Chapter 22

                                    

                                          
A/N: Does anyone else think it's weird how Aki's eyes change shape in the last 10 or something episodes? I really liked the unique look of her eyes before the timeskip :/
Warning! We are getting into the territory of this story's mature rating! Minors, DNI! There is nothing explicit yet but trust me, it's coming.
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"Pinoko! Crow!"
Running up behind us are Rally, Taka, Blitz, and Nerve. The group is nowhere near quick enough to have reached here before me, but I hadn't expected to be waiting for them.
"Rally!" I cry out, sweeping him into an embrace when he's close enough. "You're okay." The boy reciprocates but soon pulls away, seeking our D-Wheeling friend.
"Where's Yusei?"
I frown, letting Crow indicate him with a point of his finger. The four crowd around his D-Wheel as well, eyes glued to the monitor that shows the duel.
Nervin questions the turn of events, unsure of what led to it. "Hey, what's Yusei having a riding duel for?"
"Who is he up against?" Taka hurls out, his tone heavy with worry.
Crow closes his eyes, answer coming out in a breath. "It's Kiryu."
Recognition flashes in their eyes.
"Crow, Pinoko, what's happening here?" Rally questions. This is his first encounter with the dark signers.
"I'm not sure myself."
With the lack of explanation from the orange-haired duelist, he turns to me. Thankfully, I have more to offer than just that.
"This Kiryu... He's a dark signer. Yusei is a signer. They're destined to battle. In this duel, the attacks are real, not just Solid Vision." Cupping a hand on Rally's shoulder, I try to word it carefully. "The track is made up of something else. Yusei says it's like a wall, you can't get in or out. If he wins, Kiryu will lose his soul. But if the opposite happens..."
They send looks of fear at the monitor. Yusei's at 1800 life points and he hasn't even scratched that of his enemy.
"What's wrong?" The blue-haired man shouts. "Your D-Wheel is crying out for help!"
He's right. The red machine is grumbling down the track, barely holding together. The front wheel is especially unwieldy.
"During this end phase, Power Baton's effects will end, causing One-Hundred Eyes Dragon's attack to revert from 5300 back to 3000!" Kiryu's tone makes it sound more like he's playing a game rather than putting both of their lives on the line.
"My turn!" Yusei draws, but there's no flourish. He's dedicated to winning this duel and staying alive. "When there are only monsters on my opponent's side of the field, this card can be special summoned as a level four monster! Next I normal summon Hyper Synchron!" The red and blue monsters appear on the field, making me sure that Yusei plans to walk away from this fight.
I don't know what he's thinking most of the time. It makes it difficult to gauge him, to know if he's just trying to protect his friends or strolling down a path of self-destruction purposefully. It scares me to not know, but today I can see it in his eyes. He's not trying to leave us behind.
He uses Hyper Synchron to tune Level Warrior, calling out his own magnificent dragon to fight his battle. The only foreseeable issue is that Stardust has 500 fewer attack points than the other. This should be solved by the effect of his tuner monster, though.
Kiryu cackles at the sight. "That dragon is the symbol of a signer! Come at me with your best, Yusei!"
"Next is Hyper Synchron's effect. The synchro monster that used Hyper Synchron as its synchro material has its attack power raised by 800 points! Battle, Stardust Dragon! Reverberate! Shooting Sonic!"