Chiyoko was quiet. She had said a cursory goodbye to the Bosatsu duelists, then met up again with Kohitsuji. Their opponents were strange - they seemed nice, but she couldn't shake the unsettling feeling that crept up on her when she was stuck with them in the elevator.
But that wasn't the most pressing issue at the moment. She was often distracted by things like this, trying to figure people out, when really she should be focusing on the upcoming duels.
She looked around. Electrical problems aside, it was quite an impressive building - a spire that towered over the surrounding city, topped by an open-air dueling arena. The stands were bursting, fans of each team eager for this round's duels to start. She was sitting on the sidelines, along with Hairo, Tetsu, and Captain Hidaka. On the opposing bench, four of the Bosatsu duelists waited - Kotei, Jihara, Yukimura, and Captain Ryoichi. Just outside the arena, on opposite sides, Mizumigawa and Karasu were preparing to face each other.
Chiyoko knew that Karasu was strong, but Mizumigawa was not to be taken lightly. She was very skilled, and it was well-known that in the last few years Bosatsu had been a real innovator in developing esoteric techniques. Karasu was going to have to bring all his strength to bear if he was going to triumph.
The crowd suddenly cheered as the two duelists emerged from their respective entrances, striding towards their dueling platforms.
Mizumigawa Shin was wearing her signature hand-wraps and dark glasses. She wasn't a physically imposing figure, but out there in front of the audience she had a powerful presence - electric.
Karasu Nori - Karasu the Rogue - was dressed in his typical dueling outfit, his uniform accented by a domino mask. He carried a single rose, and as he reached the platform, he savored its scent, then tossed it towards the audience - receiving an extra chorus of cheers as his fans reached out to catch it.
Say what you like, he's got style, thought Chiyoko. Just can't seem to hang on to a girlfriend for some reason. Although things seem to be going okay between him and Ana so far...
"Mizumigawa Shin!" Karasu greeted his opponent. "I've been looking forward to this duel."
"Yeah?" She adjusted her shades with the edge of her hand, smirking. "Then don't blink."
"Hah! All right, but I don't just want to hear boasts. I want you to be able to keep up - you're going to have to use your thunderbolt technique."
"Normally I only use that on tough opponents."
Karasu turned towards the audience. "What do you think? Don't you want to see her duel for real?" They roared in agreement.
"Hey, hey, no need to beg. I guess if you're a fan, it's the least I can do." She shifted her stance, then traced a wide circle in the air with her fingertips. Suddenly, with a thunderclap, she brought her hands together, interlacing her fingers, steepling her forefingers. "RIN! Seal of the thunderbolt!"
Chiyoko's eyes widened. Mizumigawa's movements were confident before, but now... she exuded an incredible power, as though her body was charged with electricity. What was this technique?! Was she tapping in to some strange source of power? Or was this her natural strength, sealed away?
Karasu clenched a fist. "Yes! This is the power I wanted to see." He raised it up in preparation for the first throw, and Mizumigawa followed suit.
"Rock! Paper! Scissors! SHOOT!"
Mizumigawa whipped forward a swift throw of Rock. At the same time, Karasu's hand shot forward - stuttered in mid-throw, as though in a skipping video - and completed the throw. Paper.
"Paper covers Rock! Point to Karasu!"
They paused for a moment, then dropped their hands.
"Karasu-kun, that was a sweet Glitch Step! Totally threw me off."
"Are you kidding? I only barely pulled that off. Did you seriously just use Seeding on me?!"
"Hell, I tried."
"No, it worked! I thought you were going to throw Paper, but only guessed you might be seeding it just before the throw. I used the Glitch Step to hide my suspicion, and it payed off."
Chiyoko narrowed her eyes. Sierpinski Seeding? The technique was incredibly tough to pull off - a duelist would have to subtly indicate a specific throw several times, but only at the precise edge of their opponent's peripheral vision. Done properly, it would cause their opponent to subconsciously read them as preparing the desired throw, and would therefore control what they used to counter. So Mizumigawa had seeded a throw of Paper, so that Karasu would throw Scissors. If it had worked, her throw of Rock would have won, but he suspected something was up, and threw Paper to counter.
"You better have more tricks than that, Karasu-kun. It's not going to work again!"
They prepared for the next throw.
"Rock! Paper! Scissors! SHOOT!"
"Scissors cuts Paper! Point to Mizumigawa!"
"That type of move isn't going to work on me, Karasu-kun. Trying to read me mid-throw? I've been training with Jihara-san, and he's faster than you!"
"That was pretty good, Mizu-kun. You could tell I was trying to read your throw, so you faked Rock before switching to Scissors."
"Yep. I thought you were going to take this match seriously!"
"Well, I suppose it's time to finish this." Karasu held a rose in front of him - where had that come from? - and narrowed his eyes at Mizumigawa. "I've seen through your pattern, Mizu-kun. I don't need to read your throw, I can predict it ahead of time." He vanished the rose again with a flick of his hand.
She rolled her eyes. "I'll believe it when I see it."
"Rock! Paper! Scissors! SHOOT!"
"Scissors cuts Paper! Point to Karasu!"
"Tch. You got me."
He shrugged. "Yeah, I was lying. Had to distract you. But it worked! You were wrong about me being too slow - now that I'm synced up with you, I can 'steal' your throws without predicting them." He ran a hand through his hair. "It's over, Mizu-kun!"
"Heh." She looked down. "I guess you're right. It was fun, but it all ends here." She looked up sharply, drew a circle quickly in the air, then brought her hands together with a sound like thunder.
Her hands were clasped together, the fingers interlaced, but different this time - her middle fingers were pressed together, folded behind her forefingers. "PYO! Seal of the great thunderbolt!"
Chiyoko almost couldn't believe it. The change that came over Mizumigawa was like when she used the first seal, but redoubled. She almost expected to see sparks jumping from the duelist's fingers.
"You're good, Karasu-kun! I was hoping I wouldn't have to use my second-level release." She pointed at him. "Consider yourself lucky!"
The duel didn't last much longer after that. The next two throws followed swiftly, and on each one her movements were fast and flawless. Without hesitating, she threw the perfect counter each time. She blew past all his defenses, and in a flash, the match was over.
"Match, Mizumigawa! Three points to two!"
Karasu had to take a moment to catch his breath. "Mizu-kun, that was incredible!" He bowed to her.
She flashed him a smile and a 'V for victory'. "Not bad yourself, Karasu-kun. Keep working, and maybe you'll be able to keep up with me next time."
"Haha! All right, Mizu-kun. Next time!" They left the dueling platforms. Karasu's girlfriend, Ana, was waiting for him, and she gave him a kiss on the cheek as he returned to his seat.
But Chiyoko wasn't watching them anymore. She was heading for the team's lounge to prepare herself for the next duel. These Bosatsu duelists - we can't underestimate them! I'll have to be especially careful dealing with this next one. She glanced back, as her opponent was heading off in the opposite direction. From what I heard on the elevator, she sounded especially dangerous. The "mastermind", Yukimura Hisoka.
