(A/N: Sooooo, noticing a lot of flak that the Pharaoh has been getting lately. Not that I blame any of you. I guess when you're the Boring Invincible Hero and you've been Out of Focus for 50+ chapters and you spend most of your screen time hamming it up and talking about destiny when literally 3 of the protagonists talk about Screw Destiny that tends to happen. Most of this seems to stem from the fact that the Pharaoh and Yugi have the least character development out of everyone and haven't really…integrated well with the DGR cast the way Joey and Kaiba have. I mean even Serenity is better integrated. Serenity! Welp, good news is, that'll hopefully get patched next arc and the arcs that follow. Also, enjoy this fun, no strings attached duel while it lasts *jaws theme starts playing*. And now, if you'll look to your right, you can see a pair of giant blonde twin tails shaped like spider legs rising up out of the depths. That…thing is the enemy of fun and happiness. And I hate that we're going to be putting up with her for so damn long. But…I am a professional and will do my best to write her fairly, which is a lot more than I can say for a lot of other writers on this website.
Anyway, enjoy the final duel of the Battle City tournament. It's unfortunate Johnny Yong Bosch was never really that hammy or baritone with Hajime. Gods, could you imagine if this was Ichigo, Zero, or Emil Castagnier? My oven would not be able to keep up with the amount of ham being dished out. Er, sorry, getting side tracked. Right then, Hajime Hinata Vs Yami Yugi. Let's jam!)
When Hajime woke up the next morning, he was a little bit confused as to why he wasn't in his room. Then he slowly remembered everything that happened the night before. He won. He'd beat Marik. The nightmare was over. Holy shit, he was in the finals!
Not bad for a poor kid from the suburbs, Hajime thought. He took out his cell phone and checked the time. It was 7:30, more than enough time to take a shower, air out his clothes a little and get ready for his duel with…Yugi.
Things were starting to hit Hajime all at once like a truck deciding to just dump everything it was porting onto a busy highway.
The finals. He was dueling Yugi. He beat Marik. He possessed an Egyptian God Card.
Hajime had to take a deep breath. His heart was starting to race. All of this felt so unreal. 48 hours ago, he barely thought he could duel his way out of a paper bag. Now he was about to march to an elevator and stand on top of a multi-story tower to duel the King of Games in the largest Duel Monster's tournament since Duelist Kingdom. More importantly, his duel with Marik had been broadcast live. Anyone he knew could've seen him duel his heart out and claim what to many probably looked like an impossible victory.
I…don't want it to end, Hajime thought. He'd come so far as an individual. He definitely could not go and become Izuru anymore. Not after this.
Nodding to himself, Hajime got out of bed and left the medical bay to head for his room. He splashed some water on his face in the sink, took a shower, brushed his teeth, shuffled his deck and aired out his clothes to get some of the multi-day funk of them. If he had known he'd be competing this long he definitely would've brought a change of clothes.
As Hajime stepped out into the hallway, who else should he meet, but the girl that gave him all his confidence. "Oh, Chiaki. Good morning."
Chiaki was wrapped in her Game Girl Advance, but hearing Hajime's voice pulled her out of it and she shut off the console, pocketing it. "Oh. Hajime. Good morning," she bowed.
"I'm glad I found you. I…wanted to tell you something very important."
"Can we talk about it over breakfast? We've still got an hour before the duel starts."
Hajime nodded and the two walked down the hall.
"What's on your mind?" Chiaki asked.
"It's…it's about the Kamukura Project."
"What about it?" Chiaki asked.
Hajime stopped a moment. This was important. He had to nut up and say this no matter how much it might hurt. "I've decided I'm not going to sign up. Starting in the fall semester, I'm going to go back to my old high school since I won't have the money to pay for my education. If this tournament has taught me anything, it's that I can do great things without having to rely on things like talent or a name. I'm incredible…just by being me."
Chiaki smiled. "That makes me happy to hear. But…" she said, her smile fading, "Having said that…I could pay your tuition."
"You…what?"
"Yeah, I mean, do you know exactly how many tournaments I've won? I bet I could pay for maybe one more semester."
"Chiaki, do you even know how much you'd be giving me? I can't ask that of you."
Chiaki's smile was as warm as the sunshine itself. "I'd do anything for a friend." She blushed. "Money's no object for you, Hajime."
"But…why do you want me to stay?" Hajime asked.
"Well I…"
Chiaki was cut off by a pair of leather shoes clomping down the hallway. The duo was interrupted by Hajime's soon to be opponent: Yugi Mutoh, although it seemed the Pharaoh was already in control.
"Ah, Hajime. Good to see you," he said politely. "I'm looking forward to our duel today."
"You are? I thought you'd be really mad at me for overturning your prophecy or something," Hajime said with a nervous expression.
"Quite the opposite, actually," Yami replied. "I'll be thankful to have a normal duel for once rather than have to fight for the sake of the world. Words can truly not express my gratitude for your help." He shut his eyes and looked worried. "Please understand. After Joey, Gundham and Sonia had all been bullied and hurt by Marik, I just didn't want there to be any more victims. I was…only concerned for your safety…and I let my own obsession with the ancient past prevent me from considering the potential you yourself hold as a duelist. You have my heartfelt apology for my rudeness."
"Hey, things were pretty tense yesterday," Hajime said. He bowed to Yami. "Water under the bridge."
Yami only smiled. "Don't think I'm going to make this easy on you just because you're not evil," he chuckled. "I may not care about being the best, but I have a reputation to uphold."
"I'll hold nothing back either. I'd dishonor you if I did anything less."
Yami offered Hajime a handshake. "May our duel be filled with honor and civility."
Hajime nodded and shook the Pharaoh's hand.
"Well then, I'll see you in an hour," Yami stated. He then walked around Chiaki, the two smiling at each other as he passed.
Hajime swallowed. "This is gonna be tough. Marik was one thing, but can I really take on the King of Games?"
"Hey, you haven't gotten this far by doubting yourself. Nothing to do, but press onward, right?" Chiaki asked.
"Yeah," Hajime nodded. "Come on. Let's get something to eat."
At ten to nine, both Hajime and Yami had made their way atop Kaiba's Duel Tower. Since the host was out of the tournament, he opted to be referee instead of Roland. After all, there was no longer a conflict of interest. Even if he had personal disdain for Yugi, he refused to let Yugi be defeated by anyone else, but him.
Hajime arrived second and Yami was shuffling his deck in the interim in the time that had elapsed since his arrival.
"Listen you two," Kaiba said. "If either of you disgrace the Battle City Finals for any reason, I will personally throw you off this tower, consequences be damned. Understand? This is still my tournament, even if I'm no longer a participant."
"No need to worry over here," Hajime said, staring Yami down.
"Same," Yami replied.
Kaiba nodded at Roland who lifted up the arena as the hologram projectors fired up.
"Good luck, Yugi," Téa said to him.
"Take 'em down, Yug! You got this!" Joey shouted.
"Hajime! Do your best!" Ibuki exclaimed.
"Keheheheh," Gundham chortled. "I never would've thought when these finals started it would be you and the King of Games standing face to face, Hajime Hinata. May the bards sing of this glorious day that the Dark Horse and its thundering hooves fought bravely against the ancient King of Egypt!"
Chiaki smiled at him. "Remember to have fun."
"Yes," Sonia nodded in agreement. "Although I have not been present for most of this tournament's final stretch, it will a glory to see you and Yugi do battle, Hajime. I shall support you with all that I can as a token of my appreciation for saving me."
"You've got my support too!" Mahiru exclaimed. "So get in there and show Yugi the power of the Ultimate Reserve Course Student!" Before he'd even opened his mouth, she added, "Nagito, zip it."
He sighed. "Busted."
"Hajime, if you feel sick at all. Just let me know. I'll help in any way I can," Mikan said.
"Thanks you guys," Hajime smiled at the Hope's Peak students. He then turned back to face Yugi, smiling at him as he shuffled his deck. "Yugi, it really is an honor to duel you," Hajime said as he loaded his deck into his duel disk.
"One thing before we begin," Kaiba said. "Hinata, do you know how to use Ra properly?"
Hajime nodded. "If the Sphere mode appears, Sonia helped me memorize the incantation at breakfast."
"Let's hope that will be enough. I will not have this duel disgraced because of one of Pegasus' cheap tricks."
"We could always hand the god cards to you now, Kaiba," Yami said. "There's no need for us to fight over them anymore."
"Out of the question," Kaiba replied. "This duel started because of a Battle of Gods and it will end as such. Got it?"
"You heard our host," Hajime said. "But, just because we have them, doesn't mean they'll be played."
"Heh. I'd say destiny may have a different idea in mind, but you've already shown that destiny means nothing to you," Yami said, activating his duel disk with a smile. "So, I'm going to come at you with just my pure, raw skill. No talk of destiny. No talk of friendship. It's just you, me, and our cards."
"Wish you could show me the same courtesy, Yugi," Kaiba frowned.
Yami glanced at him once and opted to say nothing back.
"Crush 'em, Yug! There's only one King of Games and dat's you, pal!" Joey cheered.
"You can do this, Yugi! We all believe in you," Téa told him.
"Give us all a duel we'll never forget, and don't forget to win too," Tristan stated.
"Just because he's not Kaiba doesn't give you any excuse to slack off," Duke criticized. "Don't hold back."
"Hajime and Chiaki have both proven their superiority to the shadows. Just do your best, Yugi. Really, we're all here with you," Bakura said.
"It might not be much, but you've got me on your side as well," Mai said, clenching a fist. "You didn't beat Pegasus on a whim. No mercy, kiddo."
"I know you'll win, Yugi because you've taught my big brother everything he knows about dueling. You're a kind soul and a true friend," Serenity said. "I know you'll somehow win. I believe in you just the same as my big brother."
Celeste still hadn't said anything. She continued to stand arms folded, tapping her foot and her middle finger to her elbow. Yami was about to turn around, but she suddenly decided to speak. "Oh. Is it my turn? Hah, way to make a girl feel pressured." Celeste smiled at Yugi. "What can I say? For some insane reason, you believe someone like me is worth having as a friend. How could I possibly betray such a strong bond at this point? I suppose, if the mood strikes, I might just cheer for you, Yugi."
"Looks like we've both got a sizeable cheering section," Hajime chuckled.
"Indeed. Let this be a fantastic duel. Hajime," Yami said. "I've never had the opportunity to fight a duel like this with virtually nothing on the line. In Duelist Kingdom, every duel I fought was because I absolutely had to defeat Pegasus. Every duel in this tournament, up until now, was to stop Marik. And you've gone and shattered that necessity with your own honor and determination. Much as Kaiba would disagree, there's nothing at stake if I lose this duel."
"Hmph," Kaiba grunted.
"However, that does not mean I intend to duel with anything less than my best! I'll put all of my skill, determination, heart, and faith forward and duel you with everything I've got!"
"Like I said earlier this morning, I expect nothing less," Hajime said. "I'll give it all I've got too."
"Well then…there's nothing more than need be said. Our cards will do the talking for us."
"Yeah," Hajime nodded firmly. "I'm ready if you are."
"Then let's do this!" Yami shouted.
"LET'S DUEL!" Both finalists shouted simultaneously.
As both duelists drew their hands, Hajime said, "Since I'm the challenger to the title of King of Games, I'll go first." Hajime picked up the top card from his deck. Hmm? He looked at his whole hand. Well, this gives me an early advantage. I wonder how long it'll last. "I activate Polymerization, fusing together Molten Zombie with Inpachi to form Blazing Fenix, the Burning Bombardment Bird!"
"A fusion monster on his first turn?" Joey gasped.
"That's not good," Téa remarked.
"Keheheh," Gundham chortled. "The match has barely begun and Hajime already has the wicked flames at his beck and call. How interesting."
The mighty, fiery, armored phoenix stormed to the field with a damning 2,800 attack points for the first turn of the duel.
"Next, I'll set one card face-down onto the field. And next, I activate Blaze Fenix's special ability. For every card on the field, you suffer 300 points of damage. Since Blaze Fenix and my face-down both count, that's 600 points."
Hajime's phoenix screeched and launched flaming wing darts at Yami, scorching the area around his feet and bringing his life points to 3,400.
"That's all I'm doing on my turn," Hajime said.
"Not a bad opening move," Yami said with a smile.
"Well, uh…thanks," Hajime said rubbing the back of his head.
Yami smiled. "I'll have to strike back just as hard to keep up. It's my move! I draw!" Yami pulled the top card from his deck in between his index and middle finger and placed it in his hand. "And I think I'll take a page out of your book and also fuse a monster on my first turn. Come forth, Dark Paladin!"
Hajime gulped.
Mahiru snapped up a photo.
The Pharaoh's trusty Dark Paladin stormed the field, staring down Hajime's monster with 2,900 attack points.
"Awrite, Yugi's monster is stronger!" Joey exclaimed.
"Don't forget, his monster can't attack the turn it's summoned because it's a fusion monster," Mai pointed out.
"Ordinarily yes," Yami stated. "But not this time. I activate Quick Attack!"
"That's not good!" Ibuki exclaimed.
"Dark Paladin attack! Destroy Blaze Fenix, the Burning Bombardment Bird!"
Dark Paladin charged up a greenish blue blast with its bladed staff and launched it at Hajime.
"Activating trap card, Negate Attack!" Hajime exclaimed as a vortex appeared to swallow up Dark Paladin's attack.
"Sorry, but you're not taking down my opening move that easily," Hajime said.
"Clearly not," Yami said with a smile. He looked at his hand.
I don't have a card in my hand that can clear Hajime's field this turn. I'll just have to wait till next turn to destroy it.
"My turn is over," Yami said.
"My turn then," Hajime said and drew the top card of his deck. Nothing terribly useful, but now he had the Pharaoh's Dark Paladin right where he wanted it. Let's hope those cards in his hand are too valuable to throw away. "I activate Horn of the Unicorn to increasing the attacking potential of my Blaze Fenix!" Hajime exclaimed.
"Not so fast!" Yami proclaimed. "I activate Dark Paladin's special ability! By discarding 1 card in my hand, I can negate the activation of a magic card!"
As the card artwork for Horn of the Unicorn appeared, Dark Paladin fired a reddish neutralizing beam at the card and destroyed it.
"And since Horn of the Unicorn's effect was negated, it doesn't return to the top of your deck."
Hajime sent the card to his graveyard. It was disappointing, but he'd manage. Then again, if he expected things to be that easy against the one and only King of Games, he probably couldn't have defeated Marik yesterday. "Then, I'm shifting Blaze Fenix to defense mode," Hajime stated. "I'm also placing a new monster face-down!" The sideways hologram appeared as Blaze Fenix crouched and tucked in its head, guarding itself with its wings. "Additionally, I'm using Blaze Fenix's ability one more time. And since there are three cards on the field, that's 900 points of damage!"
From its folded over wings, Blaze Fenix launched a firebolt at Yami and scorched him in the chest, reducing his life points to 2,500.
"Ugh, not bad," Yami stated, grunting.
"Yugi, are you all right?"
Yami stood up and shook off his injury. "I'm perfectly fine, Téa."
I say that, but that face-down monster could be Hajime's Cyber Jar. I'll have to play this next turn very carefully, Yugi thought.
"It's my turn now," Yami stated. "I draw!" He pulled the top card of his deck to his hand. "Next, I activate Dark Hole, destroying every monster on the field!"
"Uh oh," Hajime blinked. He didn't have anything that could stop that.
"Keheheh, the Pharaoh must truly be at a disadvantage if he is willing to cast his trusted Paladin into the void like that."
"Well, Monster Reborn exists for a reason," Sonia stated.
"For Yugi, it must be worth the risk," Chiaki said, gulping.
As a powerful vortex sucked in every monster on the field, Yami still had one card in his hand. "And now, I summon Beta the Magnet Warrior in attack mode!"
"Oh no! And Hajime's wide open!" Ibuki exclaimed.
Beta appeared at 1,700 attack points strong.
"Time to tie this duel up. Beta! Attack! Electromagnetic Punch!" Yami exclaimed as his monster's electrified fist collided with Hajime's chest.
"Agh!" Hajime grunted as his life points fell to 2,300, giving Yami a 200 point advantage.
"All right! Way to go, pal!" Joey cheered.
"Keep it up Yugi!" Tristan shouted. "You got this, man!"
"My turn is over," Yami said. "Your move, Hajime!"
Hajime silently drew the top card of his deck. "I place one monster face-down on the field, in defense mode. My turn is over."
I have to remember that not a lot of Hajime's monsters are strong. So is he just trying to stave off my attack? Maybe this monster is his Cyber Jar. I don't know since my Dark Hole destroyed Hajime's monster while it was face-down. I'll just have to go at this turn with excess caution until Hajime's Cyber Jar is no longer a threat.
"My move!" Yami declared and drew the top card of his deck. It was Gamma the Magnet Warrior, but Yami wasn't going to play it right away. "I attack your face-down monster with Beta the Magnet Warrior!"
Beta attacked and waltzed straight into Giant Soldier of Stone. The monster's massive frame and bulky 2,000 defense points barricaded Hajime rather effectively.
That's not Cyber Jar! Yami exclaimed.
Hajime only had a self-satisfied smirk on his face. His ruse had been pretty effective.
Yami's life points trickled down to 2,200. Now Hajime had the advantage once more.
"I'll place Gamma the Magnet Warrior in defense mode!" Yami exclaimed as Gamma appeared with its sturdy 1800 defense mode. "My turn is done."
Yugi must be planning to summon Valkyrion. Where are you, Cyber Jar? Hajime wondered. That was literally his best option for getting out of this mess. He drew the top card of his deck. Nope. Not Cyber Jar.
"I'm setting a monster," Hajime said. "My turn's done."
"My move," Yugi thundered and drew the top card of his deck. "I summon Alpha the Magnet Warrior, in attack mode!"
Oh no, Hajime gulped.
"It's a good thing Giant Soldier of Stone is in play," Chiaki said.
"What makes you say that, Chiaki?" Mahiru asked her.
"Ordinarily, the smart thing to do would be to use the three monsters you have on the field to destroy your opponents monsters, then fuse Valkyrion after battle. However, because none of them can destroy Giant Soldier of Stone on their own…"
"Hey, yeah! Even if Yugi could destroy Hajime's other monster, it can't get over his giant!" Ibuki realized.
"Yugi has no choice but to attack blindly with Valkyrion and hope Hajime doesn't blindside him," Chiaki stated.
And that was precisely what the Pharaoh planned to do. "I fuse all of my monsters together to form Valkyrion, the Magna Warrior!" Yami exclaimed as the three magnet monsters combined to form one of Yami's most powerful monsters. Nothing except Hajime's dragon fusions were going to stand up to that thing.
"Valkyrion, attack! Magnet Saber Slash! Destroy Giant Soldier of Stone!"
Valkyrion flew forward like some kind of mini-mecha and used its powerful sword to completely obliterate Hajime's giant. It then flew back to the Pharaoh's side.
"Your move, Hajime. Make it count."
What do you think I'm trying to do? Hajime wondered. "I draw." He drew the top card of his deck. "One monster card face-down again," Hajime stated.
"Man, Hajime seems to be really struggling," Makoto said.
"Yeah, no kidding," Komaru said.
"I guess beating Marik was just a fluke. Perhaps against someone like Yugi, he's simply unprepared," Byakuya chuckled.
No, I know my computer's don't make mistakes. Hinata is the hardest opponent for someone like Yugi in terms of deck data. There's certainly a 28% margin of error, but Hinata should still be doing better than this, even if he loses.
"My move!" Yami shouted. He drew the top card of his deck and smiled. "Since it is the only card in my hand, I'm allowed to freely summon this monster: Swift Gaia, the Fierce Knight!"
Yami's trusted cavalier appeared at 2,300 attack points stronger, marginally stronger than any monster Hajime could've placed in defense mode without sacrificing monsters. The horse whinnied and Gaia himself grunted.
"Now, my monsters, attack!" Yami declared, extending his palm outward, arm straight.
Gaia and Valkyrion charged forward, destroying Hajime's Giga Tech Wolf and Mystic Horseman respectively.
"You're out of monsters, Hajime and you only have 2,300 life points," Yami stated. "One more attack like that and this duel is over."
"I can see that," Hajime growled.
"My turn is over," Yami told him.
Hmm, maybe I was wrong about Hinata, Kaiba thought. Maybe he just got lucky.
"I draw!" Hajime exclaimed. He drew the top card of his deck with full confidence, hoping to go down with a bang rather than whimper. His eyes flashed when he saw the card in his hand. Bingo! "One monster," he stated. "Face-down! That's all."
"Is that Cyber Jar?" Yami stated.
"Who knows?" Hajime asked smugly. "Maybe I'm just defiant to the end. I've kind of erased Surrender from my vocabulary ever since we escaped from virtual reality."
Chiaki could only giggle at this.
"Oh my gosh! Your laugh is so cute!" Ibuki cooed.
"What's with the chortling, Chiaki?" Sonia asked.
"Nothing. I just…" she paused and then beamed, "I'm just so proud of Hajime. When this tournament started, he was struggling to stand up to an old rival of mine, but now…he's not backing down an inch from the King of Games with the toughest look on his face."
"I'd say then that that's fine masterwork of our Ultimate Gamer," Nagito smiled.
"It has nothing to do with me. Hajime was already an exceptional duelist. The only thing he was lacking was confidence in himself," Chiaki stated. "Confidence that he now has."
"My turn's over," Hajime stated.
"Then it's my turn now," Yugi stated. "I draw."
If Hajime's face-down monster is Cyber Jar this duel is going to go on for who knows how long? Yugi looked at the card in his hand: Polymerization. And there's nothing I can do to stop it. Even if I chose not to attack, Hajime could activate its effects on his turn and then he'd be free to attack my monsters. I've got to maintain my edge and believe in the Heart of the Cards. "Valkyrion! Attack!" Yami declared.
Kaiba gazed stoically at the battlefield. This is Hinata's last chance to prove himself.
And, sure enough, Yami and Yugi's greatest fears and Kaiba's hopes were realized. Valkyrion attacked Cyber Jar. Hajime could only smirk. It was time for his counterattack.
As all monsters on the field were destroyed, Hajime and Yugi drew five cards each from their deck.
"I summon to the field Gazelle the King of Mythical Beasts and I place Mystical Elf and Big Shield Gardna in defense mode!" Yami shouted.
"I'm setting all three of my monsters face-down!" Hajime declared, activating the holograms.
Uh oh. I don't know a whole lot about Hajime's deck aside from what I've seen already. With so many monsters on the field, he could make a fusion next turn.
"Gazelle! Attack!" Yami declared. The bulky monster growled as it charged forward and raked its claws at one of Hajime's defense mode monsters. He destroyed one of the monsters: Ancient Brain.
I'd better arm my field so that in case Hajime makes a fusion, I'm properly defended.
"I activate Polymerization, fusing together my Gazelle with the Berfomet in my hand to make Chimera the Flying Mythical Beast!" Yami's two headed beast growled as it stormed the field 2,100 attack points strong. "And next, I'll sacrifice Mystical Elf in order to summon Dark Magician Girl!"
Dark Magician Girl cooed and gave a wink as it floated on the field.
"My turn is over."
"Then it's my turn," Hajime stated. He drew the top card of his deck. "I reveal my face-down monsters The Dark Hex-Sealed Fusion and Tainted Wisdom!"
"What do you plan to do with those monsters in attack mode?"
"Of all the fusion substitute monsters, the Hex Sealed Fusion series is special. With them, you can form a fusion monster using it and the proper materials if that monster happens to be the same attribute as the Hex Sealed fusion monster," Hajime then smirked, "without the need for Polymerization."
Yami growled, eyes widening in surprise.
"So now, I'll fuse together The Dark Hex-Sealed Fusion and Tainted Wisdom to form: Skull Knight!"
A monster wielding a magic sword and carrying a shield made from the face of a monster's skull floated on the battlefield. It had long red horns and its own bone white skull seemed to make up its head. It had 2,650 attack points.
"And here's an extra tidbit, because my monster was special summoned in the same vein that using Monster Reborn counts, it doesn't count as a fusion summon, meaning," Hajime pointed at Chimera. "I'm free to attack!"
"Oh no!" Yami exclaimed.
"Skull Knight, attack Yugi's Chimera now! Reaper Blast!"
Skull Knight launched a powerful orange energy ball off of the tip of its sword and completely vanquished Chimera, reducing Yugi's life points to 1,650.
"Since Chimera was destroyed, I get to return Berfomet to the field, in defense mode!" Yami exclaimed.
"I suppose I'll end my turn for now then," Hajime stated. He smiled. "I look forward to seeing your counterattack, Yugi."
"You're…looking forward to it?" Yami was confused by the sentiment.
"Well yeah, aren't you having fun?" Hajime asked.
Yami smiled. "You know. I suppose I am," he said as he reached for the top card of his deck. "Now, I draw!"
He looked at the card in his hand. He decided to hold off on using it for now.
"I'll set Dark Magician Girl to defense mode," Yami stated. "And end my turn."
Well now, this is a surprise. One little Cyber Jar and Hinata has Yugi running with his tail between his legs, Kaiba thought smugly only to glare. Either that or Yugi's planning something big and his using his monsters to buy him time to do it.
"My move," Hajime said, drawing the top card of his deck. "I summon to the field Blazing Inpachi!" Hajime's blazing cyborg creature thing stormed the field with 1,850 attack points.
Oh no! Yugi exclaimed inwardly. If I had kept Dark Magician Girl in attack mode, she would be strong enough to help me protect my life points! Dark Magician Girl was too useful a monster to lose now. Too late now though.
"I attack Dark Magician Girl with Blazing Inpachi!" Hajime declared, his fiery monster burning Dark Magician Girl with a punch and sending her right to the card graveyard.
"Man that was savage," Tristan said.
"Yeah, and the worst's yet to come for Yugi this turn," Mai pointed out.
"Skull Knight!" Hajime declared, "Attack! Destroy his Big Shield Gardna! Reaper Blast!"
The orange blast collided with the shield of Yugi's monster, wiping it from the field.
"Man, doesn't this feel like the opposite of a few turns ago," Hajime stated. "Now I'm the one with two monsters on the field and in control of this duel."
"Not for long!" Yami bellowed. "It's my turn now! And I draw!"
He looked at the cards in his hand. Oh yeah. This combo would help considerably.
"First, I'm setting one card face-down," Yami stated. "And next, I activate Brain Control to take control of your Skull Knight for one turn!"
Oh, that's not good, Hajime thought.
Skull Knight shifted positions to Yami's field. "Skull Knight! Attack!" Yami shouted. "Destroy Blazing Inpachi! Reaper Blast!"
Hajime's stolen Skull Knight attacked and its attack completely overwhelmed Blazing Inpachi, leaving Hajime with only 1,500 points, putting Yami in the lead.
"Now, I'll leave Berfomet in defense mode and end my turn," Yami stated.
"That means Skull Knight is back on my side," Hajime said as the monster floated back to his side of the field, eyes flashing at Yami, seemingly annoyed for what it made him do.
"Man talk about an intense duel," Mai said.
"I know what you mean," Téa said. "Yugi and Hajime are duking it out, neither one of them giving the other any mercy. And yet…"
"Yeah, Hajime's unlike any opponent Yug's ever faced before other than Makoto," Joey pointed out.
"Except unlike Makoto, Yugi's dueling with a completely clear mind," Tristan added.
"I hope Yugi wins," Serenity said.
"Me too," Joey said. "He needs the confidence in knowing he's good at somethin'," Joey stated.
"And what are we to do if he loses then? Bake him a sympathy cake?" Celeste asked wittily.
"I'm down for cake," Joey said.
"Of course you are," Celeste said, rolling her eyes.
"It's my move," Hajime said. "I draw." He looked at his hand. It was best to keep the field as it was for now. "I attack with Skull Knight to destroy Berfomet!" Hajime shouted.
"I figured you'd do that, so I activate this, reveal face-down card: Spellbinding Circle!" Yami roared.
The magical disc appeared and floated over to Skull Knight, trapping it and stopping its attack.
"My knight!" Hajime exclaimed as its attack points fell to 1,950.
"Hajime better hope Yugi doesn't draw Summoned Skull or another powerful 5 or 6 star monster," Chiaki said.
"Let's hope with him together," Nagito said. "Then maybe it won't happen."
"Pretty sure that's not how that works," Mahiru said.
"Ugh, I'll set a monster for now I guess," Hajime said as the hologram appeared. "Your move, Yugi."
"Very well," Yami stated and drew the top card of his deck.
Catapult Turtle? This isn't nearly enough to destroy Skull Knight. But…with its defense points and ability…just maybe…
"I sacrifice my Berfomet to play Catapult Turtle in defense mode!" Yami exclaimed as the massive, tanky, 2,000 defense point wall hit the table.
If I can hold Catapult turtle on the field for a while and get a bunch of monsters on the field as well, I can use Catapult Turtle's special ability to shoot past Hajime's life points and bypass Skull Knight entirely. I just hope my luck holds out long enough for that to happen.
Unfortunately, Hajime had a different plan in mind. He drew the top card of his deck and declared, "I activate this magic card: De-Fusion!"
"No! Not De-Fusion!" Yami exclaimed.
"Sorry to disappoint you," Hajime said. "And now I return The Dark Hex-Sealed Fusion and Tainted Wisdom back to the field!" Skull Knight split apart into its components, leaving the two weird, brain shaped monsters on the field. "And since Skull Knight is no longer on the field that means your Spellbinding Circle no longer affects it!" Hajime exclaimed.
Yami growled as his trap card vanished.
"And now, I activate The Dark Hex-Sealed Fusion's ability and combine them back into Skull Knight once again!"
Hajime's monster was back in action with no pesky trap card to dissuade its mighty 2,650 attack points.
"Go, Skull Knight! Attack and destroy Catapult Turtle! Reaper Blast!"
Hajime's attack completely obliterated Yugi's, leaving his field completely open.
"Yugi!" Téa shouted.
"Man, Hajime's ruthless," Tristan stated.
"Think we're going to have to crown a new King of Games?" Duke wondered.
"No way!" Joey exclaimed. "Yugi's got this!"
"He has no cards in his hand and nothing on the field. The only thing he's got is a Reaper Blast to the face," Celeste sassed.
"You said that about Blue-Eyes and he won the duel with Kaiba," Téa pointed out.
"Well then, I suppose it's all up to the Heart of the Cards then now," Celeste chuckled.
"I agree," Byakuya said, having been in earshot. "Only the luck of the draw can save Yugi now."
On the other side of the tower, Chiaki cheered, "You've got this, Hajime! Don't let up!"
"You are a shining example of a hero!" Sonia exclaimed. "Just like Sean Connery!"
"That…was not the best example," Mahiru stated.
"My turn is over," Hajime stated. "Your move."
If I don't draw the right card, this whole duel will be over! Yugi exclaimed. Heart of the Cards, I'm counting on you! I know there's nothing at stake…but by the strength of nothing more than my competitive spirit, I still want to win!
Yami pulled the top card from the deck and swung his arm out at his side. At first he was afraid to look at it, but when he did, he did his best not to show his contentment with what he had drawn. "I'm setting a card face-down," he said calmly. "My turn…is over."
"That's it? One crummy face-down?" Joey shouted.
"Running out of options, Yugi?" Kaiba taunted.
"I wouldn't say that," Yami smirked. "Let's recall that Hajime was in a similar position only so many turns ago. Who knows?" he asked, holding back a chuckle. "Maybe I'm just bluffing."
"Heh," Kaiba chuckled, smirking. "You're something else. Well, Hinata, it's your move."
"Yeah, I know," Hajime said. He took a deep breath and declared, "Here goes!" He drew the top card from his deck. I'm pretty sure I know what that card is, so I'd better play it safe.
"Skull Knight! Attack!" Hajime shouted.
"Heh," Yami smirked. "It looks like my luck hasn't run out just yet!" Yami roared. "I reveal my face-down card: Mirror Force!"
Crap! Hajime exclaimed inwardly.
Skull Knight's attack bounced off the trap card and reflected right in its face, destroying it, leaving Hajime's face-down monster untouched.
"I'll set another monster face-down," Hajime said. "And end my turn." Neither of my monsters are particularly powerful and Yugi likely has a lot of strong monsters he can summon. Not to mention, neither of us have used Monster Reborn so he could bring back a powerful monster at any moment.
And that was exactly what Yami did. "I draw!" Yami exclaimed, looking at Monster Reborn as he drew it. "I activate Monster Reborn!" his voice thundered. "Arise, Dark Paladin!" Yami's fused Dark Magician hit the table with a mighty 2,900 attack points. "And now, I shall attack one of your monsters and destroy it! Dark Paladin, attack!"
Dark Paladin destroyed Hajime's just played monster, sending his Ancient Elf to the card graveyard, its face looking as though it had swallowed raw lemon juice as it was sent to the graveyard. Dark Paladin then swung its scepter blade down at its side. Yami smiled. "I'm eager to see if you'll bounce back from this too, Hajime. Having a duel where the outcome is not pre-determined, nor has anything to win or lose other than glory, isn't an experience I think I'll have often. I'd like to draw this out for as long as possible."
"I know what you mean," Hajime said. "And don't worry, I won't let you down." He smiled. "I want to win too after all. Now then, I draw!" Hajime drew the top card of his deck. Good. Buster Blader. With this, I can even the playing field. "I activate Polymerization!" Hajime shouted.
Oh no! Is he going to play Blackland Void Dragon? Yugi worried.
"I fuse together the Buster Blader in my hand and my Beast King of the Swamps on my field to form my own Dark Paladin!"
It was like looking in a mirror as Hajime's monster appeared on the battlefield, mimicking Yugi's own. "And I'll activate a Quick Attack magic card in order to attack right away!" Hajime declared.
"You wouldn't!" Yami shouted.
"I would!" Hajime declared. "I'll place one monster card face-down on my field," Hajime stated as the sideways hologram appeared. "And now, I'll attack your Dark Paladin with mine!"
It was like watching someone attacking their reflection in the mirror. Both monsters raised their scepter blades and launched powerful magical blasts at each other, slamming each other in the chest and knocking each other out, leaving only Hajime's face-down monster on the field.
"That's all I'm going to do this turn," Hajime said.
Brutal. That was the only word for it. No matter how hard Yami fought back, Hajime seemed to fight just as hard to keep up. And, Yami felt, there was one key difference between this duel and the duel he had with Makoto. Even though Makoto had fought with everything he had and done his best to keep pace, at the end of the day, Makoto just wanted to have fun. Hajime, on the other hand, though fun was certainly a key factor, he oozed way more confidence. If this were a tribe of wolves, Hajime definitely came across as an alpha male.
It's like I'm trying to duel Kaiba and Makoto at the same time, Yugi thought. Hajime may very well be the toughest opponent I've ever faced. But I won't lose. Not as long as I believe in the heart of the cards. There are no other options now. I have to summon one of my Egyptian God Cards!
"It's my move!" Yami declared. "I draw!" He'd drawn Beaver Warrior. Nowhere near the best monster for attacking with. "I set a monster," he said, placing the card face-down.
My biggest disadvantage right now are cards in my hand. I haven't drawn anything like Pot of Greed or Card of Sanctity. I could really use more cards in my hand right about now. Both Hajime and I have empty hands. Top decking is all we can do right now.
That, of course, was about to change with Hajime's next card. Yugi might have an empty hand, but since it's my turn, it's worth the risk, Hajime thought. "I activate Card of Sanctity!" he declared, placing the magic card in the spell and trap zone. "Now we both get to draw until we're holding six cards."
"Sure that's wise?" Yami asked, smirking. "My hand is empty too."
"It's worth the risk," Hajime said. "This is going to stalemate and I need a big play. I just hope my luck is better than yours."
"We shall see," Yami replied as he and Hajime drew six cards each.
Hajime looked at his new hand. Oh yeah. This would do nicely. "I activate my field spell: Fusion Gate!" Hajime declared as a swirling portal appeared in the sky. "This field spell will allow either of us during our turns to summon fusion monsters to the field without the need for Polymerization. And I'll take advantage of that right now. I banish from my hand: Fairy Dragon, Winged Dragon Guardian of the Fortress #1, Curse of Dragon and Goddes with a Third eye to bring to the field Gaia the Dragon Champion and Kaiser Dragon!"
The famous Gaia knight, riding atop Curse of Dragon, swooped down onto the field from the Fusion Gate with a cry, accompanied by a lanky orangish yellow dragon. Gaia had 2,600 attack points. Kaiser Dragon had 2,300.
"Since I don't have a Quick Attack spell card to play," Hajime said. "That's all I can do this turn, I'm afraid."
"Hajime, I must commend your strategy," Yami said, sounding impressed, "Using monsters that substitute for the fusions of other monsters gives your deck variety and versatility most duelists aren't able to take advantage of."
"Oh…well…yeah. I…kind of learned that lesson the hard way," Hajime said, rubbing his head.
Yami could only smile back. "It's my move. I draw!" With a full hand of 7 cards, Yami had plenty of options to fight back with. But he needed a game plan and fast. Either one of Hajime's monsters could wipe his out. Fortunately, it seemed Yugi had just the trap card to stave off Hajime's attack long enough to see his end game strategy come to fruition. "I'm setting one monster card face-down," Yami said. "And then I'm setting one other card face-down as well." Both face-down holograms appeared. "It's your move, Hajime."
"All right. Then I draw!" Hajime exclaimed. He was ecstatic when he saw the card in his hand. Excellent! Exactly what I need right now! "I activate Future Fusion!"
"Uh oh," Joey said, taking the words out of Yami's mouth.
"Now, I send Versago the Destroyer, Koumori Dragon, and Blackland Fire Dragon to the graveyard. In two turns, my Blackland Void Dragon will appear on the battlefield."
Yami growled. Well, time was certainly of the essence now.
"I am confused. Why did Hajime not send five dragons to the graveyard in order to call forth his five headed beast?" Gundham wondered.
"Well, he already used Dark Paladin and, overall, Blackland Void Dragon is stronger," Chiaki pointed out. "Also, he may have used too many dragons in deck to summon it. Besides, I think it's better Hajime's relying on his own power rather than the power the Steering Committee gave him. At least for this duel."
Mahiru snapped up a photo.
"Now then, Yugi, I hope you weren't planning on stalling for time to summon a stronger monster, because I'm about to wipe both your monsters from the field! Gaia! Kaiser Dragon! Attack!"
"NOT SO FAST!" Yami shouted at the top of his lungs. "I activate a trap card: Regulation of Tribe!"
The trap card flipped face-up, revealing the artwork of a withered old man standing over a crowd of people with their heads bowed. "This trap card allows me to prevent all monsters of a single type from attacking. And the monster type I choose is: dragons! That means you can't attack this turn!"
Hajime gnashed his teeth. I was wondering what he had in play since Mirror Force and Spellbinding Circle were already used. I was expecting Magical Hats, but this is just so much worse.
"Keep it up, Yugi! You can do it!" Makoto cheered. After being silent for so long, he couldn't help but cheer for one of his personal heroes.
"Yeah, you said it, Makoto!" Joey agreed. "You can do it, Yugi!"
"Don't let him psych you out, Hajime!" Chiaki called to him. "Yugi has to sacrifice a monster every turn to keep Regulation of Tribe in play. Just be patient!"
Hajime looked at Chiaki and nodded at her and then looked forward at the battlefield before him. "My turn is over."
"Then it's my move," Yami said. "I draw!" A distant thunderclap resounded from through the air as he pulled his card to his hand. "And I will allow Regulation of tribe to be destroyed this turn."
Uh oh. That meant he no longer needed it. And as the trap card disintegrated, Hajime tensed up. I've got a bad feeling about this.
And he had every right to be paranoid. Red lightning seemed to spark within the storm clouds around Hajime's fusion gate. Normal lightning flashed around the ocean surrounding the island, and more thunderclaps could be heard all around the battlefield.
"First, I'll take advantage of your Fusion Gate and summon Black Skull Dragon using Joey's Red-Eyes and my Summoned Skull!" Yami bellowed.
"Boo-yah!" Joey pumped a fist. "Red-Eyes does it again."
The two monsters floated up into Hajime's Fusion Gate and out came a terrifying black dragon that slammed down onto the battlefield. It roared loud enough to warrant a half-step back from Hajime.
Yami now had the strongest monster on the field with 3,200 attack points to Black Skull Dragon's name.
"Okay, so you've got the bigger dragon," Hajime said, sweating, but trying to play it cool. "Unless you have a Quick Attack spell card, you're not attacking this turn."
"Hajime, don't jinx it!" Ibuki shouted. "Did you forget who your opponent is?"
Yami smirked. "Well fortunately for Hajime I don't have one in my hand," Yami said.
Hajime was about to sigh with relief, but Yami held up the card he'd drawn that turn with a trickster-like smirk on his face. "I have something far worse."
One by one, Yami began picking up his monsters from off his duel disk. Kaiba and Hajime noticed this and both tensed up.
He's going to summon a god card! Kaiba realized.
"I sacrifice my three monsters to summon OSIRIS, THE SKY DRAGON!"
BANG! BANG! BANG!
Red lightning flashed all around the island. A shaft of red light ascended into the heavens and then, descending from above the storm clouds, the head of Osiris appeared. With its mighty roar, it flew down as its large, massive body twisted around the tower and coiled around the entire battlefield, coming dangerously close to Kaiba.
"Hey, I wonder if it's real," Ibuki said and reached out and managed to grab hold of one of Osiris' spikes and even pulled herself onto the creature's back. "Wheeeeeeeee!" Ibuki cooed, sitting on the dragon as it regulated the positioning of its body.
"Huh?" Mahiru did a double take, not realizing Ibuki had done something so audacious. "Ibuki! Get down from there!"
However, Ibuki seemed to be ignoring Mahiru and was looking around.
"H-how is she doing that?" Tristan asked, sweating.
"Don't…just don't ask, Tristan," Joey said. Joey had rightfully given up on logic when it came to Ibuki.
"Ibuki!" Komaru exclaimed. "What're you doing? It's dangerous up there!"
"What are you saying?" Ibuki asked. "I'm only three feet off the ground." She happened to be resting on one of the lower rising portions of Osiris' body. She slapped the sturdy scales of Osiris' body. "And it's not like the big guy's going anywhere any time soon."
"Do you have any sense of shame, Mioda?" Kaiba asked her, baffled by her behavior.
"Nope!" Ibuki replied.
Kaiba sighed deeply. Technically speaking, Ibuki wasn't violating the rules of his tournament. While her safety was a concern to Kaiba, she was at least within dashing distance. He could nab her by her hair horns if he absolutely had to in order to keep her from falling.
Yami and Hajime decided it was best to just ignore Ibuki and move on. "I have three cards in my hand," Yami said. "That means Osiris has 3,000 attack points. That might be two hundred points weaker than my Black Skull Dragon, but unlike it, my Egyptian God Card can attack this very turn. Go, OSIRIS! ATTACK! Destroy Kaiser Dragon! Thunder Wave Force!"
Osiris opened its mouth and channeled a blast of electricity in its throat that it the unleashed in a continuous energy blast, completely vaporizing Kaiser Dragon and sparking residual electrical energy that Hajime held up and arm to shield himself from the blinding light.
"Your monster has been destroyed!" Yami declared. "And you lose life points!"
Hajime's life points fell to 800, less than twice Yugi's at 1,650.
"It's your move, Hajime. Make it count," Yami stated.
"I suppose I'll have to," Hajime stated. He drew the top card of his deck. "I'll place one monster face-down onto the field." The face-down hologram appeared.
"A wise decision. If you had played it face-up, Osiris would've obliterated it in an instant."
"I'll also switch Gaia the Dragon Champion to defense mode," Hajime said, turning the card sideways.
"Twould seem the might of Osiris is far too much for Hajime to deal with," Gundham said solemnly.
"Not true," Chiaki said. "Hajime just needs to survive this turn and then, Yugi's god card will be wiped out."
"Huh," Mahiru wasn't sure what Chiaki meant, but then she remembered, "Oh yeah! Future Fusion!"
"Right. So unless Yugi stops it, this could be the end."
Yami drew the top card of his deck. "I now have four cards in my hand, giving Osiris a total of 4,000 attack points. "And I'll use them to wipe Gaia the Dragon Champion from the field!"
Osiris opened its mouth and fired, completely obliterating Hajime's monster.
"My turn is over," Yami stated. "Your move, Hajime. Although, I'm pretty sure I know what's to come." Yami did not look happy.
"Looks like even you know that Osiris is about to leave the field. It was a good try though, but like I proved to Marik. Even the gods can be overcome. I draw." Hajime said. "And now, thanks to the effects of Future Fusion, my Blackland Void Dragon is summoned to the field!"
Hajime's great beast came out head first from his Future Fusion spell card and wrapped around Hajime's side of the field. It was nowhere near the massive size of Osiris, but it was most certainly more powerful, sporting 6,900 attack thanks to Yugi and Hajime's fusion monsters.
"Since a face-up monster was summoned to my side of the field, I'm sure you know what happens next," Hajime said.
"Yes. Osiris depletes your monster's strength by 2,000 attack points with its second mouth attack!"
Osiris' upper mouth opened and fired a blast of blue lightning at Hajime's dragon, weakening it to 4,900 attack points, but still giving it plenty of power, easily enough to overpower its opponent. "Ibuki, now would be a good time to get down," Hajime told her.
"Yeah, you don't gotta tell me twice," Ibuki said. "Joey! Catch me!" She exclaimed, leaping off Osiris and diving at him. He failed in catching her effectively and she completely bowled him over. Joey hit his head on the hard metal ground.
"Ow," Joey groaned.
Ibuki purred as she gave Joey a tight hug for breaking her fall and then hummed to herself as she traipsed around the battlefield back to her friends.
"That girl needs to be put on a leash," Joey complained, getting up and rubbing his sore neck.
"You know, most guys would be appreciative to have a cute girl dive into their arms," Duke said. "Just saying."
With Ibuki clear from the line of fire, Hajime fanned out his arm. I never thought I'd topple two different gods. "Blackland Void Dragon, attack! Destroy Osiris the Sky Dragon! Void Gale Blast!"
"Osiris might be destroyed, but I won't take damage! Go, Kuriboh!"
All of the puff balls began amassing in a never ending wall of fur as Blackland Void Dragon's attack completely vaporized Osiris.
Sonia stared at the Kuribohs strangely. "Something on your mind, Dark Queen?"
"That monster is called a Kuriboh?" she asked.
"Um, yeah," Chiaki said. "Why?"
"Hmm, how strange. Perhaps it is just my imagination. I will have to check something when next I am home."
"Check what?" Chiaki asked.
"Perhaps we could discuss this later. We are missing the epic showdown," Gundham stated. "No offense, Dark Queen."
"Oh, none taken. Truly."
With Osiris wiped from the field and Hajime's monster still on the battlefield, it looked like Hajime had just swung the entire duel in his favor.
"Because of Osiris' immunities, it can't be removed from the game by Blackland Void Dragon's effects, but that's a small victory if anything," Hajime said.
"It…will be enough."
If Osiris is in the graveyard, I can still draw Premature Burial and resurrect it once. If I can get just enough cards in my hand, I can wipe Hajime's Blackland Void Dragon out completely. And I know just the spell card to buy me some time. I just have to draw it.
Yami drew the top card of his deck. Sure enough, the Heart of the Cards came through and he'd drawn exactly what he needed. "I activate Swords of Revealing Light! Now you're unable to attack me for three turns!"
"You're only delaying the inevitable," Hajime said. "Even with my dragon weakened, even Obelisk can't save you now."
"We shall see," Yami said with a smirk, fortunate that Hajime had not discerned his strategy. "Now, I shall place one card face-down, and end my turn."
With my Ambush Shield trap card on the field, once I draw Premature Burial, I can power up Osiris in order to make it even stronger in case Hajime does something to diminish my hand size. I just hope I don't have to use it sooner.
"Then it's my turn now," Hajime said. "And I'll summon to the field my Divine Dragon Ragnarok, in defense mode! And then, I'll end my turn."
"My move!" Yami proclaimed. "I draw!" He drew the top card of his deck. "And I shall activate Change of Heart, taking control of your Divine Dragon Ragnarok."
"Huh? What's Yug gonna do wit data? Why didn't he take control of Hajime's dragon?" Joey scratched his head.
"Haven't you learned by now when he's up to something tricky?" Celeste asked rhetorically.
"Next, I'll sacrifice your monster to set one of mine face-down onto the field."
That's strange. If he wanted to sacrifice a monster, why didn't he choose my Blackland. Is he trying to set me up? Does he need my Blackland Void Dragon in play as part of his plan?
"What's the matter, Hajime? Did I confuse you?" Yugi asked.
"Repeating a clever line from your duel with Kaiba I see," Hajime chuckled.
"Hmph," Kaiba didn't find Yugi amusing then and he didn't think it was amusing now, either.
"It's your move, Hajime," Yugi said.
"Very well," Hajime said. "I draw." He put the top card of his deck into his hand.
With Beast of Gilfer face-down and my Ambush Shield on the field, everything is in play for when Osiris makes his return. Sorry, Hajime, but even with nothing on the line, I don't plan on losing this duel!
"I'll put into play one monster face-down onto the field," Hajime said. "And end my turn."
"Fine by me," Yami said. "I draw." He looked at the new card. Excellent. He'd draw Card of Sanctity. But if he used it incorrectly, Hajime was sure to win. "My turn is over."
"Passing, huh? All right. My turn then. Draw!" Hajime swiftly picked up the top card of his deck and placed it in his hand. "I'll set another monster face-down onto the field and end my turn." With Robotic Knight and Battle Ox in play, I have everything I need to win this duel once and for all. Sorry Yugi, but this will be my victory!
"Very well," Yami said. "Then I shall draw!" I can't let Hajime summon another fusion monster. Good thing this magic card will help. "I activate De-Spell!" Yami exclaimed. "And I'll use it to deactivate your Fusion Gate!"
A piercing beam of light shot into the sky and cleared the swirling vortex in the sky, but the storm clouds remained. This battle of wits and skill was far from losing its tension, even the heavens themselves could tell that.
"Is that all you're going to do?" Hajime asked.
"Unfortunately, it is," Yami said solemnly.
Without Premature Burial, I can't use my Ambush Shield to give Osiris the boost he needs to overcome Hajime's Blackland Void Dragon. Fortunately, without Hajime knowing my strategy, he's sure to try and test the waters and that should hopefully by me the turn I need to turn this duel around. Even if he destroys my Beast of Gilfer, the attack points lowered by its effects to Hajime's dragon are sure to turn the tide of battle!
However, Yugi was so caught up in his own strategy, he had no idea that Hajime wasn't just amassing monsters to the field, he was planning a strategy of his own, a strategy Yugi had almost completely forgotten was entirely plausible for Hajime to pull off.
"Guess it's time," Hajime said. "I draw." As he drew the top card of his deck, lightning flashed behind him in the ocean. It was a big, powerful bolt that cast a shadow on Hajime. "Yugi, this is it! The pieces are all in play! You're done!"
Hajime held up a card in his hand. "I activate Black Pendant, increasing my Blackland Void Dragon's attack power by 500 points. This gives it a total of 5,400 attack points."
The gem embedded pendant adorned itself fashionably to Blackland Void Dragon's head since it was too small to fit around its neck.
"Next, I reveal my face-down monsters, Battle Ox and Robotic Knight!"
Yugi began to panic. If Hajime's turn played out in the worst case scenario, this duel was over right here and now.
Fortunately, because of Yugi's monster and his face-down card, Hajime decided to break out the big guns. He couldn't risk another Mirror Force or Spellbinding Circle or something like it. Fortunately, he had the perfect monster for the job. "Now, I sacrifice all of my monsters to summon a beast so powerful that it's nigh unbeatable!"
"NO! You can't mean—"
"I do," Hajime said as his hair turned blond and his eyes flashed red. "Behold, I summon the Winged Dragon of Ra!"
In the sky, a gigantic golden orb formed in the air.
"Ra's sphere form," Sonia stated.
"Don't worry," Hajime said. "I've got the energy and the memory to summon it. I'm not going to let something like unable to read text make me unable to…" However, as Hajime glanced down at the card to consult his memory to recall Sonia's chant, somehow the words on the card looked plain as day to his eyes. What the…? That's…how can…I never studied this language! Is this… Hajime looked at his hand and the glow around it. Huh? In his last duel he'd been unaware of his awakened mode. Now, he was starting to realize its existence. I see, when I was being made into Izuru, something in my mind must've been left behind to give me the ability to read this. Maybe it's part of Sonia's talent or maybe the Ultimate Public Speaker or something. Either way…I can read it…so easily. It's as if…Ra's power…flows through me.
Hajime consulted his enhanced skills and began to chant, raising an arm to the sky, "Almighty protector of the sun and sky, I beg of thee, please heed my cry! Transform thyself from orb of light to bring me victory in this fight! I beseech thee!" Hajime chanted as energy flowed through him up to his arm, "Grace this humble game! And stand with me as I call out your name!"
Ra's orb began to crack open, heeding Hajime's words.
"I summon thee: Winged Dragon of Ra!"
A mighty roar shook the entire tower as Ra descended from the sky to the battlefield behind Hajime. The gust from its magnificent golden wings blew back Hajime's own supporters. A yelp from Ibuki and Sonia alerted him to it. "Are you guys all right?" he asked, turning back.
"Just a little wind," Mahiru said and snapped up a picture of Ra.
"Keheheh," Gundham chuckled. "I never would've dreamed that the great dragon of the sky that once sundered our souls to eternal damnation would now stand in front like the great guardian of the heavens it was always treasured as."
"You rule, Hajime!" Ibuki shouted.
"You can do it!" Chiaki shouted.
"Show Yugi the strength of your hope," Nagito said to him.
Yami stared down the maw of Ra. Thanks to Hajime's spell card, Ra now had 8,700 attack points.
"Because Black Pendant went to the graveyard as a result of my summoning Ra, you take 500 points of damage from its effects."
Yami growled as his life points fell to 1,150.
"And now, Winged Dragon of Ra, attack!" Hajime shouted. "Almighty Blaze Cannon!"
Ra heard Hajime's call and obeyed, striking down Yami's face-down Beast of Gilfer with extreme prejudice. Since Ra was almighty, Yami's monster was unable to activate its effects.
"It's your move, Yugi," Hajime said. "Let's see if you can overcome the might of the Winged Dragon of Ra as I did last night!"
Ra roared and its cry shook the heavens.
Yami stared as though he were staring at an abyss. My entire strategy gone up in smoke. Even if I were to summon Osiris now, I don't have my Beast of Gilfer. I never thought Hajime would have the gall or the chance to summon Ra. What do I do now? How do I win?
"Yugi!" Joey shouted. "Don't give up! If Hajime can overpower Ra, so can you! You're the King of Games! Now take 'em down!"
"You can do it, Yugi!" Mai cheered to him. "We all have faith in you!"
"That's right! We're all behind you!" Téa told him. "Until your life points hit 0, this duel's not over!"
Téa, Mai, and Joey are absolutely right. If I don't have a card in my hand to win the duel. I'll just have to draw it!
Yugi, Yami told him. Let's do this together.
Right pal, Yugi replied.
"I draw!" Yami declared. Finally, he'd drawn Premature Burial. "I activate the spell card Premature Burial!" Yami shouted. "By giving up 800 life points, I can summon any monster in my graveyard." Yami's life points trickled down to 350. "And I choose OSIRIS! The SKY DRAGON!"
From beyond the grave, Osiris reappeared once more in all its elongated, red glory.
"Please don't take another joy ride on it," Mahiru said to Ibuki.
"Nah, once was enough," Ibuki laughed.
"Your hand only has two cards in it," Hajime pointed out. "What's the point of bringing Osiris back for one turn?" he asked.
"The point is this," Yami replied. "I activate Card of Sanctity. Now we both must draw until we're holding six cards!"
"Okay."
Hajime and Yami each drew until they were holding six cards each. And lo and behold was another spell card in Yami's hand to help him out.
"First, now that I have six cards in my hand, Osiris' attack points are now 6,000. And next, I activate Pot of Greed! Now I draw two more cards!" Yami now had 7 cards in his hand, giving Osiris a total of 7,000 attack points.
"Impressive," Hajime said. "But Ra's attack points are still higher."
Ra screeched at Osiris. Osiris snarled back.
"Perhaps, but I still have plenty of draw power left! I activate a card known as Pot of Desires! By removing the top ten cards of my deck from the game, I can draw two more cards for a total of EIGHT!"
Osiris now had 8,000 attack points.
"And there's more. I'll also use a card you used in your last duel, Hajime: Pot of Avarice!" Yami exclaimed. "By shuffling Dark Magician, Dark Magician Girl, Buster Blader, Beta the Magnet Warrior and Berfomet into my deck, I can draw yet another two cards!"
Yami now had 9 cards in his hand, giving Osiris 9,000 attack points.
"Okay. Even if you wiped Ra out, which I could stop you from doing by giving up life points, Osiris will disappear this turn," Hajime pointed out. "And all I have to do is play a monster on my side of the field to wipe out your remaining life points."
"True, but this duel is over this turn. I summon Giant Soldier of Stone!"
"What?" Hajime asked softly, having no idea where this was going. Yami was now down to 8 cards and Osiris had 8,000 attack points.
"And now, reveal final trap card: Ambush Shield!"
"Ambush Shield?" Hajime had never heard of the card.
"By sacrificing one monster on the field, I can give its defense points to my monster's attack points. And since Giant Soldier of Stone has 2,000 defense points, that gives Osiris a grand total of 10,000 attack points.
Shocked faces came from all sides of the arena. Every last spectator was utterly surprised. This was it the final blow.
"Thank you for a great duel, Hajime, but I'm afraid this is over! OSIRIS! ATTACK! WIPE OUT THE WINGED DRAGON OF RA AND THE REST OF HAJIME'S LIFE POINTS!"
Osiris roared as loud as it could to unleash its power for one last attack. As the blast sailed towards Ra, Hajime could only smile and power down from his blond, red-eyed state. Yugi…Kaiba…Chiaki…thank you all… Hajime smiled as he spoke the final words aloud. "For a great tournament."
BAM!
Osiris' attack slammed into Ra, vaporizing it as Ra let out a dying screech and the residual damage knocked Hajime back. With his heart racing all duel and the stress from the night before, Hajime decided to just obey his body and crumpled to his knees, laying back flat on the hard metal as his life points fell all the way down to 0. He lay on the ground, panting.
Yami was hunched over, panting as well and he dropped to one knee.
"As head of the Battle City Tournament," Kaiba stated. "I declare this duel and this tournament finally over. The winner is Yugi Mutoh!" Part of that sentence burned Kaiba's throat to say, but he was man enough to admit to Yugi's victory.
The arena lowered as Yugi's friends all ran up to him, Joey and Téa patting him on the back, telling him he was amazing. However, though Yami was smiling and taking in their praise, he seemed to brush them off and approached Hajime. He reached down to him, hand open. "Need a hand?"
"Yeah," Hajime said and reached up his arm to help the duelist to his feet. The two stood with their hands clenched tightly. "You have nothing to feel ashamed of in your defeat," Yami said. "That was a fantastic duel."
"Hajime!" Chiaki exclaimed as she and the others ran up to him.
"That was amazing!" Nagito exclaimed. "You and Yugi's hopes were just incredible! As expected of Ultimate Duelists."
"You were really cool up there," Chiaki said. "Are you feeling all right?" She wanted to make sure Hajime wasn't upset with losing.
"Yeah," Hajime nodded. "I gave it my all." He smiled. "I had fun."
Chiaki smiled and a cute little squeak escaped her throat as her eyes shimmered with joy. She was happy to see Hajime in high spirits in spite of losing. She knew that he would definitely be all right.
Suddenly there was a blinding flash and Yami and Hajime had to rub their eyes.
Mahiru laughed. "Got you both."
"Hey! I know! Let's all take a picture together!" Ibuki exclaimed.
"That's a great idea," Chiaki said. "Hey, Kaiba, can you have Roland take the photo?"
"What? Am I not good enough?" Kaiba asked.
"I want you to be in the photo," Chiaki said.
"Yeah, come on, Seto," Mokuba said, jumping out and grabbing Kaiba by the hand.
"What? Hey!" Kaiba was not amused by this at all.
Mahiru gave Roland her camera and explained how it worked. Then, everyone, including Byakuya, Makoto and Komaru all gathered together and stood around. Yami and Hajime stood in the center of the photo with Joey and Chiaki on the side of them that the other didn't occupy. Everyone gave their best smiles, except for Byakuya and Kaiba who just looked surly, but that was expected of them.
Roland took three photos and then handed the camera back to Mahiru. Everyone huddled around the photo to see it.
Mahiru smiled. "I'll be sure this photo gets to everyone," she said, pivoting to face everyone else. "This is the kind of moment that gets remembered forever."
"All right, dweebs, everyone back on the blimp. I have an island to destroy," Kaiba said.
"Destory," Chiaki said, concerned.
"This island once belonged to my step father and I've rigged it to explode once the tournament was over. I don't plan on ever coming back here or using this island ever again."
"Instead of destroying it, I'd gladly buy it from you," Togami said.
"Sorry, but no," Kaiba said. "I'm burying the name Gozaboro Kaiba into the ocean for good and this is the last thing he owned. Then, I can move on to bigger and better things for the Kaiba Corporation."
"Very well, your fiscal loss, but I understand your motives," Byakuya said.
"Last one back to the blimp is a rotten egg!" Ibuki exclaimed, running for the elevator.
"Ibuki! Get back here and don't trip!" Joey exclaimed, running after her.
One by one the group headed for the elevator, Chiaki and Hajime being one of the last ones to do so. Without even realizing it, the two were holding hands as they entered the elevator. Hajime may not have won, but he felt as if he had gained something more than that: friends, unshakable bonds, these would be the things driving him forward into the future.
And sure, they all made it back to the blimp. And sure, Kaiba had to be a show off by using a Blue-Eyes White Dragon jet to get home because his ego never ceased to be the size of the freaking planet! But in the end, Hajime was happy. Happy that what was going to be his last tournament ever, was the end of an era for him instead, and the door to a new beginning.
Speaking of those new beginnings…
After having a healthy meal, Hajime eventually found Chiaki staring out the window at the ocean in her room. "Hey," he said.
"Hey," Chiaki said, turning around and smiling at him.
"Sounds like we're not gonna make it back until dark," Hajime told her.
"So I heard," Chiaki said.
"Do you want to…do anything until then?" Hajime asked.
"Well…there is one thing I can think of," Chiaki said and walked towards Hajime.
"What's that?" Hajime asked, only to find Chiaki gently hugging him.
"I'm really sleepy," Chiaki said. "This whole thing with Marik. I haven't been able to get enough sleep. I'm also not used to staying up all day either. Usually I take lots of small naps." Chiaki pulled away and yawned. "I've…really been pushing myself."
"You know, I could use a nap too," Hajime said to Chiaki. "Let me lock the door."
"Thanks. Oh and get the lights."
"Right," Hajime said.
He turned off the lights and locked the automatic door to Do Not Disturb mode. Then he took his shoes off and carried them over to Chiaki's bed. She was already laying down waiting for him. He got into the same bed next to her, his face red, heart beating rapidly.
"You don't have to lay so far away you know," Chiaki said and squirmed closer to Hajime and rested her head in his chest. "Like this."
"Ch-Chiaki," Hajime was red in the face.
She smiled. "I thought so."
"Huh?" Hajime gaped.
"You're really," she yawned, "warm."
"Chiaki," Hajime called her name.
"Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz…"
The gamer girl was already fast asleep.
Hajime sighed. "You really are the best thing that's ever happened to me," he said, taking Chiaki in his arms. He cradled her as her cute, sleeping face snuggled into him. Thank you…for believing in me.
(A/N: Awwwwwwwww. I know at least one of you is squeeing your head off right now. I will not name names, she knows who she is. And for those of you disappointed that there was no Marik in this chapter, don't worry, we've got an entire chapter dedicated to wrapping up this entire arc, starting with everyone parting ways at Domino Pier. And no, I haven't forgotten about Kaiba wanting to seal the god cards either, that's also next chapter.
Also, I made an error. This was not the last duel to this arc. That honor goes to Yugi Vs Joey, the "Battle for Red-Eyes." That will be chapter 60. 61 will be the final chapter of this arc and…ugh, I am not looking forward to it. You'll understand when we reach it. Anyway, what a duel, am I right? Well, until next time, as always, from all of me, to all of you, let your hearts stay human and your wrath draconic. Ja ne!)