Under the Rain [Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS]

S1-3✩ Three Reasons Why I'm Just a Minor Character... Supposedly.

It was early in the morning yet here Yusaku was, sitting on one of the benches near the school gate with his Ai-programmed duel disk around his left wrist. He brought Ai today so he could analyze every students that entered the school grounds and find Zaizen Aoi amongst them. Although he found this activity was a nuisance, he was determined to find the said girl today and earn the information he and Kusanagi desired. Ai on the other hand, wasn't planning to let Yusaku boss him around today; at least not without getting payment and by payment, he meant the temporal satisfaction he felt when he teased the boy. "Hey Yusaku, so I'm looking for Zaizen Aoi-san, right?"

"Who else?" Yusaku curtly replied without paying much attention to his talking duel disk. "Now stop talking and begin looking."

"But Yusaku, you do realize with my ultra-high advanced program I could find anyone, literally, anyone, in no time don't you?" Ai slightly narrowed his eye and talked in teasing manner, "Not just Zaizen Aoi. I could also find that girl you once talked to, you know? If you just tell me how she looked like, I could--"

Unfortunately for him, Yusaku wasn't in the mood for dealing with another nuisance in the morning. "Do I need to say it again, Ai? Stop being such a fuss and put that so-called ultra-high advanced program of yours into use," he said, giving Ai a glare, "That is, if you really have one."

"Hey, that was uncalled for!" the startled AI couldn't help retorting the boy's blunt remark. "And I was genuinely trying to help you, too!"

"You know the only way to help me right now is by finding Zaizen Aoi."

"But still--! AH!" Ai shouted as he automatically focused on the figure who just passed behind Yusaku. Just before Yusaku could reprimand him for shouting, Ai told him, "Zaizen Aoi had just passed by behind you!"

Not wanting to waste anymore of his time, Yusaku quickly followed the girl to the Duel Club room door. When Aoi entered it, Yusaku just stayed outside and pondered on what he should do next. While he was hesitating, he encountered Shima, who annoyedly reintroduced himself after Yusaku said he didn't remember his name. After re-learning his name, he now found himself standing in front of some average-looking duelists (including Aoi) and introducing himself as the newest member of the Duel Club. He made a mental note to himself to reprimand Ai later for making him join this silly club against his will.

Immediately after the introduction session, Aoi noticed his old-modeled duel disk and blatantly asked him to show his deck, to which he agreed. Since he showed "the inexperienced Yusaku's deck" instead of Playmaker's deck, he pretty much expected to be laughed at, but he appreciated when the club's president Hosoda scolded Shima for laughing at his dummy deck.

"Now let's begin the meeting," said Hosoda as he walked towards the whiteboard, soon after Yusaku received his deck back. "First, let's review the rules of Speed Duel."

As Yusaku had already known those rules, he just pretended he was paying attention to the president's lecture while actually thinking about what Ai told him earlier this morning. Ai could find that girl he met... he never thought about that before. Not when he never considered that girl to be relevant. Although he once longed to see her nostalgic eyes again, to him, now her existence was more or less like Shima. Minor characters that didn't need to be taken seriously.

...but maybe, just maybe, if he met her again, that opinion would change.

"Pardon the intrusion."

As in cue, a girly voice echoed from behind the door, stopping Hosoda's lecture and drawing all attention towards it. Yusaku merely gave a glance when he heard that voice, but when he saw her walking in, his eyes widened ever so slightly in surprise. There she was, appearing just when he was thinking about her.