"Is everyone ready?" Gingka asked as they arrived at the airport. "Next stop Africa!"

Before they could step inside, there was a metal detector and three security guards in front. "Please drop the bags and step through." One said as the other ones took out hand-held metal detectors.

"Things sure have changed in the past…few years…" Madoka commented. After going through, displaying their passports and ID, and a few more scanners, they finally made it to the plane.

Gingka was the first to step inside. It was almost empty. One small girl was sitting by a window, clutching a piece of paper, a man was sleeping in the back, one couple sat in the middle aisle. That was it.

"Hello!" Gingka greeted. It was enough to lighten the little girl's mood. "I wonder if there'll be room for me and my friends. Looks like a full crowd!"

The girl laughed. The couple never looked up. The man lightly snored.

"Is everyone here going to Tunisia for the beyblade battle?" Gingka asked as the others took their seats. They sat in the front section in the corner, clustered together.

The girl nodded and raised up her beyblade. "I am!" She said. "I am, Mr. Gingka Hagane!"

Gingka sat down next to her. "Can I see your bey?"

She nodded and dropped the top in his hands. "It's a Galaxy Cetus W105R2F. I customized it myself!"

"You don't say!" He gave it a look. It was truly one of a kind. "So you know my name. What is yours?"

"Yuuko." She answered.

"And how old are you?"

"Nine."

"You're nine and you're here alone?"

She nodded. "I'm on my own journey to be the best!" She said. "Can you...stay with me? Please?"

He smiled. "Of course I will!"

The flight attendant came out and presented the rules and regulations. Then, they were off, leaving the country, leaving loved ones behind, and in search of peace.

"Welcome to Tunisia. We hope you enjoy your stay and thank you for flying with us."

Everyone woke up. The couple was the first to leave, holding each other's hand. The man went back to sleep. Meanwhile, Yuuko held Gingka's hand. When she said she wanted him to stay, she probably meant to stay the whole time. After all, Gingka was all she had at that point. At least, that's how he saw it.

"I can't believe we're here, Mr. Gingka Hagane! Are you excited to battle?" She asked rapidly.

Gingka chuckled. "Yes, I'm excited." He nodded. But it wasn't the full truth. He was also afraid, nervous, and slightly sick to his stomach. Maybe it was fate bringing Yuuko here to calm him down. If he kept that blader's spirit from when he was younger, they can't lose. They won't lose.

"Mr. Gingka Hagane, will all your old friends be here?"

"Some of them are here now." He answered. "And you don't have to call me Mr. Gingka Hagane. You can call me Gingka..." Why did that sound so familiar? And that's when Gingka realized something. "Is your father's name Yuki?"

Madoka turned around at the familiar name. "What? Yuki?"

Yuuko nodded. "That's right! You know my daddy!"

"Wait. That's Yuki's daughter?" Madoka asked. "Then why isn't he here?"

"He is." She answered forlornly. "They captured him."

After Gingka got their carryon bags, he held the girl's hand. "Let's go find our place."

The hotel was a breath of fresh air. From the chaos of their home, it was a nostalgic burst of energy as if they were back in time. The rooms were very well decorated with vibrant patterns and modern technology.

"Well, here we are." He said.

Asami began to run around as Chieko and Shou beamed. "Nothing's broken!" They both said.

"Asami, calm down." Tsubasa told her. "Come. Let's set you up."

"Why don't I help set up while you guys train?" Izumi volunteered. "You guys need all the time you can get."

Gingka and Masamune agreed along with Yu. "I can help." Madoka said.

"I'll help too..." Tsubasa said until he was cut off.

"No, no!" Izumi said. "You should go with your friends."

Before he could refuse, Tsubasa got a good look into her eyes. It was almost hypnotic. Maybe it was a good idea to go. Then he wouldn't be alone with her and betray Yu again. "Okay. If it isn't too much trouble."

"Not at all. It's in my old job description."

"Well, it's decided!" Masamune hollered. "Let's go!"

The bladers started their walk out of the building while the women and children stayed behind. But before the guys were out of the hotel, Tsubasa held Yu behind. "I need to tell you something." He said in a low volume so only he could hear.

"What is it?" Yu asked. "It smells like you're contemplating something."

"Uh... I guess... How do you...? Whatever." Tsubasa saw Gingka and the others turn around. "Go on without us." He told them, waving them away.

As soon as they left, Yu asked "What's the matter?"

He took a deep breath. "It's kind of hard to say." He held Earth Eagle in his hand. "It's been a while since we bladed; Eagle and I."

"How long?"

"Years." He answered. "But... I remember a lot."

Yu leaned against the doorframe with one knee out. "What are you thinking of doing?"

"Do you remember Battle Bladers and how Ryuga's dark power was out of control?"

"Yeah." Yu answered skeptically.

"And how it affected me in the World Tournament?"

"Yeah."

"I was thinking of using that strength..."

"No, Tsubasa!"

"...to help in this fight."

"No!" Yu said a bit louder. "No way!"

"But with that power, we can't lose! And this is the time to pull out all the stops."

"And we can't afford to take risks." Yu stood up. "Don't you remember what you went through? All that damage? Do you want your kids to see that? Not to mention that you lost almost every time!"

"But I handled it towards the end. If I could get rid of it then, I can do it again now."

"You're missing the point. If you do this, you'll hurt more than the enemy. We're not as strong as we were. We could die..."

"And that's what I'm trying to prevent. I'm older now. Those dark forces can be controlled. Just have faith in me, Yu."

Yu didn't say anything.

"Are you with me?"

"No." He said. "There's not enough room for two crazies."

"You're abandoning me?" Tsubasa asked as Yu turned to walk away. "You're abandoning me, aren't you?"

"No." He answered. "I'm just not going to help you be evil."

"It's for my son!" Tsubasa yelled loud enough to draw attention. "He's out there probably scared and alone! I have to..."

"No, you don't!"

"Then don't get in my way." He growled. Yu automatically thought of the time during their tag battle.

"You've already awoken the dark power, haven't you?" Yu asked. "You have, haven't you?"

"No." Tsubasa was confused. "But I need something..."

"You don't need anything because I'm not going to let you do this."

"What are you going to do about it?" Tsubasa frowned. "What else do you have in mind?"

"Using the strength we already have."

Yu walked away then. He didn't want to have a part in the conversation, so he left. But Tsubasa couldn't abandon it so easily. Truth be told, he still felt the darkness inside of him. If he let the power out, he could look like he planned the whole thing. Maybe it was denial thinking he could control it.

Tsubasa looked down at Eagle again. He eyed the face bolt and energy ring. "I'm sorry..." He said. "Why am I behaving this way?"

While Tsubasa was finding out who this new Tsubasa was, Madoka was finding out who Shou was. The boy just got situated into his bed when he took out a book about beyblade mechanics. Madoka saw him reading the tome avidly and was intrigued. "Whatcha got there?" She asked.

"It's just a book about the scientific mechanics of beyblade." He answered. "It's my favorite."

"Really?" She asked impressed. "So you really enjoy that kind of stuff?"

He gave a slow nod. A regular one would've hurt his head. "I love it, but I don't really go around saying it."

"I can tell you don't go around saying much about anything!" She chuckled. "You're very quiet like your father."

Shou coughed again. It sounded a lot harsher than it did when she saw him at the drugstore. "I get that a lot."

"Wow, you don't sound so good." Madoka felt his forehead. "And that fever isn't going down."

"Ms. Madoka," Shou uttered, "am...am I going to die?"

"No!" She answered. "No, of course not, sweetie. Everyone gets the flu. You'll be fine."

"I can't believe I got sick right now. I wanted to help Dad find Mamoru. And if I couldn't do that, I was going to keep an eye on the girls, but now I can't do anything except for study."

"Hey, that's good too."

Madoka saw how upset Shou was. She understood how much he wanted to help, but she didn't expect the boy to break down and cry like he did.

"Hey, hey, it's okay, Shou. Don't cry." She told him. The whole thing was a little awkward for her. Madoka never had to deal with children in that particular situation before. "Let me get Izumi. She'll know what to do."

"No, no…" He stopped and took a breath. "I'm fine. I'm just going to lay down and rest a bit."

"That sounds like a good idea." She said. "You need to relax." Madoka stood up and quietly slipped out of his room.

Shou made sure she was completely gone before lying down. He gripped his head to squeeze away the pain. He adjusted his pillows, but nothing worked. Then, he stood up and stumbled to the bathroom. His reflection showed his reddened face. Shou leaned closer to see his pink eyes. After a deep breath, blood trickled down his nose. It poured down, bounced off of his hand, and landed in the sink, falling down as if it was vomit. The running settled to a slow stream and eventually came to a stop. Shou fell onto his knees, bruising them.

"No…"