(A/N: *plays Archangel by Two Steps From Hell* Get ready for the most hype match ever. A duel 30+ chapters in the making that goes above and beyond exciting. Chiaki Nanami. Seto Kaiba. The Ultimate Gamer vs The World Champion. These two are set to duel it out, but only one will advance. On this arc finale of Dueling Trigger Finger, get ready for the closest, and longest duel in the fanfiction's run to date. Get out your popcorn, set down your trap cards, and get ready to read a thrill that will have you guessing until the very last draw who the winner is. It's time for a merciless, time consuming clash that'll have you pining for more even though there will be a hiatus after this project so I can work on others. It's time for chapter 37 of Dueling Trigger Finger. LET'S DUEL! …but first, a good feels scene. You know, to set the tone and get some a dat buildup yo. Here we go!)
The first full week for the 77th class of Hope's Peak Academy had yet to be finished. Students were still adjusting to the new campus environment, though others, like Chiaki Nanami, walked around with their head absorbed in some project or another.
She was playing Gala Omega on her Game Girl and just aimlessly wandering around. She drifted through life as though it were always covered in a dense, thick fog.
And besides her, there were people like Seto Kaiba, who only came to the school as a formality. He had business at times with the staff and students. That was no truer than today. Briefcase in hand, he walked towards Chiaki, seeing her circle the fountain while playing her game.
"You there!" he barked.
He was loud enough that Chiaki heard him. She picked up her head and stared at Kaiba for the first time with her big, pink eyes.
As he gazed upon Chiaki for the first time, Kaiba was caught off-guard by her visage, coughing into his hand and doing his best not to blush—though he was falling that last part. After clearing his throat, he folded his arms, briefcase still gripped in his hand, "Are you Chiaki Nanami, the Ultimate Gamer?" he asked her.
"I am," Chiaki said. Her slow uptake made it take her a while to recognize Kaiba's face. "Ah…you're…"
"Seto Kaiba," Kaiba answered for her, "Head of KaibaCorp."
"Oh. Right." Chiaki said bluntly. "Nice to meet you." Her emotional output was rather stunted, a side effect of her withdrawn nature. She yawned and then rubbed her eye, only to finally notice what Kaiba was wearing. "Oh, that's our school's uniform," she said, waking up a little. "You attend here?"
"Class 76," Kaiba stated, "Ultimate Duelist, but it's just a formality. I'm already rich and successful after all. I just come here for the publicity." He narrowed his gaze at Chiaki. "And, when I see potential in others that might be useful to me."
At the delivery of Kaiba's statement, Chiaki was quiet before cocking her head to the side in confusion and pointing at herself. "Me?" she asked, completely unsure.
Kaiba got down on one knee and opened up the briefcase, the contents facing towards Chiaki. "I'm trying to come up with a new, portable design for the Kaiba Corp hologram system," he said as he stood up. Inside the briefcase was a beta model of what would later be used as the Battle City distributed Duel Disk System. There were lots of wires exposed and the system didn't have very much fine polish—or a coat of paint—but it was fully functioning. There were two of them in the briefcase. "I need a beta tester and unfortunately," Kaiba said and then said through gritted teeth, "barring Yugi Mutoh," he said and then talked normally, "There's no one I know who could help me and I don't want him to think we're friends. You're the Ultimate Gamer, right? Do you play Duel Monsters?"
"Yes," Chiaki answered calmly.
"Well then, strap one of those on, because it's time to duel."
Chiaki was confused. "Right now?"
"Well I don't mean tomorrow," Kaiba said.
"Um, okay. Just let me get to a save point."
"How long will—" Kaiba said as he watched Chiaki pull out her Game Girl, her hands moving like machine gun fire.
"Done." She shut the game off, slipped off her kitty shoulder bag and got out her deck box that contained her dueling deck. She then walked over to the duel disk and picked it up, feeling the several pound device in her arms. She stuck her arm through the hole where there were two arrows pointing out through the other end.
"There's a safety strap on the edge there if you need balance. I'm trying to go for a one size fits most, so finding arm sizes that aren't comparable is helpful information."
"It fits fine," Chiaki said. She looked at the duel disk. There were five slots in front of her and five slots below each monster zone. There was a reader on the top of the duel disk above where her deck seemed to be inserted. She placed the deck inside the reader and watched her life points read out at 4000 life points. "4000?" Chiaki questioned.
"We'll be using the new tournament format rules presented by Industrial Illusions."
"Oh, right, I heard that the game format was being changed due to players complaining about not having strong enough monsters to compete against higher ranking duelists. Ah, there was a tournament hosted not too long ago testing this new format, wasn't there?" Chiaki asked.
"Indeed there was, naturally I won," Kaiba said with a smirk. "But it's not enough. Yugi Mutoh hasn't played this format and there are people clamoring that, had he competed, he would've won. I aim to prove them wrong."
Chiaki was a bit off-put by this. Kaiba's bitter hatred of his rival reminded her of so many spiteful rivals in gaming. And Kaiba seemed genuinely amicable, minus the brooding, before the mention of Yugi. Not to mention, it had been a while since she'd gotten to duel someone else. She missed Eliza, her old rival.
"Ah, that reminds me," Kaiba said and walked over to the bench in front of the fountain, placing a laptop computer down on it, opened up to some sort of programming interface. "This computer will track our progress and list any error logs with the new system. I want these duel disks ready for the consumer market eventually and I refuse to put out cheap mass-marketed products that don't work."
Chiaki looked at her so-called "duel disk". It certainly did look like a raw product.
"It's just the beta design," Kaiba said, "I plan to give it that KaibaCorp identity when I'm sure it's working."
"Oh. I see," Chiaki said. "Well then, let's duel, I suppose."
Kaiba nodded. "KaibaCorp hologram interface, deploy!"
A popping and hissing sound emitted as two small drones shot out of Chiaki's disk, surprising her just a little as two came out of Kaiba's disk as well. They acted as impromptu hologram towers that were often present in Kaiba's stadiums. "Duel Disk interface, activate!"
Both players' life points were regulated to 4000 and a replay tracker appeared on Kaiba's computer. Kaiba and Chiaki were all set and ready to duel as each drew a hand of 5 cards.
"Let's Duel!" Kaiba and Chiaki shouted together.
A few turns went by before Kaiba and Chiaki had their first error encounter.
"Battle Ox! Attack her directly!" Kaiba shouted. Battle Ox attacked Chiaki, who still had 2300 life points left, but when he attacked, her life points didn't drop and the computer didn't register it on the replay. An error message popped up.
Kaiba sighed. He had to restart the program, disabling the hologram interface and recalibrating the system to start a new duel.
Chiaki was smiling. "I like these holograms, Kaiba. It's my first time ever seeing them. I mean, I've heard about them, but…"
"But what?"
"But I'm very happy to get to duel with them. This is fun."
"Hmph, whatever," Kaiba said and walked away from his computer and stood a proper distance from her. "Collect your cards and shuffle your deck. Restart."
"Okay," Chiaki said and did that. As she shuffled, she said, "You know, it's not just anyone that would think to make a system like this. I say it's a mark of your determination and," Chiaki smiled as she put her deck back in the duel disk, "Your love for the game."
Kaiba turned his head aside. "It kept me sane for a few years of my childhood, I suppose."
"Well, even so, I like this interface. It's really user friendly and it's much simpler to have an automated system than to do all the math in your head. My classmates and I would have to use calculators for really intense, complex duels. This is so much easier, thank you, Kaiba. Consider that honest feedback."
Kaiba saw Chiaki smiling and did his best not to react. However, if Mokuba had been there he would've seen the brief softening in Kaiba's gaze and the slight retraction of his usual scowl. "Whatever," Kaiba said, smirking a little, eyes closed, "Are you ready to duel, or what?"
"I'm ready," Chiaki said, standing tall. "Test duel two: Start!"
Five times now, Chiaki and Kaiba had had to restart their duel due to some error or another, but on this sixth duel Kaiba had finally managed to summon his Blue-Eyes White Dragon.
"Gaze upon the magnificence of a monster no one in the known world could hope to combat in sheer raw power. Now, Blue-Eyes, lay waste to your enemy! White Lightning!"
Blue-Eyes White Dragon let loose a destructive burst stream at Chiaki's face-down monster, revealing a ferret with a snake sword tail that was completely on fire.
"Fencing Fire Ferret's special ability activates. When its destroyed while on the field, I can target one monster, destroy it and its controller loses 500 life points."
Fencing Fire Ferret's tail grew out to a huge size, burning Blue-Eyes in its flames and sending it to the graveyard as Kaiba's life points fell to 2500.
"My…Blue-Eyes."
"My turn!" Chiaki exclaimed. "I summon Bistro Butcher to the field in attack mode. Now, Bistro Butcher, attack Kaiba directly!"
Kaiba got hit with 1800 life points of damage, bringing the duel to an even score of a 700 even split.
She destroyed my Blue-Eyes…only Yugi's ever been able to do that! Kaiba did not count the horrendous mutation that was Blue-Eyes Toon Dragon. Far as he was concerned, his duel with Pegasus didn't count.
"My turn," Kaiba said. "Draw. I summon Vorse Raider. With 1900 attack points, its powerful enough to destroy Bistro Butcher! Vorse Raider, attack!"
The system then glitched, Vorse Raider's attack halting in place. Kaiba sighed. "Right when I was about to win."
Chiaki yawned. "Don't feel bad," she said, rubbing her eye. "I had that happen to me three duels in a row now."
"Hmph," Kaiba said and went to recalibrate the system. As he did, he said, "You're quite skilled, Nanami. No one's ever been able to defeat my Blue-Eyes like that. You're very resourceful."
"Well, so many people use beatdown decks like yours, I guess I just figured if you know what you're up against, you should play against conventionalism. That's how you win."
"I thought you said it was about fun," Kaiba said teasingly.
"It's about fun too," Chiaki said with puffed cheeks. "If I really wanted to be soulless, I'd find the Exodia cards and make a self-mill Exodia deck, or load my deck with Wonder Balloons along with Needle Sunfish and Skullmarg Ladybug and other "send to the graveyard" effects. Besides, no matter how you construct your deck, there will still be dead draws and bad hands. Win or lose, I still have fun." She smiled. "I just want to give myself the best chance at winning, but I don't get upset when I lose."
"With that attitude, you'll never be a champion like me."
"Who said anything about being champion?" Chiaki asked as Kaiba finished resetting the game. "I play games for the fun of playing them." She fanned her arm out in front of her. "I'm not terribly interested in the competitive scene for its fame or money, but…" She poked a finger under lower lip and gazed up at the sky, "Well, when you get to be a certain skill level, it's no fun when you can just trample over the newcomers to the game." Chiaki sighed, looking down. "And then everyone thinks you're some kind of cheater."
"People who claim that other, legitimately good players cheat, only do so because they have no real concept of how a game works. And you're right, there are too many soulless players out there who abuse game mechanics just to win. But a true duelist, nay, a true gamer, knows how to conquer all adversities."
"At least in theory," Chiaki said. "There's always that random chance."
Kaiba seemed to wince at this. Random chance, that's what he was trying to prove was the cause of his loss to Yugi.
"Oh, sorry," Chiaki apologized and looked sympathetic. "I guess that's a sore spot for you, given what happened."
"Don't pity me," Kaiba told her.
"It's not pity," Chiaki said and looked almost in mourning. "Trust me, I know what it's like to see people like you, people that think their careers are a lie when I "ruin their game". Did you know I've been banned from five different types of tournaments across all video games because of my skill level? People think I'm"too good"."
"I don't think you're "too good", I think you're "just good enough"," Kaiba told her.
"Huh?"
"The road to champion is never an easy one. You will get ridiculed, you will get mocked, but you just keep at it. You tell the naysayers "Here's my crown! If you want it, come and get it!" If you let those weaker than you push you around, how are you supposed to have that "fun" you claim to enjoy."
It was then that a road seemed to open to Chaiki. Hearing Kaiba talk so bravely, he didn't put down his competition, he encouraged them. He wasn't an elitist, but a model, an inspiration, at least, that was probably how he saw himself. Chiaki smiled. "Heh, spoken like a true corporate executive. Well, enough talk for now. Let's duel again, Kaiba!"
By the time the two managed to complete a duel from start to finish without any error logs, the moon was already out. "I activate Monster Reborn!" Chiaki declared, "This lets me summon Thunderclap Skywolf from my graveyard. Now, his effect activates, allowing me to destroy every monster you have out on the field, but as a result, I can't attack this turn."
Kaiba watched as a big bolt of lightning blasted his Blue-Eyes into oblivion, clearing the field.
"It's your move," Chiaki said.
Kaiba stood on edge. Thanks to Chiaki's trap cards, he was down to 1500 life points and she was leading him by 2000. One direct attack would decide the match. Frantic, he drew, top-decking a Dragon's Mirror. Perfect.
"I activate Dragon's Mirror!" he declared, "By banishing my Blue-Eyes from my graveyard, I'm able to summon my ultimate beast, go Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon!"
A massive monster rose up out of a gigantic mirror with 4500 attack points and 3800 defense points.
"And with this quick attack spell card," Kaiba said. "I can finish the job this turn! I have to commend you though, Chiaki. You're a lot better than even the rumors claimed. To be forced to meet defeat at the hands of my ultimate dragon is truly an honor. After all, you are only the second to ever get to see it."
"It's truly an honor. If I have to lose," Chiaki said with a smile. "I'm glad it's to your best monster." Chiaki smiled. "That means it was a challenge. And challenges are fun."
Kaiba's mouth made all sorts of weird movements, like it was trying to crack a smile, but his brooding personality rejected the very idea. "Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon, attack now! Neutron Blast!"
Kaiba's dragon obliterated Thunderclap Skywolf and ended the duel.
"Phew," Chiaki said, flipping her hair out of her eyes by whipping her head back a little. "That error log must be pretty intensive by now."
Kaiba growled. Sifting through and understanding that was going to be a pain in the ass. I really should hire a temp or an intern for this kind of work, he thought.
Chiaki smiled heartfeltly, "It's okay. I don't mind. I'm just happy to share this time with you, Kaiba."
Kaiba snapped at her as he packed up his computer and the duel disks into his briefcase. "Don't mistake me," he said, beginning to walk away, back to Chiaki. "It's not like we're friends or anything. I'm just using you for my own ends."
The words stung Chiaki a little as she went from smiling to just looking serious. "Oh." She said. "My mistake. But, you've been very polite about it so far," she added.
"Hmph," Kaiba responded, taking more steps away from her. "So…is that it?" Chiaki asked.
"Are you sure you don't need a friend though?" Chiaki asked. Kaiba halted in his tracks, if only because he wondered if he was about to hear the same friendship nonsense from Chaiki. However, he just watched her say very shyly, "You seem kind of lonely." She pulled her hood up over her head. "I would know."
Kaiba turned his head away from Chiaki. She would not sway him with her inadvertently cute moe act. "Friends only exist to get in your way and drag you down. As long as you rely only on yourself you'll never be disappointed."
"That's not true!" Chiaki shouted, once more getting Kaiba's attention, only to realize she had no frame of reference, "At least...I don't think it is." Kaiba said nothing in response to her and kept walking away. "So…is that it?" Chiaki asked. It would at least be rude of Kaiba to not saying, "See you later" or "Goodbye" or "let's do this again sometime."
"Between the error logs and a finished duel, I have all the beta testing I need," Kaiba told her harshly.
"Oh. I see," Chiaki said, "I had fun though."
"That makes one of us," Kaiba grumbled.
"I wouldn't be mad at a few error logs if I were you. You seemed like you didn't hate dueling me this whole time," Chiaki said.
Kaiba stopped dead in his tracks again. "If I say yes, will you drop this whole friendship nonsense?"
"Maybe," Chiaki said facetiously.
Kaiba sighed. "I'm going back to the office to run these logs. See you around."
"Sure," Chiaki said, "See you." Well, at least they were ending on a positive note.
Two Months Later…
Spring was beginning to fade into summer and, with it, Chiaki had a new teacher in the form of Chisa Yukizome. She was much happier now and was really starting to get along with her classmates. She sat on the bench by the fountain, happily humming an anime theme tune to herself as she played Gala Omega again.
"There you are, Nanami. I've been looking for you."
Chiaki looked up as a shadow cast itself over her from the left. "Oh, hello Kaiba," she said, putting her game down.
"You seem in better spirits," he said.
"A lot's happened in the last two months," Chiaki chuckled, "I made friends."
"Well good for you," Kaiba said and shoved a big official-looking box in her hands, "Here."
"What's this?" Chiaki asked looking at the office-style packaging. However, she had her answer when she tore open the box and took out the contents, a freshly polished, state of the art, completely battle ready Duel Disk System.
"A duel disk, hand made by yours truly before they went to the assembly line. The second one made, actually," Kaiba said.
"You…made this one yourself?"
"Well if the factory didn't know what to do it couldn't have been mass produced," Kaiba stated.
"True enough."
"Anyway, that's yours," Kaiba said bitingly. "You're going to use it to compete in my upcoming tournament and you will make it to the finals. I'm not taking no for an answer, even if I have pay you or bribe you with rare cards to compete! Are we clear?"
"Sure," Chiaki said with a sweet smile.
Chiaki's amicability and compliance took Kaiba completely off-guard. "Well…well good. Glad you're so agreeable."
Chiaki smiled brightly. "Well I had fun dueling you. I'm sure I'll have fun dueling in your tournament."
"Fun, huh?" Kaiba said with a smirk, arms folded, eyes closed. He then scowled deeply at Chiaki, "I can't remember the last time I had "fun"."
Chiaki looked at him confused, "Don't you enjoy dueling?" she asked.
"...To a degree." Kaiba answered.
Chiaki swallowed and then addressed the invisible elephant in the room. "Is it because of Yugi Mutoh?"
As expected, her reaction was Kaiba going twitchy-eyed and making a low-rising growling noise.
"I don't think you should be so obsessed with beating someone just because you're the champion," Chiaki stated.
"What if it was you?" Kaiba inquired calmly. "If you lost at your favorite game, a game you dedicated your whole life to, wouldn't you be upset?" He then began to raise his voice. "Wouldn't you want to prove to that person, nay, the world, that this is still your game, your rules, and you refuse to take second place?"
Chiaki had to think about that for a moment. "Well I...I mean...I can't say I understand all of that, but I don't think—"
Kaiba cut her off. "Then don't talk as if you understand what I'm going through."
I understand that you're high strung and need to see Miaya Gekkogahara as soon as you can, Chiaki thought, glancing to the side. She then spoke aloud, looking directly at Kaiba. "All right, I won't," she told Kaiba, "But…Kaiba…I've played plenty of RPGs," she said, looking at him with concern, "Rivals that obsess over their rivals tend to go down a dark path. I just...watch your footing, okay?"
Kaiba snapped at her. "I don't need you to be concerned about me, you got that? I can take care of myself!" Kaiba then walked away, not even bothering to explain the locator card that came with the duel disk he was so annoyed. The nerve of that girl. Who does she think she is? Still...
"I'm sure I'll have fun dueling in your tournament."
As Chiaki's words resonated in Kaiba's head, he sighed and continued to walk away, smirking to himself. "I guess I owe Mokuba an apology. Some of the best parts of me," he said, gazing up at the sky, "Aren't lost forever."
Consistent vibrations were always good for rocking a person to sleep. That was why people slept great on cruise ships in addition to the stress relief of being on one. It probably explained how Chiaki fell asleep standing up as the elevator taking her and Kaiba to Deck 0 ascended. She was making cute snoring noises, much to Kaiba's irritation as he tried to drown them out.
As her head continued to roll around, involuntarily, Chiaki slowly began to wake up. "Zzzzzzzz," she snored, only for her eyes to shoot open. "Oh!"
"Enjoy your literal fifty winks there, Nanami?" Kaiba snarked at her.
"I guess," Chiaki said and then smiled, "I was...remembering how we met."
"Don't think that just because we know each other that I'm going to go easy on you," Kaiba said.
"I expect the very opposite," Chiaki said, staring at Kaiba and putting his game face on, "And you should expect the same from me."
Kaiba smirked, glad to hear it. "Then let's see if you can still prove a challenge to me the same way you did when we met."
Chiaki nodded. "That's all I can do. And may the best duelist win!"
"Oh don't worry, I will," Kaiba said.
He and Chiaki stepped out onto the deck as Chiaki waltzed over to the far side of the arena, leaving Kaiba by the elevator. Roland followed out behind them to stand as referee. The arena rose up and the guard rails locked the contestants in.
And, not soon after this, the main elevator rose up, allowing for all of the knocked out duelists, current finalists, and spectators to appear, assembling alongside the arena.
"Man, I do not envy Chiaki in the slightest," Joey said. "I think I'd call this pulling the short straw right after dueling you in the first round, Yug."
"Indeed," Celeste agreed, "But if there were ever a duelist among us that could bring Kaiba to his knees, she'd be it. She beat me after all, much more easily than you did I might add," Celeste said to Joey.
"How good is she anyway?" Tristan inquired, scratching his head.
"Among our class, she'd be our undisputed best," Gundham said.
"That's saying a lot considering you and Sonia," Makoto said, given one had almost beat Marik and the other beat Mai Valentine. "But...nothing against Chiaki, but I'm still going to root for Kaiba. You know, he is my hero and all."
"Strange taste in heroes," Joey commented.
"Joey!" Téa snapped at him.
"We don't hold it against you, Makoto. You're totally rad," Ibuki said, sticking her tongue out, making a rock-out gesture with her hands and winking at him, "We get it, don't worry."
Hajime, of course, was with Chiaki's classmates, rooting for Chiaki with all his heart. Come on, Chiaki, he thought. I know we're talking about taking out Seto Kaiba himself, but...I still want to duel you. It wouldn't feel right to get farther in the tournament than you.
"Are you ready?" Kaiba asked as he activated his duel disk.
"Only if you are," Chiaki said, doing the same. She had a "take no prisoners" look on her face.
"Then no more words need to be said," Kaiba told her.
"Indeed," Chiaki said as she and Kaiba drew a hand of five cards.
Then, competitive stares were launched from both contestants as Roland just took a step back, not wanting to interfere with the proceedings. He feared the intense aura from either combatant might cause him physical harm.
"LET'S DUEL!" Kaiba and Chiaki roared at the same time.
"I draw!" Kaiba shouted, taking the first turn. "And I summon Vorse Raider!" The fanged beast-warrior of infamously 1900 attack points strong hit the table. "I end my turn."
"My turn then," Chiaki said. "I draw." She looked at her hand.
"I set one card face-down on the field and one monster card in defense position, ending my turn."
"My turn then," Kaiba said. "Draw!" He drew the top card of his deck. "First, I activate the spell card, Stop Defense, switching your monster into attack mode!"
Chiaki's face-down monster was revealed to be Soul Tiger, a monster with absolutely zero attack points.
"Aw, no, it's got no attack points, she's wide open!"
If I know Chiaki as well as I think I do, she wouldn't waste a Mirror Force this early, Kaiba thought. "I summon Kaiser Glider to the field!" he shouted, bringing out the metallic, bird-headed dragon monster of 2400 attack points strong. "Kaiser Glider, attack Soul Tiger!" Kaiba shouted.
His monster slammed straight through Chiaki's monster, reducing it to dust and knocking her over. She landed on her back, fortunately not hitting her bad leg. Her life points fell all the way to 1600.
Kaiba gasped. Uh oh, had he gone too far right out of the gate?
"Chiaki!" Mikan shouted.
"Hey! She's injured, ya jerk! Be a little more careful."
However, Chiaki swatted the ground with fire in her eyes and immediately got back on her feet. "Careful?" she asked, her voice unusually low-pitched. "This is a battlefield. There is no place for the weak."
"Aptly put," Kaiba said. "See, Wheeler? Chiaki knows how to stand tall in the face of adversity, unlike you who cower before it."
"You think you're so smug! Why don't you come down here and we'll see who the real coward is!" Joey raged as Téa, Tristan and Yugi held him back.
"Are you sure you're all right?" Kaiba asked.
"I'm fine," Chiaki said. "I would've asked for a leg brace or some other form of aid if I needed one. And, Mikan's on standby. Trust me when I say this injury," she said as she drew the top card of her deck. "Has no bearing on this duel. I'm giving it my all!"
Chiaki, Hajime thought, smiling.
So, this is what she's like when she's passionate and at her best. Show me, Chiaki Nanami. Show me your true level of skill, Celeste thought.
"I activate my face-down card, the continuous trap, Bad Reaction to Simochi!" The trap card showed a picture of a woman being tormented by ghostly yellow hands. "Now, every time your life points would increase by a card effect, you take damage instead."
"Interesting, and how do you plan to make me gain life points?" Kaiba asked.
"With this," Chiaki stated, "I summon to the field Fire Princess in defense mode!" A woman with long blonde hair in a gorgeous red outfit and holding up a magic staff appeared. She had 1300 attack points and 1500 defense points. She was knelt on one knee with her staff held up to resemble her defensive posture. "And with Fire Princess on the field, each time I gain life points, you take 500 points of damage."
"Next, I activate the spell card Supremacy Berry, allowing me to gain 2000 life points since my life points are lower than yours."
Heh, even if her face-down card was Mirror Force, she had that in her hand last turn likely. As expected of the Ultimate Gamer, Kaiba thought.
Chiaki's life points ascended to 3600.
"Fire Princess, activate your special ability, Serene Searing Shot!"
A blast shot off from the top side of her staff, firing a fireball at Kaiba and lowering his life points by 500 to 3500, giving Chiaki the lead.
"Next, I activate Rain of Mercy!" she declared. "This spell card lets us both gain 1000 life points, but thanks to my trap card, you'll lose 1000 life points."
A splash of cool, holographic rain drizzled onto Kaiba and Chiaki. A green particle effect helped raise Chiaki's life points to 4600. However, with her trap card activated, a purple one lowered Kaiba's to 2500.
"And since I gained life points again, Fire Princess lowers your life points by 500 one more time."
Kaiba got hit with another fireball, bringing the current score an amazing 4600 for Chiaki to Kaiba's 2000 life points.
"Man, talk about a turn around," Joey stated.
"That's Chiaki for you!" Ibuki exclaimed.
"Never thought I'd live to see the day where Kaiba was lagging in life points by a tremendous amount on only the second turn," Mai stated, cupping her chin.
"Maybe so, but that advantage won't last long," Yami said. "Chiaki has already used her summon for the turn and Kaiba has the stronger monster. Fire Princess only has 1500 defense points. In the long run, Chiaki may have done little more than tie the game."
"Oh, so you noticed that too," Celeste commented.
"I set one card face-down on the field," Chiaki said. "Ending my turn."
"Not bad," Kaiba said and drew the top card of his deck. "I activate Remove Trap, extinguishing Bad Reaction to Simochi from the field!"
"It served its purpose," Chiaki said as she sent the card to the graveyard after its image exploded.
"Next, I summon La Jinn, the Mystic Genie of the Lamp!" The green genie appeared with 1800 attack points and 1500 defense points. "And now, I attack with La Jinn!"
"And right into my trap card, Widespread Ruin!" Chiaki exclaimed as her trap card printed with an explosion for an image emerged from its face-down position. Kaiser Glider then spontaneously combusted. "Widespread Ruin destroys the face-up attack monster on your side of the field with the highest attack. I may have lost Fire Princess, but it was worth the effort."
La Jinn's punch destroyed Chiaki's monster, but now Kaiba had no more attacks, leaving the girl's life points untouched.
With a snarl, Kaiba said, "I end my turn."
"All right then," Chiaki said and drew the top card of her deck. "I activate Swords of Revealing Light! This prevents you from attacking for 3 whole turns. And next, I play Fencing Fire Ferret in attack mode!" Chiaki declared.
"That blasted rodent!" Kaiba snarled.
"…I didn't use it that much in our test duels, did I?"
"You do not want an honest answer to that question," Kaiba responded. He sighed in frustration. "I already know what you're going to do, just do it."
Chiaki nodded. "I attack with Fencing Fire Ferret! Attack La Jinn!"
"Okay, I'm lost," Joey said, scratching his head.
"It's quite simple really, when Fencing Fire Ferret is destroyed," Bakura explained, "It destroys a monster on the field in just the same way Man-Eater Bug does."
"Oh, I see, she's gonna take both monsters out for a 100 life point tradeoff," Joey said.
"Not quite," Bakura continued. "Fencing Fire Ferret, after destroying the monster, then inflicts 500 damage on the monster's controller."
"Whoa, never thought a girl like her could be so savage," Komaru stated.
Fencing Fire Ferret proceeded to attack La Jinn, only to be blocked, punched to death and then revenge incinerated La Jinn with its special ability, burning Kaiba for 500 points of damage.
The result made the score 4500 to 1500 in Chiaki's favor.
I've never seen Kaiba struggle so much except against Yugi, Makoto thought. That Ultimate Gamer talent sure is something.
"My turn," Kaiba said. "I draw! And I summon to the field Lord of Dragons!" The dragon skull hooded spellcaster appeared with 1200 attack points and 1100 defense points. "And next, I activate Flute of Summoning Dragons!" Kaiba declared. "This spell card lets me call forth two dragon type monsters from my hand, so say hello to two Blue-Eyes White Dragons!"
The Blue-Eyes appeared with a cry, each one 3000 attack points and 2500 defense points strong.
"Swords of Revealing Light prevents me from attacking so I end my turn."
Chiaki nodded. "Then I'll go." She drew the top card of her deck. "I summon Bistro Butcher to the field!" she declared. The fiendish carver of meats appeared with his sturdy 1800 attack points. "And now, Bistro Butcher attacks your Lord of Dragons for 600 points of damage!"
Bistro Butcher licked his blade and then cut Kaiba's monster down to size and bringing his life points down to only 900.
"Yea-heah! Go, Chiaki!" Joey shouted. "That's showing Kaiba what for!"
"Do you enjoy the sound of your own voice, or do you have no idea as to the drawback of Chiaki's move just now?" Byakuya asked.
"Heh?" Joey asked, confused.
"Bistro Butcher's effect activates, letting you draw two cards," Chiaki said. Kaiba drew both of them.
"Since I have no cards in my hand, that ends my turn," Chiaki said.
"Fine by me," Kaiba said and drew the top card of his deck.
"I lay onto the field Saggi the Dark Clown in defense mode!" Saggi appeared with a laugh and a chortle.
"He still has that card?" Byakuya wondered.
"Probably to lay Crush Card virus if I had to guess," Celeste said. "It's good tribute fodder."
"And next I set a card face-down," Kaiba said as the hologram appeared. "Go ahead, make my day."
"Chiaki better have a plan in store," Tristan said, nervous.
Kaiba's planning to do the same thing to Chiaki that he did to me in our last duel, Yugi thought. I just hope Chiaki knows what she's getting herself into.
"My turn," Chiaki said. "Draw." She looked at her hand. "And now, I set one monster face-down on the field. And next, I attack with Bistro Butcher!" she declared, surprising everyone.
"Right into my trap card, activate Crush Card Virus!"
"As I expected," Chiaki said, holding up a deductive index finger.
Kaiba was a bit confused. "If you expected it, why didn't you do something about it?"
"But I did," Chiaki said. "I set a monster in defense mode. …Oh, you mean my deck?" She ejected her deck and held up only three cards, one of which included her Bistro Butcher. The other two were Thunderclap Skywolf and Fossil Tusker. "Because, Kaiba, including Bistro Butcher and Fencing Fire Ferret in my graveyard, my entire deck only contains four monsters with greater than 1500 attack points."
This shocked everyone, including Kaiba. "But that's..."
"The truth," Chiaki said. "If you'd like," she said, holding up her deck, "You can inspect my deck for yourself."
Kaiba looked rather rattled. "No…I…trust you to be honest." Only four monsters? You have to be kidding me! Who duels like that?
"Your turn," Chiaki said.
"Y-yeah," Kaiba said and drew the top card of his deck. He looked at his hand now: Polymerization and Kaiser Sea Horse.
This is my last turn before I can attack again, Kaiba thought. Chiaki only has one face-down monster on the field and no cards in her hand. And with Kaiser Sea Horse, Kaiba said, grasping the card. "I summon to the field, Kaiser Sea Horse!" The light sea-serpent-type monster appeared with 1700 attack points and 1650 defense points. "And now, I end my turn," Kaiba said. "And with it, your Swords of Revealing Light dissipate." The swords faded into the either.
"Indeed," Chiaki stated. She drew the top card off of her deck. "I place one card face-down and end my turn."
Kaiba pulled the top card from his deck. It was his final Blue-Eyes. I could summon my Ultimate Dragon right now, but I have no idea what that face-down is. I'd best play things close to hand. "I shift one Blue-Eyes White Dragon into defense mode and then attack with my other Blue-Eyes White Dragon!"
"I don't think so, I activate, a Feint Plan!" Chiaki declared, revealing her trap card. "This prevents you from attacking any monsters that are in face-down defense position."
"So you bought yourself a turn, huh?" Kaiba asked. "What do you plan to do with no cards in your hand?"
"Plenty," Chiaki said. "I draw." She lifted her monster off the duel disk. "I sacrifice one face-down monster in order to play a new monster face-down in defense position."
Another face-down monster. Kaiba chuckled. Ah, I get it. She thinks she can stall me out by protecting herself from my Blue-Eyes. Too bad I have all that I need to obliterate any monster on her field. I just need to draw it.
This could all be over depending on Kaiba's next move, Chiaki thought. Let's see what happens.
"Draw!" Kaiba declared. The top card of his deck turned out to be Quick Attack. Excellent! Let's do this. "I activate the spell card Polymerization! This lets me fuse the two Blue-Eyes monsters that are on my field with the one Blue-Eyes in my hand, allowing me to summon Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon!"
Kaiba's titanic monster roared with 4500 attack and 3800 defense to its name. It was, without a doubt, the most powerful monster in the entire game, barring the god cards and Exodia.
"Geeeeeh, that thing?" Joey gasped, freaking out.
"That thing nearly destroyed you in Duelist Kingdom," Téa said to Yugi.
"Yes," Yami replied. "It's the most powerful form of the Blue-Eyes, the Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon."
"Kaiba has a monster like that in his deck?" Nagito questioned. "Well, no wonder he's the Ultimate Duelist."
"I concur," Byakuya said. "And with no face-down cards to protect her, this will end very badly for our little gamer."
"Don't count the Thoughful One out just yet, I'm sure she has some sort of plan."
"She had one card in her hand and all she could do was play it. Unless she top-decked exactly what she needed, she's going to take damage."
"What makes you say that? Kaiba can't attack with his dragon this turn," Makoto said.
"What makes you think he can't. I happen to have a good idea what card is in his hand," Byakuya said.
"And now, I activate the spell Quick Attack, letting my mighty beast attack you immediately. Now, feel the wrath of the monster that felled you once before. Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon, attack! Neutron Blast!"
Blue-Eyes attacked Chiaki with its triple-headed blast, obliterating her monster, or so it seemed. Arising from the blast was a gigantic bug with a pincer mouth and big, meaty wings. It clamped onto the Blue-Eyes' torso, destroying it instantly.
"What is that?" Kaiba gasped, only to watch as the monstrous bug then slashed Kaiser Sea Horse with one strike and destroyed it. "Agh!" Chiaki's bug then vanished.
"Nobleman Eater Bug," she explained. "When its face-down on the field and is flip faced up, it destroys two monsters on the field."
"Kaiba's defenseless!"
"Well, I stand corrected, looks like our little gamer may actually win this."
Kaiba looked like he was about to blow a gasket. She destroyed…my favorite monster...my most PRIZED POSSESSION with a WEAK! MEASLY! BUG!
"Uh, I'd laugh, but I don't wanna get my face punched in," Joey said.
"Did Chiaki just win this whole thing?" Makoto gasped. Neither player had monsters on the field and Kaiba had no more cards to play this turn.
"Maybe," Hajime said. "She has several monsters with enough attack power to wipe out Kaiba's life points if she's lucky."
"To be excluded from your own ritual during its pre-preparation. That would be a fate far worse than being its sacrifice," Gundham said.
"Uh, translation?" Joey asked.
"It'd be rather sad if Kaiba was kicked out of his own tournament in the first round," Celeste said.
"Well, let's see what happens," Mai stated.
Come on, Chiaki… Hajime thought.
Hang in there, Kaiba, Makoto hoped.
Chiaki drew the top card of her deck. "I activate the spell card, Card of Sanctity, now we both have to draw up to six cards."
"That gives her six chances to draw a winning monster," Makoto gasped.
"Aw right, Chiaki! Wipe that smug look off Kaiba's face!"
"I think Kaiba looks rather distraught right about now, honestly." Mahiru said. "This could all come crashing down around him this turn.
Chiaki looked at her hand and stated. "I set two cards face-down onto the field. And next, I set one monster card face-down."
"Whaaaat? Why'd she set it face-down?" Joey wondered.
"It likely doesn't have enough attack points to finish Kaiba off," Celeste said. "And since there are two types of defense-type monsters, ones with effects and ones with big numbers, Kaiba doesn't know what it is until his monster face-checks it. And if she did play it in attack mode, sure, she has plenty of life points, but she has no way of knowing what Kaiba has lurking in his hand to fight back just as hard and then she'd be completely out of defensive options potentially. Amateur understanding like that is what separates the rookies from the pros, Joey."
"My turn is over," Chiaki said.
"My turn then," Kaiba said. He drew the top card of his deck. "I discard Thunder Dragon from my hand," he said and then searched his deck, "Allowing me to add two more Thunder Dragons to my hand." He placed the cards in his hand. "Then I activate Polymerization, fusing my two Thunder Dragons together to create Twin Headed Thunder Dragon!"
The massive lightning monster hit the table, its two red heads roaring at Chiaki as it floated on its crimson wings.
"Yahooo, rockin' the thunder, go Kaiba!" Ibuki cheered. She was a sucker for thunder monsters. She then realized who she rooted for. "Agh! I mean bad! Very, very bad! Chiaki can still beat you!"
"Oh believe me, I know she has the potential and since I don't happen to have a Quick Attack spell on me this turn, I'll just set one card face-down," Kaiba said as the hologram appeared. "And end my turn."
"Then it's back to me again," Chiaki said. "I draw." She looked at her hand. "I'll set one monster on the field and then set one more card on the field." Chiaki now had three set cards and two set monsters. That ends my turn."
Kaiba silently drew the top card of his deck. "I may have already used stop defense, but let me show you why defending still won't protect you against me: I activate the trap Dragon's Rage!" The trap card that depicted a dragon busting through a solid stone wall appeared. "This trap card allows me to deal damage even when your monsters are in defense position equal to the difference in my monster's attack and your monster's defense."
"Aw, no!" Joey exclaimed, worried for Chiaki.
"And now, I summon to the field, Divine Dragon Ragnarok!" A thunderous serpentine like dragon crackled out of onto the battlefield with 1500 attack and 1000 defense. "And now, I attack with Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon!"
"And now, I reveal my first trap card, Mirror Force!" Chiaki declared.
Makoto gasped in worry for Kaiba's chances at victory.
"Well, we knew it had to happen eventually," Duke said, regarding Chiaki playing Mirror Force.
"I end my turn with one card face-down on the field," Kaiba said, tensing his entire body. Oh he was not happy about this at all. Mirror Force, he should've expected Mirror Force, but he absolutely hated sitting at 900 life points while Chiaki sat at over 4000 even more. He was not the underdog here, never had been, never would be.
"Now I flip my monster face-up, Go Needle Worm!" Chiaki declared. A pink, slimy worm appeared with 750 attack and 600 defense.
"Oh god that thing's gross," Téa cringed.
"When Needle Worm's flip effect activates, you have to send the top five cards of your deck straight to the graveyard," Chiaki stated.
Kaiba's did so with a growl.
"And next, I activate my face-down card, Cemetery Bomb! You'll now take 100 points of damage for every card in your graveyard."
"Oh good," Celeste said, "Misery loves company."
"I don't think so," Kaiba declared, "I activate my face-down card: Ring of Defense, protecting my life points from your trap card!"
Ring of defense cancelled out Chiaki's card and shielded Kaiba from a guaranteed loss.
"Well then," Chiaki said, "Since you have no monsters on the field, I suppose I'll attack, I guess. Needle Worm, poisonous needle shot!"
Needle Worm flipped its hind at Kaiba, launching a few needles at him and bringing his life points down to 150.
"Oh man, Kaiba is getting rocked hard," Tristan said.
"That's Chiaki for you," Hajime said. "Next turn, she could have the whole thing wrapped up."
"Not a chance," Kaiba said, drawing the top card of his deck. "I summon to the field, Spear Dragon!" Kaiba's 1900 attack point and 0 defense point dragon type monster appeared. "And next I activate the spell card, Stamping Destruction, so kiss your last trap good bye!"
Spear Dragon flew through the air and slammed down onto Chiaki's card. Well, there went her Negate Attack.
"And now," Kaiba said, "You take 500 points of damage."
Chiaki's life points trickled down to 4000. She was still in way better condition than Kaiba.
"Spear Dragon!" Kaiba shouted. "Take out her pathetic worm! Spear Strike Tempest!" Kaiba's dragon flung itself forward and tore towards Needle Worm, picking the bug up in its mouth like a pelican and swallowing it whole. The sound effect of the monster being destroyed could still be heard though. "Or…that works to I suppose," Kaiba thought. Spear Dragon then switched itself to defense mode as per its ability.
"My turn," Chiaki said and drew the top card of her deck. "I set one monster face-down onto the field."
"Then it's back to me," Kaiba said. "I draw." He nodded at his hand. "I summon to the field X-Head Cannon!" The powerful shoulder cannon monster of 1800 attack points and 1500 defense appeared. "And now, Spear Dragon, attack the monster she set turns ago!"
Chaiki's monster turned out to be Snowman Eater, a monster with defense equal to Kaiba's dragon (1900) and with a mouth growing on the underside of the snowman.
"Snowman Eater's effect activates!" Chiaki declared.
"Oh, and what's it do?" Kaiba asked.
"It's basically a bulky, no attack point Man-Eater Bug," Chiaki said.
Kaiba twitched and made a face worthy of Mahiru's camera as Snowman eater leapt on the feet below its snowman and unhinged its jaw to devour X-Head Cannon whole, robbing Kaiba of his second attack that turn.
"My turn is over," Kaiba said.
"My turn then," Chiaki said. She drew the top card of her deck. "I place another monster face-down onto the field. My turn is over."
"Then it's my turn," Kaiba said. "I draw. And I'm summoning Blade Knight to the field! In attack mode!"
Kaiba's blue, gilded knight appeared. "And I'll use it to destroy the monster you played on your other turn."
Blade Knight attacked only to spring a Blast Sphere to life, to the shock of everyone.
"Well, looks like you triggered Blast Sphere's effect. On your next turn, he'll explode with enough force to deal 2000 damage to your life points."
Kaiba looked absolutely livid and in a panic. "Spear Dragon, destroy her other face-down monster!" It was a good call. Chiaki had Stealth Bird face-down. Spear Dragon tore a huge hole in it.
Thanks to Spear Dragon's effect, Chiaki still took battle damage, bringing her life points down to 2650.
"I set a card face-down," Kaiba said. "And I'm ending my turn."
"What kind of face-down card can cancel out Blast Sphere?" Mai wondered aloud.
"Guess we'll all find out together," Celeste said. She herself wasn't quite sure.
"I set one more monster," Chiaki said as she drew her card and continued her turn.
"And in response, I'll activate my trap card: Destruct Potion!" Kaiba shouted, revealing his face-down trap card. "This lets me select and destroy one of my monsters and I'll choose Blade Knight! And since he currently has 2000 attack points, I gain 2000 life points."
Blade Knight exploded and was converted into a healthy blob of energy that boosted Kaiba's life points to 2150.
"Impressive work," Chiaki said. "It's your move."
"Your damn right it is," Kaiba declared. "And I'm about to snatch victory," he said, ripping the top card of his deck to his hand, "From the jaws of defeat!" He looked at the card he drew. "I set a monster face-down! And next, I attack with Spear Dragon!"
Spear Dragon lunged at Chiaki's face-down monster, revealing a monster in a hooded robe: Night Assailant. Chiaki still took Battle Damage, but she was able to take Spear Dragon down with it. Her life points fell to 1250. Now, after so many turns of not having it, Kaiba had the lead. He laughed. "Ah, it feels so good to be back on top. I'm not even that mad that Spear Dragon was slain by your assassin. It's your move, Chiaki."
"Very well then," Chiaki said. "I draw. I activate Pot of Greed, letting me draw two cards!" she declared. When she got the two cards to her hand, she said, "I activate Spell Absorbtion. Now, whenever a spell card is activated, I gain 500 life points. And next, I'll set one monster face-down onto the field. It's your turn, Kaiba."
"Hiding behind a wall again?" Kaiba asked. "I'll tear it down!" He looked at his dwindling hand. "I summon Y-Dragon Head to the field, in attack position! And now, I'll use it to destroy your face-down monster!"
However, Chiaki's monster was not a weak effect monster, but rather the bulky Gear Golem the Moving Fortress. And, by slamming into it, Kaiba's life points ticked downward to 1450, almost even with Chiaki's.
"Good job, Gear Golem!" Chiaki encouraged her monster as though it were a real thing.
"It can't hear you," Kaiba said.
"You don't know that," Chiaki said, tilitng her head to the side.
"Just go," Kaiba grumbled.
"Very well," Chiaki said, "I draw!" Top-decking was her only option at this point now that she'd burned through Pot of Greed and Card of Sanctity. "I activate the spell card Goblin Thief! This allows me to steal 500 of your life points and I gain 500!" Chiaki declared. A grotesque goblin appeared, pushing its way past Kaiba's monsters, put its grubby fingers on Kaiba's chest and ran back and handed the words +500 to Chiaki. Her life points increased back to 1750 and Kaiba's fell to 950. "And since I activated a spell card, I gain another 500 life points. Chiaki now sat comfortably in the lead once more with 2250 life points.
Kaiba could barely contain his rage. It's just how the game is played! It's just how the game is played! He kept telling himself.
"Your move, Kaiba," Chiaki told him.
And it had better be a good one, Kaiba thought. All he had in his hand at this point was Ring of Destruction, which really wasn't going to help him anymore. I need something that will turn this duel around and fast! I never imagined Nanami could get this good in such a short amount of time. Or was she always this good? Have I underestimated her? I modified my deck slightly specifically for dealing with her, so why is she she's beating me by more than twice my life points after over a dozen turns for each of us! "Nnngh! I draw!" Kaiba top-decked Silent Doom. That wasn't helping him right now either. Great, just great, Kaiba thought. "I end my turn."
"My turn then," Chiaki said. She drew the top card of her deck. It was Jester Lord. There was no way she was throwing this onto the field. It would get obliterated. "I end my turn."
Kaiba put his hand on top of his deck. He couldn't let Chiaki replenish her hand. He needed a game changer and he needed one now! "I draw!" Kaiba shouted. He drew the top card of his deck. Yes! This was exactly what he needed and, given his previous draw, he was in just the position to summon it. "Chiaki!" he shouted. "You may have been able to stop my Blue-Eyes, but you'll never be able to stop this!"
I think I know what's coming, Chiaki thought.
"I activate the spell card, Silent Doom, letting me bring back Saggi the Dark Clown from the graveyard!" Kaiba declared. "This allows me to sacrifice my three monsters in order to summon my great beast! I call upon Obelisk the Tormentor!"
The might blue god rose up behind Kaiba. It was so massive, the hologram system could only render the top half of its body.
So, this is Obelisk in the flesh, Chiaki thought.
Makoto was blown away in awe by Obelisk's power.
The fact that Kaiba was forced to summon his god card is proof of little Chiaki's power. I knew I was right to try and make her my mind slave, not that that matters anymore, Marik chortled.
"Obelisk!" Kaiba declared, "Take out Chiaki's Gear Golem the Moving Fortress! Show her the power of a god!"
Obelisk's fist swung down and completely obliterated Chiaki's monster. The shockwave did little more than make her skirt and hoodie flap in the breeze. Chiaki raised one arm and closed one eye to avoid dirt and dust flying into her eye.
When Obelisk moved its arm, Chiaki could see that there was now a smoldering crater where Gear Golem had been.
Kaiba laughed. "What now, Chiaki? Will you accept defeat before Obelisk? None of your fancy traps or spells can do anything to him and I've run a check, a simple Man-Eater Bug won't be able to stop him!"
That's right, the gods can't be targeted by card effects, Chiaki thought. What can I do against such overwhelming power? She shook her head. No, I've got one option left, I just have to draw it. "Like Yugi, Makoto, Byakuya, and Hajime, I'm not going to give up Kaiba," Chiaki said as she placed her hand on her deck looking determined. "Because I have faith in the Heart of the Cards! I draw!"
Chiaki drew the top card of her deck, revealing the card she was hoping to put in her hand: Wave Motion Cannon. This is it! She declared to herself. "I set one monster face-down!" she shouted. "And next, I activate the spell card, Wave Motion Cannon!"
A turbine engine cannon appeared next to Chiaki with a dial firmly printed on the side of it.
Kaiba gasped. It couldn't be.
"Wave Motion Cannon grows more powerful for each of my turns that it's been out on the field. So, Kaiba, do you have enough power to wipe out 2250 life points in one swing, and destroy whatever monster I have face-down? Because, if you don't…" Chiaki took her arm and pointed it right at Kaiba like her favorite attorney. "This duel is OVER!"
Kaiba couldn't believe his eyes. This was, to him, utterly impossible. Obelisk was on the field, that should've been an instant win for him. How could Chiaki have the audacity to claim that she had claimed victory.
Technically though, she had a valid reason to be confident. Aqua Madoor and Giant Soldier of Stone had yet to be played from her deck, two monsters that were a mainstay in it from Kaiba's experience. There was not a single monster in his deck that could wipe out that many defense points, which would force him to attack with Obelisk. But then he had no monster that could take out all of her life points. And, thanks to Needle Worm, both Rare Metal Dragon and Monster Reborn were in the graveyard. And just to add insult to injury so were De-Spell, Battle Ox and Mystic Space Typhoon.
And say, for instance, Chiaki's face-down monster wasn't a bulky defender, but an effect monster, could Kaiba take that risk? He would have to, but he had so few life points left. If she had a monster that dealt 1000 damage in pyrotechnics he was done for, no, if it so much as stopped Kaiba from attacking with Obelisk, the duel was over.
This couldn't be it. Had Chiaki won? Was he bested by the only other duelist he respected other than Yugi? And with Obelisk on the field? With Blue-Eyes destroyed? That was INSULTING!
"Huh, I guess this is why she's known as the Comeback Queen in the underground," Celeste said.
"Comeback nothing, she's been stringing Kaiba along this whole duel," Tristan commented.
"Indeed," Espa agreed. "I did not think it was possible, but Kaiba's been backed into a corner ever since she activated Bad Reaction to Simochi."
"Perhaps this will teach him a lesson," Yami said solemnly. It was about time Kaiba learned not to be so hate-filled, glory seeking, and to believe in the Heart of the Cards.
Mahiru snapped up a photo. The situation was begging for it.
I can't believe it's come to this. One fatal draw. No matter what, it has to be a summonable monster that I can attack with and even then, that's no guarantee that I'll win. This can't be happening! It's a nightmare! How? How can I be pushed into a corner like this where the outcome of the duel is decided by one simple draw? All of my plans...all of my strategies...I knew Chiaki was going to be difficult to defeat, but this...this goes beyond anything I've ever fathomed! The only monsters left in my deck are Z-Metal Tank, Versago the Destroyer, and Slate Warrior thanks to that annoying worm, and only one of them could be a viable source of attacking and even its not strong enough to destroy something like Giant Soldier of Stone or Aqua Madoor! He paused and stopped breathing raggedly. No, he thought, composing himself. There's still one card in my deck, one simple spell card that could turn this whole thing around. Kaiba's hand floated over to the top card of his deck and collapsed on top of it. If I don't draw the right card now, I lose. His hand shook. What the hell am I so nervous for? I can win this. I can WIN this. With a deep breath, Kaiba then shouted, "All right, Chiaki! Last turn! All or nothing! I DRAW!"
Everyone in the audience, both live and at home, waited with baited breath. Would Kaiba become a legend or a laughing stock, everything depended on a single card. The world seemed to slow down. Kaiba could hear nothing, but the sound of his own heartbeat as he pulled the card off of his deck, Chiaki following it with her eyes. Kaiba's eyes were clenched shut in hope and in worry. He held the card in front of him now, teeth clenched, eyes still trembling. Did he dare look at it? It could change his entire career as a duelist on a single, solitary trading card.
His eyes fluttered open to the sight of a spell card and, it was precisely the spell card he needed to put the game away. "I activate my spell card, Shield Crush!"
This was it. He'd won! Shield Crush sent forth a blazing blue beam and eviscerated Chiaki's monster, which, much to Kaiba's absolute ironic amusement was Jester Lord, a monster with 0 attack and 0 defense. Chiaki had thrown the mother of all bluffs at him. Kaiba laughed his ass off, eyes shaking like the salt shaker that likely held all the salt he currently felt. "Ahaha ahaha ahaha," he chuckled in absolute rage and irritation. Chiaki had made him fret over absolutely nothing at all, wasted precious seconds of his time and made him look like an idiot on national television. With a deep breath, he completely regained his composure. This was now his duel to win.
"It's time to end this duel!" Kaiba shouted. "Obelisk!" Kaiba shouted and raised his arm. "Atta—" Kaiba suddenly stopped his declaration short. All of his memories of Chiaki suddenly slammed hard inside his skull.
"These cards are clearly too dangerous to the point that they can somehow bypass the safety features of the KaibaCorp hologram system and I refuse to put anyone using my company's products in undo danger."
"I believe that to be an excellent decision."
Kaiba continued to stand there in silence. More memories floated to the surface.
"I promise I'll duel! Please don't disqualify me, Kaiba!"
"You made the choice to come here. Disqualifying you now would be unsportsmanlike."
His memories pulled him back further, back to the days leading up to Battle City.
"Well I had fun dueling you. I'm sure I'll have fun dueling in your tournament."
Even further back now, past his memories with Chiaki, all the way to Duelist Kingdom.
"You can't take this risk, Yugi!"
Kaiba was now back to that duel with Yugi where he'd stood on a ledge and made a desperate man out of himself so he could get into Pegasus' Castle. But the situation was different now. Now it was Chiaki on that ledge, metaphorically speaking, and he himself was the one in control of the victor and the loser. He could end his turn right now and she would win, blasting him with 1000 points of damage thanks to the effect of Wave Motion Cannon.
Could he do it? Could he attack? Chiaki was injured. If she took an attack from Obelisk like this…
"What are you hesitating for, Kaiba?"
Kaiba snapped back to reality. It was Chiaki asking the question. "Huh?" he uttered.
"Go ahead and attack," Chiaki told him. "You won, so end this duel. It doesn't count unless you do it by the books, right?" She smiled at him, cheerfully. Her eyes were closed, hand placed so gently along her collarbone. Her head was titled to the side ever so slightly. Chiaki's cheeks were all rosy too.
Why is she smiling at me like that? Kaiba thought, his heart sinking down into the pit of his stomach. Stop it! He shouted internally, eyes shaking back and forth. Stop smiling! However, Chiaki could not hear the words that would not leave Kaiba's throat. You're about to get seriously hurt! Inside his head, he screamed, WHY ARE YOU ACTING LIKE YOU'RE HAVING FUN?!
Kaiba's face expressed naught, but pure anguish.
"H-hey, Mokuba, what's wrong with Kaiba?" Téa inquired.
"I dunno, but…I think he's scared to attack or something."
"Kaiba? Scared?" Celeste asked, sarcastically. "You're joking."
"I don't think it's a joke," Komaru said. "Look at him. He's sweating and everything."
Mokuba hatched on an idea, raising his arms in surprise, face expression shock, "Ah, could it be?"
"What is it?" Makoto asked.
"Well, it's just, Chiaki always brings out the good in Seto. I heard him talk about her a few times and he seemed to be a little less...sour when he talked about her."
Yami smiled. "I see, whether he admits it or not, Kaiba's heart has already declared Chiaki as a friend. And as her friend, he doesn't want her to get hurt. And because he won't admit it, he doesn't understand why he's hesitating."
"Well, he'd better make a decision soon, the people at home are going to get restless," Byakuya commented. Makoto, Celeste, Mai, Mahiru and Hajime all gave him estranged looks. "Oh, what? Like I'm the only one thinking it."
Doesn't mean you have to say it and sound like a complete douchebag, Hajime thought.
Back up on the arena, Kaiba was still trying to come to terms with the situation. No matter what, I have to move forward. I have to collect the god cards so that I can lock them away and... Kaiba trailed off and stared at Chiaki, eyes clenching for a moment. To that end... A reel of Chiaki's happy smiles played in Chiaki's memory. To that end, I… "AAAAAAAAH!" Kaiba shouted, fists clenched at his sides. With a heavy heart, face looking like tears could fall any second, he shouted, "Obelisk! Attack her life points directly!" Kaiba clenched his eyes shut and shouted, "FIST OF FURY!"
Obelisk heard and obeyed.
Chiaki opened her eyes as Obelisk's fist came slowly swinging in. I'm proud of you, Kaiba, she thought. You let nothing stand in your way. She closed her eyes once more and smiled as bright as she could. Not even our friendship.
POW!
The impact from Obelisk's fist sent Chiaki flying back, bringing her life points straight to 0. It also created so much lift that it actually sent her hurtling off the arena and almost off the blimp. Fortunately, while no track star to be certain, Hajime was already charging towards Chiaki, leapt into the air and caught her in mid-air, wrapping his arms around her and crashing onto the ground harshly on his knee. Nothing broken, but goddamn did it hurt.
Hajime looked at Chiaki. Her breathing was ragged and she had her eyes closed. Hajime shook her. "Chiaki! Are you all right?" he asked, shaking her, "Say something!"
Chiaki's eyes fluttered open to the sight of Hajime. "Don't…" she said, looking upset.
"Huh?"
"Don't be mad…at Kaiba," Chiaki said, her eyes struggling to stay open. "He did…what he had…to do." She then turned her head and closed her eyes.
"Chiaki!" Hajime shouted, worrying that she had just died in his arms, but was reassured by Chiaki snoring loudly and cutely.
Hajime now cradled her on both knees. He was so relieved. Dueling must've taken all of the energy she was storing up. Chiaki…I'm sorry, Hajime sobbed. With tears he shouted, "You should be the one advancing, not me!"
Everyone had been so distracted by Chiaki going flying that only now were they looking to see Kaiba's response to this whole scenario. However, when Makoto, the first to turn his attention to Kaiba, looked back at where Kaiba had been standing, Kaiba was long gone.
He was already in the elevator and rushed back to his room, shutting and locking the door, pounding his fist on the nearest wall. He looked like an idiot up there. Worse, he knew the feelings welling inside him. Like it or not, whether he admitted it aloud or not, he cared about Chiaki's well-being, that much was clear to him. Kaiba whacked his hand a few more times against the wall. He then tightened his fist and clenched his eyes shut as his body made a tremendous effort to make a single tear trail flow out of his right eye. Vigorously, he wiped it away and pulled himself together.
It's over, he thought, sitting down, but still feeling like crap. The duel's over. I…I won. So…why does victory feel so hollow?
He took a deep breath and lifted his head up. He then bolted from his seat and headed for his office, which was separate from his suite. He sat down in front of his computer and put on a head set. "Plot a course for Kaiba Corp Island!" He called to the flight crew. "I want us there as quickly as possible we can start the finals before 14:00 hours and finish the tournament before nightfall. Am I understood?"
"Loud and clear Mr. Kaiba," the lead pilot spoke back to him. "Kaiba Corp Island is already set for autopilot. We are adjusting our altitude and speed in accordance with the schedule you set for us, sir."
"Excellent," Kaiba said. "It's way past everyone's bed time, including mine, but I'm paying you for overtime work so I expect to see results."
"Yes, sir, Mr. Kaiba," the pilot responded.
Kaiba took off the headset and just leaned back in his chair, fingers clasped together. Good, everything's going according to plan. Marik, Yugi, and I are all advancing to the next round. It's a shame Chiaki couldn't get farther, but that's what she gets for going up against me. He closed his eyes for a moment. I suppose an apology will be in order tomorrow. I really hope she's all right. At the very least, I don't have to worry about what happened to Sonia happening to her. I just need to keep winning now. One duel down, three to go.
"I have a tournament to run," Kaiba thought aloud, "And it runs on schedule, unimpeded." He left his office. So to that end, I need to rest. He took off his jacket upon entering his suite and collapsed upon his bed, pulling the covers tightly over him, burying his body up to his nose. "Lights off," he grumbled, as the lights in the room went dark. Tomorrow…is another day. Kaiba shut his eyes and sighed. This is why I don't have any friends.
When Chiaki woke up it was the wee hours in the morning. In about an hour, the sun would rise. Her eyes fluttered open to the sight of Hajime sitting in a chair. He'd fallen asleep sitting up. "Hajime?" she mumbled and then called out louder, "Hajime?"
Hajime startled awake. "O-oh, um, I…uh…"
"I can't tell because it's so dark, but…am I in my room?"
"Yeah," Hajime said. "Mikan wanted you to get some rest. That impact sent you flying, but you're not actually injured, thank god. No cracked ribs, no torn ligaments or bruising."
Chiaki pulled the covers up over her nose. "Did you carry me here?" she asked, trying to hide her blush.
"Er, yeah, actually. Well I mean, it wasn't like…anyone else was volunteering."
Chiaki turned over in her bed. "Well, you should go back to your room then."
"Huh?"
"It's late," she said, yawning cutely, "You need your rest. You're competing tomorrow."
"Well…yeah, but…"
"Get some sleep, Hajime."
Hajime stood up. Chiaki could tell because she heard the chair slide back. "It should be you in the next round, not me. I…I don't deserve it…compared to you."
"You're still saying stuff like that. You earned it," Chiaki said.
"Earned it, yeah, but…I…I mean you…"
"These things happen," Chiaki said, sitting up and smiling. "I'm happy that if I lost it was to Kaiba. It was…the best duel of my career."
Hajime smiled. Well, at least Chiaki was taking it well. "Well, if you're sure you're all right." He then headed for the door and opened it, the light flooding into from the hallway and blinding him momentarily. "Hey," he said. "Don't oversleep, all right?" He gave Chiaki a thumb's up. "I need you to support me like you've been doing, okay?"
"I promise," Chiaki said with a smile. "Goodnight, Hajime."
"Night," Hajime said and walked away, the door closing automatically behind him.
Chiaki then lay back down and turned over. Under the covers, she played with her fingers, blushing. It probably would've been too much to ask him to crawl into bed with me, she thought. She was thinking of her relationship with Hajime like a Sim-Date Visual Novel. She sighed, yawned and snuggled down harder into the covers. Hajime…I… Chiaki never finished her thought before falling back asleep, snoring soundly.
And she didn't wake until morning.
(A/N: And that's a wrap! Arc over! Did you all call Kaiba winning? Yes, probably. But I'd like to think that at least twice, I made you believe that Chiaki could win. After all, with all the post-duel scenes I've included, you can hardly say the close calls were spoiled by the format :P. Anyway, New Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony comes out tomorrow and with it, a long hiatus. Not only am I going to be shifting back to my main project, Fairy Without Wings, but I'm also going to be playing V3 to completion before doing any more fanfic work. Goddammit, I need a break XD.
Please let me know if any of you Hajime/Chiaki shippers out there are considering jumping ship to Chiaki/Kaiba. And even if you aren't, please leave your thoughts on Kaiba and Chiaki's relationship in general. I worked really hard to create the idea that, whether Kaiba admits it or not—and he NEVER will—he and Chiaki count as friends. That's my statement as the author, you can take it or ignore it as you like.
Next time on Dueling Trigger Finger, the Noah arc begins and we—that is to say my two co-captains and I—have some very interesting things planned for it already. I don't really have an outline for the arc yet, so I can't really say one way or the other how it's gonna turn out or what's gonna be in the next chapter. But even if it's years before I return to this fanfic, I'm at least happy I got this far—and no it won't be years before I return, but chances are this fic won't be updated until 2018. Hopefully sooner, but I'm telling you non-subscribers the situation.
Anyway, as always, shout out to my two patrons: Dark Jade and Goshinzilla and, as always, from all of me, to all of you, let your hearts stay human and your wrath draconic. Ja ne!)