Chapter 9: Misidentification

{Rooftop of You Show Duel School: June 14th 2014, 9:15am}

Several days of being in the Standard Dimension had granted little leeway when it came to evidence to support finding Ruri in this Dimension; however, both Shay Obsidian and Yuto Kisaragi had decided not to surrender just yet on the matter and selected to now begin investigating the local schools to see if there were Fusionites present amongst the populous. Yuto knew very well that not only the Fusion Dimension used Fusion Summons, and that the one they were in was completely mixed and even had Link Monsters – which he had never seen before – and the Duelists used multiple forms of Summoning when it came to their monsters, as he had already witnessed a Duelist using a Synchro and Xyz monster in their decks together.

"No Fusionites still, okay I guess I should count my blessings," he muttered looking up at the clear blue sky.

When was the last time he'd seen the sky such a stunning color? Or felt the rays of the sun without flinching? Being out in a clear, beautiful summer day only a few days before summer break was about to begin felt both nostalgic and incredibly painful. Yuto cast away the memories that threatened him and looked down to the students who were Dueling in a Field known as an Action Field. It was a simple one and quite bouncy due to the young age of the children. All of them were happy, having a three-way Duel and bouncing around on the spongy surface of the field while Yuto smiled, remembering when his home of Heartland had once been like that.

However, as he watched a man in a fire-colored track suit came storming in with a blue-haired boy asking them to focus more on their skills before the blue-haired boy bunny-hopped away, cheering as he bounced. The man, or Principle as he suspected sighed in defeat and began to follow the kids, showing them how they could use the bouncing to their benefit while Yuto continued to smile, activating a simple spell with a basic incantation before listening in on the conversation. The man was directing the children and they continued taking their turns, using the spongy surface to bounce up to the backs of their monsters while he continued to watch, not being sure whether or not any one at such a jovial school could use fusions. It was then that the door burst open and a pink-haired girl shot into the room, roaring to her father about being careful not to throw his back out.

"Sorry, I just thought it would be fun for them if I joined in," the man, her father defended.

"If I have to lug your sorry tail to a chiropractor again I swear!" she raised a fan and Yuto heard someone laugh, it was light, jovial and clear almost like a bell and it caused him to raise an eyebrow as the pink haired girl turned to where he could see her face.

"Ruri?!" he asked aloud, questioning himself as the girl put her hands on her hips and puffed out her cheeks in a cute manner.

"Calm down Yuzu! Let him have fun! Besides, this is a really bouncy surface, and it's soft so him getting hurt isn't very likely, anyways, your dad is thirty! Not sixty!" the boy tossed his white jacket aside, removing his goggles as well just outside the door before he leapt onto the surface and jumped, turning and doing a very acrobatic twirl before landing in a perfect stand.

"W-What the! YUYA! DON'T YOU START AS WELL!" the pink-haired girl screeched as the red-and-green-haired boy called Yuya jumped again, cartwheeling before landing in a crouch.

Yuto was impressed, needless to say, and as he stared he found that he wished he could join in with them as it seemed like they were enjoying themselves. The pink-haired girl, who favored Ruri so much, and yet sounded nothing like her, had eventually joined in, deciding to have some fun with them as well, bouncing and practicing tumbling with the red-and-green-haired boy who Yuto now turned his attention to. The boy jumped up, cutting a back flip before sticking the landing as he did a handstand and got into a crouch atop one of the circular balls near the corner before staring up at the sky, effectively startling Yuto when he saw his own features – albeit a tad younger looking and much more carefree – staring back at him.

The black-and-lilac-haired teenager stood straight, backing away as the boy laughed, smiling in a manner that did nothing to help Yuto's sudden panic. His mind began racing, wondering if the boy had some relation to him as he felt a sharp burning in his chest as the pendulum crystal around his neck glowed and his gray eyes looked to the boy who did indeed have a pendulum crystal on as well, it was fair silver and had a pale blue almost clear crystal instead of violet like Yuto's own. it radiated warmth and light much like the boy himself did, causing the Xyz Dimension survivor to stare in disbelief as he watched the boy.

"Who…. or what are you?" he muttered as the boy paused and glanced up towards where he was while Yuto cast an invisibility spell just in time to be missed by the boy's brilliant scarlet eyes.

Instantly, Yuto began to panic as he considered that the boy he'd just saw was not like the others in the room with him. The boy saw straight through him even with his magic turning him invisible; however, his panic started to disperse at the prospect of finding someone similar to him. Yet he did wonder if the boy was indeed like him, and if the pink-haired girl was like Ruri. Who were they, and why was it that Yuto – who had never met the crimson-emerald-haired boy – felt such a pull towards him, almost as if he needed to speak with him immediately. Storm-gray eyes narrowed, a hiss leaving him as the boy jumped up, cutting a back flip and glancing towards where he still sat, invisible before smirking, letting him know that he did indeed see him; however, he was unable to make out his features save for a few details it seemed.

"I need to leave…" Yuto stood, the spell breaking as he did so before he looked back at the boy who had apparently scared the daylights out of the others due to him free falling from the height he'd jumped.

"Sorry, Yuzu! I was just trying to see how high up I could get…" the boy apologized.

"Just don't scare me like that Yuya!" the girl stated sharply as Yuto paused.

"I know, Jeeze, have a little faith, would you?" the girl sighed.

"I swear, sometimes I think your magic or something with the stunts you pull," she mentioned as the boy laughed, but Yuto could detect a nervous undertone to it.

Yuto began to walk away, thinking over what the girl who favored Ruri so much said. Was it at all possible that the boy he'd just encountered wasn't just different in his blood but overall? The inhuman side of him seemed to grumble in discontent as he heard his stomach give a growl indicating that he needed to eat. Sighing, Yuto started moving, thinking over what he'd heard before he found a bit of a realization falling into place. The girl who looked like Ruri – Yuzu, he believed her name was – was definitively human; however, the boy, Yuya as the pink-haired girl had called him: was a witch.

{Leo Duel School: 12:15pm}

"I'll have my Mobius the Frost Monarch attack your Power Darts Shooter!" declared Sawatari as he went up against his old deck with a new one.

The Lose icon appeared on the other side of the field while Sylvio smiled, looking at the giant Frost Monarch that evaporated as the Duel ended. He was pleased with the Monarch archetype; however, to him, something was still missing when it came to the style and form he had seen not too long ago by someone in particular.

"Dude…" started one of his lackies.

"Hmph!" Sylvio said in a pleased behavior, once more liking his new deck, but not wanting to show his internal displeasure.

"Sawatari, this time your cards are seriously way to strong!" stated one of his other lackies.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Not true. It ain't my Monsters that're powerful…. the one who's actually strong is…" Sylvio snapped his fingers and the three lackies held their hands out in a jazz position towards Sylvio.

"Sylvio Sawatari!" they declared as he grinned.

"Oh yes! What's most important is a Duelist's skills. It's all about calculating strategies, having precise judgment, an iron will, and finally, one helluva body! You've gotta be fit and prepared to face the trials ahead without second guessing! And the one who has it all is?" Sylvio snapped his fingers.

"Sylvio Sawatari!" declared the three again.

"Yes, yes! Or to put it another way, a perfect Duelist to whom winning comes naturally! That's..." he snapped both his fingers.

"Sylvio Sawatari!" they said once more as Sylvio smiled.

"That's right! No, with these new cards I got, you guys should call me Neo Sylvio!" he went to them.

"Neo…" he started.

"Sylvio Sawatari!" the three declared one last time as Sylvio smiled.

"Okay, okay! Ladies and gentlemen!" started Sylvio as the three lackies looked to one another.

"Yo, didn't he get that from someone?" muttered one of the guys.

"From that Yuya Sakaki kid, apparently." The other with green hair finished as Sylvio rounded on them, his face looking menacing.

"DON'T MENTION THAT NAME!" he shouted.

Sylvio couldn't get the image of Yuya, standing there in complete enthrallment, entertaining the others amidst the colors of Kaleidoscorpion's effect as he landed the finishing blow with a card that Sylvio himself had thrown away. Without admitting it aloud, Sylvio had figured out that there was something strange with Yuya Sakaki alright: in a supernatural sort of way. Did he believed the boy cheated? Deep down, no he didn't, but there was a magical charge around the boy as he elaborated the finishing blow to him in a way that only a performer could. Not that he would admit that any time soon.

"I lost to him due to some card trouble. I didn't have those Pendulum cards and had dumb, bad luck!" Sylvio turned his gaze down and the three lackies stared at him.

"Eh?! You just made that up!" said the brunette.

"And you even took his Pendulum Cards by tricking him in the first place!" said the red-head.

"But this time, I'll beat that little freak, no matter what I've gotta do! Just you wait, Yuya Sakaki! You, evil little demon."

{You Show Duel School: 12:20pm}

The group was in the wash room cooling down and using the water and towels to rinse their faces a bit as they had worked up quite a sweat earlier during their little series of bouncing exercises. The entire group had experienced quite a fun few hours before Yuzu's dad had told them to take a break and they were now in the process of getting cleaned up a bit. Yuzu was holding onto some towels while she looked at the group who had already gone and gotten cleaned up that included Sora, Tate, and Allie, and she was now waiting for Frederic to finish up while Yuya was standing at the one closest to her, still missing his jacket and goggles as he splashed some water on his face, taking in the coolness after being out in the warm sunlight for hours.

"Ha, that feels good…" Yuya muttered a bit, splashing the water on his face again.

"It gives me goosebumps!" Frederic did his little swaying motion while Sora and Tate continued to dry their faces.

"After Dueling up a sweat, this is great," Sora stated while Yuzu looked at the boy closest to her.

"Yuya, make sure to splash some water on the back of your neck, remember what your mom said about getting over heated, plus its dirty." The boy nodded.

"Yes, yes…" she frowned at his attempt to be cheeky.

"You only have to say yes once!" she stated.

"Sorry Yuzu, I did it though, okay?" Yuzu looked to him as she thought about something.

Yuya stared at her, bangs hanging in his face from the water, the colors darker than normal as he took a towel from her and began to dry his face and the back of his neck while she continued to watch before handing a towel to Frederic while she considered him for a moment. Yuzu had known Yuya Sakaki since they were born – her having been born a few months earlier than him – and he had always been by her side, talking with her, cheering her on and supporting her just as she did him; however, it wasn't until last year when the boy was thirteen that she started to see him in a little bit of a different light.

Without question, the boy in front of her was attractive, but in an odd way. His brightly toned hair, vivid eyes, tan skin, and slightly feminine features made him cute in a boyish way, and beautiful in an unnatural manner. Yuya had the kind of personality that was glowing, like the sun and a smile that was worth a thousand words in every sense of the meaning. However, Yuzu had seen him when he was dim, dark, and depressed, when he didn't shine but shrouded everything in a thick blanket like the night. She glanced down before looking into his eyes as she moved closer to him and brushed his still damp bangs out of his eyes.

"Yuzu?" she only continued to stare at him for a moment.

"Hey kids, you may wanna beat it unless you wanna see these two make out," Sora said, breaking the sudden spell that had seemed to of been cast on Yuya and Yuzu, causing the two to look at each other as Yuzu glared and she noticed a deep flush on Yuya's face.

"Are you really gonna kiss him? Big Sis Yuzu?" asked Allie hopefully.

"Why do you sound so hopeful?" the three children looked at one another.

"I think you two would be cute together," said Allie with a grin as Tate and Frederic nodded in approval.

"Same here, Yuya's really hyper and high spirited, but he can get really depressed, so he needs someone level headed and tough, but kind like you Yuzu." Sora's statement had the pink-haired girl blushing before she glared at them.

"Just go, we'll be out in a second, I wanted to talk to Yuya about something in private!" she stated as Sora ushered the three children out.

"Hey, just don't do anything that you wouldn't want little eyes to see!" with that Sora shut the door, making the awkward silence between Yuya and Yuzu even worse.

"Um, I really should…" Yuya shot her a concerned look, eyes wide and face flushed as he started to walk towards the door and Yuzu took in a deep breath.

"Yuya! I want to know something…" the boy paused, reaching for the door.

"W-What?" Yuzu bit her lip.

"Ever since…. that day…. you've been…. different, and I…" Yuya tensed, finding a small ache in the center of his chest.

"Of course I've been different Yuzu! I tried to kill myself! Just because I chose to live doesn't mean that I'm completely over it!" he snapped, expression turned into what Yuzu would describe as a vicious snarl, eyebrows slightly frowned and his teeth bared in a menacing fashion.

"That right there! What is wrong with you, Yuya? You're never this hateful towards anyone! I know what Sylvio said got under your skin, but…no…. even from before then, you've been acting strange…." Yuya looked down, fists clenched.

"Do you hate me or something? Did I do something to make you fearful of me? Is it bad if I change or something?" he asked, his voice trembling as Yuzu stared at him.

"Hate you? Yuya! I could never hate you! I lo…" scarlet eyes stared up at her in shock at what she'd almost said before he shook his head.

"Let's not continue this conversation, okay?" Yuya's suggestion had Yuzu almost in tears.

"No, please…. just…. listen to me… Yuya…" her voice softened, and he sighed, looking her in the eye.

"Yuzu, is something really going on that you're worried about? I know that I'm a little unsteady right now, but…. I'm getting better, so don't worry about me, okay?" Yuzu shook her head, moving towards him before wrapping her arms around his waist, burying her face in his chest.

"Yuya, I just don't want to lose you…. if you're not there…. I don't feel right for some reason. You're special to me…. So, if something's wrong, please just tell me the truth," she pleaded tears beginning to stain his shirt.

"I just…. listen…. right now, I can't tell you what's going on, but can you trust me to take care of it? If I need your help though, I promise I'll tell you everything, and don't worry, I won't lie." Periwinkle met scarlet and she nodded slowly.

"Promise me, that no matter what…. we'll be there for each other, okay?" she asked holding him closer as he slowly returned the embrace.

"I promise… and I also promise that if you need me I'll be there, and I'll protect you…" Yuzu felt her eyes widen.

"Me too, Yuya…. I promise too…. that I'll be there if you need me, and I'll protect you too," she muttered as he smiled and placed a hand atop her head.

"Hey, let's get out there with the kids, who knows what kind of stuff Sora's corrupting their minds with." Yuzu nodded quickly.

"Agreed." With that the two departed the room.

{Riverside Walk: 4:40pm}

Yuzu sighed as she walked back from the market place, contemplating what had gotten her and Allie to go; however, she supposed that she was thankful for some time away from the other boys who had started to drive her up the wall. Yuya had blown off their earlier conversation with a teasing smile due to so many questions only stating that he wouldn't kiss and tell – Yuzu had almost hit him with her fan so hard that he was seeing stars – but she quickly learned that it was his way of telling her that their conversation was private, and it would stay that way unless something came up that required it to be spoken about aloud. He wouldn't tell anyone about their promise, and she had smiled, assuring him of the same silent vow. Sometimes, Yuya could have too much of an impish side to him for his own good, and other times he was incredibly sweet, understanding, and complacent with listening to others problems. It was what made him someone she would always confide in; however, as she thought on that conversation, the point where it had almost abruptly ended broke into her mind and she felt her face heat up in a manner that did not go unnoticed by Allie.

"Are you thinking about the kiss you and Big Bro Yuya had earlier?" she asked in curiosity.

"We did not kiss! Allie, really I promise we didn't!" the red-haired girl gave her a knowing look.

"Then why did you volunteer to get the ice cream?" she probed.

"Because, I wanted to get away from those crazy brats for a bit." Yuzu thought about the cheering and smiling faces of the others as the red-haired girl smiled.

"I think that you should have kissed him!" Allie said as the pink-haired girl went red-faced.

"Why do you guys want us together?" Yuzu asked in curiosity.

"Like Sora said, you two are good for each other. You helped Yuya when he had his accident, remember?" Yuzu paused, she had almost forgotten that the children had been there that day, but hadn't been the ones to find Yuya, thank god.

"Right…. say, um… Allie? Do you think that Yuya likes me?" she questioned.

"Of course he does! My mom and dad always tell me that the reason boys don't admit their feelings is that they're just as scared of rejection as we are…and I think Yuya likes you, he just doesn't know how to outright tell you!" Yuzu gawked at the girl, sometimes forgetting that children were more perceptive than people gave them credit for.

"Thanks, I'll think about that. Anyways, what about…" Allie paused as Yuzu did and she looked in the direction of an old warehouse and crouched down.

"Big Sis?" she asked.

"Shush just a sec okay?" the girl nodded as Yuzu listened.

"Sawatari is pretty hyped up, isn't he?" asked one of the two guys.

"No matter what he needs to do, he'll pulverize that little freak Yuya Sakaki this time!" said the brunette, startling Yuzu and Allie.

"It looks like he's gonna do something really foul, and smash through his weak points…." Said the green haired teen.

"By the time Sawatari's done with that little mutant, he'll be in such a bad state that he'll probably never wanna pick up a deck again." The two laughed before the brunette looked to his friend.

"Let's hurry it up! he gets really nasty when his stomach gets empty," said the brunette as they started picking up speed and Yuzu glared after them.

"Sylvio Sawatari…" she growled a bit as she started going after the two.

"Big Sis Yuzu!" Allie called as she went after the girl.

Down by the docks, near sunset Yuto stood awaiting the end of the day as he prepared to go and explore the city for more information to keep tabs on the next school. Having looked at most of the other local schools on his side of the town, Yuto had but one left, and it still as a large silver and blue hour-glass style building with the LDS logo on it. This was the Leo Duel School, and he had every intention of digging into those details as quickly as possible, at current though, Yuto was also wondering about what he'd seen that morning. The boy who looked like him, he was undoubtedly a witch or something of magical inclination; however, he didn't seem evil or even remotely cruel, but kind and gentle. The black-and-lilac-haired boy sighed as he looked at the sunset and the glistening LDS building that seemed so close he could have reached out and touched it.

"A witch…. damn… and here I thought that Ruri was the only one I knew…." Yuto said to himself as a clack of footsteps came from down below. Stormy eyes looked to see the two lackies racing into the building while the boy on the roof scoffed.

"That guy in there, I swear…if someone doesn't shut him up I'm feeding him to Dark Rebellion," he muttered, puffing out his cheeks just a bit in annoyance as he listened to the squabbling of one Sylvio Sawatari.

Within the ware house, the two lackies came in, carrying Sawatari's food as he sat upon a sofa and threw darts at a board in slight irritation. Sylvio wasn't known for being patient, and it wasn't hard to guess that he was full of himself; however, at current his mind had decided to haunt him with the last encounter with Yuya Sakaki, the freak who turned everything on its ear and blasted his ass from here to Kingdom come. Currently, he was devising a strategy to begin destroying the boy who had caused him such trouble, but he was also starving, and trying to think on an empty stomach was almost impossible.

Sorry to keep you waiting, Sawatari!" said the brunette.

"Jetson, your late!" the brunette apologized.

"Sorry!" the brunette apologized as the green-haired teen came to him and sat down a small white box.

"I bought the sweet milk apple-berry pie with honey all over just like you asked!" he said.

"Thank you Nakoto," Sylvio said as he got the food from his lackies while outside of the building, Allie and yuzu were watching and waiting to see what would happen.

Without a second question, Yuzu was going to talk to Sylvio and demand a Duel. Her promise with Yuya rang in her head, and she knew then and there it was time to back it up because she knew these guys were going to do something horrible to her best friend, and Yuzu Hiiragi wasn't going to take any of it lying down. Allie tugged at her skirt, and she glanced towards the red-haired girl, knowing that it was no place for her.

"Big Sis Yuzu, we should go tell Big Bro Yuya!" the little girl suggested.

"In that last Duel…Yuya did everything he could to help me. And now, I've made a promise to him…. it's my turn to protect Yuya." Periwinkle eyes turned to Allie.

"Allie, go back to the Duel School. Take the ice cream and wait there, I'm going to talk with Sylvio," she said as she handed the little girl the ice cream bag.

"Bu… but! Ahh!" Allie got nothing else out as Yuzu went towards the entrance, Yuto watching her from above, unseen by the girl as slight panic filled him.

"What is she doing here?!"

Within the warehouse, Sawatari was about to take a bite out of his favorite pie when the door slammed open, revealing a severally pissed off Yuzu Hiiragi, and causing him to nearly choke on the pie slice. One of his friends handed him a bottle of water and he graciously accepted it and began guzzling it down, struggling to breath as Yuzu stood there, a glower befitting a feral tiger settled upon her face as she stormed into the place.

"You spineless coward!" she roared, causing Sawatari to look up.

"Well, if it isn't the Princess," Sawatari said as Yuzu shot him a withering look.

"Shut your pie hole you boorish pig!" the teenager eyed her.

"Boorish pig? Excuse me! I'm better than that freak you hang out with," Sawatari said.

"No, you're not! Because no matter what you do, you'll never beat Yuya!" she snapped back.

"Oh-Ho! Someone's mouthy today, listen sweet cheeks, we – "Yuzu sent the red-haired teenager a look so cold it could have frozen the ocean.

"Let me make one thing clear: do not call me sweet cheeks! Got it you narcissistic, ass kissing, spineless jackass!" Yuzu never swore, but at this point, she couldn't hold it in, and she was far past the point of being polite.

"Okay, okay…. look, Yuzu Hiiragi, right? I know that you probably want to chew my ear off and all, but I just don't wanna hear it. After all, anything I have to say can be done so clearly with Yuya Sakaki, not you, got it Princess?" Sylvio stated with a smile.

"You'll listen to what I have to say or I swear you'll wish you'd walked through Dante's Inferno by the time I'm done with you!" the blonde-brunette winced at the volume of her voice.

"Fine! Jeeze, I get that you're defensive over that freak, but no need to bust a gasket or…." Yuzu bristled.

"YUYA IS NOT A FREAK YOU BOTTOM FEEDER!" she bellowed, taking in a few deep breaths while Yuto listened to the conversation just outside.

"I'll grant her this much…Ruri or not…she sure can yell like her…" the Imp-half-blood thought in dismay of all the times Ruri had nearly ripped his head off for something stupid he'd done.

"Uhuh, and you're not sticking up for him just because your fucking him," said Jetson with a wiry smirk, causing the others to look at him before nodding in agreement.

"Yuya and I do not…" Nakoto jumped in at that.

"No need in denying it, I mean hell, it's clear you've got the hots for that side-show freak, so I mean, by all means, screw him if ya want to, I just don't wanna hear the details," he said shaking his head.

"Come to think of it, how is it that some side-show runt scored a hottie like you?" Sylvio frowned, not liking the tone his lackies were taking.

"I'm all for scare tactics, but this is toeing territory I am not okay with," he thought. At the last statement, Yuzu had whipped out her Duel Disk and shot them a sharp glare.

"Duel me, or are you not man enough to face a girl?" she asked sternly.

"I ain't Dueling some chick whose screwin' that little freak, no thanks." Periwinkle eyes narrowed as Yuto watched slight, using the invisibility spell to keep tabs on the situation.

"Some man you are! Yellow-bellied coward! Yuya is ten times the man you could ever hope to be, you second-rate, scum-sucking, good-for-nothing Duelist!" Yuzu snapped, anger getting at her as Sylvio narrowed his eyes on her.

"Second…. rate? I think not! Fine! I'll Duel you, Yuzu Hiiragi!" Sylvio got out his Duel Disk, and as he did, Yuzu glared, preparing to gear up to teach the smarmy jerk a lesson.

"You know, making implications on a lady such as that is rather rude," stated a voice, slightly muffled in sound.

The four people turned to see a black-clad figure, wearing a mask and dark goggles, his hair messy, spiked up, black in color with lilac bangs as he walked forward, his boots making a clacking noise while he placed a hand upon Yuzu's arm, causing her to stare into storm gray eyes. Yuzu instantly felt as though she'd seem this person somewhere before, but couldn't be certain; however, he stepped forward, his Duel Disk activating.

"Hey! I can…" gray eyes looked to her again.

"As much as I am certain you can, I don't think that he would want you hurt, and neither do I," the boy stated and Yuzu read the statement loud and clear.

"Do you think you can just take her place mystery man? I have to teach that little bitch a lesson! Now stand down!" Sylvio was quickly shot a withering glare that by far was more terrifying than Yuzu's.

"Little bitch? The only one like that I see around here is you, and your demoting behavior towards others. You really are a yellow-bellied scum sucker," the boy stated, a clearly mocking tone apparent in his voice.

"Damn you…. I'll make you regret that!" Sylvio activated his Duel Disk and the boy moved into position to face him.

"You don't even know me, so why…" the boy glanced to Yuzu.

"Honestly? I don't know, but you remind me of someone…plus, I have some questions for these idiots," he said as Sylvio prepared for the Duel.

"Ya suddenly pop out of thin air, like some knight in shining armor coming to save the Princess? What, you got some kinda hero complex?" the black-haired boy laughed a bit.

"Maybe I do, let's see if you can change that, shall we?" he asked as he held his Duel Disk out and Sylvio frowned.

"That's an unusual Duel Disk ya got there. Guess I'll take that as you not backing down…. but that's fine by me." The two squared off.

"Duel!" Yuzu stepped back as Sawatari smirked and drew five cards while the other did the same.

"I take the first turn," the black haired boy said.

"Fine by me, I'm just gonna beat ya to a pulp." The boy looked at the cards in his hand.

"I have five cards in my hand and I'll set each and every one of them! Turn end," he stated, shocking the people watching.

"Huh?! Wow, you barge in here actin' all cool and that's all ya do?" the green-haired guy, Nakoto cheered as Sawatari laughed.

"Sawatari, bring on a heavy storm!" the black-haired boy gave him a bland look.

"That's a banned card you dumbass!" he told the jeering Nakoto.

"Ya didn't even draw one Monster, eh?! It's pretty pitiful, but you just ain't got what it takes. Once I finish you off, I'll go take care of Yuzu Hiiragi, and then I'm gonna get my hands on that little side-show freak Yuya Sakaki!" the pink-haired girl glared as the black-haired boy shot Sylvio a withering look.

"Side-Show Freak? Is that the best you've got? I've heard worse insults than that from a frog!" the black-haired boy shot back.

"F-Frog?! Why you…" the boy glared.

"Didn't you hear me? I ended my turn. Take yours already dammit," he snapped, causing Yuzu to stare in surprise.

"I'll give you a glimpse of my perfect Dueling! My turn! Draw! First, I'm gonna make use of those face-down cards of yours. By doing this: when my opponent has two or more cards in their Spell-Trap Zone, I can special summon Escher, the Frost vassal from my hand! Come forth Escher! Then, I release Escher for an Advance Summon! Mobius the Frost Monarch!" Sylvio's monster seemed to not impress the black-haired boy, but his lackies cheered.

"Sweet! This is gonna be a breeze," stated Jiko, the red-haired lackie.

"Yea, he summoned a Monster with twenty-four-hundred attack power!" Sylvio smirked.

"I activate Mobius's effect! When this card is successfully Advance Summoned, I can select up to two Spells or Traps on the field and destroy them! Freeze Burst!" Yuzu winced as two of the cards on the black-haired boy's field were shattered by the effect of the Monarch.

"Ahh!" Yuzu winced, fearful of the outcome as the black-haired boy merely stood there, unfazed.

"The party's just getting' started! I activate the Spell Card, Advance Carnival, from my hand! When I successfully Advance Summon, this card allows me to Advance Summon again!" Yuzu felt realization dawn on her.

"He's going to release Mobius the Frost Monarch and Advance Summon again?!" she spoke aloud and looked at the black-haired boy who nodded to her.

"Don't worry, its fine," he assured her of this and Yuzu gave him a long look.

"If you say so…"

"Correct! I'll release Mobius the Frost Monarch for and Advance Summon! Show yourself! Mobius, the Mega Monarch! Under normal circumstances, I'd need to release two Monsters, but, if you use a Monster that was successfully Advance Summoned, he can be Advance Summoned with just one release!" Sylvio stated as the black-haired boy yawned.

"Are you done?" he gave him a bland look and Sylvio glared.

"I activate Mobius, the Mega Monarch's effect! When this card is successfully Advance Summoned, I can target up to three Spells or Traps on the field and destroy them!" Mobius geared up his effect as Jiko started jeering.

"Hey! Mr. Knight! Shouldn't you do somethin' with those cards before they're destroyed?!" he asked.

"Useless! If this Monster was Advance Summoned using a water attribute Monster, the cards targeted by Mobius the Mega Monarch can't be activated! Freeze and shatter to pieces! Blizzard Destruction!"

The attack hit, destroying the rest of the black-haired boy's cards, leaving his field bear as Sylvio grinned at him and Yuzu gave him a concerned look. True, he was a stranger, but he still had stood up for her, and she didn't want to see him loose because he had bitten off more than he could chew. Periwinkle eyes watched the two, wondering what would happen now as the wind blew by her in a fast pace.

"Huh? Why do I feel wind when this isn't an Action Field? What's going on here?" periwinkle eyes looked to the black-haired boy, and he barely even flinched when the wind burst brushed past them.

"With that, all the cards you set have been disposed of! And your hand count is zero. And to top it off, ya don't even got a Monster to hide behind. Pretty darn pathetic for a guy who stormed in here acting all cool!" Sylvio stated.

"H-Hey, you! Get your act together already! If you were just gonna come in here and play horribly, you should've just let me – "the black-haired boy cut Yuzu off.

"I said I would help you, and I am going to. Just be patient," he said sharply as Yuzu nodded slowly.

"O-Okay…." Sylvio grinned.

"Now then, Mr. Knight dressed in black. You're a real eyesore to look at, so I'd like to send you home as soon as possible. Battle! I'll use Mobius the Mega Monarch to attack directly!" Sylvio ordered as Mobius shot after the black-haired boy.

Yuto braced himself, not liking the fact that this was going to be one of his more painful experiences in Dueling as he had heard of, but never seen a Monarch card before. However, he didn't plan on letting a vow he took to help out this girl or get answers he needed go to waste or be broken, therefore, he decided now was the time to act.

"I activate the Trap Card, the Phantom Knights of Shadow Veil, from the Graveyard!" he declared.

"Huh?!"

"From his Graveyard?"

"A Trap Card?!" Yuzu gawked while the black-haired boy nodded.

"Correct," he answered as the trap card revived.

"You're activating a Trap Card from your Graveyard?!" Yuto kept his gaze focused on his Duel Disk, the snow from Mobius's attack gearing up and growing stronger.

"When you declare a Direct Attack, I can Special Summon as many of these cards as possible from the Graveyard as Monster Cards," he explained.

Three knights in ragged clothing and made of blue mist and flame atop ebon steeds with the same blue-flames for their manes and tails appeared, each with three hundred defense points and standing at a level four. The people present stared in surprise, having never seen such a strange tactic before; however, Yuzu was learning very quickly not to question this person's methods.

"What good does that do?!" the black-haired youth looked at his opponent.

"If these cards enter the Graveyard again after their effects are activated, they're banished," he said.

"He suddenly got three Monsters on the field at once!" Yuzu looked to him, bracing herself against the storm.

"So, you set those cards under the assumption that you were going to special summon them as Monsters?!" at this point, Yuto only nodded while Sylvio laughed.

"Hmph! In the end, all you'll do is Summon those Monsters as a wall to defend yourself! I'll knock 'em down with ease! Go, Mobius the Mega Monarch! Attack Shadow Veil! Imperial Charge!" one of the Phantom Knights fell at the feet of the Mega Monarch and the black-haired boy never once blinked.

"Upon being sent back to the Graveyard, Shadow Veil is Banished," he stated.

"I guess you could say your head's barely still attached. I set one card face down to end my turn." Sylvio relented, and the black-haired boy took in a deep breath.

"Alright, time to get this mess over with," he thought.

"I guess I'll let you live 'til my next turn." Yuto resisted the urge to roll his eyes.

"Neo Sawatari's the greatest!" declared Jiko.

"There won't be a next turn for you!" the black-haired boy pointed this out and Sylvio tisked.

"What?" he watched as the boy grabbed for his deck.

"My turn. Draw! I was attempting to sink my teeth in a little, but I couldn't feel anything remotely resembling the sharpness of a blade or the impact of a bullet in your Dueling. You have no soul or heart in your deck, you possess it for strength, not as extension of yourself. Your heart is not in the cards and therefore the heart of the cards is not within you! Not even a shard!" Yuto stated sharply, causing Sylvio to roll his eyes.

"Oh please, that stupid saying? No one uses that shit anymore! The games all about strength and power and who's the best!" the black-and-lilac-haired boy gave him a long look.

"Then you're dumber than you look," he said.

"W-What did you just say to me you vagabond?!" the boy sighed.

"The hell's this guy sniffin'?" asked Jetson.

"It hurts, man, it hurts!" Nakoto watched Jiko before commenting himself.

"Leave the jokes at home, pal!" he stated.

"I'm not going to waste my time repeating myself. The conditions have been met. Now that I've gathered Monsters of the same Level on the Field, my deck can show its true value!" he began, and Yuzu stared.

"Huh? That stupid thing has no value, I mean – "Yuto took in a deep breath.

"I use my two Level Four Phantom Knights of Shadow Veil to build the Overlay Network!" he declared.

"It couldn't be!" started Sylvio.

"That's…." Yuto focused on summoning his most faithful Monster.

"Fangs of Treason, from the pitch-black darkness, oppose crass, foolish power! Descend before us now! Xyz Summon! Rank Four! Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon!" he declared as the gigantic black dragon appeared in the center of the room.

"An…. Xyz… Summon!" Yuzu said in disbelief. She had never once witnessed an Xyz Summon in her life, and now that she had, without question she could say it was terrifying.

"Incredible…. he Summoned a Monster from his Extra Deck…." Jiko jumped in at that.

"This guy friggin' uses Xyz?!" he asked.

"No friggin' way! Xyz Summoning course're for the elite top class students!" Jetson's statement caused Sylvio to clap as he looked at the black-haired boy.

"Suddenly Xyz Summoning out of left field like that sure caught me by surprise. But, are you planning to use that Monster to battle against my Mobius? I mean, Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon's only got twenty-five hundred attack points. And it's facing Mobius the Mega Monarch with twenty-eight-hundred attack points! Seems like you did the math wrong. After all, Xyz Monsters seem to be nothing but a whole bunch of showing off." Yuto glared.

"I don't think so…yo know nothing about them, clearly. Otherwise, you would know that the true power of an Xyz Monster is to detach its very soul – called Overlay Units – in order to extinguish the opponent," he stated.

"What a lovely explanation of Xyz Monsters! Not that I'm the least bit interested." Yuto looked up to him, storm-gray eyes narrowing.

"Then you'll just have to learn firsthand! I activate Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon's effect! By detaching one Overlay Unit, I can halve the Attack Points of one level five or higher monster that my opponent controls, and add that to my Dragon's attack! Treason Discharge!" the group watched as Dark Rebellion's attack when up from twenty-five-hundred to thirty-nine-hundred.

"Whoa! Dark Rebellion's Attack Points!" started Jiko.

"They've surpassed Mobius's!" Yuto looked to Sawatari.

"NO FREAKIN' WAY!" Sylvio began to panic as the black-haired youth sighed.

"Once I'm done here, I'm going for a very long walk so hopefully, I can forget I ever met this clown…." Yuto thought.

"I'm not done! I detach the remaining Overlay Unit, and activate Dark Rebellion's effect once more! Treason Discharge!" he declared as Mobius's Attack went to seven-hundred and Dark Rebellion's climbed to forty-six-hundred.

"It's got forty-six-hundred attack points now!" Yuzu's statement left her before she had time to think as Sylvio stared in disbelief.

"It's a lie, lie, LIE!" Yuto raised his hand out.

"Battle! Dark Rebellion, destroy Mobius the Mega Monarch! Go, use your fangs to smash through the glacier! Rebellious Lightning! Disobey!" the attack went through, the explosion causing debris to fall as wind rushed around, and Sawatari was thrown into the wall, causing him to go faintly dizzy as Yuzu braced herself against the force of the wind.

She let out a startled scream and Yuto went to her, blocking her from the explosion as a piece of debris fell and smacked him across the head, thankfully only destroying the goggles instead of giving him an injury. The lights shattered, smoke billowed out of the top and front doors of the warehouse, and soon everyone started to rise from the destruction, Sawatari doing so with only one-hundred Life Points left.

"We felt the blast even though there's no Action Field set!" Jetson stated.

"His monster's so powerful it even sent us flying!" Jiko looked to Nakoto.

"This ain't good," he said as Sawatari stood fully and looked at the black-haired boy while Yuzu stared at him as he went to stand with his Dragon once again.

"I'll only ask once, so you had better answer. Is this badge from LDS? What's your connection with the Academia?" the boy held up a gleaming badge as he looked to Sawatari.

"A-Academia? What's that?" Sylvio asked.

"Don't play dumb!" the other stood.

"I'm not! Everyone who entered LDS has a badge like that! I don't know what this Academia is! Trust me! he stated. Yuto pulled his goggles up, but his eyes remained shadowed.

"We're done, then." Yuto began to walk away.

"Idiot! The Duel ain't over! I activate my trap! Ice Rage Shot! If an Aqua-Type Monster of mine was destroyed by battle, this card destroys one of my opponent's Monsters, and it inflicts damage to them equal to that Monster's Attack Points! I destroy your Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon, and make you eat its forty-six-hundred Attack Points! I planned everything like this, and set this Trap Card so it'd secure my victory!" the boy paused, startling the others as he began speaking.

"Your strategy is weak. A mere child's play, even…" Yuto stated as Sylvio stared.

"What?!" the boy, back turned raised a hand.

"I activate the Continuous Spell, Phantom Death Spear, from my Graveyard. When my opponent activates a Trap Card, by Banishing this card from my Graveyard, it can negate the Trap Card's activation and destroy it," Yuto explained this as the Spell Card appeared behind him before vanishing as an ancient looking spear with glowing red runes around it appeared.

"What?!" the trap card disappeared.

"And then, it inflicts one-hundred points of damage to my opponent!" he declared.

"Wait, wait, wait, wait, WAIT! WAIT! WAIT!" Sylvio began flailing, trying to avoid it.

"Prepare yourself! This is the pain and sorrow of the battlefield!" the black-haired boy declared as the spear shot through, nailing Sawatari to a wall before his Life Points were completely destroyed and the spear vanished along with Dark Rebellion. Yuzu stared in shock as the boy turned to his opponent and finally removed his mask.

Due to his goggles pushing his bangs down, Yuto favored Yuya more than he realized at that moment, the only differences in them being the hair and eye color. His eyes flashed open as he took in a deep breath and looked at his opponent, Sylvio gaping in shock as Yuzu did as well. Storm-gray eyes looked to periwinkle and blue-gray as the silence of the room overtook while a singular flicker of fire from Dark Rebellion's attack remained.

"Yuya?!" Yuzu asked.

"I-It was you?! The whole damn time!" Sawatari slid down the wall, passing out as his lackies circled around him and began to help him up.

"Not good! This is not good!" Jetson declared as the four of them fled the building, leaving Yuzu alone with the boy.

{…..}

Wait, it's just about to break, it's more than I can take…

{…..}

Author's Note: Yuto getting more screen time, extending things for more fun, and him being a bit of a troll. Seriously, I get the feeling that if Yuto had been allowed to live longer in the anime then he would have been a bit of a troll and probably pulled a few pranks alongside Yuya. I know in the manga he and Yuya get into bickering arguments, back-and-forths, and do tend to prank one another on occasion, so I think that he'd be a bit well impish.

tell me what you guys think!

Sincerely,

ShadowDragon94.

Trivia:

Yes, Yuto's last name in this story is Kisaragi, and yes, it's based upon Yuffie Kisaragi from Final Fantasy. No, she does not have any relation to him.

In the Japanese version of the anime, the Phantom Knights of Shadow Veil are actually Spell Cards, as are most of them. While in the US they're Trap Cards.

Yuto in the scene where his goggles push down his bangs, causes him to look incredibly like Yuya, almost to the point that I would say that they are twins – I never really thought Hugo and Joeri looked like Yuya as much as Yuto – but according to the artist and author of the Arc-V Manga, all the boys have the same two-toned layering hair like Yuya does, but they're just styled differently.