Hey, everyone! I have a brand new story for you! Hot off the typer! In this story, there is no separation of Domino city (Satellite or Neo Domino), it's just Domino City. Jack, Crow, and Yusei grow up in the same neighborhood as Akiza so they are childhood friends in this story. I came up with this as I watching the anime (for the sixtieth time, even though I only have seasons 1 & 2), and thought "What the heck? Why not?". So here you are! I don't own rights to YuGiOh! 5Ds! Enjoy!

Remove the Mask:

Clues

Yusei POV

I looked up at the giant mansion before me, recalling all the times that I had come here as a child. "It's been twelve years," I murmured, knocking twice. "Maybe today you will be home."

The door opened to reveal the now wrinkled face of Akiza's father, Hideo. His eyes were more shadowed than usual, telling me what I already knew. "Hello, Yusei, come on in." He opened the door further and ushered me towards the sitting room as he asked their butler, a man around his sixties with a receding hairline, to bring drinks.

Taking a seat in the gray colored sofa, I noticed that her mother was nowhere in sight. "Where's the Mrs.?" I asked, accepting the glass that Mr. Tanaka handed me.

He sighed heavily as he handed Hideo a cup of steaming coffee. "The madam is feeling very heartbroken as of late, Master Fudo. She has not emerged from her the young mistress's bedroom for quite a while now."

A lump formed in my throat as Hideo rested his head in his hands. Seeing the parents of my closest friend in this much pain made my own seem small in comparison. When she had first disappeared, I would come over and sit in her room, expecting her to walk in with a smile on her face. It wasn't until after a week of that when I finally understood that she had gone missing. For the past twelve years, on the anniversary of her disappearance, I would stop by and check on her household...hoping that my best friends had finally come back.

"Yusei," Hideo's voice pulled me from my thoughts. "I-we have a request for you."

"Oh?"

"You and Akiza were especially close," he began. "When your family moved in across the street, she was the first to help you get settled. You two were inseparable and knew each other better than anyone else." His eyes rose to meet my own. "No one knows her better than you."

"What are you getting at?" I inquired, a little on the embarrassed side. Had we really come off that strong? We had been teased that we would one day unite the families, but we were young naive children and didn't understand their meaning.

"Maybe there's something you know that could help us. You may know something that could help us bring Akiza home."

"Believe me, sir," I tilted my head forward so that my bangs covered my eyes. "If I can help, I will do everything in my power to bring her home."

~L~A~F~

What did I know that the police and detectives didn't already? I wondered, falling onto my bed. Yeah we knew each other, but I doubted that I could be of any help to them. They have already checked the places you liked to go; the library, the park down the street, they even took our friends' families in for questioning. No one knew what happened to you, it was as if you were carried away by an invisible force to some faraway place.

I bolted upright, the last train of thought echoing through my head. Invisible force... Jumping to my feet, I sprinted to the park at the end of the street and slid to a stop next to the little "garden" she had made near the north end. Memories flooded my head as I studied what was once her mud garden.

-Flashback-

"Check it out you guys," one of the neighborhood kids laughed, pulling Akiza's hair. His name was Trudge and he liked to pick on anyone he saw as a weakling. "Looks like she's made herself a bed of mud."

"Actually, it's a garden," she snapped, pointing to the neat rows she had made. "Daisies go in that first one, then it's tulips, daffodils, witch hazel, and then roses."

Jack, Crow and I stepped forward as she whimpered, the fifteen year old giving her hair another painful tug. "Back off, mate," Jack smacked his hand as Crow and I faced his followers. "You better leave her alone or else we're going to have to make you."

He chuckled, smiling wickedly. "Oh, I'm so scared of a bunch of six year olds who think themselves heroes for standing up for a four year old baby." Grabbing the front of my shirt, he used me to knock Crow and Jack to the ground. "Just look at you helpless little brats!"

"Stop it!" I blinked in shock as the ground suddenly caved, forming a giant crater with Akiza in the center. Her short hair looked as if it was standing on end and there was a strange vibe in the air as she continued to shout at Trudge. "You're nothing but a mean bully! Why can't you just leave me alone?!" She broke down into a sobbing heap as the strange vibe suddenly disappeared.

Trudge, whose eyes had grown three times their size, pointed a finger at Akiza. "You freak! Look what you did!" We stood and gasped: the crater had grown and nearly destroyed the whole park! "You're a freak! A monster! A witch!"

Jack slugged him across the jaw as Crow kicked his two followers in the shins. "Let's go! We have to take her home!" He helped her onto my back and we sprinted to her house.

-Flashback Ends-

The crater had been filled with polyurethane and the park had been replaced with newer playground sets a few months after the incident. She never wanted to talk about it, so we never bothered to bring it up. Trudge and the other kids who had witnessed the event, on the other hand, called her a witch from that day forward. "At least this is a start," I sighed, sitting in the empty swing that she had used countless times. "Aki..."

"So," I looked up to see Crow and Jack approach. "Any luck?"

"None, but they have asked me to help in the search," I sighed, running a hand through my hair. "I think I have a start, but I honestly don't know where to go from here." I explained the train of thought that I had and they nodded in agreement, proving my suspicion that something was behind Akiza's disappearance. We all agreed that if we put our heads together, we may be able to find out what happened to her. I blinked in surprise as Jack threw me my red helmet.

"Let's go for a ride and come up with a plan," he simply stated, climbing onto his Phoenix Whirlwind. "Besides, I could use a cup of coffee."

~L~A~F~

"Do you drink anything besides coffee?" Crow asked as we took our seats at one of the tables.

"Now that you mention it," he fingered his chin. "I haven't had any Blue Eyes lattes or ristrettos in a while. Waitress, get me a Blue Eyes latte with 2% and double espresso on the double!"

Crow shook his head as the waitresses disappeared into the kitchen fighting one another to fulfill his order. "What chicks see in you I will never understand."

"Back to the topic," I coughed, catching their attention. "How do we want to handle this?"

"One of us should head down to Security HQ and get the files. Since I'm more like a cop compared to the two of you, I'll infiltrate and snag the case files before they know what hit them!"

"You?" Crow scoffed. "You couldn't steal a penny off the street without getting caught."

"He has a point," I chuckled, earning a glare. "You do have a record of getting caught. I'll go down to Security and see if I can get the files. Meanwhile, Crow could go and search her room for any leads that someone may have missed."

"You can count on me," Crow nodded. "I'll go through the room with a fine tooth comb."

"What am I supposed to do?" Jack mumbled as the waitresses swarmed him, each holding a drink he had previously ordered. "There are so many to pick from."

I rolled my eyes, pinching my nose. A lightbulb appeared in my head. "Hey, Jack, whatever happened to Trudge?"

The second he heard that name he turned his full attention to me, his violet eyes blazing. "Last I heard, he was planning on becoming an officer! Why else do you think that I would want to go to Security?! I want to use his face as my personal stress ball!" The girls scattered at his yells, leaving the coffees on the table.

"We don't need to give them a reason to fight us," I pointed out, picking a macchiato and sipping it. "We need to form a partnership with them if we plan to get anywhere. Since my dad was one of the leading scientists in the city, I think they will allow me certain privileges."

"Look at you Mr. Special," Crow teased, smirking at me from over the brim of his own drink. "What happens if they don't let you access the files?"

"I've got that covered," Jack pipped up, slamming his fist down on the table. "First thing tomorrow morning, I'm going to question Trudge and see if he worked the case at some point. That way, in case Yusei doesn't get anywhere, someone is at least productive." My lips lifted into a smile as I took another sip as Crow pointed out that he would be looking for clues that the police might have missed. "Knowing you, you're just going to end up demolishing the place, you know, since you're so clumsy."

"Clumsy?!"

I was surprised to feel relief flood my body. The last time that they had bickered like this had been when she first disappeared. Since then, they had become quiet and passive, nothing like their usual selves. They stood to butt head, nearly knocking the table over, and I just barely caught one of the extra drinks. The teacup was a light pink with dark red floral patterns around the brim and was filled with a double caramel macchiato, a drink that she had tried when we stopped by this very same cafe for snacks and had surprisingly liked it. I shook my head. Remembering that she liked that kind wasn't going to help us find her. Pulling out my phone, I made a note of it anyway. We couldn't be too cautious in noting anything.

What do you guys think? Please leave a comment/review and let me know! Hope to hear from you soon!