Five of the Bladebreakers as well as Kyouju and Hiromi sat in their shared room, Kyouju typing at the computer before giving a frustrated groan. "Your beyblade won't be ready for at least a day and then you have to worry about controlling it! This is terrible!"

"Is there anything you can do Kyouju?" Max asked as he leaned over the chair and the young genius shook his head.

"Max, I'm working as fast as I can but real masterpieces take time and even then he needs to learn how to control it." He returned his attention to the keyboard, glancing at the parts he had. Rather than just creating and updating one part he had to recreate the entire beyblade and that took time.

"We don't have time!" All of them glanced up at Takao, Kai giving an annoyed look at his teammate. It was a bad circumstance and if things became the worst they didn't really want to forfeit their first tag team, especially if they went against the Renegades and the other two battles weren't a nearly guaranteed win.

Hiromi sighed in response, glancing at the others. "If only Daichi was still part of the team this wouldn't be a big problem."

"But he isn't so it is!" Takao snapped, rounding on her. In an instant Max and Jonouchi were on their feet, restraining Takao from doing anything rash. "He ditched the team to become a referee and that's all there is to it."

"Just chill out, would you Takao?" Jonouchi held his friend back, glancing at him as Takao shook him off.

"Chill out? Chill out? We're screwed if Adam doesn't learn how to use the MS system before our battle!" There was a sigh from Jonouchi, knowing deep down Takao was still angry that Daichi had left the team. But at least it hadn't been to join a new team and it was more just someone to project his frustration on for the moment than actually being furious with him.

Jonouchi turned, feeling a hand on his arm and glanced at Kai who just shook his head. He decided his lover was right. They should just let Takao rant instead of correcting him. Eventually it would burn out and he would sulk for a while then be back to normal.

Collapsing back onto the couch he felt one hand grip his lightly while the other rested around his waist, practically pulling him on his lap. At times like these he was glad for the caring gestures.

Meanwhile Adam stared at them like they were all insane. With Takao ranting and poor Kyouju looking about ready to have a nervous breakdown he wondered how this team made it so far without any adult supervision. He had heard the stories of Europe and he knew he would've had a mental breakdown so how had this team, who seemed to be having their own breakdown too early in the game, manage to make it so far?

"Seriously guys, it's no big deal. It's just a beyblade." He had mastered others before, so how could this new one be much different from his old one except smaller?

At that Hiromi raised an eyebrow as she marched over to him and stuck her finger in his face. "Just a beyblade? Just a beyblade? You may think you know it all because you're an old hand at this game but around here you're out of your league and they took all day to control this system."

Adam leaned back in response, gaping up at the girl who in his mind had just become far scarier and he suddenly felt sick to his stomach. He wasn't near the skill level that any of them were at. Maybe what they were at four years ago but they had covered so much ground in those four years. Simply said they were at the level or professionals and he suddenly felt like the rookie trying to make the grade. Glancing over at them he stared down, wondering not for the first time if he would hold them back instead of helping them out. What type of tag team partner would he be if Jonouchi needed to babysit him in the dish. He had been crushed by Slade and seeing the Bladebreakers in action he doubted that any of them could have crushed him, especially if they called on their bitbeasts. But what if he couldn't keep up? Glancing over at the blond he felt his face heat up. He would be holding Jonouchi back, especially if he didn't get a few things under control.

&&&

Outside Rei was standing on the deck. For the moment his hair wasn't pound tightly, instead just pulled back with a red ribbon. The salty sea air tugged at his hair and whipped it lightly as he leaned against the rail, giving a sigh. It was a different feeling than usual when he was getting ready for a tournament. Instead of being excited to face the competition he was listless and depressed. The neko-jin just stared in the distance towards the horizon they were leaving.

"I never picked you for a melancholy one," Rei lifted his head, slightly startled by the voice behind him. He turned quickly, noticing that it was one of the new bladers.

"Oh sorry," she smiled in response. "I'm Jesse Bishop, a member of the Steel Hawks."

"Rei Kon," he said, his golden gaze flickering away from the horizon towards the woman.

"I know who you are, by reputation only, and your team," she brushed a lock of brown hair behind her ear as she smiled towards him. "You… just look different than the pictures I've seen in the newspaper. Younger and happier…."

"I was younger," he glance back at her, wondering what this girl was getting at.

"It's not just your age, you look more mature," she said with a smile. "And sadder," she glanced at him.

"I'm missing someone," he said as she glanced towards him, pausing for a minute and not knowing what to say to the famous Chinese blader.

"A girlfriend?" She blinked for a moment, looking at him to see a shake of his head.

"No, no… my son," there was a blink of confusion from the girl as she stared at the older boy. She was shocked to hear he had a son but then again she supposed it wasn't that uncommon.

"I'm sure you make a great father," she smiled in response, patting his shoulder before turning away. Rei didn't bother correcting her, sighing slightly as his eyes returned to the horizon. It would have just caused confusion if he had corrected her. Standing there he wrapped his arms around his body, feeling the emptiness of them. He had never thought that Kouji would become such an intricate part of his life.

&&&

Rumiko had stepped out of the cabin to get a breath of fresh air and away from the overwhelming amount of testosterone on the team. It wasn't that the men out numbered the women that much but when Shizuka and Anzu were gone that left Mao and her to handle Kiki, Gao, Rai, and Matoko and the sad thing was Matoko was the most responsible of the group. The giant was currently absorbed in readying his beyblade for battle.

"Hey, what's a pretty lass like you doing out here?"

Rumiko turned, giving the other a glower. Her hands hung at her sides, golden eyes on the cyborg that had seemed to be the worst of her problems.

"How about you and I have a little one on one… if you get what I'm saying," he smiled but Rumiko just continued to glare.

"Look you bastard… I can't wait until we battle you and I get to smash that ugly mug of yours in," there was a growl towards him.

"Now, now, let's not be rash," Alistair held up his hands in defense. "I just wanna get to know ya," however he froze as he saw the glare. "See what makes a gorgeous woman like you tick."

"Kicking your ass off this boat," she snapped, giving a flash of fangs suddenly Rumiko froze as there was a sound that sounded like half pissed off meow and half scream and several red marks appeared on Alistair's face. He gave a yelp, his hand reaching up to cover the scratches as he turned to look at his assailant, a small pink one.

"This guy isn't bugging you, is he Rumiko?"

There was a shake of her head. "No, not anymore. Thanks Mao," the golden eyes met each other and Mao gave a smile. Despite that their teams had made war she had always respected the ginger inu-jin and wanted to know her better. She gave Rumiko her best smile and the inu-jin nodded towards her. "So what are you doing out here? Did Matoko tell you to bring me back?"

There was a shake of her head. "No, my brother's doing it again."

A slight laugh escaped at that as Rumiko shook her head. She knew what 'it' was of course. Sometimes when one had two captains and they were dating each other it proved to be problematic. This was one of those situations, or in this situation Matoko would be aloof as ever and Rai would massage his shoulders while whispering in his ear which slowly turned to kissing his neck and basically become sappy enough to turn stomach's until Matoko snapped and told Rai to either act like a man or to quit beating around the bush and strip already.

"Then we better stay out of their way until their done," Mao smiled slightly at that and sat next to her teammate, hands in her lap. "Rumiko, have you ever really liked someone but been afraid to tell them because you think they won't feel the same way?"

At that she glanced at the younger one. "Is this about Rei?"

At that a laugh escaped. "No, no, maybe once but I'm over him. I'm glad he found Takao because they really are good together and Kouji is adorable…" she glanced down, giving a small smile.

"So, someone else… are they on the team?"

Mao gasped at that and quickly shook her head. "No way, I'm keeping this one secret!" She blushed brightly in response. "Though was I the only one crazy enough to fall in love with my captain?"

Rumiko smiled as she shook her head. "I think at a point every one of us was in love with the boss. He meant everything to us and we'd do anything for him," she glanced over with a slight smile. "But you did just say it wasn't Rei and you refuse to tell me whether they're on the team or not."

Mao felt her cheeks burning as she glanced away only to notice a brunette standing there. "Hey gals, have room for one more for guy talk?"

Mao gave a slight nod as she glanced over at Rumiko. "I'm Rumiko, this is Mao; we're from the Predatorials."

"Jesse Bishop, Steel Hawks. I just ran into a guy that has eyes a lot like yours, big and golden. I can't remember the name off the top of my head though… but I know he had a kid."

At that Mao covered her smile and glanced over at Rumiko. "That was Rei. We used to be two separate teams and he was on the same team I was. We come from the same village."

"Well, that explains it," Jesse leaned back as she glanced at the two. "Anyways… boy talk!"

At that the two jins looked at each other and laughed. "Well it's not exactly a boy…" Mao began.

"It never is with our team. We see every day the stupidity of their gender."

&&&

There was a shrill scream and a blader diving for cover as laughter burst out from his team members. "Adam… you scream like a girl," Takao said, holding his sides.

"You would too if your beyblade decided it was going to try its hardest to hit you in the head!"

He had been warned but he had thought after the alpha core that this would be easy. He couldn't have been more wrong. Every time he launched Aster it stopped once it struck the dish and was reflected back towards his head, sending him ducking for cover before it landed and fell to the ground. If there was some secret to controlling these things his team wasn't cracking and telling him. They were on an island where the tournament was being held and had been assigned their rooms so for the moment they were outside, watching Adam attempt to matter the MS beyblade Kyouju had just finished and it seemed that his team thought it was the funniest thing they had seen.

Adam did not share their thoughts on the matter as he gave his beyblade a glare. It lay unmoving in the grass but after hearing the story of the two Dragoons he was almost afraid to touch it just in case it jumped up and started chasing him. He had tried everything short of saying please and begging his beyblade to listen and even though it sounded idiotic he was almost ready to try it.

Whatever Kyouju had made there was one thing to be said. This thing had a thinking mind of its own and short of getting on his knees and begging the beyblade he didn't think it was going to listen. With that in mind he got on his hands and knees.

"Please oh please listen, I swear I won't make you do anything bad ever again and I'll polish you every night and protect you from scratches," he continued to ramble on and the team broke into peals of laughter all over again except for Kai who was just staring at him as if he were a nut case and right now that may not be too far off.

The beyblade rolled and bounced up, smacking him square in the face. He gave a yell, holding his face as he felt the blood drip from his nose, the beyblade moving before him as if it was tempting him. "I've had enough!"

"Okay, let's take a break," Takao said, still holding his sides in laughter. He knew he shouldn't be laughing but it was so funny to see someone else having trouble with it, remembering the time they all had attempting to control them.

Heading into their rooms there were a few groans as Max wiped the blood from Adam's face and gave him an icepack. There was a slight wince in response. "Hey, that hurts."

Jonouchi shrugged in response to that. "If you don't keep it on your nose will swell and the bleeding won't stop. What will your fan girls think of that?"

There was a barely concealed growl as he tried to glower at his partner but couldn't manage to look threatening with the ice pack held to his face. Forced to lay down Adam stared at the ceiling, his nose beginning to feel numb. After opening ceremonies the first round would start so no matter what sometime in the next few days he would have to battle and he didn't know if he could learn how to master this beyblade in such little time.

"I think my nose is broken…"

At that Hiromi raised an eyebrow. "Then you'll be walking around with it taped up the rest of the tournament." With her hands on her hips the rest of the team could see that she was serious about that, the newest Bladebreaker inching back into the bed a little more. Giving a groan he held the icepack against his face more.

"Wake me when it's over," Adam grumbled as Hiromi reached down, yanking the sheet from over his face.

"What is it about men that makes them such babies? I'd like to see you give birth to a child," she snorted in response as Rei glanced over.

"I've done that," Rei said only for Hiromi to glare at him.

"You were put to sleep and had a c-section. I'm talking about having a baby the old fashioned way!" She turned around, sticking her finger in Rei's face as the boys paused, imagining just where a baby would come out.

"That would hurt…" Takao paled slightly as he just imagined it before shuddering and decided that a c-section was a very good idea.

When help finally came in the form of his mother Adam was still groaning about the pain and Hiromi was threatening to kill him if he didn't shut up. Every time she did Takao tried not to laugh and failed completely.

Kikyo stared at her son with the icepack on his face and just shook her head. Stepping over she removed the melted ice, shaking her head. "What did you do to yourself this time?"

"Nothing… it was the beyblade," she reached out to touch it but Adam winced as she sighed.

"You are being such a baby about this Adam," she scolded as she shook her head. Reaching down she realigned the bones of his nose without warning. Adam gave a loud scream, his hands reaching up to cover his face.

"You're going to kill me!"

"Nonsense, but it does need to be straightened out or else it'll heal crooked." Reaching down into her bag she took out a soft bandage and an object made to fit the nose, securing it on his face. "You need to wear that for six days and I'll pick up some painkillers for you sweetie," she smiled briefly as she kissed Adam's forehead.

Ten minutes after she was gone Takao was still laughing and Adam swore he never wanted to see another beyblade again.

&&&

All eight teams stood in silence. There was no deafening applause, no cheering crowds. All there was was absolute silence. A black haired man, who they recognized as Dr. Zero, was standing above them all.

"First of all, I'd like to welcome you all here to this… hell."

Takao felt his stomach clench as he stared up at the man. "Now I'd like to welcome our gracious host that the winner of this tournament will have a chance to battle, Shippu no Jin!"

At that Takao's eyes widened, staring up at the figure that could only be his brother. His hand clenched into a fist as Rei lightly touched his wrist, trying to get him to calm down. "My brother… my brother…"

Rei wanted to hold his lover, wanted to keep him in his arms and try to keep him safe.

"Now let me explain the rules… wait, what rules? The last beyblade spinning is the winner. There will be three battles, two singles and one double. For each single battle won your team gets one point, two points for every double battle. Take your seats and let the games begin!"

Takao had his hands clenched as he gazed up, sitting on one of the benches set back in a cubby area of the arena.

"For the first battle of the first round we have the Bladebreakers and Neo Borg!"

At that each of them glanced at each other and Max stood up, stepping forward into the box he was motioned to. In the last tournament he had battled Kai but deep down he felt an uneasy settling in his stomach as he glanced over, seeing Boris step forward. Once the silver haired blader had made it to his box on the opposite end of the arena there was an audible click and the platform began lowering: 5, 10, 20, 40 feet beneath the floor of the arena. With a switch of gears the floor drew back, leaving the bladers standing in a giant arena forty feet below their team members. There would be no running from this fight and the only way to win was to make the other beyblade stop spinning.

Max felt his mouth go dry as he stepped forward, loading Draciel into his launcher as his blue eyes flickered up, locking on Boris.

"What, they're sending the baby after me?" Boris asked as Max shot him a look. He knew he was a good choice, remembering Rei's battle against Boris and the one word they said to him. Defense.

At that Max loaded Draciel into his launcher, holding it straight. He didn't have any words for Boris, knowing the other didn't like him or any of the others. Whether or not he would try to harm him had yet to be seen. He wouldn't exactly call this team civil unless it was required of them. Max remembered that Yuriy had been furious with Daichi and Rick who beat him and in the end wanting a rematch with Daichi and only giving Takao any respect.

"3… 2… 1… Go shoot!"

Draciel was launched into the center, taking its normal spot before him. "Alright, come get me!"

"With pleasure… go Falborg!" Max stood his ground as he felt the impact, Boris' beyblade smashing hard against his. He held up his defensive wall, feeling the strength however he was shocked that no rocks had come flying his way yet.

"Draciel! Hold him!" The green beyblade continued to spin, meeting each strike.

"Falborg! Push him back!"

"Not on my watch!" Max glanced at Draciel, water starting to form a whirlpool around him and his beyblade. The water slammed hard against the other beyblade, striking it repeatedly as Boris fell back, clenching a hand. However the Russian seemed impassive, like he wasn't being worn down at all.

"Falborg! Stroblitz!" The wind sliced through the water, sending it flying back at Max as he shielded his face, feeling the water slam hard against him, knocking him back. The wind hadn't touched him but there was no way to avoid the slicing of his own attack, the beyblades clashing again.

"Draciel! Attack!" The green beyblade continued to hold its ground, slamming back against Boris' as Max watched, panting lightly. It was taking all his energy just to keep his defensive wall up, his mind tracking through defensive strategies as he held his ground.

Up above Takao gasped, glancing at the others. "Did he just cut through Max's wall?" Slowly standing up he stared down. "Quit messing around and take him out Maxie!" At that there was a grit of teeth and Max's blue looked up towards his team before glancing forward.

"Let's finish this Draciel! Tidal Attack!" Instantly a wave rose over as Boris called Falborg out, tensing at the fact that Max had forced him to bring his bitbeast out. It wasn't to be said that it wasn't unexpected though as he glanced towards Max. The wave slammed against the falcon, knocking Boris back and drenching the dirt. The beyblades traded blows, throwing mud, the wind knocking the water back towards Max but each time the small blond got back up. Boris knew he wasn't controlling this battle as Falborg hit the wall and fell still on the ground.

"Bladebreakers win!" Zero didn't conceal the sneer on his lips as he watched them. He would make sure they lost everything before this tournament was up. As a rope ladder was dropped down on each side the two bladers climbed up, Max standing in front of his team, panting and covered and mud from head to toe.

"Alright! That's one for us!"

"Can I get a bath?"

Kyouju gave him an apologetic smile as he shook his head, moving over so the muddy American could sit down. "Sorry Maxie, we still have two more battles."

He sat down hard, head against the wall. "I really need a bath." There were a few laughs at that as Takao jumped down into the hole and slipped on the mud, falling on his ass.

"Maxie! You left a mess!" He yelled up as he pushed himself up.

"I think you look good," Adam pointed out, trying to be the diplomatic one as the oldest.

"Oh, thank you very much black eye," Max grinned at the other, referring to the bruising around his nose and the black eye from the broken blood vessels of his face.

&&&

Sergei stood up, crossing over to the ladder, choosing a far more graceful way of getting into the arena than his opponent. When he had last battled this team he had fought Kai and now he was taking on the world champion himself. He no longer had anyone to fight for but his team and himself. It was his responsibility to defeat Takao.

Loading Seaborg into his launcher he gazed down at Takao as the bluenette gave an exasperated groan. "Come on Yuriy, are you going to sulk this entire tournament because Daichi is a no show?"

There was a raise of a red eyebrow, eyes focusing intently on Takao and an expression hard as rock at the world champion shrugged, laughing lightly. Whatever Yuriy had up his sleeve Takao was pretty sure it was for a good reason. As the bluenette focused on the giant man he flashed a grin.

"So let's get this thing on, huh."

"Yes, lets," Sergei gazed calmly at him, standing somewhat stiff as he watched Takao load Dragoon into his launcher and the countdown began. "3… 2… 1… Go shoot!"

Dragoon sailed out at top speed, slamming into the mud at top speed, the movements spraying mud everywhere. Takao quickly found out it was much harder to maneuver in the mud, each movement making him feel slow and sluggish, and like he was pulling a ton block behind him.

As Takao watched he also noticed that Seaborg was having trouble moving as well and he gave a sigh of relief. It Sergei was having trouble controlling his beyblade as well they were on even ground. "Dragoon!"

The white beyblade slammed hard against the other one, trying to push it back but couldn't gain any purchase in the mud and with no rushing power Takao knew he was going to have a problem. He had to push the other one back but with no grip that was proving to be very difficult. His feet slid and he groaned, trying to gain purchase on the ground. Deep down in his mind he knew he should have gone first.

"Having trouble?"

"Yeah right…" Takao grumbled, knowing Sergei was having trouble as well. He could see that the power wasn't what it should be and neither beyblade was gaining an edge. "Dragoon!" The beyblade started to spin faster, working up a tornado of wind that slammed against the other, mud flying everywhere. Sergei stood strong as Takao shield his face from the flying mud.

"Seaborg! Stramolyu!" The water flooded, slamming hard against Dragoon and washing over the beyblade. Takao felt himself get knocked back, the water up to his calves. "I won…"

A large grin broke over Takao's features in response. "Dragoon! Galaxy Storm!" The hurricane grew erupting from under the water and throwing water and mud everywhere, the wind acting like a vacuum until it was in a spot empty of mud and water, the wind, water, and mud striking hard at Seaborg, Sergei losing ground.

There was a slight growl in response, Sergei's eyes on the world champion. "You're as good as the rumors say," he said as his eyes lingered on Takao, the world champion shrugging slightly.

"What, you doubted it? Now let's turn this up a notch!" Dragoon rammed forward, the storm clearing a path through the water before striking at Seaborg, the wind growing as the Russian's beyblade was caught in the wind and thrown against the wall, dropping to wobble slightly before crashing into the water.

Remembering Sergei's battle against Kai and Takao let his jaw clench, knowing this battle wasn't over. It was just a question of where Seaborg would emerge this time, Dragoon moving along elevated piles of mud and rocks jutting out. Watching closely he saw a ripple and the other beyblade leapt out, clashing against Dragoon on top of the rock. There was little room and Takao gave a groan, trying to dig his feet in to hold his ground.

"Dragoon!" Sergei glanced up as that, the smaller beyblade pushing harder as the speed of the turn picked up. He knew facing Takao would be hard but he had no idea how hard. Deep in his mind he hoped his captain knew what he was doing. "Evolution Storm!"

The storm encompassed the area, picking up not only Seaborg but Sergei as well, slamming him against the wall. When it subsided the pit was far deeper, the water having been ripped out and Seaborg was on its side, Dragoon still spinning.

Sergei gave a groan, laying back down into the mud before cracking an eye open and noticing the hand offered to him. "That was an awesome battle Sergei. We really should do this again."

There was a nod in response as he took Takao's hand, pulled to his feet. They sunk into the mud as he pulled his beyblade out. It was filthy and nearly stuck. "You are an opponent to respect," Sergei said as he gave a nod, climbing out of the pit.

Takao hurried to grab Dragoon and then climbed out himself, grinning at the others. "Hey Maxie, now we match."

The blond just shook his head in response, laughing lightly. As Takao turned towards his lover Rei held up a hand. "Takao Kinomiya… don't you dare!"

"He's using your full name, he must be mad or you'll be sleeping on the couch the rest of your life." The world champion gave a shrug in response. He would anyways and so he grabbed Rei, covering his white clothes with mud before kissing him lightly and dumped a handful on his head, smearing it in his hair.

"TAKAO!" Rei looked furious as Takao grinned, taking a few steps back and started to run from the pissed off neko-jin, hiding behind Adam.

"Hey, don't get me into this!" Adam looked behind him at Takao and that back at a very dirty Rei who was obviously pissed off.

"Adam, it's our turn," he glanced up, seeing Jonouchi jump into the ditch and land a lot more gracefully than his friend had. He decided to take the ladder, having a distinct feeling that if he tried anything else he would repeat Takao's performance except he'd probably just fall on his already broken nose.

&&&

"Easy win, right," Demitri said as he stood next to his brother only to have Yuriy shoot him a look. "Against Adam perhaps, but the rest of those people are in a different league."

Yuriy knew that this would be a hard battle, having been beaten by Daichi. The red head was weaker than the others and even with Adam to hold him back they would have to use everything to take down Jonouchi. None of the Bladebreakers were to be underestimated and Demitri may have not realized it but Yuriy had been taken down by them multiple times, Takao defeating Garland who had destroyed him and put him in a coma for a month.

As Demitri looked at his opponents he suddenly started howling in laughter and like a pack of hyenas Ivan and Boris joined in. Sergei blinked for a moment and Yuriy smirked as he stared at the bandage that covered Adam's nose.

"What happened Adam?" Demitri asked between laughter. "Did someone finally get some brains and smack you a good one."

"No…" there was no way he was telling Demitri that his beyblade decided to get payback for something or another he must have done to it. The older redhead grinned as he loaded his beyblade into his launcher, his brother following right after him. Adam recovered to see Jonouchi was already poised to launch his own. Meanwhile Demitri was still laughing, Adam kneeling down and launching a handful of mud at his once teammates face.

Demitri froze, staring at him for a moment before angrily wiping off the mud before kneeling down, only to be stopped by his younger brother's glare, a similar glare on Jonouchi's face, directed towards Adam and the older blader sighed, loading his beyblade onto his launcher. Adam turned to give Jonouchi a dirty look before standing at the ready.

"3… 2… 1… Go shoot!"

The four beyblades were off, slamming against each other though Adam was having trouble keeping up, not as skilled as the others though as he watched he realized they weren't moving as fast as they could have, the mud slowing them down. The two beyblades were on Kuroiryu, smashing against it from opposite directions, trying to smash it down. With each hit Jonouchi got knocked back a little more. Reaching down with one hand he pushed himself up.

"Adam! Where's my backup!"

Adam lifted his head at that, his gaze focusing on Jonouchi as he glanced towards his beyblade. "Aster!" With that yell the beyblade fought to get out of the mud, smashing against Wolborg to keep the two wolves off of Kuroiryu.

"So nice of you to join the party, Adam," Demitri smirked for a moment before glancing at his beyblade. "Steelborg! Full attack!" Slamming hard Jonouchi slid in the mud before glancing up at Demitri.

"Is that all you've got."

"A feisty one, huh?" Demitri glanced at Jonouchi then nodded towards his brother.

"Wolborg!" The white wolf was the first to emerge, first taking a form of an ice maiden before the wolf emerged howling. Adam stiffened slightly, seeing the familiar bitbeast and suddenly felt that he was going to be facing his biggest challenge.

"Adam! If you can survive he's weak in defense after he attacks!"

"What do you mean, 'if I can survive'?"

Jonouchi gritted his teeth as he focused intently on Demitri. The elder red head lunged forward, causing Jonouchi to jump out of the way, blows being traded between the bladers and the beyblades.

"So you're Katsuya Jonouchi…" Demitri said, the cold blue eyes falling on him. "My brother talks of you often and speaks very highly of you." At that Jonouchi's gaze locked on Demitri, flickering for a moment back to Adam and wondering if he could handle Yuriy. "Forget about Banks, you have a problem right here."

Jonouchi growled slightly at that, his attention returning to Demitri. He knew he had to end this soon or risk losing the match. Demitri tried to hit him and Jonouchi dodged out of the way, striking back as his beyblade followed form.

"You know what…" Demitri managed as he panted. "I hate people like you. You toy with emotions but deep down you're just a whore."

"Shut up!"

"Can't stand the truth?" Demitri pushed himself up. "You lead everyone around, including my brother!"

"Is that what this is about?" Jonouchi gave a groan in response. "You can't handle the fact that someone might turn down your brother? Have you seen him lately and you still ask? Guess what, I'm dating Kai and there is nothing you or Yuriy can do about it."

There was a growl in response. "Steelborg! Volt Attack!"

&&&

As Adam stood across from Yuriy he couldn't believe that the one he was staring at was the same child that had travelled with them when they were younger. He seemed so different now than when he was younger. It made him wonder what exactly had been done to this child to turn him into what he was today. He had known what the abbey was like but though he had survived and made it through alright perhaps it was so much worse in Russia.

The red head he was standing across didn't blink, didn't crack a smile and he could tell that hate burned in him like molten lava. He had to briefly wonder how the icy mask never melted with all that burning inside him.

"Wolborg! Attack!" Yuriy yelled and Adam felt himself thrown back, sliding on the mud as his back hit the wall. He gave a groan, pushing himself up shakily, his backside sore and covered with mud.

"Aster! Blazing Comet!" Comets fell indiscriminately from the air, striking at the ground hard and leaving deeps ditches in the ground. Steelborg and Kuroiryu dodged the attack, swerving sharply around the holes in the ground and trading blows.

"Wolborg! Novae Rog!"

It was an attack Adam remembered and he wasn't quite sure if he could survive it at its increased power. Yuriy was far more powerful than Demitri had been when Adam had fought him the first time. In memory his shoulder ached as he saw the change that overcame Yuriy, far more severe than the change from last year whenever he used that attack.

Aster was frozen solid and then the diamond like ice cracked and Aster slammed hard against the wall, wobbling a bit as Wolborg went on the attack, not allowing him enough time to recover from the attack.

"Aster! Attack!" The black beyblade slammed hard and the power of fire and ice caused an explosion, the smoke clearing to reveal both beyblades having stopped. Two rope ladders were dropped and both Yuriy and Adam were able to climb out.

Once out Adam collapsed on the bench between Max and Kai, the only clean blader on the team. His red eyes were watching the battle closely and Adam could see how his body tensed. He glanced at his student, wondering if he worried for his lover.

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Jonouchi was panting, his eyes contact never breaking from Demitri's. When Demitri attack he dodged the fist, ducking under the attack as Kuroiryu dodged the attack from the beyblade. He was enjoying this battle, as intense as it was.

Demitri gave a nod towards the inu-jin. "You're good, I'll give you that. It looks like I'll have to give you my full effort." His calm blue eyes regarded the other, taking in the view. He could tell why his brother was interested but didn't see how this boy was the dream date for so many bladers. Cute with a puppyish look and a good blader but he was far too strong for his taste. Demitri much preferred them skittish and shy and Katsuya Jonouchi was none of those things.

As he staggered slightly, landing on a knee there was a quiet gasp from his team and others however Jonouchi was not out of this battle just yet. His heart was pounding but even though fast it was steady and regular. Placing his hands on the ground he pushed himself up, mud clinging to strands of hair, staining his face and mixing with sweat.

Demitri gave him a nod of respect before giving Steelborg more power. His skin turned metallic and steel-like, the power filling him as he called out his bitbeast, the large wolf covered in steel plates leaping from the bitchip.

There was a grin from the inu-jin in response. "Kuroiryu! Let's turn up the heat!" The black dragon that emerged was huge, its angular head tilting towards the wolf as it gave a screech of anger. Slamming against the wolf its claws raked against the metal, biting at the other. Fire met lightning and the resulting explosion sent both bladers flying back.

Both flashed a grin and Demitri pushed himself up before staggering again and hitting the ground, Steelborg coming to the side.

"Bladebreakers win! The current score is four to zero!" As Dr. Zero stared down at the inu-jin his lip curled in a snarl. He had hoped Borcloff's once pet project would have been able to score at least one point. Instead they had been completely defeated by the Bladebreakers.

Perhaps he had underestimated this team.

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Takao was grumbling loudly as he stepped into the communal showers, stripping off the muddy clothes and hitting the knob to turn on the spray. For all the things that this place had his brother and this Zero guy sure hadn't thought about comfort.

There were two large communal showers, one for each gender, and each team only got a large room with what resembled the beds they used in China. Hiromi had chosen to sleep on the floor in the sitting room which was a makeshift desk, an old sink, and a table. They cooked their food over a fire outside that served as their only stove.

As he felt the spray hit his back his tired muscles gave a groan of soreness. Glancing up he saw Rei standing against the wall with his muddy clothes still on. His long hair had been let down, strands clumping together as it fell down his back.

Turning back Takao flashed a grin, holding out a hand. "Come on Rei, get washed up." Stepping out from under the spray he stepped closer and saw his lover's cheeks flush. Reaching up he wiped some of the mud from his cheek and pulled at the fabric belt around his cheek.

"I'll wash later," Rei quickly said but too late as Takao pulled his shirt off. Arms wrapped around his waist and the world champion raised an eyebrow.

"What are you being so shy about? No one's going to look. We all just want to get clean." Takao glanced over at the others, Max and Demitri talking about something, most likely Adam's face as Demitri pointed at him. The newcomer to the Bladebreaker team kept losing the soap and was currently trying to catch it.

Slowly Takao pried Rei's arms away from his middle, seeing what Rei was trying to hide. The neko-jin turned away embarrassed as Takao traced a finger down the long scar across his abdomen and the lines on his sides.

"Is this what it's about? Why you don't come to bed without a shirt anymore…" his mouth went dry. "Why we haven't done anything since you started showing," Takao shook his head, laughing lightly. Sometimes he didn't get Rei at all. He willingly stood up against Boris' beatings and fought harder than any of them but a few tiny marks and a scar had him hiding himself.

Pulling the pants down Takao dragged Rei under the spray, standing behind him to help him wash his hair.

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Having lost the bar of soap for the third time, Adam bent over to retrieve it which proved to be a huge mistake as he felt and heard a loud smack across his ass. He yelped covering it with his hand before trying to give the offending hand a glower before following it up to the owner, blushing at the sight of blue eyed Max. Along the way up he had seen too much, his lithe body shaped from years of blading physically strong but compact and still managing to look fragile. As his eyes lingered on his chest and arms he noticed a fair amount of bruises and then focused on the black eye before his mind went back to the battle, realizing his own water being thrown back at him had caused the marks.

Demitri was laughing loudly. "What's the matter Adam, payback's a bitch, isn't it." At that Adam glowered at his once teammate, remembering all the times he had tormented Hitoshi about his relationship with Inu-Yasha.

He glanced over, regarding the others. Boris, Sergei, and Ivan were to one side while Yuriy stood under the spray next to Demitri. Despite not being muddy Kai had placed himself between Max and Jonouchi while Rei and Takao took the other far end. The other teams would have to wait their turn in order to get the showers.

Glancing over he eyed his student for a moment, standing under the spray and reaching over, massaging his lover's shoulder. He watched as Jonouchi turned, brushing a finger over Kai's cheek and kissing him briefly. Looking back over at the Russians he noticed Demitri glare at the couple as Yuriy visibly tensed and if looks could kill Kai would have dropped dead.

When they were finished a pile of identical pajamas: dark blue sleep pants and a white t-shirt, were waiting for them to change into. With everything done Adam got back to the room, collapsing on a portion of the large 'bed' next to the wall. It seemed that Kai hadn't mentioned that as a couple they had far more enemies than just Slade. From appearances in the shower almost no one wanted the two together.

Everyone else soon joined, all of them sitting on the bed. Takao was especially in high spirits as Max stretched, covering a yawn.

"At least they gave us clean clothes. It could've been worse," Takao started as Rei glanced at him.

"I have better accommodations in White Tiger Hills and that's as rustic as you can get." Takao grinned at the complaint, scooting behind Rei to plait his mood by brushing his hair. The comb was slowly making its way through the long tangles.

"It doesn't matter about the accommodations. We won against one of the more skilled teams," Kai said coldly and Adam noticed that he had his hand beside him and it was holding Jonouchi's tightly. He almost smiled at the public shows of intimacy. Maybe it was a warning to Slade that they wouldn't call it quits so easily.

"But we still have the Novas and Renegades to beat," Rei pointed out as he glanced at them. "And there's no telling how tough the teams are that we don't know."

"Or how tough the ones we do have gotten," Jonouchi added in his two sense. "But Rei's right, we have to watch for the Novas. When we bladed against them several years ago we were crushed and Kaiba's still undefeated."

"And we can't let the Steel Hawks slide either. They've got Brooklyn." Adam listened to them talk, strangely quiet from the side. He was trying to figure out Brooklyn for himself. If he hadn't known before then he knew now that Jin and Hitoshi were on in the same. He was powerful but part of a team that certainly didn't have equal power and seemed to have nothing against Hitoshi despite what he did. And the more confusing part was that out of the five powerhouse bladers of BEGA he was the only one to continue. BEGA hadn't accepted as a team. If he knew Andros as well as he thought he did he was pretty sure Brooklyn would be used to his fullest and that would put a wall in their way.

As he laid there he wondered about the ginger haired blader, trying to figure him out from what he had heard but that wasn't much. There was a birth certificate but there was no record of him growing or attending school until he appeared in BEGA. There was no proof that his last name was even real. And if rumors were true no one in his small town remembered his parents or him. There was no registry for them either. But that was a puzzle that would wait.

"Maxie! Are you alright?" They all glanced up at that, seeing Judy race in with a worried expression. She hurried over and grabbed Max's face, a worried look crossing her face as she saw the black eye.

"Really mom, it looks a lot worse than it feels."

Judy stepped over, leaning over the bed as she lifted up her son's shirt, scowling as she saw the bruises. "Alright, I need to see them all."

The small blond gaped at that. "Here?"

"Yes here, now strip."

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Note: Jou-Kai-Mokie typed this chapter