The thing about KaibaCorp was that it had no political power in Domino. Not on the surface, anyway. None of the employees had ever been council members, or mayors, or governors, and nor had any of the executives. If you asked a resident of Domino who held the power, they would answer the same way - whoever had won the last election, of course.

That did not mean KaibaCorp didn't wield political power anyway.

When Gozaburo Kaiba said to jump, the only thing you asked was how high and how much money he needed. Everyone in Domino could feel the invisible eyes and the pressure of Gozaburo's thumb against the backs of their necks, even if they were nowhere near the towering building at the center of Domino.

Which was why, when five KaibaCorp cars pulled up to five different Domino high schools, no one, not security, or administration, questioned it, and sent the notice to each teacher like they would do if it were an actual parent taking their child from school early.

"Miss Mutou, it's for you."

Reika Mutou looked up from her textbook as the slip dropped onto her desk, and then felt her heart stop when the only thing written was the kanji for KC. Reika clenched the note in her fist as she stood up and grabbed her bag, sliding her book inside it before heading out of the room without a word.

To her great surprise, it was Kemo who had come to collect her, not Lector, and despite the air of neutrality on Kemo's face, there was an air around him that warned her that something was wrong.

"Kemo, is everything -"

"I was instructed not to say anything until I got you to KaibaCorp, Miss Mutou. I'm sorry."

Reika's stomach twisted in nerves, and she stared out the window, counting the clouds in the sky for something to do.

"Your mother is fine, I will tell you that."

And she exhaled in relief, though the nerves didn't go away completely. "Thank you." Whatever had happened was likely still bad, but her mother being safe was the most important thing.

The flickering white, red and blue lights was Reika's first sign that something was terribly wrong.

"I'm going to let you out at the front door. Once you get out of the car, do not stop until you're inside the building," Kemo instructed as they neared the parking lot for KaibaCorp. "And go straight to your meeting room."

That was the second sign.

But Reika did as she was instructed to, bolting out the door of the car and ignoring the reporters (why were there reporters here?) that were gathered in the press area by the front door, heading straight inside and for the front elevator, but as she passed through the bobby, she could see the pale, worried faces of the secretaries and other employees who were on the floor.

Oh no.

When she got up to the meeting room, she found three Young Five members, and each of their parents at the table, waiting for her.

"Mom?"

"Just sit down, Reika," Miaka Mutou said quietly, patting the empty chair next to her. "Mr. Kaiba will explain."

Her mother's voice was never so soft, so unsure, but Reika took a seat and looked at the other Young Five members, who looked just as confused and concerned as she was.

When Mr. Kaiba arrived a few minutes later, it wasn't the Mr. Kaiba the Young Five were expecting.

"Seto? Noah? What's going on?" Hideo asked. "Where's - "

"Gozaburo is dead. I am the one in control of KaibaCorp."

The words and tone of his voice were cold, but Reika could see a glimmer of something - relief, maybe? - in Seto's eyes as he scanned the room.

"What happened?" Mei asked.

"The window in Conference Room 10 happened," Noah said. "Father was a sore loser, and he jumped out the window."

Noah's tone echoed Seto's - cold, uncaring, but again, she saw the same look of relief in his eyes.

Reika took a deep breath and addressed Seto. "I suppose you have been considering what to do about the Big Five and the Young Five." Both groups were a relic of Gozaburo's time - Gozaburo's closest confidants, and the children that had been chosen by said confidants to be the faces of the future - but that had been Gozaburo's future for the company, not Seto's, and if Reika had learned anything about Seto Kaiba over the past four years, it was that Seto had a very different vision for the future.

"Yes, naturally that has been on my mind. And I have made the decision to allow you to stay on as the face of KaibaCorp's next generation. You will still be invited to attend all of our events and learn from your mentors," Seto explained. "However… this will not be the KaibaCorp you are used to. We are moving into the future and leaving the past behind. If that isn't something you can handle, then leave."

But no one moved, and she could see the pleased smiles on the BIg Five's faces as they fanned out behind Seto and Noah.

"We will be going into a period of mourning. All employees will have the week off for the funeral and so we have time to plan out KaibaCorp's new direction," Seto continued.

"We do expect you to be at the center of the funeral with us, as a show of solidarity. Gozaburo was the weak link in KaibaCorp, not you or anyone else," Noah added.

Hearing Noah call Gozaburo by his first name was a little startling. He had spent so long trying to fight for his place in the company, fighting against everything Seto had done so far, and now here they were, in solidarity that their father was dead and the world was better for it?

She wondered how much of it was a mask and how much of it was real. This whole situation was making her wonder if she'd ever known the real Noah - or Seto - at all.

It was then that she noticed there was someone missing from the group. "Seto, where's Mokuba?"

"He's with Ichika. You can go see him if you want," Seto replied, turning to the door. "I'll be in my office. Everyone else is dismissed for the day."

Reika bowed, and the others quickly followed.

"No. None of that. Not from the Young Five," Seto said, and Reika stood at her full height in confusion. "I do not want this to change the relationship we have already built. Do not bow to me when you see me."

He was given five nods of understanding before he left the room, Noah trailing behind him.

"Did you need us for anything else, sirs?" she heard Sora ask.

"No. Do as Master Seto said. Go home and rest up. The mourning week is bound to be a very long one," Nezbit sighed, and Reika could see him over by the cabinet where they kept the Singleton Paragon of Time whiskey and Cohiba Behike cigars - treats for the adults that were only pulled out during positive news for KaibaCorp.

"Reika," her mother said, breaking her from her thoughts by putting a hand on her shoulder. "Let's go home."

And Reika followed her mother downstairs and around to the private employee parking lot.

"Mom… did he really jump out the window?" she hesitantly asked when they were in the privacy of her mother's car.

Her mother nodded. "Yes, he really did."

"So we're really free from him?"

Another nod. "Yes."

"Is it bad if I say good?"

Miaka shook her head. "No. It's not bad at all."

"Okay, good."

"We're still having dinner tonight, as planned. Your uncle can't reschedule."

Though they were free from Gozaburo's reign of terror, she was stuck with Takeo for the rest of his life, and she was seriously wondering which was worse - dealing with a megalomaniac with a desire for war, or a man desperate to climb the political ladder.

"A sixteen year old can't run a multi-billion yen corporation, it's absurd!" Takeo said as he burst through the apartment door, Aunt Kumi, Yugi, and Grandpa shuffling in behind him. "Miaka, surely something can be done about this!"

Her mother didn't even flinch as she spoke. "Takeo, would you want to go against Gozaburo Kaiba's will? He stated he would hand control of the company over to Seto upon his death, and here we are."

Uncle Takeo was a fascinating anomaly in the Mutou family. Her grandfather, Solomon, had been an Egyptian explorer in his younger years and had a deep love of games that ran so deep, he owned a shop dedicated to them. Her father, Genji, worked as an engineer, long hours, same as Takeo, but her father also wore leather jackets and kept his hair long, down to his shoulders as opposed to in spikes like the other Mutou men, and while her father didn't enjoy games the same way as Reika, Yugi, or Solomon did, he did actually have a sense of humor.

Takeo on the other hand lived in Tokyo most of the time and was desperate to gain power and influence in Japan, and tried to get Yugi to forget about the games he so loved.

He had nothing to say though, in response to her mother's warning about Gozaburo's will, and instead frowned at her.

"Come on, Takeo, give the kid a chance," her father said, rolling his eyes as he handed him a drink. "Gozaburo is dead, and he named a successor. Don't write off Seto Kaiba just because he's young. Honestly, if I didn't have my big project going on at work I'd put in an application to Kaiba Corp just to see what the future's gonna hold for it."

"Is Noah alright?" Yugi asked. "I mean, that was his dad, even if Gozaburo wasn't exactly a nice guy."

Reika pressed her lips together. "I didn't really get the chance to talk to him today but… he looked like he was at peace with what happened." It usually wasn't hard to tell what Noah was thinking, but he had masked something when they'd come in to inform the Young Five of what happened.

"I hope he's okay," Yugi murmured. "What about Mokuba? Did he…"

"No, Mokuba didn't see anything. From what I understand, one of the Big Five grabbed him before Gozaburo went through the window," her mother said. "Thankfully."

"That's good," Kumi said with a small sigh of relief. "It must have been traumatizing enough for Noah and Seto to see it, but Mokuba is still so young…"

"I'll be inviting him over whenever he wants, so I can keep teaching him piano," Reika said with a small smile. "He's quite good, especially for someone who hasn't had the level of tutoring I had."

"Yeah? Does he like Duel Monsters? Maybe I can teach him to play!" Yugi asked with a bright smile.

"Duel Monsters is more Seto's game, but I'm sure now that Gozaburo's gone Mokuba will be allowed into the game shop."

That had been the stipulation Gozaburo put on Mokuba being able to spend time with Reika outside of Kaiba Corp related events - Mokuba wasn't allowed to go into the game shop. The assumption the Young Five had was it was because he didn't want Mokuba getting any ideas for gifts to Seto.

"He will be welcome with open arms," Solomon said with a bright smile. "He seems like a good boy."

Reika smiled in return. She couldn't help but wonder just how much love Mokuba actually felt at Kaiba Manor, besides from Seto. She hoped he was supported by someone on the staff, or multiple someones.

"I think Mokuba likes Capsule Monsters Chess… I heard him talking about it to Seto once," she said. "Did you get anything new in the shop for it, gramps?"

"Why yes actually! I got a new shipment of boards in. I haven't put them out yet. Was told not to by the company until next week but… I suppose they would understand someone with the last name Kaiba getting an early look."

Reika gave him a smile of relief. "Thanks gramps…"

" - the funeral is on Thursday, Takeo, if you can make it."

"I will speak to the governor. I'm certain he'll want to be there, but I will make sure I am there too."

Reika resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Of course he would want to use a funeral to try and get his name and face out into the business world. But Gozaburo Kaiba would get his grand farewell, but it would all be a show, just hundreds of puppets dancing on strings, and a grave that would only receive visitors because his predeceased wife shared the same one.

On Thursday, the whole Mutou clan arrived at a temple for the wake. Their heads were bowed as the offering of condolence money was handed to Kemo, before they entered the room where Gozaburo's body was.

"Thank you for coming," Noah said smoothly, though his eyes were hiding the annoyance of what must have been having to perform this performance of a distraught child. "It means so much to our family."

"Are you okay?" she murmured to him.

"I'm ready for this week to be over," he muttered in reply, stepping to the side to allow her parents room to light incense. "It's exhausting having to pretend I care, and having to deal with so many people who are upset."

Reika frowned. It seemed like such a quick heel turn against his father, that she wasn't quite sure she believed he wasn't upset at what happened.

"You're on the same page with Seto? For sure?" she asked. "You're really okay with the company not being for war machines of death?" She really hoped it was true, but he had been so focused on getting Gozaburo's attention she couldn't be sure.

"I'm sure. Seto put me in charge of designing VR for the company. He's even using a design my father ignored," Noah said. "I really do believe this is going to be for the best, Reika. I was just too blind to see it before."

"I know it will be. You'll be able to do some good in the world now."

There was a lot she was leaving unsaid, but the funeral was no place for it. Not with so many ears - friendly and not - around her, and to be honest, not all of it was for Noah or Seto to hear.

She stood to the side and bowed to the owner of Yamazaki Industries when he approached, the mask of sadness evident on her face before making her way toward Seto and Mokuba.

Mokuba looked uneasy, unsure of his place here, while Seto, at least in Reika's opinion, looked like he was attempting to fight back a smirk.

"Hi Reika," Mokuba said softly. "Thank you for coming."

"It's not a problem." It was an obligation. "But hey, I heard from a very reliable source that the new Capsule Monsters board has been delivered to stores."

Mokuba's eyes widened. "Really? Seto, can I please go to Kame Games so I can see the new board?"

Seto looked over at her, his face passive, unreadable. "After the mourning period is over. We will contact you when Mokuba is available."

"Of course. We eagerly await your call."

"Miss Reika."

She glanced up at Lector and nodded once. Time to be with the Young Five.

During the funeral ceremonies, the Big and Young Five sat behind the Kaiba brothers, as the closest and the most valuable people to Gozaburo. They chanted and prayed, and Reika could see Lector's Catholic Rosary clenched tightly in his fist. He was mouthing his own prayers in the downtime between Buddhist rites.

The funeral itself was much the same, though mourners lined the streets before and after the funeral itself, giving solemn looks toward the Kaiba brothers, yet didn't seem to shed tears in the direction of the hearse as Gozaburo's body was loaded into it to take to the crematory.

For them, at least, it was over. They had done their duty as the face of KaibaCorp's new generation, and now they could relax - or as relax as much as they could being around the business world. There was still the large luncheon that had been planned by Sora's family, to be held at their manor, but that at least would keep the adults distracted with alcohol.

"Just because Gozaburo is gone doesn't mean we can trust Seto. Or hell, Noah for that matter, with the way they were able to get everything out from under Gozaburo. There's no telling if they'll do the same with the Big Five," Katsuo said as they settled around a table, his eyes darting over to their mentors to make sure they were occupied.

"Don't be stupid, Katsuo. Seto can't afford to get rid of the Big Five right now, if ever." Mei replied. "The world is watching him now. Everyone is waiting for him to fail, and people like Tanaka Industries would be more than happy to take control of the company and turn it back to where Gozaburo had it."

None of them were fools - Seto Kaiba had never been interested in war, and arguments between Seto and Gozaburo had been hard to miss despite the closed doors. Everyone knew the era of war technology was gone from KaibaCorp.

"We all know Seto isn't going to let that happen," Reika said, leaning back against her chair. "He's too prideful. None of us are going anywhere. Besides, a new era of KaibaCorp goes perfectly well with the aims of the Young Five."

"The world might be watching KaibaCorp as a whole, but it's watching us too. We were just in the Domino Times last week. Seto is going to need us to make it seem like KaibaCorp is still business as usual. Even if the business itself has changed," Sora said with a nod. "It'll be nice anyway. I don't know how many more war machines I could see Nezbit come up with. Gozaburo might have been a monster, but let's not kid ourselves, the Big Five are just as bad. And we have benefited from that destruction."

Given what the Big Five had done for them over the years, money, notoriety, and, more recently, access to whatever university program they had their hearts set on after graduation, it was a bitter pill to swallow, but a true one. Blood stained their hands, whether they wanted it to or not. But now they would be washing the blood off, and Seto Kaiba was going to lead them.

"Let's just agree, the five of us, that no matter what happens, we stick together as a team," Katsuo said, lifting his glass in a toast. "To the Young FIve. Long may we reign."

Maximilian Pegasus looked up as his computer chimed with the sound of a new email. It had been a long day already, and while it was tempting to curl up with a Funny Bunny book and a glass of wine, it was probably important enough to warrant his attention.

He didn't get surprised much anymore - not since before Shadi had given him the Millennium Eye to see into people's minds - but this email had caught him off guard.

Dear Mr. Pegasus,

I would like to set up a meeting with you regarding the future of Duel Monsters. My company has created holographic technology that will revolutionize the gaming industry, and I want Duel Monsters to be at the forefront of it. Please reply to this email with the earliest date possible that we can meet.

Regards,

S. Kaiba

Pegasus couldn't help but throw his head back and laugh. "Oh my, young Kaiba-boy, you sure do move quickly… Croquet! Set up a meeting with KaibaCorp, immediately!" When Croquet had disappeared from the room, Pegasus smirked a little.

"Well now Seto Kaiba, let's see what you can do."