Seto Kaiba was wandering aimlessly down the streets of Domino City.

It was dark. It was raining. He did not care.

A few people seemed to notice him, as he was one of the most well known men in the city after all. He decided to slip into an empty alley to avoid the stares, the publicity, and the possibility that someone might notice the fact that he was going out of his mind right now.

"Damn you!" he shouted as he punched a brick wall in his rage. It hurt for a while, but quite frankly the physical pain was a welcome distraction from the emotional pain he had been feeling today.

Today... he had finally had his duel. Against him. The man that he wanted to beat more than he wanted anything else in the world.

Vivid images began to flood Kaiba's mind. Memories of the magician against his dragon, like so many times before. Victory so close that he could taste it, with virtually no way to lose. Yet when the pharaoh pulled his last card... with a stoic face and determination like none other, Kaiba had felt the air around him change and a cold breeze brush by him. Sensing an energy you cannot explain, the very world itself bent to the pharaoh's will. A few moments later, Kaiba's life points had fallen to zero, and the chance for revenge had once again been lost. The whole trip, all that effort, nothing but a waste.

As the images in his head faded, Kaiba sat down on the street and leaned against the wall that he had just punched, embracing the silence around him. He closed his eyes, and for several minutes, the world seemed quiet.

"Kaiba."

He heard a voice call out his name and as he opened his eyes, he found himself staring at his rival.

"What are YOU doing here?!" he scowled. "HOW are you here?!"

"I had a feeling I was... needed. Destiny usually tends to lead me where I need to be," the pharaoh said.

"Screw you and your destiny," Kaiba responded as he got up and decided to leave.

The pharaoh put his hand on Kaiba's chest and stopped him.

"Listen, Kaiba. I know you think you did not get what you wanted today, but you are wrong. This is what you needed."

"Oh, really?" Kaiba sneered as he looked down upon the pharaoh. "What I needed was to spend several million dollars to build the technology that made it possible for me to travel to the afterlife just so I could see you again and lose yet another duel against you?"

"No, Kaiba," the pharaoh answered, looking up at him with a gentle smile on his face. "You needed to see me again."

The pharaoh lifted his hand from Kaiba's chest, and for a brief moment he caressed Kaiba's cheek, making sure there was not quite enough time to protest before his body started to fade into thin air.

"Till next time, Seto."