Battle Between True Rivals (1)
I decided to split this chapter because it have already reached 6000 words and I'm still not done. I may post the second part this week but we will see. Another thing, Slifer is such a pain to write since I really need to keep track of the cards and I couldn't really Card of Sanctity out of this one.
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[3rd POV]
"Are you certain?" Roland inquired, eyebrows raised. "Once finalized, altering your decision becomes impossible."
"Yes," Seto affirmed. "Yugi Mutou will be my opponent."
"Very well!" Roland declared, clapping his hands to gather everyone's attention. "For the Battle City semi-finals, Seto Kaiba will be going against Yugi Mutou, while Yuna Sano will be going against Marik Ishtar!"
With nothing more to add, he ushered the four duelists off the field. Once released, Yuna hastily departed, weaving through her friends, eager to distance herself from the unfolding scene.
"Stop," Yuna heard a voice behind her, and she froze.
Controlling her facial expression, she turned around with a strained smile. Noticing the change, Seto frowned. 'The loss seemed to have affected her more than I expected...' he thought calmly, approaching her.
"Are you angry?" Seto questioned.
Confused, Yuna tilted her head. "Why would I be?"
'So, she's not mad...' Seto concluded. Yet, frustration crept in as he recalled the pained look on her face.
"We defeated you unfairly. At this moment, you have more than enough reason to despise us."
Yuna silently stared at him, and Seto waited with clenched fists. Eventually, she chuckled slightly. "It's part of the rules."
Seto: "I see."
"Kaiba..." Yuna called his name: "Why... pick Yugi?"
"Why..." Seto mumbled, the memory of Yuna's earlier expression flashing in his mind. "His god card—I will take it from him."
The two locked eyes in silence, unsure of the next words. "I need to go," Yuna abruptly explained with an apologetic tone.
"Is something wrong?" Seto blurted out the question that was stuck in his head.
"I'm alright...." Yuna grinned and not waiting for his response, she walked away with a much faster pace than before. Watching her shrinking back, Seto visibly scowled. The stiff smile, the shallow breathing, and the constant fidgeting, all these subtle expressions, did not escape Seto's watchful gaze.
"What are you hiding from me…" He muttered in a dull tone: "You're clearly not alright...."
Wishing to get an answer out of Yuna, Seto moved. However, just at this moment, Roland's loud voice echoed across the entire tower: "Seto Kaiba and Yugi Mutou, please rendezvous at the duelling field. The match will start in five minutes."
"Tsk..." Seto clicked his teeth and a conflicting emotion surged through him. Eventually, his desire to battle won and he began marching back onto the field. However, as Seto walked, he found himself unable to focus as all he could think of was the pain in Yuna's clear blue eyes....
Meanwhile...
Yuna briskly barged past everyone, keeping her face under control. Without hesitation, she rushed to the bathroom. Yuna felt her knees buckling and frantically grasped the edge of the sink.
*Cough Cough*
With each cough, the pain in her throat increased, and it felt like someone was stabbing her lungs with a knife. Finally, Yuna vomited, and a mouthful of blood stained the ceramic sink.
"Damn... Gods sure do hurt like hell..." She grumbled painfully.
Glancing at the thick red liquid, she frowned with disdain, anxiety creeping in about her impending expiration. Emotions ranging from fear to acceptance flickered on her face. Finally, self-deprecating laughter left her lips.
"Aki…." Suddenly, Yuna's ears perked up. There was only one person who would call her this name.
She gazed into the mirror, particularly at the ghostly reflection of a woman with white hair. The woman bit her lips with worry: "Are you okay?"
"I can already feel the pain subsiding," Yuna reassured.
"Thank goodness..." The woman patted her chest with relief, but that brief emotion soon vanished, and what replaced it was a deep sense of concern: "It was fortunate that your monsters have absorbed both attacks if it is yourself directly..."
"Aki... No Yuna..." She called once again: "Maybe that girl was right. You should forfeit this upcoming battle."
"You too?" Yuna exclaimed while wiping the side of her mouth with a napkin: "You know I couldn't do that."
"Besides... That's too big of fish that I would let it off the hook that easily..." She joked.
"Fu fu fu..." The woman giggled: "That's so you... Nonetheless, please be careful. Ra is the strongest god out of Obelisk and Slifer. If you have taken damage from someone of that calibre..." She couldn't finish.
Eventually, the woman sighed: "Well, even if you did, we will make sure that you at least won't drop dead on the spot. It will hurt a lot, though..."
"Well, there's never such thing as free stuff." Yuna said, and the woman smiled wryly: "Alright, I will be careful."
"Good luck..." She muttered and vanished from the mirror.
Alone, Yuna slumped her stiff shoulders and sighed: "Thanks... I will definitely need it," She mumbled to no one in particular.
"Seto Kaiba and Yugi Mutou, please rendezvous at the duelling arena. The match will start in five minutes."
Yuna heard Roland's faint voice, signalling for the first semi-final duel of this tournament. She thought about the two people who would be fighting against each other in the position of the finals.
Deep down, she had already expected who would stand victorious in this duel, but strangely, Yuna sincerely hoped Seto would win.
"Should I have given him a card beforehand?" Yuna mumbled before sighing: "It's too late now. He probably would say something like wanting to win using his strength anyway.." She giggled and imagined the typical Seto response.
After a few more minutes to catch her breath, Yuna swiftly returned and moved to the spectator area. When she arrived, Seto and Yugi were already facing each other with their duel disks ready.
"Big Sister, you're back! !" Mokuba waved excitedly: "Where did you go?"
Subconsciously, Yuna wiped her lips with her sleeve: "Toilet..." She answered, and Mokuba nodded in understanding.
Although what she said was not a lie, if Yuna told him what she was doing there, that would have been an entirely different story.
"So, who do you think will win?" Mokuba asked with anticipation.
Not wanting to ruin his mood, Yuna smiled wryly and shrugged her shoulders: "Don't know... Let's watch..."
He nodded, and she patted his head instinctively. Yuna's eyes were focused on Seto's stern expression: "Good luck, Kaiba..." She muttered.
On the field, Seto glared at his opponent before him: "I expected you to choose Sano as your opponent." Yami Yugi spoke up: "What happened?"
"Unfortunately for you, I changed my mind." Seto retorted.
"Don't get too cocky Kaiba." Yami Yugi said with a frown: "Let's begin!"
"Gladly!" Seto snarled.
"Duel!" x2
[Yugi Mutou: 4000 LP]
[Seto Kaiba: 4000 LP]
"I will go first!" Yami Yugi shouted: "I will summon Queen's Knight in defence position, then I will set a card and end my turn!"
[Queen's Knight: 1500 Attack, 1600 Defence]
As the female warrior donning a bright red armour appeared, Seto instinctively scowled as he remembered what Yami Yugi had used the monster for.
"My turn, first I will activate Spell Sanctuary. We can both add a spell card from our decks to our hand, and during each of our turns, we can start our spells at any moment as long as it's set beforehand."
Seto then proceeded to add his Soul Exchange and watched as Yami Yugi added a spell from his deck to his hand.
"Next, I will summon X-Head Cannon." He shouted, summoning a mechanical war machine with a humanoid upper body and a pair of long barrels protruding from its shoulders
[X-Head Cannon: 1800 Attack, 1500 Defence]
"X-Head Cannon, attack Queen's Knight!
The monster dug its arms into the ground as the cannons on its body churned. With a loud resounding boom, X-Head Cannon fired a massive shell. The missile struck the Queen's Knight directly, generating a gigantic explosion, and the warrior vanished in the flames.
"I will set one card and end my turn," Seto said calmly.
"I draw!" Yami Yugi shouted, swinging his arm and making a wide arc: "First, I will play Change of Heart to take control of your X-Head Cannon!"
"Not so fast!" Seto yelled and activated his face-down card: "I play Interdimensional Matter Transporter and banish my X-Head Cannon. Thus, your Change of Heart will be useless!"
"Very well," Yami Yugi nodded: "I will summon Alpha, the Magnet Warrior and attack your life points directly!"
[Alpha the Magnet Warrior: 1400 Attack, 1700 Defence]
Appearing in Yami Yugi's field was a robotic soldier consisting of magnets. In its hand was a sword and shield as the monster charged, swinging its weapon at Seto.
[Seto Kaiba: 4000 LP -> 2600 LP]
"I will end my turn here."
"Then, during the end phase of this turn, my X-Head Cannon will return to the field from the Interdimensional Matter Transporter's effect," Seto explained: "Now it's my turn, I will draw."
[X-Head Cannon: 1800 Attack, 1500 Defence]
'I need to summon Obelisk the Tormentor as soon as possible.' Seto thought while staring at the God Card resting in his hand. If it were a battle between two Gods, the one that summoned their Egyptian God first would undoubtedly gain the advantage.
However, his thoughtful expression hadn't go unseen and Yami Yugi activated his card as his instincts told him so: "I will activate my face-down spell card, Lightforce Sword!" Yami Yugi yelled: "This card allows me to randomly choose a card in your hand and banish it and return it to you on the fourth stand-by phase after this card has been activated!"
Seto frowned as he inserted his hand into the duel disk, and Yami Yugi pressed a button on his device. Instantly, in response to the button press, one of the slots on Seto's duel disk lights up.
Revealing the card that has been chosen, Seto scowled in frustration as he dumped the card he least wanted to get chosen into banished compartment of the Duel Disk: "You have only delayed the inevitable."
"First, I will play Lullaby of Obedience!" He shouted: "By paying one thousand of my life points, I will be able to declare a card name of a monster that's level eight or higher. If that monster is in your deck, I can add it to my hand! I will choose your Slifer, the Sky Dragon!"
[Seto Kaiba: 2600 LP -> 1600 LP]
Yami Yugi glanced at his hand and grunted. Slowly, they walked towards each other as he looked into the deck and retrieved Slifer's The Sky Dragon before handing the card to Kaiba. Returning to where he previously stood, Seto stared at the Egyptian God Card with content.
"Next, I will summon Y-Dragon Head in attack position!"
[Y-Dragon Head: 1800 Attack, 1500 Defence]
Beside X-Head Cannon was a red wyvern built from machinery. The dragon soared through the air and emitted a mechanical roar.
"Now, I can activate Y-Dragon Head's effect and equip itself to X-Head Cannon, giving the monster an extra four hundred attacks and defence!"
[X-Head Cannon: 1800 -> 2200 Attack, 1500 -> 1900 Defence]
"X-Head Cannon, attack Alpha the Magnet Soldier!" Kaiba ordered as the automated cannons unleashed a second barrage, this time more fierce and deadly.
[Yugi Mutou: 4000 LP -> 3200 LP]
"I will activate my trap card, Soul Rope when one of my monsters is destroyed. I can pay one thousand life points and special summon a level four or lower monster from my deck or hand." Yami Yugi explained: "I will special-summon Big Shield Gardna in defence position."
[Yugi Mutou 3200 LP -> 2200 LP]
[Big Shield Gardna: 100 Attack, 2600 Defence]
"Fine," Seto growled: "I will set a card and end my turn."
"My move!" Yami Yugi said: "I will play Exchange. This card allows us to take a card from each of our hands!"
Seto's face scrunched up into a scowl as the two duelists once again walked towards each other. Now, Yami Yugi quickly picked up Slifer the Sky Dragon and returned the stolen card to his hand. With no choice, Seto glimpsed at Yugi's cards and chose the Life Shaver trap.
"Then, I will set a monster face down and end my turn." Yami Yugi declared with satisfaction in his voice, regaining his Egyptian God card.
'Three more turns until Obelisk the Tormentor returns to me...' Seto gritted his teeth: "My turn, I will play Pot of Greed and draw two cards from my deck!"
"I will normal-summon Z-Metal Tank!"
[Z-Metal Tank: 1500 Attack, 1300 Defence]
"Then, I will activate Y-Dragon Head's effect and unequip itself from X-Head Cannon!"
[Y-Dragon Head: 1800 Attack, 1500 Defence]
"Finally, by banishing X-Head Cannon, Y-Dragon Head and Z-Metal Tank to special-summon XYZ-Dragon Cannon!!"
The three machine monsters churned as they began merging, with X-Head Cannon on the top, Y-Dragon Head in the middle and Z-Metal Tank at the bottom, creating a massive killing machine.
[XYZ-Dragon Cannon: 2800 Attack, 2600 Defence]
"I will activate XYZ-Dragon Cannon's effect to discard one card, and then I can destroy your Big Shield Gardna!"
The weapons attached to XYZ-Dragon Cannon's body fired simultaneously, generating a massive shockwave. The projectiles struck into Gardna's shield, and the man was blown away.
"Next, I will play Quick Attack, allowing XYZ-Dragon Cannon to attack this turn!" Seto pointed at Yami Yugi's set monster: "XYZ-Dragon Cannon attack!"
BOOOM
Yami Yugi instinctively raised his arms as the clouds of dust flew towards him. When the smoke settled, he glared at the monster and grimaced.
"I will end my turn." Seto smirked. He believed that if he could keep up with the pressure and make sure that Yugi wouldn't have the chance to summon his own God before Obelisk the Tormentor returned, he could win.
"My move... I will play Pot of Greed to draw two cards from my deck. Then I will set two cards and a monster. Then I will end my turn."
"Hmph, it looks like you're running out of options." Seto grinned: "I will activate XYZ-Dragon Cannon's effect again to destroy that set monster, and then, I will attack you directly!"
"Not so fast!" Yami Yugi yelled: "I will play my trap card, Eternal Soul and use its first effect to summon Dark Magician from my hand!"
[Dark Magician: 2500 Attack, 2100 Defence]
"Before that, I will also activate my trap card!" Seto yelled: "I play Cloning (Anime)! When a monster is summoned onto the field, I can duplicate that monster and special-summon it to my field!"
Suddenly, a mirror appeared right before Dark Magician. To the mage's shock, the reflection in the mirror moved in its will and emerged from the glass.
[Dark Magician (Seto Kaiba): 2500 Attack, 2100 Defence]
"Very well, Kaiba," Yami Yugi muttered: "Then, in response to your Cloning, I will play my second face-down card, Magic Formula, giving my Dark Magician five hundred more attacks!"
[Dark Magician (Yami Yugi): 2500 -> 3000 Attack, 2100 Defence]
Seto clicked his teeth in annoyance and cancelled the attack of his XYZ-Dragon Cannon: "I end my turn."
"It's my go!" Yami Yugi yelled while gritting his teeth: "I will activate Eternal Soul's second effect and add Thousand Knives from my hand!"
"Next, I will play Thousand Knives! If I control Dark Magician, I can target one monster you control and destroy it, and I target the XYZ-Dragon Cannon!"
Waving his staff, Dark Magician summoned thousands of knives and instantly, the sharp weapons hurled themselves towards XYZ-Dragon Cannon. With the sound of blades piercing metal, XYZ-Dragon Cannon was riddled with wounds, and the machinery exploded.
"Now, I will play Card of Sanctity so we both draw until we have six cards. Then I will also activate Polymerisation, fusing Gazelle the King of Mythical Beasts and Berfomet in my hand to summon Chimera, the Flying Mythical Beast!"
*ROAR*
A loud cry was heard in the distance, and a beast covered in fur galloping from out of nowhere. The creature leapt onto the field and howled, displaying the two massive white wings on its back, and its two heads snarled simultaneously.
[Chimera the Flying Mythical Beast: 2100 Attack, 1800 Defence]
"Finally, Dark Magician, attack the clone!" The mage nodded and unleashed an array of magic at Seto's Dark Magician.
[Seto Kaiba: 1600 LP -> 1100 LP]
"I will end my turn." Although Yugi could defeat Seto that turn, he wasn't sure due to the number of traps his opponent had set, and he deemed that summoning the fusion monster was the correct move as it could be used for two tributes, and he could summon Slifer next turn.
"I draw!" Seto exclaimed: "I will play Double Summon and summon Kaiser Sea Horse, then I will use Kaiser Sea Horse's effect to use itself as two tributes to summon Blue-Eyes White Dragon!"
Instantly, Yami Yugi and Seto heard a piercing cry. They turned their heads towards the tallest point of the tower, where a large dragon with white scales stood.
[Blue-Eyes White Dragon: 3000 Attack, 2500 Defence]
"Blue Eyes White Dragon, attack Chimera, the Flying Mythical Beast!"
The pure white dragon soared into the sky. It opened its mouth and unleashed a blazing beam that vaporised the monster.
[Yugi Mutou: 2200 LP -> 1300 LP]
"I will set one last card and end my turn," Seto said, unfazed.
"My turn, I will play Monster Reborn!" Yami Yugi sprang into action: "With this spell, I will revive Queen's Knight in defence position."
[Queen's Knight: 1500 Attack, 1600 Defence]
"Then, I summon King's Knight in defence position!"
[King's Knight: 1600 Attack, 1400 Defence]
"Finally, with King's Knight's effect, I can summon Jack's Knight from my deck!"
[Jack's Knight: 1900 Attack, 1000 Defence]
"Now, Dark Magician, attack Blue Eyes White Dragon." Following Yugi's orders, The Dark Magician charged fearlessly, ready to sacrifice himself to destroy the dragon.
"I will play Command Silencer!" Seto finally activates one of the set traps: "When one of your monsters declares an attack, I will be able to end the battle phase, and I get to draw a card."
Before Dark Magician reached Blue Eyes White Dragon, he leapt backward and landed beside Yami Yugi. The resolve to sacrifice himself was absent from his face.
"Then it's your turn, Kaiba." He said: "It will only be one more turn until Obelisk returns to your hand." Yami Yugi smiled: "But also, in your main phase, I will activate my Waboku. Now my monsters won't be able to be destroyed by battle, nor can they be destroyed."
Seto clenched his fists and soon realised the summoning of the God Card was unavoidable. To stand a chance, he must set up a solid defence so he can survive the next turn.
"I will change Blue Eyes White Dragon to a defence position, and then I will set a monster face down. Next, I will use the Card of Demise to draw until I have five cards, but I must discard my entire hand on my fifth stand-by phase.
"I will set two cards face down and end my turn."
"Very well!" Yami Yugi shouted as the tension in the duel increased dramatically, and Seto frowned, knowing what was about to come: "I will tribute my Queen's Knight, King's Knight and Jack's Knight to summon Slifer the Sky Dragon!"
With the familiar roar, Seto raised his head and glared at the sky. As the lightning flashed, the figure of a red flying serpent appeared, gliding above Yami Yugi.
[Slifer the Sky Dragon: ??? Attack, ??? Defence]
Yami Yugi: "Since I have three cards in my hand, Slifer the Sky Dragon will gain three thousand attacks."
[Slifer the Sky Dragon: ??? -> 3000 Attack, ??? -> 3000 Defence]
"Dark Magician and Slifer the Sky Dragon, attack!" The two monsters pounced, both destroying the two remaining monsters on Seto's field.
"I will activate two of my trap cards; first, I play Magical Trick Mirror. When one of your monsters declares an attack, I will be able to play a spell in your graveyard. I will target you, Monster Reborn.
Activating one of Yami Yugi's spells, Seto used Monster Reborn to revive the XYZ-Dragon Cannon that was destroyed earlier in the duel.
[XYZ-Dragon Cannon: 2800 Attack, 2600 Defence]
"The second trap is Life Shaver; during your end phase, I'm able to place one counter on this card. During the main or battle phase, I can send Life Shaver to the graveyard, and you must discard cards equal to the number of counters on this card!"
"Understood..." Yami Yugi nodded: "I will set a card and end my turn."
[Slifer the Sky Dragon: 3000 -> 2000 Attack, 3000 -> 2000 Defence]
[Life Shaver Counter: 0 -> 1]
Seto nodded solemnly, and his attention was caught by the slight beeping of his duel disk. As anticipated, the moment that Seto was waiting for arrived as Obelisk the Tormentor was automatically ejected out of his duel disk.
Grabbing the card in midair, his smile widened: "I have to commend you for making it this far, but it will soon be over! Now, using my XYZ-Dragon Cannon as three tributes, I will summon my Egyptian God, Obelisk the Tormentor!!"
BOOOOOM
Responding to his cry, a colossal thunderbolt struck the ground behind him. To everyone's awe, the lightning hit the ground once more, and there stood a massive blue humanoid with a sleek and muscular body and a head crowned with two curved horns...
[Obelisk the Tormentor: 4000 Attack, 4000 Defence]
Now, the battle between two Gods has begun….
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Thanks for reading. This is probably one of the more difficult chapters I ever wrote. I think I counted the number of cards correctly, I hope. Anyway, if I manage to finish the second part early, I will probably also release it this week. If not, then I will apologies in advance.