And here we are with Chapter 25, we are getting back to the Friendship Cup and continuing forward with the Synchro Arc. I've made some changes to Team Taiyo's strategy so I hope you like them.

Now, let's get on with the chapter.

Chapter 25: VS Team Taiyo! A Normal Monster Deck?!

Martha's Orphanage

"I'm sorry, Ms. Martha. I really am." Rua apologized. "It's just we have nowhere else to go."

"It's alright." Martha assured Rua. "I would always help those in need. Whether they need to be patched up, or laid to rest."

A doctor was treating Gongenzaka while a couple of morticians overlooked Godwin's and Kazama's bodies.

"So, what do we do now?" Crow asked.

"I want more than anything to go save Aki. Seeing that lab and what Roget did to the members of Security…I don't want to know what he will do to her." Yuya admitted.

"Yuya…" Rin uttered.

"While it's admirable you want to save your friend, there is something that you have to do first."

Everyone turned to the door to see Jack Atlas with his arms crossed.

"Jack!" Crow's eyes widened.

"The people of Neo Domino City have lost almost everything important to them. But…there is one thing that can give them hope…give them a chance that anything is possible even during a disaster." Jack said. "The Friendship Cup Main Tournament."

"But is it really okay to continue the tournament? I mean, look at the state we're in." Rua asked.

"It's exactly why the tournament must continue." Jack answered. "When I succeed Chojiro Tokumatsu, I vowed to make the Friendship Cup more into a team effort than an individual tournament. And with many Duelists coming from all over the world…and from other dimensions…it's a chance to show the citizens that there is a better way to live than in a competitive society." Jack answered.

"Slowly but surely, we'll raise their spirits and then, when the time comes for the Title Match, I will give everything I have as both a King and as a citizen of Neo Domino City. I'm sure your friend, Izayoi, would want the same for you, Yuya Sakaki." Jack turned to Yuya. "Besides, I won't be content until a winner is decided between us."

"King…" Yuya looked at Jack before nodding.

Duel Palace

"Ladies and gentlemen of Neo Domino City. Disaster has struck our hometown. The cities of the Tops have collapsed onto the slums of the Commons, and what is worse, we have lost many brave men and women who fought to protect the Main Pillar, including our beloved mayor, Rex Godwin." Melissa announced.

"That's why we must find a new future for all of us and the answer is the Friendship Cup! The remaining finalists will showcase their ability to move past this tragedy. We will begin the Quarterfinals momentarily! People of Neo Domino City if you are looking for a bright future, then come to the Duel Palace and watch to the very end!" Melissa announced.

While most of the seats were filled at the Duel Palace, most of the people did not show any excitement or care. "Oh man, this is gonna be difficult." Melissa groaned.

Team Guardians Waiting Room

"Are you kidding me?! We're really gonna continue the tournament!" Yuzu shouted angrily. "Now's not the time for a stupid contest!"

"I was thinking the same thing, but Jack says that the people need to see that there is still a future despite what has happened, and the Friendship Cup is the answer." Yuya tried to calm Yuzu down.

"So, who's our opponent?" Sawatari asked.

"Team Taiyo." Bruno answered. "They're a brand-new team and this is their first tournament. They're all from the countryside as well."

"I wonder what tactics they used to get passed the preliminaries." Serena wondered.

"If they made it pass the preliminaries, they have to be strong, as well as the other six remaining teams." Rin guessed.

"The Duels will only get harder from here on it. So, we have to bring our best game." Jonouchi agreed. "So, who did you choose for this match?" Jonouchi asked Yuya.

"I've chosen…" Yuya revealed the roster.

Duel Palace

"Well, then let me introduce the teams for the first Quarterfinal Match! First, it's the powerful team that passed the preliminaries by defeating Team Unicorn and Team Paris with their wide variety of summoning methods! The heroes from other dimensions! Team Guardians!" The Guardians entered the stadium.

"Hey, I know them! They're cool!"

"Are they really? They're just kids to me."

"Trust me, you're gonna like them."

Some members of the audience perked when the Guardians appeared while others were skeptical considering they didn't see them in the preliminaries.

"Facing the Guardians is an unknown team from the country! Team Taiyo!" Team Taiyo entered the arena and they were all members of the country.

"And the members competing in this round. From Team Taiyo, Yoshizo Hayashi, Jinbei Tanigawa and finally the Captain, Taro Yamashita!" The roster for Team Taiyo were three young men wearing a green, blue and red Riding Duel suit.

"And competing for Team Guardians…Asuka Tenjoin, Ruri Kurosaki and Crow Hogan." Melissa announced as Asuka's, Ruri's and Crow's pictures appeared.

"Alright, you both ready?" Crow asked Asuka and Ruri but neither of them answered. Asuka was depressed and Ruri was trembling.

"Uh oh, they're not doing too good." Jonouchi said.

"Can you blame them? Asuka found out her brother was one of Academia's dangerous Duelists that had his freedom was robbed and Ruri is going through war flashbacks." Rio said.

"And the others are still messed up." Rua looked at Yuzu and Sawatari. Yuzu was just glaring angrily while Sawatari had a little twitch every now and then. "Even though Yuya talked to her, Yuzu doesn't seem to like Dueling now."

"And Sawatari is still jumpy from seeing Zero Reverse happen in front of him." Yuya observed. "But even so, I chose Asuka, Ruri and Crow because they can balance each other out."

"Hey, Taro, do you think our strategies will work on these guys? I mean, they have those Fusion, Ritual, Xyz and Pendulum Summons. We don't even have any Synchro Monsters." Jinbei pointed out.

"Even so, we came up with a strategy that has worked for us so far. Even if they have those summon methods, we have a monster that can dominate their Extra Deck monsters." Taro smiled.

"Well, I'm off." Yoshizo headed out to the starting line.

"Asuka, you're first. Good luck." Crow smiled.

"Y-Yeah…" Asuka drove out of the pit and to the starting line.

Crow sighed. "This is gonna be hard." Crow looked at Ruri who didn't even look at the track and instead looked at her feet. "For both of them."

"The first D-wheelers, Asuka and Yoshizo are at the starting line. The match is about to begin!" Melissa announced as both Asuka and Yoshizo were at the starting line. "Let's get the stage set up, For the remainder of the tournament, the contestants will Duel throughout the entire city! Field Magic: Dimension Highway!"

"Duel Mode: On!" The D-Wheels activated.

"The gate is opening!" The gate to the outside opened up as the count down clock appeared. "Riding Duel! Acceleration!" The clock hit 0 and Yoshizo zoomed out while Asuka didn't move at all.

"Wh-What's going on? Yoshizo has already moved forward but Asuka hasn't moved?!" Melissa shouted and the audience were confused.

"Asuka! The Duel has started!" Jonouchi shouted.

"Ah, shoot!" Asuka started accelerating.

"Asuka has finally started moving, but it looks like Yoshizo is already exiting the gate." Melissa said as Yoshizo exited the arena and Asuka finally caught up.

"Hey, are you alright?" Yoshizo asked.

"I-I'm fine…let's do this!" Asuka got focused.

"Duel!" Yoshizo and Asuka declared.

Yoshizo LP: 4000, Hand: 5, SC: 0
Asuka LP: 4000, Hand: 5, SC: 0

"My turn! Draw!" Yoshizo drew his card. "I summon Key Mace (DEF: 300, LV: 1) in Defense Position!" Yoshizo summoned a small fairy.

"Whoa! Team Taiyo has summoned a Level 1 Normal Monster! You don't see those kinds around anymore!" Melissa was surprised.

"Normal Monsters, that's like 1st generation cards. You can tell from the design." Jonouchi compared his Red-Eyes to the Key Mace card.

"They were able to win with Normal Monsters?" Serena was surprised.

"I'm excited to see how this turns out." Dennis smiled.

"I set two cards and end my turn!" Yoshizo finished. Yoshizo looked back, ready to face Asuka but she wasn't paying attention.

"H-Hey, are you sure you're, okay?" Yoshizo asked. "It's your turn."

"H-Huh? Oh, right. My turn! Draw!" Asuka drew her card.

Yoshizo LP: 4000, Hand: 3, SC: 0→1
Asuka LP: 4000, Hand: 6, SC: 0→1

"I summon Cyber Gymnatics (ATK: 800, LV: 4)!" Asuka summoned a female gymnast.

"I activate the Trap Card: Hidden Soldiers! When you summon a monster, I can Special Summon a Level 4 or lower Dark-Attribute monster from my hand! I Special Summon Hand-Holding Djinn (DEF: 1600, LV: 4) in Defense Position!" A djinn with two large hands appeared.

"This card gains Defense Points equal to the total Defense Points of my monsters in Defense Position!" Hand-Holding Djinn took Key Mace's hand and its defense power increased.

Hand-Holding Djinn (DEF: 1600→1900)

"Alright, Hand-Holding Djinn's Defense Points are superior to Cyber Gymnatics's Attack Points!" Jinbei smiled.

"And when Hand-Holding Genie is faceup on the field, you can't attack any other monster!" Yoshizo added.

"Now, Cyber Gymnatics cannot attack." Taro smiled.

"I set one card and end my turn!" Asuka finished.

"My turn! Draw!" Yoshizo drew his card.

Yoshizo LP: 4000, Hand: 4, SC: 1→2
Asuka LP: 4000, Hand: 4, SC: 1→2

"Yes! I use a Speed Counter to activate the Magic Card: Ancient Rule! This card allows me to Special Summon a Level 5 or higher Normal Monster from my hand! Come! Level 6! Emerald Dragon (ATK: 2400, LV: 6)!" Yoshizo summoned a beautiful dragon.

Yoshizo SC: 2→1

"Whoa, just like that, Yoshizo has summoned a powerful dragon that compliments his defense formation!" Melissa announced.

"That's kind of cool!"

"Way to go Team Taiyo!"

"Battle! Emerald Dragon, attack Cyber Gymnatics!" Emerald Dragon fired a breath attack and it destroyed Cyber Gymnatics instantly and causing Asuka to swerve.

Asuka LP: 4000→2400

"I set one card and end my turn!" Yoshizo finished his turn.

"Yoshizo has a good balance of offense and defense!" Melissa announced. "Asuka had better give us her A-game or she will be eliminated on the next turn!"

"Asuka's not focused on the Duel." Crow noticed.

"She's probably still worried about her brother." Jonouchi crossed his arms.

"Damn it, I have to focus. My turn! Draw!" Asuka drew her card.

Yoshizo LP: 4000, Hand: 1, SC: 1→2
Asuka LP: 2400, Hand: 5, SC: 2→3

"I summon the Tuner Monster, Cyber Acrobatic (ATK: 600, LV: 2)!" Asuka summoned her Tuner that she used against Takasu. "When Cyber Acrobatic is Normal Summoned, I can Special Summon one Cyber Girl from my Graveyard! Revive! Cyber Gymnatics (ATK: 800, LV: 4)!"

"I activate Cyber Gymnatics's effect! By discarding one card from my hand, I can destroy one monster on the opponent's field in Attack Position!" Asuka revealed.

"What?!" Yoshizo gasped.

Asuka discarded a card from her hand. "I destroy Emerald Dragon!" Cyber Gymnast destroyed Emerald Dragon.

"Amazing! Asuka managed to defeat Emerald Dragon using an effect and with a Tuner out, I know what's coming!" Melissa got excited.

"I'm Tuning my Level 4 Cyber Gymnatics with my Level 2 Cyber Acrobatic!" Cyber Acrobatic turned into two green rings and Cyber Gymnatics flew through them and became four stars.

"With your incredible flexibility and jump power, become the shining star to make dreams a reality! Synchro Summon! Come forth! Level 6! Cyber Jump Star (ATK: 2400, LV: 6)!" Asuka brought out her Synchro Monster.

"Alright, Asuka brought out her Synchro Monster!" Rua smiled.

"Here comes the counterattack." Yuya smiled.

"Cyber Jump Star's monster effect! It gains 400 Attack Points for every Cyber monster in my Graveyard! I have three so it gains 1200 Attack Points!" Asuka revealed.

Cyber Jump Star (ATK: 2400→3600)

"Wait, three? But you've only used Cyber Gymnatics and Cyber Acrobatic…" Yoshizo's eyes widened. "Wait, you discarded a card when you used Cyber Gymnatics's effect, it was a Cyber monster!"

"That's right, now that I've destroyed your offense, I'll destroy your defense! Battle! Cyber Jump Star, attack Hand-Holding Djinn! Drill Kick!" Jump Star jumped in the air and dived towards Hand-Holding Djinn.

"Continuous Trap: Defender's Mind!" Yoshizo revealed one of his set cards. "This card changes all monster's that I control into Defense Position and the Defense Points of all monsters are doubled!"

Key Mace (DEF: 300→600)
Hand-Holding Djinn (DEF: 1900→3800)

"3800 Defense Points?!" Asuka's eyes widened. Hand-Holding Djinn deflected Cyber Jump Star and Asuka took damage.

Asuka LP: 2400→2200

"What a counter! Yoshizo managed to push back Asuka's Synchro Monster!" Melissa announced.

"Man, just when I thought Asuka had him." Jonouchi said.

"Looks like they were prepared to strengthen their defense when their high-level monster was destroyed." Dennis said.

"That's it, Yoshi! Don't lose to a rare card!" Jinbei cheered.

"Damn it…I set one card and end my turn!" Asuka finished her turn.

"Here I come, Asuka! My turn! Draw!" Yoshizo drew his card.

Yoshizo LP: 4000, Hand: 2, SC: 2→3
Asuka LP: 2200, Hand: 2, SC: 3→4

"I summon Giant Soldier of Stone (DEF: 2000, LV: 3) in Defense Position!" Yoshizo brought out a stone soldier and it joined hands with Hand-Holding Djinn. "Due to Defender's Mind, Giant Soldier of Stone's Defense Points are doubled and with Hand-Holding Djinn's effect, it gains those Defense Points!"

Giant Soldier of Stone (DEF: 2000→4000)
Hand-Holding Djinn (DEF: 3800→7800)

"That's another boost to his defense." Serena said. "It makes Gongenzaka's Superheavy Samurai monsters look weak."

"With this…" Yoshizo smiled. "I set one card and end my turn!"

"I have to damage him…I have to…" Asuka put her fingers on her deck. "My turn! Draw!" Asuka drew her card.

Yoshizo LP: 4000, Hand: 0, SC: 3→4
Asuka LP: 2200, Hand: 3, SC: 4→5

"I activate the Speed Spell: Sonic Buster! When I have 4 or more Speed Counters, I select one monster on my field and inflict damage to the opponent equal to half of its Attack Points! Cyber Jump Star has 3600 Attack Points, so you take 1800 points of damage!" Cyber Jump Star charged and landed a kick on Yoshizo, making him take damage.

Yoshizo LP: 4000→2200

"Yoshi!" Taro called out with concern.

"Alright, now their Life Points are tied now!" Rua cheered.

"Next, I summon Cyber Tutu (ATK: 1000, LV: 3)!" Asuka summoned a girl with pink hair in a tutu and leotard. "I use a Speed Counter to activate the Quick-Play Magic: Allegro Toile! This card can only be activated when I Normal Summon a monster! It destroys one Magic and Trap Card on the field! I destroy Defender's Mind!" Yoshizo's card was destroyed.

Asuka SC: 5→4

"Since Defender's Mind was destroyed the Defense Points of all monsters on my field goes down." Yoshizo begrudgingly stated.

Key Mace (DEF: 600→300)
Giant Soldier of Stone (DEF: 4000→2000)
Hand-Holding Djinn (DEF: 7800→3900)

"She lowered their defense but…" Rin looked.

"But Hand-Holding Djinn is still stronger." Crow added.

"I just need one more card." Asuka thought. "I end my turn!"

"My turn! Draw!" Yoshizo drew his card.

Yoshizo LP: 2200, Hand: 1, SC: 4→5
Asuka LP: 2200, Hand: 0, SC: 4→5

"I activate the Speed Spell: Angel Baton! When I have two or more Speed Counters, I can draw two cards and then discard one!" Yoshizo drew two more cards and smiled at one of them.

"I activate the Continuous Trap: Call of the Living Dead! This card allows me to Special Summon a monster from the Graveyard in Attack Position!" Yoshizo revealed.

"You're bringing back Emerald Dragon." Asuka narrowed her eyes.

"Nope, I'm bringing back the card I discarded with Angel Baton!" Yoshizo revealed. "I Special Summon Gogiga Gagagigo (ATK: 2950, LV: 8)!" A large reptile monster appeared.

"And Yoshizo has summoned another high-level Normal Monster!" Melissa cheered.

"Wow, he was able to do that without releasing his monsters."

"Nice going, Team Taiyo!"

"Even if he attacks Cyber Tutu, I'll still have Life Points and Cyber Jump Star will gain more Attack Points." Asuka thought.

"Next, I play my other Trap Card: Hero's Rule 1: Five Freedoms! This card allows me to banish five cards from either player's Graveyard!" Yoshizo revealed.

"Oh no!" Asuka's eyes widened.

"I banish the three Cyber monsters in your Graveyard along with your Speed Spell: Sonic Buster and Quick-Play Magic: Allegro Toile!" All of Asuka's cards were gone. "With those monsters gone, your Cyber Jump Star loses Attack Points!"

Cyber Jump Star (ATK: 3600→2400)

"Battle! Gogiga Gagagigo, attack Cyber Jump Star!" Gogiga Gagagigo charged and sliced right through Cyber Jump Star, making damaging Asuka and making her lose her balance.

Asuka LP: 2200→1650

"I set one card and end my turn!" Yoshizo finished.

"Alright, Yoshi defeated that rare card!" Jinbei cheered.

"Keep it up, Yoshi!" Taro cheered. The entire pit of Team Taiyo cheered for their teammate.

"Asuka is not Dueling her usual way." Jonouchi noticed.

"Yeah, she hasn't even tried to use her set cards." Rio noticed.

"Damn it, I don't have time for this." Asuka cursed angrily. She recalled the moment when Yuya announced the team.

Team Guardians Waiting Room – Before the Match

"The lineup for the Duel against Team Taiyo will be…Asuka first, Ruri second and Crow will be last." Yuya announced.

"Alright, you can count on me." Crow smiled.

"I-I'll do my best…" Ruri tried to be brave but inside, she was still haunted.

"Good luck, you three. We'll be rooting for you." Rin said.

"You guys are definitely gonna win." Rua agreed.

"I refuse." Asuka spoke, getting everyone's attention. "I'm not Dueling."

"But Asuka, the lineup has already been submitted. We can't change it." Crow pointed out.

"Then forfeit, there's no point in continuing the tournament." Asuka crossed her arms. "Not when there are more important things to worry about."

"She's right…this is not the time for a tournament." Yuzu agreed. "Aki is still being held prisoner, Gongenzaka and Kurosaki are hurt, we should be focusing on them instead of winning a tournament."

"I want to help them too, Yuzu. But we can't just leave the people of Neo Domino feeling despaired. We have their attention thanks to everyone's efforts in the preliminaries, if we ride this momentum, we can get them to realize—" Yuya explained.

"It's not our problem!" Asuka shouted harshly. "The whole point of competing in the tournament was to gain allies. We have that with Team Unicorn and Team Paris, that's enough, let's just move on to Academia!"

"Is this about your brother, Asuka?" Rio asked.

"They did something to him. They made him into a heartless person! And what about the other students?! While we're here playing games, they could be subjected to whatever horrible plans that Leo Akaba has conjured up! He has to be stopped right now!" Asuka argued.

"Asuka, we will stop Leo Akaba. Us. Not you." Yuya emphasized.

"Oh yes, me!" Asuka argued. "Samejima told us that in order to stop Leo, it was ALL FOR ONE AND ONE FOR ALL!" Asuka clapped her hands hard to emphasize. "You should know how I'm feeling right now, Yuya!"

"That's why you're going to Duel in this round." Yuya answered. "I'm not letting you quit when you've already accomplished so much."

Dimension Highway

"What accomplishment? I haven't done anything important…" Asuka closed her eyes in frustration.

"Come on, everybody, let me hear you cheer! Your savior is gonna pass us soon!"

"Asuka! Asuka! Asuka!"

Asuka opened her eyes when she heard people chanting her name and she saw on the side that there were a lot of people chanting her name and holding signs that said various things such as "Thank you for reuniting me with my family" or "Asuka Tenjoin, our Guardian Angel"

"That's right! Louder and prouder!" Chojiro encouraged them to chant louder.

"Those people…" Asuka's eyes widened. They were the people that were trapped in the Underground Labor Facility, the ones she freed when she defeated that horrible Warden Takasu.

"I'm not letting you quit when you've accomplished so much." Yuya's words repeated in Asuka's head.

"All this time, I've been focusing on getting revenge for my brother, that I forgot about all the things I've done before." Asuka thought. "All for one and one for all…it doesn't just apply to us…"

Asuka put her fingers on her deck. "My turn! Draw!" Asuka drew her card.

Yoshizo LP: 2200, Hand: 0, SC: 5→6
Asuka LP: 1650, Hand: 1, SC: 5→6

"I activate the Speed Spell: Angel Baton! I draw two cards and then discard one!" Asuka drew two cards and her eyes widened when she saw one card. "So, you agree too, Brother." Asuka discarded one of her cards.

"I use a Speed Counter to activate the Magic Card: Swing of Memories! This card allows me to Special Summon a Normal Monster from my Graveyard! I Special Summon the monster I discarded, Cyber Priestess (ATK: 1900, LV: 5)!" Asuka summoned a young female wearing priestess clothes.

Asuka SC: 6→5

"Wait, but that card is an effect monster!" Yoshizo saw the card display, it was orange, like an effect monster.

"Cyber Priestess is a Gemini Monster, meaning it can be treated as a Normal Monster on the field or in the Graveyard! Now, I Gemini Summon Cyber Priestess!" Asuka shouted and Cyber Priestess started praying.

"When Gemini Summoned, Cyber Priestess gains this effect! Once per turn, I can perform a Fusion Summon using monsters on my field without a Fusion Card! I fuse Cyber Priestess with Cyber Tutu!"

Both Cyber Priestess and Cyber Tutu entered the spiraling vortex that appeared and Asuka chanted.

"Ballerina of finesse! Priestess full of innocence! Become one and create a new power to that will shine light in the darkness! Fusion Summon!" Asuka put her hands together. "Come forth! Level 8! Cyber Angel Magician (ATK: 2800, LV: 8)!"

Appearing from the vortex was a beautiful woman with long brown hair and brown eyes who had a cyber designed robes and a long staff full of magic power.

"When Cyber Angel Magician is Fusion Summoned, it can negate the effect of one monster on the field! I negate the effect of Hand-Holding Djinn!" Asuka shouted.

"What?!" Yoshizo gasped. Cyber Angel Girl summoned a magic circle around Hand-Holding Djinn and it lost its effect.

Hand-Holding Djinn (DEF: 3900→1600)

"She negated Hand-Holding Djinn's effect!" Jinbei was shocked.

"Battle! Cyber Angel Magician, attack Hand-Holding Djinn! Angel Burst!" Cyber Angel Magician unleashed a gold orb attack that destroyed Hand-Holding Djinn.

"But, since Hand-Holding Djinn was in Defense Position, I don't take damage." Yoshizo smiled.

"Cyber Angel Magician's effect activates! When it destroys a monster in battle, it can destroy another monster on the opponent's field and the opponent takes damage equal to half of the destroyed monster's Attack Points!" Asuka revealed.

"What did you say?!" Yoshizo panicked.

"I destroy Gogiga Gagagigo! Angel Wave!" Cyber Angel Magician unleashed a wave of magic that destroyed Gogiga Gagagigo and Yoshizo swerved as he took damage.

Yoshizo LP: 2200→725

"What a reversal by Asuka! Not only did she destroy Hand-Holding Djinn, but she also destroyed Team Taiyo's strong Normal Monster and dealt damage!" Melissa cheered.

"That Asuka is amazing!"

"Team Guardians is now in the lead!"

"This Duel is beyond awesome!"

Most of the audience were now starting to get into the Duel and started cheering and forgetting about the Zero Reverse incident.

Ruri looked at the audience and saw how happy they were. It was like they were having fun, just watching the Duel.

"I end my turn!" Asuka finished.

"Not bad, but I won't let you win! My turn! Draw!" Yoshizo drew his card.

Yoshizo LP: 725, Hand: 1, SC: 6→7
Asuka LP: 1650, Hand: 0 SC: 5→6

"I summon Warrior of the Dark Demon World, Dark Sword (ATK: 1800, LV: 4)!" Yoshizo summoned a warrior in black armor and long swords. "I set one card! Battle! Dark Sword, attack Cyber Angel Magician!"

"What?! You're attacking my stronger monster!" Asuka was confused as to why her opponent would do that.

"I activate the Trap Card: Ordinary to Extraordinary! When a Normal Monster battles an opponent's monster, that monster is automatically destroyed and the opponent takes damage equal to the destroyed monster's Attack Points!" Yoshizo revealed.

"If this goes through, Asuka will lose!" Rua panicked.

"Guess I have no choice." Asuka thought. "I activate the Trap Card: Doble Passe! This card changes your attack target to a Direct Attack!"

"Huh?!" Yoshizo was shocked and Dark Blade went around Cyber Angel Magician and struck Asuka.

Asuka LP: 1650→0

"Then, the monster that was targeted by the attack will attack the opponent directly!" Asuka revealed.

"Say what?!" Yoshizo panicked and Cyber Angel Magician fired a magic blast at Yoshizo damaging him.

Yoshizo LP: 725→0

"Oh my God!" Melissa was surprised. "For the first time, we have a double knockout! Both of the First Wheelers have been eliminated."

The audience was stunned before they started applauding and cheering.

"Nice counter, Asuka!"

"You were great, Yoshizo!"

"Man, those two were good." Crow smiled. "They were able to get everyone into it." He turned to Ruri. "Are you ready? It's your turn."

"Yeah…" Ruri nodded and went to her D-Wheel.

"Hey, Ruri." Dennis approached her. "Why don't you take this card?" Dennis held out a card.

Ruri looked at it and her eyes widened. "Dennis, this card is…"

"I think it's time you stop running away and face it head on." Dennis said. "Do you trust me?"

"I do." Ruri accepted the card, while unknown to them, Shun had just arrived and he saw the card.

"As I thought, Team Guardians are strong." Taro observed the data as Yoshizo pulled into the pit.

"I'm sorry. I thought I could've defeated one of them without being knocked out." Yoshizo apologized.

"It's fine. It fits our battling style." Taro assured Yoshizo.

Asuka returned to the pit and took off her helmet. "Yuya, I'm sorry for being conceited. Everything is important, including this tournament. I let my emotions get the better of me."

"It's okay." Yuya assured her. "Don't worry, we won't let Leo have his way forever, we will win the war, but we will do it a little bit at a time."

Asuka nodded and took off the team tag and handed it to Ruri. "Ruri, you're up. Be careful, they have very tricky combos."

"I understand." Ruri nodded.

"We're counting on you, Jin!" Taro said.

"Leave it to me!" Jinbei smiled.

Both Ruri and Jinbei placed their respective teams tag on their arms and took off. "Now it's time for the Second Wheelers, Jinbei and Ruri to take the stage. What kind of Duel will they show us this time?"

"Bring it on, we won't lose to your rare cards!" Jinbei declared.

"Dennis…I trust you…but…" Ruri eyed the card in her hand. "Can I…really do it?" The card she was looking at was Fusion.

And that is the end of the first part of the Team Taiyo Duel. I decided to let Team Taiyo be a little stronger as I felt they could've used an offensive strategy to compliment their defensive strategy. What did you guys think? Let me know in the reviews and if you have questions PM and I will get back to you as soon as I can.

Thanks for reading and I will see you next time.

Ruri begins her Duel against Jinbei, who completely goes all out by summoning strong monsters and using cards with burn effects to whittle away at Ruri's Life Points. Pushed into a corner, will Ruri use the Fusion Card she got from Dennis to make a comeback, or will she be consumed by fear. What's more Team Taiyo's strategy has successfully made the Guardians forget about a very important monster.

Next Time: Vs Team Taiyo! Face your Fear!