"My turn, draw!" Hayato drew a card and looked at it, then Set it on the field. "I set one card and end my turn."
[Hayato: 2100 LP, Hand 1]
[Ojama King] [DEF 3000]
[Set Card] X2
"Hmm? You just ended your turn so simply?" Shouji said, sounding a bit surprised. Hayato had made a whole bunch of plays during his turn earlier, searching, stealing cards, summoning monsters, but when it was his own turn, he just ended it simply?
"Then, my turn, draw!" Drawing a card, Manjoume Shouji pointed towards his Chimera the Flying Mythical Beast on the field. "The effect of Chimera the Flying Mythical Beast activates! During the Standby Phase of my next turn after it was successfully Tribute Summoned, I can Special Summon the monster that was Tributed for its Tribute Summon back to my field!"
Hayato reminded him, "Don't forget, because of Ojama King's effect, you only have one Monster Zone left that can be used. You can only Summon one monster."
"That's not necessarily true. If there's no Zone to use, why not just free up some space?" Manjoume Shouji smiled proudly and activated his Set Card. "I Chain to Chimera the Flying Mythical Beast's effect! Trap Card, Crossbow Unit, activate!"
"By Tributing one monster on my field, I can choose one card on your field to destroy!"
A giant catapult appeared in Manjoume Shouji's Back Row. Chimera the Flying Mythical Beast obediently jumped into the tray used for giant rocks. The throwing arm swung violently, launching Chimera the Flying Mythical Beast high into the air like Kars, sending it falling towards Ojama King.
"You're actually using your own monster for a suicide attack, that's so inhumane! Doesn't your conscience hurt?" Watching Chimera the Flying Mythical Beast descend from the sky, Hayato also activated his Set Card from his Back Row. "Quick-Play Spell Card, Pot of The Forbidden, activate!"
"By Tributing Ojama King, which is about to be attacked, I choose to recover Life Points equal to its DEF. Rather than letting you blow it up like this, I'd rather stir-fry it and eat it."
"You're absolutely not qualified to say that to me!"
Amidst Manjoume Shouji's retort, a giant wok appeared beneath Ojama King. A fierce fire stir-fried it vigorously, turning it into a bowl of stir-fry that looked surprisingly good and provided a boost to Hayato. And Chimera the Flying Mythical Beast, thrown by the catapult, hit the ground headfirst and was destroyed.
It was just a bit strange that even though it was Crossbow Unit, it used a catapult to launch the monster.
[Hayato: 2100 → 5100 LP]
Seeing Hayato's Life Points recover to 5100, even higher than at the start, Manjoume Shouji didn't mind. "Just a mere 5100 points. Watch me clear it out quickly."
"Because both Chimera the Flying Mythical Beast and Ojama King left the field, all my Monster Zones are now unrestricted. Come forth, Lesser Fiend and Giant Dragon!"
The two monsters that were Tributed earlier to Summon Chimera the Flying Mythical Beast returned to Manjoume Shouji's field. However, their state was different from when they were Summoned using De-Fusion earlier. This time, the bodies of the two revived monsters were noticeably stiff.
"Although Chimera the Flying Mythical Beast has the effect to revive the monsters used for its Tribute, I remember that monsters Summoned this way cannot attack, and their effects are also negated, right?"
Hayato stated Chimera the Flying Mythical Beast's effect, and Manjoume Shouji merely sneered upon hearing that. "I never intended to use these two monsters to attack you anyway."
"By Tributing Lesser Fiend and Giant Dragon, I Summon this powerful monster from my hand!"
The bodies of the two monsters gradually cracked, revealing the souls inside, which floated into the air. They converged in mid-air, then gradually transformed into a giant, two-colored monster.
A line from the top of its head to its hip served as a dividing line for the color of its body. The left half was covered in slightly pale, sickly green fur corresponding to Giant Dragon, while the right half revealed the bright yellow corresponding to Lesser Fiend.
"Absorbing the power of the two monsters, the one born is this Gazelle the King of Mythical Beasts. Its ATK will become the combined ATK of the two monsters Tributed for its Tribute Summon!"
Hayato calculated the final result and was a bit startled. "Lesser Fiend with 2100 ATK plus Giant Dragon with 2000 ATK... this guy's ATK is actually higher than Black Luster Soldier's 4000 ATK?"
"He Tributed two monsters that cannot attack to Summon a stronger being." Yugi watched the field with some concern. "If he's hit by a Direct Attack, Hayato's Life Points will be quite in danger!"
"Battle Phase! I use Gazelle the King of Mythical Beasts to Direct Attack you! Taste this strike, Hayato!" Shouji shouted excitedly, and Gazelle responded to the command he gave, swinging its giant claws towards Hayato!
At this moment, Hayato had a calm and composed expression, as if the person about to be hit by the giant claws wasn't himself at all. "That's a truly amazing Duel, Manjoume. It seems I can't hold back my real skills anymore."
"Go, my winning Ace Card, my Invincible Tamashii---"
"Rainbow Kuriboh, save me!!!"
A rainbow band of light extended from the card Hayato played, precisely blocking the attack in front of Hayato. Causing Gazelle the King of Mythical Beasts' 4100 ATK, which was even stronger than the God of Destruction, to be nullified, only causing a slight ripple in the seven-colored rainbow band of light.
Riding the band of light, Rainbow Kuriboh floated and spun in front of Hayato, flying towards Gazelle the King of Mythical Beasts, which was at a loss because its attack was negated. Using the rainbow to wrap tightly around it, rendering it unable to move.
"This monster? Damn it!" Shouji recognized Rainbow Kuriboh. Although this was the first time Hayato had used this monster in a Duel against him, he had collected information on Hayato's performance in the Duelist Kingdom, so he naturally knew about this Rainbow Kuriboh that had appeared multiple times.
Not to mention, this card had appeared in Hayato's Duels against the former Japan national champion "Insect" Haga and the "Father of Duel Monsters" Maximillion Pegasus. Just this point alone was enough for Manjoume Shouji to pay attention.
"When your monster declares an attack, Rainbow Kuriboh in my hand automatically pops out to help me stall. Then it uses its exquisite technique to play bondage with your monster." Hayato whistled. "It's a real shame, Shouji, I'm afraid I won't be able to taste the power of your monster's attack."
"Stop with the sarcasm." My turn ends!" With his monster unable to attack, and his hand and Back Row empty, Manjoume Shouji had nothing else to do and could only end his turn.
[Shouji: 4000 LP, Hand 0]
[Gazelle the King of Mythical Beasts] (Rainbow Kuriboh) [ATK 4100]
(This chapter ends)