"But I'm not going to let you, 'World's Number One Eggplant,' perform an Xyz Summon so easily this time. Cyber Twin Dragon, attack!"
On Zane's field, Cyber Twin Dragon had 2800 ATK. While it couldn't match Nobunaga's 3000 ATK, it was more than enough to break Okita Sakura's 2500 ATK.
"Too naive! —I activate my Set Trap Card! Poster Girl!"
Hoshino's signature defensive card, unseen for quite some time, could Special Summon a Level 4 or lower Heroic Spirit monster from the Deck to take the attack when a Heroic Spirit was targeted.
The reason she hadn't used it to block Cyber End Dragon earlier was simple—Cyber End Dragon had built-in piercing damage. Defending without thinking would have meant instant death.
"—Special Summon Heroic Spirit – Mash Kyrielight!"
[Heroic Spirit – Mash Kyrielight ★★★★ (Level 4)][LIGHT][Warrior/Effect][ATK 1000/DEF 2000]
Mash was thrown onto the field in a flash of light, intercepting Cyber Twin Dragon's decisive strike to protect Okita.
"Transient Wall of Snowflakes!"
As the flames collided with the massive shield, even though Mash's DEF was lower than Cyber Twin Dragon's ATK, her effect—preventing destruction while in Defense Position—allowed her to endure the blow head-on.
Akasha: "(ﾟﾛﾟﾉ)ﾉ The eggplant is here!"
"So that's the eggplant?"
"Yeah… it does fit pretty well."
Akasha's shout was met with widespread agreement from the surrounding crowd.
"Senpai!"
After blocking the attack, Mash turned around and scolded sternly.
"I knew you were doing virtual duels in your room, but could you please explain what's going on with that ID?"
"Th-that ID, uh…"
Hoshino's eyes darted around as she desperately searched for an excuse—when Zane very cooperatively launched another attack.
"Careful, Mash! Another attack is coming!"
"Mash won't be destroyed by battle while in Defense Position—but Cyber Twin Dragon can attack twice per turn!"
"Once per turn, during the opponent's Battle Phase, Mash can change the battle position of one face-up Attack Position monster you control!"
Although Mash's effect could change the battle position of any monster her controller controlled, its most important function was allowing Mash herself to withstand one additional attack.
"And while Mash remains in Defense Position, your opponent must select this card as the attack target!"
The second wave of attack crashed violently into the shield. Yet the raging energy still couldn't harm the girl behind it—only the hair at her cheek fluttered wildly in the turbulent airflow.
[Mash ATK 1000]
"That was close…" Hoshino muttered.
"Zane, are you perhaps even stronger than your mentor now?"
By "mentor," Hoshino was, of course, referring to the Cyber Style master, Sheppard. Back in the underground duel arena, when Hoshino Alter faced Sheppard, the victory had been hard-fought—but the ferocity of Zane's offense far surpassed anything Sheppard had shown.
"I wouldn't go that far," Zane replied modestly, though the excited tremor in his arm was impossible to hide.
The king of Duel Academy—Zane Truesdale, known as Kaiser—possessed not only overwhelming dueling skill, but also impeccable character.
In an environment where most of the Blue Dorm looked down on Red Dorm duelists, Zane alone treated everyone equally, never belittling or underestimating any opponent, and always giving every duel his all.
Yet through three years of duels, Hoshino had sensed something hidden deep within Zane's heart—a powerful, burning desire for victory.
He concealed it well, but it still couldn't escape her eyes.
Because in that regard, he was far too similar to Kaiba of the past.
For a duelist, possessing a strong desire to win isn't a bad thing. But if left unguided, that desire could completely reshape a person's character, causing them to lose themselves on the path of power.
That was why—even though Zane and Kaiba were entirely different in personality—they shared unexpected similarities. And not merely because Cyber End Dragon and Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon both had three heads.
The unknown variable was whether Zane, in the end, could overcome his thirst for power through his own will—just as Kaiba had.
"So it really wasn't going to be that easy… End my turn."
Forcing his trembling arm to calm, Zane—who had believed this turn would decide the duel—reluctantly lowered his Duel Disk.
I want to win—!
Even against someone once hailed as the strongest duelist, he wanted to defeat her!
If he couldn't do it this time, then next time he'd push Cyber End Dragon's ATK even higher!
After witnessing the beyond-limit clash between Hoshino and Kagemaru, and a single-turn damage output of 180,000 Life Points, Zane's hunger for power only intensified.
With enough power, any victory could be firmly grasped in one's hand!
"My turn—draw!"
Drawing her card and staring intently at Zane's field, Hoshino said,
"So you used Cyber Kirin to avoid Power Bond's drawback, leaving that 8000-ATK Cyber End Dragon on the field."
Eight thousand ATK—even by Hoshino's standards—was enough to surpass just about any so-called "wall," no matter how tall.
"On Hoshino's field, there are three Heroic Spirits: Okita, Nobunaga, and Mash," Akasha quietly analyzed.
"Using Zane's Field Spell Fusion Gate, it's possible to banish all three and Fusion Summon Okita Alter."
And because three cards would be banished, Okitan's ATK would instantly skyrocket to 6000.
But as impressive as 6000 sounded, in this situation, it was awkwardly insufficient.
It couldn't defeat Cyber End Dragon, and even if the damage went to Cyber Twin Dragon instead, it still wouldn't reduce Zane's remaining Life Points to zero.
"So in the end, Hoshino-nee still has to rely on her final Xyz Summon. With two Level 7 monsters, stacking them is still possible."
"You played that well," Hoshino praised.
"An 8000-ATK Cyber End Dragon, and you even left your Life Points perfectly within the safe line."
What looked like a reckless Power Bond all-out assault was, in truth, the result of careful planning long before Zane executed it.
"But the path to victory isn't built on terrifying attack power alone."
Glancing at the three cards remaining in her hand, Hoshino smiled and said:
"Zane, just now, in your pursuit of higher attack power, you used up all of your hand cards, didn't you? But right now, I only need this one card to completely dismantle the high-ATK wall you painstakingly built—and I can even declare that the other two cards in my hand won't be used at all."
"┌(.Д.)┐ Raigeki!" Akasha blurted out.
Hey—those are banned cards, okay!?
Raigeki, Dark Hole—those once-beloved cards of Akasha's—were all forbidden under the current rules.
Putting away the remaining two cards, Hoshino kept her word and fought using just this single card.
"—I activate the Quick-Play Spell Card Firefly's Flame of Integrity!"
[Firefly's Flame of Integrity – Quick-Play Spell Effect: Choose one of the following effects.
● Special Summon 1 Heroic Spirit – Okita Soji from your Deck in Defense Position.]
Pulling out the searched card and slamming it onto the Duel Disk, another Okita appeared—now standing on both sides of Nobunaga.
"Okita… th-there are two of her now!?"
Caught between the two Okitas, Nobu was unexpectedly flustered.
But why are you blushing like a kettle about to boil!?
[Heroic Spirit – Okita Soji ★★★★★★★ (Level 7)][WIND][Warrior/Effect][ATK 2500/DEF 2000]
"When Okita is successfully Special Summoned, I can Set one Spell or Trap Card from my Deck that lists 'Okita Soji' in its text! And now—there are three Level 7 monsters on the field!"
Her fingers swept across the three cards on the Duel Disk. A newly formed Overlay Network answered her call, summoning the final—and decisive—Xyz Monster of this duel.
"This is bad—I'm being drowned in Okita power! I—I can't breathe!"
Nobu complained, sandwiched between the two Okitas, suffering and enjoying it at the same time.
"I overlay the two Okitas on my field with the Level 7 Oda Nobunaga! Let the undying will of sincerity resound across the heavens—Xyz Summon!"
"Heroic Spirit – Manslayer Okita Soji!"
[Heroic Spirit – Manslayer Okita Soji][Rank 7][WIND][Warrior/Xyz/Effect][ATK 2500/DEF 2000]
[Materials: 3 Level 7 monsters]
[This card is also treated as "Heroic Spirit – Okita Souji."]
A blood-red flower bloomed upon the battlefield. Beneath the elegant movements and captivating appearance lay a life spent cutting down human lives like grass—the youngest genius swordsman of the Shinsengumi, and a cold executioner.
"Let's end this quickly, Master!" Okita declared confidently, drawing her sword from its sheath.
Unlike the elegant katana she usually wielded, the uchigatana Kashuu Kiyomitsu lacked flashy technique—but carried a colder edge, far more suited to killing.
Akasha sighed in awe.
"This version of Okita is unexpectedly… kind of cool-headed."
"Manslayer's effect activates—"
[① When this card is Xyz Summoned:
Select 1 Equip Spell Card from your Deck or GY and equip it to this card.]
"I equip Kashuu Kiyomitsu from my Deck to this card! Then—attack Cyber End Dragon!"
The blade's chilling gleam sharpened further. Equipped with the new card, Xyz Okita lunged straight toward Cyber End Dragon.
"What!? What kind of Equip Spell lets you bridge an 8000 ATK gap like that!?" Zane exclaimed.
Even United We Stand, famous for massive ATK boosts, could only raise ATK by at most 4000. Yet after Xyz Summoning, Hoshino attacked without hesitation.
"—Equip Spell Kashuu Kiyomitsu's effect!"
[Once per turn, when the equipped monster declares an attack on an opponent's monster:
Change that opponent's monster's battle position.]
By perfectly combining footwork, body movement, breathing, blind spots, and speed, Okita severed Cyber End Dragon's joints, forcibly changing its battle position.
[Cyber End Dragon DEF 2800]
"Even in Defense Position, Cyber End Dragon still has 2800 DEF!"
Hoshino pointed at the curled-up mechanical giant and declared,
"In Defense Position, numbers don't matter anymore! Manslayer's effect—"
[③ When this card attacks a Defense Position monster:
Detach 1 material; inflict 1000 damage, send that monster to the GY, and this card can attack again.]
"This is the move that shatters all defense—'Mumyō Sandan Thrust!'"
Three piercing strikes shattered against the Cyber Dragon's armor, triggering a paradoxical collapse—an undefendable sword technique unleashing Okita's ultimate destructive power.
"I detach Oda Nobunaga as material! Cyber End Dragon is sent to the Graveyard, and Kaiser takes 1000 damage!"
[Cyber End Dragon → Graveyard]
[Cyber Dragon Is the Best LP 3550 → 2550]
"And because of that effect—Manslayer can attack again!"
[Cyber Twin Dragon ATK 2800]
"Mu… da!"
Zane clutched his chest and protested.
"Kashuu Kiyomitsu's position-changing effect can only be used once per turn! In raw ATK, Cyber Twin Dragon is still higher!"
"I told you—I'd dismantle your wall with one card, and I meant it! When Okita was Special Summoned, I Set a Trap Card—and per its effect, it can be activated the same turn it was Set!"
Flipping her final face-down card, Hoshino shouted:
"Okita—surpass the heavens!"
[Above The Heaven – Trap Card Effect: Target 1 face-up "Heroic Spirit" monster you control; equip this card to it. The equipped monster gains 500 ATK/DEF.]
[Manslayer Okita Soji ATK 2500 → 3000]
"She surpassed it!"
"She took down both leaders of the Cyber Style… with a single monster!"
Seeing such masterful Xyz play for the first time, the crowd was stunned.
In a flash of jet-black light, Okita severed both heads of Cyber Twin Dragon in an instant.
[Cyber Twin Dragon destroyed]
"When Manslayer battles, she inflicts double battle damage!"
[Cyber Dragon Is the Best LP 2550 → 2150]
"But I'm not defeated yet!" Zane insisted.
"Cyber Twin Dragon wasn't in Defense Position—so Manslayer can't attack again!"
"It's over."
Pulling a card from the Graveyard, Hoshino pointed at the exploding remains of Cyber Twin Dragon.
"Above The Heaven's final effect—when equipped to Okita, once per turn, if she destroys a monster by battle, you can Special Summon 1 Heroic Spirit from your hand or Graveyard with the same Level as the destroyed monster!"
"Cyber Twin Dragon's Level is—8!"
Zane instinctively stepped back. In that moment, he fully realized Hoshino's absolute control over Levels throughout the duel.
Suddenly enlightened, Akasha shouted excitedly:
"When Manslayer activated her effect earlier, the Xyz Material sent to the Graveyard was treated as Level 7 on the field—but her true Level is actually—!"
[Oda Nobunaga ATK 3000 Level 8]
Slamming Nobunaga's card onto the Duel Disk, countless matchlock guns filled the virtual sky, every barrel aimed squarely at Kaiser.
"Demon King Descends! No matter how cool Okita is, in the end—it's still me who decides the victory!"
Emotions churned violently within Zane.
At first, his goal had been to understand the gap between himself and Hoshino.
But when she shattered his final turn using only one card, it felt as though Nobunaga's three thousand guns had blasted an insurmountable chasm right before him.
"This is the finishing blow, Zane! Heroic Spirit – Oda Nobunaga, direct attack!"
"—Die and rot upon the wasteland! This is the Demon King's 'Three Thousand Worlds'!"
The final bombardment, steeped in gunpowder smoke, completely wiped out Kaiser's remaining Life Points. Even an 8000-ATK Cyber End Dragon had failed to stop Hoshino's 3000-point counteroffensive.
"AAAAAAAGH—!!"
[Cyber Dragon Is the Best LP 2150 → 0]
[Duel End. Winner: World's Number One Eggplant]