Kintaro didn't know what to do. As he lied in bed, he thought of the sword on his neck. Did dad even know about this? The thoughts in his head ran like a river rushing towards a waterfall. Each thought passing rapidly and in a blur. Soon, each thought fell far down. Down into the pool where the waterfall ended, the deepest recesses of Kintaro's mind.

So I'm destined to protect Yugi. Damnit, why does the world revolve around that kid? Pegasus, Kaiba, the millennium ring, Marik and his plans for world destruction. All of these connected to little Yugi. He stopped each one of 'em.

Shutting himself up, Kintaro walked out of his tiny room and into the kitchen. Pouring himself a glass of whiskey, he walked into the slightly larger living room. The jungle of comic books, clothes, and other assorted objects still covered the floor. Looking up at the clock, little and big hands resting on the twelve, Kintaro knew this would be another long night. Flipping through the channels, he thought to himself again.

It doesn't seem all that illogical. I mean the White Paladin himself is a card depicting the most loyal servant in Duel Monsters. If this card is my signature, could it be tied to my destiny as a protector myself?

"Kintaro Akechi made his force known today as he defeated two Top 10 ranked duelists. Chi McCabe and Rebecca Hawkins. Each felt drastic losses, but Ms. Hawkins lost all her credits and thus was eliminated from this season of the IDC. Kintaro Akechi was a renowned duelist in his four years in the Tiger League. He won all years he participated with extreme ease." The announcer on the DNN (Duelists National Network) said.

The female reporter's soft voice was putting Kintaro to sleep. He downed one more shot and stared at the TV harder than before as he saw the duel between him and Chi.

"Kintaro also showed his ferocious side when he finished Chi McCabe with a devastating blow. She summoned her most powerful card, the Mazzera DeVille, and wiped out his hand. In the process, she unleashed Kintaro's Despair from the Dark, preventing a clean shot at his life points. After this, Kintaro unleashed a fury as he reborned a creature and summoned his mighty White Paladin, one of the rarest cards in the world. The White Paladin is an artifact rare, only three in the world, even though it's ranked 6th on the Kaiba Corps. Rarity Graph. Kintaro's is thought to be the only one in circulation as the other two have never been found."

Kintaro stared in amazement as he saw the fiery red glow in his eyes as he commanded the white knight to strike down Chi. Damn, Kintaro thought. As he watched the remaining moments of the duel, he dozed off.

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"He lives in this dump? It's an apartment! He's a Kaiba!" The first voice said.

"Keep it down, you don't want to wake him up." The second and deeper voice said.

Carefully picking the lock open on the door, the two shadowy figures slowly stepped into the room. As if on thin ice, the two men slid quietly and serenely across the disastrous floor.

"I think that's him on the couch." The second voice whispered deeply.

He pointed to the recliner in front of the TV. A snoring Kintaro Akechi didn't stir as the two intruders snooped around.

"Find it. We need it no matter what the cost. His deck would also be a nice pick-up." The first voice said.

As they looked around the kitchen, they found nothing but Ramen noodle cups and a sink full of dirty dishes. The second shadow motioned to the first one to go towards Kintaro's room. As they opened the first door, they only found a bathroom. The next door opened and unleashed a wave of cologne-infected air. A small mattress on the floor and a desk with a state-of-the-art laptop computer.

"Look everywhere. We need it." The second voice said.

". . . Hey Sphinx!" The first one said as he poked the second man.

"Shut up Karl!" Sphinx said in his low voice.

"But Kintaro-"

"Kintaro is our obstacle. Be quiet and we'll leap right over him." Sphinx interrupted Karl.

"Because Karl, if he wakes up -"

SMACK!POW!SMACK!THUD!

In three seconds, both of the men were on the ground. Kintaro stood over both of them.

"Ass rats. I'll teach you two to come into my house." Kintaro said.

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The morning was busy. The month was halfway over. Kintaro know had on his black, long-sleeved, under armor. He still wore his deep blue denim jeans. It kept him cool on hot days like today. Sliding on his duel disk and placing his deck in the placeholder, Kintaro cracked his knuckles and walked to his car in front of the apartment. It wasn't a great day for walking like he had been the past couple of days. Kintaro had a nice set of wheels. An old Corvette his dad left him. He started the car and let the hum of the engine sooth his tension.

The two goons that broke into Kintaro's house had been looking for his Pendant. After 'dealing' with them, Kintaro had found out that they were working for a man named Makeel Grudok. Grudok was an evil man. Suspected in several murders but never convicted. What would he need with my spirit?

How are you Kintaro?

What the hell . . . are you my sword's spirit?

Yes, I am simply known as Berserker. The man you seek has a connection somehow to the past. Be careful when looking for him.

I have a question. Did you -

Questions waste time. I'll answer everything after we find Grudok. It's imperative that we find him and learn of why he needs me so bad.

Fine, fine. Don't freak out on me.

The day went very slow. The heat poured onto the city like a thick fog. The search hadn't been going very well either.
A few duels and Kintaro was now up to 4th place.

1. Kaiba - 90 credits
2. Grinnex Xavier The 9th - 66 credits
3. Masamune Baba - 49 credits
4. Kintaro Akechi - 38 credits
5. Dante "Shadow" Halter - 30 credits
6. Bakura Ryou - 25 credits
7. Chi McCabe - 24 credits
8. Joey Wheeler - 21 credits
9. Bandit Keith - 19 credits
10. Makeel Grudok - 18

"I need some concrete evidence and I have no other places to look." Kintaro said to himself as he cruised down the streets, looking for duels and suspicious Janes and Joes. Pulling up to a brightly colored shop, Kintaro parked and yawned.

"Hey buddy, how 'bout a duel?" A tall guy in a black suit said.

". . . Have we met before?" Kintaro said staring up at the man.

"Forgive me. I am Dennis Quigley. I have been looking for a worthy dueling opponent. After I saw the rankings, I figured there was nobody else I should challenge but a Kaiba family member." He said professionally.

Stepping out of his car and looking at the challenger more clearly, Kintaro was kind of surprised. He was wearing a business suit with a black tie. He also had thin-rimmed glasses, classy shoes, and a clean face under smooth black hair. About the same height as Kintaro, he smiled faintly and stuck out his hand. Kintaro stared in a little disbelief, but reluctantly shook.

"If you want to duel, meet me two blocks down at the White Rose. We can duel in their arena. See you there." The man said as he handed Kintaro a card.

"Wait, that restaurant has a . . . dueling arena?" Kintaro said as he paused.

Dennis had disappeared just as quickly as he had shown up.

"What a quack." Kintaro said.

The White Rose was a very high-class restaurant. Kintaro would never of had the faintest idea that they had a dueling arena. That guy must be a real high roller to be getting us a place like that.

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The lobby of the White Rose was just as he expected. Kintaro had thrown on his dark gray vest to hold his deck (and a few surprises in case he got jumped). Looking at the card he had received, the host walked up to him.

"Ah, mister . . . Akechi. Right this way. Mr. Quigley has arranged for you two to duel." The stout old man said as he guided Kintaro around several tables where many wealthy folk sat talking about their ideas for world domination.

"Here's your venue, Mr. Quigley will be here shortly. Enjoy your duel." The host said as he walked Kintaro towards a metal door in back of the kitchen.

Opening the door, Kintaro saw a long, downward staircase. As he reached the door about fifty feet later, he felt the handle and opened the door.

A large dome was now in front of him. There were two stations on either side of the circle. Dueling stations. Two podiums on either side with slots for cards. A state-of-the-art Kaiba model, how fitting.

"Welcome Kintaro. I trust you weren't kept too long." Dennis said as he approached from a door on the other side. He still wore the same business suit.

"Let us get started. First off, I am here to kill you. Secondly, I want that Sword of yours." Dennis said now more serious.

"I figured there was more to you than what meets the eye." Kintaro said as he walked to the podium and placed his deck in the empty spot. He had left his duel disk in his car. He figured that the arena would have it's own system.

The doors both locked and slammed into place as the holographic lights around the dueling area lit up. Both podiums slid out towards each other and each settled into an empty square space inside the circle (opposite each other and as far out of the center of the circle as they could).

"Now this is the way the duel works. See the ground below the podiums? It will soon disappear and fill with a shadowy liquid. This liquid will sap the energy straight out of you. The more life point damage you take, the farther you sink in. Once your life points reach zero, you're banished to the shadow realm where your soul will be torn into a thousand pieces and spread throughout darkness!" Dennis said, as his voice was now fierce and gruesome.

"Answer me this. Do you work for Grudok?" Kintaro said staring at the dark liquid filling the pool below them.

"Very perceptive. Yes I do and he'll be glad when I finish you off!" Dennis said placing his deck as well.

"Good, because I wanted to send that scum ball a message. So I'll pound it into you so you can deliver it. Oh wait, never mind. You'll be dead by the time I'm done with you!" Kintaro said feeling the adrenaline tickle his body.

Kintaro Akechi Vs. Dennis Quigley

"I'll wager fifteen credits. How about you?" Dennis said.

"Sounds good. Let's get rolling." Kintaro said as he drew his hand, as did Dennis.

"Since I am the host, I'll play first. I activate Poison of the Old Man! You take 1200 points of damage!"

K - 6800 D- 8000

Damnit, he's got to have a burner deck. Kintaro's podium sunk a little bit and the liquid almost touched his feet.

"Next, I'll play two cards facedown as well as Bowganian in attack mode! The end is near, you cannot stop me!" Dennis said as he ended his turn.

After drawing, Kintaro said, "I will play Harpie's Feather Duster!"

"I activate my trap card, Magic Sickness! I can discard a card from my hand to negate your magic and deal 500 points of damage to your life points!" Dennis said.

K - 6300 D - 8000

Kintaro felt the liquid eagerly reaching for his feet. Kintaro was too close now.

"Fine, I'll set one of my own and Blood Vorse in attack mode! Attack Bowganian!" Kintaro yelled.

"I activate Gravity Bind! Ha! You're powerhouse monsters are of no use to you anymore!" Dennis said.

Ending his turn reluctantly, Kintaro watched Dennis.

"I'll draw and let Bowganian's effect take place. You lose 600 life points!" Dennis said.

The little crossbow-wielding machine shot a bolt at Kintaro who felt the first touch of the goo below him.

K - 5700 D- 8000

The sensation was terrible. Kintaro felt weak. But not weak enough.

"Next I'll play another Poison of the Old Man! Reducing your life points again!" Dennis said grinning evilly.

The little old man appeared again and threw a green tube at Kintaro, which shattered into an acidic mist.

K - 4500 D - 8000

"DAMNIT!" Kintaro yelled as the liquid reached his knees.

"Face it, you're finished! I will watch you die here! Hahaha!" Dennis laughed maniacally.