In the blink of an eye, evening arrived on the second day of the tournament.
Aomori had collected all six Map Card fragments. Following their directions, he arrived at the Domino Stadium. He sat in one of the spectator seats, looking composed as he watched Marik and his servant, Odion, whispering to each other on the far side.
Shortly after, Seto Kaiba and Mokuba arrived by helicopter. Unaware of Aomori and Marik's group hiding in the shadows, Kaiba stood in the center of the arena, striking a cool pose as he awaited the other contestants.
As twilight faded, the arena's floodlights flickered on one by one, illuminating the center of the field like high noon. Kaiba's hawk-like gaze swept the area, passing over Aomori before settling on the entrance. Yugi, Joey, and a large group of friends were marching in. Yugi and Joey had both successfully secured their spots in the finals.
Aomori chuckled, flickered to the entrance, and strolled in casually.
"Ah! It's you!" Joey shouted the moment he spotted Aomori, pointing an accusing finger.
"That's him! He's the reason I didn't make the top eight!" A blonde woman standing next to Joey added, also pointing at Aomori.
She was Mai Valentine, Joey's close friend. To ensure she wouldn't be harmed in the "inhumane" duels to come, Aomori had "gallantly" eliminated her early.
"Eh?" Joey and Mai blinked at each other, momentarily confused.
"Oh, you two know each other? What a small world," Aomori said with a grin.
"Don't change the subject!" Joey barked. "Now I have two reasons to win. Mai, I'm going to win back Red-Eyes Black Dragon and get revenge for you!"
"...Hmph, who asked for your help, you moron?" Mai muttered, blushing.
Aomori stepped back, content to be a spectator. Soon, the "Shadow" Marik (Odion in disguise), the real Marik (pretending to be Namu), and Bakura (possessed by Yami Bakura) arrived. They put on a display of acting that made Aomori, a true master of performance, shake his head. With skills like that, they were likely already on the Yugis' watch list.
Finally, with the arrival of the eighth finalist, the veiled Ishizu Ishtar, the quarterfinal matches officially began. The venue for the knockout rounds was a massive KaibaCorp luxury blimp. The contestants boarded and retreated to their rooms for final preparations.
Aomori, needing no preparation, stood alone on the upper deck, overlooking the scenery below. Before long, a woman approached him.
"You shouldn't be here. You aren't in the future I've seen." Ishizu's eyes were fixed intently on Aomori. As Marik's sister and wielder of the Millennium Necklace, she possessed the power of foresight. Aomori was an anomaly.
"Heh. Your Millennium Necklace is a man-made relic. How can it truly see the 'Real' future? It only shows the most probable outcome," Aomori said, glancing back at her.
"You know of the Millennium Items? You're clearly no ordinary person," Ishizu said sternly. "Who are you, and what is your goal?"
"I just want to play some cards. But if I run into your brother, I don't mind teaching him a lesson." Aomori chuckled and waved as he walked away. "Come on, the drawing of lots is starting. The results should be a bit different this time."
Why does he seem to know everything? Who is he? With these questions lingering, Ishizu bit her lip and followed him off the deck.
The draw results were displayed shortly after. As Aomori predicted, things had shifted:
Yami Yugi vs. Odion (posing as Marik)
Seto Kaiba vs. Yami Bakura
Ishizu vs. Marik (posing as Namu)
Aomori vs. Joey Wheeler
In the first duel, Yugi emerged victorious. Odion was forced to play a counterfeit God Card, incurring the wrath of The Winged Dragon of Ra. In the second match, despite Bakura's powerful deck and the initiation of a Shadow Game, he was no match for Kaiba's obsession with Blue-Eyes White Dragon, falling to the Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon.
In the third match, the duel between siblings, Ishizu's "Exchange of the Spirit" deck fell to the invincible Winged Dragon of Ra. Because it was a Shadow Game, Ishizu's soul was severely strained; however, Aomori secretly intervened to dispel the darkness. Combined with the protection of the Millennium Necklace, she managed to stay conscious. During this duel, Marik's personality warped completely, revealing his true "Villain Face" and earning the contempt of everyone present.
Then came the fourth match.
"Joey, be careful. He's not to be trifled with," Yugi warned.
"Don't worry! I'm not losing. I still need to have a fair, regret-free duel with you!" Joey said confidently. He had consulted Weevil and Mai about Aomori's previous tactics and felt he knew the deck's secrets.
Aomori remained silent, merely smiling.
"DUEL!" Joey shouted as his friends cheered. "I'll go first! I summon Panther Warrior (ATK: 2000 / DEF: 1600) in Attack Position! I set one card and end my turn!"
Joey's plan was a slow war of attrition, gradually exhausting Aomori's traps. He had even added Life Point recovery cards for this purpose.
"My turn. Draw!" Aomori looked at Joey with a peculiar smile. "I activate Graceful Charity, draw three, discard two. Then, Pot of Greed, draw two. Next, Harpie's Feather Duster to clear your backrow!"
"Tch! That was Mai's card!" Joey cursed as his set Scapegoat was destroyed.
"Now for the main event! Joey, watch closely! I summon The Black Stone of Legend (ATK: 0 / DEF: 0)!"
"A monster with 0 ATK and DEF?" Joey felt a surge of dread.
"I activate its effect! By Tributing this card, I Special Summon one Level 7 or lower 'Red-Eyes' monster from my Deck!"
"Could it be..." Joey's face went pale.
"That's right. Come forth, Red-Eyes Black Dragon!"
A jet-black dragon appeared on the field, its crimson eyes staring intensely at Joey. Its roar forced Joey to stumble back.
"My Red-Eyes Black Dragon... to think it would appear before me like this..." Joey said bitterly.
"Cough… sorry, but it's mine now," Aomori added, twisting the knife.
"That's too much!" Yugi and the others shouted indignantly from the sidelines.
"Hmph. If you can't protect your own precious cards, you're no duelist," Kaiba remarked coldly. "A loser with mediocre talent, as expected."
"I don't care! I'm going to win you back!" Joey cried, looking at the dragon with deep affection.
"Heh, is that so?" Aomori continued. "My turn isn't over. I Tribute Red-Eyes Black Dragon to Special Summon Red-Eyes Darkness Dragon (ATK: 2400 / DEF: 2000) from my hand! Its effect grants it 300 ATK for every Dragon in my Graveyard. Currently, its ATK is 3300!"
"Tributing Red-Eyes..." Joey grit his teeth.
"Still not done! I activate Monster Reborn! I bring back Red-Eyes Black Dragon from the Graveyard! Then, I activate the effect of Red-Eyes Black Meteor Dragon (ATK: 2000 / DEF: 2000) in my hand! By sending one Level 5 or higher Normal Monster from my Deck to the Graveyard, I Special Summon this card!"
Joey, Yugi, and even Kaiba were stunned.
"Summoning three monsters with over 2000 ATK in a single turn after clearing the backrow... he's a formidable duelist. I underestimated him," Kaiba noted seriously.
The result was inevitable. Joey watched helplessly as three black dragons opened their maws and unleashed black flames. Panther Warrior was incinerated, and Joey was engulfed. His 4000 Life Points vanished in an instant.
Another perfect OTK.
"Good game," Aomori said, turning to leave.
…
After the quarterfinals, the tournament moved from the blimp to KaibaCorp's Alcatraz (Duel Tower). During the journey, Aomori found the side-plot involving Gozaburo Kaiba's digital ghost tedious and dealt with it using "extraordinary" means before the blimp even arrived.
The next morning, the group arrived safely at the Duel Tower. To determine the semifinal matchups, a four-way "Battle Royale" was held. The first two players to have their Life Points reach zero would face each other in the first semifinal; the remaining two would form the second pair.
Marik wanted to target Kaiba to seize another God Card before facing Yugi. Kaiba was obsessed with dueling Yugi. Yugi wanted to face Aomori to win back Joey's Red-Eyes Black Dragon. Aomori didn't care much, but since Marik was being particularly creepy, he decided to take him out first.
After some tactical maneuvering, Marik was the first to be knocked out by the combined focus of the other three. Aomori followed shortly after, "falling" to Kaiba's aggressive play.
The matchups were set:
Marik vs. Aomori
Yugi vs. Kaiba
"Aomori, huh? Fine by me." Marik licked his lips, looking expectant, though internally he was wary. That guy is a mystery; even the Millennium Rod can't read his heart. I've seen him use two different decks to achieve OTKs. Which one will he use against me?
Aomori caught the look and felt even more disgusted by Marik. It was interesting at first, but now it's just nauseating.
Kaiba, having finally reached his goal, was overjoyed. I will defeat you, Yugi, and become the strongest duelist!
…
The semifinals began atop the massive tower.
"Yugi, do you think Aomori can win?" Joey asked from below.
Yugi hesitated. "It's hard to say. Marik has a God Card, but Aomori isn't easy to take down. It depends on how the duel unfolds."
"Marik..." Ishizu recalled Aomori's promise. I hope he truly has the power to save my brother.
"DUEL!" the referee announced.
"You go first," Marik said, gesturing elegantly.
"What? Afraid I'll end this on the second turn?" Aomori joked.
"Hardly. I am a duelist who wields a God Card. I'm simply giving you the advantage," Marik countered.
"Fine. I activate Pot of Greed to draw two cards. I set one monster face-down and set two cards. Turn end."
Tch, a cautious start. It doesn't matter. Marik sneered, and the eye crest on his forehead flared with golden light. Dark clouds swirled, enveloping the arena.
"Another Shadow Game?" Yugi looked up at the blackened sky, clenching his fists.
"Now, let us begin the Shadow Game, Aomori!" Marik cackled, hoping the psychological pressure would expose Aomori's secrets.
"Heh. A Shadow Game?" Aomori's expression didn't flicker. He looked at Marik coldly. "You call this darkness? Don't make me laugh. Let me show you what true darkness looks like."
Aomori snapped his fingers. An even denser, more profound darkness surged forth, swallowing everything until it felt as though they were in a windowless vault.
Marik's expression shifted instantly. "What is this? This darkness... it's overwriting the Shadow Game of the Millennium Rod?!"
"This darkness... it's strange," Yugi muttered. "I'm surrounded by it, but I don't feel any evil or malice."
"Yes," Ishizu added. "It feels... peaceful. Quiet."
"Ah..." Joey yawned. "I actually feel like taking a nap." Having lost sleep over the loss of his Red-Eyes Black Dragon, the tranquil atmosphere was too much.
"You people are too much... can't you just let me duel in peace?" Joey muttered a final "mediocre" complaint before drifting off into a deep sleep.