[Blue-Eyes Chaos MAX Dragon destroyed]
[Kaiba Man LP 5500 → 3500]
"Not bad at all, Hoshino! Without at least this level of strength, you wouldn't stand a chance in the battles against those kings coming up!"
Even after both White Dragons were destroyed by Ozymandias, Kaiba Man did not hold back his praise.
Yet those words left Hoshino feeling confused.
"Battles against those kings? Are you saying the kings recorded on the stone tablet are even stronger than you?"
Given Kaiba's personality, he was never the type to show weakness in a Duel.
Even after losing countless times to her and to Yugi, he could still shamelessly issue new challenges without holding grudges—one might even call that a Kaiba virtue.
"Hmph. That answer is for you to discover on your own."
Still, Kaiba Man's personality did differ slightly from Kaiba's in some ways.
If Hoshino had to describe it, she'd say there was a little less arrogance—and a little more maturity.
"But at least right now," Kaiba Man declared, "I'm stronger than you, Hoshino!"
Of course, that infuriatingly smug attitude was exactly like Kaiba.
"We'll see how long you can stay arrogant—my Sphinx Token hasn't attacked yet!"
Continuing the Battle Phase, Hoshino commanded the Sphinx Token.
Don't let the fact that it was a Token fool you—its attack power was already comparable to Okita's.
Okita: "(╯°Д°)╯ What do you mean 'comparable to Okita'?! That's ace monster–level stats, okay?!"
"But I have two monsters in Defense Position on my field," Kaiba Man countered calmly.
"So what's your choice this turn?"
He pointed toward Peten the Dark Clown with a mocking grin, as well as the mysterious monster set face-down in Defense Position.
Just as Hoshino Alter had said earlier, that face-down card Kaiba Man had set looked extremely suspicious.
If it was The White Stone of Ancients, destroying it blindly would allow Kaiba to Special Summon a new Blue-Eyes monster from the Deck—potentially throwing away all the advantage she'd worked so hard to build this turn.
After all, with the Field Spell sent to the Graveyard and Ramesseum's already used for its attack, Ozymandias had lost the perfect resistance granted by the field.
Without the Field Spell, Ozymandias was essentially just a 3000 ATK vanilla monster.
"Sphinx Token—attack Peten the Dark Clown!"
After some deliberation, Hoshino chose the safer option.
With a thunderous roar, the Sphinx's claws instantly tore apart the clown wearing the grotesque smiling mask.
As the data-body shattered, only the mask—still twisted into a sinister grin—fell to the ground, as if reflecting Kaiba Man's own mocking smile.
"HAHAHA! Then I'll activate its effect once again—banishing the destroyed Peten the Dark Clown from the Graveyard to summon a third Peten the Dark Clown from my Deck!"
[Peten the Dark Clown – Defense Position]
Even though the Sphinx Token destroyed Peten, it didn't reduce the number of monsters on Kaiba Man's field.
Still, forcing out the third Peten was good enough—like the last life in an arcade game. Destroy it one more time, and Peten wouldn't be able to come back anymore.
"I set one card. Turn end!"
[Hoshino's: 0 Hand Cards | 2 Set Cards]
"My turn—draw!"
With a swing of his arm, Kaiba Man drew a card from his Duel Disk and spoke solemnly:
"The outcome has already been decided, Hoshino. I told you—I understand you too well.
Your ability to calmly account for every possible scenario, while also daring to take bold risks at critical moments… that's exactly why you're strong."
["Why is this Kaiba suddenly praising people? You're making this kinda embarrassing~"]
Hoshino's eyebrow twitched slightly.
Leaving aside whether Kaiba Man had just praised Hoshino Alter as well, the real issue was—
They hadn't dueled that many times. So why did he understand her so well?
Kaiba Man flipped the face-down Defense Position monster on his Duel Disk.
Illusory light instantly flooded the field.
"But you're still limited by that strength—and you can't defeat the current me! I flip the monster I Set last turn—Summoner of Illusions!"
[Summoner of Illusions ★★★ (Level 3)][LIGHT][Spellcaster/Flip/Effect][ATK 800/DEF 900]
Hoshino muttered, "So it wasn't The White Stone of Ancients… but a Flip Effect monster?"
Flip Effect monsters activate whether they're flipped face-up by their controller or by being attacked.
But Summoner of Illusions was clearly meant to be flipped during Kaiba Man's own turn to get maximum value.
[Summoner of Illusions Effect: FLIP: Tribute 1 other monster, and if you do, Special Summon 1 Fusion Monster from your Extra Deck, but destroy it during the End Phase of this turn.]
"Summoner of Illusions's Flip Effect! I Tribute Peten and Special Summon a Fusion Monster from my Extra Deck!"
["Summoning a Fusion Monster using a monster effect… no way…"]
"Perfect! Invincible! Supreme—!"
Kaiba Man pulled a monster from the Extra Deck zone and slammed it onto his Duel Disk with a roar.
"Shatter! Scatter! Thunderous applause—!"
Under Summoner of Illusions's effect, Peten was Tributed and sent to the Graveyard.
In its place appeared Kaiba Man's true ace monster.
"Behold the evolved form of the Ultimate Dragon!
Special Summon—Neo Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon!"
[Neo Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon ★★★★★★★★★★★★ (Level 12)][LIGHT][Dragon/Fusion/Effect][ATK 4500/DEF 3000]
Manifesting in the form of the ultimate imperial dragon, Neo Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon's three heads roared in unison toward Hoshino's field.
["You've gotta be kidding me—he summoned that thing even with all three Blue-Eyes White Dragons banished face-down?!"]
Kaiba's classic trick—fusing Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon from hand—was already ridiculous enough.
But Kaiba Man went even further, pulling off a near air-fusion, practically creating an Ultimate Dragon out of thin air.
"Hoshino, in your current state, you no longer have the power to defeat this evolved Ultimate Dragon!"
Activating Neo Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon's effect, Kaiba Man loudly declared the final assault of this turn.
"—If Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon exists in my Extra Deck, then once per Duel, Neo Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon can attack three times during the same Battle Phase!"
"So it's coming at last—the triple salvo of Neo Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon."
Hoshino frowned, her fingers pressed firmly against the set-card zone of her Duel Disk as she assumed a defensive stance. Even she dared not underestimate the power of Blue-Eyes.
"Rip everything before you to shreds! Neo Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon, attack! — Neo Destructive Ultimate Burst Stream!"
Its first target was the Sphinx Token on Hoshino's field. With all three dragon heads firing simultaneously, the ferocity of the attack far surpassed even that of Blue-Eyes Chaos MAX Dragon.
[Sphinx Token Destroyed]
[Hoshino Chiyuki LP 5500 → 3500]
"Brace yourself, Ozymandias—this is the second shot! Neo Destructive Ultimate Burst Stream!!"
With the Sphinx gone, Kaiba Man naturally turned his sights to the only remaining monster on Hoshino's field—Ozymandias.
The doubled ATK granted by Ramesseum's would only last until the end of the turn. At his current strength, Ozymandias had no realistic chance of standing against the Neo Ultimate Dragon.
Three beams of white radiance, brighter than the sun itself, instantly engulfed Ozymandias's body.
"As expected of old man Seto—this move is just as nasty as ever!"
[Heroic Spirit – Ozymandias Destroyed]
[Hoshino LP 3500 → 2000]
"And now—this is the final blow, Hoshino! —Neo Destructive Ultimate Burst Stream, Triple Shot!!!"
With Hoshino's field completely empty, Neo Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon gathered its final attack. The Ultimate Burst Stream tore through the sky, screaming straight toward her.
"I've been waiting for this exact moment, Kaiba!
Activate my face-down Trap—Return of the Hero!"
[Return of the Hero – Trap Effect: When a "Heroic Spirit" monster you control is destroyed by battle or card effect: Target 1 "Heroic Spirit" monster in your GY; Special Summon it.]
Pulling a card from the Graveyard zone and placing it sideways onto the Monster Zone, emerald-green winds spiraled across Hoshino's field.
"I Special Summon Heroic Spirit – Okita Soji from my Graveyard in Defense Position!
She was previously Tributed to Summon Altera!"
[Heroic Spirit – Okita Soji ★★★★★★★ (Level 7)][WIND][Warrior/Effect][ATK 2500/DEF 2000]
"When it comes to facing an opponent's ace monster, you counter it with a true ace!
After resting in the Graveyard for the entire duel, Okita's back at full strength—unstoppable!"
Drawing her sword from her waist, Okita's eyes pierced straight ahead as she alone confronted the incoming Neo Ultimate Burst Stream.
"Hmph. A mere wall monster has nothing to fear!
If you insist on struggling, then Neo Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon—crush Okita!"
Without retracting the attack declaration despite the sudden change in monsters, Kaiba Man pushed forward with absolute confidence, the Ultimate Burst Stream surging onward with unstoppable momentum.
"You still underestimate my ace, Kaiba! I activate Heroic Spirit – Okita's effect!"
[If this card is Special Summoned: You can Set 1 Spell/Trap from your Deck that lists "Okita Soji" in its text, or "Haori of the Vow". The Set card can be activated this turn.]
Activating the searched card immediately, silver blade-light flashed across Hoshino's field, cleanly splitting the Ultimate Burst Stream apart.
"This is the Trap Card—Haori of the Vow!"
[Haori of the Vow – Trap Effect: When a face-up WIND "Heroic Spirit" monster you control is selected as an attack target: Destroy the attacking monster.]
"One change—Okita!!"
"Ooooooh! Take this, Dragon!!"
The pale-blue haori fluttering amid the raging winds—the iconic uniform of the Shinsengumi, the legendary Bakumatsu executioner corps—ascended into the form of Okita's Noble Phantasm.
Comrades who once drove history forward together—some fell in battle, some died of illness, others drowned in despair.
None of those who once stood shoulder to shoulder remained.
"Though the oath once sworn has faded into the past,
The spirit of Makoto still lives on."
"Okita—Ultra Finisher: Dragon-Slaying Severance!
—Three-Stage Thrust of Makoto!!"
The unnamed three-stage thrust evolved and expanded, splitting what was once a single-point strike into three simultaneous blows. With no delay between them, Okita shattered all three heads of Neo Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon at once.
[Neo Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon Destroyed]
"This duel is mine, Kaiba!"
Pressing the advantage, Hoshino flipped her final face-down card.
"Continuous Trap—Ramesseum's!"
[Ramesseum's – Continuous Trap Effect: As part of this card's activation, you can Special Summon 1
"Heroic Spirit – Ozymandias" that was sent to the GY or banished this turn, ignoring its Summoning conditions.]
With Ozymandias restored by the shrine's power, the field reversed in an instant, now seemingly tilted completely in Hoshino's favor.
[Ozymandias DEF 3000]
"Master… this duel is nearly over."
Returning to the battlefield, Ozymandias no longer hovered above in constant readiness, but instead stood calmly beside Hoshino.
"Though the existence of this 'old man Seto' before us is somewhat strange, I believe that no matter the version, he would never stand opposed to you, Master.
When the time comes—rely on him without hesitation."
"Ozymandias… what are you suddenly talking about?"
"I'm simply saying—this old man Seto is no ordinary opponent."
After Neo Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon was destroyed by Okita, its pure white power transcended time and returned to Kaiba Man's hand, focusing upon a single card beneath his fingertips.
"O pure white power slumbering at the source of infinite time—
Spread your wings amid the resonating echoes of crossing souls,
And emerge from the azure abyss! Deep-Eyes White Dragon!!"
[Deep-Eyes White Dragon ★★★★★★★★★★ (Level 10)][LIGHT][Dragon/Effect][ATK 0/DEF 0]
[If a Level 8 or higher monster you control is destroyed: You can Special Summon this card from your hand.]
"The one whose duel truly ends is you, Hoshino!
Born from the wrath of the White Dragons gathered in the Graveyard—Deep-Eyes White Dragon shall unleash the attack that ends everything!"
[When this card is Summoned or Special Summoned:
Inflict 600 damage to your opponent for each Dragon monster in both GYs.]
"The Dragon monsters in my Graveyard—Blue-Eyes Abyss Dragon, Blue-Eyes Chaos MAX Dragon, and Neo Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon—three in total!"
The three Sacred Beasts watching exclaimed nervously,
"Three Dragons… that should only be 1800 damage—!"
[Hoshino Chiyuki LP 2000]
"No!"
Pointing toward Hoshino's Graveyard zone, Kaiba Man declared,
"The final Dragon that decides this duel is sleeping in your Graveyard, Hoshino!"
[Artoria Pendragon Lily — Dragon-Type]
"Four Dragon monsters total! Take 2400 points of damage—and accept the wrath of the Deep-Eyes!!"
Deep-Eyes White Dragon's wings—pure white, radiant halos—released the combined dragon souls of the Graveyard, sweeping across the field in a final, overwhelming bombardment.
[Hoshino Chiyuki LP 2000 → 0]
[Duel End — Winner: Kaiba Man]
Even with all three Blue-Eyes White Dragons banished face-down, Kaiba Man fulfilled his declaration from before the duel began—and claimed victory all the same.