' effect makes one of your monsters lose 1000 ATK once per turn.”

Overmind Prince's ATK dropped to 1300 while Sad-Eyes grew to 2300. While not as impressive as it used to be, it seemed to be enough to finish the duel conclusively before the arrival of Kyoko's own dragon. However, she only smiled at the revelation, touching the screen on her duel disk.

Her monster was destroyed as planned, though she took no damage. “I Banish Sun Eater from my Graveyard. This means I take no battle damage for the rest of the turn, and any I'd take from this battle just gets taken from your monster's ATK, instead!” Sad-Eyes' ATK dropped to 1300, failing to do damage yet still destroying Overmind Prince. This, however, also seemed agreeable to Kyoko.

“When Prince is destroyed while I control no cards, I can Banish it to summon the Overmind Invader Dragon from my hand!” The ground trembled, thunder and lightning roaring in the sky. From between the clouds descended a jet black dragon, its maw dripping with molten rock the same color as its eyes. Its enlarged brain had several small rocks orbiting it as if it was a planet, as well as a pastel-colored ring spanning the circumference of its head. It landed with a thud, its immense 4000 ATK sending a shiver of fear down even Sakuya's back.

With a smirk, she snapped her fingers. “Now, attack! Creation Stream!” The dragon raised its head, firing a burning spew of lava at Sad-Eyes. Sakuya was pushed back, surviving with only 1300 Life Points left.

“When Sad-Eyes is destroyed, I can add the materials used for summoning it back to my hand from the Graveyard,” she explained, taking the Wiener Dragon and Emerald Dragon from before.

“It won't matter,” Kyoko said. “When Overmind Invader Dragon inflicts damage, you have to send cards equal to its Level from the top of your deck to the Graveyard.” With a scowl, Sakuya followed the instructions, watching ten of her cards feed into her Graveyard slot one by one, including several that could have completely reversed the situation. “Since I don't have anymore cards to play, I'll end my turn with that.”

Rather than terror or anger, Sakuya simply moved into calculation. There was only twenty cards left in her deck now, meaning her chance of drawing something that could help were slim, but still fairly high compared to what they would be without that ten card mill. If anything, that only brought her closer to victory. “I made a promise to Yumi,” she said. “I promised I would help her achieve her dream. And I can't do that if I never see her again. That means I'm not about to lose to you.”

With a cold stare, she drew a card, getting exactly what she needed. “I activate Pot of Avarice, returning five monsters my Graveyard to the deck to draw two cards.” She selected her monsters, one being Sad-Eyes, and added them to her deck, shuffling and drawing. “Now, I summon Spirit Dragon in Attack Mode!”

A small, serpentine blue dragon appeared on Sakuya's field, spreading its wings with a screech. “Now, Spirit Dragon, attack! Activate your effect!” The dragon began charging a fireball in its mouth. “While attacking, I can discard Dragon-Type monsters from my hand to raise Spirit Dragon's ATK and DEF by 1000 for each one. I send Emerald Dragon!” The attack crackled inside the monster's mouth, growing larger. “Wiener Dragon!” Again, it grew even larger. “And finally...Chow Chow Dragon!”

Sparking with electricity, the now 4000 ATK Spirit Dragon launched the attack at Kyoko's monster. “Invader Dragon, counterattack!” she commanded, her monster firing a molten blast in retaliation. They met in the middle, battling for dominance and sending shockwaves out in all directions. Both duelists shielded themselves as the blowback became too much for their monsters to handle, destroying them both.

As the dust settled, both women resumed the game. “That was a pretty risky move,” Kyoko said, looking across the field at Sakuya.

“I played the odds,” she responded.

“Neither of us have monsters now. If I get anything I can summon, you lose. You know that, right?”

“I'll take that chance.” The iron-clad determination of this girl was starting to shake her. Whether it was the fire of passion or hatred burning behind those eyes, Kyoko was slowly realizing Sakuya was no joke. Even this move was calculated to a degree. With all of her searching, Kyoko was running low on monsters. She'd been drawing them almost exclusively the entire game. The odds of her drawing one as opposed to a Magic or Trap Card were less now.

Taking the top card of her deck, Kyoko exhaled slowly with a smile. A chill overtook Sakuya. Had she been wrong after all? Suddenly, Kyoko replaced the card back on her deck, setting her hand on top of her duel disk. “I give up,” she declared.

“Don't patronize me,” she said, fury bubbling beneath her words.

“I'm not,” Kyoko defended. “I didn't draw a monster. Chance or not, I've seen enough, too. You're stronger than me. You've won.” The card she'd drawn was, in fact, Cyclone. The holograms faded from the field, Kyoko collecting her deck and placing it into a pocket on her jacket. “Besides, I couldn't in good conscience beat you with those stakes. Even if I said they didn't matter, you seem like the kind of person who'd still abide by them.”

She sighed, grabbing her pretzels and opening the lid to eat a handful. “Pretty sure she likes you more, anyway.”

“What?” she replied in genuine shock.

“I mean, I can't be sure, but if I'm going off the fact half our conversations today seemed like an excuse to talk about you, it kind of seems that way. Pretty sure she has a thing for you, honestly.” Sakuya blushed slightly at the news, biting her lower lip. She turned to leave, raising a hand in valediction.

Quickly composing herself, Sakuya cleared her throat. “Hold on,” she said, stopping Kyoko from leaving. Clenching her fists, she grunted angrily. “Fine, forget all of this.”

“What?” she said, utterly perplexed.

“I take it back. You can do what you want. I won't stop you from being friends with Yumi.”

“Why the sudden change of heart?” she asked, raising an eyebrow with a small smirk.

Sakuya sighed. “Because I need to trust her even if I don't like you. And trying to control her like this isn't something a friend should do. Sorry for wasting your time.”

“Nobody got hurt, so I guess there's no real trouble. Probably see you around, then.” Turning, Kyoko took a few steps before looking back over her shoulder. “By the way, if you feel the same way about her, my advice as an old gay is to get in on that while you've got the chance. Bet there's going to be a lot of girls fighting over her by the time she gets to high school. Just try to work on your jealousy.” She chuckled as she made her exit, listening to Sakuya stammer in embarrassment.

She was taken aback by the insinuation she could ever be in a relationship with Yumi. That was absurd, of course. She didn't like girls that way, right? She said that, but if Sakuya was truly honest with herself, she'd never put much thought into it. That just seemed like the way things were to her. Only boys and no one else. It's not like she could like girls, too, obviously.

And yet Yumi seemed to like girls and there wasn't anything wrong with that. If that was true, then was Kyoko actually right? She couldn't be. Yumi had plenty of options, so why would she ever choose her? But, again, in purely hypothetical terms, if she were to like girls and Yumi was to also like girls, and just happened to like her out of all the girls there were, well...maybe she wasn't too opposed to that.

Sakuya was just overthinking things again. That's what she told herself, at least. All of this was just a thought experiment and dwelling on it wouldn't do anyone any good. The sound of Kyoko's motorcycle flying by urged her to leave the unfamiliar area of the city for the train station, traveling back to the park and finally the library.

Finding Yumi inside, she was, amazingly enough, actually doing her homework. Walking up slowly, Sakuya swallowed hard as she rehearsed her apology. Upon seeing her, Yumi leaped out of her chair and pulled her friend into a tight hug. “Did you come to tell me we need to do more training and to forget all this boring school stuff?” she asked excitedly.

“No, Yumi. Do your homework.” She grumbled, but ultimately picked up her pencil and continued her studies. Sakuya smiled weakly, gripping the bottom of her dress tightly as she tried to find her words. “Yumi,” she said slowly.

“What?”

“I...sorry.” She couldn't help but look at the ground.

“Why you sorry?” she replied jokingly.

She swallowed again, her throat closing up. “I wasn't a very good friend earlier.” She paused. “I tried to tell you who to spend time with, but I shouldn't do that. I should trust you.”

Yumi smiled understandingly, patting Sakuya's hand. “It's okay. I guess it was kind of rude, but it didn't really bother me. It's not like you really did anything.” She started to sweat, remembering her numerous attempts to sabotage their friendship over the last few hours. “I know you just worry sometimes.”

“That doesn't make it okay, though.” Sakuya bit her lip. “I need to trust you, even if I don't think it's right sometimes.” She paused again. “Just be safe, okay? And don't join a gang, please.”

Yumi laughed. “I will. The being safe part, I mean. I don't think I'm old enough for gangs, anyway.”

“You're not,” she declared with a smile.

“Does that mean you'll trust me to do my homework later, so we can go back to my house and do stuff and maybe sleep over again?”

“Not on your life,” she answered coldly.

“Ugh!” Yumi wailed, getting shushed by a librarian. She repeated herself more quietly. Despite her complaining, Yumi managed to make a sizable dent in her assignments over that afternoon. Returning home in the evening, she really did feel a small sense of accomplishment at having finished some work. Still wasn't as fun as card games, though.

The next day, the four met at the park again as usual. Yumi was testing her deck against a few of the other children, Hideo partnered with her in a tag duel. Kazuhiko had side-eyed Sakuya since the moment they saw each other that morning, and it was no different now that they were forced to be alone.

“You were right,” she finally said.

“I know, but what about?”

“About the Kyoko stuff, ass.” She sighed, every fiber of her being telling her not to admit wrongdoing to Kazuhiko. “I should have trusted Yumi from the start, and you were right in telling me off like that. I worked something out and apologized after you left and it's okay now. And even if you're a delinquent with a bird's nest for a head, you're still...trustworthy, and I know you wouldn't let something happen to Yumi, either.”

He smirked. “Told you so. Maybe next time you should listen to me from the start.” After a few seconds, her insult finally registered. “Wait, what the hell did you say about my hair?” He shook his fist, screaming, “That's it! I don't care what lesson you learned, no one talks about my hair without facing the consequences. You're dueling me now!”

“Sakuya's finally going to duel Kazuhiko?” Yumi asked excitedly, overhearing his extremely loud yelling from her own duel. “I want to watch!”

Sakuya rolled her eyes. “Whatever. Let's get this over with.”

“That's right. I'll finally get my revenge for the humiliation I suffered before! Face the power of my Neo New Super Mutant Deck!” Needless to say, she won handily.

\Next: Card Professors Attack – Immortal Phoenix Deck/

Cards Used in Order of Appearance

Desertapir
EARTH
Level 3
Beast/Effect
900 ATK/300 DEF
FLIP: Flip 1 face-up monster on the field into face-down Defense Position. You cannot select “Desertapir”.

Stargazer
LIGHT
Level 8
Psychic/Effect
2500 ATK/0 DEF
If neither player controls a monster, you can Special Summon this card in face-up Attack Position (from your hand). This card cannot attack the turn it is summoned this way and is destroyed during the End Phase. When this card is destroyed by a card effect and sent to the Graveyard: You can add 1 Psychic-Type monster from your Deck to your hand with a Level less than this card's Level. You can only use each of these effects of “Stargazer” once per turn.

Mind Reader
LIGHT
Level 4
Psychic/Effect
1600 ATK/0 DEF
When this card is Summoned: Your opponent reveals their hand. Once per turn: You can Banish 1 Psychic-Type monster with 0 DEF in your Graveyard; add 1 Psychic-Type with a Level less than that Banished monster to your hand from your Deck.

Wiener Dragon
FIRE
Level 4
Dragon/Effect
1700 ATK/1200 DEF
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. When this card is Normal Summoned: You can add 1 “Wiener Dragon” from your Deck to your hand. While attacking, this card gains 100 ATK for each Dragon-Type monster in your Graveyard.

Terrier Dragon
EARTH
Level 6
Dragon/Effect
2200 ATK/1200 DEF
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. You can Special Summon this card from your hand in Attack Position by discarding 1 Level 5 or lower Dragon-Type monster. If this card is Special Summoned by its own effect: Its original ATK and DEF are halved.

Poison Fang (Poison Fangs)
Continuous Spell Card
Each time a Beast-Type monster inflicts Battle Damage to your opponent, inflict 500 damage to your opponent.

Prophetologist
LIGHT
Level 4
Psychic/Effect
1800 ATK/0 DEF
When this card is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard: Look at cards on top of your Deck equal to the number of Psychic-Type monsters in your Graveyard, then add 1 Psychic-Type monster among those cards (if any) to your hand. Place the remaining cards on top of your Deck in any order.

Option Hunter
Normal Trap Card
Activate only when a monster you control is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard. Gain Life Points equal to the original ATK of the destroyed monster.

Thunder Bolt (Raigeki)
Normal Spell Card
Destroy all monsters your opponent controls.

Overmind Prince
LIGHT
Level 7
Psychic/Effect
2300 ATK/0 DEF
You can Special Summon this card from your hand by Banishing 3 Psychic-Type monsters with 0 DEF in your Graveyard. When this card is summoned while you have at least 3 cards in your hand: Add 1 “Overmind Invader Dragon” from your Deck to your hand, then discard every other card in your hand. If this card is in your Graveyard and you control no cards: You can Banish it, then Special Summon 1 “Overmind Invader Dragon” from your hand.

Reactive Armor (Sakuretsu Armor)
Normal Trap Card
When an opponent's monster declares an attack: Target that attacking monster; destroy that target.

Pet Cemetery
Normal Spell Card
Target 1 Fusion Monster in your Extra Deck; Banish any number of Beast-Type monsters from your Graveyard equal to the number of monsters required to Fusion Summon that card, then send the same number of monsters from your Deck to the Graveyard to Special Summon that monster (this Special Summon is treated as a Fusion Summon). You can only activate 1 “Pet Cemetery” per turn.

Emerald Dragon (Luster Dragon #2)
WIND
Level 6
Dragon
2400 ATK/1400 DEF

Sad-Eyes Hound Dragon
EARTH
Level 8
Dragon/Fusion/Effect
3000 ATK/2500 DEF
1 Level 6 or higher Dragon-Type monster + 1 Level 5 or lower Beast-Type monster
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. Once per turn, during either player's turn: You can target 1 face-up monster on the field; it loses 1000 ATK until the End Phase. If this Fusion Summoned card is sent to the Graveyard: You can add both cards used as Fusion Material to your hand.

Pointer
FIRE
Level 2
Dragon/Effect
800 ATK/500 DEF
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. When this card is Normal Summoned: Choose 1 Level 6 or higher Dragon-Type monster from your Deck, and place it on top of your Deck.

Chow Chow Dragon
WIND
Level 6
Dragon/Effect
900 ATK/2500 DEF
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. You can Tribute Summon this card in face-up Defense Position. Once per turn, during either player's turn: You can discard 1 Dragon-Type monster from your hand; this card gains DEF equal to that card's level x 100 until the End Phase.

Psychic Wall
Normal Trap Card
When you take damage as the result of a direct attack while you have a Psychic-Type monster in your Graveyard: End the Battle Phase, then halve the ATK of the monster that attacked.

Overmind Invader Dragon
LIGHT
Level 10
Dragon/Effect
4000 ATK/0 DEF
Cannot be Normal Summoned/Set. Must first be Special Summoned (from your hand) with the effect of “Overmind Prince”. If this card attacks, it is unaffected by your opponent's card effects until the end of the Damage Step. When this card inflicts damage to your opponent: Your opponent sends cards from the top of their Deck to the Graveyard equal to this card's Level.

Beast Riser (Beast Rising)
Continuous Trap Card
Once per turn, you can remove from play 1 face-up Beast-Type or Beast-Warrior-Type monster you control to select 1 other face-up Beast-Type or Beast-Warrior-Type monster you control. The selected monster gains the original ATK of the monster removed from play for this effect.

Sun Eater
LIGHT
Level 5
Psychic/Effect
2000 ATK/0 DEF
When you would take damage as a result of battle: Banish this card in your Graveyard; for the rest of this turn, you take no battle damage, and any battle damage you would have taken from that battle is deducted from the opponent's monster's ATK.

Pot of Avarice
Normal Spell Card
Target 5 monsters in your Graveyard; shuffle all 5 into the Deck, then draw 2 cards.

Spirit Dragon (Spirit Ryu)
WIND
Level 4
Dragon/Effect
1000 ATK/1000 DEF
You can only activate this effect during your Battle Step, if this card battles this turn. Discard 1 Dragon-Type monster from your hand to the Graveyard to increase the ATK and DEF of this card by 1000 points until the End Step.

Cyclone (Mystical Space Typhoon)
Quick-Play Spell Card
Target 1 Spell/Trap Card on the field; destroy that target.

Chapter Text

It was set to be another lazy day at the park training for the tournament. Sakuya would be running late again (she told Yumi this time after the worry it caused previously), but the rest of the day would be pretty typical. Kazuhiko was here, too, so she wouldn't be forced to sit in silence for the time being, either.

“And I told my mom to quit butting into my business,” he said, passionately regaling Yumi with a story from his personal life. “I'll eat hamburgers for dinner if I want to! She can't control where I go when I'm done with school!”

Yumi laughed at his overreaction. “I'm sure she's just worried about your health.”

“Yeah,” he agreed. “She's a pretty great lady.” Despite their differences and how often they seemed to argue, Kazuhiko had nothing but love and respect for his mother. She'd raised him and his sister on her own for the majority of his entire life and he was well aware of the challenge in that.

“You should totally let me come over sometime so I can look at your cards,” Yumi added. “I won't complain about any food your mom makes for us.”

He scoffed. “Like I'd invite a little kid over to my house. How uncool do you think I am?”

“Uncool enough to sit in the park all morning talking to a little kid,” she added, bringing him to silence. “Is next week good, then? I'll bring some stuff to trade with you.”

He scratched the back of his head, still a bit embarrassed. “I don't know. I'll talk to my mom about it later.” His attention quickly turned to the sidewalk, watching a sharply dressed young man in an argyle scarf and glasses cross the street. There even seemed to be a sparkling aura surrounding his face. “Damn, he's hot. Wish he was over here so I could get a better look.”

Yumi was surprised at this. “I didn't know you liked boys,” she said.

Kazuhiko shrugged. “Boys, girls, anything else; doesn't really matter to me as long as they're hot.” He continued to peer at the boy until he was completely out of sight.

“What about me?” she said with a laugh in a clearly obtuse manner.

“Like I'd ever be interested in a little kid. You're not attractive at all. That's probably against the law, even.”

Yumi was genuinely upset by this, even if she was joking. “Jerk,” she mumbled with a pout.

Kazuhiko rolled his eye. “Fine. You're okay for a kid. And your hair is pretty great. I'm saying that, so you know it's true.” Her smile returned immediately, grabbing him in a hug. “Quit that. It'd be really uncool if someone saw me hugging a kid.”

“Because it's okay to hang out with one all the time like this, right? That's different?” He went silent again. One of these days, he'd have to face just how much of a nerd he actually was. Today wouldn't be that day, though.

“Hey, are you old enough to be into anyone yet?” he asked, shifting the conversation from his infinite uncoolness back to crushes.

“I don't know,” she answered. “I think I might like girls.” She thought for a moment, eventually nodding with determination after images of Kyoko flooded her brain. “Yeah. Girls are really pretty and nice. I think I like girls.”

“Yeah, they are,” he agreed. “Does that mean you and Ishikawa...?”

For a second, Yumi didn't understand the question. Then, realization began to set in around the same time as a massive blush. She laughed nervously, waving her hands around in disagreement. “N-no! Of course not! We're just friends! Besides, I don't even think Sakuya likes girls! And she probably has a boyfriend already, since she's so perfect and amazing! And even if she didn't, she could get one whenever she wanted! A girlfriend, too! And even if all of that wasn't true, it's not like she'd ever want to go out with me, or anything! She could find someone way better without even trying!” She ended her rant with another bout of extremely loud and nervous laughter.

Completely unconvinced at this gay little girl's denial, he resigned not to push it further. It didn't affect him, anyway. She could do whatever she wanted, even if it was painfully obvious how much they liked each other. For all he knew, it was just a little summer crush, and they'd both go back to their lives once school started up again. “Whatever,” he replied, leaning back on the grass, catching himself putting far too much thought into someone else's love life.

“It's true!” Yumi insisted, prepared to keep arguing until she could make him agree with her. “I could never like her like that! She's way too good for me, and it just wouldn't work! No matter how smart and nice and cool and strong she is.”

“Fine,” he said, relenting. “You're definitely not into her.” All the complaining was starting to become annoying and wasn't doing anything to genuinely convince him. “Any other girls you actually do like, then?”

Relief spread over her now that Kazuhiko was thoroughly convinced she wasn't secretly pining for her best friend. The next question threw her for a bit of a loop, though. “Kyoko's nice,” she said with a giggle. “I don't think she likes me that way, though. The only other girl I really met recently was Rio. She was okay. She's really cute, but more in a, 'Let me pinch your cheeks,' kind of way. Does that make sense?”

“Yeah, I think I get it.” Slowly, he raised an eyebrow. “Wait, Rio who? Mabuchi Rio, the pro duelist?” Yumi nodded with a smile. “Holy crap! How'd you manage that?”

“We dueled, actually.” His shock was far more satisfying than she would have thought it could be. “Sakuya and I showed up at a greeting she did at the library recently, and she picked me to duel with. I lost, but it was still a lot of fun.”

Kazuhiko laughed in the deep, boastful, full-bodied way only he could. “You never cease to amaze me, Miss Yumi.”

“Why do you always call me that?” she asked. “You don't have to be so uptight around me. You never do it with anyone else.”

He only shrugged. “It just feels right, you know?”

“Personally, I think it's nice to see kids being so respectful of each other these days,” a voice from behind them said in formal Japanese. They both turned their heads sharply at the eavesdropper, greeted by the smiling, bespectacled face of a dark haired man waving to them from a wheelchair on the sidewalk. “Sorry to butt in like that,” he said, folding his hands into his lap. “I just wasn't sure how best to let you know I was here. My name is Rafael Oliveira, and-”

“Wait, are you that Rafael Oliveira?” Kazuhiko interrupted rudely, his head starting to spin from the realization that he'd befriended some kind of magnet for famous people. “The genius card professor from Brazil who's won the regional tournament there three years in a row and taken the national title before?”

Yumi was both awed and annoyed. “Why am I always the last to hear about these people?” she whined. Immediately turning her focus back to the duelist, she asked, “Does that mean you're here to duel people?” without even a hint of modesty. “You can duel me if you want! I've been training, so I've gotten really strong, too!”

“Jeez, calm down!” Kazuhiko scolded, deciding to be the rational party for a change. “You can't just ask a big time pro duelist like that for a duel. Besides, I call dibs if that's really what he wants.”

Rafael laughed, amused by how forward the two kids were. “Well...” he began. “That actually is why I came here. You're Takano Yumi, correct?” She nodded enthusiastically, hopping up and down and flapping her hands with excitement. Hadn't even gone to the tournament yet and people were coming from across the world to duel her. “Then I definitely came to duel you.”

She squealed, grabbing her duel disk from the backpack she'd brought along. Kazuhiko watched, seething with jealousy. “I have to tell you a few things first, though.” He stood up slowly, walking his chair over the border between pavement and grass before taking a seat once he'd reached even ground.

“You can walk?” Yumi asked in confusion.

“Well, yes,” he said with a small laugh. “Some people in wheelchairs can walk.”

Kazuhiko nodded. “It's true. A lot of people who use mobility aids and stuff can walk without them. It's just a lot easier.” His knowledge as a fully able-bodied person surprised the both of them “What? I can't be supportive and informed?”

“Sorry for assuming!” Yumi apologized, feeling ashamed at the insensitivity.

Rafael waved it off, having accepted it as commonplace many years ago. “It's alright. Most people don't know.” He wheeled himself forward, turning back to face them with a more somber, almost pained expression. “I'm sorry if you assumed otherwise, but I didn't come here because of your reputation.” Despite how obvious this statement should have been, Yumi was genuinely disappointed. “I've been hired to duel you under the condition that, should you lose, you'll relinquish your deck and swear on your honor never to duel again.”

The otherwise cheerful meeting immediately turned sour. “Why the hell would she do that?” Kazuhiko shouted, quickly losing patience with the once-venerated duelist.

With a heavy sigh, Rafael answered. “Because your friend, Ishikawa Sakuya, is in danger. If you refuse to duel me...I don't actually know what will happen to her, but I know it's nothing good.”

Yumi froze in terror. Someone was threatening Sakuya? This couldn't be real. This was just supposed to be a normal day. “Bastard!” Kazuhiko yelled, grabbing the forest colored shirt Rafael wore at the collar and picking him up. “What did you do to Ishikawa? Talk!”

“Take it easy,” he said, holding up his hands. “Please, just listen.” With a scowl, he dropped Rafael again, Yumi shaking as she listened to what he had to say. “As long as you agree to duel me, your friend will be perfectly safe. I'm sure you can agree that a few cards is well worth that.”

Kazuhiko tried to protest more, but Yumi put a hand to his arm. Sliding her goggles down, she looked to the man with fire in her eyes and a determination to win she'd never felt before. “Fine,” she answered simply, activating her duel disk. “Let's settle this, then.”

“You sure about this?” Kazuhiko asked, still scowling. “I'll take your place if you don't feel like you can handle it.”

She shook her head. “No. I'll do it. I'll protect Sakuya no matter what.” She'd made up her mind and nothing he said could sway her.

“Right,” he said in affirmation. Taking his place on the sidelines, Kazuhiko gave her a supportive thumbs up. “Kick his ass, Miss Yumi.” Even with the stakes this high, he had no doubt she could pull off a win. He'd experienced her strength firsthand and knew just how skilled this girl was. National Champion or not, she could definitely do this.

Rafael flipped a table across his lap from the side his chair, taking out a deck from the right breast pocket on his shirt. He shuffled it quickly, then placed it down, the table glowing and a lighted duel mat pattern appearing across its surface. “Duel!” they announced in unison to begin the game.

“I'll begin, if you don't mind,” Rafael announced, taking his hand from the top of his deck. “I set one monster in Defense Mode. Turn end.” A very mundane start to a duel against one of the strongest players in the world. Obviously, there was something more to his strategy soon to come.

“Draw!” Yumi declared, all pretense of fun and games vanishing as she took her turn.

“Don't get reckless,” Kazuhiko chided in a very uncharacteristic manner. “He's got something hidden there. Keep calm and think before you rush in.” He might be loud and over dramatic, but no one could argue Kazuhiko wasn't a strategist when it counted, or that he couldn't spot a trap like that from a mile away.

“I am calm,” she said to him in an unconvincing monotone. Her expression may have been stoic, but she was burning with anger just beneath the surface. “I summon Rusty Swordsman! Equip Magic, Rusty Sword!” As soon as it appeared on the field, the little knight was given the much larger weapon from its equipment, its ATK raising to 2500. “Rusty Slice!”

Her monster charged forward, cutting through the face-down card with little effort. Before its destruction, a brown frog appeared, screeching before it disappeared with its card. “I set three cards and end my turn,” Yumi said.

“My turn. Draw!” After adding a card to his hand, a glowing circle appeared on Rafael's field. “During my Standby Phase, if Yomigaeru is in my Graveyard and I have no cards in my Magic and Trap zones, I can summon it back to my field. Be reborn!” The frog from earlier ascended from the underworld, lifted up by two angelic wings. Despite the fanfare, its unimpressive 100 ATK and Def wouldn't do much against Rusty Swordsman.

He played another monster after that. “I summon Guiding Hand of Nephthys in Attack Mode!” A dark skinned woman dressed in gold and scarlet robes appeared on the field, her eyes shadowed by an ornate, golden headpiece with an avian-looking part at the top, a feather sticking out from it. “I'll activate her effect next. Ceremony of the God Phoenix!”

The woman conjured two flames into her hands, the revived frog floating above her and burning to cinders as a sacrifice. “I Release her and another monster on my field to bring forth my Ace Monster from my deck!” With a yell, the woman became fire herself, floating into the air and becoming a spiraling ball of flames not unlike the sun itself.

“Grace this duel with your presence, my burning god of the dead! Sister to Osiris and Isis, appear now as your avatar that will cleanse the world in flame! Phoenix God of Nephthys, summon!” Yumi and Kazuhiko shielded their eyes from explosion as the ball of fire reached its peak brightness. A golden, metal ball was revealed inside. Slowly, it began to unfold, contorting into the shape of a giant bird. Its scarlet eyes gleamed as it shrieked into the sky, fire spewing from the ends of its wings and from the top of its head to replicate feathers.

“That card won't do anything,” Yumi declared, unconcerned with the appearance of what Rafael dubbed his best card. “It only has 2400 ATK, but Rusty Swordsman has 2500. Not only that, I can pay Life Points to increase it even further if you try to attack me. Your monster can't touch me!”

Rafael let out a small chuckle. “It's very true that your monster overpowers my god, but Nephthys' true strength isn't in her ATK, but in her effect.” Leaving the cryptic warning of things to come, he laid down another card. “Magic Card, Black Hole!” A swirling vortex of gravity appeared between the duelists, their monster struggling futilely to escape its pull. “This destroys all monsters we have on the field.”

“Why would you go to all the trouble of summoning your Ace Monster just to destroy it?” Kazuhiko asked incredulously. Was this guy really a pro if he played this carelessly?

“You'll discover why on my next turn. I set one card face-down and end my turn.” More cryptic messages. Things would probably move much faster in this game if people just explained their cards straight up.

Yumi began her turn now. “I summon Spirit of the Books – Hawk Bishop!” A tall, bipedal bird man in robes appeared on the field, lazily reading a book it clutched between its talons. “Hawk Bishop, direct attack!” The monster reared up, sending a flurry of razor feathers flying into Rafael. His set card seemed to be of no use as his Life Points fell to 2600. “Turn end,” she declared.

Despite the direct hit, he seemed unfazed by the attack. Without even registering it, he started his turn. “Standby Phase. The effect of Phoenix God of Nephthys activates!” A pair of enormous, flaming wings appeared behind Rafael as the monster returned to the field. “During my Standby Phase after Nephthys has been destroyed by a card effect, I can revive her to my field and simultaneously destroy all Magic and Trap Cards on the field!”

Yumi's eyes widened at the realization, glancing down to her duel disk and the three cards set to her field. “God's Fire!” Rafael declared, Nephthys spreading her wings and engulf the sky with her holy fire. It rained down onto the field, obliterating both Yumi's and his own backrow.

Twister, Magic Capture, and Mirror Force were all destroyed. Three of her best cards were gone in an instant. It was unreal. Whatever consolation there was in Rafael's miscalculation in destroying his own card was dwarfed by the problems that would come from losing her own utility.

“Now, my Trap activates! Cursed Coffin!” A portal to the underworld opened on the ground, Rafael's previously destroyed card coming back to the field. “When this card is destroyed while set on my field, I can force you to choose between discarding a random card from your hand or destroying a monster on your field. Choose which one you would prefer.”

Yumi looked to the single card in her hand: Restraint Release Wave. It wasn't doing her any good right now, given that she was without an Equip Magic on the field. Not only that, destroying Rafael's set cards could prove dangerous in this duel if Cursed Coffin was any indication of what he had in store for her. Keeping Spirit of the Books to reduce the damage she'd take seemed like the best choice right now, as it would mean waiting a minimum of two turns before she could even potentially use her Magic Card with the field the way it was now.

“I'll discard my hand,” she decided, placing the Magic Card in her Graveyard with a nod from her opponent.

“It's still my Standby Phase, so now that I have no Magic or Trap Cards on my field, I can summon Yomigaeru. Revive once more!” The frog returned to the field, looking as lethargic as ever. “Nephthys, attack! Burning God Wing Strike!” The phoenix reared up, flapping its mechanical wings and sending a torrent of flames at the much smaller bird. Though it tried to shield itself, it was easily blown away by the fire, along with 1000 of Yumi's Life Points. “I'll set one card and end my turn.”

This was the epitome of a bad situation. Her field was completely empty, as was her hand, and she was staring down a powerful monster with a set card that could ruin whatever she managed to get on her next turn. Another attack from Nephthys would nearly obliterate her Life Points, and if Rafael could draw another monster, she'd lose completely. Her next draw needed to be something good, or she might as well surrender.

“Draw!” she declared. It certainly wasn't good, but it would do. “I set one monster and end my turn,” Yumi said with a frown. She couldn't beat Nephthys this turn, but at least she could hold it off for now. As good as the extra turn to draw was, it still brought up the fear of leading her into a card she just couldn't use. Nothing good could come of waiting.

“I start my turn, draw!” Luckily for Yumi, Rafael's newest card would be of no use for the moment. “Nephthys, attack! Burning God Wing Strike!” Flames spread over the field as Wallrus appeared from its card only to be obliterated within seconds. “I'll end my turn,” he stated afterwards.

Yumi held her breath as she drew her next card, relief washing over her at picking the exact right card for this situation. “I activate Treasure Cards from the Heavens!” she announced, a large projection of a card featuring two armor-clad warriors trying to collect a rain of gold coins in their upturned helmets appearing on the field. “This lets us both draw until we have six cards in our hands.”

It was a reset, and that was the best thing she could hope for at this time. It only seemed appropriate that Sakuya had given her this card now that she was fighting to save her friend. With six new cards in her hand, she had options once more.

“I summon Magnum Lily in Attack Mode!” she declared, an unassuming orange flower appearing on her field. “Attack Yomigaeru!” A muzzle slid from between its petals, the sound of a gun cocking as it did. Quickly after, it fired several bullets into the frog, destroying it. With his face-down card, Rafael wouldn't be able to summon it back during his next turn. “I set two cards and end my turn.”

Now it was time to pay for her draw power. Rafael's turn started with seven cards in hand and a powerful monster on the field. It was sub-optimal, to say the least. “I summon Prominence Knight,” he said, a knight appearing on his field with flowing red cape behind him.

“Prominence Knight, attack Magnum Lily!” The knight's foil caught flame as he readied for a lunge, dashing towards the plant with shield raised.

“Trap Card, activate!” Yumi interrupted. “Justi-Break!” Her card flipped up, bolts of white lightning shooting from its picture. “When you attack a Normal Monster, this card destroys every monster on the field that isn't a Normal Monster in Attack Mode!” Her explanation was punctuated by Prominence Knight and Nephthys being destroyed as the electricity connected with them.

Rafael was unconcerned. “All you've done is activated my Nephthys' effect for next turn,” he told her, disappointed at her lack of planning. “For now, I use Prominence Knight's own effect. When it's destroyed and sent to the Graveyard, I can send a FIRE attribute monster from my deck to the Graveyard.”

To everyone's shock, the card he selected was another copy of Phoenix God of Nephthys. “You have another?” Kazuhiko shouted from the sidelines.

“I'll tell you now, just so we're clear: I have three copies of Nephthys in my deck. Defeating one won't be enough to win you this duel.” He shuffled his deck and returned it to its position on the table. “I'll prove that now,” he told her, placing a card onto the field. “Resurrection of the Dead!”

“I'll revive the Nephthys I just sent to the Graveyard,” he declared, the phoenix rising once more to the field. Not only would he have two of them by the time his turn started, its effect would destroy whatever cards Yumi had in her backrow again. “I set one card and end my turn. Let me see what you can do, Takano Yumi!”

It was odd. Despite the stakes of this duel, Rafael genuinely seemed to want a challenge. His actions lacked the malice or murderous intent someone in his position should typically hold, almost like he was hoping for Yumi to be able to defeat him. It was probably just her imagination, though.

“Draw!” she said, beginning her turn. “I'll play Dark Factory of Mass Production, which lets me add two Normal Monsters to my hand from my Graveyard.” She selected Rusty Swordsman and Spirit of the Books to return to her, sending the spent card to where they once rested.

“Now, I Release Magnum Lily to Advance Summon Majesty Magician!” The spellcaster appeared on the field with a flourished bow, ready to fight the monster flying above it. “Attack Nephthys! Majesty Burst!”

The magician twirled his cane, holding it by the curve of its handle and firing a zigzagging beam at the phoenix. “Trap Card, activate! Destruct Potion!” The set card he'd been hiding for so long revealed itself. “I can destroy a monster on my field to gain Life Points equal to its ATK! I choose Nephthys!” The bird screeched as red electricity began to shock its body, culminating in its destruction and an increase in Rafael's Life Points by 2400.

“Then I'll make it a direct attack!” Yumi declared, Majesty Magician's beam redirecting to hit Rafael himself. With his Trap's effect, the net loss was only 100 points, bringing him down to 2500. He'd also managed to dodge destruction by battle, meaning both Nephthys would be on the field come next turn. Seeing no other plays to make, she ended her turn.

“Draw!” Rafael declared. “During my Standby Phase, both my Nephthys will be revived!” Both monsters returned to the air above him, raining fire and destroying the set cards on both sides of the field, one of which being Yumi's Intrigue Shield.

“My destroyed card was Cursed Coffin, so choose which effect you'd like.” It was an easy decision, Yumi shuffling her hand and picking one card at random to discard. Her selection was Arms Hole, which she dropped into her Graveyard. “With my Trap Card gone, I'll also summon Yomigaeru back to my field.” The unkillable frog was raised up in Defense Position once more.

While Yumi's monster outclassed both of the Nephthys in terms of ATK points, it would be foolish to count Rafael out while he still had cards in his hand. “I set two cards and end my turn.” It would be dangerous to attack with those sets cards on the field. It almost seemed wiser to intentionally trigger a Nephthys right now.

Yumi began her turn, drawing a card and adding it to her hand. “I set a monster and end my turn,” Yumi said, unwilling to charge in without a way to destroy the obvious traps set out for her. She'd have to wait and rely on her next few draws to gain the upper hand.

Rafael drew to begin his turn, then turned over one of his set cards. “I activate Chain-Attached Dynamite!” A bundle of dynamite attached to a chain wrapped itself around one of the Nephthys' necks. “This card equips to a monster on my field and boosts its ATK by 500 points. Nephthys, attack! Burning God Wing Strike!”

With a scowl, Yumi could only watch as her favorite card was blown away, her Life Points falling to 2600. Immediately following that, her face-down monster was destroyed, as well. “I activate my monster's effect, Critter!” Yumi took her deck and sorted through it. “When it's sent to the Graveyard from my field, I can add a monster with 1500 or less ATK to my hand from my deck.” It didn't take her long to find the card she needed. “I add Komboriboh to my hand.”

He ended his turn after that with no other cards to play. The good news, Yumi thought while drawing her card, was that there was only one set card left for her to discover. The bad news was that there was one set card left that could potentially be anything, and that her field was now empty.

“I activate Pot of Greed, which lets me draw two cards from my deck!” It was a powerful, complicated card she'd used to get out of many tight situations before, and this would hopefully be no different. “I play Tribute to the Devil and select your Nephthys with the Equip Card to activate it!” The grotesque homunculus appeared on Yumi's field, grabbing the phoenix between its hands and crushing it as it struggled to free itself. A small explosion went off between its clasped palms.

Rafael was irritated by this. Chain-Attached Dynamite's effect would activate if it was destroyed while equipped, but only by a card effect. If it was destroyed like this it would be circumvented entirely. “Since Tribute to the Devil sends a monster to the Graveyard without destroying it, your Nephthys won't be able to revive next turn, either.” The monster turned back to Yumi, opening its hands to reveal a green orb of light. “Now I can summon Spirit of the Books – Hawk Bishop from my hand!”

“I'll equip Hawk Bishop with Golden Fiddle from my hand, and activate Komboriboh when I do.” She discarded the little ball of fur as the stoic bird spirit started to play beautiful music on its new instrument. “When I play an Equip Magic, I can take another Equip Magic in my Graveyard that could target the monster I'm selecting and add it to my hand. I pick Rusty Sword.” Yumi added back her earliest Equip Card from this duel as the Spirit's ATK raised to 2200.

Her Normal Summon was still available, and she was prepared to take full advantage of it. “Now, I'll summon Rusty Swordsman in Attack Mode and equip it with Rusty Sword again!” Just like on her first turn, the tiny knight was given a much bigger weapon and was ready to fight. “Rusty Slice!” Yumi shouted, sending her monster to attack. With 2500 ATK, it was 100 points higher than Nephthys. Just enough to beat it.

“Trap activate, Glaymore Dud!” Rafael's final set card opened, revealing itself as another Trap. “This card targets two Attack Position monsters on the field, and if something happens to remove one of them, this card is destroyed. When that happens, the other is destroyed with it! My targets are Phoenix God of Nephthys and Rusty Swordsman!”

Though it wasn't his intended strategy when he first played the card, Rafael could still use it. His Life Points fell to 2400 as Nephthys was cut to pieces. At the same time, the claymore pictured in his Trap's artwork appeared from its card, detonating under the unsuspecting Rusty Swordsman and destroying them both.

“Spirit of the Books, destroy Yomigaeru!” The monster began to play more sporadically, waves of sound resonating through the frog's body until it exploded. “I set one card and end my turn,” Yumi declared. With both Nephthys neutralized, it was safe for her to play a backrow once more. Now all that was left was the third one still lurking in his deck.

“I draw!” Rafael declared. “I activate Onslaught of the Fire Kings.” Whatever that card did, it must be powerful to pass up reviving his frog again. “If you control a monster and I do not, this card lets me summon a FIRE attribute Beast, Beast-Warrior, or Winged Beast-Type monster from my deck with its effects negated, and have it be destroyed during my End Phase.”

Fire began to spew from the card's projection on Rafael's field. “I call forth my third and final Phoenix God of Nephthys!” The phoenix appeared on his field once more. “Burning God Wing Strike!” Fire rained towards Spirit of the Books, though it guarded against the attack with its violin.

“When a monster equipped with Golden Fiddle is attacked, it can shift to Defense Mode,” Yumi explained. “Then, its DEF is increased by 300 points for each of its Levels, putting Hawk Bishop's DEF at 2400.”

Attacking was no good, so Rafael tried a different approach. “I banish Prominence Knight from my Graveyard to Special Summon Inferno from my hand in Defense Mode!” A monster that was nothing more than a roaring fire face with a mouth full of skulls appeared on the field. “Next, I Special Summon Hellfire, the Soul of Malice!”

A cast iron pot appeared on the field, fire spewing from the opening at its top until a distinct face could be seen within the flames. “I can summon this card when I have a FIRE monster on my field. Then, I have to pick one to destroy. I'll choose Nephthys.” Hellfire's body consumed Nephthys, starting the cycle of rebirth once again. “I'll end my turn with that.”

Yumi began her turn, hoping to make the most of her turn before Nephthys appeared once again and wrecked everything. “I switch Hawk Bishop to Attack Mode. Now, attack Hellfire!” Both monsters had 2200 ATK, clashing in the middle of the field and destroying one another. During her next turn, Golden Fiddle would have been eliminated, leaving her to take damage from Nephthy's attack should Hawk Bishop stay on the field. At least by doing this, she was removing one of Rafael's monsters and stopping whatever effect it might have from activating on his turn.

“I set a monster and end my turn,” she concluded. With her hand gone, she had only her two set cards left to protect her. Attack Nullification (her Trap) would be destroyed instantly come Rafael's Standby Phase. All that was left was her monster.

“Standby Phase,” Rafael declared after drawing. “I revive both my Yomigaeru and Phoenix God of Nephthys, and destroy all Magic and Trap Cards on the field!” Just as she'd predicted, Attack Nullification was burned to cinders upon the summoning of Nephthys. “Inferno, attack!”

The flame monster blasted parts of its own body at the face-down target, awakening the insect. “Man-Eater Bug, Reverse Effect activate!” The monster lunged at Nephthys, biting into its neck and causing it to screech. “This card destroys one monster on your field when you reverse it. It may be destroyed, but it can take Nephthys with it!” Both monsters exploded, Yumi's luck allowing her to survive for another turn.

“Inferno's effect activates when it destroys a monster and sends it to the Graveyard, inflicting 1500 damage to your Life Points.” Yumi was engulfed in the fire that made up the monster's form, shrieking as her Life dwindled to 1100. “I set one card end my turn.”

“Miss Yumi!” Kazuhiko called with concern. He went to help her up, as she'd fallen to one knee, but she stood on her own, panting and placing her fingers on top of her deck to draw. As much as he hated to doubt Yumi, he wasn't sure how she could win. She'd exhausted all her best cards and was down to one last draw before Nephthys returned. He had a set card, too, meaning any summoning or attacks she could pull off might be completely for naught.

Even so, he wouldn't give up, and one look at her face told him she wouldn't ether. As long as Yumi was willing to keep fighting, he'd support her. “You can win!” he cheered. Whether or not it would matter would be decided on this next draw.

Yumi pulled the card from the top of her deck, holding it in her hand for a few moments before turning it towards her face. To both Rafael and Kazuhiko's surprise, she started to smile. “This is the card that decides my future!” she declared, heart beating out of her chest as she slapped it into place on her duel disk. “Crane Crane, summon!”

Any second now, she expected to meet a Trap Card that would ruin everything. “Effect, activate!” It could come at any time and for any reason. On summon, on effect, on resolution, during battle; nothing she did was safe as long as that set card remained. Despite her outward composure, Yumi was entirely sure she was about to have a heart attack.

“When Crane Crane is Normal Summoned, it allows me to summon another Level 3 monster from my Graveyard! Return, Magnum Lily!” The mechanical bird dipped its head forward, dropping a line into a mystical circle leading below the field. It rose up, dragging Magnum Lily back to the field as instructed.

“With my monsters, I'll open a path to victory! I overlay my Level 3 Crane Crane with my Level 3 Magnum Lily!” Both her monsters transformed into orbs of orange light, flying into the galaxy formed during the summoning. “Xyz Summon! Show yourself! Rank 3, Illusion King Robbins!” A lanky magician dressed in all black appeared from the portal, flourishing its long coat and tipping its porkpie hat as it arrived on the field.

“Illusion King Robbins is a gentleman thief,” Yumi explained, the monster adjusting a small domino mask across its eyes. “By detaching two Overlay Units from it, I can activate its effect to call a member of the audience on stage!” As both cards used to summon it were dispensed into the Graveyard, the two orbiting units made their way into the red gem joining either side of the monster's bowtie.

“When that happens, I can equip a monster from your Graveyard to Robbins and increase its ATK points by half of the equipped monster!” Phoenix God of Nephthys was pulled from Rafael's Graveyard by a line of tied together handkerchiefs in a rainbow of colors, eventually being tugged over to Yumi's field and condensed back into its card form, which the thief tucked into its coat pocket.

With Rafael's chain broken, he was defeated. His set card was nothing more than another Cursed Coffin, ready to eliminate whatever monster Yumi might play for defense or destroy the last card in her hand before the final attack. Illusion King Robbins' ATK grew from 2300 to 3500, giving it exactly enough to overcome the last of his Life Points.

“Illusion King Robbins, attack Inferno! Sleight of Hand!” With two gloved hands and a flick of each wrist, Yumi's monster materialized two purple energy balls, sending them hurtling into Rafael's monster and reducing his Life Points to 0 as Kazuhiko cheered.

Slowly, Rafael sighed. He was conflicted – both disappointed in his loss yet relieved not to have to hurt a child with as much promise and fire as Yumi. Before he could say anything, he was grabbed at the collar once more and lifted up. “Yumi won, so tell us where you took Ishikawa!”

“I told you before,” he said, grabbing at the boy's wrist. “I was only hired to deliver the message and duel. I have no idea where your friend is or what's happening to her. I'm sorry.”

“Kazuhiko, put him down.” Yumi remained stoic despite her spectacular victory. “Is that the truth?” she asked Rafael after he was seated once more.

He nodded. “I swear to you on my honor as a duelist that I have no clue where your friend is. Like I said before, you agreed to duel me, so she should be safe.”

“If that's correct,” Yumi said, “then leave, and never speak to me or threaten my friends again.”

“It is,” he reiterated, truly hoping his employer had kept her word. They locked eyes, sharing an intense gaze for a few moments before he turned in his chair to leave. “For what it's worth,” he began, not facing either of them. “You're one of the strongest opponents I've ever faced. You're a much more worthy champion than I am.” She said nothing as he left the park.

“Honor as a duelist,” he thought, turning the words over inside his brain. What honor did he have left? He was threatening a child and trying to steal from another, and for what? Money, of course. It was always money. He had no other choice, despite how morally repugnant this entire situation was. It made him sick.

“That's correct,” he said over the phone in a defeated tone. “She beat me. The girl is safe like you said she'd be, right?”

There was a laugh from the other end of the line. “What do you care, you failure?” Rio said. “Go back to your own country like the loser dog you are. I don't have anymore time to waste on you, and neither does my family's company. Enjoy rotting in the gutter.”

“Miss, if I could just speak to your parents. Please, let me explain the situation.” She'd hung up before he even finished talking. He stopped on the sidewalk, holding in his anguish as hard as he could. That's all he could do now; go home and face his family. His mother, father, all his siblings. They'd know how he tried to extort a little girl for her right to play this game, threatening another with violence to do so. How he lost the sponsorship of Critical Games and was now blacklisted from the professional dueling world. How his earnings from the last tournament were all they had left after today.

A few seconds after Rafael was out of sight, Yumi collapsed on the ground in a heap. “Miss Yumi, are you okay?” Kazuhiko cried out, rushing to her side.

“Yeah,” she replied quietly. “I'm just really, really tired.” Kazuhiko sighed, taking her backpack off the ground and putting it under her head to use as a pillow. In seconds, she'd already fallen asleep, snoring loudly with a snot bubble inflating and deflating against her nose. It was amazing how easily she could pass out after everything that had just happened.

Several minutes passed as Kazuhiko watched over her, worrying over Sakuya's safety and contemplating calling the police, combing through his pompadour repetitively to keep himself occupied. It proved pointless, though, as a familiar blue beret appeared within his line of sight approaching the park. As if an alarm blared inside her head, Yumi's eyes sprung open as her body jolted upwards, causing Kazuhiko to fall over in surprise.

“Sakuya!” she squealed, running towards her friend and jumping forward to tackle her into a hug, only to lose energy halfway to her goal and face plant into the ground.

“Ishikawa!” Kazuhiko called, having composed himself. “You won't believe what just happened! Rafael Oliveira, the former Brazilian National Champion, appeared before us and dueled Miss Yumi! He threatened your safety and said if she lost, she could never pick up a card again, but she still prevailed for your sake and sent him home in shame!”

Sakuya blinked, keeping a bored expression the entire time. “You're right, I don't believe that.”

“It's true!” Yumi protested, face still stuck to the grass. “I dueled him and I won so you'd be safe.” The three of them reconvened at the side of the hill, recounting the battle and everything they knew about Rafael's motives, having to assure Sakuya five separate times that this wasn't an elaborate prank.

“An employer,” she said, touching a finger to her lips to think as Yumi hugged ever tighter against her side. “Did either of you try to find out who it is before he left?” Both of them were suddenly overcome by their own negligence, having not even considered that in the entirety of their encounter. Sakuya sighed slowly. “Well, it's okay. Neither of you was really thinking of collecting evidence in the middle of all of that.”

“But it's all okay now because you're here and you're safe,” Yumi added, rubbing her face against Sakuya.

“Enough of that,” she said sternly, trying to cover up the fact she was blushing intensely by speaking harshly. “I don't think I was any danger,” she continued, Yumi releasing her with a pout. “I was running errands with my father all morning and nothing suspicious was happening around us.”

“I still think we should tell some adults just be safe,” Kazuhiko interjected, continuing his responsible streak from before.

“I suppose, but I doubt anyone would believe us, or even care. 'Help! Help! Some mysterious person is hiring a bunch of people to play card games with us!' We might be on our own for now.”

Kazuhiko nodded reluctantly. Saying it out loud sort of revealed how ridiculous this entire scenario seemed. “I'm going to tell Hideo. At the very least, they'll be willing to help us.”

Sakuya nodded. “Then we'll have to be alert in case anything else happens. We can't know if any of us are in real danger right now, but if worst comes to worst, at least we have each other.” Suddenly, Sakuya's demeanor changed to be much less friendly, the realization dawning upon her that Kazuhiko wasn't privy to her true nature. “Assuming none of you hold me back, that is.”

Kazuhiko scoffed. “Don't act like we can't hold our own, Ishikawa. And you don't need to pretend to be someone you're not here. Miss Yumi's already told me just how soft you are in private.” She turned to Yumi with a glare, who smiled back sheepishly and pressed her index fingers together. Then, she kicked Kazuhiko in the shin. “Damn it! That hurt!” He grabbed at his leg, hopping up and down.

“How soft was that?” she asked, arms folded and scowling.

“That's enough!” he declared while still holding his leg. “I've suffered this disrespect long enough! Ishikawa, it's time for us to settle our differences in a duel!”

“You're still 100 years too early to try and challenge me again,” she replied, turning her nose up dismissively.

“I'm older than you!” he screamed, Yumi bursting into laughter beside them. Regardless of what happened earlier or what may come in the future, things were back to normal for the time being. That's all any of them could ask for.

Inside the penthouse floor of the Critical Games skyscraper, Rio sat in her chair, hands folded in her lap as she spoke to Fukuro the butler. “We have an understanding, then?” she asked.

“Yes, Miss Rio,” he replied, not allowing his sadness to show through in his voice. This wasn't new. She'd been doing things like this for years, but usually not to this extreme. For whatever reason, this new girl had infuriated Rio so much that she was putting her family's company at risk now. The worst part, though, was that despite how much he objected to all of this, he knew he was at least partially culpable for whatever would end up happening.

“Good. I hope you found one that's slightly more competent this time. If you let me down again, I'm going to be mad.”

“I assure you,” he said, “she will be more than capable of dealing with your problem.” For everyone's sake, he hoped that was true.

\Next: The Second Card Professor – Autumn in New York/

Cards Used in Order of Appearance

Rusty Swordsman
EARTH
Level 4
Warrior
1500 ATK/1000 DEF

Rusty Sword
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: This card's original ATK increases equal to its DEF. When this card attacks, during the Damage Step: You can pay Life Points in multiples of 100 (maximum 500); this card gains ATK equal to that amount.

Yomigaeru (Treeborn Frog)
WATER
Level 1
Aqua/Effect
100 ATK/100 DEF
During your Standby Phase, if this card is in your Graveyard and you do not control a “Treeborn Frog”: You can Special Summon this card. You must control no Spell/Trap Cards to activate and to resolve this effect.

Guiding Hand of Nephthys (Hand of Nephthys)
WIND
Level 2
Spellcaster/Effect
600 ATK/600 DEF
You can Tribute this card and 1 other monster; Special Summon 1 “Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys” from your hand or Deck.

Phoenix God of Nephthys (Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys)
FIRE
Level 8
Winged Beast/Effect
2400 ATK/1600 DEF
During your next Standby Phase after this card was destroyed by a card effect and sent to the Graveyard: Special Summon this card from the Graveyard. When you do: Destroy all Spell and Trap Cards on the field.

Black Hole (Dark Hole)
Normal Spell Card
Destroy all monsters on the field.

Spirit of the Books – Hawk Bishop (Spirit of the Books)
WIND
Level 4
Winged Beast
1400 ATK/1200 DEF

Twister
Quick-Play Spell Card
Pay 500 LP, then target 1 face-up Spell/Trap Card on the field; destroy that target.

Magic Capture (Spell Reclamation)
Normal Trap Card
Discard 1 card and chain this card to a Spell Card you activated. Whenever that Spell Card is sent to the Graveyard, return it to its owner's hand.

Holy Barrier – Mirror Force (Mirror Force)
Normal Trap Card
When an opponent's monster declares an attack: Destroy all Attack Position monsters your opponent controls.

Cursed Coffin (Dark Coffin)
Normal Trap Card
When this face-down card is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard, your opponent selects and executes 1 of the following effects: 1. Discard 1 random card in their hand. 2. Select 1 monster on their side of the field and destroy it.

Restraint Release Wave (Release Restraint Wave)
Normal Spell Card
Target 1 face-up Equip Spell Card you control; destroy the Equip Spell Card and all face-down Spell and Trap Cards your opponent controls.

Wallrus
WATER
Level 2
Beast
400 ATK/800 DEF

Treasure Cards from the Heavens (Card of Sanctity)
Normal Spell Card
Each player draws until they have 6 cards in their hand.

Magnum Lily (Barrel Lily)
EARTH
Level 3
Plant
1100 ATK/600 DEF

Prominence Knight (Brushfire Knight)
FIRE
Level 4
Warrior/Effect
1400 ATK/1200 DEF
When a FIRE monster is destroyed and sent to your Graveyard: Send 1 FIRE monster from your Deck to the Graveyard. When this card is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard: Send 1 FIRE monster from your Deck to the Graveyard. You can only use 1 "Brushfire Knight" effect per turn, and only once that turn.

Justi-Break
Normal Trap Card
Activate only when your opponent declares an attack against a face-up Normal Monster you control. Destroy all monsters on the field, except face-up Attack Position Normal Monsters.

Resurrection of the Dead (Monster Reborn)
Normal Spell Card
Target 1 monster in either player's Graveyard; Special Summon it.

Dark Factory of Mass Production
Normal Spell Card
Target 2 Normal Monsters in your Graveyard; add those targets to your hand.

Majesty Magician
DARK
Level 8
Spellcaster/Effect
2500 ATK/2000 DEF
You can Tribute Summon this card by tributing 1 monster that was originally a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. This card is treated as a Level 4 Normal Monster with 1500 ATK and DEF when targeted by card effects while face-up on the field or in the Graveyard (its Level and ATK/DEF do not change).

Destruct Potion
Normal Trap Card
Select 1 monster you control. Destroy it, and gain Life Points equal to its ATK.

Intrigue Shield
Normal Trap Card
Target 1 face-up monster you control; equip this card to that target. Once per turn, while the equipped monster is in Attack Position, it cannot be destroyed by battle. You take no battle damage from attacks involving it.

Arms Hole (Hidden Armory)
Normal Spell Card
Send the top card of your Deck to the Graveyard; add 1 Equip Spell Card from your Deck or Graveyard to your hand. You cannot Normal Summon/Set during the turn you activate this card.

Chain-Attached Dynamite (Blast with Chain)
Normal Trap Card
Target 1 face-up monster you control; equip this card to that target. It gains 500 ATK. If this card is destroyed by a card effect while equipped: Target 1 card on the field; destroy that target.

Critter (Sangan)
DARK
Level 3
Fiend/Effect
1000 ATK/ 600 DEF
When this card is sent from the field to the Graveyard: Add 1 monster with 1500 or less ATK from your Deck to your hand.

Komboriboh
DARK
Level 1
Fiend/Effect
300 ATK/ 200 DEF
When a monster is targeted by an Equip Spell Card: You can discard this card and target 1 Equip Spell Card in your Graveyard that could be equipped to an appropriate monster on the field; add that target to your hand. When a monster you control is targeted for an attack while it it equipped with an Equip Spell Card: You can banish this card from your Graveyard to target that monster; this turn, that target cannot be destroyed by battle and you take no battle damage from attacks involving that target.

Pot of Greed
Normal Spell Card
Draw 2 cards.

Tribute to the Devil (Faustian Bargain)
Normal Spell Card
Send 1 Special Summoned monster on either side of the field to the Graveyard and Special Summon 1 Level 4 or lower Normal Monster from your hand.

Golden Fiddle
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: This card gains ATK equal to its Level x 200 while in Attack Position and DEF equal to its Level x 300 while in Defense Position. If this card is selected as an attack target while in Attack Position: You can switch this card to Defense Position.

Glaymore Dud (Widespread Dud)
Continuous Trap Card
Select 2 face-up Attack Position monsters on the field. When any of the selected monsters are removed from the field, destroy this card. When this card is destroyed, destroy the selected monster(s).

Onslaught of the Fire Kings
Normal Spell Card
If your opponent controls a monster and you control no monsters: Special Summon 1 FIRE Beast, Beast-Warrior, or Winged Beast-Type monster from your Deck. Its effects are negated and it is destroyed during the End Phase. You can only activate 1 "Onslaught of the Fire Kings" per turn.

Inferno
FIRE
Level 4
Pyro/Effect
1100 ATK/1900 DEF
This card cannot be Normal Summoned or Set. This card can only be Special Summoned by removing 1 FIRE monster in your Graveyard from play. When this card destroys your opponent's monster and sends it to the Graveyard as a result of battle, inflict 1500 points of damage to your opponent's Life Points.

Hellfire, the Soul of Malice
FIRE
Level 6
Zombie/Effect
2200 ATK/1900 DEF
If you control a FIRE monster, you can Special Summon this card (from your hand). When you do: Target 1 FIRE monster you control; destroy that target. During each of your Standby Phases: Special Summon 1 “Fireball Token” (Pyro-Type/FIRE/Level 1/ATK 100/DEF 100) in Defense Position. You can Tribute 1 other FIRE monster; this card gains 500 ATK until the End Phase.

Attack Nullification (Negate Attack)
Counter Trap Card
When an opponent's monster declares an attack: Target the attacking monster; negate the attack, then end the Battle Phase.

Man-Eater Bug
EARTH
Level 2
Insect/Flip/Effect
450 ATK/600 DEF
FLIP: Target 1 monster on the field; destroy that target.

Crane Crane
EARTH
Level 3
Winged Beast/Effect
300 ATK/900 DEF
When this card is Normal Summoned: You can target 1 Level 3 monster in your Graveyard; Special Summon that target, but its effects are negated. You can only use this effect of “Crane Crane” once per turn.

Illusion King Robbins
LIGHT
Rank 3
Spellcaster/Xyz/Effect
2300 ATK/1500 DEF
2 Level 3 monsters
Once per turn: You can detach 2 Xyz Material from this card and target 1 monster in your opponent's Graveyard; equip that target to this card. When a monster is equipped to this card by its own effect, it gains ATK equal to half the ATK of the equipped monster. While this card is equipped with an opponent's monster: You can Tribute this card; Special Summon 1 monster from your hand, Deck, or Graveyard with ATK equal to or less than this card's ATK on the field.

Chapter Text

The next few days were fairly peaceful. Sakuya had decided it was a day off for Yumi, since burnout could happen without sufficient downtime and, frankly, she wanted to have a chance to just spend a day with her friend without focusing on training for the tournament. Hideo and Kazuhiko were on their own today to “settle their rivalry once and for all” (entirely Kazuhiko's idea), so the two were left on their own just as she wanted.

They'd decided to walk the city and see what age-appropriate fun they could get into together. Right now, that involved getting breakfast at a fast food restaurant, since they were both hungry and skipped today. Sakuya paid for them despite all the protest, mostly because Yumi only had enough money for a single order of small fries and nothing else and she wasn't about to let her friend go hungry.

“It's so big!” Yumi said in amazement, squeezing the egg, sausage, and cheese pancake sandwich between her hands.

“I had a feeling you'd like that,” Sakuya chuckled. She'd gone with a much more conservative chicken and lettuce wrap, and also an order of French fries to share. “You've really never been to a restaurant like this before?”

“Nope,” she said through a mouthful of food, shoving everything she could into her face as fast as possible. “We don't go to the city very often, since it's a long walk and grandma gets tired carrying stuff home. I don't usually have much money, either, and I usually spend it on Duel Monsters when I have it.” She swallowed a large wad of meat and pancake, gasping loudly when it finally went down.

As much as she hated to admit it, Yumi's complete lack of class and table manners was far more endearing than it should be. “Then I should take you out more often,” she said with a smile. It felt nice to be able to make her friend happy, even if it was with something as simple as food.

“Are you asking me on a date?” Yumi said, teasing.

Sakuya went red. “Of course not!” she deflected. “Fine, we won't do anything.” She turned away with a pout.

“Perfect. Then I can just admire how pretty you are without interruption.” It was funny because there was a part of her still shaken by her conversation with Kazuhiko the other day and it was making her question how much of a joke all this was. Damn part.

“I changed my mind!” she said quickly. “No more looking! You have to stare out the window now!” Yumi did as she was told in annoyance, though not annoyed enough to stop eating. Something caught her eye from where they sat on the upper floor of the restaurant, though. A red neon sign was hung above a doorway set into the side of the building across the street, identifying it as the On Air Club. It lacked windows, so there was no way to see inside, only piquing her curiosity more.

“What's that place?” she asked, pointing towards the sign. Sakuya turned her head to squint out the window, thinking over the name of the place. “You don't know?”

“I don't,” she said, placing a finger to her chin. “Even so, I don't think it's for us. If I had to guess, it's some kind of bar. They wouldn't let kids in a place like that.”

Yumi scoffed. “I bet we could get in. And if they put up a fight, we'll duel them into submission and make them let us in!”

“Yumi, that's not how things work.” She patted her friend's shoulder as she slumped over in disappointment. “If it would make you happy, we can go over and check, at least.”

“Really?” Yumi asked excitedly.

“Just don't get your hopes up,” Sakuya said with a small laugh, amused at how quickly her moods could change.

“Let's go, then!” She shoved the rest of her sandwich into her mouth along with a fistful of fries, grabbing Sakuya by the hand and pulling her from her seat. They charged out of the restaurant, narrowly avoiding other patrons as they went.

Sakuya was struggling to keep up as they rounded the corner of a building to get to the right street, holding her hat on her head to keep from losing it. “Slow down!” she yelled. Her complaints went unnoticed, though, and soon enough they'd already reached the entrance to the club. “You need to warn me when you do that. I almost tripped, like, ten times.”

“Sorry. I got excited.” Yumi tried to laugh off her hyperactivity as Sakuya adjusted her hat. Both of them faced the door now; a sturdy wooden structure carved into eight squared segments along its surface. It felt like a little hatch would open up requesting a password should they be brave enough to knock, which Yumi was, of course.

“Hey, we want inside!” she screamed at the door, pounding continuously with her fist.

“You can't just demand things like that,” Sakuya said, starting to get cold feet now that they were actually trying to make it inside this place. To their shared surprise, someone actually opened the door, the faintest bits of some kind of music drifting outside. It was an imposing man in a black blazer and sunglasses on his head, arms crossed as he looked down with suspicion at the two of them. “H-h-hello,” Sakuya stuttered, forcing out a nervous laugh.

“I'll duel you!” Yumi said immediately, pulling her duel disk partway from her backpack.

“Yumi, no!” She chopped her head to quiet her. “I'm very sorry for the interruption,” she said to the doorman with a bow, Yumi rubbing her head with a pout. “We were just wondering what kind of establishment this is. It looked very interesting from the sign.”

“I mean, the door wasn't locked, for starters,” the man said, slightly overwhelmed at the rapid fire nonsense before him. “But I think you're both a little young for a place like this. There's a park down the street you can visit.” He pointed towards their usual hangout.

“I told you so,” Sakuya said, sticking her nose up. “Let's go, Yumi. We'll find something else to do.”

As they turned to leave, the doorman's ears perked up. “Hold on,” he called to them. “Yumi? Takano Yumi?” She nodded slowly. “You should have said so before. There's actually someone who works here that's looking for you.”

“There is?” she asked, immediately charmed at the idea of someone in an upscale club like this trying to get a hold of her.

Sakuya, though, was far more suspicious and was on that in a second. “Why is someone looking for my friend?” she asked bluntly, stepping in front of Yumi slightly.

“Honestly, I'm not too sure, but I think it might have something to do with Duel Monsters, you know? I heard you played Mabuchi Rio on pretty even footing not that long ago. If that's true, then good job, kid. That's pretty impressive.”

“Well, I just do my best. I can't help it that I'm so amazing!” Yumi was loving every second of the praise, nearly doubled over by her bashfulness.

“I don't trust this,” Sakuya said. “Come on, Yumi. We should go.”

Dejectedly, she prepared to leave. “That's okay, you don't have to see anyone if you don't want to. You can still come in if you'd like. There's a live band, you can get something to eat. I know I said you were a little young, but you're still allowed in. Besides, you two seem mature for your age. I'm sure you'd fit in.” He added the last bit to make up for what he realized probably sounded a bit mean earlier.

Starry eyed, Yumi looked to Sakuya for approval, hopping up and down in place. “I guess,” she said reluctantly. Everything in her head was telling her this was a bad idea, but there was just no way she could say no to that face.

The door closed behind them as they entered the darkened stairwell. Everything was a velvety red color and soft, from the carpet to the walls and maybe even the ceiling. As they were led upstairs, Sakuya frowned at Yumi. “It's going to be fine,” she reassured her. “What's the worst thing that could happen to us?”

“How should I order that list?” she asked. “Do you want the unabridged version or just the worst twenty?” The top of the stairs met with a wall, several pictures of adults neither of them had ever seen before hanging in frames. On their left was what appeared to be a bathroom, so nothing of interest there. The right side, however, opened up into a dimly lit club area. A bar was fixed to the side of the room close to the stairs, and beyond that they could see a pair of doors that suggested a kitchen.

The rest of the room was taken up by a number of round tables covered in lacy pink tablecloths and a few booths set into the sides of the lounge, a large stage against the back wall with a black curtain obscuring whatever may be behind it. Apparently, this place was much bigger than it first appeared outside and must have taken up more than just two floors in a single row of the buildings. It was like nothing either of them had seen before in their hometown.

The hostess came to greet the new patrons, but stopped short of speaking after seeing they were children. She looked to the doorman with an accusing glare. “It's okay, they won't cause any trouble,” he assured.

The woman seemed to accept this, nodding. “Follow me, please,” she instructed, leading the two girls through a sea of tables.

“Everything about this place is a trap,” Sakuya said, extremely paranoid and on edge. She began pointing around the room. “That's a trap,” she said about the bar. “That's a trap,” she said, directing her finger at a large man holding a saxophone passing behind the curtain. “That's a trap,” she said, pointing to a poultry dish someone else was eating. “That's definitely a trap.” She was referring to a shifty man in a dirty overcoat reaching slowly into his pocket, pulling out a switchblade...comb, which he used to fix his hair.

“You worry too much,” Yumi said, patting her shoulder. “This place is nice. They're going to play music soon, so just relax.” They were given a table near the very front of the stage, a lonely microphone and stool seemingly awaiting a performance. Upon further examination, Sakuya observed a few other children there, as well, accompanied by older family members, putting her at ease if only slightly.

“Would either of you like something to drink?” a waitress said after taking over for the hostess. There was a small menu in the center of the table listing the things available to them, barring any alcohol.

With a sigh, Sakuya sat back in her chair and resigned to whatever trap was set for them by Yumi's supposed archenemy. “I'll have a cappuccino,” she reluctantly ordered.

“You're allowed to drink coffee?” Yumi asked. “That's so cool! Grandma never lets me have any.”

“That's probably for the best,” she said in deadpan.

“They have fudge filled truffles!” she said far too loudly for the atmosphere. “I want-” she stopped herself, her smile falling a bit. “I'll just get water,” she said, remembering how little money she had.

“We'll get a truffle, too,” Sakuya added, the waitress nodding to go send their orders in.

“Sakuya, you can't keep buying things for me,” Yumi told her. “It's not okay for you to waste all your money on me.”

“It's not a waste if it makes you happy,” she said with a smile. As fun as it was to see Yumi being the one getting flustered for a change, the expensive ass food here ate up just about all of the allowance she had that week. Anything more would be trouble.

Their orders arrived as the band finished setting up backstage, Sakuya and Yumi both marveling over the cat etched into the foam on top of her coffee. Yumi nearly cried when she was given her truffle, holding it in her hands like a delicious, newborn baby dusted with hazelnut. Then promptly ate it.

Sakuya barely had time to utter a “très bien” at tasting her drink before the lights dimmed further, with one individual bulb coming to full brightness above the stool and microphone. The rest of the crowd fell to a hush, Sakuya slapping a hand over Yumi's mouth to quiet her as she tried to ask what was happening without paying attention to any of the context clues. From backstage, a figure walked silently towards the beam of light, high heels clicking against the wooden stage.

She was tall and strikingly beautiful, with a regal, important air about her. She looked through the crowd with piercing, blue eyes, seeming to set on the two girls mesmerized by her at the table nearest the stage with a smile. Smoothing her ruffled, Victorian Gothic-influenced black dress, she lowered herself to the stool and took a breath. “Thank you for coming out today,” she addressed the crowd, words flowing from her deep red lips like silk. “We've got a lot in store for you, so just sit back. Get comfortable. And enjoy the show.” The curtains opened as the band came to life behind her.

Neither of them had thought much of jazz music before, but it quickly rose to the top as their favorite genre list within seconds of the first song. Whether it was how entranced they were by her voice alone, the fact the band played live behind her, or some combination of both, neither Yumi nor Sakuya could take their eyes off the stage the entire time. It ended far too soon (not that they were keeping track of time to tell how long she actually sang for) with a flawless rendition of One Room, All That Jazz and a chorus of applause from the entire club.

Standing, she gave a flourished bow as the crowd continued clapping. “Thank you,” she said simply, brushing a strand of light brown hair that had escaped her loose, wavy bun. She walked off backstage with the band to break before the next performance.

“Wow,” was all Yumi could verbalize to express her complete infatuation with the mysterious singer.

“Yeah,” Sakuya agreed. They were both determined to sit there for as long as it would take to see the next show, but the doorman from before appeared behind them and cleared his throat. “I'm sorry if this is interrupting, since it looks like you're having a nice time after all, but if you'd like, you can go meet the person who wanted to see you. I actually just found out myself that it was her all along.” He was referring to the singer.

“Let's just do it,” Sakuya said with a sigh, dragging the excitedly flapping Yumi by the straps on her overalls. Contrary to her tone, she was just as excited to meet the woman as her friend. Immediately to the right as they entered the kitchen area (not quite as large, for a change, as the doors would suggest) was another door marked as the one for backstage. The doorman, who'd decided to follow behind to make sure they didn't cause trouble for the cooks, nodded, the two entering into a wonderland of disappointment.

Not that there was anything particularly wrong with the backstage. It was just that they'd always heard of people talking about “backstage” and “behind the scenes” in what seemed to be reverence, and they kind of had higher expectations for this magical place. All it turned out to be was a little area for the musicians to relax, eat, and tune their instruments between shows. In addition, there was yet another door they were being led through marked as “MANAGEMENT”.

Inside was a short man blotting his forehead with a handkerchief. He smiled happily at the two girls, doing his best to comb over his thinning hair and appear much less bald than he actually was. “Hello,” he said meekly to the girls.

“I apologize!” Yumi shouted, bowing deeply and causing the man to jump back.

“Why are you apologizing?” he asked, almost like he was afraid of the twelve year old before him.

She wasn't entirely sure, to be honest. “Sorry. I kind of felt like I did something wrong.” Sakuya sighed and gave her a supportive pat on the head.

The man laughed nervously, blotting his head again. “My name is Mr. Aragawa and I own this establishment. Neither of you is in trouble. It's just that someone wanted to meet you.”

As if on queue, the door opened again, the singer walking through with a dazzling smile aimed at the two of them. “Hello,” she said, kneeling down to be at the same level as them. “My name is Megumi, the singer for the On Air Band.” Both girls were completely enamored by the woman, Sakuya's facade completely giving way without resistance.

“Yumi, Sakuya, I've heard so much about both of you. I might not look like it, but I happen to be a professional duelist, as well. I'm always excited when there's young talent in the area, so I'm very happy you both made your way here today.”

“Th-thank you. Y-your show was amazing,” Sakuya stuttered, blushing hard and trying to keep herself under control. “Your voice is beautiful, too.” Acting like such a fool only made her blush harder.

“You're really pretty, too!” Yumi declared next to her.

This made her laugh. “You're both so sweet,” she said. “I just want you to know I'm looking forward to seeing your progress in the future. Your reputations are already so prolific.”

“This is the best day of my entire life,” Yumi said dreamily.

Sadness crept into Megumi's eyes, however, as she stood to full height and sighed. “Especially you, Yumi. Apparently, you've already made enemies.” Yumi cocked her head to the side in confusion, not understanding the meaning of what she'd just said. “You seem so nice, too. I can't imagine why anyone would dislike you.”

Sakuya wasn't quite as oblivious. “I knew it! This was a trap!” She stomped her foot, grabbing Yumi and holding her close to her. “Everything in this place was a trap! Did you poison my coffee? Was that truffle really full of mud? Are you even real, or just some kind of singing hologram robot?” She poked Megumi's stomach, disproving her own theory. “Never mind that last part.”

“Please, calm down,” Aragawa pleaded, wiping his worry away. “I don't really understand all of this, but please don't fight. I'm sure there's a compromise to work out.”

“I really am sorry,” Megumi said with an apologetic smile. “I hope you can understand. I'm very curious about your skills, and there's a very large amount of money in this.”

Sakuya scoffed, nearly picking Yumi up and heading for the door. “We're leaving, and we're going to tell someone about this place.”

“Tell them what?” she asked, confused.

“Tell them...something!” For a moment, everyone was silent as Sakuya tried to fumble with the door and Yumi deadweighting her, still trying to figure out what was going on. Then, the three adults began to laugh. “What's funny? Why are you all laughing?”

“Sorry, sorry,” Megumi said as they calmed down. “It's just...you're both so cute. Could we talk about this before you leave?” Given her inability to turn the knob successfully, Sakuya assumed they were locked in now, reluctantly taking a seat and pulling Yumi down next to her. “Thank you!”

“When we get out of here, I'm telling everyone you locked us in here against our will,” Sakuya said with a scowl. The doorman simply opened the door slowly without issue, then closed it again. Apparently she'd been too panicked to remember how doors worked. Suddenly, she felt like quite an ass.

“Honestly, you two keep assuming every door in here is locked. You can leave right now if you really want. I'm not even guarding this door; I just like being a part of things. Honestly, I'm not too sure what I'm really hired for other than the aesthetic.” He laughed, scratching the back of his head.

“Aw, Koichi. You're super important here.” Megumi patted his arm in reassurance. “We need you around to help things run smoothly and make rowdy customers leave.”

“It's true,” Aragawa added. “You've have an overall positive effect on the staff, too. I ran the numbers and efficiency goes up exponentially whenever you're here. You make everyone a lot happier, if nothing else.”

“Stop, you guys! That's embarrassing!” Despite his burly appearance, the doorman was clearly nothing but a marshmallow on the inside.

Sakuya fell to her knees in defeat, unable to take anymore of their casual banter in addition to her wrongness. There was nothing stopping her from still walking out the door, but the shame was overwhelming. She'd made a complete fool of herself. “You're all terrible people, and your singing is lousy.” She sighed quickly after saying that. “That was a lie. Your singing is the most beautiful thing I've ever heard.” She couldn't even pretend to be mean right now.

“Oh, wait! I understand now!” Yumi'd sprung back to life after working out all the details of the situation. “You were hired by the person who sent the Rafael guy to come get me, and you'll take my deck and make me say I'll never duel again if you win.”

“Yes, that's true,” Megumi confirmed, a bit ashamed at having to tear apart such an innocent girl.

“If that's it, let's do it.” She smiled widely, dropping her backpack to the floor and digging inside to grab her duel disk.

“Yumi, what are you doing?” Sakuya asked. There was no reason for her to accept these stakes. “We can just leave. There's nothing they can do to keep us here.”

Yumi scoffed, gaining an aura of thickheaded confidence. “A true duelist accepts any challenge, no matter what the stakes. And besides...” She walked to Megumi, smile widening as she looked up at her. “I'll do basically anything you ask me to. You're just so perfect in every way.”

She smiled sadly. “I'm sorry we have to be enemies, Yumi.”

“It's fine, it's fine,” she responded with a hand wave. “It'll be okay.”

“Would that be okay, then?” Megumi said, turning to Aragawa. “My friend and I could put on something a bit different from the usual show. I'm sure the crowd would enjoy it.” Yumi was more concerned with excitedly telling Sakuya that she was officially Megumi's friend now than at the prospect of never being able to duel again.

“Well...” he said, blotting his forehead. “I suppose it's okay as long as you tell the band. You'll go on in ten minutes. Prepare however you have to.” He turned to Yumi with a small laugh. “And don't you worry, miss. We'll make sure to compensate you for your time, as well.”

“I get paid to eat chocolate, listen to music, and duel my best friend,” she listed excitedly. “This really is the best day of my life.”

Sakuya's expression dropped, an audible crumbling noise coming from her chest area. “But I thought I was your best friend,” she said in genuine despair. It actually really hurt her to hear that designation given to someone else.

“No, you are,” Yumi said with urgency, afraid Sakuya might actually start to cry. “You're best friend #1. Megumi's best friend #2. You're always #1 to me.” She hugged Sakuya as tight as she could, making her pout. “Is that better?”

“A little,” she grumped.

“If it's okay, I'll see you in ten minutes, best friend.” Megumi chuckled, walking out to prepare her deck and talk to the band.

Sakuya glared as she left, then sighed once more. “It would be a lot easier to hate her if she didn't act so nice.” Yumi emphatically agreed. “I guess we're really doing this,” she said, rubbing her forehead. They exited the office to take a seat on a plush, green couch. “Do you need me to help you prepare? I could give you cards. I'll let you use my deck if you want to.”

Yumi shook her head with a smile. “I'm okay. I'm just excited.”

“Aren't you even a little worried? If you lose, you'll never be able to play again.”

“Not really,” she answered honestly. “If I lose, it just means I was never worthy to be your apprentice in the first place.” This gave Sakuya pause, the full extent to how much Yumi must admire her setting in. It was a bit intimidating, frankly. She was really hoping she never did anything that would lose that admiration.

“I can't wait to start!” Yumi said, hopping up and patting the couch, thinking about how soft it was. “I hope I can make a big enough entrance. Megumi's counting on me to be able to entertain everyone, and I don't know what to do.”

Sakuya smiled and took her hand to reassure her. “Just do what you always do. You're always good at entertaining everyone. Don't worry about that.”

Yumi smiled in return, then pulled her hand back rather quickly with a nervous laugh. “That's all fine, but I still think I need something to help,” she said. “Sakuya, get the fireworks!”

“We don't have those,” she told her with a deceptively neutral expression. It was actually a little upsetting for Yumi to ruin a very genuine compliment. Her ability to draw a crowd and bring joy to others was one of the things that made her like Yumi as much as she did. She just wished she could take things more seriously sometimes.

Despite her jokes and the barrage of fake curse words after not getting pyrotechnics, Yumi appreciated the support. She just didn't know how to handle that kind of encouragement. Not to mention they were holding hands and she wasn't entirely sure how to feel about that right now. It was probably just the “hormone” things everyone was talking about.

Koichi the doorman walked up to them. “Hey, they're about to call you up. Be ready. And if you're nervous, just imagine the whole crowd is in their underwear.”

Yumi scratched her head. “Why would I do that? That's creepy.”

“You know,” he said, suddenly flustered. “To, like, make everyone seem ridiculous. So you feel better.”

“Why would seeing a bunch of strangers in their underwear make anyone less nervous?” Sakuya asked, joining the confusion. “If anything, walking into a room full of people who are basically naked would make me a lot more nervous.” Yumi nodded.

Koichi took a deep breath and sighed. “Forget it. Just go onstage when they call your name.” He walked off with a frown, being forced to consider the implications of that age-old technique. Didn't actually hold up too well under scrutiny.

“Don't worry about any perverts in the crowd,” Sakuya said to reassure her. “Just relax and do what you always do. I know you can win.” She started to brush on Yumi's overalls and fix her hair. “Do you need a cape, or something? I think you'd look good with a cape.”

Yumi pushed away. “No, it's fine.” She didn't really feel the need to get all presentable for something like this. The key was to be herself, and that meant random assortments of dirt and probably food on her clothes, and hair with the consistency of straw. No amount of last minute preparations would do much to change how she looked, anyway.

The last of the band filtered to their seats on the stage, lights dimming once more in the lounge. Megumi approached the girls soon after, holding out a clip-style microphone. “You'll need this so your voice is projected through the speakers,” she explained, Yumi clipping it to the white t-shirt she was wearing under her overalls and putting the battery pack in her front pocket. “Don't turn it on until you come out, though.” Her smile dropped a bit, a look of sympathy on her face. “You know I can't go easy on you, right?”

“I'd feel cheated if you did,” she said with a smile. She raised her duel disk up to signify her determination to fight as hard as possible.

“Then I hope you give it your best. No matter what, we'll give everyone the best show they've ever seen.” She ascended the small set of stairs leading to the stage, brushing past the curtain and walking calmly down it. Taking the microphone from its stand at the end of the walkway, Megumi smiled to the crowd, saying in her quiet, seductive voice, “I'm glad to see so many people here. As grateful as I am that you'd all come to listen to me sing, we'll be doing something a little different for the time being.”

The crowd was a bit confused, murmurs rumbling between them as to what that could possibly mean, not even thinking that she might be poised to explain right that instant. “This may be a bit surprising to hear, I happen to be a former Regional Champion at Duel Monsters. Singing may be my calling in life, but dueling was equally important to me many years ago. A very special friend of mine has come to visit today, so I thought I'd dust off my cards and show her what a real performance match is like.

“She's a bit of a rising star all on her own, but I don't need to tell you that. Just watch her and you'll see for yourself. Help me welcome to the stage, Miss Takano Yumi.” She placed the microphone back in its stand, clicking on the power pack to her own clip to activate it as quiet applause swept through the audience.

“I guess you're on,” Sakuya said, biting her bottom lip. “Good luck.” She gave Yumi a tight hug, releasing her quickly so she could face her opponent on the stage.

“I'll definitely win, don't you worry.” Yumi nodded to Sakuya with a beaming smile. It would be a lie to say her positivity wasn't contagious. She walked up the steps, turning her microphone on as the band slowly built up to her appearance. The curtain opened and the applause intensified as she finally made her debut, waving to the crowd and making V signs with her fingers, soaking in the attention like a dry sponge dropped in the ocean.

“Yumi,” Megumi said, both of them taking their places opposite each other on the stage. “Are you ready to show everyone your talent?” She leaned her head back slightly as if to say she was above her opponent, obviously playing up an antagonistic role to the young duelist.

“I'm always ready!” Yumi declared, not really concerned with acting or performing so much as shouting her mind at every opportunity. She held out her arm, the duel disk strapped to it springing to life. Swinging it into the air, she pulled her arm down to place it in front of her body in a ready position. “Let's go!”

Megumi's duel disk activated on her right arm. It was the same velvet red as the club's interior, the disk emitting in sections in front of the main body to create a half circle shape. It was a newer model with a touch screen, showing a miniaturized representation of each side of the field with important information about each player. “Then let's begin!” She drew her hand with a pleasing flourish of her wrist, making Yumi feel a bit mediocre at taking her cards one by one.

“The challenger can always take the first move,” she declared folding her arms overtop each other to await her turn. From backstage, Sakuya peeked from behind the curtain to watch the duel, instruments blasting in her ear. It was uncomfortable, but she wanted to be able to watch the game from Yumi's side.

From the moment she'd seen her, Sakuya couldn't help but feel like she'd heard of Megumi before. She was a professional duelist in addition to a singer. Now, it was revealed she was another professional duelist sent to defeat Yumi. Slowly, it began to dawn on her. The title, the music, her name; she remembered now.

Horror quickly began to creep in around her. She was Tenmei Megumi, Regional Champion of Kanto from three years ago. Her Synchro deck was nearly unbeatable, even at the national level. And, what's worse, she had those cards. The kind Sakuya had never even managed to see before in real life – Pendulum.

\Next: Funki Onslaught – Giant Steps/

Chapter Text

Now that things had really begun and reality was setting in, Yumi realized she was more than a bit nervous. Performing in front of a room full of people next to an incredibly pretty opponent was nothing like playing off her friends at the park for a crowd of kids her own age. Megumi was being more than encouraging, though, despite the situation. Sakuya was watching, too. She'd work through it no matter what.

Taking a quick breath through her nose, Yumi drew her hand and began the duel. “I summon Scaredy Lion in Attack Mode!” she declared, doing an unnecessary flourish while playing her card. She positioned her duel disk parallel to the ground, running her hand along the board and placing her monster into the second to last zone before withdrawing her arm, surprising even herself at how well she pulled off that maneuver. As a reward for her efforts, the lion appeared on the field, shivering and covering its face in fear after looking around at the crowd.

“I'll set two more cards and end my turn,” she finished, sliding her backrow into place to prepare for whatever the singer would be using. The first time she'd seen Megumi, she didn't really seem like a duelist, but standing in front of her on stage, obviously custom-made duel disk on her arm and radiating a confidence in her skills that outshone the sun, more than sold her on the claims she'd made and the crush she had.

As the turn shifted, the music did, as well. The band had played a light, slow arrangement throughout Yumi's moves, but quickly picked up into something much bigger and faster as Megumi placed a hand on her deck. “I'll draw,” she said calmly, taking a much more relaxed approach to their duel than the nervous, hyperactive twelve year old. “I begin my turn by playing Cyclone to destroy your set card on the right,” she declared, pointing to her left at one of the cards on Yumi's field.

It was a shot in the dark, but it proved effective nonetheless as the windstorm tore through the Attack Nullification on the girl's field. It was a troublesome loss, but it was far from game ending. “I hope you won't think bad of me for going all out right at the start,” she said to Yumi.

“I want to see how strong you are, do it!” Yumi replied while hopping up and down, smile plastered across her face.

Megumi chuckled to herself. Out of practice or not, she couldn't hold back against her. It was sad they had to meet like this, since she really seemed to love this game. If this was how it ended, she'd make it a match worth remembering. “I'll set my Pendulum Scale with Funki Cornet, Scale 1!” An extra zone popped out of the left side of the ring made by Megumi's field, allowing her to place the orange and green card into its place before retreating into the disk.

The crowd rabbled to themselves upon seeing the anthropomorphic instrument appearing behind the singer with a large number 1 in a column of light. It was the first time any of them had seen Pendulum cards, as well. “I've always wanted to duel against a Pendulum user!” Yumi squealed excitedly. Despite sharing the sentiment, Sakuya was nothing but terrified backstage. Her fears had come true and now there didn't seem to be any way for Yumi to win. Those cards were just too strong.

“Then I'm glad I made your wish come true,” Megumi answered with a smile. Her expression became more stern suddenly, the bands urgency switching to match. “I activate Funki Cornet's Pendulum effect. Once per turn, I can destroy it to add a Funki monster to my hand with a different Pendulum Scale than itself, but any of its Pendulum effects will be negated until the end of my turn.” The trumpet-like instrument used its arms to play a few notes before disappearing with the blue light surrounding it.

As per the rules, its card was placed into the Extra Deck within a slot at the back of its owner's duel disk. Megumi fanned out her deck, eventually picking a monster and revealing it to Yumi and the crowd. “I choose Funki Trombone to add to my hand.” With a quick shuffle, she was ready to play once more.

“I'll reset the Pendulum Scales with Funki Trombone, Scale 2.” The monster appeared behind her, moving its slide in time with some of the actual trombone players in the band upon its arrival. “By targetting a card in my Pendulum Zone, I can activate Chromatic Scale, allowing me to take a Funki monster from my deck with a different Scale and add it to my hand.”

“I was waiting for that!” Yumi declared, pressing a button. “When you activate Chromatic Scale's effect, I play Friendly Fire!” Her Trap revealed itself, eliciting a few quiet compliments from audience members at her strategic thinking at such a young age. “If you activate a card's effect, this card lets me destroy a card on the field besides the one being activated. So I'll destroy Funki Trombone!” A few stray fireballs blasted from the card, impacting into the trombone monster and destroying it while Megumi shielded herself from the explosion.

“With how much searching you've been doing, I don't think you actually have the right cards to Pendulum Summon right now. You were trying to find something to complete the Scale, but now that Trombone is gone, too, you won't be able to play until your next draw!” Even Sakuya was a bit impressed by what was actually some fairly sound reasoning. They'd only briefly touched on Pendulum cards during the training, but even with the little exposure she'd gotten, Yumi was already creating countermeasures for them. It hadn't occurred to her until now just how fast a learner Yumi was (or how good a teacher she was?).

Megumi nodded. “That would certainly seem to be the case, but I'm afraid you've made a mistake.” Her satisfied smile dropped, as did Sakuya's hopes for a win against all odds. “Even without Trombone on the field, I can still add another card to my hand. I'll select a second Cornet.” It was seemingly her plan all along to bait Yumi's second Trap before truly beginning her attack. “I set the Pendulum Scales with Funki Cornet, Scale 1, and Funki Trumpet, Scale 7.”

Her monsters appeared behind her in two columns of light, the numbers 1 and 7 underneath them. “This allows me to Pendulum Summon monsters with Levels 2 through 6 to my field. Take the stage, my monsters!” A portal appeared between the lights, two beams emerging from it and landing on her field, materializing into her summoned cards. “Time for an encore, Funki Trombone! Funki Cornet!

“Funki Trombone, attack Scaredy Lion!” The band quieted somewhat, allowing the trombone to solo as it blasted musical notes at the enemy monster, the cowardly lion covering its ears before being destroyed. Yumi's Life Points fell to 3100, soon dropping even further. “Funki Cornet, attack directly!” With another blast of sound, Yumi was knocked over and left with only 1200 Life Points by the end of her opponent's first turn.

“You're even stronger than I thought you'd be,” Yumi complimented, jumping to her feet and preparing for her turn. “But I'm not ready to lose yet! I'll show you what I can really do next turn!”

“I hope you will,” Megumi said with a smile. “I'll end my Battle Phase and activate Funki Trumpet's Pendulum effect. By destroying another face-up card on my field, I can make you send the same type of card from your deck to the Graveyard.” She chose Funki Trombone, meaning Yumi would be forced to send a monster. Given that Pendulum cards went to the Extra Deck upon being destroyed on the field, this strategy didn't hurt her in the least.

After a few moments of consideration, Yumi selected her card. “I'll send Butter Fly to the Graveyard,” she declared, dropping it into the slot and returning her deck.

“Then I'll set a card and end my turn here.” The string section played on urgently as Yumi began her turn. It was certainly a bad situation she'd found herself in, with no field and dwindling Life Points. Her hand was fairly small, too, so she'd have to rely on drawing to have a chance at turning things around.

Running her finger across the faces of the few cards in her hand, Yumi started to consider her plays. No equip cards in hand and nothing to destroy either of the cards in the Pendulum Zones. Things weren't looking good, so she'd have to try a different approach for the time being. “I would have hoped I could wait for his big moment, but you're really pushing me. I'll have to use my best cards or I won't even make it to my next turn!”

Without the flourish from before, Yumi summoned a monster to the field. “I play Crane Crane and activate its effect!” she declared, the mechanical bird creature appearing before her. “When I summon Crane Crane, it can revive a Level 3 monster from my Graveyard, so I pick Butter Fly.” Dipping its head forward, the monster lowered its head into the ground, pulling up the flying stick of butter. “Now, I Xyz Summon!”

Megumi was intrigued as the vortex opened to pull in the two monsters. Kids these days were always getting better than the generation before. And to do this so fluidly showed she'd already become an experienced Xyz Duelist. “Xyz Summon, Rank 3! Illusion King Robbins!” The black-clad magician appeared on her field with the cringiest of hat tips toward the opponent.

There was another reason she didn't want to use this card yet besides presentation. Pendulum cards were tricky creatures. Without any in the Graveyard, Yumi had no way to use Robbins' effect. All it could do now was fend off attacks by overpowering what was on Megumi's field, hoping the opponent wouldn't be able to find a way around it until she had the opportunity to fortify her field.

It wouldn't do to wait around, though. “Robbins, attack! Sleight of Hand!” The monster began its attack, only to realize too late it was all for nothing.

“My Trap activates, Backbeat!” Megumi's card flipped up, spelling doom for the Xyz Monster. “When you declare an attack on my monster, I can negate it. Then, it allows me to declare an attack of my own.” The cornet began to play, stopping Robbins in its tracks and growing louder for its counter.

“But your monster has less ATK points, so it won't matter,” Yumi contested, unsure of the goal in reversing battle.

“During the Damage Step, Backbeat switches the ATK of the monsters battling, so Funki Cornet overtakes Illusion King for this battle.” Yumi shielded herself as Robbins yelled, exploding after another barrage of musical notes attacked it. Her Life Points fell again to 800, Megumi remaining untouched. “I'm sorry you went through all that trouble for nothing, but I told you I wouldn't be holding back.”

Yumi smiled despite her disadvantage. “I'd be upset if you did,” she said, still remaining determined. “I use Resurrection of the Dead to bring Robbins back to my field, then I play Dark Factory of Mass Production to add two Normal Monsters, Scaredy Lion and Butter Fly, back to my hand!” She ended her turn after that, nothing but her monster to protect her remaining Life Points.

Megumi began her turn as music swelled, seemingly expecting her victory. Murmurs in the crowd indicating a few people had started to doubt Yumi's skills, deciding that putting a little kid up against someone as strong as her was some kind of mean-spirited joke. Sakuya, meanwhile, shook her head and blamed herself for this situation. She should have taken Yumi's place. She didn't teach her well enough to handle someone this good. Her friend was going to lose her deck and it was all her fault.

“I activate Funki Cornet's Pendulum effect,” Megumi declared, destroying the card. “I add Funki Trombone from my Extra Deck to my hand, then I activate it.” The Scales were now set at 2 and 7, still a large enough difference to summon anything she'd shown so far. “I'll use Trumpet's effect to destroy my second Cornet and force you to send another monster to the Graveyard.” Yumi did as instructed, dropping Komboriboh and shuffling her deck.

“Next, I Pendulum Summon both my Funki Cornets from my Extra Deck in Defense Mode!” Both monsters reappeared onto the field, defending against Robbins and whatever else Yumi would find next turn. “Sorry to disappoint you if you thought I was about to win. There's only one way to finish a duel like this, but you'll have to wait a few more turns to see. I won't settle for anything less than the best against someone like you.” Yumi was confused by this, but thankful for the extra time to put together a strategy. “I'll set one card and end my turn.”

Truth be told, Megumi was a bit out of practice after her retirement. She was sure she'd make a few misplays here and there and wasn't using her deck to its full capacity, even though she was in the lead. It wasn't a lie, though, that she wanted to use a strong monster to defeat Yumi. The girl deserved that much in what would be her last duel. Her set card would speed up the process quite a bit, too, and her field was content to stay as is for the moment, so she had plenty of time to get back into the mindset of a former Regional Champion.

“I draw!” Yumi declared, hoping for something that would get her out of this situation. It was promising, to say the least. “I play Arms Hole!” The card appeared on her field to activate its effect. “I send the top card of my deck to the Graveyard and add an Equip Magic from my deck or Graveyard to my hand.” The unfortunate sacrifice for this effect would be her loyal Flame Viper. Her choice was Necklace of Supplantation, seemingly to reinforce the two Normal Monsters in her hand. Given that her summon was sealed this turn, she couldn't afford to run into another Trap and lose Robbins. She'd be left with nothing, thus ending her turn without an attack.

“During your End Phase, I use my Permanent Trap Card, Perpetual Oscillation.” A large, swaying pendulum appeared between the two columns of light, moving back and forth between the monsters. “I can destroy a card in my Pendulum Zone once per turn to draw a card,” she explained, pointing a finger at one of them. “I choose Funki Trumpet.” As if waiting for it, the pendulum obliterated the trumpet card, allowing Megumi to draw.

“I'll play another Funki Cornet to start my turn, then destroy it to activate its effect.” The monster was gone as soon as it appeared, giving Megumi the option to search once more. “I'll add Funki Bazooka from my deck to my hand, then use it to set the Pendulum Scales.” Despite what many may have thought, the card was not, in fact, a large weapon that fired rockets, but the instrument with a similar name. Its Scale was also 7, meaning her strategy hadn't changed. “Its effect is negated this turn because of Cornet, but I'll let you know what it is in advance. Whenever I Pendulum Summon from my Extra Deck, Bazooka allows me to return a face-up card on your field to your hand. You won't have a defense next turn, which is when I plan to summon my strongest monster.”

She ended her turn after summoning the third Cornet in Defense Mode to fortify herself once more, Yumi apprehensively drawing. To her surprise, it was just the kind of card she needed right now. “Instant Magic, Twister!” she declared, a vortex of wind erupting from her card and destroying Bazooka in the Pendulum Zone. “With this card, I can destroy a face-up Magic or Trap Card, so now your Pendulum Summon is sealed!”

Megumi was happy to see the duel carry on, but wasn't quite as confident in the lucky draw as Yumi seemed to be. “Pay attention to your Life Points, though. You had to pay 500 to activate it, so now you're left with 300. Even just a small amount of damage will end this duel.”

“Then all I need to do is not take anymore damage,” Yumi said with a defiant smile, her confidence pushing back the fear creeping in just moments ago. “I'll play Butter Fly, then equip it with Necklace of Supplantation!” Though it was weaker, Butter Fly's lower Level would allow it to more thoroughly use the Necklace over Scaredy Lion. The only problem would come if another Level 5 monster showed up.

Yumi attacked with both her monsters, destroying two copies of Cornet and leaving the third to fend for itself on the field. Yumi ended her turn after that, no cards left to play. “It's been awfully exciting getting to duel you,” Megumi said. “I haven't been pushed like this in a long time.”

She drew the top card of her deck, placing it into the right Pendulum Zone after doing so. “I set the Pendulum Scale with Funki Key, Scale 5.” The card that appeared to complete the arc of light was different from the normal Funki cards she'd used so far. Rather than an instrument, it was simply a key that you'd press to play different notes on a brass instrument. It was also the awkward Scale 5, breaking up the cohesion of Megumi's Pendulum Summoning strategy. “I Pendulum Summon Funki Trumpet to my field!” she declared, the monster appearing in Defense Mode, Key exploding immediately after.

“As soon as I Pendulum Summon,” she began explaining to the confused spectators and Yumi, “Key is destroyed and sent to my Extra Deck.” She pointed to the trumpet, which began playing. “When it's Pendulum Summoned, Funki Trumpet's effect can be activated. It lets me add a Funki card in Extra Deck to my hand. I choose Bazooka. Now, I end my turn.”

Yumi wasn't certain what Key was all about. It seemed to have come and gone like it was nothing, but it was just so out of line with the rest of her strategy that she couldn't help but take pause at it. It's Level was 3, so with Bazooka in hand, the Pendulum Scale would be completed next turn and it could come back to the field. Not only that, but everything she'd put in the Extra Deck previously. Regardless of how strong Yumi's monsters were, a full field would be nearly impossible to overcome in a timely manner, and Bazooka's effect meant anything worthwhile she played would be sent back to the hand. It was troublesome, to say the least.

Regardless, she had to try and put in as much damage as she could with the time she had. “I activate Pot of Greed, which lets me draw two cards.” If nothing else, Yumi was lucky as hell, though neither card she was able to draw helped her too much in the current situation. “I set one card, then summon Scaredy Lion in Attack Mode.”

Making a return to the field, the monster was no less cowardly than before even with the presence of others beside it. “Battle! Butter Fly, attack Cornet! Robbins, attack Trumpet!” Both monsters did as commanded, overpowering Megumi's instruments and leaving her field open. “Scaredy Lion, direct attack!” For the first time in the duel, Megumi's Life Points took a hit, falling to 2700. It was still far superior to Yumi's 300, but it was progress. “Turn end,” she declared with a smile.

The band emphasized their trombones, playing long, low notes as the duel seemed to shift in Yumi's favor. Megumi was unconcerned, though. In fact, she was smiling. “I set the Pendulum Scale with Funki Bazooka, Scale 7!” The monster appeared back on the field in a column of light, effect finally being allowed to activate. “Time for an encore, my monsters!” Four cards appeared from the portal: Three Funki Cornets and one Funki Key, all in Attack Position.

“Funki Bazooka, activate your effect.” The slide on the underside of the instrument pulled back, a missile emerging from inside it. Apparently, the similar naming wasn't an accident, after all. With a blast of sound, the rocket fired, spiraling in the air searching for a target. “My target is...” she began, building suspense for longer than necessary. She pointed upwards. “Funki Bazooka!”

To everyone's surprise, the card returned itself to the hand, rather than the more obvious choices of Butter Fly or Robbins. “I told you I wouldn't finish this with anything but my strongest monster. It took longer than I thought to prepare for it, but that's only because you've done so well.”

Yumi couldn't be happier after receiving praise from her opponent. “Summon it!” she said, resisting the urge to hop up and down.

“Then prepare yourself! I summon Funki Bazooka to my field!” Appearing as a monster this time, the bazooka materialized next to the other instruments. “From my hand, I activate the Magic Card, Microtones! This card increases the Level of a Pendulum Monster that I've Pendulum Summoned equal to half its Pendulum Scale rounded down to the nearest whole number.”

The target was Key, increasing its Level to 5. “Now, I tune my Level 5 Pendulum Tuner Monster, Funki Key, to my Level 3 Pendulum non-Tuner Monster, Funki Bazooka! Pendulum Synchro Summon!” That's what Key's significance was; it was a Tuner all along. Just as Sakuya had feared, this deck wasn't simply Pendulum Monsters, but Synchro, as well. And this was Megumi's ace card that she intended to win with.

“Take the stage! Funki Brass Leader King!” A beam of light struck the field, a dark skinned human monster walking out. Dressed in a black suit vest and pinstripe pants, it matched perfectly with the club's aesthetic, as well as providing an answer to any potential question as to who was actually playing the instruments in Megumi's deck. Carrying its own silver trumpet, it adjusted a pair of dark sunglasses and took its place in front of the other instruments to lead them into battle.

“When I Synchro Summon this card with a monster that was Pendulum Summoned on the same turn, its ATK is doubled until the End Phase.” The trumpeter's ATK rose to a massive 5000, enough to obliterate anything on Yumi's field. “Now, I activate the second effect of King to return Trumpet and Trombone to my hand.”

The monster began to play its instrument, both Pendulum cards returning to the hand. “By returning every card in my Pendulum Zones to my hand, I can return the same number of face-up cards on your field to your deck, then make you send the same type of cards to the Graveyard.” She pointed towards the Normal Monsters. “Return Butter Fly and Scaredy Lion.”

Though it would likely have been a better decision to simply return Necklace of Supplantation, Megumi was adamant in finishing the duel between her and Yumi's strongest monsters. It was the only real way to do things, and would definitely make the best show for the crowd. Robbins would be the monster she attacked to end the game.

“I send Wallrus and Rock Warrior to the Graveyard,” she declared, “and the effect of Necklace of Supplantation lets me add it to the top of my deck when it's sent to the Graveyard.”

“Tricky card,” Megumi said, though she wasn't too worried about it at the moment. “King, attack Illusion King Robbins! Solo Death Wind!” The monster began to play on its trumpet, doing a quick turn before blasting a cyclone of air at the Xyz Monster.

“Trap activate, Intrigue Shield! I equip it to Illusion King Robbins to make it unable to be destroyed by the first instance of battle every turn, and I won't take any damage from attacks with it!” Seemingly from up its sleeve despite the physical impossibility, the monster produced the shield pictured on the Trap, resisting the air attack to survive another turn.

Megumi was a bit upset that she couldn't end the duel in such a flashy manner. She'd focused more on entertainment than defeating her opponent, a bad habit of hers even in her prime. Regardless, the field was unmistakably in her favor. Next turn, she'd be able to return one or both cards to Yumi's hand and attack for the win.

“I'll set the Pendulum Scales with Funki Trombone and Funki Trumpet, then activate Funki Trumpet's Pendulum effect.” Both cards appeared back on the field, completing the Scale once more. “I destroy my Perpetual Oscillation, meaning you have to send a Trap Card from your deck to the Graveyard.” A Trap would be much more troublesome to get rid of. Yumi had a good number of monsters that weren't particularly useful at this moment, but removing a Trap from her deck could spell the end if it had the chance of turning the situation around. She settled on Magic Capture and Megumi ended her turn.

King's ATK returned to its normal 2500, but that was the less than comforting right now. The only card Yumi had in her hand was Restraint Release Wave with no targets or purpose. Intrigue Shield had bought her a turn, but it would be gone the second the Synchro activated its effect again. Even Necklace of Supplantation, while not particularly useful now, was shuffled back into her deck.

The rest of the duel, as well as her life as a duelist, was dependent upon the next card she was able to draw. “This card is what's going to decide the duel,” she declared, pulling the card with a dramatic flair before turning it to see who fate had chosen as the winner. With a smile, Yumi placed her card on the field. “I equip Illusion King Robbins with Fighting Spirits!”

With a yell, the magician became imbued with a fiery aura, its ATK beginning to rise. “When Fighting Spirits is equipped to a monster, it gains 300 ATK for every monster you have on the field, meaning 1200 ATK points!” With 3500 ATK, it was 1000 ahead of King. Just enough to turn the duel around.

“Attack Funki Brass Leader King! Sleight of Hand!” Robbins tossed playing cards from its sleeves one after the other, hitting the musician over and over, eventually blowing it back and destroying it. Megumi's Life was reduced to 1700, the victorious monster's ATK falling to 3200 now that there was one less enemy on the field.

“That was a skillful attack,” Megumi said with a smile after recovering from the damage. “You might have defeated my card, but I'll still be the one to win this duel.”

“What makes you say that?” Yumi asked, putting her hands on her hips. “Robbins has more ATK than anything you've played so far. Just try to beat it in battle!”

Megumi chuckled. “Look at your deck,” she said simply. “I haven't been forcing you to discard without a plan. By my count, you've only got 24 cards left. That would be plenty normally, but you've got no way to bypass my defenses.” She flourished her hand across the field, making note of her trio of Cornets and two active Pendulum cards. “My monsters will never go to the Graveyard and I can summon them again every single turn. Trumpet's effect will let me take another card from your deck every turn in addition to your draw. And if you play recklessly and try to attack me, there's always a chance you'll find one of my remaining Trap Cards waiting for you in the next few turns. I suppose it's just a matter of how I'll be able to defeat you first, though it is a shame we couldn't finish this with our two strongest cards going head to head.”

She was right. Yumi hadn't even noticed it between the incredible beatdown early game and the desperate survival during the middle. She'd fallen into what seemed like an endless, unstoppable loop with no option but to wait to die. There didn't seem to be any way to damage her further and she couldn't wait out the game. It wasn't a clean win, but it would be a win all the same.

Megumi began her turn, activating Trumpet's effect. “I destroy Cornet to force you to send a monster to the Graveyard.” Yumi chose Critter, figuring that searching would be the last thing she should do at this point in time. “Pendulum Summon! Funki Trumpet, Funki Cornet, Funki Bazooka!” All her monsters returned to the field in Defense Position, the other two Cornets soon to join them to become something of an impenetrable wall. “Trumpet's effect allows me to return Key to my hand, as well.” She set one card before ending her turn. In truth, it was nothing but a feint, but it would certainly make her opponent sweat after the threat of more Traps like Backbeat was introduced.

Yumi's turn had started, but she couldn't bring herself to draw. It was hopeless. There was one card that could give her a chance at a comeback, but the odds were anything but in her favor, even with her deck dwindling. That set card would still be a problem, and there'd only be more to come.

Her hand began to move. Not to her deck, but to the top of her duel disk – the sign of surrender. She bit her lip, trying not to cry in front of everyone. Despite everything, she didn't hate Megumi. She was only doing what she'd been hired to do and was still a fantastic person. As far as last duels went, this was probably the best she could ever hope for, too. There was nothing she could do about it anymore. The music playing now sounded almost like some kind of funeral dirge. Fitting, she thought.

“Don't you dare give up, Yumi!” Sakuya screamed from the back of the stage. Everything went silent, even the band, as all eyes turned to the girl who'd appeared from behind the curtain. “I know you can win! You have to! You promised me you'd win and become the World Champion! You promised! If you lose here, how are you going to do that? You...you have to win!” She looked to be on the verge of tears herself, heart about to break seeing her friend in pain like this.

Several tense moments of silence passed, no one entirely sure how to react to the screaming child interrupting the show. Near the staircase came the sound of clapping. Slowly at first, then picking up speed. Koichi's efforts spread to the crowd, the club's patrons joining in the show of support for the girls. Soon, the whole room erupted in applause, urging Yumi forward. Even Megumi joined in with a smile. Cliche as it might be, it was magical to see in person.

Yumi's hand dropped to her side, the frown on her lips fighting to keep its place as a smile took over. She started to laugh, even. “Of course I'm going to win,” she said plainly.

“Then hurry up and do it, you dork.” Sakuya wiped at the corners of her eyes, trying to keep from blushing any harder. Making such a dramatic speech in front of so many people was a little embarrassing, to say the least.

“Is that the truth?” Megumi asked. “Can you really win?”

“Let's find out,” she answered, pulling her goggles down over her eyes. “I'm betting everything on this next draw!” Taking the card, she immediately set it face-down into her backrow. The duel disk registered it as a legal move, meaning it truly was a Magic or Trap Card. Whatever the card turned out to be, it would decide the duel.

Megumi wouldn't play recklessly this time, even if it would be more dramatic and a quicker win to Synchro Summon another monster. She'd wait this out patiently. Or, as she really, truly hoped, be shown Yumi's path to victory. “I tribute Funki Trumpet to activate the effect of the one in my Pendulum Zone, so send a monster to your Graveyard.” Yumi quickly sent Hat-Trick Magician, not looking to confirm her set as what she hoped it was.

“I set a monster and three cards face-down to end my turn.” It was possible Yumi's card would activate on summon, so she couldn't afford to return cards to her field with a Pendulum Summon. Setting Key was the safest move.

“Draw!” Yumi declared. Her newest card only confirmed to her that this was her time to win. “I play Restraint Release Wave!” The card appeared on her field, the band having completely traded sides at this point as the music rose to match Yumi's courage. “I destroy my Fighting Spirits card to destroy all your set Magic and Trap Cards!” Megumi shielded her face as all her set cards were blown away. A few were feints, but one would have truly decimated Yumi's monster if she charged in.

“Illusion King Robbins, attack the face-down Funki Key! Sleight of Hand!” It was obvious what she'd set, confirmed as the monster materialized out of the back of its card. “This is it! The last attack! Reverse Card, open!” To her own amazement, the card she activated was exactly what she hoped it would be. “Strike Shot!”

Robbins took a single playing card in its hand, leaping back and charging forward, a mach cone developing around it as it homed in on the Key. “Strike Shot increases an attacking monster's ATK by 700 and lets it inflict piercing battle damage until the end of this turn!” For the first time all duel, Megumi was truly caught off guard by this play. A total leap of faith had paid off in spades. It was genuinely amazing.

With a swift motion, the magician stopped right behind the opponent's monster and tipped its hat over its eyes. Suddenly, Funki Key collapsed into two even pieces. The resulting damage was more than enough to deplete Megumi's Life Points to 0. Yumi had won just like she promised.

The holograms faded from the field, the crowd applauding and cheering much louder than a typical jazz club would tolerate. Rather than celebrate, Yumi was preoccupied with not falling over from all the stress that had accumulated during the last attack. Taking the initiative, Megumi walked to Yumi's side of the stage, holding her hand in the air. “This is Takano Yumi, the future World Duel Monsters Champion! Remember her name, everyone!”

After the crowd quieted, the two of them returned to backstage where Sakuya had collapsed on the couch from embarrassment. “I can't believe I said all that in front of all those people,” she said, covering her face with her hands as Yumi pet her head.

“Shiro Sakuya is so cute and innocent,” Yumi crooned, hugging her friend and rubbing her face against her.

“I hate you and everyone in this building,” she said.

“Kuro is fine, too.” She laughed, looking at her feet. “You really helped me, though. I thought it was over, but you actually inspired me to keep going. I'm not even sure how everything worked out like it did, but I think it was because you were here.”

Sakuya scoffed, trying to hide any further embarrassment behind aloofness. “You won on your own. I can't change fate, or anything.”

“Imagine if you could, though,” Yumi said, a dreamy expression on her face. “That'd be so cool.” Sakuya sighed, smiling. Everything had worked out in the end. They'd avoided catastrophe once more and could head home after a long day.

Megumi approached the two of them, wiping her face and neck with a towel and handing Yumi a tall glass of ice water. “That was the most fun I've had dueling in years,” she said as Yumi began noisily chugging the drink, Sakuya still distrustful and frowning. “I'm sorry for all the trouble I caused you two, but I hope at least something good came out of all of this.”

Yumi inhaled loudly, setting the glass of ice on a coffee table in front of the couch. “Did you mean that stuff at the end?” she asked hopefully. “You think I can be the World Champion?”

“I wouldn't say it if I didn't mean it. You have more talent than most people I've ever met during my career. More than me, even. If you keep improving, I have no doubt you'll have your shot at the title.” Yumi beamed, hopping up and down in excitement.

“I believed in her first,” Sakuya grumbled to herself, arms crossed and pouting.

Megumi smiled at the two of them. “You're always welcome to come back here. The door's always open, especially for you two.”

Yumi jumped from her seat and hugged Megumi in delight. Sakuya wouldn't have it, though. “If you really want to do something to make up for all this, why don't you tell us who keeps sending you people after Yumi?”

“That would actually be really helpful, yeah. If I could just talk to whoever this is, maybe we could work things out.”

Megumi sighed, looking disappointed. “The truth is, I'm not entirely sure who they are. An elderly man approached me a few days ago with a bunch of money and pictures of the both of you and said I'd get it if I defeated you with the stipulations. Just an...actual briefcase full of money. It was really contrived, honestly.”

“Do you think it was that man who's behind this?” Sakuya asked her.

Megumi shook her head. “I doubt it. He specifically mentioned he was hiring me on behalf of someone else, but I don't know who that would be. Someone with the resources to put together a bunch of money and find me after retiring and hiding my real name.”

“Tenmei Megumi,” she interjected. “Kanto Regional Champion from three years ago.”

“Is that true?” Yumi shouted, excitement building once again.

Megumi laughed. “Yes, it's very true. You're very observant, Sakuya.”

“I remember watching you on TV when I was little! You were so good and so pretty, and you're still so good and so pretty! I wanted to be just like you, but I could never get any Synchro Monsters.”

“It seems like it was for the better. You're quite the expert when it comes to Xyz.”

Sakuya cleared her throat impatiently. “So what you're saying is you have no idea who it was that wanted you to act as an assassin.”

“I'm afraid not. Sorry.”

“Then I guess this was a waste of time. Come on, Yumi. We've got other stuff to do today.”

“Like what?” she asked innocently.

“Just...stuff. Let's go.”

“Actually, wait.” Megumi walked away from the two and went through a door, returning shortly after with a cell phone. “I just remembered that the man gave me a number to call when I'd finished my duel with you. Honestly, you saved me a whole lot of trouble just wandering in here on your own. This would have taken much longer otherwise.”

“Dial it and see who picks up,” Yumi suggested. She did just that, putting the call on speaker so all three of them could listen in. It started to ring as they waited for an answer. The phone continued buzzing for almost an entire minute, the group losing more and more patience with every one. Suddenly, their call picked up.

“Is it done?” a strangely girlish voice said from the other end. Maybe that's just how old men speak these days, though. It wasn't their place to judge.

“I was afraid you wouldn't answer,” Megumi said, trying to hide her confusion at what seemed like a completely different (and much younger person) talking to her. “Can I ask who it is who hired me now?”

“No,” the person said flatly. “Is it done?” They repeated.

“Not quite,” she replied. “It turns out she was just too good and ended up beating me.”

“How is that possible?” The voice asked, starting to raise higher.

“Ask her yourself,” Megumi told her.

“Hello!” Yumi greeted. “I don't know why you keep getting people to duel me for you. I'll duel you whenever you want if you just ask.” A few seconds passed in total silence before the call ended abruptly from the other side. “That was weird.”

“Guess I won't be getting paid,” Megumi said cheerfully. They tried to call again a few more times, but it never connect. “Seems like we won't get another chance to talk.”

Sakuya sighed. “Then we're not any closer to finding out who that person is. Wonderful.”

“Sounded kind of familiar, though, don't you think?” Yumi asked.

“I might be wrong, but I doubt I'm the last person they'll send for you. You two take care of each other.” The girls left the building shortly after to continue the day and decompress after everything that happened, alerting their friends that another person had been hired to battle Yumi.

There was plenty of time before the next show, Megumi thought as she poured some alcohol into a glass in the storage area. She wasn't really a drinker, so she had no idea what this actually was, just that it burned going down and would hopefully help her get through the rest of the day. As soon as she saw those two, she knew she couldn't tell them the truth.

There was no money. What kind of old man walks into a place like this holding a big briefcase full of bills? All he had was a letter from whoever it was pulling the strings in this whole affair, apparently doing more thorough research than even Sakuya about her past and secrets she'd rather remain hidden. Given that she'd lost and probably pissed that person off over the phone, there wasn't much doubt Aragawa would be receiving something incriminating in the mail.

She'd done so well to hide things up until now, too. She'd moved across the country, had her information legally changed, and even reregistered with the pro leagues when she was a duelist. The version of her standing as the Regional Champion of Kanto was truly who she was, but would saying anything like that matter anymore?

How would everyone react? Would they fire her? She'd only seen Koichi become physical with someone once before; would this be the second time? Rumors would spread quickly, so what about her fans? No doubt her address would be leaked sooner or later, and when that happened...

She capped the bottle after finishing the last of the beverage, replacing it and taking the glass to the kitchen. Right now, she still had a job, still had friends, still had a reputation and safety. Right now, she'd prepare for the worst, but today wasn't even over yet. There were more songs to sing, so that's all she'd focus on for right now. She almost felt bad for that old man, given how unhappy he'd looked when he arrived here before. Anyone who worked for that heartless master probably didn't have much reason to be happy, though.

In her study, Rio had just finished demolishing her cellphone after hanging up on Megumi. “Did they just become best friends during the whole fight to the death thing?” she yelled, kicking the broken bits of plastic circuitry across the floor. Storming out of the room, she looked side to side down either end of the hallway. “Fukuro!” she screamed.

The gray haired butler quickly approached the sounds of screaming. “Yes, Miss Rio?” he said to her, bowing respectfully.

“I just broke another phone,” she told him, anger clearly in her voice despite its level tone. “Why do you think that is?”

“Perhaps it did not meet your standards of performance?”

“No, you brainless old man. I just finished a call with the Regional Champion telling me she'd been beaten. The same person you hand picked for me – insisted could never lose and would get this job done in a week's time – has been beaten.”

“I apolo-”

“The Regional. Champion. Was beaten by a twelve year old.” She paused for an uncomfortably long amount of time. “Care to explain how that happened?”

He cleared his throat apprehensively. “Well, in her defense, Miss Rio, it was three years ago. She'd since retired, and that likely affected her skills.”

“Oh, well that just makes everything okay,” she replied mockingly. “I don't care if she just woke up from a coma in all that time! If you picked her, she should get the job done!”

“Yes, Miss Rio. I'm very sorry. It is entirely my fault for selecting such a lacking candidate.”

“You're just lucky my parents want you here, otherwise I'd have you thrown out onto the streets already.”

“And I thank you for your generosity and understanding, Miss Rio. I accept full responsibility for this failure and beg your forgiveness once more.” He bowed low, trying to calm her fury so she wouldn't end up taking out her anger on any of the other staff again.

“Fukuro, how old are you?” She asked.

“76, Miss Rio. Why do you ask?”

She scoffed. “And you still don't know how to properly beg for forgiveness? Is my father just keeping you here out of pity?”

He hesitated for a moment, then slowly got to his knees and touched his forehead to the ground. “Please forgive me, Miss Rio. Our next candidate will surely be better.” He felt her foot begin to press into the back of his skull.

“That's much better,” she told him. “I'll let you off for this one, but I'm losing my patience.” She moved her foot, only to spit on him before turning to leave.

Slowly, he stood back up, wiping his head with a handkerchief. “Miss Rio, I had a thought earlier regarding the skill of the card professors.”

“I'm listening intently for a reason why I should care about your opinions.”

“Have you considered that perhaps your...methods may be disrupting their will to fight?” Immediately, he could tell she was getting upset again for having her blackmail questioned. “I simply mean that it's possible these people can't play to their fullest capacity with such heavy stipulations in mind. I may not have any experience with this game, but I am a 4-dan in Go, as you're aware. During my brief career as a professional, I'd seen time and time again that those who play unwillingly or for causes other than their own can never fully utilize their ability. I only suggest that you try a different approach if you continue this endeavor.”

This gave Rio pause. She hummed, touching her lip in thought. “That's actually not a completely uneducated observation.” She nodded. “You're right, Fukuro. No matter how strong these people you choose are, they all see so reluctant to go after a little girl, even one as completely unappealing and stupid as that one. We'll need a different kind of person to do this job.”

She chuckled to herself, pacing back and forth. “Yes, someone who would do this kind of thing on their own without us even needing to ask. A real lowlife, even. And any kind of incentive we give them would just motivate them even more to do the job.”

Rio left for her room, telling Fukuro over her shoulder to order her a new phone and start putting together a list of the seediest duelists he can find in the city. He breathed a sigh of relief when he heard the door slam, trying to look on the bright side in that no one but him would have to deal with that anger for the rest of the day.

Not much of a bright side, but it was the most he could expect anymore. He blamed himself for this behavior and everything the young lady had turned into. The first signs of this were clear as day looking back on it, but he let it continue. It seemed like nothing but a reaction to the loneliness that came with having her parents so absent as they were, but if he'd only known what this would turn into, he'd have put a stop to it immediately.

Maybe one day she'd see what she's doing and reconsider her choices. Reevaluate how her actions affect others. He hoped for that greatly, and for her to return to being the girl he'd known years before. But until then, he'd have to do as she instructed, lest she bring about even more turmoil to the household. For now, it meant making another list.

\Next: The Third Card Professor – Dinosaur vs Insect/

 Cards Used in Order of Appearance

Scaredy Lion
EARTH
Level 4
Beast
1300 ATK/ 1000 DEF

Cyclone (Mystical Space Typhoon)
Quick-Play Spell Card
Target 1 Spell/Trap Card on the field; destroy that target.

Attack Nullification
Counter Trap Card
When an opponent's monster declares an attack: Target the attacking monster; negate the attack, then end the Battle Phase.

Funki Cornet
WIND
Level 6
1/1
Machine/Pendulum/Effect
1900 ATK/1800 DEF
Pendulum – You can destroy this face-up card in your Pendulum Zone; add 1 “Funki” Pendulum Monster from your Deck or face-up in your Extra Deck to your hand with a different Pendulum Scale than this card. Negate that card and any cards with the same name's Pendulum Effect until the End Phase. You can only use this effect of “Funki Saxophone” once per turn.
Monster – Once per turn: You can discard 1 “Funki” Pendulum Monster in your hand to add 1 face-up “Funki” Pendulum Monster in your Extra Deck to your hand. If you summon that monster this turn, or a card with the same name, its effects are negated until the End Phase.

Funki Trombone
WIND
Level 5
2/2
Machine/Pendulum/Effect
2200 ATK/1800 DEF
Pendulum – Once per turn, when a Pendulum Monster you control inflicts battle damage to your opponent: Declare 1 card type (Monster, Spell, or Trap); your opponent sends 1 card of that type from their Deck to the Graveyard.
Monster – If this card inflicts battle damage to your opponent; you can add 1 face-up “Funki” Pendulum Monster in your Extra Deck to your hand with a different Pendulum Scale than any card on your side of the field.

Chromatic Scale
Normal Spell Card
Target 1 Pendulum Monster activated in your Pendulum Zone; add 1 “Funki” Pendulum Monster from your Deck to your hand with a different Pendulum Scale than the target. You can only activate 1 “Chromatic Scale” per turn.

Friendly Fire (Bad Aim)
Normal Trap Card
When your opponent's card or effect is activated: Target 1 card on the field (other than that card); destroy it.

Funki Trumpet
WIND
Level 4
7/7
Machine/Pendulum/Effect
1900 ATK/1500 DEF
Pendulum – This card's Pendulum Scale becomes 4 if you do not have a “Funki” Pendulum Monster in your other Pendulum Zone. Target 1 face-up card on your side of the field, except this card; destroy it, and if you do, your opponent sends 1 card of the same type (Monster, Spell, or Trap) from their Deck to the Graveyard. You can only use this effect of “Funki Trumpet” once per turn. You cannot Special Summon monsters for the rest of the turn after you activate this effect, except by Pendulum Summon.
Monster – If this card was Pendulum Summoned this turn: You can add 1 face-up “Funki” Pendulum Monster in your Extra Deck to your hand with a different Level from this card.

Butter Fly
WIND
Level 3
Insect
900 ATK/700 DEF

Crane Crane
EARTH
Level 3
Winged Beast/Effect
300 ATK/900 DEF
When this card is Normal Summoned: You can target 1 Level 3 monster in your Graveyard; Special Summon that target, but its effects are negated. You can only use this effect of “Crane Crane” once per turn.

Illusion King Robbins
LIGHT
Rank 3
Spellcaster/Xyz/Effect
2300 ATK/1500 DEF
2 Level 3 monsters
Once per turn: You can detach 2 Xyz Material from this card and target 1 monster in your opponent's Graveyard; equip that target to this card. When a monster is equipped to this card by its own effect, it gains ATK equal to half the ATK of the equipped monster. While this card is equipped with an opponent's monster: You can Tribute this card; Special Summon 1 monster from your hand, Deck, or Graveyard with ATK equal to or less than this card's ATK on the field.

Backbeat
Normal Trap Card
Activate when an opponent's monster declares an attack against 1 monster you control: Target that monster; negate that target's attack, and if you do, you can declare an attack with 1 monster you control in Attack Position. If you declare an attack on an opponent's monster with this effect: Switch the ATK of the battling monsters in the Damage Step only.

Resurrection of the Dead (Monster Reborn)
Normal Spell Card
Target 1 monster in either player's Graveyard; Special Summon it.

Dark Factory of Mass Production
Normal Spell Card
Target 2 Normal Monsters in your Graveyard; add those targets to your hand.

Komboriboh
DARK
Level 1
Fiend/Effect
300 ATK/ 200 DEF
When a monster is targeted by an Equip Spell Card: You can discard this card and target 1 Equip Spell Card in your Graveyard that could be equipped to an appropriate monster on the field; add that target to your hand. When a monster you control is targeted for an attack while it it equipped with an Equip Spell Card: You can banish this card from your Graveyard to target that monster; this turn, that target cannot be destroyed by battle and you take no battle damage from attacks involving that target.

Arms Hole (Hidden Armory)
Normal Spell Card
Send the top card of your Deck to the Graveyard; add 1 Equip Spell Card from your Deck or Graveyard to your hand. You cannot Normal Summon/Set during the turn you activate this card.

Flame Viper
EARTH
Level 2
Pyro
400 ATK/450 DEF

Necklace of Supplantation (Amulet of Ambition)
Equip Spell Card
Equip only to a Normal Monster. If it battles a monster with a higher Level, the equipped monster gains 500 ATK x the difference in Levels (during that battle only). When this card is sent to the Graveyard, you can return it to the top of your Deck.

Perpetual Oscillation (Echo Oscillation)
Continuous Trap Card
You can target 1 card in your Pendulum Zone; destroy it, then draw 1 card. You can only use this effect of “Echo Oscillation” once per turn.

Funki Bazooka
WIND
Level 3
7/7
Machine/Pendulum/Effect
1200 ATK/1000 DEF
Pendulum – This card's Pendulum Scale becomes 4 if you do not have a “Funki” Pendulum Monster in your other Pendulum Zone. When a monster is successfully Pendulum Summoned from your Extra Deck: You can target 1 face-up card on the field; return it to its owner's hand. This effect of “Funki Bazooka” can only be activated once per turn.
Monster – When a card is sent to your opponent's Graveyard from their Deck this turn: This card gains 500 ATK and DEF until the End Phase.

Twister
Quick-Play Spell Card
Pay 500 LP, then target 1 face-up Spell/Trap Card on the field; destroy that target.

Funki Key
WIND
Level 3
5/5
Machine/Pendulum/Tuner/Effect
900 ATK/700 DEF
Pendulum – If you Pendulum Summon while this card is activated in your Pendulum Zone, destroy this card.
Monster – If this card's Level in the Graveyard is between (exclusive) the Pendulum Scales of 2 cards in your Pendulum Zones: You can Special Summon it. You cannot Pendulum Summon during the turn you activate this effect. When using this card as Synchro Material for the Synchro Summon of a monster other than a “Funki” Synchro Monster, this card's Level becomes 6.

Restraint Release Wave (Release Restraint Wave)
Normal Spell Card
Target 1 face-up Equip Spell Card you control; destroy that Equip Spell Card and all face-down Spell and Trap Cards your opponent controls.

Microtones
Normal Spell Card
Target 1 Pendulum Summoned Pendulum Monster; this turn, increase its Level equal to half its Pendulum Scale (round down to the nearest whole number if necessary).

Funki Brass Leader King
WIND
Level 8
Warrior/Synchro/Effect
2500 ATK/2000 DEF
1 “Funki” Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner Monsters
If this card was Synchro Summoned using a monster that was Pendulum Summoned: Double its ATK until the End Phase. Return any number of cards activated in your Pendulum Zones to your hand; return the same number of face-up cards your opponent controls to their Deck, and if you do, your opponent must send the same type of card (Monster, Spell, or Trap) from their Deck to the Graveyard equal to the number of cards returned by this effect. You can only use this effect of “Funki Brass Leader King” once per turn.
Wallrus
WATER
Level 2
Beast
400 ATK/800 DEF

Rock Warrior (Minomushi Warrior)
EARTH
Level 4
Rock
1300 ATK/1200 DEF

Intrigue Shield
Normal Trap Card
Target 1 face-up monster you control; equip this card to that target. Once per turn, while the equipped monster is in Attack Position, it cannot be destroyed by battle. You take no battle damage from attacks involving it.

Magic Capture (Spell Reclamation)
Normal Trap Card
Discard 1 card and chain this card to a Spell Card you activated. Whenever that Spell Card is sent to the Graveyard, return it to its owner's hand.

Fighting Spirits (Fighting Spirit)
Equip Spell Card
The equipped monster gains 300 ATK for each monster your opponent controls. If it would be destroyed in battle, you can destroy this card instead.

Critter (Sangan)
DARK
Level 3
Fiend/Effect
1000 ATK/ 600 DEF
When this card is sent from the field to the Graveyard: Add 1 monster monster with 1500 or less ATK from your Deck to your hand.

Hat-Trick Magician
DARK
Level 4
Spellcaster
1200 ATK/1500 DEF

Strike Shot (Strike Slash)
Normal Trap Card
When a monster you controls declares an attack: Until the End Phase, that monster gains 700 ATK, also, if it attacks a Defense Position monster, inflict piercing battle damage to your opponent.

Chapter Text

Skating was never something Sakuya ever conceived she'd be doing, yet here she was at an ice rink renting a pair of blades. It was Yumi's suggestion, helping them to stay cool as the afternoon sun really started to beat down on them. And cool it was. Cool enough to make her regret wearing a thin dress with only ankle length socks.

Yumi seemed completely at home here, unfazed by the cold despite her typical overall shorts offering her no protection in this harsh and unforgiving winter(-like environment). Maybe it was just the trade off for her extreme susceptibility to heat - sweat like a middle aged salaryman whenever it's a little balmy out, but resist freezing temperatures like a burly Viking with one eye and a pet bear. She nodded to herself as she placed her shoes into a rented locker next to her bag. Yumi could totally be a Viking.

“Can't believe you've never been skating before,” Yumi said, balancing triumphantly on the rubber mat.

Sakuya smirked as she finished lacing up her skates. “Some of us prefer not being frostbitten on a regular basis.” She struggled to her feet, quite a bit less confident than Yumi as she waved her arms around to keep from falling over. Regretfully, she placed her hands on a freezing railing to navigate her way to the ice, the cold burning into her palms. She kept a stern face, though, afraid Yumi would laugh at her if she showed any discomfort.

“Hurry up!” Yumi goaded playfully, already twirling about in the rink like an expert. Sakuya couldn't help but be surprised. Not content in being shown up, she placed a shaky foot out onto the ice after removing the guards from her shoes, eventually gathering her strength and putting the second beside it. She pushed off from the railing, moving a few wobbly centimeters before promptly falling on her face.

Yumi skated over with ease, laughing as she held out a hand. “Need help?”

“No, no. I'm fine.” She was not, evident by her attempt at standing back up accomplishing little more than moving herself further onto the ice.

“It's really okay if you need me to help,” she said. Yumi took Sakuya's hands, helping the other girl to her feet. As her balance threatened to give out once again, she drew closer to Yumi and pulled her into a hug to stay steady. Yumi smiled coyly, looking at her friend with a raised eyebrow. “Hey.”

Embarrassment overtaking her, Sakuya let go with a peep, slipping and falling down once again. She grunted, determined to conquer this new task the same way she did everything obstacle; with cunning, calculation, and the necessary amount of brute force. After many failed attempts, palms beginning to stick to the ice, the only progress she'd made was learning to crab walk.

Yumi was practically about to fall over, as well, though from laughing rather than lack of coordination. “Just let me teach you how to skate!” she demanded between giggles.

“I-I can do it!” Sakuya replied, managing to at least turn over as she struggled to get up. “How did you even learn to do this in the first place?”

“We used to go here sometimes when I was younger and on this side of town,” Yumi said, literally skating circles around Sakuya. “I got pretty good after a while. Plus, I had a pair of roller skates when I was little, but I grew out of them.” She began a twizzle just to show off, hoping to impress her friend further with her proficiency in the sport, blissfully unaware it came off more like she was rubbing it in her face.

Sakuya was beginning to notice others at the rink stopping to gawk at her misfortune. Some of them were laughing, too. Crawling her way to the side of the rink, she sat down and rubbed her hands together to try and regain feeling in her fingers. Yumi sat down beside her, scooting close to keep the entrance clear for others. “It's okay if you can't do it. I can teach you.”

After a minute of grunting, grumbling, and hard swallows, Sakuya finally nodded with a frown. “Great! First thing you need to do is get off the ice.” She raised an eyebrow, trying to figure out whether she was being mocked. “The best way to learn to balance,” Yumi explained with a sagely finger raised like an expert, “is to get comfortable wearing skates first.” She took the skate guards from Sakuya's pocket and capped both their blades, helping her friend up. “Now we'll just walk around.”

Sakuya waved her arms wildly with every step, cursing under her breath at every new problem. She couldn't understand why this was such a problem. She'd never had trouble learning new things before. School was easy, she was a piano prodigy by the time she was six, dueling was as natural as breathing, so why couldn't she just stand on some goddamn ice without falling over?

“You're doing it!” Yumi cheered, Sakuya disbelieving it entirely after nearly slipping for the eightieth time. The very next step was the lucky one, causing her to fall once more. Yumi laughed, walking up to pat her shoulder. “Guess we still need to practice.” She chuckled to herself. “Look at me teaching you something for a change.”

Sakuya crawled over to the lockers, finding a spot in the corner to curl into a ball and clutch her head. Understandably concerned, Yumi walked to Sakuya and squatted down, hearing a series of small, labored gasps. “Hey, are you okay?” Yumi touched her friend's shoulder, recoiling as she tensed. “Did I...do something wrong? Will you tell me?”

She couldn't answer. Her heart was pounding too fast, there was too much noise, the room was too cold, the pressure was too much. She was being laughed at, she was letting people down. The more she thought about it, the more she worried, which only made her think about it more, which only made her worry more.

“Are...are you doing a thing where you get upset and can't talk?” Yumi asked, trying to understand what was happening. After a few moments of pause, she saw a tiny nod. “Okay,” she said, taking a breath. “Okay.” Yumi nodded, as well. “Okay, just calm down. It's okay. It's going to be okay.”

“Is it because you can't skate yet?” she asked. Sakuya held her breath and didn't respond. “It's okay if you don't know. I'm teaching you. You just have to relax and keep practicing.” Amazingly, this did little to help her friend. She thought more, leaning up against one of the lockers to feel the cold against her head. “Wait...” she thought, wheels beginning to turn.

Yumi put a hand to her mouth. “Is it because I was laughing at you?” Sakuya sighed, seemingly to confirm. “I'm so sorry,” Yumi said, putting her face in her hands. “I didn't realize it was...that you'd take it...” She sighed, as well, trying to piece together what to say. “I didn't know it would hurt you like this.”

Sakuya was looking over at Yumi now, having calmed down a bit. “I was trying to tease you, but I didn't realize it would be so upsetting. I'm sorry.” They sat in silence for several minutes, Yumi staring at her feet the whole time. It wasn't her fault she couldn't read reactions very well most of the time, of course, but it didn't make her feel any less awful about hurting her friends when she did.

“It's okay,” Sakuya whispered, taking Yumi's hand loosely in hers.

“It isn't!” Yumi protested with a furious shake of her head. “I don't want to make you feel bad!” Sakuya moved closer to her. It was mostly because this place was really damn cold and she still didn't have anything warm on. In complete honesty, though, there was a part of her that craved physical attention when she was feeling vulnerable like this.

“Sometimes,” Sakuya began, “things get overwhelming. It's not because you were laughing at me, but because I couldn't do it.” She sighed, taking a better grip on Yumi's hand. “And when I can't do things, I feel like I'm letting everyone down, and if I let you down, you won't like me anymore, and I thought, since you were laughing at me-”

“Of course I like you,” Yumi interrupted. “I wouldn't stop liking you just because you can't skate. I'm not even disappointed.” They were both quiet again. “It's okay if you can't do things. I can't do a lot of things, but you still like me, right?” Sakuya nodded. “I know there's this...thing where you need to be perfect all the time, but it's okay if you're not. You don't have to try to be perfect around me. It's okay.”

Yumi helped Sakuya to her feet. “I'm sorry I upset you. We can go now if you want. People are kind of staring at us.” True to her word, a small crowd was trying extremely hard to seem like they weren't observing the two of them during their moment. Sakuya immediately started blushing and smacked a hand to her face. “It's okay! She's just learning how to skate!”

Still recovering from the embarrassment, Sakuya looked to Yumi. “We already paid.”

“What?” Yumi asked.

“We already paid,” she repeated. “If we left already, it would be a waste of money.” She blushed a bit harder than she already was. “A-and if you don't mind too much...you could still try to teach me. I won't be very good, though. If you don't mind.”

Yumi was already smiling before Sakuya could even finish her words. “Of course I can!” In an extremely uncharacteristic move, Yumi removed the goggles from her head and gave them to Sakuya. “It makes me feel more confident when I wear these, so you can wear them for now.” Suddenly, she narrowed her eyes. “But you have to give them back after. You've got to promise.”

Sakuya looked at the dorky eye wear in her hands, wasting no time in putting them around her head and pulling them down on her face. “I promise,” she said with a small laugh. For the time being, she didn't care that she looked like a complete fool with the iconic blue beret/white goggles combination, or that she continued falling over and losing her balance, or that, by the end of the day, she'd just barely learned how to stay upright and walk around the rink by holding the wall. None of it really mattered right now. The most important thing, as it should have been from the beginning, was getting to spend the day with her friend. It was even fun after a time.

Most people would assume she'd wish for the day to never end in a situation like this, but they'd be very wrong. After a little over an hour, she was very much ready to leave, given she'd officially entered the beginning stages of hypothermia. Needless to say, an impromptu trip to the ice rink was, in fact, a bad idea after all.

They left shortly after that, Yumi taking back her goggles as promised. Despite everything, Sakuya still regarded it as a pretty nice day out. She wasn't at all opposed to returning one day to finish her “training”, though they'd definitely need to remember to wear more clothes.

Chapter Text

“I wonder what Megumi's doing right now,” Yumi said, absentmindedly pulling out handfuls of grass while staring up at some clouds. It had only been a day since the encounter at On Air Club and Yumi was still falling hard for the singer. She'd been thinking about her for an almost uninterrupted 24 hours, trying to find the answers to some of the big questions floating around in her head: Would going back there today seem too desperate? Is playing the recorder a good enough musical skill to impress a professional singer? Would equal marriage be legalized in Japan by the time she became old enough to do it? Would there be some way to involve Kyoko in this, as well?

Sakuya, however, wasn't amused by the constant talk of the would-be assassin. She certainly wasn't jealous, or anything. Just upset that it was distracting Yumi from her practice. “Probably working,” she said, her tone presenting her obvious irritation. “If you're finished daydreaming, let's get back to training.”

“What's wrong with just taking a day off?” Kazuhiko asked, combing through his hair. “She beat two freaking Regional Champions in a week. She's pretty damn strong by now.”

“Yet still can't beat me,” she replied, crossing her arms. “So what does that say?”

“I mean, you are the best duelist I've ever met,” Yumi said with complete sincerity. “I'd be okay if I never beat you.”

Sakuya coughed, stifling the beginnings of a blush. “Even if you think that, it doesn't mean you can be complacent. You might be strong enough to win the tournament here, but we're training for the long term, too. I'll have to go away to school after the summer's over, so I can't-”

“You have to go?” Yumi said, her smile disappearing. “But why?” she asked panicked.

“Like I said, I have to go back to school.”

“But why can't you just go to school with me?” She took Sakuya's hands and pouted, hoping to convince her to blow off her responsibilities and switch schools at nothing but her insistence.

She sighed. “I'm not enrolled there, and it would be too much of a hassle to get everything switched over in the middle of the year. I'm sorry, but I have to go back this year.” As she finished speaking, she could have worn she heard a cracking noise from somewhere in front of her. Yumi's eyes fell to the ground, her arms slack while still holding onto Sakuya. “It'll be okay,” she said. “I'll be back during the other breaks, so it's not like we won't see each other at all after summer.”

“I guess,” Yumi mumbled, sitting back down and pulling her knees to her chest. She hadn't actually thought about any of this since they'd first started to spend time together. Sakuya's introduction even involved her returning from France, but somehow the idea that she might have to go back at some point never occurred to her. It was selfish of her to act this way, but she couldn't help it.

Before she met Sakuya, she never had what seemed like true friends. Everyone either got tired of her or simply drifted away after a while. Over this summer, though, she'd gotten to know some amazing people, all of which she attributed to her meeting Sakuya first. If she left, then what would that mean for everyone else? They could very likely just leave, too, now that the interesting half of their duo was gone.

“I think you broke her,” Kazuhiko whispered to Sakuya, who glared at him. “We can take a day off, come on.”

She sat next to Yumi, holding her hand. “I'm sorry if I made you upset,” she said.

“It's not your fault,” Yumi told her. She paused for a moment, then said, “I guess we don't have to worry about that for a little while. We should get started on training.”

“Forget it,” she replied. “You've worked hard enough. We can take a day off. A real day off without any dueling, except maybe for fun.”

“Are you sure?” she asked, her mood brightening quickly. “I don't want to let you down, and if you won't be here to train with me later, it would be a good idea to do as much as we can right now.”

She waved her hand dismissively. “You'll be fine. You've beaten a lot of strong opponents and learned a bunch already. You're a lot better than I thought you'd be at this stage, too. One day off isn't going to making much of a difference.” She helped Yumi to her feet with a smile, Kazuhiko nodding approvingly behind them. “What should we do today?”

“Wait for Hideo,” he said, checking his phone. “Running late. Something about acne, I guess.”

“Acne?” Yumi said with a bit of disgust. “What does that mean?”

“Don't know,” he replied, unaware he'd just read the kanji wrong. In truth, Hideo was making rock candies. It was pleasing to watch the way the sugar crystallized (being similar enough to the characters for acne on a small screen in the sun), and crushing a big sheet of it was a lot like popping bubble wrap. They'd filled a few bags for all three of their friends and had just started to walk to the park.

As they strolled down the sidewalk on this oppressively warm summer day, they couldn't help by ruminate on the events of this summer. It was interesting, to say the least. On any normal summer, such as the one previous or the one before that or the one before that, right now they'd likely be in their room weaving baskets or feeding the ant farm. Something of that nature. But here they were outside going to a public park for the third day in a row.

Before anymore deep introspection on the nature of life and friendship could take place, Hideo was forced to respond to the anguished cries of a child. The irritating noise was coming from close by, though in the opposite direction to the park. It would be easy to simply ignore it and move on, they thought, walking to find the person screaming.

It was a rather bizarre sight to behold. A little girl sat on the ground crying with a gaunt adult man ranting about personal responsibility and thievery building character beside her. “I'm really doing you a favor,” he said, slurping loudly on a seemingly stolen cherry lollipop in his mouth. “The strong take from the weak, and you're a weak little brat. I'm a strong man, so it's only natural I'd take things from you. Remember that, kid, and you might grow up to be half as strong as me one day.” It was a clearly disturbing scene for everyone in the area, though most simply looked the other way so as not to cause trouble.

Adjusting his white, upside down visor, the man paraded off with disconcerting, bowlegged strut that stretched the lower half of his green and black tracksuit to its very limits while an overly large, blue fanny pack bounced around in back. Hideo was unsure of what to do, as well. Thankfully, that was a direct result of the rarity of such an event taking place to begin with, having no preset plan of action for dealing with something like this. “Out of my way, kid. I'm late.” The man pushed them aside, a finger twitch the only evidence of the immense amount of self-control it took Hideo to not toss him to the ground that instant.

Things quickly became personal, however, as the man pulled out his phone. After logging in from a naked anime girl lock screen, he suddenly pulled up a photo of Yumi. Whatever that meant, it was nothing good. Hideo intercepted him before he could turn a corner, nearly causing a collision due to the man's obliviousness of walking while texting. “Move!” he yelled, throwing a clumsy left hook at whoever was in front of him.

While a bit surprising he'd be so quick to turn to violence, Hideo was not caught off guard. In one swift motion, they circled their right arm to move the attacker's punch off to the side, drawing their arm back in at the end of the guard and delivering an open palm strike straight to the sternum immediately after. The man was knocked flat on his ass, wheezing and sputtering out curse words.

“What the hell, bro?” he asked, pretending he hadn't tried to assault someone in broad daylight mere moments ago. “You can't just hit people, my dude.” He said that without even the slightest hint of self-awareness. “When you've got a problem with a guy, you need to be the bigger person and talk about it. Don't just turn to violence right away.” He nodded to himself.

“You feel me, buddy? Your boy Koro here's looking out for you. How about you just give me a few bucks to cover lunch later and we just put this behind us, you feel me? You're paying for some grade A wisdom here.” Hideo thought for a moment as the man chuckled to himself, satisfied in his speechifying. As a response, they struck him again in the same spot, sending him to the ground.

Jumping to his feet and rubbing his chest, the man began yelling. “You just did it again! It's like you didn't listen to anything I just said! Now you're really asking for-” He was cut off by another strike. “Listen, you-” This time it was an uppercut to the chin. “Stop-” Now a punch to the solar plexus.

Wobbling forward and coughing, he pointed weakly towards Hideo. “If you do that...at least two more times...I'm gonna-” Koro stopped himself this time, looking down at Hideo's first two fingers stretched out to nearly touch the left side of his chest. “You checking the wind, bro? What's going on here?” In an instant, both fingers curled inward as their entire row of fingers was thrust into the man's chest with astounding force, dropping him to his knees.

With the man immobilized, Hideo took the opportunity to reach into his pocket and take his phone. It was easy to get into; they'd seen the simple password of 1236 over his shoulder as he pushed by initially. “Come on, bro. Don't steal my phone. It's new.” Yumi's picture was still displayed on the screen.

With a cough, Koro narrowed his eyes to try and decipher what he was being shown. “What's that kid have to do with anything?” He stood up once more, suddenly having some sort of realization and draping an arm over Hideo's shoulder. “Now I get it. You saw that kid and thought, 'I gotta get her digits by any means necessary,' right?” He laughed to himself. “That's the passion of youth for you, I guess. See something you like and you take it. I can't even be mad anymore.”

Hideo ducked under his arm, pulling it behind him and locking it in place. As the man flailed and shouted more expletives, they made sure to raise the phone to eye level as they deleted to picture of Yumi. Hopefully that would get the message across clearly.

Unfortunately, it would take more than that to get through to him. He simply scratched his head in response. “What? I don't get it. Talk normal!” As a response, Hideo hucked the phone directly at his head. It landed with a crack on the sidewalk, part of the screen shattering on impact. “Okay, that's it!” He grabbed the phone and placed it inside the fanny pack, pulling out a compact lime green and white duel disk in its place.

“Someone's got to teach you some manners! Real men don't fight with fists, we do it with cards!” Hypocrisy aside, Hideo was perfectly content with this outcome. Martial arts was more a hobby and a way to get some exercise in an otherwise fairly sedentary life; it was never an ideal first move to solving a problem. Duel Monsters, though, was a much more civilized means of settling things.

The two of them made it to the roof of some office building. Amazingly, Koro had managed to bully his way to the top without incident (though it would more accurately be described as them both casually taking the elevator to the top floor and Koro making exaggerated gestures of offense if anyone looked at them strangely). They stood apart from each other, a gentle breeze blowing past for dramatic effect.

With both duel disks active, Koro tossed a handcuff-like device across the way, one end forcibly attaching to Hideo's disk. He cuffed the other end to his own, explaining, “This is a cool thing I like to do for when I break fools in half. There's a little sensor on the inside that synches up with your Life Points, and when they hit zero...” He stomped his foot and shouted, “Crunch! No more dueling for you!” He chuckled to himself. “Let's make this quick. Still got to do this to that kid you're chasing after.”

The duel began, Hideo taking the first move. They placed a card into the backrow, the device reading, “Permanent Magic, Great Sea of Trees, activate.” The drab rooftop transformed into a makeshift garden in moments, grass growing along the floor and several large trees sprouting up behind Hideo, branches and vines hanging from above.

“That thing talks?” he yelled in surprise. “I'll buy it for, like...this!” He reached into his pack and pulled out about 1200 yen in loose bills and coins. The offer was met with silence, Hideo continuing their turn.

“Monster set. Reverse Card set. End Phase. Pass turn.” The movements were quick and calculated one after the other, as to be expected from them. Dueling was more than a hobby despite their lack of desire to make it as a professional. It was almost a lifestyle at this point. They'd spent more hours pouring over every card they possessed, checking on new releases, and practicing strategy than most people would spend playing the game itself in their whole lives. Today, it seemed like all that training would finally pay off by using the skills they forged to protect a friend.

Koro laughed, seemingly finding the prospect of fighting an Insect deck funny. “A bunch of bugs it looks like,” he said with a sneer. “I'll trample them without even thinking about it! Draw!” He took one card from his hand and placed it into the Field Zone at the head of his duel disk. “Field Magic, Lost World!” The greening effect from Hideo's card was enhanced further, tall grasses sprouting up across the entirety of the roof along with more trees. The air appeared to become even more humid than it normally was, as well.

“As long as this card's out, every monster loses 500 ATK and DEF if it's not a Dinosaur-Type.” He played a monster this time, an ominous pool or murky water appearing nearby. “I summon Megalosmasher X!” Leaping from the water came a blue pliosaurus-looking creature, screeching at the opponent as it hovered slightly above the ground. At an impressive 2000 ATK, it could run over nearly anything in Hideo's deck, especially with Lost World's effect weakening all their monsters.

The ground began to rumble, eventually splitting next to Hideo's set card with a spotted, white egg appearing from the fissure. “Lost World's effect activates when I summon a monster once per turn, giving you a Jurraegg Token in Defense Mode.” He chuckled again. “And, as long as you have a Token, you can't even target other monsters on the field for effects!” This was hilarious to him, apparently. “Bet you thought that set card was going to save your ass, didn't you? Not likely!”

Pointing forward, the monster on his field screeched again. “Battle! Megalosmasher, attack the Jurraegg Token! Jurassic Bite!” With one last screech, several circular markings began to glow a pale blue across the creature's body. Lunging forward, it prepared to snap up the egg without a second thought. “Lost World's effect activates again! If Normal Monsters are going to be destroyed, I can destroy that many Dinosaurs in hand or deck instead once per turn!” His own monster's attack was rendered fruitless, its jaws coming into contact with a shimmering rainbow barrier around the egg instead of its intended target.

“I'm popping Petiranodon instead, which just happens to activate its effect!” As the card was dropped into his Graveyard slot, the image of the newly-hatched flying reptile screeched. “When this guy's destroyed by a card effect, I can summon a Level 4 or higher Dinosaur from my deck.” He pointed a hand dramatically to the sky, the ground exploding behind him with a bone-shaking roar. “Kick it, Super Conductor Tyranno!”

The monster appeared behind its owner with another tremendous roar, electricity crackling along the armor plating attached to its body. “Lucky for you it can't attack this turn, but that's not even a problem. Tyranno's effect gives up its attack for the turn to Release a monster on my field and deal 1000 damage!” The dinosaur roared once more before biting down on the unsuspecting Megalosmasher X, the beast letting out one final shriek before shattering into nothingness. Its power source charge, the electricity intensified, traveling up its tail until a ball of energy started to build inside its mouth. “Super Conductor Tyranno, Extinction Discharge!”

The beam hit Hideo squarely in the chest, though they resisted with only a minor slide in the opposite direction. They grit their teeth as static passed over them, Life Points dropping to 3000. That card would be bad news if it didn't get out of here by the next turn. “Had enough? Ready to apologize for overreacting like that? I might even accept if you give me that sweet ass duel disk.” He continued to laugh in mockery, setting a card and passing turn.

Hideo began their turn with 1000 less Life and two more cards in deck than originally planned. “Reverse Summon, Howling Insect.” The familiar blue bug appeared from its previously set card, howling as its name would suggest. “Permanent Magic, Burden of the Mighty, activate.” It was a convenient card to have against a Dinosaur deck like this, given the ace monsters were all invariably high-Leveled. Super Conductor Tyranno's ATK fell by 800, settling at 2500. While still a more manageable situation, it did little to help Howling Insect overcome its opponent, especially now that its unimpressive 1200 ATK was now only 700.

“Battle Phase. Howling Insect attacks Super Conductor Tyranno.” The monster howled, trying its best to take down the dinosaur, but was quickly smashed by a bolt of lightning cutting through its sound waves. Hideo took a massive hit of 1800 damage, lowering their Life Points to 1200 in the process. “Great Sea of Trees, effect activate. Howling Insect, effect activate.” Hopefully, the sacrifice require to use those effects would prove worth it.

Hideo selected a second Howling Insect to add to hand, opting to summon Ultimate Insect LV3 to the field. The grub wriggled as it was placed down, Koro cackling at its appearance. “You're sending out more bugs to fight dinosaurs? What do you think this is, some...magic land where bugs beat dinosaurs, or something?” While it wasn't exactly a punchline, he still managed to laugh anyway. The Ultimate Insect almost seemed upset itself at being mocked.

“Magic Card, Level Up!, activate.” Hideo's card appeared, the image of Horus glowing as the light shone onto their monster. “Sending Ultimate Insect LV3 to Graveyard as cost to Special Summon Ultimate Insect LV5 from the deck.” The tiny grub morphed into the towering insect, though its ATK was still not enough to overcome Tyranno and lowered even more to 1800.

“Permanent Magic, Divine Protection of the Neglected, activate.” A large bamboo cage appeared around Ultimate Insect, protecting it from at least two attacks with the fodder in Hideo's Graveyard. With Life Points dwindling, it would be imperative that nothing happened to Ultimate Insect before the next turn. “End Phase. Pass turn.”

“You think a little cage is going to stop me from trampling you, kid? Think again!” Koro drew a card, immediately slapping it to his field. “I summon Sabersaurus!” The angry red beast roared, shaking its jowls around as its ATK lowered to 1500. “When I summon it, I put another Jurraegg Token on your field, too.” As he said that, a second egg appeared by the first under Hideo's care.

“Battle! Sabersaurus, attack a Jurraegg Token, and I use Lost World's effect to destroy the Babycerasaurus in my deck instead of the Token!” A similar scene to the one before played out, with the baby dinosaur activating its effect after being destroyed with a weak cry. “Babycerasaurus lets me summon Black Ptera to my field in Defense Mode.” The pitch black pterosaur appeared on the field with a chorus of screeches, folding its wings around itself.

“I Release Black Ptera to activate Super Conductor Tyranno's effect, dealing 1000 damage again! Extinction Discharge!” The predator ate its comrade, firing off another blast of electricity at Hideo to lower their Life Points to 200. “See, I had this thought, like, 'Why should I waste an attack when I can just kill you like this?' It's so much easier to just watch you struggle. I bet you're going to attack me again with your own monster, too, right?” His incessant laughing just wouldn't end.

With a sneer, he held up the card he's just used as a cost. “When Black Ptera leaves the field any way besides battle, I get to put it back in my hand. And I can just keep doing that until you're done.” He chuckled. “Not that I'll even need another.”

Ending his turn, Hideo began their own, putting their plan into action. “Standby Phase. Ultimate Insect LV 5, effect activate. During your Standby Phase, by sending this face-up card to the Graveyard, Special Summon 1 'Ultimate Insect LV7' from your hand or Deck.” The monster evolved further, taking to the sky and raining poisonous spores onto the field. Super Conductor Tyranno's ATK decreased further to 1800, Sabersaurus lowering to 800 in turn.

“Going to need a real big fly swatter to kill that thing,” Koro joked with a laugh. It was evident he wasn't worried in the least.

“Permanent Magic, Burden of the Mighty, activate.” With a second Burden, Koro's monsters were further beaten down. Tyranno and Sabersaurus' ATK lowered to 1000 and 500, respectively. Even at only 2100 itself, Ultimate Insect could take them both out with ease.

“Battle Phase. Ultimate Insect LV7 attacks Super Conductor Tyranno.” The monster flapped its wings, soaring down and smashing through its target, creating a massive explosion behind Koro. He braced against the first damage he'd taken all game, Life Points at 2900. “End Phase. Pass turn.”

“Better than before, but you still can't beat me! Draw!” He smiled at the card in his hand. “This is it! I banish my Megalosmasher X and my Babycerasaurus from my Graveyard to bring out my best monster, Ultimate Conductor Tyranno!” Thunder shook the building as the ground split, an enormous dinosaur rising from the street below to serve its master. It's black scales glistened in the light produced by the purple orbs lining its body, tail swishing through the air as it roared. A third Jurraegg Token appeared on Hideo's field, as well.

Fanfare aside, it was seemingly fairly weak. It's impressive 3500 ATK – highest for a Dinosaur-Type in the entire game, even – was reduced to 800 by the various debuffs on Hideo's field. “Now I use its effect! I destroy my Sabersaurus to turn all your monsters to face-down Defense Mode!” Tokens were excluded due to their nature, but Ultimate Insect was rendered effectively destroyed. With it face-down, Tyranno's ATK was restored to 1500, as well.

“Ultimate Conductor Tyranno can attack every monster on your field once per turn, and whenever it attacks a Defense Mode monster, I can hit you for 1000 at the start of Damage Calculation and destroy your card.” Though Hideo would never show it, they were feeling the stress for the first time in a long time. All the reaction they gave visually was a small twitch in their shoulder, enough to send Koro into another laughing fit. “You get it now? You can't win!”

He spread his arms out wide. “Ultimate Conductor Tyranno, attack all those monsters! Genocide Stream!” The monster's lower jar split in half, a purple glow traveling up from the tip of its tail across the gems embedded into its flesh. Reaching the head, it fired a whirring stream of purple energy across Hideo's field. There were several explosions, dust clouding the air. Koro laughed in celebration, but as the scene cleared, it was revealed Hideo's field was completely intact, a bamboo cage holding strong around all their monsters.

“That's impossible! I planned it perfectly! You only had three Insects in your Graveyard, so you could only block three of the attacks! I should have still taken out one and won the duel!” Hideo, mind at ease and confidence returning, shook their head and held up a Trap Card. “Rising Energy!” It was the one they'd set at the beginning of the duel.

Koro scoffed. “Fine, then. You boosted one of those Tokens and discarded that Howling Insect. Even if you survived the turn, it won't matter! I can use my effect to flip your monsters during either turn, and I've still got Black Ptera in my hand to stop whatever you think you can do! It's over!”

Koro's turn ended, Hideo preparing to begin their own. “Turn start. Draw card.” Placing a hand on their deck, they thought about the reason they'd started this duel in the first place; of Yumi, probably in the park right now doing more of her training with Sakuya. This man was a terrible person who wanted to hurt their friend, and they couldn't allow that.

It wasn't just for Yumi's sake, though. Really considering things, a duel like this to push them to their limits was, in a way, a bit of a selfish pursuit. To keep up with their rival, Kazuhiko. He'd only kept growing and changing over the course of the summer, nearly unrecognizable since the first time they'd dueled. A duel like this was what they needed to evolve in their own way. They refused to be lapped.

With a small chuckle of their own, Hideo drew a card, making it the only one in their hand. They were a bit disappointed with what came, but not for the reason one would assume. It would win the duel, certainly, but they'd hoped to save this one for their next match with Kazuhiko. They were at their limit fighting normally, though, just as they'd thought earlier. It was time to evolve.

“Magic Card, Ultimate Hatching, activate.” It was a brand new card featuring a pulsating cocoon in its artwork, cracks appearing on its surface with light shining through. “Tribute 1 Ultimate Insect LV7 to Special Summon 1 Ultimate Insect LV9 from your deck in face-up Attack Position.” The Ultimate Insect on Hideo's field appeared from the card backing, becoming wrapped in silk strings before solidifying into a cocoon. In one swift motion, it was broken apart, an even more enormous monster emerging. It dwarfed the field in its shadow, standing as peers with the dinosaur across from it. The red and blue of its previous form merged into a deep purple across its entire body, a beetle-esque horn growing from its head. Its wings, while still glassy and transparent, were a mosaic of blues and reds similar to stained glass in this form, the ferocity with which they buzzed turning them into a soft purple color, as well.

Koro stood in awe of the monster as it chirped in the sky above. Hideo's duel disk began to explain the effect. “Ultimate Insect LV9: While this card remains on the field all your opponent's monsters lose 900 ATK and DEF, and all monsters on the field are treated as Insect-Type in addition to their original Types.” With a roar, Ultimate Conductor Tyranno's ATK lowered to 600. “Battle Phase. Ultimate Insect LV9 attacks Ultimate Conductor Tyranno.”

With a wave of chirps, the insect flew high into the sky, swooping back around off in the distance. It picked up speed, executing an aileron roll as it closed in on the target. “T-Tyranno, effect activate! I destroy Black Ptera to flip your card face-down!”

Hideo's duel disk began to read. “Ultimate Hatching: The monster summoned by this card's effect is unaffected by your opponent's card effects until the End Phase of the turn it was summoned.” The dinosaur tried to swat the insect out of the sky, only to be outmaneuvered as it slipped below its claw and crashed through its shoulder. The dinosaur let out a scream, firing a beam of purple energy from its tail to no effect.

“Fine, then I use my Trap Card, Survival of the Fittest! I equip it to a Dinosaur on my field to gain 1000 ATK and reduce the damage!” Tyranno roared with a surge of power too little too late, the Ultimate Insect charging straight through its back and out the center of its chest as it returned to position above its master. With one last roar, the monster was destroyed.

Koro's Life Points dropped significantly, leaving him with only 1500. “On my next turn, you're done!” Hideo, once more, shook their head. Pressing the screen of their duel disk, one of the Jurraegg Tokens disappeared from the field.

“Ultimate Insect LV9: If this card destroys a monster by battle, you can tribute 1 Insect-Type monster to have this monster make a second attack in a row.” With another chirp, the monster flew forward, striking Koro as he waved his arms out in front and begged for a moment to think about strategy. As he was knocked across the rooftop, his Life Points finally hit 0 and his duel disk was crushed in the vice. Hideo was the victor.

Hideo sighed quietly as the field disappeared, even making a small, imperceptible smile at their newest monster. The cuff detached on its own, Hideo packing things back into their backpack. “Okay, wait,” Koro said weakly, getting up and looking angrily at their smashed duel disk. They tossed it to the ground in a heap, pointing a finger at an approaching Hideo. “Now listen, you can't just-” Any further comments were silenced by a knockout punch to the jaw.

With that taken care of, Hideo was free to continue on to the park. Upon arrival, Yumi was already dueling Kazuhiko and two other children in a battle royale. Approaching from behind an observing Sakuya, she turned to see them. “There you are. We were waiting for you all morning.”

“Hideo!” Kazuhiko announced, leaving his place on the field to walk over to his friend.

“It's your turn, guy!” one of his opponent's told him.

“I am talking to a friend!” he yelled, turning back to Hideo with a pleasant expression. “Took you long enough. You get those pimples taken care of?” Despite his chuckle at how seemingly hilarious this was, Hideo was merely confused. “You know, from the text you sent me.” Kazuhiko took out his phone and showed the group, Yumi also having walked over to investigate.

“That says 'crystal',” Sakuya pointed out dryly. “See, Yumi? Too much hair spray and it'll seep into your brain so much you can't even read.”

Kazuhiko shoved a finger out accusingly. “Don't bring my hair into this!”

“I don't have to,” she said with sarcastic smirk. “You do a good enough job of that in every single conversation you've ever had.”

With a growl, he stomped his foot out forward. “That's it! I challenge you to a duel, Ishikawa!”

“You are both literally in the middle of a duel!” the child from before yelled across the grass.

“Shut up!” he replied. “Fine, I'll finish crushing my opponents, then we'll finish this for real!” He marched back to his spot on the field to continue his turn.

“We're almost done,” Yumi told Hideo. “You're probably wanting to duel Kazuhiko now that you're here. It's the day off, so we've just been hanging out.”

“Hanging out and dueling,” Sakuya added. “Seems like, even on your day off, I still managed to get you to train.” Yumi's look of amazement was almost embarrassing, Sakuya forcing herself to repress a blush. “What did you expect? I'm a competent teacher, after all.”

“I'm going to finish this duel super fast! Then you have to duel me, okay?” Yumi already ran off to retake her place before a response could be given.

Sakuya sighed happily, looking to Hideo. “But, yes, it's been a pretty relaxed day so far. What were you up to that took so long, though?” Hideo rummaged through their bag and pulled out a small pack of blue candy shards for Sakuya. “Oh, wow! Thank you.” With the topic successfully changed to sugary treats, the events of the day were a secret for the time being. Later, Hideo would tell the group about the newest assassin's failure. For now, though, it was a day off.

“Miss Rio,” Fukuro said while standing safely outside the door to the young lady's room.

“What is it?” she called back from inside.

Taking a breath, he entered the room, Rio tapping her foot to the rhythm of a place-holding metronome in a song she was composing on her computer. She kept it a secret from the public, but one of her hobbies was producing music in her spare time and posting it on the internet. It was unexpected to see someone like her take an interest in music, yet at the same time she was exactly the kind of person you'd expect to be into vaporwave.

Clearing his throat, he said, “I've just been informed that our latest candidate has...failed, once again.” Rio didn't respond. “And that his failure was due to coming into contact with another of Miss Takano's group.”

“So you're saying one of those other losers beat him,” she interrupted, seemingly uncaring as she played the keyboard on her synthesizer.

“Yes, I'm afraid so. I apologize profusely and accept the failure as my own.” He braced himself for another outburst, but it didn't come. Thinking back, Rio always did seem to be the most calm while working with music.

Finally, she sighed, removing her headphones. “You know, normally I'd be furious. More wasted money, more wasted time, and you proving you're once again unfit to do even the simplest tasks for me. But, honestly...I'm not.”

“I'm overjoyed to hear so,” Fukuro said, preparing for something to ruin the feeling of relief.

“No, I'm mostly just disappointed in myself for continually trusting you to find the right candidate.” She brushed her bangs from her face. “Looks like I'll just have to take care of it myself now.”

“Miss Rio?” he asked, confused by her meaning.

“Out. If I see you again today, I'll have you fired.” He did as instructed immediately. Whether she was screaming or not, the rage bubbling beneath her words was evident. With the door shut, Rio was once again alone. Replacing the headphones, she continued her work. The failure candidates from before were all Fukuro's fault, she told herself. The next one would be her decision, and they'd finish this without any trouble. She was sure of it this time.

\Next: Finally, the Beach Episode – What Do You Mean This Isn't Another Day Off?/

Card Used in Order of Appearance

Great Sea of Trees (Verdant Sanctuary)
Continuous Spell Card
When a face-up Insect-Type monster is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard, its controller can add 1 Insect-Type monster with the same Level as the destroyed monster from their Deck to their hand.

Lost World
Field Spell Card
All monsters on the field lose 500 ATK and DEF, except Dinosaur-Type monsters. Once per turn, if a Dinosaur-Type monster(s) is Normal or Special Summoned (except during the Damage Step): You can Special Summon 1 "Jurraegg Token" (Dinosaur-Type/EARTH/Level 1/ATK 0/DEF 0) to your opponent's field in Defense Position. While your opponent controls a Token, they cannot target monsters on the field with card effects, except Tokens. Once per turn, if a Normal Monster(s) on the field would be destroyed by battle or card effect, you can destroy the same number of Dinosaur-Type monsters from your hand and/or Deck instead.

Megalosmasher X
WATER
Level 4
Dinosaur
2000 ATK/0 DEF

Petiranodon
EARTH
Level 2
Dinosaur/Effect
500 ATK/500 DEF
If this card is destroyed by a card effect and sent to the Graveyard: Special Summon 1 Level 4 or higher Dinosaur-Type monster from your Deck, but it cannot attack this turn.

Super Conductor Tyranno
LIGHT
Level 8
Dinosaur/Effect
3300 ATK/1400 DEF
Once per turn: You can Tribute 1 monster; inflict 1000 damage to your opponent. This card cannot declare an attack the turn you activate this effect.

Howling Insect
EARTH
Level 3
Insect/Effect
1200 ATK/1300 DEF
When this card is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard: You can Special Summon 1 Insect-Type monster with 1500 or less ATK from your Deck.

Burden of the Mighty
Continuous Spell Card
Each face-up monster your opponent controls loses 100 ATK x its own Level.

Ultimate Insect LV3
WIND
Level 3
Insect/Effect
1400 ATK/900 DEF
If this card was Special Summoned by the effect of "Ultimate Insect LV1", while it remains on the field all of your opponent's monsters lose 300 ATK. During your Standby Phase, by sending this face-up card to the Graveyard, Special Summon 1 "Ultimate Insect LV5" from your hand or Deck. (You cannot activate this effect the turn this card is Normal Summoned, Special Summoned, or flipped face-up.)

Level Up!
Normal Spell Card
Send 1 face-up "LV" monster you control to the Graveyard; Special Summon 1 monster from your hand or Deck that is listed in the sent monster's text, ignoring its Summoning conditions.

Ultimate Insect LV5
WIND
Level 5
Insect/Effect
2300 ATK/900 DEF
If this card was Special Summoned by the effect of "Ultimate Insect LV3", while it remains on the field all of your opponent's monsters lose 500 ATK. During your Standby Phase, by sending this face-up card to the Graveyard, Special Summon 1 "Ultimate Insect LV7" from your hand or Deck. (You cannot activate this effect the turn this card is Normal Summoned, Special Summoned, or flipped face-up.)

Divine Protection of the Neglected (Insect Neglect)
Continuous Magic Card
When your opponent's monster declares an attack, you can remove from play 1 Insect-Type monster from your Graveyard to negate the attack.

Sabersaurus
EARTH
Level 4
Dinosaur
1900 ATK/500 DEF

Babycerasaurus
EARTH
Level 2
Dinosaur/Effect
500 ATK/500 DEF
When this card is destroyed by a card effect and sent to the Graveyard: Special Summon 1 Level 4 or lower Dinosaur-Type monster from your Deck.

Black Ptera
WIND
Level 3
Dinosaur/Effect
1000 ATK/500 DEF
When this card is sent from the field to the Graveyard, except by being destroyed by battle: Return it to the hand.

Ultimate Conductor Tyranno
LIGHT
Level 10
Dinosaur/Effect
3500 ATK/3200 DEF
Cannot be Normal Summoned/Set. Must first be Special Summoned (from your hand) by banishing 2 Dinosaur-Type monsters from your Graveyard. Once per turn, during either player's Main Phase: You can destroy 1 monster you control or in your hand, and if you do, change all face-up monsters your opponent controls to face-down Defense Position. This card can attack all monsters your opponent controls, once each. At the start of the Damage Step, when this card attacks a Defense Position monster: You can inflict 1000 damage to your opponent, and if you do, send that Defense Position monster to the Graveyard.

Ultimate Insect LV7
WIND
Level 7
Insect/Effect
2600 ATK/1200 DEF
If this card was Special Summoned by the effect of “Ultimate Insect LV5”, while it remains on the field all your opponent's monsters lose 700 ATK and DEF.

Rising Energy
Normal Trap Card
Discard 1 card, then target 1 face-up monster on the field; that target gains 1500 ATK until the End Phase.

Ultimate Hatching
Normal Magic Card
Tribute 1 “Ultimate Insect LV7”; Special Summon 1 “Ultimate Insect LV9” from your Deck in face-up Attack Position. The monster summoned by this card's effect is unaffected by your opponent's card effects until the End Phase of the turn it was summoned.

Ultimate Insect LV9
WIND
Level 9
Insect/Effect
3000 ATK/1500 DEF
Cannot be Normal Summoned/Set. Must be Special Summoned by “Ultimate Hatching”, and cannot be Special Summoned by other ways. While this card remains on the field all your opponent's monsters lose 900 ATK and DEF, and all monsters on the field are treated as Insect-Type in addition to their original Types. If this card destroys a monster by battle: You can tribute 1 Insect-Type monster; this monster can make a second attack in a row.

Survival of the Fittest
Normal Trap Card
Target 1 Dinosaur-Type monster you control; equip this card to that target. It gains 1000 ATK. When it destroys an opponent's monster by battle and sends it to the Graveyard: The equipped monster can make a second attack on an opponent's monster in a row.

Chapter Text

It had been some time since Yumi had ridden in a car. Despite being relegated to the middle seat, it was hard for her to resist the urge to stick her head out the window like a dog and enjoy the breeze. Unfortunately, neither Sakuya nor Kazuhiko would allow her to indulge, keeping her confined to her space between them. Hideo was the lucky one of the group, riding in the middle row with Kazuhiko's little sister, Sachiko. She was a wiry, excitable child with a short mess of curly, chestnut brown hair the same shade as her mother.

From the moment the two sat next to each other, Sachiko had talked non-stop to her new friend, seemingly because they were such a good listener. Willingness to speak or not, they had no problem listening to a kid talk about her life for the hour they'd spent in the car. It certainly seemed more fun than the back seat, at least. They were getting into some hot grade school drama, too.

Kazuhiko, of course, was doing his best to stay as angry as possible over not being allowed to ride shotgun. Safety first, his mother would remind him, but he was fifteen goddamn years old; he should be riding up there instead of being crammed in the backseat with two other people.

Sakuya, for her part, was endeavoring to match his attitude blow for blow. She wasn't much of a fan of the seating arrangement, either, though she found some solace in being crammed nearly on top of Yumi. All in all, though, she was no fan of swimming to the extent she didn't even own a bathing suit, evident by her brown shorts and blue and white striped tank top (her lack of hat was commented on almost immediately by everyone involved).

Yumi, of course, was nothing but ecstatic. She loved swimming, the ocean, and her friends, so putting all of those things together was sure to be great. She'd alternated between bouncing in her seat from the excitement and sticking her head out the window like a dog the whole ride over, the latter being fairly awkward for the other two in the backseat given she was in the middle.

“You seem really excited about the beach,” Kazuhiko said after another round of bouncing gave way to her sprawled across him to reach the window.

“Yeah!” She'd pulled herself back into the car and resumed bouncing. “It's been a really long time since I got to go, and now I get to go with all of you!” She turned around as best she could while restricted by a seat belt. “Did we bring a watermelon to break open? Excuse me, did we bring a watermelon?”

From the driver's seat, Kazuhiko's mother gasped. “I completely forgot to look for one before we left! I'll just turn around up at this next spot and-”

“No!” Sakuya and Kazuhiko shouted in unison, preparing a tandem bailout if they had to sit in this car for much longer.

“Are you sure?” she asked. “I think there was a small market not far back. It would only take twenty minutes or so.”

Yumi sighed, already moving on. “It's fine. We're almost there, anyway.” She turned back to Kazuhiko, eyeing his open shirt suspiciously. “More importantly, when did all that happen? I've been thinking about asking the entire ride.”

“Oh, you mean this?” he said with a satisfied smile, casually flexing for no one in particular. For someone who played far too many card games, he was in surprisingly good shape. “You know, just working out sometimes. No big deal.” Truthfully, it wasn't as if he sprouted a set of toned abs and pectorals overnight. He just simply wore enough layers of clothing during the normal day that they were usually hidden. Finally, after years of preparing, he had an excuse to rock the open white shirt and black trunks look. If he thought it was hot when guys did this, imagine the responses when he was the one wearing it? Probably get, like, all the numbers.

He proceeded to continue flexing to himself and making self-satisfied faces into his reflection in the window. Leaving him to his...hobby, she turned to Sakuya. “When's the last time you went to the beach?” She asked excitedly.

“Um...” Sakuya had to think for a moment before confirming, “Never, probably. At least not since I was old enough to remember.”

The only thing that kept Yumi from literally flooring herself in shock was the seat belt, causing her to be whipped backwards after it caught from the sudden movement. “You've really never been to the beach? Why not?”

She shrugged. “Never been something I thought of doing. I don't really like the water, either. It feels all gross. Like it sticks to my skin.” She shuddered a bit, her skin prickling at the thought of being submerged in the ocean. Her sensory issues were great enough that she could only take quick showers and nothing else, never even dreaming of trying a bath.

Yumi placed a hand on her friend's shoulder. “I'm sorry you've missed out on so much in life,” she said tearfully, ignoring the comment about this being an overreaction. Before any more unwanted pity could be expressed, however, the car pulled into a parking lot and came to a stop. “We're here!” she shouted, unbuckling and climbing over Sakuya's lap to open the door and jump out.

“We're here!” the driver repeated cheerily. “Mitsuru, honey, stop flexing. It's getting awkward now.” Snapping back to reality, he complied with a grumpy frown. She was right, though. You had to temper your showboating, not simply flash your guns like some insecure fool. It was one of the earliest lessons she'd taught him.

As exciting as it was to be at the beach, Sachi was also a bit frustrated at the prospect of leaving the car. She'd just made it to the end of describing her first grade class' plans for the summer break. “Okay. I'm getting out. I'll talk more when we're on the beach.” Hideo gave an affirming thumbs up, leaving their seat to help unpack the trunk. Evident by their complete lack of clothing change for the occasion, it wasn't as if they were going to swim. Playing with a little kid wouldn't be a bad way to pass the time.

The group filtered out of the vehicle just in time for a bubblegum pink motorcycle to pull up beside them. As soon as the rider stood up, Yumi nearly tackled her with a hug. “Kyoko!” she screamed.

With a laugh, she returned the hug with one arm, pulling off her helmet with the other. “Should have told me it was going to be an hour of driving. Would have caught a ride with you all if I'd known.” Notably, her hair was dyed a dark purple since the last time she'd seen Yumi, now styled into a pixie cut specifically to ensure that everyone on this beach knew the score before approaching her.

“What are you doing here?” Sakuya asked, making an expression like someone had just shot her dog, then her cat, then her goldfish in front of her face. Truce or not, she was still generally disapproving of her

“Yumi called me,” she answered, stretching her back and shoulders now that she was able to walk around again.

“It's true, I did!” Yumi confirmed, pulling Kyoko into a side hug in the hopes of getting a head pat. She was not disappointed.

“Hope you all don't mind me crashing the party today. Figured I'd come out here since I haven't been to the beach in forever.”

Kazuhiko laughed haughtily upon seeing her, marching over for their now-customary titanic hand clasp. “Something in the pit of my soul told me I'd see you here today!” He was lying, of course, but was still glad to see her.

“I'd recognize a hairstyle like that anywhere!” She returned his greeting, gripping his hand as tightly as she could to initiate an impromptu arm wrestle. “Nice work on those abs, by the way. Almost makes me wish you were a girl.”

“Almost sounds like that was a compliment, but what good is that from someone as ugly as you?” Their arms shook as they tried to overtake each other, refusing to budge even a centimeter. After only a few encounters, they'd already formed an unshakable bond with each other based around their mutual thick headedness.

“Mama, why is brother fighting with that purple lady?” Sachi asked innocently, running over to Hideo to hold their hand.

“We're not-”

Kazuhiko was interrupted by a surprise headlock from Kyoko. “Your brother and I are just playing a game,” she explained as he struggled to free himself, intending on putting her into a full nelson as payback. Turning her gaze upwards, she flashed a smile at the older woman. “Hello. Name's Kyoko. Friend of Yumi's and...I'm guessing he's yours?”

She laughed at their antics, thinking back to her own youth as one of the most dangerous bikers in all of Kyoto. “That's my Mitsuru. Don't be too hard on him. He's a delicate boy on the inside.” Seemingly without concern for the fact her oldest child was being choked out by a girl she met seconds ago. Grabbing a stack of towels from the passenger seat, she called behind, “Mitsuru, when you're done playing, grab the umbrellas from trunk and meet us on the beach,” leading Hideo and Sachi to find a place to sit.

Kyoko released him after that, patting his back and saying, “Dude, your mom is really hot.”

“What?” he coughed, immediately squaring up to start yelling.

“Yeah, man. She's got that hardworking mom bun and a really nice figure for someone who's had two kids. Got that sexy t-shirt and dress tied off at the hip look going on. Meets all my standards.” She nudged her friend. “Yumi, back me up on this. You've got taste.”

She considered it for a moment. “She is pretty,” Yumi declared with a nod.

“Don't try to date my mom!” he screamed, Kyoko's face getting smugger the angrier he got.

“I'll hold off on becoming your step-mother for today. Just came to jump in the ocean and hang out with my favorite kid.” She extended her fist to Yumi which she happily bumped, hopping up and down afterward.

Sakuya cleared her throat, already sick of their antics. “Maybe we could actually go to the beach while we're at the beach instead of standing in a parking lot rating how attractive your mother is.” Kyoko agreed, still unable to resisting declaring her a solid 8 to anger Kazuhiko even more before she started undressing. All three of them were stunned. “Wait, what are you doing?” Sakuya asked, not sure whether to stand her ground or hide in the car.

“You expect me to swim in jeans and a leather jacket?” she asked sarcastically, folding her clothes into a neat pile on her seat to shove into a saddlebag. It wasn't long before she had both Kazuhiko and Yumi gawking at her in a golden bikini.

Rolling her eyes, Sakuya sighed in exasperation with all of them. You certainly wouldn't catch her ogling some girl taking her clothes off. “Oh, right. Good idea.” Yumi had managed to break away from checking out the sights to remember she still needed to get changed, too. As if on a swivel, Sakuya's head turned towards her as she unbuttoned her overalls.

Irony taking its toll, she couldn't help but stare as Yumi tossed her clothes haphazardly into the backseat. She wore a pink one piece swimsuit, a white ruffle going around her hips like a tiny, translucent skirt. “Like it?” she asked Sakuya with a smile as she undid her hair ties.

“I...Dit's...I g...” She'd utterly forgotten how to make words.

Yumi laughed at the reaction, smoothing her hair before placing her goggles back on her head. They'd be utterly useless at keeping water out of her eyes given they weren't watertight, but she had a look and she'd be damned if she gave it up. “I got it a few years ago, so it's a little tight.” She tugged at her chest for emphasis, turning Sakuya's face a dark red. “What do you think? Does it still look good?”

“It's...very good!” she declared a bit too loudly, looking every direction but towards Yumi.

“You think so?” she asked excitedly. Pulling Sakuya into a tight hug, she ran off to cannonball into the ocean. Kazuhiko sneered at the sight of her nearly malfunctioning from all the repressed feelings trapped inside her fighting to escape, grabbing two umbrellas and walking off to find his mother.

Regaining her senses enough to be snarky, she turned to Kyoko who'd been sitting comfortably on her motorcycle with a satisfied grin the entire time. “W-what are you looking at?” she asked weakly.

“All that blood running out of your nose,” she answered sarcastically, chuckling to herself as Sakuya fell for the trick and actually checked her face. She waved her hand to dismiss the scowl she was getting, saying, “Just change into yours and get back at her. Bet she'll start falling all over herself the second you get in the water.”

Obviously, neither of those things were going to happen. “I don't swim,” she said bluntly, her crossed arms and frown indicating she had no intention or ability of changing into anything else.

Kyoko let out a deep sigh, placing her hands together as if in deep contemplation. “Okay, we can still fix this.” She tapped her lip as Sakuya grew ever more impatient. With a snap of her fingers, she declared, “Got it! When she gets out of the water, help her get dry and use it as an excuse to make her sit in your lap. She'll love it!”

Sakuya's face turned red again. “What are you even talking about? What do you think I'm trying to do here?”

“I would assume working up your confidence to ask Yumi out,” she said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

“I don't like girls!” she insisted. Sakuya winced at the lie even without seeing the incredibly skeptical expression on Kyoko's face. “I mean...well...it's complicated, okay? I don't know what's going on with me right now. And anyway, why are you trying to tell me what to do?”

She shrugged. “Yumi's my friend and she seems to really want a girlfriend and really like you, and if you really like her I figure I could hook you up with some insider knowledge you're too terrified and grumpy to ask about yourself.” Standing up, Kyoko placed a hand on her hip impatiently. “You in or not?”

Sakuya swallowed hard, taking a glance towards the beach to see Yumi having the time of her life splashing around in the shallows with Sachi. “Hypothetically,” she began, trying to seem as serious as she could with a flushed face and wobbly knees. “If I was interested in whatever you had to offer, how would I know you're not just trying to sabotage me for your own amusement?”

“You think I'd risk hurting a friend like that? I'm not going to mess her up just to be petty. You're not worth it.”

With a grumble, Sakuya finally exclaimed, “Fine, so what do I do?” It came off much closer to a plea for help than she'd intended.

Kyoko began to walk towards the beach, Sakuya following closely behind. “Alright, so we've had a couple talks about stuff like this before, because girl gossip is fun and I want to try and help her out since there's not that many queer girls in your age group.” If she'd had the foresight to bring a pen and paper, Sakuya would be ready to start taking notes right now. “So, you know how she's always being super affectionate with people? Do some of that back to her. That's probably all you need to do, honestly, since that's kind of all she wants.”

“What do you mean?” she asked.

“Like, she didn't say it say it, but her relationship goals seem to mostly involve cuddling. You start reciprocating that and you're in. She always gets super flustered when I do it.” Sakuya glared at her. “Platonically,” she emphasized. “Just trust me on this one, it'll work.”

“Is that true?” Sakuya said, feeling somewhat relieved at the idea any expectations for her would be relatively simple to meet.

“Basically,” she shrugged. “I think they actually have a word for that in America, or somewhere. I read it once.” She tapped a finger to her chin, stopping abruptly in the middle of the beach. “Bambi! That's it!”

Sakuya had already tuned out, not interested in the history lesson. Her sights were firmly set on the girl in the water. Determination rising, she took a deep breath and walked forward a few steps, stopping abruptly and pondering what she was going to do. “What are you waiting for?” Kyoko asked. “Jump in and attack!”

“I don't swim,” she answered plainly.

“What, you don't know how?”

“I know how, I just can't do it.” She felt her skin crawl imagining the feeling of the salt water sticking to her body. “Think of something else.”

Kyoko sighed and brushed her hair back in frustration. “Okay, so I guess you could- wait a minute.” She marched over to their spot, Sakuya following close behind with raised eyebrow, standing before Hideo and Kazuhiko lounging under an umbrella. “What the hell? Do you not swim either?”

“And mess up my hair?” he said, whipping out his comb and running through it for emphasis. “Not likely.” Hideo crossed their arms into an X shape.

“Why did half of you even go to the beach?” The three of them shrugged in unison. She sat down next to the two of them and cupped her chin in her hand. “At least it means I can still stare at your mom. Damn can she rock a one piece.” Evading Kazuhiko's overly dramatic anger, Kyoko took off for the water, not wanting to squander her beach day on land.

After he finished his fuming, Kazuhiko turned to Sakuya. “What's wrong with you?” he asked.

She'd landed herself into a bit of a predicament here. She wasn't about to tell him about her troubles, of course, but she also wanted to talk out her frustration, and the person supposedly helping her had just run off to splash in some water. The question became: How vague did she have to be to keep either of them from catching on?

“Just trying to decide something,” she answered, vagueness levels at maximum for the time being.

“Decide what?”

“Private.”

Scoffing, he leaned back on a couple of folded towels to use as a pillow. “Whatever.”

“There's a few decisions I could be making, but I don't know if any of them are actually correct. And if I don't make one soon, I might not get the chance to at all. But sometimes it seems like not making a choice is the best option in the long run. The least consequences, anyway.” She continued talking to no one in particular, mostly to herself to try and work out her feelings. Hideo was listening, though. Hideo always listened.

“So you're trying to buy something from a sale that's ending soon, but there's some weird rule about only one deal per customer and you can't pick what you should spend your money on, or if you want to spend it at all and try to save it for something else later. Like that, right?” Kazuhiko dropped his seeming disinterest to listen, as well.

“I guess that works,” she said, getting a chuckle out of a cat picture Hideo showed her to lighten the mood. It was quite rotund. They then said to make an actual, physical list of pros and cons to different options to help decide, a strategy they'd employ quite often based on the scribbles inside a tiny black notebook in their pocket. “Maybe that would work.” She wasn't sure whether she wanted to try that, but it was an idea.

“Oh, hang on. Got to get something.” Kazuhiko got up and sprinted towards the parking lot, evidently needing something from the car. The two sat in silence, Hideo taking two squares of blue and whitepaper from their front pocket and folding them. In no time at all, they'd made a star, alternative the colors so the blue interior was surrounded by ten white points. They handed it to Sakuya with a nod.

She turned it over in her hand and smiled. “Thank you.” She tucked it into a breast pocket for safety. “You're very nice,” she said. “I didn't really think we'd get along at first, honestly. I don't really get along with anyone, though, so I guess that's not news.” She sighed. “Here I am, though, spending a day in a place I hate with everyone. Doesn't make a lot of sense.”

Hideo nodded, similarly sharing her distaste for the beach. It was hot, wet, highly populated, and – worst of all – full of sand. Rough, coarse, and it gets everywhere; like a reference to an awful movie. They nodded again as Sakuya began to mention Yumi. “She kind of holds this whole thing together, doesn't she? I bet none of us would even speak if it weren't for her.” She chuckled at the observation, though felt a bit sad after a few moments of analysis. It was a bit of a revelation for her, but she actually would miss this group of theirs, not simply Yumi, when she had to leave this year.

“For what it's worth, I'm glad I got to know you. And Kazuhiko, I suppose. Might know a little <i>too</i> about him at this point.” They gave a thumbs up, thinking back to their ruminations of the day before regarding the drastic change to their lifestyle ever since the start of the summer.

The moment was interrupted by a volleyball spiked into the ground behind them. “Remembered we brought this thing in case we saw a net,” Kazuhiko said, pointing a short ways off to an unoccupied volleyball court. “Figured if we don't swim and can't bash open a watermelon, we might as well do at least one traditional beach activity while we're here. You in?” Hideo whistled twice, making a T shape with their hands. “Got it. Referee. Guess I'll just defeat you one on one, Ishikawa.”

She scoffed. “Who said I agreed to play a game with you?” Despite her initial tone, she internally decided not to be so standoffish as normal, at least for today, and cracked a small grin. “But, if you insist, I can defeat you in volleyball the same as I do every other time we compete.”

He laughed boisterously, pointing a finger at her and proclaiming, “We'll see how long that confidence lasts before my Super Death Spike crashes right through your soul!” He was just at bad at naming things in volleyball as he was in Duel Monsters.

“Volleyball sounds fun,” Kyoko said as she walked up, Yumi in tow. They'd decided to leave the water for now with the rest of Kazuhiko's family electing to stay behind.

“Two on two, then. A tag duel!” Kazuhiko began to laugh devilishly.

“I call Kyoko!” Yumi shouted, hugging her friend's arm. Kyoko looked to Sakuya with a small shrug, not sure how to suggest they swap teams without it sounding weird.

Kazuhiko grumbled, though relented quickly. “I guess it's only fair if one of us teams up with one of the kids. Fine. Ishikawa, we'll put aside our differences for now to crush those two!” She nodded, resigning to go along with it even if she couldn't be on Yumi's team for now.

They assembled on the court, Yumi getting the first serve. “Here I come!” she shouted, tossing the ball a short distance upwards before punching the ball as hard as she could straight into the net. It rebounded immediately and smashed her in the face, dropping her like a sack of potatoes.

Everything was dark for a solid eight seconds. Strangely, it almost sounded like someone was laughing at her. An unfamiliar voice, at that. It was quickly forgotten, though, as she regained consciousness. Her vision came back into focus slowly, her head spinning. She could hear Sakuya calling her name, realizing her head was now in her friend's lap. “Am I dead?” she asked, still unsure of which day of the week it was.

“Of course not,” Sakuya answered with a smile.

“But I see an angel,” she said, a wide grin on her potentially-concussed face.

“She's fine,” Sakuya announced drolly. Helping Yumi to her feet, she steadied her as she first got up. “Are you going to be okay? Do you want to sit out for a little bit?”

She blinked a few times, answering, “Nah, I'm okay. Just warming up.”

“You hit yourself in the face to warm up?” Kazuhiko asked with a laugh.

“Definitely! If I didn't give you guys some handicap, we'd beat you too easily.” She smiled confidently, matching his arrogance.

“Now you've done it! Ishikawa, hit me in the face with the ball!”

“As much fun as that would be, it's her serve,” she said as they took their places on the other side of the net.

Yumi took a breath, preparing to try serving again. “Remember to aim this time,” Kyoko told. She nodded in response, tossing the ball up and punching it into the net once again. It bounced off harmlessly this time, though her reflexes were significantly better based on her guard.

Hideo scratched their head, whistling and pointing to Kazuhiko. They'd earned a point now, but it was still no less awkward. “You get that one for free!” Yumi declared with a laugh. Tossing the ball again, the same scene repeated. It was starting to get embarrassing.

As she prepared to try again, Kyoko held out a hand to stop her. “Yumi, hold on.” She looked up at Kyoko hopefully. “You know you don't have to hit the ball like that every time, right?”

This genuinely seemed to puzzle her. “I don't?” she asked.

With a weak laugh, she said, “No, you don't, actually. Think of it like...Duel Monsters. Attack and defense, you know? What you're doing now is playing everything in Attack Mode and charging in without thinking. Play more cautious and control your serves so they go over the net. Sound good?”

“That makes a lot more sense,” Yumi said with a nod. She'd never actually played volleyball before, so she genuinely assumed smacking the crap out of the ball was the objective of the game. With another breath, she tossed the ball and, using her new found strategy, punched it with much less force. It grazed the top of the net, but it went over.

“Alright!” Kazuhiko shouted, intercepting it close to the net and passing it back to Sakuya. She, in turn, setting it high enough for Kazuhiko to follow through, jumping and spiking straight to the sand before Kyoko or Yumi could react. The whistle was blown as the two looked at each other in shock. “Are we actually working together?” he asked.

“I...guess?” she answered, catching the ball to serve as Kyoko tossed it across the net. Sakuya served in a much more traditional sense, easily clearing the net and sending it straight to Yumi. Maybe she could, just by accident, toss a few easy shots her way to help her out. Forces beyond her control decided to intervene, though, namely Yumi's predisposition to punching the ball as hard as she could. She hit it; aiming was no longer the issue here, but the fact that it landed several feet from the edge of the court.

“Yes!” she celebrated, pumping her arms. “We scored, right?”

“Yumi, you're supposed to keep the ball inside the lines,” Kyoko explained, patting her head.

She narrowed her eyes, looking under the net to see that, yes, there were clearly defined lines drawn in the sand. “This game has so many rules,” she complained with a pout.

“Just remember to aim and don't hit so hard and you'll be okay,” Sakuya said to try and reassure her. Kazuhiko came back with the ball, serving it like a pro. Kyoko took the lead this time, setting it close to the net to try and make it fall to the ground before they could reach it. Sakuya slid under the ball, hitting it upwards for Kazuhiko to spike to the other side.

Yumi was ready this time, though. Employing her usual punching skill, she whacked the ball into the air, intentionally pulling back the angle and causing it to fly high into the air. They looked to the sky only to be momentarily blinded by the sun. “Supernova Ball!” Kazuhiko cried in despair, deciding that was the name for this technique.

Though she'd have happily let Yumi get the point, Sakuya's instincts overpowered her in the moment, tracking the ball as it came down close to the line, she turned back and dove to the ground, bouncing it forward in time for Kazuhiko to send it over. Teamwork or not, though, Kyoko rushed the net and spiked it hard into the ground to earn her team their first point.

“Finally!” Yumi cheered, the two of them high fiving. “I told you we'd come back! We were just making it interesting!”

“You'll regret underestimating us! When the two of us work together, not even you can defeat us!” Kazuhiko took his position, Sakuya spacing out near the back thinking about how she was totally blowing it right now. What 'it' was wasn't too clear at the moment, but she was blowing it for sure. Like a bowl of soup you've been working on for ten full minutes after you took one taste right after it came off the heat and now you're scared you're going to burn yourself again unless it's really cooled.

“Want to try serving again?” Kyoko asked, holding the ball out to Yumi.

“Definitely!” she answered. “I'm taking you down myself this time!” She tossed the ball up and, predictably, punched it. She'd gotten used to the heft and physics of it now, though, able to control herself and keep it within the court. So well, in fact, that it landed directly at Sakuya's feet. Though confusing, it was a point as indicated by the all-mighty whistle.

All four of them were confused, staring at Sakuya until she finally snapped out of her introspective worry. “Get your head in the game, Ishikawa!” Kazuhiko yelled, taking this game too seriously for different reasons than her.

“Oh, uh, sorry,” she said, trying to return to focusing on the game.

“Yumi, do whatever you did just now again! You found some kind of magic serve!” Kyoko's direction only served to light an even greater fire inside Kazuhiko rather than inspire Yumi. Instead, she could only see a clearly disturbed Sakuya not enjoying herself. It was distressing, and the only conclusion she could draw is that she was feeling that sense of inadequacy about not being immediately the best at things again.

Her goal was clear – lose as hard as possible to make her friend feel better. “Here I go!” she announced, punching the ball directly into the net again. “Oh, no!” she said, her acting taking a major hit. “Sorry, I guess I messed up again.”

“It's cool,” Kyoko said, tossing the ball to Kazuhiko. “Not like we're going to lose this in the end.”

“We'll see if you still think that after my next serve!” He tossed the ball high into the air, smacking it over the net.

“Yumi, go!” Kyoko shouted as the ball traveled towards her. She took this opportunity to entirely miss, the ball rolling through the sand a good distance away from her.

“Sorry!” she said again, going to retrieve the ball. It was at that moment Sakuya began to realize that Yumi was trying to lose on purpose. Her heart practically skipped a beat as it finally sank in that someone really cared about her. Even so, she couldn't let herself be defeat – or, in this case, win – that easily. “Got it!” Yumi said as she returned, tossing it over to Sakuya.

Sakuya took a deep breath, trying to fight off a smile and the ensuing giddiness. She served, the ball tapping the top edge of the net and landing back over to her side. “What did you do that for?” Kazuhiko asked, reluctantly kicking the ball under the net.

“Guess it's just not my day,” she said with a shrug. Yumi grabbed the ball before Kyoko, insisting on serving again. As expected, she flubbed it once more. “Mine!” Sakuya yelled, taking the ball back before Kazuhiko could lay a hand on it.

He and Kyoko quickly began to realize what was happening, stepping to the side as both of them began hyperfocusing on the other and nothing else. After several more serves, some of which involved the two actively spiking the ball onto their own side were it to actually clear the net, they simply left the court altogether and began to watch from the sidelines.

“Guess we won't get to finish this today,” he said, still a bit grumpy he wasn't able to win despite how little it actually mattered.

“Yeah,” Kyoko agreed. “But...I think they're pretty cute, so it's fine.”

He scoffed, turning up his nose. “Speak for yourself. I was going to kick your ass.”

Immediately, she grabbed him in a headlock. “Sorry, didn't hear you there. What were you going to do?” She dragged him off to do something else as the girls went about their business. They each tried as hard as they possibly could to fail in a convincing way, running themselves ragged chasing balls and hitting them as hard as possible out of bounds and into the sand.

“You...” Sakuya had to stop to catch her breath. “You...won't win this time.” She tossed the ball up, spiking it into the net and kicking it under.

“We'll see about that!” Yumi trudged over to the ball, then walked back to the spot at the end of the court to serve. “Woops,” she said, not even pretending to be shocked anymore as her attempt at serving missed entirely. “What's the score? I think I just lost!” They stood in silence before finally looking around and realizing everyone had left. Even Hideo became bored of their singles match and went off to play with Sachi, dragging her giggling through the sand by her feet.

“We'll say the next point wins,” Sakuya decided.

Yumi nodded. “And it has to go over or else you get to retry. It wouldn't be any fun if I won from a bad serve.” Begrudgingly, Sakuya agreed, knowing that rule was exclusively to keep her from botching the serve right now. “Let's finish this!”

“Try and hit this if you can!” She tossed the ball into the air, smacking it as hard as she could to send it out of bounds. Yumi sprinted off to chase after, Sakuya content in knowing that no one could bring that thing back into bounds. But, as so often happened when Yumi was around, her plan went awry. Diving for the ball, she managed to punch it with all her might just as it was about to hit the ground. While this only served to send it further out of bounds on her side, she was still the last person to touch it, meaning it would now be her loss once it touched the ground.

“You win!” she cheered while running back to Sakuya.

“How did you managed to catch up to that?” she asked, entirely dumbfounded at the unusual speed she showed for those few critical seconds.

She laughed. “Sometimes when I get really serious I just start moving on instinct. I guess my instincts told me to go faster, and now I'm tired and hungry.” Making a small whimper, Yumi leaned into Sakuya. Her stomach grumbled in time with her mouth.

Sakuya had to resist her initial urge to jump back. It was more of a reflex at this point than an actual desire, since she'd gotten fairly acclimated to being touched by Yumi. She kept Kyoko's advice in mind, her fingers twitching as she forced her arms to move. Shyness wouldn't beat her this time, she resolved, swiftly wrapping her arms around her friend with the biggest blush of her life spreading across her face.

It took a few seconds before Yumi actually registered what just happened. She looked up slowly, starting to blush and laugh nervously. “Give me a warning before you do something drastic like hug me next time,” she said, laughing harder as she returned the hug. It was as Kyoko said; she was just as susceptible to affection as Sakuya. “You're acting all silly.”

Whatever moves she might try to make next would need to wait, though, as three angry men approached them. “Is this your ball?” the shortest, most brick-shaped one asked.

“Yeah!” Yumi said happily. “We were doing...actually, I'm not really sure what we were doing, but it got kind of out of hand and we lost it. Thanks for finding it!”

With a sneer, he hurled the ball in Yumi's face, knocking her into the sand. “Don't mention it.” He and his friends laughed as they walked off. Sakuya helped her to her feet, fury boiling up inside her. Her teeth clenched and cheeks flushed, she stepped forward.

Sensing a confrontation, Yumi instinctively grabbed her friend's wrist. “Hey, it's okay! I'm not mad!” It was useless, though, as she began following the three brutes. Panicking, Yumi looked around for help. “K-Kazuhiko!” she shouted, interrupting his bizarre corn dog deepthroating he was demonstrating for Kyoko.

“You owe my friend an apology,” she said as the other two joined Yumi.

The thugs turned around, the smallest cupping a hand to his ear. “What was that? It sounds like someone was talking to me.”

“Apologize for what you did and that will be the end of it,” she continued, not in the mood for playing games. Her eyes narrowed as they began to laugh at her. “Is that how this is going to be?”

“Go home, kid,” he said with a laugh. “What do you think you can do? Call your mommy on us?”

“I could,” Kazuhiko said before Sakuya could respond. “She'd kick your ass harder than I ever could. What's going on here?”

Yumi began to panic again, realizing bringing in more people had had the opposite intended effect. “It's fine, it's fine,” she said. “Nothing's happening. We can just forget about it.”

Intent on not doing that, Sakuya took her deck from her pocket. “Hideo, give me your duel disk,” she shouted without breaking eye contact with the leader of the three. Hearing the call, they ceased braiding Sachi's hair for the time being to reach into their back and walk it over. It would be a pain for Sakuya to use a right handed duel disk, but it shouldn't be for long. Kazuhiko's mother, none the wiser to what was happening, assumed it was just a fun game with new friends. If there was any problem, they'd tell her, of course.

The man started laughing, the other two following suit soon after. “Duel Monsters? You think all of you can take us on?”

“No, I'm the only one who's challenging you.” Her confidence was on full display in her expert shuffle and activation of the device on her arm.

Scratching his flattop haircut, the man scoffed. “Even better. What do you guys think?”

“Definitely, bro. My cards are hungry!” The tallest and lankiest one chuckled, taking a backpack from his shoulder and tossing duel disks out to the other two.

“Don't you even know who we are?” the final one asked, his averageness in height, weight, and demeanor completing their trio's odd look. “Where we're from, they call of us the Three Terrors for our incredible dueling skills!”

“I thought they called us that because of the time we drove through that bus stop,” the tallest corrected.

“Both of you shut up!” their leader demanded. They complied immediately, shuffling their decks and preparing themselves. “If you want to get beaten that badly, we're happy to oblige, little girl!”

Yumi groaned and covered her face, blaming herself for all this trouble. She could have just let Sakuya lose the game like she wanted or tried harder to stop her from starting this fight, or even just not called over backup so it looked like they were ready to fight as a group. “It's alright,” Kyoko told her, patting her head. “It's just a card game. Nothing to worry about.” As reassuring as she hoped those words were, there was no doubt in her mind that she'd happily knock all three of them into the pavement the first chance she got.

“Duel!” the four shouted in unison. Their screens displayed the indicator for a battle royale, all four having separate Life Points and fields. “You can go first,” the shortest told her. “We're gentlemen, you see.” His condescending laugh did little to convince her of that.

“No, I'll go last,” she said. “I plan to beat you in one turn, and I can't do that without an attack.”

“Assuming you even get a turn!” the tallest interrupted. “Fine, I'll take the first move! I activate the Ritual Magic, Hamburger Recipe!” A large frying pan appeared on his field, a demonic chef clad in blue angrily bashing a spatula into it. “I release my Level 3 Bio Plant and my Level 3 Tomabo to Ritual Summon Hungry Burger!”

His two tributes appeared inside the skillet, engulfed in a fire as the chef prepared its newest creation. From the flames appeared an enormous hamburger, its buns opening like jaws to reveal two sets of spikes resembling teeth. “Nice one, Koji!” the most average one congratulated with a fist pump. “You got your ace monster out on the first turn!”

Looking pleased with himself, he nodded, placing a card face-down card before ending his turn. “Your turn, Chojiro!”

“I won't let you down! Draw!” As the most average man in the world, his deck wouldn't disappoint in being suitably predictable for the situation. “Field Magic, Legendary Capital Atlantis, activate!” From the ocean rose a Solid Vision replica of the city depicted on the card, several children marveling at its scope and scale. “As long as this card is on the field, every WATER monster in our hands and on the field has its Level reduced by 1, and gains 200 ATK and DEF. I'll follow it up by playing Water Hazard!”

The Magic Card appeared on his field, shining to indicate its effect was currently activate. “Once per turn while I've got no monsters on the field, I can summon a Level 4 or lower WATER monster from my hand. I'll pick Torpedo Fish.” A small mechanized fish appeared on his field in Attack Position, boasting a rather measly 1200 after the field boost.

“I'm not done!” he continued. “Now I summon my Orca Mega-Fortress of Darkness!” From out of the depths emerged the hulking whale, bursting forth from the ocean to float behind its master. “Because of Atlantis, it becomes a Level 4 monster that I can Normal Summon without release. And since this is a battle royale, I can attack after the first player's turn. Go, Orca! Killer Whale Cannon!” The monster let out a deep moan, a cannon emerging from its mouth and blasting a yellow beam of energy at the dragon.

Sakuya was unfazed, though. “When I'm attacked directly, I can summon Rottwyvern from my hand in Defense Mode.” A large, friendly black dragon appeared on her wings, its comically undersized wings barely wrapping around its shoulders as it cowered from the attack. The missiles hit their mark, though her monster remained there after the fact. “If Rottwyvern would be destroyed, it loses 500 ATK and DEF, instead.” As she explained this, its ATK dropped to 500 and DEF to 1500.

“That won't help! I'll release Torpedo Fish to activate Orca's effect! Destroy Rottwyvern!” The monster loaded itself into a port on the underside of the whale, being blasted out at the dragon. It withstood the assault, its ATK now 0 to prevent it from using its effect a third time. “It's all clear, bro! Take it down!”

Their leader chuckled. “Good going, you two! This is too easy!” Evidently pleased by the cards he'd drawn, he slapped a monster down. “I summon Mingei Dragon in Attack Mode!” The colorful beast appeared on his field, stretching its neck as it howled into the air. “Mingei Dragon counts as two releases for a Dragon-Type monster's Advance Summon.”

He placed a Magic Card onto the field. “Activate, Dual Summon! This card lets me make two Normal Summons this turn instead of one!” As if preempting what was to come, Mingei Dragon began to shout. “I release Mingei Dragon to Advance Summon my best monster, Tri-Horn Dragon!” A blue-scaled dragon materialized on his field, a three-horned crest atop its head shining in the sun as it leaned back to roar. Thumping its tail on the ground, it prepared to charge.

“Battle! Attack Rottwyvern! Triple Vice Death Jaws!” The dragon lunged forward, gripping the opponent in its mouth and crunching down hard until it was destroyed. Sakuya's Life Points remained untouched despite her clear disadvantage when it came to fields. “I'll set three cards and end my turn. Now's your last chance to surrender quietly.”

She ignored him, beginning her turn. “I activate Heavy Storm from my hand, destroying all Magic and Trap Cards on the field.” Clearly shocked by the appearance of such a powerful card, the three grumbled as a whirlwind swept up their fields, destroying the likes of Mirror Force, Dimensional Prison, Magic Cylinder, and Book of Moon, as well as Water Hazard and Legendary Capital Atlantis (much to the dismay of the children from before).

“Wouldn't expect less from Ishikawa,” Kazuhiko said with a chuckle. “Bet she really can beat them all in one turn now.” The ease with which Sakuya was controlling the duel put Yumi's mind at rest for the time being. She'd been afraid this would ruin their day together, but it was quickly becoming clear it would be little more than bump on the road.

“I summon Wiener Dragon from my hand and activate its effect, letting me add another copy from my deck to my hand.” Her standard opening played out, allowing her to hand while summoning a strong monster all at once. She wasn't close to finished, though. “Now, I'll use the Magic Card, Fusion, to combine the Beast-Type Wiener Dragon on my field with the Dragon-Type Terrier Dragon in my hand.”

She clasped her hands together, bringing them together with an intense expression as the monsters swirled above her head. “Fusion Summon! Sad-Eyes Hound Dragon!” Her mastery of Fusion Summoning never ceased to amaze her friends. On her first turn she'd managed to summon a 3000 ATK monster with a clean backrow ripe for attacking. Her expression said she wasn't close to finished.

“I activate Pot of Greed, allowing me to draw two cards. Then, I activate Fire Dragon's Blazing Bullet, choosing to inflict 800 damage to you.” She pointed to the middle player Chojiro, who initially acted shocked before being knocked off his feat from the fireball. “I use the Magic Card, Pet Cemetery, to banish Wiener Dragon, Terrier Dragon, and Rottwyvern from my Graveyard, as well as send Sharpei Wyvern, Boxer Lizard, and Pointer from my deck to the Graveyard, allowing me to Fusion Summon again!”

“Another Fusion Summon?” Koji exclaimed in disbelief. This was a higher level of play than any of them had ever seen before in person. Their thoughts began to consider the things they'd done wrong in life, first and foremost being picking this fight.

“Eyes weary from the brutality of nature, let loose and tear my enemies to pieces! Fusion Summon, Level 10! Feral-Eyes Wolf Dragon!” From the sky, a beam of light pierced the beach. A pair of giant wings spread from the column as it began to dissipate, revealing a rugged, furry gray dragon larger in size than Sad-Eyes, sporting deep crimson eyes and gnarled fangs. “Feral-Eyes can attack every monster my opponent controls once per turn, and when it destroys them, they take damage equal to that monster's original ATK.” It was at that moment all three of them truly understood the depths of their mistake.

“Sad-Eyes' effect activates, reducing Hungry Burger's ATK by 1000 until the end of this turn. Now, Feral-Eyes, attack all of their monsters at once! Primal Inferno!” A torrent of purple and white flames escape the dragon's mouth, striking Hungry Burger, then Orca Mega-Fortress of Darkness, then Tri-Horn Dragon. Koji was dealt 2500 damage through battle, with another 2000 from the effect to finish him. Orca resisted with only 1400 damage, though it was futile given the extra 2100 damage was enough to deplete its owner's previously lowered 3200 Life Points.

Out of all three, their leader was the only one to survive the initial strike with a mere 500 Life Points. He knees began to shake, seeing his two friends tossed into the sand with their monsters burnt to cinders. “Wait, no! I give up!”

“Sad-Eyes Hound Dragon, finish it! Beam Eyes of Destruction!” He screamed in fear as the last of his Life dwindled to nothing, joining the others on the ground. Sakuya took a deep breath to decompress from the magnitude of her one-turn-three-overkill strategy, collecting her cards quietly. The three scampered away after a hasty apology.

Yumi couldn't care less for their words, though, jumping to her friend to embrace her in a tight hug. “I can't believe you did that!” she yelled directly into her face with a wide smile.

“Guess that's what you're like when you don't hold back,” Kyoko added, almost relieved she didn't have to face that version of the girl during their match, though the prospect still excited her and gave her a dose of bitterness thinking about the missed opportunity.

“Admirable performance, as usual, Ishikawa.” Kazuhiko turned up his chin, framing it with his hand. “You're lucky your skills keep improving, otherwise I'd overtake you at the rate I'm growing.”

Her first instinct was, as usual, to deflect the praise and squirm away from the hug, but she resisted. Despite her embarrassment and general uncomfortable feeling these things gave her, there was a place deep inside her that longed for them. She'd ignored it for a while, but with everything that had happened this summer, she'd decided to try and indulged it, if only a bit.

“I only did it to protect you,” she said to Yumi, showing a small smile and hugging her back loosely. Every past experience of her life told her she should be trying to escape, that her skin would crawl from being so close to someone, but it wasn't happening. That was almost scarier than if it did.

Immediately, Yumi started to blush once again. She laughed obnoxiously, trying to break eye contact while tightening her hug. “I-I don't need anyone to protect me,” she stuttered with a giggle. “You're being silly again, Sakuya.”

Sakuya pulled off the duel disk and handed it to Kazuhiko. “Give this back to Hideo for me.” He nodded and walked off with Kyoko, the latter giving her a knowing look as they exited. “What should we do now?” she asked Yumi now that they were finally alone and not trying to outdo each other in losing volleyball.

“I'm still pretty hungry,” Yumi said. “We could go to the beach house and see what they have. Grandma gave some extra money today, so you won't even have to pay for me this time.”

“Too bad,” Sakuya said, casually taking Yumi's hand to fluster her even more. “I like buying you things.” They walked together to join the moderate line leading to the small establishment, Yumi completely unable to handle all the attention she was getting that day. She was so used to being the one to act forward that she didn't know how to handle someone else making advances on her.

Thankfully, it wasn't too long a wait before they could make it to the front. Predictably, Yumi ordered some takoyaki, Sakuya having a yakisoba bun. They ate as they walked back towards their group's spot on the beach, Yumi quickly devouring her food in less than a minute and dropping her trash in a bin. As she finished, Sakuya had an idea. “Want some of mine?” she asked.

“Sure!” Yumi answered. She reached out to take it but was almost startled by having it held towards her. “W-wait,” she said, trying not to have another laughing fit.

“Go on,” Sakuya said with a satisfied smile. “It's big, so I don't mind.” With a short laugh, she leaned forward and took as small a bite as she could, trying not to blush too hard while she chewed. “See? No problem.”

Yumi swallowed as they continued walking across the beach, asking, “Why are you being so nice to me today?”

“Am I not usually nice?” Sakuya said, starting to become concerned she was doing something wrong.

“No, you are. It's just...you're not...” She pursed her lips and tried to think of what to say. “It's just that you're never...you don't...” She sighed. “It's just that I like to hug you and hold your hand and stuff, but you usually seem really embarrassed and upset when I do. And now you're doing it to me and it's just...different.”

“Is different bad?” she asked.

Yumi thought for a moment, considering how she felt about it. She started smiling. “No, I think I like different.” Sakuya couldn't help but blush, having a single, fleeting moment of appreciation for Kyoko since this plan worked so well. Being honest about her feelings and desires was actually surprisingly okay, despite every instinct telling her not to be.

She felt Yumi take her hand. This was her chance. She cleared her throat to get her friend's attention. “Yumi,” she began, immediately getting cold feet and starting to stutter. “I-I just w-wanted to know i-if you...you w-w-wanted...” She paused to compose herself.

“I don't know what it is, but probably. If you're there, it'll probably be fun.” Unfortunately, Yumi's attempt to make her friend feel more secure in asking her something backfired, finally turning the tables and embarrassing Sakuya further. It was as if every feeling she'd had that day and even the tiniest bit of determination she had left balled themselves up and locked themselves away to be repressed once again.

Her breathing quickened as she tried to find her words. “I-I-I-I-I-” she repeated.

“It's okay,” Yumi told her, squeezing her hand. “Just calm down and tell me what you want to ask me.”

Sakuya took a deep breath and held it for several seconds before releasing it. She couldn't believe she was nearly having a panic attack over something so ridiculous. She took a look down at the half-eaten yakisoba. “Do you want the rest of this?” she asked, holding it out to Yumi who gratefully swallowed it nearly whole.

Summoning up every ounce of her willpower, she finally said, “You know a few days from now is fireworks festival at Makuhari beach, right?” Yumi nodded. “I don't know if you usually go out, or if you even care about any of that, but I've always been sort of curious. I've never gone before since I didn't really have anyone to go with, but...if it's not too much trouble...”

She swallowed hard and closed her eyes. “Would you like to go with me this weekend?” Things were silent for several seconds. Every passing moment was torture for her, convincing her more and more that she'd made a mistake. It felt like she was about to pass out or throw up or both at the same time and die.

“Sure, yeah! I'd love to go with you!” Sakuya blinked, unsure of how to respond to such a casual acceptance. “It's something grandma and I try to see every year if we can. We could definitely meet you there!” Sakuya almost started screaming. After all of that trouble, Yumi really thought she was just asking to hang out. The thought of it being a date didn't even seem to register in her brain.

Yumi took her hand once more and led her along the beach, Sakuya remaining dazed and embarrassed the whole way there. Date or not, though, she couldn't say she was upset. Whether or not Yumi felt anything but friendship for her (and whether she felt anything but friendship for Yumi, since she was still confused as to what to label all of this for the time being), she was just happy to be able to spend time with her. For the time being, she was content just to let things play out as they were doing.

The rest of the day seemed to fly by, in no small part due to Sakuya's dual feelings of rejection and contentment. It was anything but an awful time, though. She and Yumi were able to talk and mess around with their friends for hours, no Duel Monsters assassins or general drama to speak of. Kazuhiko was perpetually beaten around, first by Sakuya in a duel and then by Kyoko in a wrestling match (which was more just her pulling him into a headlock and shoving a damp finger in his ear until he gave up). They built sandcastles for Sachi to run through pretending to be a monster and even managed to have a real game of volleyball.

Eventually, though, the group packed up and headed off. They hadn't brought fireworks, either, so there was no point sticking around after dark. Yumi had to be home before sunset, anyway, so it was a good idea to get on the road quickly. She dressed herself in a flash, hopping in the middle seat next to Kazuhiko. “I can't believe how tan I got!” she said while rubbing her arms.

“You're always kind of tan,” Kazuhiko told her, admiring his own bronzed reflection in the window.

“Yeah, I'm Mexican. But now I'm even more tan!”

“I think we all-” He stopped mid-sentence after shifting in his seat, his shirt opening up more to reveal entire sections of his body had avoided the sun the entire day, making for some ridiculous tan lines.

Yumi laughed. “Don't feel too bad. Hideo didn't tan, either.” As if to confirm, Hideo pushed up a sleeve to reveal a deathly pail forearm to the group. Somehow, it didn't make him feel any better.

Kyoko was about to take off, having already said goodbye to Yumi before she made it inside the car. As she donned her helmet, Sakuya walked up beside her. With a heavy sigh and an eye roll, she finally said, “Thanks,” before hopping in beside Yumi. It made her chuckle, waving at her friends before starting her bike and driving out onto the highway.

The car left shortly after, everyone strapped in for another hour on the road. Unlike before, Sachi had gone to sleep as soon as she was buckled into her seat. Her older brother would fill the void left by her usual talking, though, discussing plans for how to spend the last few weeks of summer to no one in particular. Yumi took Sakuya's hand and smiled at her, eliciting a small blush from her friend before she returned the gesture. A fine end to a fine day.

\Next: The Final Card Professor – Electric Death Match/

Cards Used in Order of Appearance

Hamburger Recipe
Ritual Spell Card
This card is used to Ritual Summon "Hungry Burger". You must also Tribute monsters whose total Level Stars equal 6 or more from the field or your hand.

Bio Plant
DARK
Level 3
Plant
600 ATK/1300 DEF

Tomabo (Inmato)
DARK
Level 3
Plant/Effect
1400 ATK/800 DEF
When 1 other face-up Plant-Type monster is targeted by the effect of a Spell or Trap Card your opponent controls, you can Tribute this card to draw 2 cards.

Hungry Burger
DARK
Level 6
Warrior/Effect
2000 ATK/1850 DEF
This monster can only be Ritual Summoned with the Ritual Spell Card, "Hamburger Recipe". You must also Tribute monsters whose total Level Stars equal 6 or more from the field or your hand.

Legendary Capital Atlantis (A Legendary Ocean)
Field Spell Card
This card's name is treated as "Umi". Reduce the Level of all WATER monsters in both players' hands and on the field by 1. All WATER monsters gain 200 ATK and DEF.

Water Hazard
Continuous Spell Card
Once per turn: You can Special Summon 1 Level 4 or lower WATER monster from your hand. You must control no monsters to activate and to resolve this effect.

Torpedo Fish
WATER
Level 3
Fish/Effect
1000 ATK/1000 DEF
While "Umi" is face-up on the field, this card is unaffected by any Spell Cards.

Orca Mega-Fortress of Darkness
WATER
Level 5
Sea Serpent/Effect
2100 ATK/1200 DEF
By Tributing 1 "Torpedo Fish" on your side of the field, destroy 1 monster on the field. By Tributing 1 "Cannonball Spear Shellfish" on your side of the field, destroy 1 Spell or Trap Card on the field.

Rottwyvern
EARTH
Level 5
Dragon/Effect
1000 ATK/2000 DEF
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. When an opponent's monster declares a direct attack: You can Special Summon this card from your hand. If this card would be destroyed: This card loses 500 ATK and DEF instead.

Mingei Dragon (Totem Dragon)
EARTH
Level 2
Dragon/Effect
400 ATK/200 DEF
This card can be treated as 2 Tributes for the Tribute Summon of a Dragon-Type monster. If this card is in your Graveyard during your Standby Phase and you control no monsters, you can Special Summon this card in Attack Position. You cannot activate this effect if there are any monsters in your Graveyard that are not Dragon-Type. If this card is Special Summoned with this effect, remove it from play when it is removed from the field.

Dual Summon (Double Summon)
Normal Spell Card
You can conduct 2 Normal Summons/Sets this turn, not just 1.

Tri-Horn Dragon (Tri-Horned Dragon)
DARK
Level 8
Dragon
2850 ATK/2350 DEF

Heavy Storm
Normal Spell Card
Destroy all Spell and Trap Cards on the field.

Holy Barrier – Mirror Force (Mirror Force)
Normal Trap
When an opponent's monster declares an attack: Destroy all Attack Position monsters your opponent controls.

Dimensional Prison
Normal Trap Card
When an opponent's monster declares an attack: Target that attacking monster; banish that target.

Magic Cylinder
Normal Trap Card
When an opponent's monster declares an attack: Target the attacking monster; negate the attack, and if you do, inflict damage to your opponent equal to its ATK.

Book of Moon
Quick-Play Spell Card
Target 1 face-up monster on the field; change that target to face-down Defense Position.

Wiener Dragon
FIRE
Level 4
Dragon/Effect
1700 ATK/1200 DEF
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. When this card is Normal Summoned: You can add 1 “Wiener Dragon” from your Deck to your hand. While attacking, this card gains 100 ATK for each Dragon-Type monster in your Graveyard.

Fusion (Polymerization)
Normal Spell Card
Fusion Summon 1 Fusion Monster from your Extra Deck, using monsters from your hand or side of the field as Fusion Materials.

Terrier Dragon
EARTH
Level 6
Dragon/Effect
2200 ATK/1200 DEF
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. You can Special Summon this card from your hand in Attack Position by discarding 1 Level 5 or lower Dragon-Type monster. If this card is Special Summoned by its own effect: Its original ATK and DEF are halved.

Sad-Eyes Hound Dragon
EARTH
Level 8
Dragon/Fusion/Effect
3000 ATK/2500 DEF
1 Level 6 or higher Dragon-Type monster + 1 Level 5 or lower Beast-Type monster
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. Once per turn: You can target 1 face-up monster on the field; it loses 1000 ATK until the End Phase. If this Fusion Summoned card is sent to the Graveyard: You can add both cards used as Fusion Material to your hand.

Pot of Greed
Normal Spell Card
Draw 2 cards.

Fire Dragon's Blazing Bullet (Dragon's Gunfire)
Normal Spell Card
If you control a Dragon-Type monster: Activate 1 of these effects.
● Inflict 800 damage to your opponent.
● Target 1 monster with 800 or less DEF; destroy that target.

Pet Cemetery
Normal Spell Card
Target 1 Fusion Monster in your Extra Deck; Banish any number of Beast-Type monsters from your Graveyard equal to the number of monsters required to Fusion Summon that card, then send the same number of monsters from your Deck to the Graveyard to Special Summon that monster (this Special Summon is treated as a Fusion Summon). You can only activate 1 “Pet Cemetery” per turn.

Sharpei Wyvern
WIND
Level 4
Dragon/Effect
1500 ATK/1000 DEF
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. When this card is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard: Target 1 Dragon-Type monster in your Graveyard besides “Sharpei Wyvern”; add it to your hand.

Boxer Lizard
EARTH
Level 4
Dragon/Effect
2100 ATK/100 DEF
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. If this card attacks: Change it to Defense Position at the end of the Battle Phase.

Pointer
FIRE
Level 2
Dragon/Effect
800 ATK/500 DEF
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. When this card is Normal Summoned: Choose 1 Level 6 or higher Dragon-Type monster from your Deck, and place it on top of your Deck.

Feral-Eyes Wolf Dragon
DARK
Level 10
Dragon/Fusion/Effect
3500 ATK/3000 DEF
3 monsters that are both Dragon-Type and Beast-Type
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. This card can attack all monsters your opponent controls once each. When this card destroys a monster by battle: Inflict damage to your opponent equal to the original ATK of the destroyed monster.

Chapter Text

“I'm going out, grandma!” Yumi called into the house, closing the door and jumping off the porch in front of Hideo. “Good morning,” she greeted, met with a head nod. “Are we all still going to the park today?” she asked. Another nod. “Onward!” she proclaimed, skipping along the road as they made the walk to the train station.

Ever since learning of Hideo's own encounter with another of the assassins sent to fight Yumi, their group had decided to try sticking together whenever they'd go out. It hadn't exactly been an issue yesterday given they'd all been in the same place, but now that the normal routine had resumed, it was important that at least one person be with her in case another person were to threaten her. Despite the severity of the situation, though, Yumi seemed totally unfazed by it all, simply counting the days until the weekend and ensuing festival.

Given that Hideo couldn't ride a bike, they would both have to walk. It would take a bit more time to make it into the city than it normally would, but it wasn't much of a problem for either of them. Kazuhiko was waiting impatiently by the time they arrived, clearly taking on the burden of being irritated in their place. “About time,” he complained. “I've never seen someone try to win a duel by waiting for their opponent to die of old age before.”

“You're just an impatient butthead,” Yumi said, sticking out her tongue. Her eyes shifted side to side across the park. “Where's Sakuya?” she asked. “Didn't you come here with her?”

“Nah,” Kazuhiko replied, scratching the back of his head. “Just checked in and said she'd meet us here. That was a while ago, though. Wonder what's keeping her.” He scoffed. “Probably thinks she's too good to walk with me.”

“Text her and find out,” Yumi suggested, the spark of an idea causing her to jump up and down immediately after. “Take a picture of us! Tell her we're waiting on her to stop being slow!” They assembled in front of Kazuhiko's cell phone, he and Yumi sticking up their fingers in a V shape with Hideo standing awkwardly to the side and trying to make a face that looked like literally anything else besides a surprised cat (it failed).

“Got it,” he said, typing onto his phone and sending the picture. “Told her to walk faster or we'll start training without her.” They sat on the grass to see if she sent any replies, talking about nothing and showing off new cards they'd bought or traded for recently. The conversation quickly ground to a halt as several minutes passed with no reply.

Kazuhiko angrily tapped his foot, finally shouting, “What the hell is taking so long?” He got up, running a comb through his hair and stomping around. “Can't even tell us you're going to be late? We sent you that great picture and everything! Just expect us to kiss your feet when you finally get here and appreciate you showing up at all?”

“I'm sure it's not like that,” Yumi laughed, a pang of fear hitting her in the gut. This definitely wasn't normal behavior. Even if she was running late, she could at least get to her phone, right? She'd at least tell her, right?

“Damn it, I'm going to tell Ishikawa off when she finally decides to show up!” Hideo pumped their fist in the air in mock encouragement before returning to a game on their phone. “And if she thinks just saying sorry is going to get her off the hook, she better think again! I'll make her look into the distraught, tearful eyes of a Miss Yumi and know the pain she's caused! She's going to-” His phone began to vibrate.

“About time!” he shouted, pulling out his phone to open the text. His trademark fury slowly transformed into a look of fear and confusion. “What the hell?” he stammered out.

“What?” Yumi asked, hopping up to go read the message. Hideo joined, too.

“Something's wrong,” he said slowly, holding the phone out to the two of them. Yumi clasped a hand to her mouth, eyes going wide. Even Hideo broke their normally stoic expression to furrow their brow. “If you want to see your friend alive, come to the abandoned warehouse by the flour milling plant. You have three hours. No police.” Attached was a picture of Sakuya, bound with rope and gagged. It was like the start of a horror movie.

Yumi immediately fell to her knees, her breathing erratic and on the verge of tears. “It's all my fault,” she repeated over and over again. They took her friend because of her; she knew it for a fact. Sakuya was going to be hurt because of her. It was all her fault.

“Miss Yumi!” Kazuhiko screamed. He'd been yelling for almost a full minute to try and get her to regain her senses. “It's going to be okay,” he told her, hands on her shoulders and looking her in the eyes. It was incredibly uncomfortable for him, but it had to be done just this once. “We're going to save Ishikawa.”

“But what do we do?” she said, rocking back and forth. “We don't know what this person wants or what's happening. We can't get help or they'll...” She choked, not wanting to think of any of the myriad of horrible things the kidnapper could be doing to Sakuya.

“We're going to save her,” he repeated with unwavering certainty. “Hideo,” he said, turning to his rival. “You ready to kick some ass?” They cracked their knuckles, signifying an agreement. “Then for now, let's just head their and see what we can do. Miss Yumi, I need you to call your grandma and tell her where we'll be. Not what we're doing, but just where we'll be. Just in case.”

She nodded and wiped at her eyes. This felt like their only option, even if it might be unsafe and scary. The trio started on their journey towards the docks as Yumi steadied her breathing, taking Kazuhiko's phone when she was composed enough to speak. She called, explaining that they were going to be near the docks and checking out a warehouse there for a clubhouse. “I guess,” her grandmother answered with a bit of apprehension. “You kids be safe, though. If you see any signs of a gang or someone asking you to leave, you get yourselves out of there immediately.”

“Okay, grandma,” she said. “I love you.” She barely registered the return as the call ended, the words hanging on her tongue like burnt food she couldn't swallow. It felt like she was a soldier walking onto a battlefield, saying goodbye to her loved ones for what might be the last time. Given the circumstances, it might very well be. She couldn't let it bother her right now, though. There would be time for fear later, but they had a mission to accomplish.

Kazuhiko cracked his knuckles as they boarded the monorail. “I'm going to call the police when we get there and tell them what's going on. We'll buy time somehow until they arrive and figure out a way to stop it.”

“But the kidnapper said...” Yumi began, trying not to cry again while other people were around them to see.

Kazuhiko put a hand on Yumi's shoulder. “Don't worry,” he told her. “They'll know what's going on. They wouldn't just charge in without thinking. They're professionals.” Though she wasn't comforted in the least, Yumi's protests stopped, the three of them sitting in silence all the way to their stop. She trusted Kazuhiko's judgment on this, even if she couldn't be sure it was right. Frankly, though, nothing felt like the right choice in this situation, except maybe hiding under a rock and hoping it would go away.

From there, it was only a short walk to the warehouse in question. None of them were entirely sure what it used to hold, just that it was old and rusty and probably used by delinquents at some point. Frankly, it was the last place for them to form an actual clubhouse, the great distance from their homes being one of many factors as to why it was a terrible location.

Kazuhiko made the call while they were still a good distance away, muting the phone after explaining the situation in order to keep their plan a secret. They made their way to the designated location as an operator mobilized the police, assuming the worst as there was no response.

He pulled open one of the doors to the shack with the ugly screech of metal on metal. “Alright, you bastard,” he said. “Where's Ishikawa? Who are you?”

“Close the door,” a quiet, masculine voice said from the shadows. He did as ordered once all three were inside. A distinctive “Tu he he!” laugh echoed through the building as a few lights turned on, revealing a lanky middle aged man standing upon a metal platform, a bound Sakuya at his feet.

“Sakuya!” Yumi screamed, running towards her.

“I wouldn't do that,” the man said, pointing to a layer of metal panels between the two groups. “The floor over here is charged with enough electricity to make that tiny heart of yours explode with only one touch. Watch.” He pulled a half-eaten papaya from his pocket, lobbing it onto the floor where it landed with a wet thud, turning a crispy black in seconds.

Yumi skidded to a halt, terror in her eyes as her hands shook. “Now do you understand?” he said with another laugh. It was hard for all of them to reconcile this monster's appearance with his actions. Between the dark, furry mustache, round glasses, and sweater vest, he looked more like someone's math teacher than a kidnapper.

“Bastard!” Kazuhiko shouted, raising a fist. “Come and fight like a man instead of taking a kid hostage!”

He laughed once more at the insult. “I'm glad,” he said with a smile. “I thought I would only get to have two victims today, but you brought me two more of your friends. I appreciate it, Takano Yumi.”

“How do you know my name?” she said, her voice quivering as she asked.

“My employer hired me to get rid of you once and for all. I'm sure you know how this goes by now.”

“If I lose, you'll take my deck and I can never duel again,” she replied, reciting the general rules for the previous three engagements with her mysterious adversary's hired assassins.

“Yes, exactly,” he said with a wide smile. “But that's not entirely true this time around.” He burst out into more laughter, quickly silencing himself with a hand placed over his mouth. “This time is different. I was told to do whatever I want to beat you, and that means I'm going to kill you.” He leaned forward, revealing an unsettling toothy grin. “I'd like to introduce myself. My name is Yoshimori Gaku. You may have seen my work in the news from time to time. I've led many people to their deaths in my time, and while that is my greatest joy in life, occasionally I may play a game of Duel Monsters. Imagine my surprise when I was given the opportunity to do both at once, and for a fee! It isn't exactly my style to mix business with pleasure, but I thought I might make this one exception. After all, I do love spending time with little girls.”

He continued laughing. “Why don't you fight someone who can defend themselves for a change?” Kazuhiko said, pointing a thumb at his chest. “Let's see you try to kill me, you coward!”

This only made him laugh harder. “Patience, boy. I'll get to all three of you eventually. First is little Yumi, though.” He pointed towards the platform standing across from his own. “If you wouldn't mind, step up there so I can explain the rules of our game.”

Without a word, Yumi took her duel disk from her bag and placed it on her arm. Kazuhiko grabbed her shoulder as she began to walk towards the steps leading up to her opponent. “Yumi, don't. Hideo and I can handle this. This isn't going to be a normal duel, I can already tell.”

Yumi turned back to him, her eyes full of fear and sadness. “I have to,” she said quietly. She wanted to turn and run. To go and hide somewhere and let all of this fix itself. To cover her ears and close her eyes and not have to believe any of this was happening. She'd open them back up and see it was all just a dream, having fallen asleep at the park with everyone safe and Sakuya scolding her for slacking off on training again.

But that wasn't the truth and she knew what had to happen. “She's right, my boy,” Gaku said mockingly. He snickered as Yumi made it to the top of the platform. “Now, little Yumi, I should tell you there's always the option to leave. You can forget all of this and save yourself and both of your friends over there. It's a number's game, after all. One for three seems like a fair trade to me, and I'm sure Sakuya and I can have plenty of fun without you.”

“I won't run away,” Yumi said with determination, dropping her goggles over her eyes and activating her duel disk.

“Excellent!” he remarked, tossing Sakuya off his platform and onto the ground behind him. Yumi gasped as she heard her friend smack against the concrete floor. “Now, the rules for this duel are simple. The platforms we're standing on are hooked up to a generator that shocks us as we lose Life Points. When one of us reaches zero, we'll be zapped until we lose consciousness. Or die, whichever. I'm not exactly picky.” He found this to be hilarious. “It was a lot of effort to make such a complicated device in such a short amount of time, but I believe it will be worth it.”

He continued. “When that happens, the power should short out, given we're running on a rather old generator. When that happens, you spectators can even rush the stage if you'd like. But until that happens, you'll have to watch from the sidelines if you'd rather not end up like the rest of my snack.” He activated a magenta disk on his left arm, placing his cards into the holder. “If that's all clear, we should start. I'll even let you go first, since you're the guest.”

Of course, he hadn't told her everything about the situation. As one would expect, he'd rigged the game. His platform was deactivated from the very beginning, keeping him safe regardless of the outcome. And, should those two be foolish enough to seek revenge for their fallen comrade, he'd brought a bit of insurance in the form of a smuggled pistol.

Yumi took her hand and began her turn. “I set a monster and one card and end my turn.” It was a simple start, but she would only be inviting defeat if she played recklessly. Luring out Gaku's monsters to see what his deck could do would give her a better idea as to what she would need to win.

“My turn, draw!” He seemed quite pleased with what he had in his hand. “Let's start by giving you a taste of what this duel has in store. Magic Card, Sparks, activate!” One of the most basic Magic Cards revealed itself on Gaku's field, glowing as its effect took hold. “This card inflicts 200 damage to your Life Points.”

As he said that, Yumi's Life Points fell to 3800. The platform under her feet sprung to life, as well, sending a massive charge of electricity through her body. She shrieked as loud as her voice could manage, falling to her knees once it ended. Her entire body was shaking and she felt like she was about to cry. Nothing in her life had ever hurt that much before. “Not bad, huh?” Gaku said with another laugh. “It's not too intense from just that, is it? I'd hope not. It would be a shame if it let loose entirely right from the beginning. We should work up to your pain.”

“Miss Yumi!” Kazuhiko called out in concern, Hideo's mouth opening partway to express their horror. She didn't answer, slowly regaining her footing and standing once more.

“Don't think I'll let you off that easily,” he said with a wave of his index finger, playing another card. “Magic Card, Sparks! Let's see it again!” Yumi screamed once more as she was electrocuted, her Life Points now at 3600. The damage was nothing, but the pain was real. It was becoming increasingly clear that this duel would be about survival more than anything, and that Gaku's deck was designed specifically to make that as hard as possible.

“Now, I'll summon Mammoth Fossil in Attack Mode!” A dopey looking creature composed of white bones and fur appeared on Gaku's field with an impressive 1800 ATK. “Mammoth Fossil, attack the face-down card!” The tiny, brown hairball was bulldozed the moment it materialized from its card backing. “When Mammoth Fossil destroys your monster and sends it to the Graveyard,” he began, “you'll take 400 points of damage.”

Yumi's Life Points fell to 3200, electricity coursing through her body once more. It was longer and more intense this time, leaving her gasping and gripping at her chest. It felt like what she a heart attack would be like. “C-Critter's effect activates,” she stammered, trying to suck down as much air as possible after losing her breath.

“I add Rusty Swordsman to my hand.” She shuffled her deck slowly, her legs starting to shake as she replaced it into its holder.

“It hurts, doesn't it?” He chuckled to himself. “Don't die just yet, though. I went to a lot of trouble to set everything up, and I have so much else for us to do afterwards. It would be such a shame if we couldn't play until the end.”

“Don't let him get to you!” Kazuhiko yelled. “Stay strong and keep playing! You've got this!” He turned to Hideo, concerned. “She's got this, right?” Hideo nodded slightly, the normal aloofness nowhere to be found as they shuffled back and forth and chewed their bottom lip.

“I'll set two cards and end my turn. Let's see what you can do with that cobbled together deck of yours I've heard so much about.”

Yumi started her turn by drawing, her hand still shaking from the electrocution. “I summon Rusty Swordsman and equip it with Golden Fiddle.” The little knight appeared on the field, its sword replaced with the gilded instrument from the equipment card.

“Now it's time for me to activate my special Trap Card,” Gaku said with glee. “Disarmament of the Royal Guards!” One of the two set cards from before opened itself to reveal the image of several men in regal armor, all having their swords, shields, and other weaponry forcibly confiscated from them by an unseen crowd. “By discarding my entire hand when you activate an Equip Card, I can destroy every single Equip Card you have on the field, in your hand, in stored in your deck!”

As Gaku slid his single hand card into the Graveyard, Yumi's mouth fell open. All her Equip Magic Cards were gone now. How could she win without her equipment? Hesitantly, she fished through her deck for the cards in question, dropping all five plus the Golden Fiddle on her field into the Graveyard. “Now, you'll take 200 damage for every card you sent. By my count, that was six.”

Yumi braced, still unable to keep herself from screaming as the electricity ran through her body. Once it finally stopped, she fell to her knees with a Life Point count of 2000. Her muscles ached and her stomach churned like it was about to spew all over the ground. Even after the shock passed, she could still feel it running through her, jittery and hot.

“I...” She tried to speak but didn't have the strength. Swallowing hard, she worked herself up to say, “I end my turn.” Getting to her feet, her vision began to go hazy. She was hurting all over and just wished it could stop. There was no hope of winning now. All she wanted was that whatever was about to happen to her would distract Gaku long enough for Kazuhiko and Hideo to escape with Sakuya. Sakuya had to be safe.

“Good, good,” Gaku said, drawing his card. “Keep your strength. The longer you're still breathing, the more fun we get to have with each other.” He pressed a button on his duel disk. “Permanent Trap, Coffin Seller!” Purple fog drifted out from the card's image, a robed figure kneeling among a group of caskets presenting itself. “Whenever a monster gets sent to your Graveyard, you'll take 300 damage from now on.” He smiled again, Yumi knowing what was about to happen next.

“Mammoth Fossil, attack!” Rusty Swordsman was destroyed in an instant. “Mammoth Fossil's effect and Coffin Seller's effect activate!” In total, the damage would amount to 1000 points, leaving her with exactly that much to continue the duel. Whether for proper resolution or abject cruelty, each instance of damage resulted in a separate shock, dropping Yumi to the ground once again with smoke rising off burned patches of clothing.

She couldn't move anymore. She was too tired and it just hurt too much. “I'm so sorry, Sakuya,” she thought to herself, her eyes glazed over. There was nothing left in her. Not even the muffled cries of Sakuya, tears streaming from her eyes as she desperately attempted to call out her friend's name, could wake her now. It was time to go to sleep. She couldn't fight it any longer.

“Yumi!” she heard, jolting awake. “I told you not to go to sleep,” Sakuya scolded. “I just said to rest while Hideo and Kazuhiko were dueling.” Her stern expression softened into a smile, patting Yumi's hand. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” Kazuhiko said, strutting over after a decisive loss. “It looked like you were shaking around and stuff over here. Was it a nightmare?”

“I...” Yumi strained herself to think of what she'd been dreaming. “I don't remember,” she said truthfully. “It was scary, I think.”

Sakuya chuckled, taking Yumi's hand in hers. “You're okay now, though. You don't have to be afraid.” Kazuhiko smiled, Hideo giving a thumbs up. For some reason, this only made Yumi more concerned. Sakuya moved closer, bringing her face in close to Yumi's. “Do you want to win?” she asked, her voice taking on almost a sultry tone.

“W-what?” Yumi stuttered, her fear growing.

“Do you want to win?” Sakuya repeated. Yumi blinked. As she opened her eyes, both Hideo and Kazuhiko had vanished. Sakuya had disappeared as well, replaced with a stranger an uncomfortable distance from her face.

With a shriek, Yumi scrambled backwards. Apparently, this was funny to the intruder. “Sorry, sorry,” he apologized, waving his hands back and forth with a chuckle. “I was just having a bit of fun with your dream. For the record, I was nothing but a spectator until the very end there. The rest was all on you, including where I ended up over here.”

“Who are you?” she asked, her voice cracking.

“That's a good question,” the man said, pacing in a circle around her with a pale finger to his chin. Flowing locks of black and white hair dragged across the ground as he did. It was only more unnerving to note that all he wore was a pair of black pants and nothing else. “Who am I?” he repeated. “I've gone by plenty of names in the past, so let's see...”

He snapped his fingers. “That's it! You can call me Izar. I like the sound of that one.”

“Izar...?” she said slowly, the word unfamiliar to her lips.

He nodded. “Indeed. As you can probably tell, this isn't real.” Upon further investigation, only a small section of the park was visible. Extending past its borders was nothing but an endless black void. “You can't take much more of this duel. If you can even get back up, one or two more attacks is going to finish you, either by depleting your Life Points or stopping your heart.”

“No!” she shouted. Yumi couldn't accept that. She didn't want to die. She didn't want to leave her friends with a killer. She couldn't give up, no matter how much it hurt.

“That's the right attitude,” Izar told her. “But what can you do? You're just a tiny human. Your body is hilariously fragile and your hand is beyond non-existent.”

“I'll...I'll find a way!” she protested. “I'll beat him and save everyone!”

“Your life is hanging by a thread. Even if you could find a way to win, you couldn't survive another attack. That's just the way things are, sorry to say.” Whether intentional or not, his words had an almost mocking air to them. Yumi was close to certain it was on purpose.

“It can't be!” Yumi screamed. “I can't die now! I can't! I still have to save Sakuya and all my friends! And I have to see grandma and let her know I'm okay! And the tournament is only a few weeks, and the festival is this weekend, and...” She trailed off, finally understanding she was literally unable to duel any longer. She really couldn't win this time.

Izar sighed. “Well, maybe there's one way to win,” he said while scratching his chin.

“How?” Yumi said swiftly, her head snapping up to look at him.

“You could let me take the wheel for a bit. Just long enough to win.” He smiled a friendly, toothy grin with a small chuckle.

“I don't understand,” Yumi told him.

“It's simple. Let me use your body to win this duel. If I'm in control, you won't feel any of the damage. You might even survive. I'm sure I can find a way to beat that man with a deck like yours. You just have to trust me.”

Yumi was hesitant, backing away slightly. “But why?” she asked. “What do you get from helping me? How are you in my dreams? I don't...what's happening here?”

He only smiled. “Trust me, Takano Yumi. There's not much time left. All I want is a favor later on – that you promise to duel me when you've gotten stronger.”

Yumi shuffled her feet and tried to think. This man was a stranger and abnormal in every way. There were so many unanswered questions, but she didn't even care right now. If all he wanted was a duel in exchange for saving her friends, she'd take it. “Okay,” she said slowly.

“Good,” Izar said decisively. With a flick of his wrist, a card appeared, the entire front of it replaced with blank white. “For good luck, I'll be giving you one of my cards as a loan. Just remember to return it before we have our duel.” The surface of the card began to glow as he held it out to Yumi. “Let's win, partner.”

The park was no longer there. They existed in nothing but a void. Yumi began to reach towards the card hesitantly. Izar smiled casually, patiently waiting for her to take it. “I trust you,” she said, grasping the edge of the card. The moment she did, everything went black.

Yumi was motionless on the ground. Kazuhiko was screaming. Sakuya was crying. Hideo even managed to verbalize in the form of hyperventilation, overstimulated and in a panic. Gaku just laughed at their misfortune. “I guess she's really not getting back up,” he said joyously. “That's just how it is, though. Little girls are always so easy to break.”

A finger twitch. The index finger on Yumi's left hand moved. Suddenly, her left hand slammed into the metal plating of her platform. Her body rose up, silencing everyone in the warehouse. Her head rolled back on her shoulders as she inhaled slowly. As she let the breath slip from between her lips, she looked back to Gaku with eyes rolled back into her head.

Even he was shaken by the sight, her mouth slightly open as she stared at him inquisitively. Her lips curled into a smile after a few seconds. “There we are,” she said. “I suppose it's time to win, isn't it?” With a chuckle, she began her turn. “Draw.”

“I activate Pot of Greed, allowing me to draw two cards.” She pressed a button on her duel disk swiftly. “I chain Magic Capture. By discarding one card, in response to activating a Magic Card, I can add it back to my hand when it's sent to the Graveyard.” She held up a Normal Monster. “I discard Magnum Lily.”

“But that's so foolish!” Gaku yelled. “Coffin Seller inflicts 300 damage, which means you'll take another shock!” Unlike before, the electricity coursing through Yumi's body didn't affect her in the slightest. Her Life Points, however, still fell to 700.

In fact, she laughed at it. “So this is pain? It's been a while since I felt that.” With a smile, she continued her turn. “I draw two cards and add Pot of Greed back to my hand. Then, I activate Pot of Greed a second time to draw two more cards.” Drawing four cards off the single effect, she'd collected everything she needed to win now. “I activate Resurrection of the Dead to revive Rusty Swordsman in Attack Mode.” The previously deceased monster returned to Yumi's field with a cheer, ready for another shot at victory.

“I activate Twister from my hand, paying 500 Life Points to destroy Coffin Seller on your field.” Her Life Points were now at 200, the shock not affecting her as Gaku's Trap Card was blown away. “I now summon Hat-Trick Magician from my hand.” The tiny wizard appeared beside its companion, both of them jumping for joy at the opportunity to work together.

“I overlay my Level 4 Hat-Trick Magician with my Level 4 Rusty Swordsman.” Both monsters disappeared into spheres of light, pulled into a swirling, stormy, black and red vortex opened on the ground. “Envoy of the abyss, appear before us to bring an end to this sinful world! Xyz Summon, Rank 4! Macrocosmus - The WORLD!”

A metallic, humanoid monster appeared from the vortex. Its legs were little more than needles, slightly thicker at the top where they connected to a heart-shaped torso. A featureless head was attached to a stick thin neck, only a glowing, yellow symbol somewhat reminiscent to a half moon on its side containing two slash marks pointed towards each other on its forehead. Its arms were opposite its legs, starting thin where they attached to the body and expanding out after reaching the elbow joints and morphing to large claws. All the while, two purple, glassy orbs floated around its head like a halo.

The same symbol appeared on Yumi's head, as well. What that would signify remained to be seen. “Macrocosmus - The WORLD's ATK and DEF are determined by the points of its Overlay Units when it's summoned, making it 2700 and 2500.” The monster began to vibrate wickedly, its 0 stats increasing to their current values.

“Now, I activate The WORLD's effect by detaching one Overlay Unit.” One of the orbs began to crack, then shattered, a glowing essence absorbing into the mark on the creature's head. “I can banish any number of Magic Cards in both Graveyards to increase my monster's ATK points by 300 for each one. I choose to banish all of them.”

Eleven cards where banished in total, both their Graveyards appearing to steam as white light shot into the sky. From all sides, the monster was bombarded with beams of energy one after the other, knocking it around on the field as its ATK grew for each new sacrifice. It finally settled on 6000.

“This isn't possible!” Gaku shouted, beginning to panic. His field was useless with nothing but Mammoth Fossil to protect him. “Stop! You were supposed to die! This wasn't the plan!”

“Macrocosmus - The WORLD, attack Mammoth Fossil. The End of World!” Slowly, the creature raised its left arm, cracking its wrist forward. It did the same with its right. Two orbs of black energy charged in each hand, a third appearing over the mark on its forehead.

“You won't beat me!” he declared, whipping out his gun and firing straight across towards Yumi. To his horror, the bullets met with the creature on her field, bouncing off it as if it had mass. The creature began its attack, the two spheres in its hand erupting towards each other in beams of charcoal fire. The third passed through the first two, taking their energy with it. Mammoth Fossil wailed as it was blasted to pieces, the attack dropping Gaku's Life Points to 0 in an instant.

Just as he'd tortured Yumi before, his own device turned on him, sending the entire force of the warehouse's electrical system into his body. It seemed impossible, he thought, but the electricity running through his body was proof enough that it was real. His cries for help ceased, replaced with cries of pain as he was shocked continuously. Just as he'd said, the generator was overloading, popping several bulbs in the ceiling and shutting down the rest of the system. Gaku's body fell to the platform, charred and smoking.

“That should be enough for today,” she said, her body immediately falling to the ground as if losing all control of her muscles. Slowly, she opened her eyes, still aching from the shocks and with a splitting headache. She couldn't remember any of what just happened, the smell of something burning making her want to vomit.

“Miss Yumi!” Kazuhiko yelled, sprinting up the metal stairs to be beside her. “Hideo, go get Ishikawa!” They were using their duel disks as flashlights to navigate the powerless warehouse. “Miss Yumi, are you okay? Can you stand?”

Suddenly, she regained her senses. “Sakuya!” she screamed, pushing past Kazuhiko to leap off the platform. She stumbled and nearly fell into the ground, recovering at the last moment and running past Hideo. “Sakuya!” she repeated, pulling the gag off her friend's mouth and hugging her as tightly as possible. “Are you okay?” she asked through her tears.

“I'm fine,” she told her. “Are you okay? I thought you were dead. I couldn't...” She began to stutter, unable to finish her sentence. She started to weep, just as Yumi did. Hideo caught up to the both of them, taking a pen knife from their pocket and cutting the ropes around Sakuya's wrists. Despite the marks begging to be rubbed out and the obvious discomfort they caused, the first thing she did was reach out and return Yumi's hug.

As Kazuhiko rejoined the group, the door to the warehouse was flung open. “Freeze!” yelled one of the officers rushing into the building with reckless abandon. Predictably, they'd arrived just as everything came to an end. “Everyone on the ground!” Kazuhiko did as he was told, looking to the others as they ignored the order. Hideo had frozen, unable to handle the loud noises and stress. Sakuya and Yumi were simply blocking out the rest of the world.

Hideo was tackled to the floor and began hyperventilating, luckily having locked up in panic rather than react on instinct and try to fight their way out of the building. “Hey, chill! They can't handle being touched!” Kazuhiko was ignored and placed in handcuffs along with Hideo. “Don't touch my hair!” he yelled as they pulled him up from the ground. Regardless of their screaming, kicking, and biting, Yumi and Sakuya were torn apart from each other and escorted to police cars.

“We've got another up here,” one of the police announced, checking for any vital signs on Gaku. “Still alive. Just barely. Think this is the guy we got tipped about?” He was carried out on a stretcher to an ambulance.

The four of them were taken down to the station to be questioned independently. Hideo was of absolutely no help, frozen still and unable to respond to anything they asked. Yumi simply repeated, “Where's Sakuya?” to herself, rocking back and forth in the chair and otherwise unresponsive. Sakuya herself broke down in tears after being unable to reach her father, repeatedly calling her house with no results.

Of them all, the only one who delivered any helpful insight into the situation was Kazuhiko. He explained what happened and showed the police his phone with the incriminating text. He called his mother soon after, who asserted herself and demanded that all four of the clearly innocent children be let go before she got lawyers involved. With no reason to hold them and with enough evidence from the warehouse and testimony from Kazuhiko to put together what likely happened, they did so.

She drove the four of them home after that, dropping Hideo off first. They remained silent the entire ride and merely glanced to Kazuhiko and the two girls as they left the car. No one else was very talkative, either. No one spoke the entire length of the ride.

Yumi and Sakuya held hands for the entire ride, neither moving an inch or daring to separate again. They came closer than ever to losing each other today. They wouldn't have been able to handle it if it really happened, and all they could think to do was stay in contact for as long as possible. It kept them calm.

The car pulled up outside of Yumi's home in no time at all. “Yumi,” Sakuya said quietly. “Please let me stay tonight.” Yumi nodded, still holding her hand as they left the car.

“Miss Yumi,” Kazuhiko said from his seat. For a moment, they only looked at each other, unable to find any words to exchange. “Just...take care of yourself. Both of you.”

“Yeah. You, too.” They heard the car drive off after they were safely inside the house. They were then forced to explain the situation to her grandmother, who was nothing but concerned for the entire group and immediately allowed Sakuya to stay the night. She tried to call the number for Sakuya's home after both girls had gone to Yumi's room, but no one picked up.

Sakuya rested her head in Yumi's lap, both of them backed against the wall of the bedroom. Neither said anything for hours, eventually refusing food when it was ready, as they couldn't eat after everything that had happened. As it got later, Yumi's grandmother placed two bedrolls outside the door for them whenever they were ready to sleep.

Fatigue began to hit them quite fast, Yumi dragging the futons into the room and closed the door back. They barely had the energy to unroll them before collapsing, falling asleep quickly and hoping to put the day behind them by the time they woke up. The house was silent, only crickets and cicadas outside to make any noise.

“Yumi,” Sakuya called late into the night. She nudged her friend gently, causing her to groan. “Yumi, please wake up.” Slowly, she opened her eyes partway. “Are you awake?” Sakuya whispered.

“What's wrong?” Yumi mumbled.

Ashamed, Sakuya explained, “I don't feel safe. I had a nightmare and... Can I sleep with you for a little bit? Until I don't feel scared?” Yumi reached out, pulling Sakuya close to her under the covers. “Thank you,” she said, settling against Yumi. Having her there comforted her beyond belief.

“No one's ever going to hurt you ever again,” Yumi told her. “I won't let them.” What was nearly a smile spread across Sakuya's lips. There was no way she could really promise that, but hearing her say it made all the difference. She was safe as long as Yumi was here, at least for tonight. She could relax, at least for tonight. She could sleep soundly, at least for tonight.

The next day, news reports told of the serial killer, Yoshimori Gaku, dying from injuries sustained by his own elaborate torture machine. There was no mention of his intended victims. Fukuro breathed a small sigh of relief, put at ease knowing that poor child was safe. While there was no evidence Yumi was actually the one there that day, the presence of Duel Monsters cards led him to assume the worst. He couldn't have predicted this was the kind of man Rio would hire after deciding to take things upon herself. It was shameful and wrong in every sense of the word.

Rather than relieved that her latest assailant didn't literally kill Yumi, Rio was angered. “That worthless garbage couldn't even finish the job!” she screamed, hurling her breakfast at the television.

“Miss Rio, aren't you at least a bit relieved you haven't become an accessory to murder?” he asked, nearly raising his voice.

She only scoffed, flipping over her chair as she stood up. “You act like I planned for him to do all that. My orders were to do whatever he had to do to beat her, and he obviously decided killing her was what he had to do. It's not my fault he turned out to be so uncreative.” Fukuro merely stared at her, more disappointed than he thought possible. “Don't judge me! You've been a part of this from the beginning! Point the blame at your useless self if you feel like growing a conscience this late in!” She wasn't wrong, though, and he would have to carry the weight of knowing he was responsible for this for the rest of his life.

Rio stormed out of the room fuming, pushing past other staff as she made her way to her room. She began to mutter to herself as the door slammed behind her. “Should have known he was weak. All of them are weak.” She paced around her room, breathing harder as she tried to keep her thoughts straight. “I'm the only one who can do it. I'm the only one who can destroy her. The only one who can make myself stop thinking these things. I'll do it this time, and that will be the end of all of it.”

\Next: Rematch – Rio's Darkness Revealed/

Cards Used in Order of Appearance

Sparks
Normal Spell Card
Inflict 200 damage to your opponent's Life Points.

Mammoth Fossil (Fossil Tusker)
EARTH
Level 4
Rock/Effect
1800 ATK/0 DEF
When this card destroys an opponent's monster by battle and sends it to the Graveyard, inflict 400 damage to your opponent.

Critter (Sangan)
DARK
Level 3
Fiend/Effect
1000 ATK/ 600 DEF
When this card is sent from the field to the Graveyard: Add 1 monster with 1500 or less ATK from your Deck to your hand.

Rusty Swordsman
EARTH
Level 4
Warrior
1500 ATK/1000 DEF

Golden Fiddle
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: This card gains ATK equal to its Level x 200 while in Attack Position and DEF equal to its Level x 300 while in Defense Position. If this card is selected as an attack target while in Attack Position: You can switch this card to Defense Position.

Disarmament of the Royal Guard
Counter Trap Card
When your opponent activates an Equip Spell Card: Discard your entire hand (minimum 1 card); destroy all Equip Spell Cards on their field and in their hand and Deck, and if you do, inflict 200 damage to your opponent for each card sent to the Graveyard by this effect.

Coffin Seller
Continuous Trap Card
Each time a monster(s) is sent to your opponent's Graveyard: Inflict 300 damage to your opponent.

Pot of Greed
Normal Spell Card
Draw 2 cards.

Magic Capture (Spell Reclamation)
Normal Trap Card
Discard 1 card and chain this card to a Spell Card you activated. Whenever that Spell Card is sent to the Graveyard, return it to its owner's hand.

Magnum Lily (Barrel Lily)
EARTH
Level 3
Plant
1100 ATK/600 DEF

Resurrection of the Dead (Monster Reborn)
Normal Spell Card
Target 1 monster in either player's Graveyard; Special Summon it.

Twister
Quick-Play Magic Card
Pay 500 LP, then target 1 face-up Spell/Trap Card on the field; destroy that target.

Hat-Trick Magician
DARK
Level 4
Spellcaster
1200 ATK/1500 DEF

Macrocosmus - The WORLD
DARK
Rank 4
Fiend/Xyz/Effect
? ATK/? DEF
2 or more Level 4 monsters
This card's ATK and DEF become the combined ATK and DEF of the monsters used as Xyz Material when summoned, respectively. Detach 1 Xyz Material from this card and banish any number of Spell Cards in both Graveyards; this card gains 300 ATK for each card banished by this effect, until the End Phase. When this card is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard: You can add 1 of the Spell Cards that was banished by this effect to your hand.

Chapter Text

The next day finally arrived, Yumi and Sakuya still huddled together from the night before. Yumi was the first to wake up, starting to feel the full effects of all the stress and torture she'd endured. Every muscle in her body ached and, regardless of the ten or so hours she'd been passed out, felt like she hadn't rested at all. Despite her pain, she knew she had to be up now. There'd be no use in trying to go back to sleep anymore.

She rubbed Sakuya's arm, tapping her shoulder gently with only one finger. “Sakuya, are you awake yet?” Obviously, she wasn't, but she was desperately needing to talk to her friend. She prodded her a few more times before she started to stir. “Sorry for waking you up,” she said after hearing a sigh.

“It's fine,” Sakuya replied in a quiet tone. Things had begun to set in for her, too. Not pain, but the reality that all four of them could have died that day. If it hadn't been for Yumi, she wouldn't even be there right now. What did this mean for their safety and their friendship? This was the worst thing she could ever imagine for them, so what happened when the mysterious enemy sent someone else who was even worse?

“I wanted to tell you something,” Yumi began.

“Okay,” Sakuya replied, only half paying attention.

“Whenever the next person comes, and no matter what they threaten me with, I'm going to lose.”

Sakuya jolted awake at that, no longer lost in her own ruminations. “What?”

“It's the only way to make this stop,” she said, blinking away a couple of tears.

“But you can't,” Sakuya told her, moving away to sit up across from Yumi. “They'll take your deck, and maybe worse.”

“I don't care,” she replied, her voice steady and certain. “It's just a card game. It doesn't matter. I just don't want anyone to get hurt again.” She swallowed hard. “I don't want to lose anyone.”

Sakuya was speechless. Yes, it was a card game, but it was Yumi's dream. Nothing felt right about just giving up and letting this awful person win, even if it was the logical route. “There has to be something we can do,” she said finally, trying to find any small scrap of hope left.

“There's not,” Yumi told her. “It's going to end, and then we can all be friends again.” They sat silently for a time, neither knowing what to say. This was the end of their story. All their work over the last month and a half was for nothing. The bad guy was about to win, and there was nothing they could do. “We should eat,” Yumi said, hoping that food would make things easier even if she didn't particularly have an appetite.

Yumi had a difficult time getting to her feet and needed Sakuya's help. They left the room together, finding her grandmother in the kitchen. She gave the both of them a suffocatingly tight hug on sight. “Are you two doing okay?” she asked, receiving a series of awkward shrugs and nods with partly verbalized affirmations. “Hungry yet?”

They sat down together to eat a hastily prepared breakfast (brunch), the two girls picking at their food more than really consuming it. “Sakuya, I finally heard from that father of yours,” she told her, disdain more than hinted as she began. Sakuya turned her head slightly at the news. “Gave him a real talking to, but he'll be here soon to take you home.”

“Oh,” she said quietly, poking at a grain of rice stuck to the rim of her bowl. “Okay.”

“If there's anything we can do to help, all you have to do is ask.”

“Thank you.” With nothing else to say, the three of them waited until the sound of a car pulling up outside could be heard. Sakuya sighed slowly, then got to her feet and began walking towards the door. Yumi followed after her along with her grandmother.

Before opening the door, Yumi took Sakuya's hand to stop her, pulling her in for as tight a hug as she could muster despite the pain. “I'll always be here,” she said, not really sure what to say that might make either of them feel better.

“I know,” Sakuya replied, returning the hug before opening the door and walking outside. Despite his seemingly busy career and wealth, her father was a pretty average looking man of modest height and weight. He came in an old, blue Toyota; seemingly the furthest from whatever kind of limousine or carriage Yumi had always dreamed about. His clothes were fairly dirtied, too, with just a simple pair of slacks and a splotchy white shirt under a wrinkled windbreaker. He hadn't shaved, either, and was sporting some dark stubble. All in all very much unlike whatever image Yumi had put together in her mind.

“Sakuya, I'm sorry I didn't pick up. I was-” She ignored him completely and walked to the car, getting inside the passenger seat and waiting to be taken away. With a sigh of his own, he walked towards the other adult. “Thank you for telling me what happened. I was working late, had my phone off, I couldn't-”

“You already said all this,” Yumi's grandmother interrupted. It was abundantly clear she had no time for excuses. “Just get that girl home.”

He nodded, then turned to Yumi. “And thank you for...thank you for...everything you've done for my daughter.”

“It's okay,” she responded flatly, looking off to the side at Sakuya's vacant expression in the car.

“I should get home now,” he said finally, nodding to the both of them before returning to the vehicle and driving off. They watched as it left down the road, eventually disappearing in the distance. Yumi's grandmother grumbled under her breath about her disapproval of the man as they went back inside.

“My heard hurts, can I have some medicine?” Yumi asked. It wasn't exactly a lie, but far more than just her head was currently throbbing with pain. Her body felt like a distress beacon blinking on and off with light, but she was too afraid to ask for a doctor's appointment. The costs would set them back heavily if anything was actually wrong, and the fear of something actually being wrong made her anxious enough as it was. She'd never liked hospitals very much.

“Of course,” she replied, taking a bottle of pills down from a high shelf in the kitchen. Yumi took two of them, eventually swallowing them after a few tries and three glasses of water. “We could go to the doctor if something feels wrong.”

Yumi shook her head. “I'll be okay,” she insisted. She was drawn into a hug once more, feeling her hair being stroked. It was a nice gesture, but it wasn't helping much right now.

“I want you to come sit with me for a little bit.” Immediately, Yumi started to feel afraid. That's usually what she heard before she was given a punishment. Was she mad about what happened? Thinking back, it probably would have been much smarter to tell an adult about what was going on. Grounded or not, she wouldn't feel much like going anywhere for a while, anyway.

They went to the TV room, television having gone dark – a rare occurrence for the middle of the day. Yumi and her grandmother were across from each other, the silence between them hanging heavy. “I want you to tell me what's been happening,” she finally said to her granddaughter. “According to the police, Mitsuru said something that worried me. He said that bad man was hired to do this to you. I want you to tell me what that means.”

Yumi was quiet, shifting her eyes around the room to try and think of what to say. “I don't really know,” she said honestly.

“Yumi, are you telling the truth?”

“I am,” she insisted. “It's just...for a couple weeks, there have been people finding me to play Duel Monsters, and they all said that someone hired them to do it, but none of them knew who it was.”

“Why haven't you told me about this before?” she asked sternly.

She swallowed hard, her voice shaking a bit. “Because before it didn't really seem to matter. None of them did anything bad to me, and one person was really nice. I didn't know this would happen.”

“Were these people all adults?” Yumi nodded. “What have I told you about talking to adults you don't know?”

“But I had to,” she argued.

“What do you mean?” Yumi opened her mouth, but no sound came out. “Why did you have to?” she repeated.

“There was always a reason,” she started. “They said that bad things would happen to us if I didn't, but whenever...” She paused to take a quick breath and hold back a cough. “Whenever we dueled, I knew that none of them were going to hurt me. Someone was making them do it.”

“How do you know that? This person wanted to hurt you.”

“I could just tell.” She was quiet for a minute, swallowing again to choke down the beginnings of a sob before she wiped her eyes with a sniffle. “I connected with them when we dueled, and I could tell. And Hideo beat one of them before he could even get to me. They were okay.”

She didn't have anything else to say. Her grandmother could sense that and stopped questioning for now. “You're going to have to stay at home for a while.” Yumi nodded slowly. “We can talk about this more later. Just rest for right now. I love you, sweetheart.” She gave her another hug and then let her go off on her own.

The first thing Yumi did after her unofficial grounding was in place was to finally shower. The pills she'd taken were starting to take the edge off her pain and the hot water was only helping even further. It was infinitely refreshing to finally be able to rinse off the tears and sweat and grime from the day before. Clean clothes were better still. Suspenders took the day off in place of regular blue shorts to go with a white t-shirt. Normally, it felt weird not to have that specific article of clothing on her body after getting so used to wearing them for so long, but she didn't even have the energy to mess with buttons right now.

Staring at the ceiling for several minutes proved fruitless, sleep refusing to come again. Eventually, she left her room, walking out the front door as her grandmother quietly watched a baseball game on the TV. Taking a seat on the porch, she stared out at the road and thought of Sakuya. How was she doing now? Did she change clothes, too? Did she eat? Could she sleep?

Then she began to think of the other two. Was Kazuhiko managing this as well as he seemed to be before? He was the toughest out of all of them, but even he had to have a breaking point. She still couldn't believe how brave he'd been that day. Hideo, too. Were they in trouble with their parents? Would they even want to still be friends after all of this? Even a good day often left them feeling overstimulated, so everything that had gone on was definitely past the comfort zone.

She wasn't given much time to think of these things, though, as something seemed to shine off in the distance. It was quickly approaching, revealing itself as, of all things, a black limousine. Had Sakuya forgotten something and now her family was taking the good car to come get it? Strangely, the motor was fairly quiet.

It parked close to the house, an elderly man stepping out of the driver's seat and bowing to her. “Miss Takano Yumi?” he addressed her.

“Yes,” she said slowly, preparing to bolt inside the house if needed. She was going to start following the stranger rule for a while right now.

“I'd just like to say that I truly apologize for all the misfortune being forced upon you lately, and that I must regrettably ask that you come with me.”

“I'm not supposed to go anywhere with strangers,” she replied, standing up and moving backwards slowly.

With a sigh, the man explained, “Please, Miss Takano. You know why I'm here and you know what my employer can do if she doesn't get her way. I swear to you that this will be the last you hear of us, no matter the outcome.” Her heart sank thinking about going through something like yesterday's disaster once more. She was terrified, truly, but it didn't seem like she had any other choice.

Gathering her courage, she finally said, “I need something to write a note with.” The butler nodded, producing a notebook and pen from his vest, tearing out a page and handing it to her. Yumi scribbled a short message to her grandmother saying not to worry and that she'd be back soon. Placing it under the edge of the door, she handed the pen back. “Let's get this over with.”

Fukuro opened the door for Yumi, letting her inside the darkened car before closing it. No one else was inside, a cooler full of various soft drinks and waters resting in between two rows of seats. “Help yourself to the refreshments,” the man said from behind a tinted divider. Yumi ignored it, shifting as the car began to move and their journey began.

It was remarkably smooth with very few bumps along the way. Yumi peered out at the passing scenery as they drove, spotting different landmarks and sights she'd come to know by memory from all her travels to the city. Seeing them from a moving vehicle was something different, though. A bike is much better, she thought to herself.

Feeling the weight in her pocket, she removed her deck and began sorting through it. Her intention was to keep it by her side for as long as possible and make the most out of her last days as a duelist, but she'd never expected the end would come so soon. Every card had a story and all of them were important to her, but it was over now. For the sake of her friends, she couldn't be a duelist anymore.

The ending to her last duel still scared her. It felt so unreal that, at first, she thought it was all just a dream; that the platforms they were on malfunctioned and that horrible man had been unable to continue while she was still unconscious. But seeing this new card confirmed it had to have happened.

She'd never had this before. She didn't even know where she would have gotten it. Macrocosmus - The WORLD was so odd looking and different from anything she'd ever seen before, and it just appeared in her deck. Izar, if he was even real, said it was his card, but that didn't explain much. For lack of a better word, it just felt wrong to hold in her hands, like some kind of dirty, oily filth that didn't belong. As strong as it was, she didn't want to have to use it anymore.

Before she even realized it, they were parking in front of a gleaming skyscraper near the northern edge of the city. It made sense, she figured, that someone who could comfortably hire Regional Champions from various countries to fight her would live somewhere like this. The logo on the side looked familiar for some reason. Where had she seen it before? It was a bad angle looking almost completely upwards, but she was certain she knew where it was from.

“Tell the reception you're the special appointment and they will instruct you what to do,” he told her, sadness evident in his voice. Regardless of his actions, he was very clearly not happy with what was going on here. Yumi did as she was told, informing a bored-looking woman inside the lobby of her status.

Buttons were pressed, orders were given, and a burly man walked towards her, leading her to an elevator off to the side. He placed a key into a hole and turned it, the elevator doors opening for her to go inside. It began to descend further and further into the ground, eventually settling on a floor marked as Research and Development, the guard gesturing for her to leave before he returned to the lobby alone.

Yumi walked through the unsettlingly empty floor of the building. Despite the obvious work being done on everything there, it felt more like a graveyard of abandoned machinery with the lights dimmed and the deathly silence emanating all around her. Half finished or half destroyed, duel disks seemed to be a majority of the technology surrounding her on the floors and work tables.

There was only one source of light that really stood out among the drabness, and it seemed to be coming from deeper within the building. Navigating her way around shelves and broken bits of metal and circuitry, Yumi finally met face to face with the person who'd caused her so much trouble. Standing inside a large, clear box full of lights was none other than Mabuchi Rio.

“Rio?” she said, stuttering in confusion. “Why are you...here? I don't understand what's happening.”

“Yes, why would I be inside my family's building which also happens to be my home? Such a mystery.” She tapped her foot. “Inside. There's a duel disk beside you so you won't need to use that piece of garbage you haul around.” Just as she'd said, a sleek, white duel disk similar to Rio's own, much more modern and clean than Yumi's, was on a table near the pod.

“But what's happening?” Yumi pleaded, trying not to get worked up. She was emotionally wrecked and couldn't handle mystery and misunderstanding right now. The gears in her brain weren't turning at even half their normal capacity.

Rio huffed an exasperated sigh. “How dumb are you? Do I need to explain every little detail? I took you here because I want you done with. No more of those failures.” Yumi's eyes widened as everything fell into place. She'd been the one sending duelists after her this whole time. She was rich enough to afford it and would definitely have the connections to get to people like Megumi and Rafael. The only thing she didn't understand was why.

“What did I do to you?” She asked tearfully, unable to contain herself any longer. “I'm sorry. I don't know why you're doing this. Please make it stop. I'll do whatever you want, just don't hurt my friends anymore.”

“Then stop your whining and get in here to duel me,” she demanded. “And if you try to quit or lose on purpose, you're going to regret it. Trust me.” Yumi's hopes of a quick and painless defeat were dashed before they even had a chance to start the game. She took a few shaky breaths, wiping her eyes on her hands and arms before picking up the duel disk and entering the box through a door on its face to stand before Rio.

Both their duel disks activated automatically, Yumi slowly shuffling and putting her cards into the wrist holder. There was even a slot for her Extra Deck like all the newest models had. The walls around them hummed with some sort of energy, metal paneling glowing a yellow-orange on the ceiling above them. “This box is a prototype my family's company is designing to enhance the realism of dueling,” Rio explained. “It's meant to heighten the sensation of the game, but look at that, the engineers haven't finished the safety testing. That means any damage done is going to feel like it's really happening.” She smiled darkly. “Should be a fun experience.”

“I don't understand why you're doing this. I don't know what I did. Please, just tell me what I have to do to make this stop.”

“You can start by not pretending to be such a pathetic amateur at this game. Then, I'll beat you, burn that collection of leftover trash you use for a deck, and make sure you never get to pick up a card again. That should make it okay.”

“I'm not pretending anything,” she told her defiantly. “I always play my hardest whenever I duel. Why would I hold back?”

“Because there's no other explanation as to how you managed to beat two Regional Champions while still giving such a pathetic display against me. Now you get to suffer for that, and I get to watch you break.”

“I just got better,” Yumi said. “I've been training for the tournament and-”

“I don't care about your excuses,” Rio interrupted. If they kept talking like this, she might let a few things slip that she didn't want people hearing. She'd already started thinking something irritating about the way Yumi's hair looked when it was down like this. It only pissed her off even more. “Hurry up and start your turn.”

With no other options, Yumi began the duel, drawing her hand silently and looking over her cards. It was only yesterday that she had to fight someone while sitting in what amounted to an electric chair. Now, they'd have to actually join their monsters in battle. Her body still ached from the former and she had no idea what to expect from the latter. Maybe she really was going to die here.

The thought was terrifying. She was only twelve years old, yet she already came so close to it once. Some people had told her there was a heaven when they died. Some people said it was Nirvana, or some kind of infinite peace, or something. Kazuhiko always talked about being afraid of ghosts, which she thought was funny. Some people said reincarnation, and for a little while she was kind of hoping for that so she'd end up as a puppy eventually. But staring it down as she did and facing it again as she might have to now, all she could imagine was nothing.

A deep, existential fear inside of her told her that dying would be the end of her entirely. There was no afterlife, no peace, no second chances. She'd no longer be alive, no longer be Yumi. She'd be nothing. Her friends would never be able to see her again and she'd never be able to see them. Their last memories together would be in that car after a long and terrifying day of misery.

And Sakuya. Her last memories would be of that hug and the assurance that she'd always be there for her. She'd become a liar if she died. She'd leave her behind and there would be nothing either of them could do about it. There was so much she still wanted to do with Sakuya, so many things she wanted to tell her. But if she couldn't take this, she'd never get the chance.

All Yumi wanted to do was quit and go home, but that wasn't good enough right now. She'd have to carry on one last time. For Sakuya. “I set a monster and another card and end my turn,” she declared, her face-downs materializing in front of her.

“Still holding back,” Rio growled from under her breath, drawing a card. “I summon Girzerker Tiny Panda,” she declared, the baby panda appearing on her field with substantially less cooing than normal. “I use its effect to pay 1000 Life Points and add Girzerker Ascending Ceremony to my hand, then activate it.” Her Life Points fell to 3000 in order to perform her Ritual Summon on the first turn. For most duelists, losing that much right from the start would be a problem, but her deck was made specifically to work around any costs from her effects. It was almost ingenious to use a deck that lost Life Points through a means other than damage in a duel where all damage was real.

“I release Girzerker Tiny Panda on my field and Girzerker Grumpy Dinosaur from my hand! Ritual Summon, Level 7! Girzerker Queen Bee!” The womanly monster appeared on Rio's field, wings buzzing as it floated in front of her. “Grumpy Dinosaur lets me pay 800 Life Points to add Girzerker Grodd Ape to my hand when it's sent to the Graveyard.” Her Life Points were now 2200, but that seemed to be even less significant now that she had a monster to regain the lost numbers.

“I activate a second copy of Girzerker Ascending Soul and send the Girzerker Jump Puppy in my hand to the Graveyard as release. Ritual Summon, Level 10! Girzerker Grodd Ape!” Her monster appeared next to its comrade, pounding its chest and screeching. “Grodd Ape attacks your monster,” she declared in monotone. Nothing about the duel so far seemed to interest her in the least, still believing Yumi was holding back.

The ape charged forward, smashing both its fists into the face-down monster on Yumi's field. The brown hairball that appeared was blown to pieces, raising Grodd Ape's ATK by 700 after Queen Bee's stat lowering effect on the non-Psychic. “Due to Critter's effect,” Yumi began, “I can add Crane Crane to my hand.”

“That won't help you,” Rio told her. “Queen Bee, direct attack! Death Swarm!” The monster approached Yumi with an awful buzzing sound, striking her in the stomach with a stinger-like fist and knocking her backwards. Her Life Points dropped to 1800 after the first attack.

She coughed, trying to suck back the air she'd just had knocked out of her. It was so much worse than a normal bee sting and it felt completely, utterly real. “Not again,” she moaned quietly. She'd been hurt twice by this card game now. This wasn't what dueling was supposed to be. Duel Monsters was meant to be fun and to help people understand each other, but it was being used to hurt her. It was horrible and she wanted nothing more than to make it stop.

“Going to die already?” Rio asked dismissively, watching her opponent writhe on the ground. Quickly, Yumi shook her head, wobbling to her feet. “Good. There's a lot more pain before that happens.”

“I don't understand,” Yumi said quietly. “I'll apologize for whatever I did wrong. I don't know why you hate me so much. I did my best when we were dueling, I promise.”

Rio scoffed. “I hate you because you're pathetic and weak. What more reason do I need?”

“But why me? I don't know what I did. I'll give up and stop playing if you just let me go. I don't want to do this anymore.”

“It's too late for that,” she said. “That's what you should have done before, but you didn't. You were all smiles and just went along after being destroyed by me. No one is allowed to do that.”

“That makes no sense!” Yumi screamed. “This is a game! People lose!” She took a shaky breath to try and calm herself. “I would never have gotten better if I didn't lose a thousand times first. If I gave up after I lost once, I wouldn't have even been there that day. Why would you want me to do that?”

“You're asking me why?” she replied incredulously. “Someone like you wouldn't understand even if I explained it like I was talking to a toddler.” She turned up her nose and set another card, ending her turn. Rio wasn't used to having her statements refuted or needing to explain her actions. She always just did things without worrying about the consequences or the thought behind it. Anything she said in her home would go unquestioned out of fear, and that was how she liked it.

Deep down, though, it was glaringly obvious why she was so upset – so viscerally offended – at Yumi's existence. Because deep down, she wasn't so unappealing as she kept having to reassure herself. Deep down, she'd felt this way before about other girls she'd seen, and feeling this way made her mad. It wasn't right and it wasn't proper, she told herself, so whatever she did to these girls that made her have these thoughts was okay.

She'd hurt the others in very bad and personal ways, but her treatment of Yumi was a level above the rest. Such a dopey, unskilled, uncultured nobody as her dared to make her have these feelings? It was unforgivable. And even worse was that Sakuya girl. They had what she told herself she couldn't and were rubbing it in her face, whether they knew it or not. It was all she could do not to scream her head off in public watching them during that duel.

Nothing would make her admit to this, though. She repressed the thought along with any positive observations about Yumi's new outfit and lack of standard issue hilljack overalls. She'd crush her like the rest of them and finally move on with her life. She could forget about all of this and things would go back to normal.

“Hurry up!” she screamed, stomping her foot in anger. “My turn is over already, so make your move!” Silently, Yumi began her turn, pain still throbbing in her stomach as she looked over her options. With a quick breath, she set a face-down next to her first. “Any defense you try to put up is just going to get torn down,” Rio mocked.

“I summon Crane Crane,” Yumi somberly stated. The bird-like machine appeared on her field, dropping the end of its beak into a portal to the underworld. “I use its effect to revive Critter in Defense Mode. Turn end.”

“Too weak!” Rio shouted. “This isn't your full strength! There's no way you could have beaten everyone I sent after you being this weak!” She seethed with rage through clenched teeth, drawing a card. “Standby Phase. Queen Bee's effect will return half of all the Life Points I paid during my previous turn to me.” Yumi's only real advantage at that point (Rio's depleting Life Points via costs) was now subverted as her opponent's Life regained to 3100.

“Grodd Ape, kill her!” she commanded, sending her monster after the 0 ATK Crane Crane. Whether she was delirious from the pain or just simply forgot, Yumi hadn't even tried to Xyz Summon on her turn and left a defenseless monster in Attack Position.

Much to Rio's irritation, the attack was blocked. “I activate Attack Nullification,” Yumi explained, “to negate your attack and end the Battle Phase.”

“An obvious, pointless move like that is only going to prolong the duel for no reason. If you can't even remember what cards you own, there's no point in trying to survive.” She set a face-down card, then activated an effect. “I use Jump Puppy in my Graveyard to add another copy to my hand at the cost of 1000 Life Points.” Even at only 2100, she was still ahead of Yumi and unquestionably controlled the field.

Yumi drew for her turn, a tiny smile managing to work its way across her tired lips. “I release Critter and Crane Crane to summon my ace monster, Majesty Magician!” Both of Yumi's current monsters were swept up into two miniature tornadoes, the cyclones joining together into a larger one and blowing apart to reveal the wizard inside it.

“Pathetic!” Rio told her, pressing a button on her screen. “Trap activate, Pitfall of Naraka! When you foolishly summon a monster with 1500 or more ATK without thinking, this destroys it and banishes it!”

“Counter Trap, God's Providence!” Yumi's spirits were beginning to lift. “I can activate this card when you activate an effect on your field, and if I can discard the same kind of card, yours is negated and destroyed.” Discarding the Majesty Guard Trap Card, Yumi's effect carried through, negating Rio's Trap and saving her monster.

Rio scoffed. “So you saved one of your useless cards. It's no big deal. It's too weak to do anything with only 1700 ATK!”

“Are you sure about that? Critter's effect lets me add a monster with 1500 or less ATK to my hand from my deck.” She filtered her cards as prompted by the touch screen, selecting one to add to her hand. The deck shuffled itself automatically, ejecting her card from where it ended up. “I choose Rusty Swordsman.” She had to admit, that was a pretty cool feature that she hoped to continue using throughout this duel.

“I equip Majesty Magician with Broken Wand!” The monster's staff began to spark, taking on the properties of the Equip Card as its ATK raised to 2200. “Then, I'll also equip it with Expert Heart. Since Majesty Magician will always be counted as a Level 4 monster with 1500 ATK and DEF when it's first targeted, I can stack my equipment onto it.” The golden heart appeared on its breast, filling it with courage and determination.

“Attack Queen Bee! Majesty Bolt!” Spinning its staff above its head, Majesty Magician fired a burst of blue lightning at the insect.

“They'll both be destroyed!” Rio argued, astounded by the foolishness displayed in this move. “Then you'll just be open for attack!” Without a word, Yumi let the battle play out, smiling as Queen Bee's attempts to fight against the beam were overtaken, destroying the enemy monster and leaving the wizard unscathed. “That's impossible!”

Yumi smiled wider. “Expert Heart lets the monster it's equipped to withstand battle once per turn. Now your monster is gone and mine can go back to normal.” Majesty Magician's ATK loss was gone, raising past its original to a solid 3000 with the addition of Broken Wand. It was even stronger than Grodd Ape now, something Rio found to be detestable and infuriating. “Now I'll end my turn.”

“During your End Phase,” Rio announced, waving a hand in front of her to signal her card to activate, “I'll use Life Absorbing Machine.” Placing her fingers on top of her deck, she continued, “My turn, draw! During my Standby Phase, I gain half the Life Points I paid as cost during my last turn.” Her Life increased to 2600, in and of itself annoying to her as it wasn't the full amount now that Queen Bee was gone.

With an unsettling laugh, she activated her newly acquired card. “Magic Card, Preparation of Rites, activate! With this card, I can add a Level 7 or lower Ritual Monster from my deck to my hand, then a Ritual Magic from my Graveyard. I choose my Girzerker Bronze Tiger, and return one of my Girzerker Ascending Ceremonies.” Just as Yumi's had before, Rio's deck ejected her selected monster, then the Ritual Magic from her Graveyard.

“Now I activate it, releasing Girzerker Jump Puppy as the entire cost!” The ritual proceeded, Jump Puppy dissolving into the fires as Bronze Tiger appeared in Defense Position, standing next to Grodd Ape. “Bronze Tiger has a fun ability. See if you can remember it.” To her irritation, Yumi actually began to think on their last encounter. “Bronze Tiger lets me pay Life Points to decrease a monster's ATK and DEF by that much until the end of the turn. I'll be paying 2100 Life Points to decrease Majesty Magician's ATK to 900, and attack with Grodd Ape to finish you!”

Obviously not intending to carry this duel on for any longer, Rio had sacrificed all but 500 of her Life Points to weaken Yumi's monster just enough to make an exact victory. The monster pounded its chest, charging at the wizard and pulling back a fist to smash through it. Yumi, though, only raised her hand. “Trap activate, Majesty Guard!”

“What?” Rio shouted as the image of Yumi's previous fodder appeared above her head. It displayed the image of Majesty Magician conjuring a yellow barrier against a bolt of energy, appropriate for the situation.

“I can banish this from my Graveyard to halve the damage I take from one battle. And, because of Expert Heart, Majesty Magician won't be destroyed by this battle, either!” As displayed on the card, Majesty Magician blocked Grodd Ape's meaty fist with a barrier, sparks flying back as Yumi winced from the pain. Her Life Points were now 900.

“The second effect of Expert Heart activates, too, increasing Majesty Magician's ATK and DEF by the amount of damage I took just now!” The bonus would put it at an enormous 3900 once the turn ended, more than enough to wipe out the rest of Rio's Life Points with a single attack. With a snarl, she passed.

“Draw!” Yumi declared, finally regaining her smile to its fullest. “Majesty Magician, attack Girzerker Grodd Ape! Majesty Bolt!” She was prepared to end this duel and finally put all of this to rest. Unfortunately, Rio had other plans for them.

“When your monster attacks and would reduce my Life Points to 0, I can pay half my Life to activate my Trap Card, Last Surprise, from the deck!” Her Life Points fell to 250 as she explained, a card appearing that depicted a thief tipping their hat as they absconded into the night. “I negate the damage and make your monster unable to attack from now on.” Though the attack went through, Grodd Ape being blasted to pieces, Rio was still alive. Majesty Magician was encircled by three purple rings of energy, constricting its ability to move.

Rio chuckled as her Life Points began to rise. “And, because of your foolishness, I gain Life Points equal to Grodd Ape's ATK on the field.” She was now at 2950, soon to be more once her turn came.

Yumi puffed out her cheeks. “Come on! How was I supposed to know a card like that even existed?”

Rio blinked in surprise. “What?”

“You called me foolish for not predicting Last Surprise, but that card is just weird! I might not be the best, but even I know that's not a normal card.”

“Just shut up and end your turn,” she growled.

Yumi huffed, activating another card. “I play Treasure Cards from Heaven, letting us both draw until we have six cards.” In unison, they pulled the top cards from their decks, Yumi looking especially happy to have found what she needed. “I'll activate Arms Hole! By sending the top card of my deck to the Graveyard, I can add an Equip Card from my deck or Graveyard to my hand.” The cost for this was, unfortunately, her Flame Viper. Regardless, she selected Rusty Sword, keeping her hand at six.

“Now I'll use Pot of Greed, letting me draw two more cards!” The unprecedented amount of drawing she managed to do this turn put her ahead quite a bit. “I'll set two cards and end my turn,” she declared.

“Draw!” Rio moved to the Standby Phase, recovering 1050 Life Points to make 4000. She laughed quietly to herself. “And to think, I was almost worried. That was rather silly of me, wouldn't you say? After all, you just gave me a new hand without any problems.” By the look on her face, it was clear she was about to go back on the offensive.

“I use Girzerker Jump Puppy's effect add my final copy to my hand at the cost of 1000 Life Points.” Now at 3000, she added a seventh card to her hand, activating a Ritual Magic, Girzerker Last Rights. “I banish Girzerker Jump Puppy from my hand as a cost to Ritual Summon Girzerker Killer Crocodile!” Like its predecessors, the dog became fodder for the man-like crocodile's arrival on the field. Despite a hefty 3000 ATK, it still couldn't overcome Majesty Magician.

“I'll banish my Girzerker Last Rights from my Graveyard to gain 2000 Life Points now, then pay 1900 to reduce Majesty Magician's ATK to 2100.” This left her with 3100 Life Points in addition to a clear avenue to victory. “I switch Girzerker Bronze Tiger to Attack Mode, then attack with Killer Crocodile! Devil Press!”

“Don't count on that working!” Yumi said, Broken Wand beginning to glow. “When you attack Majesty Magician with a monster that has greater ATK than it does, I can return it to my hand and end the Battle Phase immediately!” At the expense of her equipment, she'd saved herself and her favorite card from certain death another time.

Rio sneered, setting two cards of her own before ending her turn. Yumi began by drawing, a smile on her face as she did. She looked up to meet eyes with Rio. Despite the seething hatred she sensed coming from the other girl, she was finally beginning to see a closeness that she hadn't been able to feel in their last encounter. “Rio, I hope you know that, because of everything you've done to me and my friends, I'll never be able to forgive you. But, even so, I really need to thank you for this.”

Taken aback, she asked, “What's that supposed to mean? Were you looking for a way to commit suicide this whole time?”

Yumi shook her head. “You made me realize something. That, no matter how bad things may be or how high the stakes, I really, really love dueling! And nothing can ever change that.” Her smile only grew wider. “Maybe you thought taking my deck away and keeping me from playing would have worked, that it would stop me from being a duelist. And maybe that would be right in a way. But no matter what, even if I can never play a single card again, I'll always love Duel Monsters and everything it's done for me, and you'll never be able to change that!”

\Next: Chaos Girzerker - Yumi's Choice/

Cards Used in Order of Appearance

Girzerker Tiny Panda
EARTH
Level 3
Psychic/Effect
900 ATK/500 DEF
This card cannot be targeted for an attack while you control another face-up monster. Pay 1000 LP; add 1 “Girzerker” Ritual Spell Card from your Deck to your hand. You can only use this effect of “Girzerker Tiny Panda” once per turn.

Girzerker Ascending Ceremony
Ritual Spell Card
This card can be used to Ritual Summon any “Girzerker” Ritual Monster. You must also Tribute monsters from the field or your hand whose total Levels equal the Level of the Ritual Monster you Ritual Summon. You can also pay LP equal to any number of Levels x 500, in addition to any Tributes used to equal the Level of the Ritual Monster. While this card is in your Graveyard, except the turn it is sent there: Pay 1000 LP; shuffle this card into your Deck and draw 1 card.

Girzerker Grumpy Dinosaur
EARTH
Level 4
Psychic/Effect
1600 ATK/1000 DEF
When this card is sent to the Graveyard: Pay 800 LP to add 1 “Girzerker” Ritual Monster from your Deck to your hand. You can only use this effect of “Girzerker Grumpy Dinosaur” once per turn.

Girzerker Queen Bee
EARTH
Level 7
Psychic/Ritual/Effect
2200 ATK/1100 DEF
You can Ritual Summon this card with any “Girzerker” Ritual Spell Card. All monsters on the field lose ATK and DEF equal to their Level, except Psychic-Type monsters. During your Standby Phase: Gain LP equal to half of any LP paid during your last turn.

Girzerker Grodd Ape
EARTH
Level 10
Psychic/Ritual/Effect
2000 ATK/2800 DEF
You can Ritual Summon this card with any “Girzerker” Ritual Spell Card. If this card destroys a monster by battle and sends it to the Graveyard: This card gains ATK equal to that monster's ATK on the field. When this card is removed from the field: Gain LP equal to its ATK on the field.

Girzerker Jump Puppy
EARTH
Level 2
Psychic/Effect
500 ATK/300 DEF
When you Ritual Summon a “Girzerker” Ritual Monster using this card as a Tribute; this card can be used as the entire Tribute. While this card is in your Graveyard, you can pay 1000 LP; add 1 “Girzerker Jump Puppy” from your Deck to your hand.

Critter (Sangan)
DARK
Level 3
Fiend/Effect
1000 ATK/ 600 DEF
When this card is sent from the field to the Graveyard: Add 1 monster with 1500 or less ATK from your Deck to your hand.

Crane Crane
EARTH
Level 3
Winged Beast/Effect
300 ATK/900 DEF
When this card is Normal Summoned: You can target 1 Level 3 monster in your Graveyard; Special Summon that target, but its effects are negated. You can only use this effect of “Crane Crane” once per turn.

Attack Nullification (Negate Attack)
Counter Trap Card
When an opponent's monster declares an attack: Target the attacking monster; negate the attack, then end the Battle Phase.

Majesty Magician
DARK
Level 8
Spellcaster/Effect
2500 ATK/2000 DEF
You can Tribute Summon this card by Tributing 1 monster that was originally a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. This card is treated as an appropriate target for a card that specifically designates a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF while face-up on the field or in the Graveyard (its Level and ATK/DEF do not change).

Pitfall of Naraka (Bottomless Trap Hole)
Trap Card
When your opponent Summons a monster(s) with 1500 or more ATK; Destroy that monster(s) with 1500 or more ATK and, if you do, banish it.

God's Providence (Ultimate Providence)
Counter Trap Card
When a Spell/Trap Card, or monster effect, is activated: Discard the same type of card (Monster, Spell, or Trap); negate the activation, and if you do, destroy that card.

Majesty Guard
Normal Trap Card
Monsters you control cannot be destroyed by battle this turn, also halve all damage you take this turn. During either player's turn, except the turn this card was sent to the Graveyard: You can banish this card from your Graveyard; halve the battle damage you take from one opponent's monster this turn.

Rusty Swordsman
EARTH
Level 4
Warrior
1500 ATK/1000 DEF

Broken Wand
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: This card's original ATK increases by 500. When this card attacks or is attacked by a monster with higher ATK: You can return this card to your hand and end the Battle Phase.

Expert Heart
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: Cannot be destroyed by battle once per turn. When you take damage from an attack involving this card: This card gains ATK and DEF equal to the damage you took.

Life Absorbing Machine
Continuous Trap Card
During your Standby Phase, gain Life Points equal to half the Life Points you paid during your last turn.

Preparation of Rites
Normal Spell Card
Add 1 Level 7 or lower Ritual Monster from your Deck to your hand, then you can add 1 Ritual Spell Card from your Graveyard to the hand.

Girzerker Bronze Tiger
EARTH
Level 4
Psychic/Ritual/Effect
1700 ATK/1000 DEF
You can Ritual Summon this card with any “Girzerker” Ritual Spell Card. Once per turn, during either player's turn: You can target 1 face-up monster on the field and pay LP in multiples of 100; that monster loses ATK and DEF equal to LP paid until the End Phase.

Last Surprise
Normal Trap Card
When an opponent's monster with the highest ATK on the field declares an attack: Make the battle damage you take from this battle 0, and if you do, target that opponent's monster; it cannot attack. If your Life Points would become 0 from that attack: You can pay half your Life Points to activate this card from your deck.

Treasure Cards from the Heavens (Card of Sanctity)
Normal Spell Card
Each player draws until they have 6 cards in their hand.

Arms Hole (Hidden Armory)
Normal Spell Card
Send the top card of your Deck to the Graveyard; add 1 Equip Spell Card from your Deck or Graveyard to your hand. You cannot Normal Summon/Set during the turn you activate this card.

Flame Viper
EARTH
Level 2
Pyro
400 ATK/ 450 DEF

Rusty Sword
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: This card's original ATK increases equal to its DEF. When this card attacks, during the Damage Step: You can pay Life Points in multiples of 100 (maximum 500); this card gains ATK equal to that amount.

Pot of Greed
Normal Spell Card
Draw 2 cards.

Girzerker Last Rights
Ritual Spell Card
This card can be used to Ritual Summon any “Girzerker” Ritual Monster from your Graveyard. You must also banish monsters from your hand whose total Levels equal the Level of the Ritual Monster you Ritual Summon. Banish this card from your Graveyard; gain 2000 LP. This effect cannot be activated if you summoned a monster this turn, except by Ritual Summon.

Girzerker Killer Crocodile
EARTH
Level 9
Psychic/Ritual/Effect
3000 ATK/3000 DEF
You can Ritual Summon this card with any “Girzerker” Ritual Spell Card. Once per turn, when this card is targeted by your opponent's card effect: You can pay 1000 LP; change the target to another appropriate card on the field. When this card destroys an opponent's monster by battle and sends it to the Graveyard: You can add 1 “Girzerker” monster from your Deck to your hand with ATK less than or equal to the destroyed monster's original ATK.

Chapter Text

Yumi's declaration silenced Rio. Despite her best efforts, she couldn't help but blush at how cute she found that speech. This only made her angrier. Angry enough to scream, in fact. “Why won't you just die?” she yelled, Yumi afraid she might forgo dueling entirely to charge her. After several heavy breaths, she glared towards her. “Just continue your turn.”

Though not entirely unshaken by the outburst, Yumi chose to do just that. “I'll activate Tribute to the Devil, which lets me send your Killer Crocodile to the Graveyard to summon a Normal Monster from my hand!” The green beast appeared on Yumi's field, closing in on Rio's monster.

“I activate Killer Crocodile's effect, letting me pay 1000 Life Points to change your target to Bronze Tiger!” Her Life fell to 2100, the devil changing direction at the last minute to grasp the new target between its hands, crushing it in a small explosion.

Turning back to Yumi, its hands opened to reveal a ball of light. “I'll Special Summon Rusty Swordsman!” The knight appeared on her field, striking a heroic pose only for its visor to fall over its eyes with a loud clank. “Then, I release Rusty Swordsman to Advance Summon my ace monster one more time, Majesty Magician!” Her monster returned to the field triumphantly, bowing respectfully with a hand flourish to their opponent.

“Don't look away or else you might miss his trick!” She inserted a Magic Card into her duel disk. “Majesty Magician, power up!” The card she'd played was Rusty Sword, targeting the monster. On command, it spun its staff through the air, holding it between both hands on its side. It clapped them together, the cane disappearing between them. Pretending to look both ways like it was unsure of what had happened to its weapon, the monster snapped its fingers, spreading its arms to create a cloud of pink smoke. As it cleared, it was holding the enormous sword. Rio simply rolled her eyes at the theatrics.

Yumi laughed. “Don't get upset. After all, this is the end of the duel, and I want you to at least be able to smile after helping me realize everything before.” She discarded a card to activate its effect. “When Rusty Sword activates, I'll use Komboriboh's effect to discard itself and add another Equip Magic from my Graveyard to my hand that could also target Majesty Magician.” Her selection was Broken Wand, mostly for safety's sake.

“Majesty Magician, attack Girzerker Killer Crocodile! Majesty Strike!” The wizard pulled the sword from where it rested against its shoulder, lunging forward. With its 4500 ATK, it would leave Rio with only 600 remaining; that is, if Yumi hadn't activated another card. “During the Damage Step, I use my Trap, Unbreakable Spirit!” Rio grit her teeth, not accounting for her set cards to actually matter.

“I target a monster on my field, then have it gain ATK equal to the monster on your field with the lowest ATK. That means Majesty Magician's ATK becomes 7500!” Her monster gave a shout as an aura of power enveloped it. Spinning like a top, it slashed clean through Rio's Girzerker, a large explosion signaling its defeat. Yumi pumped her fist in excitement before remembering the effects of the chamber they were. “Rio, are you okay?” she called out, about to run through the smoke to check.

“Trap activate,” she heard. “Guard Block. I can activate this when I'm about to take damage, making it zero and letting me draw a card.” Despite everything, she still refused to lose to Yumi. Taking the top card of her deck, she felt her heart skip a beat, a disconcerting smile spreading across her lips. “Now, since a Psychic-Type monster was destroyed in battle, I can activate Telepathic Power to destroy your monster and gain its current ATK as Life Points!”

Yumi could only watch in horror as her best card writhed in pain, exploding as its massive ATK value increased Rio's Life Points to 9600. She began to cackle, pointing to Yumi. “Look at your face!” she said between breaths. “You thought you were about to win, but all you did was help me! And on my turn, I'll show you what it means to suffer! And it'll be all your fault!”

Yumi grit her teeth, unsure of what to do next. She'd lost Majesty Magician for good this time and whatever Rio claimed to have waiting next turn was probably not a lie. All she could do now was bolster her defenses and hope for the best next turn. “I activate Unexpected Guy! This lets me summon a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster from my deck if I don't have any monsters. I pick Hat-Trick Magician, in Attack Mode, and I equip it with Broken Wand.” The diminutive sorcerer appeared on her field, covering its head with its hands as its ATK raised to an unimpressive 1700. “Turn end,” she declared.

Rio began to laugh again. Quietly at first, then louder. Finally, she drew her card, still in fits as her Life Points reached 11050. “This is where it ends!” she declared. “You might have thought you'd seen all my Girzerker Ritual Monsters, but you'd be wrong!” She played her third and final Girzerker Ascending Ceremony. “I release Girzerker Baby Bird, Girzerker Little Bear, and pay 3000 Life Points for the cost of a Ritual Summon!”

Yumi counted up the Levels in her head. “Wait, Level 13? That can't be possible!”

“Ethereal horror born from another universe,” she began, stretching her arms out among the flames. “Cross existence to erase my enemies! Ritual Summon, Level 13! Chaos Girzerker Antimatter!” Rio's behemoth appeared on the field, glistening blue armor adorning its massive form. Its actual body appeared to be an otherworldly black color, darker than anything she'd ever seen before. Inside it appeared to be a bubbly yellow substance, two eyes of the same color boring into her like twin suns.

“When I Ritual Summon this card, you can't activate effects, and all face-up Magic and Trap Cards are negated!” As if on queue, the monster began to make a humming sound, blasting a purple shockwave across the field. Both her own Trap and Yumi's Broken Wand cards grayed out as they appeared on the field now that they were rendered inert.

Rio cackled, pointing towards Yumi. “Antimatter, kill her! Omnicidal Rage!” Letting out an inhuman roar, the monster channeled two balls of cosmic energy into its palms, blasting them towards Hat-Trick Magician. With Broken Wand negated, it lost its effect, rendering it unable to return to the hand and negate the battle.

“I activate Komboriboh's effect, banishing itself from the Graveyard to negate destruction and damage for a monster with an Equip Card.” The puffballs appeared on Yumi's field, cooing happily as they were incinerated in droves to protect her and her monster.

“You're only prolonging the inevitable!” she shouted. It was at that moment Fukuro finally appeared. He approached the chamber just in time for Rio's next advance. “I activate the effect of Girzerker Ascending Ceremony in my Graveyard, paying 1000 Life Points to return it to my deck and draw a card.” Her Life Points were of little concern at this point, but 7050 made it a moot point entirely. Pleased with her draw, she set it.

“I end my turn, activating Chaos Girzerker Antimatter's effect! During every player's End Phase, I inflict damage to you equal to half your Life Points!” Yumi's eyes widened as the monster's body began to glow. “Destruction Photon Execution!” she commanded, the monster letting out a wave of energy that knocked Yumi against the wall of the enclosure hard enough to crack it.

She felt all of it, too. It was almost real. If she were to describe it later, she would claim that her skin was being melted off her body. Screaming, she writhed on the floor, unable to handle the immense pain across her entire body. “Miss Rio, you have to stop this! You'll kill her!” Fukuro couldn't stand by any longer. He'd been an accessory up until now, but that was over. He tried to open the door only to find that the impact Yumi's body made against it had broken the handle.

“I know!” Rio said with glee. “Then this can all be over! Everything will go back to normal!” She began to cackle again, looking down at Yumi. “Come on, Yumi! You heard him! You're going to die, so take your turn and let me end you!”

Yumi was about to black out before she heard a voice, crisp and clear and uninterrupted by any of the noise around her, say, “She's right, you know.” This got her attention over the agony. “Hello, Takano Yumi! It seems like you can remember me. That's good! It looks like you're in another predicament.

She could hear the voice – Izar – laugh. “Mind if I take over for a little bit? You could go back inside that little brain of yours and rest up while I finish things here.” Yumi's breathing quickened, shaking her head slowly as she struggled to stand. “Come on. Just for a minute. All you have to do is say yes. We both know you can't handle anymore damage. Your tiny human heart would give out.”

Despite saving her before, Yumi had come to realize there was something not right about Izar. As friendly as he came off, she knew deep inside that his offers were anything but benevolent. More than anything, she didn't want to lose control like before. She didn't want to be an observer in her own body. “Takano Yumi,” he crooned softly. “Let me help you.”

“No!” she screamed as loud as she could, hearing a laugh in response. Whether it was from Rio or Izar, she was too delirious to tell. She stood weakly, panting and raising a shaky hand to her duel disk. “I'll do this on my own,” she said, drawing a card.

It was Twister. Even if that card was useful right now, she had only 450 Life Points left, making it impossible to activate. As if sensing her distress, Rio used another card. “During the Standby Phase, I activate Imperial Order of the Royal Palace! This negates every Magic Card on the field!” It was nothing if not an aggressively spiteful move for no other reason than to prove to Yumi she was finished, stuck with no way out. There was nothing she could do now. She had lost.

Except, there was something she could do. Every fiber of her being told her not to, but she had no choice. If she ended her turn, she would receive another blast from Antimatter's effect, killing her. If she managed to survive that, an attack from that monster, unaffected by her set Justi-Break due to it being non-targeting, would inflict double piercing damage, killing her. If she surrendered, she didn't believe for a second Rio wouldn't still find a way to kill her on the spot, butler or not banging futilely against the wall.

“I'm sorry for what I'm about to do,” she said quietly, tears running down her cheeks. It was more to herself and, by extension, everyone she cared for than Rio. “I summon Scaredy Lion in Attack Mode,” she declared, the two monsters sharing a mutual fear of their opponent. “I overlay my Level 4 Scaredy Lion with my Level 4 Hat-Trick Magician. Xyz Summon, Rank 4. Macrocosmus - The WORLD.”

The unsettling creature appeared on the field just like before, only this time there was no question that Yumi had been the one to make the call. The mark appeared on her forehead once again. With 2700 ATK, it seemed impossible that it could overcome Antimatter, a fact Rio was quick to comment on. “So that's your last stand? Pathetic!”

Looking down, she activated its effect. “I detach an Overlay Unit from The WORLD, banishing every Magic Card from both Graveyards to increase its ATK by 300 for each one.” Eleven cards were removed from the game, increasing its ATK by 3300 to make a total of 6000.

“What?” Rio said, pure terror washing over her. “That's...no! That's not possible! What is that?” Even her monster appeared shocked, roaring at the many times smaller being that had just overtaken it in strength. “You can't do this! You can't beat me, you trash! I'm Mabuchi Rio! I'll be the greatest duelist in the world in two years time! No one can beat me!”

Ignoring her rantings, Yumi commanded, “Attack.” Charging its beam, the monster let forth. Antimatter put up a resistance, but it was entirely in vain. The attack burnt through its enemy's blast like it was nothing, the glass around them shattering outward as the beam hit. It shot clean through Rio's monster, burning a hole through the back wall and into the Earth itself.

As devastating and painful as the damage she'd taken from that attack was, it was the least of her worries. While the summoning conditions alone were extreme, the true cost for Chaos Girzerker Antimatter's unstoppable power was its final effect. When it was destroyed, its owner would take the combined ATK and DEF values it possessed on the field as damage, making a total of 8000. Rio could only watch in horror as she was overtaken by a wave of energy, dropping her Life to 0 instantly.

The holograms faded, Yumi falling to her knees from exhaustion. “No, no, no, no,” she repeated to herself, shaking her head.

“Good job, Takano Yumi,” she heard, only making her feel worse. Fukuro, having avoided a majority of the glass while still being tossed back by the explosion, ran to Rio's side as she lay in a heap on the floor. Despite everything, he still loved this child. If she were to die, he'd never be able to forgive himself.

He felt for a pulse, sighing slowly in relief at feeling the faint thump of her heart against his fingers. “She's alive,” he said with a smile, slightly relieving Yumi's guilt in the process. Cradling her in his arms, he turned to Yumi with a stern expression. “Miss Takano, I apologize for everything that has happened here today and previously.”

Struggling to her feet, Yumi dropped the duel disk after collecting her cards. “Does that make it okay?” she said, her anger surprising herself. “You were right here,” she continued, her breathing starting to quicken. “You saw her try to kill me. She sent that man to do the same thing yesterday, and the three others who wanted to hurt me, too. She hurt my friends. She...” She began to hyperventilate, clutching her chest and trying to calm herself. “You think I should just forgive you?” she screamed.

He was silent. “No,” he said finally. “You have every right to hold a grudge against myself and Miss Rio. Nothing I can say or do will make this right. This is as much my fault as it is hers.” The last part confused her given how unaware she was of his involvement in this plan. “I have worked as the butler for this family since Miss Rio's grandfather adopted her father. I helped to raise her from the time she was born, yet I allowed her to become like this. All her actions are a result of my failure.”

He stepped forward, Yumi backing away. “I promise to you on whatever honor I may have that this is the last of your suffering at the hands of Miss Rio. A car will be in front of the building to escort you home momentarily. If there is anything at all we can do to ease your pain, please tell us. You need only ask and we can fulfill it.”

“I don't wan-” she stopped herself. As much as she would hate herself for this later, she saw an opportunity and had to take it. “My family is very poor. We struggle with having enough money a lot.” She couldn't say more, the guilt overwhelming her.

“I understand,” he said with a nod. “I will arrange for restitution. Again, I am truly sorry for all of this. Neither you nor your loved ones deserved this.” With that, he walked off, taking the elevator up to the penthouse to call for their in-house physician to attend to Rio. After a thorough examination, it was concluded she was perfectly healthy – the affects of the chamber remotely activating pain sensors, therefore causing no real damage – though her mind had apparently suffered some sort of trauma.

The only conclusion they could draw was that she was comatose as a result of it. There was no telling when or even if she would wake up from it. Fukuro would wait, though, as he always did. Whatever exactly happened down there was a mystery, but he knew the only thing to do now was wait. He prayed for her recovery as well as that, when she did awaken, she would once again be the girl he used to know.

Yumi rode to the lobby again after collecting herself. It was hard to make it the whole way given how much pain she was in currently. Once she reached the top, she wandered out into pure chaos. The lobby and the Critical Games employees were scrambling in every direction, news having spread fast that the heiress to the company was injured and in a coma. That news only made Yumi feel worse about demanding money from them. She honestly couldn't say Rio didn't deserve it, though.

Just as promised, a car waited for her outside. She got in quietly, the driver knowing where to go from the GPS. She sat in a daze trying to process what had happened. She just couldn't, though, no matter how hard she tried. None of it seemed real. Not the kidnapping, or the torture, or Izar, or the card, or Rio's plans, or the accident.

One thing was for certain, though: She would never again use Macrocosmus - The WORLD. Taking the card from her deck, she cracked the window as they drove through the city, tearing the card in half and throwing the pieces out, closing it back. While far from at ease, that was at least a small weight off her shoulders. That evil card was no more and she would never have to look at it or feel the temptation to use it ever again.

They arrived back at her house shortly, the driver helping her out of the car. She wandered to the porch, collapsing on top of it almost immediately. Looking off to the side, she noticed her letter was still there. Her grandmother hadn't even noticed she was gone. As much as she hated lying, she figured it was best to keep this from her, at least for now, wadding up the paper and tossing it under the house.

She rolled onto her back, shaded by the eaves and letting the warmth of the afternoon wash over her. It took mere seconds before she passed out from exhaustion, sleeping soundly for fifteen minutes before her grandmother came out to check on her.

The older woman had heard her granddaughter walk outside earlier, assuming she wanted fresh air and some time to think. She respected her wishes, though became concerned after she failed to come back inside nearly an hour later. It was a relief to find that she'd just fallen asleep, nothing bad having happened during that time.

“God, you're getting big,” she said, holding Yumi and patting her on the head. Taking her to her room, she reflected on how much time had passed since their family was last whole. It was almost 11 years to be precise, bringing a sad sigh to her lips. Her husband had passed away, her children missing, and now her granddaughter was nearly killed. She couldn't bear to lose her, too.

Setting her down, she covered her with a blanket, kissing her forehead before leaving the room to let her rest. And rest she did, not awakening until 33 hours had passed. Yumi was very confused, disoriented, and aching when that happened.

She finally got up at nearly the same time her grandmother planned to go to sleep. They talked briefly about how she was feeling, hugged, and heated some food. With how hungry she was, Yumi ate an entire day's worth of food to recover her strength. It was helpful that she wasn't in as much debilitating pain anymore.

“Do you want me to stay up with you?” she asked, patting Yumi on the head.

“I'll be okay,” she answered. “I kind of want some time to think, and I don't want to make you stay up. I'm probably going to back to sleep soon, anyway.”

“If you're sure,” she answered. “Don't be afraid to come get me if you need help. Are you sure you don't want to go to the doctor now?”

Yumi nodded. “I'm fine, I promise. I feel a lot better already.” She gave her grandmother another hug. “See you in the morning.”

“Alright, Yumi. Stay inside.” With that, Yumi found herself alone in the house. She decided to see what was on TV at this time of night, something she rarely got to check given how early their bedtime was on most days. Lowering the volume so as not to cause a disturbance, she flipped channels before settling on one of those late night anime with cheap animation made with the intention of selling the fixed Blu-Rays.

There was a lot more violence and nudity than she normally expected to see; just one of the perks of staying up late, she thought. She'd joined in the middle of an episode and had no idea who was who and what was happening, but it was colorful and fast-paced enough to keep her attention. Her favorite character was a grumpy pink haired girl with gigantic breasts that hit people with a whip, who she decided was named Baroness von Underboob.

There was an obvious similarity to someone she knew in there, forcing her to turn her head towards the hall where the phone sat. At the end of the episode and the energetically generic ending theme, she made the decision to get up and make a call. Picking up the receiver, she steadied her breathing, trying to calm her overactive nerves.

Slowly, she dialed the number and sat down next to the wall. It rang for a solid minute, no signs of answering, until finally she could hear a voice on the other side. Specifically, a sleep groan. “Yumi? W-what are you doing?”

“Hi,” she said. “Sorry, I haven't seen you in a few days, so I was lonely. I'll let you go back to bed, sorry.”

“No, wait. No, no, it's okay.” Sakuya stretched and rolled over in bed to lay on her back. “Are you okay? How are you feeling?”

“I'm feeling a little better now,” she said, unable to stop a tiny smile from coming to her lips. “I think I've been asleep for almost two whole days now. Are you okay?”

“I'm fine,” Sakuya answered. “I'm glad you're feeling better. Did you just get up?”

“Kind of. I ate dinner and watched some TV, and this one character reminded me of you and I wanted to see if you were still awake or not. Have you ever tried wearing a crop top that's, like, almost too small?”

“Excuse me?” she asked with a small laugh.

“Nothing, nothing,” Yumi deflected. She leaned her head back to touch the wall. “I'm sorry I haven't been going to the park. I'm kind of grounded, I think.”

“Yumi, don't apologize for that. We...a lot happened, so you just rest. Training doesn't matter right now.” They were both quiet for a time. “Are you safe there? Has anyone tried to hurt you again?”

Yumi stopped herself, her first instinct being to hide the truth again. Thinking better of it, she admitted, “Yeah, but we don't have to worry anymore. It's over now.”

“Did you...really...” Her voice was shaking.

“That's the thing,” Yumi interrupted with a small laugh. “I actually...won. I beat the person sending them after us, and now she's not going to bother us anymore.”

“How do you know that?” She received no answer. “Yumi, how are you sure she won't?”

“Well, when I won, she kind of...fell asleep. And as far I know, they're not sure if she's ever going to wake up.”

“Oh. Wow.” Sakuya sat up, fully alert now. “I guess we're okay now.” She sighed, running a hand through her hair. “I don't know what to say. Are you okay?”

“I think so,” Yumi answered. “I just miss you and everyone else.”

Sakuya finally smiled. “I missed you, too,” she said quietly. They were both silent for a time, Sakuya finally saying, “I talked to everyone recently.”

“How are they,” Yumi asked quickly.

“Kazuhiko kept calling me to complain about not being allowed out, since he wanted to come see you and try to make you feel better.” They chuckled. “Such an idiot.”

“He's a good person,” Yumi said with a smile.

“Yeah,” Sakuya was forced to admit. “He says Hideo's doing okay, too. Just trying to be okay with everything. Apparently, they weaved you a hat, so I don't know what that means but I guess you can look forward to that soon.”

“I like hats,” she said excitedly. “Have you heard anything from Kyoko?”

“I think she's been trying to find information on who was coming after us, but I guess nothing came of that.”

Yumi grinned, innocently saying, “Too bad she didn't come here to nurse me back to health. You know how cute I am when I'm all vulnerable.”

“Shut up,” Sakuya said with a pout. “Stop acting weird and get your rest.”

Yumi giggled. “Maybe you could be here to nurse me, then.” They both blushed at the thought, Sakuya secretly knowing how horrible her bedside manner was and refraining from any comments. “I hope I can see you again soon.”

“Me, too,” she agreed. They'd fallen silent again, Sakuya swallowing hard and saying, “This is kind of unimportant, but can I ask you something?”

“Sure,” Yumi replied.

“It's just...the festival is tomorrow. I know you probably don't feel like it, and even if you do you're probably not allowed, but I was just...are you still going to go? With me?”

Yumi was quiet. “I don't know,” she finally said. “I definitely want to see you, but I don't know if I'm allowed anymore.”

“That's okay,” she said, regretting all of this even more. She blamed herself for not being strong enough or careful enough. It was her fault Yumi got her, she thought, all because she looked like such an easy target.

Suddenly feeling determined, Yumi blurted out. “No, wait. I'm definitely going. I made a promise to you.”

“Yumi, it's okay if you can't. I'm not mad at you.”

Yumi huffed. “Nope, I'm going. We're going to have fun together and eat takoyaki. Oh, and the fireworks! We get to see those, too!” She nodded resolutely. “I'm definitely going to see you tomorrow!”

Sakuya couldn't help but laugh at her defiance. “You're unbelievable,” she said with a shake of her head.

Yumi laughed. “Yep! I'll see you, right? You're going now?”

How could she say no to her like this? “Definitely,” Sakuya replied.

“I'm happy,” Yumi said. “I'll see you at the beach, okay?”

“I'll be waiting.” With their resolution at its peak, the two talked about their plans for the day for the rest of the night.

\Next: Fireworks Festival – Is There a Real Confession Coming?/

Cards Used In Order of Appearance

Tribute to the Devil (Faustian Bargain)
Normal Spell Card
Send 1 Special Summoned monster on either side of the field to the Graveyard and Special Summon 1 Level 4 or lower Normal Monster from your hand.

Girzerker Killer Crocodile
EARTH
Level 9
Psychic/Ritual/Effect
3000 ATK/3000 DEF
You can Ritual Summon this card with any “Girzerker” Ritual Spell Card. Once per turn, when this card is targeted by your opponent's card effect: You can pay 1000 LP; change the target to another appropriate card on the field. When this card destroys an opponent's monster by battle and sends it to the Graveyard: You can add 1 “Girzerker” monster from your Deck to your hand with ATK less than or equal to the destroyed monster's original ATK.

Girzerker Bronze Tiger
EARTH
Level 4
Psychic/Ritual/Effect
1700 ATK/1000 DEF
You can Ritual Summon this card with any “Girzerker” Ritual Spell Card. Once per turn, during either player's turn: You can target 1 face-up monster on the field and pay LP in multiples of 100; that monster loses ATK and DEF equal to LP paid until the End Phase.

Rusty Swordsman
EARTH
Level 4
Warrior
1500 ATK/1000 DEF

Majesty Magician
DARK
Level 8
Spellcaster/Effect
2500 ATK/2000 DEF
You can Tribute Summon this card by Tributing 1 monster that was originally a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. This card is treated as an appropriate target for a card that specifically designates a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF while face-up on the field or in the Graveyard (its Level and ATK/DEF do not change).

Komboriboh
DARK
Level 1
Fiend/Effect
300 ATK/ 200 DEF
When a monster is targeted by an Equip Spell Card: You can discard this card and target 1 Equip Spell Card in your Graveyard that could be equipped to an appropriate monster on the field; add that target to your hand. When a monster you control is targeted for an attack while it it equipped with an Equip Spell Card: You can banish this card from your Graveyard to target that monster; this turn, that target cannot be destroyed by battle and you take no battle damage from attacks involving that target.

Broken Wand
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: This card's original ATK increases by 500. When this card attacks or is attacked by a monster with higher ATK: You can return this card to your hand and end the Battle Phase.

Unbreakable Spirit
Normal Trap Card
If you control only 1 face-up monster: Target that monster; until the end of this turn, it gains ATK equal to the ATK of the monster your opponent currently controls with the lowest ATK (your choice, if tied).

Guard Block (Defense Draw)
Normal Trap Card
During your opponent's turn, at damage calculation: Make the battle damage you take from this battle 0, and if you do, draw 1 card.

Telepathic Power
Normal Trap Card
When a Psychic-Type monster you control is destroyed by battle with an opponent's attacking monster: Target the opponent's monster; destroy that target, and if you do, gain LP equal to the destroyed monster's ATK on the field.

Unexpected Guy (Unexpected Dai)
Normal Spell Card
If you control no monsters: Special Summon 1 Level 4 or lower Normal Monster from the Deck.

Hat-Trick Magician
DARK
Level 4
Spellcaster
1200 ATK/1500 DEF

Girzerker Ascending Ceremony
Ritual Spell Card
This card can be used to Ritual Summon any “Girzerker” Ritual Monster. You must also Tribute monsters from the field or your hand whose total Levels equal the Level of the Ritual Monster you Ritual Summon. You can also pay LP equal to any number of Levels x 500, in addition to any Tributes used to equal the Level of the Ritual Monster. While this card is in your Graveyard, except the turn it is sent there: Pay 1000 LP; shuffle this card into your Deck and draw 1 card.

Girzerker Baby Bird
EARTH
Level 3
Psychic/Effect
1000 ATK/800 DEF
Pay 800 LP; excavate the top card of your Deck. If it is a “Girzerker” card, add it to your hand, then shuffle your Deck. If it is not, send it to the Graveyard.

Girzerker Little Bear
EARTH
Level 4
Psychic/Effect
1500 ATK/900 DEF
When this card is Normal Summoned: You can add 1 “Girzerker” Ritual Monster from your Deck to your hand. You can discard this card; add 1 “Girzerker” Ritual Spell Card from your Graveyard to your hand. You can only use each effect of “Girzerker Little Bear” once per turn, and only once per turn. To activate these effects, pay 1000 LP.

Chaos Girzerker Antimatter
LIGHT
Level 13
Psychic/Ritual/Effect
4000 ATK/4000 DEF
You can Ritual Summon this card with any “Girzerker” Ritual Spell Card. Must be Ritual Summoned, and cannot be Special Summoned by other ways. When Ritual Summoned, cards and effects cannot be activated, also negate the effects of all face-up Spell/Trap Cards on the field. If this card attacks, your opponent's Spell/Trap Cards and monster effects cannot be activated on the field until the end of the Damage Step. Cannot be destroyed by Spell/Trap effects that do not target this card. If this card attacks a Defense Position monster, inflict double piercing battle damage to your opponent. During each player's End Phase: Inflict damage to your opponent equal to half their Life Points. When this card is destroyed: Take damage equal to its combined ATK and DEF on the field.

Twister
Quick-Play Magic Card
Pay 500 LP, then target 1 face-up Spell/Trap Card on the field; destroy that target.

Justi-Break
Normal Trap Card
Activate only when your opponent declares an attack against a face-up Normal Monster you control. Destroy all monsters on the field, except face-up Attack Position Normal Monsters.

Imperial Order of the Royal Palace (Imperial Order)
Continuous Trap Card
Negate all Spell Card effects on the field. During each of your Standby Phases, pay 700 Life Points or destroy this card.

Scaredy Lion
EARTH
Level 4
Beast
1300 ATK/ 1000 DEF

Macrocosmus - The WORLD
DARK
Rank 4
Fiend/Xyz/Effect
? ATK/? DEF
2 or more Level 4 monsters
This card's ATK and DEF become the combined ATK and DEF of the monsters used as Xyz Material when summoned, respectively. Detach 1 Xyz Material from this card and banish any number of Spell Cards in both Graveyards; this card gains 300 ATK for each card banished by this effect, until the End Phase. When this card is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard: You can add 1 of the Spell Cards that was banished by this effect to your hand.

Chapter Text

Yumi had managed to get an hour's worth of sleep before waking up again at dawn. Her internal clock was quite obviously in shambles at this point, though it was at least allowing her to get up at a reasonable time for her lifestyle. Shooting, burning pain had turned into a dull ache across her body; not optimal, but definitely an improvement. A few more days of resting and she should be back to full strength, she thought. Rest wasn't her goal today, though.

She set about making breakfast to try and get on her grandmother's good side today. When that inevitably failed, she hid all the evidence as well as she could and went back to her room to sit in contemplative silence. She had to think of something else to do that would make her more accepting of going out to see the fireworks. Unfortunately, her inability to focus on anything that took a lot of planning and brain power, especially without any food, quickly led her to doing other things.

By the time her grandmother had awoken, she'd already managed to draw a full portrait of Majesty Magician (minus the feet, being cut off at the edge of the page because she didn't know how to draw feet). Hearing noise in the direction of the kitchen, she slipped out to see what she could do. Upon arrival, she found her grandmother staring perplexed into the refrigerator. “Yumi, were you trying to cook again?”

She'd been caught. Looking to the side, she tried not to devolve into nervous laughter. “I wanted to make you something,” she said, a few giggles escaping as she tried to stay straight faced. Like all things straight, though, she was exceedingly bad at it. Being put on the spot always made her anxious, and her reflex was always to try to laugh it away.

With a sigh, she patted her head. “That's sweet of you, but let me help next time.” She looked around to assess what they had left. “Get some rice for now. We needed to go shopping, anyway.” Yumi did as instructed while her grandmother walked off to ready herself for traveling into the city. She ate little, a thick, queasy feeling in her solar plexus as she worried over how to ask to go see the fireworks later.

Despite this, she resolutely shoveled the rest down, running off to change clothes. She had the foresight to take a shower last night, meaning she wasn't about to walk out into public smelling like four days worth of misery and sweat. After so long without them, she was actually pretty happy to be wearing overalls again. Her father's hand-me-downs always felt exceptionally comfortable and familiar to her no matter how out of date they made her fashion sense.

After fixing her hair, she pulled her goggles around her head and sat them in their usual position. With everything that happened the last few days, seeing herself in the mirror like this was reassuring. Things would be okay, she told herself. Everything was going back to normal she thought while placing her deck into her front pocket. “I can do it!” she said, smacking her cheeks to try and motivate herself.

The two of them finished their morning routines about the same time, her grandmother taking her cane for the extended walk to and from the house. Yumi was always impressed with how nice her grandmother's outfits were whenever they went out together, especially compared to the old, floor-length dresses and slippers she usually wore around the house. Today was a flared yellow dress and brown jacket, hair pulled back into a ponytail. It actually gave her pause to consider whether or not to try her hair that way sometime, ultimately deciding that familiar was better. She had a trademark image to keep up.

They talked back and forth about different mundanities on their way to the train station, Yumi recounting some dueling stories and rare cards she'd gotten recently and how she finally finished all her summer homework after getting home from the beach, her grandmother bringing them both to tears with half-remembered events from a game show she was particularly fond of. “He just kept saying, “99!' every answer, even for the ones that didn't involve numbers!” she said, having stopped to regain their breath.

“But why?” Yumi asked as she tried not to fall over.

“I think it was based on a strategy I've heard about, but he just got so nervous he couldn't do it right.” She shook her head, still laughing. “Poor kid.” The actual train ride was rather uneventful, the two of them reading as they moved so as not to disturb other passengers. Yumi had chosen to take a pocket edition of a dueling guide book Sakuya had loaned her, while her grandmother chose the trashiest of trashy romance novels, Olive Oil: The Ninth Book of The Song of Love and Freedom Series. She found that kind of literature to be more entertaining than legitimately good fiction.

Finally, their stop came with only a short walk to the market left. It was a spacious place outdoors for various farmers, fishers, and many other kinds of sellers to peddle their products to the people of the city. Quality and freshness were generally better than what most of the large supermarkets carried, and there was just the general feel good sensation of helping directly support the people who made their food.

With all that said, though, the Takano family's shopping lists were usually quite small. Whether it be monetary concerns or the advantage of having their own produce garden on their property, most of what they bought ended up being things they couldn't easily make for themselves. “What are you wanting to eat?” her grandmother asked, quickly adding, “and don't say octopus, because we're already getting that.”

She thought for a moment, raising up and down on her toes before deciding, “We haven't had chicken in a while. Oh, and broccoli! Can we get some of that?”

“Sure thing,” she said, giving her a pat on the head. She stopped right before arriving at the booth normally expected to sell poultry products. “Oh, speaking of octopus, can you see how much it is today? It's right over there.” She pointed a few stalls down; not incredibly far and more than close enough to keep an eye on her through the limited crowd.

“Yep!” she shouted, jogging over to the booth and examining the prices on her most despised animal. As she compared the prices on different kinds of sea creatures, she was caught off guard as a man in a billowing brown cloak and hood approached her, completely unaware as he stood next to her.

His eyes lit up. “Takano Yumi!” he said gleefully. She jumped back in surprise, preparing to run away. “Wait, don't leave! I'm just...wow, I'm a fan!” She looked him up and down, paying special attention to his unkempt red hair and scraggly beard. Despite getting the sense his comments were genuine, she was still put off by the stranger's sudden appearance in front of her.

“How do you know my name?” she asked fearfully. This couldn't be another assassin, could it? She beat Rio herself. That should have been the end of it. Frankly, he didn't even seem to fit with the rest of them, visually or in mannerism (though based on what Hideo had told everyone about their opponent, she might be wrong).

“Just a fan,” he repeated, still seeming flustered and slightly starstruck. He shook his head quickly to clear his thought. “That's not important right now. All I need you to do is take this card and never lose it.” He reached into his cloak and pulled out a Duel Monsters card, looking at it puzzlingly. “Okay, that's different. Whatever, I'm sure it'll work out.” He held it out to her, the front of it having gone completely white for reasons unknown.

Yumi began flashing back to her deal with Izar, breathing starting to pick up rapidly. She shook her head slowly as she backed away. “No, no, no, no,” she repeated, refraining from having a breakdown in public.

“W-wait, I won't hurt you!” he said quickly, waving his arms back and forth. It was too late, though. She'd already run back to her grandmother and was telling her about a strange man trying to give her a trading card.

“What man?” her grandmother said seriously, head darting around the market for anyone who matched the description she'd been given. “I don't see him,” she said, stroking a panicked Yumi's hair. “It's going to be alright,” she assured her. “You made a good decision telling me.”

She didn't know why that action, specifically, set her off like this. Suddenly, her chest just started to feel tight as she flashed back to all the pain that card had caused the moment that man held out whatever he was offering. It was blank, too, just like The WORLD before it appeared to her.

After a few minutes, she managed to calm down. She felt supremely embarrassed to have an episode in the middle of public like this, but she was told it was nothing to be ashamed of. “It's alright,” her grandmother reassured her. “Just relax. You're safe.”

She took a deep, shaky breath and pulled her goggles over her eyes. “I'm okay,” she said with a nod. “R-right.” She just remembered why she was over there to begin with. “I think it's a good price. It all looks good.” The lack of any actual useful information she could remember only worsened the situation.

“I guess we should get a lot,” her grandmother said with a smile, patting her head once more and taking her hand. She carried a special insulated bag in the other containing a whole chicken. As promised, they picked up a large collection of octopus and fresh fish after arriving at the booth, the older woman quickly doing calculations in her head to figure what she'd have to refrain from buying in order to afford the extra seafood.

As they walked the market, Yumi slowly began to relax from her panic. She wasn't sure that stranger really meant harm. His whole deal was odd, sure, but the circumstances themselves were so radically different that any chance of another mistake like the one before seemed rather slim. Even so, she'd still make sure to tell Sakuya and the others once she got the chance just for safety's sake.

Which brought her back to her initial dilemma. How would she ask to go to the fireworks tonight? Especially after reporting yet another mysterious stranger tried to accost her just moments ago, which she was already regretting talking about. That panic attack had left her feeling pretty drained and unsociable, too. All she wanted right now was to go home and go to bed for the rest of the day, but she was determined to power through. She made a promise and she was going to keep it.

They finished their shopping quickly enough, now with plenty of food to last the two for quite some time. “Can you believe you used to be such a picky eater?” her grandmother asked with a laugh. “Always had to hide stuff in what you would eat until you finally started liking it, and now look at you.”

Yumi chuckled along with her. It was kind of funny, wasn't it? Especially since all her friends were (rightfully) amazed at how much she could eat now. More importantly, though, she seemed to be in a good mood. She'd have to ask soon or else they'd already be home and her grandmother would be changing into TV watching clothes, and there was nothing she could do after that happened.

“Grandma,” she finally managed to say as they neared the train station. As usual, her planning skills were sub-par. She'd spent all her energy and mental resources working up the courage to ask the question that she didn't plan out what she planned to ask to begin with.

“What is it?” she asked, shifting her bags around to free a hand to take her wallet out when the time was right.

After a slight pause, Yumi gathered up her determination and said the first thing that came to her mind. “Takoya-” She shook her head, then tried again. “Do you know what day it is?”

She had to think for a few seconds before concluding, “Saturday?”

Yumi nodded. “In August. You...remember what this weekend is, right?”

“The fireworks, yeah,” she concluded after a few more moments of pondering. “Wonder if they'll be on TV.”

That last comment almost discouraged her from trying to go any further, but she kept pressing. “I was...actually wondering if...” She swallowed hard. “...we could still go, maybe?” They both stopped in their tracks, Yumi's heart freezing. She was going to get scolded again, she just knew it.

“Do you think that's a good idea?” she asked with a stern expression. The way she said it seemed to more honestly imply, “Do you really think you should be asking that right now?”

“Well...” She cleared her throat. “I just...we always go, and...” She cleared it again, her hands quivering a bit. “I, um...I promised my friends we could...” She began wringing her hands to stave off her anxiety. It helped her focus enough to add, “We always go and I know you're not really happy with me right now, but I think we...should still go. Please?”

Her grandmother continued to look down at her, Yumi shifting back and forth on her heels. “I don't want you going off on your own right now,” she finally said.

“I won't!” Yumi responded quickly. “A-and you'll be there, so nothing can happen. That's okay, right?”

She sighed and, after a long pause, said, “I'm not saying yes, but I'm also not saying no.” While not as decisive as she would have hoped for, this was an optimistic enough answer to warrant hopping up and down. That wasn't nearly enough, though; this was hand flapping-levels of excitement, but groceries got in the way of that (for the time being).

The train ride home was uneventful, the mood having brightened considerably compared the ordeal at the market. They were able to talk about the usual topics once more on the ride back without care, happy to have food for the house once more. As they neared the end of the short walk back home, Yumi made the decision to push for one more liberty. She was on a roll, so why not risk it?

“There was one more thing I wanted to ask,” she said with a slight bit of hesitation. Having gotten her grandmother's attention, she continued, “Well, um, over the summer, I've been getting a lot better at Duel Monsters and I was kind of planning to enter a tournament again. I mean, maybe.”

Before Yumi could even get to asking her question, she heard a sigh. “You're pushing it, Yumi,” her grandmother told her. “The fireworks are one thing, but you're still being punished. Besides, those tournaments have an entrance fee. I don't think we can afford that right now.”

“I get that, but...” Quickly, she tried to find a way to spin this in her favor. All her training was paying off now that she'd gotten much better at thinking under pressure. “I mean, it's not just for fun. It's for my future, too.” This got a reaction, and she was prepared to capitalize on it. “Yeah. I've always wanted to be like my parents and become a professional duelist, and tournaments like this are the best way to get qualified and noticed by sponsors. So, I mean, it wouldn't just be me having fun. I'd be working towards my future, too. And you can take the fee out of my allowance.”

A few moments passed as the older woman grumbled. “You've got too much of your mother in you,” she said, a small smile forcing its way to her lips. Yumi's mother had always been known for her exceptional strategic talent in the game as well as simply being one of the smartest people she'd ever met. It was starting to become clear her granddaughter had inherited that guile, too.

Nothing she said was untrue, either. Thinking back, she remembered when Yumi's father – her own son – started his career as a professional Duel Monsters player. He'd taken a similar route as Yumi, tackling official tournaments like this to work up to larger and larger fame, giving him a head start in the pro league after passing the test. If Yumi was serious about her career goals, it definitely wouldn't hurt to try her hand at earning the title of strongest in Chiba.

“Fine, fine,” she relented. “If I can find a way to budget for it, I'll consider letting you compete.” They arrived back at the house as the conversation drew to a close. Given the time of day, the mail had probably arrived, prompting her to check the box. A few bills, a home goods catalog, and some sort of letter. Puzzling as it was (who was sending them letters, much less addressed to Yumi?), it could wait until they were inside and putting away the food.

Once everything was in its proper place, she looked over the mail, wondering aloud, “Now, what are we going to have for breakfast? I guess it's closer to lunch now. Brunch?” Like most would do, she turned to the mysterious letter first. Unfolding the single piece of crisp paper housed within the envelope, she took hold of a mint green rectangle that fell to the floor. It was a check, further adding to the confusion. Her breath immediately escaped her as she saw the numbers along the side.

“Yumi!” she screamed down the hall, wandering in a daze into the TV room. The girl bolted from her room and toward the sound of her name. Her grandmother hardly ever yelled, let alone at her, so she was rather startled at being called like this. Flopping to the couch, her grandmother handed her the letter and check. “Yumi...am I dreaming? W... P... I...”

Gasping, things started to make sense. It was a check addressed to her guardian for 1 million yen. The letter explained the rest. Between flowery writing and legalese, she was able to parse that the butler had made good on his word, using his position at Critical Games to repay Yumi for her troubles tenfold more than she ever imagined. And, according to what she was reading, they were extending an offer to sponsor her for her “exceptional talent at the game of Duel Monsters.” To avoid admitting any connection to attempted homicide, the money was explained to be like a signing bonus, though it specified she could refuse the offer and still be allowed to keep it.

“You really have been getting better,” her grandmother said, still in a stupor over the reality that they'd just been gifted a life-changing amount of money with no strings attached. She ran a hand through her hair, taking a deep breath to collect her thoughts. “Well, I guess you'll be going to the tournament.”

Yumi immediately began squeezing the life out of her grandmother, squealing in delight at the resolution to let her join the fight. “But don't think this means you can just do whatever you want from now on. I'm still expecting you to make good decisions and follow my rules, understand?”

“Yes, definitely!” she said quickly. “Thank you, thank you, thank you!” Yumi let go, bouncing from foot to foot as she prepared to launch out the front door. “I'm going to go outside for a little bit and run around, okay?” Only giving enough time for a single nod, she was already on her way, excitedly jumping in front of the house and doing laps to celebrate how right everything was turning out.

Her grandmother was left to compose herself, pumping her fist and thinking about cashing this beauty and show off Yumi's accomplishments to her friends at their monthly mahjong games. 12 years old and she was already being scouted by companies looking to sponsor her. Your grandson was accepted to one of the best high schools in the prefecture, Tomoko? Well, Yumi here is about to become the World Champion of Duel Monsters before she even graduates middle school. How's that for bragging?

After a solid ten minutes of running off her excess energy, Yumi finally took a moment to rest. Flopping onto the porch in front of the door, she rolled back and forth fantasizing about expertly defeating all her opponents and standing at the top of the world. Her friends would lose it once she told them about the sponsorship, too. It hadn't yet set in just how absolutely awkward and scary it was being supported by the company whose heir had nearly murdered you a few days prior, so there was nothing to dampen her mood.

Her eyes fell to a turned over card next to one of the support beams next to the stairs. Strange; had she dropped it before leaving the house and not noticed? It didn't seem likely, but it was the only explanation that made some sense. She picked it up, greeted by the blank card face from before. Normally, this would terrify her. Not only was she holding another of these horrible cards, it meant the grungy stranger knew where she lived. Holding it in her hand, though, it filled her with a sense of warmth and protection its counterpart lacked, somehow telling her it was all okay. Against her better judgment, she decided to trust those feelings, placing the card with the rest of her deck in her pocket. What would she do with a blank, unplayable piece of cardboard? She'd figure it out eventually.

Rather than spend time thinking about the numerous existential worries she'd just discovered were something to worry over, though, she turned her attention to their plans for the evening. Everything was going pretty well, so her grandmother would definitely be more receptive to going out now. Even if they did end up going, though, would it all work out? Maybe Sakuya would decide against leaving the house today and just stay home. She'd could call and check, but she didn't want to be a bother.

The more she thought about it, the more discouraged she got. Sakuya had probably just been humoring her when she said they could go together. Who'd want to go out so soon after being attacked like that, right? It was true for her, too. Two near-fatal incidents in a row and a panic attack earlier in the day left her wanting to just spend the rest of the summer asleep. Everything was gross and tiring now and that seemed like the only thing that could make it more tolerable.

That wasn't an option, though. She'd have to power through. It was fine now. Better than fine, even. She was strong and she'd make it. There wasn't any reason she couldn't just pick up where she left off. The thought of leaving Sakuya there all by herself waiting on her to show up was motivation enough in and of itself, too. She had to go.

She spent the next few hours rolling on the ground, drawing, yodeling, vowing never to yodel again because of how awful that sounded, and pushing down any bad feelings or anxiety she had over leaving the house. Not the healthiest or most proactive of coping mechanisms, but they got the job done (for now). While little more than mindless fidgeting and random activities to keep her occupied for a time, they worked fairly well at keeping her busy for the next several hours. Aside from a quick intermission to eat brunch, she managed to distract herself until it was nearly time to decide whether they'd be going to the festival or not.

Checking on her grandmother, Yumi observed that she hadn't changed clothes despite being at home the entire day. This was a good sign. There was no way she'd choose to wear an actual outfit around the house unless they were going to head back out later. If that's what was happening, now would be the time to do it. Based on the walking distance and the subsequent train ride to where the festival was being held, plus a detour to the park to see if Sakuya would be waiting there, leaving now would get them there with about fifteen minutes to spare – plenty of time to buy armfuls of takoyaki before the fireworks started.

“What's that?” Yumi asked as she took a seat next to her grandmother.

“Some guy's trying to break the world record for holding your breath,” she replied, pointing at the screen to a blue-faced man beating his chest and writhing on the ground in front of TV hosts and a world record judge. “Only a few minutes left on the clock. I figure I can see if he makes it or not before we have to head out.”

Despite the apprehension she felt deep inside her, Yumi still mustered up her biggest smile and hugged her grandmother as tightly as she could. “You mean it?” she asked excitedly.

“Yeah, I suppose. It is kind of a tradition for us. But you have to be in my line of sight the whole time, and no wandering off places.” Yumi nodded enthusiastically, forcing a small laugh from the older woman. “Go get yourself ready so we can get going.”

As Yumi dashed to her room to collect herself and what she was planning to bring with them, her grandmother was left to ponder whether or not she was being too lenient, as well as see the man on TV fail at breaking the record. What Yumi had done was incredibly irresponsible even if she was doing it with the best of intentions. Did it warrant a greater punishment than just staying home for a few days? Worse yet, was caving and letting her do the things she asked for now that they had money reinforcing some kind of bad lesson?

Concerning as they may be, she eventually decided it wasn't that big of a deal. Yes, this was a bad situation and a terrifying scenario to end up in as a guardian, but Yumi had clearly learned her lesson if earlier in the day was any indication. As for the money, she trusted that it wouldn't lead to anything too wrong. She'd raised her granddaughter well and believed in her to turn out just as kind and understanding as she was now by the time she grew into an adult.

It was a complex scenario with a lot of things to consider, but she was willing to bet on Yumi in this scenario. She was a good kid who made a mistake. A big mistake, but one that seemed to work out okay in the end. The kids were safe and that awful man was dead, and the police would no doubt find whoever was behind all this soon enough. Justice would be served. Nothing to worry about in the long run.

Contrary to what her grandmother was thinking right now, though, Yumi was definitely showing signs of something to worry about in the long run. She sat in her room clutching the front pocket of her overalls and feeling the shape of the cards inside, bracing herself as a small panic attack ran its course. It took a minute for her to even realize what brought this on before realizing it was the fireworks festival itself. More specifically, what she planned to do while there.

The last time she saw Sakuya was the morning after that horrible incident. It wasn't so much that she dreaded seeing her friend again – quite the opposite, in fact – but she was afraid things were still bad for her. Or, worse yet, that experience had somehow tainted their relationship and she'd simply not show up despite what they'd talked about on the phone. She didn't want to lose her friend, blaming herself for everything that happened. If Sakuya never wanted to see her again, it would be all her fault.

Thankfully, the episode passed rather quickly, giving her time to slow her breathing and blot sweat with a dubiously clean t-shirt off the floor. This was silly, she thought while composing herself. Her fears made no sense and they definitely weren't true. Of course Sakuya wouldn't just abandon her. She even promised she'd be there, and she wouldn't lie about that. Definitely not.

With one last deep breath, Yumi finally calmed herself. Things would be okay. Everything was going right. Things were going to start looking up, she could feel it. Taking a few seconds to straighten her hair and make sure she didn't look like someone who'd had two breakdowns in one day, she headed out to meet her grandmother. “Let's go!” she shouted, faking her usual boundless energy.

Upon arriving back at the train station, they were unsurprised to find many more people crammed into their car than earlier that day. The fireworks were always a fairly popular event for the people of the city which only compounded the usual rush of those going out to have a fun Saturday night. Luckily for them, people were willing to give up seats for an elderly woman and her grandchild, allowing them to sit for the duration of the trip.

The entire time, Yumi still worried about what could happen once they reached the park. Despite her resolve from earlier pushing everything away, her thoughts finally caught up to her and forced her to go over the possibilities for this evening in her head. Would Sakuya be mad at her for getting everyone involved with Rio's vendetta? Would she ditch her? What if she only showed up out of courtesy and had an awful time?

Keeping her outwardly cheery and energetic facade intact, Yumi remained quiet until the train came to a stop and the two exited the platform. She'd explained earlier about meeting Sakuya at the park without receiving any push-back, making good time even without a bike. Her heart thumped painfully in her chest, still unable to shake her anxieties. No matter how much she told herself that these thoughts were totally baseless and extremely unlikely, she forced herself to linger on that tiny possibility that things really would go badly and that she would be responsible for it.

Finally arriving, Yumi was greeted by the sight of a friend; not Sakuya, but Kazuhiko. Unexpected or not, she was overjoyed to see him again and immediately launched forward for a hug. “Alright, alright. That'll do,” he said, returning the hug briefly despite his embarrassment. “Good evening, ma'am,” he added as Yumi's grandmother caught up to her.

“What are you doing here?” she asked excitedly. “Are you going to watch the fireworks with us?”

He waved his hand. “Nah, not my thing. I just heard you'd be down here and I wanted to see how you're doing. Also, Hideo wanted to send you some cryptic messages, so here.” He handed off his phone, letting her read a series of strange, almost nonsensical texts about how the time was nigh and that the true test would begin soon. A short sentence in parenthesis below explained it was about the tournament, and that they'd all be there to cheer her on when it happened. Yumi couldn't help but laugh as she replied with half a dozen hearts, stars, and dog emojis before giving it back.

“You're ruining my street cred,” he grumbled in reference to all the emojis. “Everyone knows I only use sharks.”

“Did you see Sakuya on the way here?” she asked, a slight tinge of worry in her voice.

He shook his head. “We talked on the way and she said she was going to be a little late. Not by much, though, so you shouldn't worry.” Yumi nodded, hoping for her friend to get there as soon as possible.

“How have you kids been holding up?” Yumi's grandmother asked. She didn't want to interrupt their reunion but wanted to ask directly before they had to leave.

Kazuhiko shrugged, feigning aloofness. “Not too bad. Hideo's not feeling being outside right now, but we're all going to support Yumi at the tournament, so I figure they'll be good by then. I'm fine, too.”

She nodded. “If you need anything, you can just say so. When things settle down, why don't you all come over to the house again sometime?”

“Yeah!” Yumi agreed. “We can even go home from school together in a couple weeks!”

He scoffed, turning up his nose. “I'm not desperate enough to walk home with a little kid. But we don't even go to the same school, so I probably couldn't even if I wanted to.” Scratching his head, he quickly added, “Maybe, though. It's been fun hanging out over the summer. I should get going, though. Trying to get my sister to finish her schoolwork before the term starts is a pain.”

“We won't keep you, then,” the older woman said. “Tell your mother I said hello for me.”

“Come over soon!” Yumi demanded, giving him one last hug before he took off, promising that they'd see each other again soon. “I hope Sakuya comes soon,” she said to herself, looking around the park and down the sidewalk to try and catch a glimpse of her. At first, her search turned up nothing, causing her anxiety to spike once again. Not more than a minute later, though, did she finally see a familiar blue come into view from the corner of her eye.

Running down the sidewalk was Sakuya, holding her hat on top of her head as she sprinted towards Yumi. “Sorry!” she shouted as she came up beside Yumi. “I didn't mean to be late. I tried to call your house, but you weren't there, so I asked Kazuhiko to tell you it would take me a minute but I don't know if he did, and I'm really sorry if I made you wait or you were worried or anything.” Before she could speak another word, Yumi had already embraced her. A feeling of relief washed over both of them, overjoyed to know the other was safe.

“Sorry!” Yumi said, jumping back after half a minute of continuous hugging.

“It's okay,” she said with a smile. “I was about to hug you, anyway.”

Suppressing a blush, Yumi grabbed Sakuya by the hand and led her to her grandmother. Sakuya couldn't help but think about how odd this whole arrangement was compared to her life before the summer. If things went normally, she'd have just been lording over the park like she always did, pretending to have some sort of authority and knowing all too well how alone she really was.

Ever Yumi came into her life, things had changed. She had people she could trust and care about now who cared about her in turn. Even her relationship with the other kids at the park was marginally less antagonistic. Despite all of this, though, the constant specter that she could be doing more hung over her head. A better friend, teacher, leader; none of it ever felt like enough.

She was being talked at now, though, so there wasn't any time to dwell on negative thoughts and fall into despair. “It's nice to see you again, Sakuya,” her friend's grandmother said. Her expression suddenly took on a stern and disapproving look. “I notice your father's not here with you.”

“He had to work,” she answered, forcing a smile. “But he said I could still go since I didn't want to miss the fireworks.”

“How have you been lately?” she asked, switching gears to be concerned.

“I'm okay. Not much happened, so I guess I just needed a couple days to myself.” Suddenly feeling nervous, she added, “But I'm totally fine now. You don't have to worry.”

Though not entirely convinced, she chose not to press the issue any further. “Alright. Remember our door is always open to you if you need anything. You're a sweet girl and you mean a lot to my granddaughter.”

“She does!” Yumi declared, giving her another hug. Suddenly, her head darted towards the large clock near the sidewalk. “We have to go!” she shouted, jumping up and down. “We've still got to get on the train if we want to make it before the fireworks start! And we need to get there before, too, so they don't run out of takoyaki!”

“I really don't think they'd just run out of takoyaki,” Sakuya told her. It didn't phase her, though, Yumi still insisting they hurry. Exaggerated rush aside, they did need to make the train, which they did. The two girls spent the ride catching up with what they'd missed the last few days, particularly how Sakuya had become a magnet for everyone else asking about Yumi's condition.

“And he just kept calling me every day asking about you,” she said, recounting Kazuhiko's extreme worry over the last few days. “I told him to just call you himself, but he just kept saying he'd wait.”

“He should have called me!” Yumi protested with a laugh. She'd elected not to inform Sakuya about the stranger and the blank card he'd left her right now, pushing down everything related to that and her earlier panic attack so as not to ruin the mood. It was going to be a good day, she told herself. She wouldn't ruin it by bringing up unnecessary things.

Time flew by as the train moved along its route, ultimately stopping in Makuhari where the festival was being held. Yumi bounded into the streets ready to sprint towards the music and food before remembering she was supposed to be on a short leash. “I smell it!” she called to them, basically as a way of telling everyone to hurry up so she could finally get her food.

“Why do you like takoyaki so much?” Sakuya asked as they were at the stand selling them.

“I don't know. They're just so crispy and chewy and warm.” In fairness, she wasn't really sure what to expect as an answer. A simple one like this was acceptable, though. Arms loaded up with takoyaki, they went to explore the rest of the are before the fireworks began.

For Yumi, most of her desires were fulfilled hopping from one food stall to the next. Kebabs, grilled corn, yakisoba, and a multitude of sweets were devoured at an alarming rate by the girl. “How can you eat so much?” Sakuya said with concern as she watched her friend inhale a chocolate dipped banana in a matter of seconds.

“I kind of forgot to eat lunch today,” she said with a laugh in between bites of a grilled sausage and rock candy.

“Pace yourself, Yumi,” her grandmother told her, splurging a bit herself now that they were more financially secure. She'd already made it to her eighth stick of dango, leaving Sakuya feeling a bit outclassed by both of these iron-gutted women.

Eating certainly wasn't her strong point, but games of chance were another story. Intent on winning something for Yumi, she made her way to a goldfish scooping booth. Neither of them was prepared to take care of a fish, but being able to catch one for her friend was why she'd come in the first place. She could always give it to someone else after the fact or return it to the tub, too.

After popping the marble in a drink Yumi was struggling with, she took her scoop in hand and paid the 100 yen cost. “You can do it!” Yumi cheered, stopping intermittently to suck down her peach flavored drink. Closing her eyes, Sakuya focused on visualizing her moves and plotting her strategy for a guaranteed success.

Like a bolt of lightning, she cut through the water with the plastic toy, immediately ripping the paper as soon as she touched a fish. After a moment of stunned silence, she grabbed another and paid once more to similar results. This continued until she was suitably seething with a pile of fourteen broken nets beside her. Even Yumi didn't have any luck on her two attempts.

“Stand back, kids. I'll show you how it's done.” With one swift motion, Yumi's grandmother scooped up a fish and expertly placed it into a bag. All three were astonished at just how easily it happened. “I didn't actually think that would work,” she said, handing the fish off to Sakuya. Thoroughly humiliated, she passed it along to Yumi.

Any attempts to restore her wounded pride would be forced to wait, however, as it was nearly time for the fireworks to begin. “We should get a good place to watch,” Yumi said, giving away the captive fish to a (hopefully) responsible child with his parents. “Not too close, but not too far...” she thought aloud, scanning the area for anywhere good to sit or stand. “The playground over in the park is nice and romantic, but it's too far away.”

“Why are you thinking about romance?” Sakuya asked accusingly.

“In case you decide to confess your love to me during the fireworks like in an anime,” she said while nuzzling against her, falling on the ground after Sakuya swiftly moved away. “Over there might be good.” As she stood back up, she pointed to a row of trees off to the side. It was close enough to take in the full spectacle of the display while being far enough away to get a good view. Not many people were there yet, either.

They made their way towards one near the center, Yumi immediately climbing up it to sit on a high branch. “Be careful up there,” her grandmother said while taking a seat by the trunk. With a grumble, Sakuya followed her up, needing some help to climb the whole way.

“Why are we up here?” she asked, keeping one hand on a higher branch to make sure she was stable.

“Better view,” Yumi replied shortly, swinging her legs back and forth without care. “It's about to start!” she squealed, controlling her urge to bounce for Sakuya's sake. Instinctively, she took her friend's hand. Though surprised at first, she returned the gesture quickly.

A hush fell over the massive crowd of people in attendance. A few tense seconds passed before the first rocket went off, followed by dozens of others. A cascade of every color imaginable lit up the darkness perfectly in time with the music. Different patterns emerged in the explosions, cartoon characters, flowers, and all manner of other images hanging in the air before fading away and being replaced by others.

Midway through the performance, Yumi began to feel uncomfortable. Her face was unexpectedly hot and she couldn't see properly. Reaching up to touch her cheek, she realized she'd started crying. Though not impossible, it seemed unlikely that the awe of the fireworks had moved her to tears. Without warning, emotions began to hit her in waves, nearly causing her to lose balance on the branch.

Sakuya was quick to notice. “Yumi, what's wrong?” she asked, squeezing her hand harder. “Is it too loud? Too bright? Did I do something wrong? How do I help?”

Forcing a laugh through the tears, Yumi rubbed at her eyes and dismissed it. “It's nothing. I just...I'm worried over nothing.”

As loud as their surroundings were, Sakuya focused intensely to ensure she didn't miss a single word. “Are you sure? It's okay to talk about it if you don't feel okay.”

She deliberated, her tears showing no signs of stopping. “I...” She laughed again. “I just got worried. When summer ends and you go away to school, you know? That maybe...we won't be friends anymore when you come back.” Sakuya covered her mouth with her hand in shock. “See? It's silly.”

“That would never happen,” she said quickly. “I'd never do that to you. I don't want to do that to you.” She swallowed hard while considering her words. “I...” She paused to take out a handkerchief from her bag and hand it to Yumi, who unceremoniously blew her nose into it.

“I care about you,” she finally said. “I want us to keep being friends even if we're apart for a while.”

“We won't even be able to see each other, though,” she said, sniffing and wiping her nose.

“We'll figure something out. You're good at doing that.” She inched closer, taking both Yumi's hands in hers. “I promise we won't drift apart. I won't ever let that happen.”

Yumi smiled despite the insecurity she felt. “It just feels like so much of what we are is based on training for the tournament, and once that's done and summer's over...”

“Is that the only reason you talk to me?” she asked.

“Of course not! I talk to you because you're smart and funny and help me with things, and you listen to me when I talk about stuff I like. And it's always really fun when we get to be together no matter what we do. I like playing Duel Monsters with you, and talking about that book you want to write, and even just talking about nothing.” She had to stop after that, panting now that she was out of breath.

“And I feel the same way about you,” Sakuya told her. “I'm always so happy when I'm with you. I don't want to stop being happy or making you happy. So I promise that we're going to see each other again after this summer.”

“You promise you will?”

“The very first thing I'll do is come see you. How's that?” Yumi nodded, pulling closer and pressing into Sakuya. Neither of them wanted to pull away this time.

A few minutes of peaceful fireworks watching passed before Yumi blushed. With a force laugh, she cleared her throat. “We're, um...still holding hands.”

“Oh.” Sakuya looked away with an embarrassed smile. “I guess we are, aren't we?” Despite this realization, they continued to do so. Slowly, they looked back at each other. Even without the fireworks, the glow from their faces would have lit the darkness well enough on its own.

“I...Sakuya?” Hands still interlocked, their faces moved closer to each other. They looked to each other for answers as to what was happening, but they were both lost in the moment and unable to process. Frankly, though, it didn't really matter.

A loud explosion ripped across the sky, Yumi jumping off the branch miraculously landing on her feet with a scream. “Are you okay?” Sakuya shouted after her as she carefully lowered herself to the ground.

“Yeah,” she answered with a laugh. “Sometimes loud noises scare me when I'm not expecting them.”

“I guess we'll watch the rest from the ground, then.” They sat next to each other under the tree, admiring the lights in the sky as they burned in and out of existence. The moment had passed, both of them left a bit wanting. They'd have plenty of time to make up for it in the future, though. For now, this was enough.

Yumi laid her head against Sakuya's shoulder, intent on enjoying the rest of their night together before they had to return home.

\Next: It's Finally Here - Training Put to the Test/

Chapter Text

It was finally time. She'd been preparing all summer for this. Now it was finally time to show everyone what she could do.

Yumi hopped up and down as she looked up at the duel stadium where the event would take place. She'd seen it many times over her life but had yet to actually enter. Whether as a competitor or fan, it cost money to be part of the action. Luckily for her, they had some to spare now.

Her grandmother patted her on the head. “I guess all those papers we signed are paying off,” she said, referencing the meeting days earlier to finalize Yumi's sponsorship by Critical Games. As part of that deal, she was given new equipment for this day. The duel disk in her backpack was reminiscent of the one she'd used during her death match with Rio, pure white in color with scarlet accents around the screen. She liked the new design for the blade, too, held inside a single compartment instead of separating into two halves like her old one.

It would take some time before she'd get the chance to try it out in a real duel, though. Because of the high volume of entrants to prefectural tournaments, it wasn't practical to have everyone set up duel disks inside the buildings and fight it out in a free-for-all brawl. Instead, they'd do things the old fashioned way at tables, at least for the first eight rounds. After that, the show would really begin.

Even so, she didn't intend to use this one yet. Despite being better than the rusty hunk of metal next to it in almost every conceivable way (to say nothing of its superiority when it came to saving space), Yumi didn't want make her debut with it just yet. It didn't make much sense from a practical standpoint, but she wanted to send off her classic model in the proper way. It had stuck with her for years now as a gift from her parents, and it deserved at least one more go at winning her a tournament before it found a home in her closet.

Before she could head in, though, she had to wait for her friends. As expected, she'd shown up early to soak in the atmosphere of the whole event and was now left waiting for the rest of them to arrive. Not quite as expected, the first to appear was Kyoko. “Yumi!” she called out, pulling off her helmet and stepping over to give her friend a hug. “Kazuhiko told me you were going to enter the tournament today, so I figured I'd stop by and wish you luck.”

“T-thank you!” she exclaimed several seconds later, initially dazed by the hug. “Are you going to cheer me on with everyone else? I could definitely make it to the finals if you were watching me.”

She chuckled and ruffled her hair. “Sorry, I'm kind of busy right now. If I can snag a spot later, I should be able to make it around the time the finals start. Make it that far, okay?”

“I promise!” Yumi turned to her grandmother to explain why a seemingly random woman on a motorcycle pulled up beside them. “Grandma, this is my friend Kyoko. She came with us when we went to the beach.”

“Nice to meet you, ma'am,” she said, bowing to her elder.

“Pleasure to meet you, too. Are you one of Kazuhiko's friends by any chance?”

She nodded. “Yeah, we all kind of know each other now.” Sakuya was the next to appear, her eyes narrowing as she spotted Kyoko in the distance. “Grumpy's here,” she announced, giving her a thumbs up only to receive a glare and a nod in return.

Frankly, though, she was more preoccupied with going to Yumi to hug her. “You'll finally get to see how much you've taught me, teacher,” she said, smiling innocently as a blush spread over Sakuya's face.

“I told you to stop calling me that. It's embarrassing.” She couldn't hide her excitement at the prospect of seeing Yumi take on the world, though. “You've worked hard at this, so I'm proud of you no matter what happens. That being said, I still predict you'll win.”

“If she's even half as good as her teacher, this should be a breeze,” Kyoko chimed in.

“Or her parents, for that matter.” Her grandmother couldn't help but think about the two of them now that Yumi had started down the same path. It would surely make them proud to see if they were still there.

With one last hug, Kyoko picked up her helmet. “I better head out. I'll try to get back before you win the whole thing.” They said their goodbyes before she drove off, leaving everyone to assume it was some kind of turf war she was headed to when it was really just desperation to finish all of her summer homework before her mother grounded her.

Not long after did the final members of their group arrive. Kazuhiko and Hideo made their way to the stadium, Sachi following along and holding Hideo's hand. “Sorry we're late,” Kazuhiko said. “My mom's at work today, so we had to bring my sister along.”

“I'm just glad you're here,” Yumi told him, managing to hug all three of them at the same time, something Sachi found incredibly funny. “You're still going to watch me duel, right?”

Kazuhiko scoffed. “Sorry, but I don't have time for that.” Everyone was taken aback by this. “See, the thing is, I'm actually feeling a little excited to see just how strong I've gotten lately. I figure it wouldn't hurt if I joined, too.”

“You're actually going to join the tournament?” Sakuya asked skeptically.

“That a problem? I busted my ass to catch up to Hideo, so I'm going to go out there and aim for the top, too.”

Yumi was nothing but excited at this revelation. “Maybe we'll even make it to the finals together. What if we end up the last two? That would be so cool!”

“Then let's do our best. I'll be seeing you there.” With a bumping of fists, they were finally ready to head inside and register. It was a simple process, just filling out names, personal information, player ID numbers and the like, as well as a small entrance fee. After that, it was just a matter of time until the tournament began.

“Have they said anything about the prize card for this one yet?” Kazuhiko asked, sitting with the group off to the side to avoid being in the way.

“Not from what I've seen,” Sakuya answered. “They usually like to keep that a secret until near the end.” Like most tournaments in the Fortuna Corporation's pro league qualification circuit, the main prize was a rare card for the first place winner. Sometimes it would be from an upcoming set in a special rarity, other times a totally unique one of a kind card. As the people who made the game, they had a lot of options, though they were always kept a secret until the finals.

Aside from the prize card, there were usually other things given to top performers. Packs, game mats, cell phone charms, and the like. The top two usually came home with some prize money, too, though a prefectural win probably wouldn't be enough to make a living on alone.

“Guess we'll just find out when I win,” Yumi said confidently, puffing out her chest.

“Better not get overconfident. I'm still here, remember?” The two traded witty retorts with each other while Sakuya and Hideo worked on their phones. With so many matches going on at once, the organizers always provided a way to track the status of the players as their duels happened.

The convenient thing about having a dedicated stadium in the city for events like this was the advanced technology that allowed things like that to happen. 'Smart tables' allowed the event organizers to track which cards were being played where, making them a helpful anti-cheating device. “How long is he going to last?” Hideo thought for a moment, then shrugged. In truth, they were hoping to see Kazuhiko go all the way. Having two friends face off for gold and silver was the dream, but it was hard to say how realistic that dream was until all the players had signed in.

“I bet my brother's going to lose,” Sachi said, sticking her tongue out at him. She was getting a bit impatient waiting for something to happen.

“Will not!” he shot back, forgetting his ever more exaggerated boasting match with Yumi.

“Will too!” They fought back and forth exchanging the kind of caliber of insults expected of a six year old. Despite her negativity, she still supported her brother and hoped he'd win. She was really just upset because he took an extra pancake that was meant for her this morning at breakfast.

“What about Yumi?” her grandmother asked the two of them. “You've all been teaching her this summer. Do you think she'll win?” Though she had some experience with Duel Monsters and wanted to keep her expectations realistic, she couldn't help but be excited for her granddaughter's first big tournament.

Sakuya touched her chin in contemplation. “I hope so,” she answered. Hideo replied that, based on everything they'd seen up to this point from her, Yumi stood a pretty good chance against most of the people they knew about in town who might be here. Ultimately, though, the answer would come when the duels began.

And began they did. Eight minutes later, the announcement came that the tournament was about to start. The judges thanked everyone for attending and commented on how many entries they had (119 players in total). As such, there would be seven rounds of non-elimination Swiss matches. At the end, the eight players with the highest records would stay to face off in single elimination duels until a winner was decided.

The clock was set, timing each match for 25 minutes. Player matches were posted on the walls and to the website, people scrambling to find their chairs and begin as soon as possible (save for a few scummy individuals taking their time as part of a strategy to run down the clock). “Let's do this!” Kazuhiko shouted, checking his table number on his phone and dashing towards it.

“I hope my opponent is strong!” Yumi said while hopping. She leaned over Sakuya to spy on her phone as she scrolled down the list. Confusingly, she was listed as not having an opponent when she checked with Yumi's name and ID number. “What's that mean?” she asked, puzzled by the same blank space where she would be assigned an opponent and seat.

“I think...” Sakuya began. “I think...you have a bye.”

“What does that mean?” Yumi rushed over to one of the walls where a bracket had been taped. Just as before, she wasn't given an opponent.

Sakuya scratched her head. “It basically means you get an instant win because there's an odd number of players.”

“But that's no fun!” Despite being given a 1-0 start to the day, she was still upset she wouldn't get to duel. “Why did they pick me for that? Can I give it to someone else?”

“I think it's because you've got the lowest rank here. Sorry.” This was undoubtedly the reason. Yumi rarely went to official events, and the few she did attend always ended with her being soundly beaten by the competition. As a result, her official duel record was astoundingly bad, the few wins she did have overshadowed by dozens of losses. Close or not, a loss was a loss on paper.

Yumi hung her head as the group went to watch Kazuhiko, Sakuya patting her on the shoulder. He was at the end of a table so it wouldn't be a disruption to have them all crowded around him. To their surprise, he'd already taken a decisive lead within the ten minutes since the beginning of the round. “I'll set a monster and end my turn,” his opponent said, quiver giving away that he was most likely out of options.

He scoffed, then stood up and put his foot on the table like an asshole. “Finish it!” he declared. Super Mutant Butcher led the charge, destroying the face-down Watch Dog, allowing Mutant Bite Hound and Mutant Venom Cobra to attack for the win.

After the fact, he offered his opponent a friendly handshake to make amends for his in-character theatrics. “Damn, you won already, too?” This was directed at Yumi, not initially picking up on her disappointment.

“They gave me a bye,” she said dejectedly.

“Sorry to hear that.” He patted her on the back, understanding her disappointment in being given a win rather than earning one. “Good news is you won't get skipped next time, though. Can't have two byes in a row.”

Hearing that cheered her up a bit. “I guess you're right. Still grumpy, though.” She puffed out her cheeks, Sachi copying her. The two made upset noises at each other as the group tried to kill time until the next round started.

Scoping out the competition was one option, but Yumi and Kazuhiko refused out of respect for potential opponents. They didn't want the possibility of having an unfair advantage over someone they might get paired up with. Hideo, however, lacked any such reservations and actively sought out various duels in progress to record different decks and strategies for future study.

“I want to duel so badly!” Yumi exclaimed while flopped on an unoccupied table.

Her grandmother smiled and pat her head. “You've got to be patient. It's not much longer.”

“I know,” she whined, kicking her feet. “There's just nothing to do while we're waiting.

“We could help you with your deck if you have any adjustments to make,” Sakuya suggested, looking to Kazuhiko and Hideo as they were doing just that.

She shook her head. “I did some of that last night, so I want it to be a surprise when you see what I've got.” Reaching into the front pocket on her overalls, she took out the blank card she'd found. Even after a bunch of tests she did to try and make it do something, the card failed to respond. Why she expected it to do anything was a mystery, but it was a feeling she had.

“What's that thing?” Sachi asked from beside her while laying in a chair. This caught the attention of everyone else, too.

“I don't really know,” she answered. “It's a card I found, but it doesn't have a picture.”

“You just found it?” Kazuhiko asked, scratching his head. “I've never seen anything like that before. Is it some kind of misprint?” Hideo took a picture of it quickly and began searching the internet for some answers.

“I think if it was a misprint, whatever it was supposed to be would still respond when I put it on a duel disk. I kept trying, but nothing made it work.” Whatever further questions everyone had about the blank card would have to wait, as the post-round intermission was nearly up. The second round would begin in less than a minute. “Finally!” she shouted, tensing up as she waited for the pairing to go live.

As soon as they did, Sakuya searched for Yumi's opponent. Just as they predicted, she was finally able to duel. “I think it's over there,” she said, pointing off to the left towards a quickly filling table.

“Then I'll see all of you after this round,” Kazuhiko said, bumping fists with Yumi. “Don't get wiped out before I have a chance for a rematch.”

“Better hope you get another pushover and finish in three seconds again,” she teased. He and Hideo headed off, Yumi moving to find her seat. Given that she was in the middle now, there wasn't much room for spectators, so everyone else would have to be content to watch from a phone screen off to the side.

“Sorry. Excuse me. Sorry.” Yumi was forced to scoot her way between people as she moved to her spot, ignoring the fact someone elbowed her in the ass (hopefully on accident). Reaching her chair, she took off her backpack and placed it between her legs to keep a good eye on it. As she reached to take out her deck, she stopped herself and grabbed the rubber game mat from her bag.

It was the first one she'd ever owned, feeling a bit of excitement as she unrolled it. It was a soft purple with labeled zones for every kind of play across its surface. A Critical Games logo was in the top left corner. She spent a good minute pressing her fingers into the squishy material before remembering she was supposed to prepare for a duel.

She sat in place, absentmindedly shuffling her cards as she waited for her opponent. Seconds turned to minutes as she began to worry he'd be a no-show. To her relief, a man crab walked between the rows of players towards the open seat across from her. “Morning. Ishida Akira.” He greeted her with a curt handshake, to which she enthusiastically responded in turn.

“Sorry, but I've got to get out of here.” He placed his deck down on the table, then put a hand on top to surrender. “Something came up, so I can't stay any longer. Good luck out there today.” As quickly as he appeared, her opponent vanished just as fast. Yumi was left stunned and confused. Her record was now 2-0, both given to her through technicalities.

“How was it?” her grandmother asked as she approached. “It looked kind of funny on Sakuya's screen there. It started up and then just stopped.”

She laughed weakly. “He gave up and said he had to go as soon as he got there.” They looked at her in stunned silence. How unbelievable was it that she would just be given two wins right from the start? Not extremely to be perfectly honest, though it was still frustrating.

With no game to play, they switched to watching Kazuhiko's duel. He seemed to be having some trouble playing someone whose deck revolved around returning cards from the field to the hand. It was an effective strategy and an unlucky match up, given it was the perfect counter to monsters that relied on staying on the field. Despite some initial trouble, a rapid fire Synchro Summon combo managed to win him the day.

“I just can't be stopped!” he proclaimed as he met up with the rest of their group. “I assume you won, too, Miss Yumi?” She was hit with another wave of despair, taking him aback. “You didn't actually lose, did you?”

“My opponent quit the tournament before we could duel,” she said dejectedly.

“Wow, I'm sorry. Two in a row.” He leaned against a wall with a sour expression. “This sucks. You've been looking forward to this forever now and you still haven't played a single game.”

“If nothing else,” Sakuya said, “there should be a lot less of that going on after this round. Look.” She pointed to the doors, several people walking out the doors after speaking the judges.

“What's all that about?” Yumi's grandmother asked. She felt as if she remembered seeing that years ago with Yumi's father, but it wasn't clear what they were doing.

To confirm her suspicions, Sakuya brought up the registration and current records. “Dropping out. If you want to make it to the finals, you can only afford to lose once. They're all people who lost both rounds, so they dropped out.”

“People actually do that?” Yumi wasn't able to wrap her head around the idea that someone would just quit in the middle of a tournament. Maybe they couldn't make it to the finals, but wouldn't it still be fun to see it through to the end?

“Hey, hey, granny,” Sachi said, tugging on the older woman's sleeve. “I'm hungry and bored and have to pee.”

She laughed. “Okay. Let's go take care of that.” Taking the girl's hand, she said, “We'll be back by the time the next round starts. You two keep an eye on the girls for me.” Kazuhiko and Hideo gave her a thumbs up, Sakuya grumbling about 'Captain Pompadour' being in charge of her.

As the two left, Kazuhiko nudged Yumi. “We were talking about that blank card, right?” The four gathered around as Yumi produced the item in question, handing it to Kazuhiko. “This is seriously weird.”

“I've never seen anything like it, either,” Sakuya added, Hideo nodding in agreement now that they could confirm there wasn't anything like it online. “Where did you say you got it, again?”

Yumi froze for a second. Technically, she found it on her front porch, but giving an answer like that seemed dishonest. Reluctantly, she explained, “There was a weird guy who came up to me one day who tried to give it to me, but I ran away. I found it at my house when me and Grandma got home from the market after that and I just kind of kept it.”

“Just some guy?” Kazuhiko asked.

“Why did you tell us about this?” Sakuya was concerned now, grabbing the card from Kazuhiko and turning it over. “What did he look like? Did he try to hurt you? Are you okay?”

Yumi waved her hands in front of her. “It's fine, I promise. He was just...some guy I'd never seen before. He was wearing some kind of brown cape thing, and he had a red beard. I don't think he had anywhere to live, either.” They all remained silent, Hideo doing what they did best and taking notes as if it was a crime scene. “I think he knew who I was, too.”

“Excuse me?” Sakuya looked Yumi in the eyes. “Why do you think that?” she asked sternly.

She swallowed hard. “He said my name and that he was a fan of me. I don't know, am I popular enough to have fans yet?” The three looked at each other, Yumi suddenly feeling nervous. “I'm sure it didn't mean anything, though. If he meant any harm, he'd have done something, right?”

“I just don't know,” she said, shaking her head. “Yumi, I-” With the announcement of the third round, the conversation would have to be put on hold for the time being. “We'll talk about this later. You should have told us, though.”

“Sorry. I didn't want to worry anyone.”

“Forget about that,” Kazuhiko said with a grunt. “We're friends, so we're here for you if anything bad happens. Tell us the next time a guy like that shows up and I'll come and beat him up, got it?” She laughed, nodding in agreement. “We've got duels now, though, so let's get out there.”

They split into two groups, Hideo keeping watch for Yumi's grandmother and Sachi since Kazuhiko and them were closest to the entrance this time. Yumi and Sakuya were located on the other side room, Yumi preparing her supplies like last time. The room was less crowded compared to the previous round, at least twenty or so people having quit between rounds.

A tall man approached the table, impatiently pulling out the chair and taking a seat. He scratched a thin, dark mustache across his upper lip, unrolling his own mat in front of Yumi while eyeing her up and down. Unlike her stylish bare bones model, his lacked any of the helpful field markers and only displayed an image of several nearly-naked anime girls at a bathhouse. Sakuya found it distasteful from where she was sitting a few seats down, but Yumi had absolutely no issue with his choice of equipment.

“I like your mat,” she said, trying to make conversation as they prepared for the duel. He ignored her completely. A bit discouraged, she didn't feel like giving up yet. “This is the first time I'll actually get to duel.” She forced a short laugh. “They kept giving me wins before, so I haven't even warmed up yet.”

“First or second,” the man asked. She blinked, prompting him to repeat it in a harsher tone.

“F-first,” she stammered. After her selection, he placed his deck on her mat to let her cut it. She did the same, her hand trembling a bit as she separated his cards into two piles. They exchanged decks once again and began the duel. There was no call to action as you'd normally find, Yumi too intimidated to speak up and her opponent having no interest in the formality.

The table displayed his name: Taniguchi Hiroshi. As she looked over her hand, she could hear him tapping his finger impatiently. From the sidelines, Sakuya tried her hardest to suppress the rage she felt seeing this awful man manipulate her friend.

“I'll start with Hat-Trick Magician,” she said, placing the card down in Attack Position. Taniguchi scoffed, making her flinch as she released it onto the field. “T-then I'll set two cards and end my turn.” Her anxiety was starting to build up, her concentration fading as she looked for distractions.

“Quit,” he told her.

“What?” She didn't know how to respond.

“I win on my turn. Quit so I don't have to waste my time.”

She forced a laugh, only for it to die midway through. “B-but we just started.”

He responded with a sigh, drawing to start his turn. Wordlessly, he Normal Summoned the card Bixi, Dracomet of Water, destroying it and the Dinomight Knuckle, the True Dragon Fist Fighter in his hand to summon out True Dragon King Baharstos, the Führer in Attack Position. “Banish,” he said while pointing at Yumi's set cards.

“W-wait.” She could only read so fast.

“Don't slow play,” he told her, his tone showing his utter disinterest in what was happening. Shaking, Yumi did as she was told, having gotten the gist of what was going on and banishing her Attack Nullification and Mirror Force cards. She was wide open now. Luckily, the damage would only be minor.

As soon as she thought this, he began sifting through his deck, only confusing her more. He summoned Suanni, Dracomet of Fire in Attack Position, only to immediately destroy it and Ignis Heat, the True Dragon Warrior in his hand, instantly summoning True Dragon King Agnimazud, the Vanisher. “Banish,” he said, this time referring to Hat-Trick Magician.

Reluctantly, she did that, as well. Now she was completely defenseless. None of the cards in her hand were able to help her now, either. From Suanni's effect, he was able to summon Bi'an, Dracomet of Earth in Defense Position. As one would expect at this point, both it and Baharstos were destroyed to summon True Dragon King Lithosazim, the Disaster, the last card in his hand.

This only proved that he was simply showing off, not even considering Yumi enough of a threat to play conservatively and take the first available kill when it made itself available. Both Bi'an and Baharstos used their effects, summoning Taotie, Dracomet of Evil and Jiaotu, Dracomet of Darkness. With the stage set, he performed a Synchro Summon using the newest Dracomets, forming Yaizer, Dracomet of Wickedness.

“Attack, attack, attack.” In an instant, Yumi's Life Points dropped from 4000 to 0. She had lost. Without another word, Taniguchi packed up his things and left the table.

“Are you okay?” Sakuya asked, taking hold of her friend's hand to try and keep her from shaking. “It's okay. You can afford to lose once without any problem. There's nothing wrong.” These words couldn't penetrate Yumi's wall of self-doubt, with only reminders of her failure repeating in her brain.

She trained so hard, but it was all for nothing. She only got to play for one turn and that was it, then he trampled her. Her hand still trembling, she put her cards away and slowly rolled up her mat. “It's going to be okay,” Sakuya repeated.

Helping her from her seat, Sakuya led Yumi towards the entrance, passing by Kazuhiko and Hideo. Interpreting it to mean Yumi had already won, Kazuhiko's enthusiasm grew as he launched into an attack, unaware of the truth.

The two girls sat on the ground, Yumi holding her head and pulling her goggles over her eyes. Everything she'd done felt useless now. If this was the caliber of player here, what hope did she have of winning? And if she couldn't win, what was the point of trying? She was letting everyone down, Sakuya most of all. All the sweet words in the world couldn't convince her she wasn't the biggest disappointment to ever live right now.

“We're back!” Sachi exclaimed, running up to Yumi while chewing on a Popsicle stick. “You won?” she asked, not picking up on any indication something was off.

Before she had a chance to say anything, Yumi's grandmother immediately sensed turmoil in the air. “What happened?” she asked the both of them, mistakenly handing Sachi the Popsicles meant for the rest of the group.

“Yumi lost,” Sakuya told her bluntly, patting her friend on the head.

“You lost?” Sachi repeated with one of the ice pops in her mouth. She wasn't really fazed by the news, as she didn't care about this game.

Nearly at a loss for words, all she managed to say was, “I'm so sorry, Yumi.” Soon, Kazuhiko and Hideo would rejoin them and hear the news. Whether or not she could continue in this state was yet to be decided.

\Next: Yumi's Lost Fire – A Vacation in a Land of Sweets?/

Cards Used in Order of Appearance

Super Mutant Butcher
DARK
Level 7
Psychic/Synchro/Effect
2000 ATK/500 DEF
1 “Mutant” Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner “Mutant” monsters
During your Standby Phase: Increase this card's ATK by 800 and Level by 1. If this effect is activated 4 times while this card remains face-up on the field: You can Tribute this face-up card at the end of your Battle Phase after this card destroys another monster by battle; Special Summon 1 “Mutant” Synchro Monster from your Extra Deck that has a higher Level than this card. The monster summoned by this effect can activate its second effect.

Watch Dog
FIRE
Level 1
Pyro/Effect
0 ATK/0 DEF
During your Main Phase 2, if this card was Normal Summoned this turn: You can send 1 Spell Card from your hand to the Graveyard; Set 1 Continuous Spell Card directly from your Deck. You can only use this effect of "Watch Dog" once per turn. You cannot Special Summon during the turn you activate this effect.

Mutant Bite Hound
DARK
Level 4
Reptile/Effect
1500 ATK/1200 DEF
During your Standby Phase: Increase this card's ATK 500 and Level by 1. If this effect is activated 3 times while this card remains face-up on the field: This card can no longer be destroyed by battle or card effects.

Mutant Venom Cobra
DARK
Level 3
Fairy/Effect
1200 ATK/800 DEF
During your Standby Phase: Increase this card's ATK by 300 and Level by 1. If this effect is activated 3 times while this card remains face-up on the field: When this card inflicts battle damage; inflict 300 damage to your opponent.

Hat-Trick Magician
DARK
Level 4
Spellcaster
1200 ATK/1500 DEF

Bixi, Dracomet of Water (Bixi, Water of the Yang Zing)
WATER
Level 2
Wyrm/Effect
0 ATK/2000 DEF
When this card you control is destroyed by battle or card effect and sent to your Graveyard: You can Special Summon 1 "Yang Zing" monster from your Deck in Attack Position, except "Bixi, Water of the Yang Zing". You can only use this effect of "Bixi, Water of the Yang Zing" once per turn. Once per turn, during your opponent's Main Phase or Battle Phase, you can: Immediately after this effect resolves, Synchro Summon 1 Synchro Monster, using only "Yang Zing" monsters you control (this is a Quick Effect). A Synchro Monster that used this card as a Synchro Material is unaffected by Trap effects.

Dinomight Knuckle, the True Dragon Fist Fighter (Dinomight Knight, the True Dracofighter)
WATER
Level 6
Wyrm/Effect
2500 ATK/1200 DEF
To Tribute Summon this card face-up, you can Tribute a Continuous Spell/Trap Card you control, instead of a monster. Once per turn, during either player's turn, when your opponent activates a card or effect while you control this Tribute Summoned monster: You can take 1 "True Draco" or "True King" Continuous Trap Card from your Deck, and either activate it or add it to your hand.

True Dragon King Baharstos, the Führer (True King Bahrastos, the Fathomer)
WATER
Level 9
Wyrm/Effect
1800 ATK/3000 DEF
If this card is in your hand: You can destroy 2 other monsters in your hand and/or face-up on your field, including a WATER monster, and if you do, Special Summon this card, and if you do that, you can banish up to 2 Spell/Trap Cards from your opponent's field and/or Graveyard, if both the destroyed monsters were WATER. If this card is destroyed by card effect: You can Special Summon 1 non-WATER Wyrm-Type monster from your Deck in Defense Position. You can only use each effect of "True King Bahrastos, the Fathomer" once per turn.

Attack Nullification (Negate Attack)
Counter Trap Card
When an opponent's monster declares an attack: Target the attacking monster; negate the attack, then end the Battle Phase.

Holy Barrier – Mirror Force (Mirror Force)
Normal Trap Card
When an opponent's monster declares an attack: Destroy all Attack Position monsters your opponent controls.

Suanni, Dracomet of Fire (Suanni, Fire of the Yang Zing)
FIRE
Level 4
Wyrm/Effect
1900 ATK/0 DEF
When this card you control is destroyed by battle or card effect and sent to your Graveyard: You can Special Summon 1 "Yang Zing" monster from your Deck in Defense Position, except "Suanni, Fire of the Yang Zing". You can only use this effect of "Suanni, Fire of the Yang Zing" once per turn. Once per turn, during your opponent's Main Phase or Battle Phase, you can: Immediately after this effect resolves, Synchro Summon 1 Synchro Monster, using only "Yang Zing" monsters you control (this is a Quick Effect). A Synchro Monster that used this card as a Synchro Material gains 500 ATK and DEF.

Ignis Heat, the True Dragon Warrior (Ignis Heat, the True Dracowarrior)
FIRE
Level 5
Wyrm/Effect
2400 ATK/1000 DEF
To Tribute Summon this card face-up, you can Tribute a Continuous Spell/Trap Card you control, instead of a monster. Once per turn, during either player's turn, when your opponent activates a card or effect while you control this Tribute Summoned monster: You can take 1 "True Draco" or "True King" Continuous Spell Card from your Deck, and either activate it or add it to your hand.

True Dragon King Agnimazud, the Vanisher (True King Agnimazud, the Vanisher)
FIRE
Level 9
Wyrm/Effect
2900 ATK/1900 DEF
If this card is in your hand: You can destroy 2 other monsters in your hand and/or face-up on your field, including a FIRE monster, and if you do, Special Summon this card, and if you do that, you can banish 1 monster from your opponent's field or Graveyard, if both the destroyed monsters were FIRE. If this card is destroyed by card effect: You can add 1 non-FIRE Wyrm-Type monster from your Graveyard to your hand. You can only use each effect of "True King Agnimazud, the Vanisher" once per turn.

Bi'an, Dracomet of Earth (Bi'an, Earth of the Yang Zing)
EARTH
Level 3
Wyrm/Effect
1600 ATK/0 DEF
When this card you control is destroyed by battle or card effect and sent to your Graveyard: You can Special Summon 1 "Yang Zing" monster from your Deck in Defense Position, except "Bi'an, Earth of the Yang Zing". You can only use this effect of "Bi'an, Earth of the Yang Zing" once per turn. Once per turn, during your opponent's Main Phase or Battle Phase, you can: Immediately after this effect resolves, Synchro Summon 1 Synchro Monster, using only "Yang Zing" monsters you control (this is a Quick Effect). A Synchro Monster that used this card as a Synchro Material cannot be destroyed by battle.

True Dragon King Lithosazim, the Disaster (True King Lithosagym, the Disaster)
EARTH
Level 9
Wyrm/Effect
2500 ATK/2300 DEF
If this card is in your hand: You can destroy 2 other monsters in your hand and/or face-up on your field, including an EARTH monster, and if you do, Special Summon this card, and if you do that, and both destroyed monsters were EARTH, you can also look at your opponent's Extra Deck and banish up to 3 monsters from it with different names. If this card is destroyed by card effect: You can Special Summon 1 non-EARTH Wyrm-Type monster from your Graveyard. You can only use each effect of "True King Lithosagym, the Disaster" once per turn.

Taotie, Dracomet of Evil (Taotie, Shadow of the Yang Zing)
DARK
Level 5
Wyrm/Effect
2200 ATK/0 DEF
When this card you control is destroyed by battle or card effect and sent to your Graveyard: You can Special Summon 1 "Yang Zing" monster from your Deck in Defense Position, except "Taotie, Shadow of the Yang Zing". You can only use this effect of "Taotie, Shadow of the Yang Zing" once per turn. Once per turn, during your opponent's Main Phase or Battle Phase, you can: Immediately after this effect resolves, Synchro Summon 1 Synchro Monster, using only "Yang Zing" monsters you control (this is a Quick Effect). Possession of a Synchro Monster on the field that used this card as a Synchro Material cannot switch.

Jiaotu, Dracomet of Darkness (Jiaotu, Darkness of the Yang Zing)
DARK
Level 2
Wyrm/Tuner/Effect
0 ATK/2000 DEF
When this card you control is destroyed by battle or card effect and sent to your Graveyard: You can Special Summon 1 "Yang Zing" monster from your Deck in Attack Position, except "Jiaotu, Darkness of the Yang Zing". If you control no other monsters: You can send 2 "Yang Zing" cards from your hand to the Graveyard; Special Summon 1 "Yang Zing" monster with 0 ATK and 1 "Yang Zing" monster with 0 DEF from your Deck, but banish them during the End Phase. You can only use 1 "Jiaotu, Darkness of the Yang Zing" effect per turn, and only once that turn.

Yaizer, Dracomet of Wickedness (Yazi, Evil of the Yang Zing)
DARK
Level 7
Wyrm/Synchro/Effect
2600 ATK/2100 DEF
1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters
Cannot be targeted by an opponent's card effects. You can only use each of these effects of "Yazi, Evil of the Yang Zing" once per turn.
● You can target 1 "Yang Zing" monster you control and 1 card your opponent controls; destroy them.
● When this card you control is destroyed by battle or card effect and sent to your Graveyard: You can Special Summon 1 Wyrm-Type monster from your Deck in Defense Position.

Chapter Text

“I'll kick his ass!” Kazuhiko shouted, looking all around to try and spot Yumi's opponent.

Sakuya held him back. “That's just going to get you thrown out. It won't do any good.”

“But there has to be something we can do about that guy!” His fists shook with rage as he tried to come up with a plan. “None of that sounded fair. Did he break some kind of rule? He had to!” Hideo confirmed that everything he did was legal. The only thing they might be able to report him for would be unsportsmanlike conduct, but the worst consequence of that would be a verbal warning.

“It's okay,” Yumi said sounding anything but okay. “I just...wasn't good enough.” She shrugged off her grandmother who'd been rubbing her shoulder. “I think I should just go. I wasn't ready for this.”

Kazuhiko was the first to break out of their collective astonishment. “But you're not even out of the tournament. You've still got a chance to make it to the finals.” She shrugged in response. “You're just going to quit like this?”

Sakuya took Yumi's hands. “If you really don't want to continue, then I'll support your decision, but I hope you think about it first. I understand how you feel, so I won't stop you. I think you still want to try, though.”

“No you don't,” she muttered.

“What did you say?” Sakuya asked, taken aback by Yumi's uncharacteristic reply.

She pushed away Sakuya's hands, saying, “You don't understand. How could you? You never fail at anything. Everything comes easy to you, so how can you stand there and say you know what it feels like to let everyone down?”

“But you haven't let anyone down,” her grandmother told her.

“Yes I have!” she screamed, pulling at her hair. “Everyone else is so talented, but I have nothing. The only thing I can do is play Duel Monsters, but after all this time, all that training, I just...I'm not good enough.” She inhaled sharply and tried her best not to make a scene in the middle of all these people. “You tried to teach me, but it didn't work. You were right about me from the start. I'm pathetic.”

Without another word, she pushed past Sakuya and ran into the crowd. Yumi ignored them as they called her name, hoping to find a bathroom to cry in and forget the world for a little bit before dropping out of the tournament. In truth, her reaction wasn't so much that she lost. Not on its own, anyway. It was more so what that loss represented to her.

She was beaten like it was nothing in a single turn. All the effort she put into trying to improve felt wasted. If she lost like that against the first opponent she met here, what hope did she have against anyone else? What hope did she have of becoming the World Champion? What hope did she have that she'd ever be good enough for her parents to notice her?

She'd convinced herself long ago that if she could just become good enough, just win enough, that they'd finally be proud of her. After that, they'd have no choice but to come home and congratulate her. But from the way things were going now, that would never happen.

Everyone was dumbfounded as to what they could do to help Yumi, standing in silence after she disappeared among the players shuffling about in the room. Hideo took out a green rubber pendulum worn around their neck to chew on, telling Kazuhiko they would go look for Yumi now that the next round was about to start. Sakuya went in the opposite direction to cover more ground.

Sachi tugged on her brother's sleeve as she sucked on a third Popsicle. “Mitsu, is she okay?”

“Yeah, Miss Yumi just needs some time to cool off.” He took Sachi by the hand, turning to Yumi's grandmother. “I'll hang onto my sister for right now so you can go look for her. I've got everyone else on my phone.” She thanked him and went off to look, as well. “Hey, you want to watch me beat some guy at Duel Monsters?” he asked Sachi.

“Not really,” she answered, lacking any real interest in the game.

“Too bad,” he said with a twinge of annoyance. The next round started, Kazuhiko finding his opponent and sitting Sachi down next to him. His opponent was thankfully an actual pushover this time, so it was easy for him to split his attention between the duel and trying to catch a glimpse of Yumi. He'd handed his phone off to his sister, telling her she could play with it as long as she told him if any of their friends said something about Yumi.

After watching all that Detective Conan as a kid, Hideo liked to consider themselves an investigator. Putting together the clues, they figured Yumi would probably find a secluded place to cry, and the most obvious and closest location for that would be the bathroom. They walked into the women's restroom and began listening for any unusual sounds.

As expected, quiet whimpers could be heard from one of the stalls. They knocked on the door. “S-sorry. I'll be out in a minute.” They knocked again, only to receive no answer. Frustrated at a lack of vocals, they pulled themselves over the top of the door and pointed to the outside with their thumb, nearly giving Yumi a heart attack.

Even so, she did as she was asked, lifting her goggles to let the tears drop onto the floor. “I don't want to duel anymore,” she said as they walked out together. Hideo wasn't trying to make her, only wishing to talk about things. As they informed Sakuya and Kazuhiko (Sachi) that they'd found Yumi, she continued to speak. “It's just a waste of time. I won't win. There's just no point in trying.”

While they understood her decision, they also pointed out the round had started. Quitting now might leave her opponent disappointed the same as she was previously. If she still didn't care, then that wouldn't be an issue, but they figured it was something to consider all the same. After a few moments, she stomped her foot and started walking. “Fine, I'll just give someone else an easy win. Where am I seated?”

The two traveled to where she would be dueling, seeing her opponent had already arrived. He was a tall, round man with dark hair almost resembling a Teddy bear. A friendly smile spread across his face when she pulled out her seat. “Hello. I was starting to get worried you wouldn't show up. In a couple minutes, you would have been marked as forfeiting.”

“I thought about it,” she replied dryly as she set up her side of the table. He chuckled in response, assuming it to be a joke. Hideo went off to find Yumi's grandmother since she was the only one without a phone and wasn't yet aware of what was happening. Sakuya would be there soon, anyway, so their absence for a few minutes wouldn't make much of a difference.

“It's nice to meet you. My name's Inoue Iichiro.”

“Takano Yumi,” she said quietly, taking his enthusiastic handshake as they began their duel.

Yumi couldn't care less who took the first turn, passing it off to Iichiro. “Okay, then. I'll start things off this time.” He spoke softly, but his enthusiasm for the game showed through regardless. “I think I'll summon Madolche Magileine first.” Yumi took notice of the pink haired witch her opponent had just played, not expecting his deck to be full of cutesy cards like that.

“I'll use her effect on summon, which lets me add another Madolche to my hand.” He looked through his deck, considering what would be of most use right now. “I'll pick Madolche Butlerusk.” He shuffled his deck, then placed two cards face-down and ended his turn.

She drew a card, looking over her hand. It looked like a pretty good start, but she knew what she'd get for making that assumption again. “I summon Rusty Swordsman in Attack Mode, then equip it with Rusty Sword.”

“Wow, that's a good combo.” He chose not to respond as Yumi attacked, inflicting 1100 damage right from the start and destroying his monster. “Madolche Magileine's effect activates when you destroy her. If she's sent to the Graveyard, I shuffle her back into my deck to use her again.”

“I'll set a card and end my turn.” Sakuya appeared after that, standing a ways away to observe as she was unable to get to the center of the table where Yumi was dueling. The fact she'd agreed to duel seemed like a good sign, but she was still concerned. Yumi didn't look to be having any fun and likely wasn't firing on all cylinders. She wasn't sure what another loss might do to her.

Iichiro started his turn. “You destroyed Magileine, so I guess Butlerusk is going to have to wait. In that case, I'll just summon Madolche Mewfeuille.” The cat in the picture was almost cute enough to get a reaction from Yumi. “I'll use its effect to Special Summon another Madolche from my hand. My choice is Madolche Anjelly.”

He was beginning his real strategy now. “I activate Madolche Ticket, too. From now on, when a Madolche card goes back to my hand or deck from my field or Graveyard, I can add a new Madolche monster from my deck to my hand once per turn.” He smiled, confident in his next move. “Now, I release Madolche Anjelly to use her effect, summoning a new Madolche from my deck.”

“I activate God's Providence,” Yumi declared, discarding Tasukeleton. “This negates the same kind of card as what I just discarded and destroys it.”

“That was a good move,” he complemented, though he flipped over a Trap Card of his own in response. “But I activate Seven Tools of the Bandit, negating God's Providence and letting Anjelly's effect through.” While he may get to summon a monster, his Life Points were starting to get dangerously low for only a few turns having passed. With only 1900 left, he'd have to start playing more carefully.

Through the effect, he selected Madolche Messengelato. “When I Special Summon Messengelato while I have a Beast-Type Madolche on the field, I can add a Madolche Magic or Trap Card from my deck to my hand. It's about time for a change of scenery.” The card he added was a Field Magic, Madolche Chateau. Taking a closer look at his game mat, the card's picture was used as the background. It seemed like the obvious choice.

“Now, I'll activate Chateau. In addition to giving all my Madolches 500 more ATK and DEF, I get to shuffle all my Madolche monsters from my Graveyard into my deck. And, when Anjelly returns to my deck, Madolche Ticket gets to activate.” His strategy was planned flawlessly, rapidly summoning monsters to grab his Field Magic, then searching with Ticket. The only question remaining was how he planned to overcome Rusty Swordsman. “I'll choose Madolche Mehple.”

He revealed his final face-down card. “I activate Madolche Happy Festa, which lets me summon all the Madolches in my hand.” Both Mehple and Butlerusk appeared on the field in Attack Position. “I target Madolche Mehple and Rusty Swordsman to activate its effect, which turns them both to Defense Mode.” After that, it was only a matter of attacking. Butlerusk destroyed Yumi's Swordsman, with Messengelato and Mewfeuille striking her directly for a combined 3100 damage.

“You really caught me off guard there,” Yumi said, a tiny smile on her lips. She couldn't place why, but this duel felt different. Even though a loss here would disqualify her from the finals decisively, there was much less pressure. Her opponent was having a good time and, somehow, it was forcing her to do so, too.

“Then just watch this. I'll overlay my Level 4 Madolche Messengelato and Madolche Butlerusk. Xyz Summon my Rank 4 Queen Madolche Tiaramisu.” Despite his low and slightly monotone speaking voice, his excitement at summoning his favorite monster forced its way out in the form of a slightly raised pitch.

“She's cute!” Yumi said while stifling a laugh.

Iichiro nodded. “Isn't she? But I won't be able to use her until next turn, so I'll end with that. Because of Madolche Happy Festa, Mehple goes back to my deck now.”

Despite the tough spot she'd been put in, Yumi was starting to have fun. In fact, it was specifically because of her disadvantage that this duel was fun. The feeling of overcoming insurmountable odds was what she loved most about Duel Monsters. Planning out what she'd do and how she'd counter her opponent made her pulse race. Win or lose, she'd be able to enjoy it without regrets.

Odds were in her favor right now. Her opponent had nothing in hand and a 1000 ATK monster on the field. Even so, all of that could change quickly. If she chose to attack Mewfeuille, it would just return to hand because of Chateau, then Ticket's effect would activate. Even worse, that would leave Queen on the field with its dangerous effect.

It was now or never, though, and the appearance of a certain card in her hand helped bolster her confidence. “I activate Tribute to the Devil, letting me send your Queen Madolche to the Graveyard and summon a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster from my hand.” With a disappointed sigh, Iichiro was forced to send his favorite card away, letting Yumi summon Big Bat Knight in its place.

“You showed me your favorite card, so now you get to see mine. When I Advance Summon this card, I can use a single monster as long as it's Level 4 or lower, a Normal Monster, and has 1500 ATK and DEF or less. Come out, Majesty Magician!” Her ace monster was on the field now, quickly declaring an attack on Iichiro's only remaining monster. His Life Points fell to 400, though Mewfeuille simply returned to his hand.

“Since a Madolche monster returned to my hand, I can use Madolche Ticket's effect to add another from my deck.” He considered his options before finally selecting. “I'll choose Madolche Puddingcess.” It seemed odd that he'd add a Level 5 monster to his hand while there was nothing on the field use as a release, but Yumi wouldn't let her guard down. She assumed he was planning something, ending her turn.

Iichiro took his turn, smiling as he drew a card. “There it is,” he said. “Just the card I needed.” He summoned Mewfeuille once more, using its effect to Special Summon Puddingcess from his hand. “Now I can equip Puddingcess with my Magic Card, Overlay Satellite. With this, I can use her as two Overlay Units in an Xyz Summon.”

“I've never seen a card like that before,” Yumi said in amazement. Something that let you substitute a single monster for two? That would be perfect for her deck, as well.

“There's more to it than that,” he said. “I'll show you, overlaying my Madolche Puddingcess with herself to Xyz Summon. Rank 5, Madolche Puddingcess Choco-a-la-Mode.”

“She's cute, too!” Yumi exclaimed.

He laughed. “When the monster equipped with Overlay Satellite is used for an Xyz Summon, I can attach it as an Overlay Unit to that Xyz Monster. I can't attack the turn I do that, though.” Despite this, Choco-a-la-Mode now had two materials to use for her effect in addition to a massive 3000 ATK. “Now, I'll use her effect to return a Madolche monster from my Graveyard to my deck. I pick Messengelato. And since Choco-a-la-Mode has Puddingcess as an Overlay Unit, I can detach Overlay Satellite to summon a Madolche from my deck in Attack Mode. I can also use Ticket's effect, and since I control a Fairy-Type Madolche, I can summon the monster I choose to add.”

His first choice was Mehple in Attack Position. For Ticket's effect, he chose Madolche Chouxvalier. “I target Mehple and Majesty Magician to change them both to Defense Mode. Now my Chouxvalier can destroy it.”

“You'd be right, but you forgot about my Graveyard!” Yumi sorted through it, taking Tasukeleton in hand. “When you're attacking, I can banish my Tasukeleton once per duel to negate that attack.”

“Almost had it,” he said with a snap of his fingers and a laugh.

“I don't lose easily,” she told him, a wide smile finally forcing its way onto her lips.

Iichiro scratched his chin. “If that's the case, then I'll overlay my Level 3 Madolche Mehple with my Level 3 Madolche Mewfeuille. Xyz Summon, Rank 3. Giant God of the Silver Mountain.” Getting Mewfeuille off the field would prevent him from taking damage should Yumi find a way around Chouxvalier and its effect to redirect attacks to itself. It's high DEF and strong effect were just a bonus.

His turn over, Yumi started her own. It was just the card she needed. “I equip Majesty Magician with Burning Slugger.” Big Bat Knight's own equipment finally showed itself. “Burning Slugger gives Majesty Magician a new effect. In exchange for giving up its attack for the turn, I can target one of your monsters and send a number of cards from my deck to the Graveyard equal to its Level or Rank to destroy it. Then, you take 100 damage for each one.” She pointed confidently at Choco-a-la-Mode. “Home Run!” she shouted, sending five cards from the top of her deck in order to destroy her opponent's monster and win the game.

“You really got me,” Iichiro said with a smile. “Thanks for the duel.”

“It was a lot of fun,” Yumi agreed, shaking his hand once more.

“Good luck with the rest of the tournament,” he told her, the two parting on good terms. With a long sigh, Yumi packed her things and left the table, as well, meeting back up with Sakuya and her grandmother.

She nearly froze, wringing her hands together before apologizing. “I'm sorry for how I acted and what I said. I shouldn't have done that.”

“The only thing I'm upset with is you running off like that,” her grandmother told her. “You had us all worried about you.”

“Sorry,” she said again.

“Just don't do that again,” Sakuya said, taking her hand.

“I won't,” she promised, holding her friend's hand tightly. “I guess I just got overwhelmed, but I think I'm feeling better now.”

Sakuya smiled. “You seemed like it.” They met back up with Kazuhiko, Hideo, and Sachi, Yumi apologizing for how she acted once again. With her determination restored and amends made, she and Kazuhiko were both prepared to make it to the finals.

A ways away in the corner of the room, another girl stood by herself. Her hair was pale, nearly covering the blank expression from her dark eyes. She couldn't have been much older than Yumi; in fact, she was probably younger. Despite the slight air of danger surrounding her, not much else was notable about her save for the metallic gray left hand sticking out of her black and white striped jacket sleeve.

“You've done well,” a woman told her, giving her a bottle of water which she clasped tightly between both hands. Digging her manicured red nails into the child's shoulder, she continued, “There's only three more opponents until the finals. It should be enough to prove you were worth it once you win.” The girl gave no response, only sucking on the bottle's straw.

“I'm sure you know by now, but don't disappoint me. You know what happens when you're a disappointment.” She grabbed her tighter. “Are you understanding me?”

“Yes, ma'am,” she spoke. Her words were quiet and empty.

The woman nodded in response, a smile across her red painted lips. “Good. We have ten minutes until the next round starts. Take care of what you need to before then and meet me here.” She gave no response, but the woman was sure she understood the orders.

\Next: Machine and Mutant Grudge Match – Mysterious Girl Kasuga Yuu Appears/

Cards Used in Order of Appearance

Madolche Magileine
EARTH
Level 4
Spellcaster/Effect
1400 ATK/1200 DEF
When this card you control is destroyed by your opponent's card (either by battle or by card effect) and sent to your Graveyard: Shuffle this card into your Deck. When this card is Normal or Flip Summoned: You can add 1 "Madolche" monster from your Deck to your hand.

Madolche Butlerusk
EARTH
Level 4
Spellcaster/Effect
1500 ATK/800 DEF
When this card you control is destroyed by your opponent's card (either by battle or by card effect) and sent to your Graveyard: Shuffle this card into your Deck. When this card is Normal Summoned: You can add 1 Field Spell Card from your Deck to your hand. There must be another face-up "Madolche" monster on the field to activate and to resolve this effect.

Rusty Swordsman
EARTH
Level 4
Warrior
1500 ATK/1000 DEF

Rusty Sword
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: This card's original ATK increases equal to its DEF. When this card attacks, during the Damage Step: You can pay Life Points in multiples of 100 (maximum 500); this card gains ATK equal to that amount.

Madolche Mewfeuille
EARTH
Level 3
Beast/Effect
500 ATK/300 DEF
When this card you control is destroyed by your opponent's card (either by battle or by card effect) and sent to your Graveyard: Shuffle this card into your Deck. When this card is Normal Summoned: You can Special Summon 1 "Madolche" monster from your hand.

Madolche Anjelly
EARTH
Level 4
Fairy/Effect
1000 ATK/1000 DEF
If this card in your possession is destroyed by your opponent's card (either by battle or by card effect) and sent to your Graveyard: Shuffle this card into the Deck. You can Tribute this card; Special Summon 1 "Madolche" monster from your Deck, but shuffle it into the Deck during the End Phase of your next turn. You can only use this effect of "Madolche Anjelly" once per turn. That Special Summoned monster cannot be destroyed by battle.

Madolche Ticket
Continuous Spell Card
When a "Madolche" card(s) is returned from your side of the field or Graveyard to your hand or Main Deck by a card effect: Add 1 "Madolche" monster from your Deck to your hand. If you control a face-up Fairy-Type "Madolche" monster, you can Special Summon the monster from your Deck in face-up Attack Position instead of adding it to your hand. You can only use the effect of "Madolche Ticket" once per turn.

God's Providence (Ultimate Providence)
Counter Trap Card
When a Spell/Trap Card, or monster effect, is activated: Discard the same type of card (Monster, Spell, or Trap); negate the activation, and if you do, destroy that card.

Tasukeleton (Bacon Saver)
DARK
Level 2
Zombie/Effect
700 ATK/600 DEF
During either player's Battle Step, while an attack is occurring: You can banish this card from your Graveyard; negate the attack. You can only use the effect of "Bacon Saver" once per Duel.

Seven Tools of the Bandit
Counter Trap Card
When a Trap Card is activated: Pay 1000 LP; negate the activation, and if you do, destroy it.

Madolche Messengelato
EARTH
Level 4
Warrior/Effect
1600 ATK/1000 DEF
When this card in your possession is destroyed by your opponent's card (either by battle or by card effect) and sent to your Graveyard: Shuffle this card into the Deck. When this card is Special Summoned: You can add 1 "Madolche" Spell/Trap Card from your Deck to your hand. You must control a face-up Beast-Type "Madolche" monster to activate and to resolve this effect.

Madolche Chateau
Field Spell Card
When this card is activated: Shuffle all "Madolche" monsters in your Graveyard into the Deck. All "Madolche" monsters on the field gain 500 ATK and DEF. If a monster(s) in your Graveyard would be returned to the Deck by the effect of a "Madolche" monster, you can add it to your hand instead.

Madolche Mehple (Madolche Baaple)
EARTH
Level 3
Beast/Effect
0 ATK/1800 DEF
If this card in your possession is destroyed by your opponent's card (by battle or card effect) and sent to your Graveyard: Shuffle this card into your Deck. Once per turn: You can target 1 Attack Position "Madolche" monster you control and 1 face-up Attack Position monster your opponent controls; if both monsters are still on the field, change them to face-up Defense Position, and if you do, the ones changed by this effect cannot have their battle positions changed until the end of your opponent's next turn.

Madolche Happy Festa (Madolchepalooza)
Normal Trap Card
Special Summon any number of "Madolche" monsters from your hand, but shuffle them into the Deck during the End Phase.

Queen Madolche Tiaramisu (Madolche Queen Tiaramisu)
EARTH
Rank 4
Fairy/Xyz/Effect
2200 ATK/2100 DEF
2 Level 4 "Madolche" monsters
Once per turn: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card, then target up to 2 "Madolche" cards in your Graveyard; shuffle those cards into the Deck, also, after that, shuffle cards your opponent controls into the Deck, up to the number of "Madolche" cards returned.

Tribute to the Devil (Faustian Bargain)
Normal Spell Card
Send 1 Special Summoned monster on either side of the field to the Graveyard and Special Summon 1 Level 4 or lower Normal Monster from your hand.

Big Bat Knight
EARTH
Level 3
Warrior
1100 ATK/500 DEF

Majesty Magician
DARK
Level 8
Spellcaster/Effect
2500 ATK/2000 DEF
You can Tribute Summon this card by Tributing 1 monster that was originally a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. This card is treated as an appropriate target for a card that specifically designates a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF while face-up on the field or in the Graveyard (its Level and ATK/DEF do not change).

Madolche Puddingcess
EARTH
Level 5
Fairy/Effect1000 ATK/1000 DEFIf this card in your possession is destroyed by your opponent's card (by battle or card effect) and sent to your Graveyard: Shuffle this card into the Deck. While you have no monsters in your Graveyard, this card gains 800 ATK and DEF. After damage calculation, when this card battles an opponent's monster: You can target 1 card your opponent controls; destroy that target.

Overlay Satellite
Equip Spell Card
If the equipped monster is used as an Xyz Material for an Xyz Summon, you can treat it as 2 monsters. If the equipped monster is used as an Xyz Material for an Xyz Summon: Attach this card to the Summoned monster as an Xyz Material. If you do, it cannot attack this turn.

Madolche Puddingcess Choco-a-la-Mode (Madolche Puddingcess Chocolat-a-la-Mode)
EARTH
Rank 5
Fairy/Xyz/Effect
2500 ATK/2200 DEF
2 Level 5 EARTH monsters
You can also Xyz Summon this card by using a Rank 4 or lower "Madolche" Xyz Monster you control as the Xyz Material. (Xyz Materials attached to that monster also become Xyz Materials on this card.) Once per turn: You can target 1 "Madolche" card in your Graveyard; shuffle it into the Deck. While this card has "Madolche Puddingcess" as Xyz Material, when a "Madolche" card(s) in your Graveyard is shuffled into the Main Deck (except during the Damage Step): You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; Special Summon 1 "Madolche" monster from your Deck in Attack Position or face-down Defense Position.

Madolche Chouxvalier
EARTH
Level 4
Warrior/Effect
1700 ATK/1300 DEF
When this card you control is destroyed by your opponent's card (either by battle or by card effect) and sent to your Graveyard: Shuffle this card into your Deck. Your opponent cannot target face-up "Madolche" monsters you control for attacks, except "Madolche Chouxvalier".

Giant God of the Silver Mountain (Soul of Silvermountain)
EARTH
Rank 3
Rock/Xyz/Effect
1800 ATK/2200 DEF
2 Level 3 EARTH monsters
Once per turn: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card to target 1 Set card in your opponent's Spell & Trap Card Zone; it cannot be activated while this card is face-up on the field. If this card destroys an opponent's monster by battle while it has Xyz Material: You can target 1 EARTH monster in your Graveyard; Special Summon that target in face-up Defense Position.

Burning Slugger
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: Once per turn: You can target 1 monster your opponent controls, then send cards from the top of your Deck to the Graveyard equal to its Level/Rank; destroy it, and if you do, inflict damage equal to its Level/Rank x 100. This monster cannot attack the turn you activate this effect.

Chapter Text

The fifth round had just begun. Yumi was feeling confident once more, rushing off to face her next opponent. Kazuhiko, as well, was riding high on his winning streak. The improvement he'd made over the summer was finally paying off. For the most part, he had Hideo to thank for that. Unbeknownst to their friends, they'd actually been undergoing rigorous training together whenever they stepped out of the group. Real “sitting under a rushing waterfall and pushing rocks up hills” kind of stuff, but for a card game.

He was confident he was as strong as he'd ever been today. No matter what his next opponent threw at him, he knew he could take it and toss it right back. Approaching the table, he was surprised to find someone else young sitting in the spot across from him.

The first thing he noticed was how plain her field looked (and her brown skin, though he tried not to make a big deal out of that). With all the extravagant mats and other trinkets he'd seen today, it was almost startling to see someone just place a deck and Extra Deck down and be done with it. The next was that hand, dull and metallic and hard to explain. He wrote it off as being some kind of fancy glove, though what purpose it had wasn't clear.

“Yo,” he greeted, unrolling his simple yellow mat and shuffling his cards. “Maybe you've heard of me. Name's Kazuhiko Mitsuru. Kind of a big deal in this town, you know?” He got no response. “No need to be intimidated. You made it this far, so I bet you're strong, too.”

The fact she wouldn't speak to him and gave up the option for the first turn like it was nothing started to bug him. “Have it your way. If you want to skip the small talk and get right to the main event, that's fine by me.” Drawing their cards, the duel began. Kazuhiko started things off, taking a card from his hand and laying it on the table. “I summon New Mutant Acidic Slug!” he declared.

He was still thankful new support had come out for his favorite cards not long before the tournament. He'd been enjoying showing them off all day, and now was no different. The blue slug creature with multiple legs (sort of defeating the purpose of being a slug if the card was being honest with itself) was one of the cornerstones of his new strategy, and he was ready to show his opponent what it could do. “When I Normal Summon this card, I get to Special Summon another Mutant monster from my hand with its second effect already active.”

It was an easy selection. “I'm picking my Mutant Bite Hound!” Though it was only at 1500 ATK for now, its immunity to destruction would allow it to sit and grow stronger and stronger with each of his turns, more than making up for his inability to Synchro Summon for the time being. “I'll set a card and end my turn.”

Despite his excitement to see what his opponent had in store, Kazuhiko was beginning to feel a small sense of dread building in the pit of his stomach. He couldn't place why, but something felt off about this kid's play style right from the start. Even her completely unenthusiastic draw seemed bizarre. Something wasn't right here.

“Summon MD Base Unit,” she said, placing a card on the table. It was a serpentine machine in the image of a dragon, two mechanical wings on its back in place of limbs. “Effect activate. Add two MD Base Unit to hand.”

“Not bad,” he said, impressed with her speedy hand improvement. Though her monster had nothing in the way of ATK or DEF, its effect was certainly helpful at deck thinning. He spotted its status as a Tuner, as well, pegging her for a kindred spirit in the way of Synchro.

She had no response prepared for the compliment, simply continuing with her turn. “Activate Pot of Greed to draw two cards,” she said in monotone. Immediately upon completing its effect, she played another card. “Activate Angel's Chairty to draw three cards, discarding two.” After taking her three cards, she dropped two copies of Mecha Hunter into the Graveyard. No mystery on what he deck was about anymore.

“Setting four cards. Turn End.” Kazuhiko was taken aback at this. All that drawing and searching just to set a bunch of cards? Seemed like a bunch of wasted effort to him, especially given the pitiful monster left to defend her.

He couldn't help but laugh. “Guess all your drawing turned up nothing. Sorry, but I'm not going to be taking it easy on you just because you made a mistake!” As he took his turn, his Hound grew stronger. With 2000 ATK, he'd make sure she regretted leaving her monster out in the open like that.

Even so, he had to play carefully. He couldn't charge in without thinking when there were four set cards waiting for him. With an almost full backrow, it was highly unlikely they'd all turn out to be feints. Switching his Slug to Defense Position, he went on the offensive with an unkillable monster. “Bite Hound, attack!”

His opponent didn't react, simply placing the card into the Graveyard as her Life Points were halved. Kazuhiko's smile soon dropped, though, as she turned over one of her set cards. “Activate Damage Condenser. Discard one card to summon a monster with ATK less than or equal to damage.” She fanned out her deck after discarding a Card Gunner.

“Summon MD Support Unit,” she declared, placing down another card showing the imagine a serpentine metal dragon, this one with rib-like metal claws on its abdomen. Though it lacked any ATK or DEF, too, it obviously had some sort of powerful effect for her to bother with playing it out of the blue, especially since her Trap would allow her a vast amount of potential options given the damage he just inflicted.

Through gritted teeth, he reluctantly ended his turn without doing anything beyond setting a second card. Whatever that thing did, it sure wouldn't be pleasant come the next turn. He'd hoped to have at least something to counter it and get it off the field, but he wasn't that lucky.

She took her turn, playing yet another draw card. “Activate Pot of Greed and Avarice. Banish ten cards from top of deck to draw two cards.”

“What the hell?” he exclaimed. “You'll trash your deck like that just to draw more cards?” It was inconceivable. Maybe in certain decks, but was this really one that could work with that kind of drawback? What was she trying to go for?

She fulfilled the conditions, drawing her two cards. By his count, this left her with just 13 cards in deck. Was it confidence or arrogance that allowed her to recklessly waste cards like that? He'd likely find out in a few moments.

“Activate MD Support Unit. Banish MD Base Unit from Graveyard to summon MD Base Unit from deck.” 12 cards. Could he deck her out? Maybe, but that was a risk in and of itself. More importantly, what was the point of summoning another 0 ATK monster?

Now there were two identical cards on the field. He knew already that she held another two copies of her Tuner, though the next three cards were a mystery, same as her face-downs. “Summon MD Base Unit and activate effect. Adding MD Base Unit to hand.”

Her ability to manage her hand was both amazing and appalling. She'd used so many cards yet still managed to hold five cards after so many plays. The ability to recycle MD Base Unit was likely going to be a real pain in the ass if this duel kept going, he could feel it. More importantly, though, she'd assembled three monsters, one of which was a Tuner.

Like he'd let her have the chance. “When you summon that monster, I'll activate this card!” He revealed his Trap, “Mischief of the Yokai!” He smiled, letting out a bit too much of his antagonistic persona than he'd intended. “Every monster on the field loses 2 Levels until the end of this turn, which means you're not going to be able to Synchro Summon like you wanted to.”

His celebration was over as soon as it began, however, as she revealed her own Trap Card. “God's Pronouncement. Negate your activated card by paying half my Life Points.”

“No way!” That card was impossibly rare. Not only did she have it, but she was callously using it against a card that, frankly, was just a temporary setback for her. This kid was starting to piss him off. “Take this seriously,” he told her with a frown.

She ignored him, of course, proceeding with her move undeterred. “Synchro Summon, Level 9,” she declared, her voice keeping the same disinterested tone as it always had. “Machine God Dragon – Synchro.” Despite its high Level, the multi-headed and gnarly-looking mechanical monster wasn't all that strong. A DEF of 3000 was pretty impressive, but it wasn't in Defense Position. It was in Attack Position with a whopping 0 ATK, just like its materials.

Normally, it would gain the ATK of the non-Tuners used for its summon, but zero plus zero still equals zero. She didn't seem concerned about this, though. “Activate Machine God Dragon – Synchro effect. Banish MD Base Unit to banish Mutant Bite Hound. Gain Life Points equal to ATK and increase monster's ATK by the same amount.”

To Kazuhiko's shock and horror, his nearly indestructible monster was just destroyed. On top of that, his opponent was only 1000 shy of full Life Points once more, with a 2000 ATK monster staring him down. “Guess I've accidentally underestimated you. Sorry, I didn't intend to. But if this is what you can really do, then I'm for sure not going to hold back anymore! Bring it on!”

In truth, she couldn't care less about whether he held back or not. All she was concerned with was winning. Ordering an attack, she made short work of Kazuhiko's slug monster, ending her turn after that. “Now you've really fired me up! I'll summon New Mutant Dive Hawk and use its effect!” Irony represented in the form of a card (a bird said to be diving in its name despite the rock-like growth on its body preventing it from taking flight) took the field, allowing Kazuhiko to send a Mutant from his deck to the Graveyard and summon one of the same Level.

“Come out, New Mutant Tricky Armadillo!” he ordered, sending the new monster in order to revive it once more. With a smile, he took both cards in hand. “Won't stay for long, though. Synchro Summon, Level 7! Show her what real power's like, Super Mutant Butcher!” His Synchro Monster hit the field, though what it intended to do with matching ATK wasn't yet clear.

Seemingly without thinking, Kazuhiko immediately began an attack. “Don't think I'd just try to beat down both our cards. Because I used Tricky Armadillo as material to Synchro Summon Butcher, it can't be destroyed by battle or targeted by your effects! So even if we've got the same ATK, your dragon is the only thing that's about to be destroyed!”

Though she felt no such emotion, it almost seemed she played her next card wordlessly out of spite. Metalization – Magic-Reflection Armor revealed itself. Targeting her Machine God Dragon, Kazuhiko's Butcher didn't manage to inflict any damage to its target, instead costing its owner 300 Life Points. Even so, it remained on the field and would be immune to the dragon's effect.

“Damn,” he cursed, setting a card before ending his turn. Despite the setback, he'd actually accounted for this possibility. The bigger concern would be whether or not he could pull off his next trick. If it worked, her ace monster would be destroyed and he'd have a clear path to victory.

She began her turn by drawing a card. Seemingly wasting no time, she attacked Super Mutant Butcher. Because of her Trap's effect, Machine God Dragon's ATK grew further to 3300 during that battle, though Kazuhiko seemed to have gotten exactly what he wanted. “I activate Evolution's Folly!”

The Trap featured an army of Mutant monsters, all swollen to incredibly size despite the obvious pain they seemed to be feeling. “Until the end of the turn, one of my Mutants gains ATK equal to what it would get for making it to another of my turns, and all your monsters lose the same amount!” In the middle of the Damage Step, Machine God Dragon's ATK would fall to 2500, while Super Mutant Butcher's ATK rose to 2800. In a stunning turnaround, he actually managed to defeat the enemy's overpowered card, even managing to return the 300 damage.

Despite less than a second's hesitation, she wordlessly moved her card to the Graveyard. “Summon Necroface, effect activate. Return all banished cards to the deck and gain 100 ATK for each returned to the Main Deck.”

“Looks like you've got more than just Machines in there after all,” Kazuhiko commented while shuffling his deck. It was a good card to have in a deck like that, though only managing to rise to 2400 ATK wouldn't do it much good. He figured she considered the damage taken next turn to be worth adding back the cards she'd lost.

“Draw!” he declared. Butcher's 2800 ATK became permanent, with its Level increasing to 8. “I'll activate Dark Zone to boost the ATK of every DARK monster on the field by 500.” Though it would momentarily benefit her, he wasn't worried. Up until now, every monster in her deck had been EARTH. Necroface was likely an outlier, meaning he should be safe to play his Field Card without fear.

“I'll summon Mutant Venom Cobra, too! Attack, Butcher! Cobra!” Butcher would hit first, destroying Necroface and dropping his opponent's Life Points to 2300. Cobra was next, inflicting a hearty 1700 to leave her with only 600. “But I'm not done yet. While I'm still in the Battle Phase, I activate my Instant Magic Card, Mutagen!”

That card would let him activate a Mutant monster's secondary effect until the End Phase of the turn. He selected Butcher, obviously. Now that it destroyed a monster, he'd get to use its effect and summon out his true ace monster, practically winning the duel then and there. He had this game in the bag now.

Unfortunately, his plans weren't quite as airtight as he wished. His opponent's final Trap revealed itself to be Magic Jammer. “Damn it!” he shouted as she discarded a third Mecha Hunter to negate his Mutagen card. He was forced to end what he didn't yet realize was his final turn.

She drew a card, then summoned MD Base Unit. Predictable at this point, letting her search the one returned to the deck previously. What happened next, though, was truly unexpected and made his blood run cold. “Activate Fusion,” she declared.

Kazuhiko could only watch as she used all three MD Base Units as material to summon out another powerful monster. “Fusion Summon, Level 9. Machine God Dragon – Fusion.” Unlike the one that came before, this monster was prepared to do battle. Taking on the form of a mechanized European dragon, its 3000 ATK was only going to grow further.

“Effect activate. When summoned, banish all monsters in both Graveyards and gain 100 ATK for each.” Its ATK grew to 4300, Necroface banishing another five cards from the top of each of their decks to go along with it. It hardly mattered, though.

Despite Kazuhiko's assurance that he'd manage to scrape by until next turn, his opponent had no intention of letting there be another turn to this duel. She attacked Super Mutant Butcher strangely, activating another card during the Damage Step. “Activate Limiter Removal. Doubles the ATK of all Machine monsters.”

And with that her dragon's ATK soared to 8600, completely obliterating Kazuhiko's remaining Life. Had he not been playing while sitting in a seat, he'd likely have been flung across the room by the force of the attack in a typical game. But this was a low-tech version of Duel Monsters where the only force that hit him now was the overwhelming sense of power this child several years younger than him exuded. He realized now that his bad feelings about her weren't simply because of her strange mannerisms but the unmistakable sense of danger she exuded.

“Not bad, kid,” he said, trying to remain nonchalant despite a hint of legitimate fear growing inside him. “You really got me. Good luck in the rest of the tournament.” She packed up wordlessly and began to leave, Kazuhiko taking hold of her left hand from across the table before she could turn away. “Wait,” he said, feeling the strange sensation of metal between his fingers. That hand was artificial?

Seeing her eyes go wide and body tense at being grabbed, he released immediately. “Sorry. I just wanted to know if you'd tell me your name now. Not like I'm your opponent anymore.” He could have easily looked at the display on the table during their duel, but he felt like it was best for her to be the one to say it. He also forgot to do that before that information disappeared.

She stood frozen for several seconds, her mouth beginning to slightly open before spotting the woman who had taken her to this tournament. Any desire she might have had to speak to Kazuhiko vanished instantly, nearly causing her to run away from the table towards the woman, leaving him extremely confused.

He found his way back to the group's meeting point, Yumi already excitedly telling Hideo (who'd gone off to explore with Sachi to allow Yumi's grandmother a chance to watch her duel) how she'd defeated her opponent with a massive Xyz combo play. “Yo,” he called out, starting to feel a bit down now that the reality of losing began to set in.

“Did you hear? I won!” Yumi didn't even bother to acknowledge his greeting, too excited to obey social convention. “You won, too, right?” She'd already begun hopping.

“Not exactly,” he said, combing through his pompadour. Everyone's faces took on either a look of shock or confusion, all except for Sachi who grumpily drank from a cup of water (she wasn't happy her sugar was being restricted now).

“Do you mean actual loss or 'I forgot how to play Duel Monsters and attacked without thinking' loss?” Sakuya asked. Even she was surprised by this turn of events.

“Actual loss,” he said with an eye roll. “My opponent was just...oppressively strong. I thought I had her a couple times, but by the end I realized she wasn't even playing seriously the entire time.”

“She was toying with you?” Sakuya asked, tapping a finger against her lips.

“Not even that. It was like she was looking past me the whole game. Like she barely even registered me as an opponent.” The more he thought about the duel, the worse he started to feel. Chills ran down his spine remembering her gaze and the uncaring way she commanded her cards. There was no love or passion for the game, no enjoyment whatsoever. She seemed as much like a machine as the monsters in her deck.

“Who did you play?” Yumi asked having long since stopped hopping. Hideo pulled out their phone to search for the name after Kazuhiko admitted he never found out. They all peered at the screen at once. “Kasuga Yuu,” she read for the group. All four silently committed it to memory.

Kazuhiko sighed. “For your sake, I hope she loses the next two rounds.” Despite giving a laugh, there a part of Yumi, however small, that agreed with him. If everything he'd told her was true, this player didn't seem like an ordinary opponent. She feared a match against her might even draw out that card. Izar would certainly be intrigued by someone like that. She could feel it.

 “Well done, Yuu,” the woman told her, nails stabbing into her shoulder as she stroked her hair. “You only have two more round before the finals, and I know you wouldn't disappoint me by losing even one of them.” She shook her head silently. “Good. Keep performing like this and I might even give you a reward when we return home.”

This was hardly motivating for her. None of her handler's rewards were ever something to look forward to. They were just uncomfortable and painful in more ways than one, some of them indescribably awful from an emotional level. She'd never been taught the kind of words she'd need to talk about that pain, regardless. And, regardless, she would continue to perform just as she was now. It was her duty whether she liked it or not.

“Take care of anything you need to before the start of the next round. I'll be reporting our progress until then. Don't speak to anyone unless absolutely necessary.” Though Yuu nodded in obedience to these commands, the woman felt it necessary to take a small silver bell from her pocket, ringing it once in front of her. Yuu shuddered and closed her eyes in response, feeling absolutely down to the core of her being that she must obey after hearing that noise.

“Good girl,” the woman told her, patting her head once before leaving to contact someone. Yuu merely pulled the hood attached to her jacket over her head and clutched her knees to her chest, sitting against the wall in the same spot until the next round began.

\Next: Fast Track to the Finals: Yumi's First Opponent is.../

Cards Used in Order of Appearance

New Mutant Acidic Slug
DARK
Level 3
Sea Serpent/Tuner/Effect
1000 ATK/700 DEF
When this card is Normal Summoned: You can Special Summon 1 “Mutant” monster from your hand. A monster summoned by this effect is treated as having been face-up on the field for 3 of your Standby Phases. You cannot Synchro Summon using this card the turn you activate this effect.

Mutant Bite Hound
DARK
Level 4
Reptile/Effect
1500 ATK/1200 DEF
During your Standby Phase: Increase this card's ATK 500 and Level by 1. If this effect is activated 3 times while this card remains face-up on the field: This card cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects.

MD Base Unit
EARTH
Level 3
Machine/Tuner/Effect
0 ATK/0 DEF
When this card is Summoned: Add up to 2 “MD Base Unit” cards from your Deck or Graveyard or that are banished to your hand. While this card is in your Graveyard, you can return 1 of your banished Machine-Type monsters to the Graveyard; add this card to your hand. You can only use each effect of “MD Base Unit” once per turn.

Pot of Greed
Normal Spell Card
Draw 2 cards.

Angel's Charity (Graceful Charity)
Normal Spell Card
Draw 3 cards, then discard 2.

Mecha Hunter (Mechanicalchaser)
Dark
Level 4
Machine
1850 ATK/800 DEF

Damage Condenser
Normal Trap Card
When you take battle damage: Discard 1 card; Special Summon 1 monster from your Deck with ATK less than or equal to the battle damage you took, in face-up Attack Position.

Card Gunner (Card Trooper)
EARTH
Level 3
Machine/Effect
400 ATK/400 DEF
Once per turn: You can choose a number from 1 to 3, then send that many cards from the top of your Deck to the Graveyard; this card gains 500 ATK for each card sent to the Graveyard this way, until the end of this turn. If this card you control is destroyed and sent to your Graveyard: Draw 1 card.

MD Support Unit
EARTH
Level 3
Machine/Effect
0 ATK/0 DEF
You can banish 1 Machine-Type monster from your Graveyard; Special Summon 1 “MD Support Unit” from your hand or Deck in face-up Attack Position. This effect of “MD Support Unit” can only be used once per turn. Banish the monster summoned by this effect at the End Phase of this turn.

Pot of Greed and Avarice (Pot of Desires)
Normal Spell Card
Banish 10 cards from the top of your Deck, face-down; draw 2 cards. You can only activate 1 "Pot of Desires" per turn.

Mischief of the Yokai
Normal Trap Card
Each face-up monster on the field loses 2 Levels, until the End Phase. You can remove from play this card from your Graveyard to select 1 face-up monster and reduce its Level by 1, until the End Phase. This effect cannot be activated the same turn this card is sent to the Graveyard.

God's Pronouncement (Solemn Judgment)
Counter Trap Card
When a monster would be Summoned, OR a Spell/Trap Card is activated: Pay half your Life Points; negate the Summon or activation, and if you do, destroy that card.

Machine God Dragon – Synchro
EARTH
Level 9
Machine/Synchro/Effect
? ATK/3000 DEF
MD Base Unit + 2 non-Tuner Machine-Type monsters
Must be Synchro Summoned, and cannot be Special Summed by other ways. The ATK of this card is equal to the combined ATK of all non-Tuner monsters used to summon it. Once per turn: You can return 1 banished Machine-Type monster to your Graveyard; banish 1 face-up monster on your opponent's side of the field, and if you do, gain Life Points equal to half its ATK on the field. This monster gains ATK equal to the ATK of monsters it banishes.

New Mutant Dive Hawk
DARK
Level 3
Rock/Tuner/Effect
700 ATK/500 DEF
When this card is Normal Summoned: You can send 1 “Mutant” monster from your Deck to the Graveyard; Special Summon 1 “Mutant” monster from your Graveyard with the same Level.

New Mutant Tricky Armadillo
DARK
Level 4
Wyrm/Effect
1700 ATK/1000 DEF
If this card is Normal Summoned: Add 1 “Mutant” Spell/Trap Card from your Deck to your hand. If this card is used as Synchro Material for the Synchro Summon of a “Mutant” monster, it cannot be targeted or destroyed by your opponent's card effects or destroyed by battle.

Super Mutant Butcher
DARK
Level 7
Psychic/Synchro/Effect
2000 ATK/500 DEF
1 “Mutant” Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner “Mutant” monsters
During your Standby Phase: Increase this card's ATK by 800 and Level by 1. If this effect is activated 4 times while this card remains face-up on the field: You can Tribute this face-up card at the end of your Battle Phase after this card destroys another monster by battle; Special Summon 1 “Mutant” Synchro Monster from your Extra Deck that has a higher Level than this card. The monster summoned by this effect can activate its second effect.

Metalization – Magic-Reflection Armor (Metalmorph)
Normal Trap Card
Target 1 face-up monster on the field; equip this card to that target. It gains 300 ATK and DEF. If it attacks, it gains ATK equal to half the ATK of the attack target, during damage calculation only.

Evolution's Folly
Normal Trap Card
Target 1 “Mutant” monster you control; it gains ATK equal to the ATK it would gain for being on the field for an additional Standby Phase until the End Phase. Your opponent's face-up monsters lose the same amount of ATK and DEF until the End Phase.

Necroface
DARK
Level 4
Zombie/Effect
1200 ATK/1800 DEF
If this card is Normal Summoned: Shuffle all banished cards into the Deck. This card gains 100 ATK for each card shuffled into the Main Deck by this effect. If this card is banished: Each player banishes 5 cards from the top of their Deck (or their entire Deck, if less than 5).

Dark Zone (Mystic Plasma Zone)
Field Spell Card
Increase the ATK of all DARK monsters by 500 points and decreases their DEF by 400 points.

Mutant Venom Cobra
DARK
Level 3
Fairy/Effect
1200 ATK/800 DEF
During your Standby Phase: Increase this card's ATK by 300 and Level by 1. If this effect is activated 3 times while this card remains face-up on the field: When this card inflicts battle damage; inflict 300 damage to your opponent.

Mutagen
Quick-Play Spell Card
Target 1 “Mutant” monster on your side of the field; apply its second effect until the End Phase.

Magic Jammer
Counter Trap Card
When a Spell Card is activated: Discard 1 card; negate the activation, and if you do, destroy it.

Fusion (Polymerization)
Normal Spell Card
Fusion Summon 1 Fusion Monster from your Extra Deck, using monsters from your hand or field as Fusion Materials.

Machine God Dragon – Fusion
EARTH
Level 9
Machine/Fusion/Effect
3000 ATK/2100 DEF
MD Base Unit + 2 Machine-Type monsters with the same level
Must be Fusion Summoned with the above monsters, and cannot be Special Summoned by other ways. When this card is Fusion Summoned: Banish all monsters in both player's Graveyards, then increase this card's ATK by 100 for each card banished by this effect. When this card attacks, it is unaffected by the effects of opponent's Spell Cards until the end of the Damage Step. This attacking card cannot be destroyed.

Limiter Removal
Quick-Play Spell Card
Double the ATK of all Machine-Type monsters you currently control, until the end of this turn. During the End Phase of this turn, destroy those monsters.

Chapter Text

After two more rounds had passed, the finals were about to commence. Kazuhiko pouted from the stands near the front row, disappointed in himself for losing the last match and disqualifying himself from standing on stage with the others. “You'll be up there next year, I'm sure of it,” Yumi's grandmother told him.

“Maybe. Just kind of feels like all the training was a waste if I couldn't even make it this far.” His mood lifted slightly after two reassuring pats on the shoulder by Hideo. He was still upset about losing, but after some time thinking on it, he'd start to see it as a learning experience and figure out how to further improve himself as a duelist. Plus, it was pretty fun to compete with new people for a change.

Absent from the group of five was Yumi herself, having defeated her last two opponents and claimed a spot on stage with the other finalists. They walked as a group to the center of the stadium, a road of light leading them towards an illuminated middle ground. She was stiff as a board, heart pounding faster than she'd ever felt it before outside of a genuine panic attack. Seeing a real crowd like this was more intimidating than she bargained for after all.

To calm herself, she thought of her parents. They made it through stuff like this all the time without even a worry. Thinking of them confidently marching into the light helped her to relax. She glanced around the seating, thinking she managed to see Sakuya and the others sitting somewhere in the darkness. It might have just been shadows playing tricks on her, but knowing they were all watching helped her confidence immensely. She had to put a good show no matter what.

Having built herself up, she managed to take the last few steps into the spotlight without even a hint of her previous anxiety. She stood proudly with head held high and a bright smile spread across her face. “Hey, everybody!” the announcer called in English. “Get up! Get loud! Get excited! It's time for the amazing main event!” He was a bit of a local phenomenon given his boisterous public persona and passion for the job, plus his curly mustache.

“There were over a hundred duelists here today to test their metal, but only a handful could make it to the top! Show them your amazing support while I introduce the eight finalists!” The crowd exploded into cheers on command, Hideo having preemptively placed headphones over their ears to block out some of the noise and generally having a very unfun time now that the loud crowd stuff had begun.

“Our first finalist was last year's champion, making a big return after making it to the Regional Championship! Akinari Kyo!” The crowd cheered even louder, signifying the flamboyantly dressed man in the cape was definitely an audience favorite.

“But he's not the only veteran today. Give it up for last year's runner up, Matsuyama Shigeo!” Another round of cheers as a tired looking man waved to the crowd, lazily brushing a mess of brown hair out of his eyes.

Kazuhiko stood up and pointed accusingly. “That's the guy who beat me!” he declared for seemingly no reason. “Avenge me, Miss Yumi!” She obviously wouldn't hear him over the roaring of the crowd, but his spirit would carry forward nonetheless.

“You ended up losing?” said a familiar voice coming in from the side. Kyoko pushed by various audience members to steal a seat next to her friends. “Looks like our girl made it, though,” she said with a smile, plopping down next to a glaring Sakuya.

Kazuhiko only sighed, explaining that he wasn't so much annoyed at the loss as the fact he forgot to warm their friend about this opponent. “I was so wrapped up with the other person who beat me that I totally forgot to warn her about this guy's deck. It's bizarre.”

Their conversation would have to wait, though, as the next player was announced. “Nagamatsu Shoji!” the MC shouted, drowning out the group's talk. “Next up, the lady who's been making a name for herself in the local circuit, Amisaki Kaori!” A young blonde haired woman blew kisses at the crowd, getting an exceptionally large response comparable to the first two.

“Up next, one of the youngest finalists we've ever had! Give her some amazing applause, okay? Takano Yumi!” She waved nervously towards the cheering crowd before building up her confidence enough to strike a pose with two V signs, trying not to feel any embarrassment for the whole time she was on stage.

“But we've got someone even younger here with us today, too! Not only that, she managed to win her way through the preliminaries with a perfect 7-0 score! Show her what you think of that, fans! Kasuga Yuu!” It was obvious she was the one to beat this year, as all the other competitors turned their heads to glance at the motionless child standing beside them in the row. Some plotted revenge for a loss suffered earlier while others simply looked on in curiosity.

He introduced another duelist, Matsubara Tadao, before making it to the final competitor. “Another veteran of the Prefectural Tournament taking another crack at the title this year, Taniguchi Hiroshi!” Yumi felt a bit of a chill run down her spine now that she was aware her third round opponent had made it this far, too. Silently, they both wished for opposites with regards to pairings, Yumi wanting nothing to do with him while Taniguchi hoped to duel her once again for another “easy win”.

“Okay, okay!” the MC said to quiet the crowd. “Now that we know who's competing, let's get started see what the pairings look like!” The massive video screen that had previously displayed a closeup of each duelist as their name was called switched to an image of a bracket, pairing the eight against each other. “Nice! Looks like our first match is between Tadao and Hiroshi! The excitement is building now! There'll be a five minute break before the start of the match, so don't go anywhere!”

The contestants headed backstage to a waiting area stocked with snacks and drinks, Yumi and Kaori in particular immediately tucking into as much as they could get their hands on to both their amusement. They were on near opposite ends of the bracket, so they could afford to act friendly for the time being, even wishing each other luck as they went about their business preparing for their matches.

Unbeknownst to Yumi, however, Kazuhiko was currently in distress over her pairing. “Why'd it have to be that guy?” he moaned, scratching at the sides of his head in desperation. “His deck is so weird! How's she going to be able to handle it?”

“We'll just trust she'll find a way,” Sakuya said astutely despite her own fears. Kyoko nodded in turn. “Yumi won't accept a loss in the first round of the finals, I know that much. She'll find a way to win no matter what.”

The round commenced, with both duelists taking their place within the arena. The other competitors stayed backstage, allowed to do as they pleased until it was their turn with the option to watch the duels in progress on several TVs hung within the small room.

Despite her seeming preoccupation with food, Yumi had her own fears she was trying hard not to think about. Taniguchi had completely destroyed her in the preliminaries. If he won this duel, it would mean they'd have to have a rematch. She didn't want that despite her normal enthusiasm for the game, hoping Tadao would pull through no matter what he might have in store for her in turn.

From the corner of her eye, she spotted Yuu standing in a corner nursing a bottle of water. Though she didn't have much basis to assume, it almost seemed like she was hungry. Why she couldn't just grab any of the numerous food items on the table across from her was anyone's guess, but Yumi took it upon herself to try and coax her in case there was some component of anxiety involved. She didn't exactly seem like the most extroverted person in the room.

Slowly, she made her way towards the other child, extending a takoyaki on a skewer when near enough. It seemed to take her by surprise. “You look hungry,” Yumi said without hesitation. “You can eat if you want. It's really good.”

With no response beyond a blank, confused stare, Yumi simply placed the stick between Yuu's fingers on her right hand with a smile. “I don't know if we'll get a chance to duel each other, so good luck. You beat my friend pretty badly, so I want to see what you can do if I can.” With a wave, she grabbed a few more handfuls of food from the table before heading back to her seat, leaving Yuu alone once more.

She simply stared down at the octopus ball in her hand, unsure of what to do with it. Soon, though, she began to detect its scent wafting up to her nose. Her hand beginning to shake, she slowly moved it closer to her face, mouth opening slightly before suddenly devouring the entire thing in a single bite. It was, without a doubt, the best thing she had ever eaten.

Yumi smiled watching Yuu overtake the table for herself, shoveling food into her starving gullet to the shock of the other contestants. Approaching her again, Yumi couldn't help but laugh when seeing the other kid's face covered in all different kinds of sauces mixed with the expression of a deer in the headlights. “Told you it was good,” she said, receiving a quick nod response.

“My name's Yumi, but I guess you heard that before when we were all getting introduced. And you're Yuu.” Another nod as she pushed another takoyaki into her cheek like a squirrel. “We're about the same age, right? But you're younger. I'm twelve, so how old are you?”

Even after swallowing the massive amount of food inside her mouth, Yuu remained silent. “Eleven? Ten?” She nodded on the second answer. “That's really cool! You must be way stronger than I was when I was your age!” Yumi reached out and patted her on the head. “Guess I'll have to set a good example as your elder. That feels weird to say since most of my friends are older than me.”

Despite an initial recoil, Yuu quickly adjusted to the contact. It felt...good? She wasn't used to that. There wasn't any force or malicious intent behind it like she was used to and the rubbing motion felt nice. She wanted to indulge in it for longer, but Yumi suddenly stopped. Something on the television had alarmed her.

Tadao had lost, meaning she'd be facing Taniguchi in the next round should she beat her own opponent. “Well, guess I should go get ready,” she said, her smile slightly more forced than last time. “See you when I get back,” she told Yuu, waving before returning to her seat to do one last look at her deck before she'd be called up to take the stage.

She wasn't sure what looking at her cards would accomplish, but she decide to do it nonetheless. It was too late to be swapping things out, so all she was really doing was confirming the contents of her deck, which she was already aware of. Despite how completely pointless the action was, it still made her feel a bit more confident. Even seeing the bizarre blank card again was strangely uplifting, like a testament to her potential that wouldn't be stopped here.

She looked across the room towards another seat, finally spotting her opponent napping in the corner. Apparently the tiredness wasn't just some kind of gimmick he did for the audience. Had he stayed up the whole night before preparing? Cynical as it was, she though maybe his exhaustion would give her some sort of advantage, though that thought quickly perished with the reality that he'd already made it to the finals in this state. If being tired really impacted his performance that badly, he probably wouldn't have made it here in the first place.

Yumi couldn't afford to stay lost in her own head any longer, though, as a man in a black suit came to collect her. He said she'd be entering from the opposite side as when they all took the stage, leading her around the inner chambers of the stadium. “Don't be nervous, kid. You already made it this far.”

“I'm not nervous,” she lied, fiddling with a spot of rust on her duel disk to pass the time during the walk.

“Good attitude,” he said, pushing up a pair of dark sunglasses. “This city's big, but it's rare for anyone but the usual suspects to make it this far. It's good to see some new blood hit the finals for a change. Win or lose, I bet some sponsor's going to snatch you up the moment the tournament ends.” Supportive as his words were, she couldn't help but think they were meant as consolation prior to an expected loss. Maybe she was just imagining it, though.

They made it to the tunnel leading out to the arena, the noise of the crowd filling the dark corridor even while standing at the very end. The man looked at his phone. “Alright, you can start walking. Stop before you go out until you hear him say your name. Good luck.”

With a quick inhale, she did as instructed, able to hear the MC talking her up over the audience. “Just 12 years old and already at the finals for the prefectural tournament! She didn't make the cut last year, but that time sure didn't go to waste! Show her what you think of her hard work! It's Takano Yumi!”

Remembering the feelings of courage from the last time she walked on stage, Yumi took the first few steps out of the tunnel with a smile. The crowd exploded into applause, seemingly having gained some fans since the initial introductions.

Once she reached her end of the marked out duel field, the announcer started the second introduction. “You all know who he is by now! He was the runner up last year and is aiming for first place this year! How far do you think he's come since we last saw him take the stage! Let's welcome him back, Matsuyama Shigeo!”

Looking as if he'd just been forced awake (and he likely had been), Shigeo emerged from the other end of the arena giving a lazy wave to the crowd. He pushed back his hair to get a clearer view of Yumi, sizing her up as he came closer. The dark circles under his eyes seemed to confirm her theory that he'd neglected sleeping for at least a few days prior to the tournament.

Other than the extremely flashy red and purple duel disk on his left arm, he was dressed rather plainly in a simple white t-shirt and jeans. He scratched at his shoulder after taking his place opposite Yumi, a judge instructing them both to shuffle their decks manually. After a few thorough mixings for each of them, they were directed to exchange decks to cut. Shigeo gave her a tired smile as they stood in front of each other, returning their cards to each other after cutting and walking back to their spots. At random, Yumi was chosen to take the first move. “It's time! Second round, start!”

Both drew their starting hands, shouting, “Duel!” at the same moment along with most of the crowd and the MC. It sent a shiver down her spine, but in a good way. The longer she stood there, the more the energy started to agree with her. She was quickly becoming acclimated to the crowd and the performance aspect of the game.

“I'll start things off!” Yumi declared, confidently placing a monster on the field. “I summon Sunlight Unicorn, then use its effect to excavate the top card of my deck.” The unicorn materialized on stage, blue hair shimmering in the lights and giving an exceptionally loud whinny, almost as if it wanted to show off for the occasion. “If the card I pick up is an Equip Card, I'll add it to my hand. If it isn't, it'll go to the bottom of my deck.”

She drew the top card of her deck with a dramatic flourish, holding it in front of her to confirm its identity to her opponent and the crowd. “Looks like Yumi's gamble paid off!” the announcer shouted. “It's Equip Magic, Fighting Spirits!” With a smile, she set two more cards before ending her turn.

Upon passing the turn, it was like a switch was flipped inside her opponent. No longer was Shigeo the sleepy, unmotivated lump falling asleep backstage. Even his hair had somehow lifted itself out of his eyes all by itself, seemingly to show off his newfound wild expression and gleam in his eyes. “Already taking risks for glory. Amazing.”

Putting two fingers against his deck, he pulled off a card from the top. “Draw!” Examining the cards he had to work with, he chuckled quietly to himself. “Opponents like you are why I play this game,” he said to Yumi. His fingers fluttered over his cards, settling on one and plucking it from the rest. “High risk, high reward. The passion that goes into what you do without a care for what's to come next. All in the pursuit of your dreams, just like me! Like you're questing for some long forgotten treasure or scaling the side of a castle. I can already tell you're different from the ones that came before. I feel it in my soul.”

Yumi simply nodded in response, not really sure what this guy was talking about. “I summon True Treasure Hunter – Watchful Lookout!” An avian in brown robes and large spectacles appeared on the field, shining a lantern from side to side as if to survey its surroundings. “This monster is a loyal member of the True Treasure Hunters, a troupe of adventurers whose mission it is to track down their very truest desires.”

“Amazing!” the MC cut in. “It's Shigeo's famous Story Duel! Watch as he weaves a fairy tale right before your eyes with the way he plays his cards! It's unbelievable!”

“Did he do all this when he played you?” Kyoko asked to a very surly Kazuhiko.

Gritting his teeth, he shook his head. “No, he just beat me quick. Which means...” He stood up, stomping his foot against the seat below him. “Kick his ass! He held back against me! Don't let him dishonor your friends like that, Miss Yumi!”

On the field, Shigeo had revealed a card in his hand to his opponent. “Watchful Lookout has the ability to spot treasure I'm holding. Now, this card might not seem like much right now, but they say the journey is always more important than just the destination.” A giant version of his card, True Treasure – Eighth Wonder, appeared behind him, its name glowing gold before editing itself to spell out “True Treasure – Heart's Desire”.

“With Watchful Lookout's effect, what started out as just another ordinary trinket becomes an irreplaceable memory. Until the end of this turn, this card's name now becomes True Treasure – Heart's Desire, and I can use it as such.”

Yumi scratched her head. “I don't really get it, but I guess that's pretty cool. What's renaming a card going to do, though?”

“Don't get impatient!” he commanded a bit louder than he'd intended. “The story's just started. I'll set one card, then activate True Treasure – Heart's Desire!” The card formerly known as True Treasure – Eighth Wonder appeared on the field, showcasing a group of sword and sorcery-esque people marveling towards the viewer, seemingly taking in some unseen wonder.

He pointed dramatically towards Watchful Lookout who began to glow a pale gold. “This is an Equip Card that targets a True Treasure monster I control, allowing it to count as eight different monsters for the purpose of effects.”

The crowd was understandably confused. A card that counted as eight different cards? Why did that exist, let alone what did it expect to accomplish? Yumi herself was no less baffled, not sure what purpose a card like that would serve, though remaining cautious nonetheless. She'd learned not to underestimate things that didn't seem to make sense.

“Now that I've activated True Treasure – Heart's Desire, Watchful Lookout's second effect can activate. By returning a card on my field to the hand, I can Normal Summon another True Treasure monster this turn.” The choice was obvious, returning the card he'd set just moments before to enable that second summon.

He grasped a card from his hand, holding it close before intending to play it. “And with this, we can now welcome the troupe's leader to battle! True Treasure Hunter – Big-Hearted Captain, summon!” From the moment the monster appeared on the field, it definitely looked as if it had earned its name. Weathered and beaten, both its armor and flesh told stories of countless adventures with its companions. A gleaming sword embedded itself in the ground before it as it rested its hands there, awaiting commands from its owner to better direct its own men.

“Normally, I'd have to release a monster to summon the captain, but with the treasure this close at hand, he just can't wait any longer to head to the battlefield.” The captain began to glow just as Watchful Lookout had before, letting out a yell. “And not only that, he's excited to show a worthy opponent what he can do.”

Kazuhiko seethed in the stands as Yumi suddenly began to feel worried. “I can pay 1000 Life Points to choose any card in my hand and change its name to True Treasure – Heart's Desire until the end of this turn. I'll be picking the card I returned earlier, Cyclone, and activating it immediately!”

A miniature tornado whipped across the field from Shigeo's card, Yumi shielding herself as Justi-Break was blown to pieces next to her. Not a huge loss considering it couldn't be used at the moment, but it was still a bit annoying. “Good, now there's even less chance of my story being interrupted.”

The captain wasn't finished yet, however, as it raised its sword high into the air as its aura intensified. “Since I just used True Treasure – Heart's Desire, Big-Hearted Captain can activate its true ability now. With it, I can pick up to five True Treasure monsters and give each of them a different boost.”

Realization set in around the stadium, the crowd going wild. “Amazing! His expert use of True Treasure – Eighth Wonder earlier in the turn set him up for this unbelievable combo! What's Shigeo going to do next?”

“I assign all five effects to Watchful Lookout, letting it take the place of five monsters at once.” Because of this, it could no longer be destroyed, nor could it be targeted by Yumi's effects until the End Phase of her turn. Not only that, it could both attack directly and attack twice during the Battle Phase. To top it all off, it gained a permanent 500 ATK and DEF boost, putting it at 2000 ATK. A one turn kill in the making.

“Guess we'll be closing the book on your story sooner than expected,” he said, brushing a hand through his hair. “Battle! Watchful Lookout, direct attack! Alert Inferno!” The bird beast began to squawk, opening the front of its lantern to blast a stream of hot fire towards Yumi.

Fortunately for her, she had a plan. The smoke clearing, a trio of three women cloaked in blue stood before Yumi's field, chanting in unison as a small barrier protected her and her monster from damage. “I activate Emissaries of Reconciliation, meaning I won't take damage or have my monsters be destroyed for the rest of the turn. And it doesn't target.”

Rather than be upset by this, Shigeo only laughed. “As expected from someone like you. No one will remember this story if you don't fight back even a little!” Despite this, he had no way around the Trap. “Since I can't damage you this turn, I'll just set a card and move to the End Phase. Because Watchful Lookout used its effects this turn, it returns to my hand.”

He picked up the card, Eighth Wonder dropping off now that it was without a target. “When it's sent to the Graveyard, True Treasure – Eighth Wonder can let me banish an Equip Card in one of our Graveyards or the field, and in return, it'll come to my hand after eight more End Phases have gone by. I'll be removing it from the game for the time being, then.” The card's image appeared for only a brief moment before sinking into a dark void. “It's your turn now.”

Drawing her card, Yumi nearly starting to jump up in down with glee at what she'd just received. “I finally get to use this card!” she squealed. Shigeo's confusion turned to surprise when she placed the card into her duel disk. “I activate Common Fusion!” The name gave a general idea of what it would do, sending the Fusion lovers in the crowd into a frenzy.

“This lets me perform a Fusion Summoning a monster that doesn't have an effect using Normal Monsters from my hand, field, or deck.” The intensity of the cheers grew further, praising Yumi for the unique aim of her card's effect. “I'm using Flame Viper and Trakodon from my deck as material. Combine!” She clasped her hands together above her head as she'd seen Sakuya do so many times before and, remembering all the rehearsal she'd done leading up to today to look as cool as possible, thrust them down as the two monsters merged as one.

“Fusion Summon! Level 5, Pragtical!” A less-than-friendly purple dinosaur appeared on her field, letting out a roar as its barbed tail swished back and forth. Despite the cheers or the fanfare of summoning it, though, the monster didn't seem capable of doing much with a paltry 1900 ATK.

Even so, Sakuya was completely at a loss for words in the stands. “Did you teach her that?” Kazuhiko asked with a dumbfounded expression.

“I...I didn't.” She could only look on in a mixture of pride and fear at her friend's skill. Pride in the fact she seemingly taught herself the basics of Fusion Summoning just from observing her all summer, but a creeping sensation of fear that, if Yumi had become this skilled already, what did she need her as a teacher for anymore? It was a foolish concern, obviously, and even losing her position as teacher wouldn't mean they weren't friends, right?

Fear would have to take a backseat for now, though, as she was genuinely happy to see how far her friend had come. Sakuya couldn't help but start smiling, waiting in anticipation to see what Yumi would do from here.

After a short bit of basking in the crowd's approval, Yumi turned her focus back to the duel. “I'll equip Pragtical with Fighting Spirits, raising its ATK by 300 for every monster you have.” The dinosaur roared once more, its ATK becoming a slightly more impressive 2200, though it still wouldn't be enough to take down Big-Hearted Captain.

“That was a pretty impressive move you pulled off,” Shigeo began, “but it seems to me you're grasping at straws to try and overcome my monster. Or did you misplay and forget to summon it in Defense Mode?”

With a smirk, she replied, “Just watch. The next card I use is going to seal the deal.” She pointed to Sunlight Unicorn, which neighed expectantly. “I'll activate Unicorn's effect to let me reveal a card and add it to my hand if it's an Equip Magic.” Though he felt a bit uneasy at allowing the effect to go forward, Shigeo wasn't trigger happy enough to use his set card without care. Unfortunately for him, that caution didn't save him from the cruel reality of chance.

“Rusty Sword!” Yumi declared, revealing the card she'd excavated and adding it to her hand. Her lucky really was uncanny at times. “Now I summon Hat-Trick Magician.” The cartoony wizard appeared on her field next to Pragtical, awaiting orders and possibly some equipment. “Battle!” Yumi declared, Pragtical rushing forward to bite at the captain.

Confusion set in among the spectators as well as her opponent. She had no set cards and her monster had no effects (considering that was the point of her Fusion card), so what did she intend to do now? Yumi's answer to this question made itself apparent as a seemingly readied Big-Hearted Captain fell to one knee seconds before Pragtical bit into its neck. “That shouldn't be happening!” Shigeo exclaimed, almost looking as if he wanted to say that it “wasn't in the story”.

Yumi held up a single card – Common Fusion. “This card has another effect besides fusing my monsters,” she said. “When the monster it summons attacks one of yours, I can banish it from my Graveyard to negate your monster's effect and any kind of boosts it has until the end of the Battle Phase.” Pragtical made short work of the captain after that, lowering Shigeo's Life Points to 2800 as a result and its own ATK to 1900 once more.

As frustrated as he was, it was an exhilarating twist to his “story” that he didn't see coming. “Not bad. Once the captain shows up, that usually means we're close to the climax. But it seems like this story has a few more pages left than expected.”

“And you might not like how it ends!” Yumi shot back, starting to get into the spirit of the duel. “Hat-Trick Magician, direct attack!” Shigeo braced for the attack, his Life lowering to 1600. “Now, Sunlight Unicorn, finish it!”

“I was hoping to save this, but it looks like I don't have any other options.” Shigeo threw out his hand, the face-down card he'd kept hidden revealing itself to be a Trap. “Demon's Chain, stop the attack!” The unicorn was wrapped in dark chains, halting its charge and saving its owner from defeat. “Wish I could have used it on something bigger, but you don't use Effect Monsters to begin with.” His only regret was not using it the first chance he had to stop his opponent from gaining another card.

Though her strategy failed to cinch the win this turn, Yumi was undeterred. Moving to her second Main Phase, she adapted expertly to the seeming shortcoming. “I overlay my Level 4 Sunlight Unicorn with my Level 4 Hat-Trick Magician!” she declared, the audience going wild all over again at the knowledge she was adept at two forms of Extra Deck summoning. “Xyz Summon, Rank 4! Kachi Kochi Dragon!”

The rigid dragon appeared on her field with a grumble, setting up next to Yumi's dinosaur and preparing to do battle the next chance it got. Though she hadn't planned this far ahead, Yumi was happy to know that her intention of drawing out whatever Shigeo's face-down was had worked. There was no way of knowing what it would do, let alone knowing it was Demon's Chain of all things, but she'd managed to play well enough to maximize all her resources while baiting it out. “I'll set one card and end my turn.”

“Looks like this story's really heating up,” he said with a smile, drawing his card. “But it wouldn't be any fun if the hero wasn't pushed into a corner every once in a while.”

Yumi scoffed. “Um, I'm obviously the hero here.”

“You think so?” he said, raising an eyebrow incredulously. “Last time I checked, heroes don't have a battalion of horrible monsters under their command. They lead a party of heroes and adventurers, like so.”

“But I'm a plucky little girl setting out on an adventure,” she said with a pout. “You're just some old guy standing in my way so I have an excuse to show off the results of my training.”

“I'm only this old because I've already gone through a lot of tough situations, learning and growing every time!” He nodded to himself. “And experience wins out over youthful optimism every time. If anything, I'll win and pat you on the head telling you to get stronger and face me next time, and it'll inspire you to get better so we meet again somewhere down the road.”

Dangerously meta conversation aside, they'd both started to enjoy this duel immensely. Yumi was finally getting into the grove of performance dueling, and Shigeo was glad to have an opponent willing to play along with the routine for a change. “Now I'll show you the results of my training when I summon True Treasure Hunter – Wise Navigator!”

It was a small, dwarf-looking monster with a pair of thick glasses and an exceptionally long, gray beard. Holding a map in both hands, it lowered to one knee after its summoning. “Wise Navigator switches to Defense Mode once its summoned. Not exactly fit for fighting. A balanced cast of heroes is more than just a bunch of brutes, after all.”

He pointed towards the monster, declaring an activation. “Wise Navigator's effect lets me reveal a Field Magic in my hand to change its name to True Treasure – Heart's Desire, but it'll be returned to my deck during the End Phase.” He flipped around one of the cards in his hand, revealing it to be True Treasure – Hidden Beauty. “Now I activate the Field Magic, True Treasure – Heart's Desire!”

A circle of golden light began to glow around Shigeo's feet, spreading out to encompass the entire field. Within the illumination, grass and flowers began to bloom to transform the stadium into a picturesque meadow. “Amazing! Shigeo's Field Card has turned the stadium into something out of a fairy tale! Gorgeous! Romantic! Amazing!” The MC paused to think after that, though, grumbling and making a few other non-word sounds. “Even so, this doesn't seem like the kind of place you'd do battle on. What's his strategy going to be now?”

“He's right,” Shigeo said with a nod. “This is no place for fighting. I can't even attack while I have this card on the field. In exchange, though, I can draw a card if it's name is True Treasure – Heart's Desire when I activate it!” Since that was the case, he did just that, apparently pleased with what he got. “And now, since True Treasure – Heart's Desire was activated this turn, Wise Navigator can use its effect! I look at the top two cards of one of our decks, arrange them how I want, and then force the other person to send the top card of their deck to the Graveyard.”

He tapped his chin to appear as if he was thinking over the matter, though it was clear he'd already made up his mind. “I'll look at my own cards, then force you to send one of your own.” He picked up two cards off his deck, quickly placing them back on top in the same order, seemingly unconcerned with what they were. “Now your turn.”

Yumi's luck seemed to be changing, as the card she was forced to get rid of was a rather unfortunate Komboriboh. “The fun doesn't stop there, though. Our story's just begun!” He raised his arms wide, the meadow beginning to glow all around them. “This field has special properties that allow pure-hearted warriors and their friends to prosper. This means, once per turn, I can add a True Treasure card from my deck to my hand on the condition it can't be activated unless its name is True Treasure – Heart's Desire, and I'll have to discard it at the End Phase if it isn't.”

He made the selection quickly, adding a Magic Card called True Treasure – Kingdom for a Horse to his hand. “Don't assume I'm just thinning my deck,” he warned with a smug smile. “I activate True Treasure – Campaign Start!” The card in question featured a group of adventurers standing around a map spread wide on a table looking as if they were about to set out on some sort of quest. “I can only use this when I control a True Treasure – Heart's Desire. Then, I can discard a card and make another card in my hand into True Treasure – Heart's Desire until the end of the turn.”

For the cost, he discarded Watchful Lookout, leaving only Kingdom for a Horse in his hand to take on a new name. “Just like I said, this meadow allows the True Treasure Hunters to prosper. All I had to do was trust in the power of my cards!” He activated the newly christened Heart's Desire to exemplify that point. “When this card is used, it makes us choose a card in the other's Graveyard to return to the deck before anything else happens.”

Shigeo quickly swiped through his options using his duel disk, selecting Flame Viper for Yumi. A few moments passed, Yumi tapping her foot with a serious expression. She began to hum to herself, seemingly deep in thought, with the noise growing louder as time went by. “Something wrong?” he asked finally.

With an embarrassed laugh, she was forced to admit, “I forgot what's in your Graveyard.”

He raised a brow before noticing the look of his opponent's duel disk, realizing it was an older model that couldn't track that information. “Oh, sorry.” He ejected his Graveyard and walked across the field, holding it out for Yumi who thanked him for understanding.

She looked over each, trying to think of what the best move would be. She wanted to take the time to read each card and see if there were any hidden effects, but she'd already wasted so much time. It was kind of becoming a hassle, and the audience would probably get mad at her if she took too long. Obviously, she was psyching herself out, but reality rarely stopped Takano Yumi from overthinking things.

“This one,” she declared, hoping that returning Cyclone would be the better move. Though a card like that would normally be a bad option, she figured it was safer than allowing a True Treasure back into the deck. With any luck, it would be unplayable once he drew it again.

Shuffling their cards, Shigeo proceeded with the rest of the effect. “Now, I return every True Treasure card on my field to the deck, all except for True Treasure – Heart's Desire.” The navigator left the field after a single brown horse appeared on the field, seemingly riding off into the “sunset” down the tunnel he'd come out from at the beginning of the duel. “In Wise Navigator's place, I can summon a new True Treasure Hunter with a Level equal to the number of cards sent back with this part of the effect. Come out, True Treasure Hunter – Regretful Thief!”

A slightly inebriated man in a black cloak and heavy stubble appeared on the field, pitiful ATK and DEF likely not an indicator of its overall power. This was only the beginning of his strategy, though, as the true danger of the True Treasure deck finally began to show itself. “The moment after the activation of True Treasure – Heart's Desire, its second effect activates. At the same time, I banish Campaign Start from my Graveyard.”

The effects activated in sequence, with Campaign Start resolving first and vanishing into the abyss to sit next to Eighth Wonder. “When Heart's Desire resolves while Campaign Start is in the Graveyard, I can banish it to destroy a True Treasure – Heart's Desire on my field in return for summoning a True Treasure monster from my Graveyard.” Yumi kicked herself (multiple times, in fact) for letting such an obvious trick slip by her. “Sorry if I did something for you to overlook this, but you know what they say – the show must go on! Welcome him back, Big-Hearted Captain!”

The captain made its triumphant return, the crowd cheering as it rose to full height after walking its way out of the Graveyard. Its ability to attack was restricted for the turn due to Campaign Start's resurrection, but its effects were intimidating enough on their own. “Now, on to the second step in the plan. When Kingdom for a Horse is sent to the Graveyard after it activates and its name happened to be True Treasure – Heart's Desire at that time, I can return it to the field as a monster all its own. Captain, your horse awaits!”

The same stallion from before returned to the field, rearing up and whinnying. Even after all this, though, Shigeo wasn't close to finished. “Because my Field Card was sent to the Graveyard, it allows me to summon a True Treasure – Heart's Desire Token to my field in Defense Mode, with its name always counting as True Treasure – Heart's Desire.” Despite its impressive 10 stars and unnatural typing, the miniature golden heart statue gracing the field seemed like it could do little with no ATK or DEF.

Wiping his forehead in mock exhaustion, Shigeo let out a sigh. “Lots of plot points at once there. Sometimes I even impress myself with how strong my deck is. Don't worry, though, no more confusing stuff after this. It's a straight path to my victory now.” He pointed a thumb at his chest at the end, Yumi refuting his statement almost immediately. “We'll see about that. True Treasure – Kingdom for a Horse activates its new effect, letting me equip it to Big-Hearted Captain and increase his ATK equal to his Level x 100.”

The troupe's leader mounted his horse, ATK raising to 2500 despite the inability to attack this turn. “But that's not all. While equipped to a monster, Kingdom for a Horse allows it to use an effect that would require True Treasure – Heart's Desire to be activated or summoned as an activation condition once only. You know what's coming next.”

The captain's devastating effect activated once more, raising its own ATK to 3000, allowing the token invincibility from destruction until the end of Yumi's turn, and letting the thief attack directly. “Battle! True Treasure Hunter – Regretful Thief, direct attack!” In a single moment, the thief dropped what seemed to be an act of drunkenness, launching forward in a flash and cutting through Yumi's midsection. Though it inflicted a minuscule amount of damage, it still lowered her Life Points to 3900 and set off the card's effect.

“When Regretful Thief inflicts damage, I get to add a True Treasure card from my deck to my hand, but I'm not allowed to use it this turn.” He quickly searched his deck, knowing exactly what he wanted to select. “I pick True Treasure Trap – Lurker! to add to my hand.” While she had no idea what that card did, Yumi could tell from name alone that it wouldn't be anything good. Almost like it was a trap, or something.

Shigeo set his newly searched card and ended his turn there, his thief seemingly left recklessly vulnerable to attack. To make matters worse for him, Yumi's Pragtical now had 2800 ATK due to Fighting Spirits. Frankly, the only way his intentions could be anymore obvious was if he tossed her the card himself and let her read the whole thing right then and there.

Trap or not, though, Yumi would have to move forward somehow. “I draw!” she declared to start her turn. “I activate Arms Hole, sending the top card of my deck to the Graveyard to add an Equip Magic from my deck or Graveyard to my hand.” The card sent was Butter Fly. Not a huge loss, but still a bit irritating given its potential for combos.

“I pick Burning Slugger to add to my hand.” With the monster in hand, she figured it would be a good choice for next turn. That captain wasn't immune to effects, so taking it out with an effect like this would be the best option. Now all that was left was that set card. Should she bait it out with an attack or just wait another turn?

Several tense moments of contemplation left her with metaphorical smoke pouring from her ears. Finally, she decided to throw caution to the wind and just go for it. You never got anywhere in life by standing still. Even if she did hesitate, all she'd accomplish would be the loss of at least one of her two monsters. “Kachi Kochi Dragon, attack Regretful Thief!” The dragon straightened itself, firing a blast if rock towards the enemy monster.

From the floor rose a gray manta-like creature, lunging forward and absorbing the attack. Despite its struggle, it quickly managed to subdue Kachi Kochi Dragon and affix itself to its body. “Trap activate!” Shigeo declared. Yumi's monster was rendered entirely defanged, stuck in Attack Position despite having 0 ATK and DEF at this point. To make matters worse, the Battle Phase immediately ended, too, meaning she couldn't even take advantage of the opening.

Calculated risk or not, it might prove to be her downfall depending on what happened next turn. At the very least, there probably wasn't much he could do with just a single card in hand even if she did end up losing Kachi Kochi Dragon. Damage big or small, she should be able to make it to her next turn.

“I draw!” he said. With a small chuckle, he looked towards Yumi. “Looks like this is the beginning of the end.” Fear ran down her spine at those words, fate seemingly trying to do everything it could to make that tiny chance he had of obliterating her become real.

“We're reaching the climax of the story,” he declared for the crowd. “It's been fun, but everything must come to an end.” He activated Big-Hearted Captain's effect, draining his Life to 600, flipping the card in his hand around. “Using the captain's effect, I'll make True Treasure – Precious Time, Glory Days as True Treasure, Heart's Desire for this turn. Now, I'll activate it!”

A rather standard looking grandfather clock appeared behind Shigeo, the only thing to set it apart from others like it being the large golden heart in its center pinning the hands in place as they turned. Upon closer inspection, though, the face didn't tell time, but the phases of the turns. It was set to MP1 currently, corresponding to the phase they were in as it should.

Due to Heart's Desire being played, the captain's effects could go off once more. “I select for the Heart's Desire Token to be immune from your targeting, Regretful Thief to be immune from destruction, and Big-Hearted Captain to be able to attack twice.” With that, he entered his Battle Phase.

“Captain, attack Pragtical!” Despite the monster's enthusiasm of riding forward to slash away with its sword, its weapon met only a collection of puffy little demons, cushioning the blow and making its attack useless.

“I banish Komboriboh from my Graveyard to prevent any damage or destruction to a monster with an Equip Card this turn.” Yumi smiled, silently thanking her card for being sent to the Graveyard when it did.

“Not bad,” he complimented. “In that case, I'll go ahead and attack Kachi Kochi Dragon with Regretful Thief.” Though it did damage, lowering Yumi's Life Points to 3300, no one was sure why he'd attacked with that monster rather than the exceptionally more powerful Big-Hearted Captain. “I'll use Regretful Thief's effect to add a True Treasure card to my hand, and I choose True Treasure Hunter – Sea-Faring Vessel.”

With seemingly no other choice, he ended his Battle Phase. Strangely, he didn't seem too upset by that, his confident smile still on his face. “I use my Magic Card's effect,” he declared. “Once per turn, I can pick a card that, last turn, had the name True Treasure – Heart's Desire and return its name to that until the End Phase. My only option is True Treasure – Kingdom for a Horse.”

The glass door covering the clock's inner mechanisms opened, a stream of translucent, rainbow energy snaking its way out to surround the horse. Was it just grandstanding for the sake of showing off, or was there something more to this move? “And now,” he began, “it's time to show you what this card can really do.”

He pointed upward, directing all eyes towards the clock. “The card originally known as True Treasure – Precious Time, Glory Days, is a commemoration of all the memories my monsters have had together over their many adventures. The good, the bad, and everything else. This clock is a reminder, but more than that...it's a way to go back.”

The crowd grew entirely silent. “Only once, while this card's name is True Treasure – Heart's Desire, I can send it and any number of other True Treasure – Heart's Desire cards to the Graveyard. When that happens, my next turn begins immediately, but during the phase counting backwards from where we are now equal to every Heart's Desire sent to the Graveyard besides the clock itself.”

He'd effectively given himself a second turn. It was unheard of. Not even the MC could think of what to comment in the face of this development. “As some of you might have noticed, there is no card with a name matching True Treasure – Heart's Desire. Not naturally, at least. That's because the treasure is itself is the people we meet and the memories we make together, and that can't be turned into one simple thing. And now I'll show you just how strong that treasure is.”

Yumi's blood ran cold, the now uproarious crowd seeming distant and near-silent as Shigeo went about his strategy. The clock opened once more, absorbing the golden statue and the horse into it before the hands began to turn backwards. The same energy as before began to emit in waves out of the clock face, a new blast shooting out with every phase it turned back. It made one complete circle back to the Main Phase 2. Then the Battle Phase. Then the Main Phase 1.

“I release True Treasure Hunter – Regretful Thief to Advance Summon True Treasure Hunter – Sea-Faring Vessel!” An enormous boat appeared on the field, the captain hopping aboard to replace its steed. “And remember, Big-Hearted Captain's effects last until the end of your turn, and you haven't had a turn yet.”

That was his way of saying his monster still had two attacks, which he demonstrated rather quickly in a double attack on Pragtical. The first attack was cushioned by Fighting Spirits, but the second went through with its full force. Her Life Points fell to 1700, only to deplete even more with a ramming blow from the ship itself. With just 200 left and no monsters strong enough to overcome Shigeo's cards, things looked hopeless for Yumi.

“You hung on longer than I planned for. You've really made this an interesting story. I'll activate Sea-Faring Vessel's effect, letting me declare a type of card and check the top of my deck. I either have to get rid of it if it doesn't match or add it to my hand if it does, and if it does, it'll be treated as True Treasure – Heart's Desire until the end of the turn.”

He declared Trap, and as if a testament to the turning tides of luck and its incredibly fickleness, he not only guessed the type right but was allowed to add Holy Barrier – Mirror Force to his hand. For added protection, he set the card and ended his turn. “Amazing!” the MC cried. “Shigeo's turned the tide of battle in an instant with a double turn combo! It's amazing! Too amazing! Can Yumi recover from this, or has Shigeo won for sure this time?”

Despite Sakuya's fears that Yumi would collapse in panic or despair, her smile still shone brightly on her face. She was afraid – terrified, even – that she'd lose this duel, meaning all her training would have been for nothing this year. But even so, this duel was too fun to get upset over. She was having a blast with Shigeo, and the only way to end this duel right would be to keep giving her all until the very last second.

“No matter how bad it looks, I'll still keep trying!” She drew a card, her heart starting to pound faster and faster at seeing the first stroke of luck in ages. This was a sign for sure. She had to chance using her card now. “I activate Charity of the Ordinary! I draw two cards and banish a Normal Monster from my hand. If I can't, I have to discard everything.”

It was already guaranteed she had a Normal Monster, but if that ended up being the only Normal Monster out of all six cards, she'd be ruined. Not much good all these Equip Cards would do without anything to equip to.

Holding her breath, she drew her cards, slowly peaking at them from the side after they were in her hand. Her pulse raced even faster at the realization that she could win this now. “I banish Wallrus!” she declared, hoping she didn't start screaming from the frenzy of emotions about to overtake.

Her hand shaking – not from fear this time, but pure excitement – she grabbed a single card with intent to play. It would all work. She saw the path to victory. She just had to follow it. A single misplay, though, and it would all be for nothing.

“I summon Big Bat Knight!” The baseball player appeared on the field, tossing its bat into the air to catch as it came down. “N-now, I equip Big Bat Knight with Burning Slugger!” There wasn't any increase in ATK from this card, but the effect itself would be devastating on its own. “I activate the effect, and I target Sea-Faring Vessel!”

Five cards were sent. Among them was her own Mirror Force, as well as Pot of Greed. Both valuable, but neither would be needed for this victory. The flaming ball smashed through the hull of the ship, causing it to collapse to the ground. Shigeo blocked the cloud of dust and smoke that blew over him, his Life Points reducing down to 100. Despite this, the captain remained unharmed.

“It's not enough,” Sakuya said in near-monotone. In contrast to Yumi's mania, she looked as if she was about to burst into tears at any second. “She forgot its limitation. Big Bat Knight can't attack, no matter what she has. She wanted to show off and beat his ace monster, but it's not enough.

“You mean she picked the wrong one?” Kazuhiko said, joining everyone else in turning towards her.

“She can't win with just that. There's only two unknowns in her hand. Her opponent has a Trap that will stop any attack. None of the other cards in her deck I know of can inflict direct damage.” With a shaky breath, she declared definitively, “She can't win.”

They all remained silent, watching in horror as Yumi celebrated this minor victory. Kyoko covered her face, Hideo's fists clenched. Her grandmother's heart started to ache, understanding how much this loss was going to hurt once the adrenaline died down. Even Sachi had stopped playing with Kazuhiko's phone to take notice, not really understanding what was happening but knowing enough to sense the gravity of the situation.

“There has to be something!” Kazuhiko demanded. “She can't just lose after all this! There's a card you don't know about, or some plan! Miss Yumi...she can't just...she's not playing just on instinct. She can't be...” Unfortunately, he knew all too well from their countless duels that, when pushed far enough with her excitement at a fever pitch, Yumi's tendency to play without thinking would come out as if a switch was flipped. There was nothing they could do but watch and hope beyond hope they were wrong.

“Restraint Release Wave!” Yumi yelled. “I destroy my Equip Card and all your face-down Magic and Trap Cards!” Her words started to slur the further along her strategy made it. She hadn't felt this worked up in a duel since her second match with Rio. Though not in a literal sense this time, this duel felt just as life-or-death as that, with the reactions of the crowd and her opponent's enthusiasm only driving up her own excitement that much more.

Mirror Force was destroyed. The path was clear. It was almost time. She nearly slammed her card into her duel disk after that. “Resurrection of the Dead!” She wasted no time explaining it or calling out her selection, pulling Butter Fly onto the field as quickly as possible. With a few panicked breaths close to the level of hyperventilation, she shakily declared, “X-Xyz Summon!”

A new monster? An old one? “Rank 3, Illusion King Robbins!” The wizard appeared on the field with a tip of the hat, ready to play its role in its owner's victory. “Effect activate! I'm taking Sea-Faring Vessel!” As she called out to her monster, it complied, absorbing its two Overlay Units and roping up the ship's card form, taking it for itself and boosting its ATK to 3050.

“You're 50 short!” Sakuya yelled, pulling down on her hat with both hands. She couldn't tell exactly what she felt anymore. Hope? Fear? Anguish? Excitement? It all just blurred together the second that monster came out. None of them knew what to expect anymore. Was Yumi aiming to stick with that until the next turn, getting a win in two moves? Was there still more to this convoluted plan?

“Effect activate! Release!” Robbins became engulfed in white light, exploding with a loud bang and leaving a large puff of white smoke behind. What did she choose to summon? With 3050 ATK worth of choices from anywhere outside her Extra Deck, she wasn't short on options.

The dust cleared, Yumi shaking in anticipation.

Her loved ones in the stands held their collective breaths. With a bit of thought, they'd all be able to predict what was about to be revealed. But this wasn't really the time for thought.

Swiping a cane through the remaining cloud, Majesty Magician appeared on the field in all its glory. It bowed to Shigeo, completely at a loss for words from a mixture of disbelief and pure elation at the kind of show they were putting on.

“E-equip Magic, Rusty Sword!” Performing possibly the greatest account of sleight-of-hand ever recorded, the magician managed to swap its cane with the hulking sword, raising its ATK to 4500. “Finish it! Majesty Strike!”

Running across the ground in a serpentine pattern, Majesty Magician dragged its weapon close behind, metal screeching against the floor with every step. Shigeo couldn't hold in his reaction any longer, laughing as hard as he could. “Don't lose without a fight! Captain!”

Despite the futile effort, his monster obeyed out of both loyalty for its master and respect for a worth opponent. The captain lifted its sword, charging forward to meet in the center of the field. The combatants slashed at each other, blades colliding in a shower of sparks. They matched each other blow for blow, but it became instantly clear Big-Hearted Captain was outclassed this time.

One shot was all it took. Ducking beneath an upward strike, Majesty Magician slashed through the captain's side. Turning the blade over in its hand, it stabbed the weapon into the ground, the captain falling to one knee a moment later and then shattering to pieces. Shigeo's Life Points were reduced to 0 at the same moment.

The crowd hadn't stopped cheering for a single moment during Yumi's last turn, reaching a peak after victory was claimed. It would be hard to top Kazuhiko in terms of a single reaction, though, as his chin seemed to nearly deform in a grotesque fashion similar to his Mutant cards as he flexed in celebration. “Amazing! A true reversal! Takano Yumi is the winner of the second duel of the Chiba Prefecture Finals!”

Despite the immense pride she felt at having come this far, Yumi's head began to spin, nearly causing her to take a tumble straight to the ground. Shigeo placed a hand on her should before that could happen, though, holding her upright. “You can't just go to sleep now. You've got to keep standing until you beat the rest of them, too.”

Brushing his hair from his eyes again, he yawned. “But that doesn't apply to me. Kind of feel like going home and taking a nap after all that excitement. Thanks for making this story a really memorable one.” The dizziness in her head began to clear about halfway through what he said, causing her to smile and thank him for the great game in turn.

Leaving the field almost as friends, both duelists returned through their respective tunnels. Yumi collapsed into a chair and almost immediately began taking a nap, while Shigeo packed himself up and headed out of the stadium. As he exited through the front doors, he turned back for just a moment, pushing the hair from his eyes and giving a small chuckle. “Hope we get to tell another story some day,” he said to himself before continuing on his way.

\Next: Second Round of the Finals! The Dreaded True Dragon Rematch!/

Cards Used in Order of Appearance

Sunlight Unicorn
LIGHT
Level 4
Beast/Effect
1800 ATK/1000 DEF
Once per turn: You can excavate the top card of your deck, and if it is an Equip Spell Card, add it to your hand. Otherwise, place it on the bottom of your Deck.

Fighting Spirits (Fighting Spirit)
Equip Spell Card
The equipped monster gains 300 ATK for each monster your opponent controls. If it would be destroyed in battle, you can destroy this card instead.

True Treasure Hunter - Watchful Lookout
WIND
Level 4
Winged Beast/Effect
1500 ATK/1000 DEF
You can only activate each effect of a card originally named “True Treasure Hunter - Watchful Lookout” once per turn and you cannot activate the effects of cards, except for “True Treasure” cards, the turn you activate this card’s effects. Once per turn, you can reveal a card in your hand; its name becomes “True Treasure - Heart’s Desire” until the End Phase of this turn, also return this card to the hand during the End Phase. (You cannot Normal Summon/Set “True Treasure Hunter – Watchful Lookout” until the End Phase of your next turn after activating this effect.) If you activate or summon “True Treasure - Heart’s Desire”: You can return a card you control to the hand, also you can Normal summon/Set one additional “True Treasure” monster this turn.

True Treasure - Eighth Wonder
Equip Spell Card
If this card’s name isn’t “True Treasure - Heart’s Desire”, pay one-eighth of your LP to activate this card. Equip this card to a “True Treasure” monster you control. The equipped monster counts as 8 different monsters for the purpose of card effects. When this card is sent to the Graveyard, banish an Equip Spell Card from the field or either player’s Graveyard; add it to your hand after eight End Phases. You can only activate a card originally named “True Treasure - Eight Wonder” once per turn.

True Treasure Hunter - Big-Hearted Captain
EARTH
Level 5
Warrior/Effect
2000 ATK/1400 DEF
If you activated “True Treasure - Heart’s Desire” this turn, you can Normal Summon this card without Tributing. You can only activate each effect of a card originally named “True Treasure Hunter - Big-Hearted Captain” once per turn and you cannot activate the effects of cards, except for “True Treasure” cards, the turn you activate this card’s effects. Once per turn, you can pay 1000 LP and reveal a card in your hand; its name becomes “True Treasure - Heart’s Desire” until the End Phase of this turn. If you activate or summon “True Treasure - Heart’s Desire”: You can select up to 5 different “True Treasure” monsters you control and give each a different effect:

• This card gains 500 ATK and DEF.

• This card can attack twice during each Battle Phase until the End Phase of your opponent’s next turn.

• This card cannot be destroyed until the End Phase of your opponent’s next turn.

• This card cannot be targeted by opponent’s card effects until the End Phase of your opponent’s next turn.

• This card can attack directly until the End Phase of your opponent’s next turn.

Cyclone (Mystical Space Typhoon)
Quick-Play Spell Card
Target 1 Spell/Trap Card on the field; destroy that target.

Justi-Break
Normal Trap Card
Activate only when your opponent declares an attack against a face-up Normal Monster you control. Destroy all monsters on the field, except face-up Attack Position Normal Monsters.

Emissaries of Reconciliation (Waboku)
Normal Trap Card
You take no battle damage from your opponent's monsters this turn. Your monsters cannot be destroyed by battle this turn.

Common Fusion
Normal Spell Card
Fusion Summon 1 non-Effect Fusion Monster from your Extra Deck, using Normal Monsters from your hand, field, or Deck as Fusion Material. When the card Fusion Summoned by this effect battles an opponent's monster: You can banish this card in your Graveyard; negate that monster's effects and apply its original ATK and DEF when calculating damage until the end of the Battle Phase.

Flame Viper
EARTH
Level 2
Pyro
400 ATK/450 DEF

Trakodon
EARTH
Level 3
Dinosaur
1300 ATK/800 DEF

Pragtical
EARTH
Level 5
Dinosaur/Fusion
1900 ATK/1500 DEF

Rusty Sword
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: This card's original ATK increases equal to its DEF. When this card attacks, during the Damage Step: You can pay Life Points in multiples of 100 (maximum 500); this card gains ATK equal to that amount.

Hat-Trick Magician
DARK
Level 4
Spellcaster
1200 ATK/1500 DEF

Demon's Chain (Fiendish Chain)
Continuous Trap Card
Activate this card by targeting 1 Effect Monster on the field; negate the effects of that face-up monster while it is on the field, also that face-up monster cannot attack. When it is destroyed, destroy this card.

Kachi Kochi Dragon
EARTH
Rank 4
Dragon/Xyz/Effect
2100 ATK/1300 DEF
2 Level 4 monsters
Once per turn, when this card destroys an opponent's monster by battle and sends it to the Graveyard: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; it can can make a second attack in a row.

True Treasure Hunter - Wise Navigator
LIGHT
Level 2
Psychic/Effect
0 ATK/2000 DEF
When this card is Normal or Special Summoned: Change it to Defense Position. You can only activate each effect of a card originally named “True Treasure Hunter - Wise Navigator” once per turn and you cannot activate the effects of cards, except for “True Treasure” cards, the turn you activate this card’s effects. Once per turn, you can reveal a Field Spell card in your hand; its name becomes “True Treasure - Heart’s Desire” until the End Phase of this turn, also shuffle it into the deck during the End Phase of this turn. If you activate or summon “True Treasure - Heart’s Desire”: You can look at the top two cards of either player’s Deck and arrange them in any order, then send the top card of the other player’s Deck to the Graveyard.

True Treasure - Hidden Beauty
Field Spell Card
You cannot attack while this card is face-up on the field. If this card’s name is “True Treasure - Heart’s Desire” when activated, draw a card. Once per turn: You can add 1 “True Treasure” card from your Deck to your hand. If that card’s name is not “True Treasure - Heart’s Desire”, it cannot be activated or summoned this turn, also send it to the Graveyard at the end of the turn. If this card is sent to the Graveyard: You can Special Summon 1 “True Treasure - Heart’s Desire Token” (Divine-Beast/DIVINE/Level 10/0 ATK/0 DEF) to your side of the field. Its name is always treated as “True Treasure - Heart’s Desire “. You can only activate each effect of a card originally named “True Treasure - Hidden Beauty” once per turn.

Komboriboh
DARK
Level 1
Fiend/Effect
300 ATK/ 200 DEF
When a monster is targeted by an Equip Spell Card: You can discard this card and target 1 Equip Spell Card in your Graveyard that could be equipped to an appropriate monster on the field; add that target to your hand. When a monster you control is targeted for an attack while it it equipped with an Equip Spell Card: You can banish this card from your Graveyard to target that monster; this turn, that target cannot be destroyed by battle and you take no battle damage from attacks involving that target.

True Treasure - Kingdom for a Horse
Quick-Play Spell Card
You can only activate each effect of a card originally named “True Treasure - Kingdom For A Horse” once per turn. Each player shuffles 1 card from the other player’s Graveyard into the Deck. Shuffle all other “True Treasure” cards on your side of the field into the Deck, except “True Treasure - Heart’s Desire”, then you can Special Summon “True Treasure” monsters from your Deck whose combined Levels are equal to or less than the number of cards shuffled into the Deck this way. After this effect resolves: If this card’s name when it was activated was “True Treasure - Heart’s Desire”, you can Special Summon this card as an Effect Monster (Beast/EARTH/Level 4/1600 ATK/700 DEF), but banish it when it leaves the field. (This card is NOT treated as a Spell Card.)

• During either player’s turn: You can equip this card to a face-up “True Treasure” monster you control and make that monster gain ATK and DEF equal to its level x 100 (even if this card leaves the field), also it can activate an effect that would require the activation or summoning of “True Treasure – Heart's Desire” once.

True Treasure – Campaign Start
Normal Spell Card
Can only be activated if you control a face-up “True Treasure – Heart's Desire”. Discard 1 card and reveal 1 other card in your hand; the revealed card's name becomes “True Treasure – Heart's Desire” until the End Phase of this turn. If you activate or summon “True Treasure – Heart's Desire” while this card is in your Graveyard: Immediately after that card resolves or is summoned successfully, you can banish this card to destroy 1 “True Treasure – Heart's Desire” you control; summon 1 “True Treasure Hunter” monster from your Graveyard, but it cannot attack this turn.

True Treasure Hunter - Regretful Thief
DARK
Level 1
Fiend/Effect
100 ATK/100 DEF
You cannot activate the effects of cards, except for “True Treasure” cards, the turn you activate this card’s effects. You can discard 1 card; this card can attack directly this turn, also the discarded card’s name becomes “True Treasure - Heart’s Desire” until the End Phase of this turn. (You can only activate this effect of a card originally named “True Treasure Hunter - Regretful Thief” once per turn.) If this card inflicts battle damage to your opponent: You can add one “True Treasure” card from your Deck to your hand, but it cannot be activated or summoned this turn.

True Treasure Trap – Lurker!
Normal Trap Card
When an opponent's monster declares an attack involve a “True Treasure” monster you control: Target that attacking monster, equip this card to it, and end the Battle Phase; that target cannot attack or change its battle position and its ATK and DEF become 0. When it leaves the field, destroy this card. If this card's name is “True Treasure – Heart's Desire” when it is sent to the Graveyard: Inflict 1000 damage to your opponent.

Arms Hole (Hidden Armory)
Normal Spell Card
Send the top card of your Deck to the Graveyard; add 1 Equip Spell Card from your Deck or Graveyard to your hand. You cannot Normal Summon/Set during the turn you activate this card.

Butter Fly
WIND
Level 3
Insect
900 ATK/700 DEF

Burning Slugger
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: Once per turn: You can target 1 monster your opponent controls, then send cards from the top of your Deck to the Graveyard equal to its Level/Rank; destroy it, and if you do, inflict damage equal to its Level/Rank x 100. This monster cannot attack the turn you activate this effect.

True Treasure - Precious Time, Glory Days
Continuous Spell Card
This card cannot be activated during Main Phase 1 if its name is not “True Treasure - Heart’s Desire”. Once per turn: You can select 1 card in your hand, field, or Graveyard whose name was “True Treasure - Heart’s Desire” during your last turn; its name becomes “True Treasure - Heart’s Desire” until the End Phase of this turn. If this card’s name is “True Treasure - Heart’s Desire”, you can send it and any number of “True Treasure - Heart’s Desire” from your hand or field to the Graveyard; for each “True Treasure - Heart’s Desire” sent to the Graveyard in this way, excluding this card, immediately start your next turn from that many Phases ago. (You can only use this effect of a card originally named “True Treasure – Precious Time, Glory Days” once per Duel.) You can only activate a card originally named “True Treasure - Precious Time, Glory Days” once per turn.

True Treasure Hunter - Sea-Faring Vessel
WATER
Level 5
Aqua/Effect
1500 ATK/2400 DEF
You can only activate each effect of a card originally named “True Treasure Hunter - Sea-Faring Vessel” once per turn and you cannot activate the effects of cards, except for “True Treasure” cards, the turn you activate this card’s effects. Once per turn: You can declare 1 card type (Monster, Spell, Trap) and excavate the top card of your Deck; if it is the declared type, add it to your hand. Its name becomes “True Treasure - Heart’s Desire” until the End Phase of this turn. If it is not the declared type, send it to the Graveyard. This card cannot attack while the last card revealed in this way was not the correct type. If you activate or summon “True Treasure - Heart’s Desire”: You can special summon one “True Treasure” monster from your hand and increase its ATK and DEF by the number of “True Treasure” cards you control x 200, also it cannot attack this turn.

Holy Barrier – Mirror Force (Mirror Force)
Normal Trap
When an opponent's monster declares an attack: Destroy all Attack Position monsters your opponent controls.

Charity of the Ordinary (Common Charity)
Normal Trap Card
Draw 2 cards, then remove from play 1 Normal Monster Card from your hand. If you don't have any Normal Monster Cards in your hand to remove, send all cards in your hand to the Graveyard.

Wallrus
WATER
Level 2
Beast
400 ATK/800 DEF

Big Bat Knight
EARTH
Level 3
Warrior
1100 ATK/500 DEF

Pot of Greed
Normal Spell Card
Draw 2 cards.

Restraint Release Wave (Release Restraint Wave)
Normal Spell Card
Target 1 face-up Equip Spell Card you control; destroy the Equip Spell Card and all face-down Spell and Trap Cards your opponent controls.

Resurrection of the Dead (Monster Reborn)
Normal Spell Card
Target 1 monster in either player's Graveyard; Special Summon it.

Illusion King Robbins
LIGHT
Rank 3
Spellcaster/Xyz/Effect
2300 ATK/1500 DEF
2 Level 3 monsters
Once per turn: You can detach 2 Xyz Material from this card and target 1 monster in your opponent's Graveyard; equip that target to this card. When a monster is equipped to this card by its own effect, it gains ATK equal to half the ATK of the equipped monster. While this card is equipped with an opponent's monster: You can Tribute this card; Special Summon 1 monster from your hand, Deck, or Graveyard with ATK equal to or less than this card's ATK on the field.

Majesty Magician
DARK
Level 8
Spellcaster/Effect
2500 ATK/2000 DEF
You can Tribute Summon this card by Tributing 1 monster that was originally a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. This card is treated as an appropriate target for a card that specifically designates a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF while face-up on the field or in the Graveyard (its Level and ATK/DEF do not change).

Chapter Text

Yumi spent the next match (Yuu versus Kyo) sound asleep in a chair, snot bubble hanging from her nose. She'd expended quite a bit of energy during the duel with Shigeo after an unexpectedly high-intensity match from someone who seemed so tired himself before it began. Given who her next opponent would be, though, this was probably a good move on her part.

By the time she woke up, the fourth match had already started, Kaori facing off against Shoji. Before she could even have the chance to look around at who was left in the room, Yumi was met with the sight of Yuu sitting in front of her on the other side of the table. Given the intense look she had on her face, it almost seemed like she'd been watching her sleep.

“Hi,” Yumi mumbled, stretching her arms and shaking the sleepiness out of her head. “I guess you won if you're sitting there,” she said, receiving a nod in reply. “I'm glad. Maybe we'll get to play each other in the finals after all.” Remembering who she'd be dueling next, a weak laugh couldn't help but escape her lips. “Maybe.”

Other than Taniguchi who occupied himself looking at his cards with only the occasional dismissive glance in their direction, they were the only two left in the room. The current duel was being played on the screen, but neither of them was all that interested in it at the moment. “You dueled my friend earlier in the tournament. He said you were really strong. But don't worry, he didn't tell me about your deck very much so I won't know what you're going to use.”

Yuu suddenly produced her cards from her jacket pocket and held them out to Yumi. “N-no, you don't have to show me. I like the surprise, and it's not fair if you let me know what you'll be using ahead of time.” Stern faced as always, Yuu quickly put her deck away once more. Was it confidence that let her so brazenly offer up the contents of her deck or did she just not care? Either way, it was kind of weird, yet oddly a bit endearing. She wanted to try and find an excuse to pet her on the head again.

“I'm a little nervous,” she finally admitted. “I lost the last time I dueled my opponent, and I don't know if I'll be able to do any better this time. Kind of feels like a waste of time, you know?” Without any warning at all, Yuu reached across the table and placed a hand on Yumi's head, rubbing from side to side to imitate what had been done to her earlier.

After the initial moment of shock passed, Yumi couldn't help but smile. “Thanks.” The petting continued until she was forced to touch Yuu's hand, causing her to withdraw it. Not that it wasn't pleasant, but she'd be going out in front of the crowd soon and her hair was already messy enough just by nature.

As soon as she thought that, Kaori returned to the room after having won her match. “Guess I'm up next,” Yumi said with a small sigh. “I'll do my best,” she told Yuu. “Let's see each other in the finals, okay?” Yuu nodded in response.

Just as last time, she was led around to the other side of the arena. Her heart was beating quicker than she would have liked as she walked out onto the field, forced to meet her opponent in the middle. It actually would have been less stressful if he'd looked at her with anger or contempt, since all her opponent's expression showed was total indifference.

After cutting each others decks, they took their places at opposite ends of the field. He didn't offer the same dismissive chance at surrender as before, though Yumi doubted it was out of newfound respect for her skills. More likely, it would just look bad to the judge standing next to them at the time.

“Duel!” they shouted in unison as was the custom. Taniguchi would be going first this time. Though the chance for him to set up a field was frankly terrifying, Yumi was somewhat relieved she'd be able to dodge any one turn kills for the moment. And, if his previous hand was any indication, his deck was mostly monster, so there wasn't too much to fear when it came to anything set.

That was entirely speculation, though. It would be foolish to bank all her hopes on a single turn in a duel from several rounds back, and she neglected to watch any of his match from earlier in the finals. She couldn't afford to become too sure of herself before he'd even played a card.

Now was no time for daydreaming, though, as he was about to make his incredibly fast move. “Activating Supply Squad. Activating True Dragon Heritage.” As soon as the cards appeared on his field, one of them was already about to disappearing, shimmering away to nothing in golden light. “Release Supply Squad to Advance Summon Draius III, the True Dragon Cavalry General.”

She didn't really understand how he could do that, but Yumi decided not to question it. He might not be nice, but she doubted he'd try to cheat in front of a huge audience full of people. The MC only seemed impressed by the maneuver, too, and there were no alarms going off on his duel disk, so she just had to accept it as a legal move.

“Destroying Draius III and Bi'an, Dracomet of Earth to summon True Dragon King Lithosazim, the Disaster,” he continued. Yumi was at least familiar with the way this card worked, though its effect activating was still pretty bad for her. Her Extra Deck wasn't exactly overflowing to begin with, so the loss of Pragtical, Robbins, and Kachi Kochi Dragon before she even started her first turn was just awful.

“Draius III's effect,” he declared, his deck ejecting a monster which he quickly summoned. “Dinomight Knuckle, the True Dragon Fist Fighter.” He wasn't ready to stop there, though, Heritage beginning to glow as its effect activated and let him draw a new card.

He seemed pleased with this card, letting Heritage go off once more. “When Heritage's effect happens, I Advance Summon Majesty Maiden, the True Dragon Mage.” The sacrifice was Dinomight Knuckle, though that wasn't much of a loss given its lack of effect.

This was, thankfully, the end of his turn. Yumi's normal enthusiasm she'd be feeling at seeing a monster whose name was so complimentary to one of her own simply wasn't there right now. It was silly to think it, but she almost wished she was dueling Rio again. At least she had some kind of passion for the game. Taniguchi just seemed to be on autopilot.

“Now it's my turn!” Yumi declared as she drew her card. It felt gross to have to feign optimism like that, but she hoped pretending would put her back into a state of enjoyment. If nothing else, it was a sign to her opponent that he wouldn't intimidate her into hating this game. Enough people had already tried to do that this summer and she wasn't about to let him be another.

Upon inspecting the card she'd just drawn, Yumi's expression changed to one of pure delight. After a series of short, quiet giggles into her cards, she picked one and slapped it down onto her duel disk. “I summon Flame Viper in Attack Mode!” she declared, the very much outmatched reptile confidently hissing as it appeared on the field.

The reaction from the crowd was a mixture of laughter and applause, overall just amused by the fact she played such a bizarre little card while facing down such strong monsters. Of course, Yumi didn't really intend to send Flame Viper into battle all on its own. That would be irresponsible.

“I equip Flame Viper with Necklace of Supplantation, meaning it gains ATK when it battles a monster with a higher Level equal to the difference between our two cards.” Pleased with herself, she pointed towards Lithosazim. “Your monsters might look big and dangerous, but all you've done is set yourself up for an even bigger fall!”

Seemingly unconcerned, Taniguchi simply activated Majesty Maiden's effect, allowing him to add Ignis Heat, the True Dragon Warrior to his hand. “Battle! Flame Viper, attack True Dragon King Lithosazim, the Disaster! That's a difference of 7 Levels, so Flame Viper's ATK will grow to 3900 for this battle!” Just as she explained, Flame Viper's normally puny flames shot forth in a torrent of explosive power, utterly obliterating Lithosazim and taking with it 1400 of Taniguchi's Life Points.

“Amazing! Yumi's taken first blood in this duel! Despite his strong start, Hiroshi's being pushed back! What is he going to do now?” To say he thought the commentary was inane would be an understatement. Despite managing to last more than a single turn this duel, Taniguchi still refused to view Yumi as an actual challenge. All she was to him was a child playing at being a duelist.

Though all of Taniguchi's monsters he had on hand would have more ATK than Flame Viper were they to battle, his position was overall worse than his opponent. Regardless, he didn't expect it to last for much longer. His biggest problem was a lack of cards in hand, which would be mitigated next turn shortly.

Yumi ended her turn by setting two cards, confident in her monster despite its disadvantages. Taniguchi began his turn after that, preparing to do as much damage as possible to cement his superiority. “Activating Disciples of the True Dragon Phoenix, returning Dinomight Knuckle, Lithosazim, and Draius III to the deck to draw a card.” His selection shuffling itself back into his deck, he took a new card from the top, giving a quiet hum of affirmation upon seeing it. “After using Disciples of the True Dragon Phoenix, I can Advance Summon a True Dragon. Releasing Disciples of the True Dragon Phoenix and Majesty Maiden to Advance Summon Master Peace, the True Dragonsword King.”

This was only the start of his turn, though, Yumi's situation growing more dire by the second. “Disciples effect. Destroy your card.” The image of Taniguchi's spent Magic Card appeared behind him, shimmering before shooting out a red blast of energy to shatter one of Yumi's set cards. Majesty Sanction was a rather unfortunate loss, though she would be fine so long as he didn't get rid of her oth-

“Master Peace effect. Banish Disciples to destroy your card.” Things were just as bad as they seemed now that Justi-Break had been cleaved in half by that monster's sword. She'd survive the turn assuming nothing else cataclysmic happened, though not by much. “True Dragon Heritage effect, draw two cards.” Just as before with Disciples, Heritage's second effect kicked in after that, releasing itself so Taniguchi could summon Ignis Heat, the True Dragon Warrior.

He moved to the Battle Phase after that. Ignis Heat went first, destroying Flame Viper and costing Yumi 500 Life Points in the process. With no monsters in hand, she chose not to return the necklace to the top of her deck given it would be equivalent to suicide. “Attack,” he called unenthusiastically, waving a hand forward as Master Peace slashed across Yumi to claim 2950 of her Life in one go.

Despite being blown back, Yumi refused to lose her footing. Gritting her teeth through the attack, she hung on with just 550 Life Points left. Taniguchi set a single card before ending his turn, leaving her with no cards on the field staring down two incredibly powerful monsters. Worse than raw strength, though, was Master Peace's immunity to both monster and Magic effects, as well as its destruction ability.

“Draw!” she declared. No matter what she did, Ignis Heat's effect would have to go off this turn. Most important was eliminating Master Peace, though, as there was still another two cards it could banish. The only problem was that her current hand just wouldn't cut it. At best, she could only buy herself another turn.

“I summon Hat-Trick Magician!” The cartoonish wizard appeared on her field, ready to be of service however it could. “Then, I'll equip it with Rusty Sword, which gives it the effect to increase its own ATK by its DEF.” The large weapon appeared to replace the monster's original wand, Hat-Trick Magician having difficulty lifting it as the two of them hit the ground with a thud.

“Ignis Heat effect, adding Disciples of the True Dragon Phoenix.” Just as she'd expected, Taniguchi managed to take advantage of her turn once again and add another card to his hand. If nothing else, it was at least a card she'd seen before and, knowing that, she was aware it wouldn't be of much use at the moment.

She'd push through regardless. “Battle! Hat-Trick Magician, attack Ignis Heat!” Mustering up all its strength, Hat-Trick Magician floated forward, spinning like a deadly top towards Ignis Heat.

“Master Peace, banish Supply Squad, destroy Hat-Trick Magician.” As always, Taniguchi had a counter. Master Peace rushed to intercept Yumi's attack, planning to cut straight through the magician as it did a turn earlier with her Trap. Fortunately, this was all according to plan.

Yumi extended a hand, revealing her counter. “Armored Block, activate!” As Master Peace took its swing, Hat-Trick Magician stopped its rotation to intercept and cross swords. “For the rest of the turn, none of my monsters equipped with Equip Cards can be destroyed.”

For the first time all duel, Taniguchi's composure broke. He grit his teeth at being denied his victory. His intent was to wipe her field and leave her powerless before his cards just as he'd done in their last duel, but the fact he planned that was why she knew her strategy would work, and that didn't sit right with him.

“Keep going!” Yumi commanded. Hat-Trick Magician nodded, continuing on its path to destroy Ignis Heat. “During the Damage Step, I can pay up to 500 Life Points to increase Hat-Trick Magician's ATK by the same amount. I'll do 300!” Now doing a solid 500 damage to Taniguchi, Hat-Trick Magician managed to destroy Ignis Heat without issue. Despite now being at 2100, it still far surpassed Yumi's 250 Life Points.

Of course, just taking a few extra Life Points wasn't her intention. With 50 more ATK than Master Peace now, Hat-Trick would be safe from attacks. Obviously, he'd try to use its effect, but she already had a way to deal with that. “I'll end my turn,” Yumi declared, confident in her ability to make it through the next turn despite the tenuous situation she was in.

“Activate True Dragon King's Return,” Taniguchi declared, the card flipping up as Yumi's turn drew to a close. “Summoning Majesty Maiden in Defense Mode.” Though seemingly nothing more than a way to bolster his defenses, the fact he'd used it on her turn meant he could dodge the card's own limitation of preventing Special Summoning the rest of the turn.

“Banish Heritage, destroy monster.” Just like before he went for her monster, and just like before he'd find himself stopped in his tracks.

“If one of my monsters equipped with an Equip Card is going to be destroyed, I can banish Armored Block from my Graveyard to stop its destruction.” Master Peace's strike was deflected once more, Taniguchi's overconfidence proving to be a greater enemy than any of Yumi's cards at the moment. With disdain, he switched his monster to Defense Position, set a card in the backrow, and summoned Ignis Heat again with True Dragon King's Return before ending.

Yumi began her turn positively elated upon seeing what she'd just drawn. “I activate Pot of Greed, letting me draw two cards!” Though the cards she got out of it wouldn't exactly help her win the duel there and then, they'd at least help her accomplish what she needed to this turn. “I use the card Poltergeist, returning True Dragon King's Return to your hand.” It didn't exactly fit with her style, but it was a pretty helpful card from time to time, and the fact she found it in the literal trash still made her laugh.

With the Trap Card out of the way, Taniguchi would be unable to immediately return whatever Yumi chose to destroy, nor Advance Summon during her turn. “Hat-Trick Magician, destroy Master Peace!” Overcoming what was once her biggest obstacle in the duel, she breathed a sigh of relief as the game finally seemed to be tilting in her favor. Setting a card, she ended her turn.

Unfortunately, her opponent was nowhere near finished. “Activate Secluded Ethereal Waterfall. Second effect, adding Dozen Metatron, the True Dragon Machine Combatant to hand.” While she didn't recognize that card (she expected one of the Kings, if anything), it was obviously bad news if he wanted it in his hand right now. And by using his search card on her turn, his deck would be one card smaller by the time he got to draw.

And draw he did, shoving the card into his duel disk with the force of his disdain for Yumi behind it. “Thunderbolt!” he declared, his voice finally breaking its normal disinterested monotone as if to assert dominance through more than swarming the field.

“That card!” the MC yelled. “That's a super rare, super powerful card Hiroshi's got there! With that, all of Yumi's monsters are destroyed in an instant!” Just as he explained, Hat-Trick Magician would finally be bested, not benefiting from any kind of immunity like Master Peace or another shield like Armored Block.

Storm clouds hung above her field, a sharp bolt of lightning raining down to electrify her monster until it was thoroughly destroyed. Then, suddenly, she froze. The crackle of the electricity rung in her ears just as it had that day, bringing her back to the burning pain and forcing the scent of singed flesh and clothing into her nose.

Yumi stood frozen with her arms in front of her chest, shaking while trapped in the memory of her trauma all over again. All the feelings and memories she tried hard to push below the surface since then came back in force, refusing to let her escape them any longer.

“Hey, kid, what are you doing?” The judge stationed on the field approached her, confused as to why she'd only been standing in place since Taniguchi's play. He called to her two more times but couldn't seem to get through to her, Yumi lost in her own mind for the time being.

“Something's wrong,” her grandmother said from the stands, almost prepared to jump out of her seat and vault onto the field.

“It's...” Kazuhiko looked to Hideo, then Sakuya to confirm. “It's like the warehouse,” they realized in unison.

“What warehouse?” Kyoko asked, eyes fixed on the field as she bit her thumbnail.

Sakuya took a breath, gripping her hat with one hand. “Earlier in the year, we were taken to a warehouse where Yumi was forced to duel on an electrified platform. I think that card reminded her too much of it, and now...”

“I'm going down there,” Yumi's grandmother said as she stood up.

“Wait!” Sakuya called, tensing up in her seat and wringing her hands together. “Just...please. Give her a chance.”

“She's having a panic attack in the middle of a duel,” Kazuhiko said. “She can't continue like that.”

“I know. I know...” Sakuya grabbed her hat in both hands and held it against her chest. “She'd feel even worse if someone stopped this duel. Give her a chance to keep going.”

After several tense seconds of deliberation, she reluctantly sat back down. “I'll trust you,” she said firmly, all eyes now on Yumi as she stood motionless on her side of the arena. A clock had begun to count down to her disqualification for refusing to make a move, though it was obviously not without some sympathy. Both the MC and most of the audience were encouraging her to get back in the game, Taniguchi simply looking at his watch to ensure there weren't any extra seconds tacked onto the time limit.

Second after agonizing second passed, Yumi unable to move. Her brain kept replaying those awful moments for her on repeat, up to and including the deal with Izar. Even beyond the flashbacks, she could feel the pull inside her chest once more. “Use it,” she could hear. She didn't know how or why, but that card was back and he wanted her to summon it again.

“Don't let the pressure get to you, Yumi!” the MC called. “Things look dire, but you have to carry on with pride as a duelist! Win or lose, we want to see you make it to the end!” His words, as well as the roar of the crowd, simply passed through her skull unheard, too busy focusing on the flood of emotions the card brought back and fighting back the grip of Izar wanting to take control again.

She could feel him creeping closer in an almost literal sense. A heavy, suffocating aura growing larger behind her with each passing moment. She could feel his influence taking hold of her heart, pain growing in her chest as it felt like something was bearing down on her. Just like before, he promised to make the pain go away, to let her win, to give her the strength to keep moving forward. Whether it was him or her who played the card didn't seem to matter, just as long as it was played.

Summoning every ounce of willpower she still had, Yumi drew her right hand close and bit hard at the space between her thumb and index finger. Her teeth sunk in, a few small trickles of blood running into her mouth. It hurt like hell, but that was the point.

The sudden jolt of pain drew her back to reality, Izar's influences staved off for the time being as her panic began to quiet. Her eyes turned down to look at her hand first, finally opening her mouth as letting a few drops of blood hit the floor. Next, they turned to the countdown, seeing just twenty seconds left before she'd lose. Then it was the field, a shock all on its own considering the entire landscape of the duel had changed since the last time she saw it.

Taniguchi had apparently activated the Disciples of the True Dragon Phoenix he'd searched for earlier, releasing it and his monsters to summon out the Dozen Metatron card, too, taking the form of a glowing golden warrior standing behind him. He'd also set something, no doubt the Trap she'd returned to his hand just a turn prior.

The only reason he hadn't yet mowed her down with such a colossal monster was, in the strangest twist of fate yet, she'd activated her set Emissaries of Reconciliation entirely by accident when her panic attack first started. Surviving the turn like that wouldn't mean much if she was disqualified via time, though.

“S-sorry!” she said to the judge, finally ready to continue.

“Don't worry about it, just start your turn before you run out of time!”

She nodded quickly. “R-right! Draw!” Seeing her officially back in action urged the crowd into a cheer, her friends finally breathing a sigh of relief to see that she was able to function again. Despite having the will to fight once more, though, there wasn't much she could do right now. Her field was empty and the card she'd just drawn was all she could use. She had no choice but to set it and end her turn unceremoniously.

“Activate True Dragon King's Return,” Taniguchi declared. The choice was obvious, Master Peace appearing on the field beside Dozen Metatron. After beginning his turn, the next obvious action was to switch it to Attack Position. “Battle,” he declared, the blue flames emitted from Dozen Metatron's wings turning white as it moved forward.

“Attack Nullification!” Yumi declared, the card revealing itself to end the Battle Phase. As the only kind of card left that could affect Taniguchi's ace, her Traps were now more valuable than ever. Despite this, there wasn't much she could do with this one besides buy time.

“Set monster. Summoning Majesty Maiden in Defense Mode. Pass turn.” The situation was looking more grim by the second. He just continued to build his forces while Yumi scrambled to stay alive. If her next draw couldn't turn the situation around, she'd lose for sure.

In an instant, she found herself inside her head once more. Not in the same way as her panic attack, but in a more literal sense. The white expanse from before surrounded her, Izar sticking out immediately like a stain. “You're being really stubborn lately."

She took a step back, though distance didn't seem to matter to him. Izar seemed both near and far at the same time without moving an inch, almost like he was the void itself. “We agreed, didn't we? Why won't you use my card anymore? Kind of hurting my feelings, Yumi.”

“You're not a good person,” she said finally. “You want me to hurt people.”

“So?” He said it with the kind of disregard that indicated he genuinely wasn't sure what the issue was meant to be. “I haven't hurt you, have I? No, all I've done is make you stronger. And now you want to stab me in the back like this.” He shook his head. “You're not a good friend, Yumi.”

“We aren't friends!” Running would be useless, so she stood her ground no matter how much she wanted to get away.

He scoffed. “Then what are you going to do? Lose like you would have before without my help?”

“Better than winning if it means no one has to die!” This was apparently hilarious to him, as Izar broke into a shrill laugh. His head bobbed in all directions, hair flying all over as if it was an entity unto itself. He even held his stomach as if he was about to collapse.

Then, suddenly, he stopped. His hair grew to fill the entire area, turning it from a stark white to an unrelenting black. Yumi couldn't tell up from down, left from right, or even where her body parts where in relation to herself any longer. But among it all, Izar still stood out just as clearly.

“You should know by now that losing means death.” White eye-like symbols began to take shape around them now, looking as if they were drawn in chalk as they constantly shifted in size and consistency. “If not for your opponent than for you. Without me, you'd be rotting in the ground now like any other piece of trash. That man would have killed you, and so would that child.”

He was standing behind her now, his hands resting on her shoulders. “They both understood, so why don't you?” He spoke directly into her ear, his face mere centimeters away from her. She couldn't think to try to escape or shake him off, as her body refused to move. Whether it was from his influence or her own fear was hard to tell.

“You're as worthless as the rest of the humans on this planet, but I've given you a chance to be more than that. You could actually matter. I might have picked you at random, but I stuck by it because you were interesting. Almost the most worthless piece of trash among all these other pieces of trash, but you were still able to delude yourself into thinking you had a chance to make something of yourself. It was pure madness, and I loved it!”

He gripped her around her neck, squeezing tightly. “You got so far, but in the end you were going to fail, and you knew that. You accepted this deal because you knew you would lose without me! You can't go back to losing, and you know that, too! Do you think any of those other pathetic humans would accept you after losing here? Have you bought into the delusion that you're worth something when you can't win now, too?

“Are you this much of a fool? You can win right now, save yourself and everything you've worked for and have a chance to be something bigger than you could ever imagine, but you resist because you can't handle the reality of the power I'm giving you? What more do you need before you understand? Do you have to lose and lose and lose over and over again until you finally get it? You're too weak to make any kind of difference on your own. Let me help you, Yumi.”

Yumi felt like she was drowning, being pulled deeper and deeper into an inky darkness below the surface of an oily, thick ocean. Every breath was like filling her lungs with boiling water, simultaneously setting her insides on fire as it suffocated her. It was impossible to tell whether the feeling of falling was real or imagined at this point, the whole world seeming to spin out of control as it centered itself around the demon who'd taken her here. This was no longer her mind, if it even had been to begin with - this was Izar's world.

She tried to cry, but no tears fell. She tried to scream, but no sound came. She tried to run, but no steps were taken. “Do you understand now?” she heard. She couldn't even think anymore without hearing his voice, everything bending to his will as she was reshaped to fit his ends. The light was drifting further away if such a thing even existed anymore, everything that defined her slowly being ripped apart and devoured by Izar.

One last thought. In a single instant, she realized that's all she'd have left. She was losing her will to fight, giving herself over to Izar just as he'd wanted. And it was in that instant she realized there was only time for one last thought to define her. A single chance for rebellion before it was too late, to scream with her entire heart and soul that she was still there, that he couldn't take her.

And in that instant, she thought of the only thing she could. She thought of Sakuya. A single image of her friend burned into the core of her being that refused to be erased. It stayed there, defiant against Izar's absolute control, not budging no matter how much of her he'd already taken.

That thought soon led to another about how blue her hat was. Then another about the dresses she liked to wear. Then another about her duel disk and the way it was meant for her left handedness. Then another about her deck and how it was made up of cute dogs.

Thoughts came one after the other, spinning out from that one single starting point into a vast web. She thought of herself, her cards, the tournament she was in, her goggles. She thought of her friends, of Kazuhiko, Hideo, Kyoko, Megumi, the kids at the park, Ami from school. She thought of her parents still out there somewhere in the world, poised to return home one day whenever their work was complete.

She could recognize herself again. No longer was she drowning in a pit of nothingness, but standing on what could maybe be described as a floor. The darkness around her began to recede, pulled to some kind of singularity slowly forming itself into the shape of a person.

Izar stood before her once more against the white background, smiling happily like nothing had happened. “You certainly are interesting,” he said without a single hint of a negative emotion.

Yumi took several deep breaths now that she'd regained the ability to do so, shouting, “You're not going to win! I won't ever make another deal with you, so just give up! There are too many important things in my life to just turn myself over!”

His expression remained unchanging. “From now on, I'll move forward with my own strength! Win or lose, it'll be up to me to make it happen! Not you or anyone else!” Yumi felt a reverberation in her chest, like a warm pulse spreading out from her core and rapidly expanding beyond it. Where it came from was unknown, but an instant later, she was back at her duel with no time seeming to have passed at all.

Taking a moment to reorient herself with existing on the physical plain, she finally peaked at the card she'd drawn. Luck, fate, or even her own determination managing to influence the world around her, a miracle appeared in her hand.

Before she could continue, she had to do one thing first. She took her hand and placed it onto the bridge of her goggles, pulling them down over her eyes. No more fear now. Win or lose, it would be through her power. That's what she said and she meant every word of it.

“Treasure Cards from the Heavens, activate!” If she was going to turn this duel around, now would be the time to do it. “Now we can both draw until we have six cards in our hands.” The natural drawback of this strong card was immediately apparent here, as Taniguchi was gifted five new cards for nothing even if she had a full hand of six.

“I'll start by activating Resurrection of the Dead, summoning back Flame Viper!” Her monster made its triumphant return, curling into a defensive position yet refusing to be frightened by the towering Master Peace and Dozen Metatron before it. “Now, I'll release it to Advance Summon! My favorite monster, Majesty Magician!”

Majesty Magician appeared on the field with a tip of the hat and a wide bow, the audience reacting positively remembering its strong performance in Yumi's last duel. “This is the card that's going to beat you,” she declared confidently. “I won't let myself lose here, so get ready!”

Placing another card into her duel disk, she made her move. “I activate Golden Fiddle, equipping it to Majesty Magician. And when I target a monster with an Equip Card, I can discard Komboriboh to add another Equip Card that would be a valid target in my Graveyard to my hand.” Her selection was Rusty Sword, which she promptly activated.

“Majesty Magician's effect means it can always be a target for one of my cards that works on a low level Normal Monster, meaning I can double up on my Equip Cards!” Using its magic, her monster combined the two cards into a single weapon with a burst of light, creating a long golden sword with several grooves mirroring strings running the length of the thin blade. From the two effects they granted, its ATK grew to 6100 after taking hold.

“True Dragon King's Return,” Taniguchi declared, contempt in his voice. “I release it to Advance Summon Draius III, the True Dragon Cavalry General during your Main Phase.” After its short appearances before, Draius III was finally on the field to stay. “True Dragon King's Return destroys a monster when it goes to the Graveyard.”

Several red beams of energy shot out of his card as it appeared behind him, all headed for Majesty Magician. Unfortunately for him, though, he'd sealed his fate several turns ago. “I'll use the Majesty Sanction in my Graveyard to stop destruction!” With a simple wave of the hand, Yumi's monster stopped the blasts in mid-air just a few centimeters from impact, forcing each of them to pop into harmless confetti sprays a moment later.

“Let's finish this! Majesty Magician, attack Dozen Metatron, the True Dragon Machine Combatant! Burning Concerto!” Her monster's sword took on a blazing golden hue, brighter than it had ever been before. Charging forward, it deftly cut the hulking machine monster in two, Taniguchi unable to do anything but watch in dismay as his card was destroyed.

Hitting for 3100 damage, Yumi was the decisive victor of the duel. Coming back from the brink as she did, the crowd completely lost any sense of composure they might have had earlier and exploded into cheers, her loved ones simply relieved she managed to pull herself together and finish strong.

Before she thought to celebrate, Yumi approached her opponent. “You're not very nice,” she told him, “but you really are pretty strong. I kind of hope we get to duel again one day. Maybe it doesn't have to be so serious next time?”

She tried to smile, but it faded quickly as his look of true hatred for her refused to change. Without a single word, he turned and left the arena. It was hard for her to understand someone like that who didn't seem to find any enjoyment in Duel Monsters despite playing it so intensely. Even in her darkest moments, Yumi's love for the game still stayed true. It grounded her, even. But with Taniguchi, she couldn't feel any genuine passion left in him at all.

Regardless, she didn't plan to lose sleep over it. You can't please everyone, and neither can you understand everyone. They'd likely never meet again, and though she wished him the best, she felt like that was probably a good thing. For now, though, she'd take in the feeling of victory knowing that the next time she walked out here, it would be as a participant in the final round.

\Next: The Final Round! What's Yuu's Secret?/

Cards Used in Order of Appearance

Supply Squad
Continuous Spell Card
Once per turn, if a monster(s) you control is destroyed by battle or card effect: Draw 1 card.

True Dragon Heritage (True Draco Heritage)
Continuous Spell Card
During your Main Phase: You can draw cards equal to the number of "True Draco" and "True King" card types (Monster, Spell, and Trap) sent from the field to the Graveyard this turn. During your Main Phase, you can: Immediately after this effect resolves, Tribute Summon 1 "True Draco" or "True King" monster face-up. If this card is sent from the Spell & Trap Zone to the Graveyard: You can target 1 Spell/Trap Card on the field; destroy it. You can only use each effect of "True Draco Heritage" once per turn.

Draius III, the True Dragon Cavalry General (Dreiath III, the True Dracocavalry General)
EARTH
Level 6
Wyrm/Effect
2100 ATK/2800 DEF
To Tribute Summon this card face-up, you can Tribute a Continuous Spell/Trap Card you control, instead of a monster. Your opponent cannot target face-up "True Draco" or "True King" monsters on the field with card effects, except this one, also they cannot be destroyed by your opponent's card effects. If this face-up Tribute Summoned monster leaves the field: You can Special Summon 1 "True Draco" or "True King" monster from your Deck in Defense Position.

Bi'an, Dracomet of Earth (Bi'an, Earth of the Yang Zing)
EARTH
Level 3
Wyrm/Effect
1600 ATK/0 DEF
When this card you control is destroyed by battle or card effect and sent to your Graveyard: You can Special Summon 1 "Yang Zing" monster from your Deck in Defense Position, except "Bi'an, Earth of the Yang Zing". You can only use this effect of "Bi'an, Earth of the Yang Zing" once per turn. Once per turn, during your opponent's Main Phase or Battle Phase, you can: Immediately after this effect resolves, Synchro Summon 1 Synchro Monster, using only "Yang Zing" monsters you control (this is a Quick Effect). A Synchro Monster that used this card as a Synchro Material cannot be destroyed by battle.

True Dragon King Lithosazim, the Disaster (True King Lithosagym, the Disaster)
EARTH
Level 9
Wyrm/Effect
2500 ATK/2300 DEF
If this card is in your hand: You can destroy 2 other monsters in your hand and/or face-up on your field, including an EARTH monster, and if you do, Special Summon this card, and if you do that, and both destroyed monsters were EARTH, you can also look at your opponent's Extra Deck and banish up to 3 monsters from it with different names. If this card is destroyed by card effect: You can Special Summon 1 non-EARTH Wyrm-Type monster from your Graveyard. You can only use each effect of "True King Lithosagym, the Disaster" once per turn.

Pragtical
EARTH
Level 5
Dinosaur/Fusion
1900 ATK/1500 DEF

Illusion King Robbins
LIGHT
Rank 3
Spellcaster/Xyz/Effect
2300 ATK/1500 DEF
2 Level 3 monsters
Once per turn: You can detach 2 Xyz Material from this card and target 1 monster in your opponent's Graveyard; equip that target to this card. When a monster is equipped to this card by its own effect, it gains ATK equal to half the ATK of the equipped monster. While this card is equipped with an opponent's monster: You can Tribute this card; Special Summon 1 monster from your hand, Deck, or Graveyard with ATK equal to or less than this card's ATK on the field.

Kachi Kochi Dragon
EARTH
Rank 4
Dragon/Xyz/Effect
2100 ATK/1300 DEF
2 Level 4 monsters
Once per turn, when this card destroys an opponent's monster by battle and sends it to the Graveyard: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; it can can make a second attack in a row.

Dinomight Knuckle, the True Dragon Fist Fighter (Dinomight Knight, the True Dracofighter)
WATER
Level 6
Wyrm/Effect
2500 ATK/1200 DEF
To Tribute Summon this card face-up, you can Tribute a Continuous Spell/Trap Card you control, instead of a monster. Once per turn, during either player's turn, when your opponent activates a card or effect while you control this Tribute Summoned monster: You can take 1 "True Draco" or "True King" Continuous Trap Card from your Deck, and either activate it or add it to your hand.

Majesty Maiden, the True Dragon Mage (Majesty Maiden, the True Dracocaster)
WIND
Level 5
Wyrm/Effect
2300 ATK/1500 DEF
To Tribute Summon this card face-up, you can Tribute a Continuous Spell/Trap Card you control, instead of a monster. Once per turn, during either player's turn, when your opponent activates a card or effect while you control this Tribute Summoned monster: You can add 1 "True Draco" or "True King" monster from your Deck to your hand.

Flame Viper
EARTH
Level 2
Pyro
400 ATK/450 DEF

Necklace of Supplantation (Amulet of Ambition)
Equip Spell Card
Equip only to a Normal Monster. If it battles a monster with a higher Level, the equipped monster gains 500 ATK x the difference in Levels (during that battle only). When this card is sent to the Graveyard, you can return it to the top of your Deck.

Ignis Heat, the True Dragon Warrior (Ignis Heat, the True Dracowarrior)
FIRE
Level 5
Wyrm/Effect
2400 ATK/1000 DEF
To Tribute Summon this card face-up, you can Tribute a Continuous Spell/Trap Card you control, instead of a monster. Once per turn, during either player's turn, when your opponent activates a card or effect while you control this Tribute Summoned monster: You can take 1 "True Draco" or "True King" Continuous Spell Card from your Deck, and either activate it or add it to your hand.

Disciples of the True Dragon Phoenix (Disciples of the True Dracophoenix)
Continuous Spell Card
You can target 3 "True Draco" and/or "True King" cards in your GY; shuffle them into the Deck, then draw 1 card. During your Main Phase, you can: Immediately after this effect resolves, Tribute Summon 1 "True Draco" or "True King" monster face-up. If this card is sent from the Spell & Trap Zone to the GY: You can target 1 Spell/Trap on the field; destroy it. You can only use each effect of "Disciples of the True Dracophoenix" once per turn.

Master Peace, the True Dragonsword King (Master Peace, the True Dracoslaying King)
LIGHT
Level 8
Wyrm/Effect
2950 ATK/2950 DEF
To Tribute Summon this card face-up, you can Tribute Continuous Spell/Trap Card(s) you control, as well as monsters. Unaffected by the effects of cards with the same card type (Monster, Spell, and/or Trap) as the original card type of the cards Tributed for its Tribute Summon. Once per turn, during either player's turn, if you control this Tribute Summoned monster: You can banish 1 Continuous Spell/Trap Card from your Graveyard, then target 1 other card on the field; destroy it.

Majesty Sanction
Normal Trap Card
Discard 1 card; monsters you control cannot be destroyed by a Spell/Trap effect (once each) until the End Phase. During either player's turn, except the turn this card was sent to the Graveyard: You can banish this card from your Graveyard and target 1 monster you control; once this turn, if it would be destroyed by an opponent's Spell/Trap effect, it is not destroyed.

Justi-Break
Normal Trap Card
Activate only when your opponent declares an attack against a face-up Normal Monster you control. Destroy all monsters on the field, except face-up Attack Position Normal Monsters.

Hat-Trick Magician
DARK
Level 4
Spellcaster
1200 ATK/1500 DEF

Rusty Sword
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: This card's original ATK increases equal to its DEF. When this card attacks, during the Damage Step: You can pay Life Points in multiples of 100 (maximum 500); this card gains ATK equal to that amount.

Armored Block
Quick-Play Spell Card
Target 1 monster you control equipped with an Equip Spell Card; it cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects this turn. If a monster you control equipped with an Equip Spell Card would be destroyed, you can banish this card from your Graveyard instead.

True Dragon King's Return (True King's Return)
Continuous Trap Card
If this card is sent from the Spell & Trap Zone to the Graveyard: You can target 1 monster on the field; destroy it. You cannot activate the following effects of "True King's Return" in the same Chain.
● You can target 1 "True Draco" or "True King" monster in your Graveyard; Special Summon it in Defense Position, also for the rest of this turn, you cannot Special Summon.
● During your opponent's Main Phase, you can: Immediately after this effect resolves, Tribute Summon 1 "True Draco" or "True King" monster face-up.
You can only use each effect of "True King's Return" once per turn.

Pot of Greed
Normal Spell Card
Draw 2 cards.

Poltergeist (Spiritualism)
Normal Spell Card
Return 1 Spell/Trap Card your opponent controls to the hand. This card's activation and effect cannot be negated.

Secluded Ethereal Waterfall (Waterfall of Dragon Souls)
Normal Trap Card
Activate 1 of these effects;
● Add 1 Wyrm-Type monster from your Deck to your hand.
● Send any number of Wyrm-Type monsters from your hand and/or face-up from your field to the Graveyard; draw cards equal to the number of monsters you sent to the Graveyard +1.

Dozen Metatron, the True Dragon Machine Combatant (Metaltron XII, the True Dracombatant)
LIGHT
Level 9
Wyrm/Effect
3000 ATK/3000 DEF
Requires 3 Tributes to Normal Summon (cannot be Normal Set). To Tribute Summon this card face-up, you can Tribute Continuous Spell/Trap Card(s) you control, as well as monsters. Unaffected by the effects of cards with the same card type (Monster, Spell, and/or Trap) as the original card type of the cards Tributed for its Tribute Summon. If this Tribute Summoned monster in its owner's control is destroyed by an opponent's card (by battle or card effect): You can Special Summon 1 Fusion, Synchro, or Xyz Monster that is EARTH, WATER, FIRE, or WIND from your Extra Deck.

Thunder Bolt (Raigeki)
Normal Spell Card
Destroy all monsters your opponent controls.

Emissaries of Reconciliation (Waboku)
Normal Trap Card
You take no battle damage from your opponent's monsters this turn. Your monsters cannot be destroyed by battle this turn.

Attack Nullification (Negate Attack)
Counter Trap Card
When an opponent's monster declares an attack: Target the attacking monster; negate the attack, then end the Battle Phase.

Treasure Cards from the Heavens (Card of Sanctity)
Normal Spell Card
Each player draws until they have 6 cards in their hand.

Resurrection of the Dead (Monster Reborn)
Normal Spell Card
Target 1 monster in either player's Graveyard; Special Summon it.

Majesty Magician
DARK
Level 8
Spellcaster/Effect
2500 ATK/2000 DEF
You can Tribute Summon this card by Tributing 1 monster that was originally a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. This card is treated as an appropriate target for a card that specifically designates a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF while face-up on the field or in the Graveyard (its Level and ATK/DEF do not change).

Golden Fiddle
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: This card gains ATK equal to its Level x 200 while in Attack Position and DEF equal to its Level x 300 while in Defense Position. If this card is selected as an attack target while in Attack Position: You can switch this card to Defense Position.

Komboriboh
DARK
Level 1
Fiend/Effect
300 ATK/ 200 DEF
When a monster is targeted by an Equip Spell Card: You can discard this card and target 1 Equip Spell Card in your Graveyard that could be equipped to an appropriate monster on the field; add that target to your hand. When a monster you control is targeted for an attack while it it equipped with an Equip Spell Card: You can banish this card from your Graveyard to target that monster; this turn, that target cannot be destroyed by battle and you take no battle damage from attacks involving that target.

Chapter Text

The physical, mental, and emotional toll of her last two duels were starting to pile up. Both Shigeo and Taniguchi had managed to wear Yumi out in different regards, not to mention Izar's unwelcome appearance. All her life she'd dreamed of being a pro duelist, but never before had she actually thought of the kind of work that would go into what was an actual job.

Making her way back to the waiting room, only Yuu and Kaori were left there. Yuu looked toward her expectantly, showing what might have been a hint of genuine emotion for about the first time since they met. “Headed to the finals,” she said weakly, plopping down in a chair and sighing. “Dueling is hard.”

“Good job, kid,” Kaori said from behind before drinking an entire bottle of water in only a few gulps. “Didn't think I'd be going up against two children this year, but it's pretty cool to see. I like how you knocked that last guy down a peg, too.” Yumi nodded, still a bit troubled thinking about both Taniguchi and the last duel.

Shortly after, Yuu and Kaori were called to the arena for their match, a staff member showing up soon after to dress the wound Yumi put on her hand, disappearing down one of the corridors once it was done. Now all alone, she took out her deck and spread it across the table in front of her. She wanted to have one last look over everything before she took the final walk out there for the last duel of the day. Seeing all her cards like this helped her calm the growing anxiety in the pit of her stomach just a bit.

Glancing through row after row, her eyes lingered on the blank card for a moment. Though it didn't appear any different from when she'd first picked it up, something seemed different about it. Couldn't place what, though.

Turning towards the television, it looked as though the duel was wrapping up as Kaori's monsters were dismantled one after the other. Picking up her cards, Yumi placed them into her front pocket before taking the newly reborn Macrocosmus – The WORLD in hand and tearing it into as many pieces as she could, tossing it into the trash. This would hopefully be the last time she had to do it, though she couldn't really be sure of anything when it came to that card.

She spent the next few minutes psyching herself up and rehydrating, Yuu emerging victorious just as she'd hoped and expected. “Good job!” she greeted Yuu as she returned to the room, mustering up some enthusiasm. Short as it was, the rest in between matches did her some good.

Yuu walked up to her and leaned forward, not so subtly implying she wanted to be petted again. Yumi indulged her with a smile. “I guess we both made it like we promised,” she said. They didn't have long to celebrate, but the feeling of accomplishment they shared was nice while it lasted.

Soon enough, they'd been called to take the field on either side. Just before parting ways, Yuu finally spoke. “Sorry. I have to win now.” Yumi took that as the usual banter before a duel, shooting back with how she wouldn't be defeated so easily, though she received no response. Yuu's entire demeanor seemed to change in that moment, her movements becoming much stiffer and expression even colder than before.

Not thinking much of it (she assumed it was just Yuu's way of “flipping a switch” or maybe pre-game nerves), she took the field. The thrill of emerging to a cheering crowd was far from wearing off, Yumi fully acclimated to the performance aspect of dueling for the first time. She waved to her newly acquired fans, taking her place across from her opponent as if it was now the most natural thing in the world for her.

Wordlessly, Yuu removed her jacket to expose both her arms. Extending her left to the side, the metal plate that composed the top half of the forearm raised up, a strip of metal displaying three field markers moving forward as two others unfolded on either side from its bottom. As dim yellow lights illuminated several key areas of the playing field of her duel disk, her left hand bent down slightly as a deck holder jutted from her wrist.

Yumi was in awe of how cool she found all of that to be, having missed the beginning of Yuu's other two duels and making this the first time she'd actually seen her prosthetic transform. She barely managed to stop herself from blurting out how she wished she had an arm like that, realizing that might come off as insensitive given the extenuating circumstances that likely necessitated an arm like that.

Activating her own duel disk, Yumi approached the center while shuffling her deck, handing it off to Yuu when they met for the cut. “Let's both do our best. It's the finals, after all.” She received no response, not even a nod. They took back their decks before returning to their respective sides of the arena, ready to begin the game.

“We'll start things off with Yumi!” the MC declared after word from the judge. Wasting no time, she drew her hand. Outside of a few glimpses on the TV screen earlier, she had no idea what Yuu would be using. The one thing she knew for sure was that she earned her place in the finals here and that she managed to beat Kazuhiko. With that in mind, the best approach would likely be a cautious one.

“I'll set a monster and two cards face-down. Your turn!” If all went well, Yumi would have set herself up for an Xyz Summon on the next turn, though whether or not that proved to be the best move would depend on her opponent's actions. Her need to show off certainly hoped for it if nothing else, as playing defensive never came natural for her.

“Draw,” Yuu declared softly, speaking in front of Yumi for the first time. She slowly scanned the cards in her hand before deciding on a monster. “Mecha Hunter.” The monster with its many blades appeared on the field, poised to fight. Despite this, Yuu remained nearly emotionless. “Magic Card, Pot of Greed. I draw two cards.” As it said, she added two new cards to her hand, permanent poker face hiding whether or not they were of any use.

“Battle,” she declared, pointing forward to command her machine to swing at Yumi's set card. The attack connected, a tiny brown ghoul screeching as it was cut in half.

Yumi, however, was pleased with the result. “Effect activate, Critter!” Since her monster left the field, she'd now be able to search another from her deck to add to her hand. After a few moments of consideration, she revealed one. “I think I'll pick Komboriboh.” One shuffle later and the turn resumed.

Yuu ended her turn by setting two cards. “Draw!” Yumi declared, excited to turn the tables now that she was able to play again. “I'll Normal Summon my monster, Crane Crane, in Attack Mode! And when I do that, I can activate its effect to bring back Critter from my Graveyard!” The stage was set, though Yuu predictably remained devoid of a reaction.

“Xyz Summon!” she declared, her monsters overlaying onto each other. “Rank 3, Gurensaurus!” The dinosaur roared as it appeared on the field, jets of red fire exploding out of it. “Battle! Gurensaurus, attack Mecha Hunter!”

Despite its best efforts, Yumi's monster seemed to stumbled as it charged forward, a mechanical launcher raising out of the ground. “Trap activate, Compulsory Evacuation Device. Return the monster to the Extra Deck.”

Yumi, however, was undeterred. “Not this time, because I activate my own Trap, God's Providence!” She reached into her hand and grabbed another Trap Card. “I can discard the same type of card you just used to negate its effect.”

Just as soon as she did, though, a robed figure appeared on Yuu's field, sending out shockwaves that shattered her card to pieces. “Trap activate, God's Pronouncement. I negate a card by paying half my Life Points.” With that, things were decided, Gurensaurus letting out a pitiful roar moments before it was swiftly launched into the air.

Though she had no choice but to end her turn, Yumi wasn't too upset about the loss. Though she might have lost a few cards, Yuu's Life Points were halved. As long as she could regain a foothold within the next turn or two, she'd be that much closer to winning. All that said, the fact she felt it fit to give up that much Life just to stop an Xyz Summon probably meant something big was coming.

As if in response to Yumi's worry, Yuu played another monster. “MD Base Unit,” she declared, its effect activating once it appeared on the field. With two more copies in her hand, she was now able to summon one of the devastatingly strong boss monsters of her deck.

“Fusion,” she declared, playing the card from her hand. The other two copies of her monster appeared beside it before spiraling into a single form. “Fusion Summon. Level 9, Machine God Dragon – Fusion.” She summoned her card without any of the usual fanfare associated with someone using their strongest card, simply laying it on the field like anything else.

Trouble had just begun, though, as its effect went off after a successful summon. “Every monster in the Graveyard is banished to increase the monster's ATK,” she explained, all three of her MD Base Units and Yumi's two cards being removed from the duel. As a result, Yuu now possessed a monster with 3500 ATK staring down her unguarded opponent.

“Battle,” she declared again, Mecha Hunter being the first to attack.

Though she might have been hoping for a quick win, Yumi was determined to stop it from happening. “That won't work this time! I use my Trap Card, Emissaries of Reconciliation! Now I won't take any battle damage for the rest of the turn.” Yuu was forced to allow this, ending her turn by setting an additional two cards.

“That dragon might be big, but don't get used to seeing it around. I'm taking it down this turn!” Though her confidence was a crowd pleaser, Yumi's hand at the moment didn't exactly have the funds to cash the check her mouth just wrote. She was relying on her next draw to make due, which her deck would reward with just the card she'd need.

With a smile, she carried out her plan. “I summon Wallrus in Attack Mode!” The monster rose up, slapping together its brick flippers and anticipating a fight. “Then, I equip it with Necklace of Supplantation. With this, my Normal Monster gains 500 ATK for the Level difference between it and whatever monster it attacks. That means when I attack your dragon, Wallrus will gain a whole 3500 ATK!”

Unfortunately for Yumi, this wouldn't come to pass. “Trap card, Magic Jammer.” By discarding her Scanner card, Yuu successfully nullified Yumi's equipment and left her with nothing but a 400 ATK monster to defend herself. For obvious reasons, she opted not to return it to the top of her deck.

With a nervous laugh, Yumi scratched her head. “I guess it'll get to stick around for at least one more turn. Your move, I have to end now.” Though she wanted to appear confident (at least halfway so), the truth was she may very well lose the game once Yuu began her turn. Her opponent was unbelievably strong, employing airtight strategies with some of the rarest and most powerful cards she'd ever seen. Even if she did manage to make it to her next turn, what would she be able to do with such a miniscule hand?

Yuu began her turn, seemingly drawing nothing of use as she rushed straight to the Battle Phase. “Battle,” she declared, Machine God Dragon rearing up and sending a yellow beam of energy straight towards Yumi's monster. Though the attack clearly connected, Yumi still stood defiantly. Much to everyone's surprise, her Life Points were far less affected than they should have been.

“I banish Majesty Guard from my Graveyard to halve the battle damage I take from your dragon,” she explained, now sitting at 2450 in total. Despite the announcer declaring it an expert maneuver, it did little to preserve her Life in the long term beyond simple survival. Mecha Hunter's next attack sent her falling, knocking off another 1850 and leaving her with only 600.

Yumi still fought on, however, quickly regaining composure and preparing to start her turn. With nothing left to do, Yuu declared her End Phase, prompting Yumi to draw. “I'll activate my own Pot of Greed to draw two more cards!” Luck had shined down on her once more, giving her just what she needed for a reversal.

“I'll summon Big Bat Knight!” she announced, the tiny baseball player appearing on her field and taking a few practice swings to prepare for battle. “You've probably noticed by now, but I'm not just playing cards for the sake of it. Whenever I have a monster like this, my Equip Cards aren't far behind! I activate Expert Heart!”

Her knight felt a surge of courage wash over it, fire burning brighter in its eyes than ever before. “But that's not all, since I'm activating the effect of Komboriboh in my hand. Whenever an Equip Magic Card is used, I can take another from my Graveyard that I'd be able to use and add it back to my hand.” Her choice was clear, given it was the only one currently residing in her Graveyard.

“One more for good measure. I'm activating Necklace of Supplantation again and equipping it to my Big Bat Knight!” She looked to Yuu with a smile. “No objections this time?” Receiving no response, she took that to mean she was right. “Then I'm going to attack! Big Bat Knight, take out Machine God Dragon – Fusion!”

With the necklace in full effect, Big Bat Knight's ATK grew to 4100, smashing its enemy to pieces with a single swing and lowering Yuu's Life Points to 1400. For the first time all duel, she finally seemed to react with a wince as her monster went down.

“Amazing! Yumi overcame Yuu's huge Fusion Monster! With that, Yumi has officially taken the lead in terms of field, but can she hold it forever? What will Yuu do to fire back?” Despite the announcer and the crowd's enthusiasm, Yumi couldn't enjoy the duel any longer. Her opponent almost seemed like she was in distress and it was starting to become worrisome.

“Are you okay?” she asked, not yet having ended her turn. Yuu stared ahead blankly, intent only on continuing the duel. After some considering, she continued, “Do you like Duel Monsters?” Though it wasn't a response, Yumi noticed her opponent's eyes waver for just a moment.

“It doesn't seem like it,” she said. This was different from anything she'd encountered before. With Sakuya, it wasn't so much that she disliked dueling but that she was tired of it, her passion for the technical aspects of the game still showing through whenever she'd teach her new things about it. Even Taniguchi's poor sportsmanship and bad attitude seemed to indicate someone who took the game too seriously rather than someone who outright hated it (though enjoyment was another matter altogether).

But for Yuu, she felt nothing. There was no hint of passion in her movements, no underlying sense of joy to be playing a game she loved at such a proficient level. Even her earlier expressions of affection, however faint, completely disappeared now that she was forced to take the field. But why would she be here if she hated it so much?

In truth, Yumi felt bad for her. Maybe it was parents who wanted to pressure her into a hobby or career she didn't want or some sort of other external factor like that, but it was clear Yuu didn't want to be here despite her immense skill. “I'll end my turn now,” she said, hoping to find some sort of answer to all of this if they continued their duel.

Yuu began her turn by drawing a card, quickly summoning it. “Magical Mirror Master Reflect Bounder.” A peculiar monster, it seemed like it would be troublesome to get around. More immediately, though, it offered Yuu an opportunity. “Battle,” she declared, Reflect Bounder charging a ball of energy to fire at Big Bat Knight.

Though its ATK increased, it still wasn't enough. A one Level difference only netted a 500 ATK gain, meaning Yumi still took 100 damage from the battle. Though her monster would survive and thrive due to Expert Heart's effect, it would now be vulnerable from an attack from Mecha Hunter.

Continuing with the onslaught, Mecha Hunter lurched toward Big Bat Knight, swinging down with a set of blades intending to rend it apart. Rather that the knight, however, its attack met with a black fluffy blob appearing in its way. “Since you're attacking a monster equipped with an Equip Card, I can banish my Komboriboh to stop the destruction and negate all damage,” Yumi explained, having planned ahead far enough to prevent something like this from happening.

That, however, was the end of her pre-planning, everything from that point forward forced to be improvisation. Her hand was depleted as were any cards in her Graveyard she could fall back on. Though her monster remained formidable, she had very few Life Points to play with anymore. The wrong monster that could overcome the necklace's effect would almost certainly mean the end.

Beginning her turn, she drew another card. Though not quite good enough to win the game then and there, it was certainly a start. “I activate Common Fusion!” Yumi declared. “I'll send Flame Viper and Trakodon from my deck to the Graveyard as material, then Fusion Summon! Level 5, Pragtical!” Clasping her hands together and bringing them down just as rehearsed, her monster appeared. Though not overly strong on its own, the effect of the card summoning it would certainly prove useful in removing pesky monsters.

“Let's go, Pragtical! Destroy Mecha Hunter!” With a swipe of the dinosaur's tail, the machine was no more. Yuu only took 50 damage from the attack, but the loss of a strong monster would prove problematic regardless. “I'll end my turn there.”

Yuu began her turn by playing Angel's Charity, letting her draw 3 more cards. Her decision on what to discard was swift, sending Necroface and Power Bond to the Graveyard. “Burial from a Different Dimension, activate.” Using this card she, strangely, only returned two copies of MD Base Unit to her Graveyard. Not so strange, though, was the usage of its effect, returning the third in exchange for adding one to the hand.

“I summon MD Base Unit,” she declared, using its effect to add the other two back to her hand. Despite making a show out of getting them back to her, however, Yuu didn't seem to have any plans for the monsters at present. “I set one card. Turn end.” Without so much as a Synchro Summon, her turn came to a close with a 0 ATK monster on the field.

“I draw!” Yumi said. “I'll activate Arms Hole, sending the top card of my deck to the Graveyard to grab a new Equip Card.” The card sent as cost was Friendly Fire, somewhat of a relief knowing it wasn't too big of a loss. In return, Yumi was able to add Rusty Sword to her hand. Though she wasn't planning to use it this turn, it seemed like a good idea to have some insurance in her hand.

As soon as she raised a hand to declare an attack, Yuu's set card opened. “Threatening Roar,” she explained, “prevents attacks this turn.” Yumi's arm dropped to her side quickly, sighing as she was forced to end her turn. She was starting to get impatient about destroying Reflect Bounder now, having been prevented from doing so for so long now.

Yuu began her turn, seemingly getting just the card she needed to reverse the situation in her favor once more. “I summon MD Support Unit.” Using its effect, she banished Scanner in her Graveyard to summon a second copy of the Support Unit from her deck in Attack Position. With the right cards assembled, she could now make her move.

“Synchro Summon,” she declared, MD Base Unit forming three rings in which the two Support Units passed through, their Levels adding up to 9. “Machine God Dragon – Synchro.” Yet another massive robotic dragon appeared on her field, this one in Defense Position. It was easy to see why given its nonexistent ATK.

“I return Scanner to the Graveyard to banish Big Bat Knight,” she said, a pair of red beams shooting out of the dragon's eyes that passed over the crowd, field, and eventually Yumi's monster, eradicating it with a single pulse of energy. In return, Yuu's Life Points grew to 2550, the monster itself gaining Big Bat Knight's original ATK. Though still weak, using that effect just once more would make it more than strong enough to steamroll almost anything Yumi could summon.

She ended her turn after that, refraining from turning Reflect Bounder to Defense Position. The reasoning was simple enough, in that forcing Yumi to use Common Fusion now meant she'd be unable to do so later on against a significantly more powerful Machine God Dragon.

Yumi chose to capitalize on this anyway, worried Pragtical might not even be there to use with Common Fusion should she hesitate. “Attack Reflect Bounder, and I'll banish Common Fusion to negate its effect.” Though she succeeded in lowering Yuu's Life Points to 2350, her turn didn't amount to much more than that. Setting a card, she ended.

If nothing else, Yuu would at least be prevented from using her monster's effect again immediately. After all, she was out of banished Machines, and nothing on the field enabled her to change that. Honestly, she knew she was kidding herself, the nagging fear she'd be proven wrong quickly becoming reality. “Soul Release, activate.”

Yuu's targets all came from her own Graveyard, eliminating Scanner, Necorface, Mecha Hunter, Reflect Bounder, and MD Support Unit. The true aim of this card was obvious, though, as Necroface's effect activated to banish another five cards from both their decks. For Yuu, it was another Mecha Hunter and Support Unit followed by Shretsdder, Pot of Greed and Avarice, and Card Gunner.

For Yumi, it was much worse. Mirror Force, Rusty Swordsman, Golden Fiddle, Sunlight Unicorn, and Resurrection of the Dead; all gone. All five cards that could easily be party to winning the duel rendered unusable in an instant. What's worse, Pragtical would soon join them.

“Effect activate,” Yuu said, returning MD Support Unit to her Graveyard. Pragtical was taken away, Machine God Dragon's ATK raising to 3000 while its owner's Life Points increased to 4250. Whatever lead Yumi had had at one point, it was all but gone now. “Attack,” she declared after it switched positions.

Unable to form a true defense, all Yumi could do was activate Attack Nullification, saving her for one more turn before Yuu's dragon could completely annihilate the last of her Life Points. Despite how bleak things looked, she didn't plan to simply give up, drawing her card with confidence.

By the looks of it, her deck wasn't done fighting, either. “I'll summon Hat-Trick Magician!” she said, the wizard appearing on her field in a puff of smoke. Equipping it with Rusty Sword, its usual wand transformed into the oversized weapon. “Now attack! Rusty Slice!” Despite only having 2700 ATK, the monster rushed in and prepared to do battle with its stronger foe.

“I'll pay 400 Life Points to raise Hat-Trick Magician's ATK by the same amount, making 100 points higher than your dragon's ATK!” Receiving the last bit of enhancement it needed, Yumi's monster easily sliced through a beam of energy shot by Machine God Dragon, cutting its head in two and destroying it. Though Yuu's Life Points were only hit for 100 damage, it was a serious blow both to her card advantage and her morale.

Just as before, the loss of this Machine God Dragon elicited a reaction from Yuu. She trembled slightly, to the degree that the only ones who were able to pick up on it were the judge and Yumi. When asked if she could continue, Yuu ignored the man's words and drew a card, her expression changing from one of apathy to a dark determination. It was clear she wouldn't allow herself to lose this duel.

From inside the tunnel, the woman who had previously spoken to Yuu during the preliminary rounds watched the finals unfold. She noticed the subtle changes in the child's demeanor and playstyle throughout the duel, making note of them to someone on the other end of a phone call.

“About as expected, yes,” she spoke into an earpiece. “It's more of a challenge than she was prepared for, but she won't lose. Overall, it's probably a good thing to expose her to a situation like this by this stage. Take account of emotional responses and deficiencies in her game like this to work it out of her before the real thing.” She stopped speaking, listening intently to what the other person was telling her. “Understood. We'll go over changes once the duel ends.”

Despite the almost dire situations Yuu was in now, this woman was completely unfazed. She had no doubt whatsoever that she would win. How could she lose, she thought, with what her next card would be?

\Next: The Final Machine God! Power of Chaos Unleashed!/

Cards Used in Order of Appearance

Macrocosmus - The WORLD
DARK
Rank 4
Fiend/Xyz/Effect
? ATK/? DEF
2 or more Level 4 monsters
This card's ATK and DEF become the combined ATK and DEF of the monsters used as Xyz Material when summoned, respectively. Detach 1 Xyz Material from this card and banish any number of Spell Cards in both Graveyards; this card gains 300 ATK for each card banished by this effect, until the End Phase. When this card is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard: You can add 1 of the Spell Cards that was banished by this effect to your hand.

Mecha Hunter (Mechanicalchaser)
Dark
Level 4
Machine
1850 ATK/800 DEF
Critter (Sangan)
DARK
Level 3
Fiend/Effect
1000 ATK/ 600 DEF
When this card is sent from the field to the Graveyard: Add 1 monster with 1500 or less ATK from your Deck to your hand.

Komboriboh
DARK
Level 1
Fiend/Effect
300 ATK/ 200 DEF
When a monster is targeted by an Equip Spell Card: You can discard this card and target 1 Equip Spell Card in your Graveyard that could be equipped to an appropriate monster on the field; add that target to your hand. When a monster you control is targeted for an attack while it it equipped with an Equip Spell Card: You can banish this card from your Graveyard to target that monster; this turn, that target cannot be destroyed by battle and you take no battle damage from attacks involving that target.

Crane Crane
EARTH
Level 3
Winged Beast/Effect
300 ATK/900 DEF
When this card is Normal Summoned: You can target 1 Level 3 monster in your Graveyard; Special Summon that target, but its effects are negated. You can only use this effect of “Crane Crane” once per turn.

Gurensaurus (Grenosaurus)
FIRE
Rank 3
Dinosaur/Xyz/Effect
2000 ATK/1900 DEF
2 Level 3 monsters
When this card destroys an opponent's monster by battle and sends it to the Graveyard: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; inflict 1000 damage to your opponent.

Compulsory Activation Device
Normal Trap Card
Target 1 monster on the field; return that target to the hand.

God's Providence (Ultimate Providence)
Counter Trap Card
When a Spell/Trap Card or monster effect is activated: Discard the same type of card (Monster, Spell, or Trap); negate the activation, and if you do, destroy that card.

God's Pronouncement (Solemn Judgment)
Counter Trap Card
When a monster would be Summoned, OR a Spell/Trap Card is activated: Pay half your Life Points; negate the Summon or activation, and if you do, destroy that card.

MD Base Unit
EARTH
Level 3
Machine/Tuner/Effect
0 ATK/0 DEF
When this card is Summoned: Add up to 2 “MD Base Unit” cards from your Deck or Graveyard or that are banished to your hand. While this card is in your Graveyard, you can return 1 of your banished Machine-Type monsters to the Graveyard; add this card to your hand. You can only use each effect of “MD Base Unit” once per turn.

Fusion (Polymerization)
Normal Spell Card
Fusion Summon 1 Fusion Monster from your Extra Deck, using monsters from your hand or field as Fusion Materials.

Machine God Dragon – Fusion
EARTH
Level 9
Machine/Fusion/Effect
3000 ATK/2100 DEF
MD Base Unit + 2 Machine-Type monsters with the same level
Must be Fusion Summoned with the above monsters, and cannot be Special Summoned by other ways. When this card is Fusion Summoned: Banish all monsters in both player's Graveyards, then increase this card's ATK by 100 for each card banished by this effect. When this card attacks, it is unaffected by the effects of opponent's Spell Cards until the end of the Damage Step. This attacking card cannot be destroyed.

Emissaries of Reconciliation (Waboku)
Normal Trap Card
You take no battle damage from your opponent's monsters this turn. Your monsters cannot be destroyed by battle this turn.

Wallrus
WATER
Level 2
Beast
400 ATK/800 DEF

Necklace of Supplantation (Amulet of Ambition)
Equip Spell Card
Equip only to a Normal Monster. If it battles a monster with a higher Level, the equipped monster gains 500 ATK x the difference in Levels (during that battle only). When this card is sent to the Graveyard, you can return it to the top of your Deck.

Magic Jammer
Counter Trap Card
When a Spell Card is activated: Discard 1 card; negate the activation, and if you do, destroy it.

Scanner
LIGHT
Level 1
Machine/Effect
? ATK/? DEF
Once per turn, you can select 1 of your opponent's monsters that is removed from play. Until the End Phase, this card's name is treated as the selected monster's name, and this card has the same Attribute, Level, ATK, and DEF as the selected monster. If this card is removed from the field while this effect is applied, remove it from play.

Majesty Guard
Normal Trap Card
Monsters you control cannot be destroyed by battle this turn, also halve all damage you take this turn. During either player's turn, except the turn this card was sent to the Graveyard: You can banish this card from your Graveyard; halve the battle damage you take from one opponent's monster this turn.

Big Bat Knight
EARTH
Level 3
Warrior
1100 ATK/500 DEF

Expert Heart
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: Cannot be destroyed by battle once per turn. When you take damage from an attack involving this card: This card gains ATK and DEF equal to the damage you took.

Magical Mirror Master Reflect Bounder (Reflect Bounder)
LIGHT
Level 4
Machine/Effect
1700 ATK/1000 DEF
Before damage calculation, if this card is being attacked by an opponent's monster, and was in face-up Attack Position at the start of the Damage Step: Inflict damage to your opponent equal to the attacking monster's ATK. If you do, after damage calculation: Destroy this card.

Common Fusion
Normal Spell Card
Fusion Summon 1 non-Effect Fusion Monster from your Extra Deck, using Normal Monsters from your hand, field, or Deck as Fusion Material. When the card Fusion Summoned by this effect battles an opponent's monster: You can banish this card in your Graveyard; negate that monster's effects and apply its original ATK and DEF when calculating damage until the end of the Battle Phase.

Flame Viper
EARTH
Level 2
Pyro
400 ATK/450 DEF

Trakodon
EARTH
Level 3
Dinosaur
1300 ATK/800 DEF

Pragtical
EARTH
Level 5
Dinosaur/Fusion
1900 ATK/1500 DEF

Angel's Charity (Graceful Charity)
Normal Spell Card
Draw 3 cards, then discard 2 cards.

Necroface
DARK
Level 4
Zombie/Effect
1200 ATK/1800 DEF
If this card is Normal Summoned: Shuffle all banished cards into the Deck. This card gains 100 ATK for each card shuffled into the Main Deck by this effect. If this card is banished: Each player banishes 5 cards from the top of their Deck (or their entire Deck, if less than 5).

Power Bond
Normal Spell Card
Fusion Summon 1 Machine Fusion Monster from your Extra Deck, using monsters from your hand or field as Fusion Materials, and it gains ATK equal to its original ATK. During the End Phase of the turn this card is activated, you take damage equal to the amount of ATK gained from this effect at the time of the Summon.

Burial from a Different Dimension
Quick-Play Spell Card
Target up to 3 banished monsters; return them to the Graveyard.

Arms Hole (Hidden Armory)
Normal Spell Card
Send the top card of your Deck to the Graveyard; add 1 Equip Spell Card from your Deck or Graveyard to your hand. You cannot Normal Summon/Set during the turn you activate this card.

Friendly Fire (Bad Aim)
Normal Trap Card
When your opponent's card or effect is activated: Target 1 card on the field (other than that card); destroy it.

Rusty Sword
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: This card's original ATK increases equal to its DEF. When this card attacks, during the Damage Step: You can pay Life Points in multiples of 100 (maximum 500); this card gains ATK equal to that amount.

Threatening Roar
Normal Trap Card
Your opponent cannot declare an attack this turn.

MD Support Unit
EARTH
Level 3
Machine/Effect
0 ATK/0 DEF
You can banish 1 Machine-Type monster from your Graveyard; Special Summon 1 “MD Support Unit” from your hand or Deck in face-up Attack Position. This effect of “MD Support Unit” can only be used once per turn. Banish the monster summoned by this effect at the End Phase of this turn.

Machine God Dragon – Synchro
EARTH
Level 9
Machine/Synchro/Effect
? ATK/3000 DEF
MD Base Unit + 2 non-Tuner Machine-Type monsters
Must be Synchro Summoned, and cannot be Special Summed by other ways. The ATK of this card is equal to the combined ATK of all non-Tuner monsters used to summon it. Once per turn: You can return 1 banished Machine-Type monster to your Graveyard; banish 1 face-up monster on your opponent's side of the field, and if you do, gain Life Points equal to half its ATK on the field. This monster gains ATK equal to the ATK of monsters it banishes.

Soul Release
Normal Spell Card
Target up to 5 cards in any Graveyard(s); banish them.

Shretsdder (Shreddder)
EARTH
Level 4
Machine/Effect
1600 ATK/1000 DEF
Once per turn: You can send 1 Machine-Type monster from your hand to the Graveyard, then target 1 monster your opponent controls with a Level less than or equal to the sent monster's; destroy that target.

Pot of Greed and Avarice (Pot of Desires)
Normal Spell Card
Banish 10 cards from the top of your Deck, face-down; draw 2 cards. You can only activate 1 "Pot of Desires" per turn.

Card Gunner (Card Trooper)
EARTH
Level 3
Machine/Effect
400 ATK/400 DEF
Once per turn: You can choose a number from 1 to 3, then send that many cards from the top of your Deck to the Graveyard; this card gains 500 ATK for each card sent to the Graveyard this way, until the end of this turn. If this card you control is destroyed and sent to your Graveyard: Draw 1 card.

Holy Barrier – Mirror Force (Mirror Force)
Normal Trap
When an opponent's monster declares an attack: Destroy all Attack Position monsters your opponent controls.

Sunlight Unicorn
LIGHT
Level 4
Beast/Effect
1800 ATK/1000 DEF
Once per turn: You can excavate the top card of your deck, and if it is an Equip Spell Card, add it to your hand. Otherwise, place it on the bottom of your Deck.

Rusty Swordsman
EARTH
Level 4
Warrior
1500 ATK/1000 DEF

Golden Fiddle
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: This card gains ATK equal to its Level x 200 while in Attack Position and DEF equal to its Level x 300 while in Defense Position. If this card is selected as an attack target while in Attack Position: You can switch this card to Defense Position.

Resurrection of the Dead (Monster Reborn)
Normal Spell Card
Target 1 monster in either player's Graveyard; Special Summon it.

Attack Nullification (Negate Attack)
Counter Trap Card
When an opponent's monster declares an attack: Target the attacking monster; negate the attack, then end the Battle Phase.

Hat-Trick Magician
DARK
Level 4
Spellcaster
1200 ATK/1500 DEF

Chapter Text

Yumi had finally managed to overcome the Machine God Dragon – Synchro. Even so, Yuu didn't seem to be giving up just yet. Despite having her two strongest monsters felled one after the other, she continued fighting. The look in her eyes was far from blank now, showing a mixture of fury, determination, and what seemed like fear.

“Yumi has to have won now,” her grandmother said. Though she didn't play the game herself, she'd been exposed to it enough over the years to understand the general beats of the game enough to know Yumi had struck a heavy blow against her opponent.

“I hope so,” Kazuhiko replied with uncharacteristic seriousness, echoed by the rest of the group save for Sachi who texted her mother about being home soon. Despite the optimism they all shared, they knew better than to get ahead of themselves in declaring this duel over.

Yuu placed down the card she'd drawn once she started her turn. “Resurrection of the Dead, activate.” No one was entirely sure what she could be intent on summoning. Both of her Machine God Dragons couldn't be summoned again from the Graveyard and everything else she had in her Graveyard was fairly weak. The same went for Yumi's monsters, with none of her monsters being able to overcome a powered up Hat-Trick Magician.

The card she chose was certainly unexpected. “MD Base Unit,” she declared, the monster appearing on her field in Defense Position. As soon as it did, she revealed another card in her hand, calling out, “Reckless Summon of Hell.” With this card, she was able to summon the other two copies of MD Base Unit from her hand, Yumi being unable to benefit from its secondary effect due to only having one copy of Hat-Trick Magician in her deck.

There was only one option as to what she was about to do now. Her monsters began to glow, transforming into balls of light and flying into a swirling galaxy that materialized over the field. “Xyz Summon, Rank 3. Machine God Dragon – Xyz.”

The towering mechanical dragon appeared on her field, coiling around its master like a snake and stacking its body three segments high before draping a pair of skeletal (as skeletal as a creature made entirely from metal could be) wings over the top next to its head. Only a glimpse of Yuu could still be seen as she was almost fully encased by her monster in a protective shell made from its own body.

Suddenly, the three Overlay Units circling its body flew downward, attaching to the monster's body in three holes spaces side by side on the lowest rung of Yuu's makeshift fortress, turning into orange gems on contact. Upon closer examination, Yumi could see two more sets of holes just like them on the second and third body segments.

“You will lose to this card,” she declared, slipping back into her emotionless persona now that she'd shut herself away from the world. “My monster cannot be attacked or targeted by effects. It cannot be destroyed by effects. Each turn, I can add a banished Machine-Type monster to this card as an Overlay Unit.” To punctuate this, MD Support Unit flew in as another Unit and placed itself on the spot furthest to the left on the second rung of holes.

“When my monster has nine Overlay Units and I end my turn, I will remove all of them and you will take 4000 points of damage.” The crowd erupted in a mixture of jubilation, disappointment, and overall excitement, sensing the duel would soon come to an end one way or the other. “You will lose to this card,” she repeated.

It was now her turn, but Yumi was too stunned to continue playing right away. Rather than be yet another insurmountable wall to overcome, the Xyz dragon flipped everything on its head and employed an entirely opposite strategy. Rather than fight back, Yuu had completely stopped the duel in its tracks, intent on winning simply by waiting things out.

She couldn't stand around for too long, though. “Draw!” Yumi declared with confidence, flinching at seeing nothing of use come to her. She set the Armored Block she'd drawn, ending her turn without being able to do anything else.

Yuu had taken to sitting on the ground now, knees hugged to her chest. She pulled a card off the top of her deck and tossed it in front of her. Adding a Mecha Hunter to her monster's stocks, she passed her turn once more. All she wanted was to win so this entire day could be over.

“Draw!” Yumi said, somewhat less disappointed at this draw. Setting her card, she looked towards the dragon to where Yuu would be. At first glance, it almost seemed like the monster was protecting her, but the idea of protection didn't seem entirely apt. It was more like it trapped her inside it, physically manifesting how she felt about whatever her situation in life was.

She took a breath, gathering her determination. “Yuu, I don't think I understand everything that's going on with you, but I can tell you aren't happy. And I have a feeling those cards are part of it.” Raising an arm, she pointed forward towards the dragon, the beast letting out a synthesized roar in response. “That's why I'm going to destroy it and set you free!”

It was hard to tell whether she was saying these things as part of a performance or to try and convince herself she had some ability to help the child across from her. Deep down she knew she was powerless to affect Yuu's situation at home, but – hoping against hope – maybe doing this could inspire something in her. At the very least, she wanted to make it seem like she wouldn't have to feel so trapped and alone forever.

Yuu took her turn as she did the last one, drawing a card, setting it down, and adding material. This time it was Scanner, completing the second row of gems now that six Overlay Units were attached to the dragon. Her turn came to an end after that.

Yumi drew her card, then activated her Trap. “I'll use Charity of the Ordinary to draw two more cards!” She looked over her hand, settling on banishing Butter Fly to fulfill the last half of the effect. “Now I'm one step closer to bringing down that dragon,” she said confidently.

Yuu covered her ears, gritting her teeth and trying to stay focused on waiting out the duel. “Just wait. It's only going to take me a few more turns before it's destroyed.” Yumi set another card face-down and ended her turn.

Despite her best efforts, Yuu couldn't help but retaliate now. Though her first priority was adding Card Gunner as the seventh Unit, she was now determined to snuff out even the tiniest chance Yumi might have of turning things around. Picking a card from the pile she'd tossed to the floor earlier, she slipped Thunderbolt into her duel disk.

The card appeared, storm brewing overhead. Holding her breath, Yumi steeled herself against the sounds of electricity, activating her own card. “Not this time! I use Armored Block, which prevents a monster with an Equip Card from being destroyed this turn.” With nothing else to do, Yuu ended her turn with a grimace. Logically, she knew there was no way for her to lose this duel with her dragon two turns from going off, but even so...

“Draw!” Yumi declared confidently. With a nod, she said, “It's your turn. All I'm going to need is one more turn.” Despite a massive amount of doubt from everyone in the room, Yumi's unwavering certainty with what she was saying was starting to win people over. More than simply hoping she could win, they were beginning to believe it was truly possible.

The same could be said for Yuu, who drew a card before placing it in her duel disk face-down. She was on the verge of hyperventilating from sheer panic, doubting herself and her abilities as Yumi simply refused to back down. Her last action that turn was to add Reflect Bounder as the eighth material, making Yumi's next turn her last one way or the other.

Yumi began her turn, Yuu almost immediately activating her card as soon as she had the opportunity. “D.D. Dynamite!” she called out, her voice breaking. “Take 300 damage for every banished card you have!”

Shaking her head, Yumi smiled. “A card like that can't beat me! Trap Card, activate!” The card she'd set several turns ago flipped up, revealing itself as Majesty Eclipse. “This negates all effect damage I take this turn!” The blast from Yuu's own card was sucked into a large glowing moon that appeared above Yumi's head, darkening it to match the card's name.

In the haste, Yumi hadn't had the chance to even look at her draw. Whatever it was had to be good, otherwise she would lose. The card still clutched firmly in her right hand, she turned to look at it. Her heart stopped once the picture came into view, Majesty Magician's permanent grin looking back at her.

In another situation, this might have been exactly the card she needed to turn things around. Right now, though, there was absolutely nothing this monster could do for her. Whether she summoned it or let it languish in her hand, the result would be the same. She was going to lose.

For some reason, this made her laugh. Was it panic? Sorrow? Relief? She certainly couldn't tell, onlookers similarly perplexed as to why one of the duelists had suddenly broken out into a loud cackle. But suddenly, something changed.

Yumi felt a burning deep in her chest. Not the unpleasant sort like she was being set on fire, but an intense drive consuming her from within. At the same moment, a few beams of white light began to emanate from the front pocket of her overalls – the location of her Extra Deck. Reaching inside, she found the blank card she'd been carrying around for so long now.

It was like being able to read for the first time, the card seeming to be writing itself out the longer she looked at it. In a few moments, the entire face had illuminated, a brand new monster having been created right in front of her. Xyz, Rank 4, and and effect that...

With another laugh, she realized what she could do. “This is it,” she told Yuu. “I've got the card that can set you free.” Placing it back into her pocket for the time being, Yumi set about creating the field she'd need. “I summon Scaredy Lion in Attack Mode!” Her cowardly monster appeared on the field, covering its eyes at the sight of the mechanical dragon in front of it.

“And I equip it with Broken Wand!” This did little to change its disposition, but it was instrumental in Yumi's plan for victory. “Now, I'll Xyz Summon! I overlay my Level 4 Hat-Trick Magician with my Level 4 Scaredy Lion and Equip Magic Broken Wand as material!”

The crowd was in shock, questioning each as other as to how she was able to perform a summon like that. Even the announcer was at a loss for words. Yuu, on the other hand, wouldn't stop speaking, only repeating the word, “No,” to herself in a whisper over and over again.

“I tap into the world of chaos to create a new power!” Yumi recited, the words coming to her naturally in the moment as if she'd rehearsed a thousand times for this one speech. She spread her arms out wide as a faint rumbling began to come from the middle of the arena. “Lay waste to the world order and find form in the ashes! Xyz Summon!” The ground seemed to split open as she said this, a beam of white light shining from the depths. “Rank 4, Chasm Queen – Telos!”

From out of the light emerged a towering creature draped in heavy white robes. Fine hair in the same color covered its left eye, both remaining closed as it descended slowly towards Yumi. It knelt down in front of her once it reached the ground, its features appearing vaguely human up close if a bit too long.

It stood up suddenly, facing towards Yuu and her dragon. Both eyes opened, gleaming red as its robes immediately started to shake. Black overtook parts of its attire, the two colors constantly shifting back and forth across the fabric in different jagged shapes. Needless to say, everyone who looked upon the monster was entirely mesmerized.

“Now,” Yumi said, breaking the silence. “Telos, use your effect!” A shockwave passed over the entire field the moment the monster raised its arms above its head. The Machine God Dragon began to creak, quickly finding itself unable to writhe any longer. “Until the end of the turn it's Xyz Summoned, every card on the field has its effects negated besides Telos.”

Yuu couldn't hear her explanation over the sound of her own denial. Though it hadn't increased in volume, the rest of the world had been completely blocked out to her as she desperately tried not to face the reality that she was about to lose. “Now, Telos,” Yumi began. “Save Yuu!”

The monster raised its right hand, drawing its first two fingers through the air across the dragon and leaving behind small ripples through space. Reality itself seemed to crack after it had moved from one side of its body to the other, creating a jagged blade that tapered down the further to the left it reached. Telos grabbed the thinnest side of this crack, intending to use it as some kind of weapon.

“Shatter Disarray!” Yumi called out, Telos swinging the sword it had made through the air. It didn't need to make contact in order for the swipes to hit, pieces of the dragon being hacked off and quickly disintegrating as they fell. More and more of the creature was hacked away with each slash, soon enough, all that was left as a triangular bit in the front the perfect size to shield Yuu as she sat on the floor.

Approaching the remains, Yumi's monster tapped the metal lightly to cause it to powderize in front of it. It was plain to see that Yuu was crying now, too afraid to even look up at the attacker. “When Telos attacks a Defense Mode monster when it has an Equip Magic as an Overlay Unit,” Yumi explained, keeping her voice calm and level, “you take piercing damage.”

In a single moment, Yuu's Life Points fell to only 1350. “But that's not all,” she continued. “When I inflict damage with this monster, I can detach an Overlay Unit to inflict 400 damage to you for every Equip Card in the Graveyard.” Reaching up, Telos took hold of one of the Units that was buzzing around it, crushing it in its hand and placing it gently over Yuu's head. The card she chose to detach was Broken Wand, making the total number of Equip Magic Cards four.

With that, Yuu's Life fell to 0. The reaction from the crowd as well as the tournament officials was delayed, even as the holograms faded away. Yumi began walking towards her opponent by the time the cheering started, the judge declaring her the winner despite his own confusion surrounding the end of the duel.

She was within a few steps of Yuu when she tried to call out, only to be met by sheer panic. Crawling away as quickly as she could, Yuu cried to herself on the ground while trying to avoid either Yumi or any of the tournament staff who tried to console or otherwise remove her from the stage. All the while, the announcer continued to talk up Yumi's miraculous victory.

It felt quite hollow if she was honest with herself, at least at first. More than simply winning a game, she wanted to try and help Yuu. Despite her best intentions, though, whatever was troubling her was far too deep to work through with a single duel. She could only hope there was some means of salvation for her in whatever it was she had to deal with. The last she saw of her that day, she was being dragged away by the arm by some older woman.

Concern or not, though, reality soon began to set in. The cheering grew louder in her ears until she could no longer block it out with hyperfocus. She had won the tournament.

She couldn't help herself from celebrating just a bit, literally jumping with joy. “After some hard fought battles, it's finally come to an end! Congratulations, Takano Yumi! Champion of Chiba prefecture!” After a bit more jumping and waving at the crowd, the judge led her back into the tunnel and up a set of stairs into a small room. A representative from the Fortuna Corporation congratulated her on her accomplishment, awarding her a small golden trophy signifying her as the Q3 2016 prefectural champion, a gold embroidered ticket certifying her entry into the Kanto Regional Championship during December, and a prize of 50,000 yen in the form of a check.

Despite receiving a much larger sum of money not long ago, this still amazed Yumi. Less so for the fact that she now had money, but that she had truly earned this. It could be argued she deserved compensation for what Rio did to her, but this money was really hers that she had made through her dueling. It was a dream come true.

“Thank you!” she finally blurted out after several seconds of complete silence. Dismissed quickly enough and led back to the waiting room. Though the official guiding her offered to find a parent/guardian for her, she declined and decided to brave the crowd on her own to meet up with her group by herself.

Despite being the new champion, not many people recognized her with her awards and duel disk tucked into her backpack. She was just another face in the crowd for most people as they shuffled around and out of the building. The few who did recognize her, though, were sure to congratulate her and asked for pictures. One boy even gave her a marker to sign his own Hat-Trick Magician card.

After a bit of searching, a familiar blue color broke through the crowd running towards her. Before Yumi had the chance to even say her name, Sakuya had already pulled her into a hug. “You won,” she said softly, her happiness barely able to contain itself.

As soon as Yumi had returned the embrace, Kazuhiko charged forward, grabbing the both of them for a hug himself. “You did it!” he said quite a bit less softly. Kyoko followed suit, expanding the group hug even more. Finally, Hideo took up the rear, patting Yumi on the head to avoid too much contact.

“I only managed to win because all of you helped me,” Yumi said after she was released from the ever-expanding vice of love and friendship. “Thanks for always supporting me. I couldn't have done any of this without you.”

“You don't have to be all serious about it,” Kyoko said with a laugh. “We're just a bunch of losers and punks who wanted to help a kid out.”

Yumi's grandmother finally caught up shortly after with Sachi close behind. “You kids run too fast,” she said. She bent down to give Yumi a hug of her own and a kiss on the forehead. “That was great, Yumi. Your parents would be so proud of you.” Hearing that officially took the day from good to great for her, being able to truly believe it coming from her grandmother.

Finally making it out of the stadium, the group parted ways. Kyoko drove off towards Haru and the ramen stand, having promised to help with midday customers to pay off part of her lengthy tab. Kazuhiko and Sachi headed to the train station to get home, Hideo following behind so the two of them could do their own training. That left only Yumi, her grandmother, and Sakuya.

As the Takanos were preparing to head off, Sakuya suddenly took hold of Yumi's hand. “Would it be okay if I could talk to Yumi alone for a minute?” she asked, seeming a bit anxious for some reason.

Though a bit perplexed as to how spontaneous it was, Yumi's grandmother nodded. “Just don't take too long. I'm old, so I'm about ready to go to sleep right here on the sidewalk after all that excitement.”

Sakuya took Yumi over to a bench nearby, sitting down next to each other. “Is something wrong?” Yumi said, concerned over her friend now that she'd started wringing her hands.

“Nothing,” she said, though it didn't seem like she was entirely convinced of that herself. “I just...there's some things I wanted to tell you.”

“What kind of things?” she asked in response, not giving Sakuya much time to continue out of worry.

She took a deep breath before replying. “I haven't...I wasn't entirely honest...with you.” Yumi raised an eyebrow upon hearing this, prompting Sakuya to continue. “Everyone I think assumes I'm pretty rich, but that's not really true.”

Yumi stared at her blankly before uttering a dumbfounded, “What?”

“I mean, we're pretty well off, but that's about it.” She paused. “That's not all, though. I also don't...don't actually study abroad every semester like I tell people.”

“Wait, but you speak French all the time!”

“Well, I do know some French, but that's just because I've been learning it a little on my own.” She scratched the side of her head, looking towards the ground as the guilt started to pile up. “I do leave the city for school, though, but it's because I go to Gunma. To Togami Private Academy, and all.”

Yumi had to literally do a double take upon hearing that. “Wait, you do what now?” She blinked a few times. “What?” she said even louder. It was no Academia, but Togami was still a prestigious dueling school, not to mention one of the best high schools in the entire region. That last bit was possibly the most confusing thing she'd said so far, too.

“First of all, how are you in high school? We're the same age!”

She laughed nervously, swallowing hard as she started to explain. “Well, I started school a little early when I was young, and-” She stopped herself suddenly. “It's not like I'm some kind of super genius, or something! I just...when they first scouted me, we worked out a system where I could get up to speed and skip ahead to be a first year in high school there. I guess they just didn't want to wait, but I was never really sure why they did this for me.”

“Okay, so why would you lie about this? What's the point of telling people you go to France every year instead of Gunma?”

“I just...”

“What, being an actual prodigy who gets to skip grades would risk making you too cool?” This was the first time Yumi had been legitimately angry with Sakuya since they'd met. Neither of them liked it very much.

Sakuya held her hat on top of her head with both hands. “When you're just a show off around town, that's one thing – big fish in a small pond – but telling everyone about all of this would just...it would mean attention.”

“Attention?”

“Suddenly I'm not just Sakuya, the queen of a random park in Chiba. I become the youngest student in Togami's history who's supposed to be on track to enter the pro leagues once I graduate.” She took a breath to steady herself. “That's more than just you or Kazuhiko or someone challenging me. That's people coming from all over to formally duel me, with me defending my school or my status or...”

She fell silent. “I know you don't get it, but I don't want any of that. Duel Monsters isn't what I want to do with the rest of my life; it's just a hobby for me. I accepted the school's offer because of other reasons and because they cut the tuition cost in half for us. It was just easier to hide this from everyone and not risk the secret getting out.”

“I...guess that's kind of understandable,” Yumi finally said after a minute of excruciating silence between the two of them. “I just wish you would have told me sooner.”

“I'm sorry,” she said. “I know I should have, but I got scared whenever I tried.” Sakuya sighed after saying that, following it up with, “That's not an excuse, though. You have every right to be mad at me, and I won't bother you anymore if this means you can't trust me ever again.”

“Like that would ever happen,” Yumi asserted. “I might be upset with you, but you're still my friend. You'd have to do a lot worse to make me leave you.” Sakuya's mouth hung open, though quickly shut with a peep as Yumi stuck her finger out towards her. “But this time when you promise to be honest, you'd better mean it!”

She nodded quickly. “I will, I promise. And...and to prove it, I'll tell you some other things, too. I don't think I actually lied about them, but I did keep them from you. So I guess if we're being completely honest from now on, I should tell you some things about my family.”

“You're not, like, related to the Emperor, right? Or some kind of god in human form?”

Sakuya held back a laugh and shook her head. “No, not anything like that. It's about my father.” She had to pause again for a moment. “It's...I guess you could say he would be the other reason I didn't want you to come over. Ever since my mother...he hasn't become a bad person, but I don't think he can really deal with the reality.”

“What do you mean?” Yumi asked.

“When he's not at work, he usually drinks. And I didn't really want you or anyone around when he's like that.”

“Do you mean he...” Yumi felt a chill run down her spine.

Sakuya, sensing the implication, shook her arms wildly. “No, definitely not. It's not like he hurts me. He's just...not really there. He'll make sure we have food and sometimes he asks me about my day, but it's like he forgets I'm a person sometimes. I just didn't want someone I care about to see how screwed up my life really is.”

“I'm really sorry. I wish I had something else to say, but I don't really know what I could do to help.”

She shook her head. “It's not your job to fix me family. And besides, being-” She stopped herself, trying not to blush as the words jumbled in her mouth. “I mean, just...you being my friend has been...it makes me happy.”

Yumi started to laugh, taking Sakuya's hand. “It makes me happy, too. Do you have anything else to tell me?”

She thought for a moment. “I don't think so. Are you sure you don't hate me?”

Yumi nodded. “Just don't lie anymore and I'll be able to forgive you.”

“Of course. I promise I won't lie anymore. Sometimes it's hard for me to say the truth, but I'm going to get better at it.”

“Good. I'll make sure you remember that.”

“And if there's anything I can do to make things up to you, just tell me,” Sakuya added hurriedly. “Anything. I want us to be able to move forward.”

Yumi had to think on that for a moment. Anything, she says? With ideas dawning, her lips formed into a devilish grin. “Well, I can think of a couple things.” Though a bit concerned with how pleased Yumi looked to be saying that, Sakuya nodded. “If you really mean that, then there's two things I want you to do for me.”

“Okay. What are they?”

She raised an index finger. “The first thing. Before you leave the city to go back to school, you have to duel me again. But this time, you have to use your full power.”

“Oh, right.” Sakuya was a bit ashamed of herself for forgetting that so quickly after promising not to hide anything. “I should have mentioned that I've been holding myself back. Not because you're too weak, but just as a way to limit myself and make me stand out less. It's not because of you, I promise.”

“I get it. I was kind of starting to suspect it for a while, especially when everyone kept bringing it up when you weren't around. Will you do it?”

She nodded. “Of course. I won't hold anything back against you. You're strong enough to give me a fight like that, too.”

“Then we're agreed.” Yumi then raised another finger. “And the second thing. As payback for lying, I want you to close your eyes while I do something really embarrassing to you. Is that okay?”

“I guess so,” Sakuya said, a bit confused as to what that was supposed to mean. Either way, she'd suffer a little humiliation if it meant strengthening their relationship. Knowing Yumi, it would probably be something silly like a hug or drawing on her face. “Okay, do what you're going to do,” she said, eyes closed tightly.

She could hear Yumi laughing to herself quietly. “Are you sure? You're going to be really embarrassed by this.”

“Sure. I'm fine with it.” A moment after she said that, she felt something warm press up against the side of her face accompanied by a kind of sucking noise. It didn't feel particularly bothersome, but it was strange enough that she could only stand a few seconds of mystery before opening her eyes.

Realization set in as she felt the small wet mark on her cheek and took in Yumi's proud, giggling expression. Sakuya's entire face immediately turned a bright red, leaving her in stuttering confusion. “And now we're even,” Yumi said. “We both got used to stuff like holding hands and things, so I figured the only way to embarrass you now would be like that.”

Sakuya held her face in her hands, trying to steady herself. She almost felt lightheaded after that, her brain a swirling mess of bewilderment, fear, and euphoria all at the same time. “You're terrible,” she said, cheeks still glowing.

“Sorry,” Yumi apologized. “That was probably too far. You can get me back for that sometime.”

“I definitely will!” she said, pouting and folding her arms in a huff. “For that, you're getting no mercy when we duel. I'll tear you apart.”

“I wouldn't want it any other way,” Yumi told her, sitting back down next to her and leaning back. “You still look cute when you get embarrassed like this.”

“Shut up!” They sat together without a word, eventually deciding to hold hands and look out towards the horizon. Though the summer was nearing its end, it didn't seem like their friendship would be anytime soon.

\Next: Round 2! The Summer's Last Duel!/

Cards Used in Order of Appearance

Hat-Trick Magician
DARK
Level 4
Spellcaster
1200 ATK/1500 DEF

Rusty Sword
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: This card's original ATK increases equal to its DEF. When this card attacks, during the Damage Step: You can pay Life Points in multiples of 100 (maximum 500); this card gains ATK equal to that amount.

Resurrection of the Dead (Monster Reborn)
Normal Spell Card
Target 1 monster in either player's Graveyard; Special Summon it.

MD Base Unit
EARTH
Level 3
Machine/Tuner/Effect
0 ATK/0 DEF
When this card is Summoned: Add up to 2 “MD Base Unit” cards from your Deck or Graveyard or that are banished to your hand. While this card is in your Graveyard, you can return 1 of your banished Machine-Type monsters to the Graveyard; add this card to your hand. You can only use each effect of “MD Base Unit” once per turn.

Reckless Summon of Hell (Inferno Reckless Summon)
Quick-Play Spell Card
When exactly 1 monster with 1500 or less ATK is Special Summoned to your field while your opponent controls a face-up monster: Special Summon as many monsters as possible with the same name as the Summoned monster, from your hand, Deck, and Graveyard, in Attack Position, also your opponent Special Summons as many monsters as possible with the same name as 1 of their face-up monsters, from their hand, Deck, and Graveyard.

Machine God Dragon – Xyz
EARTH
Rank 3
Machine/Xyz/Effect
0 ATK/0 DEF
3 Level 3 Machine-Type monsters
Must be Xyz Summoned, and cannot be Special Summoned by other ways. This card must be Xyz Summoned by using “MD Base Unit” as one of the Xyz Materials. This card cannot declare an attack. While this card has Xyz Material, it cannot be selected as an attack target or be targeted or destroyed by card effects. Once per turn: You can target 1 of your banished Machine-Type monsters; attach it to this card as Xyz Material. During your End Phase, if this card has 9 Xyz Materials: You can detach all Xyz Material from this card; inflict 4000 damage to your opponent.

MD Support Unit
EARTH
Level 3
Machine/Effect
0 ATK/0 DEF
You can banish 1 Machine-Type monster from your Graveyard; Special Summon 1 “MD Support Unit” from your hand or Deck in face-up Attack Position. This effect of “MD Support Unit” can only be used once per turn. Banish the monster summoned by this effect at the End Phase of this turn.

Armored Block
Quick-Play Spell Card
Target 1 monster you control equipped with an Equip Spell Card; it cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects this turn. If a monster you control equipped with an Equip Spell Card would be destroyed, you can banish this card from your Graveyard instead.

Mecha Hunter (Mechanicalchaser)
Dark
Level 4
Machine
1850 ATK/800 DEF

Scanner
LIGHT
Level 1
Machine/Effect
? ATK/? DEF
Once per turn, you can select 1 of your opponent's monsters that is removed from play. Until the End Phase, this card's name is treated as the selected monster's name, and this card has the same Attribute, Level, ATK, and DEF as the selected monster. If this card is removed from the field while this effect is applied, remove it from play.

Charity of the Ordinary (Common Charity)
Normal Trap Card
Draw 2 cards, then remove from play 1 Normal Monster Card from your hand. If you don't have any Normal Monster Cards in your hand to remove, send all cards in your hand to the Graveyard.

Butter Fly
WIND
Level 3
Insect
900 ATK/700 DEF

Card Gunner (Card Trooper)
EARTH
Level 3
Machine/Effect
400 ATK/400 DEF
Once per turn: You can choose a number from 1 to 3, then send that many cards from the top of your Deck to the Graveyard; this card gains 500 ATK for each card sent to the Graveyard this way, until the end of this turn. If this card you control is destroyed and sent to your Graveyard: Draw 1 card.

Thunder Bolt (Raigeki)
Normal Spell Card
Destroy all monsters your opponent controls.

Magical Mirror Master Reflect Bounder (Reflect Bounder)
LIGHT
Level 4
Machine/Effect
1700 ATK/1000 DEF
Before damage calculation, if this card is being attacked by an opponent's monster, and was in face-up Attack Position at the start of the Damage Step: Inflict damage to your opponent equal to the attacking monster's ATK. If you do, after damage calculation: Destroy this card.

D.D. Dynamite
Normal Trap Card
Inflict 300 damage to your opponent for each of their removed from play cards.

Majesty Eclipse
Normal Trap Card
You take no effect damage this turn. During either player's turn, except the turn this card was sent to the Graveyard: You can banish this card from your Graveyard; halve one instance of effect damage you take this turn.

Majesty Magician
DARK
Level 8
Spellcaster/Effect
2500 ATK/2000 DEF
You can Tribute Summon this card by Tributing 1 monster that was originally a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. This card is treated as an appropriate target for a card that specifically designates a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF while face-up on the field or in the Graveyard (its Level and ATK/DEF do not change).

Scaredy Lion
EARTH
Level 4
Beast
1300 ATK/ 1000 DEF

Broken Wand
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: This card's original ATK increases by 500. When this card attacks or is attacked by a monster with higher ATK: You can return this card to your hand and end the Battle Phase.

Chasm Queen – Telos
DARK
Rank 4
Spellcaster/Xyz/Effect
2800 ATK/2200 DEF
3 Level 4 monsters
You can Xyz Summon this card by using Equip Spell Cards equipped to monsters used as Xyz Material for this card's summon. When this card is Xyz Summoned: Negate the effect of all face-up monsters on the field besides this card until the End Phase. If this card attacks a Defense Position monster while it has an Equip Spell Card as Xyz Material, inflict piercing battle damage. When this card inflicts battle damage to your opponent: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; inflict 400 damage to your opponent x the number of Equip Spell Cards in both players' Graveyards.

Chapter Text

It was hard to imagine just how much things had changed over the course of a single summer. Ever since the death of her mother, Sakuya had felt almost entirely alone in the world. Whether by her own choices or the choices of those around her, she'd gone years without feeling any sort of real connection or tenderness with another person.

Then Yumi came into her life. Somehow this girl had completely transformed her outlook on life as well as her situation. She felt happy – truly happy – for the first time in years. Even her relationship with her father looked to be about to change for the better. Though she wouldn't allow herself to believe confronting him about his drinking the night before would lead to a permanent change, there was still a spark of hope she'd never dreamed could exist.

Checking the cards in her deck one final time, she headed for the door. Sharing a somewhat tense smile with her father (progress in and of itself), she headed towards the park. Towards the duel. Toward Yumi.

By the time she arrived, Yumi was already there. Kazuhiko and Hideo, too. It was kind of funny to watch the other children swarm them, desperately trying to get Yumi's autograph or try to duel her. She wasn't exactly unpopular around here before her tournament win, but it was nothing like it was now.

“Congratulations!” Miyuki greeted her, Michiko nodding enthusiastically beside her. “Your apprentice actually managed to make something of herself. You must have worked extra hard to change her into someone presentable.”

“Thanks, I guess,” she said, looking straight ahead towards Yumi. “I have some business to take care of right now. We can talk later.” As Sakuya advanced, the two accepted their place and resigned themselves to watching. It seemed like that's all they did anymore.

Yumi took notice of her friend as she came closer, but was stopped in place mid-hug attempt when she raised a hand. “You've come far over the last few months,” Sakuya said with an almost threatening level of seriousness. “But despite all that, I can tell you're still weak.”

This statement shocked everyone. Despite her cold public persona, the kids at the park had all more or less understood Yumi was someone special to their tyrannical leader, so to hear her talk so brusquely towards her again was more than a bit surprising.

“What're you saying all that for?” Kazuhiko asked her with a scowl. The fact that she was suspiciously out of character hadn't yet hit him, so he naturally assumed the worst and figured she'd just decided to put Yumi down for no reason.

“You heard me,” she said, not bothering to look at him. “She's weak. Even if she can defeat the likes of you, there's nothing special about winning one tournament.” Her lips formed into a haughty smile. “Now, if she were to defeat me, then I'd have to admit I was impressed. But I think we all know that could never happen.”

Quickly realizing what was going on, Yumi started to laugh. Pointing confidently at Sakuya, she declared, “I'll show you just how strong I've become. We're going to have a real rematch right here!”

She chuckled, digging her duel disk out of her bag. “Fine. I'll indulge this foolishness one final time. Unlike before, though, I'll use all my strength to crush you.”

“That's all I wanted,” she replied, activating her brand new disk for her very first duel with it. “Let's finally settle this once and for all.”

“Agreed.” Sakuya activated her duel disk in turn, taking a position across from Yumi as a crowd gathered. Decks shuffled, they drew their opening hands. “Duel!”

Sakuya took the first move, scanning her hand and considering what her options were. She intended to make good on her promise and not hold back in this duel. “I'll start by summoning Wiener Dragon, using its effect to add a second copy to my hand from my deck.”

As quickly as it appeared, though, her dragon was set to leave the field. “Now I activate the Magic Card Fusion, merging the Wiener Dragon on my field with the Chow Chow Dragon in my hand.” The familiar vortex swirled behind her as the dragon on the field was pulled into it along with a much larger and fluffier one from her hand.

“Dragon with eyes full of despair, let go of your sorrow in a roar that shakes the heavens! Fusion Summon, Level 8! Sad-Eyes Hound Dragon!” As she pulled her hands down, the monster appeared on the field and landed behind her with a thud.

“You're really going all out today,” Yumi said with a confident smile, surprised to see her put so much effort into playing the game.

Sakuya looked down her nose at Yumi, setting a card to end her turn. “If you can't overcome this much, then it was a waste to train you. Show me what you'll do now.”

“I'll do more than just show you. My turn, draw!” Taking a card from the top of her deck, she let out an exaggerated sigh. “Or maybe not,” she said with a shrug, pretending to be disappointed with what she'd gotten. Ever since the end of the tournament, she'd been trying to practice her acting and performance more. Hyping up the crowd was almost as fun as dueling, so her skills with one had to keep pace with her skills in the other from now on.

“I'll just set a monster, then. And, hmm...” She tapped her chin. “This should do it. I'll set three more cards and end my turn.” Even just seeing the backs of her cards, Yumi could already tell just how staggering the improvements were to her new duel disk. Everything was so crisp and vibrant. None of the occasional visual glitches, either, and all the buttons were responsive and easy to use.

“Disappointing,” Sakuya said with a frown, drawing a card. “I'll summon another Wiener Dragon, using its effect to add the third copy to my hand.” After doing so, she moved to the Battle Phase. “Sad-Eyes, destroy her monster!” Just as she ordered, Yumi's monster was completely blown away by the dragon's attack.

Even so, she was far from unhappy about it. “Since you just destroyed it, I get to activate my Critter's effect. Let's see...” Instinct told her to reach for her deck and manually sift through it, but the fancy new touch screen was far too alluring to pass up. “I'll go with...Crane Crane!” Tapping the card on the screen, it was automatically ejected for her to take, the deck shuffling on its own after it had been retrieved.

“Add all the weak monsters to your hand you want, they won't protect you. Wiener Dragon attacks directly! And since it declared an attack, its ATK will increase by 100 for each dragon in my Graveyard.” In total, Yumi took 1900 points of direct damage, dropping her once untouched Life Points to 2100. “Is that all you learned these last few months? How to eat a hit?”

“I wonder about that,” she said with a smirk.

Sakuya scoffed. “Fine then. I'll activate my Magic Card, Begging. By releasing Wiener Dragon on my field, I can take a Magic or Trap Card from your hand and add it to mine.”

“Looks like you walked into that one,” Yumi said, activating a card on her field. “Trap Card, Friendly Fire!” Several members of the audience gasped, legitimately shocked that Sakuya had seemingly overlooked such an obvious set up with no counters. Attacking brazenly was one thing, but this proved she had no plans to stop Yumi's cards should they turn out to be anything of substance.

“When you can activate a card effect, Friendly Fire lets me destroy any other card on your field.” Sakuya's dragon let out a weak roar as Yumi pointed towards it triumphantly. “That's the card I'll be taking down, Sad-Eyes!” Her Trap glowed, firing several shots of red energy out of its picture that impacted the dragon and blasted it to pieces.

Sakuya waved an arm to clear the dust, saving any kind of congratulatory words for later. “Then without further interruption, my card will resolve.” The two walked towards each other, Yumi smiling at her as she exposed her hand. Trying her best not to break character, Sakuya grabbed the only option among them (Expert Heart) and returned to her side of the field.

“Since Sad-Eyes has left the field, I'll get to use its effect. I'll add my first Wiener Dragon and Chow Chow Dragon back to my hand.” The cards ejected from her Graveyard. “Next, I'll show you just how fruitless your flailing truly is. I activate Gospel of Revival!”

A shimmering statue of a Sad-Eyes from seemingly millennia ago rose from the ground. “With this, I can summon a Level 7 or 8 Dragon-Type monster from my Graveyard. Return to my field, Sad-Eyes!” Suddenly, the statue began to move as if it was breathing. With a flash of light, it transformed back into the original dragon it was based on. “And that ends my turn.”

Yumi couldn't help but start to laugh. “You're amazing,” she said with a shake of her head. “It's like you planned everything three turns ahead. None of my cards even worked on you. Even after this long, I still don't think I've ever dueled someone as strong as you.”

Fighting back a blush, she looked off to the side and crossed her arms. “I-if you're surrendering, then just go ahead and do it. I don't have time for praise from someone like you.”

“Why's she being like this?” Kazuhiko asked to Hideo. “Did they have a fight we don't know about, or something?” Hideo informed him they'd made some kind of plans to duel without holding back a little after the end of the tournament, figuring this was part of the performance. “I guess that explains it. So she's just acting like an asshole again? Miss Yumi seems into it, so I'm not going to put a stop to it.”

Yumi began her turn, activating the card she drew immediately. “It's time to turn things around with Pot of Greed! This card lets me draw two more cards from my deck.” Taking her cards, Yumi smiled. “I'll set two more cards, then summon my Rusty Swordsman in Attack Mode!”

As her monster appeared on the field, she ended her turn. “I draw,” Sakuya declared. “Your plan is obvious, but I'll indulge you. Use whatever traps you want; it won't matter.” The first play Sakuya made was summoning Wiener Dragon once more. Then, however, she used something entirely different.

“I pay 1000 Life Points to activate the card Dog Mill.” This rather grizzly card featured a number of dogs stuffed as comically as possible into a single miniature cage. “By targeting a monster on my field that's both a Dragon and a Beast, I can summon this card as a new monster with its same Level.” The cage from the picture appeared on Sakuya's field, the dogs barking and trying to escape their prison.

“That's only the beginning, though. If I were to use Dog Mill for the summon of a monster in my Extra Deck, it can be counted as two materials with the same Level instead of just one.” This explanation naturally preceded the announcement that she would be summoning a new monster.

“I overlay my Level 4 Wiener Dragon with my Level 4 Dog Mill counting as two monsters.” The two monsters transformed into orbs of light and flew into the galaxy forming overhead, Dog Mill splitting off into two at the last moment. “Eyes brimming with hope, descend and tear through your enemies with relentless passion! Xyz Summon, Rank 4! Shiny-Eyes Dingo Dragon!”

A lengthy dragon covered in immaculate white fur appeared on Sakuya's field, flapping two sets of wings and standing tall on four lanky legs. Two yellow orbs circled its body as it awaited its orders. “I knew it!” Yumi shouted while hopping up and down. “I knew you could Xyz Summon, too! That's why you taught me so well and had those cards extra for me!”

Sakuya only smiled, proceeding with her turn. “Once per turn, I'm allowed to attach a monster from my Graveyard to Shiny-Eyes. I'll choose another Wiener Dragon.” A third sphere joined the first two in their orbit as she said this. “Now that that's finished, I'll move to my Battle Phase. Sad-Eyes, attack!”

Despite the twin beams of energy racing towards her monster, Yumi seemed unfazed. In fact, she seemed quite pleased with herself, the reason why soon becoming clear. “First, I activate Emissaries of Reconciliation, which means I won't be taking any battle damage this turn and Rusty Swordsman will get to stay on the field. Then, I'll use my other Trap Card, Unbreakable Spirit!”

“Hey, that's the card she used to kick my ass in our first duel,” Kazuhiko said on the sidelines. “Not sure why she's using both cards, but go for it!”

“When I only control one monster, it gains ATK equal to the lowest ATK on your field until the end of the turn. Since your Shiny-Eyes has the lowest, Rusty Swordsman will go up to 4000 ATK while battling Sad-Eyes!”

“If that's the case, then I'll use Sad-Eyes' effect to lower your monster's ATK by 1000 until the end of the turn.” Now both monsters matched at 3000 ATK.

“She planned for that!” someone in the crowd shouted as they began to realize the extent of Yumi's forethought. It had been her intention all along to have Sad-Eyes use its effect, matching the two monsters' ATK and using her first Trap to prevent the swordsman's destruction. She protected herself from another direct attack through this plan, as well, making for a nearly ironclad defense.

The two monsters clashed, Rusty Swordsman beating the odds and deflecting Sad-Eyes' blasts into the sky. As it began to redirect the beams towards the attacker itself, Sakuya raised her hand. “If my monster would be destroyed, I can banish Gospel of Revival in my Graveyard to stop it from happening.” Though the attack made contact with its user, a shimmering turquoise aura protected the monster entirely.

Ultimately, their scrap had been entirely pointless. For the monsters at least, though for the players, Yumi had taken a heavy blow to resources attempting a plan that simply didn't work out. Even so, she wasn't planning to surrender any time soon.

“Since you avoided damage by battle, I'll just have to do this.” Shiny-Eyes began to roar, all three of its materials flying into its mouth before it chomped down on them. “By detaching at least three Overlay Units from Shiny-Eyes Dingo Dragon, I can inflict 300 damage to you for each one.”

Another blast of energy came from one of Sakuya's dragons, this one headed straight for Yumi and her Life Points. She was prepared for this too, however, as the white light was captured inside a dark circle that appeared to block Yumi from the damage, neutralizing it entirely. “Too bad. I use my Trap Card, Majesty Eclipse, to negate all the effect damage I take this turn, too.”

“That was almost impressive,” Sakuya said, a small smile appearing on her lips. “Even so, you won't win. I'll end my turn here.”

“No matter what it takes, I'm going to beat you this time! And I have a feeling the next card I draw is going to help me do just that.” She'd started to become good at predicting when her deck would give her something to help a reversal, and this was no exception. Yumi began by summoning Crane Crane from earlier, reviving Critter before making her move. “Xyz Summon, Rank 3! Gurensaurus!”

The dinosaur appeared on the field, flames spewing from it excitedly. “Remember when you gave this card to me? I thought it would be appropriate if I showed you how far I've come by using it to help me beat you.”

“That's a confident statement about a monster that can't overcome either of my dragons.”

“We'll see if you still think that when I use this!” Yumi placed her newest card onto the field. “Equip Magic, Power of Unity! With this equipped, Gurensaurus gains 800 ATK for every face-up monster I have.” Now at 3600, her dinosaur rushed forward to attack Shiny-Eyes.

“Sad-Eyes, use your effect!” Sakuya declared, Gurensaurus being hit with two blasts of energy in the side mid-charge. Though it stumbled, it continued onward to bite into its target's neck, ripping it apart and doing only 100 damage.

“Since Gurensaurus just did damage,” Yumi began, “I can detach an Overlay Unit to inflict 1000 more to you.” Removing Critter, Sakuya's total loss put her at 1900 Life Points.

Undeterred, Sakuya activated a Trap. “When one of my Beast-Type monsters is destroyed, all my others on the field gain its ATK until the end of my turn.”

Yumi wagged her finger in response. “I'm not done yet, but having that out of the way will definitely make things easier for me later. I activate the Instant Magic Order to Charge! When I use this, I pick a Normal Monster to release in order to destroy one of your monsters.”

The choices were obvious, Rusty Swordsman taking on a white glow before charging into Sad-Eyes. Both monsters were subsequently destroyed, leaving Sakuya with an empty field and Yumi beaming with pride. “I'll let you have your turn now.”

“You'll realize it was a mistake not to figure out how to beat me right there,” Sakuya said as she began her turn. “I won't forgive any second chances.” She took a monster from her hand and summoned it, declaring, “I use my Tuner monster, Pit Biter.” A pit bull-like creature appeared, standing on two legs and howling through a steel muzzle.

“That's my thing!” Kazuhiko shouted, shaking his fist like a disgruntled old man.

She ignored him and proceeded. “When I Synchro Summon with Pit Biter, I can only use one other monster. A Dragon-Type in my hand, just like Wiener Dragon.” She flipped the card around to confirm. “I'm tuning my Level 2 Tuner monster, Pit Biter, with my Level 4 non-Tuner monster, Wiener Dragon! Stern eyes of harsh silver, rip your enemies asunder without concern! Synchro Summon, Level 6! Cold-Eyes Dhole Dragon!”

Sakuya's newest monster graced the field, a lithe brown dragon with two slim wings and an unexpectedly friendly face despite its unfeeling and vaguely threatening eyes. “When I Synchro Summon Cold-Eyes, I can send a dragon from my deck to the Graveyard to make one of your monsters lose 200 ATK equal to its Level.”

Her selection was Terrier Dragon, a 6 star monster. Because of that, Gurensaurus' 2800 ATK fell to 1600, more than palatable for the Synchro Monster. “Now attack! Jet Stream of Destruction!” The dragon soared into the sky, tilting back its head before releasing a whirlwind of blue and green energy that cut straight through Yumi's dinosaur.

“I end my turn,” Sakuya declared after, Yumi's Life Points now at 1700. Despite how dire things seemed, she couldn't help but feel excited. Finally getting to face Sakuya's true strength while she used three different summoning methods was a dream come true (literally, considering she'd dreamed about this kind of scenario more than once).

“I'll draw!” she declared, forced to bet the rest of the duel on a single card. “Looks like I've still got another turn in me,” she said, revealing her card to be Common Fusion. The crowd began to cheer for her, having grown significantly larger than when they first started. Not just children but several adults had come to watch, either because they recognized her from her tournament win or to simply see what all the commotion was about.

“This situation calls for something a little stronger than what I usually summon, so this time I'm going to be fusing Invader from Another Dimension and Djinn of the Lamp from my deck. Fusion Summon, Level 6! Soul Hunter!” The nightmarish creature appeared on the field, its mount letting out a roar. “With 2200 ATK, it's just strong enough to win against your Cold-Eyes.”

She was correct in saying that, Soul Hunter cutting through the dragon with a single swipe of its scythe. Sakuya and Yumi now had the same number of Life Points remaining, the tide having turned rather quickly. “Your turn,” Yumi said.

Sakuya couldn't help but laugh. A small chuckle, but a laugh all the same. “You never give up even in the worst situations,” she said. “Let's see just how far I have to push you to win, then!” After drawing a card, she activated it. “I play Hand Obliteration, meaning we both discard out entire hands and draw the same number we had before. Unfortunately for you, I'm the only one with cards right now.”

Tossing Expert Heart back to its owner...expertly, Sakuya discarded Chow Chow Dragon and added two new cards to her hand. With a frown, she set one of them and summoned the other. “I'll play Sharpei Wyvern and end my turn.”

Despite her instincts telling her to rush in, Yumi knew better than to simply attack. Sakuya didn't make mistakes, so there had to be a reason to summon such a weak monster in Attack Position. The obvious answer was her set card, though exactly what it would do wasn't clear.

The possibility of it simply being a feint also crossed her mind. Real or fake, though, it was better to hang back this turn. “I'll play Arms Hole,” she declared, sending the Justi-Break on top of her deck to the Graveyard in order to search out Rusty Sword. Though losing that Trap Card was rather unfortunate, it would likely be worth it in the long run. “I guess I end my turn.”

“I draw, then.” Setting her newest card, Sakuya smiled. “Your instincts were impressive. If you'd attacked, you wouldn't be able to last the turn. I activate Castle of Dragon Souls!” Yumi was expressly familiar with that card given that it was the one that beat her the first time the two of them had dueled.

“I'll attack with Sharpei Wyvern, then use my card's effect.” The decrepit tower that had erected itself behind Sakuya began to hum with an otherworldly energy. “By banishing Sad-Eyes Hound Dragon in my Graveyard, I can increase Sharpei Wyvern's ATK by 700 until the end of the turn.” The departed soul of her Fusion Monster traveled out of an opening in the castle, empowering her attacking dragon just enough to match with Soul Hunter.

It was mutual destruction, both monsters exploding once they clashed. Fortunately for Sakuya, this activated the wyvern's effect, letting her add Wiener Dragon back to her hand. “I'll summon it after that,” she declared, her poorly named monster making another reappearance this duel. “I end my turn.”

“You always make the best use of all your resources,” Yumi said as she began her turn. “I can really tell I've still got a lot to learn when you do that. You take all this time to plan stuff, but whenever I'm in a pinch, I just have luck to fall back on.”

“Is that your way of saying you got a dead draw?” she asked with a sly smile.

Yumi was silent for a moment, though she couldn't hold it for much longer due to her own impatience. “Not yet! I'm summoning Scaredy Lion, then equipping it with Rusty Sword!” The cowardly monster materialized on the field, nearly pulled to the ground by the weight of the weapon it was forced to hold. “Now battle! Scaredy Lion attack your dragon!”

Since Wiener Dragon wasn't the one declaring an attack, it wouldn't be able to gain anything from its effect. Even so, Sakuya was unconcerned. “I'll banish Pit Biter in order to activate my Castle's effect,” she declared, her monster's ATK raised to 2400, making it 100 higher than Yumi's.

“That's not going to work this time. With Rusty Sword's effect, I can have Scaredy Lion gain 500 ATK by paying the same number of Life Points.” Despite its terrified screaming, Scaredy Lion continued to charge forward, swinging the sword with 2800 ATK and cleaving Wiener Dragon in half.

“How was that?” Yumi asked with a grin. “Can't use your Trap Card to boost ATK if there's no monsters left for you to attack with. I'll end my turn.”

Their Life was nearly the same now, 1200 and 1300 in Sakuya's favor. Drawing a card, she had to admit she'd found herself in a fairly precarious position. “You've actually managed to corner me,” she said. “I'll give you a little credit for that, but that's all. I summon Boxer Lizard and attack!”

Her monster appeared on the field, making a few jabs at the air before launching forward towards Yumi's lion. “I'm using my Castle's effect to banish Terrier Dragon, meaning our monsters have the same ATK.” They clashed in the middle of the field, Scaredy Lion slashing into Boxer Lizard's side as it landed a straight punch into its nose.

Sakuya ended her turn as the dust settled, the only card left on the field with the potential to make any drastic changes being her one face-down. Yumi seemed poised to change that, though, as her next card completely changed the gamestate on its head. “I activate Treasure Cards from the Heavens, which lets us both draw six new cards.”

“It's pretty risky to reset things like that,” Sakuya said, secretly feeling a bit of pride to see Yumi use the card she gave her once again. “Neither of us have a hand, so we'll both get the full effect.”

“If there's no risk involved, then where's the fun?” Sakuya finally laughed heartily, drawing her cards in time with Yumi. “See? That risk just opened a path for me to win.” She placed a Magic Card into her duel disk. “I'll activated Unexpected Guy! When I don't have any monsters on my field, I can summon a Level 4 or below Normal Monster from my deck.”

Wallrus appeared on the field, though it wouldn't stay there for long. “Now, I'll release Wallrus and use it to Advance Summon!”

It was obvious what came next. “Yeah, do it!” Kazuhiko cheered. “You can win!” The rest of the crowd joined in, predicting Yumi's favorite card.

“It's time to bring out the real star of the show! Let's go, Majesty Magician!” The monster shot down in a beam of light towards the ground, standing up from a kneeling position and tossing its cane into the air for dramatic effect. Expertly catching it, it twirled it around and did a spin before bowing to Sakuya.

“And now I'll equip my magician with this card, Golden Fiddle!” The instrument itself materialized in Majesty Magician's hand, its cane turning into a bow to play with. At the same time, Yumi discarded something. “Since I just used an Equip Card, I can activate Komboriboh next, letting me put Rusty Sword back in my hand and activate it!”

With another twirl, Majesty Magician's violin merged with the bow, transforming into an enormous golden sword. With a total ATK of 6100, victory seemed assured. “You're just showing off now,” Sakuya said with a smile. She'd started to enjoy herself too much to stick to her old persona.

“When things end, you want to go out with a bang, right? Majesty Magician, direct attack! Harmony Cutter!” Raising the sword into the air, it started to hum a single, silky note. Slashing into the ground, a shockwave tore through the field headed towards Sakuya.

An explosion rocked the park as the attack impacted. The crowd held their breath, as did Yumi, while they waited to see whether or not the damage took. “I told you there was risk,” Sakuya said, the view opening up to reveal Rottwyvern with its ATK and DEF lowered by 500. “When I'm attacked directly, I can summon this card from my hand, then lower its ATK and DEF to prevent destruction.”

With a sigh, Yumi kicked at the dirt. “I thought I had you that time.” To end her turn, she set a card, then activated Supremacy Berry to regain 2000 Life Points. Regardless of being stopped, it still seemed like Yumi had the upper hand. How long would that last, though?

“Draw!” Sakuya declared, playing a Magic Card shortly after. “Sorry, but your over extension turned out to be a waste. Heavy Storm!” A tornado appeared in the middle of the field, sucking up Majesty Magician's equipment as well as pulling Sakuya's Castle into it brick by brick. Additionally, her set Trap, Beast Riser, was blown away, seemingly having been a wash the whole time.

“Majesty Guard, activate!” At the last moment, Yumi's Trap went off. Whether or not it would be necessary remained to be seen, but there was no reason to let it go to waste. If Sakuya was planning something to turn the duel around, it would at least guarantee Majesty Magician would get to stick around for another turn.

A huge amount of spectral energy came flooding onto the field shortly after that, seemingly beginning to take shape into a monster. “When my Castle of Dragon Souls is sent to the Graveyard, I get to summon one of my banished Dragon-Type monsters back to my field. Return to me, Sad-Eyes Hound Dragon!”

The spirit took the shape of Sakuya's dragon, eventually solidifying until it reappeared on the field in all its glory. “I'm far from finished, though. Now, I summon Beagle Drake from my hand, and use its effect to summon Cold-Eyes Dhole Dragon from the Graveyard!”

The shrimpy, wingless dragon appeared on the field, its floppy ears hiding the true danger of its abilities. Beside it was Cold-Eyes, revived from the dead in Attack Position without an effect and 0 ATK or DEF. “Additionally, if I don't use Beagle Drake to Synchro Summon by the end of this turn, I'll take 2000 damage and lose the duel.”

Avoiding that consequence immediately, Sakuya quickly began to summon another monster from her Extra Deck. “Now, I'm tuning my Level 2 Tuner monster, Beagle Drake, with my Level 6 non-Tuner monster, Cold-Eyes Dhole Dragon. Eyes overflowing with grief, gaze upon this rotten world and exact vengeance for its sins! Synchro Summon, Level 8! Bleary-Eyes Jackal Dragon!”

It was the most impressive dragon yet, stripes of white running up each side of its grey body as it towered over the field. On either side of its head were miniature wings, dwarfed by the two enormous ones on its back. Streams of red tears seemed to fall from its face like a gushing wound, only serving to make it look that much more intimidating as it snarled into a roar.

“And lastly, I'll activate Poison Fang, which means I do an extra 500 points of damage whenever one of my Beast-Type monsters inflicts battle damage to you.” Thrusting her arm forward, Sakuya ordered her cards to battle. “Sad-Eyes Hound Dragon, activate your effect and attack!”

Majesty Magician's ATK fell to 1500 as the dragon's beams struck it. Though it withstood the attack, Yumi still took heavy damage. Falling to 2450, she was hit with another 250 for the reduced damage on Poison Fang, leaving her at 2200. “Now, Bleary-Eyes, attack! Bloody Stream of Destruction!” With an unearthly screech, her dragon channeled the twin streams of tears into its mouth before firing them as a singular blast. Yumi took another 1000 damage altogether, though it wasn't over just yet.

“When Bleary-Eyes Jackal Dragon inflicts damage to you, I'm allowed to draw a card once per turn. If it turns out to be a monster, I can attack a second time.” Drawing a card, she smirked. “Sharpei Wyvern. I'll attack again!”

Yumi was forced to take another 750 battle damage, banishing Majesty Eclipse from her Graveyard to halve the effect damage from Poison Fang this one time. With 325 Life Points left now, there didn't seem like there would be a better opportunity to use it going forward. “I set one card and end my turn.”

“Draw!” Yumi declared. “Your cards are pretty strong. It's going to be tough getting over dragons that big.”

“Don't think you'll be able to overcome them with a low Level monster and Equip Cards, either,” she told her. “Bleary-Eyes has another effect which cuts the ATK and DEF of any monster with a lower Level or Rank than it by 100 points for each. Your Magician just barely passes the threshold.”

“And that's most of my strategies, too,” she replied, scratching her head to try and think of a better plan. “Well, in the meantime, I can still do this. I'll equip Majesty Magician with Shield Bash.” Its ATK grew by 1000, though it wouldn't be of much use. If Yumi tried to attack either of Sakuya's biggest cards, Sad-Eyes' effect would return Majesty Magician's stats to their original value and destroy it. There was, however, another target available.

“Battle! I attack Rottwyvern with Majesty Magician!” Though it connected, there was little it could do against the dragon's survival effect. With 0 ATK, though, it couldn't survive another hit. Whether or not this did any good was still up in the air. “Turn end.”

“If that's all you have left, then this duel is about to end. Draw!” Sakuya began her turn by discarding a Pointer card in her hand to summon another copy of Terrier Dragon, proceeding with her real plan after that. “I equip Rottwyvern with the Magic Card Synchro Hero. With Synchro Hero, Rottwyvern gains 500 ATK and 1 Level.”

She now had two Level 6 monsters on the field, though that wasn't all. “Now I activate Call of the Living Dead, reviving Chow Chow Dragon, as well.” It was clear what came next. “I overlay my Level 6 Terrier Dragon, Rottwyvern, and Chow Chow Dragon! Eyes of unflinching resolve, rain destruction down upon your enemies! Xyz Summon, Rank 6! Cruel-Eyes Coyote Dragon!”

Letting out a high-pitched howl, the slender scarlet dragon appeared on the field. It lacked limbs, floating in the air with six furred wings attached across its long body. The cruelty reflected in its eyes truly lived up to its name, seemingly imagining destroying Majesty Magician the moment it came to the field. “It's over! Sad-Eyes, use your effect and attack!”

“I don't think so, since I still have Komboriboh!” Sad-Eyes' beam attack was blocked by a collection of furry balls materializing in front of Majesty Magician. “When you attack a monster equipped with something, I can banish it to stop destruction and damage for the rest of the turn.”

She smiled, nodding her head. “Then it seems like you've bought yourself one last turn. Will you be able to beat me in that time?”

“We'll let my next card decide that,” she replied. They each held their breath as it was drawn, the crowd falling silent to see if Yumi could pull off a miracle. With a smile, Yumi played her card. “I'll equip Majesty Magician with Burning Slugger,” she said.

“In exchange for giving up an attack this turn, Majesty Magician can destroy a monster you control and inflict damage equal to its Level, and then I send that many cards from my deck to the Graveyard.” It was unclear what the purpose of that would be. None of Sakuya's monsters had a high enough Level or Rank to finish her off. That effect would leave Yumi with close to no cards left, too. The only plan that made sense would be to hope for something that could activate from the Graveyard.

“My target,” she said, “is Sad-Eyes Hound Dragon!” Launching a flaming baseball at the dragon, it shattered to pieces, taking 800 Life Points from Sakuya with it. Before destruction, though, it made sure to lower Majesty Magician's ATK down to 2500 again to prevent any kind of shenanigans just to be safe.

Mirror Force, Broken Wand, Butter Fly, Violentist, Armored Block, Trakodon, God's Providence, and Big Bat Knight. Those were the cards eliminated by her own effect. Knowing her deck inside and out, this meant the most valuable card Yumi had left was Resurrection of the Dead. It wouldn't come, though. This was her last turn.

“One last gesture of resistance before I win?” Sakuya asked, her expression softening slightly.

“I wanted to at least destroy Sad-Eyes once and for all,” she said. “Majesty Magician wanted revenge for last time, so now we have no regrets.”

“I see.” They stood in silence after that before Sakuya spoke once more. “I'll begin my turn, then.” Drawing a card, she activated it. “I use Pet Cemetery, banishing my three Wiener Dragons in my Graveyard and sending Rottwyvern, Pointer, and Pit Biter from my deck to the Graveyard, letting me summon Feral-Eyes Wolf Dragon from my Extra Deck.”

Her monster appeared on the field with little fanfare. The spectators had died down somewhat after any remaining hope for Yumi's victory vanished. Sensing this, she closed her eyes and took a breath, then pulled her goggles down over her eyes. “I'll fight to the very end. Come on!”

With a small laugh, Sakuya smiled. “Fine, then that's how we'll end this. Feral-Eyes, attack Majesty Magician! Primal Inferno!”

The dragon let loose a blast of purple flame from its mouth, swooping in to claw at the wizard as it hid behind its shield. “I banish Armored Block from my Graveyard, which prevents Majesty Magician's destruction once this turn!” As Feral-Eyes approached, the magician slammed into it, destroying it while remaining unscathed.

“In that case, I'll attack with Cruel-Eyes Coyote Dragon! When it has at least two Overlay Units, it gains 200 ATK x your monster's Level while it battles. At Level 8, that means 4400! Torment Stream!” Launching a blast of white light, Majesty Magician and its shield were both pierced through and exploded.

“I won't take any damage from battles with the monster equipped with Shield Bash. I told you I wasn't going down without a fight!” Everyone assembled began to cheer for her. Kazuhiko, Hideo, the kids from the park, and even total strangers. Though they knew the duel was over, they couldn't help but admire her tenacity when faced with certain destruction.

Looking across the field to Sakuya, Yumi smiled. “You have one more monster. Let's finish this.”

With a nod, she wiped at the side of her eye. “Then so be it. Bleary-Eyes, attack Yumi directly!” Her dragon reared up, letting out one last roar before sending its attack towards Yumi. As she closed her eyes, the beam connected, sapping away the last of her Life Points in one fell swoop.

Sakuya was the winner, holograms fading from the field. As the crowd clapped, she approached Yumi and held out her hand. “You've gotten better,” she said with a smile.

“I've still got a long way before I can beat you, though.” She took Sakuya's hand in hers, lifting her goggles up again with the other. “It's going to be a lot of fun getting there with you!” They didn't have much time to celebrate together before Kazuhiko picked both of them up in a hug, both him and Hideo immediately jumping to try and duel the both of them after seeing how far they'd come. Half the crowd had the same reaction, wanting a shot at the two unquestioned queens of the park.

Before she could accept any challenges, though, Sakuya knew there was one last thing she had to do. “Everyone,” she began, holding up a hand to quiet them. “I need to make an announcement regarding the future.”

She looked to Yumi, smiling briefly before returning to her serious demeanor. “For the past few years, I've frequented this park and commanded absolute authority over all of you. I've realized recently that that time has passed.”

Obviously, this was a rather confusing statement to hear. “I no longer have any desire to rule this park. I never did, in fact, but I did it anyway. Starting now, I relinquish my title as strongest in Chiba.” There was nearly a solid minute of silence as the group digested her words, unsure at first at how to react.

“Then leave,” one boy said. She blinked in response.

“Yeah,” another said. “If that's how it is, then just go already.” Slowly, the rest began to join in, all calling for Sakuya to simply leave the park.

“Hey, hold on,” Kazuhiko said, the first to come to her defense. “Weren't you all kissing her ass before this? What the hell is all this for?”

Michiko scoffed, stepping forward. “None of us actually liked her, you know. We just did what she said because she's strong. If she doesn't want to be strong anymore, then why should we put up with someone that mean?” Others echoed this sentiment, finally airing grievances they'd had for years but were simply too scared or complacent to speak up about.

Slowly, Sakuya nodded. “I see. If that's how everyone feels, then-” She stopped dead in her tracks as Hideo's arm shot out in front of her face to catch a rock someone had thrown at her.

“Just leave!” someone shouted. Kazuhiko immediately started to pick fights, Yumi running to Sakuya's side while Hideo stood guard to deflect any further projectiles. Whether their reaction was justified or not at this point mattered little, as it was clear they wanted nothing to do with her from this point forward.

People actually began to cheer as Sakuya finally walked off, Yumi following close behind her. Kazuhiko and Hideo stayed behind to try and do damage control and prevent a fist fight, respectively. The girls moved down the sidewalk in silence for some time before happening upon the overpass from the day they first met. Heavy handed as it was, they seemed to decide in unison that it was the best place to talk about what had just happened.

“I don't know what that was,” Yumi said, shaken to her core at just how spiteful the crowd had turned.

“They have every right to their anger,” Sakuya said, following a car with her eyes as it drove down the street below them. “I treated everyone poorly for a while, so it makes sense that they'd turn on me when I no longer had any sort of authority.” She chuckled to herself to hide her sadness. “I was actually planning to come clean with all my lies after that, too, but...”

“I guess so, but still. That was just...extreme.”

“Not everyone is as forgiving as you, Yumi.” She sighed, wringing her hands. “You can still leave, too, if you want. I would understand.”

She shook her head. “I don't want to leave. You're being honest now and that's all I asked for.” She scratched her head. “I just didn't think it would turn out like this.”

“Maybe it's for the best,” Sakuya said. “I had this coming, and now they can all go about their lives without me ruining their fun. And, I guess...maybe I can start figuring myself out a little better, too. I know I don't want to be a dictator or a pro duelist, but I don't know what I do want to be.”

Yumi thought for a moment, then said, “Maybe you could start by just being my friend.” She broke quickly after that and had to laugh. “Sorry, that sounded really weird.”

Sakuya shook her head with a smile, taking Yumi's hand. “That sounds pretty nice. I think it's a good place to start.” They sat together and looked out at the horizon, processing the events of the day and knowing it would be the last they'd share for a while. “Do you think Kazuhiko's punched anyone yet?”

“I hope not,” Yumi said with a sigh. "By the way, what's a dhole?"

"A kind of wild dog from the south of the mainland."

"They must be super cute based on your card!" It seemed like things were about to change again, and neither could be sure whether it was for the better this time. Good or bad, though, they'd see it through together.

\Next: New Semester Start! Exchange Student Suzy Q Reporting for Duty!/

Cards Used in Order of Appearance

Wiener Dragon
FIRE
Level 4
Dragon/Effect
1700 ATK/1200 DEF
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. When this card is Normal Summoned: You can add 1 “Wiener Dragon” from your Deck to your hand. While attacking, this card gains 100 ATK for each Dragon-Type monster in your Graveyard.

Fusion (Polymerization)
Normal Spell Card
Fusion Summon 1 Fusion Monster from your Extra Deck, using monsters from your hand or side of the field as Fusion Materials.

Chow Chow Dragon
WIND
Level 6
Dragon/Effect
900 ATK/2500 DEF
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. You can Tribute Summon this card in face-up Defense Position. Once per turn, during either player's turn: You can discard 1 Dragon-Type monster from your hand; this card gains DEF equal to that card's level x 100 until the End Phase.

Sad-Eyes Hound Dragon
EARTH
Level 8
Dragon/Fusion/Effect
3000 ATK/2500 DEF
1 Level 6 or higher Dragon-Type monster + 1 Level 5 or lower Beast-Type monster
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. Once per turn, during either player's turn: You can target 1 face-up monster on the field; it loses 1000 ATK until the End Phase. If this Fusion Summoned card is sent to the Graveyard: You can add both cards used as Fusion Material to your hand.

Critter (Sangan)
DARK
Level 3
Fiend/Effect
1000 ATK/ 600 DEF
When this card is sent from the field to the Graveyard: Add 1 monster with 1500 or less ATK from your Deck to your hand.

Crane Crane
EARTH
Level 3
Winged Beast/Effect
300 ATK/900 DEF
When this card is Normal Summoned: You can target 1 Level 3 monster in your Graveyard; Special Summon that target, but its effects are negated. You can only use this effect of “Crane Crane” once per turn.

Begging
Normal Spell Card
Tribute 1 monster that is both Dragon-Type and Beast-Type; add 1 Spell or Trap card from your opponent's hand to your hand.

Friendly Fire (Bad Aim)
Normal Trap Card
When your opponent's card or effect is activated: Target 1 card on the field (other than that card); destroy it.

Expert Heart
Equip Spell
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: Cannot be destroyed by battle once per turn. When you take damage from an attack involving this card: This card gains ATK and DEF equal to the damage you took.

Rusty Swordsman
EARTH
Level 4
Warrior
1500 ATK/1000 DEF

Gospel of Revival (Return of the Dragon Lords)
Normal Spell Card
Target 1 Level 7 or 8 Dragon-Type monster in your Graveyard; Special Summon it. If a Dragon-Type monster(s) you control would be destroyed by battle or card effect, you can banish this card from your Graveyard instead.

Pot of Greed
Normal Spell Card
Draw 2 cards.

Rusty Swordsman
EARTH
Level 4
Warrior
1500 ATK/1000 DEF

Dog Mill
Continuous Spell Card
Activate by paying 1000 Life Points and targeting 1 monster you control that is both Dragon-Type and Beast-Type. Special Summon this card in Attack Position; it is treated as an Effect Monster with the same Level as the target (Beast-Type/EARTH/ATK 0/DEF 0). (This card is still treated as a Spell Card.) This card is also treated as a Dragon-Type while on the field. If used for the Special Summon of a Dragon-Type Fusion, Synchro, or Xyz Monster, this card can be used as 2 materials with the same Level.

Shiny-Eyes Dingo Dragon
LIGHT
Rank 4
Dragon/Xyz/Effect
2500 ATK/1500 DEF
3 Level 4 monsters that are both Dragon-Type and Beast-Type
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. You can target 1 monster in your Graveyard that is both Dragon-Type and Beast-Type; attach it to this card as an Xyz Material. You can detach any number of Xyz Material from this card (minimum 3) to inflict 300 damage x the number detached. You can only use each effect of “Shiny-Eyes Dingo Dragon” once per turn. If this face-up card would be destroyed, you can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card instead.

Emissaries of Reconciliation (Waboku)
Normal Trap Card
You take no battle damage from your opponent's monsters this turn. Your monsters cannot be destroyed by battle this turn.

Unbreakable Spirit
Normal Trap Card
If you control only 1 face-up monster: Target that monster; until the end of this turn, it gains ATK equal to the ATK of the monster your opponent currently controls with the lowest ATK (your choice, if tied).

Majesty Eclipse
Normal Trap Card
You take no effect damage this turn. During either player's turn, except the turn this card was sent to the Graveyard: You can banish this card from your Graveyard; halve one instance of effect damage you take this turn.

Gurensaurus (Grenosaurus)
FIRE
Rank 3
Dinosaur/Xyz/Effect
2000 ATK/1900 DEF
2 Level 3 monsters
When this card destroys an opponent's monster by battle and sends it to the Graveyard: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; inflict 1000 damage to your opponent.

Power of Unity (United We Stand)
Equip Spell Card
The equipped monster gains 800 ATK and DEF for each face-up monster you control.

Beast Unleashed
Normal Trap Card
Activate only when a Beast-Type monster on your side of the field is destroyed while there is another Beast-Type monster on your side of the field. All face-up Beast-Type monsters on your side of the field gain ATK equal to the ATK of the destroyed monster, until the end of your next turn. Any Battle Damage inflicted to your opponent during your turn is halved.

Order to Charge
Quick-Play Spell Card
Select 1 face-up Normal Monster (except a Token) on your side of the field when you activate this card. When this card resolves, Tribute the selected Normal Monster and destroy 1 monster on your opponent's side of the field.

Pit Biter
EARTH
Level 2
Dragon/Tuner/Effect
500 ATK/300 DEF
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. This card cannot be used as Synchro Material except for the Synchro Summon of a Dragon-Type monster. When using this card as a Synchro Material, the other Synchro Material is 1 Dragon-Type monster in your hand.

Cold-Eyes Dhole Dragon
WIND
Level 6
Dragon/Synchro/Effect
2000 ATK/2000 DEF
1 Beast-Type Tuner + 1 or more Dragon-Type non-Tuner monsters
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. When this card is Synchro Summoned: Send 1 Dragon-Type monster from your Deck to the Graveyard, then target 1 face-up opponent's monster; it loses 200 ATK x the Level of the monster sent by this effect until the End Phase.

Terrier Dragon
EARTH
Level 6
Dragon/Effect
2200 ATK/1200 DEF
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. You can Special Summon this card from your hand in Attack Position by discarding 1 Level 5 or lower Dragon-Type monster. If this card is Special Summoned by its own effect: Its original ATK and DEF are halved.

Common Fusion
Normal Spell Card
Fusion Summon 1 non-Effect Fusion Monster from your Extra Deck, using Normal Monsters from your hand, field, or Deck as Fusion Material. When the card Fusion Summoned by this effect battles an opponent's monster: You can banish this card in your Graveyard; negate that monster's effects and apply its original ATK and DEF when calculating damage until the end of the Battle Phase.

Invader from Another Dimension
DARK
Level 4
Fiend
950 ATK/1400 DEF

Djinn of the Lamp (Lord of the Lamp)
DARK
Level 4
Fiend
1400 ATK/1200 DEF

Soul Hunter
DARK
Level 6
Fiend/Fusion
2200 ATK/1800 DEF

Hand Obliteration (Card Destruction)
Normal Spell Card
Each player discards their entire hand, then draws the same number of cards they discarded.

Sharpei Wyvern
WIND
Level 4
Dragon/Effect
1500 ATK/1000 DEF
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. When this card is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard: Target 1 Dragon-Type monster in your Graveyard besides “Sharpei Wyvern”; add it to your hand.

Arms Hole (Hidden Armory)
Normal Spell Card
Send the top card of your Deck to the Graveyard; add 1 Equip Spell Card from your Deck or Graveyard to your hand. You cannot Normal Summon/Set during the turn you activate this card.

Justi-Break
Normal Trap Card
Activate only when your opponent declares an attack against a face-up Normal Monster you control. Destroy all monsters on the field, except face-up Attack Position Normal Monsters.

Rusty Sword
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: This card's original ATK increases equal to its DEF. When this card attacks, during the Damage Step: You can pay Life Points in multiples of 100 (maximum 500); this card gains ATK equal to that amount.

Castle of Dragon Souls
Continuous Trap Card
Once per turn: You can banish 1 Dragon-Type monster from your Graveyard, then target 1 monster you control; it gains 700 ATK, until the End Phase (even after this card leaves the field or the monster becomes unaffected by card effects). When this face-up card on the field is sent to the Graveyard: You can target 1 of your banished Dragon-Type monsters; Special Summon that target. You can only control 1 "Castle of Dragon Souls".

Scaredy Lion
EARTH
Level 4
Beast
1300 ATK/ 1000 DEF

Boxer Lizard
EARTH
Level 4
Dragon/Effect
2100 ATK/100 DEF
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. If this card attacks: Change it to Defense Position at the end of the Battle Phase.

Treasure Cards from the Heavens (Card of Sanctity)
Normal Spell Card
Each player draws until they have 6 cards in their hand.

Unexpected Guy (Unexpected Dai)
Normal Spell Card
If you control no monsters: Special Summon 1 Level 4 or lower Normal Monster from the Deck.

Wallrus
WATER
Level 2
Beast
400 ATK/800 DEF

Majesty Magician
DARK
Level 8
Spellcaster/Effect
2500 ATK/2000 DEF
You can Tribute Summon this card by Tributing 1 monster that was originally a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. This card is treated as an appropriate target for a card that specifically designates a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF while face-up on the field or in the Graveyard (its Level and ATK/DEF do not change).

Golden Fiddle
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: This card gains ATK equal to its Level x 200 while in Attack Position and DEF equal to its Level x 300 while in Defense Position. If this card is selected as an attack target while in Attack Position: You can switch this card to Defense Position.

Komboriboh
DARK
Level 1
Fiend/Effect
300 ATK/ 200 DEF
When a monster is targeted by an Equip Spell Card: You can discard this card and target 1 Equip Spell Card in your Graveyard that could be equipped to an appropriate monster on the field; add that target to your hand. When a monster you control is targeted for an attack while it it equipped with an Equip Spell Card: You can banish this card from your Graveyard to target that monster; this turn, that target cannot be destroyed by battle and you take no battle damage from attacks involving that target.

Rottwyvern
EARTH
Level 5
Dragon/Effect
1000 ATK/2000 DEF
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. When an opponent's monster declares a direct attack: You can Special Summon this card from your hand. If this card would be destroyed: This card loses 500 ATK and DEF instead.

Supremacy Berry
Normal Spell Card
If your Life Points were lower than your opponent's when this card was activated, gain 2000 Life Points. If your Life Points were higher than your opponent's, you take 1000 damage.

Heavy Storm
Normal Spell Card
Destroy all Spell and Trap Cards on the field.

Beast Riser (Beast Rising)
Continuous Trap Card
Once per turn, you can remove from play 1 face-up Beast-Type or Beast-Warrior-Type monster you control to select 1 other face-up Beast-Type or Beast-Warrior-Type monster you control. The selected monster gains the original ATK of the monster removed from play for this effect.

Majesty Guard
Normal Trap Card
Monsters you control cannot be destroyed by battle this turn, also halve all damage you take this turn. During either player's turn, except the turn this card was sent to the Graveyard: You can banish this card from your Graveyard; halve the battle damage you take from one opponent's monster this turn.

Beagle Drake
EARTH
Level 2
Dragon/Tuner/Effect
750 ATK/100 DEF
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. When this card is Normal Summoned or Special Summoned from the Graveyard: You can target 1 non-Tuner monster in your Graveyard that is both Dragon-Type and Beast-Type; Special Summon it in Attack Position with its effects negated and 0 ATK and DEF. During the End Phase of this turn, take 2000 damage if “Beagle Drake” is not used as Synchro Material after this effect resolves.

Bleary-Eyes Jackal Dragon
WATER
Level 8
Dragon/Synchro/Effect
3000 ATK/2500 DEF
1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters that are both Dragon-Type and Beast-Type
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. All opponent's monsters with a lower Level/Rank than this card lose ATK and DEF equal to their Level/Rank x 100. Once per turn, when this card inflicts battle damage to your opponent: Draw 1 card, and if it is a monster, you can reveal it; this card can make a second attack during this Battle Phase.

Poison Fang (Poison Fangs)
Continuous Spell Card
Each time a Beast-Type monster inflicts Battle Damage to your opponent, inflict 500 damage to your opponent.

Shield Bash (Bashing Shield)
Equip Spell Card
Equip only to a Normal Summoned/Set monster. It gains 1000 ATK. You take no battle damage from attacks involving it.

Pointer
FIRE
Level 2
Dragon/Effect
800 ATK/500 DEF
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. When this card is Normal Summoned: Choose 1 Level 6 or higher Dragon-Type monster from your Deck, and place it on top of your Deck.

Synchro Hero (Synchro Boost)
Equip Spell Card
The equipped monster gains 500 ATK, and its Level is increased by 1.

Call of the Living Dead (Call of the Haunted)
Continuous Trap Card
Activate this card by targeting 1 monster in your Graveyard; Special Summon that target in Attack Position. When this card leaves the field, destroy that target. When that target is destroyed, destroy this card.

Cruel-Eyes Coyote Dragon
FIRE
Rank 6
Dragon/Xyz/Effect
2800 ATK/2000 DEF
2 or more (max. 5) Level 6 Dragon-Type or Beast-Type monsters
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. This card gains effects based on the number of Xyz Materials attached to it. During the End Phase of a turn this card declared an attack: Detach 1 Xyz Material from this card. If this card has no Xyz Material, it is destroyed.

• 1 or more: When this card inflicts battle damage to your opponent: Send the top cards of their Deck to the Graveyard equal to this card's Rank.

• 2 or more: When this card battles a monster: It gains 200 ATK x the attack target's Level/Rank during the Damage Step only.

• 3 or more: When this card attacks a Defense Position monster, inflict piercing battle damage to your opponent.

• 4 or more: Unaffected by opponent's card effects.

• 5 or more: When this card attacks: Destroy all monsters your opponent controls.

Burning Slugger
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: Once per turn: You can target 1 monster your opponent controls, then send cards from the top of your Deck to the Graveyard equal to its Level/Rank; destroy it, and if you do, inflict damage equal to its Level/Rank x 100. This monster cannot attack the turn you activate this effect.

Holy Barrier – Mirror Force (Mirror Force)
Normal Trap
When an opponent's monster declares an attack: Destroy all Attack Position monsters your opponent controls.

Broken Wand
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: This card's original ATK increases by 500. When this card attacks or is attacked by a monster with higher ATK: You can return this card to your hand and end the Battle Phase.

Butter Fly
WIND
Level 3
Insect
900 ATK/700 DEF

Violentist
LIGHT
Level 3
Fiend
650 ATK/1300 DEF

Trakodon
EARTH
Level 3
Dinosaur
1300 ATK/800 DEF

Armored Block
Quick-Play Spell Card
Target 1 monster you control equipped with an Equip Spell Card; it cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects this turn. If a monster you control equipped with an Equip Spell Card would be destroyed, you can banish this card from your Graveyard instead.

God's Providence (Ultimate Providence)
Counter Trap Card
When a Spell/Trap Card or monster effect is activated: Discard the same type of card (Monster, Spell, or Trap); negate the activation, and if you do, destroy that card.

Big Bat Knight
EARTH
Level 3
Warrior
1100 ATK/500 DEF

Pet Cemetery
Normal Spell Card
Target 1 Fusion Monster in your Extra Deck; Banish any number of Beast-Type monsters from your Graveyard equal to the number of monsters required to Fusion Summon that card, then send the same number of monsters from your Deck to the Graveyard to Special Summon that monster (this Special Summon is treated as a Fusion Summon). You can only activate 1 “Pet Cemetery” per turn.

Feral-Eyes Wolf Dragon
DARK
Level 10
Dragon/Fusion/Effect
3500 ATK/3000 DEF
3 monsters that are both Dragon-Type and Beast-Type
This card is also treated as Beast-Type while on the field or in the Graveyard. This card can attack all monsters your opponent controls once each. When this card destroys a monster by battle: Inflict damage to your opponent equal to the original ATK of the destroyed monster.

Chapter Text

It was a blistering August afternoon in Chiba, though the kids on the playground certainly gave no indication of noticing it with how carefree they were. The man taking a seat on a bench fanning himself with a magazine, however, couldn't say the same. It was far too hot to even read the literature he had, let alone play in a sandbox or on a slide. How was his daughter enjoying any of this right now, he thought.

A woman sat down beside him. She was dressed in a near-immaculate white dress and matching wide-brimmed hat, putting his band shirt, cutoff jorts, baseball cat, and aviator ensemble to shame. She also looked positively tiny next to him, though that might just be because he was rather large to begin with.

Despite their differences, she seemed to be suffering just as much from the heat. Doing the gentlemanly thing, he held out his magazine. “This heat, am I right?”

With a smile, she took the magazine from him and fanned her neck. “The forecast didn't predict it would get this warm,” she said. “I hope it cools down soon, or at least let there be some clouds.”

“Tell me about it,” he said, lifting his cap to wipe his forehead off. “I promised my daughter we'd come here if she was good at the dentist, but I didn't expect it would get this bad. At least she seems happy.”

“I brought mine here hoping she might make some friends. I doubt she'll be very disappointed when it's time to leave.” She pointed towards a pink-haired girl standing awkwardly off to the side of the playground as another girl buzzed around her to try and get her attention.

The man couldn't help himself from laughing. “That one would be mine. Always gets excited when she meets someone new.”

“Do you two come here often? I don't remember seeing you before.”

He shook his head. “Nah, just close to our dentist. We're a ways away on the outskirts of the city.”

“That's too bad. Sakuya almost looks like she's having a good time.” Imperceptible as it would appear to outsiders, her mother picked up on the fact she wasn't entirely displeased by the other child's attempts to get her attention.

“Maybe we'll get in touch with you sometime.” He handed her a business card. “Bunta.”

“Shinobu,” she said, placing the card into her purse. “I don't have anything to give you in return. Could I write a number?”

“Sure. Use this.” He held out his palm to her which made her laugh, though she went through with it all the same. “Always preferred putting notes on my body instead of paper. Makes sure I remember everything for later, you know?”

Across the way, the two girls were getting to know each other, though that might be a fairly strong way to describe their interaction so far. Rather, one talked incessantly towards the other as she remained mostly silent save for a few inputs and a nod here or there. Even so, they seemed to be getting along fairly well like this.

“And I heard when your teeth fall out you can plant them in the ground and then they grow a big tooth tree, but I don't know if that's actually true or just something I heard on TV one time, but I really want to try it just to see if it works, but none of my teeth have fallen out yet and I'm really getting tired of waiting, but no one is going to give me any teeth so I just have to wait until one falls out. Do you have any loose teeth?”

She shook her head. “I'm just 3.”

“Huh. Me, too.” She sat on ground and picked at some grass off to the side. “Do you play Duel Monsters?” she asked a second later, receiving a shake of the head in response. “My mama and papa taught me to play and they're really good. I want to be good like them one day but I still need to practice a bunch and get more cards and duel more people, and you should really start dueling so we can play together if I come back here sometime. Look!”

She took out a card and shoved it into the girl's face. “It's my favorite and really strong.” The card glistened in the sunlight, the holofoil artwork nearly blinding from the angle it was held at.

“Pretty,” she said, almost spellbound by the card in front of her. She couldn't make sense of any of the words written on it given that she couldn't read yet, but that only added to the mystique. “I should get cards.”

“Yeah, they're lots of fun. I even learned how to read them, see? Ma-jes-ty Ma-gi-cian.” She moved her finger along each part of the name as she read it to prove she knew what each character meant. “I can teach you how to play when you get cards. It's kind of hard to get at first but once you start playing it feels easier, and then you keep learning and playing and it gets even easier.”

“Okay,” she said, handing the card back and making a mental note to ask her parents for some of her own when she got home. “Have you ever played piano?” she asked, deciding to be the one to initiate a new topic for a change.

“No, which one is that? Is it the one that goes boom boom bang?”

“No, that's a drums. A piano goes ding ting ting and has all the black and white keys.”

“Oh, I like that one! Do you play it? I bet you're really good.”

She shook her head. “I want to. I like how they sound.” Losing herself briefly in a daydream of being able to masterfully play the piano, she began rocking side to side until she was shocked out of her thoughts by a tap on the shoulder.

“Good, you're still here. You stopped talking and were kind of shaking, but I guess you're fine, so it's okay. Sometimes I do stuff like that when I think about things really hard. Did you think about piano?” She nodded. “That sounds fun. Want to go swing now?” Another nod.

They casually strolled towards a swing set, holding hands because why not? Once there, they each took a seat next to the other, quickly realizing they were in a bit of a predicament. “How do you swing without pushes?” Yumi asked, kicking her legs fruitlessly to try and make herself move.

After a moment of thought, Sakuya stood up. “I think when you go forward, you put your legs out, then pull back when you come back.” She gave the other girl a hard push, sending her forward so she could put into practice what she'd been told. To their mutual amazement, it seemed to work.

“Swing!” she said, managing to keep herself moving. Though she wasn't gaining much air, it was still a fairly monumental accomplishment at her age to say she'd managed to swing on her own even if she did get help to start. And then she let go and fell on the ground.

She remained prone for several seconds, causing her new friend to worry whether or not she'd died then and there. Thankfully, she rolled over shortly after that, giggling uncontrollably before saying, “I fell down.” The fall was from such a short distance that it barely even hurt, making it more of an amusement than anything else.

“Yeah,” she said with a nod, helping her up.

“Want to swing now?” She shook her head. “It's lots of fun, but okay. Can you push me again?” The cycle of pushing, swinging, and falling down continued for the next several minutes, neither of them seeming entirely aware that falling off the swing was not actually the goal of this activity. They were forced to stop once Yumi managed to get a bad scrape on her elbow after the ninth fall in a row.

“Does it hurt?” Sakuya asked, taking part of her dress and rubbing it against the wound.

She shook her head. “Not really, but my parents tell me to go get bandages even when it doesn't. Otherwise I get something call infection, and then I could get sick and die.” They took off together towards their parents, Yumi screaming, “Papa, I got hurt!”

“Again?” he said with a slightly exasperated tone. They weren't so much concerned about her getting hurt while playing as expecting at this point, though they'd been fortunate in that nothing had been very serious so far. “Let's see.”

He patted her on the head with a laugh. “Doesn't seem too bad. Do I...” he felt around on himself. “I think I left your potions at home.” They'd taken to calling any kind of medicine a potion after Yumi had sat with her father as he played an RPG one afternoon.

“I might have something,” Sakuya's mother said, digging through her extremely cluttered purse. Growing more and more frustrated with each piece of random garbage she pushed around, she huffed, “I know I have bandages in here somewhere.”

“Top pocket in front,” Sakuya stated, with a quick look inside proving her to be right.

Bandaged up, Yumi let out a loud, “Thank you!” before the two prepared to run off back to the playground together.

“Oh, hey, wait up,” her father said. “It's actually getting kind of late, so we should be getting home.”

With a glance towards her watch, Sakuya's mother agreed. “You're right, we need to be leaving soon, too.”

“I don't want to,” Yumi said with a frown, Sakuya's expression dropping at the same time.

Her father smiled. “Don't give me that face. We'll come back soon and you can play with your friend again before you know it.”

“Exactly,” Sakuya's mother said with a nod. “It's only for today. You'll see each other again soon.”

Though neither wanted to, they didn't have much choice but to relent. The girls said their goodbyes to each other and headed off in opposite directions, Yumi talking the whole way to the car about her new friend. Sakuya was deep in thought considering why she enjoyed another person's company like that and whether she would want to do it again, only nodding when asked whether or not she had a good time today.

Unfortunately for the two of them, it would be some time before they were able to play together again. Several years, in fact, thanks to a combination of careless purse cleaning and sweat-soluble ink. Needless to say, they weren't very happy about that.

Chapter Text

Saying she didn't expect this would be a lie. No matter how early she woke up normally or how many alarms she set that morning, Yumi couldn't remember a semester where she managed to get out of the house on schedule for the first day.

The good news, though, was that she wasn't that far from school. Peddling faster than normal, she'd make it with time to spare so long as nothing got in her way. And the second she thought that, she knew for a fact something was about to get in her way.

The obstacle of the day turned out to be another human, running out to cross the street just as she was coming to the same intersection. Had she not been slowing down already in order to make the turn herself, she'd likely have run the stranger over. Instead, she merely hit her before coming to a stop.

“Are you okay?” she shouted, waving her arms wildly and running over to help her. “I'm sorry, I didn't see you come out and I was already going and couldn't stop in time and wasn't paying attention and-” She stopped herself, noticing the girl's clothes as she shook the confusion out of her head. “That's my uniform,” she said.

Looking at herself, then to Yumi, the other girl nodded. It was the same white collared shirt, pleated red skirt, and red mini tie for the both of them. “Oh, yeah. Hey, are we classmates?”

“Yeah, I think so. Are you new?”

She nodded. “We just moved here. Sorry for making you crash. I should have paid more attention to the road.”

“No, it was my fault! I was going too fast.” It was then she realized the other girl was still sitting on the pavement, deciding to extend a hand and help her up immediately after that.

“No one got hurt, so it's not a big deal.” She brushed herself off, then took Yumi's hand. “My name's Suzy Q,” she said with a well-timed snap of her fingers, giving Yumi even more goosebumps than the sensation of holding hands with a pretty girl would on its own. “What's your name?”

“Oh, uh, Yumi,” she said, trying to get her head back in order. “We should probably go, though. We're going to be late if we stay here much longer.”

Glancing at her phone, she nodded. “Yeah, you're right. See you at school, Yumi.” Suzy pulled free of Yumi's grip, surprisingly unaffected by she'd been holding onto her far longer than the original handshake would entail.

Yumi stood there like a weirdo in the middle of the street watching her new friend run off before she was shocked back to reality by a car horn. She wanted to stay and speak to her more, unable to stop herself from daydreaming about her the whole ride to school.

All she really knew right now was her name, that she was new in town, and that they went to the same school. Also that she was really forgiving about getting run over. She might even be a foreigner given how she looked, though her Japanese didn't even have a noticeable accent to it. “Wonder where she moved from,” Yumi mumbled to herself while passing through the school gates.

The morning assembly was pretty typical, the students welcomed back and wished a successful new semester by the principal. No one seemed entirely interested in what was being said, least of all Yumi who kept trying to find anyone she knew. If anything positive could be said about the whole affair, it was that it was over quickly, allowing them to hurry things up and get to class.

Class 1-B hadn't changed much since the summer ended. The same desks with the same students as before all in the same spaces. This familiarity at least meant she didn't have to look far to find a friend. “Ami!” she screamed in a volume much too loud for a classroom.

“Hi,” another girl greeted, catching Yumi as she leaped into her arms for a hug. “Please stop doing that already,” she said, though she didn't let go just yet. “One of these days I won't be able to catch you.”

“You have good reflexes,” she said with a smile. “And I missed you over the summer. Where'd you go? I didn't see you at all around the city.”

“Sorry,” she said. “I didn't know until we got out of school on the last day. My parents wanted to visit my relatives in the country, and I didn't get any reception so I couldn't call you.”

“That sounds fun. Did anything cool happen while you were there?”

She sighed. “Well, my aunt called me fat a lot, so that wasn't very nice. But I did find this.” Taking hold of a strand of twine around her neck, she pulled out a rough looking yellow crystal of some kind.

Yumi's eyes widened, watching the gem-like rock glistening in the sunlight. “What is it?” she asked, poking it a few times for good measure.

“I'm not sure what kind of stone it is, but it can do some pretty neat things.” She tucked it back into the front of her shirt.

“Like magic powers?” Though Yumi laughed, intending it as a joke, Ami suddenly looked nervous. “Can you use it to magnify the sun and turn it into a laser, or something?”

“Closer to your first guess,” she said sheepishly. “I don't know what this rock is, but it has some kind of weird powers that let me fight evil. And I get a cute costume.”

“Is that why you dyed your hair? For some cosplay stuff? It looks really cool.” Ami was naturally dark haired, though at some point during the summer her shoulder length curls had transformed into an auburn, almost copper color.

“No, it just happened when I first used it. And it's not cosplay. I just told you it's some kind of magic stuff.” She looked side to side, suddenly realizing she might have been talking too loudly. “Please don't say anything about this to anyone else. I just told you because I know I can trust you.”

Yumi laughed. “Okay, I won't tell anyone about your cosplay, but you have to show me sometime. I like cute costumes.”

Needless to say, Ami's secret would remain perfectly safe with how firmly in denial her friend was. “Anyway,” she said, changing the subject, “did you do anything interesting while we were on break?”

She nodded enthusiastically. “A ton! I made some friends and they all helped me train for the prefectural tournament that happened last week, and I actually won!”

Ami grabbed her in another hug. “You really did it? Congratulations! I thought it would be at least a few more years before you made it that far.”

“Me, too,” she said, bouncing on her heels. “But Sakuya was a really good teacher and always pushed me to be better, and I kept winning until I made it all the way to the finals!”

They took a moment to squeal together before Ami asked, “Who's Sakuya?”

“She's this really cool girl I met at the park. She's super strong and smart and cute and wears this neat French hat and can beat anyone in a duel. You can't meet her right now because she goes to a fancy private school in Gunma, but we can all get together after the end of the semester.”

Before Ami had the chance to say anything, Yumi continued. “Oh, and a couple days ago I got this.” She reached into her pocket and pulled out a pink flip phone, a tiny pumpkin monster charm hanging off it. “Now I can finally call you in my room instead of standing in the hallway.”

“Finally,” she said excitedly. “Text me so I can have your number.” Yumi did as requested, sending her a random string of 26 different emoticons she typed out at random. “Got it.”

Their time together was interrupted right after as another girl pushed Yumi aside to take her seat near the window, one above the last desk and right in front of Ami. She was rail thin with greasy lavender hair that nearly reached the floor, with thick, smudged glasses that did little to hide the dark circles under her eyes. In general, she looked like a walking corpse, or maybe just someone who hadn't slept or showered in a few days.

“Good morning, Kaguya,” Ami said halfheartedly, her distaste for her classmate not much of a secret. In truth, neither her nor Yumi particularly liked her, but they almost pitied the fact that she had absolutely no friends and let her sit by them and eat lunch together. Outcasts as the two of them always seemed to be, Kaguya's extremely toxic personality and unearned superiority complex made them seem like celebrities by comparison.

She looked Ami up and down with a smug expression. “Dying your hair won't distract from how fat you are,” she said, apparently deciding this was the most appropriate greeting for the first time you see someone after a long break.

Ami sighed and sat down at her desk next to Yumi. “Okay, then.” She figured she was done talking to her for the day.

Trying to relieve some of the tension, Yumi stepped in. “We were talking about what we did this summer. Did you...do anything interesting?”

She scoffed. “Obviously. I started a new webcomic, and so far it has at least three dedicated readers on each chapter.”

“What happened to the old one?” she asked. This had been at least the third one Kaguya had declared she was making. No one ever really had an interest in reading them.

“I ended it since none of these simpletons could appreciate it.” Her failure to attract readers was a very obvious sore spot. “And what about you? I assume you lost another tournament, as usual.”

“No, I won this time!”

Kaguya's expression darkened, feeling threatened and now having to try and think up some kind of quip on the spot. “Was it some kind of consolation prize? They felt bad for the poor kid and wanted to give you something nice?”

She shook her head. “No, first place. It was really hard, but I won. I even dueled last year's runner up.”

“Really?” Ami said. “You didn't tell me that part.”

“Yeah. His name was...Shigeo, I think. He had this really neat deck with some kind of roleplaying theme. I hope we can have a rematch sometime, since it was really fun.” Unable to find any way to twist this situation into a negative, Kaguya immediately stopped talking and opened up a notebook to do some sketching.

Ami and Yumi spent the next several minutes talking before class officially begun. Their homeroom teacher, an older woman with an extremely monotone voice, stood in front of the class with an announcement. “Today,” she spoke in the most boring way possible, “a new student will be joining our class. Please try to get along.”

The door to the classroom opened with the girl Yumi had nearly run over earlier in the morning walking inside. She was instructed to introduce herself, and after clearing her throat, she did just that. “Hello! My name's Suzanna Quallenberg, but you can all call me Suzy Q! My family just moved here from America, and I'm really excited to be in Japan! I like Duel Monsters and anime, and I really want to be friends with everyone!” She ended her introduction by striking a pose not unlike one performed by a pink ghostly catman, just in case anyone wasn't entirely sure what she was about yet.

The class stayed silent in a mixture of embarrassment and confusion, no one seeming to fully believe whether this girl was real or not. All except for Yumi, who was immediately taken with her, gesturing wildly to an empty desk next to her as she went for a seat. Recognizing each other, they flashed a pair of wide smiles as classes commenced.

If you asked either Yumi or Suzy what happened during school leading up to lunchtime, neither of them would be able to give you a straight answer other than that class had certainly taken place. They were paying far too much attention to each other to focus on what a teacher was saying, doing their best not to get caught as they got to know each other.

Amazingly, they managed to evade detection all throughout the day, mostly because Suzy had the bright idea to exchange numbers during the first break between classes. Though reluctant at first, Ami eventually relented and joined in, texting between the three of them during the next several classes. By the time they were pushing desks together to eat, it was like they'd known each other for years.

“What do you normally bring to lunch?” Ami asked Suzy, opening up her lunchbox and taking a bite out of a tiny hot dog shaped into an octopus (she always loved those despite how much Yumi hated the animal they were based on).

“It depends, but today I wanted to do something different.” She opened her own lunchbox to everyone's amazement.

“You brought sushi?” Yumi said, already halfway through with devouring last night's dinner leftovers.

She nodded proudly. “Yeah, I learned how to make it when I lived in New York, so I thought I'd use some real Japanese ingredients to make some for lunch. It's definitely not as delicious as the kind people make here, but I think I've gotten pretty good at it.” She held out a tuna roll towards Yumi. “Want to try? Tell me if I got close.”

Nodding enthusiastically, Yumi was expecting to be handed the piece to eat on her own, taken off guard as Suzy moved it closer to her mouth for her. Fighting back her natural gay urges, she allowed herself to be fed without making a scene. “Is it any good?” She responded with a flustered thumbs up.

As Suzy repeated the process with a much more composed Ami, Yumi felt the need to address the elephant in the room. “Kaguya,” she said, turning around in her chair to look towards her. “Did you...want to eat with us?”

Not even bothering to turn around, she rebuffed her. “Looks like you already have a third.” It wasn't entirely clear whether she was jealous or just being an asshole, though either option forced Yumi to the conclusion she didn't want to join them today. It was probably for the best, as Kaguya had a habit of deliberately trying to ruin any joy in her immediate area once she joined a group. Being able to enjoy making a new friend without that kind of blight was a nice change of pace. In any case, there wasn't much point in worrying over it.

“Yeah, I usually straighten it since it's easier to deal with,” Suzy told the two of them, pointing at her hair. “If I didn't, it would curl up a ton. It's not dyed, though, it's just always this yellow.” They'd started out talking about Ami's change of hairstyle, eventually leading to discussing Suzy's sunflower blonde bob cut.

“There was one thing I wanted some help with,” she said after that. “What kind of clubs do you have here? I always wanted to join a school club, but they don't really work the same way in America, so now I'm trying to think of what I'd like to do.”

Yumi swallowed hard to choke down the rest of her lunch, having decided it was a good idea to cram it all into her mouth as fast as possible to have as much time as possible to talk. “We have a lot of clubs here, so I guess it depends on what kind of stuff you like.”

“What about a host club? Or a light music club? I don't know much about being in either, but I could learn.”

“I don't know about the first one, but I know we have the second,” Ami said, vaguely sensing some sort of reference having gone over her head. “There's a calligraphy club, and a literature club, and lots of sports teams if you like that.”

“Are you two in any clubs?”

She nodded. “Yeah, I run track, and Yumi was part of the Duel Monsters club. Didn't you quit, though?”

“Yeah, I guess I couldn't get into it. Everyone was nice, but we didn't really do anything besides duel and talk. And I just thought I could do all of that at the park but with more people.” She was beginning to reconsider that decision now that she was unsure of being able to return to the park, given that it might be somewhat awkward to be hanging around the place her friend had been publicly banished from and all.

“That doesn't sound so bad,” Suzy said, thinking over her options before switching conversations abruptly. “Oh, and before I forget, I want to duel you today.”

Yumi perked up. “Sure, that sounds fun. We could do it now when you're done eating.”

She shook her head. “No, like for real. When school lets out, we can do it outside. You have a duel disk in your bag, don't you?”

“Yeah, I do. How did you know that?” Apparently, Detective Conan was one of Suzy's favorite shows, too.

“I just figured someone who likes Duel Monsters as much as you would carry one around pretty much all the time. And I saw a little bit of it earlier when you ran me over. It's a new model, isn't it?”

“Did she just say you ran her over?” She looked to Yumi accusingly, reminded of how they met in elementary school. “Stop doing that already.”

“It's not like I planned for it to happen twice.”

“Was it just twice or have you hit someone else?”

She grew quiet. “I'm feeling really attacked right now,” she said with a pout.

“You attacked us with your bike!” Despite how it might appear to outsiders, neither of them was taking the conversation very seriously. Ami had been able to laugh about the way they met almost as soon as it happened and was always pretty forgiving about the accident, though she'd never pass up an opportunity to remind Yumi of it.

They spent the rest of lunch as well as most of the school day getting to know each other, Ami and Suzy bonding over their shared experience of being hit by a bike. The end of the day came around with the three having learned little that didn't involve one another. Though they'd quickly come to regret goofing off for an entire school day, that regret wasn't coming until at least the next day.

“I'll be outside when you're ready,” Suzy said to Yumi before bolting from the classroom. She was too excited to wait for the others to pack up, heading towards the front of the school immediately once they were dismissed.

Yumi pulled on her backpack shortly after, looking to Ami who was taking her time getting her things together. “Are you going to stay to watch us?” she asked, hoping her friend's track commitment wouldn't get in the way today.

“Sure. I've got some time before practice starts. I haven't seen you duel in a while, so it should be a lot of fun.” They began walking down the hallway, Yumi hop-skipping in anticipation for what was sure to be a good duel.

“Oh, one second.” She opened one of the classroom doors, specifically the science lab. “Professor!” she yelled in a way that would probably get her in trouble with any other person of authority.

An older man in a white coat looked towards her, brushing back his graying hair. “Yumi, glad to see you back.” He pushed up his thick glasses and placed a graduated cylinder onto a shelf. “Tidying up a little. Did you need something or did you want to help?”

“Not today,” she said, dropping her bag to the ground and reaching inside. “I just wanted to show you my new duel disk.” Strapping it to her arm, she raised it up for him to see. “Now I won't have to keep bothering you to help fix my old one. Thanks for always doing that, though.”

He stroked his neatly trimmed beard, nodding in approval. “I like how it looks. Have you tried it out yet?”

“Just once, but I'm on my way to a duel right now. We're in front of the school if you want to watch.”

“I've still got some stuff to take care of here, but I'll catch the end of it if I can. Good luck out there.” They parted ways shortly after, the professor returning to organizing the supplies. He always enjoyed it when Yumi popped in, whether it was just for a quick talk or to get help keeping the ramshackle duel disk she used to use in working order. She was a lot like her father, he thought, remembering back when he was a child attending the same school.

Once outside, Yumi spotted Suzy almost immediately, running over to her and jumping into position. “Alright, you ready?” She was positively giddy to start.

“You know it,” she answered, attaching a modern-style blue and white duel disk to her left arm. Yumi activated hers in turn, still feeling enthralled with how new it felt. “Duel!” they shouted in unison.

A small crowd began to form, mainly composed of students whose club activities hadn't started up yet or those who would otherwise just be heading home. “I'll let you have the first move,” Yumi said, confident in her skills as well as wanting a real challenge to test out the new changes she made to her deck following the duel with Sakuya.

“That's nice of you. I'll start my turn, then!” She looked over her hand quickly, taking hold of a card. “I should probably say I'm still a little new to using this deck, so I might make some mistakes.”

“No problem,” Yumi said with a nod. “If that's the case, I'll just help you test what you have now.”

“I'll start things off by activating Pot of Duality, which lets me excavate the top three cards of my deck and add one to my hand. In exchange, I won't be able to Special Summon this turn.” Large holograms appeared behind her to show the top cards of her deck. They included a Book of Moon, a Cyclone, and a second copy of her Pot.

“Hmm.” She tapped her lips before taking hold of Cyclone, adding it to her hand and letting the other two be shuffled back into the deck. “Now, I think I'll summon Kozmo Scaredy Lion in Attack Mode and set two cards before I end my turn.”

Suzy's monster appeared on the field, shaking in fear despite its tough appearance. Almost immediately, Yumi's excitement tripled. “It's the same!” she declared.

“What is?” Suzy asked.

“That card! It's the same as mine!” Drawing for her turn, Yumi revealed a monster in her hand before summoning it. “My own Scaredy Lion!” The two lions met face to face, initially trying to intimidate the other with roars only to end up even more frightened than before.

Suzy laughed, sharing Yumi's enthusiasm for the coincidence. “That's really cool! I've never even seen that card before. I think it might be one of the really early ones that never got released outside of Japan, right?”

She nodded. “Yeah, it's one of the first ones I ever got from my dad. I didn't think there was another card out there so similar to it.” Taking another card, Yumi was about to get serious. She wanted to show off what her own lion could do now that it seemingly had a rival. “I'll use Pot of Greed now, which lets me draw two more cards from my deck.”

It was probably a more advantageous move to activate Pot of Greed prior to summoning, just in case she were to draw something more viable to summon than Scaredy Lion. Strategy kind of went out the window the moment she saw her opponent use the Kozmo equivalent to it, though. Luckily for Yumi, there wasn't an appreciably better move to make at this point in time, so she wouldn't have to endure any penalty for acting rashly.

“Now you can really see the power of my Super Common Deck!” She hadn't actually said that name out loud since thinking of it a few days ago, but hearing it now was...less than impressive. The crowd sure didn't seem to like it that much, either, though Suzy was more than taken by it. Charging forward, she placed a card into her duel disk. “I equip Scaredy Lion with the Equip Magic, Broken Wand! This gives Scaredy Lion an effect to increase its ATK by 500.”

Grabbing hold of the sparking wand, Yumi's monster seemed to gain some measure of confidence. Snarling towards the Kozmo monster, it prepared to attack. “Go, Scaredy Lion! Destroy Kozmo – Pavid!”

A bolt of energy shot out towards Suzy's card, but she was entirely unafraid. “I activate Kozmo Scaredy Lion's effect!” Her monster began to glow with a deep purple aura. “During either of our turns, I can banish my monster to summon another Kozmo monster that's at least 1 Level higher than this one from my hand.”

The lion transformed into light, dodging the attack against it and blasting off into the sky. “I'll use this to summon Kozmo Dark Destroyer from my hand!” Above the field, a starship appeared out of thin air as if it had just dropped from hyperspace travel. Engines roared as it circles around to float behind Suzy, guns locking onto Scaredy Lion as they began to charge.

“When Dark Destroyer is summoned, I get to destroy a monster on your field.” She pointed towards Yumi's lion. “Fire!” Blasting at the field, the lasers traveled up towards Scaredy Lion, eventually hitting the mark and shooting at its spot on the field several times. As the dust settled, though, it appeared like the effect did little to actually harm it.

“I don't think so!” Yumi declared, a card appearing beside her. “When one of my monsters equipped with a Magic Card would be destroyed, I can use Armored Block to negate that destruction.” A thin yellow barrier had surrounded Scaredy Lion prior to the attack, shattering to pieces now that the effect was fulfilled.

The battle ended, obviously, as there would be no point in attacking a monster so much stronger than her own. “I'll set two cards, then. Turn end.”

“At your End Phase, I use my set card, Mystical Space Typhoon!” Suzy's card flipped up, tearing across the field to break one of Yumi's own set cards. “Yes! Lucky!” The card she'd managed to destroy was none other than Mirror Force, Yumi lamenting the fact she never seemed to be able to use it before an opponent would inevitably blast it to pieces.

Ami stepped forward from the sidelines, nudging Yumi. “Hey, why does Suzy keep calling cards different things?” Though none of them spoke up, preferring to simply watch, a few other students silently nodded. They were all a bit confused as to the reason behind the differences.

She shrugged. “I don't know.” Turning towards Suzy, she shouted, “Hey, why do you keep calling your cards weird names?”

“I didn't say they were weird,” Ami said, suddenly feeling a bit self-conscious for calling it out like that.

Suzy shrugged herself. “Sometimes they change a card's name when it gets translated into a different language. I don't really get why. I'd definitely use the Japanese names since most of them are way cooler, but I'm just really used to these.” She held up her Cyclone card, pointing towards the text. “Plus, all my cards are in English, so it's hard to remember some of the original names without having cards in another language.”

“Oh, I get it now,” Yumi said, nodding to Ami. “I'm not bothered by it, so call your cards whatever you like. My duel disk translates everything, anyway, so it's not a big deal.”

“Thanks,” Suzy said as she began her turn. She seemed pleased by what she'd just drawn, immediately summoning it with a smile. “I play my Kozmo Goodwitch,” she declared, the monster appearing on her field in a shower of golden light. Waving its wand around in a circle, bubbles began to shower Yumi's field, glistening in the sunlight as they seemed to position themselves around her monster.

“By paying 500 Life Points, I can flip one of your monsters face-down.” Pointing to Scaredy Lions, the bubbles began to pop with enormous force, turning the card over against its will and causing Broken Wand to drop off.

It was a clever plan, that much was certain. Without Broken Wand, Yumi couldn't end the Battle Phase, meaning there was a clear path to her Life Points for a 3000 ATK direct attack once her monster was taken out. That seemed to be the plan, at least. “Attack! Kozmo Goodwitch destroys Scaredy Lion!”

Plans do change, however. “Not this time! Trap Card, Majesty Guard!” Her card flipped open, forming a barrier around Scaredy Lion as it was forced into battle. “Until the end of this turn, none of my monsters can be destroyed by battle and all the damage I take is halved. You won't be destroying anything this turn.”

Suzy nodded, agreeing with this assessment. “Looks like you managed to get around me this turn. I still have my Dark Destroyer on the field, though. Good luck trying to get around that. Turn end.”

Beginning her turn, Yumi could feel something good coming. Drawing a card, her instinct was proven right, demonstrated as she played it to the field. “I activate my Magic Card, Instant Fusion!” As the enormous cup of instant ramen rose up from behind her, she explained the effect. “To use this card, I need to pay 1000 Life Points. Then, I get to Special Summon any Fusion Monster from my Extra Deck that's Level 5 or lower.”

As the cost deducted itself from her Life Points, steam began to spew from a small opening at the rim of the cup. The lid burst off soon after, a monster jumping through the vapor cloud that escaped to take its place on the field. “Come out, Rare Fish!”

Fusion Monster or not, however, Rare Fish hardly inspired much fear in Suzy. It barely had more ATK than Scaredy Lion and was unable to attack on the one turn it occupied the field due to Instant Fusion's effect. She was well aware that Yumi hadn't just summoned this card for the fun of it, though.

Throwing her hand in the air, both monsters began to glow. “I overlay my Level 4 Rare Fish with my Level 4 Scaredy Lion! Xyz Summon, Rank 4!” The two merged inside the glowing vortex, a new monster exploding out of it. “Zubaba General!”

The monster stared menacingly towards its opponents, driving its sword into the dirt in front of it. “Zubaba General isn't here just to look scary,” Yumi said, one of her monster's Overlay Units orbiting faster and running into the monster's weapon. “By detaching one of these, I can take a Warrior-Type monster in my hand and equip it to my monster, adding their ATK together!” She revealed Big Bat Knight, sliding it into her duel disk.

With a roar, Zubaba General's ATK grew to 3100, the ghostly image of its equipment appearing behind it. “Now, battle! Attack Kozmo – Grindol!” Hoisting its sword, Zubaba General raised the weapon skyward, drawing in power before letting loose a wide swing through the air, blasting its target with devastating air pressure without even making contact. With a small scream, the Kozmo was destroyed.

“That was pretty good,” Suzy congratulated as her Life Points fell to 2200. “I wasn't expecting a Xyz Summon like that, especially using a Fusion Monster. Where'd you learn to do something that advanced?”

Ami nodded, adding, “Yeah, you've never used cards like this before. It looks so easy for you.”

With a smile, she explained, “It was part of my special training for the tournament. My teacher helped me learn a lot.” Yumi ended her turn after the battle. “Xyz Summoning becomes as easy as breathing when you do it fifteen times day for a month. I'm still trying out some new tricks with Fusion, too.”

“I hope you'll show me some of them before I win,” Suzy said, introducing a little trash talk into the duel. “Draw!” With seemingly nothing to do, she set a card and switched her monster to Defense Position, then ended the turn. Without Grindol on the field, taking out Zubaba General would be a bit more difficult than she'd like, though it was far from an insurmountable task as she'd soon demonstrate.

“I don't know if I can if that's all you can do now.” With a smile, Yumi started her turn, immediately launching into an attack. “Battle!”

“You activated my Trap Card!” she declared with a dramatic laugh. “Kozmojo!” An instant before Zubaba General's sword could make contact with the starship, it froze in place. Dropping to the ground, then to its knees, the monster grasped at its own throat as if it was being choked. “This card destroys one of my Kozmo monsters to banish a card you control. That'll be all from Zubaba General.”

As Yumi's card disappeared, Suzy's began to explode. Falling out of the sky, it too vanished. “Now the real fun starts. When Dark Destroyer gets taken out, I get to banish it and summon another Kozmo from my deck with a lower Level. So come out, Kozmo Forerunner!” No sooner did one ship leave the field did another take its place. Slightly less powerful than the last, it was no less intimidating now that Yumi's field was entirely cleared.

“I set two cards and end my turn,” she declared, a monster and a Trap set to her field. Losing her Xyz Monster was a major blow to momentum, especially now that she was staring down Forerunner. No matter how well the next turn went, she'd likely be taking some damage.

“Draw!” As the turn moved to the Standby Phase, Forerunner positioned itself over Suzy, showering her with silver sparks. “Every Standby Phase Forerunner is on the field, I get 1000 Life Points back. And I'm going to need them to use this!” Placing a monster on the field, she proceeded with her plan to show how truly fearsome the Kozmo deck could be.

“Kozmo Strawman, use your effect!” The flimsy straw doll began to shake and jitter in place, some kind of ethereal glow materializing around it. “For just 500 Life Points, I get to bring back a Kozmo monster I've banished for this turn without its effect. Come back, Dark Destroyer!”

Thrusting her arm forward, Suzy proceeded to the Battle Phase. “Let's go, Dark Destroyer! Infiltrate Beam Destroy!” Goofy attack name aside, the monster more than took care of business, the furry creature's pitiful defense shattered with a barrage of proton torpedoes.

“That just let me use my Critter's effect!” Yumi said, selecting Crane Crane to add to her hand. She took the other two attacks directly after that, banishing Majesty Guard to halve the damage from Forerunner. Even so, she was left with a paltry 1100 to start her next turn.

“I set one card and end my turn. That means Dark Destroyer goes away again, but since it's destroyed, I can use its effect to summon Kozmo Landwalker from my deck.” Closing out the turn, Suzy more than took the advantage when it came to their fields. Two strong monsters plus another that could fetch something banished, which would only help her to swarm the field even more at the end of each turn. She even had two set cards to serve as defense now, potentially countering anything Yumi might be able to mount as a counterattack.

That being said, this turn did provide some helpful information. Suzy's choice of attacking with Dark Scimitar over Forerunner showed her to be cautious, making sure to use her strongest card with the least value to proceed into the unknown rather than take the extra 200 (100 after Guard's effect) damage. As minor as that detail might seem, it was important to keep in mind when trying to predict her opponent's move.

If nothing else, it meant that at least one of those set cards wouldn't just be for show. “My turn, draw!” Assessing both the field and the cards in her hand, Yumi decided the best approach to the situation would be to attack. If she tried to play it safe, she'd almost surely be run over by the army of high powered monsters accumulating on the field.

“I activate my Trap, Charity of the Ordinary. I'll draw two new cards, then banish a Normal Monster from my hand or discard everything.” Taking a moment to look over what she'd drawn, she held out a card. “Trakodon,” she declared, banishing the dinosaur.

“Next, I activate my Magic Card, Unexpected Guy! Since I don't have any monsters, I get to summon a Normal Monster from my deck.” Ejecting it from her deck, she played a card to her field in Attack Position. “Hat-Trick Magician!”

Finally, she played the Crane Crane she'd added to her hand last turn, summoning back Critter in what appeared to be the preparation for another Xyz Summon. “I overlay my Level 3 Crane Crane with my Level 3 Critter! Xyz Summon, Rank 3! Illusion King Robbins!”

Suzy looked impressed with how quickly Yumi bounced back from an empty field. “That's a pretty cool monster, but I don't know what good it's going to do you.”

“Then maybe I need to show you a magic trick. Robbins!” As both Overlay Units came to a point above the monster's head, it clapped its hands together on top of them. Opening them back up, it began to pull a rope made of colored handkerchiefs from thin air. “When I detach two Overlay Units from Robbins, I get to steal one of your monsters from the Graveyard to use as equipment, giving it half as much ATK.”

Given how much of Suzy's deck was banished currently, about the only viable target was Grindol. Even so, it was more than enough to take care of the strongest monsters she'd seen so far, Robbins' ATK growing to 3200.

“That's not the only increase I have, though. Equip Magic, Rusty Sword! Hat-Trick Magician gains an effect that increases its ATK by its DEF.” With 2700 ATK, both her monsters were poised to do some real damage to Suzy's field. “Now, att-”

“Not so fast! I use my Trap Card as soon as you enter the Battle Phase. Go, Threatening Roar!” Her card flipped up, blasting out a series of booming noises that forced several people to cover their ears. “When I use this card, you can't attack this turn.”

Yumi had expected something to stop her attack, though it was a bit refreshing to see it be far less devastating than she thought it might be. “Guess I have to end my turn, then,” she said, passing to Suzy. With so many troublesome monsters on the field, this would be trouble. Her hope was that at least one of her cards could make it to her next turn, at which point she'd be able to go on the offensive again.

Drawing a card, Suzy's Life Points became 3700 by Forerunner's effect. The gap seemed to be widening, Yumi keenly aware that the longer this duel continued, the less chance she'd have of winning. “I pay 500 Life Points to summon back Dark Destroyer,” she declared.

“Then, I'll switch both Strawman and Landwalker to Defense Mode and activate my Trap, Kozmourning. Now whenever one of my Kozmo monsters destroys one of yours, it goes back in your deck instead of the Graveyard.” As beneficial as it could be for her, having her deck cluttered with monsters would only make it harder to draw what she needed, especially those like Critter that wouldn't be able to gain their effects after being returned.

“Battle Phase, attack! Dark Destroyer, blast away Hat-Trick Magician!” The attack connected, kicking up a cloud of dust that obviously hid an unscathed Hat-Trick within it. “It's still there?” she questioned, noticing Yumi's Life Points had dropped, as well.

“If one of my monsters that's equipped with a Magic Card would be destroyed, I can banish Armored Block from my Graveyard to stop it from happening.” She knew that wasn't the end, though, bracing for the next attack from Forerunner that managed to finish off Hat-Trick once and for all, leaving her with 700 Life Points left. It returned to the deck, just as Suzy said.

“I'll end my turn now, which means Dark Destroyer is destroyed again. Then, I banish it to summon a second Kozmo Forerunner from my deck.” Her two ships flanked the monsters on the ground. “That Xyz Monster is kind of troublesome, but it can't stop me forever. Just you wait. Turn end.”

As Yumi began her turn, she couldn't help but smile. This was the card she'd need to turn the tables and finally get the duel running in her favor again. “Robbins has another effect, you know. This one's a disappearing act!” With a snap of the fingers, Robbins was engulfed in a puff of smoke. Slowly, it faded away to reveal the white-clad magician Yumi was most known for. “Take the stage, Majesty Magician!”

“Flashy entrance, but that monster has less ATK than the other. What are you planning?”

With a chuckle, she answered, “Just watch. I activate a Magic Card, Treasure Cards from the Heavens!” Golden light shone over the field, Yumi holding out both her hands. “With this, we both get to draw until we have six cards. As you can see, I don't have any right now.”

With one swift motion, she added six new cards to her hand, one more than Suzy. “Majesty Magician has a special ability,” she began, taking a card from her hand. “Even though it's a high powered effect monster, I can still equip it with cards that only my weak Normal Monsters would be able to use. Just like this!” She placed it into her duel disk. “Equip Magic, Golden Fiddle.”

Taking hold of the instrument, Majesty Magician's ATK grew to 4100, more than enough to do some serious damage. “Battle! Majesty Magician, attack Kozmo – Fowlmeat!” Before the attack could connect, however, the monster warped away.

“Too late for that. I use its effect to summon a new monster from my hand. Come out, Kozmo Wickedwitch!” It took the field in Defense Position as one would expect, Suzy hoping its heartier effect would give it more staying power than her other card.

“Fine, then. Majesty Magician, change targets to Forerunner!”

“Landwalker, use your effect!” Suzy shouted, her monster leaping in front of Majesty Magician's attack to take the blow for Forerunner. “If one of my Kozmos would be destroyed while Landwalker is on the field, I can destroy a different one. I pick Landwalker.”

“But you still take the damage,” Yumi said, watching her attack deal 1300 damage based on Forerunner's ATK.

Recovering from the blow, Suzy banished Landwalker to use its second effect. “Now I can summon a Kozmo from my deck with a lower Level. Come out, Kozmo Sliprider!”Appearing on the field with a booming noise, the ship charged its weapons almost immediately. “That's just the start, though. When I summon Sliprider like that, I can destroy one of your backrow cards. So get rid of that Equip Spell!”

Golden Fiddle was destroyed, lowering Majesty Magician's ATK back to normal. While it was definitely going to be an issue later, Yumi resolved to make the best of it and protect herself until the next turn gave her a chance to turn things around. “I set three cards and end my turn,” she declared.

“Draw!” With a smile, Suzy added her newest card to her hand, her Life Points automatically increasing to 3900 despite the damage last turn. “You'll regret giving me all these new cards. I activate Allure of Darkness!” A dark void appeared behind her, cards appearing to drift out of it. “It's kind of like your Trap from before. I get to draw two cards, but if I can't banish a DARK monster after that, I ditch my whole hand.”

That didn't prove to be much of an issue, as Kozmo – DOG Fighter disappeared right after. “After that, I activate another Spell, Pot of Greed! This card also lets me draw two cards and add them to my hand, but for free.” Her absurd amount of draw power was merely the beginning of her turn, though, as another card placed into the backrow proved.

“I activate Fissure! Now, destroy the weakest monster on your field!” She pointed towards Yumi's magician, given that it was currently the only monster on her field.

“That's not happening!” A Trap activated on Yumi's field. “By discarding Rusty Swordsman, I can use Majesty Sanction! Now your Magic and Trap effects can't destroy my monsters one time for each.”

“Tricky,” she said. “Then I'll just have to take the direct approach on this one. Go, Kozmo Tincan!” The unassuming little robot appeared (more accurately, fell) onto the field, shooting out tiny clouds of white smoke accompanied by the sound of a train whistle.

“I can pay 500 Life Points for Tincan's effect. This lets me pick three Kozmo cards from my deck and have you choose one at random. I get to keep that one and the rest go to the Graveyard.” The cards she chose were Kozmo - Dark Planet, Kozmo – Dark Eclipser, and another copy of Kozmo – Dark Scimitar. Yumi nodded to confirm.

Three holographic card backs labeled 1, 2, and 3 appeared in front of her. Thinking hard, Yumi chose the second, since 2 was her favorite number and there wasn't much you could do as far as strategy when it came to random guesses. Flipping around, her choice appeared to be Dark Eclipser.

“That works,” Suzy said, pitching the other two while adding the selected card to her hand. “Now, I banish Kozmo Tincan to summon the Kozmo Dark Eclipser you added to my hand!” An even bigger spaceship – the largest yet – flew overhead, guns trained on Yumi's field. “Now attack!”

“I activate Emissaries of Reconciliation, meaning my monsters can't be destroyed by battle this turn and I take no damage.”

Suzy wagged her finger. “Not this time. I activate Dark Eclipser's effect!” Its cannons began to charge as she said this. “If you use a Trap Card, all I have to do to negate it is banish a Kozmo monster from my Graveyard. I'll use Goodwitch to stop your effect!”

“That's exactly what I was waiting for,” Yumi said, flipping over one of her cards. “Trap activate, God's Providence!” The card began to glow, slowly charging up its effect. “I can negate one of your effects by discarding the same kind of card, then it destroys your card. And since it's a Counter Trap, your monster can't do anything against it.”

Discarding Butter Fly, God's Providence blasted a golden stream of energy at Dark Eclipser to ground it. Not only had it been destroyed, though, but the effect was also negated, meaning Yumi and her monster were safe for the turn.

This wasn't any indication for Suzy to give up, though, as she was already working on a counterattack. “Since you destroyed Dark Eclipser, I'll banish it to use its effect. Instead of summoning a monster, this card just lets me add one to my hand.” Choosing a card, it ejected itself for her to take. “I choose Kozmoll Dark Lady.”

Raising a hand, the Kozmo – Dark Rose on her field began to glow. “Now, I banish my Wickedwitch to summon Dark Lady from my hand. And just in case you want to try something clever...” She held up two copies of Kozmo – Rayblade. “I equip both of these onto Dark Lady, making her ATK 3200.”

This put Yumi in an undeniably bad place. She made it out of the last turn by the skin of her teeth, but now she was relying on her next draw to give her something with enough power to beat any of the several tough monsters Suzy controlled. To make matters worse, her monster's effects were now sealed with the newest Kozmo. While it certainly wasn't as devastating for her as with others, it would still be irritating to work around.

Needless to say, however, she remained optimistic as ever. Tense struggles like this only made her even more fired up. “Then I guess I'll have to be more clever than you could have predicted,” she said, drawing a card. While it wasn't anything game changing on its own, it certainly had the potential to open the door to victory.

“I'll bet everything on this card. I activate Pot of Avarice!” Making this the third kind of Pot used in this duel, Yumi began to look through her Graveyard for targets. “I get to put five monsters back in my deck, shuffle, and draw two new cards.” After a few moments of consideration, she chose to return Crane Crane, Rusty Swordsman, Rare Fish, Illusion King Robbins, and Big Bat Knight.

By returning two of them to the Extra Deck, she lessened how many cards were actually being put back in her deck. All in all, it would only be one card heavier after drawing. Every card she could cut would be for the best, as a dead draw here would decide the game.

She stopped to take a short breath before drawing, composing herself before revealing the cards that would decide her fate. Wordlessly, she took the two on top of her deck, raising them up to take a look. With a smile, she continued her turn.

“I guess you'll get to see some of my new tricks after all,” she said. “First, I equip Majesty Magician with Burning Slugger. When I use this, Magician gains the effect to destroy one of your monsters by sending cards from my deck equal to its Level to the Graveyard, then inflict the same amount of damage to you.”

Perplexed, she began to say, “But you can't target-” before realizing the truth. With a chuckle, she corrected herself. “I see what you're after, but I don't know what you hope to accomplish like that. If I'm reading this right, you have to give up your monster's attack the turn you use that effect. What do you plan to do about my other monsters?”

“Let's find out,” she said confidently. “Majesty Magician, target Kozmo – Dark Elphaiber!” As the cost, she sent five cards from the top of her deck. Komboriboh, Djinn of the Lamp, Armaduriboh, Terriger, the Magic-Equipped Warrior, and Big Bat Knight (so much for returning that) were all taken.

Suzy could more than afford to take the damage the damage and lose her monster to this effect. The rest of her cards would more than compensate for a Majesty Magician that couldn't attack and had lower stats than all of them. But maybe that was all part of the plan.

Dark Elphaiber's effect only worked once per turn, so regardless of the outcome, she'd lose that effect. But maybe it wasn't the effect Yumi wanted gone, but the monster itself. It was certainly believable that she could manage to get a monster out with more than 2800 ATK but less than 3200 ATK, especially if it involved buffing Majesty Magician through another Equip Card.

She couldn't just stand there thinking. She had to act. Gritting her teeth, Suzy made the only play she could think of. “I activate Dark Lady's effect to negate another monster effect.” While it cost 1000 Life Points to do so, her monster would survive, Yumi's Magician being destroyed as a result. As soon as it was, though, she realized her mistake.

“Perfect,” Yumi said, holding out a new card. “I activate the Magic Card, Common Fusion!” Sending even more cards, Yumi ejected Invader from Another Dimension, Wallrus, Violentist, and Flame Viper as materials for this summon. And from the amount of effort she'd put into thinking up a cool chant to go along with it, it was sure to be something big.

“Forces of the ordinary, join hands to form a storm of change! Combine together to reach a new power! Fusion Summon, Level 10! Helpful, Knight of Commons!” A towering figure emerged onto the field, patchwork armor and dingy sword and shield doing nothing to conceal how massively strong it really was. With a shout, it raised its weapon, ready to do battle.

Suzy started to laugh, unable to help herself as she realized how she'd been set up. “You planned all of this, didn't you?”

With a smile, Yumi nodded. “I had to bet on you being too cautious to let Burning Slugger destroy your monster, so I made sure to remind you it became a monster's effect instead of just a Magic Card. Now your Dark Elphaiber's effect is used up, so it can't stop me from doing this!”

As soon as she said that, a little brown fluff ball wearing a red spiked helmet rose from the Graveyard. “Armaduriboh, use your effect!” With a soft cooing noise, it began to shine. “I can banish this card while it's in my Graveyard to add an Equip Magic to my hand from my deck. And the only choice that makes sense would Power of Unity.”

Taking the card in hand, she almost immediately played it. “Helpful gains 800 ATK for every one of my face-up monsters, so now it has 4600!” She pointed forward with a slightly more flirtatious than intended wink. “You know what happens now. Helpful, attack Kozmo – Dark Elphaiber! Good Spirits Impact!”

“That was pretty good, but I'll still be able to hold on by 1000 Life Points! Dark Lady, protect me!” As Helpful began to emit a rainbow glow from the open spaces between its armor, Dark Elphaiber conjured up an aura of violet energy. Rushing forward, the two met in the middle of the field, Helpful's sword striking against the Kozmo monster's lightsword.

“Don't count on it,” Yumi said, Helpful beginning to overtake Dark Elphaiber. “When my Fusion Monster battles yours, I can banish Common Fusion from my Graveyard. Then, your monster's effects are negated and it's forced to battle with its original ATK and DEF!”

The energy weapon Suzy's monster held began to short out, the blade disappearing to allow Helpful's sword to strike its target. With one swift motion, Dark Elphaiber was sliced in half, an explosion rocking the field as exactly 2400 damage hit the card's owner. Yumi had won.

The crowd, which had grown significantly since the duel first began, clapped and cheered for the two in recognition of the show they'd just put on. Ami made sure to give Yumi a hug, telling her how impressed she was to see her improving so much over just one summer. “It's not like I could have won the prefectural tournament if I didn't get to at least this level, you know,” she said with a laugh.

It only took her a moment to realize what she'd just done. Immediately, she was swarmed by the crowd, pouncing on the news that she was now officially one of the strongest duelists in Chiba.

“You really won the tournament?” one asked.

“No wonder you're so strong!” said another.

“I knew you'd do it eventually, I always said so!”

“Yeah, that's really cool!”

While the compliments were nice, she couldn't help but be reminded of the park. The other kids had kowtowed to Sakuya because she was strong, too, but all they really admired about her was her strength. Yumi couldn't help but wonder if this was a similar situation here, given at least a few of the people singing her praises had been openly antagonistic to her in the past, sometimes even a little racist.

Suzy, though, was a different story. Fighting her way through the crowd after trying to avoid as much awkward conversation and autograph signing (!) as possible, she met back up with her two friends. “That was a lot of fun,” she said.

Suzy nodded in agreement. “I can't believe you managed to set up that last move so easily. You really are a champion.”

Yumi laughed, shaking her head. “Honestly, it was mostly luck.” Calling it a calculated risk was more accurate, given her plan relied on milling the right card while avoiding dropping the wrong one. Reducing her deck to as small as it was certainly helped, but it all came down to luck in the end. It was something she wanted to try to change in the future.

“I really want to duel you again sometime,” Suzy told her with a smile. “I learned a lot about how to improve my deck, so if it's not too much trouble, could we play again soon?”

“Definitely!” Yumi took her hand with a smile. “Anytime you want a rematch, just ask. I'm always ready.” They wouldn't get another chance that day, though, as the crowd force them apart shortly after. None of them stayed for much longer, either, with Ami needing to get to track practice while Suzy went to look for a club to actually join.

Yumi, on the other hand, simply went home early. For once in her life, she felt like getting a head start on her schoolwork rather than try to finish every assignment at 9:30 the night before. She spent the train ride home texting Kazuhiko, Hideo, and Kyoko to see how their first day back went. To her surprise, it turned out the former two actually went to the same school and never saw each other before due to being in different classes. Kyoko, of course, was just on the complete opposite side of the city.

She greeted her grandmother after getting inside, running to her room to try to get some work done before an early dinner. Predictably, it was hard for her to focus, especially with so much on her mind. She ended up spending about as much time looking at her phone as she did writing answers.

Finally, the anticipation was just too much for her. Grabbing her phone, she punched in the last number left on her scrap of paper that had yet to be set to a contact. With a wide grin, she started to type.

“heeeeey”

No response after three seconds.

“heeeeeeeeeeeeeeey”

Still no response.

“( ≧Д≦)don't ignore me sakuyan(ू˃̣̣̣̣̣̣︿˂̣̣̣̣̣̣ ू)”

Unable to tune out the buzzing of her phone any longer, Sakuya was forced to put down the book she was reading in her dorm room. Given how exceedingly unpopular she was just about everywhere, she was fairly curious as to who could possibly be messaging her.

Her eyes narrowed at the bizarre string of texts she'd just received from an unknown number, several more bothering her for attention having appeared since she opened the messenger app. Her first instinct was, of course, to block this strange person and move on with her life, but something hit her the moment she saw “Ƒ ư ɕ ƙ (╬ﾟ◥益◤ﾟ) ╬ﾟ” appear on the screen.

She covered her mouth to try and contain a laugh, though it proved fairly ineffective. Lucky for her reputation as an unapproachable killjoy, her roommate wasn't there at the time. “That's a rude word,” she finally replied, only to see several more flash across the screen. “I've only been gone for a few days and you're already like this. Who's responsible for this?”

After another series of joyful emoticons, Yumi sent, “one sec” followed by total radio silence for the next eight minutes. “look!” The next message was a not quite centered picture of Yumi in her uniform trying (and in Sakuya's opinion, more than succeeding) to strike a cute pose.

“That's a really nice uniform,” she said, working past a moment's hesitation and steadying her nervous hands to take a picture back. “Mine isn't very good.” She sent one of herself in her school's signature blue blazer, white skirt, and white tie looking quite a bit less enthusiastic about it compared to Yumi.

Of course, Yumi found it to be the cutest sight imaginable, telling her so with excruciating use of emoticons. The two spent the next several minutes catching up before Yumi announced she had to leave to eat dinner and would be back “soon”.

An hour and a half passed by, Sakuya trying unsuccessfully to pick up her book once again in the meantime. It was hard to get back into the story given how happy she was to be speaking to her friend again. There was so much she wanted to tell her, making the wait feel that much more excruciating.

Suddenly, her phone began to ring, the default ringtone playing through the room. “Hello?” she said, hearing an almost speaker-shattering squeal on the other end. “That was loud.”

“Sorry. I got excited because I missed hearing your voice.” Sakuya's heart skipped a beat. “I would have called sooner, but I didn't want to have to hang up to go eat first.”

“That's fine. You made a friend, you said?”

“Yeah. She's American and makes sushi, and we dueled and I won.”

“Your first day sounds a lot more interesting than mine. Just the usual stuff and nothing happening.” Shifting into teacher mode, she asked, “Did you change your deck at all since we last dueled?”

Yumi nodding, forgetting for a moment she couldn't be seen on the other side of the line. “Yeah. I used what I learned with you to try and focus more, and I got some new cards recently, too. The company gave them to me with this schedule kind of thing.”

“They're scheduling you to start training?”

“I think so. In a couple of days, I'm supposed to meet someone who's going to help me get ready for the next tournament.”

“That makes sense,” she said. “Since I'm going to have to turn you over to someone else now, I've got one last piece of advice as your teacher.”

“You already told me to stop picking my nose.”

“Yes, but that's not what I was going to say. Stop doing that, though, it's really gross.” She cleared her throat. “What I wanted to tell you about was research. The higher up you get, the more important it's going to be.”

“Researching what?” Yumi asked.

“Cards, strategies, opponents. On the small time level you've been competing at right now, doing what you do is perfectly fine. You've built a solid deck that can go up against a lot of different things without being overwhelmed. That's not how it's going to work at the regional level, though.”

Yumi stayed silent to listen to the whole explanation, thinking that she might already have an idea of what Sakuya was telling her. “Charging in without a plan isn't going to work against these people, so you're going to have to look ahead and try to predict what your opponents could use before you even set foot on the field. If you do that, you'll have won before you even play a card.”

“I've actually heard of that before,” she said, remembering back to finding different notes and outlines her parents had made for other professionals they were slated to go up against.

“That's good. I'm sure your trainer is going to tell you more about this when you first meet, but I wanted to give you a heads up before that.”

“Thanks.” The rest of the evening was spent talking about other things, the two losing track of time until Yumi inevitably realized how late it was, scrambling to finish as much of her homework as possible before falling asleep. It wasn't much.

\Next: Grades in Peril! Why Can't this Guy Just Teach Math?/

Cards Used in Order of Appearance

Pot of Greed and Humility (Pot of Duality)
Normal Spell Card
Excavate the top 3 cards of your Deck, add 1 of them to your hand, also, after that, shuffle the rest back into your Deck. You can only activate 1 "Pot of Duality" per turn. You cannot Special Summon during the turn you activate this card.

Book of Moon
Quick-Play Spell Card
Target 1 face-up monster on the field; change that target to face-down Defense Position.

Cyclone (Mystical Space Typhoon)
Quick-Play Spell Card
Target 1 Spell/Trap on the field; destroy that target.

Kozmo – Pavid (Kozmo Scaredy Lion)
LIGHT
Level 2
Psychic/Effect
1200 ATK/500 DEF
During either player's turn: You can banish this card; Special Summon 1 Level 3 or higher "Kozmo" monster from your hand. You can only use this effect of "Kozmo Scaredy Lion" once per turn. Once per turn: You can pay 500 LP, then target 3 of your banished "Kozmo" monsters; return them to the Graveyard, and if you do, inflict 500 damage to your opponent.

Scaredy Lion
EARTH
Level 4
Beast
1300 ATK/ 1000 DEF

Pot of Greed
Normal Spell Card
Draw 2 cards.

Broken Wand
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: This card's original ATK increases by 500. When this card attacks or is attacked by a monster with higher ATK: You can return this card to your hand and end the Battle Phase.

Kozmo – Dark Scimitar (Kozmo Dark Destroyer)
DARK
Level 8
Machine/Effect
3000 ATK/1800 DEF
If this card is Normal or Special Summoned: You can target 1 monster on the field; destroy it. Cannot be targeted by an opponent's card effects. If this card is destroyed by battle or card effect and sent to the Graveyard: You can banish this card from your Graveyard; Special Summon 1 Level 7 or lower "Kozmo" monster from your Deck.

Armored Block
Quick-Play Spell Card
Target 1 monster you control equipped with an Equip Spell Card; it cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects this turn. If a monster you control equipped with an Equip Spell Card would be destroyed, you can banish this card from your Graveyard instead.

Holy Barrier – Mirror Force (Mirror Force)
Normal Trap Card
When an opponent's monster declares an attack: Destroy all your opponent's Attack Position monsters.

Kozmo – Grindol (Kozmo Goodwitch)
LIGHT
Level 4
Psychic/Effect
1800 ATK/1000 DEF
During either player's turn: You can banish this card; Special Summon 1 Level 5 or higher "Kozmo" monster from your hand. You can only use this effect of "Kozmo Goodwitch" once per turn. Once per turn: You can pay 500 LP, then target 1 face-up monster your opponent controls; change it to face-down Defense Position.

Majesty Guard
Normal Trap Card
Monsters you control cannot be destroyed by battle this turn, also halve all damage you take this turn. During either player's turn, except the turn this card was sent to the Graveyard: You can banish this card from your Graveyard; halve the battle damage you take from one opponent's monster this turn.

Instant Fusion
Normal Spell Card
Pay 1000 LP; Special Summon 1 Level 5 or lower Fusion Monster from your Extra Deck, but it cannot attack, also it is destroyed during the End Phase. (This is treated as a Fusion Summon.) You can only activate 1 "Instant Fusion" per turn.

Rare Fish
WATER
Level 4
Fish/Fusion
1500 ATK/1200 DEF
"Fusionist" + "Enchanting Mermaid"

Zubaba General
EARTH
Rank 4
Warrior/Xyz/Effect
2000 ATK/1000 DEF
2 Level 4 monsters
Once per turn: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; equip 1 Warrior-Type monster from your hand to this card. This card gains ATK equal to the combined ATK of the monsters equipped to it by this effect.

Big Bat Knight
EARTH
Level 3
Warrior
1100 ATK/500 DEF

Kozmo – Energy Arts (Kozmojo)
Normal Trap Card
Target 1 "Kozmo" monster you control; destroy it, and if you do, banish 1 card your opponent controls or in their Graveyard. You can only activate 1 "Kozmojo" per turn.

Kozmo – Forerunner (Kozmo Forerunner)
LIGHT
Level 7
Machine/Effect
2800 ATK/1400 DEF
Cannot be targeted by an opponent's card effects. During your Standby Phase: Gain 1000 LP. If this card is destroyed by battle or card effect and sent to the Graveyard: You can banish this card from your Graveyard; Special Summon 1 Level 6 or lower "Kozmo" monster from your Deck.

Kozmo – Fowlmeat (Kozmo Strawman)
LIGHT
Level 2
Psychic/Effect
500 ATK/1800 DEF
During either player's turn: You can banish this card; Special Summon 1 Level 3 or higher "Kozmo" monster from your hand. You can only use this effect of "Kozmo Strawman" once per turn. Once per turn: You can pay 500 LP, then target 1 of your banished "Kozmo" monsters; Special Summon it, but its effects are negated, also destroy it during the End Phase.

Critter (Sangan)
DARK
Level 3
Fiend/Effect
1000 ATK/ 600 DEF
When this card is sent from the field to the Graveyard: Add 1 monster with 1500 or less ATK from your Deck to your hand.

Crane Crane
EARTH
Level 3
Winged Beast/Effect
300 ATK/900 DEF
When this card is Normal Summoned: You can target 1 Level 3 monster in your Graveyard; Special Summon that target, but its effects are negated. You can only use this effect of “Crane Crane” once per turn.

Kozmo – Landwalker (Kozmo Landwalker)
DARK
Level 6
Machine/Effect
2400 ATK/1200 DEF
If a "Kozmo" card(s) you control would be destroyed by battle or an opponent's card effect, you can destroy 1 other "Kozmo" card you control instead. If this card is destroyed by battle or card effect and sent to the Graveyard: You can banish this card from your Graveyard; Special Summon 1 Level 5 or lower "Kozmo" monster from your Deck.

Charity of the Ordinary (Common Charity)
Normal Trap Card
Draw 2 cards, then remove from play 1 Normal Monster Card from your hand. If you don't have any Normal Monster Cards in your hand to remove, send all cards in your hand to the Graveyard.

Trakodon
EARTH
Level 3
Dinosaur
1300 ATK/800 DEF

Unexpected Guy (Unexpected Dai)
Normal Spell Card
If you control no monsters: Special Summon 1 Level 4 or lower Normal Monster from the Deck.

Hat-Trick Magician
DARK
Level 4
Spellcaster
1200 ATK/1500 DEF

Illusion King Robbins
LIGHT
Rank 3
Spellcaster/Xyz/Effect
2300 ATK/1500 DEF
2 Level 3 monsters
Once per turn: You can detach 2 Xyz Material from this card and target 1 monster in your opponent's Graveyard; equip that target to this card. When a monster is equipped to this card by its own effect, it gains ATK equal to half the ATK of the equipped monster. While this card is equipped with an opponent's monster: You can Tribute this card; Special Summon 1 monster from your hand, Deck, or Graveyard with ATK equal to or less than this card's ATK on the field.

Rusty Sword
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: This card's original ATK increases equal to its DEF. When this card attacks, during the Damage Step: You can pay Life Points in multiples of 100 (maximum 500); this card gains ATK equal to that amount.

Threatening Roar
Normal Trap Card
Your opponent cannot declare an attack this turn.

Kozmo – Epilogue (Kozmourning)
Continuous Trap Card
Monsters destroyed by battle with "Kozmo" monsters you control are shuffled into the Deck instead of going to the Graveyard. You can banish this card from your Graveyard; the first time you would take battle damage from a battle involving a "Kozmo" monster you control this turn, gain that much LP, instead.

Majesty Magician
DARK
Level 8
Spellcaster/Effect
2500 ATK/2000 DEF
You can Tribute Summon this card by Tributing 1 monster that was originally a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. This card is treated as an appropriate target for a card that specifically designates a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF while face-up on the field or in the Graveyard (its Level and ATK/DEF do not change).

Treasure Cards from the Heavens (Card of Sanctity)
Normal Spell Card
Each player draws until they have 6 cards in their hand.

Golden Fiddle
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: This card gains ATK equal to its Level x 200 while in Attack Position and DEF equal to its Level x 300 while in Defense Position. If this card is selected as an attack target while in Attack Position: You can switch this card to Defense Position.

Kozmo – Dark Rose (Kozmoll Wickedwitch)
DARK
Level 4
Psychic/Effect
1900 ATK/300 DEF
During either player's turn: You can banish this card; Special Summon 1 Level 5 or higher "Kozmo" monster from your hand. You can only use this effect of "Kozmoll Wickedwitch" once per turn. Once per turn, during either player's turn: You can pay 1000 LP; this turn, this card cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects.

Kozmo – Sliprider (Kozmo Sliprider)
LIGHT
Level 5
Machine/Effect
2300 ATK/800 DEF
If this card is Normal or Special Summoned: You can target 1 Spell/Trap Card on the field; destroy it. If this card is destroyed by battle or card effect and sent to the Graveyard: You can banish this card from your Graveyard; Special Summon 1 Level 4 or lower "Kozmo" monster from your Deck.

Allure of Darkness
Normal Spell Card
Draw 2 cards, then banish 1 DARK monster from your hand, or, if you do not have any in your hand, send your entire hand to the Graveyard.

Kozmo – DOG Fighter (Kozmo DOG Fighter)
DARK
Level 6
Machine/Effect
2000 ATK/2400 DEF
Once per turn, during the Standby Phase: You can Special Summon 1 "DOG Fighter Token" (Machine-Type/DARK/Level 6/ATK 2000/DEF 2400). If this card is destroyed by battle or card effect and sent to the Graveyard: You can banish this card from your Graveyard; Special Summon 1 Level 5 or lower "Kozmo" monster from your Deck.

Pot of Greed
Normal Spell Card
Draw 2 cards.

Fissure
Normal Spell Card
Destroy the 1 face-up monster your opponent controls that has the lowest ATK (your choice, if tied).

Majesty Sanction
Normal Trap Card
Discard 1 card; monsters you control cannot be destroyed by a Spell/Trap effect (once each) until the End Phase. During either player's turn, except the turn this card was sent to the Graveyard: You can banish this card from your Graveyard and target 1 monster you control; once this turn, if it would be destroyed by an opponent's Spell/Trap effect, it is not destroyed.

Rusty Swordsman
EARTH
Level 4
Warrior
1500 ATK/1000 DEF

Kozmo – Fer-blanc (Kozmo Tincan)
LIGHT
Level 1
Psychic/Effect
0 ATK/0 DEF
During either player's turn: You can banish this card; Special Summon 1 Level 2 or higher "Kozmo" monster from your hand. You can only use this effect of "Kozmo Tincan" once per turn. Once per turn, during the End Phase: You can pay 500 LP; reveal 3 "Kozmo" cards with different names from your Deck, your opponent randomly picks 1 for you to add to your hand, and you send the rest to the Graveyard.

Kozmo – Dark Planet (Kozmo Dark Planet)
DARK
Level 10
Machine/Effect
4000 ATK/4000 DEF
Cannot be Normal Summoned/Set. Must be Special Summoned (from your hand) by banishing "Kozmo" monsters from your hand whose total Levels equal 10 or more, and cannot be Special Summoned by other ways. Cannot be targeted by an opponent's card effects. During either player's turn, when a Spell Card is activated: You can banish 1 "Kozmo" monster from your Graveyard; negate the activation, and if you do, destroy that card. If this card is destroyed by battle or card effect and sent to the Graveyard: You can banish this card from your Graveyard; add 1 Level 9 or lower "Kozmo" monster from your Deck to your hand.

Kozmo – Dark Eclipser (Kozmo Dark Eclipser)
DARK
Level 9
Machine/Effect
3000 ATK/2600 DEF
Cannot be targeted by an opponent's card effects. During either player's turn, when a Trap Card is activated: You can banish 1 "Kozmo" monster from your Graveyard; negate the activation, and if you do, destroy that card. If this card is destroyed by battle or card effect and sent to the Graveyard: You can banish this card from your Graveyard; add 1 Level 8 or lower "Kozmo" monster from your Deck to your hand.

Emissaries of Reconciliation (Waboku)
Normal Trap Card
You take no battle damage from your opponent's monsters this turn. Your monsters cannot be destroyed by battle this turn.

God's Providence (Ultimate Providence)
Counter Trap Card
When a Spell/Trap Card or monster effect is activated: Discard the same type of card (Monster, Spell, or Trap); negate the activation, and if you do, destroy that card.

Butter Fly
WIND
Level 3
Insect
900 ATK/700 DEF

Kozmo – Dark Elphaiber (Kozmoll Dark Lady)
DARK
Level 5
Psychic/Effect
2200 ATK/1800 DEF
During either player's turn: You can banish this card; Special Summon 1 Level 6 or higher "Kozmo" monster from your hand. You can only use this effect of "Kozmoll Dark Lady" once per turn. Once per turn, during either player's turn, when another monster's effect is activated: You can pay 1000 LP; negate the activation, and if you do, destroy that monster.

Kozmo – Rayblade (Kozmo Lightsword)
Equip Spell Card
Equip only to a Psychic-Type "Kozmo" monster. It gains 500 ATK and DEF, it can make up to 2 attacks on monsters during each Battle Phase, also if it attacks a Defense Position monster, inflict piercing battle damage to your opponent. If this card is sent from the field to the Graveyard: You can pay 800 LP; add this card to your hand. You can only use this effect of "Kozmo Lightsword" once per turn.

Pot of Avarice
Normal Spell Card
Target 5 monsters in your Graveyard; shuffle all 5 into the Deck, then draw 2 cards.

Burning Slugger
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: Once per turn: You can target 1 monster your opponent controls, then send cards from the top of your Deck to the Graveyard equal to its Level/Rank; destroy it, and if you do, inflict damage equal to its Level/Rank x 100. This monster cannot attack the turn you activate this effect.

Komboriboh
DARK
Level 1
Fiend/Effect
300 ATK/ 200 DEF
When a monster is targeted by an Equip Spell Card: You can discard this card and target 1 Equip Spell Card in your Graveyard that could be equipped to an appropriate monster on the field; add that target to your hand. When a monster you control is targeted for an attack while it it equipped with an Equip Spell Card: You can banish this card from your Graveyard to target that monster; this turn, that target cannot be destroyed by battle and you take no battle damage from attacks involving that target.

Djinn of the Lamp (Lord of the Lamp)
DARK
Level 4
Fiend
1400 ATK/1200 DEF

Armaduriboh
DARK
Level 1
Fiend/Effect
300 ATK/200 DEF
During your opponent's turn, when an attack is declared involving a monster you control equipped with an Equip Card: You can discard this card; make the attacking monster's ATK 0 until the End Phase of this turn, also it cannot be destroyed by that battle. You can banish this card from your Graveyard; add 1 Equip Spell Card from your Deck to your hand.

Terriger, the Magic-Equipped Warrior (Terratiger, the Empowered Warrior)
EARTH
Level 4
Warrior/Effect
1800 ATK/1200 DEF
When this card is Normal Summoned: You can Special Summon 1 Level 4 or lower Normal Monster from your hand in Defense Position.

Common Fusion
Normal Spell Card
Fusion Summon 1 non-Effect Fusion Monster from your Extra Deck, using Normal Monsters from your hand, field, or Deck as Fusion Material. When the card Fusion Summoned by this effect battles an opponent's monster: You can banish this card in your Graveyard; negate that monster's effects and apply its original ATK and DEF when calculating damage until the end of the Battle Phase.

Invader from Another Dimension
DARK
Level 4
Fiend
950 ATK/1400 DEF

Wallrus
WATER
Level 2
Beast
400 ATK/800 DEF

Violentist
LIGHT
Level 3
Fiend
650 ATK/1300 DEF

Flame Viper
EARTH
Level 2
Pyro
400 ATK/450 DEF

Helpful, Knight of Commons
EARTH
Level 10
Warrior/Fusion
3800 ATK/3050 DEF
4 Level 4 or lower Normal Monsters

Power of Unity (United We Stand)
Equip Spell Card
The equipped monster gains 800 ATK and DEF for each face-up monster you control.

Chapter Text

School had been back in session for almost two weeks now, everyone having settled into the routine. For Yumi, this usually meant trying desperately to pay attention to lessons before her mind wandered to something more stimulating. By all accounts, she was doing fairly okay in most of her classes, but her extreme lack of interest in most of what she was learning combined with her boundless energy just made it hard to concentrate.

One of the classes she had the most trouble in was math taught by Mr. Harada. Balding, permanently scowling, and never seen without the tiniest of mustaches, he was the picture of a teacher you didn’t want out to get you. He'd always seemed to dislike her since she began attending, but things were steadily getting worse. Even the smallest issues would get her sent out into the hall for the rest of the period, being lucky to even make it fifteen minutes into a lesson most days before he called her out in front of the entire class.

It had gotten so bad that even Kaguya felt the need to comment on the raw deal Yumi was getting, and she'd normally enjoy watching others suffer (at first she'd found it funny, but now it was just kind of sad). Even those doing the same thing as her literally right next to her were overlooked.

Seeing no other option, Yumi turned to the only person of authority she thought she could trust in this school. Taking her case to Professor Yoshimitsu, he agreed to try and talk some sense into his colleague, or at least get to the bottom of why he seemed to hate her so much.

It was around lunchtime when he put his plan into action, entering the faculty room and scanning for Harada. He’d always known him to take his lunch in here while looking over lessons or grading papers and, as expected, there he was at his desk doing just that.

Pen in one hand and chopsticks in the other, Harada didn’t notice the professor sit down next to him in a vacant chair until he let out a sigh. “Really starting to feel my age these days,” he said while leaning back.

Harada chuckled, nodding in agreement. “I know what you mean. I keep having to ask my wife to fix my back when I get home in the evening since it’s always so soar.” He marked a question with an X before setting his pen down and turning towards the other teacher. “How goes things in the lab these days?”

He waved his hand dismissively. “Oh, about the same. We almost had a fire, but it was taken care of pretty fast. I guess that’s still kind of exciting in its own way.” Scratching his beard, he asked, “And what’s new in the world of math?”

“Not too much,” he said. “A discipline problem here or there, but nothing unusual.”

“I’ve been meaning to ask you about that,” the professor said, shifting in his chair a bit to lean forward. “Every now and then I’ll be walking by around the time you’re teaching, and almost every time I see this same student standing outside.”

His expression darkened a bit, a minute flair of the nostril indicating his distaste for Yumi. “Yes, that one is a problem. Hopefully she learns her lesson soon so there won’t be any more disruptions in class.”

“Disruptions?” he said while raising a brow, not entirely convinced of this claim. “What do you mean?”

“Well, disruptions,” he replied, as if the word alone explained itself all on its own. “Not paying attention in class, using a cell phone, fidgeting and making noise. You know what I mean.”

“It’s like that every day?”

“More or less. It’s an ongoing problem.”

“Hmm.” He tapped his chin, then asked, “Well, have you talked to her about it?” The bewildered expression on Harada’s face confirmed that he did not. “I wouldn’t tell you how to teach your students, of coursed. You’re a talented educator. Just that, in my time, whenever I’ve had an issue with a student, I might try to see what they have to say about it. Find some common ground and talk about the problem.”

Harada turned these words over in his head for a moment, realizing almost immediately that Yumi had orchestrated this conversation. Despite his dislike for this student, he held no ill will towards the other teacher for it. He’d worked with Yoshimitsu for the better part of two decades now with the bulk of their interactions being respectful and pleasant without getting too familiar (just how he liked it), so something this minor wouldn’t be enough to come between them.

In fact, he’d have to find some way to thank him for this, since it just gave him a brilliant idea. With an uncharacteristic smile, Harada finally said, “You know, you might be right. Thank you for talking with me about this.” Without another word, the two parted ways for a productive and happy lunch.

It would be a full day before he put his own plan into action. Classes went by, strangely enough, without a single hitch, Yumi finally getting to complete a full math lesson for the first time in four days. So good, in fact, that she was completely caught off guard when Harada approached her at the end of the day.

“Takano, a moment,” he said, gesturing towards her as she was about to walk off. A feeling of dread overtook her, looking to her friends for reassurance, but none of them were foolish enough to believe this would be anything good. Reluctantly, she turned to face her teacher.

Yumi didn’t trust the smile on his face, as it may actually have been the first one she’d ever seen from him. “Lately, it seems that people believe I’ve been too harsh in reprimanding you.” Her heart felt like it stopped, the rest of her clenching in ways she didn’t even think were possible as she waited for what he’d say next. “Now that I think of it, that might be right.”

Almost three full seconds passed before that sentence could fully process in her brain. “What?” she asked in utter bewilderment.

He nodded. “It’s true. In an effort to enforce discipline in the classroom, I fell into a pattern of singling you out. That was wrong on my part, so I should apologize.”

“T-that’s not necessary!” she said, waving her arms back and forth and hoping beyond hope she could escape this conversation as quickly as possible.

“Of course it is,” he said, seemingly incapable of noticing just how uncomfortable Yumi had become. “I feel like I should do something to make it up to you, like...” He snapped his fingers. “Duel Monsters.”

Hearing those words was enough to catch her attention. “Of course. I learned recently you’ve started to make a name for yourself in the game. It just so happens I’m also a fan, so how about a friendly duel? Just so there’s no hard feelings.”

“Sure!” she said, almost immediately forgetting all her prior reservations and fear. As always, she was ready and willing to take on just about anyone who challenged her.

Harada nodded, secretly pleased that his scheme had gone off without a hitch. “Then how about tomorrow?” It was decided, Yumi rushing off with Ami and Suzy now that school was over. Waiting until they were out of sight, he couldn’t help but chuckle at his own brilliance. Dueling had caused this problem and now it was going to end it.

Though he’d never claim to like Takano Yumi, he was mostly indifferent to her at the beginning. She was just another slacker who wouldn’t amount to anything destined for public school and a life of menial labor or housewifery like the rest. But things changed after the break ended.

Almost immediately, this nobody was catapulted to almost celebrity status around the school. Chiba’s Champion, they called her, and all because she won a single tournament. If that had been the end of it, there wouldn’t be a problem, but he knew better. What kind of example would it set if the other students believed a slacker like that could get ahead in life with nothing but luck (because skill obviously had nothing to do with her accomplishments)? What kind of motivation would they have to study hard and achieve things in school?

As an educator, he couldn’t allow that to happen. In a way, it was almost lucky the “issue” of his punishments was brought up like it was. They hadn’t seemed to be much of a deterrent, other children still flocking to her as they had before due to her title. But should someone else claim that title, there’d be no reason for anyone to think twice about her.

All he had to do was win and this would all be taken care of. True, he was no expert at the game, but his skills combined with his precision made deck should be more than enough to crush a small timer like her. They ought to be, at least, otherwise the money he’d spent collecting these cards would be a total waste, and they were far too valuable for that to be true.

The following day proceeded as normal, both Harada and Yumi going about their routines while anticipating the battle ahead. Coincidentally, they both made sure to thank Professor Yoshimitsu at different points for facilitated all of this.

Soon enough, lunchtime was upon them. Yumi quickly scarfed down her food, having to pause for a few moments while choking, and got up to leave the classroom. “Where are you going?” Ami asked her, not even halfway finished with her own meal.

“The duel,” she said. “We agreed that this would be the right time before classes started, which is good, since I don’t think I could wait much longer.” True to her word, she was already hopping up and down as she clamped her duel disk to her arm.

“I have to see this,” Suzy said, picking up her lunch and following Yumi out the door with Ami in tow, Kaguya reluctantly joining them with the requisite eye roll. In truth, she was curious to see first hand just what kind of skills Yumi had managed to build up over the summer, though she was more hoping to watch her suffer an embarrassing defeat.

Harada was already waiting in the courtyard, several students and teachers having stopped to find out just what was about to go down. Surprisingly enough, he was wearing one of the garishly large duel vests over his gray suit. Rarely seen due to just how expensive they were (and for the fact they were kind of silly looking), it seemed to signify he really intended to take this seriously.

Yumi, of course, was immediately enamored with it. If not for the subtle urging of those around her, she’d likely have spent the entire lunch period admiring the thing. “Thanks for letting me duel you,” she said, cutting her opponent’s deck before trading it back for her own.

“No need to thank me,” he said with a smile just a bit too sweet. “Let’s just have some fun.” Decks inserted, they both took positions on opposite ends of the field, shouting out the customary “Duel!” in unison. Hands drawn, Harada made the bold move of handing the first turn to Yumi. “It’s the polite thing to do, giving my student the first strike.”

“I hope you’re not going easy on me,” she said, taking the turn nonetheless. “Let’s start things off with this monster!” Laying a card down, a fighter clad in white appeared on the field, leaning its head back with a roar. “I summon Terriger, the Magic-Equipped Warrior! When he’s Normal Summoned, I get to play a Normal Monster from my hand that’s Level 4 or less.”

Her selection was instant, laying down Scaredy Lion without a moment’s hesitation. Her moves were finally beginning to reflect the confidence she’d built over the last month, hands moving almost on instinct by this point. A similar instinct took over as the two monsters began to glow. “Now, I overlay my Level 4 Terriger with my Level 4 Scaredy Lion! Xyz Summon, Rank 4! Cairngorgon, Dark-Line Change-Warrior!”

The gemstone-clad behemoth crashed onto the field from out of the summoning portal, rising to full height and raising its bashing fist into the sky to catch the light, shining a rainbow of colors across the field that quickly turned into shadows. Needless to say, the crowd was impressed with the showy display.

“Since I can’t attack yet, I’ll just a set a card and end my turn with that.” In truth, she was hoping to end her turn quickly, since that meant she’d get to see what kinds of cards her teacher had. The whole scenario was unlikely to begin with, but with a duel disk like that, he might actually be a serious player.

With a smirk, Harada placed his next to his deck, a card ejected into it. “Draw!” he declared, adding it to his others. “With someone as powerful as you,” he began, his compliment being an obvious lie, “I’ll have to use my strongest cards from the very start.”

This was his queue to activate a Field Magic. “Geartown!” Inserting it into his disk, the ground began to rumble as various bits of machinery and gears burst from it. The school building itself transformed into a mechanical city filled with all sorts of rusty moving parts, mesmerizing Yumi and everyone else watching.

“So long as this card is still on the field, I can summon my monsters with one less release than I’d normally have to.” Immediately after saying that, he took another card and placed it on the field. “Now, I summon my Antique Gear Beast!”

The robotic cat pounced onto the field, recessed eyes gleaming a bright red. “Yumi!” Suzy shouted from the sidelines. “Look! It really is one of them!”

“I know!” she shouted, waving her arms in excitement. “Antique Gear cards!”

“What’s so special about those cards?” Ami asked them, her relative disinterest in playing the game for herself having shielded her from things like trends or important developments in the meta.

Priding herself on knowing the history of Duel Monsters, Suzy was more than happy to explain. “Antique Gear cards are all super rare and were only made for a few years not long after the game first started. They were designed by a famous pro from Italy who started working for the company after retiring. And Mr. Harada just played one of the originals!”

With a nod, Harada continued on with his turn. “I appreciate the introduction. Now that we’re all up to speed, I’ll activate this card.” As he inserted a green-bordered card into his disk, heavy winds picked up. Yumi’s Mirror Force was lifted up before being carried off into the sky, the vortex also ripping off the mechanical fixtures that had overtaken the school. “Heavy Storm will destroy all the cards in both our Magic and Trap Zones.”

“Did he mean to destroy his own card, too?” Ami asked Suzy in a low voice.

She nodded quickly. “That card has a second effect when it’s destroyed like that. And now...” Her enthusiasm matched Yumi’s as she nearly shook in anticipating on the duel field.

“With Geartown destroyed, I now get to summon another Antique Gear monster, and this one comes from my deck.” It only took him a second to make his selection, his intention of truly going all out from the start making itself known. “Come out, Antique Gear Gadjildragon!”

With a roar, the machine descended onto the field and took a place behind its owner. “Amazing!” Yumi was far too busy being impressed by the card itself to realize she’d been left defenseless after her Trap was destroyed. Not that it would have done much good to begin with, as the Antique Gear cards were almost universally equipped to shutdown any backrow interference when they attacked.

“Quite. Before I attack, I’ll activate the Permanent Magic Card, Antique Gear Fortress.” From behind him rose an enormous stronghold outfitted with guns, the dragon perched atop it. “As long as this remains here, my Antique Gear monsters can’t be targeted by your effects the turn they’re summoned or destroyed by card effects.” The extra security was part of his strategy, locking down his field as much as possible before moving in to attack.

With caution no longer needed, he continued forward. “Now, Gadjildragon, destroy that Xyz Monster! Precious Burst!” The dragon let out a beam of white-hot energy, clashing with Cairngorgon’s punch before quickly shattering its bashing gem and overtaking it. The leftover damage was dealt to Yumi, though that was far from the final attack she’d have to endure this turn. “Antique Gear Beast, direct attack! Precious Fang!”

Though the blow was heavy, Yumi managed to survive the attack. Recovering after a bite from the Beast, she was left with only 1450 Life Points for the rest of the duel. This did little to dampen her spirits, though, the smile permanently affixed to her face only making Harada more irritated. “I set a card and end my turn.”

“Draw!” she declared, taking a moment to squeal about how exciting it was to fight against such strong cards. “That dragon is going to be tough to get over,” she thought aloud. “I guess in the meantime, all I can do is this.” She played Rusty Swordsman to the field, equipping it with Power of Unity before moving in to attack. “Power of Unity gives my monster 800 more ATK, so now it’s more than a match for Antique Gear Beast. Rusty Slice!”

The knight effortlessly cut the monster in half, inflicting 300 damage in the process. Unfortunately, that was about all she could do for the time being. Setting a card face-down, she had to end her turn with the threat of Gadjildragon still looming overhead.

Harada scoffed, beginning his turn by drawing a card. “I’m a bit disappointed in your performance,” he told her with a wag of his finger. “From everything I’d heard, I would have thought you could deal with at least this much. But I suppose you’re still only a child.”

Another structure began to rise up from the ground. “Permanent Magic, Antique Gear Castle! From now on, all my Antique Gear monsters gain 300 ATK.” A paltry sum to be sure, but even a small increase only furthered the absolute superiority of the dragon.

“After that, I summon my Antique Gear Wyvern to the field.” A smaller reptilian machine arrived to take the place of the fallen Beast. “Once summoned, Wyvern lets me search another Antique Gear card from my deck and add it to my hand.” He took a card ejected from his duel disk and presented it to Yumi. “The card I choose is Antique Gear Box, which activates its own effect. When it’s added to my hand by an effect, I can add another EARTH Machine monster with 500 ATK or DEF from my deck to my hand.”

The logical choice was Antique Gear Gadget, bringing his hand up to two cards again like at the start of the turn. While they might not be the strongest cards, they provided material for the future. That aside, however, the Castle was going into effect at the same time, a shield being raised on a rope pulley. “Oh, and by the way, whenever I Normal Summon or Set a monster, Antique Gear Castle gains a counter. When I Advance Summon, I can release my Castle as material as long as the number of counters matches how many monster I would need for the summon.”

“That’s pretty handy,” Yumi said. “I wonder if there’s a version I could use for myself.”

“Doubtful,” he said, confident in knowing he’d soon be declared the winner. “And with that out of the way, let’s take care of that monster. Atta-”

“Hold up!” she shouted, forcing the turn to a screeching halt. “Before you can attack me, I activate my face-down card, Armored Block! I pick a monster on my field with an Equip Magic, and until the end of the turn, it can’t be destroyed.”

Harada grit his teeth, irritated both by her proud smile and the fact she managed to find the flaw in his Antique Gear’s effect. If a card was used before a battle could even be declared, there wasn’t anything he could do to stop it. That being said, there was nothing saying he couldn’t still commence with the battle.

“If that’s the case, then I’ll still battle. Gadjildragon, attack!” Just as before, the monster reared back and prepared to blast its opponent.

“Didn’t you hear? Armored Block prevents Rusty Swordsman’s destruction.”

“But you’ll still take the damage!” he declared, Yumi’s Life Points falling to 450 despite her monster’s best attempts to shield her. “You managed to stop me from eliminating your monster, so you’ve lasted the turn. If you can, try and make a comeback.”

“I will!” she replied, drawing her card. Determination or not, though, her options were slim. “I activate Pot of Greed, letting me draw two new cards from my deck and add them to my hand.” Unfortunately, neither of these cards was especially beneficial to her at the moment. “Rusty Swordsman, attack Antique Gear Wyvern!”

This battle was about all she could do this turn, only managing to inflict another 300 damage before setting a card and ending her turn. At the moment, all she could hope for was another Equip Magic to try and turn things around, since even another monster on the field couldn’t boost Swordsman’s ATK enough to overtake the dragon. Even if it did, whatever she played to do so would be vulnerable to Wyvern or another card. With her Life so low, she couldn’t afford that gamble.

Proceeding with his turn, Harada played the card he’d drawn. “I activate Cyclone! Destroy your set card.” Despite Gadjildragon’s effect, he’d always been a cautious player. Should that face-down be the right kind of card, it could circumvent his attack again and potentially have even worse consequences than just stopping destruction. Even with the boost from Power of Unity, his monsters were more than safe, he assumed.

“Then I’ll use my Trap Card, Emissaries of Reconciliation! Now the destruction isn’t just negated, but the damage!” Hard to argue with that assessment. Realizing he’d waste both his card and the turn, Harada was forced to pass to Yumi. He was far from upset about it, though, as it would only be a single turn more before he could win.

“Looks like it’s finally time to go on the offensive,” Yumi said, smiling at the card she’d just drawn. “I activate an Equip Magic, Necklace of Supplantation! Now, whenever my Normal Monster attacks one of yours with a higher Level, it gets an ATK boost matching the difference.” On her order, the knight launched forward to slay the dragon, the jewelry hanging from its neck empowering it to 4300 ATK with the 4 Level difference.

The first clean hit she’d landed all game, Harada’s Life Points fell to 2400 as Gadjildragon collapsed. Strangely enough, he seemed rather unconcerned if a bit annoyed. Upon ending her turn, he raised a hand. “Now I activate my Trap Card, Antique Gear Reborn!”

As the name implied, it allowed him to revive his fallen Gadjildragon, only with the condition he had no monsters on the field. “And, when a monster revives using the effect of Reborn, it gains 200 ATK permanently.” The look of shock on Yumi’s face amused him, drawing a card before resigning to another turn of waiting (making sure Gadjildragon was in Defense Position).

Though he couldn’t yet overcome the enhanced Rusty Swordsman, it would only be a matter of time. Even so, only be able to keep one monster on the field at a time could present a problem. It was probably for the best so as not to waste monsters, though, as reviving his biggest monster would be a better counter than sending Gadget or Box to the slaughter.

The previous turns events repeated themselves, with Yumi attacking only for Gadjildragon to be revived right after. The only difference was her setting a card before ending, still unable to breach Harada’s defenses.

Unfortunately for her, he wasn’t planning on setting up a loop. “I activate Pot of Greed,” he declared, playing the card he’d just drawn. “Now I can draw two more cards.” Beside a second copy of Reborn, he’d managed to get the card he needed to turn things back around. “I use my own Equip Magic, Demon’s Axe! Now my Antique Gear Gadjildragon gains 1000 more ATK, putting it above your Rusty Swordsman even at its strongest.”

He was right, of course. Even if her face-down card was something substantial, Yumi wouldn’t even be able to use it. Meaning all she could do now was endure. “Precious Burst!” The only hope she had of buying another turn was through Armored Block’s second effect. Given that it doesn’t actually activate when banished, it was able to get around the Antique Gear effect once more. Even so, all she had left was 250 Life Points.

“Draw!” Yumi set a card, still unable to do much of anything. While she did actually have a monster in hand, Power of Unity required it to be face-up in order to gain the effect. While she might momentarily be able to defeat Gadjildragon by doing that, her current Life Points would make that the same as surrendering then and there. She’d be forced to end her turn, choosing to keep Rusty Swordsman in Attack Position as a deterrent, betting the duel on her last 50 Life Points.

Whether out of cautiousness or overconfidence, Harada decided to merely attack with his dragon instead of attempting to win on that turn. With another set card entering the fray, he didn’t want to make the mistake of playing carelessly. Having such an overwhelming lead like this, though, meant he could likely afford the extra turn. Without Rusty Swordsman on the field now, too, Yumi would have nothing to counterattack with.

Despite the worry (or in Kaguya’s case, hope) she might lose, Yumi stood firm and pushed ahead. Draw a card, she decided it was now or never. “I activate Charity of the Ordinary!” she declared, her second set card opening up. “I get to draw two cards, but if I can’t banish a Normal Monster in my hand after that, I have to discard everything.”

Taking her cards, she assessed them both: Djinn of the Lamp and Flame Viper. After carefully considering each one compared to her other cards, she chose to keep Flame Viper. “I summon this card!” To the bewilderment of everyone watching, the tiny reptile appear on the field belching flames. “Now I’ve got everything I need to win.”

Harada couldn’t help but start to laugh. “Optimism is a good thing to have, but how do you expect to win with such a weak card?” The monster itself seemed to take exception to this comment, thrashing about and squeaking in anger.

“Simple,” Yumi replied, “I just need to do this.” She inserted a card into her duel disk, declaring Flame Viper as the target. “Mage Power, activate!” Because of this, her monster would grow 500 ATK stronger with every card in her backrow. But she wasn’t done there. “And at the same time, I use Komboriboh to add Necklace of Supplantation back to my hand, equipping it, too.”

Now, Flame Viper had a base ATK stat of 1900. It was about to grow much, much larger, though, as it launched an attack on Antique Gear Gadjildragon. With an eight Level difference, Yumi’s monster now had 5900 ATK, crushing the machine with ease and leaving its owner with only 1000 Life Points.

Harada wasn’t ready to take this lying down, though. Once Yumi ended her turn, he made his move. “Antique Gear Reborn!” he declared, presumably to revive Gadjildragon once again. This wasn’t the case, though, as Antique Gear Wyvern took to the field. “When this monster is summoned, I can add an Antique Gear card to my hand. And my choice is this.”

From his deck, he held out the card Antique Gear Bomb. “When I use this card, I destroy one of my monsters to damage you equal to half its ATK. Though, with how few Life Points you have left, it doesn’t really matter how much damage it actually is.” The disappointed looks from the crowd summed things up pretty adequately, a few even starting to walk away now that the duel seemed to be over. “I’d wanted to end this was an attack from my dragon, but you’ve forced my hand.”

“You won’t play that card,” Yumi declared with a confidence that said she believed this to be true wholeheartedly. Her teacher’s look of confusion forced her to repeat it. “You won’t play it. It won’t do any good.”

“I think you’re mistaken,” he said as he began his turn. “If you need some convincing for some reason, then just watch. I-”

“I activate my Trap Card, Majesty Eclipse.” Before he could play the Bomb, Yumi’s card flipped up. “For the rest of the turn, I take no effect damage.” Harada started to grind his teeth, slowly putting the card back with the rest of his hand. “You could try to play it if you want, but I don’t think that would help you much.” Her smile was almost infuriating.

Even so, his conviction didn’t waver. “I’ll admit saving that card was a clever strategy. But even so, all I need to do is wait a single turn. After that, you’ve lost.” For safety, he also set the Antique Gear Soldier in his hand to build up a defense, not to mention add the second counter to his Castle. Should things really go awry and three monsters worth of attacks manage to break through, he still had a secret weapon in his hand just waiting to come out, easily summoned thanks to Castle.

“There’s not going to be another turn after this one,” Yumi said after seeing her newest card. “Equip Magic, Big Bang Shoot!” Flame Viper hopped inside the robotic shoe, becoming a literal snake in a boot. Not only did it increase its ATK, but it offered an important secondary effect. “Thanks to this card, my monsters now inflict piercing damage when they battle yours.”

Harada was horrified. He looked through his hand, his field, and anywhere he could to find an answer. There was none, though. His monsters might be protected from destruction by effects with infinite revival potential, but there was nothing he could do to prevent this damage.

The attack was declared, Flame Viper crushing Wyvern underfoot and dealing enough damage to win the duel. As Yumi was congratulated on her win, she took a moment to approach Harada, thanking him for the experience. “It was really exciting to see such rare cards like that,” she said with a bow.

“Oh, that’s alright. It was a good duel.” After so much scheming, he couldn’t help but feel a bit guilty having her act so polite to him. The rest of the day came and went as normal, with Harada begrudgingly admitting that, for a slacker, she did have some amount of skill in Duel Monsters if nothing else. Additionally, he resolved to be less harsh towards her, if for no other reason than to honor the sort of implicit agreement to do so that duel represented.

Though losing the duel had been quite the surprise for him, the biggest shock of all came a day later as he graded papers over lunch. Nothing if not fair (at least in this regard), he’d just finished giving a 93 to a student’s test, the name concealed beneath the clip on his clipboard as a means of remaining totally impartial while he assessed. And, upon removing it to get to the next one, he caught the name: Takano Yumi.

And just like that, everything he’d done seemed to have been for nothing.

\Next: Loneliness in Gunma – Sakuya’s Solo Adventure!/

Cards Used in Order of Appearance

Terriger, the Magic-Equipped Warrior (Terratiger, the Empowered Warrior)
EARTH
Level 4
Warrior/Effect
1800 ATK/1200 DEF
When this card is Normal Summoned: You can Special Summon 1 Level 4 or lower Normal Monster from your hand in Defense Position.

Scaredy Lion
EARTH
Level 4
Beast
1300 ATK/ 1000 DEF

Cairngorgon, Dark-Line Change-Warrior (Cairngorgon, Antiluminescent Knight)
DARK
Rank 4
Rock/Xyz/Effect
2450 ATK/1950 DEF
2 Level 4 monsters
During either player's turn, when another card or effect is activated that targets exactly 1 card on the field (and no other cards): You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card, then target another card on the field that would be an appropriate target for that card/effect; that card/effect now targets the new target.

Geartown
Field Spell Card
Both players can Normal Summon "Ancient Gear" monsters for 1 less Tribute. When this card is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard: You can Special Summon 1 "Ancient Gear" monster from your hand, Deck, or Graveyard.

Antique Gear Beast (Ancient Gear Beast)
EARTH
Level 6
Machine/Effect
2000 ATK/2000 DEF
Cannot be Special Summoned. If this card attacks, your opponent cannot activate any Spell/Trap Cards until the end of the Damage Step. Negate the effects of an opponent's monster destroyed by battle with this card (including in the Graveyard).

Heavy Storm
Normal Spell Card
Destroy all Spell and Trap Cards on the field.

Holy Barrier – Mirror Force (Mirror Force)
Normal Trap Card
When an opponent's monster declares an attack: Destroy all your opponent's Attack Position monsters.

Antique Gear Gadjildragon (Ancient Gear Gadjiltron Dragon)
EARTH
Level 8
Machine/Effect
3000 ATK/2000 DEF
If this card attacks, your opponent cannot activate any Spell/Trap Cards until the end of the Damage Step. This card gains the appropriate effects if you Normal Summon it by Tributing these monsters.
● Green Gadget: If this card attacks a Defense Position monster, inflict piercing battle damage to your opponent.
● Red Gadget: If this card inflicts battle damage to your opponent: Inflict 400 damage to your opponent.
● Yellow Gadget: If this card destroys an opponent's monster by battle: Inflict 600 damage to your opponent.

Antique Gear Fortress (Ancient Gear Fortress)
Continuous Spell Card
During the turn they were Normal or Special Summoned, your opponent cannot target "Ancient Gear" monsters you control with card effects, and they cannot be destroyed by your opponent's card effects. Your opponent cannot activate cards or effects in response to the activation of "Ancient Gear" cards and effects. If this card is destroyed in the Spell & Trap Zone: You can Special Summon 1 "Ancient Gear" monster from your hand or Graveyard, also you cannot Special Summon monsters for the rest of this turn, except "Ancient Gear" monsters.

Rusty Swordsman
EARTH
Level 4
Warrior
1500 ATK/1000 DEF

Power of Unity (United We Stand)
Equip Spell Card
The equipped monster gains 800 ATK and DEF for each face-up monster you control.

Antique Gear Castle (Ancient Gear Castle)
Continuous Spell Card
All "Ancient Gear" monsters gain 300 ATK. Each time a monster is Normal Summoned/Set, place 1 counter on this card. If you Tribute Summon an "Ancient Gear" monster face-up, you can Tribute this card instead, if the number of its counters is equal to or greater than the number of required Tribute(s).

Antique Gear Wyvern (Ancient Gear Wyvern)
EARTH
Level 4
Machine/Effect
1700 ATK/1200 DEF
If this card is Normal or Special Summoned: You can add 1 "Ancient Gear" card from your Deck to your hand, except "Ancient Gear Wyvern", also you cannot Set cards for the rest of this turn. You can only use this effect of "Ancient Gear Wyvern" once per turn. If this card attacks, your opponent's monsters cannot activate their effects until the end of the Damage Step.

Antique Gear Box (Ancient Gear Box)
EARTH
Level 4
Machine/Effect
500 ATK/2000 DEF
If this card is added from the Deck or Graveyard to your hand, except by drawing it: You can add 1 EARTH Machine-Type monster with 500 ATK and/or DEF from your Deck to your hand, except "Ancient Gear Box". You can only use this effect of "Ancient Gear Box" once per turn.

Antique Gear Gadget (Ancient Gear Gadget)
EARTH
Level 4
Machine/Effect
500 ATK/2000 DEF
If this card is Normal or Special Summoned: You can declare 1 card type (Monster, Spell, or Trap); this turn, if a monster you control attacks, your opponent's Spell Cards, Trap Cards, or monster effects (whichever was declared) cannot be activated until the end of the Damage Step. Once per turn: You can declare 1 "Gadget" monster's card name; until the End Phase, this card's name becomes that name.

Armored Block
Quick-Play Spell Card
Target 1 monster you control equipped with an Equip Spell Card; it cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects this turn. If a monster you control equipped with an Equip Spell Card would be destroyed, you can banish this card from your Graveyard instead.

Pot of Greed
Normal Spell Card
Draw 2 cards.

Cyclone (Mystical Space Typhoon)
Quick-Play Spell Card
Target 1 Spell/Trap on the field; destroy that target.

Emissaries of Reconciliation (Waboku)
Normal Trap Card
You take no battle damage from your opponent's monsters this turn. Your monsters cannot be destroyed by battle this turn.

Necklace of Supplantation (Amulet of Ambition)
Equip Spell Card
Equip only to a Normal Monster. If it battles a monster with a higher Level, the equipped monster gains 500 ATK x the difference in Levels (during that battle only). When this card is sent to the Graveyard, you can return it to the top of your Deck.

Antique Gear Reborn (Ancient Gear Reborn)
Continuous Trap Card
Once per turn, if you control no monsters: You can target 1 "Ancient Gear" monster in your Graveyard; Special Summon it, and if you do, it gains 200 ATK (even if this card leaves the field). You can only control 1 "Ancient Gear Reborn".

Demon’s Axe (Axe of Despair)
Equip Spell Card
The equipped monster gains 1000 ATK. When this card is sent from the field to the Graveyard: You can Tribute 1 monster; place this card on the top of your Deck.

Charity of the Ordinary (Common Charity)
Normal Trap Card
Draw 2 cards, then remove from play 1 Normal Monster Card from your hand. If you don't have any Normal Monster Cards in your hand to remove, send all cards in your hand to the Graveyard.

Djinn of the Lamp (Lord of the Lamp)
DARK
Level 4
Fiend
1400 ATK/1200 DEF

Flame Viper
EARTH
Level 2
Pyro
400 ATK/450 DEF

Mage Power
Equip Spell Card
The equipped monster gains 500 ATK and DEF for each Spell/Trap Card you control.

Komboriboh
DARK
Level 1
Fiend/Effect
300 ATK/ 200 DEF
When a monster is targeted by an Equip Spell Card: You can discard this card and target 1 Equip Spell Card in your Graveyard that could be equipped to an appropriate monster on the field; add that target to your hand. When a monster you control is targeted for an attack while it it equipped with an Equip Spell Card: You can banish this card from your Graveyard to target that monster; this turn, that target cannot be destroyed by battle and you take no battle damage from attacks involving that target.

Antique Gear Bomb (Ancient Gear Explosive)
Normal Spell Card
Target 1 "Ancient Gear" monster you control; destroy it, and if you do, inflict damage to your opponent equal to half its original ATK.

Majesty Eclipse
Normal Trap Card
You take no effect damage this turn. During either player's turn, except the turn this card was sent to the Graveyard: You can banish this card from your Graveyard; halve one instance of effect damage you take this turn.

Antique Gear Soldier (Ancient Gear Soldier)
EARTH
Level 4
Machine/Effect
1300 ATK/1300 DEF
If this card attacks, your opponent cannot activate any Spell/Trap Cards until the end of the Damage Step.

Big Bang Shoot (Big Bang Shot)
Equip Spell Card
The equipped monster gains 400 ATK. If the equipped monster attacks a Defense Position monster, inflict piercing battle damage to your opponent. When this card leaves the field, banish the equipped monster.

Chapter Text

Over 100 miles from Chiba stood Togami Private Academy, one of the premier dueling schools in Japan. People would kill (at least, one person nearly did) to attend here, with admissions numbering in little more than 100 students per year. Of all people, one of them happened to be a middle schooler.

As one would imagine, hearing that news that the newest grade 10 student wasn’t even 13 yet came as quite a blow to some people’s self-esteem. If the school went out of its way to get this child admitted at such a young age, what did that mean for them? This school was competitive enough as is.

Because of this (and her general unfriendly attitude), Sakuya was having a rather difficult time making friends. This was fine, at least on the surface. She’d never been particularly social as anyone would tell you, though she couldn’t deny it was a bit lonely here. More than anything, she missed her home in Chiba. She missed Yumi.

The day began fairly typically, waking up early to prepare for class, fix her hair, and so forth. It was a little before 7:00 when she was heading out to get breakfast. As usual, she fruitlessly tried to wake her roommate with no response. Despite having shared a dorm for close to half a year by now, Sakuya barely ever saw Eriko awake, let alone knew anything about her. How she stayed enrolled in this school when all she seemed to do was sleep and stay over at other people’s rooms was a mystery.

The two had been paired up specifically because of their ages. Eriko was an 18 year old grade 12 student whereas Sakuya was a 12 year old special case, the powers at be seeming to think that the older student would help guide their youngest in the transition. This, of course, proved to be completely off base, as the two rarely spoke to each other or interacted beyond grunts and gestures.

Her uniform, having to be special ordered in a smaller size, was still just slightly too big for her. It hung off her body awkwardly, the blue blazer appearing overstuffed as it threatened to fall off her shoulders at any moment.

Walking across the courtyard towards the cafeteria, Sakuya could already feel herself being watched. The general reaction to her presence upon first arrival ranged from annoyance, disgust, exasperation, and sometimes even flat out fear. These days, people settled for gossiping about her behind her back and avoiding her. Still, she preferred that over having rocks thrown at her.

Entering through the double doors, Sakuya made her way to the serving counter. She usually avoided being too adventurous with her meal options, going for simple items like white rice, some scrambled eggs, a few sausage links, and miso soup, plus a cup of coffee (splash of milk, no sugar).

She found an empty table near the back wall of the building, pulling out the white plastic chair after setting her tray down on the wood-patterned circular table. As usual, she’d be eating alone. Taking a few bites of her food, she looked to her phone to check on the message from Yumi dated half an hour ago. Her class had taken a test recently and now she was worried about getting it back today, afraid she didn’t study hard enough despite trying as hard as she could.

“I’m sure you did fine,” Sakuya texted, remembering just how intensely she’d prepared for the exam, up to and including putting off one of their nightly phone calls for almost ten minutes to finish her work. If that wasn’t dedication, nothing was.

Yumi was likely riding her bike given she didn’t reply. It was probably for the best, as she didn’t exactly have a very good record when it came to multitasking. While Sakuya waited, she resumed her meal, still feeling the sensation of being watched despite everyone in the immediate vicinity seeming to pay her no mind as they ate or conversed at the surrounding tables. Might just be paranoia brought on by how isolated she was, though if that was the case, she had much bigger problems to worry about.

She finished eating quickly, busing her tray and stopping to drink from the water fountain before heading out to the classrooms. She took her time getting there, walking slowly across the pavement and admiring the trees that surrounded half the school. She even contemplated stopping to smell the white lilies planted next to a window, though ultimately decided against it for obvious image-related reasons.

The design of Togami was always a bit interesting, she thought. She’d heard some people around campus call it “The Pyramid” with how the three main buildings – dorms, classrooms, and commissary – where arranged in the shape of a triangle, pavement connecting all three with a large obelisk clock in the center, all of it overlooking the rest of Gunma from on top of a hill. She quite liked the aesthetic to be perfectly honest.

Before entering the class building, she actually managed to catch a glimpse of Eriko out of bed, currently in a mad dash towards food. Whether she was motivated by hunger or the realization she only had about ten minutes before the start of classes was hard to discern, though she definitely had good running form.

The wall space between classroom doors inside the build was shared between photos of different teachers, school staff, and alumni who’d managed to make it to the pro leagues, plus a trophy case or two to represent the accomplishments of the students. Even for Sakuya, it was a bit intimidating to just be tossed into the fray, the expectation of just about everyone around her being that she’d match or surpass at least half of these people one day regardless of what she wanted to do with her life.

Her classroom was on the third floor of the three story building, third door on the right after making it up the stairs. Despite the relatively small class sizes, most of the classrooms at the academy were designed as lecture halls, which was fine for her given how much space students would have to work during classes. Taking a spot in the upper left next to the window, she set down her bag and prepared to start.

Yumi texted her back as she was getting set up, loudly(?) declaring she’d gotten a 93, outdoing even her wildest fantasies. They’d have to find a way to celebrate it later, but for now she’d have to make do with just a kissing emoticon, which would probably seem weird to an outsider but was just something they did with each other with no deeper meaning, meaning there was no reason to think too hard about it.

Class itself finally began not long after, Mrs. Ogawa taking roll before they breezed through homeroom, almost immediately moving on to math. Duel school or not, the more typical curriculum was just as impressive and complete. It was one of the reasons she agreed to attend in the first place, knowing she’d be getting a quality education even if she was forced to duel almost every day.

Funnily enough, Sakuya would be taking a test only a day after Yumi, breezing through most of it without much difficulty. As she adjusted her suspenders that held her skirt up to keep them from digging into her shoulders, she felt that same sensation of being watched once more. Scanning the room, though, only showed a group of 20 or so other students focused on their classwork.

Though she was becoming increasingly more unnerved by this feeling (it started happening about a month after she first began attending), the best she could do was ignore it. No sense in worrying over an overactive imagination.

After that was English, a class she was actually fairly interested in. Learning languages was always something of interest for her, so she was a bit excited when it came time for it. Unfortunately, given she’d only taken what amounted to about a year’s worth of the language before being tossed into a crash course and left to fend for herself in the class itself, it was one of the few areas she struggled with.

Frankly, though, she welcomed the challenge. She’d normally be unable to cope with not immediately being the best at something, but this was different. She found the battle to catch up in English somewhat refreshing even if she couldn’t really explain why. Given it was something she genuinely wanted to learn for herself rather than to simply master for the sake of it, she had a much easier time coping with the setbacks, too.

After that was social studies, then Japanese. Then it was finally time for lunch. Deciding to skip out on it (she was still full from breakfast), Sakuya left the building, bypassing the courtyard and maneuvering around the back of the cafeteria until she found the treeline. They were a towering row of oaks pressed up against the side of an imposing iron fence that surrounded the campus. Nestling between two of them and pressing her back against the metal, then took out a book and began to read.

Yumi was evidently busy, otherwise they’d be texting. Since they weren’t, Sakuya’s phone only served as an alarm to warn her of ten minutes before the end of the break, tucked safely into the breast pocket of her white collared shirt. Despite her intention of finishing off this novel, she quickly found herself drifting off to sleep in the shade.

Rather than the pleasant tones of her alarm, however, she was awoken by the shrill screams of Eriko. “Creepy girl who lives in my room!” she shouted, approaching her at alarming speeds in a dead sprint. Screeching to a halt directly in front of Sakuya, she pointed a finger accusingly and squatted down to her level. “You stole them,” she said, not even framing it as a question so much as a statement of fact.

Blinking in confusion, Sakuya couldn’t so much as ask for an explanation before she started up again. “My special magazines under my bed. They’re in that bag.”

“What are you talking about?” she asked in utter bewilderment. “I’ve never seen any of your magazines.”

“Oh, no way.” Amazingly, this seemed to be all it took to placate her. “Never mind, then.” Just as quickly as she arrived, Eriko sprinted off towards her next suspect, bright blonde ponytail like a streak of lightning behind her.

With all hope of sleep or reading dashed, Sakuya checked the time. She still had about twenty minutes before class started, though what she’d fill that time with wasn’t clear. As she got up to leave, she thought she heard a branch rustle off to the side, though spinning around revealed absolutely nothing besides more evidence she was slowly losing her mind.

Had she just waited a few more moments before walking off, though, it might be a different story. From behind a tree emerged the stalker she’d briefly contemplated might be following her, watching her wander towards the school buildings through the wiry black hair that covered his face. He’d been eyeing her ever since she started attending, deciding almost immediately to pursue her.

Sakuya was, of course, completely unaware of Toshikazu’s existence. The gaunt, greasy teenager had never actually tried to interact with her before, preferring to simply follow and observe from afar. He had to learn more about her to make a good first impression, he told himself, believing that if he just knew an arbitrary amount of information about her she’d fall for him in an instant.

This was, of course, a complete fabrication. In truth, he was just a coward too afraid to speak to a girl three years younger than him, fearing rejection more than even the numerous ethical issues his obsession presented. Really, he was just looking for a weakness, something he could exploit that would give him some kind of “edge” against her, ensuring he’d get what he wanted if he played his cards right. This was, after all, a school about playing cards.

The next class of the day was literature, unarguably Sakuya’s favorite. She’d always loved to write even if she didn’t find herself particularly good at it, meaning the opportunity to learn the fundamentals at this level was something she could look forward to. The real reason to show up to class was the teacher, though.

Maki Nobunaga, acclaimed young adult author, renowned recluse, and proud socks-with-sandals wearer, had decided to take a job teaching at the school a year ago. He declined to answer why he’d done as such, even his editor having no prior warning before the announcements showed up in the news. Just like the origins of his name (he refused to tell anyone whether or not Nobunaga was a pen name or a real one), it seemed like a mystery no one but a select few would ever get a straight answer to.

A lot of things about this man were unclear if she was being honest. His reputation from the minimal interviews and public appearances he’d made in the past pegged him as cold and disinterested, and while he certainly wasn’t sunshine and rainbows in the classroom, he seemed altogether more lively than in any video she’d ever seen of him prior. When he spoke of his books, as well, it felt like he had a genuine passion and love for what he’d written despite how often he rather brutally mocked his style and the flaws he’d found in his work over the years.

Time always flew by when he taught, at least from Sakuya’s perspective. Mr. Maki seemed to have a talent in making just about any subject matter from contemporaries to classics seem all the more interesting, pointing out tiny details and bits of trivia that made it seem like he’d sat down with the authors themselves for a chat and learned every secret the narratives held. She could tell not everyone felt the same, though, plenty of students understandably being more than a bit fed up with his eccentricities. He never gave off the impression he was someone who cared for what others thought, though, which only made her like him more.

Before she knew it, class was over. “Do the reading and get lost,” he said gruffly as students began to leave, the next class for Sakuya’s group being held at the duel arena instead of the usual classroom. “Really, get lost. Nature can be inspiring, and maybe something interesting will happen to make your boring lives more exciting.”

She was nearing the door when someone called out to her. “You, hold on,” Mr. Maki ordered, Sakuya stopping in her tracks as the rest of the class left for the dueling stadium. “I read the manuscript you left me.”

Another thing of note about Mr. Maki was a policy he made on the first day of class – anyone who wanted feedback on their personal writing could leave a copy on his desk. Obviously, Sakuya hadn’t been the first to try this. The whole class had seemed a bit hesitant when they first began last semester, but after about a week, some brave soul was spotted handing him a small stack of papers at the end of class. After that happened, it was open season on reviews, with dozens of different students from all classes submitting their stories for critique.

And now he’d read hers. In only a single night, though? It wasn’t exactly small. “What did you think?” she asked nervously, trying hard to keep her voice from cracking or otherwise showing her nervousness.

“Frankly, it's crap.” Sakuya bit her bottom lip at hearing that, steeling herself to keep her disappointment in check. “There's no coherent theme, at least not one I could make out, you underdescribe things like scenery but always manage to focus too much on appearances, you don't vary your descriptors or sentence structure enough, and the plot is an incoherent mess half the time before becoming too up its own ass the next.”

He leaned back in his chair and scratched his dark mustache, continuing on his with his appraisal as if he hadn’t just torpedoed a small child’s dreams. “That having been said, your characters were genuinely inspired. If not for the interpersonal chemistry between them, I'd have given up after three chapters, but you managed to invest me enough in them that I suffered through the rest of it to see how they turned out.”

She blinked, unsure of what to say next. “Th...thank you. Is that true?”

He nodded, leaning further back and kicking his feet up on the desk. “You managed to instill a genuine sense of camaraderie and friendship between these really mismatched people, and that made it interesting to watch them play off each other. Your villain was appropriately threatening with a fair amount of nuance even if his motives didn't make any damn sense, and the way you wrote the side characters made me want to see their stories as much as the protagonists’. Be proud of that, since it takes most authors a decade to finally get all that down right.”

Sakuya was speechless. He'd torn her work to shreds immediately before heaping this level or praise on her. She wasn't sure how to react beyond a blank stare and heavy breathing. “Want some advice?” She nodded quickly. “Plot is the least important part of a story. I mean, you still need one that works, but characters come first. Good characters can make even the worst story work, which is what you've got here. Get a good cast and you can tell pretty much anything you want as long as you do it well.” He held out her manuscript to her. “Keep doing that and I'll be happy to read a second draft.”

She quickly took the papers and bowed to him. “Thank you, sir. Your advice is invaluable to me.”

“Don't be a kiss ass,” he said, pulling a pair of black headphones onto his ears from around his neck. “If you want to thank me, just keep improving. Now get out of here so I'm not responsible for you being late to class.” She nodded once more, thanking him one last time (not that he’d hear over the Korean lounge music blasting far louder than it was intended to be played) before running off down the hall to try and make up for lost time, all the while trying unsuccessfully to keep a smile from creeping its way across her lips.

Despite the utter evisceration her work received initially, the fact she'd managed to do something well enough – so well she deserved praise for it, even – that a real author supported her made her positively ecstatic. She resolved to keep working to hopefully make her story better the second time around. She'd have to tell Yumi about this when she got back to the dorms.

\Next: Afternoon Out with Friends - Can We Have Ramen this Time?/

Chapter Text

It was a long but unusually easy day at school. The class was in between big assignments and tests at the moment, so most of the students were taking it pretty easy outside of the routine studying. There wasn’t much going in the area of club activities, either, so many more than usual had free schedules after class.

“There’s no practice today, so what do you want to do?” Suzy had joined the track team like Ami had suggested, realizing she was unexpectedly quick when she wanted to be. Right now, though, they were leaving school at the same time as Yumi. Deciding to use the free time as a group, the three tried to figure out what to do together.

They hadn’t really decided on what they were meant to be doing yet, having expected one another to think of an idea before school ended. Now they were just walking around aimlessly hoping someone would have an idea to no avail. Beyond a few, “What if we...” and “Maybe we could...” utterances, the three simply wandered the city with no goal or direction.

Suddenly, Yumi’s phone buzzed. Moments after looking at the screen, she began to hop up and down. “I finally know what we can do!” she told the others excitedly. “We can go see my friends.”

The meeting place they headed to was a bit out of the way compared to any of the usual shops or restaurants near the school, but they made it there on foot without much issue. Right as they reached the unassuming ramen stand, a couple familiar faces came into view.

Forgoing any kind of greeting or introductions, Yumi launched herself into Kazuhiko’s arms for a long-awaited hug. “Come on, you don’t have to do this every time,” he complained, making no effort at all to not hug her back.

“It’s been so long since we got to see each other, though,” she said, jumping off him to high five Hideo, having taken to it as a preferred method of contact as of late.

“It was barely two weeks ago and we’ve been texting every day.”

Yumi shrugged. “Feels like longer. Are you okay?” She gestured towards the both of them and their dirtied, wrinkled clothes, not to mention the fresh, purple bruise on Kazuhiko’s cheek.

“It’s nothing,” he said with a wave of his hand. “Just had to set some guys straight for picking on a buddy of mine.” He and Hideo instinctively fist bumped without looking at each other, perfectly in sync.

“You get in fights?” Suzy asked, the first of the two to approach the older kids. With a tiny squeal of excitement, she blurted out, “Are you a real high school delinquent?”

It took him a moment to register what she’d said, but upon understanding her meaning and grasping that she probably wasn’t from Japan, he couldn’t help but grin. “Yeah, so don’t mess with me. Wouldn’t want to have to rough you up, you know?” He did his best to look intimidating, forehead vein popping as he scowled as hard as possible. This only made her more enthusiastic, almost having the urge to whip out a piece of paper for an autograph.

“Is it really okay for us to be talking to someone like that?” Ami whispered after pulling Yumi aside.

She laughed, amused at just the idea Kazuhiko was even capable of being dangerous. “Oh, yeah, definitely. Watch, I saw this in a TV show once.” Without warning, Yumi began sprinting forward, screaming “Catch me!” at the last moment.

Immediately dropping any pretense of looking cool, Kazuhiko stopped posing and dropping one-liners to grab Yumi out of the air, stumbling around trying not to fall over. “Don’t do that!” he said, putting her down. As he did, Hideo took her place, jumping into Kazuhiko’s arms. “No one else better do this!” he yelled, though it was fairly clear he’d continue catching until people stopped throwing themselves at him.

“Told you so,” Yumi said, Ami feeling a bit more secure seeing the tough guy act crumble to pieces. “He even cries when he watches those commercials with all the sad animals in cages.”

“I do not!” he protested, finally letting Hideo go after casually holding them for several seconds longer than one would expect. “I just get real angry, is all. With how people can treat their dogs like that. Those little guys depend on you to take care of them, and then people just hurt them and abandon them, and it’s...” He turned his back to the group, wiping away the tears at the corners of his eyes with his sleeve before sticking his hands in his pockets. “Anyway, I’m hungry, so I’m going over there.”

As the group followed Kazuhiko to the ramen stand, not allowing him to outrun his embarrassment, Hideo walked beside Yumi and presented her a card. “You found it for me!” she shouted, quickly pocketing it.

“Found what?” Suzy asked as they sat down.

“Just a card I was looking for. And I’m not telling you what it is yet, so don’t ask.”

She flailed her arms in Yumi’s direction and grumbled. “Come on. I bet it’s not that big of a deal.”

“Nope. It’s going to be a surprise next time we duel.”

They would have continued the bickering for several minutes if allowed (arguing back and forth to try and make the other reveal their new cards had almost become a hobby to them), but the conversation was interrupted by the woman working the stand. “What can I- oh, hey, it’s you guys.”

“Haru!” Yumi shouted directly into her unfazed face. Slapping herself on the forehead, her outburst made her realize a crucial detail she’d forgotten up until now. “I totally didn’t introduce anyone, did I?”

“Was kind of waiting for you to do that,” Kazuhiko said.

“Sorry! Okay, that’s Kazuhiko and Hideo,” she said to the girls. “They’re my friends from summer and are in high school.” She turned the opposite direction. “That’s Ami and Suzy Q. Ami’s been my friend since elementary school and Suzy just moved here from America. And that’s Haru who runs the ramen stand, but half of you already knew that.”

Before taking their orders, Haru paused to look Kazuhiko up and down. “You look worse than usual. Did your little sister beat you up again?”

He scoffed, waving his hand. “Not this time. Just took care of some bullies. They were picking on a guy I know and no one else wanted to help.” The others looked to him, now intrigued by the extra detail. “It’s nothing much. I was friends with a dude named Yomi back in middle school and we kind of fell out of talking a lot since last year, but we’re still pals. But he’s always been kind of a sickly nerd, and it looks like some people at school have been taking advantage of him, so me and Hideo decided to put a stop to it.”

“Wow, I get to serve ramen to a couple of heroes today. I’d almost feel like giving you some kind of discount if my dad would let me.”

“Yeah, I was just thinking that.” Kazuhiko combed through his hair with a smirk. “Maybe you need some protection around here. Couple of tough delinquents out front and no one will mess with you.”

“I think we’re good,” she said preparing some bowls for the group in advance.

“I don’t know, be a shame if something...happened.”

She laughed. “Kyoko’s got it covered. No offense, but she and her girls would stomp the yard all over your ass if they wanted to.”

“Yeah, you’re probably right,” he with a disappointed look. In the dueling world he might edge her out, but when it came to fighting, Kyoko far outclassed him. If this was a different kind of story, she’d probably be his rival full time by now given how much it motivated him to get stronger.

“Is Kyoko around right now?” Yumi asked, looking excitedly up and down the street and trying to listen for any motorcycles in the distance.

“Nah, she’s off doing some things with the gang,” Haru said. “Still really bummed she had to dye her hair back to its normal color.”

“What is it now?” Yumi asked.

“This real mellow green. I always liked it, but she’s all depressed.”

“Speaking of people who aren’t here,” Kazuhiko interrupted, “where’s your dad at? Doesn’t he work the stand with you?”

Haru pouted and stomped her foot. “He left right when I got here from school. I think he’s out drinking with his friends. That’s what I’m supposed to be doing!” She quickly corrected herself, remembering the children sitting in front of her. “Age-appropriate drinking, I mean.”

She sighed and shrugged her shoulders. “It’s no big deal, I guess. I like working here, so it’s not a problem right now. What do you want to eat, by the way?”

Kazuhiko looked at the menu for a moment before deciding on his order. “Think I’ll go with the tonkotsu. Extra pork, too, and mild.” He looked to Hideo who nodded in approval. “Make that two, but one extra spicy.”

“Ooh, three!” Yumi said. “Mild, though.”

Ami scanned the menu, giving her order a bit apprehensively. She was never very good at making quick choices. “I guess...the shoyu. Can I ask what the broth base is?”

“Chicken for that one.”

“Oh, okay. I’ll take that, please.”

“Want extra pork, too?”

She gave a small laugh and nodded. “I guess so.”

Attention fell to Suzy. For what seemed like the first time since she’d arrived in Chiba, she was quiet. Nervously, she asked, “I don’t want to sound picky or disrespectful, but the shoyu ramen doesn’t have any pork or shrimp in it, right? Like, in the broth?”

“It shouldn’t. If you wanted that, I might be able to figure something out.”

“No, no! That’s what I wanted. I’ll have the shoyu, too, and no pork, please.”

Yumi laughed. “You must really hate pork.”

“Well, sort of.” She cleared her throat. “It’s more I just don’t eat it, you know? It’s not kosher.”

“What’s that mean?” she asked, Ami turning to hear the explanation. On the other end, Hideo had preemptively pulled up a definition for Kazuhiko to read, who nodded understandingly.