Arakai

Episode 3: The Strongest Duelist, Ryuzo Takeshi!

"The National Champion is here, so we gotta make a good impression!"

Hiroki and Team Domination are searching all over a shopping mall, having gotten completely lost. Yes, the National Arakai Champion himself is here in Kyoto, dueling at this very moment! Hiroki heard the news on the street, and he couldn't turn down a chance like this. Just imagine it! If they can defeat him, they'll be legends! His eyes are full of stars and sparkles. Gaku and Touha are able to find the card store, so the kids rush over, squishing their faces up against the glass storefront because they can't get inside past the huge crowd.

Everyone in the store is gathered around to watch the duel, but nobody watching seems happy to be there. They're in awestruck silence, almost horror as this purple-haired, dark and edgy looking guy duels. Just as expected from Ryuzo, he's completely wiping the floor with his opponent... Gaku and Touha share some spooky rumors and stories between themselves. Apparently he's been a pro since he was 12 years old. They call him the Dhampir Duelist, and word is he's second only to one. Other than that, he's completely invincible. Ryuzo defeats his opponent, looking down at him with disgust. He calls him a failure as a duelist, and commands him to leave his sight. The crowd parts so the disgraced duelist can storm out of the store, and seeing this, Hiroki screams that it's their chance!

Using their little bodies, Team Domination comically slips through the crowd and under people, sneaking up and causing a whole lot of chaos along the way. They get right up at the front of the crowd and start yelling as loud as they can to try and get Ryuzo's attention, which only prompts him to roll his eyes and turn away, trying to ignore them. He asks if there's anyone actually worth his time here, or if he should leave already. Hiroki clenches his fist and summons all his bravery, but Gaku and Touha beg him not to risk it! He's too scary and powerful! Hiroki charges out in front of everyone anyways, confronting Ryuzo, much to the shock of the crowd!

"We have a secret weapon that can totally destroy you! We just need uhh... ten, no, twenty minutes!"

Everyone is surprised by the audacity of this little boy's challenge, even Ryuzo, who keeps a stoic face. He says he's more than certain he can handle whatever some kids can throw at him, and that he doesn't want to waste his time, which causes Hiroki's bluster to completely break, desperately begging with puppy eyes for him to give them just a little while to prepare. Ryuzo seems like he's not gonna bite, only to sigh and turn away, saying that he's fine with waiting anyways. It'll give him time to defeat another challenger or two.

Hiroki celebrates his success, but Gaku and Touha are intimidated by Ryuzo's steely, cold confidence. They ask if their boss is sure about this, but he promises he has a genius plan to defeat Ryuzo! They ask what it is, and he scolds them for not realizing yet. Hurry up, slowpokes! They need to go to Dragon Child Gaming! Hiroki and pals take off running.

Sora, in the meantime, is at DCG on his own. He's pleasantly surprised that Hayate and Team Domination aren't around today, because that means he was finally able to get a good duel in on his own... I mean, not that he wants to get rid of them, but they can both be a lot in their own ways, and he needs to stand on his own if he wants to improve as a duelist, right? Turns out he's talking to Shiina about it, and she sarcastically tells him that sure, she gets what he means. Just as she volunteers to find another opponent for Sora to duel, Hayate finally arrives and interrupts them. Well, Sora rubs the back of his neck... Another time, then. Sora and Hayate try to figure out the next step in Sora's Arakai journey, until-

Hiroki and Team Domination finally rush in, breathless and desperate! They beg Sora for help, prompting weird looks from everyone in the store. Hayate asks them to explain what's going on, and when they try, they all have to stop to take deep breaths first. They then all start loudly babbling about it at once, causing it to become completely incomprehensible. Shiina tells them to go one at a time, but they only listen once sensei Sora repeats it to them.

Hiroki falls to his knees, pathetically begging Sora to come defeat this scary guy for them at another store! Hayate questions if they ran away somewhere else because Sora beat them, which Gaku and Touha claim is slander. In fact, they were spreading word of his power! Sora tells them it's none of his business and he's not going all that way. Besides, he just won another duel, so he's happy with that much. Hiroki pleads and begins to cry, saying that he can't just back out now, he challenged the National Champion for Sora already!

We see a flashback of the challenge from Hiroki's perspective, revealing his inner thoughts. He got put on the spot in front of everyone and did something without thinking, but his confidence ran out when he remembered that he'd just lost yesterday! So instead, he made an excuse to go and get Sora to duel for him! He sobs and says that he's so sorry, begging for Sora to please help him...

But this new info about Ryuzo seems to have caught both Sora and Hayate's interest. Sora asks if it could be true, and Hayate explains about Ryuzo Takeshi, a big time duelist with a bad attitude and a bad reputation. Sora is surprised that a guy his age could be the best Arakai player in the country... What's he been doing with his life? Hayate suggests they follow the lead up, this could be a once in a lifetime chance to meet the champ! He'd heard he was in the area, but this is totally something else... Sora and Hayate let Team Domination lead the way to the shopping mall, arriving at the rival card store.

As they struggle their way to the front of the crowd, Ryuzo only acknowledges them by saying that they're late. He doesn't seem happy about that. Hiroki tries to introduce Sora and Hayate to very little fanfare. Everyone seems understandably underwhelmed, and when Ryuzo and Sora meet, they both seem equally uninterested in whatever competition is going on here. Sora recognises Ryuzo as the dude he saw on the TV back in Episode 1, and Ryuzo says that it's funny- He doesn't recognise Sora at all. To protect his sensei from Ryuzo's withering remarks, Hiroki begins talking Sora up, over exaggerating things and making stuff up to present Sora as a new duelist on the scene with high potential. When he hears Sora's full name, Ryuzo seems to assume some things and changes his mind.

"So you're some kind of big deal around here, huh? Then let's not waste time standing around."

Ryuzo says no more talk, it's time to duel. Sora doesn't let the pressure get to him, telling himself that it doesn't matter if he wins or loses. It's normal to lose against a guy like this. The duel begins, and Hayate and Team Domination watch nervously. Sora is using his Blaze starter deck with no changes, which Ryuzo recognises as garbage. Ryuzo has an Abyss deck, a nation themed after darkness and death. Sora quickly notices that Ryuzo's deck revolves around manipulating the Lost Area (where Allies and Spells go after they're used). He sends a lot of cards there, and gains benefits from the cards in his Lost Area.

Ryuzo goes right for his key ally, Necrochimera, Beelebucter. Sora saw this card back in Episode 1 too, and remembers it. He knows he can't underestimate Ryuzo, so this time he Invokes NEXUS early to go all out right away and destroy Beelebucter with its power boost! However, Ryuzo doesn't react at all... When Beelebucter is destroyed, it has an effect to discard a card from his hand to return itself to his hand, and then Ryuzo gains 2 Life, bringing Beelebucter back and making Sora's attack feel nearly pointless. Hiroki and Sora both realize that this indestructible Ally is crazy powerful, and Hayate remarks that it's an effective strategy for defence if it keeps working. Now Sora's going to have to deal with Beelebucter over and over, while Ryuzo keeps attacking relentlessly.

Beelebucter destroys Sora's key ally in return, and with NEXUS gone, the situation seems hopeless... The pressure is on, and Sora admits that he should have paid more attention to Ryuzo's duel on the TV. Maybe he'd have known what to do here, but it's too late now. Sora decides that there's no use in attacking Beelebucter, so instead focuses on attacking other Allies and attacking directly. Hayate and Hiroki panic, Ryuzo seems confident- because all three know the same thing. Sora's given up, so Ryuzo has already won the duel. With Beele sticking on the field, Ryuzo is able to easily overwhelm and defeat Sora. His attempts to deal damage end up being in vain, taking his first loss at Ryuzo's hands- a pointless struggle. Sora sighs, admitting that Ryuzo definitely seems like a National Champion. Ryuzo scoffs.

"What made you think otherwise?"

Despite Sora's loss, Hayate is excited to have met such a powerful duelist, but Ryuzo completely overlooks his handshake. He says he's done wasting time here, and just leaves, seeming not angry, but disappointed. The tension in the room deflates the instant Ryuzo leaves, as if everyone had been holding their breath. Sora expresses that something about the guy feels familiar, almost recognizable... Hayate says he's probably seen Ryuzo before, since he's the champion and all, but that's not what Sora means. It feels as if Ryuzo wasn't having fun at all during their duel, even if he was focused. Almost like he was doing chores, or taking an exam.

No time for that, though! Sora's gonna be late for dinner, so he's gotta get home already! He says goodbye to Hayate and Team Domination, and although they offer to help, he says he can probably find his way home from here on his own. As Sora goes home, we instead find ourselves unexpectedly following Ryuzo on his way home instead, seeing him stop by a cute local bakery to buy some pastries, before returning to... A nearby hospital. He's allowed in to visit a bedridden woman in a hospital room... The sign on the door makes it clear that it's his mother, Amane Takeshi. He sits down and shares the pastries with her, and she's delighted! At this moment, Ryuzo almost seems vulnerable.

"I got your favourite again..."

In comparison, Sora eats dinner with his own mother in awkward silence before retreating to his room. Even though he lost so badly, he's still thinking about his duel with Ryuzo. It was really frustrating when he realized that he couldn't defeat Beelebucter, but something inside him almost wanted to do it all over again, even if he knew the result wouldn't change. Wasn't that the definition of insanity? Compared to his previous duels, this one had been different. He wasn't quite sure if it had been 'fun', but it had been thrilling, even though he never stood a chance. So this was what he'd been missing out on... It was a shame that Ryuzo couldn't appreciate it the same way.

Featured Card: Necrochimera, Beelebucter