"Yeah... Sorry, Ban-san. But it's like I said, I knew me winning was super unlikely. That's why I just stalled long enough for someone who can win to get here."

"W-what?!"

"Nice fight, big man!"

With a giant grin on her face, Ibuki raised her cool as hell sunglasses and looked down at the group. Then, she made the divine question

"What kind of woman is your type?"

The wind blew by, and the silence that spread through the group as they stared at awe at Nakano's backup soon crumbled when everyone looked at the source of a low growling noise. Someone was fuming thanks to someone stealing the line that defined their character.

"YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOU BASTAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARD! THAT'S MY LINE, DAMMIIIIIIIII!!! DON'T GO STEALING OTHER PEOPLE'S LINES LIKE YOU OWN 'EM, YOU STUPID GOTH ALBINO BIKER GANGSTER WANNABE REJEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEECT!!"

"He's taking it greatly, ain't he?" Tate deadpanned.

Izuru and Ibuki locked their eyes in an intense staring contest. The world could end in an explosion that took out the entire universe, but these two would remain in their fierce fight!

...until Ibuki just shrugged.

"Aight."

"Eh?" Izuru and Nakano blinked.

She just got up and left. 

That's it.

She left the plot as soon as she became part of it.

But then she suddenly appeared again, this time jumping off the top of the stairway with some momentum she built up, and utterly destroyed Izuru with a meteor kick that sent the poor bastard flying straight into the ground. He couldn't even protect himself, because during the entire time Ibuki was in the air, the sun just flashed on his eyes to stop him from seeing things he wasn't meant to see.

"Holy shit, that was awesome!" Tate exclaimed.

"A-a perfect Rider Kick!!!" Chika nodded.

"Senpai, I don't think that's it..." Ban sweatdropped.

The only one to go to Izuru's aid was Yukiko, who crouched next to him and sighed.

"You good?" She asked.

"No."

"Honestly, I came runnin' all this way just for some major disappointment. Sheesh, talk about blue balling someone." Ibuki sighed, adjusting her biker jacket as she joined her schoolmates' side. "I was hyped when you said you found some pretty people from Heiwa, but these guys are just... I'd rather be looking at an actual blonde monkey than that thing."

"Eh?" Ban pointed at himself and looked around. "AH?! WHO'RE YOU CALLING A BLONDE MONKEY?! I AM NOT A-!"

"Hai, hai, hai, hai, hai, we get it, we get it. Let me guess, among the trope list... You're probably the rich guy, right? I mean, you really aren't trying to hide it from us middle class plebs, Mr. Fancy Watch."

Ban slapped his hand on his right wrist to hide his fancy watch.

"You're probably really bad with girls, aren't you? Let me guess, you probably accidently confessed your feelings for some cute girl, probably younger than you because no one your age would be dumb enough to actually date you, and then she showed you why 'No' isn't the worst thing she can say."

"..." Ban stepped back and hid behind Chika. "She's mean..."

"Don't worry, Katsu-chan!" Tate exclaimed, clenching his fists. "I'll protect your-!"

"You ate boogers when you were a kid, didn't you? You probably still do that now by accident."

"HOW DID YOU KNOW?!"

"Pfffffffff, this is priceless...!!!" Yasuke muttered, covering his mouth to hold back his laughter.

"Let's see, what else do we have here... Oh right, that guy that probably wants to go home and who lacks manners. You have problems with money, don't you?"

"That's a common fact known by the general public..." Izuru groaned.

Oh damn, Ibuki read the source material.

"Man this sucks..." Ibuki sighed, tossing her jacket to Yasuke. "You really suck at knowing the difference between pretty things and ugly things, Ren."

'Ren?' Izuru thought.

"But they are hanging out with girls. Doesn't that mean that they find them attractive?" Nakano asked.

'OH GOD HE'S EVEN NAMED REN! IS THIS CRUEL WORLD TRYING TO SEND A- Wait, can this guy be one of my people? He's social awareness is bad enough to rival Aimi's, I didn't think it was possible to be someone like us out there...'

"That's because one of them probably has a thing for the black haired monkey." Ibuki deadpanned.

"E-eh?! N-no no, w-we actually came with them because of o-other reasons!!!" Chika exclaimed, shaking her hands.

"I was right on the money." The white haired girl chuckled with a smug. "And don't worry about it, cutie. Do you think anyone's actually scared of your little ships?"

"...eh...?" Chika blinked.

"I like her." Yukiko said with a proud dad smile.

"So let me get this straight... Yasuke kicked one of the monkeys down a hill, and then the blonde monkey wanted to settle it in a children's card game, but then you said no and stalled until I got here?"

"Yes." Nakano nodded.

"...oi Ren, do you think I don't got things to do on sundays...?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. Did you had plans already?"

"Yes, dipshit! The author of Suteneko Kanojo was doing an autograph session, I was on my way there when you texted me!! I've been waiting for this for ages!"

"...huh, what's that?" Nakano tilted his head.

"Really good doujin, fully recommend, would give a kidney to get an autograph." Izuru explained, now back on his feet with some help from Yukiko.

"Yeah, that guy gets it! I wasted so much raw cash on getting a printed version! Getting an autograph would make my life peak!"

"Ye- You have a printed version?! Holy shit! How much did it cost?!"

"Enough to buy two Gavrail decks and go eat at one of the fancy ramen shacks."

'SHE'S LOADED, HOLY FUCK!' Izuru thought.

"...I don't get it." Nakano said, staring at the two bluntly.

"Go to hell, dumbass!" Izuru and Ibuki exclaimed.

"This is getting out of hand..." Yukiko sweatdropped.

"Now there's two of them!" Tate said.

"One thing's for sure, I'm not doing my homework for the rest of the semester. You're gonna work your ass off doing my homework after this, Ren!" Ibuki scoffed, rolling her sleeves up.

"Being sleep deprived because of work? I call it college training." Nakano deadpanned.

"Please sleep more, senpai." Yasuke sweatdropped.

"So, I gotta fight you next? Sure." Ban scoffed. "I'll fight all of Shinjuku if that means getting justice for-"

"Ooh ooh aah aah." Ibuki stopped Ban by imitating monkey noises. "Move aside, Tarzan. If I have to look at you for any longer, I'll deadass gouge my eyes out with some cheap cardboard." She deadpanned.

"E-eh...?"

"I'm fighting her!" The white haired declared, pointing at Chika. "She's way better to look at- Hell, she's super duper cute too!!"

"M-me?! C-cute?!" Chika asked, pointing at her herself with a gigantic blush. "S-she probably means you, R-ryougi-"

"Nope, she totally means you." Yukiko shook her head and pushed Chika forward. "Go have some fun, Hime-chn."

"E-eh?! B-but, I'm not-!"

"I can assure you you're as much of a cutiepie as they come, Hime-chan." Ibuki said with a cheeky smug. 

"H-hai..." Chika nodded.

"What's your name?"

"M-mitsuki..." The upperclassmen muttered, but after taking a deep breath and steel her resolve, Chika looked up at her opponent. "Mitsuki Chika!"

"Oya, oya, such a cute newly found resolve! Straight outta Jojo's, am I right or am I right?!"

"I-i'm sorry!!!" And Chika was back at blushing.

"I say with all the appreciation in the world, Chika-chan." Ibuki chuckled. "Don't mind me, I'm just teasing half the time.

'She's totally a teasing master. Hot.' Izuru and Tate thought.

"You two, stop thinking whatever you're thinking. It's probably something terrible." Yukiko deadpanned, slamming her fists over their heads.

"We're sorry..." They muttered.

"Now then, Chika-chan!" Ibuki clapped her hands and winked. "Let's have fun with Vanguard, okay?"

"M-mhm...!" Chika nodded. 

"You're really cute when you're excited, Chika-chan. Stand up, vanguard! Stealth Dragon, Madoi! (6000)"

"S-stand up, the vanguard! Sol Maiden, Uzume! (6000)"

"So, this is a Protect selfcest match." Yasuke commented.

"Please don't... Please don't call it that..." Nakano sweatdropped.

"Beautiful ladies first." Ibuki winked.

"E-eh? M-me...?!"

"Hime-chan, just do it." Yukiko deadpanned.

"H-hai! Stand and draw! I'll discard a card and ride Battle Sister, Torrijas from my ride deck! (8000) Uzume's skill, I draw one... And then Torrijas' skill, I reveal the top card of my deck. (Battle Sister, Torte) It's a Battle Sister, so I add it to hand. Turn end...!"

Chika
Hand: 7
Damage: 0
OXO
OOO

IbukI
Hand: 5
Damage: 0
OXO
OOO

"Eh? So you like the cute nuns with cute guns too, Chika-chan?" Ibuki chuckled. "Stand and draw. Ditch one, ride Stealth Rogue of Invitations, Rui. (8000) Madoi's skill, draw and get free discard fodder. Rui. (8000)"

"N-no guard!"

"Drive check. (Stealth Dragon, Genkai) That's what they call a hit and a miss."

"Damage check! (Battle Sister, Ginger - Critical)"

"OTT really like their crits, don't they? Pass."

Chika
Hand: 7
Damage: 1
OXO
OOO

IbukI
Hand: 8
Damage: 0
OXO
OOO

"Stand and draw! I discard a card and ride Diviner, Kuroikazuchi from my ride deck! (9000) K-kuroikazuchi's skill! I discard a card and soulblast to reveal the top card of my deck! (Battle Sister, Torrijas) It goes into my hand, and since I revealed a normal unit, add 6k! (9000>>15000) C-call Torrijas! (8000) Her skill. (Battle Sister, Trifle) Trifle goes into my hand... And since I used a scry effect, Torrijas gets 5k!! (8000>>13000)"

"Eh, I hear that term used alot in OTT decks. Never really thought about it stands for." Ibuki commented. "Is it a Magic thing? Maybe Duel Masters?"

"Huh, Ibuki... Scry is an actual word." Nakano deadpanned.

"Ah?!" She looked actually shocked to learn that. "Really?!"

"Boosted by Torrijas, Kuroikazuchi attacks!! (15000>>28000)"

"Real word or not, you really made sure I'd either use two cards for that attack or just took it. But yeah, no guard."

"D-drive check! (Battle Sister, Fromage)"

"(Evil Stealth Dragon, Zangetsu) Hit and a miss."

"T-turn end!"

Chika
Hand: 8
Damage: 1
OXO
OXO

Ibuki
Hand: 8
Damage: 1
OXO
OOO

"That's alot of cards, Chika-chan. I hope you don't mind me cutting them a bit, okay?" Ibuki winked. "Stand and draw. Ditch and ride Evil Stealth Dragon, Yamishibuki. (9000) In another words, a card with a name too big for its own good. Rui's skill, I soulblast one and you discard a card."

"I discard Macaron!"

"Now then, let's see here... I'm gonna rush this a bit! I call Kagesarashi, followed by a pair of Genkai! (8000) (9000) (9000) Genkai's skill, I give Boost to Kagesarashi twice, and since I didn't give the Boost to themselves, I soulcharge." Ibuki picked up two cards and threw them into her soul. "Look at that, I'm soulcharge faster than Genesis at this rate."

"Holy crap, the cards she soulcharged!" Tate exclaimed.

"Hm? Oh, lucky lucky! That's two Tasogares in soul just like that! But that's besides the point, Battle. Loner Genkai attacks. (9000)"

"Torte! (14000)"

"Nice guard, Chika-chan. Yamishibuki. (9000) Let's use his skill. Counterblast one, bounce the loner Genkai to the hand and call a pair of Evil Decoy tokens. (0) (0)"

"No guard."

"Drive check. (Evil Stealth Dragon, Yamishibuki) No gua- Wait, this thing has 'Ibuki' in the name! Holy shit, I never noticed it until now!"

"New plan. Next time you need help, call Junpei." Yasuke deadpanned.

"No need to tell me twice..." Nakano sighed.

"Damage check! (Battle Sister, Cassata)"

"And boosted by Kagesarashi, Genkai. Since there's tokens on the field, Genkai gets buffed. (9000>>17000>>22000)"

"I'll guard with Psychic Bird! (24000)"

"Alrighty then, pass, pass."

Chika
Hand: 6
Damage: 2
OXO
OXO

Ibuki
Hand: 7
Damage: 1
XXO
XXX

"Stand and draw! Truthful payers, manifest in the shape of the strength needed to mantain a peaceful utopia! The utility of the Magnum 44, the power of the Type 67, and the rapid fire of the AK 203!"

"T-this is America...?" Ibuki blinked.

"I pray to thee, my trinity of firearms! Riddle through the masses and mantain the tranquility set upon the world by the fallen! Ride! Battle Sister, Fromage! (12000) Imaginary Gift, Protect I! Fromage's skill! Counterblast, soulblast, drawing two cards! I call Trifle! (9000) Trifle's skill. Counterblast, I scry the top three and call a Battle Sister from among them! Call, Battle Sister, Praline! (23000) The rest returns to the top of the deck in any order. Then, Praline's-!"

"Oooooh, I should totally pick up BaS, they have Chainsaw Man!!!"

"...hai?" Chika blinked.

"The manga rocks, and I'm super hyped for the anime too!! I love it so much that I even got an Aki bodypillow and a whole folder dedicated to lewd fanart of the series! It's a shame the simps got their hands on all the Power merch, or else I'd have stocked on that too! I hope Aki gets voiced by Mamoru Miyano, he has a voice that makes me feel R-rated things!"

'Ibuki, you moron...!!!' Nakano thought.

"Ah, I went on a fan craze for a sec there, my bad! Keep on with your turn, Chika-chan!"

"R-right... Praline's skill. When placed, reveal the top, and if it isn't a normal unit, Praline-"

"Kermits toaster bath?"

"Pfffffffff." Izuru looked away from the fight to hold back his laugh.

"Y-yes, she retires herself... A-anyway... (Goddess of the Sun, Amaterasu) It's a normal unit, so Praline stays. And then, Amaterasu's skill! I bind her face up and give my vangaud 10k and a critical. (12000>>22000/2) I call Panettone and Cassata. (8000) (8000) Fromage's skill! I discard a card, and for each Battle Sister unit on my field with a different name, I scry the top cards of my deck! With six of them, I scry six! I put one on top and five on the bottom."

"Yikes, talk about a harsh RNG." Ibuki sweatdropped. "Say, Chika-chan, going off your more mature and elegant look, I'm guessing you're a third year like Ren, right?"

"Eh? Y-yes, I'm a third year student."

"And seeing how you're using the normal card back sleeves, I'm gonna assume that you're probably new at the game too."

"W-well, I began playing around last year. Truth be told, I'm in a situation similar to Nakano-san's. I obtained some of my first friends through learning the game, and now I'm close to graduate. New Years is only two months away, and then the final semester will fly by like if it was nothing. It stings that these fun years are almost over, but even while accepting that, I wish they could have lasted-"

But what was Ibuki doing during Chika's heartfelt confession? She was playing gacha games on her phone. And Izuru was standing next to her and giving her advice.

"Do that." Izuru said.

"Ah huh." Ibuki nodded.

"Click that."

"Got it."

"Use that skill."

"Using that skill."

"Swap out this for that."

"Doing it."

"Focus on killing that mob first."

"I'm gonna insult him into committing kermit toaster bath."

"Your Okki set-up is jank but understandable, I like the NEET too. She's cute."

"I know, right?! Kyaaa, that video of her singing that Chug Jug song is so cuuuuute!! It was so cute that it was gonna make me explode!!"

"...I think I'm gonna go into my battle phase now." Chika sweatdropped, clenching her fist.

Aimi wasn't the only one out for Izuru's kneecaps anymore.

"...I think I'm gonna go..." Izuru moved away from Ibuki and took refuge behind Ban. He sensed the bloodthirst coming from Chika. 'My kneecaps...'

"Oh, right! Come at me, Chika-chan!"

"Boosted by Torrijas, Fromage attacks! Since I used a scry effect this turn, Torrijas gets 5k! (22000>>30000>>35000/2) Firearms Praying!"

"No guard."

"Twin drive! (Battle Sister, Tiramisu - Draw) Draw trigger! I give the power to Trifle and draw a card! (9000>>19000) And since my drive check revealed a trigger, Cassata gets power! (8000>>18000) (Battle Sister, Torrijas)"

"Damage check. (Evil Stealth Dragon, Zangetsu) (Voracious Stealth Rogue, Kosode - Heal) Hey, nice nice! I got a heal trigger. Power to the vanguard and heal one. It's free countercharge. (19000)"

"Boosted by Cassata, Trifle attacks! Trifle's skill, since I used a scry effect, add 5k! (19000>>24000>>42000)"

"Yikes, I can't shield that. (Evil Stealth Dragon Akatsuki, Hanzo)"

"Boosted by Panettone, Praline! (23000>>31000)"

"But that? That I'll guard. Kosode. (39000)"

"Turn end!"

Chika
Hand: 9
Damage: 2
XXX
XXX

Ibuki
Hand: 6
Damage: 3
XXO
XXX

"Nice going, senpai! Just live this turn and clinch it on the next!" Ban cheered.

"You play the many crit clan, abuse the many crits!!!" Tate yelled.

"Your kouhais are nice and supportive, aren't they?" Ibuki chuckled, showing a smug. "But you know what they say about people who claim to end it all on the next turn, don't you?"

"But it was them who said it, Ibuki. And didn't even claim, they just suggested." Nakano stated.

"I think the term is called backseat gaming." Yasuke pondered.

"You two... Shut up, I'm doing a thing here! Honestly, I come to help you and what I get in return is your shithousery..." Ibuki sighed. "Oh right, my turn. Stand and draw. Ditch one, ride Evil Stealth Dragon Akatsuki, Hanzo. (12000) I'd have a chant ready but it is what it is, so gimme a break. Imaginary Git, Protect I, because I'm not stupid. Right away, I'll be using Hanzo's skill. I retire my two tokens to add 20k, and then to bounce Genkai to my hand. You bounce your entire board and then ditch five. (12000>>32000)"

"Wait, she's giving senpai back three big shields?!" Tate asked. "I thought Hanzo wasn't supposed to do that!"

"I mean... A board wipe is a board wipe,  no matter how you go about it, I guess." Ban sweatdropped.

"Hmm... I'll discard Praline, Macaron, Torrijas, Tiramisu and Amaterasu."

"Nice discard. I'll be using Kagesarashi's skill next. It kermits toaster bath to call out another pair of tokens. (0) (0) And since my vanguard's Hanzo, I put a Tasogare from hand into the soul and grab one from the deck. I call Genkai and Yamishibuki. (9000) (9000) Genkai's skill, give Boost to the token behind Yamishibuki, and since there's tokens on the field, he gets 5k. He also gives the tokens 5k. (9000>>14000) (0>>5000) (0>>5000) And hm... I got it! Hey Chika-chan, what kind of man is your type?"

"E-eh?!"

"Don't think about it too much, just give me an answer. It's cool if you're into girls too."

'STOP STEALING MY LINES!' Izuru thought, steam blasting from his ears as he learned that his special line isn't unique to him.

"B-but why?!"

"For flavour, of course. You're already super interesting, Chika-chan, but knowing your kniks will make you even more interesting! A person's kinks tend to tell everything about them! Like for example, Yasuke likes virtual idol youtubers, so that means he's a giant dweeb! I like tall dudes with big asses! What about you?"

"W-well..." Chika muttered.

'Black haired guys who play Valeos. Just rip the band aid off, senpai.' Izuru thought.

His confidance was shattered after took a deep breath and blasted her response like she was the next big rap star.

"I-i like boys with glasses!! Glasses are really versatile! First, you can have glasses-wearing girls take them off and suddenly become beautiful, or have girls wearing glasses flashing those cute grins, or have girls stealing the protagonist's glasses and putting them on like, "Haha, got your glasses!" That's just way too cute! Also, boys with glasses! I really like when their glasses have that suspicious looking gleam, and it's amazing how it can look really cool or just be a joke. I really like how it can fulfill all those abstract needs! Being able to switch up the styles and colors of glasses based on your mood is a lot of fun too! It's actually so much fun! You have those half rim glasses, or the thick frame glasses, everything! It's like you're enjoying all these kinds of glasses at a buffet! I really want Tate-kun to try some on or Miyuki-kun to try some on to replace his Ansei family sunglasses! We really need glasses to become a thing in Heiwa and start selling them for the cultural festivel! Don't! You! Think! We! Really! Need! To! Officially! Give! Everyone! GLASSES?!"

"Eh?" Izuru blinked.

"Nice answer. Passing it to the battle phase. Genkai. (14000)"

"No guard! (Battle Sister, Praline)"

"Yamishibuki. Counterblast, bounce Genkai, get another two tokens. (0) (0) The other two lose the power so there's no point in boosting. Oh yeah, and Yamishibuki gets 5k per token on the field. (9000>>29000)"

"No guard aswell! (Psychic Bird - Critical) A trigger, all to my vanguard! (22000)"

"Goddamn defensives." Ibuki sighed. "Hanzo. (32000) Tasogare's skill from the soul, kill a token to call him out with a 30k buff and the power to swing from the back. Oh yeah, times three. (12000>>32000) (12000>>32000) (12000>>32000) Goodbye, three attack deck hell!"

"Kusanagi, guard! (52000)"

"Eh, so a two to pass? I don't believe on my RNG that much, Chika-chan. Twin drive. (Evil Stealth Dragon, Kagesarashi) (Evil Stealth Dragon, Zangetsu) A swing and a... Insulting miss. Front row Tasogare. (32000)"

"Ginger! (37000)"

"Backrow Tasogare A. (32000)"

"Psychic Bird! (37000)"

"Yikes. B. (32000)"

"No guard! (Battle Sister, Torte)"

"The three Tasogare jump into soul and call three tokens. (0) (0) (0) Passing it to you, Chika-chan."

Chika
Hand: 6
Damage: 5
OXO
OOO

Ibuki
Hand: 8
Damage: 3
XXX
XXX

'Even with a hand that big, I should be able to end the game here with Trifle's effect. I kept the cards I need to gain more power, so this should work.' Chika thought. "Stand and-"

"Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait!" Ibuki called out. "Let me finish my effects first, alright?"

"Eh? What do you-"

"At the start of my opponent's turn, since my vanguard's Katsuki, I drop two to ride Tasogare from hand. (12000) Of course, I also get a Protect I with that, but then all my rears get 5k shield. So this went from a nice 25k to a fat 50k on intercepts alone. Even with Fromage's main effect online now, it should still guard Trifle's attack nicely, yeah?" Ibuki asked, with a large grin.

"...stand and draw! Ride once again, Fromage! (12000) Counterblast, soulblast, I draw two cards! I call Trifle and use her skill! (9000) Superior call Macaron! (9000) I call Torrijas! (8000) Her skill, reveal! (Battle Sister, Cassata) I call two Cassatas! (8000) (8000) I discard one and use Fromage's skill! Scry five! I put two on the bottom and three on top! And then, since your vanguard is a grade 3 unit, all my Battle Sister units get 5k! (9000>>14000) (8000>>13000) (12000>>17000) (8000>>13000) (9000>>14000) (8000>>13000) And since I used a scry effect, Torrijas gets 5k, and Macaron gets 10k! (13000>>18000) (14000>>24000) Battle! Boosted by Torrijas, Fromage attacks! (17000>>35000)"

"Well, there isn't much in guarding with actual shield when there's obviously two triggers on top, right? In that case I guess I'll just have to..."

'Without a doubt, Ibuki will use a sentinel here. If she perfects guard this attack, she should have enough shield on her hand and board to guard against Trifle's massive attack.' Nakano thought.

"...no guard." Ibuki declared.

"What?! But she stacked three on top, not guarding is jsut signing your own death right here and now!"

"Senpai's right, Ibuki! Just PG the damn thing and move on! This ain't the time to be gambling on this shit!" Yasuke exclaimed.

"Oho? But Vanguard is just gambling in the end, isn't it? 'Sides, she didn't stack crits. I'm right, aren't I, Chika-chan?"

"...t-twin drive... (Battle Sister, Brioche - Heal) (Battle Sister, Brioche - Heal) I heal two and put the power on Trifle, then both Cassatas power up... (14000>>34000) (13000>>23000) (13000>>23000)"

"Yay, I was right!! Damage check! (Evil Stealth Dragon, Yamishibuki)"

"Even if things didn't go the way I wanted... That doesn't mean I've lost yet!!" Chika exclaimed. "Boosted by Cassata, Macaron! (19000>>42000)"

"No." Ibuki said, putting down a sentinel. "It does. Hurry it up, Chika-chan."

"...T-trifle! Her skill adds 5k, and then I soulblast Fromage to block sentinels from guarding! (34000>>57000)"

"That takes guts, giving a Nubatama player a fifth damage. (Stealth Dragon, Kurogane - Critical) Oh eat shit, Kurogane. (22000)"

"T-turn end!"

"And when that happens, Akatsuki rerides over Tasogare, meaning one more Protect goes to hand."

Chika
Hand: 7
Damage: 3
XXX
XXX

Ibuki
Hand: 4
Damage: 5
XXX
XXX

"Well then, now's my turn. Stand and draw. Chika-chan, the fact you're fighting for your friend's honour is really commendable, but I have friends I have to fight for aswell, y'know?" Ibuki asked, giggling. "But I mean, calling them that would be too much..."

"E-eh?"

Ibuki grabbed a small black pouch she kept in her chest pocket and threw it in the air. Five small pins fell from the pouch, and landed on the guardian circle on the board, all spinning.

"They aren't my friends, and I'm not really fighting for them either... What those idiots are... The useless dumbass who rubs my left shoulder!"

The first pin stopped spinning. It was a Joker's pin.

"The useless idiot who rubs my right shoulder!"

The second pin stopped spinning. It was an Ace's pin.

"The useless girls that rub my legs and carry my stuff!"

The third and fourth pins stopped spinning. They were a Jack and Queen's pins.

"And the useless dipshit who gets on all fours to become my chair when I'm too tired to be standing up!"

The last pin stopped spinning.

"T-that is-!" Chika widenned her eyes.

A King's pin.

"Shinjuku Tech has no Royalty. But what it has is Ibuki." Yasuke said.

During the entire fight, Ibuki had been giving Chika a false sense of security to even the odds, but at the end of the day, the gap in skill was still the same. Chika was a recent player, and even though she started playing around the same time as someone like Yumi, she didn't hold the same interest towards the game as Yumi then, and on the other hand, Ibuki was someone who stood above the skill needed to be in a Royalty. At the very least, she could go toe to toe with Izuru and Endo and call it a casual game.

And the thought of the gap size alone made Izuru clench his fist.

"GO TO HELL! DON'T WORRY ABOUT IT, SENPAI! THIS GAME'S AS GOOD AS YOURS!" Izuru shouted.

"This game has been mine for a while." Ibuki said, winking at Izuru with a finger in front of her lips, to tell him to be quiet.

(Media - Smell Of The Game)

"Persona ride, Hanzo. (12000) Imaginary Gift, Protect I. Hanzo's skill, I retire the tokens on the front row and behind Yamishibuki to bounce back four of your rears to hand. Any four, the choice doesn't mean much to me. (12000>>32000)"

"I return everything except Macaron and discard four...!" Chika muttered, gritting her teeth.

"I'm gonna guess you probably left a draw on top to get some more shield and make guarding against quad Tasogare easier, right? Eh, that's cool. You're probably still gonna be taking two damage and that's all that matters to me." Ibuki shrugged. "I call Genkai and give Boost to the token behind him, then soulcharge. (9000) Hey, gacha boy. Your bro played this deck back when he was our age, right? You can guess what's gonna happen next, right?"

"Happen next?" Izuru pondered. Then, his eyes widened. "Wait, that last rear-!"

"Call, Stealth Beast, Kokushigarasu. (11000) Kokushigarasu's skill. I soulblast three and ditch two Protects to add 15k. (11000>>26000) Then I bounce that last rear to your hand. Oh, and you ditch five after that."

"F-five cards?!"

"Yup! Get those fingers moving, Chika-chan!"

"I-i discard... Five cards..." Chika muttered, holding out her last three cards with a weak grip.

"Nice nice! Oh yeah, but that draw you left on top, whatever will I- Call, Shura Stealth Dragon, Fuzencongo! (12000)"

"She has that too?!" Tate exclaimed.

"It was fun while it lasted, but all the fun has to end some day, right, Chika-chan? Be it your days with your pals or this stupid excuse of a fight. Battle phase! Yamishibuki! (9000) Counterblast, bounce Kokushigarasu and call two tokens, one over himself! (0) (0) Hanzo attacks! (32000) Four tokens die, and then four Tasogare rise! (12000>>32000) (12000>>32000) (12000>>32000) (12000>>32000) What will it be, Chika-chan?!"

"N-no... N-no guard!"

"That's it, give me some more of that poor excuse of a confidance!" Ibuki cackled. "Twin drive! (Stealth Dragon, Kurogane - Critical) I put it all on Fuzencongo! (12000>>22000/2) (Evil Steath Dragon, Kagesarashi) A hit and a miss!"

"D-damage check!! (Battle Sister, Tiramisu - Draw) F-fromage!! (22000)"

"That's it, that's it! Keep that despair comin', Chika-chan! Front row Tasogare! (32000)"

"Ginger...! (37000)"

"Back Tasogare A! (32000)"

"Brioche!! (42000)"

"B! (32000)"

"B-brioche!! (42000)"

"N-no guard! (Battle Sister, Brioche - Heal) V-vanguard! (32000)"

"Ah, stupid defensives..." Ibuki clicked her tongue. "But what does it matter, right? Fuzencongo attacks! Since I'm at five damage, I soulblast a grade 3 and bind all the cards in my drop zone! That's a whole ass fifteen cards! For each card yeeted this way, add a nice 5k. That's 75k. (22000>>97000/2) Oh come on man, one more and I'd be past a hundred thousand... I'm pretty sure that last card you got is Kusanagi, and if Fuzencongo's attack was smaller, he'd still not be able to save your ass. Little Fuzen here gets a nice glory skill when he uses his skill. That means no sentinels. Now take that last damage, Chi-ka-chan."

"N-no... No guard... (Battle Sister, Fromage)"

"Yay yay, Ibuki-san's glorious dub!" Ibuki celebrated with her arms in the air. "Nubas can takes Ws, suckeeeeeeeeers! Woooooooooooow! And you two!" She looked back at Nakano and Yasuke. "Stop calling me to come fix your shit, I got more to do than be saving your damsel in distress asses from dipshits who ain't even worth me taking this shit seriously!"

With her pouch of Royalty pins back on her chest pocket and her glorious biker jacket put on, Ibuki got out her sunglasses and put them on as she looked back at the other Shinjuku students.

"Oh yeah, you dipshits go and give that deck back to the dude from the football team. Tell him it sucked like his skills at the sport. And tell him Ibuki called him a bitch."

"G-give the deck... Back...?" Chika muttered.

"Hm? Oh, I'm sorry, Chika-chan!" Ibuki giggled, looking at Chika with a smile. "I hope I didn't made you think I'd actually take this serious and use my actual deck. Well now, bye bye!"

With her hands in her pockets, Ibuki left in an exit as cool as her entrance.

"R-ryougi-san..." Chika murmured, tears rolling down her eyes.

"Yeah, let it all out." Yukiko said, showing her friend a small smile as she brought her into her arms.

"I was selfish enough to think Junpei was our biggest problem because of the past but... Goddammit, it hurts to be proven wrong like this." Tate sighed, looking down.

'Even if I won against Nakano... It was too close to comfort.' Ban thought, clenching his fist.

'Ibuki Nino...' Izuru thought, looking at the stairway where he first saw her.

Soon, it began raining.

The day ended there. The Shinjuku Tech students left soon after Ibuki, and with Chika in such a terrible state after her fight, Yukiko decided to take her home, instead of letting her stay in a part of town where she could accidently cross paths with Ibuki again. Not even the boys could keep their plans after what happened, and they too went their separate ways.

But this unfortunate day was about to become just a relic of the past.

Afterall, this is the hot springs chapter.