Cat: Sorry it's so late!

Rena: And this chapter is really rushed and bad, so sorry. If you want a much better quality chapter by me, how about you read last weeks chapter? The one that i'm proud of and, like, only 3 people reviewed :'( Tee hee kidding.

But please review.

Cat: This story is in Yuzu's POV. Please give me some artistic licence. If i put some stuff that isn't in the anime in here, don't flame. There would be no point in reading, if it was just the anime in words.

Chapter 30- The Tested Steadfast Spirit

I woke up in the morning feeling surprisingly refreshed, which I hadn't done in a long time. I also realised that I had slept the whole night and I hadn't woken up in a cold sweat. No creepy dreams. My night had been peaceful, for the first time in weeks.

After a full breakfast with my dad, we pulled on our shoes and were immediately greeted by Yuya and Sora, who were just about to ring the bell. We exchanged greetings and began walking to the stadium, a long walk but we weren't missing anything.

"Gongenzaka isn't with you?" I asked Yuya, as we crossed the main road.

"Nope, probably up to some crazy training method," Yuya grinned, tapping the side of his head, to indicate that Gongenzaka was insane. Even though we knew that wasn't really true, Yuya and I would never partake in one of the dojo's serious training sessions. Between us, we knew very little about the sessions in the traditional school but Gongenzaka had the scars to prove that they weren't just playing a harmless game of scrabble.

"Still buzzing from your win?" Yuya asked, as the crowd began to thicken as we got closer to the arena.

I nodded. "Yeah, I am-"

"So am I!" Yuya cheered, jumping in the air. "I am so going to kick Sawatari's butt today again because you have me so totally pumped… Aww! I can't wait for my duel!"

Outside the main doors, we found Ayu, Futoshi and Tatsuya, waiting for us.

"Good morning!" they all cheered, as we greeted them back.

Then, my dad's phone buzzed and he glanced down to check it. I looked at him, wondering if it was anything important as he snapped it shut and smiled. "Just Yoko saying she'll be with us after she's walked the cats… Alright! Before we go into the stands! Who needs a toilet stop?"

I was about to grumble that we weren't children and that none of us needed to go when Ayu, Futoshi, Tatsuya and Sora stuck their hands up.

"What? I'm desperate!" Sora wailed, as I gave him a look.

"Yosh!" my dad pumped the air, as if we were about to go on an adventure, when we were just off to find the bathroom (and that wasn't an adventure either because it was clearly sign-posted). "Boys with me! Ayu with Yuzu! Meet back here in five minutes!"

"I'll wait here, I don't need," Yuya sauntered off and stood in the middle of the floor and stared off into the distance. I didn't pay him much attention as I took Ayu by the hand and we walked over to the bathrooms.

As Ayu ran in and locked herself in a cubicle, I pulled myself up and sat on the ledge between two sinks, dangling my legs and daydreaming.

Finally, Ayu emerged and stood on her tip-toes in order to wash her hands. "Hey, Yuzu-neechan?"

"Yeah, Ayu?"

"When's Gongenzaka's match starting?" she asked. I pulled out my phone and checked the time.

"Uh… Now?" I muttered, shoving the machine in my pocket and running out the room, dragging Ayu behind me, nearly bashing into my dad and the boys as they appeared outside the boys room. "Gah! Dad! Be careful!" I yelled, as we all shot off down the corridor.

My dad grinned. "Well, I could say the same to-"

"Hurry! Hurry! Gongenzaka's match is gonna start soon!" Ayu wailed as we tore down the corridors of LDS.

"Huh? Where's Yuya?" I asked, as we arrived back in reception to see he was nowhere. "He said he'd be waiting here…" I looked around for my best friend to see… Nothing. Typical. We leave him two minutes and he vanishes.

"Over there!" Tatsuya pointed towards the door. We all looked to see Yuya sprinting away from us, out the doors and vanishing, obviously chasing someone.

"Wonder what that's all about…" I sighed. "Oh well, let's go and save him a seat. He'll be back soon; he won't miss Gongenzaka's match."

We came through the entrance, seeing that the introductions had just began but we had not missed anything. Checking our tickets, we slid into our seats. After a few seconds, Yoko appeared and clambered into her seat beside me.

"…While he doesn't belong to any school, this duellist qualified for the JYC with a six-game win streak! Ankokuji Gen!" Nico announced, as said person stepped out onto the field. "His opponent is the successor to the Steadfast duelling of the Gongenzaka dojo, Gongenzaka Noboru!"

The match hadn't officially started yet, so we couldn't hear what the two opponents were actually saying but they were obviously talking about something that was getting Gongenzaka quite irritated. The match was about to begin. Where was Yuya? After a few more minutes, I glanced down at my Dpad to see if Yuya had texted or something, to explain where he was. "Jeez, the match has already started! Where did Yuya go off to!?"

I typed in the well-used number and held it up to my ear, not really expecting an answer. "Yuzu!?" he barked down the line, which nearly made me drop it. "Tell Gongenzaka not to worry! Let him know that I'll definitely get his sash back!"

"Huh? Sash?" I tried to ask him but, Yuya being Yuya, he had already hung up. I glanced up and surveyed Gongenzaka. He was wearing his usual outfit but with a brand-new black sash. What was Yuya on about? Perhaps Gongenzaka had lost his usual white one? And Yuya was looking for it but Gongenzaka wore a replacement for this duel?

"On the honour of my dojo, I cannot surrender without a fight!" Gongenzaka roared, the two duellists finally amplified for the benefit of the spectators.

"Then struggle all you want!" Ankokuji jeered, as the duel began. "I'll take the first move. First, I summon Barbarian #3 from my hand. When this monster is successfully summoned, I can special summon Barbarian #4 from my hand!"

"Now, this is a throwback for me!" Nico cheered over the speakers. "These are the monsters Strong Ishijima used!"

Jeez, where is Yuya!? What is he doing!?

"I set one card and end my turn," he finished, grinning. "Now it's your turn! If you're not fast, your friend will get beaten to a pulp!"

What? Yoko and I exchanged glances. I sat rigidly and felt anxiety begin to nibble at my heart.

What Ankokuji just said about his friend being beaten up… He couldn't have been talking about Yuya, could he?

Gongenzaka was beginning to summon Big Benkei as I pulled out my phone and tried to call him again but it said the line was busy. That only meant two things; he was either on the phone to someone else (extremely unlikely, the only numbers he had were mine, my dad's and his mother's and he wasn't calling any of them) or he was duelling. But who? Where?

"It's been snatched!" Ayu groaned, which forced me to look up. Ankokuji had played a trap card which had let him take control of Gongenzaka's tuner monster which he had just summoned onto the field.

"Anything could be happening outside this field right now," Ankokuji sniggered. "If you don't hurry up and go, who knows what will happen to your beloved friend?"

"Damn it!" Gongenzaka snarled. "Yuya…!"

He's done something! Something's happened to Yuya!

I took deep breaths, so I wouldn't start panicking and making a scene. Yoko shifted slightly in her seat and sighed, folding her arms. Was she worried? I couldn't tell, she was completely pokerfaced. However, Gongenzaka wasn't as cool and collected as Yoko.

Heedlessly, he jumped into an attack with Big Benkei to destroy Barbarian #3, only to have it deflected by #4, due to its special ability. No big deal really. He hadn't been dealt damage but he slammed his fist into the ground.

"I don't have time for this," he growled, glaring at Ankokuji with pure hatred.

This is all spiralling downhill. He wanted this to happen. He- He- He planned this!

"What now? Are you frustrated?" Ankokuji asked. "Are you panicking? You got betrayed by your beloved monster and you don't know what's happening to your beloved friend! So… Of course you'll be panicking… I bet he's thinking you've betrayed him right now! Even though he believed you'd come save him for sure, but you won't!"

"Dammit!" Gongenzaka snarled, slamming his hands into the ground again. "Yuya!"

"I'll prove to you right now how fragile Steadfast duelling is!" Ankokuji pointed at Gongezaka, who was still kneeling on the floor.

"Gongenzaka!" I screamed, leaning over the barrier, so they knew exactly who was shouting. "Believe in Yuya!" I hollered, as they both stared at me. "Yuya told me to tell you not to worry about him! And that he'll definitely get your sash back and return it to you!"

"Yuya…?" Gongenzaka looked at me with questioning eyes, probably wondering if we were talking about the same person.

And that's what it came down to, really. To this day, Gongenzaka still saw Yuya as he used to, the young, dependent child, who was constantly bullied and laughed at. Gongenzaka still felt over protective of his friend, believing him incapable of things such as standing up for himself because, mere months before, Yuya wasn't capable of doing it at all. But now it was different.

"Yuya isn't the same Yuya as before! He can fight on his own!" I shouted, before I was interrupted as a pair of feet landed beside me on the barrier. I stared up to see Gongenzaka's father towering above me, which was a very strange feeling because he is smaller than me.

"Noboru! Right now is the time for a Steadfast spirit! Believe in your friend as well as yourself!" his father called over.

"Father…" Gongenzaka whispered, staring at us as if we were two aliens that had just arrived in the stadium on a pizza motorbike.

Ankokuji laughed, the malice cutting in like a knife cutting bread, serrated and scratchy. "So, they got in contact with him? It's so pitiful when that weakling acts like he's something else!"

I ran back to my seat and sat down. Gongenzaka was back in the game.

"He is no longer…" Gongenzaka hissed, pulling himself up. "A weakling! Yuya will definitely come back! Yuzu is right! Yuya isn't the same as he was three years ago!"

"Gongenzaka…" I said, staring down at the duel which was finally about to get serious.

"Now that I know Yuya's resolve, my spirit will waver no more!" Gongenzaka announced, standing, looking prouder and more defiant than ever. "I will follow my duelling ways! I end my turn here!"

It's unfortunate that he had such a powerful speech but no attack to back it up… Oh well, he'll have one next turn.

"Believe in him?" Ankokuji snarled. "People betray others! Just like your monsters betrayed you! My turn!" He drew and glanced at his cards. "I release all three monsters on my field…"

"Well, good bye tuner monster," Sora sighed, sinking down in his seat.

"And special summon Barbarian Mad Shaman from my hand!" he announced, as a creepy monster began jumping and dancing behind him.

"Level ten, with 2000 attack points…?" Sora muttered. "I bet this one's got something to it!"

Gongenzaka…

"Here we go! I activate Mad Shaman's special effect! Once per turn, I can take control of an opponent's monster! The monster I'll be taking control of is, of course, Big Benkei! Battle phase! I make a direct attack with Big Benkei!"

"If he takes that attack head on-!" Tatsuya cried, as the attack stream headed straight towards him. Any ordinary person would immediately jump out the way. It is an Action duel, after all. But Gongenzaka took it all, never flinching or stepping away. It drove him backwards so far, it pushed him right out of the forest area and onto the edge of a cliff. His life dropped from 4000 to 500 in an instant.

"Gongenzaka!" I shouted, as he fell to one knee, something I had never seen him do after being hit by an attack.

"Standing up is a waste of time!" Ankokuji grinned like a hyena, circling his prey. In fact, I bet he would, but if he did, he would plunge into the 'sea', probably resulting in a few broken bones, if not careful, like my duel with Masumi. "You're going to take a direct attack from Mad Shaman and plunge into the ocean! No matter how much you believe in him, he isn't coming!"

"Yuya will come!" Gongenzaka spat back. "I believe it!"

"Then go ahead and believe all you want! Battle phase! I attack Gongenzaka directly with Mad Shaman! Finish him!"

"At this moment, I banish Superheavy Samurai Glo-V from my graveyard! I draw a card from my deck and if that card is a 'Superheavy Samurai' monster, I can make my opponent's attack 0!"

It was as if heart stopped as Gongenzaka drew the card.

"I believe in Yuya!" he snarled, as he held his hand up and completely deflected the attack, meaning that he had in fact drawn a monster. "Yuya will come!" He received no damage apart from his new sash being ripped and floating to the floor, uncared about and already forgotten. "No matter what happens, my spirit that believes in my friend will never be shaken!"

The crowd screamed.

"You just got lucky! That's all! But as long as I have Big Benkei here, you can't attack Mad Shaman because of its effect! Also, Mad Shaman can only take control of one monster, but if you happen to summon a stronger monster next turn, I can swap it for Big Benkei! So basically, you have no way to win! I end my turn here!"

"Gongenzaka!" a familiar scream tore through the sounds of the crowd. There, standing at the entrance, was Yuya, brandishing Gongenzaka's ordinary sash like a first-place prize.

"Yuya!" I cried.

"You're here?" Gongenzaka grinned.

"Sorry to keep you waiting!" he smiled back. "Catch this!" he threw the usual white fabric towards his friend, which he caught perfectly, without moving a muscle.

"Yuya! I got this sash from you! I believed. And you came. This is now my sash for victory!" he announced, tying it around him. "My turn!"

"I summon the level 2 tuner monster, Superheavy Samurai Tama-C, from my hand!" Gongenzaka summoned a tiny monster that floated beside him feebly, with minimal attack points.

"A tuner? Without any other monsters it's a fodder!" Ankokuji grinned.

Gongenzaka smirked. "Tama-C can perform a synchro summon using a machine type monster on my opponent's side of the field!"

"What!?"

"I tune the level 8 Superheavy Samurai Big Benkei with my level 2 Tama-C! Synchro Summon! Level 10, Superheavy Koujin Susano'o!" And, sure enough, there it was, Gongenzaka's new humongous ace.

"Alright!" my dad cheered, as I pulled him down into his seat, so we wouldn't vault over the stands by accident in his excitement.

However, Gongenzaka didn't stop there. "Next, I equip Superheavy Samurai Soulbuster Gauntlet to Susano'o from my hand! It increases its defence by 400!"

"Huh? Defence?" Futoshi blinked. "Why is he defending?"

"Don't tell me, it's just like Big Benkei and it can-!" Ankokuji screamed in terror, realising the fix he was in. He may have won battles but he was about to lose the war.

"That's right! I can attack using its defence!" Gongenzaka glared down on him, not needing to voice how the expelled Dojo student was going to receive no mercy. "Let's go! Battle phase! Susano'o! Attack Mad Shaman!"

"Right now, Mad Shaman has 0 attack points because of Glo-V's effect!" Tatsuya cried.

"Susano'o has 4200 attack, I mean, defence points, so that means…!" Ayu bounced up and down.

"He'll win it in one attack…" Sora said, as if it was an easy feat.

Ankokuji fell to the ground and didn't get back up. The Action field faded away and Gongenzaka walked off, not wasting his time with his former dojo peer.

"The first Junior Youth Championship win of the day goes to Gongenzaka!" Nico roared down the speakers, as I jumped out my seat and ran down to where Yuya and Gongenzaka were discussing something.

"Yuya!" we all shouted as we ran over to him, as he talked to Gongenzaka over the barrier. "Where were you!?"

Yuya scratched his head and waved his hand apologetically. "Sorry! Sorry! I'm up next, so I'll do my best so I don't fall behind Gongenzaka. I'm off!"

And then, he strolled confidently onto the field to wait for Sawatari Shingo.

Cat: So yeah... Please review! Don't feel awkward at all! Even if it is just a few words i always appreciate them 3 All reviews are read! (Unless they're hate because who cares about those?)

Totally un-yugioh related but i would just like to put a little message congratulating Masashi Kishimoto on finishing his amazing manga, Naruto! I have loved it so much and i will miss it like... No words describe.

Anyway. Sorry, i just had to put that somewhere...

Rena: So, today's question:

If you had any anime character (from any anime, ever) and could lock them in a room and torment them for being so annoying. Who would it be? What anime are they from? Why would you torment them?

Tee hee (I found this question online, before you think i'm creepy!)

Thanks everyone, you guys are my life xx

-animewatchers186