"Spell Card, Graceful Charity, activate!"
"Draw three cards from the deck, then discard two from your hand." Jonouchi drew three cards, glanced at the cards in his hand, picked out two from them, transforming them into data that flow into the Graveyard on the Duel Disk.
Changed his hand cards, huh?
Dinosaur Lyuzaki silently watched his opponent.
His strategy hasn't really changed.
Prepare for the first turn, then Set reactive Trap cards, and battle in the next turn.
Like now, the face-down card he set on his field is the classic "Torrential Tribute", which can destroy all Monsters on the field when a Monster is Summoned, Special Summoned, or Flip Summoned.
"Well then... Lyuzaki, let me show you the incredibly interesting cards I've been gathering these days!"
?
"Spell Card, Law of the Cosmos, activate!"
What's this?
An imaginary question mark appeared over Dinosaur Lyuzaki's head, his body rotating amidst the stars, bewildered.
"This card's name can only activate one per turn. The opponent can select 1 Trap Card from their hand or deck and place it in their Spell and Trap Zone!"
Jonouchi chuckled, saying to Dinosaur Lyuzaki, "So, Lyuzaki, are you going to set it?"
Lyuzaki shook his head slightly, feeling a vague sense of familiarity in the duel.
"Are you looking down on me?" he said with his mouth, while inwardly thinking that such seemingly generous offers must have a follow-up effect, he won't fall for it.
"Eh? Why give the opponent a Trap Card?"
"Exactly... Isn't that weird?"
"Stranger still, Dinosaur Lyuzaki didn't accept it, right? It's a free card—" A few onlooking Duelists asked in confusion.
Seeing this, Jonouchi laughed heartily, saying, "Cosmos Law effect. If the opponent sets, Special Summon 1 Jinzo from your deck. If they don't, add 1 Jinzo or a Monster with that name from your deck to your hand."
"I see—"
"Directly special summoning Jinzo, huh? That Monster can directly lock all Trap Cards on the field, really no need to worry about setting them. Mr. Jonouchi indeed."
Jonouchi didn't care about the surrounding spectators' opinions; he just took 1 card from the deck into his hand, displaying it: "What I am adding is the Threatening Jinzo, LV 7."
"This card can be activated when there are Trap Cards on either your or your opponent's field or in the Graveyard. Special Summon from hand. This card becomes LV 6 until the end of the turn when Special Summoned."
Jonouchi pointed to his Graveyard: "Currently, there's a Trap Card in my Graveyard!"
Dinosaur Lyuzaki scoffed disdainfully, seeing the color of the card Jonouchi revealed from the Graveyard.
Soon after, a green-skinned robot with crossed arms appeared on his field.
Threatening Jinzo, LV 7, Dark Attribute, Machine-Type, 2400 ATK.
Law of the Cosmos...
Jinzo?
Dinosaur Lyuzaki looked at the Monster, unable to help but start reminiscing.
Ten years ago, during Duel City, he dueled Esper Roba then, unaware that the opponent really had superpowers to duel using the information from the Cosmos.
In reality, that person let his brothers help by peeking at the opponent's deck, resulting in his loss back then.
However, at that time, Dinosaur Lyuzaki lost to Esper Roba, and the opponent's Ace Monster was "Jinzo", while Esper Roba also claimed to communicate with the Cosmos...
He quickly shook his head: "Activate the Set Card, Trap Card, Torrential Tribute, destroy all Monsters on the field!"
It seems that this Jinzo is just another form of that Jinzo and doesn't possess the ability to lock Traps, so better activate it early—
"Then, chain activate!" Jonouchi clenched his fist and said, "During either player's Main Phase, tribute this card to activate. Special Summon 1 Jinzo from your hand or Graveyard! Then, destroy all Trap Cards on the opponent's field!"
Argh—
Dinosaur Lyuzaki's inner voice let out a muffled groan.
It's over.
Jonouchi chuckled, his chin raised towards Dinosaur Lyuzaki: "You saw it earlier, right? The card I sent to the Graveyard was a Trap Card and a Soga!
I'll send Threatening Jinzo to the Graveyard and resurrect Jinzo from the Graveyard!"
Zap zap zap—
A surge of electricity, the classical green-skinned robot replaced the newer and more cutting-edge technology, appearing on Jonouchi's field.
Jinzo, LV 6, Dark Attribute, Machine-Type, 2400 ATK.
The flood that surged from the ground intended to sweep all Monsters on the field away, but under Jinzo's telepathic control, it gradually calmed down, eventually subsiding completely.
"While Jinzo exists in the Monster Zone, neither player can activate Trap Card effects, and all Trap Card effects on the field are negated!" Jonouchi chuckled, wiping his nose with his index finger, "How about it, Lyuzaki? I'm no longer relying on luck now."
Jinzo's sealing effect is quite powerful; as long as it's a Trap Card, it will be directly sealed by it, unable even to activate.
"Don't get cocky, you bastard." The slight sense of "guilt" Dinosaur Lyuzaki originally had for Jonouchi Katsuya was almost immediately wiped out.
Indeed, he and Jonouchi just don't get along; he just finds Jonouchi disagreeable.
But—
Then again.
He looked at Jinzo standing on Jonouchi's field.
After a long absence, seeing this familiar Monster again, he felt a sense of nostalgia, making him feel nauseous and disgusted.
A man shouldn't be so sentimental, but he had to admit that in this long-awaited duel, Jonouchi hasn't used any particularly powerful cards, still using ones he recognizes and is familiar with, as though they were still back ten years ago, dueling for a victory.
But—
He knew.
Everything couldn't return to the past.
Just like when he first lost to Jonouchi, then handed Red-Eyes to him, then Jonouchi used Red-Eyes to reach the world's top.
Between people, there is already disparity and difference.
After that, he only thought about defeating Jonouchi, even joining Doma, willingly sacrificing his soul to The Seal of Orichalcos just to defeat Jonouchi, even later conspiring with Insector Haga to rob Muto Yugi's house.
No matter what, people aren't the same people, and ten years have already passed.
All things can't return to the past; there's no such thing as a regret remedy.
Jonouchi didn't say anything either; he pointed to the Monster on Dinosaur Lyuzaki's field, shouting loudly: "Go, Soga— Jinzo attack Souleating Oviraptor!
Castle Jonouchi Telekinesis Shock!"
"Hey, that's not the name of the attack at all!"
But even though he got the attack name wrong, Jinzo didn't pause for a moment; his eyes glowed red, and the intense red telekinetic light flow sliced through the world like a stream, instantly cutting Souleating Oviraptor in two.
Then, two streams of laser floods followed, piercing through Dinosaur Lyuzaki's body, reducing his Life Points.
Dinosaur Lyuzaki, LP: 4000→3400.
Pain?
No—
Perhaps, release!
When experiencing damage, Dinosaur Lyuzaki felt as if something within his body had truly awakened completely.
He suddenly opened his eyes wide, as if golden light burst out from his eyes.
"End turn." Jonouchi calmly ended the turn, not even setting a card.
But instead of calm, it's more like his demeanor became ever more determined, as if he were waiting for something.
"That's the end?"
"Is Jonouchi's duel like this?"
"Though it seems impressive at first glance, the stats seem too low..." A group of duelists puzzled, shaking their heads.
"Ohhoho... Looks like the two of them are finally warmed up." And not far away, Muto Sugoroku watched the two's demeanor with a smile.
Tenjo Hikari slowly nodded.
It seems.
The duel he initiated might bring a conclusion that satisfies everyone.