Episode 4 - Trial by Fire

It was the following day, and Jin was once again walking through the dueling compound's courtyard. The dueling team had sent Kotei Jin home to rest the day before, but now he was resolute. They had said that before he could get a place on the team, he would have to duel each of the Bosatsu Four. They hadn't said how many of them he would have to beat - just that he would be judged on his performance. He wasn't sure exactly what that meant. All he knew was that he needed to make it onto the team, so that he could face 'Venomous Kyoru' and avenge his brother.

He entered the team's offices and made his way towards the central room where they had spoken. He turned the corner and paused. There was someone there.

It was a tall girl who Jin didn't recognize. Her silvery-gray hair was mostly short, except for a long lock that covered the right side of her face. Her uniform was unfamiliar - she certainly wasn't from Bosatsu Academy.

She was leaving the central room. She paused when she reached Jin. "Kotei-san." Her voice was smooth and cloying. "I understand you're being tested today." She placed her hand on Jin's shoulder. "Best of luck."

"... Thanks," said Jin, unsure.

The girl laughed lightly, then continued down the hall. Jin watched her leave, the hair standing up on the back of his neck. There was something unsettling about her... Jin shook off the feeling, then turned and walked into the central room.

The monitors were off, and the papers lying about had been tidied up a bit. No one was there. Jin looked around in mild confusion, then, tentatively, tested the door at the back of the room.

His eyes took a moment to adjust to the bright lights. The Bosatsu Four were facing him, sitting on a raised bench at the far wall. Between Jin and the Four lay a pair of slightly elevated platforms, and above them on the wall was an electronic scoreboard with a timer - this was their private dueling arena.

"Welcome, Kotei Jin," intoned Captain Ryoichi Kei, standing and raising his arms. "Today you will face each of the top four duelists at Bosatsu Academy. Your success or failure will determine whether there is a place for you on this team. Are you ready?"

A confident grin crossed Jin's face. "Of course. Who's up first?"

Ryoichi smiled. "I am."

~

They stood facing each other on the dueling platforms.

"Kotei-kun, something for you to keep in mind - victory is not the most important thing in this test. Dueling someone is the only way to know their true character. That is the purpose of the test. Show us your character."

Jin raised his fist, grinning. "Enough talk. Let's duel!"

Ryoichi nodded. "Very well. Best two of three. Engarde!"

"Rock!" Jin watched carefully.

"Paper!" He saw it. The twitch of Ryoichi's fingers. He was displaying the same tell as Mizumigawa. Jin almost shouted at him - he wasn't going to fall for the same trick twice!

"Scissors!" Unless... he must be expecting Jin to see this and recognize it as a trick. If Jin fell for it, he'd throw Rock. If he saw through the trick, he'd throw Scissors. Which meant Ryoichi was going to throw Rock or Paper...

"SHOOT!"

"Hah! Looks like I'm better than you thought?" Ryoichi's Scissors had beaten Jin's Paper. "You're going to have to do better than that."

Jin couldn't believe it. It wasn't a trick. He really does have a tell that obvious. It took effort to make it look like he was disappointed.

"Ready, Kotei-kun?"

Jin frowned. "You are good. I hope I can figure you out."

"Rock!" Jin watched intently for the tell.

"Paper!" There it was again. All four fingers this time - Paper. Jin would throw Scissors and wipe him out.

"Scissors!" But Jin couldn't silence a nagging doubt - was Ryoichi manipulating him? He'd play it safe, throw Paper. If he was right, they'd tie, and his suspicions would be confirmed.

"SHOOT!"

A tie. Jin smiled to himself.

"Damn. Looks like you're still winning."

Ryoichi smiled proudly, raised his fist in silence.

"Rock!" Jin was behind, but he knew all he needed to win.

"Paper!" It was a shame, really. He hadn't expected it to be this easy.

"Scissors!" ... Nothing yet. That meant he was going to throw Rock... right?

"SHOOT!"

"Sorry, Ryoichi-san. Paper covers rock. We're tied now."

"Ah, looks like I'm going to have to be more careful." Ryoichi tilted his head, watching Jin closely. He raised his fist once more.

"Rock!" One more throw. This was where Jin had to prove himself.

"Paper!" All four fingers. Paper again.

"Scissors!" Unless Ryoichi was pretending still... but he looked confident. Jin was sure!

"SHOOT!"

Jin smiled. Scissors cut Paper.

Ryoichi was taken aback. "... Your vicory, Kotei-kun." He turned and walked back to the sidelines.

This, thought Jin, is going to be easier than I expected. Still, something bothered him about that duel. Forget it. Deal with the others. "Well, who's next?"

Yukimura Hisoka stood silently, walked out opposite Jin. Her expression was severe, unreadable.

She eyed Jin. "... Pathetic."

Jin raised his eyebrows. "That's what I thought. I expected the captain of the team to put up a-"

Her voice was flat. "I'm not talking about him, I'm talking about you."

"What?!"

"You're right, the captain of the Bosatsu Academy dueling team is much better than that. He threw the duel."

Jin glanced at Ryoichi, watching with amusement from the sidelines. "Why?"

"It's a test. We told you that. You saw his weakness, but you didn't push. You didn't see how he was manipulating you - he could have won at any moment."

Jin's head was spinning. "But... but I won! In the end, I won!"

Yukimura glared. "You won a single round. But you learned nothing. The duel didn't make you any stronger. When you duel, you have to push your opponent to be as strong as possible - so you can crush the next opponent. And the next." Her glasses flashed with reflected light. "If you want to join the Bosatsu Four, you're going to have to do better than that. If you want to beat Captain Ryoichi next time, you're going to have to do much better."

Jin shook his head. "All right! I'll show you what I can do." He raised his fist.

Yukimura adjusted her glasses, gripping the top and bottom of one lens with her forefinger and thumb. She raised her fist in turn.

"Rock!" Jin was sweating. Was he in over his head?

"Paper!" No. I can't think like that. I have no choice but to beat them and fight my way to Kyoru. But Yukimura was blank and unreadable. She was giving no clues.

"Scissors!" There had to be something... she seemed like the type to prefer Paper, cold and analytical. But she was smart, she would expect him to see that... he'd throw Rock, hopefully that would be safe, give him something more to work with.

Right before making his throw, he had a sudden thought. No! She's figured me out... I have to assume she knows what I'm going to throw - I'll switch to Scissors to counter Paper!

"SHOOT!"

NO! She'd thrown Rock, beating his Scissors.

"Pathetic. I expected better from you, Kotei Jin." She pointed at him. "I'm going to make this absolutely clear. If you're going to beat me, you're going to have to use 'that'."

Jin recoiled, looked away. "I... I haven't used 'that' since...." He couldn't finish.

"If you can't do it, then you're useless. You'd better leave right now."

For a long moment, she watched Jin, who couldn't seem to raise his head to meet her gaze.

She narrowed her eyes. "Fine."

Then, she raised her fist.