I think Seto knows Judo in canon, but as a boy I think he's just a kid who knows how to throw a punch. Or a kick. Basically I think of him as a feral little animal, lashing out and gnashing his teeth and generally proving himself a nuisance.

As well he should.


.


"Where did you learn . . . you know. To do that?"

Seto frowned. "I'm not sure what you're talking about," he said. "Learn to do what?"

Noa put up his hands, pulled into fists, like a boxer. "You know," he said, "to fight."

Seto mulled this over, then eventually he shrugged and said: "I don't really know. I just had to." His face twisted as he tried to come up with a more substantive answer. "It wasn't really something I ever learned. I had to just . . .kind of . . . figure it out. It was either that or get my teeth knocked out. I don't really know how to fight. I just hit them hard enough that they stop trying to hit me."

"I'm pretty sure that's the purest essence of what fighting is," Noa said.

"I guess." Seto shrugged again. "If I ever met somebody with, like, training. I'm pretty sure they'd put me flat on the floor." He gestured. "I can't do what Hahaue can."

"Yeah, well. That's different."

Both boys seemed to understand that their mother was capable of superhuman feats. There was simply no getting around it. Amaya Kaiba was no mere mortal, and the biggest mistake people made, when they met her, was assume that she was. Seto didn't say this part out loud, but despite any size advantage Gozaburo might have—and he obviously did, considering his arms were as wide around as small trees—if it came down to blows between his new parents, Seto was more than reasonably certain that the Lady Kaiba would come out on top.

"I can't have you doing that for me," Noa said, "every time somebody decides they have a problem with me." He hummed thoughtfully. "I need to learn how to do it myself."

"You mean, like, find a school?" Seto asked. "Learn Jiu-Jitsu or Judo?"

"I dunno. Maybe." Noa held out his hands. "I don't know anything about . . . any of that. I can't even tell what you did to that kid. All I know is, everybody was watching. I don't think anybody's gonna bother you after that. Or maybe every tough guy with a chip on his shoulder is gonna try to corner you in the hallway. I have no idea how this stuff works."

Seto grunted. "That's no different from the orphanage," he said. "Let them try."

Noa grinned. "Chichiue says that's the Kaiba way. You're learning already."

". . . They must have learned from somebody," Seto murmured thoughtfully. "You don't just know that kind of stuff by instinct. Not to any real level. Maybe . . ."

"Maybe Chichiue or Hahaue know somebody who could teach us?" Noa guessed.

Seto nodded, hopeful and scared. "Yeah."


.


The only way to describe what Amaya was doing was pouting. She looked thoroughly put out, like she was currently plotting an escape from her current situation. If any particular window in her line of sight happened to open, she would definitely leap headlong out of it and jettison across the state until she reached the ocean.

"He's right, you know, dearest," Gozaburo said. "Noa's going to have to learn how to defend himself one of these days. This isn't going to be the last time someone targets him."

"I know he's right," Amaya muttered. "That doesn't mean I like it, or that I'm not going to be dramatic about it." She huffed and stood up from the couch where she'd been slumped for the past ten minutes. As she paced across the plush carpet, she stared straight ahead like she expected to bore a hole straight through the walls. "We talked about Giichi handling that part, last time we discussed this. He seemed the safest choice. At the time."

"It shows how little we knew," Gozaburo said, "not so long ago."

"Doesn't it, though?" Amaya eyed her husband suspiciously. "He won't be causing any trouble, will he?"

Gozaburo stared blankly back at his wife. "Not unless you intend to take up necromancy."

Amaya nodded. "Good," she said. "I shudder to think what he might have elected to do if that loose end were left . . . loose. This Paradius might have thought to recruit him." She crossed her arms and stared out one of the closed windows in the room, out into the night sky. "The question," she went on, "is when they intend to strike again. They won't have put so much time and effort into roping Ishmael into their schemes without some kind of contingency plan for his failure."

"I would love to say that I've put their plans in the dirt by handling Raj," Gozaburo said, "but I've never been in the business of flattering myself. You're right."

"And no matter what Noa learns," Amaya said, "it won't be enough to protect him from somebody like that. We don't have uninterrupted years to devote to his training. Even if we did, I can't think of a single instructor gifted enough to do it right."

"What about the woman who taught you?" Gozaburo asked.

Amaya whipped around and stared at her husband like he'd just blasphemed. Her eyes blazed like bonfires. "I'm not letting that witch within ten miles of our children."

Gozaburo held up his hands in surrender. "Of course, of course," he said.

"We can't play defensively," Amaya said eventually, glaring off at nothing. "There's no winning behind shields. We need to strike. The sooner, the better. Let Paradius learn what it means to make an enemy out of us. They've moved without impediment for too long now."

"Be that as it may," Gozaburo pressed, "we still need to put defensive measures in order. The boys should have attendants. At the minimum, whenever they are off the grounds. I have my doubts Phoenix Gate will appreciate this, but I should be able to blame this most recent incident if it comes to it."

Amaya nodded. "Good," she said. "Very good." She hummed low in her throat, tapping one foot against the carpet. "Do we send out feelers, find new hires? Or do you have anyone in mind already?"

Gozaburo smirked knowingly. "Don't worry, dearest. I know just who to place on this detail."