As with the show, it went beat for beat. And I just sat back and became a viewer. Not wanting to intervene or dispute anything that occurred. Yet even when the duel ended abruptly, I couldn't help but feel bad and frustrated with the kid. So as soon as Yuya began to whine and be all gloomy… I decided to not just leave. Instead, I went to watch the duel that gave Yuya his smile and relearn exactly what his father did to push the boundaries of Action Duels. A touching story of just what Yusho Sakaki had to do to become a legend. Nice to see Mrs. Sakaki join us for a bit to watch the light in her son return.
So inside of just hoping right into what I thought would be the next episode with the creepy smile guy, things seemed to return to being… not an episode. Weird thing to say but after I just stayed inside, looking for more strategies with my deck, and then when to You Show things were average at best. Just like this world was alive and breathing and not just going along a said path day by day. Though at least two days after things settled down, I was lucky enough to go spend some time with Yuzu who wanted to go shopping with me. Most likely because I was the only other girl in You Show that was Ayu. Who might I add was spending quality time with her family?
"So… anything interesting at school today?" I asked while we walked down the street.
"Eh, you know besides Yuya getting yelled out in class just the same old things," Yuzu smiled as we finally reached the shop, "Here we are! I'm just so excited to get some new clothes."
"No kidding…" I followed her into the little clothing shop and got greeted by an employee.
"Honestly, I'm glad Yuya's starting to feel better. He just can't stop talking about becoming a pro like his dad and whatnot every time we have a conversation." Yuzu started to go through a rack of shirts, "And don't get me started on what I've been hearing from Niles."
"Oh right… that guy's still doing his own thing and being supportive to Yuya." I sighed, thinking back to Niles, "He seems pretty cool… maybe I brush up my skills by dueling him some more. Wouldn't be cool if I could incorporate XYZ into my deck? I could totally surprise everyone!"
I looked up from the rack I was looking in - being one for shirts more of my size - to see Yuzu's eyes downcasted. Oops… looks like that struck a nerve. Kind of forgot she lost to Masumi and feels bad about it… Okay… how can I lift the mood?
"Hey Yuzu look at this," I pulled at a random shirt and showed her the print of a kitty, "Isn't this one so cute?"
She must have noticed my smile was forced, but she only faintly smiled back. "Yeah… so cute…"
"I'm sorry Yuzu. I forgot how touchy you are about that subject still…" My heart couldn't take it so I apologized. "This is just a day where we can just be girly and I ruined it."
"No, you didn't! It's just that…" Her voice trailed off as she pulled out a shirt, eyes downcasting to view the tag, "I can't stop thinking about what I could have done to win the battle! The defeat against Masumi… I wish I could have done more!"
"...Geez, what is up with people and getting upset over losing duels…" I mumbled before clearing my throat. Perhaps I could lighten up the situation. "You know Yuzu, I don't think that your defeat was that bad… I mean I was a terrible Duelist when I was with my friend. I often lost a ton of matches. Pretty much became a laughing stock whenever I was up to duel."
"Huh? Really?" She asked as I leaned to one side looking at a sweet jacket. Yuzu had placed the shirt back on the rack. "I couldn't imagine you losing a match. At least that often as you say."
"Just have special summoning methods doesn't guarantee you victory. I learned that the hard when I was dueling my first few years. Resorting to copying other decks to use instead of one that matched what I loved and who I was." I couldn't help but imagine those memories of us dueling. "It took me so long to realize that I wasn't failing because I didn't have the right cards or methods like Fusion, Ritual, XYZ or Synchro. What I was lacking was the heart."
"Heart? That's a strange thing to value." Yuzu bluntly stated.
"I know that's weird to hear but hear me out…" I trailed off as I felt a flashback going on. Though instead I was more quoting him. "'You can have the most overpowered cards, combos and overall deck in your possession. But you can easily fail if you lack any heart in your deck. I don't just mean memorizing the combos, blocking counters or simply knowing your opponent. Lacking any heart in your deck will easily get you a loss. You need to believe in yourself and your deck. Without that, you're just an average Duelist.'"
"Wow…" Yuzu blinked twice.
"And that's what I did… at least for a while. I decided to start using the cards I liked and believing in myself. I guess that's how all my knowledge of duels works into my dueling style." I scratched the back of my looking at the price of this jacket, "That was a fun time where I was starting to win… Saffira, Queen of Dragons as my ace monster."
"So you choose to go with a Ritual Deck?"
"Yeah. It wasn't like I didn't have some other things side deck. It was a fun deck to play around. Resulted in some more wins on my part. I loved that Deck so much; it felt some much like me. I kept on playing up and until my friend moved far away."
"But you said he left you and you stopped Dueling right? And your parents burnt your Deck? Why would… you just give up?" She asked and I froze on the spot.
"Um… well how about I save that for another time? I got what I wanted! Let's get going Yuzu. I think it's getting pretty late already," Ignoring, that question, I started walking towards the long line.
There was no way I could just tell Yuzu why I stopped dueling. Now wasn't the time to divulge anything to somebody I was still only just considering a friend. Yet not long after did Yuzu finally speak about the Miami Championships and the qualifications. Seemed like this was a big deal just like in the show. Well, good for them. I mean, sure I could try and qualify but that would be too much pressure. I'm still getting back into the groove of Dueling and now wasn't the ideal time. Besides… I wanted to instead focus more on the fact Yuto and Shun were running around carding people left and right. I literally had to throw a drink and stain Shingo's clothes at one point when Yuzu and I were out and talking about Yuya for crying out loud! Though this day looked promising… because while this should be like any other day Niles and I were sitting around talking about the next installment to the series.
"And you're not willing to go try and qualify for the Miami Championship because it's not worth your time… correct?" Niles asked me once again as we were resting on a park in one of the park areas. Kids were running around as I was finishing up a water bottle.
"Yeah, and plus my record only lists like one duel and I need at least 50 matches with a 60% win rate. That is literally impossible between then and now," I folded my arms as I kicked up my feet onto the table, "So there's no reason why I would duel in front of a live audience. Besides… I like to be in the crowd and support people. You?"
"I'm already qualified," He showed me his record with a 73% win rate, "But I guess your reason makes sense. You already lost one Duel. Though I think everyone else would have loved to see you participate."
"Like some miracle would happen and I'd suddenly find myself a participant," I joked a bit as I finished my water, "Though I got a quick question, Niles. You're the You Show Duel School's main XYZ user, right? Why haven't you been teaching the others how to XYZ summon?"
"Me? Well…" His voice trailed off before he continued. Though in those moments of silence something in his eyes changed. "...They prefer very much to stick with the decks. And for some odd reason, those kids can't listen to simple instructions. XYZ isn't hard to pull off you know? At least not as bad as when you tried to teach them Synchro."
"Don't remind me." I groaned thinking back to that one day, "Yuya kept forgetting to have a Tuner on his field… Yuzu kept getting the levels wrong for the monsters… I see the point."
Getting up, I walked over to the nearby recycling bin and placed the bottled before heading back, seeing Niles get up when some LDS students past by. I did return to his side but there was something off about their behavior.
"What's their deal?" I asked Niles.
"...Something about another LDS personal getting attacked." He shrugged, "And it was some guy that didn't appear like Yuya yet was using XYZ. I guess by that logic they thought it would be me."
"Yeah, like that would actually be you…" I folded my arms just as I got a call from my phone. "Odd. I wasn't expecting a call today." Opening the screen, I read the name before pressing the accept button.
"Oh, thank goodness you picked up! You need to come over here right away!" I was surprised to hear the voice on the other end yelling at me. Even at this volume, I think Niles could hear who called.
"What's the deal with you calling me on my day off?" I asked, putting this on speaker so I won't go deaf.
"It's important! You need to get to the docks right away because-!" Then the line suddenly went dead; not good at all.
"Who was that?" Niles asked as I closed my phone and pocketed it.
"...That was Yuzu… and whatever is going… it's not good." I started to run off, "And I can't waste any time!"
Niles ended up joining me as we raced over to the docks. Whatever was happening over there couldn't be good for Yuzu. My memory tried to jog on what occurred in an episode that would be like this… but nothing came up! It was a huge blank spot in my head and I wasn't liking how it sounded on her end. By the time we arrived the sun was setting and my gut was warning me about something. Neither Niles nor I knew where had last called me, so we went running around trying to see any sign of Yuzu.
"Damn it! Where could they be?" Niles asked as we stopped by one of the main warehouses.
"Why are there so many damn warehouses?!" I asked before I fanned myself a bit. "Geez, I think I need to go back out shopping to get some shorts with Yuzu…"
"Heh, getting tired already?" I jabbed his shoulder, "Ouch!"
"You know what, how about we split up? I'll go left and you go right. That way we can cover more ground." I suggested, "We can call each other once we locate Yuzu."
"Sounds good." Niles then went right and I went my way.
Splitting up would be a smart move. Then if something outside the knowledge of the show happened, one of us could do something… at least that was my plan. Yet once I saw another lame of warehouses I groaned. Seriously!? How hard is it to locate a warehouse that should be sort of activity? A duel should be easy to find in Yugioh; they're the whole point of the show!
"...Why are you glowing again?" I asked, pulling out the Spell Card from before. It was glowing a faint white but remained almost the same as how it first brought me here. "Unless…"
Lifting it up, I noticed how it started glowing more in one direction than the other. Oh! So I guess this card has a use besides being the MacGuffin. Wonderful! At last maybe now I can use for something more not just wait for a fated Duel. So I followed wherever this card was leading me to. Most likely Yuzu; she was what I was looking for in the first place. It didn't take long before the card suddenly stopped glowing in front of one warehouse. Guess that meant she'd be in her. Placing the card back into my deck, I walked to open the shutters and when I did…
The first thing I could see what a bring burning destruction to crates and whatnot finally settling. It sent chills down my spine as I backed away, smoke and ash escaping from whatever just occurred. Something happened to cause this mess… but I couldn't make out if it was done by a duel or not. No Yuzu in sight… yet I was brought here by the MacGuffin card. Why would it bring me here and not to where I wanted to go? This card is getting more and more on my-!
Just then something moved. Not the burning fire seemingly giving out ash and smoke. It was a solid dark silhouette of something. Squinting, it didn't take me long to realize it was more than a thing.
"No way-!" My eyes widen, seeing the strange Duelist wearing a dark cloak. Yet that wasn't what got me to freeze in place. It was the unique shade of coloring underneath the dark cloak. "Hey!"
I tried to reach out, to confirm my suspicions about who was underneath. My hand clenched the fabric, pulling it away to reveal more of the black fabric. Only one character I knew wore something like this. But it was impossible; he shouldn't even exist-! Yes as soon as my hand released the fabric, they suddenly vanished after a light flashed. It wasn't from me or from Yuzu, as I looked back to see that she wasn't nearby like I thought. Plus, the light looked more like rainbowish than a solid color. Which was, very, odd.
Had I… really seen… him? But if I did, wouldn't this mean-!?
I shook my head as I curled up my hands into fists. No way was that possibly the person I was thinking of. Too many questions would have to be brought up if that was the truth. Just then, the ringer on my phone went off and I quickly answered it.
"Lowell! I found Yuzu but… I think you should see who else I found," I sighed in relief hearing Niles on the other end. "Don't worry she's fine but… I think it would make sense to explain it to you."
"Okay. Just wait and I'll be right over." I ended the call as I looked once more across this crime scene. Then I swiftly turned and left, not caring for the strange gut feeling that I was being watched or what I just witnessed.
?, Miami City, 3rd P.O.V.
As the light died down, he glanced around and noticed the change in location. His suspicion turned out to be true though. He was somewhere else in the city. No longer at the docks after-!
He winced in pain, grabbing his left shoulder and feeling the trickling wound's pain resurface. Right. There was something more he needed to attend to. Walking a few steps, he ducked before a dumpster before taking a good look at the wound. Not extremely deep - but enough to start bleeding and get infected if not attended to swiftly. Darting to his cloak, he tore some of it off before hastily tying it over the wound.
Of course one of them had to be here. That caused a lot more problems with the current plan. No medical resources or backup could be provided. A solo mission like this meant he couldn't be careless. Conflicting with the other force inside him clawing for another sweet taste of battle. Couldn't indulge that desire anymore; not when that endangered his own safety and the plan.
He needed to find her. Once he did, he could finally get some treatment. Then, finish what they had started. Even if, there was an unforeseen new contender in the ring.
Revision: 10/22/18
Ignore some of what is below in the Author's notes. Things have been changed and no longer applies. This goes with Tanith, Devnet, and Meletta. These girls are back in the story and have their own role to play. That being said the original hooded figure was changed into somebody else. I will reveal the change once I officially introduce them properly.
That is all I have for this revision update.
And here is where the pre-written reboot chapters end for now. I thought this would a fun thing to do in my spare time and since I wanted to finish the original Yugioh Arc-V Dimension Zero. Plus with all of Yugioh Arc-V Anime finally done with it made perfect sense to start this backup. I've got no plans to write and Yugioh VRAINS since I'd like to see what the anime story is going with before I tackle what I'd like to go with. That's the main big reason I discontinued the original one.
Though let's go beyond that and address a couple of changes I'm making from the original! I'll quickly go through them all.
Firstly I've decided that Lowell with have no Dimensional Counterparts. This was the first major thing I wished to change simply because during my reboot outline for this story I came to realize just how out of place and how massive a plot hole would become. So sadly, Tanith, Devnet, and Meletta will have to be put on the bench. (But whether I decided to make them their own separate characters if up in the air.)
Secondly, anything involving Dimension Zero or Dark Synchros aren't scrapped. If you recall from the original story, they were both introduced quite early on. This time I'm just pushing them a bit back for later on down the line in the Standard Arc. Both will become very relevant when the time comes.
Thirdly, I decided that for most Duels I'll have them consist of being inside a single Chapter/Episode. Mainly because this is just easier for me to write in a single sitting and doesn't divulge into having many Duels being split into two or more separate Chapters. There are going to be a few exceptions to these rules when the time comes - such as when two or more duels are going on at the same time. Only then would this rule not apply and I can break up the Duels into multiple chapters.
And fourthly, I hope to actually finish this one and not leave it either abandoned or take too long of a hiatus. Reading those reviews and actually seeing people enjoy my fanfiction made me so happy back then. Seeing some people have theories and even one person got one of the ideas I had for the original one right! Not going to say who got what right though; that will be up to you guys to figure out.
Still, I'd like to have people leave some feedback if I messed something up on accident: be it a miscalculation, monster/card effect or just a spelling/grammar error. If anything I will try to give myself at least five days between posting chapters to respond to feedback and correct any errors should there be any. If I end up taking a hiatus or something happens to prevent an upload going to my schedule it will be added to my profile page. Though currently, I'm planning to update between one to two weeks from the last update.
With this massive reboot and rewriting of scenes, things won't exactly be the same as the original but will follow the same beats. Especially since we've finally gotten to the point where the matches for the Miami Championships are beginning. I hope to see everything next time for the next exciting update to Yugioh Arc-0!