Chapter 004: A Difficult Answer

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN, YOU'RE NOT GOING TO THE TOURNAMENT?!" Kenji said to Makoto in shock.

"Isn't it obvious?" Makoto replied to his uncle, "I'm not going." Kenji couldn't say anything, but Regina, who was the first customer of the day, managed to find words for him.

"What the manager is wanting to say is something along the lines of I thought you wanted to teach someone a lesson?" Regina told Makoto. Makoto sighed.

"I did..."

"Then you probably should," Regina answered, "And going to that tournament is the only way."

"...I always thought people would never use Vanguard to hurt people..."

"You need to stop being so naive, Makoto," Kenji finally said, "Of course, people are going to do whatever they please with Vanguard. Sometimes, people hurt people with card games. That is something that can be fixed though..."

Makoto turned around. "What do you mean by that?"

Kenji began to chuckle. "Well, that's something your father would always say..."

"What's my father got to do with this?" Makoto asked.

"I'll tell you the answer to that..." Kenji answered, "...If you would have a Vanguard fight with me." Makoto looked at his deck across the table.

"I guess one fight wouldn't hurt..." Makoto replied.

"This is going to be good," Kenji answered.

--

"Stand Up, Vanguard!!!" both fighters shouted as they began the game.

"I ride Starburst Dracokid!" Makoto said first.

"Let's go, Brugal!" Kenji followed, "Since I challenged you, I go first, right?" Makoto nodded. "Well then," Kenji continued, "Royal Ride! Crashgal!" Makoto followed intently as Kenji made his next move. "Crashgal allows me to call Little Sage, Marron from the deck. Your move."

"Draw! Then I'll ride Starburst Squire!" Makoto said. "I'll place another one behind the vanguard.' Kenji began to laugh.

"Your father was always challenging bullies to Cardfights," Kenji told Makoto, "I remember there was one in particular... Shark... Everyone called him Shark. Guess it was because he played Granblue."

"Why are you telling me this story?" Makoto asked him.

"You'll find out the further we get into this story," Kenji answered quickly, "Do you attack? Or are you scared?"

"Of course not!" Makoto answered back, "Attack! And with skill, I add 5000 to the Vanguard."

"That's a no guard," Kenji said.

"Drive Check, Critical Trigger!!" Makoto answered, "Then, the rear-guard Starburst Squire allows me to draw two since the attack hit."

"Damage Check, no trigger, I'm afraid," Kenji replied, "I will stand and draw! Royal Ride! High Dog Breeder, Akane!"

At that moment, a boy slightly older than Makoto walked into the store. Regina seemed to recognize him. "Long time, no see, Yuto-san."

Kenji had amassed quite the field already. To the left of his vanguard, he had Marron and Borgal, a unit which allowed him to add a grade 3 from his deck to his hand with the cost of Soul Blasting a Brugal. Behind his vanguard, he had placed a Pongal due to its skill.

"They all say he was the best," Kenji began his story again, albeit a little disjointedly, "He even beat Roselia Cardona, who they said had the best chance of beating him..."

--

"Starburst Dragon, attack her vanguard!" Naito said to his opponent, whose vanguard was Colorful Pastorale, Canon. The attack hit, most likely because she didn't ride Colorful Pastorale, Fina instead.

"And Naito Sakaki proves once again that he is indeed the First Vanguard!!!"

--

"But I remember a time before that. Before he was the best. So this kid, Shark, would steal kids' cards and beat them silly using those very cards against them. Naito, being Naito, decided to teach him a lesson..."

--

"Scaredick! Attack his pathetic vanguard!" Shark shouted at his card.

"He lost, of course, and lost his entire deck in the process. I can't remember what clan he played that day. I think he played them all against Shark, and lost with them all."

"You lose again, kid, now cough up your cards!"

"Darn it!" Naito slammed his fist on the table.

"As a result, they called him Bet-it-all Sakaki. I think they kept on calling him that even after he went pro."

"That's seven in a row, kid," Shark told him, "You know what to do."

"Darn it!" Naito said for the seventh time.

"He kept on trying, though... Everyone told him to quit the game. Even I told him to quit the game, I think..."

"Wow, kid..." Shark finally said, "That's twenty-four losses in a row... I knew you were pathetic, but you just want to throw all your cards away, don't you?" Naito did just that.

"I don't care anymore..."

--

"Let's go!" Kenji told his units, "First, Marron!"

"No guard!" Makoto answered, "Damage check, no trigger."

"Next, Akane, boosted by Pongal!"

"No guard on that one too," Makoto replied.

"Drive Check, Draw Trigger!"

"Damage check, no trigger again..."

"It's your move, Makoto," Kenji said to him. Makoto smiled.

"Alright!" Makoto said confidently, "Stand and draw!" He smiled at the card he drew just now. "Ride! Silent Archer, Temna!"

Regina and the older boy were both stunned to see that card.

"I've never seen that card before," the older boy said to Regina.

Regina replied, "Europe must have made you fall behind. It came out in the new booster set. It searches for a grade 2 or higher card to add to the hand cards."

"9 times out of 10, people are just going to look for a grade 3," the older boy replied.

"Knowing Makoto," Regina answered, "I know just the card he's looking for..."

Makoto had called Silent Tom and Starburst Knight o the rear-guard spots, and begun his attacks. Kenji blocked the Knight's attack, but allowed Silent Tom to hit.

"Tenma, attack the vanguard!" Makoto then said. Kenji just shrugged his shoulders. "Drive Check, Draw Trigger!" Kenji said nothing as his damage was not a trigger.

"It's 3 to 2," the older boy said to Regina, as they continued watching.

"I get they like to end games quickly over in the Euro League," Regina responded, "but back home, things are slower, more patient. Protect rules the game."

"Super Royal Ride!!!" Kenji proclaimed loudly. He stood up in his chair and held his card as if he were holding Excalibur itself.

"Does he always do this?" the older boy asked Regina.

"Only when he rides a grade 3," Regina answered him. Kenji nearly collapsed where he stood.

Once Kenji regained his composure, he said which unit he was riding next: Sunrise Knight, Carnax.

"You know, Makoto," Kenji began, "Over this past week, I've noticed something."

"What's that?" Makoto asked looking up from his hand cards.

"You and Reiji aren't so different after all..." Makoto and the slowly growing crowd of spectators were all shocked upon hearing that.