Kaoru hasn't talked to me in a week. You know, since I stole his precious D-Wheel and all. Therefore, I've had to cling onto other people for company. So today, instead of spending my every waking moment around Yusei, not that he complains, I've decided to spend some time with Aki. She just started back in Duel Academy, so I haven't seen her much recently. She sighs as she moves books from her backpack onto her desk. They're very chunky textbooks with long titles. I spot a Physics book, a Chemistry one, a Biology one and even an English one. I start reading off the titles as best I can. I say that because I've thrown myself on Aki's bed. My head passes the edge of the bed so I have to read them upside down.
"Damn, they're all so advanced. I imagine being placed above your age group is hard. Then again, it's probably not a problem for you." Aki shrugs her shoulders.
"I covered some of the content before, in my own time. It's not so bad." She says but there's something in her tone that tells that everything's not all great. She was so excited to go back, I hate to see her like this.
"What's wrong?" She sighs again.
"I don't know." She starts. "I can't help but think of what happened last time. I know that my classmates are the same way."
"Are they bullying you?" I sit up very quickly, letting her know that I'm ready to fight everyone in her class.
"Not really." I lie back down, head dangling over the edge of the bed. "It's just their stares. I feel like that they can't help but think of me as the Witch." She starts shaking her head. "I'm not sure that I can fit in anymore." I go to say something, but she beats me to the punch. "Why did you never go back?"
"I never wanted to be there in the first place." I stare at the ceiling. "I got tired of people's prejudiced bullshit. I knew that, with my powers, it would only get worse. I saw how you got treated. I knew that I wouldn't be able for it so I left." I look at Aki, she seems taken aback. "But don't listen to me. People's opinion of you doesn't matter. I know what you're thinking." I sigh. I look at Aki. "Don't give up your education just because of what people think of you. I realise that I'm being a bit of a hypocrite here, but Duel Academy won't help me to get where I want to be."
"I know what you mean." Aki says solemnly. "But I just think it might be easier to be home schooled. My parents asked me if I wanted to do that, but I said I wanted to return to Duel Academy. Now, I'm not sure that I made the right choice."
"You're wrong." Aki seems taken aback, not expected such a strong response. "That's never going to solve the problem. If you never show them that you've changed, they're always going to have the same opinion of you. It's just an endless cycle. It's better for you, it's better for me, it's better for all psychics if you just hold your head up high and make it seem like nothing's wrong. Besides, I just think you need a confidence boost." I smile at Aki, her face lights up.
"Thank you." She says. "I mean it. I'm lucky to have a friend like you." I get more flustered from that comment than I probably should, but I don't care.
"I'm lucky to have you." I manage to get out. "Hey." I sit up properly on the bed. "We should go shopping again this weekend. I don't know about you, but that always makes me feel better."
"Sounds like a plan." Aki smiles again. I want her to keep smiling, I think.
I stand in the Daimon Area, for the first time in a long while. Was it the Fortune Cup? Was that the last time? I used to live not five minutes from here, but I couldn't stand to be here. Too noisy. But I need to be here today. I'm going to find who attacked me. This was the first place I could think of. That person was a psychic, this is where the outcasts of society like to hang out, seems like a reasonable conclusion. I'm waiting for Takumi. I wanted someone to join while I hunt down the little shit. Kaoru isn't talking to me, Kenta is a no-no, and everyone else thinks I was attacked by Ghost. Sure, Takumi isn't a psychic, but he's the best option I have right now.
I've mostly recovered. My ankle is still playing up a bit, though that's carrying over from the whole thing with Ghost. Running in the forest for so long wasn't a good idea. I'm grateful that this time, my powers aren't affected. I can still pick out every aura in this open space. I scan the area for that one aura. The one that was vaguely familiar to me. That person who attacked me knew me. It must be someone from a gang. But whether they attacked me because of Black Flag or Team Liberation is another story. I've tried to pinpoint it. Every person I saw while attacking gangs. It must be someone from the first two gangs. Though, Takumi insists it's from a gang that we haven't fought yet. Some lingering feeling tells me otherwise.
"Hey Yuuka, long time no see." Despite being in a secluded corner of the Daimon Area and wearing sunglasses, I still somehow managed to get noticed.
"Ah Nico! Haven't seen you in months." He's the doctor around these parts. He only deals with psychics, since it's a demographic that most doctors won't even look at. Explains how he found me. He uses ability to read auras to help any psychic who needs it.
"Oh, I know. I heard you've been in hospital twice in the last few months, and you didn't come see me. Unbelievable!" He shakes his head and rolls his eyes. "Thought you were my best customer."
"I've put those days behind me, Nico." I lie. I'm still in a gang, just not Black Flag.
"Ah I suppose, since Raiden jumped ship three months ago."
"Do you know where he's at? Haven't heard much myself." I try to play it cool.
"I would have guessed. Rumour has it that it didn't end well between you two. Last I heard he was in Thailand, at least, that's what his friends say." I would ask what friends, but I feel like I'd give too much away. I can already feel Nico analysing my every move. "You've got another person inside your head, what's with that?"
"My brother and I can hear each other's thoughts, is that what you mean?" I blink, not entirely sure.
"Something like that." Nico says this but he doesn't look entirely satisfied. "Give him my number, if he's anything like you, he'll need it." Nico stares at my ankle. "Concussion and sprained ankle, yes?"
"Right, like always." I answer.
"Ankle's a reoccurring thing?"
"How do you keep getting these things right? It's incredible." I smile.
"I've seen you injured enough to know everything." He scoffs. I suppose that's true. I mean, back when Black Flag was at its busiest. I visited Nico a lot for stitches and the like. Then again, I was at my most reckless. Every wound came from a mistake.
"Oi, Yuuka." Takumi calls out to me next. Boy, I sure am popular today. "Oh, and Dr. Rodriguez, hello."
"Ah yes, Takumi, hello." Nico replies. How does he know Takumi? He only deals with psychics, right? "How's Kenta doing?" Okay, that kinda makes sense, I guess.
"No complaints." A strange sensation washes over me.
"That's good, remind him that he has an appointment with me next Monday."
"I will." Appointment for what? The last time that I saw Kenta he seemed fine. He doesn't have any sort of illness, that I know at least. Strange.
"Alright, we all have places to be, so I'll leave you to it." Nico waves and moves back in an attempt to get away. "Enjoy your duel. See you later, Yuuka!" I stare at Nico's back as he leaves. Churning out some reply.
"How much does he know?" Takumi asks.
"No idea. He knows about some gang stuff cause he deals with so many psychics. He knew that I was in Black Flag with Raiden, he shouldn't know about Team Liberation." Takumi nods.
"If we don't find him here, we can check Psycho later."
"Takumi, I'm not going clubbing with you today." Come to think of it, Takumi looks like he's dressed to go clubbing, with his chinos and polo.
"One drink then?" Takumi does his usual half-smile to try convince me. I look at him over the top of my shades. He takes the shades off my face, putting them on his own. "Go for shots, then?"
"Oh gods no, not shots. Fine, one drink. You know I'm not supposed to be drinking. If I get trouble, you're going down with me."
"Don't I anyway?" He sighs. I don't even reply. An aura moves through the crowd. It's coming closer. It's him. I have to focus on the aura before I lose it. It moves quicker through the crowd, the person knows that I'm following them.
They lead me into an alleyway away from the main crowd before they stop. They look around them. I read that aura of theirs. He slouches, out of breath. He realises that I'm right behind him. He turns around slowly, still taking deep breaths.
"You're the wrong one." He stares at me.
"What?" I answer back. I have to keep my guard up, I can't afford to let it down around this guy.
"Your aura. It's the same, but you're not the one I'm looking for." Was he looking for Kaoru? That makes no sense.
"Well, you found me instead." I start moving to him. I get a look at his face. There's something unmistakably familiar about it.
"You're not the one I'm looking for." He repeats as he starts moving away from me.
"Hate to break it to you, you can't ambush someone then run away." He turns back to me. Something flashes in his eyes.
"You're the one I attacked?" He scoffs, but he seems suddenly afraid. "It was meant to be the other one." I hear Takumi tut behind me. He makes his way in front of me, partially blocking my view.
"Is that any way to treat a lady?" Takumi's tone is definite. He isn't messing around. "Who are you anyway, pipsqueak?" I'm sure if Takumi had an aura, you'd feel it from a mile away right now.
"The name's Saitama. Second-in-command at The Jackals."
"Former." Takumi scoffs. "You were the first ones that got taken down by Team Liberation." He turns back around to me, then he looks back at Saitama. He's playing innocent. "I remember you. You dueled the one with the same aura as her. Lemme guess, you read her aura, mistook for the other one, made her crash in an attempt at revenge."
"Of course. Revenge is what I'm after." Saitama glares right at me. I try reading his aura. There's pain lingering under that anger.
"You know who we are then?"
"Obviously, you're the leader of Team Liberation. The only non-psychic. Not much of a leader if you ask me." Takumi stiffens. "How can you lead if you don't instill fear?"
"I'll show you fear." Takumi shifts. He's readying for a fight. His voice is dark. Saitama raises his arm with his Duel Disk. I move between Takumi and Saitama.
"I'll duel you." I say. I look up at Takumi. "This is my fight."
"Fine." Takumi scoffs. He moves away, standing behind me as if to back me up. "I recommend moving into the Daimon Area, who knows what he's going to pull." I nod, Saitama pauses before nodding.
We stand facing each other in the Daimon Area across the painted lines that make up a small duel field. There's already a crowd forming around us. I hear them talking about our expressions. It should be a heated duel, they say. Their murmurs crawl on my skin. There's something unsettling about that many eyes watching me duel. They're waiting for me to slip up, make a mistake and lose. Anything for the sake of entertainment.
"Are you ready?" Saitama snaps me out of my thoughts. I nod.
"Duel!" We chant at the same time.
"You're technically the challenger here, so I'll let you go first." I say this, but I prefer going second. Everyone seems to prefer the opposite. Kenta says it's something about being defensive, which surprised him when he learnt my preference. Apparently, I'm too hot-headed to prefer such a tactic.
"Fine. I summon Inpachi(ATK:1600). I set one card and end my turn." He says. His facial expression doesn't change. The murmurs of the crowd only become more intense.
"My turn. I draw." I stare at my hand. Nothing that beats his monster's attack points, damn. Two copies of Monster Reincarnation too? Boy, this is a bad hand. But if I use this effect, then maybe… "I summon Snipe Hunter(ATK:1500). Next, I activate its effect. By discarding a card from my hand, I can roll a die. If this die lands on anything that isn't a one or six, one card of my choice is destroyed. I choose Inpachi!" Saitama maintains his stoic expression. A die appears on the field. It starts rolling. The crowd starts making more noise. 1. "I set one card and end my turn." I close my eyes, trying to block out the noise. I want to cry. My every move is being judged. I hate it. They want me to make a mistake. I start shaking. I can't lose. Not now.
"My turn." Saitama stares at his hand for a few seconds. His aura flares slightly. The crowd is starting to be on edge. "I activate Fissure. The face-up monster with the lowest attack points on your field is destroyed, say goodbye to Snipe Hunter!"
"Not so fast!" I interrupt Saitama as he raises his arm. "I activate Karma Cut. By discarding one card, I get to banish one face-up monster you control. Say goodbye to Inpachi!" Saitama seems unaffected by the card's effect. The crowd is loving it though. Our fields are completely devoid of monsters.
"I summon Genex Neutron(ATK:1800)." Saitama's hand twitches. That monster. It's…
"You might want to get out of the way." I shout back to the crowd behind me. Everyone on my side of the field moves away and towards Saitama's side. Everyone's stepped further back. They know.
"Genex Neutron attacks you directly." I wait until the robotic monster starts flying towards me. I manage to cartwheel backwards. The monster barely scratches my stomach. The fabric of my t-shirt has some holes in it but it'll be fine, and my skin is tinted red from the small release of blood. My life points stand at 2200, this is fine.
"I set one card. Genex Neutron's effect activates. If it was Normal Summoned this turn, then during the End Phase, I can add one Machine-Type Tuner to my deck from my hand. I choose Genex Controller. It's your move." A smirk appears on Saitama's face. Genex Controller. A key part of any Genex deck. It's the required Tuner for many of the Genex Synchro Monsters. But can he summon anything with Neutron as material? Nevermind. I'm not letting him.
"My turn. I draw." Guarded Treasure. I need to discard five cards to activate its effect. Aside from this, I have two. So no to that. My only monster is too weak for this right now, and I can't use its effect. Monster Reincarnation it is. "I activate Monster Reincarnation. By discarding one card, I can add one Monster card in my grave to my hand. I choose Snipe Hunter." The crowd starts getting excited again. "Welcome back Snipe Hunter(ATK:1500). I discard another card to activate its effect." The crowd starts cheering. The die appears. "If it isn't a one or a six, Genex Neutron is destroyed. I'm sure you're familiar with the concept." The die flies into the air before dropping back down. "Five. Too bad." The crowd cheers as Saitama's monster is destroyed. "Next, Snipe Hunter attacks you directly." Saitama's life points drop to 2500. He blocks the brunt of the attack that never comes with his arms. As Snipe Hunter comes back to my field, he lowers his arms, eyes wide. I don't need to hurt him physically to get my revenge. I won't sink to his level. "I end my turn."
"My turn." Saitama keeps staring at me. "I set a monster and end my turn." The crowd makes some noise, as he starts to play defensively.
"My turn. I draw." Another monster. I'll take another swipe at his life points this turn. "I summon The Fabled Cerburrel(ATK:1000)." This monster probably isn't strong enough to destroy that set card. Despite Cerburrel being a Tuner, I can't Synchro anything. "Snipe Hunter attacks your set card. Now, Cerburrel attacks you directly." Saitama's life points drop again, this time to 1500. "I end my turn." Saitama looks like he's starting to crack under the pressure.
"My turn." Saitama's aura flares slightly. Fear starts to set in. "I set another monster and end my turn." The crowd livens up. I can hear gasps escaping their mouths. They question him. It's a bad hand. I know that from his aura. But our audience starts judging his ability. "Stop pitying me." He says all of a sudden. "Make your move." I sigh.
"My turn. I draw." I can Synchro. I'll end this now. "I summon The Fabled Ganashia(ATK:1600). Level 2 Cerburrel tunes Level 3 Ganashia. The will of many combine into one. Join together and bring forth revolution! Synchro Summon! Arise, Fabled Ragin(ATK:2300)!" The ornate demon appears and stretches out its wings before crossing its arms. "Ragin's effect activates. When this card is Synchro Summoned and I have less than two cards in my hand, I can draw until my hand is back to two cards. Legion Assembly!" I don't even look at the cards. "Snipe Hunter attacks your set card. Now, Ragin attacks you directly! Legion Strike!" Saitama's life points drop to 0. The crowd very quickly dismantles. They move onto the next duel. Saitama falls to his knees. There's a darkness to his aura.
"Don't pity me." He says as I get closer to him. Takumi behind me is apprehensive. "You already took everything else from me."
"I-" He interrupts me before I say anything.
"Gangs are all I have. They're the reason I have a roof over my head, that I can eat. And you took that away from me!"
"I know how it feels. Security took everything from me once. I was sent to the City before the unification with the Satellite. But I made a life for myself here. I won't let Security keep me down."
"I know." He says. "I remember." Then it clicks. I remember Saitama. When I first started hanging around the Daimon Area, he was there. That tiny homeless kid. I look at him now. We must be the same age. I talked with him a few times. Anako tried to recruit him too. He wouldn't sway. Someone had already scouted him, I heard. That person must have been the leader of the Jackals.
"I'm sorry but this is something I must do." I sigh. "Go have a life, you don't need gangs." Saitama stares at me before standing up.
Everything starts to move in slow motion. A bolt of dark energy starts to move towards. It catches me off guard. I don't have enough time to react, but neither does Saitama. It draws closer but there's something familiar about it. The beam gets blocked by a monster. I stare at it. A spellcaster, but that means… Anako comes sprinting after it. She stops to catch her breath. I'm frozen, staring at the dragon on a rooftop. Dark End Dragon. I only know one person who uses that monster. Anako catches my gaze. She's scared. She know what that means.
"Stop trying to kill my best friend!" Takumi shouts at Saitama.
"I swear it wasn't me, this time." He answers.
"He's right." Anako answers. "That monster. It could only belong to…"
"Raiden." I finish.