"Ahhh, I lost…" Leo sat cross-legged on the ground, rubbing his head.
The honor student with glasses said, "See, Leo, I told you—you're not thinking far enough ahead. Our teacher said that dueling isn't just about setting up your own tactics; you have to be able to see through your opponent's strategy too. If you always rely on intuition, just reacting to whatever comes up, you'll never get far."
Leo frowned miserably. "But thinking during a duel is exhausting…"
Imitating Goodwin, Kira folded his hands behind his back, walked over, and gave Leo a gentle smile.
"No, maybe it's fine for you to stay just the way you are."
Leo perked up. "Really!?"
Kira smiled, "Yes. Dueling purely by intuition and putting your entire trust in your deck is also a kind of faith. If you truly trust your deck, your deck will respond in kind."
Kira wasn't just spouting platitudes; there was real truth to his words.
Back in the day, when Jaden was Leo's age, he wasn't anywhere near as strong as he is now either. Kira had seen talent in action—the strength of such gifted duelists increases every day, even if they don't deliberately practice, they just get stronger by the day.
Maybe that's genius for you.
Jaden and Yusei, as two generations of protagonists, both embodied the somewhat mystical quality of "faith in the heart of the cards." However, their dueling styles were quite different.
Yusei did sometimes pull off miracle top-decks, but overall he preferred planning and calculated combos, using precise strategy and psychological mind games to win duels.
Jaden, however, didn't care for tactics or gambits at all—miracles were just his normal attacks. No matter the situation, as long as he drew exactly the right card (even ones he didn't know he needed), tactics were just window dressing.
Maybe that's what "one force breaks ten thousand schemes" means in the dueling world.
Leo also had a bit of a protagonist's blessing—maybe not as strong as Jaden's, but strong enough to make him stand out among duelists. It was obvious to Kira that Leo was the same type as Jaden, destined for great things.
"It's not that I'm bad!" Leo protested to his friend. "It's just that this guy is too strong!"
The honor student didn't argue—he couldn't, actually, because Leo was completely right. Kira's strength defied all common sense.
How impressive was summoning Zushin in one turn?
The honor student felt this silver-haired man had just, through this one duel, surpassed every ace duelist he'd ever known. Honestly, he even suspected this uncle seemed stronger than the absolute champion—Jack Atlas himself.
"Why don't you compete in tournaments, Uncle? With skills like yours, if you pulled off a Zushin summon in any event, you'd become a superstar overnight in the world of dueling!"
Kira only smiled, without answering.
He knew he was stronger than Jack—for now. Not just Jack, but Yusei and the rest of the 5Ds protagonist team were still rookies at this stage and far from their strongest.
But to claim you could walk through the entire 5Ds world with only Zushin would be underestimating all the other heroes.
Zushin was powerful, but not invincible. First, it was immune to everything, but it could still be beaten by something like Lava Golem.
The chances of running into Lava Golem in 5Ds was small, but not impossible.
Also, Zushin's effect only affected ATK—encounter a card like "Big Shield Gardna" with 2600 DEF and only 100 ATK, and it'd have a tough time breaking through.
And even if Zushin was "invincible," duelists' LP and decks were both limited, and there were ways to win by targeting the controller, not the monster.
All in all, this deck was a stunt—it was powerful to pull off a Zushin summon, but that combo left Zushin as the deck's only win condition.
Kira had long realized: in the anime world, decks with only a "three-move wonder" never last long. No matter how strong those moves are, even a monster as "invincible" as Zushin can't be the only thing you rely on.
Because if it is, you lose all deck versatility. No matter how strong, some weird tech in an opponent's deck could counter it on the spot.
Still, pulling this off against a kid like Leo was perfect, and left an impression he'd probably never forget.
Sure enough, Leo instantly became Kira's biggest fan, peppering him with questions and chatting away.
Leo was naturally outgoing, able to get along with anyone, even strangers. His friend initially wanted to warn him about talking to strangers, as teachers and parents always instructed. But then again—a famous Security Director who'd been on TV couldn't really count as a stranger. If even a Security Director was a bad guy, then society was hopeless anyway. So, the friend decided not to intervene.
With a nudge from Kira, Leo was soon sharing all about himself—his parents were always busy and rarely home, but he had a luxury mansion in the Tops district, a cute little sister named Luna... and so on.
"Leo and Luna… Ah, I remember now." Kira stroked his chin. "The Security is holding the 'Fortune Cup' soon—your sister Luna has actually been selected for an entry slot."
Leo was delighted: "Really!?"
"Of course," Kira smiled, "And the King—Jack Atlas—will be there too. The winner gets to duel him."
"Ooh—a duel with Jack!"
Leo's eyes nearly turned into star shapes.
The honor student reminded, "But the invitation was for your sister, not you. And besides, even if you entered, no way you'd win, right?"
Kira laughed. "Well, even though we just met today, I think we're friends. So, how about this: if you want, I'll give you an extra slot. You can bring your sister and enter together, how about that?"
Leo was stunned: "Eh? Is that even allowed?"
"Of course," Kira said, hands behind his back in a grand pose. "I'm sort of running the tournament, so I have that power.
Just, if you take the slot, please actually show up to compete. If both slot holders are no-shows, it'll be bad for the event organizers."
"That's wonderful—thank you!"
Leo joyfully hugged Kira's leg.
"Don't worry! I swear I'll drag Luna here even if I have to tie her up!"
Kira nodded in satisfaction.
Excellent—the last contestant secured. Well, actually, two for one—a bonus.
Leo might not be a Signer yet, but he would be in the future. Even without the Signer mark, he would end up as a key fighter against the Dark Signers.
With the contestants gathered, it was time to focus on preparations for the tournament.
…