Chapter 5: Team Spirit
The Breakers stood in front of Tatsumaki Yaku's home. It was a large, white three story home (counting the basement) sitting on three and a half acres of land. A set of concrete steps led up to the front porch which wrapped around the right side of the building. The evening sun was fully obscured by the house's silhouette, and the surreal pinks and oranges of the sunset glow reflected off of the windows.
"So, I know this is a big place, but are you gonna have enough room to house all of us?" asked Enzo.
"Of course! Some of you will have to share a room, but there's seven bedrooms in total: two on the ground floor, four on the upper floor, and one in the basement. There's also a sunroom in the back and an office if we really need to convert them into bedrooms, but I'd prefer to keep my office intact if possible."
"That's fair, I guess," replied Manda. "Hey, Kiri, wanna be roommates?"
Kiri nodded.
"Me and Noroi will share a room as well," said Emi. "We're used to being around each other constantly already, so it'll just be more of the same but in nicer conditions."
"Fine by me," replied Noroi.
"Oh, I bet it is fine with you," jabbed Enzo.
"Not like that, you pervy old man," snapped Noroi. "Me and Emi have spent just about every day together since we were kids. If we were gonna fuck it would have already happened before now."
"Exactly," said Emi.
"Alright, fine, I was just trying to crack a joke. My bad."
"Well, how about you actually make it funny next time," teased Emi.
"Ouch. Everyone's a critic."
"There's a full bathroom on every floor, so you can all get cleaned up pretty quickly," explained Tatsumaki. "Go on in. I'll be working on dinner while you guys are showering off."
"Dinner? You can cook?" asked Enzo as they all walked into the house.
"Of course. I've been living here by myself since mom died, so I kinda had to learn."
"How did you manage to not get put into foster care or an orphanage?" asked Emi.
"I bribed my caseworker. And the judge. And a few other people."
"All that just to hang on to your mom's house? What about the mortgage?" asked Manda.
"Don't stress the details, alright? The important thing is I greased the right palms and as far as the legal system knows, I'm living here with my dad and the house is set up to be put into my name when I turn eighteen, seven months from now."
"Where is your dad, anyway?" asked Noroi.
"Hell if I know," shrugged Tatsumaki as he unlocked the door. "He left us out of nowhere when I was seven, and I haven't seen or heard from him since. Using his name to keep the house is the only thing he's been good for in all that time. Between her career and taking care of me, mom never got around to filing for divorce, so officially speaking, he's widowed."
The front door opened to a wide hallway with hardwood floors. Immediately on the left stood a doorway that led into the office, and another into the dining hall a few meters down from there. On the right side were two doors that led into separate bedrooms, and an L-shaped staircase leading to the upper floor just past them with a storage closet nestled underneath. The hallway ended at a passage leading into the sunroom. Past the dining hall, the large kitchen also connected to the sunroom, which led out into the backyard and also contained the door which led down into the basement.
"Alright, guys, pick your rooms and wash up," said Tatsumaki. "I don't have spare clothes for you all to change into yet, unless a bunch of grown adults wanna try squeezing into my skinny jeans. We'll get you guys some new threads tomorrow, it's a little late now for how long clothes shopping takes."
"Wait, you're just gonna buy us all new clothes?" asked Enzo. "You've known us for less than a day, and you're feeding us, letting us crash in your home, and buying us clothes?"
"Yeah, I am," replied the black haired boy with an eye roll. "But if that's somehow a problem for you guys, you're welcome to go back to living out of an abandoned building eating cold food out of cans."
"N-no, it's not that we're ungrateful," stammered Enzo. "It's just that this is a suspicious amount of apparent trust you're placing in a gang of known criminals you only just met."
"I think I've proven by now that I'm far better to have as a friend than an enemy," replied Tatsumaki. "You really think I would openly admit to bribing the legal system for no reason?"
"What does that have to-" began Enzo, then it clicked mid sentence. "You wanted to let us know you have friends in high places, and you can grease palms to get back at us if we decide to screw you over."
"Exactly. I've also got a nifty little memo I recorded this morning before I came out to meet you guys. It details my intentions to join the Breakers and makes sure to paint you guys as the prime suspects if something happens to me. The only thing preventing that memo from automatically being emailed to the chief of police is a phone call from me every day at a time I will not specify. So, rob me or murder me, and you're fucked. I'm not naive enough to not have an insurance policy."
Enzo nodded. It made sense, but it was still impressive for a kid to have that tight of a set up.
"So, anyways, now that you all know better than to try any funny business, go get cleaned up. Dinner will be ready in about an hour, and then we can discuss plans for the future. The first bedroom on the left upstairs is mine, but all the other ones are free to choose from."
The group dispersed, with Emi and Noroi taking the first room to the right, and Enzo taking the next one down. Manda and Kiri went down to the basement room, and Jo, Ryo, and Taza headed upstairs and grabbed one of the vacant rooms.
Tatsumaki went into the kitchen and started on dinner. He had prepped the ingredients earlier this morning, so cooking would be a simple endeavor. Tonight's menu was a marinated beef stir fry with peppers, onions, mushrooms, and zucchini over rice. Hardly anything sophisticated, but it was easy to make and yielded enough to feed an army, which wasn't too far off from what he was doing.
As he was working the veggies, Emi walked in, hair damp from the shower and wearing some of his clothes: a white collared shirt with a black tank top underneath and blue jeans. The sleeves were slightly too short, as well as the pants legs, but the shirt itself fit surprisingly well over her slim frame.
"I feel so much better after that shower!" she exclaimed. "How's it going in here, Tatsumaki?"
"Pretty good. And please, my friends call me Maki for short. The rice is nearly done and the meat and veggies won't need too much longer. I see you found some of my old clothes."
"Maki, huh? I guess that means we're friends now, neat! I'm guessing that was your room before your mom died? Looked like there was a lot of stuff that's too small for you now."
"Yeah. I haven't really been in that room much since then. Naturally, after the incident, I moved into the master bedroom upstairs. I'm surprised those clothes fit you, considering they're meant for a twelve year old."
"Aside from the length, they're not too bad. Better than changing back into my normal dirty ass outfit."
"I imagine so. Either way, we'll get you some proper clothes tomorrow. For now, you might wanna take your normal outfit to the basement. The laundry machines are down there, in the first room to the left once you get downstairs, and the detergent is in the cabinet next to the doorway."
"Thanks, I appreciate that," smiled Emi. "In fact, I appreciate everything you've done so far. You're feeding us, housing us, you're gonna buy us clothes tomorrow. I wanna do something for you, too." She reached into her shirt pocket and pulled out a card, handing it out face down. "Here. This is for you."
Tatsumaki took the wok off the heat and set it aside, wiping his hands before taking the card. He flipped it over and was surprised.
"A copy of Chaos Sorcerer? This card is pretty rare. Why would you give it to me?"
"To say thanks for all this. Besides, it's not like I can use it. You've seen my deck in action, it's almost all Earth monsters. I don't have enough Lights and Darks to play it."
"Why not give it to Noroi, then? He already plays Chaos Sorcerer, and I'm sure his deck would benefit from a second copy."
"I tried a few years back, but he wouldn't accept it. He doesn't want any help or handouts. Reminds me of you, honestly."
"I suppose that's something we have in common," laughed Tatsumaki. "And I suppose I can't take it for that very reason."
"But this isn't a handout," countered Emi. "It's payment for services rendered."
"You're not gonna let this go until I take it, are you?" asked Tatsumaki suspiciously.
"Nope! I can't use it and don't want to, so I want it to go to someone who will use it. So just make both of our lives easier and take the damn card."
"Alright, fine, I guess you're not giving me much choice," replied Tatsumaki. "But what do you mean you don't want to use it?"
"Look, I've seen what Dueling looks like at the highest level nowadays. Chaos strategies are everywhere, and for good reason. Cards like Chaos Sorcerer and DMOC are incredibly strong, as well as the legendary Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning. But, I want to prove that it's possible to reach the very top without those cards. That's why I decided I wanted to play a Burn deck."
"A Burn deck with a giant panda that attacks over everything," remarked Tatsumaki.
"Gyaku-Gire Panda is a special card to me," shrugged Emi. "It was the first card my grandpa ever gave me, and I've still got that original copy in my deck to this day. Eventually, I managed to track down two more of it and started to build a deck around it."
"I see," said Tatsumaki. "You want to carry on your grandfather's legacy using the card he gave you. I guess that's the exact opposite of me. I loved my mom, don't get me wrong, but I wanna get to the top on my own merit, even if it means leaving her legacy behind me."
At that moment, the rice cooker's switch flipped. Time for dinner. Tatsumaki took the Chaos Sorcerer from Emi, slipping it into his shirt pocket and stepping through the dining room into the hallway.
"FOOD'S UP!" he yelled with his hands cupped around his mouth. "EVERYONE GET IN HERE!"
The other Breakers hadn't been so lucky to find extra clothes that fit them, so they looked the same except with cleaner skin and hair. They lined up like it was a buffet line, grabbing the bowls and chopsticks Tatsumaki had set out and serving themselves in order before filing into the dining room.
There were more than enough seats at the long dining room table for everyone. Tatsumaki took his place at the head of the table. Even though he wasn't the leader, it was his house, so there wasn't much Enzo could say about it.
"Thank you for the food!" shouted everyone simultaneously.
"Alright, everyone, eat up!" said Tatsumaki. "And don't worry, I made sure there's enough for everyone to have seconds if they want."
"Much appreciated, kid," said Enzo. "But lemme ask you. Earlier, you mentioned something about plans for the future? You got something in mind?"
"Yeah, about that," replied Tatsumaki in between bites of rice. "If you ask me, the first step towards making ourselves more legitimate is taking down the Dustshoot Gang once and for all."
Enzo almost choked on his food at that. "The Dustshoot Gang? Are you crazy? We've been going at it with them for years! You know how Duels between street crews go, right?"
"Yeah, of course," replied Tatsumaki. "When two crews meet, they assign three members each to Duel each other, and the losers have to give up their decks and Duel Disks. It's how gangs fight over territory and resources."
"Exactly," confirmed Jo. "The Breakers and the Dustshoots used to have way more members, but we started beefing real heavy 'cause their boss wanted to muscle in on our turf. The turf wars have dwindled us both down from over twenty members to a measly six apiece. Well, until you guys came along."
"The losses on both sides got so heavy that me and their boss, Chairo, called a ceasefire," continued Enzo. "At the rate we were going, we'd have both wiped each other out. Picking a fight with them is not on my to-do list right now. Sorry, kid, the answer is no."
"Ah, but you're forgetting something," said Tatsumaki. "You have me, and my resources available to you now. I don't just have a bunch of fancy clothes and gadgets in this house, I have tons of cards my mom left behind from her collection. We can improve your decks with the cards at my disposal, practice against each other, and then crush the Dustshoots under our heel. And besides, now that Noroi, Emi, and I have joined, you have a numbers advantage as well."
"So what's the plan for actually dealing with them?" asked Noroi. "You make it sound like you plan on taking them out in one fell swoop."
"Because that is the plan," replied Tatsumaki with a devilish smile. "Instead of the usual three members participating in the meet, we'll propose a winner-take-all gang match. All six of them versus six of us that we choose. Even if we all somehow lose our Duels, which I highly doubt will happen, there will still be three members of the Breakers left to fight another day. It's a medium risk, high reward kind of plan. Worst case scenario, our numbers are cut but we remain as a gang. Best case, we eliminate our strongest competition in a single day. What do you think?"
"I think the only way they'd go for it is if they didn't know we got three extra members," replied Enzo. "Whoever doesn't participate will have to stay hidden. I'm not about to let you three sit this out, either. For one, you're the newest members, so throwing you out there to see how you handle the pressure of a gang match is just standard procedure, and for two, this was your idea, so you'll have to participate."
"I take that to mean you've decided to go with my plan?" asked Tatsumaki smugly.
"As much as I don't like the idea of the new kid calling the shots, I gotta admit it's a good plan. As far as who participates besides you kids, I'll think on it and let you know. Naturally, as the leader, I gotta Duel, too, so that just leaves two spots."
"Actually, boss, I don't think you should participate if this is our plan," said Taza.
"What? The boss has to participate, it's a matter of pride!" countered Enzo.
"I get that, but think about the worst-case scenario here," replied Taza. "If everyone does somehow lose, including you, then not only will the Breakers be down to just three members, but they'll also be without their leader, and that combination's pretty much as good as being completely disbanded."
"Damn, yeah, you're right," conceded Enzo. "Fine. Guess I gotta sit this one out in order to hedge our bets."
"You don't have to answer now," said Tatsumaki. "But seeing as I'm the one supplying cards for everyone to tune up their decks, I need to know who else is gonna be Dueling by tomorrow, so I know who to prioritize when it comes to editing decks."
Enzo shook his head. "I can't believe I'm listening to this crazy ass plan thought up by a rich teenager. What is the world coming to?"
After dinner (including seconds), the Breakers helped clean up the kitchen, then retired to their rooms for the night. Tomorrow was going to be a long day.
Tatsumaki was halfway up the stairs when Noroi called up to him from the ground floor.
"Hey, Tatsumaki, thanks for everything. I know I don't really deserve all of this."
"Don't worry about it," replied Tatsumaki. "I'm just doing what I think gets me closer to my own goals. The Breakers benefitting from my pursuit is just a nice bonus."
"Even so," said Noroi, "I can't help but feel like this is too much generosity after everything I said and did. I promise you won't regret your decision. When we take on the Dustshoot Gang, I absolutely promise to win!"
"Good to hear," said Tatsumaki. "I look forward to seeing you in action, but first we have to get through tomorrow. First, clothes shopping, then deck editing, then duel practice. It's gonna be fun, but we'll probably be pretty tired by the end of it, so get some rest. Have a good night!"
"I hear ya," replied Noroi. "Same to you, Tatsumaki."
They both retired to their respective rooms. Tatsumaki placed the Chaos Sorcerer Emi had given him on his dresser, then changed into a pair of blue pajamas and curled up in the king-sized bed that used to belong to his mother to sleep.