(A/N: God I hope this duel lives up to the hype. If not…well another hyped duel in this tournament ought to and I'll make up for it then)
After a few more seconds of waiting, it was determined that Chiaki would be going first.
Izuru began squirming in Mahiru's lap "All right then, I draw!" she declared. She scanned her hand and instantly knew her best move. "I'll start by summoning Mahunder in attack position!"
The red clad mother of the Hunder monsters took to the field with her electrified fists, 1,400 attack points and 700 defense points.
"And now, I'll activate her special ability, allowing me to summon Lightning Rod Lord in attack position!" A strange combination of skeletal entities appeared on Chiaki's field with purple lightning sparking from it in all directions from the eye sockets. It had 1,800 attack points and 100 defense points.
"Lightning Rod Lord prevents the use of spell cards during your pre-battle main phase. And now, by placing two cards face-down onto the field," Chiaki said, placing the cards in the slot and causing the holograms to appear. "That will be the end of my turn. Your move."
Byakuya nodded. "Well played," He said. "Strong monsters, a prevention of some of my better plays. Do not think this will hold me though. I draw." Byakuya then pulled the top card of his deck to his hand and looked at the cards in his hand. I need to do something about that Lightning Rod Lord quickly or I can't play Double Summon. Do I defend? Or do I try to outmuscle? …No, her trap cards are bound to go off, Byakuya thought. I'll have to do this, he said as he held up a card, The Togami way.
"I summon to the field The Trojan Horse!" Byakuya declared as a large, living, wooden horse snorted. It had 1,600 attack points and 1,200 defense points. "As it would be foolish for me to attack under the circumstances, I'll pass my Battle Phase and move to my post-battle main phase. And now, I will activate the spell card Double Summon!" Byakuya revealed the magic card to Chiaki. "Now I can make an additional summon this turn. And, by offering Trojan Horse with its special ability, I can summon an Earth monster by treating Trojan Horse as two separate monsters! So now, I summon Granmarg! The Mega Monarch!"
A giant, orange and gold behemoth of a monster with large, white bull horns emerged onto the field. It had 2,800 attack points and 1,000 defense points.
"And when Granmarg is summoned to the field, I can instantly destroy any two face-down cards. So now, I will destroy the ones you thought would protect you! Granmarg! Monarch Quake!"
Granmarg slammed its fists down as the tremors trailed past Chiaki's monster field and destroyed her two-face downs.
"Since I had to pass my Battle Phase to summon Granmarg, your monsters are safe. Be grateful I do not shatter your field further," Byakuya said, condescendingly. "However, since I tributed an earth monster to summon Granmarg, I get to draw an additional card." Byakuya then pulled the top card of his deck to his hand.
"Man, even as far as ego goes, Byakuya sometimes comes across as worse than Kaiba."
Byakuya turned his head and shot Tristan a look.
"I'm not taking it back."
Byakuya sighed inwardly. "I shall set one card of my own face-down onto the field and end my turn," Byakuya said, the face-down hologram appearing before him. "Show me what you can do."
Chiaki drew the top card of her deck to her hand. "Gladly." Fortunately, even before she drew the top card of her deck to her hand, she already knew her move. "I tribute summon both Mahunder and Lightning Rod Lord in order to bring out Sanga of the Thunder!"
Chiaki raised the card above her head before slapping it onto the reader, causing the strange spiritual being toe emerge onto her field. With its disjointed arms and thunder balls arranged around the back of its head, the mighty monster sat on Chiaki's field with 2,600 attack points and 2,200 defense points.
"Next, I'll set a card face-down onto the field," Chiaki stated. "Your move, Byakuya."
"Naturally," Byakuya said and drew the top card of his deck to his hand. Hmm, Sanga of Thunder will cost me a lot of life points just to attack it. Fortunately, I have the means to stop it should it choose to attack, Byakuya thought, thankful for his face-down Mirror Force. Now then, how shall I supplement my field? Byakuya looked at the four cards he had in his hand. Yes, this will do for now. "I set one monster card face-down onto the field," Byakuya stated. The sideways hologram emerged next to Granmarg. Oldest trick in the book? Perhaps. I doubt she'll attack. She's too clever for that. But next turn, I'll devastate her life points without even needing to attack. We'll see how long she lasts after that. "I will also choose…not to attack," Byakuya said. "Sanga of Thunder is a dangerous monster. It would be wise of me to avoid it."
"My turn," Chiaki said and nodded. "I draw!" She looked at the two cards she still had in her hand. Byakuya's trap card worries me and the fact that he played a monster in defense mode. He must be planning something, but what? Chiaki tried to use her knowledge of Byakuya's Monarch deck to help her, but she'd only seen him duel once. She then took a deep breath. No, I can't be focused on what can and can't be. I just have to go with optimal strategies and assume the worst counter strategies. She looked at the two cards in her hand. I need to prepare for whatever happens on Byakuya's turn. "I activate the ability of Thunder Dragon in my hand!" Chiaki exclaimed. "This will let me discard Thunder Dragon and search my deck for two more Thunder Dragons and put them in my hand!" She looked now at her hand. Two copies of Thunder Dragon and one Polymerization.
I could summon any fusion monster from my deck right now, however… Chiaki gauged the situation carefully. However…if Byakuya's face-down card is Bottomless Trap Hole, I'll be playing right into his hands. Either way, it's best if I don't reveal my hand too soon. Chiaki gazed down at her own trap card. After all, I need to make it look like I'm out of options. "I'll end my turn."
"Man, talk about a slow burn," Kazuichi said.
"Yeah, no one's attacked and it's already Byakuya's third turn. Something has to give," Fuyuhiko commented, arms folded.
In Mahiru's lap, baby Izuru began squirming, reaching for Chiaki's general direction.
"That's riiiiight, that's your mama," Mahiru said, playing with his arms. "Aren't you a smart little boy?"
Izuru babbled…and then spit up. Thankfully none of it got on Mahiru's skirt.
Mahiru sighed. "Jeez! I'll be right back guys."
"Don't worry, Mahiru. I'll let you know if you miss anything exciting!" Hiyoko exclaimed.
Mahiru smiled. "Thanks, Hiyoko."
Back down on the battlefield, Byakuya began to take his turn. It didn't matter what card he drew. His turn had already been decided when he set his monster face-down. "I shall now reveal my face-down monster! Flame Ruler!"
Byakuya revealed his monster, a monster with 1,500 attack points and 1,600 defense points. It was a dark-skinned human with wild bright blue hair.
"I only revealed my monster so you would understand when I sacrifice it and only it to summon Thestalos the Mega Monarch!"
A tall, towering being with pale red armor and a blue and red cape took to the field. It was shorter and thinner than Granmarg but it was no less potent with the same stat line: 2,800 attack points and 1,000 defense points.
"When Thestalos is tributed summoned to the field, I can look at your entire hand, then I will discard one card from it and you will take damage based on its level. So now, show me your hand, Chiaki Nanami!"
Toko grinned. "Th-that's just l-like Byakuya. I-I knew he'd inflict damage first."
"Jeez, you've been so quiet, Toko, I forgot you were even here," Homura said, finishing off a hot dog. "Also, I thought you had a crush on Yugi."
"I-I can find something to admire in regal beauty! Thank you very much!" Toko shouted accusatorily. "B-Byakuya has qualities th-that Y-Yugi j-just d-doesn't have."
"I mean, personally, I just think you have a fetish for guys in leather pants," Homura said and sipped her soda.
Toko seized with irritation like a porcupine readying its spines.
"Yeah, if you like 'em stuffy with attitude," Leon dismissively.
"Oh? What? You think you're so much better Mr. I want to be a musician but lack the aptitude!" Toko exclaimed.
"Hey! Low blow, Fukawa!" Leon exclaimed.
"Pay attention to the duel, you two!" Taka shouted over the noise. "I wish to see how Chiaki reacts to Byakuya's strategy!"
Both Leon and Toko looked guilty and shut up. "He started it," Toko grumbled.
While this was going on, upon the arena, Chiaki revealed her hand to Byakuya as the two approached each other, meeting in the center. Byakuya was floored by her hand.
What? Why didn't she…she could've easily… Byakuya suddenly grew nervous. Normally, he'd just write this off as a boneheaded play, but this was Chiaki Nanami, the Ultimate Gamer. What kind of insanity is she playing at?
"Well, is something wrong?" Chiaki asked, looking concerned.
Byakuya quickly composed himself. "No, nothing is wrong. Quickly discard one of your Thunder Dragons. I don't care which one."
"Okay," Chiaki said. The two about face and resumed their initial positions.
"Hmmm," Yami uttered, staring at Chiaki.
"What's wrong, pal?" Yugi asked.
"Nothing's wrong," Yami communicated telepathically to Yugi. "I'm just trying to figure out Chiaki's strategy."
"Yeah, she did just forfeit the ability to perform a fusion summon," Yugi thought. "I wonder why."
Once Chiaki had discarded her Thunder Dragon, Byakuya took action. "Since you discarded a monster card, Thestalos will now inflict damage to you equal to 200 points times your monster's level. And, since I summoned it using a Fire attribute monster, 1,000 points of damage is added to the flames you will be scorched with! That comes to a total of 2,000 damage. Thestalos! Do my bidding! Burn her life points!"
Charging up an absurd amount of fire energy, Thestalos sent a stream of fire across the battlefield towards Chiaki where upon the fire tunneled into one spot at her feet. Chiaki braced for impact, crossing her arms over her body as a pillar of fire erupted around her. She grunted, weathering through the attack.
"CHIAKI!" Several of her fellow classmates called out in alarm.
However, though Chiaki swayed to and fro, she did not fall over. Hunched over slightly, she wiped some holographic soot off her cheek and gave Byakuya a pretty uncharacteristically tough smirk. "Not bad." Her life points fell to 2,000. She stood up straight. She then fanned out her hand to Byakuya. "But I've fought my way past Shadow Games, childbirth, speed runs and Penguins. A little holographic fire is nothing new."
"Miho feels like that list is in the wrong order," Miho said, smiling nervously.
"Act confident won't save you now," Byakuya said with an accusatory index finger. "This duel is all but wrapped up. I might lose one monster to Sanga, but you have no hope of victory. 2,600 life points is a small price to pay if it means utterly annihilating you. Granmarg! Attack!"
That's what I was hoping you would do, Chiaki thought. "Reveal face-down card!"
Chiaki was now using the exact same trap card Rebecca had used on Celeste: Wall of Disruption.
"What?!" Byakuya exclaimed.
"If I had summoned a Thunder Dragon fusion monster, you wouldn't have so brazenly revealed your strategy," Chiaki said. "This was my means of gaining my own advantage. Since you control two monsters, both will lose 1,600 attack points."
Both Thestalos and Granmarg both lost attack points until they had only 1,200 remaining. Granmarg, unable to stop, continued to attack.
"Sanga! Fight back! Destroy Granmarg!" Chiaki shouted. "Thunder Blast!"
A powerful barrage of lightning ejected from the circle of orbs floating around the back of the monster's head, or what passed for one. The electrical current slammed into the approaching Granmarg and destroyed it!
Byakuya sneered. His life points dropped to 2,600. "I underestimated you. Its your move. I have nothing left I can do this turn."
"Very well, I draw," Chiaki said and drew the top card of her deck to her hand. She smiled when she saw Pahunder. Hajime… She gazed at Byakuya's weakened monster and his face-down card. But not yet… "I attack with Sanga of the Thunder!"
Not this time, Byakuya thought. "I reveal my face-down card: Mirror Force! Now your monster's attack will be reflected right back at you!"
A glass-like surface appeared to protect Thestalos, causing the lightning that was then discharged by Sanga to be reflected right back into the monster's face.
Sanga tensed up as its own lightning coursed through its body before exploding.
"Heh, you now have no monsters to protect you," Byakuya pointed out, smirking. "All I have to do is summon a monster and this duel is all but over."
"Sorry, but no," Chiaki said, calmly. "I anticipated that you would try to destroy my monster upon attack so I stayed my hand until after battle. Because now, I activate Polymerization!"
"What?!" Byakuya was, again, caught entirely flatfooted. "But…how?"
"Simple," Chiaki said, showing him Pahunder. "I drew another Thunder monster. Now, fuse together and become my champion!" Chiaki exclaimed, extending an arm to the sky.
"Wait! Wait! Hang on just a moment!" Byakuya exclaimed. Something didn't add up here.
A bolt of lightning struck the battlefield from holographic storm clouds as the purple, horned, slender form of Thunder Dragon Colossus emerged from the bolt and roared. It had 2,600 attack points and 2,400 defense points.
"Behold! This is Thunder Dragon Colossus!" Chiaki exclaimed.
"Now hold on just a minute!" Byakuya exclaimed. "I demand an explanation! You could've fused that monster during your last turn but you chose not to do so and allowed me to discard one of your Thunder Dragons. Why? What possible reason did you have for such a behavior if you were planning on summoning it anyway?"
"And that Byakuya is part of the reason why you're going to lose this duel," Chiaki said calmly but without even so much as a hint of arrogance.
"Excuse me?!"
"There's no denying your skill with the game," Chiaki stated. "You even know how to carefully strategize and, from what I can tell, you're not bad at understanding the heart of your deck. You are capable of using the Heart of the Cards."
"Of course I am. What does that have to do with anything?" Byakuya shouted, only for the implications to catch up to him. "WHAT?!"
"Figured something out?" Chiaki asked.
"You mean to tell me you bailed on summoning a fusion monster knowing you'd draw the materials next turn by the faith you have in your deck, just to bait out my strategy?" Byakuya asked, red with fury, fist clenched.
"That about sums it up, yeah," Chiaki said casually.
Byakuya thought he was going to burst a blood vessel. Ridiculous! The heart of the cards is simply an enigmatic unexplainable phenomenon that allows any duelist that can utilize it to draw the exact card they need in order to win a duel. What kind of fool does she take me for?
Yugi's grandpa nodded, knowingly.
"Is something up, Mr. Muto?" Téa asked.
"Chiaki's heart…is very large and gentle," Solomon stated. "Her kindness is a powerful motivator. Therefore, she has nothing to fear from a duel. She is always following her heart and enjoying every moment of every game, let alone every duel."
"So what you're saying is," Byakuya said, overhearing this, "That Chiaki has greater potential in the Heart of the Cards than most duelists. Therefore, her skill with it currently outstrips my own."
Solomon nodded. "I dare say, Byakuya, you are up against quite the formidable opponent here."
Byakuya smirked. "Heh, naturally. All foes in this tournament are a worthy opponent to me." He gazed at Chiaki with competitive seriousness. "However, no matter how good your skill and faith are, there is one thing you will never overcome."
"What's that?" Chiaki asked.
"I am Byakuya Togami," Byakuya said. "No matter how skillful or lucky you are, I am this world's chosen one to escort it to the future."
"And that attitude right there is precisely why you'll lose. But, we're making progress. The lesson is over for now. Come at me with everything you've got," Chiaki told him.
"I would even had you not asked," Byakuya said. "I draw."
Hmph, fools, Kaiba thought. Chiaki's plan wasn't about heart, it was skill. Every monster in her deck is a Thunder-type. The idea that she wouldn't draw another monster to replace the one she lost to summon Colossus is an absurd notion to even consider. She played Togami right into her hands because she's an exceptionally skilled player. His gaze narrowed as he gazed down at his guest of honor below. And one of the only few duelists that deserves the right to challenge Yugi.
With his turn now underway, Byakuya pulled the top card of his deck to his hand. Chiaki's field is vulnerable so my first action should be removing Thunder Dragon Colossus from the field as quickly as possible. Byakuya gazed at the cards in his hand. And I have just the monster to do it. "I sacrifice my weakened Thestalos in order to summon Zaborg the Thunder Monarch!" A white behemoth of a bipedal monster with giant hands, a red face and green hair appeared on Byakuya's side of the field. It had 2,400 attack points and 1,000 defense points.
"And now, since Zaborg was summoned to the field by tributing a monster, I can destroy any card on the field, regardless of what it is!" Byakuya then pointed at Thunder Dragon Colossus. "Zaborg! Destroy Thunder Dragon Colossus!"
"Not so fast, I activate Thunder Dragon Colossus' special ability! By banishing one of my Thunder Dragons from my graveyard, I can negate Zaborg's effect and Thunder Dragon Colossus stays in play!"
Crackling lightning emitted from Zaborg's hand and Thunder Dragon Colossus' mouth. The bolts slammed into each other and exploded right before Yami's eyes. Sparks emitted around the area.
"Sorry, but your plan has failed," Chiaki told Byakuya dismissively.
"My plan," Byakuya said, "Has only begun. Thunder Dragon Colossus can only stay in play using monsters in the graveyard as resources. By depleting those resources, it will eventually be destroyed. And now, with this spell card, I will prevent harm from coming to my life points! I activate a field spell: Domain of the True Monarchs!"
A gigantic cathedral began to grow up and around Byakuya and Chiaki, just as a field spell had engulfed Gundham and Joey's duel.
"Oh my, I do not believe this will end well," Sonia said, suddenly worried.
"Have faith, Dark Queen," Gundham smirked. "The Reliable One cannot be stopped by mere cultish faith in the domain of giants."
"You can do it, Chiaki! We all believe in you!" Ibuki exclaimed.
Mahiru was now returning from the bathroom. "What'd I miss?"
"Oh my god, what didn't you miss?" Hiyoko asked.
"Whoa!" Mahiru exclaimed, passing Izuru off to Peko. "Check that out!" She immediately snapped up a photo of the holographic cathedral.
"I suppose not even babysitting can stop Mahiru from her true passion of taking photographs," Nagito said with a nervous smile.
"That's our Mahiru!" Akane exclaimed.
While Class 77-B caught Mahiru up to speed, Chiaki found herself now caught inside Byakuya's field spell. The inside of the cathedral was dark sans for a single shaft of grayish light filtering in from the light of the window up and behind Chiaki. It lit up the giant throne behind Byakuya.
"Welcome to a domain of power," Byakuya boasted. "Where only the strong survive and the weak, they perish. Josesph Wheeler managed to conquer this domain. What about you?!"
Zaborg darted forward towards Chiaki, its attack power shooting up by 800 points to a total of 3,200.
"With the power of Domain of the True Monarchs, whenever a monster I control that was tribute summoned attacks, it gains 800 attack points!"
With a thunderous punch, Zaborg cracked Thunder Dragon Colossus across the face, causing the monster to crash to the ground and writhe in pain. It was only not destroyed as Chiaki banished another Thunder Dragon from her graveyard. However, the move still cost her.
Chiaki gazed seriously at the battlefield as her life points dropped from 2,000 to 1,400. Byakuya now had a commendable lead.
"Go ahead and attempt to destroy Zaborg," Byakuya said and set a card down onto the field. "It will be your very undoing."
"We'll see about that!" Chiaki exclaimed. "I draw!" She looked at the card she'd pulled to her hand. Trap Hole of Spikes. This will come in handy. "I'm setting one card face-down!" Chiaki exclaimed. "Now, Thunder Dragon Colossus, attack! Destroy Zaborg!"
"You fool!" Byakuya exclaimed. "I warned you about attacking Zaborg and you did it anyway! I activate the continuous trap card Escalation of the Monarchs!" Byakuya's trap card depicted a swirling vortex of red and blue. "Now, even though you are in the middle of attacking, I can immediately tribute summon a monster! So, I now sacrifice Zaborg in order to bring out a more powerful monster! I tribute summon Mobius, the Mega Monarch!" Byakuya exclaimed.
A white armored, frosty behemoth of a monster emerged on Byakuya's side of the field. It had 2,800 attack points and 1,000 defense points.
"I banish my last Thunder Dragon from my graveyard in order to activate Thunder Dragon Colossus' special ability!" Chiaki exclaimed.
"Maybe," Byakuya said as Mobius grappled Thunder Dragon Colossus by the horns, "But you will still take some damage."
With a mighty headbutt, Mobius knocked Thunder Dragon Colossus back, lowering Chiaki's life points to only 1,200.
Chiaki looked apprehensive. This was not going well.
"Why do you look so concerned? Weren't you going to teach me a lesson? Make me re-evaluate who I am by rubbing your victory in my face? You're the one who refused to heed my warning. You have no one to blame but yourself for your folly," Byakuya boasted. "And now, I will put an end to this farce!" Byakuya drew the top card of his deck. He smirked when he saw what he'd drawn. "I activate Card of Demise, permitting me to draw until I'm holding five cards," Byakuya said and then pulled the next five cards from the top of his deck." When he saw what he had available, his smirk grew wider. "And like that, this duel is over. By tributing Mobius, I can summon one of the most destructive Monarchs in my deck: Caius the Mega Monarch!"
A gray bodied, demonic horned titan of a creature began to materialize while sitting in the throne of the domain's church. It then slowly rose to its feet, its red eyes glowing in the bad lightning of the dark cathedral.
Caius was just as strong as Mobius having 2,800 attack points and 1,000 defense points.
Byakuya's strategy lets him continue to summon powerful monsters by using a Mega Monarch's built in ability to be tribute summoned by using a tribute summoned monster, Yugi thought. By doing so he can keep firing off their special effects and continue to back Chiaki into a corner.
"Your monster's special effect might have saved you up to this point, but there will be no saving you this time," Byakuya stated. "I activate the ability of Caius, the Mega Monarch! Now I can immediately banish a single monster from your field! And since its not destroyed, you can't protect your monster from Caius' ability."
Chiaki gasped.
"Fall before my unquestionable might," Byakuya told her condescendingly. "This duel is over. Caius! Take out her eyesore of a dragon! Shadowed Dominance!" Thick shadows poured from Caius body and began to rush forward through the battlefield. Thunder Dragon Colossus roared as Chiaki put her arm up to stop the gale force wind from knocking her over.
"Hnnnnngh," Chikai grunted, clenching her teeth.
Thunder Dragon Colossus was then erased from the battlefield as Chiaki's life points fell down to only 200.
"You gotta be kidding MEEEEEEEEE!" Kazuichi shrieked, face contorted in complete terror.
Even little Izuru was crying, though Peko did her best to console him.
"Hey…Chiaki can still win, right?" Mahiru asked Sonia and Gundham.
"Truthfully, I couldn't say," Gundham stated.
"Byakuya has complete control of the field. I wish to have faith in Chiaki, but even I would be hard pressed to come back from this scenario," Sonia stated.
"I've got faith in her!" Nagito exclaimed, eyes full of vigor. "It's too soon to give up on our fearless class rep now!"
"Wow, I never thought I'd be saying this, but I agree with Nagito!" Ibuki exclaimed. "Come on, Chiaki! We're all behind you! You can do it!"
Because the holograms were not soundproofed, Chiaki could hear Ibuki's shout of encouragement through the walls of the cathedral.
"Charming," Byakuya said, disgustedly and sarcastically. "And a waste of breath. This duel is already over. Caius, end this. Attack."
Caius rushed towards Chiaki to deliver the final, knockout blow that would decide the duel. However, Chiaki did not flinch nor cower, even as the fist grew ever closer to her face.
And then, right as Caius reached Chiaki's side of the field, the ground gave way and it started to fall into a pit.
Byakuya gnashed his teeth. "Kh."
Chiaki smirked silently.
When the dust cleared from Caius' sudden stumble it was revealed to have fallen into a pit full of spikes.
"I commend you for making the decision to take Thunder Dragon Colossus out of the equation," she said, showing off the trap card artwork of the pit that Caius had just stumbled into. "However, had you targeted my face-down instead, you would've undoubtedly been the winner of this duel."
Caius disintegrated as the hole disappeared. Byakuya began to explain his actions. "It was a simple calculation of risk assessment," he said as his life points ticked downwards to 1,200. "Had you activated your trap card before Caius' ability could resolve, I would still be left with your monster to deal with and no means of depleting the last of your life points. And, depending on what the trap card was, you might've even been able to stop me from attacking. Pinpoint Guard, Threatening Roar, and even a stat boosting trap like Reinforcements. There are many others, but all could've been resolved before Caius had the chance to destroy them, hence why I was intent on removing your dragon instead. The knowledge that oneself possesses is different from global knowledge possessed by all. Simply put, removing your dragon was far more pressing than taking the risk of removing your trap card and somehow costing me the duel right then and there."
"An astute observation," Chiaki said. "But, you could still lose the duel right now. If I draw a monster—"
"I set one card face-down," Byakuya said, interrupting her.
Chiaki's eyes shook.
"What?" Byakuya asked her. "Are you surprised? I am a force to be reckoned with. I am Byakuya Togami. And you are just another bump in the road on my way to victory. If you make even one mistake, you will lose. So, what are you planning to do? My field is open after all. But you, you have nothing. No cards. No field. And barely any life points. If you do not draw a monster. If you haven't the means to summon one on your turn, I will summon one on my turn and wipe you out."
Chiaki looked frightened for one more moment, only to stand up straight, take a deep breath and drop her arms at her sides. "And here," she said, gazing at Byakuya seriously, "Is where we come to my other lesson to you. You are correct. I have no cards in my hand. I have no monsters on the field. My graveyard is almost completely empty," Chiaki said. "But I still don't feel…" she said as her eyes shined with vigor, "Like I can lose."
"What?" Byakuya asked angrily.
"I don't say that as if I care whether I'll win or lose or not," Chiaki said with a smile. "This duel has been really fun. You're an amazing duelist, Byakuya. But…you fight all alone."
In one sentence, Chiaki had cut deeper into Byakuya than any amount of life point loss could. His face reflected this.
"The Heart of the Cards isn't just some gimmick you use by trusting your deck and yourself to win games, it's about family, friendship and so much more. Look at the people I surround myself with. I have a husband, a son, my parents and more friends than a full lobby for a MOBA. But you, Byakuya," Chiaki said, looking at him with grave concern, "You have none of that. You stand upon your pedestal, flaunting your wealth and status. And while no one will deny that you earned your place at the top, have you ever looked around at where you are? You have no one to support you. My friends, my husband, Miss Yukizome and even my son are all supporting me. I can feel their support in my heart. It makes me strong. Can you say the same?"
"I don't need anyone else!" Byakuya exclaimed. "I am Byakuya Togami! I am the Chosen One destined to bring a brighter tomorrow! Your lecture is naught but the idle talk of the ninety-nine percent!"
"If that's what you believe, then I feel sorry for you. If you want to be the best, you can't charge forward by yourself. Just look at Kaiba, even in his darkest moments, do you know what pushes him forward despite everything? His little brother! Kaiba would have lost his way long before he met me if Mokuba wasn't around!"
Kaiba wanted to refute what Chiaki was saying, even internally. However… Chiaki…isn't wrong. Kaiba opened the card shaped locket around his neck and looked at the picture of Mokuba. Everyone…has something to fight for and duel for.
"Sure, Kaiba might usually duel for what seems like selfish pride, but do you think he got to where he was simply because he thought it was his birthright to get to where he was? He succeeded because he had a heart! Even if he buries it, Kaiba has a heart!" Chiaki then gazed intently at Byakuya and asked him. "Where's your heart, Byakuya Togami? Because…if you don't find yours, you're going to be just like this field spell. Lifeless and gray…a monarch…before an empty throne."
Yami could only smile at Chiaki. She understood everything that he did. Saw everything that he did.
"Chiaki's really something, huh pal?" Yugi asked him.
"Yes, she would make a fine adversary should she win the whole tournament," Yami replied to him.
"So then, let's see how this duel plays out. If you can't find your heart, you won't win. Because mine," Chiaki said as she reached for the top card of her deck. "Is about to turn this duel around for me."
Chiaki very calmly pulled the top card of her deck to her hand. "I activate Card of Sanctity! This will replenish both of our hands to six cards each!"
"Good show!" Yami exclaimed, marveled at the power of Chiaki's heart.
"Heh," Kaiba said, smirking. "As if anyone cheering for her had a reason to be worried."
With six cards in hand, Chiaki had more than what she needed to shut Byakuya down.
"I hope you're not thinking you can simply summon a fusion monster," Byakuya told her. "As long as Domain of the True Monarchs is in play, you have no access to your entire fusion line up."
"I am well aware of the Domain of the True Monarchs' power over monsters outside the deck. However, that condition only rings true if you are the only one with a tributed summoned monster on the field. Currently your field is empty. However, I believe you plan to summon a monster just in time to stop me from overcoming that effect. But tell me, Byakuya, did you think you were the only one of the two of us that ran Double Summon?"
Byakuya's jaw hung agape. "No…you can't possibly…"
"I am!" Chiaki declared. "I start by summoning to the field Brohunder!" An energetic young looking monster with 900 attack points and 400 defense points hit the field. "And with his power, I can add any thunder-type monster from my deck to my hand as long as it's level 4. And I choose Sishunder! Next, I activate Double Summon! This will allow me to sacrifice Brohunder in order to summon Thunder Dragonroar!" A black monster that looked like a lion got caught in a fusion accident with a dragon hit the field. Its wings had blue membranes and its blue mane ran all the way down its back. It roared with a ferocious 2,400 attack points and 0 defense points.
"And since I have my own tribute summoned monster on the field, I can fusion summon a monster immediately! But first, I'm going to activate the power of Thunder Dragon Fusion! Now I can shuffle back my Thunder Dragons that I discarded and banished right back into the deck! This will allow me to summon the powerful Thunder Dragon Titan, in defense mode!"
The gigantic monster of Chiaki's had a massive stat line of 3,200 attack and defense points each.
"Why in defense mode?" Byakuya questioned.
"Because in case I'm wrong about your trap card and you have another card that can wipe my field just like Mirror Force, I can still take you down with Thunder Dragonroar alone! My weaker monster shall vanquish the rest of your life points with a direct attack!"
"Not while I still have this card. I activate The First Monarch!" Byakuya exclaimed. "This will allow me to summon a monster with exactly 2,400 defense points!"
A shadowy figure emerged on Byakuya's side of the field. It had 1,000 attack points and 2,400 defense points. "But why block your attack when I can make you lose from your own hubris?" Byakuya declared. "For by discarding one card from my hand, I can turn The First Monarch into any attribute of my choosing and I choose wind!"
The shadowy figure changed its coloring from black to light green.
As Chiaki's monster continued to gallop forward, Byakuya declared. "Next, I activate Escalation of the Monarchs once more! This will allow me to special summon Raiza the Mega Monarch!"
A behemoth of a monster clad in green armor stormed to the field. It had 2,800 attack points and 1,000 defense points. "And with Raiza on the field, I can choose to send both of your monsters right back to the top of the deck! I'm also returning Thestalos from my graveyard to my hand! And as soon as he is summoned, you will lose the duel! And since Thunder Dragon Titan is a fusion monster, it will go right back to its proper spot with your other fusion monsters!"
"Raiza's effect is powerful and it's true that you will end up winning the duel by attacking me or summoning Thestalos," Chiaki said. "But what if I had planned for that?"
"There is nothing you can do!" Byakuya exclaimed. "You're in the middle of an attack and I'm about to blow both of your monsters away!"
"Not if I destroy Raiza first," Chiaki said.
"You have nothing face-down!" Byakuya exclaimed. "Once the effect goes off, your attack won't even connect."
"Correct, which is why I'm activating Thunder Dragon Titan's special ability," Chiaki exclaimed. "Because in my hand, I still have this card: Thunder Dragondark." Chiaki flipped the card around to show the purple, legless dragon in her hand with 1,600 attack points and 1,500 defense points. "And it is one of the only Thunder Dragons whose special ability can be activated from my hand during the battle phase. It's effect only lets me discard it to get another one from my deck to my hand, but its ability has served its purpose."
Powerful lightning began to spark from Thunder Dragon Titan as its body crackled with power. "Thunder Dragon Titan can wipe out any card on the field just like Zaborg."
"But…that would mean…"
"Correct, your monster is about to be destroyed," Chiaki told him.
"ALL RIGHT! GO, CHIAKI!" Ibuki cheered.
"Put that bastard in his place!" Fuyuhiko shouted.
"As they sometimes say, take him to the cleaners!" Sonia declared.
"Let the Loner at the Top face the might of your sparking fury!" Gundham cackled.
"Your hope shines brighter than any other in our class!" Nagito said with conviction. "Show him why!"
"HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" Chiaki screamed triumphantly, feeling a well of fighting spirit emanate from her whole body as she thrust one fist forward in synchronization with her monster.
It was all over after that. Thunder Dragon Titan's special ability absolutely fried Raiza and Thunder Dragondark kept its path straight towards Byakuya with unrelenting fury.
"No! There must be something I can…I can…" Byakuya panicked, but he had nothing. Because of Raiza and First Monarch, he only had one card left in his hand and it wasn't anything he could use to stop an incoming direct attack.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAGGH!"
With one swipe of Thunder Dragonroar's front claws, Byakuya was cut down and knocked to the floor. His life points fell from 1,200 to 0.
And then, slowly but surely, each and every hologram began to disappear, including Domain of the True Monarchs.
Chiaki's 8-bit sprite flapped its arms in victory up and down as the girl herself smiled gently and put her hand at the back of her hoodie as a gentle breeze pushed against her. She gazed up at her classmates with a smile. Thanks, everyone.
She saw Izuru giggling and laughing and waving his arms frantically. She smiled and waved back.
Byakuya groaned as he got up off the ground and dusted off his right sleeve. Chiaki turned towards him as he tugged on his lapels. "Now do you understand?"
Byakuya looked cross but said nothing. He then looked…far more contemplative and only said, "You have…given me a lot to consider, Chiaki Nanami. I will take this loss and perform some soul searching. Goodbye." He then very sportsmanly exited the arena and left the stadium. For where he was bound no one really knew for the moment.
He'll be back, Chiaki thought with a smile. I know he'll grow from this duel.
"That was a fine display of the Heart of the Cards," Yami said to Chiaki.
Chiaki turned her head to face the Pharaoh and smiled. "Just doing what comes natural to me."
Yami smiled back. "I look forward to your next duel whether it be against Zigfried or Junko."
Chiaki stared at the pharaoh for a moment, mouth agape, finding his encouragement surprising, only to smile and giggle. "I'll be sure to put on a good show. Anyway, Hajime owes me pork cutlets, so I'll be back next round!" She then jogged off to get food.
Chiaki and Hajime quickly sat down to celebrate the former's victory over Byakuya Togami. Joey was both surprised and a little terrified.
"Man, Togami pushes me really hard and Chiaki beat a guy like that. Guess she's not the Ultimate Gamer for nothing," he said, scratching his head.
"Have you forgotten that she pushed Kaiba into a corner in Battle City?" Celeste asked him.
"No, but…hey, I almost beat Kaiba too," Joey said.
"You got lucky," Celeste pointed out. "Chiaki is all skill. I had the pleasure of dueling her in the Battle City Preliminaries. She is not to be underestimated."
"Oh yeah? Who won?" Joey asked.
Celeste gestured with her whole palm. "She did."
"Whaaaa…?!" Joey did not expect that answer.
"What did you expect? I'm in the same boat as you, I supplement my luck with skill. I'm honestly shocked she never found herself in the Duelist Kingdom finals," Celeste said. "Assuming, of course, that she was invited."
"Jeez," Joey said, watching as Yukizome approached Chiaki and Hajime and had some food and laughs with them. "This tournament's full of monsters, and I don't mean the cards."
"It is a very different beast from the Canadian Nationals. I thought I would be disappointed with my lineup, but Rebecca surprised me in the end. Now, Makoto Naegi, who I'm up against next, he's another one I can't afford to underestimate. He's no professional gamer, but he barely leans into his luck unlike the two of us," Celeste commented.
"Yeah, that guy almost beat Yugi," Joey pointed out. "Kinda resembles Yugi too with how scrawny they both are."
Celeste laughed. "Must be why they're both so skilled. Powerful things come in small packages, which would explain why you're just a brute."
"What the—HEY!" Joey exclaimed, greatly offended, but Celeste was already elegantly walking away out of earshot.
In the middle of the break, Junko was using one of the public bathrooms to wash her face and reapply makeup before her duel with Zigfried. While the sink was running, her phone began to vibrate. She quickly shut off the water and dried off her hands. The Caller ID read "Monaca".
Junko picked up the phone and answered it. "Talk to me," she said as she turned around and leaned against the sink. She listened intently for a long time, nodding her head and grunting to indicate she was paying attention. And then, after minutes of listening to Monaca talk, she broke out into a wide grin. "You don't say."
Once the break was over, Zigfried and Junko were called to the arena to have their duel. Both Zigfried and Junko had similarly looking calm smiles on their faces. The smiles of schemers.
Zigfried's polished shoots echoed upon the polished arena over to the far end of it where he then pivoted to face Junko.
"Fraulein Enoshima, I must admit, your reputation reaches all ze way to Germany," he said, holding up a white rose. "But I vill be honest, I did not zink you vere such a skilled duelist."
"Looks can be deceiving, Ziggy," Junko said with a smirk. "I wouldn't be standing here if I wasn't capable. Kaiba and Yugi can both attest to my skills. Gotta say though, I didn't think you of all people would make their way here. Oh, but I probably shouldn't talk about that in front of the cameras," she said, grinning while covering her mouth. "Wouldn't want you to get disqualified or anything."
Yami missed it, but Junko saw Zigfried's slight reaction from the curl of his finger to the dilation of his pupil. Zigfried started to freak out on the inside. Vat does she know? And more imporzantly how?
"Look, I'll be honest, I worked through a lot of anger issues in my previous duel, showed a side of myself I'm not proud of on live TV. What do you say we keep this clean and professional? A fashionista and a pretty boy CEO make for a fine combination."
CEO? Kaiba thought. Kaiba turned to Roland. "Run a background check on duelist Zigfried Lloyd and tell me what you find!"
Roland saluted to his boss. "Yes, sir."
Kaiba sat down in his chair and clasped his fingers together, gazing at the arena from barely over them. What's your angle here, Enoshima?
"I haven't ze faintest clue vat you mean, mein fraulein. I am but a humble entertainer in my shpare time and a duelist of ze highest caliber in Germany all others," Zigfried replied.
"Ah, the cover routine. No, it's cool, I totally get that," Junko said.
Yami found it difficult to follow the conversation, but decided it really wasn't his business, so long as Junko didn't freak out like last time.
"So, Mr. Entertainer, shall we entertain?" Junko asked, adopting her Queen persona. "My fans and yours alike are chomping at the bit to see us throw down. I'd hate to keep them waiting any longer."
"Mein fraulein, I vould like nothing more. Let our spar be fanciful and beautiful," Zigfried said and tossed away the flower he was holding as some lovestruck girl in the audience caught it, swooing.
Ugh, Téa thought, grossed out. Some people could be so…desperate.
Without another word, Junko and Zigfried activated their duel disks. Their life points climbed to 4,000. They each drew a hand of five cards. Junko's calm smile met Zigfried's confident, faint smirk.
The randomizer flipped back and forth and it was revealed that Junko would be going first.
"Let's duel," They both said loudly, but not exactly yelling.
The final duel of the 2nd ground of the Kaiba Corp Grand Prix was about to begin!
(A/N: I don't know about you, but I love how I ended this duel. But, here we are: the face-off you've been anticipating for over a year: Junko Vs Zigfried. The overarching Big Bad versus the canonical Arc Villain. Tanky pink suit versus fashion gogo boots and pig tails. Fake hair versus fake name. Will Zigfried go on to show that Junko hasn't a wing and a prayer in high level competitive play? Or will Junko move to the next round and give everyone nightmares caused by Despair Side Episode 10 flashbacks. Only one antagonist can advance. Who will it be? Place your bets! And, as always, from all of me, to all of you, let your hearts stay human and your wrath draconic! Ja ne!)