Ba-Ku-Ra!

By: Miss-DNL & RenagadeRexRider

Chap 27 Battle City…BEGIN

The following morning, Ryou was up, ready and gone by 7:00 complete with Duel Disc. By the time he arrived in the Domino City Plaza it was 7:55 and virtually bursting at the seams, 'A lot more people showed up early that I thought they would, must be excited.' He thought as he made his way through the crowd, looking this way and that carefully, 'Don't see Yugi or Malik.'

Akefia likewise found himself more or less impressed with the turnout and simply stared at the crowd, "This…. is a lot." He commented as the situation reminded him of the larger market places during times of abundance and sale. He hummed at Ryou's comment as he too continued to scan the masses before at length huffing, "I feel it'll be like trying to locate a grain of wheat in the whole of the great desert… I'm sure we'll run into them eventually." He added rather dryly. Either way he would be just as happy to see a desert scorpion.

Ryou hummed softly at the Thief's tone but continued to look for his friend while his company kept his eyes more trained for threats. After fifteen minutes of waiting, Ryou felt himself perk up as he spotted a mess of familiar tricolored hair enter the Plaza prompting the Thief to glare irately and make himself scarce as Ryou headed towards him, much to Akefia's irritation, waving, "Yugi!"

Yami Yugi paused and turned his head to the sound of his name, immediately he smiled both pleased and surprised by who had called, "Ryou!" he gave a smile and tilted his head, "I'm a bit surprised you entered the tournament, it doesn't matter why though. Good to see you here." he commented before Ryou could explain, to which Ryou simply smiled back.

Ryou felt a form of pride that his friend saw confidence in the decision enough not to question it. It was well enough to make him feel more solid in his own decision. He paused as he then noticed Yami looking about carefully, "Any sign of Malik or his hunters?" he asked with a low tone.

Ryou shook his head as he likewise took a glance around, "I haven't seen him or anyone suspicious so far…"

Yami exhaled a bit forcefully as he crossed his arms, "Judging by his tactics I doubt he'll show up soon. He's probably somewhere watching through one of his puppets."

As the two spoke, Akefia gazed out through the Ring, teeth set bitterly for being so close to his enemy. For a fleeting moment he considered rushing out at him, but thought better of it. One he didn't need that attention, and the still present pressure of his shadow binds reminded him that he could not actually do anything. Bristling and growling shallowly he narrowed his eyes at the comment and forced his eyes out at the crowd, the sight making him feel several forms of ill. Swallowing his disdain, he had to acknowledge that, for the moment at least, they shared a common enemy.

Ryou nodded in agreement to the authoritive Yami. A sudden burning sensation developed in his stomach making him shift and quickly took note of Akefia's restrained aggravation. He frowned a bit knowing well what it was, but before anything else could happen he glimpsed an approaching figure and quickly looked to see who it was, the motion attracting both yami's attention to the direction.

Yami blinked a moment before registering who he was seeing, "Mai!"

Akefia blinked as he too registered the form and sighed, "Of course she'd show up…"

"Hey Yugi! Of course I'd see you here." Mai declared as she stood before the Yami, not at all surprised to see him. She quirked a brow however as she quickly noted his company and just as quickly smirked, "You're his friend Bakura right? The one that wiped the floor with Bandit Keith?" She smiled brightly in amusement at the image of Keith having his butt kicked by a younger kid and gave him a thumbs up, "It's no surprise that you made it then." She declared before taking notice of a shortage of heads, "Where's the others?"

"They should be arriving shortly." Yami replied after he assessed the gang had still yet to arrive.

Forcing himself to set back in his binds Akefia grunted at the arrival and the soon to be arriving before humming in feigned interest, "Wonder who else we'll see?"

A gruff voice answered his question almost immediately and everyone turned as Ryuzaki approached, Haga in tow behind him, "Long time no see! Yugi! Mai!" he barked, obviously carrying more than a hint of disdain on his voice.

Akefia gave an irritable sigh and wished he could facepalm, "Oh fuck…"

Ryou sighed having half expected the two to show eventually, although preferred it to have been later and almost playfully responded to his Yami with an inward laugh, 'You asked…'

Akefia growled shallowly at his host's comment and sighed, "So I did…"

Ryou more or less began to ignore the rest of the ensuing conversation that was quickly escalating into an argument about their monsters, 'So noisy…' Ryou thought to himself after a while, the thought agreed upon by his own Yami.

Mai likewise seemed to share the sentiment and quickly crossed her arms, at length rolled her eyes as she addressed her original company, "Let's go, I'm already tired of these guys…"

Akefia felt himself chuckle, likewise having tuned out the argument, "A good idea…" he declared.

Ryou and Yami looked at one another nodding in agreement to Mai's suggestion and quickly abandoned the two boys, quickly losing them in the crowd to find a quieter place to stand.

Just as the group relocated to a more favorable area, a large video monitor came alive with none other than Seto Kaiba on the screen. The fact immediately caught the attention of the massive crowd as the CEO addressed them all,

"Fellow Duelists… Welcome to Battle City! I will now explain the rules of the Tournament!" immediately the crowd gave a cheer before once more falling back into a surprising silence, "The participants gathered here today have been acknowledged by the Kaiba Corporation as a level 5 Duelist or higher. The Duel Disc on your arms are proof of that! The stage of this tournament is the entire Domino City! I have spoken to the civic authorities. No matter where you are within Domino City… if two duelists come face to face… you may fight!"

Ryou felt himself sweatdrop as Kaiba spoke, crossing his arms as he shifted, 'I'm starting to think Kaiba owns Domino City…'

Akefia likewise found himself frowning, more so at his host's comment, "And that somehow pisses me off…" he then gave a scoffing snort, "But I doubt he truly cares as long as he can parade his "games". He just loves to stroke that oversized ego of his."

Ryou gave yet another sweatdrop at his yami's comment and sighed, 'I'm going to have to agree with you on that one…' he paused as his Yami became thoughtful.

"The whole of the city… meh. It's safe to assume that a large portion of the competitors will be within this area alone. Give or take a good three mile stretch in any direction." He commented looking to his host, who gave a mental nod in reply.

'Yeah. I think so too… it's going to get really cramped around here…' Ryou thought as he looked around at the crowd. He sure hoped it would thin out quickly.

"That's an understatement…" Akefia muttered as he looked around, likewise sharing the sentiment. He had never been one for large crowds and spreading out sounded good. Hearing Kaiba mention the ante rules he and Ryou paused and proceeded to listen carefully.

"Now… according to the reports there are 48 official participants. But only eight make it to the finals!" to this he smirked a bit, "As for the location of the finals… it's a secret. But it's somewhere within the city limits! Mweh-heh… I too intend to duel under the same conditions as the rest of you. Therefore, in interest of fairness, not even I know where the finals will be held!"

Akefia listened to Kaiba talk before snorting at his final word, "Bullshit."

'We'll see… he likes a challenge.' Ryou thought to Akefia as Kaiba stood and put on his own Duel Disc, "Look at the Duel Disc on your arms! On the back you'll find a transparent plate!"

Akefia quirked a brow at this and hummed, "So it seems…"

At this Ryou perked curiously and did just that, along with many other people nearby. It took only a moment but Ryou found the plate stuck to the back of a card plate. Pulling it off he inspected it curiously, 'Looks like a piece of a street map…'

"That plate is a Puzzle Card. When all 48 puzzle cards from the contestants are put together, a map of Domino City will be revealed. The Puzzle Cards have a special prismatic coating. If you stack any six of them together a light will shine in a certain spot on the plate. That spot will be the location of the finals! That's right! When you duel, your opponents Puzzle Cards will be yours! Only those that collect 6 Puzzle Cards can reach the unknown location of the finals! The Tournament starts at nine o'clock! Duelists! Scatter across the city!" With that the screen shut off as the Duelists cheered in excitement, the opportunity to make it to the finals now belonging to anyone, immediately began scattering to find their niche, Akefia watching the crowd scatter alertly and intently.

'Somewhere around here is Diabound's missing power…' he thought to himself stiffly. It could be anywhere nearby or far… but he found a smirk crawl its way onto his face. Near or far… it didn't matter. He'd find his missing piece.

Ryou looked around at the sight of the thinning crowd and blinked at just how fast the Plaza was emptying, 'He sure knows how to get people riled up…' he paused as he heard Mai address them, alerting him that she too was on her way.

"Alright you two! Next time we meet… we're on! See you in the finals!" She called with a competitive smirk before vanishing in the scattering crowd.

"Yes!" Yami called as he waved her leave. Once out of immediate sight he turned to Ryou, "Best we split up and gather Puzzle Cards." Ryou nodded, knowing spreading out gave more opportunity for duels as well as covering ground. "Be careful though." He added after a careful scan around them.

"You too." Ryou responded earning a smile and thumbs up from Yami,

"I will." The duel champion said as he turned to leave, stopping only to call back, "Make it to the finals Ryou!"

"You can count on it "Pharaoh"…" Akefia hissed, hair still bristled even as the Pharaoh made his leave, perhaps even more so.

Hearing the grating tone of his Yami, Ryou blinked and looked around uncomfortably as his Yami's anger had yet to quell, 'It'll certainly be an interesting tournament.' He commented, drawing in the Spirit's attention, enough so it seemed to lessen his immediate irritation. The fact made Ryou smile a little before rubbing his neck. The city was huge, and people were everywhere, "Where should I go?" he questioned aloud.

Akefia hummed at the question and looked around, "Plenty of places to choose from it seems… But perhaps somewhere less approached. Duels are likely to be exploding here already."

Ryou bit his lip slightly, agreeing with the sentiment. As if to enforce that thought, he perked when several people suddenly rushed by, their chatter making him nod, "Looks like someone already challenged Yugi…' seeing the quickly gathering group around his friend even at a distance he blinked, "He has fans.'

Akefia merely huffed as he observed the growing gathering, scoffing at the sight with a still seething hatred, "Let them flock…" he growled before turning his stiffened voice to his host, "In the meantime we can hunt a proper duel, even perhaps a Rare Hunter." Looking at the sheer number of people he grumbled, "We'll never make much headway through this…." Casting his gaze around the street, he focused on a path where a few other duelists were likewise trying to escape the clutter, "Head that way. A few small fish, but larger ones love picking them off. Our best bet is that way." he urged directing the boy with one of the Ring's prongs.

Ryou listened to his Yami's logic and nodded, it made sense that Rare Hunters would be likely to take on the weaker duelists as well as lurk in shadier areas. Casting one last glance around he headed out of the Plaza and down the street where a few duels were already beginning to commence, 'That was fast.' he thought as he looked around at various groups, 'Maybe I could duel one of them…' the thought. A slow start could be just what he needed to get properly inspired for the larger fights.

Akefia nodded in agreement and began assessing the selection, "Take your pick. Plenty of "fish"." He paused momentarily as his eye trailed over the crowd, giving a double take as he spotted a group rounding the corner, "Ah? Who was that?"

"Oh! It's those guys that were with Keith!" Ryou declared immediately as he recognized the short skeletal looking kid, he hummed interestedly at the fact, 'Maybe they'll know something…' he paused however thinking back, 'Or not… Keith did dump them easily…Could still duel Bonz though.'

Akefia tossed the thought around, "A good point. Only one way to know for sure. Either way, a win win for us~." He commented smoothly.

'Yeah.' Ryou thought as he then proceeded to run after them as they turned the corner and out of sight.

As Ryou sprinted after the trio, Akefia kept a sharp eye out on the shadows. As they passed an alley however a flash of white snatched his gaze making his mind almost entirely stop, more so when the Ring automatically reacted. The Ring twitched in response to Akefia's realization and, grinning with a sudden excitement, Akefia called out, "Ryou! Wait! That way!"

Ryou came to a startled stop at the sudden shout and blinked in confusion at Akefia's excited tone and abrupt decision, 'Eh? What for? I need to go duel Bonz.' He thought to the Spirit as he looked on at the corner. They'd lose them if they didn't go!

Before he could argue further, he blinked as Akefia assumed spirit form and gestured back towards the alley, "That way!" he called firmly, completely ignoring his question.

Still confused Ryou gave a slight nod and decided it would be best to listen to his Yami and turned back towards the alley, 'Okay, Okay…' he thought as Akefia turned his sight to him almost impatiently. As he headed back to the alley he then took notice that the Ring was slightly pulling at his neck. Immediately through process of elimination he facepalmed as he put two and two together, 'Seriously?' he thought dumbfoundedly.

"Very~." Akefia retorted with a broad mischievous grin.

Sighing at the sensations radiating from his Yami, Ryou proceeded to turn down the alley, eyes out for Ishizu. It took only a swift glance when he spotted her not far ahead, he shifted as he glanced to his Yami and saw a grin that made him briefly think of a wolf.

Akefia's grin stretched ear to ear as he observed the woman, who it seemed had not taken notice of them. The fact made his voice come out as a rumbling purr, "Hello my Goddess~~."

Ishizu felt herself stall as she heard the Thief's familiar voice. Turning she blinked in surprise to see him so soon. Her brow quirked a bit at Ryou's rather exasperated expression and then felt her face flush as she fully realized the Thief's comment. Inwardly she thanked the fact that her blush was hidden behind her veil, "Bakura, Thief King?" she managed.

Akefia felt his shoulders slump ever so slightly in disappointment as he observed the face cover, "Ah… Now what's this?" he asked in a saddened tone, more so that he could not easily see her expressions, "A classy tradition reserved for only the crème of society?" he hummed and then waved his hand in an offhand manner, "Never was for it." he then grinned as he tilted his head slightly, stroking his chin as if in thought, "Ah. But I suppose it's for the best. Wouldn't want the whole of fools about this city ogling you my dear~." He added with a devilish grin.

Ishizu felt her brows furrow in confusion by the Thief's first comment, unsure of how to take it before blushing heatedly to the second. Unsure how to exactly respond she simply stared back at him with a confused look.

Ryou in the meantime was groaning slightly out of sheer embarrassment over his Yami's behavior, trying and failing to truly understand the fact. His teasing the woman made him shift awkwardly as the silence began to once more settle causing him to struggle to find a break, which he found strapped to Ishizu's arm, "You're in the tournament?" he inquired, genuinely intrigued and some surprised.

Ishizu nodded as she breathed a grateful sigh for the distraction, "Yes I am."

Akefia chuckled undauntedly as he observed his host, "But of course she is. After all, she's just as much a part of this whole mess as us currently. And I don't doubt she'll give us a run for our gold when the time comes." He turned a mischievous look back to the woman, "I look forward to that~."

"That makes sense." Ryou said more to himself than actual response.

Deciding to leave the Thief's comment be, Ishizu simply continued, "Yes, though it isn't a preferred activity of mine. I have to enter this one."

Akefia smirked as he eyed her gleaming Necklace, "Of course you do…" chuckling he looked back at her, "Care more the quiet route of the life of a scroll keeper I'd wager. Seems to suit an intelligent woman~."

Ishizu hummed and looked away from the Thief's gaze, feeling a slight impatience with his obvious teasing, "No, not really… not quite the life I want. That isn't what matters at this point though…" She replied as her eyes gaze fell to the ground, shaking her head at herself realizing she was allowing herself to get off course.

Akefia noted the alteration in Ishizu's mood and hummed, tilting his head curiously before deciding it wasn't exactly of immediate interest, "Ah. For the moment I guess… yes." he replied casting a glance to Ryou a moment, whose curious look at his glance went unnoticed, "That seems to stretch to quite the few. And how close has this Tombkeeper gotten to the fruits of this competition? Hmmm?"

"The tournament has just started; I have yet to duel… So not close." Ishizu commented a bit flatly, to which the Thief chuckled amusedly,

"So it has~. Well then I suppose we should part ways once more, seeing as we won't get much done standing here… For now~. I don't doubt that we'll see you in the finals however~. I look forward to seeing you there~." Akefia added with a smirk, earning an even glance from Ishizu.

"Yes…" she then straightened and nodded to them both, "Until the Finals. I wish you both well." She added before heading on her way.

"You too." Ryou replied with a slightly timid smile as he waved goodbye.

Akefia merely hummed and watched Ishizu leave and only allowed himself to completely limber up as she vanished around the corner. He shifted in place a moment thinking about the run in before smirking, "Ahh~ I'm feeling… weird." He said aloud with a grin, "I feel ridiculously giddy."

Ryou blinked and looked at his Yami, still confused, but easily feeling his radiating emotions he hummed, "Oh?"

"Yes. Other than that," Akefia began before looking to him once more, "Shall we proceed to slaughter some competition?"

At the mention Ryou nodded, recalling what he had been doing prior the detour and quickly headed back out the alley, 'Yeah… Might need to find someone else to duel.' He commented a bit dryly, earning a brief blank gaze from the Thief who just as quickly shrugged,

"Still plenty to pick from. As for those vermin, I don't doubt we'll run into them again." Akefia reasoned undauntedly, to which Ryou gave a smile,

'That's true.' He replied as he headed back into the streets once more looking around for someone to begin his task. Seeing most people already in a duel or simply watching a duel, Ryou found himself drifting further and further away from where he began in search of a good starting duel while Akefia continued to keep a trained eye out for trouble.

As Ryou turned down yet another street he found himself stopping in his tracks as a small group of people suddenly rushed onto the street in a clear panicked run, prompting Ryou to go on alert, 'Huh? What's going on?'

Akefia likewise locked in on the commotion and looked carefully, not seeing immediate danger, "I can't see from here. Only one way to find out really." He turned a gaze out the corner of his eye with a grin, "Could be worth it~."

Ryou blinked at his Yami's words, momentarily torn on how to take the hint. But deciding it would't really hurt to at least check. Feeling confident by his Yami he nodded and headed over to where the group had stopped to catch their breath, all grumbling.

"Excuse me." Ryou piped drawing the group's attention, "What happened? I saw you running."

The first boy, still panting looked up at the silverette, "We're not sure. We were taking a short cut through the graveyard when a bunch of people popped out of the ground and mugged our friend." He replied gesturing to his still somewhat pale friend.

The duelist amongst the group wiped his face, now looking more annoyed than anything huffed, "Yeah. They swiped a chunk of my cards too. It happened fast we high tailed it out of there…" The response made Ryou bristle at the familiarity and subtly looked to Akefia who likewise gave him a look,

"Well, well… earlier than expected. Cowards…" Akefia commented dryly.

"Oh, sorry to hear that." Ryou replied softly as he looked to the graveyard, keeping back his aggravation at the underhanded repeat from Duelist Kingdom, "I'll go get your cards back." He declared, more than confident he could take them on.

The group before him looked at each other skeptically, the kid not looking like he could amount to much but nonetheless shrugged at the offer, "If you do, you can keep the Locator Card."

Akefia couldn't help but give a short amused snort, "And helping comes with a prize~. Well then. Let's go stomp a few deadbeats into the ground~."

Ryou nodded in a simultaneous answer to both Akefia and the boy before he headed passed them and towards the graveyard. He paused only a moment to look up at the tall creaking wrought iron gates before entering, carefully passing row upon row of headstones almost fearlessly, listening intently to the still and silent air…

Sorry for the wait, chapter was sadly misplaced ^^;

It's here now and Battle City has officially begun! Next chapter Ryo will duel his first opponent!

This chapter was written by Renagade edited by Me.

Renagade-Thief Bakura

Me-Ryo, Kaiba, Mai, Ryuzaki, Ishizu, random & Yami Yugi

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