Chapter Six
When She Helped Out
Day One of Tag Duel Preparations (Continued)
~later that day~
Jaden walked down the hall, her thoughts focused on the earlier events as she entered the store. She walked up to the counter girl and requested something. The counter girl nodded and handed Jaden a paper. Jaden nodded and thanked the counter girl.
A few moments later,
Jaden was now sitting in one of the counter stools in the store tapping her mechanical pencil on the paper given to her by the girl. She swung her legs back and forth, alternating with the other as she read the paper. She pressed down on the pencil's eraser, pushing out the lead until she was satisfied with a certain amount.
"Let's see…" Jaden said, beginning to fill out the paper. "'Duel Request—Jaden Yuki'…"
Jaden's thoughts began to focus on Shou as she wrote down her name.
"Something must've happened with him and that big brother of his if he couldn't use Power Bond at the last moment…" Jaden thought, smiling as she looked over her paper.
Jaden lifted her pencil up, the eraser tapping against her lips as she thought.
"But if that's the case, I may as well duel his brother," Jaden thought, lowering the pencil back onto the paper to continue writing. "They say you have to duel first to get to know someone."
Jaden continued to fill out the 'Duel Request' form, not noticing Professor Chronos walking by. Professor Chronos spotted the gender-mistaken girl. The blonde-haired professor's curiosity got the better of him when he noticed the paper Jaden was writing on. He walked over to Jaden and snatched the paper out from under her, earning a surprised gasp from her.
Jaden looked up and saw her 'Duel Request' form in Professor Chronos's hand. Professor Chronos skimmed through the form, his interest piqued when he realized it was a 'Duel Request' form.
"Hmm…a Request for a Duel…and the opponent is…" Professor Chronos said, his eyes diverting over the opponent's name.
Professor Chronos's eyes widened at the name. He closed his eyes and placed his hand on the side of his head.
"Gorgonzola Cheese!" he exclaimed. (1)
Jaden held out her hand and stared at Professor Chronos slightly annoyed.
"Please give it back!" said Jaden. "I haven't finished writing it yet!"
Professor Chronos narrowed his eyes at the gender-mistaken Osiris Red.
"See here, that won't be necessary," said Professor Chronos. "After all, you're a million years too early to even challenge Marufuji Ryou…the most-skilled of the Duel Academy—"
Professor Chronos waved the form in front of Jaden's face as he pointed at it. Jaden puffed up her cheeks and pouted…rather cutely, and interrupted the blonde professor.
"And Shou's older brother!" Jaden added.
Professor Chronos sighed and shook his head. He pointed an accusing finger at Jaden, almost poking the tip of the Osiris Red's nose. Jaden blinked.
"Don't interrupt me, dropout boy!" snapped Professor Chronos. "A dropout like you duel a skilled duelist like Marufuji Ryou? Ha!"
Professor Chronos ripped Jaden's form in half before ripping it into multiple, smaller pieces. Jaden's eyes widened in horror as her jaw dropped.
"Oh god, why?" she thought as she saw the pieces of paper flutter down onto the ground.
~meanwhile~
Shou sat in his bed with his knees pulled up to his chest with a blanket draped over his head. He stared at the card in his hand, Power Bond. His brother's voice echoed in his head.
"You don't deserve to use that card yet," Ryou's voice echoed.
Shou gasped and closed his eyes tightly. He covered his ears with his hands as Ryou's voice continued.
"Until you are competent enough to be called a 'duelist', that card is barred-off from you," said Ryou's voice.
Shou changed his position and was now crouching onto his bed. His fists were tightened, shaking as he closed his eyes tightly and clenched his teeth. The blanket draped over his head now covered him fully.
"That's right…I'm not fit to be Aniki Jaden's partner!" Shou said to himself.
A small simulation of the tag duel played in Shou's head. It involved one of his and Jaden's opponents taking control of his monster and attacking Jaden. Jaden was on the ground, her life points down to 0, reaching out for Shou and calling his name while Ryou laughed at their loss.
Shou popped out from under his blanket, his eyes wide with fear from the simulation.
"This is horrible!" he shrieked.
During that moment in the forest,
Hayato sat up high on a tree branch as he went through his deck. He came upon a koala-based monster card and stared at it thoughtfully.
"I can't let go of this card, after all," he said.
Hayato blinked as he heard someone walking by with heavy footsteps. Whoever it was, Hayato swore he could feel their anger and wrath emanating from them. He stayed still and listened as whoever had been walking through the forest was getting closer and currently grumbling.
"Jaden?" thought Hayato.
It was Jaden and she was mad…enraged more likely as she tightened her fists. What Professor Chronos had did to her irritated her to no end.
"Damn that Professor Chronos!" said Jaden. "He didn't have to tear it up right in my face!"
Jaden stopped walking and crossed her arms. Unbeknownst to her, she was standing right under the tree Hayato was in.
"Fine!" she said. "If that's how it is, then…"
Jaden exclaimed and froze as cards rained down on her. She opened her eyes and looked up.
"W-What the?" said Jaden.
Jaden blinked, her mouth opened slightly in shock, as she stared at the sight that lied before her. Hayato had lost his balance and dropped his cards as he clung onto the tree branch to prevent himself from falling off. The way he was now clinging onto the branch reminded Jaden of a certain animal and got her saying…
"A-A koala?" she said, her eyes narrowing a bit as she realized who it really was. "It's just Hayato…"
Hayato turned his head and looked at Jaden.
"Y-Yeah," he said.
Jaden sighed and knelt down to take a look at the cards that were on the ground. She picked one up and turned it over. Blinking, she looked up at Hayato with a sly smile.
"Don't tell me you've got the motivation to duel…" said Jaden.
Hayato closed his eyes and smiled.
"T-That's not it!" said Hayato. "Just doing a little card fortune-telling!"
Jaden gathered up all the once scattered cards into a neat little stack. She stood up and placed her hands on her hips as she looked at Hayato.
"Uh-huh…" she said with a grin. "Oh, I can't stick around here. See ya!"
Jaden waved at Hayato and turned around. Hayato stared at her as she ran off.
"Where are you off to, Jaden?" asked Hayato.
"I'm going to march into Obelisk Blue!" Jaden shouted, not once looking back.
Hayato's eyes widened as a bead of sweat rolled down the side of his head.
"W-What?" exclaimed Hayato.
"I'm gonna duel the Kaiser!" yelled Jaden.
This shocked Hayato so much that he lost his grip on the branch and fell onto the ground.
~later in the Obelisk Blue Dorms~
Jaden was shoved back forcefully and landed rear-first on the ground. She winced and opened her eyes immediately as she glared fiercely at the two Obelisk Blue boys who were standing right in front of her.
"What the hell are you doing?" she yelled.
One of the Obelisk Blues, a dark-brown haired boy, scowled at Jaden.
"Know your place, you crummy Osiris Red dropout," he said.
The other Obelisk Blue, a black-haired boy, agreed with the dark-brown haired boy.
"Do you think we'd let a guy like you get near the Kaiser?" he asked.
Jaden got up from the ground immediately with her fist tightened up in rage.
"W-What was that?" snapped Jaden.
Jaden's eyes widened and she closed them immediately as water, courtesy of the dark-brown haired Obelisk Blue who held the once-filled bucket, was thrown onto her head. She wiped her eyes and glared at the both Obelisk Blues as they turned and walked away, laughing at her. Jaden clenched her teeth and growled at them, her hair and the part top of her uniform now drenched.
"Shit!" she said through clenched teeth.
Hayato had watched what had happened from behind a tree.
"T-This is pathetic," said Hayato.
A few moments later,
Hayato walked Jaden back to the Osiris Red dorms after handing her a towel. Jaden toweled her hair, angry with the Obelisk Blue members who laughed and threw water on her. On a different subject, she wondered how they would've reacted to her if they'd known she was a girl. She snorted and shook her head.
"They'd still do it," she thought.
Hayato stared at Jaden, who was still irritated and angry.
"Geez, stop being so hasty," said Hayato.
Jaden would've listened to Hayato, but it'd be a cold, cold…very cold day in hell when she'd give up that easily. She was far too stubborn to do that…especially since she was just drenched in water from the neck up and laughed at by two guys who thought themselves far more superior than her.
"Damn Obelisk Blues!" said Jaden. "Those jerks…This isn't gonna make me quit! Mark my words, I'm dueling the Kaiser!"
Hayato mushroom sighed.
"Why am I not surprised?" thought Hayato.
Jaden toweled her hair one last time before shaking her head. Her hair puffed up afterwards, caused from toweling and shaking her head. She handed Hayato the towel and began to smooth down her puffed up hair. Hayato stared at Jaden, mentally laughing at how amusing it was to see her like this.
Hayato and Jaden stopped in front of the door to their room. Jaden grabbed the doorknob and turned it, opening the door. She looked around the room and spotted a tell-tale bulge under the covers of Shou's bed. She sighed and closed her eyes.
"Aw, darn it, Shou…" Jaden said, opening one of her eyes. "You stay cooped up inside all hours of the day and you don't even show up for your classes…"
"Jaden, we didn't have classes today," said Hayato.
"I'm talking about the duel preparations!" snapped Jaden.
Jaden walked over to the bunk beds.
"You're turning into Hayato!" said Jaden. "As if Koala-man wasn't enough…"
Hayato blinked and scowled at Jaden with both his fists held up.
"Hey!" he said. "Can it with the rude remarks!
Jaden closed her eyes and crossed her arms as she stood in front of the bunk beds.
"Count that as payback for the 'no assets' comment," Jaden said as she climbed up the ladder.
Jaden stopped by Shou's row and grinned as she grasped onto the covers. She then pulled them off in one quick motion, expecting the moping blue-haired Osiris Red to be under the covers. However, Shou was not under the covers or even in his bed. What had been under the blanket was a pillow, which Jaden was currently staring at.
"Huh?" said Jaden. "Shou's…"
Jaden stared at the pillow for a few more moments before giving an outburst.
"That's ingenious!" she exclaimed (2). "Okay, where is he?"
Hayato walked into the room and looked around, spotting something on the desk. He walked over to the desk to get a closer look and gasped when he realized what it was.
"W-What's this?" he said.
Jaden blinked and jumped off the ladder as she rushed over to Hayato's side. Hayato picked what had been on the desk…a letter. Jaden looked at the paper curiously and tried to get a look at it by standing on her toes. Finding it a difficult feat (due to her short height) to look at the letter while Hayato had it in his hands, she decided to screw it and just ask him what it said.
"What's it say?" she asked.
Hayato read the letter over and knew immediately at once it was from Shou due to the handwriting.
"This is just a short note for you guys," Shou's voice said in Hayato's mind as he read the letter. "I, Shou, am leaving the island. Don't try to stop me, Aniki. Life is nothing but a long goodbye!"
Jaden, stubbornness getting the better of her (once again), had climbed onto Hayato's back to read the letter. After reading it, she jumped off the large boy's back and snatched the letter out of his hands. She crumpled the paper in her hand, angry at what Shou had written.
"That jerk ran away?" Jaden said as she gripped the letter tightly until her hand was shaking.
Hayato stared at Jaden, noticing her anger in her expression. He was taken aback with how she was almost shaking.
"What are we going to do now?" Hayato asked Jaden, hoping to calm her down a bit.
Jaden blinked and looked at Hayato, her expression somewhat softened.
"Let's look for him!" she answered.
Hayato looked at Jaden perplexed.
"Huh?" he asked. "With dinner right around the corner?"
Jaden growled and grabbed onto Hayato's sleeve as she started to run out, dragging the large boy along.
"You'll live, just come on!" snapped Jaden.
Hayato sighed and followed Jaden as the gender-mistaken girl dragged him. It was best not to get on her bad side…especially in a situation like this.
Sometime later,
Jaden and Hayato looked around by the seaside after dashing out of the forest. Jaden looked frantically around for any sign of the blue-haired Osiris Red.
"Shou!" she called out. "Where are you?"
"Shou!" shouted Hayato. "Come on out!"
Jaden, seeing Shou wasn't here, ran down the seaside pathway. Hayato trailed after Jaden, looking around as he ran after her in case they missed anything.
"Shou!" yelled Jaden. "Come back!"
Jaden stopped and looked around carefully. Hayato slowed down his pace as he tried to catch his breath.
"Shou, you jerk…I'm begging you, come out!" Hayato yelled, placing his hands on his knees as he panted. "Dinner's going to be over…"
Jaden clenched her teeth and broke into a run again.
"Shou, when I get my hands on you, I'll—!" yelled Jaden. "I don't mean it!"
Meanwhile somewhere close by,
The blue-haired Osiris Red that Hayato and Jaden were currently looking for had just finished creating a makeshift raft. Shou held a long stick in his hand as he stared at the makeshift raft.
"This is my only option," he said.
Back with the searching duo,
Jaden turned a corner, narrowly avoiding falling off the pathway and landing into the water. Hayato trailed after her, exhausted from running and yelling. Unlike the large boy, Jaden wasn't exhausted at all and kept an eye out for the blue-haired boy.
Jaden's deck started glowing brightly, catching the attention of said owner. Jaden blinked and looked to her side, catching glimpse of her glowing deck, which she currently had placed in her right back pocket. A 'kuri kuri' called to her as a small weight rested upon her shoulder.
Jaden diverted her eyes to her left should and gasped as she saw it was Winged Kuriboh. His sudden presence caught a bit off guard, though just a bit.
"Partner!" said Jaden.
Hayato had stopped running, having heard Winged Kuriboh. He looked around and saw nothing.
"There's that voice going 'kuri kuri' again…" said Hayato.
Winged Kuriboh flapped his wings and started flying into a certain direction. Jaden watched Winged Kuriboh as he called to her.
"Kuri kuri!" said Winged Kuriboh.
Winged Kuriboh stopped and turned to look at Jaden. Jaden blinked as she stared at the winged furball.
"What?" she said. "'Follow you'?"
Winged Kuriboh nodded and said, "Kuri kuri!"
Jaden blinked and gasped.
"Could that be where Shou is?" thought Jaden.
Winged Kuriboh started to fly away in the direction he pointed out to Jaden. Jaden turned around and waved at Hayato.
"This way!" she yelled, breaking into a run afterward.
Hayato held out his hand.
"W-Wait, Jaden!" yelled Hayato.
Jaden ignored him as she continued to follow Winged Kuriboh. Hayato sighed and ran after his roommate.
Elsewhere,
Ryou stood by the lighthouse with his arms crossed as he stared out into the sunset. Footsteps caught his attention and he turned his head. He stayed silent as the person, Asuka, walked up and joined him in watching the sunset. After a few seconds, Ryou spoke.
"Get your hands on anything?" Ryou asked without looking way from the sunset.
Asuka shook her head.
"No…" said Asuka. "Another day like any other is uneventfully passing by. All the while, any signs of my brother have vanished into the waves…"
"Be patient," reassured Ryou. "I'm sure one day…"
Asuka nodded and said, "Yeah, I know."
Asuka looked at Ryou.
"That reminds me, I saw one of your otouto's duels," she said.
"So what?" asked Ryou.
"I won't give any comments, but now, Jaden Yuki wants a duel with you," said Asuka.
Ryou continued to stare into the sunset, thinking over where he heard that name before.
"Jaden Yuki?" he repeated, a few moments passing before he remembered where. "Ah, from the entry exams…"
Asuka stared at Ryou.
"Will you take him up on his challenge, Ryou?" she asked.
Ryou stayed silent whilst Asuka waited for an answer. Suddenly, a voice yelled out, breaking the silence between them.
"Aniki!" exclaimed someone.
Both Ryou and Asuka turned their head, finding the voice familiar. They looked at the docks, but saw no one. They looked around and stopped when they spotted a familiar blue-haired Osiris Red standing by the seaside pathway near a makeshift raft. Asuka gasped.
"That's…" Asuka said.
Ryou finished for Asuka, "Shou!"
Back on the seaside pathway,
Shou watched as Jaden ran into view, his eyes widening at the sight of the gender-mistaken girl. He turned and hopped into the raft, pushing it off from shore. Jaden saw this and picked up the pace quickly before Shou could get any further. Jaden pushed herself off the ground as she leapt into the air and landed right in front of Shou on the makeshift raft.
Shou stared at Jaden with wide eyes as she began to stand up on the raft. The sudden weight and force on the makeshift raft caused a tilt in balance and as a result, it capsized. Both Jaden and Shou screamed as they fell into the water.
Jaden was the first to pop out of the water and inhaled deeply. She looked around for Shou and spotted him spitting out water from his mouth as he began to struggle and flail in the water.
"H-Help me!" cried Shou. "I can't swim!"
Shou turned around quickly and grabbed a hold on the closest thing by him…Jaden. Jaden clenched her teeth as Shou's weight added with hers made it difficult to stay afloat. It didn't help that both Osiris Reds were pretty much almost the same height, making it even difficult for Jaden to support Shou.
"Hey, don't cling to me!" Jaden said as Shou clung on to her with his arms around her neck. "We're gonna sink!"
Hayato watched as he saw Jaden and Shou sink under the water. The last thing he saw before they sunk down completely was Jaden's hand, follow by a big splash. Winged Kuriboh flew over by where the duo had sunk.
"Kuri kuri!" he said in a concerned tone. "Kuri kuri!"
Hayato called out to his roommates.
"Shou!" yelled Hayato. "Jaden!"
Hayato jumped into the water, creating a big splash…before realizing first hand that he was in shallow water. The water barely reached up to his waist, as he found out when he opened his eyes.
"Ah…it's shallow," he said.
Not long after, both Jaden and Shou popped out of the water. They stood up straight as they inhaled deeply. Shou coughed a few times, having swallowed some of the salty water. Jaden shook her head and looked down as Winged Kuriboh flew to her side.
"Kuri kuri!" said Winged Kuriboh.
Winged Kuriboh returned to Jaden's shoulder before disappearing. Shou had finished coughing and turned to Jaden.
"Just let me go in peace, Aniki," said Shou.
Jaden turned to Shou and looked at him with an enraged expression in her eyes. Shou turned away immediately, slightly intimidated and preferring not to make eye-contact with his Aniki while she stared at him with that face. Had he looked closely, he would've noticed that Jaden was actually more hurt than enraged.
"You don't have to worry about me…" Shou said as he looked down, crossing his arms. "Just search for a different partner, and you'll least escape being expelled, Aniki."
Jaden clenched her teeth and held her fist up as she glared at Shou.
"Quit complaining!" snapped Jaden. "I've made up my mind!"
Jaden placed her hands on Shou's shoulders and gripped them as she shook him.
"You're my partner!" yelled Jaden.
Shou looked away after Jaden stopped shaking him. He frowned as he looked at the waves crashing into the rocks. Jaden blinked and let go of Shou, whom was silent. She stared at him as he finally spoke.
"But I've got no chance the way I am now!" said Shou.
Jaden clenched her teeth and held up her fist. Hayato watched concernedly at Jaden, her body language speaking for herself about how close she was to lashing out on Shou. Jaden was trying her hardest to not beat Shou senseless for his current behavior. Luckily, a voice interrupted them, which was just about enough time for Jaden to calm down on her rage a bit and focus on whoever had spoken.
"How pathetic, Shou," someone said.
The drenched Osiris Red trio looked up and spotted Asuka standing next to an older, Obelisk Blue student. The older Obelisk Blue was a boy, about 17, with dark green-blue hair and teal-colored eyes. Hayato and Jaden didn't recognize the boy, however…Shou did.
"O-Onii-san!" exclaimed Shou.
Jaden stared at the boy Shou referred to as his older brother.
"So, that's Kaiser Ryou," said Jaden.
Ryou stared at Shou with a stoic expression.
"Trying to run away?" said Ryou.
Shou blinked as Ryou stared at him.
"I-I…" said Shou.
Ryou closed his eyes and looked down.
"That's fine by me…" said Ryou.
Shou frowned and looked down, his eyes beginning to water. He started to walk over to the remains of his makeshift raft. Jaden turned away, hearing Shou trudge through the water. She saw his somber expression and his watery eyes. It hurt Jaden to see Shou like this…
"Shou…" Jaden said, reaching out for the blue-haired boy. "Shou…"
Shou froze as he noticed a change in Jaden's voice. It was more aggressive than concerned and he turned, his expression turning nervous once he saw the glint in Jaden's eyes. As much as it hurt her to see Shou like this…it enraged her even more to see him try and run away. Jaden walked closer to Shou before pulling him into a headlock. Shou never had a chance to get away…
"Shou!" she exclaimed as she started mashing her knuckles into Shou's scalp.
Shou began to struggle as the pain from Jaden's noogie.
"Ah!" yelled Shou. "Stop! No! C'mon! Anikiii!"
Jaden shook her head and continued giving Shou his noogie.
"No!" said Jaden. "You had me worried! Shou, you jerk! You—!"
Jaden stopped, much to Shou's relief, but she still kept her grip on him. Shou sighed and blinked as he could've sworn he heard Jaden sob. Just as he was going to turn his head, Jaden brought him closer to herself. She caught her blue-haired friend by surprised when she began to embrace him.
"Don't go…" said Jaden. "Don't…go…"
Shou blinked as he heard the hurt tone in Jaden's voice.
"Aniki, are you crying?" Shou asked as Jaden tightened her hold on him.
"No I'm not!" snapped Jaden. "Water got in my eye…Are you still going to leave?"
As much as it hurt Shou to hear Jaden like this, his decision was already made.
"I have to…" said Shou.
Jaden clenched her teeth and pushed Shou away. Shou staggered back a bit, blinking as he looked at Jaden before turning around, facing the raft's remains. Jaden turned around and wiped her eyes a bit before looking up at Ryou. Ryou blinked as he saw the gender-mistaken glare at him, her eyes slightly red.
"Your otouto said he's going to leave!" said Jaden.
Ryou smirked and turned his head away.
"No helping it, I guess," said Ryou.
Jaden growled and tightened her fists, enraged up to the point where she was almost shaking. She glared daggers at Ryou.
"If that's the case, why don't you at least give him a farewell present?" yelled Jaden. "With a duel between you, the Kaiser, and me!"
Shou's eyes widened and he turned around to look at Jaden. He was surprised with her sudden outburst.
"A-Aniki!" exclaimed Shou.
Ryou stared at Jaden as she glared at him.
"Duel with you?" said Ryou.
Ryou closed his eyes and gave a small smile.
"Fine," he said. "Come on up, Jaden Yuki."
Jaden grinned widely and held up her fist.
"Now we're talking!" said Jaden.
Ryou blinked as he stared at Jaden. The way she was drenched paired up with how she looked right now, it was almost kind of cute. Almost being the word, until he remembered who Jaden was. He turned and shook his head.
"What was that about?" he thought.
Meanwhile in Jaden's thoughts,
"Ha!" thought Jaden. "Another point for the gender-mistaken Yuki-kun!"
"A-Aniki!" said Shou.
Jaden snapped out of her thoughts and looked at Shou. She looked at him sternly.
"You'd better watch closely," Jaden said, looking back at Ryou. "And realize something through our duel."
Jaden stared at Ryou and smiled at him.
~later at the docks~
The sun had set, the sky was a dark blue-black, and the stars were just about close to appearing in the sky. Jaden and Ryou stood facing each other on opposite sides of the field. Shou stood in between Asuka and Hayato, the three of them watching Ryou and Jaden.
"Duel!" said Ryou and Jaden.
Shou watched as both Jaden and Ryou drew their first hand to prepare for the next draw. Shou placed his hands on his head as he looked anxiously at his brother and gender-mistaken roommate.
"What am I supposed to do?" exclaimed Shou. "To think this happened because of me…Aniki can try all she wants, but if she gets dealt with by my Onii-san…"
Jaden smiled at Ryou, her eyes sparkling with awe.
"Woo!" she said, awed by the fact that she was dueling the Kaiser. "To think I'm able to duel against the duelist they call best in the Academy…"
Jaden closed her eyes and tightened her fists as she grinned widely.
"It's getting me fired up!" said Jaden. "By the way, Shou…don't say anything! You brought this onto yourself!"
Shou clamped up, his cheeks tinged with a small blush in embarrassment. Jaden reached for her deck.
"I'll go first!" Jaden said as she drew a card. "Draw!"
Jaden looked at the card and then her hand. She looked up and smiled.
"I summon Elemental Hero Avian in attack mode!" said Jaden.
Elemental Hero Avian appeared on the field with a flip.
ATK 1000
Jaden placed a face-down and ended her turn. She looked at Ryou, wondering what he was going to do.
"My turn," Ryou said, drawing a card. "Draw!"
Ryou glanced at the card and played it.
"I summon Cyber Dragon in attack mode," said Ryou.
Out from the ground, a serpent-like silver-armored dragon popped out and appeared right behind Ryou, hissing once.
ATK 2100
Jaden was taken aback with the sudden 5-star monster summoned.
"You summoned a 5-star monster without even sacrificing?" exclaimed Jaden.
Ryou looked at Jaden, his expression stoic as ever.
"It's Cyber Dragon's special effect," he explained. "It can be summoned without sacrifices when there are monsters on your field and none on mine."
Jaden placed her hand on her face and closed one eye as she stared at Ryou's monster, awed.
"Oh, wow!" said Jaden.
Ryou reached for a card in his hand.
"Then, I activate the Instant Magic, Cyclone!" said Ryou. "It destroys one Magic or Trap card!"
A cyclone shot out from the card and went directly towards Jaden's face-down, destroying it. Jaden shielded herself from the card debris.
"He nailed me!" exclaimed Jaden.
"With Cyber Dragon, I attack Avian!" said Ryou. "Evolution Burst!"
Cyber Dragon aimed at Avian and opened its mouth, shooting a fiery blast at the green-clad Elemental Hero. Avian was engulfed within the fiery blast and disappeared. Jaden clenched her teeth at the loss of Avian.
Jaden:
LP
2900
A bead of sweat rolled down the side of Shou's face as he watched agape.
"My Nii-san really is merciless!" thought Shou.
"Next, from my hand, I activate the Magic card, Time Capsule!" said Ryou.
A sarcophagus with a clock on it appeared on Ryou's side of the field. Ryou grabbed his deck from his duel disk and held it in his hand.
"I can choose a card from my deck…" Ryou explained as he picked out a card, "…and place this card inside the Time Capsule. On my second turn, it'll bring this card back into play."
Ryou held the card in his hand and placed it inside the sarcophagus. The sarcophagus closed and sank down into the ground.
"So, choosing a card you like from the deck, huh?" Jaden said with a grin. "I'm lookin' forward to seeing what you're bringing out."
Shou watched nervously.
"Don't tell me that card's…" thought Shou.
"I end my turn," said Ryou.
Jaden stared at Ryou, her expression now neutral.
"You certainly hold the nickname Kaiser true to its form, Ryou," Jaden thought as she reached for her deck. "In your first turn, you've gotten defense, attacking, preparation, and every strategy there is set up."
Jaden smiled.
"I'm getting pumped!" thought Jaden. "My turn! Draw!"
Jaden looked at the card in her hand and played it.
"I activate Polymerization!" Jaden said as she held two cards in her hands. "It'll fuse Elemental Heroes Sparkman and Clayman from my hand…and summon Elemental Thunder Giant in attack mode!"
One fusion later,
Lightning struck from the sky as Elemental Hero Thunder Giant appeared right where it struck.
ATK 2400
"And now, I activate Thunder Giant's special effect!" said Jaden. "Vapor Spark!"
Thunder Giant attacked Cyber Dragon with an electrical attack, destroying the dragon. Jaden grinned and brought her fist down.
"All right!" said Jaden. "Thunder Giant's special effect destroys a monster with an ATK lower than this guy's!"
Hayato cheered Jaden on.
"Way to go, Jaden!" said Hayato.
Shou just stared at Jaden.
"Aniki…" said Shou.
Jaden looked over at Shou and smiled at him, her fist tightened.
"Now, here I go!" said Jaden. "I use Thunder Giant to attack the player directly! Voltic Thunder!"
Thunder Giant held his fists together and aimed them at Ryou as they charged up with electrical power. Once Thunder Giant charged the electrical power completely, he blasted it towards Ryou. Ryou watched as the attack headed straight toward him, staying stoic…even while he was hit with the blast.
Ryou:
LP
1600
Jaden placed a face-down and ended her turn. Shou watched the duel, his expression now serious.
"Aniki's awesome, too…but…" Shou thought as he looked at Ryou.
Ryou reached for his deck.
"My turn," he said. "Draw."
Ryou glanced at his card and looked up.
"Due to its special effect, I'll summon Cyber Dragon without any sacrifices," said Ryou.
A Cyber Dragon appeared on Ryou's side of the field in attack mode.
"Next, from my hand, I activate Monster Reborn!" said Ryou. "I'll revive the Cyber Dragon in my Graveyard!"
Another Cyber Dragon appeared next to the one that Ryou had summoned previously. Ryou held up a card.
"And then, I'll…fuse them both," Ryou said, turning the card over, revealing it as Polymerization.
Both the Cyber Dragons disappeared within the Polymerization vortex. Ryou held his hand up.
"I summon Cyber Twin Dragon!" Ryou said as a two-headed cybernetic dragon appeared on his side of the field.
ATK 2800
Hayato was astonished with Cyber Twin Dragon's ATK.
"A-An ATK of 2800?" said Hayato.
"That's not all," said Ryou. "Cyber Twin Dragon can attack twice in a Battle Phase."
Hayato was taken aback with this.
"Y-You're kidding!" said Hayato.
Asuka stared at Cyber Twin Dragon.
"And that second attack will be a direct attack on Jaden," said Asuka.
Hayato gasped.
"Oh, no!" he exclaimed.
Jaden narrowed her eyes and glared at Hayato.
"Shut it, Koala-man!" said Jaden. "I don't need no comments from you after the 'no assets' insult!"
Ryou arched his eyebrow at Jaden.
"No…assets?" thought Ryou. "What are you hiding, Jaden Yuki?"
Hayato blinked and scowled.
"It's been almost a week since I've said that to you and you've already gotten back at me!" said Hayato.
Jaden sighed and shook her head.
"Never mind…" said Jaden.
Shou looked down and clenched his teeth as he trembled a bit.
"This is how my Onii-san duels," thought Shou. "He's thoroughly calculated things in order to win. No one can come close to him, not even Aniki…"
"I use Cyber Twin Dragon to attack Thunder Giant!" said Ryou. "Evolution Twin Burst!"
Cyber Twin Dragon was about to attack, when Jaden intercepted.
"Reverse card, open!" said Jaden. "A Hero Emerges!"
Shou gasped as Ryou stared at Jaden, slightly caught off guard with her trap card.
"My opponent chooses one card from my hand, and if it's a monster card, I can special-summon it!" explained Jaden. "I only have one card in my hand…And this one's…"
Jaden held up the card in her hand and flipped it over.
"A monster card!" she said, playing the card. "I summon Friendog in defense mode!"
A black, machine-like dog monster appeared on the field. It howled once as it took its position.
DEF 1200
Cyber Twin Dragon continued its attack, destroying both Friendog and Thunder Giant with a fiery blast each. Jaden shielded herself from the blasts' aftermath explosion as her life points depleted.
Jaden:
LP
2500
"With Friendog sent to the Graveyard, its special effect now activates!" said Jaden. "It can add one 'Elemental Hero' and 'Polymerization' card in my Graveyard back to my hand."
Jaden reached for her duel disk and pulled out Polymerization and Elemental Hero Clayman. She held them up in between her fingers. Ryou stared at her, his expression still stoic.
"I end my turn," said Ryou.
Jaden blinked twice and smiled widely at Ryou.
"This duel is fun!" she exclaimed. "Really fun, Kaiser!"
Ryou blinked and gave Jaden a small smile.
"Yeah, same here," he said.
Shou stared awestruck at Ryou.
"Onii-san!" thought Shou.
"My turn!" Jaden said, keeping her grin. "Draw!"
Jaden held the card she drew in between her index and middle finger before playing it.
"I summon Elemental Hero Bubbleman in attack mode!" said Jaden.
Elemental Hero Bubbleman took his position on the field.
ATK 800
"Bubbleman's the only monster on my field," said Jaden. "And with Bubbleman's special effect, I can draw two cards from my deck!"
Jaden drew two cards. A 'kuri kuri' followed by the presence of a small weight on her shoulder caught her attention. She gasped and turned her head to see Winged Kuriboh perched on her shoulder.
"Partner!" she thought, looking back at her hand and spotted her Partner's card along with another… "Transcendent Wings…By using this and Wing Kuriboh in a combo, I'll be able to Evolve Winged Kuriboh."
Jaden reminisced the last time she used Winged Kuriboh and Transcendent Wings in a duel. It was during the promotional exams against Manjoume.
"My evolved Winged Kuriboh destroys all opposing monsters and deals damage to that player equal to their total ATK," thought Jaden. "If I can get this off, I'll win. But I can't normal-summon anymore on this turn."
Jaden looked her cards thoughtfully.
"I'll bring Winged Kuriboh out on my next turn," she thought. "I hope I can withstand his attacks…"
Jaden looked up and lowered her cards.
"I activate the Magic card, Polymerization!" said Jaden. "I'll fuse Elemental Hero Clayman with Bubbleman on my field…and summon Elemental Hero Mudballman in defense mode!"
Elemental Heroes Clayman and Bubbleman disappeared within the Polymerization vortex, coming out as Elemental Hero Mudballman.
DEF 3000
Hayato smiled at Mudballman's DEF.
"With a DEF of 3000, it doesn't matter if Cyber Twin Dragon can attack twice!" said Hayato.
Shou blinked.
"But on my Onii-san's next turn, that card will re-emerge from the sarcophagus," thought Shou.
Jaden looked at Ryou seriously.
"I'll finish my turn," Jaden said as Winged Kuriboh disappeared.
"My turn," said Ryou. "Draw."
Ryou had just drawn a card when the sarcophagus emerged from the ground. Shou stared at the sarcophagus nervously as Jaden breathed in sharply.
"This would be my second turn since activating Time Capsule," said Ryou. "I destroy Time Capsule, and then add the card placed in the sarcophagus into my hand!"
Shou gasped as the sarcophagus was destroyed. The card that was once within the sarcophagus was now glowing as Ryou added the card into his hand. He stared at Jaden.
"Jaden, we've reached the end at last," said Ryou.
Jaden gave Ryou a carefree smile.
"Yeah, I'm pumped for what's going to happen," said Jaden.
Ryou stared at Jaden, her smile starting to get to him.
"I'm sure you are," he said. "You've shown me the utmost of your capabilities. And I, too, have been giving it my all against you."
Ryou closed his eyes and smiled back, Jaden's smile having been contagious.
"I have to give your dueling the respect it deserves," said Ryou.
Shou looked agape, awed by his brother's remark.
"Onii-san approves of Aniki's dueling?" thought Shou.
Jaden blinked and continued to smile as she stared at Ryou.
"Kaiser, it sounds like you're saying all that to Shou," thought Jaden.
Shou continued to watch, realization suddenly hitting him.
"That's it!" he thought. "Onii-san duels by considering his opponents and dealing with any and all possibilities! But back then, I…"
Shou remembered the way he acted against Gorisuke by deriding the older boy. He sighed and looked down.
"By mocking my opponent and overestimating my cards…" Shou thought, closing his eyes. "I dueled with complete disregard of my opponent."
Ryou stared at Jaden, his smile having ceased.
"Here I go, Jaden!" said Ryou.
Jaden nodded and looked determinedly at Ryou.
"Bring it!" exclaimed Jaden.
Ryou nodded and reached for a card in his hand.
"From my hand, I activate De-Fusion!" Ryou said, showing the card to Jaden. "This will cancel Cyber Twin Dragon's fusion!"
Cyber Twin Dragon separated from each other and returned to their two original, separate selves with a silent hiss.
"Then, from my hand, I activate the Magic card, Power Bond!" said Ryou.
Shou stared at the card Ryou held up, shocked as it was the one that had been in the sarcophagus.
"Power Bond?" thought Shou.
Ryou played the card and looked at Jaden as he explained.
"This card can fusion-summon a Machine-type monster," explained Ryou. "I'll fuse both my Cyber Dragons on the field with another Cyber Dragon from my hand!"
A third Cyber Dragon appeared in between the two others before a bright light engulfed all three of them.
"I summon Cyber End Dragon in attack mode," said Ryou.
An electric-blue light emanated from the Fusion-Monster that flew onto Ryou's field. The light waned and revealed a larger, silver cybernetic, winged dragon with three heads…Cyber End Dragon.
ATK 4000
"Due to Power Bond's effect, its ATK is doubled!" explained Ryou.
Static crackled from Cyber End Dragon as its ATK was doubled.
ATK: Previously, 4000
Now…8000!
Hayato gasped in shock at Cyber End Dragon's ATK.
"8000!" said Hayato.
Jaden's eyes widened.
"That's almost over 9000!" exclaimed Jaden. "Whoa…did I just make a DBZ reference?"
Ryou stared at Jaden questioningly.
"Did he just make a DBZ reference?" he thought, sighing afterwards as he began to explain. "When this monster attacks a defending monster, and its ATK is higher than the monster's DEF…it deals that difference as damage to my opponent!"
Jaden stared at Ryou as she did the math in her head. Her eyes widened as she clenched her teeth and grunted.
"That's 5000 damage!" she thought. (3)
Hayato noticed Jaden's distressed form.
"Hang in there, Jaden!" Hayato called out. "If you can just manage to ride this turn out, Power Bond's other effect'll let you win!"
"He's right," said Asuka. "Power Bond has the risk of damaging yourself with the ATK…that the Fusion Monster started out with at the End Face of the turn it's activated."
Asuka looked at Shou, whom had his fists tightened as he stared determinedly at the duel.
"The problem isn't the risk…" thought Shou. "What my Onii-san wanted to say back then way…'You must respect your opponents'!"
"I use Cyber End Dragon to attack Mudballman!" said Ryou. "Eternal Evolution Burst!"
Cyber End Dragon let out a yellow, electrical-like energy blast aimed at Mudballman from each of its three heads, creating an even bigger blast. The blast went right through Mudballman, destroying him, and then right at Jaden. Jaden kept her composure as the blast struck her, determination in her eyes.
After the blast hit Jaden, she looked down. Her hair fell around her face and covered her eyes as her life points depleted to 0.
Jaden:
LP
0
Jaden fell onto her knees, grunting a bit in pain from the attack. Hayato stared at Jaden concerned, a bead of sweat rolling down the side of his face.
"Jaden!" exclaimed Hayato.
Asuka stared at Jaden, astonished with the outcome.
"Jaden Yuki…lost?" said Asuka.
Shou stared worriedly at Jaden and called out to her.
"Aniki!" cried Shou.
Shou got no response from his female roommate and started running towards Jaden, calling out to her once more.
"Aniki!" he called out.
Jaden blinked and looked up from where she was at Ryou. She smiled as a bead of sweat rolled down the side of her face.
"That was sure a fun duel…" Jaden said before yelping as Shou tackled her. "Shou!"
Shou had jumped onto Jaden, his sudden weight on her as well as force caused her to lose balance and topple back onto the ground.
"Aniki!" said Shou. "I'm sorry!"
Jaden stared at Shou before managing to sit up with the blue-haired boy still clinging to her, his arms around her shoulders. She shook her head and looked over at Ryou. Ryou stared as his younger brother clung onto Jaden. Shou stared back at Ryou with determination in his light grey eyes.
Jaden diverted her eyes at Shou as she looked at him slightly annoyed.
"Shou…" she said somewhat aggressively.
Shou blinked as a bead of sweat rolled down the side of his face. He slowly turned his head until he was face-to-face with Jaden. Jaden stared at him, a sudden devious grin forming on her lips. Shou cursed mentally as Jaden grabbed him in a headlock and started to mash her knuckles into her scalp. However, unlike earlier, she did it with a more playful intention instead of painful.
"Shou, you jerk!" said Jaden. "Do that again, and I'll skip the first two wake-up warnings for the next month!"
Shou burst into laughter, Jaden following along. Ryou stared at Shou as Jaden continued to give the blue-haired boy a playful noogie. Ryou blinked a few times and looked at the Osiris Red duo with a faint smile on his lips.
The Kaiser turned around and started to walk away, chuckling quietly at Jaden's antics paired up with Shou's. Asuka spotted Ryou and started running towards him. She quickly caught up with him and began to walk with him.
"How was it?" asked Asuka.
Ryou stared out as Asuka walked by his side, his expression stoic.
"That Shou sure has a fine Aniki," said Ryou. "An interesting one…"
Asuka blinked and giggled softly.
"You don't know the half of it," she said, earning a perplexed stare from Ryou.
"Oh, really?" asked Ryou.
Asuka laughed a bit.
"You'll find out soon enough," said Asuka. "You'll have to ask Jaden yourself, if you want to know."
Ryou blinked and turned away from Asuka as he looked ahead. Watching both Obelisk Blues walk away were Hayato, Shou, and Jaden. Jaden had latched herself onto Shou's back, her head propped on top of his with her arms hanging around the side of his neck. Shou didn't mind the close contact with Jaden and just stared on as his brother walked away.
Jaden diverted her eyes down at Shou.
"Your Nii-san's incredible," Jaden said as she got off Shou.
Shou blinked and smiled as he turned to Jaden.
"Yep, and so's my Aniki!" Shou said, latching himself onto Jaden's waist in an embrace.
Jaden blinked and looked at Shou for a few seconds before they both burst out laughing. Jaden patted Shou's head as the lighthouse's light began to shine. Shou looked up at Jaden as she looked back at him.
"So then, wanna go back home and build our decks?" asked Jaden.
Shou let go of Jaden and nodded.
"Yeah!" he said.
Jaden smiled and placed her hand on Shou's shoulder.
"This time, build it so you can use Power Bond, Shou," said Jaden.
Shou nodded with determination in his eyes.
"Got it!" said Shou. "I'll take the bars off for sure."
Hayato, having been watching his roommates, frowned as he held his loud, growling stomach.
"But the dorm's dining hall's been barred off, hasn't it?" asked Hayato.
At that moment Hayato had brought up that subject, Jaden's and Shou's stomachs both growled loudly at the same time. Their eyes widened as they looked down at their stomachs. With all three roommates agreeing on the same thing, the trio didn't hesitate to start running back towards their dorms.
"We can still make it in time!" said Jaden.
Hayato, Shou, and Jaden all laughed as they rushed back to their dorms. Jaden was already ahead of her roommates, yelling at them to hurry up. Shou and Hayato laughed since this was just like Jaden to do that. And so ends another day at Duel Academy…
A/N End of chapter. You happy I updated two chapters? I am! Remember! NO FLAMES! Constructive criticism and reviews are… the latter being on your own accord! And BTW, if Jaden sounded OOC, it was because she was showing how much she really cares for Shou. In what way, that depends on you. If you want to know what way I look at it... I see it as platonic and sibling-like, but hey! That's just me! Expect the next chapter up…maybe today and if not…tomorrow!
(1) Yes…Professor Chronos did say that in the original.
(2) A reference to Yu-Gi-Oh Abridged Series by LittleKuriboh, which I love watching, but don't own. Remember that.
(3) I'm not sure, but I did the math and that was it. Still, not sure if Ryou meant by that difference, so yeah…
Well, that's about it!