Chapter 10: Duel of the Ages

Asuna took another step forward when he didn't respond, the worry in her heart increasing with each passing second.

He was just standing there. Why was he just standing there?

"Yuuto-kun, are you alr-" was as far as she got, for the swords in Yuuto's hands fell to the ground, cutting her off with a clang of metal against the floor.

Now she started walking towards him at a brisk pace, concern clearly etched into her features...before she set off at a dead sprint, as she watched Yuuto's legs finally give out beneath him, causing him to fall limply to the ground with a sickening thud.

"Yuuto-kun! YUUTO-KUN!"

Klein paled, before running after Asuna. "OI, IS HE OKAY?! YUUTO!"

The rest of Fuurinkazan followed, all 6 gathering around Yuuto as Asuna picked his limp body up in her arms, eyes wide with panic. He was covered in about a dozen or so wounds, ranging from mild inconveniences to serious injuries, the large gash on his shoulder still bleeding freely. She pressed her hands to the wound, pressing down hard as she sought to stop the bleeding.

Looking to her party board, she noticed Yuuto's HP was still dropping.

25...20...15.

He was bleeding out.

She pulled a hand away, and it came away covered in his blood. Tears that had been threatening to spill over poured freely at this, and she dug in her pocket for a Health Crystal, snatching the small object and crying, "HEAL!"

Yuuto's health stopped dropping. It held steady at 15, then began to climb rapidly, the wounds on his body healing as his health continued to increase. Once his health reached 75%, most of the wounds on his body had been healed, save for the lone tear in his left shoulder, which looked as if a chunk had been carved directly out of it.

With a start, she realized that the Gleam Eyes' last attack had connected, and had caused this horrible injury. With the realization that she very easily could have lost Yuuto a few moments ago came the realization that if he died...she didn't know what she would do.

It felt like he was being pulled, slowly, from a pit of black sludge, everything steadily getting lighter and brighter. Truthfully, the darkness hadn't bothered him. Rather, it had seemed...welcoming, almost as if it was waiting especially for him. It had enveloped him, wrapping him in a cowl of black darker than his Coat of Midnight.

And for once, Yuuto felt at peace.

No warring with his subconscious mind, no dealing with tremendous feelings of guilt and self-loathing. No knowledge that, before he'd come to SAO, he'd been just like Kayaba Akihiko. Playing god with people's lives, choosing who he let live and who he killed on his missions.

No realization that he'd been nothing more than a serial killer on a payrole.

So it came as a mild irritation when he felt himself leaving that darkness. Part of him wanted to stay, to bask in the soothing calm and serenity that came with not having to think. But the other part of him...

The other part needed to go back.

Go back to where, he wasn't certain. Where was he, now that he thought about it? Was he dead? Was he in Hell? Because this certainly looked nothing like Heaven. Not that he knew what Heaven looked like, but he was of the firm belief that it didn't look like an all-black spectral void of nothingness.

Maybe he was in limbo? He'd heard about near-death experiences, and that sometimes souls were put into limbo, until their body decided whether or not to quit living.

Regardless, he felt that draw again, only this time, it was dragging him from the darkness, his surroundings getting brighter and brighter-

It felt like an eternity before he managed to crack an eye open, then both, before wincing at the aching, throbbing mass that was his entire body.

He groaned, and heard a gasp before pain shot through his body once more.

"YUUTO-KUN!"

"A-asuna...?" he croaked, and a wash of auburn hair covered his face as if to answer his question.

"Yo, Yuuto, you okay man? Thought we lost you there for a second."

"K-klein?"

"Who else, dumbass?"

Yuuto frowned, before looking around. "How...how long was I out?"

Asuna muffled a reply against his chest. "About a minute...I thought...I thought..." she began to sob softly, and he managed to wrap an arm around her, letting her cry against him as he propped himself up on one arm, looking around once more.

He was surrounded by everyone, both Army and Fuurinkazan making a half-circle around him. He let his gaze land on Asuna, who was latched firmly onto his midsection as if he would disappear should she let him go.

"Corbatz and two others died."

His eyes widened, then narrowed, hand clenching into a fist against Asuna's back, and she stiffened before sobbing once more, now lamenting the loss of three more people to the death game. He sighed, and let his fist unclench itself as he smoothed his hand over her back.

"We haven't lost a man since the 67th Floor Boss...damnit."

Klein nodded solemnly, before he grit his teeth. "How can you even call this a fight?" Turning to the Army, he growled. "Bloody retards. What good are you to ANYONE if you're dead?!"

Some had the decency to look ashamed, while others were openly crying at the loss of their comrades and their commander. The rest just hung their heads in sadness and shame.

Klein shook his head, before smiling. "But seriously, what the HELL was that skill, Yuuto?"

Yuuto sighed. "Do I have to tell you?"

Klein smirked. "Damn right you do. I've never seen anything like it. Dual-wielding? For real?"

Yuuto huffed. "Fine...it's an Extra Skill. Dual Blades."

Klein immediately opened up his Skill List, as well as the entire list of skill sets for SAO. Scrolling through them, he frowned. "I don't have it, and the database doesn't even list it. A Unique Skill, huh?"

Unique Skills were a select few skills that were given to certain players once they met certain criteria that no one else had achieved. No one knew how many Unique Skills there were, nor how to obtain them. They seemed to randomly pop up at any given time, and the person who was fortunate enough to obtain one was a force to be reckoned with.

Yuuto shrugged. "I'm not sure. It just showed up in my Skill List one day about 6 months ago."

Klein chuckled. "You're so anti-social, Yuuto. Why would you keep quiet about such an awesome skill?"

Yuuto gave him a deadpanned look. "If anyone found out I had this ability...I think it's pretty obvious, Klein."

Klein rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Heh, you're right. Online gamers are an envious bunch, and even though I myself am a virtuous person, even I would be jealous of something like that. I see your point."

Yuuto snorted at the 'virtuous' comment. "Whatever helps you sleep at night."

Several chuckles came from his guildmates, and Klein gaped, a mock-hurt expression on his face. "For shame, Yuuto! And I thought we were friends!"

"You may have, but I never said that."

Klein laughed. "Still as rude as ever. Good to have you back, man."

Yuuto shook his head. Klein finished laughing and got down to business. "So, going to activate the next portal?"

Yuuto again shook his head, this time as a response. "No, I'm far too weak right now. You guys go ahead. We'll catch up later."

Klein nodded, and both the Army soldiers and the Fuurinkazan members walked over to the portal, where one of them activated it before heading through it as a group.

Klein made to follow them, but stopped.

"...Yuuto."

"Hm?"

He looked at the ground. "Er...how to say this...when you jumped in to help those Army guys..."

Yuuto cocked an eyebrow. "What about it?"

Klein sighed, then wiped an eye clean. "I was...happy, ya know? You showed that you actually cared about the rest of us. It made me feel like you really were my friend, ya know?"

"Klein..."

He grinned. "Anywho, see you around, you one-man wrecking crew!"

Yuuto chuckled. As Klein entered the portal, Yuuto noticed that Asuna still hadn't let go of him.

Sitting up fully, he wrapped a second arm around her and jostled her slightly. "Hey, we should be getting ba-"

"I was so scared."

Yuuto shut up, his eyes widening slightly as she encircled him even more, pressing herself tightly against him. "I kept thinking to myself, 'What will I do if you died?' Even now...I don't have an answer. I don't know...I just don't know!"

He could feel more tears soak into his already damp coat, and he hugged her back. "What are you talking about? You were the one who jumped in first, remember? I just-"

"I'm going to take a break from the guild."

Again, Yuuto clamped his mouth shut, surprise clear on his face. "What?"

"Did you forget? I said I would party with you for a while. Well...I want to for a little while longer..."

Eyes widening, Yuuto thought back to all the time Asuna spent trying to get his attention. Trying to get him to spend time with her. Pestering him. Following him.

Stalking him.

And yet, for some reason, a warmth spread across his cheeks, as well as his heart.

It felt...nice...to be wanted.

In an act that was uncharacteristic for him, he laid his chin on her head, causing her to stiffen in surprise, before she nuzzled against his chest once more.

"All right. For a while longer..."

It was several days later, and Yuuto was getting stir-crazy.

Not only that, but he was going to kill whoever blabbed about his Unique Skill with said skill.

He'd barely gotten back to his place, Asuna still firmly attached to his arm, when he'd been confronted by at least a dozen swordsmen and swordswomen, each eager for him to 'teach them' how to unlock the Dual Blades sword skill.

He'd fielded about 20 questions before realizing it was pointless and, picking up Asuna bridal-style against her half-hearted protests, set off at a dead sprint, using his expertise as a mercenary to effortlessly lose his pursuers down several hairpin turns and quick ducks into alleyways.

Only to run across a dozen more after he finally lost the first ones.

Thus, he'd spent the better part of the day carrying Asuna around like a sack of groceries as he employed every trick in his book to desert the growing mob of rabid fans that he'd unwillingly attracted. A few were there to see, "Asuna-sama!" but the rest were there to get not only a glimpse of the man who possessed a Unique Skill, but to hopefully get him to teach it to them, too.

He'd also had a few women paw at him, some a bit too close to his neither regions for comfort. Luckily Asuna hadn't noticed in all the mayhem, otherwise he was certain she'd have been playing orange for a few days.

And by that, he meant she'd take out her rapier and...he shuddered, not daring to go further on that train of thought.

By the time he took refuge in Egil's shop on the second floor, where the black man's bedroom was located, the town was abuzz with news.

Said man sat across from him at the table, laughing his ass off as he clutched a newsletter he'd just gotten. "My God, this is priceless!"

Yuuto frowned, glaring holes into the wood of the table as Egil let loose another bout of laughter. "I just bet it is. Some friend you are."

"But seriously, just LISTEN to this: 'The Blue Demon that killed an entire Army squad was effortlessly taken down by the Black Swordsman's fifty-slash combo. That man is none other than the solo player Yuuto, who's acquired a Unique Skill known as Dual Blades.' It's unbelievable!"

Yuuto nodded. "Yeah, they really like to exaggerate. It was a 16-slash combo at most. Jeez, this sucks."

"Well, it's your own damn fault~"

Yuuto leveled a glare at Lizbeth, who had come upstairs from the shop with a box of materials in her arms. "I don't want to hear your bitching, because I had to vacate my shop, too. You promised me it would be our little secret, and then you go and blow your own cover. Amateur~."

She grinned as he silently fumed. All three of them turned to regard Asuna, who had just come up the stairs and was leaning against the frame panting.

"Asuna?"

She looked up at Yuuto, an apology in her eyes as she spoke. "What do we DO, Yuuto-kun?!This...is getting out of control!"

Floor 55: Grandzam.

The Headquarters of the Knights of the Blood Oath, and the exact spot where Yuuto had been summoned by none other than the leader of the KoBO, Heathcliff "The Paladin".

"Is this the first time we've met outside the field of battle, Yuuto-kun?"

Yuuto gazed apathetically at the man. "No, we spoke briefly during the strategy meeting of the 67th floor. I hope you are doing well, Heathcliff."

His advisers stiffened when Yuuto addressed Heathcliff informally, but he merely smiled as he replied. "I'm doing well, Yuuto-kun. I'm glad you asked. In regards to the outcome of that fight, it was a tough battle, and we lost some good people that day. In fact, we barely made it. I know that people call us the strongest guild, but they used to call the Army that, too, before the incident on the 25th floor."

"As it stands now, our forces are nearing their limits." It was at this point that Heathcliff narrowed his eyes at Yuuto. "And here you are, trying to take one of our most important players away."

Asuna made to retort, but Yuuto beat her to the punch. "If she's so important to you, the least you could do is pick competent bodyguards for her."

Heathcliff sighed. "Yes, that was...a mistake on our part. I do apologize about the incident with Kuradeel. He's been appropriately punished. But still, we won't just sit idly by and watch as you take away one of our Vice-Commanders."

Yuuto frowned. "Who said I was taking her away? Is a small scheduled leave of absence too much to ask?"

Heathcliff cocked an eyebrow at Yuuto's choice of words. "...you were in the Army in the real world?"

Yuuto shook his head. "No, and I'm not about to tell you what I was. We're off-topic as it is. Asuna should be able to request leave when she needs to, seeing as she is a 'valuable member of your guild' and all."

Heathcliff smirked at this. "Oh? Then perhaps you would care to make a wager?"

Now it was Yuuto's turn to cock an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

Inwardly, Heathcliff was grinning. Outwardly, "I propose this: Fight me. With both of your swords. If you win, Asuna gets her leave time, and any further requests will be sanctioned and approved by me personally."

Yuuto folded his arms, leveling a curious look at Heathcliff. "And if you win?"

At this point Heathcliff grinned, unable to help himself. "Then you become a member of the Knights of the Blood Oath, and serve under me."

Asuna bit her lip at this, before turning to Yuuto. "Yuuto-kun, it's alright. We'll find some other way to-"

"I accept your wager, Heathcliff."

Her gasp, as well as the gasps of Heathcliff's advisers, echoed through the chamber.

"Besides..." Yuuto smirked, leveling an intimidating look at Heathcliff. "I've always been better with blades than words."

Despite the fact the duel took place the very next day, word about it had spread like wildfire.

Yuuto, "The Dual-Wielding Demon" vs. Heathcliff, "The Living Legend".

This was to be the duel of the year, a one-time event, and seats to the arena where the duel had been relocated (it had originally been designated at an empty clearing on the 36th Floor, but because of the vast amount of people who wanted to see such a feat, it had been forced to be relocated to the main dueling arena of the 75th Floor, in the town of Collinia) were rapidly selling out.

One person in particular was rather...unhappy with the entire setup.

"YOU COMPLETE IDIOT! HOW COULD YOU SAY THAT?!"

Yuuto cringed as Asuna practically screeched her rage at him. "Yell a little louder, please. I think my hearing's going."

She groaned. "This is no time for jokes, Yuuto-kun! You're fighting Commander Heathcliff. THE Heathcliff. The Undefeated Man, the man that has never, EVER, lost a duel. No only that, but not a single person has seen his health bar drop below green since this game started two years ago!"

She managed to calm herself down a bit, and continued. "Yuuto-kun, when I first saw your dual-wielding skill, I thought your strength was on a whole other level. However, the Commander has a Unique Skill, as well."

Yuuto cocked an eyebrow at this. "He does, huh? Guess I won't have to hold back once he whips it out."

Asuna fumed. "You've seen it before, you idiot!"

Yuuto put a finger to his chin, thinking back. "Hmm...ah, you're right! It's called...Divine Blade, right?"

She nodded. "A skill that maximizes both attack and defensive power. The attack is quite strong, but the defense is simply incredible. It's an incredibly OP (overpowered) skill."

Yuuto chuckled. "That's most certainly the case."

Asuna bit her lip. "What are you going to do? If you lose, not only will I not get my leave, but you'll have to-"

Yuuto stood abruptly, cutting her off as he gave her a smile, one of those smiles that she honestly believed he reserved specially for her. "Then it's a good thing I don't plan on losing, right?" Rubbing the back of his head, he began to head towards the tunnel exit, which opened out into the main battlefield. "Would suck if I fought with the intent of losing, ne?"

She watched him go, a smile of her own plastered to her face. 'Good luck, Yuuto-kun...'

Heathcliff sighed, and looked apologetically at Yuuto. "I'm terribly sorry about all of this. I didn't know that this was going to get so..."

Yuuto supplied the rest. "Out of control?"

Heathcliff laughed. "Yes, that. Had I known our guildmembers have such big mouths for gossip, I'd have issued the challenge in private. Again, my apologies."

Yuuto shook his head. "It's fine. Besides, with such a packed stadium..." He gestured to the completely filled stands, the coliseum abuzz with cheers and shouts as the spectators eagerly awaited the start of the fight. "I get a percentage of the total net profit."

"No."

Yuuto raised an eyebrow. "After this fight, you'll be a member of my guild. I'll treat this as your first mission, and will compensate you according to the standard mission payout for new recruits."

Yuuto scoffed. "Cheapskate."

Heathcliff grinned. "Just another reason for you to win our little duel, ne?"

Yuuto sighed, then grinned back. "Sure, why not?" Scrolling through his menu, he activated his Dual Blades skill set, Dark Repulsor appearing on his back in a small flash of light.

Heathcliff blinked. "Using Dual Blades right from the get go? Aren't you in a bit of a rush?"

Yuuto smirked. "Don't play games with me, Heathcliff. You know that I know about your Unique Skill. Most everyone already does. I'm not about to face someone with a Unique Skill without having my own as backup."

Heathcliff ahh'd in reply. "A wise decision. Had you decided to go soft on me from the start, I'd have destroyed you in mere seconds, Yuuto-kun. You're rather shrewd, aren't you?"

Yuuto shrugged, drawing both of his blades and twirling them casually as he spoke. "I prefer to think of myself as duly informed."

Heathcliff smiled, and scrolled through his own menu, this time issuing the duel challenge. Yuuto accepted and the start counter began to count down.

Heathcliff's outfit was strikingly different from the typical Knights of the Blood Oath outfit. Being the Commander and subsequent leader of said guild, he wore a set of armor that identified him as such: Breastplate, stomach plate, shoulder plates, arm plates, arm guards, hand guards, gloves, upper and lower leg plates, shin guards, and armored boots. All were blood-red bordered in gold, except the gloves and cape were a stark, pristine white.

His shield, a gray tower shield resembling a cross, had a red cross painted on the front. Heathcliff's scabbard was kept behind his shield, and he drew his blade as he gazed at Yuuto, a dull gray weapon with a black hilt and a thin red cross on the guard, waiting for the start counter to reach zero.

[-3-]...

[-2-]...

[-1-]...

[-START-]

In the blink of an eye, Yuuto had closed the distance between them, Dark Repulsor arcing through the air as he used Elucidator to knock Heathcliff's shield aside, giving Repulsor a clear path to Heathcliff's chest.

Eyes widening, Heathcliff couldn't believe it. 'He's fast! Too fast!'

Heathcliff used his sword to deflect Yuuto's, and thrust his shield forward, forcing Yuuto to backpedal slightly lest he be hit in the face. Heathcliff took this opportunity to thrust his blade forward, intent on stabbing Yuuto in the chest.

His blade was deflected by Yuuto's however, and the two continued to trade blows, sparks flying as blades scraped against one another, Heathcliff's shield taking a beating as Yuuto continued to hammer against it.

A cross slash met Heathcliff's shield, and he stumbled backwards under the continued assault, a double horizontal slash raking across his shield so hard his arm felt as if it had received the blow itself. An uppercut cross slash followed by a spinning horizontal saw slash, and for the first time, Heathcliff wondered if his shield could take such punishment.

'How? With this much strength, it shouldn't be possible for him to move this fast! Only a dedicated tanker can possess this much power, but he moves like a speedster...could he be using an armor break build? It just doesn't make sense!'

(A/N: For those of you who don't understand the terminology, builds are when players design their character a certain way, ie, attack/defense power and large health bar = Tanker Build, speed and increased number of attacks = Speedster Build, and high piercing and increased overall critical hit damage = Armor Break Build.)

From the sidelines, Asuna watched with baited breath as Yuuto continued to drive Heathcliff around the field, slipping under the man's guard more often than not and taking nicks and bits of Heathcliff's health, occasionally taking some tiny scratches himself. The sound of metal on metal rang through the air amidst the cheers and shouts of the crowd, although her fists were still clenched tightly to her chest.

'Yuuto-kun...'

Heathcliff managed to draw his blade across Yuuto's cheek, but relished his momentary victory too soon as he felt cold steel swipe across his own. Backpedaling once more, Heathcliff sought to keep a manageable distance between himself and Yuuto, but the man kept working his way into his guard, before relentlessly hammering his defenses.

Grunting with the effort of blocking Yuuto's strikes, Heathcliff began to sweat as Yuuto's repeated hammering began to take its' toll on his shield arm, his left arm trembling from the continued blows. 'His speed's impressive, but his strength...it's incredible!'

Thrusting his shield forward, Heathcliff frowned as Yuuto used Dark Repulsor to deflect the shot aimed at his gut, before blocking another aimed at his chest. Working Repulsor under Heathcliff's shield, he flung them both upwards, knocking Heathcliff's sword to the side with Elucidator as he began to bring Repulsor down for a vertical slash, the green blade humming with energy as he poured a massive amount of power into the strike.

Yuuto finally let a small smirk grace his features. 'He's mine.'

The blade came within half a foot of Heathcliff's face before the world seemed to simply freeze around them.

It took Yuuto a moment to realize that it had, in fact, completely frozen.

'What the hell?!'

With speed that was, literally, impossible to have, Heathcliff brought his shield down and blocked Yuuto's strike, before using that speed to thrust his blade directly towards Yuuto's stomach.

Only the years of dodging countless blades and bullets prevented Yuuto from taking a sword to the gut. Elucidator seemed to come out of nowhere, slamming into Heathcliff's blade and diverting its' course away from Yuuto's stomach, the edge leaving a small tear in Yuuto's undershirt as he spun around and-

*DING*

Both combatants stopped, the duel having ended with that sound. Even if they'd continued, no further damage would have been applied, so each wordlessly sheathed their weapons as the crowed roared in excitement.

Some of the roars turned to gasps of astonishment as the results were displayed.

[Time - 1:30]

[Yuuto – 60/100 Points Remaining]

[Heathcliff – 60/100 Points Remaining]

[Duel Result – Draw]

Yuuto blinked. This being his second duel, having one win and one tie to his record didn't seem too shabby.

Heathcliff, however, was completely dumbfounded. He'd never, EVER, lost a duel before today, and while a tie wasn't considered a loss, it was also the end to his perfect record. Even though a draw counted as neither a win nor a loss towards one's overall duel score, a perfect record could only be achieved if the player won every single one of his or her duels.

That would forever be out of Heathcliff's reach, now.

Frowning, Heathcliff turned to his opponent. "Well, it appears that our agreement now has no purpose. Since neither of us won OR lost, none of the agreed-upon results can come to fruition."

Yuuto regarded Heathcliff with a blank look. "True..."

Sighing, Heathcliff turned and began to leave. "Tell Asuna-san to report to headquarters at 08:00 tomorrow. I have an assignment for her-"

"Wait."

Stopping, Heathcliff turned to regard the crestfallen expression of his opponent.

"Yes?"

"...I have a proposition for you, Commander Heathcliff."

Hearing Yuuto use his title for the first time, Heathcliff grinned. "Go on~"

Chapter 10's done, and looks like the chapter per episode bit we had going on in Chapter 9 was a one-hit wonder.

Should've known :/

Anywho, hope you enjoyed the duel. Felt that a draw would be much more suitable than a loss, as I felt Kirito got robbed in Episode 10.

Just to clarify, regular duels do not draw virtual blood, as the Safety protocol is still on due to them being in the city/town, where the no-fight areas are strictly enforced. However, a duel to the death outside of the city/town will draw virtual blood (duels to the death cannot occur inside cities/towns, obviously, because the Safety protocols prohibit a player's heath from dropping below 50%).

As for adding virtual blood to the storyline, I figure it adds a layer of depth to the story not found in an RPG setting. You already know that you die if your HP hits 0, but to add virtual blood makes it more realistic for those who still don't believe SAO's a death game.

Yes, Boss Battles obviously draw blood. Would be a moot point to add virtual blood to the scenario and not have it present in Boss Battles. Same goes for dungeon battles, seeing as the Safety protocol has been disengaged and you're literally fighting for your life.

Just wanted to clear up any confusion regarding the virtual blood. It adds depth to the story, makes character death more brutal, and makes the majority of the people who are still ignorant about the consequences of dying think twice before rushing headlong into a fight.

-Sgt. Assassin