"Search for the Runic Scimitar" - Magallanica Branch

Tamotsu hadn't been expecting pets this early into things but was nonetheless happy to have Hikari's affection. He was indeed the one who'd taught Jace about Great Nature and he puffed up his chest a bit at the recognition and praise from the girl. This sense of pride was quickly diminished at Jessie's tone. His boy had scolded him for using Bashiro's word out loud. Had he thought about it he would have remembered the word bothered the younger of his boys so he felt a bit bad about all of it. His head drooped down and his tail slowed to a halt.

"I'm sorry Jessie..." he said with a soft whine. However Ves seemed to want to know a bit about what he'd said and despite having just upset Jessie with it he seemed ready to describe it to the innocent pudding lover. "Yeah! Thicc's when a girl's got a a reaaaaaaallly big-" the pup started then got cut off by the sound of a woman's voice over the sound system. It seemed Umi was beginning the event and so that took his attention, sparing Jessie the embarrassment and Ves the defilement in the process.

Tsubame had been close to another laughing fit through this whole exchange but Umi calling the event to order took her focus well enough. She liked the idea of being a pirate. The idea of assembling a map by fighting the Aqua Force Navy and Bermuda Triangle mermaids had a nice fantasy ring to it. But it was the description of the first mate's deck that made her the most curious. There was no clan mentioned, just that they hadn't ever seen anything like it. She'd have to go and confirm how accurate that statement was.

But first up was another show of the idols. Now that she'd met Hana it was time to pay particularly good attention to details for potential jabs later.

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Katashi seemed a bit embarrassed about how forward Tobi had been with Koga. Largely because the cabbage seemed annoyed by the earlier parts of the exchange. But she did at least introduce herself and the two seemed to at least be acquaintances. Nothing to do now but roll with it though. It couldn't be too bad. He just had no idea what the relationship here really was and didn't want to mess up any sort of rapport Tobi might have established.

"H-heh. Nice to meet you Koga. I met Tobi here a bit before the Zoo event I just wasn't able to attend myself. Turns out we go to the same school and stuff so we've been practicing for today together." he said, with a clear touch of nervousness with the exchange. He wanted to ask how they knew each other but perhaps would wait to ask Tobi about it later in private.

He would eventually be spared some of the awkwardness by Umi calling for the attention of those in attendance. Katashi let loose a sigh of relief as she began explaining and pondered the different fights waiting for them. There'd be a lot of new experiences here for Fenrir and him.

Aria decided quite early on she wasn't the biggest fan of Umi. She listened intently as the woman spoke, fierce eyes trained on the podium. Running around like her little dog certainly wasn't Aria's favoured thing to do, but she assumed certain sacrifices had to be made for her goal. At least it was somewhat interesting. Treasure hunts had an element of mystery in them that she quite adored, but it evidently wasn't enough to even dent her impassive face. She raised an eyebrow at the boy who was summoned, witnessing the beatdown he endured. Quite humiliating. Umi walked off the stage, Aria's eyes following her all the while. Well, the pirate life certainly wasn't for Aria. She tightened her grip on the deckbox in her hand, nails of deep azure pressing against the pure white leather. Some distant part of her mind vaguely registered how fitting her blue colours were for the event.

What little attention Umi had commanded of her faded at the announcement of the idols. She respected them, but decided her time would be better off spent thinking of a strategy. At least it would be a nice bit of background noise. Turning on her heel, she began to walk towards the outskirts of the crowd. No doubt the middle would be full of rabid fans hungry for a look at the youthful beauty and energy of the idols, and it was a slightly more advantageous position. She reclined against the wall, one foot raised and pressed against it, the other planted firmly on the ground. She looked at Gavrail, having taken the card out a few moments prior. She gazed at her inquisitively, as though she could offer the answers to the location of the scimitar. From time to time, she glanced out the corner of her eye, spotting the stacks of maps.

The beginnings of a plan cooked up in her mind. You didn't need all the pieces of the map. Enough clues, did Umi say? The pieces gradually fell into place, gathering like a storm as her next steps gradually grew clearer. If you didn't need all the pieces, perhaps some parts of the map were more important than others. A rather obvious deduction, she chided herself. Her mind wandered to the old ideas of 'X marking the spot' for the bounty of pirates. But who would have the most important piece? Was it worth the risk, or should she go for more fights? It was a classic case of risk vs reward; if she lost, she wasted all her time. If she picked the wrong person, her plan was in shambles. If she was wrong entirely, it was mostly just luck. She took in a deep breath. There was hardly any information for her to go off of. It drove her wild. Her eyes scanned the area, looking almost calm despite the crazed glint in her eye, only visible if someone was looking directly at her, far too close to be comfortable. She was about ready to grab a pen and furiously jot down the lyrics of whatever enchanting melody the idols were performing; were there clues in the lyrics? What were the chords? She felt surprisingly nervous, feeling her stomach squirm like a bug - and thus she squashed it like one.

She was going to win. That was the end of it.

Seth looked on the side to see familiar faces from his trip to Card Capital Two gathered together ready for the event. He had an uneasy expression but deep down he could tell that he would enjoy Cardfighting them if given the opportunity. He looked back down to his deck until his pointy elf-like ears shook at the sound of a familiar voice that echoed throughout the entire Branch.

"Surprise, surprise. There she is." Seth's icy gaze looked towards his Branch Manager surrounded by the other participants for the event. It was finally starting as he listened closely to her instructions, while shuffling through his deck. She introduced everyone alongside her whom Seth quickly recognized as his "targets" that he needed to face off to become victorious. "So we're her lackeys to face off against everyone else? What type of ev-" Before Seth could even finish his thought, he heard an individual speak up with similar thoughts before the poor sap was made an example of in front of the entire player base. Thankfully, Seth perished the thought before he could join the unfortunate boy.

"There is a time to live and a time to die." That particular line spoken from Umiruka had interested Seth interrupting his thoughts about who he should challenge first from the opposing Aqua Force faction. He didn't think she was the type to make statements like that from the first glance, especially her commanding everyone to do the former. However, from seeing how she cares about the people under her command, Seth understood exactly what she meant and what that meant for him, especially the bit about no second chances given Seth's.... performance last time.

"Don't worry, I intend to live to the very end." This was Seth's chance to show not only to everyone what he was capable of but to show to Umiruka that he's learned his lessons.

Karin stared into the mirror of her dressing room, blinking at her reflection. She'd already changed into her frilly blue dress (which she'd had repaired after her wardrobe malfunction last time) and had already touched herself up to make herself stage-worthy. She'd read over the lyrics of the song she'd only just been informed they'd be performing today as well; She was thankful for how simple it was to memorize, but she felt a bit awkward about the song in question. It was true that most of the target audience for this event were younger children, but was this really appropriate?

Karin shook her head. Right now, she was just another part of the crew, and the captain's orders were still orders. She'd put on a smile for the crowd and put her heart into her performance.

Her eyes fixated on her reflection now, gazing into her discolored eyes. It was hard to keep herself in the showtime mentality when her mind kept drifting back into the past. She slipped out the singular contact lens from its container and brought it up to her eye, sliding it into place over her empty orange iris. Her hand hesitated a moment after the lens was secure, however. She turned around, looking back at the dressing room door... She thought she'd heard a voice behind her, something close to a whisper. Someone at the door? She got up and cracked it open, but not a soul was in sight when she peered outside. Strange.

She sat herself back down in front of the mirror, and shook her head again. She figured she was just tired, or nervous. Whatever she'd thought she'd just heard, it was probably nothing. For a reason she couldn't quite place, it bothered her. But she was just tired. Or nervous. It was nothing. That's what she had decided.

It was nothing.

---

Just like the last time, Sakuya found herself a bit overwhelmed and hopelessly lost amidst the large crowd of event-goers. It wasn't until after the Branch Director's announcement about the rules of the tournament- Rules that had Sakuya really feeling the pressure- that she managed to find her way to Jessie, Ves, and Tomatsu. She put her hand up and waved to them, calling out to Jessie and Ves first as she made her way over. "At last, I found you all... Quite lively today, isn't it?" She laughed out nervously. "Oh, and hello to all the new faces. Sakuya Fagan, present and ready!" The shrine maiden gave a quick bow to each of the individuals she didn't recognize, trying to get her introductions done before the idol performance that was supposed to be starting soon.

Hikari pouted and made a low sound of annoyance upon getting a headpat from Jace. It was annoying being treated like a kid. Even if she was one. And he was definitely older than her. And she looked even younger than she actually was. And sometimes acted that way too. But that wasn't important! She didn't want to be treated like a kid! It didn't actually annoy her enough to get mad about, so she just stayed pouting.

Then her attention turned back to Jessie and his dog, whose name was apparently Tamotsu. Jessie seemed upset by something Tamotsu had said, which Hikari's one-track mind had apparently blocked out. Was it possible that this dog was, in fact... not a good boy? That seemed impossible. All dogs are good dogs, aren't they? Hikari was struggling greatly with this problem, especially when Tamotsu went on to try to explain the word to Ves. Hikari's world was starting to break apart, but her internal crisis was halted by the branch director. It was time for the announcements to begin.

The announcement got Hikari pumped up. The idea of being a pirate and hunting treasure sounded super fun. Way cooler than fighting animals in the jungle. And pirates were one of the only things that were roughly half as cool as giant robots.  Plus, she got to beat up navy soldiers and idols, which is just icing on the cake. The line-up of players sounded pretty tough. TWO champions? But that just meant more glory for taking them down. Hikari was unafraid. Hearing about just what she was up against, a grin spread across her face. She would take down anyone who stood in her way. She would return that scimitar. And she would be the undisputed victor of this event. Of that, she was certain. She began bouncing up and down on her heels impatiently. She'd have to wait for the idol performance first. Ugh. She couldn't wait that long!

Before she could whine about the idol performance eating up her time, another face showed up. It seemed like she knew Jessie and Ves. She seemed quite polite, but as Hikari looked at her she felt... intimidated. Just like she did with Ves. Hikari was meeting a lot of intimidating girls today. Forcing down all feelings of inadequacy, Hikari forced a smile and raised a hand to the newcomer, Sakuya Fagan, "Hikari Sugimoto. Nice to meet you." If this is what most women who played Vanguard were like, Hikari was in for a rough time...

About two hours before the start of the event...

Sieg was heading towards the event, her hand gripped tightly on her newly improved Blaukluger deck. Surely with how much she and her deck had improved in just a few days with the help of Yoshi-sensei, she'd be able to do significantly better in this event. Sadly, fate was not going to be on Sieg's side today.

"Yo," a voice rang out from behind her. It was one she'd heard before, one Sieg was far from pleased to hear. Sieg whipped around to see leaning against a building behind her the woman in red, the woman that had stolen Sieg's Gold Card from her during Zoo. Before Sieg could respond, the lady in red spoke up, "Don't worry, I'm not here to sabo-" Her words stopped and Sieg felt a fist impact her stomach. She dropped to her knees, her deck falling from her hand. "Oops. My hand slipped."

"Bu... How..." Sieg coughed out as the woman took her Blaukluger deck. The woman had been a few meters away and in a blur of motion faster than sound, had driven her fist into Sieg's stomach. Yet, unlike with Aoi's speed, there was no sonic boom or gust of wind. Desperately, Sieg tried to grab back her deck from the woman, scrambling up but failing as the woman was clearly much faster than her before collapsing back to her knees. "W-why... p-please, just give it back..."

"Heh, maybe there's more to you than I first thought. How about we make a deal, hm? There's only a few things in this world I really just can't stand, and one of those is people with no sense of self," she said before kicking Sieg. "I'll hang on to this precious deck of yours. Impress me and you get it back. Simple, right? Show me there's something more inside that shell of yours than what you showed at Zoo." And then, she just walked off without waiting for a response from Sieg into an Alley. By the time Sieg was able to recover herself and chase after her, the lady in red was nowhere in sight.

Present Time

As the first announcements of the event rang through the crowd, Sieg stood in the crowd, a new fire burning in her soul. Even if she was forced to use Chronojet in this event, she'd fight with her best. There was even more motivation than ever before for her to take first place at this event.

Fubuki had been in place for a while, waiting for the signal that the event was beginning. While she had been hoping she'd have the opportunity to greet Aoi and the others, that hadn't been the case today as she'd been helping with some of the last minute prepwork before having to take her place. "Well, at least I'll get to see them during the event," she had said to herself. With the Aqua Force fleet under the command of Tetra-Drive Dragon at her side, she wasn't going to give up her maps easily.

Rin was totally lost in the crowd, having forgotten to ask Hikari to meet her outside of it and very much panicking from being cut-off from her friend but quieter than usual, her EHing barely being audible even to those right next to her.

The lady in red had found a nice vantage point away from the crowd to watch the announcements, making less of an effort to hide herself than during Zoo. "A pirate treasure hunt, huh?" She smirked "Well, this might be even more entertaining than I thought."

Alysson was just kind of there.

The stage was set and the introduction had been given. In the corner of the dressing room, just before the curtain call...

Stress and turbulence was overcoming the idol captain's entire being. He was tapping his foot impatiently, seated on a plush cushion as he strummed a bedazzled guitar, eagerly tuning it. At the sound of Miss Nanana giving her introductions to the fighters, he sent a look across the room to his fellow singers and nodded as if to motion them into position. Haruka himself flung the guitar over his shoulder and slid on his gloves, pulling the long fishbone braid over his shoulder and lightly adjusting the last of the teal makeup around his eyes. He was wearing considerably less than at the Zoo event, given he had no time to costume change after the opening concert and would be moving directly to his fight station.

Moving on stage with a welcoming wave, Haruka this time had no microphone attached to his ear but was instead using a manual stand at the front of the stage with two amplifiers to either side of him, which Hana and Karin would be able to position themselves between as well on center stage.

"Hello Magallanica! Welcome to the Search for the Runic Scimitar, I hope everyone is eager to get their hunt on because I know I'm looking forward to seeing each and every adventurer here today. But first, let's get your spirit's in the seafaring mood, yeah?!"

He rose a fist in the air as the track started behind them a mere moment after.


In a stunning moment, Haruka slid back from the mic, throwing the guitar he'd brought on stage back over his shoulder and began playing the chords to a guitar riff between the lyrics. He'd only been able to practice it for just about thirty minutes, making every note another sweatdrop on the stage but with a clean execution and a bit of stylistic flair, he managed to ride the wave back into the final chorus.


Graphics of a large map piecing itself together throughout the song as the different nations of Cray formed together behind the idol group became more and more prevalent throughout the song as they sang about miracles and finding the fortune in friendship. The singing was, compared to the Zoo event, more polished and had a bit more unison to it. Where they failed to improve from before was spectacularly masked by the astonishing amount of hydrotechnics around the stage. Water fountains sprang and sprinkled on the dancers, creating magnificent rainbows on the stage space and a cool, refreshing mist that sank off the edge and into the audience like a bewitching fog that loomed as the adventure for the map pieces was about to begin. The choreography between Karin and Hana was spectacular, something far less uniform and lot more based around the event; wild and free. Haruka didn't have a lot to do in the way of dancing due to being restricted to the front amplifiers with the guitar for the song's final stretch, but he managed to play to the face of the crowd by reaching down and touching hands with the fans at the front who actually enjoyed the performance.

"Thank you so much everyone! From Cyan Sea ☆, to everyone here, grasp your dreams in your hands and find your treasure! Good luck everyone, I hope to see you all later today!"

That last phrase. That last call for good luck, while for those who knew nothing about Haruka, was nothing more than a mere idol's goodbye, was an oddly menacing way to say, "I look forward to crushing you all at a the battles later today."

He hasn't gotten to Cardfight a whole lot recently.

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Tobi stared at her, referring to herself with a strange name like "F Chopper Koga." He furrowed his brow, trying to decipher what the meaning behind it was, but he soon realized she was one of the members of Generation Rare. If Tobi had to admit one thing about his knowledge of Vanguard idols, it's that he liked Generation Rare more than this new group that had been showing up the events. He nodded with sparkly eyes at her, then looked at Katashi and back at her. Even if he wasn't exactly an idolizing fan, he found her to be way cooler than she was just a few moments ago.

"Koga, yeah? That's really cool—"

She asked about Katashi as a friend, Tobi being cut off though completely well-deserved and also kind of difficult to catch due to the volume of the room. He rose an eyebrow, only barely hearing Katashi respond over the noise.

Out of his throat came a rather annoyed, "Haaaaaaaaaaah?!"

Then the music began, it played, and it was over. Throughout the entire song, Tobi yelled over into the crowd at Koga about watching her tone and that he was definitely going to crush her today but if he didn't then Katashi definitely would. He also probably asked if she would sign his hoodie but it was honestly just too loud with the sound of the music playing for anyone to really convey any meaningful messages through words.

With the help from his trusty map, Neo finally found the Magallanica Branch. This is where the next G quest was taking place after the events of the Zoo branch. This time Neo planned to do well in this event after.. forseen problems in the first event. He walked through the entrance and tried to peek around to see if he saw anyone he knew and he didn't notice anyone on sight. So Neo went to the front desk and signed himself up for the event.

"My new journey starts here! Time to get off to a good start!"

After generous pats delivered from Jace, the young man turns to the stage and listens to the announcement. The event was a bit more childish than he imagined, but then again, he was invited to this event by a child and a dog. So, he really shouldn't of expected that much. That is until, his new 'captain' proved to have a massive stick up her ass by showing she wasn't above abusing kids. Sure he was a brat, but seeing someone take advantage of a kid at an event for them and taking themselves and what is supposed to be a good time too seriously pissed Jace off. He had half a mind in his head to go up to her and tell her off. However his nature prevented him from doing so. Regardless he was going to have words about that to somebody. Such behavior was unbecoming of someone in a leading position of a children's card game.

Right now his only job was to try to have fun and win. Hell, if he wins and brings back the Scimitar, he will get to have words of his own with this 'captain'. Jace sits through the idol performance unimpressed. He wasn't a fan of idol pop groups, fully aware of how harsh the life is on the idols. It took him out of it on top of the fact that it just wasn't his kind of music. However he attentively pays attention, just in case the song contained a hint of a mechanic of the event. Jace shakes his head and turns to his friends. "If anything, if I win I am going to give our captain a piece of my mind."

Isabella was in rare form, brought out by the charm of her homeland: the Magallanica Branch where Bermuda Triangle resided. This led her to try harder in smoothing out her self-absorbed performance compared to Zoo, having better synchronization in vocals and steps, but reveling in the freedom of the song's nature with loose and wild movements. True to the form of pirates, the idol group was given clearance to go about things as they pleased, not needing to be perfectly in tune with one another for varying parts of the song while Haruka didn't have to dance much at all, taking up the guitar. ... The princess had advised against that thing considering how little time he had to practice with it, but he was doing well enough that she couldn't complain.

Without having to worry about Karin's own movements, nor the possibility of Haruka flopping with the guitar, Hana was able to dazzle the crowd with her starry-formed eyes. The princess' form undulated through energetic grace, letting boots stamp and crash down onto the floor in a flexible rhythm of its own beat and the beat of her co-stars, twirling and mimicking the appearance of a bird taking flight, embodying the lyrical theme of flying without wings. In tandem with the rainbows and waterworks machines, the image of Pacifica and her adorable penguin companions leaping and sliding about was formed to the beat of the music. The avatar of smiles waved to the crowd in a spectral form, as did the new princess of the PR♥ISM-Promise trio from the past, celebrating her new crowning: Princess Labrador.

While it looked like special effects, they were projections of Hana's image that preludes the upcoming fights against her.

It was either her avatar or the debut of a long-time name returning.

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Koga paid little mind to Tobi's upset, hearing out Katashi and then Umi's announcement. So the brats hung out with kids still in school? Given Aoi Undyne's personality and childish mentality, it wasn't all too surprising. "You guys mind if I talk to you after this whole thing?" The cabbage spoke with a friendly tone, finding solace in young, impressionable minds... while also not expecting rivals out of them. It was a good place to make friends and spread the change of Link Joker.

This left Jessie and Ves who had to catch up to the Aoi who left them behind with the first quest against Hana.

"Tamotsu!" Jessie screeched, just barely drowned out by the music. He was going to talk his ear off and try to respond to Jace about what he assumed was Umi's attitude. The brunette didn't want to be the poor sap who spoke out of line to the captain and thought the showing was a little unnecessary, but growing up in Umano made him feel it was pretty natural discipline.

"Jessie." However, Ves stopped him in his tracks through the song. "Do not be slow again." Were the the surprising words that came out of her mouth. The blonde had come to know of his slow performance at Zoo, but knew that he was entirely serious when he wanted to catch up to his hyperactive friend. That is way her gaze commanded him to focus, which made him gulp anxiously.

"So even you can get serious, huh...? Alright." Jessie mentally prepared himself, knowing he would chase down Hana Espoir to get his revenge on her and stand out alongside his peers. After quickly greeting Sakuya, he made a mental note to ask where she had been after the event, needing to be ready to charge forward. Aoi wasn't around to blow away the competition with another sonic boom run again, which meant they had to keep speed with everyone else, as no one was going to be bewildered by a speedy youth again. This time, I'm not falling behind. I don't have Aoi's pace, but I have my own legs!

As soon as the performance ended, the idols cheerfully responded to the much more accepting and praising crowd with smiles, waves, highfives, and the like. Haruka and Hana had to quickly get in place, which left Karin the target of envy for being able to relax after the draining show.

And after a little while...

The loud horn blew.

A loud sonic boom was heard, obviously being Aoi's movement as the participants began rushing out, grabbing map pieces off of the tables near building exits. The reps were getting into position and outfitted with earpieces for communication with each other and the branch director. However... something unexpected happened.

"Aaah!" Aoi screamed at her position. "I forgot my map pieces!" On top of that, Aoi had no idea how to work her earpiece, so while her voice carried through the set... she couldn't hear anyone else. "I gotta go back!"

Hana was... completely unsurprised. "Yeah uh, I don't think she can hear us. Director Umi?" The idol had gotten dressed into her school uniform outfit again, settled at a fruit drink shack for her position.

"Not to worry, I already saw this coming." Umi spoke to the other reps. "You guys were given extra map pieces. That wasn't me handing out a surplus, that was me trying to play around our precious little goofball. You all are gonna have Aoi's pieces. You can hand out one or two different parts at your leisure."

"Ah..."

Well, this was going to be interesting. The four reps were armed with extra pieces while Aoi had absolutely none of them, and she had snuck back into the branch while everyone else was out.

This was going to be a hilariously bumpy road.

Katashi's focus was clearly split between Koga and Tobi by his side and the Cyan Sea☆ performance on stage. But he did manage to catch the cabbage wondering if they'd be able to talk more after the event. He had to stop looking at the stage for a moment to properly address her.

"Yeah sure, we can talk all you want once everything's over. I don't got much going on today." he managed to say before Haruka's guitar solo stole his attention entirely until it concluded. He gave the group an excited round of applause when the performance had ended. It wasn't until they'd left the stage he really focused back on the event itself. Tables were set up with the framework of the maps the Director had mentioned toward the exits. Eventually a loud horn blared about the branch, signalling the beginning of the event.

"All right! Let's go do this!" he called out, rallying Tobi with a fair bit more energy than was typical of him. Two of the three Cyan Sea☆ members could be challenged in this event. But the boy had his sights on one in particular. "A-anywhere you think we should go first?" he questioned of his companion as they moved out with the crowd. He wasn't entirely sure how confidently he wanted to say it but if Tobi didn't have a strong preference he knew how he'd try to steer them.

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The Aimless Blade was quick to set himself and the other reps up. He placed his earpiece and began testing it. Everyone seemed to grasp it well except for Aoi who was unable to hear them. Thankfully, at Umi's direction, Kachidoki and the others had been given Aoi's map pieces as the director had figured the gumball would neglect important things like this. He had to smile at the whole affair despite the frustration that accompanied trying to work with the the excited girl. The purple-haired samurai made it a point to check the windows of the branch by day's end in case the girl's speed had sent a strong enough shock wave out.

Before long the man was strolling down a long pier, wide enough for a few people to walk on shoulder-to-shoulder which stood a few feet above the calm harbor below. There were stairs leading up to it which Kachidoki himself took but as he reached the top of them he drew his blade. With a flash it was already sheathed again but the stairs fell behind him. Those who followed would still be able to get up of course but it would slow down crowds he hoped as it would take a bit of a jump and some upper body strength to get up. Then there was the very long walk out into what seemed the middle of the ocean. At the very end with nothing but the waves before him the man would turn and kneel, his sword rested on the wooden floor in front of him and a cardfight table in front of that which he had had brought a day prior in preparation. He would sit here and await those who dared approach to challenge him.

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Jessie seemed even more mad that Tamotsu had continued with his description of the awful word taught to him by Bashiro but the sound and excitement of the idol group clashed with it enough he didn't hear it very well. That and the boy didn't try to discipline him much more after. Jace seemed very upset with Umi's behavoir toward the fighter who'd spoken up. Whatever the reason the young fighters all seemed motivated as Ves encouraged Jessie to be faster this time. The dog had one reason to even be here which at the moment of the sounding horn took off near the speed of sound. There Aoi went, quick as ever.

"Catch you all around after!" he said to everyone present before sprinting off after his favorite gumball. The dog was fast when he wanted to be. Nothing like the girl when she was excited like this but still enough to usually give her a good race for a minute or two. What he had over the others present was a sharp nose that knew Aoi's scent like the back of his paw. Off he went in search of his bubbly companion. Their destined fight soon to follow once he caught her.

Tsubame meanwhile was much more relaxed about everything than just about everyone around her. She opened her parasol and lazily held it overhead and behind her head as the horn sounded. She stuck to no one in particular, figuring they'd all be moving faster than she'd want to anyway. She picked up the largely empty map copy for her as she exited and pondered who to go after.

"Hmmmmm... I've met three of them already, however briefly. One's a samurai which is cool but kinda tryhard in this day and age. The other's the guy idol which is super weird. Fighting Aoi sounds like a pain in the neck. Maybe Hana. Got lots to poke her for with that last performance there." she pondered aloud as the sea of fighters rushed past and around her.

Haruka spared no moments for pleasantries other than the regular moment of peace at the changing room, dropping off the guitar, collecting his event gear and trusted deck for the event. He firmly nodded to the rest of the idol troupe, exiting the room and making his way to the event station in the far western hall, blocking off one of the quadrants of offices as to keep any of the participants from running amok in places they shouldn't be. Deck set, he stared eagerly down the hallway waiting for trouble.

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"Huh?" Tobi missed the entire interaction between Koga and Katashi regarding meeting later to talk more, but he figured whatever it was he'd be filled in on when the time was right.

"Well then, let's do this! We can go uh... Well, I don't know any of these people really. I'd seen the idols a couple times now, but didn't the lady say they'd be extra hard?" Tobi tapped his chin trying to figure out where he wanted to go first, realizing a challenge awaited taking on either of the idols. He shrugged, seeing Miss Balloon Head run off before the crowd was even able to mobilize, causing his expression to sour just a bit more.

He turned to Katashi with a sense of destruction on his face, blended with pure determination now. "Let's go take on that white-haired guy! He's strong, right? We'll show that stupid ball of hot air how strong we are! Maybe even the chick with the broccoli hair will be impressed, yeah? What do you say?" Tobi had a devious grin with a righteous fist ready to be pumped on Katashi's command of where they were headed.

"Alright!!! WEEEEEEE!!! LET'S GO!!!" Mirai yelled as the signal for the official start of the G quest went off. Finally, a quest the airhead made in time for! As exciting as it is, it was also meant to be a moment of determination. To prove to herself that she at least prove the buglady who is still vividly inside her mind wrong that she is strong. As much as Mirai appreciates Lady Luck shining down upon her when the going gets tough, she also wants to break through those tough moments with her own strength. Completing this event will be one step towards proving that!

With Seekers in hand, a special one at that, she held it close as she began her journey through this. "BUT FIRST!!" Mirai yelled to herself, "..... I'm thirsty... all this watery scenery is making me want something nice to drink!" Well... it is the Magallanica branch after all. Lady Luck helping the airhead once more, brought her to a fruit shake shack. Almost like in a trance, Mirai walked up to the stand and ordered a Mixed Berry shake with extra strawberries. Something delicious like that sounds expensive, especially from a concession stand on one of the branches. Mirai barely managed with a few bills and lots of coins. How does this girl get by?!

Little did she know, one of the target people she is supposed to fight for map pieces was right there. Mirai completely distracted by the delicious shake despite staring at her, almost as if her brain was trying to yell at her saying that one of the people they need was right there, all the while indulging in such a fine drink.

Jace was off, waiting on the outskirts for the performance to end. This wasn't a team like event. Everyone wanted to win, and there is only one Grand Prize. Jace couldn't find any odd hints in what he was being presented. So he decides to go after the most interesting of the map piece weilders, the samurai Kachidoki Isao. He is easy to spot... He carries with him the sheath to a Katana. It fit with the aesthetic he was going for, and he followed attentively to the dock... only to find that the director wasn't the only eccentric one. Seeing the dock being sundered by the samurai, assumidly to add some sort of challenge to getting to him. Luckily Jace was tall and athletic enough to clear the gap easier than most. Jace grumbles to himself as he pulls himself up. "So I guess the objective of this event is now to make it as hard as possible for children to enjoy the event? I'm confused." Jace eventually hikes himself up and approaches the card table. His face wears his anger and scolding tone still, but he does his best to be polite. "My name is Jace Antonis, Isao. I would like to challenge you for your map piece!"

Surprisingly for the raven-haired woman, she had enjoyed that performance. It was more mesmerizing than she had initially expected. It certainly seemed to give the crowd a sort of buzz. From the outskirts of the crowd, close to the maps, she saw them all laughing and bumping into each other. It didn't last very long. Creeping tension set in, a type of almost nervousness hanging in the air like a spell. There was electric in the air that kept the atmosphere from being too suffocating, but as the sounds of excited chatter dimmed, the knot in her stomach tightened. Who knew a silly little Vanguard event would worry her so much? Her grip on her deck tightened, a deep breath calming her nerves. Perhaps she was so worried due to feeling slightly behind the others - behind people she hadn't even met. She always hated the unknown, but had learned to swallow that fear and bury it deep within her to move forward.

As luck would have it, the horn sounded as she sank into the sea of introspection. Snapping back to reality, she narrowed her eyes. She had to move fast before the angry mob of a crowd overwhelmed her. She paced out of the crowded mess with her head held high. She had her sights set on a target, and would stop at nothing to prove herself here. She was ahead of the pack and would waste no second of this event. Success was written in the stars for the previously forlorn valkyrie.

There she was - the famed idol herself. After all the hype surrounding her from Umi, it was only natural the glory-thirsty Aria had practically hounded her down. It had taken a few minutes more than she'd liked to stumble upon her, but it was strangely fitting for her to be in a fruit drink shack like this. She noted a blonde girl ordering a drink, sipping at it eagerly. That was a good idea, Aria thought. She might want one after, too. But was she a competitor? From the angle she was at, it would've been hard to see Hana, so maybe she just didn't notice... or the drink was a good luck charm. She grinned at the thought, but quickly pushed it back down. Shaking her head, she kept going forwards, walking with an imposing strut and an intense thunder in her eyes. It was an almost comical contrast for her to look so serious next to someone like Hana.

"You're Hana, right?" She asked, her voice softer than her face may have looked. It was a strange question considering the energy Hana gave off - something that was just so definitively her. Aria had never met her before, naturally, but it felt so close to her energy even on stage, through the television screen of her home. She supposed it was the mark of a true idol. "I challenge you. For your piece of the map." The softness in her voice gradually hardened. Sure, Hana was an idol, and she certainly didn't look half as fierce as Aria did with the scowl currently etched on her face - but she was a seasoned fighter, and Aria would never make a mistake as elementary as underestimating her opponent. Her blood burned in anticipation. Her fight and climb began here - for better or for worse.

Hikari showed very little interest in the idols' performance. All through the performance, she bounced on her heels impatiently. When would it be over? She focused solely on the table where the maps were sitting, as well as the exit. All she cared about was the event. Finally, the instant the horn blared, Hikari was off like a flash. With her small frame, she easily weaved in between the other participants crowding the hall. She nabbed an incomplete map and crashed through the door into open air.

Sprinting at speeds seemingly unnatural for her tiny stature, Hikari let her legs carry her wherever they decided they wanted to go, and eventually they carried her to a drink stand. Drinks? Why would Hikari need a drink right now? Staying hydrated was for wimps! She didn't need water to keep running! Surely her legs must have had some reason to bring her here. Her legs had never failed her before. There must have been something important here. She strode up to the drink stand aggressively, reached into her pocket, pulled out a pen, and stabbed it into the counter like it was a dagger, "YARR!!!" she roared, putting on her best, thickest, cheesiest pirate accent, "I be lookin' for the Runic Scimitar! Where be the scallywags that've spirited away with the map?" she demanded, peering around with a wild look in her eye.

While in the middle of her wild overacting, she overheard another participant challenge one of the map holders. Hana. The idol girl. Ugh. Alright. This was fine. The pulled the pen from the counter and whirled around towards the two, pointing the pen towards them, "You thar! You be the leader of those mermaid scoundrels?" Holy shit this was so fun. Hikari had to do this more often, "Don't be worryin' about this landlubber! I be your opponent!" Doing this silly pirate Roleplaying had hyped Hikari up even more than usual. She was ready to keelhaul this idol.

Aoi wandered aimlessly around Magallanica, unsure of where to go to get extra map pieces. If she told Umi, the pirate woman would probably kill her... Better to at least pretend to have pieces in case people come in fight her. Even more motivation to win so no one finds out...

In the meantime, the Jaeger brunette searched for his priority target: Hana in order to get a grudge match.

Ves, however, had quickly separated from him to go about her own quest. The young pudding demon was surprisingly agile, despite the poofy dress she was wearing, and used the chaos ensued by the Aimless Blade's spectacle at the pier to literally hop atop person to person, maintaining perfect balance and a steady, resolute gaze forward while bouncing and gracefully stepping about. With amazing jumping ability, the Oracle Think Tank clan leader had leaped toward her goal: Kachidoki Isao, while also seeing very few of the crowd already making it up with someone in the middle of challenging him.

She would wait, patiently preparing for the coming duel of blades. The unconscious image of a war god and his many swords held in hands was painted - illustrating Susano'o wielding Kusanagi and Amenomurakumo.

This left Koga to backtrack to the building, believing that having everyone focus on the exits and the big search area was a clever ruse. Some reps had probably stayed inside.

---------------------------------------

"You're somethin' else, you know that, little lady?" The friendly neighborhood fruit drink shack owner: Pallun said to Isabella with a thickly accented tone of voice. He was a tan-skinned, white hat wearing immigrant who wished to expand his smoothie business, while being pitched ideas to expand his beverage inventory and stretching all around the world... That was his dream anyway, but he had only just recently started in Japan as his first stop and probably his only shop with how small the place was. It was still a pretty comfy environment though. Hana had come to frequent it, and quietly sipped through her straw as she embraced the cool breeze and shade of the small structure. "Got changed and made it here before anyone even took off runnin'."

"Well, it just naturally comes to me, I guess?" Hana bragged while trying to keep a modest tone. She didn't have Haruka's natural speed or Karin's... fire magic that somehow didn't cause another incident, but being an idol was in her blood. Being able to swap costumes and settle in place without breaking a sweat is a talent that requires years of hellish training. At least, she would assert it as that anyway. Anything to make her stand out and feel important.

It's a really bad kink in her attitude, but not as bad as it was before.

"Hey there!" Pallun tipped his hat at the sight of Mirai. Hana recognized her as the one who fought Aoi during the Zoo after party, and assumed she was part of the event... except Mirai was too busy enjoying her strawberry-heavy shake and didn't even bat an eye to the idol, which brought her to raise a brow. Was she not as Vanguard-happy as Aoi to immediately challenge her or was she too invested in the drink? ... Eh, well, Umi did say try not to be too obvious. Though, that didn't stop two people who did recognize the princess stepping up and offering their challenges.

One of them was much more refined and reserved, but fierce in presence. The other was playing along with the pirate theme with the sensation of hotbloodedness Hana had familiarized herself with around the new generation.

Standing up from her seat, the princess smiled to the duo. "Yes, I am the leader of the 'mermaid scoundrels', Hana," she played along too while also replying to Aria with confirmation. The lass was rather calm, despite knowing Mirai would likely instantly challenge her after these two here. Even so, her smirk remained, carrying itself about with a confident air layered with the lingering power of a legend. The Espoirs as a clan radiated with ferocious might that would match the energy of the oncoming winds. "And I will gladly fight you both."

Tamotsu was having trouble tracking down his gumball. Her scent seemed like it was everywhere. Almost like she'd gone in a big circle or something. She'd been so fast out the gates it seemed unlikely she'd gone back to the branch building and yet the nose seemed to say otherwise. The pup had slowed a decent bit as full on sprinting made sniffing out a person a bit more difficult. For now he'd trot in the circle the scent seemed to be taking him in. Back to the branch and all that.

Tsubame meanwhile had taken much longer than many of the others to depart that she'd actually seen Aoi return. Actually seen wasn't so much the correct statement as heard. The girl's speed was something else entirely. So when the familiar gush of wind and small sonic boom occurred again but this time toward the branch building she figured it wouldn't hurt to take a peek inside. It seemed a few others had had similar strategies. But now she had to get into Aoi's mind. That was asking a lot as it happened as the girl's ability to function confused her greatly. So she took to wandering the interior of the branch figuring that the airhead would be bouncing about so fast they'd be more like to hit each other before ever seeing each other.

----------

Katashi was visibly relieved that Tobi seemed set on challenging Haruka as well. Now he could have the fight he was looking for and not have to say anything all that embarrassing. It was better to harness his friend's enthusiasm and go along with that.

"Y-yeah, good plan! That idol guy won't know what hit him!" he said then realized he was being looked to for guidance for the initial thrust into things. "Uhh... let's check around the branch building outside. The search area's pretty big but maybe someone's staying close to home." he said, hoping Haruka hadn't run off halfway across town by this point.

----------

It was impressive the samurai thought. Already a challenger before him. His eyes had been shut as he knelt on the wooden pier, only opening upon Jace's formal challenge. The boy seemed irritated. Likely he was not amused with the removal of the stairs which was understandable. Yet Umi had been clear in how she had wanted this to be challenging in a multitude of ways so he would follow orders. He stood and took hold of the sheathed katana resting on the ground in front of him and put it back into it's place at his side. There was no need to draw it here. This was merely a cardfighter. But he felt he would soon need the blade itself. The appearance of Ves Yamata further back on the long dock seemed to confirm it.

"Well met, Antonis-dono. I accept your challenge. Let us have a fair fight." the Aimless Blade said very formally. Each opponent, regardless of circumstances, was to be treated with honor and respect. He withdrew a deck and set it down on the table before him. The literal blade would not be drawn here but a blade indeed had just been produced.

Even though the other girl was there first, Hikari felt like she was in a hurry. She didn't want to wait for another person to play first. Rudely and impatiently, she moved past the other girl and presented her deck to Hana, "I'll be yer first opponent!" Hikari declared, still keeping her cheesy pirate accent on. She was overflowing with confidence. This girl may have been a champion, but Hikari had already sworn to herself that she'd win this event. That meant that she'd defeat anyone in her way. Even a champion.

The game got off to a rough start. Both Hana and Hikari were forced to make suboptimal rides, with Hana dropping a perfect guard and Hikari dropping her best booster. Hana started defensively, guarding Hikari's first attack, such that even a trigger wouldn't be able to get through. Hikari on the other hand was much less careful, accepting every attack that was sent her way, though a critical trigger made her almost regret it. Hikari was already racking up damage quickly while Hana was sitting fine. Hikari's turn two saw her being forced to ride White Hank, one of her best grade 2 rear guards, but she was at least able to inflict some damage. Hana's turn three pushed Hikari to the very limit, dragging her all to a very dangerous damage range.

Finally however, Hikari rode into Victor, then strode into Vik-ten. Her hand was almost completely empty of grade 1s and 2s, so she called Muscle Shriek to the rear, and launched a heavy assault toward's Hana's vanguard. In the end, however, she was only able to force Hana to 4 damage. Hana was leading. She strode into Princess Labrador, and like a flash, her board was full of mermaid lolis. A ferocious assault began against Hikari. A single attack from Labrador forced Hikari to drop half of her hand to ensure that three triggers wouldn't do her in. The majority of what remained of her hand was spent blocking Hana's other units. And after Hikari barely scraped through the attack, Hana's entire field returned to her hand. This would be a fierce obstacle to overcome. Daunted but not deterred, Hikari pushed onwards. One way or another, this would be her final turn.

She strode into Viktplasma, then dumped her hand onto the field. White Hank in the front, Arasheed, her stride fodder, boosting, and Quad Gigas replacing Muscle Shriek. With this field, and all 5 of her counterblasts still available to her, she could only hope she'd be able to break through Hana's defenses. Quad Gigas attacked, bringing Hana to five damage. Viktplasma attacked next, Hana guarding with a two-pass barrier. Hikari's twin drive revealed a critical trigger, sparking hope, but nothing on the second check. Hikari wasn't anywhere close to done, though. Victor's heartbeat caused Quad Gigas to stand again, and Viktplasma's skill caused himself to stand as well. Powered up from the critical trigger, Viktplasma launched a second attack. Hana guarded with only enough shield to protect her if Hikari got no triggers. Hikari's third check revealed a Draw Trigger, giving Viktplasma enough power to smash through Hana's defenses. But that wasn't the end of it. The second check revealed another Draw Trigger, giving Viktplasma even more power than was necessary. To add insult to injury, both of the draw triggers had drawn Hikari other triggers. Within just six cards, Hikari's deck had stacked FIVE triggers. Hana never stood a chance. Her damage check revealed nothing of value, and the game was over.

"Ya-ha-har!" Hikari cheered, pumping her fist into the air excitedly. "Ye were pretty tough for an idol," Hikari commented, showing some amount of respect for the woman. She clearly wasn't a champion for nothing. And if Hikari hadn't had destiny on her side, she could have very easily been defeated. Even if Hikari didn't get the whole idol thing, she would always respect a strong opponent. "Now, where be the scimitar?"

It took only their second performance on stage for Karin to confirm two things about her new choice in career.

One, the performances themselves were, while draining, immensely fun. She enjoyed getting to move her body around so much, and the members of the crowd that did cheer and applaud the group gave her a sense of fulfillment. At the very least, she was getting people hyped up and excited, just as she had done during the Messiah Scramble. If people were having a good time, they weren't having a bad one. Even if most of the general public didn't remember the war, it had been those times- memories of happier times- that had gotten them through it in the first place. It gave them something to hold onto, and something worth fighting for. And without a single major conflict in sight, now was the perfect time to give people as many good memories as she could.

The second thing she confirmed was that she absolutely hated working on the fly. She'd grown a few muscles for quick thinking, and was even quicker on her feet, but none of that could fully make up for true experience- And due to the short notice they received for each of their songs, just about all of Karin's free time two or three days before each event was devoured by the beast that was the idol industry.

Karin had made her way back to her dressing room immediately after the performance, changing out of her idol outfit and back into her proper attire, seating herself in her chair for a good few minutes. She did not feel an ounce of envy for her two sibling-partners, who had been resigned to performing double duty for today's event. If anything, she was thankful she got to catch a break; These performances were entirely different beasts from her typical morning jogs, and she was still getting used to their aftermaths.

---

Sakuya barely had time to greet anyone back, the idols' song drowning out most conversation, and the horn heralding the event's beginning blaring loudly soon after. Jessie and the rest scattered, with Ves literally leaping into action, hopping across the crowd like some kind of ninja. Just what kind of girl was she?!

She didn't have more than a moment to ponder that question, however, as the event was swiftly getting underway, all the participants rushing off in every direction. Her first instinct was to run, but she forced herself to stop and think things through. It wasn't just speed or strength that allowed pirates to successfully sail the seven seas, right? Surely, smarts were just as important. After all, keeping one's ship ship-shape would no doubt be a difficult task, and ancient treasures were always kept hidden underneath some sort of riddle or puzzle, right? So she stood still for a few moments, considering her options. The area to search for the treasure was large, and the map holders had been spread out around it... But almost everyone was staying outside. The interior of the building was within the search area's boundaries, was it not? If her hunch was right, then at the very least, she could secure one map piece early on... Provided she won, of course.

Turning around on her heel, the Korean Champion dashed into the building, scanning as much of it as she could. She checked rooms, hallways, went through each floor of the building as she slowly made her way up... Until she spotted one of the idols who had been on stage. Haruka was his name, if she recalled him correctly, and he was mentioned as one of the map holders for the event. She'd been right, they did hide a map piece back inside! Stopping for a moment to catch her breath, she stepped up to the man slowly, withdrawing her deck from its case. "I suspected they might keep one tucked away in the back... Haruka, I would like to challenge you for your piece of the treasure map."

Jace sits down in front of the card table. Setting up his deck and preparing himself mentally. He places his starter face down and shuffles his deck. The samurai was quite intimidating, his words harsh and stern. They let loose their catchphrases, "Stand up, Vanguard!" revealing Jace's Great Nature, lead by Pencil Koala versus Kasen Kanesada of clan Touken Ranbu. With that, the game was off with Isao beginning play.

Isao rode into Kousetsu, his perfect guard, using Kasen's forerunner to bring it to the center rear and passed. Filling Jace with a bit of confidence as he lead with Taping Cat, bringing Koala to his center rear and attacking. Isao did not guard, and Jace got a lucky critical, giving him great momentum. However, Isao would not take that lying down, riding into Kanesada and calling two Hasebe's to his flank. He used his first Hasebe's attack, getting a damage in. Jace received a tigger, and applied it to his Taping Cat. The hit activated Hasebe's ability to restand and attack a backrow rear guard. Jace then guarded with the same critical trigger he got from his first attack. Isao then attacked with his Vanguard, an attack that Jace took, granting him another trigger to apply to his Vanguard, and to protect him from the flanking Hasebe. Koala was safe for now, but Isao proved to be a worthy aggressor.

Jace did his best to follow up with aggression of his own, riding into Sleepy Tapir and calling another one to his side. Jace attacked with both, with his vanguard hitting but his rear guard being intercepted by a Hasebe. Isao mentioned that he would now go all out in his odd samurai speak, which hurt Jace slightly. "If you weren't already, you insult me." Isao in turn called what was assumed to be his Avatar, the pure white blade that rends darkness, Tsurumaru Kuninaga. He also called Masakuni in the stead of his interceptor. What followed was an attack from Hasebe, which was forced to be guarded if Jace wanted to avoid another strike to Koala. Then an attack from the Vanguard that Jace was forced to perfect guard. Despite his perfect guard, Isao's drive proved to be deadly. A draw trigger and two crit triggers, all onto Doutanuki. Jace took three damage in one swing, and was suddenly on the ropes in both card advantage and damage. Jace got slight relief from a heal trigger, but things looked bleak.

Jace top decked his prefered first grade 3 ride, Honorary professor Chatnoir, and discarded his Avatar Tester Fox to stride into Omniscience Dragon Cath Palug. Jace also played Crayon Tiger, but unfortunately due to his need to guard so much the prior turn, could not boost the Tiger to close out the game. Jace lead with his Vanguard into the fray, making Isao use a surprising amount of cards to guard. He really did NOT want Jace to get any value from his Koala. Unlike Isao however, Jace could not produce three triggers to get past the four card guard. Jace did drive into a heal, making the damage count equal. With his Omniscience Dragon's ability he was able to strike with both Crayon Tiger and Tapir, which would of put Isao to five damage... if he didn't check into a Heal trigger. Damn this Samurai was luckier than him! At the end of Jace's turn, he retired both of his rear guards and drew for each of them. On Isao's turn, he strode into Hotarumaru. He attacked with his Vanguard, of which Jace guarded. Hasebe attacked, and with Jace used up on guards, was bullied out of his Koala and at five damage. Next turn was his make it or break it. Jace drew and ran into a problem, none of his strides helped in this situation, as they all relied on other rear guards. "Break ride, into my avatar, Tester Fox!" This was his gambit, playing Tester Fox, playing a Chatnoir, and legioning with Illusion Scientist. He attacked, both went through, but with no triggers, and both players at five damage, the game was certainly over. This was proven true as Jace could not adequately guard Isao's second stride into Mikazuki Munechika, closing the game out. Stupid pretty Samurai's.

Jace lost the game fair and square. He collected his cards and stood to respectfully bow. "Thank you for the opportunity. However now I need to work faster and harder if I am to challenge your Director." When he mentioned the director he seemed to scold again, even though he seemed to genuinely be having fun during the match. Both decks got to do their thing to the fullest, and was a pure kind of game. How could he not enjoy it? "Your deck is well built and strong, I can see why you are spoken highly of. I wish you continued future success."

The Aimless Blade wasn't sure what to have expected from the opponent that stood before him. Great Nature is what met his blade and Jace quickly showed he was resolved to overcome Kachidoki's offensive. Neither player had an optimal grade one ride but Jace checked a critical trigger putting the samurai to two damage early. If it was a sign of things to come he might be in trouble. But the purple-haired man had an onslaught of grade twos to attack with. His vanguard was one thing but with it he called two Hasebe's, both of whom carried an odd ability. When the first struck Kachidoki called out Homare then paid the cost of the skill. The rearguard stood with two thousand more power but was unable to attack the vanguard. So instead it attacked the only rearguard Jace had, Pencil Koala in the back row. The Great Nature player seemed to want it around and knowing what the card did Kachidoki could understand why. But the way to victory demanded the opponent move to your pace and so he knew he would eventually take the forerunner from his opponent.

Once Jace had dealt Kachidoki his third point of damage he commented that he would now be able to draw his blade in earnest. Jace felt if he had not been taking him seriously to this point he would feel insulting. The samurai smirked as his opponent did not yet understand Touken Ranbu's other ability: Shinken Hissatsu. A power that could only be activated at three or more damage. Kachidoki rode to grade three first with Tsurumaru Kuninaga and though the brilliant Masamune was blocked entirely by a perfect guard, his drive checks revealed two critical triggers, making for a very punishing rear swing. The Great Nature player responded with Honorary Professor Chatnoir and striding into Omniscience Dragon Cath Palug. The grade three ride brought to mind a fighter from the war who had bested the god of the sun with such units, but now was hardly the time for reminiscing. The samurai managed to guard out the attacks which was aided by his fifth damage check being a heal trigger which took him back to four.

It was time to go on the offensive and so Kachidoki strode into his situational restander. He called his entire hand to have five rearguards then swung with the vanguard. In the event it hit, it would rest the other rears then stand to attack again. But as it was blocked that left the man's rearguards to continue the assault. And this time, Hasebe did strike Pencil Koala down. Jace responded with break ride into legion. A formidable strategy but the boy had only one rearguard. As it was, Kachidoki was only in a position to guard the rearguard and so he took the vanguard swing. No criticals came and thus the path to victory was set. Munechika was the man's next stride and with its power up and extra critical it sealed the game. It was a valiant fight on the challenger's part. Something Kachidoki could respect.

"You will indeed be hard pressed to overcome Nanana-san." he said at the boy's comment on the power he would need to challenge the Branch Director.  "I too hope your efforts in obtaining the other map pieces will be fruitful. However, you will not leave this fight entirely empty handed. For your efforts I will give you a hint to the location of the scimitar. The hint is thus: The black flag of Captain Nightmist is directly above the chest." the man said stoically while shifting his attention to the pudding lover who had been waiting for their fight's conclusion.

"I would advise you hurry on your way. There are yet four others you may challenge and overcome. And I feel it may not be safe to tarry here." he said to Jace as he stared down Ves. His hand went to the hilt of his sheathed sword out of instinct. He felt something in the air from this girl. The Zoo right hand's daughter and Oracle Think Tank clan leader. What was she seeking here?

"... We, uh, we aren't lost, right?"

Tobi awkwardly stumbled around, some of his vigor seemingly drained off of him after dawdling the halls of the Magallanica building with Katashi at his side for well over four minutes. Four minutes wasn't a great deal of time but in the grand scheme of the event, that was precious moment they could be collecting map pieces or happening upon the treasure! Instead they were aimlessly bounding through the center hall structure, only taking a left toward the western halls after a few moments of indecisive picking of which way to go. As they did, a strangely familiar entity was visible down the hall, talking to another even more familiar visible entity.

The first one wasn't familiar enough to recall a name but it was easy enough to remember the face from the first time Tobi had been introduced to Aoi, Jessie and co. Tobi knit his brow, somewhat frustrated further by the fact that someone beat them to their intended target, but Tobi played by the rules and just gave a disgruntled shrug, laying his back to the wall.

"Guess we're waiting our turn, but don't worry Katashi. We're gonna crush this guy right after this chick gets out of our way, and we'll definitely show everyone, yeah?"

Tobi had a determined aspiration to win now in his head, and he hadn't let it go.

Haruka, on the other hand, was now standing at his battle desk with three participants lined up and ready to go in rapid succession. He raised a brow at Sakuya, giving an almost-friendly wave. Similar to his idol courtesy, but with a tinge of something else. Something far worse. The happy-go-lucky facade of chivalry and courtesy gave way to the devoted spirit to make sure every participant he came by was properly tested. To make sure the new generation of Vanguard was worthy, Haruka steeled himself to not hold back for any reason against any of the participants.

"Ah, yes, yes! Surprisingly I'm inside this time around. Probably to make it a bit harder to find. Let's have a fun fight, shall we?"

Haruka placed his Grade 0 Vanguard onto the circle, awaiting his approaching challenger with almost demonic vigor.

Seth was walking around his branch aimlessly trying to find his "targets" that he listed off. He took out his phone and pressed on the screen, triggering an application that appeared to be a "check-list" with their names on it and a box beside it.

"My main priority should be... this Fubuki person." He said calmly, recalling that she had a Tear Dragon for Mystozan to link with. Even though he wanted to win this event, he had to remember that this would be the only time that he would be able to fulfill his promise to both Mystozan and Jellal, to help Mystozan evolve even further. He continued down the list of the names.

"Everyone else is really a 'if I see them, I'll fight them', however." Seth wanted to try his hand with them after handling his promise so that he would be able to fight to his fullest without any distractions or in the unlikely event, get kicked out of the event. Additionally, he only needed one map piece, so should he even fight and defeat one he was all set. However, between his promise and his eagerness for a challenge, he had no qualms about fighting anyone else - though still preferring to engage in combat after seeing Fubuki's dragon.

"There are a few people I wouldn't mind squaring off. This Kachidoki individual, he's apparently Umi's "first mate", whatever that means. But I heard he had interesting deck, and if he's as tough as Umi then there's that. And finally..." Seth mind wandered in the vivid memories of his adventures in Card Capital Two. His hand opened up, revealing a cold flat white surface as the wind slowly brushed through his matching white hair, reliving the moment when he met her, and his critiques towards her and her deck. "I need to make sure the person Umi in charge of me actually knows how to play the game." Seth wasn't sure whether he was feeling his usual eagerness to fight Aoi or whether he was upset and confused to have someone like her be his chaperone. He slid both names to the second and third line respectively, before closing the app and darting off to find whomever he could fight.