Yu-gi-oh! National Championship 2004
Ok, for those of you involved, you know this was an interactive fic. I got players from over the net to play on the Yugioh Virtual Desktop system, and their wins have decided the outcome of this story. Depending on how this one goes, there may be a second, but it's not likely. I'd like to thank those who volunteered to duel. This Fanfic takes place during the National Japan Championship, where only 12 select duelists have been invited to duel. The winner gains the title, $20,000 prize money, and a chance to duel the tournaments mysterious operator…. ( Disclaimer: I do not own Yugioh in anyway and im not making any money off this, I also don't own the Yugioh Virtual Desktop, so don't sue! I'm doing this for free and out of boredom! )
Daybreak, the sun washes over the sleepy city of Domino, a light glistening of dew on the buildings and streets, not even a single car driving down the many highways of the city to disturb the peace. Such a sleepy start, to a day that would be the start of a exciting chain of events for the following days. For today, was the day before the National Championships, an event nearly as popular as the Super Bowl itself, and event all of Domino and Japan itself looked forward to. For months, it was rumored who would appear in the dueling elite, names such as Seto Kaiba and Yugi Mutou mentioned as definite arrivals. Of course, who could doubt that the two top ranked duelists in the world would appear in such a tournament? Along with these two, the names of Mai Valentine and Joey Wheeler were whispered, even though they never gained any major wins, their accomplishments in Duelist Kingdom and Battle City could not be over looked. Today all rumors would be put to rest, for the announcement of the competitors was to be announced in front of Kaiba Corp., the company best known for its creation of the portable duel disk systems, also owned by Seto Kaiba himself. The spot alone made people feel Seto was to be included for sure. It's at this time in the morning that we find ourselves at a curious looking building, a game store to be exact. Games store that specialized in cards, duel monster cards. It is here that we meet Yugi Mutou himself, already well awake, going over his deck of duel monster cards with ease and care.
"Do you think we stand a chance?" he asked, seemingly to no one but himself. Though, you would be wrong, for its inside this boy the dwells a powerful force. A second identity, simply known as Yami Yugi, or Yami to his friends. The spirit itself resides in a ancient puzzle, a treasure known as a millennium item, rumored to possess great power. As far as Yugi saw it, Yami was standing right next to him. He was even able to answer Yugi. "With the deck you've constructed, we'll be unstoppable. You've but your whole heart and soul into these cards, and they will come through for you." Yugi nods to the Yami, always filled with more confidence by his words. Just then, the door to Yugi's room flies open, and another young man enters, a loud blonde haired teen. " Yo, Yug, ya ready? We gotta get goin, their gonna announce the duelists!" the boy announced, clearly in a big hurry. "Ok Joey, I'm ready!," announced Yugi, and the two of them quickly departed from the game store. All the way through the streets, Yugi and Joey chatted, but deep inside the twin corridors of Yugi's mind, Yami waited, and thought. It was true, that with out his skill, young Yugi might have never become the powerhouse name of Duel Monsters, but he still held much respect for his younger self's talents. "This tournament will be a nice change of pace from the past… no one's souls are on the line and the outcome won't affect the fate of the entire world…" Though, something continued to bug him, something he couldn't put his finger on.
It wasn't long before Yugi and Joey both arrived at the front of Kaiba Corp., and they were hardly the first to arrive. It seemed that in a short amount of time, all of Domino had arrived. "Yugi! Joey! It's about time you guys showed, was worried you both slept in!," called out a brown haired teen male. "Come on Tristan, you know me and Yugi had to show, we're the top duelists in the country," commented Joey, full of himself as always. This resulted in Tristan grabbing Joey into a headlock. "Yeah your right, provided you meant Yugi is the best duelist and you're just a chump who keeps getting lucky." Yugi quickly backed away as the pair started wrestling in the middle of the crowd. Only people who knew the two well enough knew they weren't serious, to any one else, it looked like the two were going to kill each other. Yugi turned, to see a group of familiar faces approaching, two young girls with a white haired boy following them. "Tea! Mai! Bakura! I'm glad to see you guys. Can you believe the turn out?" The three teens approached Yugi, all three looking nearly as nervous and anxious as any other person in the crowd. " I never knew so many people would turnout to see me be picked as Japan's greatest duelist," muttered Mai. Her self-assuredness was never faulting, despite her bad luck in past tournaments. Before Yugi even had a chance to comment, a loud siren went off, catching the attention of the entire crowd. Everyone looked up to the giant video screen on the side of Kaiba Corp. Almost at once, the face of Seto Kaiba appeared on the screen. "Gah, talk about a creature feature," mumbled Joey from behind Yugi, but no one was really paying attention to him. "Welcome citizens of Domino and duelists. Today, the twelve top duelists of Japan will be announced. Now, as I'm sure you all guessed, I am to be a participant, thus leaving only eleven of you left to fill spots, not that it'll matter. I'll be crowned once again the world's top duelist. Now, once your name is called, please step forward. Once all eleven of you assemble on the steps of the building, you will be allowed to enter the lobby, where you'll be briefed on the following duels. Now listen well, you'll have half an hour after the announcement to show up, or else your spot will be given to another. Now, here's what you've all been waiting for, the announcement of the top eleven duelists to compete in the 2004 Championship Battles of Japan!" Seto's face disappeared from the screen, only to be replaced by the face of the official judge of the past Duel Monster tournaments. "The first duelist is nearly a household name, gaining fame for his victory over the creator of Duel Monsters as well as his victory of the Battle City tournament, Yugi Mutou! Our Second duelist will be another famed duelist, having gained their way up ranks and competed in Duelist Kingdom and Battle City finals, Mai Valentine! Third, we also have a former regional champion, Weevil Underwood!" At this announcement, a buggy looking young boy stepped from the crowd, walking up the steps, only to turn and stare at Yugi and his friends. "Hyo-Hyo-Hyo! You may have beaten me in the past, but my new ultimate insect deck will bring you to your knees Yugi!" With that, he turned and continued up the steps.
"Fourth, the runner up in past regional finals, Rex Raptor! Fifth, the famed duelist of the seas and past tournament competitor, Mako Tsunami! In sixth we have a bit of a dark horse competitor, past team member of the American champion Bandit Keith, we have Bonz.. um… uh, well just Bonz! Seventh, famed circus psychic and eerie psychic duelist, Espa Roba!" Through out the announcements, each one of the duelists walked up the steps, gathering at the top of the stairs, Mai and Yugi still standing with their friends. "What's up with this? How come their taking so long to announce me?" yelled Joey. This did seem strange as Joey had ranked higher than nearly all of the duelists after Yugi. "Ok, our Eighth duelist is a little known duelist, but his skills have not gone unseen, Bakura Ryu!" This announcement shocked Yugi and his friends, especially Bakura. "But, I'm hardly a duelist!" he gasped. "Ninth, we have Marik Ishtar, duelist from the Domino Museum of Egyptian History, participant of the Battle City Finals." This brought nothing short of shock of from Yugi. The battle between Yugi and Marik had been a brutal one. Marik had tried to use three exclusive cards known as God cards to take over the world, along with defeat Yugi and steal the his puzzle, in hopes of harnessing its power. Luckily, Yugi had defeated him, supposedly also banishing the evil side of Marik. Yugi could only watch as Marik ascended the stairs, not even paying Yugi notice. "Our Tenth duelist is not a top duelist of Japan. We held a drawing of over a million entrants for a chance do duel in the 2004 championship, and the winning person is, Tea Gardener!" Tea gasped, in total shock. "But how? I didn't even enter in the drawing?" she asked, completely lost. Yugi smiled, turning to his friend. "You didn't, but my Grandpa did. I told him how you handled yourself against the Big Five, and he was so impressed, he entered you." Joey gritted his teeth, growling loudly, glaring up at the screen. "Thats ten duelists! Only one slot left, and they've already called out a lottery winner? This is messed up!" Tristan and Bakura both had to hold Joey back, or else he'd likely climb up the front of the building itself just to punch the big screen. But before Joey could do anything more, the screen flickered, and once again, Seto Kaiba's face appeared. "I know you're all wondering who the final duelist is, and if you ask me, I feel he has no right or business in a championship tournament. He's a low dog or a duelist, nothing but a half rank amateur. You might remember him being dressed like a dog after losing a match to Duke Devlin. So by an obvious mistake, our twelfth and final duelist, Joey Wheeler." Tristan and Bakura and now Yugi had to use all their strength to hold Joey back now. " THAT KAIBA! Let me get my hands on that rotten creep, I'll make him swallow those words!" he yelled, his face completely red with anger. "Cool it man, you're in the tournament now, so calm down. Show him up by dueling well!" yelled Tristan. Yugi nodded "Tristan's right. Now come on, we've gotta get up there or else we're all out!" And with that, the group of friends moved up along the steps, ready to meet their future trials head on.