"I end my turn."
[Hayato: 4000 LP, Hand 1]
[Labrynth Archfiend] [ATK 0]
[Cyberdark End Dragon] (equipped with Mezuki) [ATK 5000]
[Imperial Iron Wall] [Set Card]
After Hayato declared the end of his turn, before starting his own turn, Bastion Misawa looked at Hayato and Kaiba, then suddenly smiled.
"Although you are powerful Duelists, Hayato and Seto Kaiba, you two have no synergy at all. You're simply fighting your own individual battles."
With a finger resting on top of his Deck, Bastion declared arrogantly, "Your Duel initially intimidated me with its powerful aura, but now it's my turn to counterattack! All the frustration from being suppressed earlier, and the humiliation of being defeated by Seto Kaiba before!"
"My Turn, Draw!"
Drawing a card from his Deck, Bastion, who was already quite pleased, became even more arrogant upon seeing the card he drew: "Here it comes, my perfect offensive strategy. I've grasped the Core Card in my hand!"
"I activate the Quick-Play Spell Card [Mystical Space Typhoon]! I'll use this card's effect to destroy that [Imperial Iron Wall]!" Pointing at the Continuous Trap Card [Imperial Iron Wall] in Hayato's Back Row, Bastion had been enduring that card for a long time. A whirlwind swept towards it.
Hearing this, Kaiba merely gave a cold laugh, having no intention of activating his own Set Card to assist Hayato. Instead, he said scornfully, "Trying to unseal your Back Row cards? You can only see the cards on your Field and are stuck in the past; after all, you're nothing but a third-rate Duelist."
"Oh, unlike Seto, you're contemplating the future of humanity a thousand years from now, like the Mafty."
"Hmph, even I'm not that idle. And don't compare me to some virtual character." Hayato's words earned him a roll of Kaiba's eyes. As the two conversed, [Imperial Iron Wall] was destroyed by [Mystical Space Typhoon], yet neither Kaiba nor Hayato reacted to it.
Their attitude infuriated Bastion somewhat: "Damn it, you two are completely disregarding me!"
"I'll correct that condescending attitude you have with my unsealed Set Card, and show you what I'm capable of!" Pressing the activate Set Card button, Bastion flipped over a card that could now be activated due to [Imperial Iron Wall]'s destruction. "I activate this Quick-Play Spell Card, [Destruction Swordsman's Destiny]!"
"I target up to three monsters of the same Type in your opponent's Graveyard; banish those monsters, then until the End of this turn, one [Buster Blader] or [Destruction Sword] monster on my field gains ATK/DEF equal to the number of banished monsters x 1000!"
"I choose the cards in your Graveyard, Seto Kaiba, because of [Infernoid Tierra]'s effect earlier, you sent that [Blue-Eyes Armored Dragon], which can negate monster effects, to the Graveyard, didn't you? That's the monster I'll banish! And I believe there must be other Dragon-Type monsters among the Fusion Monsters you sent from your Extra Deck to the Graveyard earlier!"
Hearing Bastion's words, Kaiba's expression turned cold: "You dare banish my [Blue-Eyes]!?"
"Hehe, what can you do even if you glare at me with such a fierce gaze? You can't kill me with your eyes, can you?" Bastion said, meeting Kaiba's stare. "The reason I banish Dragon-Type monsters from your Graveyard instead of Hayato's monsters is, first, because your Dragon-Type monsters provide the greatest boost."
"Second, in my eyes, Hayato will be defeated by me this turn, so whatever cards are in his Graveyard aren't worth my attention at all!"
"Reveal your Graveyard, Seto Kaiba!"
At Bastion's words, Kaiba instead let out a cold laugh, looking at Hayato beside him, and for once, taunted, "So you're being looked down upon like this, Hayato? Going to be wiped out in one turn? Although having my [Blue-Eyes] banished is quite annoying, if I get to see you suffer a setback, I feel like even the [Blue-Eyes] would be willing to endure it a little, after all, that's a rare sight."
Just as Joey and Alister would eagerly anticipate seeing Kaiba suffer a setback, witnessing Hayato suffer one would also be a rare experience for Kaiba.
This time, it was Hayato who rolled his eyes at Kaiba: "Cut it out, you've become quite malicious. Who corrupted you this badly?"
As he spoke, Kaiba also took a few cards from his Graveyard into his hand, his expression shifting to one of arrogance as he looked at Bastion: "I have these monsters in my Graveyard: [Blue-Eyes Armored Dragon], [XY-Dragon Cannon], [XZ-Tank Cannon], [YZ-Tank Dragon]."
"Huh? These are the [XYZ] monsters!?" Bastion was surprised to see the cards Kaiba took out. "Why would you send these monsters to the Graveyard?"
"Hmph, you know full well. When did you get the delusion that I would do something as despicable as sending my monsters to the Graveyard willingly for victory, like you?"
Kaiba lifted his chin, speaking with arrogance, but Hayato couldn't shake the feeling that this guy was definitely making an allusion to him.
"Tch, even so, I choose to banish [XY-Dragon Cannon], [XZ-Tank Cannon], and [YZ-Tank Dragon], these three Machine-Type monsters, to increase [Buster Blader]'s ATK by 3000 points."
Bastion briefly weighed his options. Although he really wanted to banish Kaiba's [Blue-Eyes Armored Dragon], in the end, for the sake of victory, he chose to banish the three Machine-Type monsters. "While I've given you a chance to recycle that [Blue-Eyes Armored Dragon], that's for the next turn. This turn, I will eliminate Hayato!"
[Buster Blader] [ATK 2600 → 5600]
Although [Buster Blader]'s effect was negated by [Blue-Eyes Armored Dragon]'s effect, preventing it from gaining ATK based on the number of Dragon-Type monsters in the opponent's Graveyard and on their Field, its ATK had already been increased to a level surpassing [Cyberdark End Dragon] by [Destruction Swordsman's Destiny]'s effect.
While [Cyberdark End Dragon] possesses incredibly powerful resistance, there's a saying that the most useless resistance is to being destroyed by battle, and the most effective removal method is destroyed by battle. In front of a [Buster Blader] with 5600 ATK, even [Cyberdark End Dragon] could only be destroyed by battle; its powerful resistance was completely useless.
But more importantly, besides [Cyberdark End Dragon], there was another monster on Hayato's Field: [Labrynth Archfiend]. Furthermore, [Labrynth Archfiend] in Attack Position was in a state where its ATK had become 0 during the previous turn due to [Guardian of the Golden Land]'s effect.
If it were targeted for attack by [Buster Blader], it would be no different from a direct attack on Hayato. With a staggering 5600 ATK, even Hayato's Life Points, which were currently at a full 4000, would be completely insufficient!
Watching Kaiba banish three Machine-Type monsters, Bastion was still not satisfied. He looked at Kaiba and said, "[Buster Blader]'s power is more than enough to clear out Hayato, so next up is you, Seto Kaiba!"
"I said earlier, didn't I, that there's no synergy between you and Hayato? I said that naturally because compared to you two, our Tag Duel synergy is much better." As he spoke, he looked at the Mysterious Person on the other side. "Hey, I'm going to use your Set Card, alright?"
The Mysterious Person remained silent, simply reaching out to the two Set Cards in his Back Row, gesturing for Bastion to do as he pleased.
"Then I'll activate the one on the left."
Hearing Bastion's words, the Mysterious Person also pressed the button to activate the Set Card, revealing a red Trap Card, [Eldlixir of Scarlet Sanguine].
"[Eldlixir of Scarlet Sanguine]'s effect is to Special Summon one Zombie-Type monster from the Deck or Graveyard. However, if an [Eldlich] monster is not on the Field, you cannot Special Summon monsters that are not [Eldlich] monsters. Furthermore, after this card is used, until the End of this turn, I cannot Special Summon monsters that are not Zombie-Type."
Bastion impatiently interrupted the Mysterious Person: "But since [Eldlich the Golden Lord] is on your Field, that restriction doesn't apply, and I can Special Summon a Zombie-Type monster directly from the Deck or Graveyard."
"I Special Summon this monster from the Graveyard, come forth, [Gozuki]!"
[Gozuki], which had been Tributed and sent to the Graveyard earlier, rose from the dead and returned to Bastion's Field, still holding its large wooden mallet, and bravely chose Attack Position. However, upon seeing its old comrade [Mezuki] equipped to [Cyberdark End Dragon], [Gozuki] paused for a moment, choosing to pretend not to see it.
"I activate [Gozuki]'s effect, once per turn, to send one Zombie-Type monster from my Deck to the Graveyard. I send [Onmoraki] to the Graveyard. Then, I activate another Set Card, [Call of the Haunted], to Special Summon the [Onmoraki] that was sent to the Graveyard!"
[Gozuki], which attracts deceased spirits, sent a monster from Bastion's Deck to the Graveyard, but this monster named after a Yokai from the Hyakki Yagyō was Special Summoned to the Field in Attack Position by [Call of the Haunted]'s effect, spewing blue flames.
[Gozuki] [ATK 1700]
[Onmoraki] [ATK 1200]
"The Deck I'm using is a 'Yokai' Zombie-Type Deck based on the Yokai from the Hyakki Yagyō. Although I added cards like [Buster Blader] to counter Seto Kaiba's [Blue-Eyes White Dragon] and had to remove some others, I deliberately kept a portion of them so you would know I'm using a 'Yokai' Deck."
Bastion, who only now began to introduce his Deck, placed his finger on top of it. "And as Yokai, they naturally uphold the inherent characteristic of the Zombie-Type; the Graveyard is like their core."
"When [Onmoraki] is Special Summoned from the Graveyard, I draw one card from my Deck! Draw!"
Drawing the card, Bastion looked at it and revealed a very pleased expression: "Here it is, the strongest monster in my Deck, and an important part of That Lord's plan. I haven't performed a Normal Summon this turn yet, so now, I Tribute the [Onmoraki] on the Field!"
"A legendary Giant also known as Tatara-Bōshi, a peerless Great Yokai, descend!"
"[Giant Taro]!"
The purple winged beast born from the resentment of newly deceased spirits transformed back into dissipated resentment and vanished from Bastion's Field. In its place, a jet-black Giant rose from the ground, standing tall on the Earth, corresponding to Kaiba's [Blue-Eyes White Dragon] and Hayato's [Cyberdark End Dragon] on the opposite side!
[Giant Taro] [Level 10/EARTH]
[Zombie/Effect]
[ATK 2900/DEF 2500]
"A Level 10 monster? Hmph, feels... inferior to [Blue-Eyes White Dragon]." Kaiba said casually, but then frowned. "However, when Tribute Summoning a Level 7 or higher monster, two Tributes should be required. Has the Duel Disk system been hacked?"
"No, the reason [Giant Taro] only used one Tribute for its Tribute Summon is due to its own Summoning conditions. This card cannot be Special Summoned, but it can be Tribute Summoned by Tributing only one Zombie-Type monster."
Saying this, Bastion waved his hand again, "As for being inferior to [Blue-Eyes White Dragon]? Heh heh, I'll show you, Seto Kaiba, just how terrifying I can be when I get serious!"
"[Giant Taro]'s effect: This card gains 200 ATK for each other Zombie-Type monster on my Field. And there are a total of four Zombie-Type monsters on my Field: [Gozuki], [Eldlich the Golden Lord], [Guardian of the Golden Land], and [Conquistador of the Golden Land]."
"Therefore, [Giant Taro]'s ATK increases by 800 points!"
[Giant Taro] [ATK 2900 → 3700]
"With this, [Giant Taro]'s ATK is now higher than [Blue-Eyes White Dragon]'s."
Watching the [Giant Taro] on his Field raise its hand, and several wisps of power from the other Zombie-Type monsters on the Field gathered towards the Giant's body, causing its ATK to increase, Bastion declared arrogantly, "Enter my Battle Phase! I'll take out Hayato first, then eliminate you, Seto Kaiba, with these two powerful monsters on my Field!"
"[Buster Blader], attack that [Labrynth Archfiend] with 0 ATK! Destruction Sword Flash!"
[Buster Blader], with its high 5600 ATK, felt a sense of foreboding, but compelled by its controller's Attack Declaration, it reluctantly raised its longsword towards the seemingly defenseless [Labrynth Archfiend] on Hayato's Field.
Seeing his opponent so easily declare an attack, without even clearing his own Set Cards in the Back Row, Hayato was somewhat helpless.
However, his words were different: "A [Buster Blader] with 5600 ATK attacking my [Labrynth Archfiend], which means I'm about to take 5600 Battle Damage!? Oh my goodness, my Life Points are like a candle in the wind!"
"So strong, too strong!" As he spoke, Hayato didn't hesitate to press the activate Set Card button. "Therefore, I activate the invincible [Magic Cylinder]!"
"Witness Leader Zuo's top-tier understanding of Duel Monsters!"
(end of chapter)