If His True Identity Is Discovered, Don Thousand's Dueling Career Will Be Over
"I lost..." Watching his Life Points drop to zero, Zane Truesdale still lowered his head in dejection, even though he had already known the final outcome of the Duel from the moment (Super Polymerization) appeared.
No matter how powerful Zane Truesdale might become in the future, it had nothing to do with the present Zane Truesdale. After all, he was still just a twelve-year-old child.
Losing a Duel was one thing; after all, Zane Truesdale hadn't lost any less frequently while training at the Cyber Style Dojo, and he had always considered himself someone who didn't solely pursue victory or defeat. However, in this particular Duel, Zane Truesdale couldn't even manage to exert his full strength.
From the start of the Duel, he had been constantly restricted by (Last Warrior from Another Planet). Let alone Summoning (Cyber End Dragon), his Deck's Ace Card and the symbol of his Cyber Style Graduation, he barely managed to Summon (Cyber Twin Dragon) at the last moment, and it even ended up becoming his Opponent's Fusion Material.
This did not align with Zane Truesdale's demand for himself to "respect the Duel." It was a great oversight to not unleash the full Power of his Deck in a Duel.
Hayato put away his Duel Disk and walked over to Zane Truesdale. "Heh heh, the famous 'Cyber Style' is nothing special after all. It's no match for me, who possesses Divine talent. And you talk about 'respecting the Duel'? Pathetic, pathetic!"
However, looking at "Don Thousand" standing before him, Zane Truesdale, with a thoughtful expression, was silent for a moment before calmly saying, "I certainly lost this Duel, but even if I hadn't lost, there would have been no need for me to Add to Hand that (Cyber Dragon) from you anymore."
"Hm?" Hayato was stunned by this.
"Although I don't know what method you used, there were simply too many tells, especially that final (Super Polymerization) Card. I once saw it during your Duel with Ms. Ishizu in Battle City," Zane Truesdale said, lowering his voice so the onlookers couldn't hear. "It's not strange for you to have (Cyber Dragon) Cards in your Hand at all, Don Thousand—no, Mr. Hayato."
Tsk, how could I have forgotten that?
Hayato then remembered that he had tried his best to use Cards he didn't normally use in public to hide his identity. Even though (Rainbow Kuriboh) was already in his Hand, he hadn't used it. Was his identity exposed by (Super Polymerization) in the end?
Since Zane Truesdale had already spoken this much, Hayato reluctantly partially removed his disguise and said to him, "Too smart kids aren't usually liked."
Although he had already guessed Hayato's identity, Zane Truesdale still couldn't help but show a surprised expression when he saw Hayato remove the Power of the (Millennium Rod) to reveal his true face. "It really is you, Mr. Hayato!"
"Shh~ Keep your voice down, don't let others hear." Hayato said, glancing at the spectators who had been drawn by the previous Duel. As the Duel ended, most of these passers-by offered applause, then dispersed.
After all, in their eyes, this Duel was merely a spar between two unfamiliar, unknown Duelists, not a Duel involving important figures, and it wasn't so spectacular that it deserved prolonged attention. They saw it and that was that.
However, the speed at which passers-by dispersed varied; quite a few still lingered nearby. If Zane Truesdale's voice was too loud and they found out Hayato was here, it would be far more troublesome than Rex being mistaken for Joey.
Hayato glanced at Joey and Yugi standing together, then pointed at them and said to Zane Truesdale, "If you have anything to say, let's say it over there."
After leaving the Duel Field and moving to the inconspicuous spot where Yugi and his friends were, Zane Truesdale, who had followed Hayato, hesitated several times before asking, "Mr. Hayato, it might be presumptuous, but I'd like to ask your opinion on that Duel just now."
"That Duel just now?" Hayato heard Zane Truesdale's words but merely smiled, not answering him directly. "That's something no one else can give you the answer to. Instead of asking me, try to find the answer yourself."
Hayato, of course, knew the problems Zane Truesdale had in the Duel. Leaving aside that at the beginning of the Duel, even though he noticed something was off when Hayato Seized First Turn, he still allowed Hayato to set up his First Turn Combo. Just the fact that he clearly had Cards in his Hand that could Counter (Last Warrior from Another Planet) but chose not to use them for the sake of "respecting the Opponent" and "respecting the Duel" was highly problematic.
Of course, Hayato wasn't referring to (Forbidden Droplet); he was referring to that (Fusion Release), which Zane Truesdale Send to Graveyard as the Cost for (Forbidden Droplet). One must know that the Target for that Card has never been limited to one's own Monster; it can also be used on the Opponent's Fusion Monster.
Zane Truesdale drew (Forbidden Droplet) on his second Turn. Reversing this, it can be deduced that his six Cards in Hand at the start of the first Turn were (Proto-Cyber Dragon), (Cyber Dragon), (Power Bond), (Power Wall), (Fusion Release), and the useless (Sakuretsu Armor).
With such a setup, he could have broken through (Last Warrior from Another Planet), which, despite its powerful Lockdown Effect, had no Resistance whatsoever, in the first Turn by using (Fusion Release). He could then Summon (Cyber Twin Dragon) to Destroy the Face-down Defense Position scumbag Aleister (Aleister: Hey!) and Direct Attack Hayato for the win.
Yet, purely for the sake of "respecting the Opponent," Zane Truesdale never even considered "using (Fusion Release) on the Opponent's Monster."
Everyone has their own persistence in Duels: for example, Jesse Anderson and Raphael who treat Monsters as family, Kaiba who, upon drawing (Blue-Eyes), will absolutely Summon her no matter what, and Hayato himself, who feels uncomfortable if he doesn't Tribute a Monster once in a Duel...
Oh, scratch that last one, is that even Tributing Monsters? That's a necessary Sacrifice.
However, if these persistences only add a bit of trouble to a Duel, it's fine. But if a Duel is lost because of such persistence, then it becomes extremely fatal. After all, at its core, Dueling is a derivative of ancient dueling rituals, something one cannot survive without winning.
Not just now, but in the future Hayato knows, Zane Truesdale would continue to hold onto that mentality of "respecting the Duel," "respecting the Opponent," and "respecting the Deck" for a long time, a persistence even greater than his desire for victory.
But if you don't choose to pursue victory, what reason does victory have to approach you?
Zane Truesdale would only come to understand this Principle after Graduation, entering society, suffering multiple setbacks, and falling into hellish circumstances, eventually realizing it during life-threatening Underground Duels. It was then that he understood the desire for victory that had always been in his Heart, allowing him to transform and grow into a Duelist truly worthy of the name "Kaiser"—Hell Kaiser.
Therefore, Hayato didn't expect this one Duel to make Zane Truesdale realize this point. The reason for instigating this Duel was merely to give Zane Truesdale an early warning.
After all, the Cost for Zane Truesdale's growth from the academic "Kaiser" Zane to "Hell Kaiser" was his excessive use of the Impact Amplification Device for artificial Dark Games in Underground Duels. This planted the seeds for the Heart disease he would later suffer from due to Dark Games, forcing the genius Duelist Zane Truesdale to put down his Duel Disk before he even reached adulthood. Hayato felt quite regretful about this.
After all, he was kind-hearted, and there was no more loving Duelist in this world than him. It would be ideal if Zane Truesdale could realize this before entering the Underground Duel Arena.
"I'll find the answer myself?" Zane Truesdale heard Hayato's answer. Although his intuition told him Hayato definitely knew how he could improve, he couldn't demand an answer if Hayato wasn't willing to give it, so he could only nod in understanding. However, he had no inkling of what Hayato wanted him to realize.
Setting aside the fact that Zane Truesdale was only 12 years old at the moment, and had only Graduated from Cyber Style three years prior, the deeply ingrained philosophy of "respecting the Duel" couldn't be shaken by just one of Hayato's Duels.
After all, upon realizing Hayato's identity, Zane Truesdale could no longer associate this Duel with philosophies or similar concepts. Who could help it when his Opponent was the Duel King? Even if his Opponent didn't go all out, he wouldn't be Hayato's match. The result would be the same even if his own teacher came. Zane Truesdale was also aware of Hayato receiving Secret Cards from Sheppard.
This was one of the reasons why Hayato had hidden his identity at the start, only to be unexpectedly discovered by Zane Truesdale mid-way.
However, Zane Truesdale didn't think for too long, because when Hayato led him to an inconspicuous corner in the cafeteria, he suddenly realized something: as the Duel King standing at the pinnacle of Duel Monsters, it was only natural that Kobayashi Hayato's connections would be exceptional.
"'Father of Duel Monsters' Mr. Pegasus, the Legendary Duelist Mr. Yugi, and Mr. Joey Wheeler, whom Mr. Rex often mentions!" Zane Truesdale was utterly astonished, almost dumbfounded. "I'm actually seeing them alive!"
"Why do you say it like we're already dead? And why is it so weird when you get to me, making it sound like Rex and I have some scandalous relationship?" Joey grumbled.
Zane Truesdale's description was even worse than that kid Jesse Anderson's earlier. Skipping it entirely would have been better than that gay-sounding description.
"I heard someone reported seeing Mr. Joey and Mr. Pegasus here before, and I thought it was fake news. Is it actually true?"
Zane Truesdale still looked incredulous, and Joey scratched his head upon hearing him. "That was actually fake news, don't worry about that."
"No, you don't care, but I do!" Marik exclaimed, looking at Hayato. "Brother-in-law, you definitely set me up just now, right! You called me with 'the winds are quite boisterous today' and 'potato chips are on sale downstairs' to trick me into coming down, and then I was surrounded as soon as I got out of the elevator! You were definitely plotting against me!"
"When I was being harassed by those unreasonable guys, why were you just watching?! Aren't we comrades?!"
"Ah, that," Hayato looked into the distance. "It's a bit embarrassing to say, those were mistakes I made when I was young."
"Hm? What are you talking about?"
Just as Marik was relentlessly trying to borrow money from Hayato to buy a new motorcycle, Rex returned belatedly after the Duel, carrying a large bowl of peanuts and melon seeds.
As he walked, he asked Joey skeptically, "Say, Joey, are you sure this stuff is worth what I paid for it? I didn't go to school, so don't trick me."
"Don't ask, Rex, or your image will completely turn into a comedic character. While I did tell you to eat more shelled snacks, you'd be better off drinking ten pounds of soda than eating this," Joey said, a little sweaty, changing the subject. "By the way, you said this kid is a student at Sheppard's Dojo, right? What a shame, the Duel resulted in Hayato's victory."
Rex shrugged. "Yeah, totally expected. And I bet the Duel either involved Hayato Tributing his Monsters to Recover Life Points, or forcibly using other people's Monsters, or Tributing his own Monsters for the final blow."
"Uh, aside from the last point, the other two did happen," Joey scratched his head, looking at Rex strangely. "But is that all? Aren't you worried about this kid's thoughts after losing the Duel?"
"Why should I care about his thoughts?" Rex was also surprised by Joey's question, countering.
Joey looked at Rex, then at Zane Truesdale, and said, "Although your appearances are quite different and your personalities aren't very similar, your voices sound exactly the same, huh? Are you two long-lost brothers or something?"
"Right, Hayato?"
Joey turned to ask Hayato, only to see Hayato had inexplicably raised a sign with the meaningless words "Kouko. NTR" as his response.
"Ah, speaking of brothers, Marufuji, you'd better go back quickly," Rex said casually. "When I went to get food just now, I observed the kids we brought, and it seems quite a few of them started arguing because both of us were absent. We need to go manage them quickly."
"Especially your brother, he's been telling everyone that Cyber Style is engaging in fraud and child trafficking. If it weren't for my respect for you, I'd really teach him a lesson. Even though I just joined Cyber Style, I can't stand him saying such things."
Upon hearing this, Zane Truesdale put away the paper and pen he had unknowingly pulled out, intending to ask for autographs, and said seriously, "Syrus? You don't need to consider me, just discipline him. And since you noticed, why didn't you go over?"
Rex glanced at the cheap digital watch on his wrist, and whispered guiltily, "There's still over half an hour left for mealtime, can't waste it—I get it, let's go together!"
Under Zane Truesdale's strict, almost murderous gaze, Rex quickly changed his words.
PS1: Both Yu-Gi-Oh! DM and GX anime feature annoying green-haired characters.
DM's is Weevil, at least he solved the pesky (Exodia) problem for later enemies, provided the initial wind-fading Death Flag, and the famous (Berserker Soul) scene later.
As for Syrus Marufuji in the GX anime, one can only say he lives up to his name. He's always calling for his "Big Bro" when in trouble and Jaden when not, he's even more annoying than his low-key manga counterpart.
PS2: Rex's voice actor, Maeda Takeshi, is also Zane Truesdale's voice actor. Souda.jpg
(end of chapter)