Judai, Sho, and Flame return to Duel Academy! How is Sho handling the grief from his brother's "death"? I promise, after this chapter, the main plot will take place. Also, to answer your question Edward Elric, I made up my story for ARC-V Ryo by looking into Academia's history and how an alternate Ryo would handle the situation. Losing his loved ones, one way or another, I thought would make him more compelling a character. Now then, here we go!

Yugioh: The Hope of Six

Chapter 32: Kaiser Arc – Part 4

"You've done great work, Asuka. You don't know how much help you've been since you came back." Emi told her new assistant. Asuka nodded back, smiling.

"Thanks, Ayukawa Sensei." She replied. During the time between her graduation and accepting her post in Duel Academy, Asuka had attended a North American Dueling collage. Although it had only been a few months, she had quickly kept up with her course work. Part of her education was to take on a semi teaching position to gain experience, hence her current job. Once Asuka got enough time and experience, it would really look good on her collage credits and on a full time job application.

"How does it feel, teaching rather then learning as a student?" Emi inquired. Asuka thought for a second before she replied.

"It's actually strange. I mean, I only graduated from here not long ago. I guess it feels… surreal. Also, although I'm not student here anymore, I still believe I have much more to learn." When Asuka started, she thought she might have a little trouble earning the trust and respect of the younger girl students in the dorm. Turns out, that wasn't the case at all. She had no trouble, seeing as she was the "Queen of Obelisk Blue" and the girls all seem to idolize her. She suspected she had some help from certain people (Rei and Serena come to mind at one point). Her supervisor nodded approvingly.

"Exactly what I hoped to hear." Asuka nodded back. Just then, her phone beeped and her heart leapt. It was Judai. Emi noticed and motioned her to take it. "You're finished for the day. Go take that call."

Asuka thanked her and walked out. Once in the hallway, Asuka picked up. "Hi Judai. What's up? You coming back for our next date?" What her boyfriend said made her stop walking. Her expression changed from happy and giddy… to shock. And then, very sad. She lowered her head and tried, and failing, to hold back the tears. 'It's finally happened.' "No. Just yesterday? Oh no. What about Sho? How is he?" She asked, her voice trembling.

It was just then that Tyranno Kenzan headed her way. He was about to ask Asuka how her day was when he saw the look on her face while on the phone. It was not a good sign. After Asuka said goodbye and hung up, she looked up at Kenzan. "What's wrong?" He asked. Asuka's lips frowned deeply.

"That was Judai. He just told me that Ryo, our Ryo I mean, that he's…" She could not bring herself to say it. Kenzan's eyes widened, knowing what she was trying to tell him.

"He's gone." He said softly. Asuka nodded. They both stood there in silence, letting the news sinking in. "Damn. Sho must be really miserable right now."

"Judai said that Sho was definitely not well." Asuka told him.

"We should let the others know." Kenzan suggested.

"Manjome and Grace are having a date tonight, same with the other Ryo and Gloria. I don't want to ruin both their evenings with this news. Let's wait until tomorrow to tell them." Asuka said. Kenzan agreed.

"Good idea. What about Serena and Rei? I saw them heading outside not long ago. I think they were about to have a Duel." Asuka conceded that option.

"Okay, let's go. We can tell them after their Duel." With that, the pair walked away to meet the younger students.

Later that evening, Emi was in her room and had just finished a quiet meal when she heard someone knock on her door. "Come in." She called out. The door opened to reveal Chronos, much to her surprise. "Chronos? What brings you over here? Things going okay with that other Ryo?" She asked kindly as she walked over to meet him.

The Obelisk Blue boy's supervisor smiled pleasantly. "Oh, he's dandy. I'm here because there is some business I need to discuss with you… it's rather important."

"What kind of business? Is it something we should talk to Principal Samejima about?" Emi asked. Chronos chuckled.

"No no Emi! Nothing that important to involve him! It's a private matter. Would you come with me please?" He said, beckoning out the door. Curious, Emi agreed and followed Chronos out. What she failed to see was the triumphant and sinister smile of a man who had seen the light…

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

The following morning, a large group waited at the docks. Asuka, Serena, Kenzan, Manjome, Rei, Grace, Gloria, Yuri, Masumi, Fubuki, and Yusuke all watched as the boat slowed and eventually came to a stop. "Now remember guys. Be sensitive to Sho. He's very vulnerable right now, so be careful how you talk to him." Asuka instructed. The others all nodded.

"Sure, of course." Serena said. She meant it. As much as she wanted to, she knew it was definitely the wrong time to talk to Sho about how he felt about her. He was going through his own pain and didn't want to add more to his load. She was just going to have to be patient for the time being.

After a minute, once the transport was secured, it's few passengers disembarked. At the same time, Judai and Sho stepped down and met up with their friends.

"Hey everyone. Missed all of ya." Judai said to the group before turning to his girl. "Especially you." Asuka smiled as she walked up to him and hugged him.

"Me too." She then turned to Sho, who wasn't really looking at anyone… not even Serena. "Hi Sho." She said. The boy nodded.

"Hey." He barely managed to say. Eventually he got the nerve to look at each of the group. When he caught sight of Serena, his heart momentarily leapt. He wanted to go over and hug her. But he reminded himself he shouldn't do such things… that he shouldn't even have those kind of thoughts. He looked away, though a little too late as he saw the pain in the girl's eyes. He suspected she wanted to have a serious talk about how distant he suddenly became when he left. Sho knew he would have to talk to her about it… just not yet.

"Hey… Sho." Serena said while trying to sound friendly. Sho appreciated that much.

"Hi Serena." Sho replied before scanning the crowd. He noticed a certain someone was missing. "Where is… you know…?" Gloria was the first to catch on and answered him.

"He's working back at the Obelisk Blue boy's dorm. He felt that you shouldn't see him yet, not after..." Sho nodded, getting the message.

"I… understand." He then addressed everyone present. "Thanks you guys, for being here. It does mean a lot to me to see you all. I'm going to head over to the Red Dorm now and settle there." He turned to the oldest of the guys. "Fubuki, Yusuke… can you both give me a hand please?"

Both of them were surprised that he asked for them specifically. The two glanced at one another briefly. They had an idea of why Sho wanted them, but decided not to voice it aloud. Instead, they chose to accept. "Sure, I don't mind." Fubuki answered. "You feel like helping, Yusuke?" His friend nodded.

"Yeah, of course. We'll catch up with you guys later." Yusuke said. With that, the trio marched on over to the Osiris Red dorm. Judai and the others watched them leave.

"Will he be alright?" Serena asked, clearly worried about Sho's wellbeing.

"This is not something that can be immediately taken care of. He has to work through it himself in some way." Yuri told her.

"Something tells me we should let Fubuki and Yusuke handle that department for now." Judai said.

"Yeah." Manjome said in agreement.

"I concur." Gloria said.

"Say, is Flame here too?" Asuka asked. Her boyfriend nodded.

"Yeah, he's still in Sho's Duel Disk. The two really bonded this past month from what I've learned." Judai said.

"That's good. Sho needs his friends now more than ever." Masumi added.

"Absolutely." Rei said. Asuka then remembered something.

"Judai, something really interesting is about to take place in the main Academy building. I think you should check it out." Judai raised an eyebrow, looking intrigued.

"Oh, like what?" He asked. Asuka smiled and chuckled.

"You'll just have to come and see for yourself."

/\/\/\/\/\/\

After entering the dorm, Sho took the luxurious room and slowly unpacked. Fubuki and Yusuke helped the little guy in what way they could. Hardly a word was spoken during that time. Once they were done, the guys all took a spot on the couch and sat down. They seated in total silence, each not knowing what to say.

Fubuki and Yusuke wanted to talk to Sho about how he was really doing, but they were worried they might upset him if they said the wrong thing. Sho himself also desired to speak but lacked motivation to do so, his thoughts swirled around his brother being gone and his complicated feelings for Serena.

Finally fed up with the quiet after a little while, Flame popped out of Sho's Duel Disk, which sat on a nearby table, and glared at the trio while groaning. "Good grief! Enough with the silent treatment! It's irritating! You guys!" He shouted as he pointed at all three surprised young men. "Discuss what is on your minds and not worry about stuff you think may be insensitive! Keeping your mouths closed up won't get anyone anywhere! Now talk!" The Fire Ignis demanded as he folded his arms and continued to glare at them.

The trio knew he was right, so Fubuki decided to break the ice first. "Okay, um… Sho. How's the Cyber-Style Pro League coming along?" He asked delicately. Sho shrugged.

"It's… still in the very early stages. A staff team will be needed. And we"… Sho fumbled for a second before proceeding. "I mean I, need to scout out possible candidates to join. I'm hoping to look at some of the third year students that use "Machine" Decks. I already found a suitable location for the League itself." He then shook his head before looking down. "No, that's not right. Ryo found the location. I just approved it." Sho quietly corrected.

"I see. That's good. You uh, gotta start somewhere right?" Fubuki said, trying to sound up upbeat. Sho nodded without saying anything. Still trying to help his friend, Fubuki thought of a memory from his past. "You know, I just remembered something a while back. When Ryo and I first met, we didn't quite get along at first. He thought I was too carefree to take my dueling seriously, and I thought he was a bit of a stick in the mud. When I showed him I could hold my own, he changed his tune and I started respecting him more. We've been buds ever since." Sho smiled from hearing that.

It was a long minute before he turned to Yusuke. "Speaking of Ryo, how's his counterpart fitting in here?"

"Actually, he's doing quite well. Honestly, the amount of paperwork he gets doesn't seem to bother him. I guess he prefers the quiet life after everything he went through."

"That's nice." Sho said. "Is he… still avoiding you?" He questioned hesitantly. To his surprise, Yusuke also smiled.

"Not anymore. We worked things out yesterday. Everything's good between us now." Sho smiled again.

"I'm happy to hear that, Yusuke. How did you two settle things?"

"With a Duel." Yusuke then chuckled. "He won of course. It was rather fun, though it was definitely intense. It really helped ease Ryo's suffering about what happened to my counterpart."

"He was that good, huh?" Sho asked. He still had not seen the other Ryo duel yet and was a little disappointed he missed it.

"Hell yeah. He's as strong as the Ryo we knew, if not better." Yusuke commented. Sho sighed as looked down again.

"I miss him." He admitted in a faint whisper. Fubuki and Yusuke nodded.

"We all miss him, Sho." Fubuki said. Sho gripped his pants.

"I still can't believe he's gone." He couldn't speak anymore. No one did. He felt he could burst into tears anytime. He tried very hard not to do so. Fubuki could tell. He offered a suggestion he hoped could help his friend.

"Hey Sho, how about a Duel? You and me?" He offered. Sho looked up at him.

"You want to duel me?" He asked. Fubuki smiled.

"Sure. I think it would be good for both of us. How about it?" Sho appeared to be thinking about it.

"No reason not to." Yusuke insisted.

"I agree with both of them. I strongly recommend it Sho." Flame added.

Sho looked at them and finally nodded. "Okay."

A few minutes later, Sho and Fubuki stood outside the Red Dorm, their Decks inserted and Duel Disks activated. Yusuke stood on the sidelines with Flame, who transferred himself into Yusuke's Duel Disk. He felt Sho should be the only one Fubuki would be facing.

"Ready Sho?" Fubuki asked.

"Ready." Sho confirmed. The two then began their battle.

"DUEL!"

(Sho: 4000) (Fubuki: 4000)

"If it's okay with you, I'll take the first turn." Fubuki said, which Sho didn't mind. "Alright then. My turn! Draw!" He was looking forward playing the game with what had now and wasn't going to waste a second of it. "I activate the Monster Effect of Reactan, Dragon Ruler of Earth in my hand! By discarding it and a "Dragon" or EARTH Monster, I can Special Summon a certain Monster from my Deck, but it cannot attack this turn! That last part won't matter, since I'll Summon this big guy in Defense Mode: Redox, Dragon Ruler of Boulders!" (EARTH; Level 7; ATK: 1600; DEF: 3000) A big wingless dragon that seemed to be made entirely out of rock emerged onto the Field in Defense Mode. It also had two horns that looked like they were cut cleanly in half.

Sho was surprised by the Monster. "Dragon Ruler? You changed your Deck!" He exclaimed. Fubuki smiled with pride.

"Yeah, I sure did." He said as he glanced over at Yusuke. "After the events of the last school year, Yusuke and I both decided to completely change our Decks. His previous Deck represented a bad part of his old life. As for me, while I had an attachment to my "Red-Eyes" Deck I started to feel a stronger affinity to nature… more accurately, the four elements of nature. So, we made some changes. Yusuke's new Deck uses LIGHT and DARK Monsters, while mine mostly has all the other Attributes!" He said excitedly.

"Interesting choices." Flame noted.

"You both use Dragons now, don't you?" Sho surmised. Both Fubuki and Yusuke were the ones surprised this time.

"Well, yeah. We kind of gotten that inspiration from Ryo… our Ryo, I mean." Yusuke answered delicately. Sho flinched a little before he composed himself.

"Really, that's fine. I'm interested to seeing what else your Deck has, Fubuki." He said. Fubuki smiled back and nodded.

"Believe me, you will. Now back to the Duel! I Normal Summon Keeper of the Shrine in Defense Mode!" (DARK; Level 4; ATK: 0; DEF: 2100) A old man wearing black and dark pink dragon armor sat next to Redox. "I then Set one card facedown and end my turn. Now let's see the changes to your Deck Sho!" Sho hesitated for a split second, which Flame noticed.

"You know what they say, the more things change the more they stay the same! My turn! Draw!" Fubuki wondered why Sho would say that before his opponent proceeded. "Your rocky dragon and old keeper won't protect you from this! I Summon Submarineroid!" (WATER; Level 4; ATK: 800; DEF: 1800) A blue and yellow submarine with eyes appeared on the Field. The torpedo it carried also had eyes. "This Monster can attack my opponent directly! Battle! Submarineroid, Direct Attack! Death-Deep Impact!" The torpedo launched itself under the ground, traveled beneath both opposing Monsters, and burst out to hit Fubuki right in the chest, exploding upon contact.

(Fubuki: 4000 - 800 = 3200)

"Looks like Fubuki's defensive plan just blew up in his face." Yusuke joked. Flame just looked up at him.

"The torpedo didn't explode in his face." The Fire Ignis pointed out. Yusuke sweat dropped.

"Never mind." He muttered.

"Because Submarineroid attacked, it switches into Defense Mode! Then I also Set one card facedown and end my turn." Sho declared.

"During the End Phase of the turn it was Special Summoned, Redox goes to my hand!" Fubuki said, his rock like dragon vanishing from the Field.

Sho eyed him. 'Fubuki is planning something. I wonder what…' He wondered.

'He hasn't played anything serious yet. But this is sure to shake things up a bit.' Fubuki thought before starting his next turn. "My turn! Draw!" He still expected Sho to Summon "it" before long, so he wanted to start getting ready. "I discard Burner, Dragon Ruler of Fire and Blaster, Dragon Ruler of Blazes from my hand to activate their Monster Effects! When I discard Blaster along with another FIRE Monster, like Burner, I can destroy one card on the Field! I'll take out your facedown card!"

Sho grunted as his Trap was destroyed, annoyed he didn't get to use it. 'There goes my Cyber Repairer!'

"Now for Burner's Effect! When I discard it with another "Dragon" or FIRE Monster, I can Special Summon my second copy of Blaster, Dragon Ruler of Blazes from my Deck!" (FIRE; Level 7; ATK: 2800; DEF: 1800) A dragon made up hardened molten lava came bursting out of the ground to stand next to it's fellow Monster. "Like Redox before, Blaster cannot attack this turn when Special Summoned this way! Next I play my facedown Quick-Play Magic card, Super Rejuvenation Ability, which you'll learn more about later!"

"What does that do?" Sho asked himself, unsure of Fubuki's strategy.

"When I Sacrifice my Keeper of the Shrine to Summon a "Dragon", it can be used as two Sacrifices! Using my Keeper, I Advance Summon Tidal, Dragon Ruler of Waterfalls!" (WATER; Level 7; ATK: 2600; DEF: 2000) A thin, ice blue dragon emerged next to it's fiery counterpart. "This ought to cool things down! Battle! Tidal, Dragon Ruler of Waterfalls, attack Submarineroid! Draco Flood!" A geyser of water sprayed out of the dragon's mouth and washed away Sho's Monster.

"Sho has nothing left on his Field!" Yusuke said. Flame nodded.

"He is fortunate Fubuki's other Monster cannot attack or he would take heavy damage now." He said.

"Okay, now I end my turn! At this time, Super Rejuvenation Ability's Effect comes in! During the End Phase of the turn this card was activated, I can draw cards equal to the combined number of "Dragon" Monsters I discarded or Sacrificed from my hand or Field! I discarded two cards, so I'll draw two cards!" Fubuki smirked. 'Almost there. Just need a couple more…' Sho smiled at his opponent.

"I like your new Deck Fubuki, but I still don't plan to lose to it! My turn! Draw!" He got what he needed to turn things around. "I activate Vehicroid Connection Zone! It allows me to Fuse Summon a "Vehicroid" Fusion Monster from my Extra Deck using Monsters in my hand or on my Field! I Fuse Truckroid, Expressroid, Drillroid, and Stealthroid in my hand! Fusion Summon! Take action! Super Vehicroid – Stealth Union!" (EARTH; Level 9; ATK: 3600; DEF: 3000) Sho's giant white and blue robot Fusion Monster materialized to face Fubuki's dragons.

'That's still not the Monster I was hoping for…' Fubuki thought, disappointed.

"Now you're in trouble Fubuki! Battle! Super Vehicroid – Stealth Union, attack Blaster, Dragon Ruler of Blazes! Steel Punch!" One blow from the city sized robot and Blaster was blown to pieces.

(3600 - 2800 = 800)

(Fubuki: 3200 - 800 = 2400)

"Sho is doing well." Flame said, impressed by Sho's skills. Yusuke, however, frowned slightly.

"Yeah…" He replied, not sounding all too impressed. Flame noticed and wondered what was bothering him. He put that thought away for now and returned his attention to the Duel.

"By destroying a "Dragon" Monster in battle, Keeper of the Shrine can be Special Summoned from the Graveyard, and I'll have it in Defense Mode!" Fubuki declared, his weaker Monster returning to the Field.

"Now I activate Stealth Union's Effect! Once per turn, during my Main Phase, I can Equip a face-up non-"Machine" Monster on the Field to itself! I'll have my Monster take your Tidal, Dragon Ruler of Waterfalls!" Sho declared. Fubuki cursed beneath his breath as his water dragon was grabbed by Stealth Union and merged it with the machine itself. Now Sho's Monster had Tidal's head on it's chest, it's wings sprouting from the back, and blue scales on the arms and legs. "Nothing more I can do, so I'll end my turn."

"Why didn't Sho use that Monster's Effect before attacking?" Flame questioned curiously.

"When Stealth Union is Equipped with a Monster, it's Attack Points are halved when it battles. If Sho had done that, his Monster would have become too weak to destroy Fubuki's other dragons. Not only that, but Sho believed Blaster would return to Fubuki's hand if it remained on the Field." Yusuke answered.

"That's it for both your Dragon Rulers!" Sho exclaimed. He then noticed his opponent frowning, but not like he was concentrating on something. "Fubuki? Are you okay?" Fubuki sighed as he looked back at him.

"I should be asking you the same thing. The way you're dueling… it just isn't what I expected." Sho seemed confused. He didn't know what he meant by that.

"What are you saying? I'm dueling just fine." Fubuki's frown deepened.

"Not from what I'm seeing. To tell the truth… I'm feeling a little let down at the moment." Sho gasped.

"Let down? Why? What for?" He asked, clearly not knowing what Fubuki was talking about.

Instead of answering, Fubuki prepared for his next turn. "Doesn't matter. Unlike you, I'm planning to step it up big time! My turn! Draw!" He declared, now sounding angry. 'Maybe Sho needs a good push to help him remember the kind of Duelist he should be…' That was his plan, and he had just the way to pull it off. "Okay Sho, this is how a serious Duelist plays! First, I Sacrifice Keeper of the Shrine to Summon Redox back into action!" Fubuki's rock dragon returned to with a low growl. "Next, I play Monster Reborn to revive Tempest, Dragon Ruler of Storms from my Graveyard!" (WIND; Level 7; ATK: 2400; DEF: 2200) A light green dragon made up of swirling vortexes emerged to stand with Redox.

"I feel something big is coming." Flame said, anticipation building. Sho also felt it, and was also feeling uneasy.

"Now I play Pride of the Elements! When I control two Monsters with different Attributes, I can negate the Effects of an opponent's Monster until the end of the turn! Your Stealth Union can no longer hold mine! Return to me, Tidal, Dragon Ruler of Waterfalls!" With a loud roar the sound of a crashing wave, Fubuki's water dragon came bursting out of the big robot and flew back to stand with it's fellow Dragon Rulers. "I also get to draw a card from my Deck!" The drawn card was what Fubuki needed to complete his strategy. "And finally, by banishing two FIRE Monsters in my Graveyard, I Special Summon Blaster, Dragon Ruler of Blazes from my Graveyard!" With a burst of flame, the fourth and final Dragon Ruler reappeared.

"Fubuki has all four Dragon Rulers out on the Field!" Yusuke exclaimed.

"Why would you do that? None of them can take down Stealth Union!" Sho said in protest.

"Not on their own they can't." Fubuki conceded. "But four elements are unstoppable when working as one! I activate Polymerization to Fuse Tempest, Tidal, Redox, and Blaster together!" Sho, Yusuke, and Flame watched as the four elemental dragons swirled into something new. "Fusion Summon! Appear! Liferia, Dragon Master of Elements!" (LIGHT; Level 10; ATK: 4400; DEF: 3900) What now stood before Fubuki was a gargantuan creature with the main body and thick legs make of solid rock, two sets of wings with one set of water and the other set of fire, and the neck and head resembling an angry tornado with bright yellow eyes.

Sho gaped at the towering beast. 'Fubuki wasn't bluffing! He really has stepped up!' He thought to himself. Fubuki saw how surprised his friend looked.

"Nervous? You should be! While I have one WIND Monster, one WATER Monster, one EARTH Monster, and one FIRE Monster in my Graveyard, my Ace cannot be destroyed by card effects! Also, it's Attribute can also be treated as the aforementioned four! Battle! Liferia, Dragon Master of Elements, attack Super Vehicroid – Stealth Union! Gaia's Wrath!" A blast made up of water, fire, winds, and rocks erupted from the new dragon's mouth and slammed into Sho's Monster, ripping it into pieces.

(4400 - 3600 = 800)

(Sho: 4000 - 800 = 3200)

"No! Stealth Union!" Sho shouted, dismayed to see his Monster destroyed.

"There's more than that coming your way!" Fubuki informed him. "When Liferia destroys a Monster in battle, you take damage equal to half that Monster's Attack Points! Blazing Gust!" With a flap of it's four wings, Sho got hit by torrents of water and flame, knocking him down.

(3600 / 2 = 1800)

(Sho: 3200 - 1800 = 1400)

'Fubuki is showing no mercy in this Duel. Why is he being so aggressive?' Flame asked himself. Last the Fire Ignis checked, this wasn't how Asuka's older brother would normally duel. True, he did change his Deck, but that didn't mean he should change his attitude along with it. He felt he was missing something. Yusuke had the same thought.

'The way Fubuki is being so harsh on Sho… it's not how he usually is. What's he trying to do?' He thought for a moment… then he understood. 'I'll bet it has to do with what's going on with Sho…'

Sho slowly got back up and gritted his teeth. "Fubuki… why is he acting like this?" Sho questioned softly after standing upright again.

"I Set my last card facedown, and end my turn." Fubuki crossed his arms and gave Sho an unusually hard stare. "If you have a huge comeback in mind, you'd better pull it off with your next move Sho! Nothing less than your absolute best will help you in this Duel!"

Sho grimaced. He had no more cards in his hand or on his Field. He had to draw what he needed now. "My turn! DRAW!" The drawn card gave him some hope. "I play Roid Backup! This lets me draw cards from my Deck for each "Roid" Monster in my Graveyard! There are five, so I draw five cards!" He was glad by what his hand now held. He smiled back at his opponent. "You want me to show you my best, then that's exactly what you will get!"

Fubuki gave a very faint smile. 'That's it Sho. I know you got it. Now bring it out…' He thought excitedly. His excitement, however, was short lived… for he was disappointed yet again.

"I activate Ultimate Machine Union! It will allow me to Special Summon a "Roid" Fusion Monster by banishing the necessary "Roid" Fusion Materials from my Graveyard! I banish my Submarineroid, Truckroid, Expressroid, Drillroid, and Stealthroid to unleash Valbaroid, the Ultimate Battle Machine King!" (EARTH; Level 12; ATK: 4000; DEF: 4000) Erupting from the ground came a red, one-eyed robot the size of Liferia. It also sported no legs and wielded two cannons as it's arms.

"A Level 12 Monster! This is a rare occurrence!" Flame shouted in amazement. While he too was surprised by Sho's Monster, Yusuke also felt the same sense of disappointment his friend felt at that moment.

Fubuki gritted his teeth. "Dammit Sho…" he whispered angrily before he made his counter. "Continuous Trap open, Castle of Dragon Souls! As long as this is in play, I can add 700 Attack Points to a Monster I control until the End Phase by banishing a "Dragon" from my Graveyard once per turn! I banish my Keeper of the Shrine to give my Liferia some extra power!" Fubuki's Ace roared as it glowed from it's power up.

(Liferia, Dragon Master of Elements' ATK: 4400 + 700 = 5100)

Sho was prepared for this. "I thought you might make it stronger somehow! I activate Limiter Removal! This doubles the Attack Points of all "Machine" Monsters I control, but they will all be destroyed at the end of the turn!" Sho's Monster also glowed while it received it's own boost.

(Valbaroid, the Ultimate Battle Machine King's ATK: 4000 x 2 = 8000)

"Now if Sho attacks, he can win." Flame said.

"We'll see…" Was all Yusuke said.

"Here I come Fubuki! Battle! Valbaroid, the Ultimate Battle Machine King, attack Liferia, Dragon Master of Elements! Ultra Cannons!" The two arms fired a barrage of energy balls that struck the mighty dragon.

"It's not over yet! I activate the Effect of Liferia! When it is about to be destroyed by battle, I can banish a "Dragon Ruler" Monster from my Graveyard to prevent it's destruction and cut the battle damage I take in half! I will banish one of my copies of Blaster!" Fubuki declared.

(8000 - 5100 = 2900; 2900 / 2 = 1450)

(Fubuki: 2400 - 1450 = 950)

"He barely managed to survive that one." Yusuke said.

"Indeed. Sho is not to be underestimated." Flame said, impressed. Yusuke inwardly groaned.

'But Fubuki and I definitely overestimated him.' He thought disapprovingly.

"It was a good effort Sho, but I'm not going down this turn!" Fubuki taunted. Sho smiled at him.

"I wouldn't say that! Valbaroid can attack twice per Battle Phase, but it cannot attack directly! Lucky for me, you saved your Monster!"

"Damn." Fubuki cursed, knowing where this was headed.

"Valbaroid has another Effect! Since it attacked a Monster, that Monster's Effects are now negated!" Sho revealed.

'Crap! That means I can't protect my dragon again!' Fubuki realized.

"Alright Valbaroid, let's try this again! Attack Liferia a second time!" Sho's Monster fired it's cannons once more. Fubuki still wasn't going down just like that.

"I still got one more trick up my sleeve! If I am about to take damage from a battle involving a WIND, WATER, EARTH, and FIRE Monster I control, I can banish Pride of the Elements from the Graveyard to reduce the battle damage to 0!" Although Fubuki succeeded in avoiding losing the Duel, the same couldn't be said for his Monster as it was completely disintegrated. "Good effort, but I'm still in the game!" To his surprise, Sho still smiled.

"Not for much longer! Valbaroid has one more Effect! If it destroys a Monster in battle, you take 1000 points of damage! I've got you!"

"What?!" Fubuki yelled right before a yellow blast from Valbaroid's eye hit him in the chest, making him fall to one knee.

(Fubuki: 0)

"That was quite a Duel Sho." Flame acknowledged.

"Yeah, it was." Yusuke added, though halfheartedly. Sho didn't seem to notice as he nodded at them.

"Thanks guys." He then walked over to Fubuki, who had just gotten up again. "I really enjoyed our Duel, Fubuki. Your new Deck is amazing." Sho complimented. When he reached Fubuki, the older guy didn't look at him. Instead, he stared downward. "Fubuki?" He refused to meet his eyes as he answered.

"Why didn't you use them, Sho?" Fubuki asked him. "Throughout the Duel, I was expecting, no hoping, that you would play them… but you never did. Why not?" Sho tilted his head, confused again.

"Use what?" Fubuki finally looked him in the eye, and Sho was stunned to see anger and disappointment in his stare.

"Your brother's cards." He said, making Sho look away. "Ryo's Cyber Dragons. Cyber End Dragon. I know you added them to your Deck and Extra Deck before the end of last year. But you didn't play any of them. Why didn't you?"

Sho was taken aback by Fubuki's words, as was Flame. When he looked up at Yusuke, he saw that he didn't share his shock. That's when the Ignis finally realized it. "You were wanting the same thing as Fubuki did, weren't you?" Yusuke nodded without saying anything. Flame also began to question why Sho didn't play any of Ryo's cards, for he also knew they were in Sho's Deck and Extra Deck.

The younger Duelist still looked away, not meeting Fubuki's eye. "I'm sorry I disappointed you, Fubuki." He said softly. Fubuki wasn't satisfied with that.

"Sho, I don't want an apology. I want an answer." He told him calmly, but still had a hint of anger. Reluctantly, Sho took a small box out of his jacket pocket, opened it, and revealed the contents. Inside were all the "Cyber Dragon" cards that once belonged to his brother. Fubuki, Yusuke, and Flame were surprised even more. "You… You didn't have them in your Deck?" Fubuki asked incredulously. Sho still refused eye contact.

"I took them out right after I learned Ryo was dying. I've kept them in this box ever since. He never knew I did it, nor did Flame." Sho finally said, surprising the Ignis further.

Fubuki looked from the cards to Sho, not understanding his actions. "Why did you remove them?" Sho had shut his eyes tight.

"I… have my reasons. Please don't ask me. I won't go into it." He wouldn't say another word before closing the box and putting it away. Fubuki sighed as he rubbed his forehead.

Flame now understood Fubuki's reasons. 'Fubuki and Ryo were best friends. He believed that if Sho had played with his brother's cards along with his own, Fubuki would feel like he was dueling both of them. It would be like facing Ryo one last time before moving on. But he didn't get that wish today.' Flame lamented.

Sho really felt bad about Fubuki not getting what he wanted. The thing was he could no longer bring himself to play Ryo's cards… not after what he did. Throughout the past month, he still had not forgiven himself for inadvertently causing his brother's death. He felt he never could. So instead, as an act of penitence, he removed all of Ryo's "Cyber Dragon" cards and anything related to them from his Deck and Extra Deck, including Power Bond. After that, he swore to himself he would NEVER play them again. He believed he was no longer worthy of using them as his own. He would only use his own cards from here on out, no matter what people might say.

An uncomfortable silence followed this, no one knowing what to say. Just then, a loud boom occurred that nearly shook everyone off their feet. "What the hell was that?!" Yusuke yelled.

"That sounded like a explosion!" Sho said.

"Did a bomb just go off nearby?!" Fubuki said, shaken by the event.

"Look there!" Flame called out, pointing to the direction of the main Academy building. All four of them were shocked to see thick smoke rising from the school.

"Judai! Asuka! Everyone! They could be hurt! We have to get to them now!" Sho urged. The others all agreed, putting the matter of Ryo's cards out of their minds for the time being.

"You're right! Let's go!" Fubuki ordered as the group rushed toward the building… hoping everyone was alright.

To be continued.