Chapter 1:
The boat was on its way to Duel Academy's island for yet another year – this time with an entirely new group of passengers. Aboard the ship were girls dressed in red and yellow uniforms as well, brand-new dorms awaiting them on the island. To oversee this momentous change, Academy founder Seto Kaiba was along for the ride (though he hadn't been seen since the ship left port).
Some were more interested in the new passengers than others. Senka Night's alert ears caught snippets of conversation as she watched the crowd from the edge of the deck with apathy.
"Check it out! More girls!"
"Is that all you think about?"
"I'm so glad it'll be more than just us Blues making up the female community at the Academy! That's great!"
"Hey, ladies. Let me welcome you to the Academy by…hey, where are you going?"
A particularly strong sea breeze blew Senka's silver hair painfully into her half-lidded yellow eyes, and she squeezed them shut, brushing her hair back to its usual position, covering the upper right half of her face. Sighing quietly, she made her way to the safety of the refreshment stands, where a large umbrella shaded her from the sun.
She sat down on one of the benches, tugging uncomfortably at the edge of her red miniskirt. Why did the Academy have to issue such short skirts for the girls?
"Need anything, Miss?" asked a vendor. Her sweet tooth immediately began begging for sugar, and Senka nodded.
"Chocolate milkshake," she said curtly.
"Um, right away," said the vendor, a little put-off by her abrupt manner of speech. She opened the top of her uniform jacket and reached into the side pocket of the black collared shirt underneath (the collar of this was high enough to be visible over the neckline of the jacket even when closed). She took the payment from the wallet within and dropped it on the table, just in time for the vendor to return with her milkshake. She heard him take the money, and she reached back until her hand encountered the cool surface of the disposable cup.
Her fingers closed around it, and she brought it around, lifting it up to drink.
But just before her lips could close around the straw, a meaty hand snatched it from her grasp, and her eyes widened briefly before she glared up at the offender, a redheaded boy wearing blue. He was muscular, and displayed to be so by his sleeveless uniform, which also revealed a skull-shaped tattoo on his left shoulder.
He grinned tauntingly, golden eyes mocking. "Thanks for buying for me, Red chump!" he jeered. He made an obscene gesture at her with his free hand and turned to walk away.
Senka blushed briefly as she realized all eyes were on her, now that the loud Blue boy had drawn attention to her. The scarlet hue vanished from her face, however, as she watched the boy joke with a random group of Blue students about the theft.
She didn't like to be bullied.
Deliberately, she stood and smoothed out her skirt. With dignified but rapid strides, she closed the distance between them and tugged on the boy's jacket.
"Yeah, hair over an eye and everything. Emo bi - huh?"
He had felt the tug. He turned around and glared menacingly at Senka. She glared right back.
"That's mine," she said, pointing to the milkshake in his hand.
"No, it was yours," said the boy as the group of Blue students around him laughed. "It's mine, now." To prove his point, he raised the cup to his lips. However, before he could drink…
"Duel."
The hand holding the cup lowered, and he stared at her in disbelief.
"Huh?" the boy wondered, dumbstruck for a moment. Then, he threw his head back and laughed. "Fine by me," he said, putting the milkshake down in the center of the closest umbrella-covered table. "Let's duel for it. I'll wipe the floor with your pathetic cards and drink your milkshake too!"
The duelists turned and walked away from the table. The students around them cleared the way. Each held out their arms as their Duel Disks deployed, opening up and setting Life Point display. A grid formed from light between them. The computers in each linked, and the two duelists slid their decks into the slot. A red light appeared on Senka's. Her move first.
"Duel!" both declared at once, drawing their first hands in unison.
Senka drew one more, and looked at her hand. "I play Ninja Commando Kabuki," she announced, her voice carefully even as she took the card from her hand and placed it on an open space on the disk. The hologram emitters on her Duel Disk activated. A human form materialized before her, and solidified into a tall man wearing a white helmet and armor, with loose black pants accentuated by a golden flare around the back from the armor.
"It's effect activates," she continued. "I can Special Summon one 'Ninja' monster from my hand or deck. I summon the Strike Ninja from my hand." She did so, and a new hologram joined Ninja Commando Kabuki on the field, this one a more 'traditional'-looking ninja wearing a black bodysuit with three-pronged red pads on the knees, a golden belt with the same symbol, golden accents on his wrists and ankles, and a long crimson scarf.
As the first Duelist to go, Senka was forbidden from attacking. "Your turn," she said to the bully.
"Fine," he said, observing the statistics of each of her monsters. Ninja Commando Kabuki was an easy target, with only 700 attack points. Strike Ninja had a thousand more, and even if he went for Kabuki, Strike Ninja could probably defeat whatever he sent out…unless…
"I summon Drawler," he said, laying the card on his disk. "I gotta admit, Red, you made a pretty good start. But now I'll mop the floor with you!"
He grinned as a large steamroller-like Monster made of gray stone materialized before him. "With each card I shuffle back into my deck, I increase its attack and defense by five hundred! So, I'll just say goodbye to these four cards," he shuffled four cards back into his deck, "and hello to 2000 attack points! Drawler, attack her Ninja Commando Kabuki!"
Drawler rolled forward, and Kabuki was crushed beneath its rollers. Senka's eyes darted to her Life Point count, watching as it dropped to 6700. She put the Ninja Commando Kabuki card at the bottom of her deck. "Fine, but your Drawler sends cards into the Deck, not the Graveyard," she said as Drawler reversed and rolled back to its original position. "Anything else?"
"Nope, I think I'll let you go on a little longer."
"Talk is cheap," said Senka, drawing a card. She added it to her hand, and pulled another one from it, laying it on the disk. "Lady Ninja Yae, attack mode."
A green-haired female ninja in a violet jumpsuit appeared, her red scarf trailing behind her as she held a dagger before her.
"Hah, stupid Red!" taunted the Blue. "She can't beat my Drawler. Her attack is only 1100."
"I know." Senka pulled another card from her hand and slid it into the slot below Strike Ninja. "Black Pendant, equipped to Strike Ninja. His new attack is 2200."
A void-black pendant set in gold appeared on a purple-beaded chain around Strike Ninja's neck. It glowed, and the monster was surrounded by a dark aura. "Strike Ninja, attack Drawler," she commanded, slowly raising her hand to point at the target.
Strike Ninja leapt across the grid, bringing his twin kunai down on the stone beast. A small crack formed in their wake, and the hologram crumbled. Strike Ninja leapt back to his space as the bully's Life Points dropped to 7800. The other Duelist's eyes widened slightly as he realized he was vulnerable.
Senka smirked slightly, the only change in expression she'd made since the start of the Duel. "Lady Ninja Yae, direct attack," she said.
Yae leapt forward, and the bully flinched as the holographic knife passed harmlessly through him. (Real or not, you can't help but flinch at a knife coming at you.) His Life Points dropped to 6700.
"We're tied," said Senka, her face returning to its passive apathy. "Your turn."
"Yeah? Well, not for long," said the bully. "I'll set a monster and a card," he said, placing the monster card facedown on the field and sliding a card into the slot below it. Holograms of facedown cards appeared on the field. "Go ahead. Attack…if you dare!"
Senka drew a card. "Alright. Kunoichi Ayame the Ninja Girl, attack mode."
"That's redundant!" a random spectator yelled.
"Your point?" said Senka, as the bully snickered.
He wasn't laughing at the name of the black-clad ninja's card, but at the fact that said card was only 300 attack points strong, and it had no effect. "You think you can do anything with that pathetic card?" he jeered. "You see, that's why you're a Red and I'm a Blue. I know when a card is worthless!"
Senka said nothing to that, declaring her attack as if the bully had remained silent. "Lady Ninja Yae, attack."
The ninja rushed towards the facedown card, and it flipped over as her knife connected with it, revealing a robot made of gold metal with a single red eye, arms crossed defensively. Yae flinched as the strike jarred her arm, and Senka's life points dropped to 5900 from the successful defense. Thwarted, the monster leapt back to her space, visibly disappointed.
"Strike Ninja. Attack."
Strike Ninja leapt at the revealed Mine Golem, and the Black Pendant glowed, a similar glow appearing around his kunai. The sliced into the metal monster, and a white shine came from the crack. Strike Ninja's glowing red eyes glowed brighter, as if surprised, as the Mine Golem exploded, blowing the ninja back to his space, sprawled on the ground. The shockwave went past the ninja, engulfing the Duelist in holographic dust. Her Life Points dropped to 5400.
"It's called Mine Golem for a reason," said the bully as Strike Ninja picked himself up. "When it's destroyed by battle, it deals 500 damage to the opponent!" He slipped the Mine Golem card into the Graveyard to join Drawler. "My turn yet?"
"No," said Senka as the dust settled. "Ayame, attack."
"Barely a scratch!" said the bully as Ayame threw a shuriken at him, bringing his Life Points to 6400.
"But damage nonetheless. Your turn."
The bully drew a card, and his expression changed, surprise. He made an annoyed "Tch!" sound as he placed another facedown card beside his first. "Your turn," he spat.
Senka allowed herself another smirk as she drew, and placed a facedown. Then, she picked up Ayame's card. "Tribute," she announced. "I summon Ansatsu."
A swirling blue column of energy surged around Ayame, engulfing her. When it cleared, another ninja was standing in her place, this one a black-clothed male with red shoulder decorations, holding a single kunai.
"You have a poor poker face," she said, still smirking. "I take it your facedowns won't cause me trouble? Yae, direct attack."
Yae leapt at him, a triumphant grin on her face as she sliced into the opposing Duelist. She backflipped to her space as the bully's Life Points fell to 5300.
"Ansatsu."
Ansatsu was gone in a blur, and the bully's Life Points were 3600. Just like that, he was back on his space. Yae and Strike Ninja glared at him, as if scolding him for being a showoff.
"Kaiba really oudid himself. These holograms are so realistic," Senka overheard from the crowd.
"Strike Ninja."
Strike Ninja leapt from his space, mimicking Ansatsu in his attack. The bully's LP was 1400.
"You have one turn left," Senka informed the bully.
"Tch, I know that! I'll have no problem…beating…aw, crap." The bully sighed as he looked at the card he'd drawn. "Go. Damnit."
"Then I win. Ansatsu, direct attack."
Ansatsu leapt at the bully, and his Life Points dropped to 0. All holograms vanished (but not before her ninjas struck a victory pose) as Senka's Duel Disk registered the win. She calmly reset the disk to inactive, and put her deck back into her pocket. "I'll take my milkshake now," she said, walking past the stunned Blue to retrieve her prize.
"I…I lost to a Red?" the bully stammered as Senka walked away, sipping her milkshake.
The bully erupted into a string of curses behind her as Senka, indifferent, leaned on the rail, straw in her mouth, as the Duel Academy island came into view.