Zypher: Hello again to another wonderful chapter of Yami no Game! Glad you enjoyed the last chapter and I hope you enjoy this one just as much.

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Yami no Game: Dark Saga

Chapter 4

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-2 Hours into Dueling-

After the duel with Haga, Yami now had three star chips while Jounouchi, using his newly acquired glove, had only one. "Awright! Let's get outta this forest! It reeks of loser bugs still!" Jounouchi commented, now determined to catch up with Yami and find himself someone to duel. "Do you think Jou-kun will be alright...?" Diamond questioned as they followed the other teen out of the forest. "Who knows? If there are more duelists around Haga's league of dueling, without the tricks and cheats, then Jounouchi may not have much of a chance. I'm still wondering if he'll be able to make it to the finals..." Honda replied. "I guess the only thing we can do is cheer him on...after that, he's on his own to make the right moves when he's in the middle of a duel." Keara stated as they soon arrived in a grassy field. "Hey! I bet we can get an awesome view up on that hill!" Jounouchi called as he started sprinting towards said hill. "Geez! This isn't a field trip, Jou-kun!" Myrrh called before the rest of the group followed him. Jounouchi smiled as he stood upon the hill, looking out to the sea. 'What a great view...' His gaze turned up to the sky and he saw an image of Shizuka. Her bright smile and eyes and he smiled as well. 'Shizuka, I promise you...I'll show you scenery like this...I'll get that money so they can help you and you can see whatever scenery you like! Whoever you like! Whenever you like! I'll let you see it all!' Diamond turned to look behind them. "Hey, look everyone! There are duel boxes everywhere around here." she said, pointing to the various ones she could spot. Yami smiled. "Looks like the other duelists got over their cold feet and finally started dueling." he said and Yugi nodded with a smile. "Awright! I'm gonna duel as well!" Jounouchi said, burning with determination. "Pick out a weak person first, Jounouchi!" Honda snapped from behind him. Yami turned to him. "You also need to make sure you choose the right spot for your duel, Jou-kun."

"I know! Based on the field ya choose will determine whether yer monsters are strong or weak. Got it!" Jounouchi replied, looking around still. "Pay attention, Jou-kun." The blonde turned back to him, now having his full attention. "The other duelists might have found out the rules of the island by now even if they didn't watch my first match. They'll stake out the areas that put their monsters at an advantage and wait for a duelist to come by. So consider what field works best for your cards." he said and Jounouchi nodded. "Well, I have a lot of warrior and beast-warrior cards, so I guess it would be Sogen, the plains field."

"So right here would be Jounouchi's territory." Keara confirmed. "There's mountains to the left and sea to the right so it's best to make sure you don't wander any farther from here and give other people the advantage with making other areas blend together with your own."

"We're done! Give me your star chips and leave!" A familiar voice yelled. Jounouchi shivered. "No...not that voice..." he groaned, the need for previous bravado fading when said voice constantly mocked. "It's coming from that duel box!" Ryou pointed out, motioning to one not far away from them, the girl's laughter being heard from where they were. They walked closer to see what was going on but not any closer in hopes she wouldn't spot them. "Run home to your mommy, kid. This island is no place for an amateur like you." The kid she went up against grunted in disappointment. "I can't believe I lost." he spoke. She smirked as she walked off. "It's her! Kujaku Mai!" Honda uttered, drool seeping from his mouth. "And she already has four star chips!" Jounouchi exclaimed. Kaiser whapped Honda over the head and he grumbled as he rubbed the back of his head. "Didn't I tell you she's way out of your league? At least Jounouchi snapped out of it..." he grumbled before they heard Mai and the kid start to speak again. "I went easy on you because you're a girl...serves me right..." The kid mumbled. "But that wasn't all! How could I concentrate with that little trick you did with your cards! How'd you do it anyway? How can you read your cards while they were face down?!"

"That...is my secret~" she cooed, turning to take a glance back at him before walking off with a little spring in her step. "One step closer to the prize money!" she said happily before spotting the group. A smirk crossed her lips before walking over to them with an incredibly happy demeanor. "Hey, Yami. How are your duels going~?" she asked sweetly. He snorted but responded with a 'not bad'. 'Hmm, Yami has three star chips...he hasn't been in another duel since that one with Haga. But little Jounouchi here only has one...' Yami watched her intensely, knowing she was about to ask one of them to duel. 'And I'm betting she wants to go up against me so say it already.' he thought. "Ok, I've decided! I do want to have a duel! I challenge you, kiddo!" she said, pointing to Jounouchi. He looked flabbergasted as he pointed to himself. "Who me?!" he objected. Yami was surprised by this as well since he had the feeling that she would have asked to duel against him. 'But I guess she thought with Jou-kun having only one star chip, he's an easy picking to take out of the competition.' he thought. "Of course. You won't run away, will you...? Little boy~?" she questioned and Jounouchi snorted. "As a duelist, of course I would want to fight Yami like any other person. But with the rules of this island, that wouldn't be a good idea on my part since I may lose...just look what happened to Insector Haga after dueling him!" she said and that got a snicker from Honda and Kaiser at the thought of him still running to the boat with the giant hole in the backside of his pants. "First, I need to crush all the weaklings and collect my star chips! I'll fight Yami after that..." she spoke and Jounouchi sneered at being called a weakling. Yami bristled angrily. 'What a...! But she is right though. That's the way Pegasus had the island to work.'

"Jou-kun won't be able to beat her! Don't accept her challenge!" Diamond urged. "She's right! If you lose this duel, it's over!" Honda added. Myrrh looked over to Yami. "Yami! Please tell him that he shouldn't duel her!" He was silent once more before grinning. "Jou-kun! Do your best!"

"Thanks, Yami! I knew ya'd say that for me!" He left the group's side and they started to complain.

"Wait a sec, Jounouchi!"

"Yami...?" Jounouchi raised a hand to quiet them. "If I run away right here, right now...then from now on, whenever I look up at the sky, or the mountains...or the horizon...or even the sea...whenever I see such a wonderful view like this," He motioned to the plains around them. "I'll remember that I was the coward who ran away! I don't want to be a wimp! Yeah, there's a part of me afraid since I'm only a beginner at the game...but if there's another me inside of me, then I want him to be someone really cool!" The blonde then looked to Yami. "Right?" Yami nodded in agreement. "Oh, I get it now. Sorry for trying to get you to back out." Honda murmured. Diamond agreed while Mai smirked. Jounouchi then looked at her. "I accept your challenge, Mai!" he said, pulling out his deck. "Fine by me." She led him over to the nearest duel box and they sat down for their duel. From outside, the others watched, worrying still if Jounouchi would win but both Yami and Aqua trusts that Jounouchi will win. "Good luck, Jou-kun!"

"Yeah! You can win this!" Jounouchi nodded before looking at Mai. "Well, you only have one star chip, so I'll bet one as well." she said, removing one from her glove and placing it on the table. "I'll bet mine as well." He placed his on the table. 'This is my only star chip. I lose this and it's over for me.'

"Ok. The field we'll battle on is 40 percent mountain, 20 percent grassland and 20 percent wasteland." she said and Jounouchi took a glance to the field and gaped. "What kind of field is this?! This is unreal! How can it be in 3-D?!" he exclaimed. 'Calm down, Jou-kun. You have the grassland on your side of the field. Use it to your advantage.' Jounouchi looked around, his mind thinking that he heard Yami's thought to him before turning his full attention back to Mai. "Hey, Mai? Can I ask you something before we start this duel?" She looked to him questioningly, nodding. "Why did you come to the island? For honor? For the prize money?" She smirked. "Both!" She then sat back, looking smug. "If I win the prize money, I'll travel the world...no! I'll live in Paris for years and buy all the Chanel and Vuitton that I want!" she gloated, a big smile on her face. "Man...that's a pretty weak reason ta be here." Jounouchi muttered and she sat back up, glaring at him. "How dare you! And what about you then?! What are you here for?" she demanded. "I'm here...to save a life!"

She was stunned to hear this from such an underrated kid and from the sidelines, Yugi, Myrrh, Honda, Ryou and Diamond cheered him on. 'Go on, Jou-kun, and show her the strength of your convictions!' Yami thought as the duel began. Jounouchi drew his five cards and looked over to Mai who had hers face down in front of her. "W-Why aren't ya looking at yer cards?" he said in surprise. "It's simple...I already know my hand." she mused. 'No way...! That can't be possible!' What she said didn't only leave him baffled but the rest of the group was just as surprised. 'It can't be...how can she tell her cards while they're face down...?' Yami wondered, eyes narrowed. She smirked as she looked down to her cards. "I'll go first. For my first card, I'll play Harpie Lady and she gets a power boost from the mountains!" She said as the Harpie monster appeared onto the field and her attack increased to 1690. "My go! I play Tiger Axe in attack mode. He too gets a power boost from the grasslands. Attack!" Tiger Axe gave a roar before he went to attack Harpie Lady. Yugi gasped. 'Wait...Jou-kun didn't realize from Yami and Haga's duel! With the ability to fly, Harpie Lady can avoid Tiger Axe's attack!' As he thought, Harpie Lady flew up into the air, dodging the attack before swooping down. "Go, my Harpie! Scratch Clash!" Tiger Axe roared as the Harpie's sharp claws dug into his face, blinding him before another swipe of her claws destroyed him. 'This boy is completely distracted by my technique! What's more is that he's nothing but an amateur! He's no match for me and he'll be on the next boat off this island soon enough!'

"Jou-kun!" Myrrh cried, ears folded back in worry. "Aww man...! Is there any way he can beat her?! She already has the upper hand!" Honda spoke. Yugi would agree with his friends but seeing the look is Yami's eyes said otherwise. 'He still believes he can win and so do I!' Back in the duel box, Jounouchi was still thinking of how Mai could already know her cards while they're face down. He shook his head to get rid of the thoughts before drawing a card. "Alright! I'll play Demon Hunter Kojikocy!" he said, placing the monster onto the field and it gained a power boost, raising his attack to 1950. Yami tsked at Jounouchi's repeated mistakes. 'Jou-kun! You're making the same mistake as before! Not only that but she may aim for a combo this time! It will be useless to attack with just one card alone!' Mai laughed quietly to herself before drawing her next card. "Then I'll play this." She flipped the card face up and onto the board. "Electro-Whip! Harpie Lady's attack increases by 300 points." The whip appeared in the Harpie Lady's claws, increasing her attack to 1990. "Now attack that demon hunter, Harpie Lady! Lightning Whip!" Harpie Lady gave a screech before lashing the whip towards Kojikocy. With a wail of pain, he was destroyed and Jounouchi's life points decreased to 1120. "You won't be able to beat my Harpie Lady that easily, especially with a card like that! Each turn, she becomes more beautiful...more elegant...and most of all, deadlier!"

"Oh yeah! Well take this! Warrior of Gardna!"

"With pleasure! Cyber Bondage! Harpie Lady's attack and defense increases again!" Mai called, flipping over the card without looking at it and Harpie Lady was equipped with gold armor, her attack increasing to 2490. "Attack again! Cyber Lightning Whip!" With another flick of the whip, the blonde's monster was destroyed once more and his life points fell to 810. Mai laughed haughtily at him. "Learned your lesson yet? You're nothing but prey to me!"

'How? How is it possible for her ta know her cards while they're face down?! Does she have ESP or somethin'?' he wondered. 'No! Calm down, Jou-kun! It's just a trick! Don't let it get to you or it'll throw your game off!' Yami thought, now trying to connect with him mentally again but he wasn't able to get through. Jounouchi looked down, tears started to well up in his eyes. 'I'm not good enough...I just can't beat her...'

"C'mon, Jou-kun! You won't lose to her!" Yugi called, catching Mai's attention. "Hey, Yugi!" she called and Yugi turned to her. "What was it you said before...? "If you shout, the duelist will hear your feelings..." or something related to that and it will help them win? Then make this wimp win! He needs all the "feelings" you've got!" she goaded and Yugi growled. "Don't you see now? That kind of thing is useless. And here's some more advice...you can't become a true duelist and play with your friends at the same time! Today's friends can be tomorrow's enemies! That's what it means to be a duelist!" she finished. "Learn from me, duelists can't trust anyone but themselves! Take that into heart after your defeat!" Jounouchi flinched from her words and Yami snarled. Myrrh tussled her hair angrily. "Agggh! She's makes me so angry!" she hissed. "You're not the only one! I'll make Jou-kun win against you, Mai! With just one word and he'll defeat you!" he snapped and she gasped, turning to him. Jounouchi looked to him as well. "Yami...?" he whispered and Yami turned his gaze to him. "Jou-kun! This is a riddle! Answer it and you'll figure out a way to defeat her!"

"Huh?"

"What is 'Something you can show...but you can't see'?" he recited. 'Somethin' you can show but can't see...' he wondered, trying to think of the answer. Mai laughed out loud. "That's supposed to be a strategy?! That's gonna make him win alright! Sounds great! So let me see that happen!" Jounouchi turned away from his friends and thought about the answer. 'Wait! I know. It's friendship! The friendship I share with Yugi and the others! But...this time not even that can help me...' He looked back to Yami who was watching him closely. 'I'm sorry, Yami...I'm too dumb ta figure this out. I don't know what you're tryin' ta tell me.' He breathed a light sigh. 'Shizuka...I wish you were here so I can see ya...I'm nothin' but a rotten brother...I can't even fix yer eyes...'

"I wanted to see your face...for one last time..."

Her words echoed through the blonde's mind as he clenched his free hand in anger, closing his eyes and cursing beneath his breath before relaxing. 'The world of blindness...I wonder if it's pitch black like this. I can never let ya go into a world like this, Shizuka...' Soon, he saw a spark of light and started to smell something in the air and opened his eyes again. "I smell somethin' in the air...what was it?" Jounouchi looked over to Mai who was silent, just waiting to see what exactly was going to help him win. 'I don't recognize the smell when my eyes were open...I just thought it was that perfume she was wearin' but...this time I smell lots of different perfumes! They're each distinct! I noticed 'em only when my eyes were closed so why...?' he pondered then the realization hit him. "Come on, now! It's your turn! I don't have all day to deal with you!" Mai called. "I got it now! I figured out yer little trick!" he growled and she gasped.

"No way!"

"Yes way! By puttin' perfumes on yer cards in advance...yer able to tell which cards they are by smellin' each one! I get what Yami was tryin' ta tell me! Ya can show the cards, but ya can't see the smell..." Mai gaped in horror. 'No way! He's nothing but a newbie! How could he easily figure out my "Aroma-tactics"?!' Jounouchi stood up from his seat and pointed to her. "Man, ya weirded me out there for a while but ya only did that ta throw me off my game! But now that I'm on to yer little scheme, I can play ta my fullest!" he declared. "All right, Jounouchi! Teach her a lesson!" Honda cheered. Jounouchi looked over to Yami and smiled. 'Thanks, Yami. You were a big help.' he thought and he saw Yami nod before turning back to Mai who was fuming with anger. "So you saw through my trick, big deal! You still couldn't beat me in 1000 years!" she hissed. "It's strange though...just havin' my friends watchin' my back makes me feel like you're not all that tough. And while I'm at it, I'll take ya up on that 1000 years thing!" He drew his card and placed it into his hand. "Now, I'll play Baby Dragon in defense mode!" he said as the little orange dragon appeared onto the field with a coo. 'That card...! Yugi gave Jou-kun that card while we were on the boat!' Jounouchi looked over to Yugi and grinned. 'I'm not gonna waste this card ya gave me!' Mai laughed again. "Good choice, Jounouchi! A card for babies! Well, at least you were smart enough to place it in defense so you wouldn't get hurt when I kill it. So instead of doing that, I'll play this card! Elegant Egotist! The splendid mirror image! Now I have three Harpie Ladies! Harpie Lady one...two...and three!" As she spoke, the two Harpie Ladies flew onto the field, each sporting a different hairstyle to stand next to their red-headed sister. "What?! Now there's more of 'em?!"

"He already had problems with just one! Now he has to deal with three?! This isn't going to go well." Ryou spoke softly. "Jounouchi! Hang in there!" Honda called. Jounouchi gulped with fear and Mai only smiled at the look of fear he held. "I'm glad to see you fear me now but lucky for you, after I use Elegant Egotist, I can't attack. So take your turn." she said as he drew his card. "I play Garoozis in attack mode! Attack those Harpie Ladies!" Garoozis charged in to attack and they dodged out of the way. "Prey my harpies! Whip Garoozis!" The harpies did as told and whipped Garoozis fiercely, destroying him and bringing Jounouchi down to a mere 120 life points. 'There's not a card in my deck that can defeat them! I can't win now!' Yami placed a hand against the box, watching Jounouchi. 'Don't give up just yet, Jou-kun! Kujaku-san's combo is based on powering up one Harpie Lady with more than 10 magic cards and equipment cards! But because of that, it has a fatal flaw! Namely aside from that single Harpie Lady, her deck is filled with nothing but cards to support that monster! If you destroy her Harpie Lady, her whole strategy will fall!' he thought to him and Jounouchi nodded, hearing the thought directed to him.

'You will win if you draw one certain card! The card that Yugi gave to you!'

-Flashback-

"Hey Yugi!" Jounouchi called as he picked up the box that once contained the puzzle. "What's this box?" he asked as he sat down beside the younger teen. "Oh! That's the box I used to keep the Sennen Puzzle in! But now, I use it to store my important cards in it." he said as he took off the lid and pulled out the little deck of cards. "Oh yeah! That reminds me," He shuffled through the cards before taking one out. "I wanted to give you this card before I forget about it! You should take it with you to the island!" Jounouchi took the card and read it.

"The Time Wizard? What does he do?"

"He can do lots of things. For example, if you use it with Baby Dragon, it can forward time by a thousand years and turn Baby Dragon into an adult dragon!"

"Wow! That sounds handy!" Yugi nodded in agreement. "It is! He's a super reliable card! Take it!" Jounouchi smiled and nodded. "Thanks, Yugi!"

-End Flashback-

'The Time Wizard! That's what I need!' Jounouchi thought. "C'mon now! You only have one turn to live! Why don't you give up and give me your cards along with that star chip right now?" Mai snapped impatiently. Jounouchi looked through his hand and saw he didn't have the monster he needed. 'Great, I don't have it in my hand! I'll have to draw it then. Those are some pretty big odds that it will show up.' he thought, looking down to his deck where the card he needed resided. 'Trust in your cards, Jou-kun! Trust in them!' Jounouchi closed his eyes and reached for his deck, drawing the card. "Here goes!" he said, hoping that it will be the one. Yami smirked when Jounouchi's conviction bore fruit, picking up just what he needed to finish this duel for good. "Yes! Just what I needed! Go Time Wizard!" he declared and the clockwork wizard appeared on the field, getting a confused look from Mai. "Don't ya know who this is? It can speed up time! It zooms forward 1000 years and turns the Baby Dragon into an adult!" Yami chuckled as he listened. 'Jounouchi...that's not all Time Wizard is capable of...'

"Go Time Wizard! Time Magic!" The monster waved his staff and soon, time started to zoom by until a thousand years had gone by and where his Baby Dragon once stood now is a much older dragon. "After 1000 years go by, Baby Dragon becomes Thousand Dragon!" Mai huffed. "So what! Your dragon got a little bigger! That senile old thing can't compare to my harpies' attack! Kill it, Harpie Lady Sisters!" she called but when she looked to the field, she gasped. 'M-My harpies are wrinkly...with gray hair!' Yami snickered to himself. 'Just as I thought. 1000 years passed on the spot and her harpies grew old and lost their power! Poor Kujaku-san...not only losing but losing your beauty may have been too cruel.'

'Whoa...' Jounouchi thought, also stunned at the other effect Time Wizard caused to the field. "I-I'm surprised too...I didn't know it'd do that." His façade changed and he grinned. "But either way! Let's go, Thousand Dragon! Attack with Thousand Nose Breath!" The dragon let out a low roar before flapping his wings and launched himself into the air. Hovering high above the harpies, the dragon unleashed a wave of fire from his snout to attack the harpies. With that attack, the rest of Mai's life points decreased to zero. "N-nooo! I...I lost..." The others cheered for Jou's victory and Jounouchi turned to Yami, smiling at him. "Thanks, Yami!" he said and Yami nodded. 'I know your presence was in my mind, helping me out through the duel and I'm glad for that. Yer presence really did change the way this duel was goin' in my mind.' Jounouchi thought before looking back to Mai. "Kujaku Mai...I may not be a "true" duelist but let me tell ya this one little thing...there's one thing that doesn't change even after 1000 years..." he said. "What...?" she whispered. "It's...something you can show...but you can't see!" he remarked before taking his cards and the star chip he won before leaving out the duel box and left, ready for the next challenge awaiting them.

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Zypher: There! Done with this chapter and I hope you all enjoyed it. Now time for a good ol' story from the big book of Duel Monsters Stories! Enjoy.

-Shadow Realm: Jounouchi's Deck-

After the duel, all the monsters relaxed. Garoozis groaned in pain as he rubbed at the wounds on his arms. "Man, those harpies can really whip someone." he mumbled as he looked around for Giltia, the only warrior who knew healing magic. He soon spotted the other talking with Fier, the Flame Swordsman, and walked over. "Hey, you two!" he called and they turned to him. "Whoa! What happened to you, Garoozis?!" Fier asked in surprise. "The duel Katsuya-sama got it dealt with some heavy hitting ladies and I took the brunt of the attack from three. I heard someone talking about Kojikocy taking the hit from only one and that was less than what I took but it still very damaging." he explained and Giltia winced. "That must've really hurt."

"No kidding. Those whips they had were electrified." he explained, wincing again as he moved his tail slightly, stretching some of the wounds there. "Here, let me heal those for you then I'll go and see Kojikocy." Giltia spoke as he waved his staff and a green light engulfed the lizard warrior, healing all the lacerations so that the scales were unblemished once more. Garoozis smiled and thanked him. "No problem." Giltia replied before he walked off, saying goodbye to them before starting his search for the other warrior. "Oh yeah! If you see Tiger Axe, you best heal him too. Heard he went blind from an attack to the face before he was destroyed!" Garoozis yelled and Giltia nodded before he was gone from sight. After he was gone, Fier turned to Garoozis. "So, you say Jou-sama won the duel, right? Who was he up against and who defeated the opponent?" he asked and they walked off. "He was going against that girl. Kujaku Mai I think her name was. Laito was the one to win the duel with time on his side." Garoozis claimed and Fier nodded. "Must've been harsh with the way you looked after that battle. How did he win?"

"Katsuya-sama pulled out the Time Wizard and remembering what Master Yugi told him that day before they left for the boat, he combined his Time Magic with Laito, created Meneg and destroyed the Harpie Lady Sisters." Garoozis explained. "So now we have two dragons living here. Hopefully Meneg is wise enough to keep Laito in line even if he's Laito's older self. That little scaly ball of energy is gonna been seen as something annoying by some monster soon enough."

"I agree with you on that. I think that Giltia himself is getting annoyed with the little dragon as Laito is always seen attached to him while he's training." They both had a laugh about the last time Giltia was seen sparring with Ohtar and the little dragon almost had a question to ask about every second of the spar. "Yeah. Hopefully Giltia won't try anything." Fier laughed. "Nah. I'm sure he wouldn't. Laito may be an energetic little dragon but we all care for him." Fier stated and Garoozis agreed with him. "Well, since it may be a while before Jou-sama finds another battle, how about we go for a little spar ourselves?" Garoozis suggested and Fier agreed before they left for the sparring grounds, passing Giltia on the way who now had the energetic Laito glued to the hip, talking about the duel that Jounouchi won just seconds ago.

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Zypher: Ah, nothing like good humor to add when it comes to Jounouchi's deck. Can't help it either since Jounouchi is one to make a lot of humor on and off the dueling field. -laughs- Anyways, hope you enjoyed the little story and I also need some help with a name for Tiger Axe. Went to my handy elven name site to look up a name for him and Arperilsilmar is the elven name for tiger which I think is a little long. But I want to know what you think. Should his name be that or Tigre, maybe even another name if you guys can think up one. Give me your suggestions or votes in your reviews and I'll see what I will choose for him by the next time Jounouchi gets into a duel. But for now, I'll see you all later.

Translations:

Ohtar: Warrior

Laito (for those who haven't read my one shot Western Love in Lover's Collection): Baby

Meneg: Thousand