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Yu-gi-oh 5Ds: Rise of Darkness and Corruption (Athene/ImaginaryMuse & Razgriz)

Hajime ​

Hajime mulled over Yamichi's comment before nodding after thinking it over. "True. With any luck, all of us will get a bit of a confidence boost. Hopefully." The last word was murmured quietly, hinting he himself was already anxious as it was. Even the best of warrior decks could be defeated. And even though they were their own clan, the X-Sabers were still warriors.

Hell, the fact Yuna must have gotten defeated in order to be dragged inside Arcadia and she --- just shut up. Don't freak out.

Taking a slight breath, Hajime leaned back, grinning as he kept watching the fight. "Looks like it's coming to a close soon."

Just as Daisuke expected, Takeshi didn't make the only mistake that could have allowed him one more turn. He would have had to attack with the weaker monster second, not first. It'd leave him alive. Barely, but more than compared to having zero life points. A soft sigh passed his lips. This definitely hadn't gone anywhere close to how he expected. Ah well; such was the blessing and curse of dueling. It really did have the most interesting way of surprising even the most experienced duelists.

"Ahh, thank you. You too, Takeshi-kun."

Daisuke grinned, reaching out and finding his hand with no problem.

... Obviously, he'd adapted to his bangs and figured a way to see despite it looking impossible. "Truly was quite the interesting deck you have there. Well then, good luck with the rest of this tournament. It will likely get harder with each new opponent." As he slowly unclasped his hand from Takeshi's, Daisuke pivoted and walked away. Despite losing, the same grin was still plastered on his face. Taking slow, steady steps, he began navigating his way past the stands where the audience could sit and watch. Daisuke needed to find a more ... secluded area to give his report to Leo-sama.

"Damn, dude. See? I told ya not to worry," Hajime greeted, smiling as the recon-savvy Disciple returned to him and Yamichi. "I almost feel a bit sorry for your opponent, though. They didn't even dent your life points."

The next two duels would proceed rather quickly, with each respective victor keeping and maintaining quite the edge over their opponent. If poor Hajime hadn't been nervous enough as it was, he as feeling just a bit more antsy. "Geez. I hope I can join you two. It'd be a bit lame if I couldn't do that much. Well .... your go, Mr. Tech Genius. Good luck!" Just as he'd done with Takeshi, Hajime waved, wearing a coy grin as Yamichi began walking away.

"Awww, damn. Lucky bastard."

Before she disappeared from view, Hajime and Takeshi would note Yamichi had ended up being pit against one of the few female duelists in this tournament.

"Wonder what she's got," Hajime mused, crossing his arms over his chest.

Ling, meanwhile, would give Yamichi a low bow as they both entered the stadium. "Hmmm, I'm feeling generous today. You choose if you want first or not. Duel!" When her opponent declared he'd go first, Ling nodded and swiftly drew her five cards, holding them all in her hand.
 

Giving Takeshi a bear-hug, Yamichi just laughed, "I knew you were gonna rock it! That was on par with Celeste's performance dude!" Takeshi just smied and rubbed the back of his head, "Yeah, yeah...I know." Yamichi pulled back a bit, cocking his head as he looked at his friend. "What's the matter, Tak?" he asked, to which Takeshi said, "Nothing's wrong...I mean, I'm glad I can still pull off a sweep if I have the chance. And my opponent was cool about it...But that's just it, he was too cool. That and he was saying some weird stuff during the match...Something about a 'Six Samurai' archetype and how my Shiranui looked like them."

Giving a wayward glance back at the dueling platform, Takeshi noticed his opponent was gone; he didn't know why, but...Something felt off about his opponent. He couldn't place it, but the guy was weird...And not in the introvert sort of way. More like the creepy shoot-up-the-school type, except without the mania and guns. Either way, he just shrugged it off and replied, "Hajime's right, though...You're up, nerd." shortly before rubbing his head playfully and mussing up Yamichi's hair.

"Oooiiii" Yamichi pouted, getting his hair back into its less messy form before taking his Duel Disk and running up to the stage. When Hajime made note of his opponent, Takeshi looked too; he couldn't help but inwardly chuckle. She was hot alright...But if she was the type who hoped her looks would distract Yamichi any, she would be in for a rude surprise. Of course, only time would tell if she were that way.

Yamichi stood on the stage, feeling overwhelmed a bit at the number of people cheering both him and his opponent on. This feeling...It was both awesome and crazy at the same time. Never did he think he would actually be here, in the Tops...Dueling no less! Hotsuma always said they'd get here at some point, get out of the Satellite and make a gateway for those that wanted out too to get across. Extend Yomi's mission and help those that wanted to make new lives for themselves.

But for right now, he had both Yuna and Hotsuma's permission to be selfish and enjoy this for himself. Seeing his opponent bow to him, he returned the gesture and replied, "I'll take first turn, if that's alright. Let's enjoy ourselves, yeah? DUEL!" His Duel Disk shuffled his deck, and the meter read '8000'...And now it was time to start, drawing his first five cards.

It wasn't a terrible hand....But he definitely had better; even still, he knew he could make several plays, but only one right now made sense. "I set one card face-down, and one monster face-down. Turn end." he then said, motioning for his opponent to take her turn.

"Man, is this view you guys had? What a rip-off." Takeshi joked with Hajime, seeing that his partner had set two cards - One backrow and one monster - on the displays around the arena. Takeshi figured the barrier would help the organizers or something...But this was weird, not seeing the cards to be played.
 
Hajime ​

If Yamichi had met Ling several years ago, then yes. She would definitely have been using the 'seducing with looks' tactic. However, she quickly learned it tended to be an unreliable strategy to use. As she grew up and matured, so did her mindset. Now, she used little more than her deck and confidence to win. Her head nodded as she reassured Yamichi she'd been serious about not minding who went first or second. Looking down at what she drew, she saw an immediate problem. Not a typical issue, but one nonetheless.

Eh?! All tuners?!

Usually, she lacked them. But this hand only had tuners!

W-Well ... you have time to draw a normal card and get something out.

Besides, unlike most other decks, this didn't only have Synchros; a few Fusions were also included.

Oh whew. Kinda glad he went on the defensive.

"Draw!" Still no normal monster. Actually, now that she looked in her hand, it wasn't the fact she had only tuners. What was weirder was she had a few copies of each card. Now what were the odds of that? If it weren't for the fat she knew her disk had shuffled her own deck, she would have demanded to have her device looked at. It was just a bit too eerie and even convenient. "I summon Delta Flyer. I'll then set a card and activate Dragon's Rage."

A fireball shot out, flying over the set card and slamming against Yamichi. It was only 800 life lost, but it was still first blood from Ling nonetheless.

"Yep, it sure was."

Hajime hissed and cringed, seeing Yamichi already lose life with what had to be a magic or trap card. "Damn. Well, I'm kinda glad we're getting challenges. He is, anyway. We can't keep having Yuna and Hotsuma give us everything, ya know?"

"Delta Flyer! Attack his set monster!"

Ling inwardly sighed, relieved to see it hadn't been a defensive deck like she half expected. However, her head tilted as she did see what it had been. "Oh? Scrap, huh? I've never seen a Tops resident use that kinda deck before. Good! Already, this is interesting. Your turn!"
 

Yamichi paused, seeing the tiny dragon appear on his opponent's field; well, she certainly wasn't wasting any time. If she had a Tuner, that likely meant she was going to try and Synchro Summon next turn. But with his current hand, he knew he couldn't do much...But at least he wouldn't take any Life Point damage this turn, right?

Wrong, as he soon found out; Dragon's Gunfire saw to that, and since his own monster was face-down, she wouldn't be able to apply the second possible effect. And as the fireball hit him, he covered his eyes and raised an arm up to shield himself from the light and heat, his LP dropping to 7200. Even with all the Duels he'd been in, it astounded him how real it felt despite them being holograms. Solid Vision was a masterpiece of technology, and he loved that it was invented.

"Yeah...I know, not the most popular archetype out there. But I find a way to make it work...Wasn't expecting that Spell though, nice play." Yamichi replied honestly, giving her a smile as he declared, "My turn! Draw!" And when he saw the card he drew, he knew it was game time...Next turn, at least.

"From my hand, I activate the Field Magic, Scrap Factory!" the young man said, sliding his Field card into the slot. Within moments, the pair was surrounded by the sounds of hydraulic presses, the heat of flowing molten metal and the occasional sound of the blast furnace firing to be formed into parts for his beasts. Between them was a giant kettle that would turn over to pour the boiling liquid over into premade molds before sending it down to be formed. Even with this though...He couldn't make a play just yet, but the card he just drew was something that could help him.

"I set another monster face-down...Turn end."

Takeshi stared at the displays; what was Yamichi thinking? He must be waiting for something, he thought. "Yeah, true...But I get the feeling Yamichi's trying to buy time. You know him, always wants to be thorough. Keep his options open until he can get the ball rolling." "At least I hope so; if she has cards that can pierce, he'll be in trouble..." Takeshi thought, praying that Yamichi would be able to pull through.
 
Hajime ​

Ling offered Yamichi a genuine smile. Not a smirk nor a gesture that held any ulterior motives like most people likely showed him. At least, anyone that wasn't in the Disciples or Yomi. She was being completely real and honest with hi ... something he'd likely - hopefully - appreciate and embrace. "That's really cool. A lot of people tend to just take the easy way out. I'll admit I may have with this but .... I'd like to think I didn't only copy what every other user who has similar decks did."

She knew she was nowhere near the caliber of Jack Atlas, who also had his own dragon deck. And it would be fair to assume he was her inspiration for the deck. She just chose not to be one of the many immature 'fan girls' who chased him around like a lost puppy. She had more sense than most of the other girls, both in Satellite and Tops.

A faint but still noticeable tinge of red painted her cheeks as Yamichi complimented her. "Oh ... heh. Thanks. It feels like a bit of a staple for these sorta decks but ... I'll take what I can get anyway."

He's quite the sweetie, she thought, watching as he took his turn. As the scenery changed, she looked from side to side, blinking in excitement and curiosity. "Ohhh wow. This is definitely new. Really cool. The last I heard anything about the scrap cards, there were like ... a few monsters. A field? This has to be something they just came out with. Orrrr I just heard about because I missed the announcement." The last choice was mumbled softly, hiding it as best as she could. By the time she finished examining the new field, her head turned .... and saw poor Yamichi could only set another card.

"Hmmm. Shame. Well, here I go! Draw! First, I summon Dread Dragon. Next, I activate my face down! Trap card open, Dragon's Rage! If the name doesn't hint it, all dragons I control can now inflict piercing damage. Sooo .... battle! Delta Flyer, your turn first!"

Her head tilted when the card flipped rather than disappearing.

"Ohh? Doesn't die in battle? Hmm. Very unfortunate, because the damage will go through still. Dread Dragon, you're next! Attack!"

Two times, Yamichi's life would drop courtesy of Dragon's Rage. Otherwise, he would have been perfectly safe.

"Hmmm. Okay then. I suppose that's it for me this round so turn end~"

Hajime, meanwhile, couldn't help but cringe and lightly snicker as he watched Yamichi's health drop. Given the attack and defense both had question marks, it implied he'd set something once more. "Oi, oi. Look what you did!" Hajime teased, chuckling softly, "You jinxed poor Yamichi! You owe him an apology when he comes back, ya know?"
 

"Copy or not...You should always go with whatever deck you feel works best for you. Just because someone else uses the same type doesn't mean you can't make it your own, right?" he replied to her, patting his Duel Disk where his deck currently sat. He knew there was a ten-turn restriction for surrendering, so he didn't have to worry about throwing the match by mistake. "It's why I chose this, after all."

And just as she pinked a bit when he complimented her, his cheeks tinted as well when she complimented on his Field Spell. "Eh-he...Well, I don't know all about that. I've had it since I first assembled this deck..." He honestly didn't know when they had it released, as it was a gift Hotsuma gave him after raiding a card shop in the Tops. And Yamichi was extremely glad to have it, because it was a crucial link in this deck...

Something Ling would experience first-hand when her turn ended...Though how, with him having already lost a quarter of his life, he would pull it back would remain to be seen. It seemed she played similarly to Hotsuma, always finding a way to circumvent an opponent's defense even if it wasn't destroying their monsters. Very direct...He could respect that.

"With your turn ended, Goblin's effect activates. When this card is targeted for an attack, it's destroyed during the End Phase!" he declared, the little robotic gremlin glowing brightly before detonating, leaving only bits and pieces of itself to remind them of its former presence. "And when a 'Scrap' effect destroys this monster, including its own, I can add one other 'Scrap' card from my Graveyard to my hand. I return Scrap Hunter and chain Factory's effect! When a 'Scrap' monster is destroyed, I can Special Summon one 'Scrap' monster from my deck!"

Little bots began sweeping up the pieces of Scrap Goblin, feeding them into the giant vat in the middle before molten steel would pour out into molds, the plates rapidly slamming together as water would then quickly quench. "Form from the remains, Scrap Beast!" And when the plates separated, she would see that another jury-rigged monster appeared before her, stronger than the Goblin.

"My turn! Draw! I release Scrap Beast to Advance Summon Scrap Golem!" And the poor beast he controlled looked up, seeing a giant press come crashing down on top of it, shattering its body before being reassembled into a giant box-like machine. But at 2300 ATK, it wasn't something to take lightly. "Next, I activate Golem's effect and Summon the Scrap Beast I just released back to my field!"

And now, staring down her dragons were two decently leveled monsters, both able to overpower her cards. "I should also mention, Scrap Factory boosts the ATK and DEF of all 'Scrap' monsters by 200" Yamichi explained, Scrap Golem's ATK rising to 2500 and Beast's rising to 1800. Now he could go on the offensive.

"Golem, destroy Delta Flyer! Beast, tear Dread Dragon apart!" the tech declared, the latter pouncing on Dread Dragon and giving its frail neck a death bite while the former rammed the flighty dragon with his heavy body. He would just give Ling a smile and continue, "Now it gets fun! I tune my Level Four Scrap Beast to my Level Five Scrap Golem! Synchro Summon! Level Nine! Scrap Twin Dragon!"

And as the white dots of light and green rings would fade, she would soon be staring at a level nine rusted hulk with a whopping 3200 ATK stat from the Field Spell's effect. "And with that, my turn is over" he then said, motioning to let her take her turn.

Takeshi whooped as he saw his comrade and friend deal some heavy damage of his own, returning the blue-haired male's teasing with some of his own "I'll take a jinx like that anyway, Hajime. He's doing just fine! He just cleared her field, man! And he's got a 3200 ATK Synchro beater on the field." Seeing now that Yamichi had leveled the playing field, as it were, he was growing confident the lithe genius was going to win this. "Besides, if he wins this, that means all the pressure's on you to step up" he poked Hajime teasingly, knowing the guy could duel with the best of them but still feeling like giving him a little gruff for not having dueled yet.
 
Hajime ​

"Well .... " The red painting Ling's face strengthened just a bit more as she nodded. "Yeah. That is one way to think about it, I suppose."

He really is a sweet guy. Too bad I likely won't see him again after this tournament.

She had noticed, before entering the barrier, that he hadn't been alone, either. And while she doubted he was more than friends with either of them, the simple fact was Ling didn't know exactly who they were. Hell, even Yamichi by himself was a new face. So .... was he even from the Tops? If he was, then he'd been quite the recluse. But honestly, she wasn't relying on that being the case. Even if it may sound a bit biased or stereotypical, once his cards revealed to be from the scrap archetype, she had figured he was from the Satellite.

On the contrary, however, she didn't care. In fact, it was nice to see there were more than just the usual group of street punks who were too selfish to care about others.

"Eh. It's fine. I probably didn't pay heed to much else aside from my own deck."

Ironically enough, it would be that exact statement which would steadily begin guiding her downhill in this duel. That plus bad draws. But of all the things Ling could have controlled, the first fell under one and that, thus, was all on her.

"Ugh!"

The lowest of pained winces passed her lips as each hit connected, both depleting her life and destroying her monsters. Despite the turning of the duel, though, Ling's smile remained. "Hmmm. That's Scrap Twin Dragon's gonna be a problem. Draw!"

She wasn't sure whether to face palm, sigh, or laugh. In her hand was exactly what she'd needed from the get-go; a non-Tuner. Bright Star Dragon, to be precise. And with that she could have gotten even Trident Dragon out no problem.

But now ... with both her monsters gone, it didn't take a genius to know that was borderline impossible. She didn't have Double Summon, or anything that could allow for more than one dragon to land on her field in the same turn.

Well, shit ....

Yamichi would see her smile widen, albeit seeming to now hold the most subtle signs of regret and sorrow. Assuming he paid enough attention, that was. "It's my turn to set a monster." Another Dread Dragon, in fact. "And I'll end."

Hajime groaned as Takeshi teased him back. "Oi, oi. I don't need to be reminded of the pressure. Trust me, I've been feeling it since we stepped foot here. I've ... just been trying to hide it well enough. You really do not need to remind me that losing if he wins would make me look horrible." Wanting to get the spot light off of him, Hajime's head tilted as he changed the subject. "So .... think she's trying to stall? Or do you think the end's coming up?"
 

Takeshi laughed, "Ah, don't sweat, man; if I can win, you'll have no issues. You're a way better Duelist than me." And it was true; the times they had practiced with each other more often than not gave Hajime the win. "I will say though...I wonder who you'll be facing. My opponent was weird but cool about the outcome, and Yamichi will have to tell us how his opponent reacted to everything. And as for him...I don't know about you, but I think this match is pretty much over."

Speaking of which, Yamichi seemed content with how things were going. It definitely felt good to come back after she inflicted some decent damage on him, and he didn't miss her facial cues. She seemed to have drawn a card that could have helped her earlier; he knew that pain all too well. But, she did fight admirably. And used her cards excellently; if he would say anything, it was that she made this experience very enjoyable.

It was nice to see that not all people from the Tops were snobby dicks. He knew Hotsuma disliked them more than he let on, despite his saying that Sector was the root of all the problems; the young man could tell that his boss had a sizable chip on his shoulder when it came to the residents of New Domino.

Regardless, as her turn came to an end, he just nodded and replied, "My turn! I draw!" And with this card, he had a pretty good feeling this was going to be game. "I summon Scrap Chimera and activate its effect. When this card is Summoned, I can target one 'Scrap' Tuner monster in my graveyard and Special Summon it. I'll choose Scrap Beast...Rise up!" And moments later, the cobbled-looking canine mech reappeared, snarling at Ling's defense. "He won't stay for long though, because now I activate Scrap Twin Dragon's ability!"

Pausing for a moment, he clarified, "By targeting two cards you control and a 'Scrap' monster on my side of the field, I can return the former to your hand and destroy mine. Activate! Iron Recall!" Scrap Twin Dragon then howled loudly, Scrap Beast shattering as Ling's cards would be bounced from the field. "And just like last turn, I chain Scrap Beast's effect with Factory! I add Scrap Goblin back to my hand and Special Summon another Scrap Beast from my Deck!"

And just like that...He had three powerful monsters out, while her field was wide open. "Battle! I attack with all three of my monsters!" he then said to his opponent, moments before each attack would land and drain her LP to zero. Letting out a small sigh of relief, he gave his opponent a genuine smile and stated, "I won't lie...I was kind of worried what you had in store. You really had me on the ropes at first...But seriously, I had a lot of fun. Thanks for making this Duel so enjoyable..." he started to say, approaching her with a hand extended, adding at the end "I mean it."
 
Hajime ​

Hajime wove his hand through the air. "I don't know about better. But thanks for the confidence. For real, I'm .... jeez. I'm fucking nervous, even though you're probably right and I don't need to be." He wasn't sweating or reacting in any major ways. But his breathing did seem to quicken a bit. A few times, words got caught in his throat. His head shook as he scoffed at himself.

Get a grip. No way in hell these guys can be worse than Yuna. Now that would be terrifying; to go against a deck like hers or Hotsuma's. You got this.

Ling had similar emotions. This was by no means her first loss. It was, however, her best one. One where the opponent wasn't a sore-ass loser or sexist prick. And in that regard, it made losing to Yamichi that much more ... right. Fair even. Hell, the fact he came to her with a very interesting deck choice made it all the more rewarding, and he used it in by far the most unique manner she'd seen with the Scrap archetype.

"My, my. So strong. I ... wow. I'm legitimately speechless. But not in the worst of ways; don't worry about that."

Before her entire deck was reshuffled, she flipped over her Bright Star Dragon, allowing him to see it. "Now that would have made this a bit more interesting if I'd gotten it in the beginning. Alas, bad draws. Forever a curse of this game." Gracefully sliding it back into place, she walked forward, closing what gap lingered between the two. "Mhmm, indeed. This was a great duel. And that's why ... I wanna give you something before we part ways Consider it a good luck charm."

It wasn't the only reason she was going through with the next move. That was a cliche, lame excuse; but it was one she'd use.

Ling would accept his hand and intertwine it with her own to accept the shake. At the same time, she pulled him even closer ... and pressed her lips softly against Yamichi's. Ling stayed put, letting the kiss go on for a good thirty seconds before slowly pulling away.

"Later, Yamichi-san~"

Smirking slyly, she waved goodbye one last time, finally exiting the barrier.

"Way to go!" Hajime would greet, tilting his head as he got loser. "... The fuck is that?" Leaning closer, the faintest outlines of red could be seen along his lips. "... Is ... that lipstick. Dude? Did that babe kiss you?" As if Hajime wasn't jealous enough already. There were tons of bars, most of which tried to act like brothels or shit like that. As easy as it could have been for Hajime to go there for a fling ... nah. It wasn't his style. He'd been like Hotsuma in that regard; the few times he had been with women were when he helped them out somehow. And since they'd been willing, he didn't really feel guilty. In fact, he often triple checked if they really wanted to do such a thing.

But this ... that had to be far more rewarding than anything he'd had.

Assuming his eyes wren't yet deceiving him, that was.
 

Yamichi just smiled as she returned the handshake; thought her next statement made a look of puzzlement cross his face. And he all but froze when she came in far closer than he was expecting. If there was any color bright than crimson, it would be his face as she kissed him. His eyes were larger than sand dollars at this point, his breath hitched in his chest as the brief but warm liplock continued for what felt like an eternity.

And he still hardly moved when she broke it off, only able to give a weak wave as she walked off and a meek-sounding 'B-bye'. He just thanked the heavens the barrier hadn't come down yet, which meant that no one outside would be able to see his face. He didn't even notice the residue on his lips, trying to calm the racing of his heart to not look so flushed.

"Hey, Yamichi! That's how you kick ass!" Takeshi hollered; though he too joined the blue-haired male when he pointed out that someone got a little something extra. "No way...Yamichi, my man! I didn't know you were a lady-killer! Did you get her number too?" Takeshi asked half-jokingly, Yamichi's full facial blush returning as he tried to wipe the lipstick off with his jacket sleeve. "Oiii, it wasn't like that; I wasn't even expecting her to do that!" he whined, squirming as Takeshi grabbed him in a half-arm hug. "Awww, what are you so shy for? She clearly thought you deserved it, so take some pride in it man! She was cute!" Takeshi teased, poor Yamichi looking redder and redder.

"You did enjoy it though, right?" Takeshi asked, Yamichi looking away shyly, "Wel..Well, it wasn't bad...I just never had a girl kiss me before." Takeshi just chuckled, "Well, keep doing what you do and that could change, my friend."

With that though, Hajime's number would be called, Takeshi patting him on the back, "Go get 'em, tiger. You got this." Yamichi gave a firm nod, "Best of luck, Hajime. Fight your best!"

The blue-haired male would find his opponent wearing quite the smug little grin, his eyes seeming to appraise his opponent, his next statement full of disdain. "Hmph...They send a twink to face me as my first opponent. Ah well, I suppose it's better to get the easier ones out of the way first. I hope you're satisfied, because you're looking at the next Duelist that will not just win the Fortune Cup, but go forth into Satellite and bring the Fiend to his knees! Consider it an honor to have your ass kicked by yours truly."

"DUEL BARRIER, ENGAGE!"

And with that, the pair was enclosed within its walls. "I do believe I'll take first turn if that's alright; I'd rather prefer to fight my next opponent quickly." Looking down at his starting hand, he saw that he would have a nice starting play. "Perfect...I activate the Field Magic, Pandemonium and Normal Summon Inferno Queen Demon in Attack Mode. I then set one card face-down and end my turn." the brunette male stated, adding "It's a shame, isn't it? Ten turns before you can surrender...Well, I'll just make your defeat so agonizingly slow you'll probably want to run out two turns in."
 
Hajime ​

Hajime sighed, grinning as he ruffled some of Yamichi's blonde hair. "Lucky son of a bitch," he muttered, his head continuing to move from side to side. "Hopefully some of the other gals will be moving on. You can't be the only one to go against them."

... Well, he could if the randomizer gods so wished it. But that was why he was hoping it wouldn't come down to that. Speaking of random shit, it was soon his moment. Hajime closed his eyes, taking a few moments to gather his wits. Granted, he'd known even before Yamichi's duel ended he'd be up next. But now, reality was hitting him, and it was doing so much harder than he'd imagined. Clasping his hands, he finished a quick internal prayer and looked back to his comrades, bowing his head.

"Thanks. Well ... on the off-chance I don't join you, one of you avenge me, will ya?"

Of course, he was hoping it wouldn't even come down to that. Pressure had been tense enough just from entering and partaking in this tournament. Now, it was at its peak. Whether he was keeping a decent enough strong front or not ... he had no idea. But damned if poor Hajime wasn't trying his best. The fact he was going against a male ... he could have done with, despite his teasing and joking to Yamichi. What almost immediately irked him, however, was that look.

... Just like Takeshi, eh? Wonder if these two know one another.

His head shook as he opted to try to ignore his assumptions. Besides, it wasn't fair to judge from a mere look. His mouth opened to greet his opponent; yet before Hajime could do even that, the guy spoke. "Excuse me? A twink?"

... Okay. So apparently, his sixth sense had been right. Now he audibly groaned, snickering lightly. "Hmph. I suppose I kinda am, yes. But I'm a competent twink, if you really wanna view me as that."

Apparently, that was the tamest part of his taunt.

" I hope you're satisfied, because you're looking at the next Duelist that will not just win the Fortune Cup, but go forth into Satellite and bring the Fiend to his knees!"

.... He did not just say that.

Hajime quickly rose a hand ... pressed it tighter against his mouth. And finally caved in, as he busted out laughing.

"HAHAHAHA, yeah fucking right! I'm sorry but ummm ... nooooo. Nu-uh. You have literally no chance of taking the Fiend down. My group is allied with him, dude. I work alongside him on a daily basis. You ... ahhh, what a joke. You are way out of your league. You have more of a chance to beat me than him. Trust me on that."

... So he chose to forgo duel etiquette? Okay. Hajime could do that too.

"Hmph. Draw!" His own smile widened; maybe he could be convinced to become a slightly more religious man yet. Either way, his prayer had obviously been heard. This was one of the best hands he could have gotten. "I activate my own field card. Saber Vault!" On his half, it looked something like a littered battlefield. Swords and armor adorned the ground. He even curiously reached over, lightly brushing his fingertips across the pommel. Yep. Real. Truly brought to life by this technology.

No wonder Yamichi's into this stuff ... I need to get some 101 lessons from him. And picking up chicks.

".... Archfiends, eh? I hate to say it, but if you're trying to scare me, you royally failed. Any first hand the Fiend could have produced is much worse than that. Since you're against me, though, I can say I'll wipe that smirk off your face. I summon X-Saber Anu Piranha. Thanks to Saber Vault, her attack jumps up and she's stronger than your Inferno Queen Demon. But I'm not done! I equip her with the Sword of Sparkles. Go on, laugh. I care not, because the effect will not make you chuckle. You'll see what I mean."

... So far, so good. This guy hadn't kept him from activating anything, which made him feel better about the set card.

But the sword would take care of it once and for all; that he intended to make sure of.

"Anu Piranha! Go forth and vanish that unholy card!" When the attack succeeded, a low 'Hmph' reounded from Hajime's lips. "Here we go ... Sword of Sparkle's effect activates! Since Anu destroyed a monster in battle, I get to destroy one of your cards. I'll choose your set."

And just like the sore loser this guy was, he activated it at the exact same time.

... Maybe it was just Hajime's logic, or even the fact this guy was already irritating him. But he didn't think it was worth making the move, even less so since it used a bit of life points on his behalf. "Very well. Turn end. If you're gonna talk shit about me, then come back it up. Put up or shut up time, boy."
 

Needless to say, his opponent was less than pleased at the blue-haired male's reaction, a brow twitching in annoyance as the man laughed at him. Oh, how it infuriated him; everyone else thought the same too. He was too weak, he wasn't good enough...Well, he showed plenty of people with this deck. Made them regret laughing at him.

If the Fiend wanted to use Demon cards, he would show him how a real deck was built. His Chess Demons would outplay and outwit the Fiend; that was the mistake everyone made. They needed to use cards like, ones that protected against destruction. Going against him in a fight was indeed a bad idea; but if they used effect decks, then they would stand a much better chance.

And his displeasure showed all the more when Hajime activated his own Field Magic. Soon, the demonic ring of bones was interlaced with protruding swords, his opponent superseded by a large ornamental blade that stood directly behind him. "Anu Piranha? Figures...A girly monster for a girly man. Even with your Vault boosting its ATK, how can you be so certain it will even go through?" the young man challenged. Only to indeed laugh as he played that ridiculous card. "Sword of Sparkles..." he mused, a wide grin splitting his face before busting out in rambunctious laughter. "You call yourself a duelist playing cards like that?"

Only to find Hajime wasn't nearly as gullible as most of his opponents had been, his life dropping by 300...And before his Equip Card's effect could destroy it, he would declare "I chain Dice Re-roll...Thanks for giving my monsters a chance to reactivate their effects!" Of course, that wasn't entirely the truth; the Trap's effect would only work this turn, but he had surprisingly fooled a number of people with that taunt.

"My turn! Draw!" he said; if one paid close enough attention, they would see that his hand wasn't exactly stellar. In fact, looking at it, Hajime's opponent was quite nervous...But quickly attempted to hide it by showing that same smug smirk. "You may have destroyed Queen, but I have a whole deck of Demons waiting to tear your Piranha to pieces. I set a monster face-down, as well as another reverse card. Your go, madame." he would then say, staring down the Satellite boy.

Meanwhile, Yamichi was watching with the Duel progress with Takeshi, seeing that his opponent already lost all the cards on his field and 300 LP on top of it. "What do you think he's doing, Tak? Stalling or trying to set something up?" Yamichi asked, wondering how the Duel was progressing. Takeshi just chuckled, "I don't know...One thing I don't like about this barrier; you can't see what moves are being made. Kind of unfair really, just because some stupid-named nobody had to hack to win....Hey, don't change the subject! You still didn't explain why you didn't get that girl's number! You could have at least given it to me!" Yamichi flushed again and whined, "Let it gooooo; she was just trying to be nice!"
 
Hajime ​


Uggggh. Get more creative, you fucking brat.

Hajme sighed, crossing his arms over his chest. Being teased and called rather feminine himself wasn't new. In fact, it was probably older than the they were playing. Which made this fucker's words more of a nuisance than anything else.

"Anu Piranha? Figures...A girly monster for a girly man."

"... Hmph. At least she's more competent than you are, thus far. If you're gonna keep hurling insults or shit, then make them count. Right now, you're missing baaaaadly. Are you blind as well as stupid? I wouldn't be surprised with how off your aim is." His eyes rolled as he muttered, "Seriously, you think you're the first to try to get to me like this, hmmmm? Nope. Nowhere near."

... Dice Re-Roll? Does that even work in his sorta deck?

... If it did, it had to be in a very different way than what Hotsuma had. Because going off that, the answer was no. However, he was also using Pandemonium. Typically without the field, life points would normally have to be sacrificed. Still, something more ... of a buff would have seemed smarter in Hajime's mind.

".... I'm not gonna repeat myself after this. I said it when I ended my turn, and I'll say it again. Put up or shut up. I don't believe you got shit, and the fact Anu is still on the field is more than proof enough of that. Also ... if you're gonna keep calling me a woman, the fuck with that shit. I may be the second-in-command for a woman, but I'm not one myself. Since words will obviously do nothing for that pathetically thick skull of yours, I got something that damn well better."

Normally, Hajme would never be this bold. Thankfully, the barrier provided gave him much more courage than he'd otherwise have in a typical duel. He didn't draw for his next turn yet. Instead, he reached down and carefully peeled his tank top off, being more cautious about not ripping it against his duel disk. Despite being a bit lanky, he was more toned than anyone woul have immediately expected. A few scars here and there adorned both back and chest from all the fights he'd accompanied the Fiend and Yuna on.

Keeping his top draped over his shoulder, he then pointed to himself.

"Now then .... where are the breasts, hmm? Nonexistent. Fucking retard. So shut up about my gender looking wrong. One last time; if you're gonna keep going, then make them count. Otherwise, shut the fuck up. Draw!"

Taking a deep breath, Hajime looked down at his hand after calming himself. "Hmph. Much ado about nothing; that's how your last turn went. Shame, because I'm gonna take full advantage of that. I'll set my own card then summon XX-Saber Emmersade. Emmersade will attack the set card!"

.... Fuck. The Sword's effect won't activate. Ah well.

Hajime inwardly shrugged it off, deciding it'd be worth the exchange. After all, eve if that was the case, he now had the ability to deal much more damage to this bastard directly. And he could do so with a purpose, too. "Anu, feel free to incur your anger upon him! Directly attack him; Vengeful X-Blade Slash!" A very satisfied smirk couldn't help but spread over Hajime's face. He wasn't normally sadistic. Nowhere near, in fact. On the contrary, he was usually tame and meek as all hell. But when someone like this fucker all but begged for it, sure. He could gladly deliver well-earned pain.

"Your turn. You may have more, but between you and me, seeing your Queen easily get cut in half is a very bad omen for you. It's true for things like chess and shogi, after all. Once the Queen dies, you will soon enough. Maybe not die literally, but you - hopefully - get the point, hmmmm?"
 

"The fact that you're commenting on it shows it does upset you a bit though. You should try lifting weights some time; maybe then you wouldn't look like such a twig and have people thinking you're a chick." his opponent replied, seemingly satisfied at the man's response.

"With how you Duel, I think your claim that you're allied with the Fiend is a load of shit. And even if it were true, you sure you're wise in telling me that? Not that there's any way some would-be tranny is working with one of the baddest motherfuckers in Satellite. So as a last testament to the fact you actually managed to damage me, I'll even go so far as to tell you my name. Mihara Renzo...Just remember it in the papers when the Director puts a medal on my chest." he continued to boast, raising an eyebrow as Hajime removed his shirt.

"Last I checked, surgery was an option...You women do some crazy things, after all...." he started to say, only to have his monster destroyed. "Thank you..With Heiress destroyed, I can add a Demon card to my hand. I choose Demon General of course." he said, showing his opponent the level 4 with 2100 ATK before adding it to his hand. Of course...By this point he was just playing cool; inside he was about to lose his mind!

How was this guy maintaining such a strong card presence? He built this deck to specifically counter the Fiend's! And he let out a rather pitiful sounding shriek as Anu's blades cut an 'X' pattern across his in flashes of light, knocking the man on his ass. Standing up as his LP dropped even lower, he just wiped the corner of his mouth and let out a 'tch' as the blue-haired male ran his mouth some more. "You're just lucky my Demons want to keep playing...Once I snuff you out of this competition, then you'll all see that I'm the one who will bring the Fiend down!" Mihara replied to Hajime's taunting, now starting to get visibly flustered himself.

"Feh, you know nothing about chess, girl-boy. It's the King you have to worry about...And once he shows up, you'll regret talking down to me like you did. Draw!"

And...He had absolutely nothing. Mihara knew there was some weaknesses in this build...And he cursed his luck at running into someone that didn't try to load their deck with destruction-effect monsters. "I set another monster face-down, as well as another card in reverse position. Turn...end." Mihara spoke with a definite hint of anger in his tone.

Yamichi and Takeshi meanwhile, were still debating an old topic...Well, not debating more like the former still being teased at his shyness. "Hey, come on, you can tell me! Were her lips soft? Come on, dude, you shouldn't hold out on a brother-in-arms! Give me all the details, man!" Takeshi was relentless, Yamichi groaning...However, when it read that Hajime had his opponent down by over half his LP, he immediately broke the conversation and remarked, "Oi...What the hell's Hajime's opponent doing? Is he just giving him the win?"

Takeshi looked over and saw what the young tech was talking about, grinning "Naw...His opponent is probably just getting whooped right now. Look, Haj has two monsters on the field. This guy has one set." Yamichi just looked closer, "You know...This is kind of how your match went. I just hope his opponent's not an asshole." Takeshi just waved a hand, "Ah, don't sweat it...Hajime's the 'put up or shut up' type. He won't stoop to any kind of tactics he could use; he'll just kick his ass, plain and simple. You know that, dude."

Yamichi nodded, "Yeah...But this is supposed to be fun, you know? And it's no fun if the opponent decides to be a complete toolbag the whole time."
 
Hajime ​

Hajime scoffed, waving a hand through the air. "Look, rich bitch, you probably have the time and ability to splurge on shit like cosmetic surgery and shit. Me? Nope. I don't have that luxury. And if I ever had enough, I'd spend it on much better and way more practical things than a sex change." His eyes rolled again as he snickered, pointing behind the opponent. "Ummm .... hate to break your delusions of grandeur and all, but even i you didn't tell me your name, it's literally right behind you. You know mine and I know yours. But with how much of a brat you're being, you don't deserve the right to be called by your real names. You act like a child, I'll treat you like one. Plain and simple."

And now ... Hajime was officially done. Fed up.

His hands raised to help emphasize the point as he simply waited for Mihara to hurry up and end his turn. Tons of quips went through his head, including the fact that - in all honesty - it could be easily debated the king was by far weaker than even the pawns in chess. Possibly the weakest piece .. definitely in the lower ranks for sure.

You're the one who doesn't seem to know shit ... he bitterly thought, azure eyes scanning the field. Waiting to see if he'd end up doing something productive or not.

"With how little you're doing to me in any form or fashion, I have no shame nor fear in telling you I truly am an ally of the Fiend. On the contrary, I'm very proud of it. You're all talk with no way to back it up. This duel has proved that much thus far ... as have your past several turns. Only one monster in attack mode? Heh. Demons - true demons - don't play or fuck around. No, they lunge at their opponents and rip throats out. Yours are all but imps. Draw!"

For a bit, Hajime panicked. He had drawn a great card; that wasn't the problem. Rather, he only saw an option that would include using Anu, and thus destroy the Sword of Sparkles in the process. So far, that had really been helping him out, along with other factors. However, a much closer look helped him find something else he could do. "Here we go! I summon XX-Saber Fulhelmknight. I don't intend to have him remain for long though. Fulhelmknight will be used to tune! Fulhelmknight! Emmersade, go forward!"

The orbs appeared as the two monsters jumped forward. Light engulfed the two XX-Sabers as they started to fade and take up a new form.

"Mistress of the Wudang arts, your blade and skills are needed. Cut down all who try to oppose and taunt you, and show your worth in this fray! Synchro Summon! XX-Saber Hyunlei! And now, her effect activates!" He nodded to the two set cards Mihara had. "Those plus one of my own sets will be destroyed."

Thankfully, he had something to make up for having to get rid of one of his own card. When all three set spells or traps were destroyed, an inward sigh of relief echoed in Hajime's head.

... Yep. All bark, no bite. Couldn't even stop Hyunlei. Heh.

"I'll set a new card to replace the one I had to sacrifice. Anu will attack first, with Hyunlei hitting you directly. Turn end."

Already feeling much more confident than he had even before stepping foot into the arena, Hajime could tell the end was very close. Between that and finally feeling just a bit chilly - plus wanting to keep his bold act of removing his shirt as discreet as possible - he pulled his tank top back on. There probably wasn't a rule against it or anything.

Buuuuut ... just in case. Always better safe than sorry, after all.
 

"Only a dreg from Satellite would be so offended by wealth; I won't lie that I do possess a small fortune. Probably more than you'll see in a thousand lifetimes...But that doesn't change the fact that you're going to ultimately lose." Mihara quipped, still trying to put on a brave face. With his card set, he could at least eat one attack. "Don't confuse my Demons with those of the Fiend's; there's an art to breaking your opponent. Something your alleged leader will find out once I break him." he replied as he clenched a fist in assurance.

But as he summoned a Tuner and Synchro Summoned, he felt a cold bead of sweat run down his spine; was this guy really aligned with the Fiend? He was picking his field apart like no one else he'd faced. "Even with their destruction I activate the Trap Card, Demon's Roar! By paying 500 Life, I can Special Summmon a 'Demon' monster from my Graveyard. You'll find that Pandemonium is hard to get rid of...Come Back, Trick Demon!"

And just like that, the tiny daughter of the Emperor of Demons reappeared, her lithe form blue as she was huddled with her arms crossed in front of her. And when Anu destroyed her, Mihara grinned, "With Trick's destruction, I can add one 'Demon' card from my Deck to my hand. I add of course, Demon General!" before showing his opponent the card and adding it to his hand.

However, he nearly screamed as Hyunlei's weapons carved his LP down even further, Mihara clutching his chest; this was looking really bad! How could he come back from this? "No, shut up! You can beat this loser! You're the one that can beat the Fiend! You have to win this!" he mentally said, verbally declaring, "My turn! Draw! I discard Demon General to add Pandemonium to my hand! And of course, I'll activate it! So much for your Hyunlei destroying it!"

And once more those bones interweaved with the armor and swords that lined the floor and walls...The same battlefield as where their Duel started, is where it would ultimately end. He had one last possible play he could make...But it involved his opponent making a very rookie mistake with having such a large lead. "I set one monster...Turn end" he breathed, teeth grit as he hoped and prayed.

"Man...Hajime's getting a raw deal. He had to wait this long to get this kind of opponent?" Takeshi muttered, Yamichi just smiling "Well, maybe he's like a worse version of Ling. She was really nice, but just got a bad set of draws." Takeshi just grinned at this, "Ah, so you DID remember her name! I knew she made an impression on you!" Yamichi immediately flushed at this, whining in a very muted tone as he pulled the hood of his jacket over his face, "Damn it...."
 
Hajime ​

".... Seriously, just shut the fuck up already. Goddamn, dude. You got a shit ton more things to worry about, and none of them are linked to me. They're all things revolving around you, dumbass! If you're for real on wanting to beat the Fiend, fucking prove it! But as it is? You'd have to go though sooooo many people who support him. Whether you believe me or not, I am one of them. And I am not letting some stuck-up prick that the Fiend has no time to waste on beating me, only to pester him! YOU FUCKING UNDERSTAND ME?!"

It wasn't just his talk that was finally making Hajime snap. Hell, he would have put up with hearing how feminine he looked.

But knowing exactly where Hotsuma and Yuna where while this bastard continued to boast and brag on wanting to defeat them in a duel?

Yeah. It was pushing more buttons. And none of them were even somewhat good ones.

"You better run. Because when this duel ends, I will legitimately come over and beat your ass. DRAW!" Hajime was beginning to tremble. A very rare but powerful fury had all but consumed him. If his opponent had thought any of the words had been bluffs, he'd realize - if he paid enough heed - Hajime was dead serious. Even about the possibility of beating him up. "Final turn, you son of a bitch. Just remember; you asked for all of this. You continue to insult the Fiend. By doing so, you insult me. I will not accept this. I set a card and summon X-Saber Axel. Do you have short-term memory, brat? Unless that's a Mirror Force, you shouldn't set things. Otherwise ... this is gonna happen again. Anu! Attack his set!"

Hajime scoffed arrogantly, seeing the attack go through.

"Alright then. Your set card gets destroyed. Duel over. Hyunlei, direct attack!"

Hajime didn't even wait for his monster to finish with her own attack. Slowly, the blue-haired Yomi member sauntered towards Mihara. Regardless of whether he kept his balance or not, Hajime would reach down and grip the lapel of his shirt. No warnings would be given. The first of many slow, agonizing punches to his face would land with a firm, clenched right fist.

He was about to go through with the fifth one .... but almost swore he heard Yuna's voice.

"That's enough, Hajime! No more!"

"... Hmph. I'm stopping simply because the barrier's about to fade. Just remember though; don't talk about something as serious as beating someone like the Fiend. Especially when you couldn't even put a goddamn dent in my life points. You thought this was Hell? You'll see how it really looks if you dare try to come and find him. I hope that got through your thick skull because I'm not repeating that warning."

Shoving Mihara none-so-gently to the ground, he turned and walked back to the Disciples. The anger still lingering in his face hinted he definitely did not have a good duel, nor an opponent anywhere close to Ling. "Have I told you yet how jealous I am of you, Yamichi? You easily got the best opponent among all of us. Good riddance." An irked huff passed his lips as he leaned back and began taking a few deep breaths, trying to calm himself.
 

Mihara snorted, "Jeez, what is the Fiend, your boyfriend or something? Nah, even he wouldn't go after someone like you if he swang that way." Giving a laugh, he then continued, "But I'll say it again. I will make him beg. He's terrorized Satellite for too long, and if Sector can't stop him it will just have to be me."

However...He would find that his dreams would stay only that: Dreams...As Hajime's monsters would clear his field and finish off the rest of his Life Points, Mihara found himself knocked on his ass from Hyunlei's direct strike, a hand gripping at his chest before being wrenched to his feet. And seeing a very angry opponent with a fist cocked back, only to drive forward and strike him square in the cheek.

And though it was less than a half-dozen punches, it felt like an hour...Only to be thrown down as he heard his opponent talk about facing true Hell if he tried to go after the Fiend. This guy was crazy, and the audience would boo as if to take the young man Hajime had faced was a sore loser who couldn't even show respect.

Takeshi and Yamichi could easily see he was distraught; how the Duel gone that sourly. "Shit...Hajime, I'm sorry man. Was that guy really that much of an ass? Where is he? I'll fucking cream him." Takeshi tried to help, but Yamichi just shook his head, "He's already gone...After Hajime won, he ran right out of the stadium and hopped on his Runner. Guess he didn't like how the Duel turned out." Takeshi quirked a brow, "How do you kno...." but trailed off after he saw the tech looking at his pad, putting together that Yamichi was still tapped into the cameras and saw what happened after the Duel.

Giving the blue-haired male a smile, he then added as well, "But...Think of it this way. We're all here in the next round, right? That's pretty badass!" Takeshi gave Hajime a small nudge, "See? And you were all worried about the pressure. Even if that guy was a dick, you annihilated him, man! That's gotta count for something, right?"

However...The announcer came out again, ready to announce the next brackets. And what the trio would see would make them all go wide-eyed in surprise.

11 vs. 3
7 vs. 12
6 vs. 9
2 vs. 5

Yamichi looked down at his number, seeing that this was no mistake: He and Hajime were slated to go against each other. Putting a hand to his mouth in a mock fashion, Takeshi teased, "Oooooo, shiiiit...I hate this barrier's up! I want to see this Duel happen in person!" Yamichi just rubbed a hand behind his head, smiling meekly as he put his datapad away again, "Well...Suppose it was bound to happen at some point, right? But...Whatever comes of it, I will give you a better match than your last opponent, Hajime."

Takeshi just gave Yamichi's arm a playful punch, "You'd do that even if we weren't here, goof. Besides, I'm eager to see my opponent...If she's a cutie like Ling was, I'll be a very happy Disciple, haha." Yamichi just laughed and teased right back at Takeshi, "Don't get too confident yet, you saw who you were facing right?" Takeshi seemed to pause, but looked at the board again before giving his friend a very bland look after realizing the joke, "Oh, haha, very funny. I was trying to forget that, you know." Yamichi only laughing in response.

As they talked though, they would keep tabs on the first match...A fairly even bout, with 3 coming out on top by a number of LP in the hundreds. A very close Duel, and both of them seeming amicable in their conclusion. "Alright, guys! Your turn! Go up there and make it a match to remember!"
 
Hajime ​

"Yeah. Yeah, he really was. He wants to try to beat Hotsuma. Joke's on him though; even he went off to try to find him now, he's not gonna really get anywhere in that endeavor. Not unless he wants to admit himself into the Facility, anyway."

His voice had lowered, just in case anyone around them tried to eavesdrop. It was a delicate enough situation as it was. No sense in letting unwanted ears catching wind about knowledge like that. "I didn't tell him any of that, obviously. Just that he would have had no chance. Now confirmed by the fact he couldn't beat me. Yeah. It was definitely good to beat his ass, just ... frustrating to hear him go on and on like some fucking holy paladin on a mission. Especially because he wasn't even a goddamn saint himself. Prick."

Letting out an irritated sigh, Hajime crossed his arms over his chest, leaning back against a nearby pillar behind him.

The last several fights went by rather quickly ... particularly the one involving contestant number five. It looked like it may have been a massacre, in fact. Hajime grimaced, mentally noting there was likely a powerhouse of sorts among them. With the end of the last two sets of fights, round one officially came to a close. When the assigned numbers for round two showed up, all Hajime could do was chuckle and shake his head. "Oi, oi, Kami; we asked for a few things. Being put against each other this soon wasn't quite one of them. Shit. Well ..... "

Moving a few strands of his hair behind his ear, he nodded. "Agreed. I don't have to worry about facing another jerk, at least. Plus, there are others we can try to enter. Well, I for sure, and that's going off the assumption I lose. You're not weak, so ... this is gonna be much more of a fight than what Mr. Self-Righteous-Wanna Be tried to give me."

His head lifted, seeing the third contestant won their second fight in addition to the first.

Tucking all of the observations away, Hajime elicited a deep breath. "Well ... here we go then."

It had actually been twenty or so minutes since Hajime had last been in the barrier. But it felt a lot shorter, as if it'd been a few instead. "I guess since I'm so much of a lady - something else he kept going on about - I'll go first. Draw!"

... Maybe Mihara was onto something regarding his female cards having a connection with him. At least that much may be true, according to his starting hand, which made even Hajime smile a bit. "I set two cards face down and summon X-Saber Anu Piranha. Your turn."
 

"Haha, Mr. Self-Righteous-Wanna-Be....Good one, Haj." Takeshi chuckled, watching as the two made their way up to the stage, enclosed by the Duel Barrier moments afterward. "Man...I wonder how this is going to turn. Yamichi and Hajime both have kick-ass decks. Their skill is without question, but it's how their draws turn out that will make or break them." Smiling inside and out, Takeshi then cupped his hands as if they were a megaphone, "Fight your hearts out, you guys!"

"Duel!" Yamichi declared, his disk activating as their LP meters would read 8000. "Man vs. Machine...Kind of ironic how this turned out." Yamichi mused, referring to their decks. He knew Hajime's deck was full of powerful effect monsters and versatile backrow cards, but he wasn't all too familiar with the playstyle of the X-Saber archetype.

However, when Hajime finished his turn, summoning the ever-familiar Anu Piranha on his first turn, Yamichi drew and said, "Oi, Hajime. I get it. But I want you to listen to me. He can call you a girl all he likes, but you showed him who was the real bitch in that Duel. His reactions speak volumes about him. So forget that little pussy, alright?" Because now it's you and me...So let's enjoy this to the most we can!" Rarely did Yamichi ever use foul language like that, so it might have been a bit of a surprise to hear the young tech speak so negatively about someone.

"I'll set one card face-down, then activate the Magic Card: Foolish Burial! With it, I can send Scrap Beast to the Graveyard. Next, I summon Scrap Chimera and use its effect! When it's Normal Summoned, I can Special Summon a 'Scrap' Tuner monster from my hand or Graveyard, which means Scrap Beast comes back!"

And while he would normally attack first, the presence of those two sets worried him; knowing Hajime, it was some kind of defensive card. And like this, he knew he would be in trouble if he went on the offensive as it was. With his mind made up, he then declared, "I tune Scrap Beast to Scrap Chimera! Synchro Summon! Level 8! Scrap Dragon!"

As the lights died down, Hajime would see a slim but massive monstrosity hovering before him, its yellow eyes gleaming at Anu Piranha and a reverberating, scratchy growl leaving its mechanical throat. "I then activate Scrap Dragon's effect! I can target one card I control and one card you control, and destroy them both! Double Cannon Burst, aim for the card in the middle zone!" At that declaration, Scrap Dragon would fly up to almost where the top of the barrier was, two spotlights shining on their respective sets...Before an annihilating shot left Scrap Dragon's maw and shattered them.

Yamichi was still a bit hesitant; that other card could be something bad...But he had to go on the offensive, and besides, he did have something else in case this backfired. "Battle! Scrap Dragon attacks Anu Piranha! Scrap Cannon!"

"Trap Card, open! Mirror Force!"

And as Scrap Dragon's attack flew forward, it would hit a wall of light and bounce right back...Shattering Scrap Dragon's body and bringing it screaming down in a hulking mass of flaming metal. Giving a sheepish grin, Yamichi just chuckled, "Well, ain't that just my luck. Nice play, man...But now I activate Scrap Dragon's other effect. When an opponent's card effect destroys it, I can Special Summon a non-Synchro 'Scrap' monster from my Graveyard...Return, Scrap Chimera!"

And as the mismatched monster reformed from Scrap Dragon's remains, Yamichi then showed another card in his hand. "When I have a 'Scrap' monster on my field, I can Special Summon this guy from hand. Appear, Scrap Breaker! In Attack Mode!" And as Breaker would materialize, Chimera would self-destruct. "Unfortunately, I do have to destroy a 'Scrap' monster on my field when I Special Summon it...And with that, I end my turn."

As it was, Scrap Breaker still overpowered Anu Piranha...But this duel was just getting started, and Yamichi knew Hajime could very well have something to decimate his beasts.
 
Hajime ​

Before the barrier enclosed himself and Yamichi, Hajime did hear that Takeshi loved his nickname for Mihara. It was odd; apparently, he was funniest when he wasn't trying to be. Shouldn't it be the other way around? When one was making efforts to properly humor people?

Ah well. It is what it is; that's what his mind decided, anyway.

Hajime's head lifted, having lowered to try to get some ideas ahead of time for the next turn. What Yamichi spoke though ... a sly smirk spread over his lips. "My, my. Did I just hear you - of all people - actually curse? Hah! That girl really did have quite the effect on you, didn't she? Hehe."

It definitely helped lift his spirits. Unlike others whom could have mentioned this, Hajime was being as real as Yamichi was. He wasn't expecting it to take the tech-savvy duelist so off-guard he'd completely forget how to duel. But maybe at least one turn? It was overly wishful thinking, and not really likely to happen. But it wouldn't stop Hajime from hoping for the best for himself, either. There was, alas, one blessing to this match-up .. well, several, actually. One was something he already sated before entering; there would be other tournaments to enter. Two - and this was the really important part - this was a guarantee. At least one of them would definitely go through, if nothing else. And even if himself or Yamichi didn't secure a spot in the Fortune Cup, they would definitely be in the running for a huge sum of money.

It would be, for the most part, a win-win.

Haime smirked as Yamichi wasted little time in Synchro Summoning one of his bigger monsters; Scrap Dragon.

Thankfully, he chose the 'wrong' - well, lesser of two evils - card of his own to destroy. He could handle At One With Sword being destroyed. It left him able to perform the following counter. "Hold it right there! Trap Card, open! Mirror Force! I'm not easily letting you get rid of my loyal Anu."

Phew man. Already bringing in the big guns, huh?

Not that he'd expect any less. In fact, it did provide much more of a challenge. He'd have to be quicker in getting his own Synchros out. Or, if eh couldn't do that, he'd have to find other ways to keep his life points from being depleted so he could try to make a comeback.

"My turn, then. Draw! I'll set a card then activate Saber Slash. It allows me to destroy X amount of cards, where X is equal to the X-Saber monsters I have on the field. For now, one's more than enough. I'll destroy your Scrap Breaker. Now, with nothing impeding you, charge forth! Vengeful X-Blade Slash!"

Thankfully, it wouldn't be heavily focused on being overly 'vengeful' so much as simply needing to do what was necessary. Still, a hit was a hit, and Yamichi would feel it courtesy of the technology surrounding them both.

"Your turn."
 

Yamichi smirked as the Yomi lieutenant commented on his crass language; true, it did take a fair bit to make him lose his civility. But at the same time, he had a fairly low BS tolerance much like most of those that worked to protect the underground; one could call it a requirement almost, if they really thought about. Fun and games were fine, but if it started to become a nuisance the issue was quashed real quick.

The prime example being the option to let people leave if they didn't like the fact that Yukio was a woman all this time. Even still, this was a time where he didn't have to hold his guard up as much.

The blonde male winced a bit as his Scrap Breaker was trashed, the hulking giant turned into...well, scrap. "I'll forgive that notorious pun on your own monsters' name, Hajime...if only because you and I are such good friends." Yamichi teased, though he did have to cover himself a bit as Anu 'cut' his LP by a large chunk, the total dropping to 6200. "Damn...Crazy how real these holograms are, huh?" he smiled at his opponent, giving a resolute stare.

"That's it though, Hajime...Bring it on. I want to have as much fun as I can, and I'm just getting started." the tech mentally mused, declaring "My turn! Draw!" And when he looked at his hand, he would see that he had no real plays to make just yet.

There was only one move he could make for the moment; he didn't know what Hajime's newest set was, but he couldn't risk it being something like Bottomless Trap Hole or Solemn Strike. Not yet, anyway.

"I'll set one monster face-down and end my turn."
 
Hajime ​

Hajime's head tilted. "Pun?" he repeated, clearly not having caught onto what Yamichi was referring to. Sure enough, it took him a bit of mental rewinding before catching that - somehow - his accidental sense of humor had kicked in. His head shook as she chuckled at himself. "Heh. I wasn't even trying that time. I just figured making it sound like a math equation would make much more sense to you." Times like this could be just as much of a blessing as they were a curse. He was proud of being able to sound witty; he just wished he could do this voluntarily. Or, rather, more often and know he was willingly saying such things.

"Yeah. It definitely looked crazy. I can't yet say due to experience ... though knowing I'm against you, I don't really expect to come out of this match unharmed."

His own deck was ... how to word it? Well, to be blunt, it wasn't meant to be a swarming deck. There were rare moments when maybe it could, but those were few and far in between. More than anything, the X-Sabers focused on destruction, both with the set spells and traps as well as monsters. Yamichi, meanwhile, had something much more akin to a swarming deck. Whether he'd done that intentionally or not, even Hajime didn't know for sure. But the very few times he'd seen any of the other Disciples or Yomi members duel, Hajime could easily say Yamichi's deck put even the best Gladiator Beast decks to shame.

It was one of those displays Hajime would always think of as intimidating and awe-inspiring.

Oh? Not moving to the offensive?

That was ... different. Bold for sure. Giving him too much time wouldn't really be wise. Even one more turn could sometimes be one too many for most other duelists. But alas, there were the keywords; most. Yamichi very likely had his own back-up plans. And Hajime would be feeling ten times more confident if he'd gotten any of the Sword of Sparkles from his deck. "Very well, then. I'll draw again! I summon X-Saber Axel. Anu will attack your set!"

.... And as it flipped over to reveal it hadn't left the field because of what it was, Hajime smirked and shook his head.

"Hmmm. Not bad, not bad. Well ... since it can't die by battle and I don't have any effects to make it disappear, I suppose that's the end of my turn."

He was trying to hide his annoyance. But Hajime couldn't help but notice it. His deck was going way slower than earlier. Bad draws were always the easiest thing to blame. But it couldn't always be that. Plus, if it was simply tha, he wouldn't have gotten even half a decent starting hand. He fought the urge to frown or bite his lower lip, trying to keep more of a stoic expression. It wasn't so much losing that Hajime feared; even less so to a comrade. It would be feeling like he was half-assing his efforts in this duel.

This could be more intense. Both himself and even Yamichi knew that.

And already feeling like he was failing in that regard was making Hajime slowly starting to feel horrified and ashamed in himself.
 

Yamichi only let out a sigh of relief as Anu's attack stopped, her blades making an audible clang as they collided with the metal gremlin. Goblin still on the field since Axel did not attack. Normally, that would pose a problem, since Scrap monsters relied on self-destruction to trigger their effects, the exception being the Synchro Monsters that relied on opponent's card effects to destroy them. In many ways, Hajime's deck was both the best and worst for Yamichi, and he knew it.

Yamichi noted his opponent's displeasure with this Duel; but what could he say? Even the best decks - and in his mind Hajime's was one of the best - had their times where they did nothing but dead draw for a few turns. And in those instances, there was nothing the Duelist could do.

"Well...That was a close one. Had that been any other monster, you would have had a clear shot at my Life Points." Yamichi commented, wiping his brow. "But hey...There's still a lot of time left in this Duel, and I think we're both just getting warmed up. Draw!" Looking down at his hand, he then said, "From my hand I activate Scrapstorm! With its effect, I send Scrap Searcher to the Graveyard, draw one card and then destroy Goblin!" And with that, his own monster was annihilated. "And with Scrap Goblin's destruction, I can add a 'Scrap' monster from my Graveyard to my hand and I choose Scrap Chimera...And then Searcher's effect activates in the Graveyard! When a 'Scrap' monster is destroyed by an effect, I can Special Summon it!"

Showing Hajime his Chimera, he would then declare "I summon Scrap Chimera and activate its effect! Revive, Scrap Goblin!" And with that, there would be three monsters, one of them a Tuner. "You might have destroyed the first Scrap Dragon...But the thing about trash is, anything can be reused! I Double Tune Chimera and Searcher with Goblin! Synchro Summon once more! Rise, draconid of rust and oil! Level 8! Scrap Dragon!"

And for the second time, Scrap Dragon would appear before Hajime. "Battle! Scrap Dragon attacks Anu Piranha! Scrap Cannon!" The giant metal dragon then opened its maw and fired an incendiary payload, striking the brave female warrior and shattering her image, dropping Hajime's Life Points.

"Turn end."
 
Hajime ​

Ironic. That was how this next turn ended up playing out. Mere moments ago, Hajime had been almost positive Yamichi had been unwise in risking giving Hajime a turn. Joke was on him, apparently, as he ended up giving Yamichi the one turn he needed to get everything set up an gathered together. The blue-haired duelist sighed at himself, weakly chuckling.

Well, fuck. Whatever that gal had to damage him would have been nice for me to have.

At least it would have felt far more productive. Like he'd been able to do anything aside from just ... stare at the Scrap Goblin. His grin spread - even if not done in an overly noticeable manner - as he nodded and acknowledged Yamichi's words. The optimistic point of view truly was appreciated. The main problem - aside from feeling like he was more and more half-assing this duel - was his position. He was supposed to be a right-hand man. He was hardly feeling like anything close to that ... almost. There was one saving grace, and it came in the feeling of knowing he had at least bee able to put a decent dent in Yamichi's life points.

Because, as far as he could see, this duel was gonna go pretty fucking sour from here on out.

"Thank you for everything, Anu. These efforts won't be in vain. Draw!"

.... Yeah. His hand alone, in addition to the fact he was once again being forced to deal with the Scrap Dragon, all but screamed there were so many ways of this fight going very much against Hajime. There came saving grace number two; it was at least a friend and not some random prick.

"I set one card and also a monster. Your turn."

At this rate, one of the best things he could do was work on getting a certain card out. For that to occur, though, certain requirements would need to be fulfilled. And, unfortunately, that meant allowing Yamichi to kill more cards and send them to his graveyard. Hopefully by then, he could get another Saber Slash ... or some card that'd help turn this duel around.
 
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