"Oooiiiii~, how much longer are we gonna be walking in this mundane place? Oi! I'm talking you, Kurosaki!"

Shun wasn't sure how much longer he could take it.

Sawatari's constant whining, which has continuously going on for the last two hours, had Shun wishing he could card him already. Thanks, Akaba.

He quietly contemplated on the choice of knocking him out for the sake of silence.

"Oi!"

No. Then he would be pain to lug about. Maybe, just maybe, he could tune out the duelist, then -

"Kurosaki!"

...Never mind. Initiating knock-out sequence, now.

Just as Shun was about to was to swiftly "give Sawatari what he deserved", Gongenzaka, who he had forgotten was with them as well, placed a large hand on his shoulder and met his eyes. He shook his head.

'It's not worth it,' The large man seemed to silently tell him, as if he had anticipated Kurosaki's actions. Shun made an annoyed sigh, turning away from the duelist.

To keep his mind off of his group member behind him, he tried focusing on other things, but the hallway they traveled was gray and, as Shingo had described it earlier, mundane.

He sighed once more.

God, he wished something interesting would happen already, so Sawatari would shut. up.

...

...

"Kuro-" BOOM

The explosion reverberated along the metallic hallway. The sound caused the floor beneath them to quake in such a way that it was nearly impossible to stand.

As the echos died away, Gongenzaka and Shun stood up slowly.

"What was that?" Shun asked shakily.

"I don't know. Perhaps someone is dueling?" Gongenzaka replied.

Before the RaidRaptors duelist could answer, a piercing yell reached his and the large fighter's ears. A loud thump followed.

The scream was all too familiar.

"Yuya!" Gongenzaka yelled, racing down the seemingly never-ending corridor.

Shun pondered on following him briefly.

"Oof. What happened," a voice said behind him. "Kuros - Hey! Come back here!"

Kurosaki sped off as fast as he could, closely following suit.

#####################################################################################

After much running the pair encountered a large strange room. There were tables, which were all knocked over, that Shun was sure were once covered in a multitude of things, as all of the items nearly coated the entire floor. The center of the room was a mess, as well. The walls and ceiling were dented and scorched in some places.

'Definitely a duel,' he thought, glancing over at the tomato-haired duelist, who lay un-moving on the floor.

Gongenzaka ran over to Yuya and cradled him in his arms. Shun swiftly walked over and crouched near the Sakaki's head. "Is he alright?"

"Ah," Gongenzaka nodded. "unconscious, but otherwise okay. What happened here?"

"A duel, for sure, but...where did his opponent go?" Shun questioned, staring at the 'WIN' icon flashing on Yuya's duel disk.

"That is a good question...ah, but we have to get Yuya out of here first before we encounter the Obelisk Force-" Gongenzaka's words were cut short as a groan erupted from the body on his lap.

The large duelist looked down at the boy. "Yuya!"

Yuya's face scrunched up, but loosened as his eyes fluttered open. His ruby eyes (which glowed for a moment?) met Gongenzaka's. They were full of confusion.

"Y-Yuya?"

"...Gong...gen...zaka...?" The tomato-haired duelist asked hoarsely, blinking up at said person.

The duelist nodded.

"...Gongenzaka!" Yuya shouted, almost jumping up in answer. He flinched horribly, clutching head.

"Sakaki, are you okay?" Shun asked, placing a hand on Yuya's shoulder.

The Dueltainer turned around to face Shun, blinking.

There was silence as Yuya stared at the RaidRaptors duelist. Gongenzaka broke the silence by clearing his throat loudly. "Don't you remember Kurosaki Shun, Yuya?"

"Y-Yes! I'm sorry Kurosaki! It must of slipped my mind briefly. I apologize." Yuya said quickly.

Shun sighed. "It's alright. Whatever happened must have done a number on you. By the way, who were you fighting to cause this much destruction?"

Yuya looked uncomfortable. "Uhh...I can't remember much...ah! I think it was Yuri!"

"Yuri?" Gongenzaka asked. Shun just narrowed his eyes but said nothing.

"Yeah. He's another guy who looks like me. He's from the fusion dimension." Answered Yuya.

Shun grasped the boy's shoulder, making him look into his eyes. "Sakaki...i-is he...?" Shun did not want to jump to conclusions, but another person that looks just like Yuya, Yuto, and, quite possibly, the Pawn of Fusion? He didn't know what to think.

Yuya, catching the duelist's concern, nodded his head. "Yes, Kurosaki. He's the one who kidnapped Ruri and Rin."

Kurosaki squeezed the tomato-haired dueltainer's shoulder. "Where is he!? I'll kill him!" He said in a harsh whisper.

Yuya just shook his head. "I...dunno. All I remember is me and him battling with Odd-Eyes and, I think it was, Starve Venom Fusion Dragon. Next thing I know, Gongenzaka and you show up."

Shun inhaled sharply, before exhaling slowly, letting his anger bleed away. He removed his hand from the boy's shoulder. "Anyway," he said glancing off to the side. "we should get out of here. I don't want to encounter anymore Obelisks, and you can't duel in that condition, Sakaki."

"What are you talking about? O-Of course I ca-Ugh!" Yuya, once again, clutched his head. Gongenzaka balanced the boy, responding with, "You need to rest a while. You must of hit your head pretty hard."

"B-But - " The dueltainer's words were cut short by a glare from both of the older men. "Fine. I'm walking, though."

Shun, not feeling like fighting him, just lazily agreed. There was a nagging feeling that hung around, like he had forgotten something. It was only then that their third party member decided too make himself known. Bent over, breathing hard, he yelled,

"H-Hey! You - You forgot me!"

Ah, that's what he forgot.

#####################################################################################

Hmm...the leader, the protector, and the annoying one...

An unusual combo, but interesting, nonetheless.

I can only guess that there are others, hopefully. These ones will bore me soon enough...

Oh well...

Whatever...

Might as well make the most of it while they last, anyway.

################################################################################