Author's Info: Here's chapter ten of Sando No Jigoku! Thanks to those of you who are reading this, and special thanks to for the review. I'm really glad the characters are staying true to form. If they get too OOC, let me know. I want them to stay as true as possible (they're the reason we're writing these stories, after all). Now, on to the first part of the duel with Kaiba!
The "what"s: Listening to a mix of alternative and rock songs that always serve for inspiration. Recently finished Interview With a Vampire for the second time and about to start reading The Vampire Lestat again. Thank one of my friends who bought me the leather-bound version.
Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, hence my desire to remain as true to their original counterparts as possible. If I wrote Yu-Gi-Oh, I wouldn't have to worry about anything more than losing a few readers.
Extra Note: I do not play the card game. I had to do a lot of research to find real cards that would work with Yumi's deck, and I don't know if I completely follow the rules. Bear with me, as I probably won't be making changes to adapt properly.
Chapter Ten
"Yumi, are you sure you should have provoked Kaiba like that?" Yugi said. He was worried his friend might ruin her chances at getting a job at Kaiba Corp., or anywhere else for that matter. Just because it amused Joey, and even him, to hear someone stand up to Kaiba like that, didn't mean she should ruin her chance to get a job she really wanted.
"I'm not worried," Yumi said honestly. When she saw Yugi's shocked expression, she smiled. "Kaiba and I made a deal, and neither I nor Kaiba would dishonor that deal. Businessmen ruin their reputations with things like that. Besides, I wanted to see if I could get under his skin, get him emotionally involved in the duel. I get a better sense of who Kaiba really is that way."
"I actually thought it was kinda cute, hearing Yumi talk to Kaiba like that. It sounded like she was almost flirting with him," Tsuki said, giggling at the thought. She didn't mind that her sister was glaring at her furiously or that the others were looking at her in amazement and horror. She just knew that, for once, she actually wanted her sister to get the job. Maybe then she'd finally realize that she'd met her match: the one man who could not only meet her blow for blow, but who could also win over her trust and maybe even her love.
"Tsuki, I really think you should turn your voice on silent from this point on. I really don't want to have to blow all my money on expensive pills that probably aren't any more effective than the ones I use. In fact, they're probably less effective," she amended.
"Considering you have your own medication," Tsuki said. Yumi sighed and looked at her sister in exasperation. "That's what you get for working all those hours instead of having a life."
"No, it's what I get for having you as a sister," she teased, laughing at the mock hurt on her sister's face. She stepped through the now-open doors still smiling and chuckling at the exchange. That smile didn't fade even when her eyes met Kaiba's and she made her way to the platform.
"Do you think Yumi's ready to take on a guy of Kaiba's caliber?" Tea asked, looking at Tsuki worriedly. "I mean, I know you said she's good, but she hadn't dueled in a tournament in years. Kaiba's really tough, even if she had been in the circuits."
"Don't worry so much, Tea!" Tsuki said. "I'm sure my sister has what it takes to beat Kaiba. After all, she is the Pharaoh's Guardian, which means she's defended the championship title against both the Tomb Robber and the Guardian circuits. No one has ever held both circuits for more than a year before my sister. This is way more difficult than any circuit you'll ever see on television, so I'd say tournament expertise isn't a problem."
"We'll just have to believe Yumi can beat Kaiba," Yugi said. He noticed Tsuki didn't seem worried about her sister's abilities. "After all, I'm sure Tsuki knows all about what she does in the circuit, and she seems more than confident in her abilities. I see no reason why we shouldn't believe Yumi can win." He smiled to Tsuki, who had suddenly gone quiet, which concerned him.
"Actually, I haven't seen Yumi duel in a long time. I just hear about her duels from some of our mutual friends. She refuses to let any of us watch her while she duels in the circuit. We've learned not to ask her anymore. She's always quiet and grim, and sometimes she'll get sick without warning when they start having tournaments. My guess is that there's more at stake in those circuits than just losing a duel, but I don't know what happens."
"Tsuki, that's more than enough of your conspiracy theories about the Tomb Robbers and the Guardians. I duel, that's all. There are just a lot of things to plan out, and I don't get much sleep. I do have a title to defend, after all." Yumi's voice was sharp and commanding as she ordered her sister's silence. She knew she was only concerned, but she didn't want her sister, or the others for that matter, to know what really happened when you played the high-stakes games.
Yugi could tell, somehow, that Yumi was lying about the explanation of her illnesses. He wondered if she was playing the same kind of high-stakes game he had played against Yami Bakura and Maximillian Pegasus. If she was, he could understand her not wanting her family to know, but he couldn't understand why she would want to continue to play in such dangerous circuits. He would have to wait until a later time to ask questions, however, because it was clear Yumi had no intention of explaining anything more. She was glaring at Kaiba, more than ready to prove her worth.
"Now that you're finished with all this stupid talk about dangerous games, how about getting started with our duel?" Kaiba asked, only growing increasingly annoyed by all the vague and foolish talk of Yumi being involved in some sort of dangerous gaming ring. From now on, the only thing she would be worrying about would be whatever his latest wish and desire happened to be.
"Careful, Kaiba," she said lazily, "wouldn't want that pretty brown hair of yours turning grey early, do you? After all, I'm pretty sure a teenage CEO with grey hair wouldn't look very good, no matter how skilled a businessman you may be." Yumi's smug expression only grew as she noticed the anger in Kaiba's eyes. Her plan to get under his skin was working better than even she thought possible, given Kaiba's ever-icy exterior.
"Here," Kaiba growled, tossing her one of his prototype duel disks. "We'll duel using my latest technology. Think you can handle it?" He was sneering as he noticed her inspecting it in curiosity.
"Interesting," she mused as she continued to study it. "It's a type of portable holographic dueling apparatus. I'd heard you'd begun developing this so-called 'duel disk,' but I wasn't sure how far along the technology was. This must be the first time this particular version is being used. I guess we'll see how this holds up to what I'm used to." She smirked as she continued, causing Kaiba to scowl.
"What's that supposed to mean? There's no way you have more advanced technology than my brother! Seto's leading the gaming industry by years; there's no way you could have anything close to his technology!"
Yumi looked over at the black-haired, grey-eyed boy who had suddenly cried out in protest. She studied him for a moment and smiled gently. "Forgive me. You must be Mokuba Kaiba, younger brother of Seto Kaiba. My name is Yumi Makoto. As for my technology and what I'm used to, I'm afraid it's not something that can be compared outright to your brother's technology. What I'm accustomed to can only be understood by experiencing it for yourself."
"Then why make such a comment in the first place?" Kaiba asked coldly. He wasn't sure if she was just incredibly stupid, or if she was boasting of her skill. All he knew for certain was that it was time to put her in her place. "If you're so sure of your skill, stop bragging about it and prove it in the duel."
"My pleasure," she said, bowing deeply before placing the duel disk onto her wrist. She watched as it latched on firmly with avid delight. She was going to enjoy working with Kaiba thoroughly, even if it meant spending all her time next to a walking iceberg. She slid her deck into the slot and ejected the holographic projectors, pleased when they set themselves up without problems. She looked over to see Kaiba had done the same.
"Ladies first," he said mockingly. He was curious about what her opening move would be, not that it would matter in the long run. Despite her obvious knowledge of gaming, and her supposed skills at other games, this was not a game he was known for losing. In fact, he was already planning to amend the fact anyone had ever managed to defeat him.
"Alright, then, let the lady show the gracious gentleman how this game is really played," she said, her voice teasing yet somehow completely serious. She drew a card and looked at her hand with a grim determination. While there wasn't anything she could use toward her ultimate strategy, she knew there were more than enough strategies in her deck she could use in the meantime. "I play Arcane Apprentice in attack mode, and I lay two cards face down. That concludes my turn."
"Fine. I play Vorce Raider in attack mode. Vorce Raider, attack her Arcane Apprentice!" Kaiba smirked as he watched his creature go in for the kill, but frowned when he saw the smirk on Yumi's face.
"I activate my face-down card, Stop Attack!" With that, Kaiba's Vorce Raider immediately halted his attack and returned to his side of the field. Kaiba growled at the failure of his attack. "What will you do now, Kaiba?"
"I end my turn," he said, knowing there wasn't much he could do. After all, he couldn't touch that pathetic little monster thanks to the effect of Stop Attack.
Yumi smirked as she drew her next card. She knew that Vorce Raider was one of Kaiba's favorite opening monsters, and she was more than ready to counter it. "I play Maiden of Macabre in attack mode! Maiden, wipe out his Vorce Raider!" She watched as her scythed creature sliced his beast in half, adding two hundred attack points to her Maiden. "With that, I end my turn."