The sound of a candy wrapper being crinkled is the first thing he hears when he wakes. Slowly, he raises his head, the metal wires attached to the base of his neck creaking slightly. He hates the feeling of it, the cold steel and plastic chafing away at his flesh. The temptation to scream is always lingering but he's learned that screaming only makes it hurt more. He's learned that begging only incites cruel snickering from his captors.

Fuuma Hikage's only wish now is to die. It sickens him to feel this way, but death feels like a welcome thing now.

"Hurts doesn't it?" a voice calls out to him so thinly veiled with honey that he wants to cringe, but is unable to. Instead, Hikage's eyes blink wearily at the blue-haired Academia duelist who is nonchalantly sucking on a piece of candy. Shiu…nin Sora…

"How does it feel to be part of Akaba Leo's plans?" Sora raps the machine with his knuckles, a wicked leer curling his lips at the metallic echo the machine makes. "Impressive, if I do say so myself. Hard to imagine all this was done in just three years, right?" He gestures to the hall behind him, where other identical machines are whirring and clicking. All of them are attached to someone who once took pride in their dueling prowess.

Men, women, children. All from the Xyz Dimension. Beyond his cell, Hikage knows of five more that come from Standard. His world. And here in the Fusion Dimension, they have all been reduced to living experiments for Akaba Leo's mad amusement. In his own way, the ninja is grateful that his little brother is still safe. But for how long?

Sora continues talking about how the duelists here will all help with fusing all the worlds into one and how Xyz and Standard are merely stepping stones for it to happen. "In the end, Fusion will be the true world and the true Summoning method. Everything else should just fall on their knees and accept it. Don't you agree, ninja-chan~?"

"…" he cannot speak, his vocal chords still raw from days of screaming as he was being hooked up to a generator and being left to adjust to the mechanical gears now running down his back, piercing flesh and bone. His eyes have long since dulled and there are tear tracks staining his cheeks. His mask had been ripped from him, as was all his armor, leaving him bare from the waist up. His hands are hung to his sides, a needle strung to his left forearm to provide him with nutrients to keep him alive.

The blue-haired duelist tsks and slaps Hikage hard across the face before yanking the ninja's hair down so they're face to face. "Well? Answer me, ninja trash." His green eyes are filled with hatred and it makes him want to curl up out of fear. Another slap, a little softer than the first, but still painful enough to sting.

Hikage's throat strains as he tries to talk. He can feel his voice box rattling when he opens his mouth and emanates a raspy hiss. "Ffffool…issh." The idea was madness. Each Summon was special, none where inferior or superior to the other. It didn't matter what method a duelist used, as long as they were smiling and having fun. That's what he believed in. That is what he had been taught by his Clan.

Your duty is to see your job through, Hikage. But ,most importantly, you and your brother should enjoy yourselves, as children should.

Cracking down hard on the lollipop in his mouth, Sora stares at the prisoner for a moment, and drops his hold on Hikage's hair. Turning to leave, he looks back over his shoulder with one more spiteful remark. "I'll be back soon. Maybe this time I'll bring your brother down here too." He walks away, unwrapping yet another sweet to snack on, his footsteps echoing loudly amidst the moans and cries of pain and despair.

Hikage's head drops to stare at the floor, gnashing his teeth. Tsukikage was strong. He wasn't suited for a place like this and it was Hikage's job to protect him. Protect his flesh and blood. He was certain that the others here had done the same for their loved ones, for their homes. And he'll be damned if the Fusion Dimension were to win this war.

While there was no hope for him in this place, Hikage was certain that Akaba's son, Reiji, would foil the madman's plans. He had that child by his side after all. And Akaba Reiji had been adamant that that child would be the one to save them all.

Sasaki Yuuya of the Pendulum.