(A/N: So as I said at the end of the previous chapter, this is where a lot of shit starts to go down. Strap in ladies and gentlemen, we're in for a wild one. Also, more of Class 77 to go around. Enjoy!)

Walking briskly down the path, Byakuya continued to review in his head how he could've fared better in his duel against Celestia Ludenburg, trying to cover up the error of his techniques, trying to see where he'd gone wrong. However, as he continued to pace about, lost in thought, he wound up walking straight into, and subsequently knocking over, Nagito Komaeda.

"Ow!" Nagito exclaimed.

Byakuya reacted, but not out of care or concern for Nagito. "Do you mind watching where you're going?" he asked snidely. "You could get your commoner's grease all over my finely pressed suit."

"Sorry," Nagito said, holding up his hands in apology as he stood up. "I guess my bad luck finally caught up to me if I took that badly of a fall."

It was then that Byakuya spied the duel disk on Nagito's arm. "You, are you still in the tournament?"

"Me?" Nagito asked, rubbing his chin with his finger. "Well yeah, I suppose I am." He put his hands in his hoodie pocket. "I happen to have four locator cards myself."

"What coincidence, I have four as well," Byakuya said.

"Care to wager just one?" Nagito asked. "If I got to the finals too soon, I think my classmates would be upset with me that someone like me managed to get to the finals before they did."

"Oh how charming you're competing with your school. That's cute."

"Oh, no, I'm no competitor," Nagito said and hugged himself. "I just want to be used as the stepping stone towards the hope of my great classmates." He held his arms out wide with praise. "They're the real heroes! Chiaki in particular would do amazingly well. She's the Ultimate Gamer after all."

"Ultimate…Gamer?" Byakuya asked, taking a pause. "And you're her classmate?" Byakuya was quiet for a moment.

"Well yeah, I go to—"

"Hope's Peak Academy," Byakuya said, answering for Nagito.

"Yup, how'd you know?"

"Heh, how fortunate for me. This duel will give me a taste of the type of people I am to commune with starting next year."

"Huh? But I thought Hope's Peak didn't start sending out acceptance letters until the Fall."

"For one such as I, such an acceptance is already a foregone conclusion," Byakuya said, secure in his smugness, arms folded. He lifted his head, looking down on Nagito. "For I am Byakuya Togami, of the Togami family. There is nothing I can't accomplish for I am the chosen one destined for greatness."

"Byakuya…Togami? Huh, weird, for some reason I thought you'd be more…"

"What?" Byakuya asked.

"Um, how do I put this nicely? For some reason I thought you were a bigger guy."

"Bigger…are you saying you thought I was fat?"

"You said it, not me."

"What drivel! Who's been spreading a rumor about me? I demand names!" Byakuya exclaimed.

"Huh? N-no, you've got it all wrong," Nagito said, looking nervous. "No one's said anything. It's just…I can't shake this weird feeling that I've seen you before…except 100 pounds heavier."

"I don't know where you got such a ridiculous notion from," Byakuya said, pointing accusatorily at Nagito, "But I demand you cast it into whatever vile pits of hell it came from. I, Byakuya Togami, am perfect in every way right down to my white and red blood cell count and 150 pounds of lean muscle." Byakuya crossed his arms and huffed. "Me. Fat. The nerve of some people."

"S-sorry," Nagito said. "So, h-how about that duel? It'll take your mind off things. I should warn you though, my deck is pretty powerful."

"I'd expect as such from a student at Hope's Peak, but don't think that that will save you. I put my deck together using the best cards money could buy."

"How much are we talking?"

"About twenty billion yen," Byakuya answered.

"Whoa," Nagito said, taken aback a bit by the staggering fiscal amount. He didn't even have that much to throw around from his parent's insurance money. "You must really like the game to throw around that much money."

"Like the game?" Byakuya asked as though the question were an insult. "You mistake me. Purchasing cards and building a worthwhile deck is what any sane duelist would do. I just happen to have a much larger income than most and I decided to use it to fuel this new hobby of mine. When Duel Monsters took the world by storm, I decided that I had to make a point that a Togami, namely me, could rise to any fad or craze and be the best at it." He chuckled. "I must really thank Kaiba the next time I see him for his generous chance to let me compete and prove my worth."

"Next time? You already ran into Kaiba?" Nagito asked.

Byakuya did not look happy given the narrowing of his sideways glance. "I did. And the next time I see him, he's going down."

So he lost. Poor guy, Nagito thought. All that pressure only to fail.

"You on the other hand shall be a glorious stepping stone in my path towards greatness," Byakuya said.

"Ah, just the sort of thing I like to hear from an Ultimate, future or otherwise," Nagito said. "But, you've gotta earn that right."

"Naturally," Byakuya said. "To fight and earn my keep," Byakuya pointed at Nagito declaratively, "That is the standard by which I live my day to day life. Let it never be said that Byakuya Togami takes what he wants without earning it first."

"Well, okay then, let's see how a top-level citizen can duel. This'll be good for me too because it'll give me good insight as to the hope of the next generation," Nagito said, ecstatic.

"Heh, finally someone who understands me," Byakuya said with a smile. Although a little too well. The 99% usually aren't this agreeable with my status. "Well then, are you ready?" Byakuya asked and activated his duel disk. "Because I'm not going to show you any mercy."

"I'm always up for a duel," Nagito said and activated his duel disk.

"All right then," Byakuya said.

Then, he and Nagito said at the same time, "Let's Duel!"

"Since my victory is already a foregone conclusion, why don't you go first. I'll enjoy picking apart your defenses," Byakuya said.

"Sure thing," Nagito said and drew the top card from his deck. "Draw." He put the new card in his hand. "Hmm…" He examined his hand for a moment before deciding on a course of action. "I activate the spell card Resurrection of Chakra and by sending Ritual Raven to the graveyard, I can summon it for the small price to pay of a single monster. Now, come forth, oh great fiend of many arms! I summon Chakra!" A strange, legless, floating creature with four arms appeared. It had an eyeball at the top of its body in place of a face. It had 2450 attack points.

"That's all I can do this turn," Nagito said.

"My turn then," Byakuya said and drew the top card of his deck. "I'm sorry to say, but your monster isn't going to be staying around for very long."

"That's okay, he's just a stepping stone, right?"

"Right," Byakuya said. Why does his approval fill me with such disgust? "I activate the spell card Hammer Shot, destroying your monster in its entirety!" A gigantic hammer came down and destroyed Nagito's monster. "And next, I play Mad Dog of Darkness in attack mode," Byakuya said and placed the feral creature on the battlefield.

"Impressive move," Nagito said.

Byakuya ignored the compliment. "Mad Dog of Darkness, attack!" The ferocious canine leapt from its summoned spot and mauled Nagito before returning to Byakuya's side for a stroke for a job well-done. Nagito stood up, his life points down to 2100.

"I shall place two cards face-down," Byakuya said. "And then I shall end my turn. It's your move."

"Sure," Nagito said and drew the top card of his deck. He then looked at his hand of four cards. Oh, that's not good. Hopefully my luck will hold. "I'm afraid I have to end my turn," Nagito said.

"Pathetic," Byakuya said. "You claim to have a powerful deck, yet you play nothing to counter my brilliant maneuver. You disappoint me."

"What can I say? I can't play a single card in my hand," Nagito said.

"How unfortunate," Byakuya said as Nagito gazed intently at his deck. "I draw." Byakuya placed the card in his hand, leaving him with three cards in his hand. "I shall place one more card face-down onto the field. And next, I shall attack with Mad Dog of Darkness."

The ferocious canine charged at Nagito and knocked him over, dealing another 1900 points of damage.

"If you don't play anything this turn," Byakuya said. "I'll just assume you'll forfeit."

"Something tells me I will play a card this turn," Nagito said.

"Oh, why's that?" Byakuya asked.

"I guess you could say, I'm feeling lucky," Nagito said and drew the top card of his deck. Yup, that's what I thought. "Sorry Byakuya, but the duel's over."

"Of course it's over…wait, why are you sorry?"

Nagito began placing cards onto his duel disk's monster zone.

"What are you doing?" Byakuya snapped.

"Summoning the most powerful monster in the entire game, what does it look like?"

Byakuya looked pale. "Impossible! You…have Exodia? No way! Those cards must be fake!"

"Nope, they're the genuine article. I had them appraised myself."

"Th-this is…" Byakuya stuttered.

Nagito called forth for the mighty, massive, monstrosity that was Exodia, the Forbidden One. The powerful creature towered over his duel with Byakuya. Byakuya was just in awe as he stared up at the great spellcaster.

To see it with my own eyes, cards I've sought after for so long. Why does he have them?

"Exodia!" Nagito shouted. "Obliterate!"

Rearing back its hand, Exodia shot forth the massive power of its right hand and destroyed Byakuya's field in its entirety, bringing his life points to 0 in an instant. Yet, unlike his last two duels, Byakuya neither cowered nor cringed after his defeat. Instead, he seemed rather eager for a certain group of cards.

"You…what did you say your name was?" he asked.

"Oh? Me? I guess I never introduced myself. I'm Nagito Komaeda."

"Nagito," Byakuya said. "I would like to buy your Exodia cards. Name your price."

"Sorry, but they're not for sale."

"Everyone says that," Byakuya chuckled. "How about Five and a half billion yen for each piece?"

"That's a lot of money, but like I said, they're not for sale."

"A hundred billion yen," Byakuya said. "I'll even give you three of my cards in addition to your chosen rare card for winning this duel."

Nagito smiled. "I'm starting to see why you lost to Kaiba."

"Don't change the subject!" Byakuya declared angrily.

"Byakuya, you put together cards that you bought to make a powerful deck, but Duel Monsters is about way more than powerful cards and skill and strategy. If you're heart and head aren't in the game, your chances of winning go down."

Byakuya rolled his eyes. He'd deal with the change in subject for now. "Spare me," he said, irritably. "Sentimentalism has no place in a collectible card game. It only depends on who has the most powerful cards and who can use them well. If I had Exodia with the resources in my possession, I could never lose. Now hand them over."

Nagito held up an informative finger. "It seems you've got a bit to learn about this game, Byakuya. You can't go around thinking you have the mightiest deck in the world just because you tossed a bunch of money around. Dueling is about more than that. You're so rich that you might not understand this, but people like my classmates and me, we put our decks together using cards we really wanted, strategies we figured out or based an entire deck around a card we thought looked cool. Take Chiaki for example, her deck is completely unorthodox, but she designed it that way on purpose because she thought it was the best counterstrategy for people that do what you do and rely upon powerful monsters. My deck is designed to reflect my way of life," Nagito said and smiled, "I discard all of my weak monsters as stepping stones for my most powerful cards, my ritual monsters. Garlandolf in particular is my favorite. Yugi favors the Dark Magician, Kaiba favors his Blue-Eyes. Can you say you favor any card in your deck?"

"Of course not," Byakuya said. "Any card will do. My deck was made so that no matter what I drew, my victory was guaranteed." Byakuya thought about his last three losses in a row. "…almost guaranteed," he corrected.

"And that's why you lost," Nagito said.

"What you've just said makes no sense," Byakuya said.

"Maybe I'm not explaining it well," Nagito said. He looked contemplative for a little while. "Oh, I know. Why don't you go visit the Mutoh Game Shop on the other side of town?"

"And why, pray tell, would I do that?"

"In an interview, Duelist Kingdom finalist Joey Wheeler said that aside from duels with his "pals" he learned everything he knew about dueling from Yugi's grandpa," Nagito stated.

Nagito's words seemed to resonate within Byakuya given the expression on his face. "I see what you're saying. If a nothing duelist like Joey Wheeler can become a grand tournament finalist—"

"Think of what you could learn," Nagito said.

"Fascinating," Byakuya said. "I think I'll take you up on that offer. And it is a game shop, perhaps I could find some cards to my liking for sale. Nagito, you have a slight token of my appreciation. To show it," Byakuya said and fanned out his entire deck. "You may pick any card you like from my deck."

"What? Really?"

"Don't worry, I have at least six copies of all of these cards, just in case thieves decided to steal them, I have enough cards to replace three whole copies' worth of any card in my deck."

Nagito looked over Byakuya's deck and scanned through it. "I'll take this one then," he said and plucked a card towards the edge of Byakuya's deck from Nagito's left. Having memorized all of the cards in the order he showed them to Nagito, Byakuya knew which one Nagito had just drawn.

"Mystical Knight of Jackal, huh. A fine choice." Byakuya folded his deck back into one neat pile and put it away in a deck box, which then went into his pocket. "I hope you will put it to good use."

"Oh I will," Nagito said. "A card like this is perfect for my strategy."

"Well then, I must be off," Byakuya said and handed one of his locator cards to Nagito. "I do hope I will see you in the finals, given how you have five locator cards now."

"Same, the future leader of the Togami Corporation should be in the finals of this tournament. It would be unthinkable to have a Sweet 16 without the great Byakuya Togami in it."

"I feel like you're mocking me," Byakuya frowned.

"What? No!" Nagito exclaimed, looking horrified. "Why would I do that?" His eyes were wide and full of life, "I love Ultimates. They give me hope, hope for a bright future."

"I…see…" Byakuya said, weirded out by Nagito. "In any case, I must be going. You've eaten up enough of my time as it is."

"Right, right," Nagito said. "You be on your way. I've got to find someone that could provide me with my final locator card."

"You do that," Byakuya said and briskly walked away. "Goodbye."

Nagito looked at the card in his hand and slipped it into his deck. "Ah, it feels so good to inspire Ultimates, especially future Ultimates." He sighed with a smile. "Welp, not gonna get that last locator card just standing around here. Guess I'd better find a duelist worthless enough to take it from."

Nagito walked away and down the street Byakuya had turned the corner from.

"You aren't going anywhere, Nagito Komaeda!" A man exclaimed, running after him. "Because I challenge you to a—"

WHAM!

The man had run straight out into oncoming traffic and been hit at 25 miles per hour, sending him flying and tumbling along the road.

"Holy crap," the drive said getting out of his car. The man on the ground twitched. "You okay, buddy?"

"I can't feel my legs."

"Someone call an ambulance!" the driver called and people began scrambling with Nagito walking away from the scene, finding it not to be his problem. If only he knew the truth about the poor man in hot pursuit of him.

Speaking of oblivious pursuits, Joey was still oblivious to the fact that Celeste wanted a piece of him. As he and Ibuki walked underneath the indoor bridge that connected a pair of buildings, Teá had to ask. "Ibuki, are you sure you know where you're going?"

"Nope, not a clue, but if we keep walking around, we have to run into them eventually, right? Besides, Ibuki wants to see the city. It's not like she lived around here before she went to Hope's Peak. This city is totally rad!" she exclaimed. "I counted like six music stores since we started looking for Chiaki, Nagito and my other classmates."

"Yeah, I suppose Domino's pretty amazing," Joey said, wiping his finger under his nose.

"You say that like you contributed to its infrastructure," Teá said with a glazed look. And that was when her cellphone started to ring.

"Ooooh! Teá has a cellphone! That's so cool!"

"It's not that big of a deal," Teá said, fetching the phone out of her purse.

"Are you kidding? Cellphone technology is like super cool. Ibuki loves her Iphone. It's like a part of her. What about you, Joey?"

"I, uh, I don't have one."

"What? Why? They're like, almost a necessity in today's day and age," Ibuki said. She gasped. "Oh no, are you like one of those retro guys that wants to save all the payphones in the world."

"It's nothing like that," Joey said. "It's, um…" Joey didn't want to talk about his dad's lack of care for Joey's well-being and his inability to afford a cell phone for himself so he changed the subject. "So, Teá, who's calling?"

Teá held up a finger to indicate she was trying to listen to the person on the other end as she held the phone to her ear. "What's that, Serenity?" she asked.

"Oh, it's my sister!" Joey exclaimed, handing the phone over. "Give it here," he said, eagerly requesting Teá's cellphone.

"Yeah, I'll put him on," Teá said, "hold on a second." She handed Joey the phone.

"Joey, are you there?" Joey could hear Serenity's voice from the other line.

"Hey, sis, how are you?" Joey asked.

"Joey, I just got told by the nurse I can take off my bandages tonight," Serenity said. "I'm all good to leave the hospital too. I just need someone to escort me out."

"What? Really? That's great!" Joey exclaimed.

"Um, if it's not too much trouble, could you come get me?" Serenity asked.

"Eh?"

"I know it's a lot to ask, but could you come get me?" Serenity asked. "I want the first thing I see is you dueling, big brother."

"Uh, well, that's, um, you see…"

Serenity sighed and smiled. "I understand, you're busy right? You're trying so hard in the tournament."

"Heh? How'd you know that?"

"I got some help so that I could follow your duels," Serenity said. "You've never let me down. So, I could understand if you're a bit busy to come get me."

"No. No, it's not that. I, uh…"

"You could always send Tristan to come get me. But if I wait for mom, I don't think I'll get a chance to see you duel."

"What? Why should I send him over?" Joey snapped. He then scratched his head. "Although, I guess Tristan is a little like family, kind of like that annoying cousin who always—" Joey suddenly noticed the phone had been snatched up…by Ibuki. "Ah, hey!"

"Hello!" Ibuki exclaimed into the other end of the phone.

"U-um, wh-who is this?" Serenity asked, not recognizing the voice.

"My name is Ibuki Mioda," Ibuki answered. "I'm Joey's new best friend after Tristan and Yugi. We're also band members!"

"I still haven't agreed to this band thing, Ibuki!" Joey shouted.

Ibuki ignored him and Serenity bought into it. "Joey's starting a band? I'll have to listen to you guys play sometimes."

"We'll give you the best seat in the house because you're family to the drummer," Ibuki said.

"Well it's nice to meet you, Ibuki," Serenity said.

"Nice to have met you too, Serenity," Ibuki said. "But Ibuki grabbed the phone for more than just greetings. She has really good ears so she knows you're stuck at the hospital. She's got some friends that might be able to help with that. Joey and Ibuki are busy looking for Ibuki's other friends, but Ibuki has so many friends that she can multitask."

"Um…I don't know if that's…"

"Joey, mind if I call a couple of my classmates and have them pick your sister up?" Ibuki asked, holding the phone out towards Joey.

"Eh? A couple of your classmates. Uh, sure I don't mind if Serenity's okay with it."

Serenity called out from the other end, but because the phone wasn't on speaker, only Ibuki heard her. "She said she wants to talk to you," Ibuki said, handing Joey the phone. Joey took the phone back.

"Joey, are you sure about this?" Serenity asked, nervous.

"I trust Ibuki, Serenity. She's a bit high energy, but I'm sure she wouldn't do anything to upset me given how good we're getting along, right Ibuki?"

Ibuki pointed to the side with both of her index fingers. "Darn straight!"

"Well, if you trust her, Joey, then I trust her too," Serenity said.

"We'll all meet up at the big fountain in the middle of the city," Joey said, looking at Ibuki who was already pulling out her own cellphone to call her friends. "I'll head on over there to wait for you and I'll buy you something delicious to eat. Do you still like Imagawayaki?"

"Of course I do. That sounds delicious," Serenity exclaimed in delight. "See you when I see you. I love you, big brother."

"Love you to, sis, bye!" Joey said and threw Teá's cellphone into the air. "Woohoo! My little sister's gonna watch me duel! This is gonna be awesome."

Teá let out a shrill cry as she managed to catch her falling cellphone. "Joey! Easy with the technology, you Neanderthallic monkey!"

Ibuki suddenly let out a big sigh.

"What's the matter?" Joey asked.

"Ibuki was gonna call Miss Yukizome to go pick up your sister, but she's not answering her cellphone or her work phone."

"Who's Yukizome?" Joey asked.

"Ibuki's teacher," Ibuki said with a frown. "She's super cool and awesome and reliable, so Ibuki can't understand why she's not answering her phone."

"Maybe she's using the lady's room," Joey said.

"Joey!" Teá exclaimed, expecting Joey to have more class than that.

"It's okay!" Ibuki exclaimed. "Ibuki's always got a backup plan."

Back in Class 77's homeroom at Hope's Peak Academy, the final round of their class tournament had come down to Fuyuhiko and Nekomaru. The two had pushed together a bunch of desks, huddled around a pair of duel mats. Fuyuhiko had 1200 life points left and Nekomaru had 1000. Each had two cards face-down on the field with Nekomaru having a monster face-down and Red Dragon Ninja face-up in attack position. Fuyuhiko had Baron of the Fiend Sword on the field in attack position and no other monsters on the field, the previous one—his Zure, Knight of Darkworld—and it was Fuyuhiko's turn. Drawing the top card of his deck, he declared, "I sacrifice my Baron of the Fiend Sword to play Gravi-Crush Dragon." He said, placing the card into the monster zone. "And next I'll activate a continuous spell Toll, only to tribute it in order to activate my monster's special ability and destroy your face-down monster!" Fuyuhiko declared, causing Nekomaru to send his Man-Eater Bug straight to the graveyard. "Next, I'll activate my face-down card, Reinforcements and use it to power up my Monarch, raising its attack power to 2900," Fuyuhiko said, flipping the card over. "And now, I attack!"

"Hold on!" Nekomaru declared, "I activate my trap card, Reverse Trap, reversing all instances of increases and decreases to attack and defense."

"Clever move, but I'm one step ahead," Fuyuhiko said smugly, "I activate Trap Jammer, which negates a trap card played during the battle phase!"

"That means Nekomaru loses this battle," Mahiru declared with surprise.

"Meaning his life points go down to 500," Kazuichi said.

"Heh, feeling strained?" Kazuichi asked as he and Nekomaru placed all appropriate cards in the graveyard. "Face it, this duel is just about wrapped up."

"It ain't over until I say it is!" Nekomaru belted. "…or my life points hit zero."

"Man, who knew watching people play a card game could be so interesting," Akane said, finding herself emotionally invested. "It's like I'm watching an actual battle unfold. I'm gettin' pumped up."

"Quiet, I'm trying to pay attention!" Hiyoko exclaimed.

"But nobody's done anything yet," Mikan pointed out.

"Shut up!" Hiyoko snapped. Mikan whimpered.

Nekomaru drew the top card off of his deck. "I play my Fire Kraken in attack mode!" Nekomaru declared. His monster bore the picture of an octopus on fire with 1600 attack points and 1500 defense points.

"That card? It doesn't stand a chance against my dragon," Fuyuhiko pointed out. "Why don't you ask our chef to make some spicy Takoyaki out of it. I'm sure that's all it's good for."

"Would you like some spicy Takoyaki, Fuyuhiko?" Teruteru asked. "I'll make it fresh."

"Extra spicy," Fuyuhiko said. "To celebrate my victory."

"Better add some salt to that recipe," Nekomaru said, "Because I'm equipping your monster with Black Pendant," Nekomaru said, pointing at Fuyuhiko's card as he played his spell card, "Giving it 500 extra attack points."

"Okay," Fuyuhiko said, confused.

"Next, I activate my trap card, Inverse Universe flipping our monster's attack and defense points."

"Okay, you still don't have enough power to beat me," Fuyuhiko said. "My monster still has 1200 attack points to your 1500."

"Oh? But what happens when I play my Rush Recklessly Quick-play spell and increase my monster's attack power by 700."

"Then your monster has 2200 attack points and it'll deal 1000 damage," Fuyuhiko said and then blinked when he realized the problem. "And because you played Black Pendant…OH YOU BASTARD!"

Nekomaru laughed and laughed.

"What? What happened?" Akane asked.

"Fuyuhiko got played," Kazuichi said as he began to snicker. "Once Nekomaru's monster destroys his monster, Black Pendant goes to the graveyard and since its Nekomaru's spell card, Fuyuhiko loses more life points and it's game over."

"So coach wins?" Akane asked.

"Damn straight!" Nekomaru declared.

"All right, I don't get it, but YEAH!" Akane shouted. "You're really something else coach. I didn't expect you'd win the whole thing."

"Really?" Kazuichi asked, scratching his head. "I did after he gave me a thorough thrashing last round. Nekomaru's a real pro. There's that Team Manager talent at work."

"Aw, c'mon, it ain't that impressive," Nekomaru said, acting all humble and embarrassed.

"Heh, I disagree," Fuyuhiko said, having found his composure and was already cleaning up his deck. "You're quite the talented duelist, Nekomaru. You could've made a real killing if you competed in the tournament."

"Well, what can I say? I love you guys! Group hug!" Nekomaru exclaimed, pulling Mahiru and Kazuichi in under his arms, who happened to be the two closest students.

"Ugh, too tight. Personal space!" Mahiru exclaimed. That was when her cell phone rang from inside her skirt pocket.

"Mahiru, your phone," Hiyoko pointed out.

Nekomaru let go of her as Mahiru answered her phone. "Hello? Oh, it's you Ibuki," she said.

"Ugh, gross. What's all talk and no fashion want with Mahiru?" Hiyoko bemoaned.

"H-hey, slow down, I can barely understand you," Mahiru said. "Ibuki! Ibuki!" she shouted twice to get Ibuki to calm down.

"So, Fuyuhiko, do you still want to taste my freshly made balls?" Teruteru asked.

Fuyuhiko jerked his head at Peko, prompting her to hit Teruteru over the head with her sword, almost knocking a tooth loose and causing him to become dizzy. "Celine Dion," he said in a slurred manner before falling over and faceplanting into the ground.

"Wait, seriously? Hold on, let me speak to him."

"Him? Him who?" Hiyoko asked, but Mahiru held up her hand, indicating for Hiyoko not to interrupt her.

"I'm Mahiru," Mahiru said to the person she was now speaking to. "Ibuki tells me you want me to pick up your sister. Any reason you can't do it yourself?"

"Who's she talking to?" Kazuichi asked. "Someone from her old school?"

"Can't be if Ibuki knows them," Nekomaru said.

"Yeah, that sounds like Ibuki," Mahiru said. She sighed. "Jeez, all right, I suppose if she volunteered Mikan as long as you were willing to do it yourself, I guess I can do it."

"M-me?" Mikan squeaked.

"Wherever you and Mikan are going, I want to go too!" Hiyoko exclaimed.

"Hang on, say that again, what's the address and room number?" Mahiru asked, scribbling onto a notepad. "Mmmhmm, mmmhmm…got it. Go straight to the fountain in the middle of the city. I'll see you there. Tell Ibuki to call me if she needs anything else." Mahiru hung up and then looked at Mikan, scratching her head. "So apparently we need to go pick up the little sister of some guy named Joey Wheeler."

"Get the hell out!" Kazuichi exclaimed, getting pumped up. "You were talking to Joey Wheeler? The Joey Wheeler? He's like an inspiration to underdogs like me everywhere!"

"Oh, is he some big shot like Bandit Keith?" Mahiru asked.

"Screw Bandit Keith, Joey's the man! He beat Bandit Keith, just like Miss Sonia! Aw, man. Let me go! I wanna meet Joey!"

"Me too! If you're going anywhere with Mikan then I want to go too!" Hiyoko exclaimed. "Any place that's low quality enough to permit her ugly face entry is good enough for me too!"

"I don't have an ugly face," Mikan whined.

"We're going to a hospital," Mahiru stated. "That's why Ibuki asked Mikan to go get Joey's sister Serenity. I'm going too because Ibuki said I'm reliable and well…" she gave Mikan a concerned look, "Well she said she'd be worried about you if you went by yourself."

Mikan looked sad. "Well she's not wrong, I'd probably get lost or hurt or lose my escort."

"Which would be bad, considering Joey's sister just got out of eye surgery. We need to be delicate with her."

"Oh yeah, Joey said something about that in that interview of his," Kazuichi said, scratching his cheek. He then doubled back on his previous question. "So can I come along?"

"Me too!" Hiyoko exclaimed.

"Both of you cut it out! This isn't a field trip!" Mahiru barked. "I'm doing Ibuki a favor like a responsible adult. You think Joey's sister wants four complete strangers crowding around her. Two is going to be bad enough and at least Mikan's the gentle type. Jeez!"

"B-but I have to go with you!" Hiyoko exclaimed. "Anywhere you go, I go too! You said you'd always be by my side!"

"I also don't want you getting sick. Mikan and I are going to a hospital. You have a big responsibility on your shoulders, Hiyoko. You can't risk it by going somewhere for sick people when you're not sick."

"But…" Hiyoko protested.

"No, she's got a point," Kazuichi said. "Joey's sister is probably terrified coming out of eye surgery. Poor thing probably can't see and then we show up like a rowdy bunch of misfits and it's gonna cause all sorts of problems. I don't want my first impression by Joey to be that I'm a jackass."

"Well, I wish your motivation was better, but at least you get the sentiment. Come on, Mikan," Mahiru said, grabbing her by the arm.

"O-okay," Mikan stuttered, stumbling over her own two feet as Mahiru led her out the door.

"B-but what about the tournament?" Hiyoko asked.

"We'll be back in time to see the finals start," Mahiru said.

"But Mahiru," Hiyoko said, only for Mahiru to walk out the door without another word. Hiyoko stood in the middle of the room, reaching towards the vacant, empty door in an expression of stunned silence. The others watched as Hiyoko's hand clenched into a fist and tears formed in her eyes. She looked like a kettle starting to boil over.

In a fit of rage, she kicked the nearest person in the shin, which unfortunately happened to be Kazuichi. Grabbing his leg, he bounced on the ground, holding it in pain. Hiyoko then bolted from the room and ran for the bathroom.

"The hell was that about?" Fuyuhiko wondered.

"I'll go check on her," Akane volunteered. Small, upset things made her upset. She grabbed a meat bun from Teruteru's buffet and walked out of the classroom…only to come back for another one and walk out again…only to come back for another one with dough on her face and then took three more, chewing as she exited the room. Kazuichi sighed at the sight of this. Why couldn't Akane have her priorities straight?

As Akane entered the girl's bathroom, she used her ears to follow the sound of crying and found the locked stall door on the first try. Batting on it slightly with the back of her hand, knuckles first, she asked in a concerned tone, "You okay, Hiyoko?"

"Go away!" Hiyoko shouted. "Unless you're Mahiru coming to apologize, just fuck off!"

If a foul mouth was all it took to deter Akane, well she would never be considered a good sibling by her younger brothers and sisters.

"Look, I totally get having abandonment and attachment issues, but Mahiru said she'd be back, right? And she's street smart. She'll be fine."

"Shut up!" Hiyoko screamed at her, pounding back on the stall door. "Stop acting like you know anything about me! Go back to stuffing your stupid fat face in and leave me the fuck alone you fat, stupid gorilla!"

Akane looked upset, but not because of Hiyoko's words. Those weren't getting to her. Akane was only trying to help and the fact that she couldn't, that Hiyoko had put a barrier between them, made her feel like a failure. Akane had superimposed one of her siblings in Hiyoko's place and how she would feel if this situation was occurring with her and one of them and it crushed Akane to feel as if she couldn't help them. Unfortunately for Hiyoko, Akane had a way of dealing with barriers: brute force.

With a powerful kick she completely kicked the door in, terrifying the poor blonde as she cowered while sitting on the toilet as the shadow of Akane bared down on her. Hiyoko continued to cower as Akane picked her up, only to become confused when Akane firmly pulled Hiyoko into an embrace, pushing her head against her chest and showing a look of concern on her face.

"Cry," she said, almost like a command, leaving Hiyoko confused. "You're right when you say I don't know anything about you, but I don't have to. Whenever one of my little brothers or sisters are upset, sometimes all they need is a hug and a reassurance that they have someone around them who cares. Sometimes we all just need a good cry to find our confidence again, that's what I always tell them. So, go ahead and cry if you have to."

Hiyoko resisted it at first, but before long she was wailing like a baby with a dirty diaper.

"Awww, it's okay. There we go," Akane said soothingly, stroking the back of Hiyoko's head. "Let it all out."

Hiyoko cried and carried on for few good minutes before her tears finally began to dry up. Then she sat down on the toilet as Akane stood over her. Hiyoko then gazed up irritably at the goofily smiling Akane.

"Feel better?" Akane asked. Hiyoko didn't answer her. Akane then looked at Hiyoko's expression. "Jeez, what's with you? You cry all that out and you're still such a grump."

"That's cause you're an idiot!" Hiyoko barked. "I don't trust you! If you tell anyone about this, I won't forgive you!"

"What are you saying?" Akane asked, glancing aside. "I'm not gonna tell anyone."

"You say that now, but you're an idiot! You might forget and be all "Hey, that's just like the time Hiyoko cried her eyes out in my chest"."

"Why would I tell people that?" Akane asked.

"Huh?" Hiyoko was confused, Akane sounded like she actually meant that. It seemed this was one of those rare moments when Akane cared more about something other than food and fighting.

"Crying is a sign of weakness and if you're weak, your dead. That's the kind of neighborhood I grew up in. No one's gonna help if you just cry or bring you medicine or fix your scabbed knee. You think I'm gonna rat on someone who doesn't want to show weakness either? I'd look like a massive…hypo…hyper…gah, what's the word for it?"

"Hypocrite," Hiyoko said.

"Yeah, that one," Akane said. "I'd look like…one of those if I told people what happened in here. Far as the others have to know, all we had was this nice little chat."

Hiyoko looked really surprised. Was this really the same dumbass that always talked about food, fighting and had a brain so unused its synapses were starting to rot?

"Oh, I almost forgot," Akane said and pulled a meat bun out of her cleavage. She offered it to Hiyoko.

"Gross, I'm not gonna eat that! It's been sitting next to your sweaty boobs for god knows how long. That's unsanitary!"

"I have no idea what that word means, but if you don't want it, more for me," Akane said and scarfed the whole bun down in one bite."

"That's disgusting!" Hiyoko exclaimed. "You eat like a voracious boar! No, I take it back, pigs have better table manners!"

Akane swallowed her food. "That's cause food is so tasty I just have to scarf it down."

"It's still gross!" Hiyoko exclaimed.

There was a long pause between the two girls.

"Mahiru will be back," Akane told Hiyoko in a concerned tone. "What's the big deal, anyway? It's not like you can demand her attention all of the time every day." Akane stared at the ground. "I think I'd go crazy if I had to cater to all of my siblings' needs all the time. Feeding them and providing a roof for them is hard work enough as it is. It doesn't mean Mahiru likes you any less and it doesn't mean she cares about you any less." Akane smiled brightly. "I'm sure she wants to get back here as soon as possible because she knows how upset you probably are that she left you here, but I bet she'll be back with a big surprise and a nice present." Akane then thought about what she said. "Well, okay, I do that for my brothers and sisters. I don't know if Mahiru will. I mean, a hospital isn't exactly a place to buy gifts."

"Yeah, well…don't think this means I like you or anything. You're nothing compare to Mahiru," Hiyoko said snippily.

"Mahiru and I are nothing alike anyway," Akane said, chuckling. "We're as different as onigiri and takoyaki."

"Guh, is food all you ever think about?" Hiyoko asked.

"Nah, sometimes I think about the safety and well-being of my shorter, tinier blonde classmates."

Hiyoko was speechless for once. She had no retort for that. She was even blushing slightly. Part of her wanted to give Akane a hug and thank her for being so nice, but the rest of her got right back into prickly defense position and shot back.

"D-don't think saying stuff like that makes you think I like you or anything." She pointed right at Akane rudely. "You're still a fat-titted, battle hungry gorilla and that's all you're ever going to be. So get out of the bathroom and leave me alone!"

"Sure thing," Akane said with a smile. "See you back in class when you're done in here."

"Hmph," Hiyoko said and kept up her sour, grouchy expression until she heard the door to the bathroom close. She then looked really, really guilty. "What should I do?" she asked herself. She was actually giving heavy consideration to letting Akane in the way she let Mahiru in. She wanted to, but there was no way she could. The world was out to get her. That's how she had always known reality. Everyone's nice to you until they want something out of you, then it's all "but I did X for you." That was how Hiyoko's brain worked. It was a hard defense mechanism to fight and not fighting it was safer.

For now, Hiyoko figured she'd stay in the bathroom for a bit. And then maybe she'd join those idiots she called classmates. Maybe.

…Probably

…She would.

Five more minutes, Hiyoko thought and quickly switched stalls, shutting and locking the door in order to use the bathroom for its intended purpose.

Back in Domino City, Joey, Ibuki and Teá were headed for the city fountain in order to meet up with Mahiru, Mikan and Serenity. Currently they were traveling through a less busy, but still somewhat populated part of town. As they made their way down the street, they happened across Bakura again. However, this time he was bleeding through a bandage on his arm and he was being held by some guy none of them recognized.

"Oh no, Bakura!" Teá exclaimed, being the first to run over to him.

"Omigosh! Bakura! Are you okay? Did you have an altercation with a vampire and you dodged at the last second and he missed your neck?" Ibuki looked at the skeptical look on Joey's face, "What? It could happen."

"I found him stumbling about a little while ago," the stranger with Bakura said. He had darkened skin and blond hair and spoke in a kind, well-mannered voice, "I dressed his wound and I've been trying to find a mode of transport to get him to a hospital. Do you know him?"

"Course we know him, he's our pal. Bakura, you okay buddy?" Joey asked, kneeling down and putting a hand on Bakura's good arm.

"I think so…"

"He's losing a lot of blood. We need to get him to a hospital," Teá said.

"Thanks for finding him," Joey said to the strange, dark skinned man. "What's your name?"

"Me? I'm Namu," the man replied.

"Namu? No last name, just Namu?" Ibuki asked.

"We can ask him about that later, right now we really need to get Bakura to a hospital," Teá said.

"Aw, man, you're right. Mr. Fluffy Kitty doesn't look so good," Ibuki said. "And Ibuki already used her "get out of a hospital free card" with Mikan. If Yukizome isn't answering her phone, she's got nothing to fall back on."

However, as luck would have it, just as Ibuki was panicking and looking for a solution, she noticed a familiar head of white hair across the street. She gasped in delight. "Hey! That's Nagito! Nagito! Yoohoo! Over here!" she exclaimed, waving both of her arms excitedly back and forth.

Nagito turned his head and saw Ibuki across the street with several people he did not recognize. Looking both ways before crossing the street, he jogged up to Ibuki, seeming rather reassured to see a friendly face. "Well if it isn't the Ultimate Musician herself. Good to see you, Ibuki. How fortunate I am that I ran into one of my classmates. How's the tournament fairing for you, Ibuki?"

"Oh, Ibuki's already out of the tournament." She pointed her fingers at Joey with a snap of both of them. "Joey knocked Ibuki out so now he's taking responsibility as Ibuki's new band buddy"

"Urgh, how many times do I gotta say that I never agreed to this band scheme of yours," Joey reminded her.

"Oh, so you're Joey Wheeler, huh?" Nagito asked. "I've heard quite a bit about you. Your reputation as the duelist kingdom finalist precedes you."

"Thanks," Joey said. "And you are...?

"I'm Nagito Komaeda. Hope's Peak Academy's Ultimate Lucky Student," Nagito said.

Namu, who was actually Marik Ishtar, recognized that name immediately. I see, so this is Nagito Komaeda. He's the boy with Exodia, but where is my mind slave that has been keeping an eye on him. Surely he is around here somewhere.

Suddenly the sound of wood collapsing and heavy, round objects thudding against the ground could be heard from the opposite side of the street, left of where Nagito had originally run from.

"My cabbages!" the vendor screamed, looking at how his stand had just spontaneously collapsed. And, beneath all the produce, lay Marik's rare hunter. Marik resisted the urge to massage his face with his hand. Instead, he gave a stern look to Nagito.

I wonder, does he possess the last millennium item? To Marik, the power to evade and bring about misfortune to one of his most esteemed Rare Hunters could only be achieved through Ancient Egyptian Magic. It would also explain how Nagito managed to draw Exodia on his first turn.

His thoughts were snapped back to reality by Joey's words, "As much as I'd like to make good on Fuyuhiko's comment about you being lucky and duel ya, do ya think you could take Bakura to a hospital?"

Nagito seemed taken aback by the request. "Huh? Me? I...I don't know if that's such a good idea."

"Please, Nagito," Ibuki pleaded, "I've already got Mahiru and Mikan picking up Joey's sister and we just so happen to run into you. Unless fortune smiles again and we run into Chiaki, Gundham or Sonia, you're all I've got. Mr. Fluffy Kitty needs help."

Nagito thought about Ibuki's proposition, "Well…I suppose I could lend a hand, but don't blame me if something bad happens. You know my vicious cycle," he said, referring to how his good luck would eventually turn into bad luck and when Nagito considered his win streak and his good fortune today, he knew something bad was going to happen soon.

"Oh you'll be fine. It's in the name of hope after all," Ibuki said cheerfully, knowing exactly what to say to lift Nagito's spirits, "Joey's hope for his friends and family."

"In the name...of hope?" Nagito asked, going from contemplative to amicable in a matter of seconds. "Well, if it's for hope, I'll gladly accept the task, despite the danger."

"Awesome! You da man, Nagito!" Ibuki exclaimed. "Oh, and if you see Mikan and Mahiru you can let Mikan escort Bakura to the hospital or have her treat him if she can. We're supposed to meet up by the fountain anyway so it'll be fine. Once Serenity is out of the hospital, Mikan's part is done anyway."

"Okay," Nagito said and then raised his hand, "Taxi!"

About 5 or 6 cabs began to rush to the curb to stop for Nagito, some of them almost colliding into each other. When one of the drivers spotted Nagito, she got out of her cab and looked at him. "Nagito? Nagito Komaeda?"

"Huh? Oh my gosh, Kazusa, hi. It's been years."

"You know her?" Ibuki asked, gazing at the raven colored, tan-skinned taxi driver.

"She was in the same hospital wing when I was in intensive care after my parents passed away."

"And if it wasn't for Nagito giving me hope, I never could've left the hospital," Kazusa said. "Do you need help? Wherever you need to go, just get in."

"Man, what are the odds of that happening?" Joey asked.

"Oh, this type of thing happens to Nagito all the time. Like, this one time, while Ibuki was practicing, he—"

"Tell us later, Ibuki," Teá interrupted. "We need to help Bakura."

After getting Bakura into the cab with Nagito, Kazusa zoomed off down the road, breaking the speed limit and almost running the next traffic light. With the drama passed, Joey and Teá seemed to calm down. "I sure hope Bakura's gonna be all right."

"I'm sure he'll be fine," Joey said. He turned around, "Thanks for the help, Namu. I'm Joey by the way, Joey Wheeler." Joey reached out to shake Namu's hand.

"Oh, I just did what anyone would've done," Namu said and rubbed his hand behind his head. He shook Joey's hand with his free hand. He looked at Teá and Ibuki. "And you two are."

"I'm Ibuki Mioda!" Ibuki exclaimed. "It's nice to have met ya."

"Um, I, um…" Neither Marik nor his alias were prepared for Ibuki's high energy.

"Don't mind Ibuki," Teá said, "She takes some getting used to." She gave Namu her hand to shake. "Teá Gardner, nice to meet you."

"Likewise," Marik said and shook Teá's hand.

"By the way," Teá said, noticing the duel disk on Namu's arm. "Is that a duel disk?"

"Yes it is," Namu said. "Although I'm afraid I only got into this tournament by pure luck. I don't think I'm a very good duelist. Please, don't duel me. There's no way I would stand a chance against a Duelist Kingdom Finalist."

"Don't worry," Joey said with a thumb's up. "I've got my sights set on one of Ibuki's classmates from Hope's Peak Academy. She said she'd introduce me and once I meet up with my sister, I'm gonna show her my finals securing victory.

Interesting, Marik thought, resisting the urge to smile gleefully and break his cover, Maybe I can get these fools to lead me straight to Hajime Hinata and Chiaki Nanami. "Oh? You wouldn't happen to know Chiaki Nanami, would you?" Marik asked as Namu. "I'm a fan of hers."

Ibuki giggled. "Chiaki should start her own fan club at this rate. Just follow Ibuki's super duper sense of direction, Mr. Namu. Let's go!"

Unfortunately for Marik, it would be a long trek as Ibuki had about as much of an idea of where she was going as an inbred rat in an uptown designed maze.

However, Marik pretended to be winded when he managed to meet the gaze on the street of a young woman sitting down at a café and drinking tea. When the others stopped to see if he was all right, the young woman, Celeste caught sight of Joey and immediately got up from her table and strapped her duel disk on. She then waltzed down the street past Joey and away from the crowd.

"I'm fine," Namu said to Teá, as she voiced yet another concern. "Let's continue the hunt for Chiaki, shall we? Maybe we can check down this dead end street first? Never cross any possibility off a list, I always say."

"Makes sense to Ibuki," Ibuki said.

Perfect, Marik thought as he and the others walked down the dead end street and eventually came face-to-face with Celeste as she stood at the end of the road. If Marik hadn't lured the group down this street, she would've shadowed Joey and the others until she was sure she could ambush them.

And, as always, Celeste had acted like this was always her plan. "I've been waiting for you, Joey Wheeler," she said, smirking as she held up her duel disk.

"Who the heck are you?" Joey barked.

"My name is Celestia Ludenburg," Celeste replied as she activated her duel disk. "I'm a high stakes gambler, champion underground duelist and," she held up her locator cards. "Holder of 5 locator cards."

"Celestia Ludenburg," Teá said, pondering the name with her chin in her fist. She then remembered where she'd heard it. "Wait a minute. I've heard about her!" She exclaimed. "She's known as the Queen of Liars. She's a notorious poker player and an amazing trickster," Teá exclaimed. "Joey, this is the last opponent you want to go up against. She's the closest thing to a professional without actually being a professional. She's definitely way out of your league!"

"Oh?" Celeste asked, scratching her chin with her finger brace, "Turning down my challenge? And to think I stayed in this one spot, gambling on a whim that that girl would happen to lead you straight to me."

Ibuki pushed her fingers together. "Are you talking about Ibuki? Cause she wasn't looking for you," she said.

Celeste covered her mouth with her fingers, chuckling, "No, but you were trying to help Joseph find one of your classmates, were you not, student of Hope's Peak?"

Ibuki gasped. How did Celeste know that?

"Oh yes, I've heard quite a bit about you as well, Ibuki Mioda," Celeste said. "So, Joseph. I've thrown the gauntlet. The question remains," she closed her hand into a fist in front of her mouth, "Are you going to pick it up or not."

"Joey, think about this carefully. Celeste's a dangerous opponent. Duel Monsters isn't her only forte. She's good at roulette, poker, chess, you name it if it's played in a casino."

"Whoa, she might almost be as lucky as Nagito," Ibuki gasped. "Joey you totally shouldn't duel her. I mean, you're good, but this French Maid sounds like a total pro. And she's pretty to boot. Pretty girls always beat rough and tough guys. That's just how the world works. I-I know!" Ibuki exclaimed. "Let's get Namu to duel her! He can see what her deck is like?"

"What? Me? N-no way," Namu stuttered. "I wouldn't stand a chance."

Celeste gazed sternly at Marik's alias and then glanced back at Joey. "Well, Joseph, what's it going to be? Are you man enough to stand against the Queen of Liars? Or will you turn tail and run like the cowardly little puppy dog that you are?"

Joey growled loudly. That was the final straw. "You're on, Frenchy!" he declared with a booming voice, "Let's do this!"

"Ahuhuhuhuhu," Celeste laughed. "Glad to see you're man enough to make your own decisions, Joseph. Now, let's just see how well your luck holds out against mine. Hold nothing back because if you can't stand a chance against me," Celeste said as she gave Joey an almost demonic and hypnotic gaze, "You'll be eaten alive in the finals. Tournament finals are no place for those without the stern determination and willpower to stand in them," Celeste returned to smiling and chuckling to herself, "So if you think that sounds like you then come at me with everything you've got. I know I'll do the same."

"Bring it," Joey said, "When I'm done with you, you'll be cleaning up your game and hanging it out to dry."

Gazes intensified, Ibuki started biting her nails, Teá looked apprehensive and both Joey and Celeste drew their hands of five cards, each then meeting the other's stare with competitive gazes. For Celeste, this was her final trial to complete her deal with Marik and obtain the deck she believed would make her peerless. For Joey, Celeste was his last exam, the only thing standing between him and feeling as though he had the soul of a true duelist. He could feel it within her, the soul of someone that had fought countless battles. She was like a hardened Colonel fresh off the battlefield, donning her assault rifle and helmet once more. And Joey was like a green recruit fresh out of boot camp armed with just a pistol.

However, Joey wasn't going to let that stop him. He never let rank or skill scare him. After all, he had heart.

As long as I believe in the heart of the cards, I know I can win, Joey believed. I got this!

Poor fool, there's no chance for him to escape now. No matter what happens in this duel, Celeste thought, I will win in the end, Joseph Wheeler. You can bet your soul on it. Ahahahahahaha

TO BE CONTINUED…

(A/N: Next time on Dueling Trigger Finger, prepare for a duel I've been building up to since chapter four if you can believe it. This is where the real action begins. This is where things get really serious. And why is it that Joey's chapters continue to be the "big event" type of chapters? Shame that I am going to come 1 chapter short of repeating every 7th chapter to deal with Joey, but if I had to pad a chapter to keep a running gag going that would just be stupid.

But anyway, the stage is set and the curtain is up. Next time on Dueling Trigger Finger: Joey Vs Celeste! Luck Vs Luck! Gambler Vs Underdog! Winged Beasts Vs Warriors! It all starts next time! And until then, as always, from all of me, to all of you, let your hearts stay human and your wrath draconic. Ja ne!)