Chapter 255: Bond Fusion - "Cross-Flash Zero Style"
On Nanki'in Sakuya's field, the tachi girl in her deep-water armored mode cycled directly through the link circuit and traded the rail cannon's storming wind loadout for a heavy configuration of blue combat plating.
"Another armor swap! That's incredible!" Shio, completely unconcerned with the chaos around her, helped herself to another glass of cola and stared.
"I have never seen anyone duel like this." Jinguuji Masayo was frozen in place. "Is that really Sakuya's duel up there? And Father..."
Jinguuji Domitsu had made a jump from his standard fire-and-rebirth deck to a Death Prison Realm build that nobody recognized, and the sheer spike in power had already left most onlookers struggling to follow. And now Nanki'in Sakuya's response: a link circuit that pointed toward the future, deployed in full public view, had left the room speechless.
One monster, constantly switching modes, pouring out damage, and driving a rail cannon volley directly into the duelist across from her over his own field. The blast had left Jinguuji Domitsu at 500 LP.
Yukihime, fingers locked around Muramasa's thigh with a grip that was going to leave a mark, leaned in: "Tell me the truth. Is the one actually dueling up there Sakuya?"
The wrinkles on Muramasa's face bunched with the effort of not flinching. "When this duel ends, I will explain everything."
Amano activated the continuous effect. "Sky Striker Ace - Shizuku's passive: while this card is on the field, all of your monsters lose ATK and DEF equal to the number of Spell Cards in my Graveyard times 100!"
At this point Nanki'in Sakuya's Graveyard held two Spell Cards: Reinforcement of the Army and Sky Striker Mecha - Widow Anchor, which had been loaded there by Hayate's after-battle effect.
[Albion the Branded Dragon] [ATK: 2500 -> 2300]
"I set two cards face-down. Turn end. And at the End Phase, Shizuku's other effect activates!"
[During the End Phase of the turn this card was Special Summoned: You can add 1 "Sky Striker" Spell from your Deck to your hand that has a different name from any card in your GY.]
From the Deck, Amano searched for a Sky Striker Spell and added it to hand. It was not the one he most wanted, Sky Striker Mobilize - Engage!, but a freshly awakened deck that had only existed for two days was still essentially in its infancy by any reasonable standard. In Digimon terms, Nanki'in Sakuya's Sky Striker line was still a Rookie at best, nowhere near its ultimate form.
And it was not just the Main Deck. The Extra Deck's Sky Striker Link monsters were also mostly Link-1s courtesy of Amano's system skills. The one Link-2 card she had managed to pull was a single copy.
And Amano had also discovered that certain critical cards in the Eva Terminal could not simply be drawn with money alone. They required Academy credit exchange instead. Sky Striker Mobilize - Engage!, the most important Spell in the entire archetype, was currently sitting in the Academy City credit shop at an 80,000 credit price tag.
But even a Rookie-form Sky Striker lineup was fully capable of handling duels at this level of competition in the mid-level district. There was no cause for concern.
Turn change. Jinguuji Domitsu's move.
The man wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, the real-damage result of a Dark Game direct hit, and drew.
"My turn. Draw! I then activate the Spell Card, Pot of Greed, and draw two more cards from my Deck!"
The Dark Game had left the man looking noticeably older than he had at the start of the evening. The blow to his LP from Sky Striker's assault had done that to him.
"You underestimated me, little girl. I'll admit I didn't expect you to produce that kind of power at the critical moment, a blade sharper than Shiranui's. But this is where it ends!"
Jinguuji Domitsu snapped a Quick-Play Spell into the Duel Disk from his hand.
"You missed your window last turn. You will not get another chance to beat me! I activate the Quick-Play Spell, Branded in High Spirits!"
The moment this card was played, the darkness surrounding Jinguuji Domitsu visibly doubled in density.
Ecclesia: "Branded spells again. And still no trace of Fallen of Albaz's presence."
That was probably just as well. In a genuinely dangerous Dark Game, the last thing they needed was a dragon that ate other Fusion monsters getting involved.
[Branded in High Spirits]
[Quick-Play Spell: Target 1 "Death Prison Realm" monster or "Fallen of Albaz" in your GY; add it to your hand. Then, you may also apply this effect: Banish monsters from your hand and/or field as Fusion Materials, Fusion Summon 1 Level 8 or higher Fusion Monster. A monster Special Summoned this way cannot attack directly this turn.]
"I retrieve Despair Tragedy of the Death Prison Realm from my Graveyard, then banish it together with Tragedy Actor of the Death Prison Realm from my hand as Fusion Materials!"
Across Jinguuji Domitsu's field, the familiar catastrophic light of a Fusion Summon crashed through the ceiling of dimensional space. A dragon's cry tore upward.
"The dark curtain rises on Act Two! Burning roar, take the stage in your disguise and deliver the lethal performance!"
"Fusion Summon! A second Albion the Branded Dragon!"
[Albion the Branded Dragon] [ATK: 2500 -> 2300 due to Shizuku's effect]
Amano reacted immediately from the Graveyard.
"When a monster is Special Summoned, the effect of Sky Striker Maneuver - Justice Sword in my Graveyard activates!"
[When this card is in the GY and a monster is Special Summoned: Target 1 "Sky Striker" Link Monster you control; equip this card to that target as an Equip Spell that grants it 1500 ATK. This effect can only be used once while this card is in the GY.]
Amano lifted the card from the Graveyard and placed it in the Spell and Trap Zone behind Shizuku. "I equip Justice Sword to Sky Striker Ace - Shizuku!"
[Sky Striker Ace - Shizuku] [ATK: 1500 -> 3000]
"Bl... Blue..." Amano Shio tried to say something, but had packed too much fried rice into her mouth. She went red in the face, beat her own chest urgently for a good ten seconds before managing to clear her airway, and by then the moment had already passed.
"Augh. I almost choked to death!"
Jinguuji Domitsu raised a sharp finger. "You just activated a card effect, didn't you? Don't forget Albion the Branded Dragon's effect!"
[As long as this Fusion-Summoned card remains in the Monster Zone, your opponent cannot activate card effects without paying 600 LP.]
The Albion that had been revived from the Graveyard last turn had lost its LP-drain effect because it was not Fusion Summoned. But the freshly Fusion Summoned copy had no such limitation.
Nanki'in Sakuya LP: 3400 -> 2800
This was the second time Amano had paid LP for an effect in this Dark Game. Curious thing: both times, he had felt nothing at all. No sensation from the LP loss whatsoever.
That was strange. It was a Dark Game. He had watched Jinguuji Domitsu cough real blood when Sky Striker Ace - Hayate connected. He had experienced enough Dark Games by now to know that even Kuroshio Nagi's smaller-scale version had produced real stomach-churning discomfort at LP losses above a thousand.
Amano: "Sakuya. Are you feeling any discomfort?"
Sakuya: "Nothing at all."
Jinguuji Domitsu, reading the puzzled expression crossing Sakuya's face, burst out laughing.
"Ha ha ha! So you've finally noticed something's off, little girl from the Nanki'in family."
Nothing at all. That was actually the correct answer.
"Are you feeling like your body is harder to control?"
Nothing at all.
"In this Dark Game, as your LP is stripped away, you will gradually lose control of your own body. Until you are utterly defeated and become a puppet I can move as I please!"
That was exactly Shiyue Yi's skill set. Or more precisely: a manipulation method that resembled the Puppeteer's approach.
Then Mana's voice came through sharply: "I can feel it, Amano! Faint, but it's there. That man is holding a Millennium Rod!"
Amano: "A Millennium Rod?!"
In the original animated series, the Millennium Rod in the villain Marik's hands had its well-deserved reputation for brainwashing. The artifact had made people forget themselves entirely.
Mana: "The Rod itself is not on his person, but he has clearly been granted its power. This Dark Game is a one-sided mental domination type!"
One-sided mental domination. That explained everything. Domitsu took physical damage from the Dark Game while Sakuya felt nothing at all on her end. Because she was the one being targeted for domination, the game was rigged from the start so she would not suffer physical harm until she lost completely.
So that was it. He had planned all along to seize control of Nanki'in Sakuya's body. No wonder he had been comfortable opening a Dark Game with the entire Nanki'in family watching. If the game had played out as intended, Sakuya would not have been physically harmed. She would simply have been taken over.
And now Amano had beaten him to it.
Can't exactly play the pure-love paladin here when I'm literally the one already in her body right now. But taking over someone you care about is completely different from having some middle-aged man take control of her. Completely different.
Sakuya: "Between being controlled by some old man like this or being controlled by you, Amano, I know which I'd prefer."
Amano: "I'll take that as high praise."
Jinguuji Domitsu continued: "And now, the effect of Despair Tragedy of the Death Prison Realm and Tragedy Actor of the Death Prison Realm activates from the moment they were used as Fusion Material!"
[When this card is used as Fusion Material and sent to the GY or banished: Target 1 "Despair Tragedy" or Level 8 or higher Fusion Monster in your GY or banishment; Special Summon that target.]
[When this card is sent to the GY by an effect or banished by an effect: Add 1 "Death Prison Realm" monster other than "Tragedy Actor" from your Deck to your hand.]
"Grand Director Death God Special Summons itself from the Graveyard, and I add Comedy Actor of the Death Prison Realm to my hand from the Deck, then Normal Summon it!"
[Grand Director Death God] [ATK: 3000 -> 2800]
[Comedy Actor of the Death Prison Realm] [DEF: 2000]
"The face-down Quick-Play Spell I set last turn, Mysterious Wok, activates! I Tribute Comedy Actor of the Death Prison Realm and recover LP equal to its DEF!"
A healing light descended over Jinguuji Domitsu's head. The ashen middle-aged face recovered some color.
Jinguuji Domitsu LP: 500 -> 2500
People who run Dark Games really do love packing LP recovery cards into their decks. The old Puppeteer was the same way. And now here was Jinguuji Domitsu with the same impulse.
Honestly, fair enough. The usual joke was that LP not at zero was just a resource you had not spent yet. But inside a Dark Game, sitting at critically low LP indefinitely was a liability. Pass out from real damage and the duel ends by default.
After the LP recovery, the massive Branded city Field Spell lit up with its unnatural shimmer again.
"And now I use the Field Spell's effect to Fuse Grand Director Death God on my field with the first Albion the Branded Dragon!"
The first Albion, the one with no LP-drain effect, was fed into the Fusion machine.
"The dark curtain, Act Three! I Fusion Summon a third Albion the Branded Dragon!"
[Albion the Branded Dragon] [ATK: 2500 -> 2300]
Two Albion the Branded Dragon, both properly Fusion Summoned, spread their wings on either side of the enormous Branded city backdrop. Jinguuji Domitsu, standing between them, wore the expression of a man who had already decided the duel was over.
"Two Fusion-Summoned Albion the Branded Dragon on the field at once. Do you know what that means, little girl?"
He held up two fingers.
"You only have two more chances to activate a card effect. That is the countdown to your fate."
Two Albion on the field at once meant paying 1200 LP for every card effect activation. With Nanki'in Sakuya sitting at 2800 LP remaining, she could only afford to trigger a card effect two more times before her LP was gone.
Inside a standard 4000 LP environment, two Fusion-Summoned Albion's suppression was genuinely oppressive.
"We're not done yet. The Grand Director Death God I just used as Fusion Material triggers its own GY effect and revives itself."
[When this card is used as Fusion Material and sent to the GY or banished: Special Summon this card.]
"And I activate another GY effect of Albion the Branded Dragon!"
[During your or your opponent's turn, if this card is in the GY and your opponent controls a Ritual/Fusion/Synchro/Xyz/Link monster: You can Special Summon this card. If Special Summoned this way, this card is banished if it leaves the field.]
Because Nanki'in Sakuya's field currently held Sky Striker Ace - Shizuku, a Link monster, the Albion that had been used as Fusion Material earlier in the turn came back from the Graveyard under its own power.
Jinguuji Domitsu's field was now a straight row of four Attack Position monsters: three Albion the Branded Dragon and one Grand Director Death God.
"The young miss's monster has higher ATK though!" The Nanki'in side attempted a tactical analysis.
With Justice Sword equipped, Sky Striker Ace - Shizuku sat at 3000 ATK. The highest ATK on Domitsu's field was Grand Director Death God at 2800, still reduced by 200 from Shizuku's Graveyard Spell count.
"When I revived the Albion from the Graveyard, I activate Grand Director Death God's other effect!"
[When a Fusion/Synchro/Xyz/Link Monster is Special Summoned: Target 1 Effect Monster on the field; negate that target's effects until the end of the turn.]
"I negate Sky Striker Ace - Shizuku's effects! Seal of Blazing Damnation!"
A chanted incantation materialized as black cursework that coiled and settled around the heavily armored tachi girl.
[Sky Striker Ace - Shizuku's effects negated]
[Grand Director Death God] [ATK: 2800 -> 3000]
[Albion the Branded Dragon] [ATK: 2300 -> 2500 x3]
Because Justice Sword was an Equip Spell and not one of Shizuku's own effects, the ATK boost from it persisted through the negation. But now, with Shizuku's passive negated, Grand Director Death God's ATK recovered to 3000 and all three Albion recovered to 2500. Grand Director Death God had drawn level with Shizuku.
"Do not think for a moment that not activating effects will carry you through this turn. All the performers gathered on the dark stage: attack!"
Jinguuji Domitsu declared the Battle Phase and sent Grand Director Death God into Sky Striker Ace - Shizuku.
Equal ATK, 3000 against 3000. Both would destroy each other in the exchange. Which was precisely the point. Deliberately sacrificing one monster to tear a hole in the opposing field so the remaining three Albion could all pile through and attack freely.
"Face-down Trap Card, activate!" The moment Grand Director Death God's attack was declared, Amano flipped the set card.
Jinguuji Domitsu called out immediately: "That's your last free activation! Only one left!"
Nanki'in Sakuya LP: 2800 -> 1600
"At least this turn it is not the last one."
Amano flipped the set card beside Sakuya's small leather-heeled boots.
The Trap that had been waiting face-down was Speedcast.
By discarding a Normal Spell from hand, it allowed that same Normal Spell to be treated as a Quick-Play Spell, resolving at Spell Speed 2.
"The Spell Card I am discarding is Dark Ruler No More!"
[Dark Ruler No More]
[Spell Card: Negate the effects of all face-up monsters your opponent currently controls until the end of this turn. For the rest of the turn after this card resolves, your opponent takes no damage. Neither player can activate monster effects in response to this card's activation.]
Activating Dark Ruler No More on the opponent's turn via Speedcast was the kind of extravagance that only existed in anime. In his previous life, Amano had never once pulled this off.
"I negate all of your monsters' effects!"
With the monster effects negated, the duel proceeded mechanically. Grand Director Death God and Sky Striker Ace - Shizuku clashed and destroyed each other.
[Grand Director Death God destroyed]
[Sky Striker Ace - Shizuku destroyed]
And this was exactly the result Amano needed.
"At the same time, I activate Sky Striker Ace - Raye's effect in the Graveyard!"
[Once per turn, when a "Sky Striker Ace" Link Monster you control leaves the field because of the opponent's card effect or is destroyed by battle: You can Special Summon this card from your GY in Defense Position.]
"Because Sky Striker Ace - Shizuku was destroyed in battle, I Special Summon Sky Striker Ace - Raye from the Graveyard in Defense Position!"
[Sky Striker Ace - Raye] [DEF: 1500]
The tachi girl shed the deep-blue armored configuration and reverted to her original appearance, black-and-white uniform, blade in hand.
"Even if you revived one monster, I still have three Albion with no effects to block that have not attacked yet!"
Three Albion spread their wings in unison and dove toward the Defense Position Raye.
Amano flipped the other set card without hesitation. "I activate Quick-Play Spell, Half Shut! I target Sky Striker Ace - Raye!"
[Half Shut]
[Quick-Play Spell: Target 1 face-up monster on the field; it cannot be destroyed by battle this turn, also its ATK is halved until the end of this turn.]
"Raye's ATK drops to half, and she cannot be destroyed by battle this turn!"
[Sky Striker Ace - Raye] [ATK: 1500 -> 750]
The tachi girl, ATK halved, set her blade horizontally across her line of sight and took a guard stance. She held it there: one against three, the girl who could not be cut down holding the line.
"You survived. For now." Jinguuji Domitsu looked at the cards remaining in his hand.
Two face-down Trap Cards. But with Half Shut making Raye undestroyable by battle for the turn, there was nothing he could do with those two remaining Traps through the Battle Phase.
"I set two cards face-down and end my turn. But remember: when this turn ends, Dark Ruler No More's effect expires. You will still have only one chance to activate an effect."
With 1600 LP remaining and two Fusion-Summoned Albion on the field, the cost of any card effect was 1200 LP. Exactly one activation left.
"My turn. Draw!" Amano drew the opening card of the turn.
Before the card had fully cleared the Duel Disk, Jinguuji Domitsu triggered the face-down. "At this moment, I activate the Trap Card, Necro Fusion! I banish two Grand Director Death Gods and one Comedy Actor from my Graveyard face-down to Fusion Summon!"
Against an opponent down to one effect activation, the only play Domitsu could picture was a second Hayate direct attack. And Necro Fusion was his answer to even that last option.
"The final act of the dark stage is opening. Tragedy and comedy combined in one, cry and mock this world together!"
"Fusion Summon! Perform your soliloquy from hell! Death Prison Realm Actor - Quiritis!"
[Death Prison Realm Actor - Quiritis] [Level 8 / LIGHT]
[Fiend / Fusion / Effect]
[ATK: 2500 / DEF: 2500]
["Death Prison Realm" monster + LIGHT or DARK monster]
The stage for Jinguuji Domitsu's grand finale now held four monsters, each at exactly 2500 ATK.
And Death Prison Realm Actor - Quiritis carried an effect that was the finishing blow against a field that could only activate one more card effect:
[During your or your opponent's Main Phase: Negate the effects of all monsters on the field except Level 8 or higher Fusion Monsters until the end of this turn.]
Even if Amano Link Summoned Hayate again, that ATK would be dropped straight to zero.
"This is your desperate finale, Nanki'in Sakuya, only heir of the Nanki'in family. Your curtain call happens here."
"The one making noise without realizing he is the one about to fall." Amano's jaw was set. "One effect activation is all I need. I will take your whole precious finale apart with this one shot."
He pulled a monster from his hand and drove it into Nanki'in Sakuya's silver-tachi-styled Duel Disk.
"I Normal Summon Sky Striker Ace - Roze in Attack Position!"
[Sky Striker Ace - Roze] [LIGHT]
[Warrior / Effect]
[ATK: 1500 / DEF: 1500]
A second tachi-wielding girl in a jet-black uniform materialized on Nanki'in Sakuya's field and stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Raye.
And here was the gamble it had always been coming down to.
From the moment the Blade and Sword field had awakened just two days earlier, Nanki'in Sakuya had only drawn one Link-2 Sky Striker monster. That single Link-2 was simultaneously the last resort and the decisive weapon.
"One Link-2, and it cuts through everything."
Amano spent the last of his two allotted Link Summon slots.
[Current available Link Summons: 1 -> 0]
The rules for Link Summoning were straightforward to the point of being almost too universal. Link-1: send one monster to the Graveyard. Link-2: send two.
"I designate Sky Striker Ace - Raye and Sky Striker Ace - Roze as Link Materials! Link markers pointing: lower-left, lower-right!"
"Expand! The link circuit to victory!"
"Sky Striker network overloading across all channels, twin data streams converge and merge, combination sequence initiated!"
"Final link circuit confirmed, absolute Sky Striker zone established!"
"Link Summon! Link-2! Combination Technique - Cross-Flash Zero Style!"
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