Chapter four is finally here my readers, sorry about the wait. I was in the process of making original cards to use in this chapter, which is why it took so long to update my other fanfics as well. Brainstorming as well as trial and error are the keys of how I come up with what I write in my fanfics.

Speaking of which, I already mentioned this in my other fanfics, but I have a poll up to decide which fanfic I should write an AU of. I noticed that I wrote a lot of fanfics with OCs in them, so I decided to try something new for a change of pace. Problem is I couldn't which one I should do an AU of.

I'm in quite a pickle, so I ask that you help me decide by dropping by my profile and placing a vote please. I would be eternally grateful for your help in this decision making.

Now that I got that out of the way, on with the chapter!


Chapter Four: Blade Battle Conclusion

Things were not going well for me in this duel in the slightest. I just had to duel a thief whose deck is most likely filled with hand traps. Not only was every move I made countered, but now I had to deal with a Number on top of that. A Number that looks like he could make a pincushion out of me if I even looked at him funny. The only thing that's keeping me from panicking is the fact I had Antitopian on the field as well as a face-down card.

'Alright, Yusa, you can do this.' I looked up at Antitopian who was on one knee and arms crossed in front of him. 'If he attacks, then I can use Antitopian's ability to force his Number to defense mode.' I then looked down at my face-down before focusing my attention on the thief. 'And if that doesn't work, I have my face-down to protect Antitopian.'

"I hope you weren't planning on relying on that face-down, kid." The Turban Bandit said as he took a card from his hand. "I'll take care of that by activating the Forbidden Chalice spell card." He placed the card in his duel disk to reveal a woman in a white dress drinking from a gold chalice. "I select a monster to give 400 attack points in exchange for losing its special abilities for the turn."

"How would that take care of Yusa's face-down?" Kyle questioned, tilting his head in confusion as he thought about what the spell does.

"The monster I'm selecting is my own Master of Blades." The thief replied, pointing to his own monster as a gold chalice appeared in front of him.

"What?" I couldn't keep the surprise out of my voice when I heard who the target of the spell was. "Why would you target your own monster?"

"To activate his ability, of course." The thief replied as one of Master of Blades' overlay units got absorbed into the red gem on his turban. "By using one overlay unit, my spell is negated and destroyed." Master of Blades pulled out a glowing dagger and threw it at the spell card, dispersing it into particles. "That's not all, I can also destroy another card on the field."

"That was his plan to begin with." Kazu said, arms crossed as Master of Blades threw another dagger and destroyed my face-down. "That Number's going to be tricky to beat if you're not careful, Yusa."

"Then what do you suggest I do?" I asked, giving the floating being next to me a side glare.

"There is an upside, that ability only activates if the Number is being targeted by an effect or ability." Kazu replied, disregarding the look I was giving him as he analyzed the situation. "Antitopian's ability doesn't target, so you'll be fine if he attacks.'

"But what if that gets negated, wise guy?" I countered, turning to face Kazu before pointing at him. "That would leave me with nothing on the field when Antitopian gets destroyed!"

"Uh, Yusa?" I faced Kyle who was giving me a strange look before he started to look around for a moment. "Who are you talking to?"

"I forgot no one else besides me and Yuma can see you." I muttered, shaking my head to Kyle before facing the thief again. 'Never mind that guy, I need to focus on the duel.'

"If you were practicing being a mime, you should know that mimes don't talk." The thief taunted, looking over his remaining two cards in his hand before pointing forward. "Master of Blades, attack Antitopian!"

Master of Blades reached behind him and pulled out six daggers that he held between his fingers. He then jumped into the air so he was directly in front of the moon before throwing his daggers at Antitopian. Antitopian looked up to see the daggers flying towards him and picked up his sword.

"I activate Antitopian's ability!" I declared as one of Antitopian's overlay units entered the triangle gem on his chest. "By using an overlay unit, your monster is forced into defense mode, Detainment Wing!"

Antitopian's wings extended and deflected the daggers before reaching up towards Master of Blades. The wings wrapped themselves around Master of Blades' wrists who began to struggle. The wings then forced Master of blades back to the ground before releasing him. Master of Blades got to his feet before turning back to me and holding a dagger so I could see it over his shoulder. (DEF: 2300)

"Hmph, lucky move." The thief said as he took a card from his hand and placed it face-down on his field. "It's your move, kid."

Yusa: 4000

Turban Bandit: 4000

"Switch Antitopian to attack mode, Yusa." Kazu said as I drew a card from my deck and added it to my hand. "With the card you just drew, you can destroy his Number."

"I said it before and I'll say it again, no back seat dueling!" I shouted in frustration, looking over the three cards in my hand. "I know what I'm doing."

"Who was it again that recklessly attacked the previous turn?" Kazu asked rhetorically, causing me to feel my temper rising and I knew at least half of it was from Yuma. He looked down at me as he uncrossed his arms and rested a hand on his hip. "Oh yes, that was you."

"If you have something to say to me, just say it!" I shouted, raising a fist at Kazu while he just looked unimpressed.

"First of all, control that temper of yours." Kazu replied, letting out a sigh as he turned his attention back to the duel. "Secondly, you have to think carefully before making a move."

"What are you, my dueling instructor?" I turned my back to Kazu, crossing my arms with a hmph before looking over my hand again. "Just watch, I'll win this duel without your help."

"How long do you plan on talking to yourself?" The thief asked, tapping his finger against his crossed arm impatiently. "I have places to be."

I looked over my shoulder to see Kazu opened his mouth to speak but I just stuck my tongue at him. I faced the thief as I surveyed the field to figure out what to do during this turn. Right now, I have Antitopian in defense mode and three cards in my hand. The Turban Bandit had Master of Blades with 2300 defense points, a single face-down, and one card in his hand.

I looked over the cards in my hand which were two trap cards and one spell. I couldn't use either of the traps this turn because they're in my hand. All that was left was the spell Kazu wanted me to use. As I read over the effects of the spell, I knew it was what I needed to take care of the thief's Number.

"I equip Antitopian with Sword of the Fallen!" I declared as Antitopian's sword suddenly morphed into a rusted black broadsword that had a red aura around the blade. "This gives an equipped warrior xyz monster an additional 500 attack points." (Antitopian: 2000 → 2500)

"Alright!" Kyle cheered, raising a first high up in the air when he saw my monster's attack total. "That means Antitopian has more attack points than Master of Blades' defense!"

"Next I switch Antitopian to attack mode!" I watched as Antitopian got to his feet and brandished his new weapon. "Andtitopian, attack Master of Blades!"

"It won't be that easy, kid!" The thief declared as his face-down flipped over to Orange Assailant in an alleyway locking blades with an egyptian looking man. "I activate the trap Assailant Defense!" Master of Blades turned to face Antitopian and they locked blades. "This trap prevents my Psychic monster from being destroyed in this battle."

"That won't stop Antitopian while he's equipped with Sword of the Fallen." I said as the aura around Antitopian's sword got slightly brighter. "Since he's attacking a monster in defense mode, your monster loses 500 defense points and you still take damage!" (DEF: 2300 → 1800)

Antitopian's sword began to vibrate as he and Master of Blades tried to push the other back. With one final push, Antitopian pushed Master of Blades back, releasing a wave of red energy. The energy went past Master of Blades and struck the Turban Bandit, knocking him to the ground. (4000 → 2700)

"It's your turn now." I declared as I placed my remaining two cards face-down.

Yusa: 4000

Turban Bandit: 2700

"I'll admit, that was a good move." The thief got to his feet before drawing his card and looked at it before grinning. "But it's time I end this duel."

"How will you end it?" I asked, not liking how he was looking at the card he drew.

"Like this, I activate the Forbidden Lance spell card." The thief declared as he activated the spell with showed the same woman from Forbidden Chalice except she was holding a lance. "The reduces a monster's attack points by 800 and make them immune to spells and traps this turn."

"Not good, he's going to do that again!" Kyle watched worriedly as a silver lance appeared over Master of Blades and pointed its blade at him.

"Now for Master of Blades' special ability!" Master of Blades absorbed his last overlay unit and stabbed a dagger onto the spell. "Now destroy Antitopian!"

Master of Blades turned to face Antitopian before throwing more daggers. Andtitopian tried to deflect the daggers using his sword before Master of Blades jumped over him. Master of Blades pulled out more daggers and began to throw them so they were raining down. The daggers pierced all over Antitopian before he couldn't take anymore and exploded.

"Antitopian!" I called out as Sword of the Fallen fell to the ground and shattered. The shards then rained down on me and I brought my arms up to shield my face. (4000 → 3000)

"Wait, why did Yusa take damage?" Kyle asked, confusion in his voice when he saw that I took damage.

"That's the price for Sword of the Fallen." Kazu explained despite knowing that Kyle couldn't hear him. "When Sword of the Fallen is destroyed, its owner takes 1000 points of damage."

"Quite the risky card to use." The thief said when he realized what happened when I took damage. "That just made this easier." He took the last card in his hand and revealed it. "By sending Blade Assailant from my hand to the graveyard, a psychic monster on my field gains 300 attack points for the turn."

A woman wearing black robes appeared next to Master of Blades before presenting him with a curved dagger. The Number took the dagger and the woman bowed before dispersing into particles. Master of Blades inspected the blade of the dagger, giving it a few practice swings before holding it in a reverse grip. (2700 → 3000)

"3000 attack points?" I took a step back when Master of Blades' attack total appeared in front of me. I double checked my life points to see it was the same as the Number's attack points. "This is bad."

"Very bad." The thief looked up at his Number as it switched to attack mode before pointing towards me. "Master of Blades, finish this twerp!"

Master of Blades jumped into the air to be in front of the moon again. A number of glowing daggers floated around him and angled themselves towards me. With a swing of the dagger in the Number's hand, the daggers began to rain down towards me at high speed. Master of Blades followed after his daggers, holding the one in his hand forward to land the finishing blow.

"Yusa, your trap card!" Kazu shouted, looking at me while I tried to decide which trap to activate. "Hurry!"

"Ah, I'll activate this one!" I yelled, pointing to the face-down on my left as it flipped over. The card revealed a witch standing over a knight laying on the ground. The witch's hand was over the knight as a green energy flowed down from it. "The Drain Might trap card reduces your monster's attack point by 1000 this turn!" (3000 → 2000)

I brought my arms up as the daggers rained down on me before Master of Blades slashed me with his dagger. He then kicked me, knocking me off my feet and on my back before jumping back to stand in front of the thief. I struggled to get back up to my feet and watched the daggers on the ground disperse into particles.

"So you survive to see another turn." The thief muttered as the dagger Master of Blades was holding disappeared. "You won't be so lucky next turn." (2000 → 2700)

Yusa: 1000

Turban Bandit: 2700

"That wasn't the trap I meant." Kazu said as I drew my card and looked at it before facing Kazu. He had his arms crossed and a frown on his face as he kept his eyes on the duel. "But what matters is that you survived that attack."

I opened my mouth to make a witty remark when I noticed something off about Kazu. The swirling markings on his body seem to have gotten bigger and darker. I could even see that he was struggling to keep his eyes open. He looked so weak and vulnerable right now, as if a single gust of wind could knock him over.

My duel gazer then began to ring letting me know that I had a call. I was confused because I wasn't expecting any calls right now. I gave Kazu another look before deciding to answer the call. A new window opened and I was greeted by Yuma's face wearing his duel gazer.

"Yusa, how's Kazu?" Yuma asked, looking worried which confused and concerned me.

"Not good, Yuma." I replied softly, giving Kazu another side look before focusing on my brother. "Why, is Astral okay?"

"Well…" I knew that when Yuma said that and nothing else meant he was trying to find the right words. "Let's just say that what Kazu told us yesterday is true."

"Are you in a duel against a Number right now?" I asked in panic, remembering what would happen to Astral if Yuma lost a duel with a Number.

"Yeah, against Mr. Kay." Yuma replied and my eyes widened in shock when I heard who Yuma was dueling. "He's the reason everything was going crazy."

"Our math teacher Mr. Kay?" I couldn't believe what I was hearing, Mr. Kay was always a nice person.

He always answered any math related questions I had whenever I got stuck. He even became the advisor for the band despite knowing nothing about music. I couldn't even picture someone like Mr. Kay doing something so horrible.

"I didn't want to believe it either, Yusa." Yuma shook his head before he held up a fist. "Don't worry, I'm gonna win and return Mr. Kay back to normal."

"Guess I can't let you show me up then." I gave my brother a grin which he returned before we returned our attention to our respective opponents and declared. "Time to finish this!"

"Finish this, you say?" The thief let out a small laugh before pointing at me. "You have no monsters on your field and only one card in your hand, how will you finish this?"

"Kazu?" I looked at Kazu to see he was giving me a questioning look and I smiled. "Help me out?"

"Thought you'd never ask." Kazu gave me a grin as I ended my call with Yuma. He then pointed forward as I faced our opponent. "Activate Dark Revival Ritual!"

"Gotcha, I activate Dark Revival Ritual!" My final face-down flipped over to reveal it was a trap card. The card revealed a dark shadow with red eyes rising from a grave in a cemetery. "By paying half my life points, I can bring back a dark attribute monster from my graveyard!"

"Be reborn, Number 98: Antitopian" Kazu called out as a graveyard portal opened on the ground and Antitopian flew out. I suddenly felt sparks of electricity course through my body as my life points dropped. Dark Revival Ritual then became an orb of purple light and started to orbit around Antitopian. "If the summoned monster is an xyz monster, then this trap card becomes an overlay unit for that monster."

"So you got your monster back." The thief scoffed, not the least bit scared that I got my Number back. "It still doesn't have enough attack points."

"Then I'll rely on luck!" I said as I took the last card in my hand and played it. "Say hello to Xyz Treasure!" The spell appeared on the field to reveal a group of pirates approaching an open chest of jewels. "This lets me draw a card for every xyz monster on the field."

"There are two xyz monsters on the field." Kyle muttered as both Antitopian and Master of Blades glowed.

"Meaning I draw two cards." I reached for my deck and drew two cards and looked them over.

"Perfect, those are just the cards we need." Kazu nodded in approval when he saw the cards I had drawn. He then pointed to the card on the left which showed a man seemingly getting his soul taken. "Activate that spell first before using the second."

"Right." I nodded as I took the card Kazu pointed at and activated it. "I activate the Riryoku spell card!" Master of Blades gained a blue aura as he slowly began to look weak. "This spell cuts Master of Blades' attack points in half and gives it to Antitopian."

"It does what?!" The thief gasped in shock before looking at his Number to see him slouch forward as the aura left it and entered Antitopian. (2700 → 1350) (2000 → 3350)

"Oh yeah, not so tough now, huh?" Kyle pumped a fist at seeing the difference in the two Numbers' attack points and that mine was stronger now.

"Stop acting like you're gonna finish me off this turn!" The thief yelled, growing frustrated that a kid suddenly gained the advantage. "Even if your attack succeeds, I'll still have 700 life points!"

"You might want to double check your math." I smirked as I held up the last card in my hand and waved it. "In case you forgot, I still have one card left."

"Don't tell me…" The thief backed away before shaking his head and stepping forward. "You're bluffing!"

"We'll have to see." I looked up to Antitopian to see he was tightly gripping his sword, waiting for me to give the order. I looked at Kazu and we nodded to each other before pointing at Master of Blades. "Antitopian, attack Master of Blades!" Hearing the order, Antitopian charged towards Master of Blades and I played the last card in my hand. The card was a quick-play spell with a red boar charging. "I activate Rush Recklessly, giving Antitopian an extra 700 attack points!" (3350 → 4050)

"No way!" The thief shouted in disbelief that I actually got the card I needed to end this duel.

"Go!" Kazu and I declared in sync as Antitopian raised his sword over his head while Master of Blades readied his daggers. "Despair Sword Slash!"

Antitopian brought his sword down on the daggers and shattered them. The sword then slashed Master of Blades from his left shoulder diagonally down to his right hip. The feather on Master of Blades' turban fell off and fluttered the ground. Once the feather hit the ground, Master of Blades exploded while the force of the blast knocked the Turban Bandit off his feet and onto his back as his life points plummeted. (Turban Bandit: 2700→0)

"Yes, I won!" I shouted excitedly as a window appeared with my picture declaring me the winner. Antitopian vanished along with all the damage that would have happened to our surroundings if this was real. My eyes widened before sheepishly looking at Kazu. "I mean we won."

"I knew what you meant." Kazu gave me an amused chuckle before he held his hand out to the Turban Bandit. A glowing card came out of his chest and flew to Kazu's hand which he caught. He then turned his attention to me and smiled. "You did well this time around, I barely helped."

"Well, you did help." I replied, placing my hands on my hips as I watched the Number in Kazu's hand vanish. "If anything, it was a team effort at the end there."

Kazu blinked in surprise before he chuckled again before leaning back to float with his hands behind his head and one leg over the other. "I suppose it was."

"Hey Yusa!" I looked over to Kyle to see he had the Turban Bandit completely tied up and dusting off his hands. "Quit talking to yourself and call the police already!"


It didn't take the police long to get to us and arrest the Turban Bandit. We did get a good scolding from the officers though. They told us that what we did was dangerous and that we should leave everything to the professionals. Despite the scolding, they did thank us for catching the guy but told us not to do it again.

I looked over to Kyle who was talking to a cute girl with wavy long black hair and brown eyes. She was wearing a white blouse, dark blue skirt, and red slip on shoes. They were talking to each other but I couldn't hear what they were saying. I watched Kyle rubbing the back of his head and chuckling nervously from what the girl said. Kyle then started talking with a slight blush on his face.

The girl said something to Kyle that made him look disappointed. Kazu and I looked at each other in understanding as to what was said. Needless to say, the chances of Kyle being rejected was pretty high. The two parted ways and Kyle was walking over to me with his hands in his pockets.

"She shot me down." Kyle said, letting out a sigh and I had to stop myself from cringing. "She said she already has someone she likes."

"Yikes." I immediately thought of Sora and wondered if she already had someone she liked. I shook that thought away before placing a comforting hand on Kyle's shoulder. "Cheer up Kyle, I'm sure you'll find someone else."

"Maybe." Kyle shrugged his shoulders and gave me a small smile. "Sorry I had you do this."

"Don't worry about it." I patted his shoulder and had a wide grin on my face. "I said I was going to help you get the girl, and I keep my promises."

"Kazu, isn't it about time you get home?" Kazu asked, causing me to go as stiff as a board and my face going pale. "I bet Yuma's done with Mr. Kay by now and Kari probably has a few words to say to you."

"I forgot!" I shouted, running my hands through my hair in panic at the thought of Kari probably receiving a call from school. "Kari's going to kill me!" I then ran past Kyle and waved to him over my shoulder. "Sorry Kyle, I'll help you tomorrow if Kari doesn't bury me alive!"

"I think you're being a bit dramatic." Kazu said as he floated next to me as I ran through the streets of Heartland city.

Well you haven't seen what Kari's like when she's mad!" I replied as I vaulted over a litterbot and jumped over an empty can. "If she finds out I skipped school, who knows what she'll make me do!"

"You make it sound like she's going to toture you or something." Kazu sighed before looking ahead to see my house coming into view. "Well, I guess you better prepare yourself then, Yusa."

I gave him a side glare but stopped when I saw that his swirling marks were back to normal and he looked healthier now. I thought back to when I first saw the markings change, and I think it was when I took damage in the duel. Every time I took damage, the marks seemed to come alive as they got bigger and darker. It also looked like he was in pain whenever the marks did get bigger.

'If Astral vanishes when Yuma loses against a Number…' I thought, giving Kazu a side glance to see he was looking at his marks in deep thought. 'What'll happen to Kazu?'

"There you are, Yusa!" I jumped at the sudden voice and looked up the steps to see Kari standing at the top with her hands on her hips. "Mind telling me where you've been?"

"H-hey, Kari." I stuttered, laughing nervously and I knew I was sweating bullets right now. "I was at band practice, same as usual."

"Oh really?" Kari raised an eyebrow and the tone of her voice told me she doesn't believe me. "So the call I got from your school was for another Yusa Tsukumo's family?"

'I'm so dead.' I thought, silently praying to be spared from the scolding and punishment I'm likely to receive.

"Honestly Yusa," Kari sighed as she slowly walked down the steps. "What were you thinking, skipping school of all things?"

"Sorry Kari." I apologize, lowering my head when I saw the camera still attached to my uniform's collar. I removed the camera and held it out to Kari while she looked at it curiously. "You were really upset about losing your scoop the other day, so I did some digging."

"You skipped school to get me a scoop?" Kari asked, surprised that was my reason for skipping school, I didn't tell her Kyle dragged me, though.

"Yeah." I nodded, rubbing the back of my head sheepishly. "You're the one who's putting food on the table, so I thought maybe I can help make things easier for you somehow."

"Yusa." Kari blinked a couple times before smirking and taking the camera. She then bopped me in the head and turned her back to me as I held my head with tears in the corners of my eyes. "You're still in trouble mister."

'I deserved that.' I thought, nursing the small bump on my head as I followed Kari up the steps to our house. I still smiled, happy to see Kari was in a better mood.

I looked up to the sky to see the full moon and my eyes widened when I saw a monster with a glowing bulb-like head. Kari looked up and saw the same thing I did and I knew that it was Crashbug. I remember Mr. Kay said that Crushbug was an electrical spirit that eats the bugs in our lives be it sadness, doubt, frustration, etc. I then realized I still had my duel gazer on and so did Kari.

"Now that is a wonderful sight." Kazu said and I looked at him in confusion as he stared at the monster in the sky. "It's said that if you see Crashbug on the night of the full moon, you will be granted good luck and forever live in happiness."

I could tell that Kazu had something on his mind with the way he was frowning. It makes me wonder what he could be thinking about so seriously. I looked back up to the sky to see Crashbug pulling out bombs and tossing them into the air. When they exploded, they were like fireworks, lighting up the night sky with different colored lights. It was a beautiful sight to behold and I will always remember it.


The next day, I was in school sitting by myself in the classroom as I was in detention. Since Kyle and I skipped school yesterday, we got two weeks detention. To make matters worse, Kari grounded me and said I couldn't duel or go to band practice. So, to make up for the classes I missed, I was sitting at my desk copying notes that Sora and Tori were kind enough to make for me. Kyle was at his desk, snoozing away like he would in class when it didn't involve dueling.

Once I was done copying Sora and Tori's notes, I set them to the side and pulled out my deck. I may not be allowed to duel, but Kari didn't say anything about working on it. I know, it's a technicality, but Kari didn't forbid it. As I sorted out my deck, I pulled out the two Number cards I collected so far.

'Tri-Head Dust Dragon and Master of Blades.' I looked over the two number cards before pulling out Antitopian's card. 'Astral's collecting the Numbers too, does that mean I'll have to duel Yuma in the future?'

Ever since this morning, Kazu's been inside my lock all day, not once coming out. I had so many questions and Kazu's the one with the answers. What are Number cards, why do they exist, how come they're so dangerous? Questions like those always pop up in my head whenever I think about the duels I had against these Number cards.

'Come to think of it.' I looked down at Antitopian's card and picked it up. 'Antitopian looks kind of like a villain, but he always protected me with his ability.'

"Focus on your studies. I let out a startle yell when Kazu was suddenly in my face and I dropped Antitopian's card. "While working on your deck is fine, you also need to keep your grades up."

"Don't do that!" I placed a hand over my rapidly beating heart as Kazu floated upside down with his legs crossed and his hands behind his head. "You almost gave me a heart attack."

"Sorry, didn't mean to scare you." Kazu flipped himself so he was rightside up as he looked around the classroom. "So you did end up getting detention."

"Well, I did skip a few classes." I said, gathering up my cards and putting them away before doing a few vocal exercises. I gave Kazu a side glance to see he was watching me. "What?"

"It's nothing." Kazu shook his head, uncrossing his legs and floated to lay on his side. "I was just thinking how talented a singer you are."

"I'm not that great." I waved off Kazu's compliment as I cleared my throat and went back to my vocal exercises.

This went on for about fifteen minutes when the teacher came and told me and Kyle we could go home for the day. I decided to take a detour to the park before I went home. As I walked through the park, my mind went back to my questions about the Number cards. More specifically, my question of having to duel Yuma someday. I don't mind dueling with my brother, it's just that thought of what would happen to Astral and Kazu that worries me.

"Kazu?" I stopped walking to look at two flowers that were identical in every way, except one of them was wilting a little. "Will I have to duel Yuma one day to get his Number cards?"

"You don't if you don't want to." Kazu replied, his gaze also on the two flowers, more specifically the one that was wilting. "However, there may come a time where you will have no choice but to duel him."

"And what'll happen to you?" I asked, facing the energy being who never took his eyes off the flowers. "I know what'll happen to Astral, but what about you?"

"You don't need to worry about that." Kazu shook his head, looking rather solemn as he turned his back to me. "Trust me, you're better off not knowing."

"You can't be serious." I reached up to grip my lock as I stared at Kazu's back. "Come on, I can handle whatever it is."

Kazu remained silent for a moment, crossing his arms as he looked up to the sky that was painted a brilliant orange hue. "I'll think about it."

I opened my mouth to protest, but Kazu just dispersed into particles and went inside my lock. I groaned in frustration that he ran away. I do know this now, whatever it is that happens to Kazu, it isn't good. It has to be if he doesn't want to tell me or anyone despite telling us what'll happen to Astral. He was obviously in pain last night when those marks on his body got bigger and darker.

'What are those marks anyway?' I couldn't think of anything that could work as a theory as to what the marks on Kazu's body could be.

Needless to say, I was even more curious about what would happen to Kazu. However, I wasn't about to find a person with a Number and lose on purpose. Not only would that be a blow to my pride as a duelist, it's also cruel to Kazu. For now, all I can do is observe and take notes of what I find on the enigmas that are Astral and Kazu.

With my mind made up, I left the park and made my way home. As I walked, I started to hum a few random tunes that pop in my head every now and again. It's strange, I always seem to be humming songs I've never heard of before. And yet, I somehow know the lyrics that go with the songs I hum. I've been doing it since I was little, which was part of the reason Blazer wanted to start a band. I even know lyrics that seem to be in a different language that I can't understand at all. Even though I don't understand the language, I knew what they mean and how they go with the songs.

'Guess that's why Blazer wanted me to be the singer.' I swapped from humming to whistling as I skipped at certain parts of the beat. Before I knew it, I was singing as loud as I could to get my mind off everything that happened the past few days.

Jichyeoganeun ni nunbich-i

jakku naleul noh-eulyeogo hae

Sum icha ni moseub-eul

bol sudo butjab-eul su eobs-eo

jichyeo (stop stop stop) ijen deo

At the chorus, I brought a hand in front of me for the first two "stops" I sang and spread them out on the third.

modeun geol (step step step) beos-eona

This time, I took a step with each "step" in the chorus before doing a small spin.

dol-ikil suga eobsdago

kkeut-ilamyeo tto uljiman

I stopped walking as I spread my arms out wide as I held the last note. Before I knew it, I heard what sounded like clapping. I looked around to see a crowd of people looking at me as they clapped. I even saw some of them were recording me and blushed in embarrassment. I didn't even bow, I just ran as fast as I could to get away from the crowd.

"I'm home!" I announced as I slammed the door open and shut, taking off my shoes.

"Hey Yusa." Yuma greeted as he left the doorway to the living room. He had a confused look on his face when he saw he hastily straightened up my shoes. "What's with you?"

"Nothing, just want to get home fast." I replied quickly, removing my bookbag and walking past my brother. "I'm skipping dinner and going to bed early tonight, see you tomorrow Yuma!"

I didn't give my brother time to respond because I was already running up the stairs to the second floor. I then sped down the hall and opened the door to my room and turned on the lights. I set my bag on the desk before walking over to the closet to change out of my uniform. I put on my usual white tank top blue sweatpants before walking to my bed and climbing under the sheets. I closed my eyes and thought of nothing that would be distracting and keep the abyss of sleep away from me. After about half an hour of just laying in my bed, I finally felt tired and slowly drifted to sleep.


Did you enjoy reading this chapter my readers? I hope so, because it's now time for a segment I call Review's Corner. Review's corner is where I reply to your reviews and answer any questions you might have. With that being said, let's begin!

Karsap: You don't need to apologize.

HunterHQ: I'm glad too, makes things a bit easier for me. You have ideas, I wonder what you came up with. Good question, I'll leave that to your imagination until the final chapter. No, Arc V archetypes will not be used for the sake of not making certain characters more powerful than they already are.

That's it for Review's Corner, hope to see you again sometime soon!

Also, if you were wondering the name of the song Yusa was singing, it's Not Alone by Park Jung-min. Give it a listen if you're interested, I personally thought it was a good song.

With that being said, till we meet again!