Chapter 69: Facing Dark Ash—I Mean, the Big Rabbit-Eared Demon King
Walking down the excessively long stairs, even though Hayato's stamina was decent, he couldn't help but sit down and catch his breath. Ignoring the strange looks from the surrounding Duelists, he spoke to the air beside him: "Yellow, which direction?"
Floating in the air, invisible to anyone but Hayato, Ojama Yellow glanced at Ojama Green waving from a distance, then looked at the scorching sun overhead. He conjured a small fan to fan Hayato, while muttering, "Still a ways to go, Aniki, how about we rest a bit more?"
"That rainbow ball is useless, only good for being cute. Only I care about Aniki~"
Hayato was too lazy to rant about where Ojama Yellow learned that phrase. Once his breathing calmed down slightly, he ran off again in the direction Yellow pointed.
Meanwhile, on a forest path.
A White-Haired Youth with a youthful face and a harmless appearance walked alone. While other Duelists around were pairing off and battling, the White-Haired Youth, strolling leisurely as if on vacation, seemed quite out of place.
Stopping under the shade of a tree, he watched two Duelists battling fiercely nearby. The White-Haired Youth's lips curved slightly. "Oh my, how strange. Why do I always feel like someone is following me?"
A dark shadow leaped down from the treetops above him, landing not far behind him. Gaia The Fierce Knight, without his warhorse, dragged his Lance on the ground, his eyes fixed on the White-Haired Youth. "By My Master's command, I am to place you under surveillance."
The youth turned around, his harmless face obscured by the shadow cast by the tree canopy, only his neck and below exposed to the sunlight. "What a loyal dog."
The Golden Disk ornament on his chest glinted golden in the light.
Everything seemed normal, but the fact that the White-Haired Youth could see Gaia The Fierce Knight, who was invisible to ordinary people, was itself very abnormal.
Raising his hand towards the invisible Card Spirit, the White-Haired Youth showed a harmless smile. "It just so happens I found this Duelist Kingdom a bit boring. How about I just use you to make a doll and pass the time?"
Just as the White-Haired Youth and the Card Spirit were about to clash, a voice interrupted their confrontation. "Instead of laying hands on my subordinate, why don't I be your opponent instead, Bakura Ryo?"
The White-Haired Youth turned to look at the speaker, displaying a flawless performance of surprise on his face. "Oh, isn't this Hayato? I didn't expect to meet you at the Duelist Kingdom Match. Congratulations on eliminating Japan's strongest Player, Weevil, and securing your first Victory."
"Just luck, that's all. I was fortunate." Hayato walked out from the shadows, sweat from his intense exercise still on his forehead, not yet wiped away. He held five Duel Monsters Cards in his hand. After brushing past Gaia The Fierce Knight, the Card Spirit of Dark Magician Knight returned to the Card.
"As for you, Bakura Ryo, you usually keep a low profile. I didn't expect you to be a powerful Duelist invited by Pegasus. I thought, like Yugi, you weren't interested in the empty title of 'Duel King'."
"That's not entirely true. I'm human too, with desires and emotions. Besides, apart from the title of 'Duel King', Mr. Pegasus has also prepared generous Prizes for the winner."
Hayato smiled. "Oh? Prizes? Which Prize is it that attracted you here? Is it the Wealth symbolized by a Duelist's Right Hand, or the Glory symbolized by their Left Hand?"
"Or perhaps, Pegasus's Left Eye?"
Bakura's expression froze for a moment, his eyes instantly becoming sharp. "As expected, the scent of the Millennium Items on you wasn't an illusion. You really do know something!"
As he spoke, Bakura's hand reached towards the Golden Disk on his chest, and an invisible Power began to spread out in waves around him. Ojama Yellow, hiding in the Card in Hayato's hand, was the first to notice. "Aniki, that white-haired guy is making a move!"
"Don't even think about it!" Hayato threw the five Cards in his hand forward. Although he didn't use any card-throwing techniques, the five Cards each traced a trajectory, striking the Golden Disk on Bakura Ryo's chest simultaneously. But just as they were about to hit, the Power around Bakura still spread out, and the five Cards were scattered on the ground after only blocking for an instant.
Having had one confrontation with Pegasus's Millennium Eye, Hayato knew that his and the Card Spirits' Power was still insufficient for now. However, he naturally had his trump card for daring to seek out Bakura. "System, deploy the Domain!"
[Understood. Duel Domain deployed, automatically adapting to Shadow Game Rules.]
[Unknown Power detected, resisting. Deducting 500 DP Points.]
Almost the moment the Power erupted from Bakura, an invisible Power also spread from Hayato. As the 10000 Balance of DP Points in Hayato's System decreased by 500, Hayato's Power took a step ahead of Bakura's Power, encompassing the surrounding space.
"A Shadow Game?! You... do you have a Millennium Item on you too?" Bakura, whose state was completely different from before, looked nervous. As the Domain formed, he felt the aura on Hayato more and more clearly. Besides the aura of the Millennium Eye, he even sensed a faint aura of the Millennium Key.
"Who knows? Maybe it's the Millennium Eye, or maybe the Millennium Puzzle. Oh, it could even be the Millennium Ring."
Looking at Bakura, who had suddenly become somewhat nervous, Hayato wasn't sure why his reaction was like this, but that didn't stop him from saying something provocative. "If you want to know the answer, just beat me in this Shadow Game where we bet our Souls, Bakura who isn't Bakura at all."
Hayato, of course, actually knew who the Soul currently occupying Bakura Ryo's Body was. The final boss who appeared from the first episode to the last, only won one Duel in the entire Anime plot, was one of the few without a 'Duel brain', and would achieve his goals through means other than Duels: Great Evil God Zorc.
However, this Information was a bit too far ahead. It was better not to reveal that he knew this.
"A Duel Monsters game? Hmph, how troublesome." Bakura Ryo reluctantly took out the Deck from his person, looking at the strange device that appeared before him out of thin air. "What is this thing?"
Slipping the device, like an Arm Blade, onto his wrist and inserting his Deck, Hayato revealed a smile full of fighting spirit. "Just something interesting fabricated by the temporarily deployed Domain. You can call it a Duel Disk. This thing is much easier to use than a Duel Platform."
"Let's battle, Bakura! Bet our Souls and fully enjoy this Shadow Game!"