Chapter 025: Reiji's Incentive

Reiji's Incentive
Release Date	April 9, 2020
Previous Chapter	Chapter 024: Closure
Next Chapter	Chapter 026: The Cardfight Club

Makoto, Hanako, Kenji, Baku, Kotaro, Agrise, and Asahi had all gathered around a table so they could listen to Reiji's story. Back at the National Circuit final, Reiji had promised Makoto that he would hear the story of the origin of Kuromi. Reiji, as per usual, stood, leaning against a wall.

"Now this story is very personal to me, so don't tell everyone or laugh at me if I get sentimental and stuff, okay?" Reiji had everyone promise to this. The story meant a lot to Reiji, and it meant a lot to the others that Reiji was willing to share the story with them.

"This began many years ago," Reiji began to tell the story. "Aichi Sendou had just won the Asia Circuit for the first time. They switched it to the National Circuit shortly after. How many of you were playing Vanguard at that time?" Makoto, Kotaro, and Kenji raised their hands.

"Figures..." Reiji realized. "I started playing Vanguard around that time, so yeah... I'd say it was six years ago..."

---

"Oh no! I'm going to be late for school!" Reiji said in a flashback, as he was running down a street. He's probably played this image back many times, only recently understanding what happened.

Suddenly, he noticed a blue haired boy walk in front of him. They collided. Cards were scattered everywhere. Reiji landed on his back.

"Ow..."

The boy offered a hand to him. Reiji then realized who the boy was.

"A- A- Aichi Sendou!!!" Reiji quickly got back on his feet, before bowing before his idol. "I am so sorry I didn't see you there! Please forgive me, sensei!"

Aichi paid little attention to the boy's attempts at begging for forgiveness, only giving a "That's okay..." for a response. Then he began to pick up cards, and noticed that some of them weren't his.

"So you play Vanguard too?" Aichi asked him, as he continued to arrange cards. Reiji joined him in cleaning up the mess.

"Yeah..." Reiji started to reply. "But..."

Aichi stopped in place. "But... what...?"

"I'm not very good at it," Reiji answered. "I've only just started playing."

After all the cards were collected, Aichi stood back up, both decks in hand. "I see you play Royal Paladin. Excellent choice."

"Easy for you to say," Reiji responded. "I haven't won a single game yet."

Aichi thought for a moment, before saying "Let me take a look at your cards." As he saw them, he quickly noticed Reiji was missing an important piece. "You had better hurry to school. Then, after school, come to Card Capital."

"Card... Capital...?"

Aichi responded by quickly drawing a map that would get Reiji to Card Capital. He handed the map to Reiji and went on his way.

---

Later that day, Reiji had arrived at Card Capital as planned. Aichi Sendou was waiting for him.

"It's pretty simple," Aichi explained. "You have most of the cards needed for a fully functioning Alfred deck."

"What am I missing?" Reiji asked him.

"You don't have any Blaster Blades in your deck," Aichi explained further. "It's like having a Tsukuyomi deck without Tsukuyomi or a Beast Deity deck without Illuminal Dragon. Four Blaster Blades will do the trick."

Reiji nodded in agreement. "But... I don't know if I have the money for them. Blaster Blade is an extremely rare card."

"Don't worry about it," Aichi replied. "The cards are on me. Go ahead and see if there's any other cards you might like."

And that's when Reiji saw it for the first time. Beacon of Hope, Kuromi.

"I'll take four of these, too," Reiji told Aichi. Aichi went over to see what Reiji had chosen.

"That's weird," Aichi observed, "I've never seen that card before. Must have come from the new set."

---

After all the cards were paid for, Aichi began to turn around to leave the shop.

"Wait, sensei!" cried a voice from behind him. It was Reiji. Despite Reiji still being very nervous around his idol, Aichi could tell that something was very different about Reiji.

Aichi turned around, saying "What is it? Also, please just call me Aichi." He blushed a little, embarrassed over being called a sensei.

"Oh... Aichi... um... Could we... have a Cardfight?" Reiji asked very nervously. Suddenly thinking he made a mistake, Reiji tried to correct himself. "But if you're really busy I definitely understand!" Baka, idiot! You can't just walk up to a professional like Aichi Sendou and challenge him to a Cardfight! It's not polite...

"Absolutely!" Aichi responded. "I guess I forgot my friends were meeting me here so I've got time for a Cardfight."

Reiji lit up at the very idea of fighting Aichi. "Thank you, sensei... Oh! Sorry... Aichi..."

---

Back in the present, Makoto interrupted the story. "I didn't know you were such a fan of Aichi Sendou!"

"Yeah well," Reiji said, struggling to regain his composure, "back then it was hard not to be a fan of Aichi Sendou."

Reiji had gotten the group very excited to hear the rest of the story. He had no choice but to continue...

"Where was I..."

---

Reiji and Aichi sat at a table, shuffling each other's decks. Reiji thought of Aichi as his hero, the one who taught him that anything was possible with a strong enough imagination. And now here he was, about to fight his hero, his idol, in a Cardfight. Sure, it wasn't the Asia Circuit, but Reiji was fine with this friendly little Cardfight for now...

"Are you ready, Reiji?" Aichi asked him.

"Uh... ready..." Reiji answered shyly.

"Alright then! Now, Stand Up, Vanguard! Barcgal!"

"Um... Stand Up, My Vanguard! Clowdia!"

"Imagine it..." Aichi told Reiji as he closed his eyes.

"Imagine?" Reiji answered as he closed his eyes.

"We're astral bodies on the surface of the planet Cray, a world much like our own..."

"I can see it..."

"Feel the wind blowing through your hair..."

Reiji did as Aichi told him. There it was! The wind! Reiji opened his eyes and saw that he was on Planet Cray!

"And now that the stage is set," Aichi told Reiji, "the battle can begin. I draw, and then ride! Knight Squire, Allen!"

"Now I ride! Blue Steel Knight, Lionel! His skill activates! I call Clowdia from the soul to the rear-guard. Add 5000 Power to Lionel! Attack!"

"No guard!" Aichi told Reiji.

"Drive Check, Draw Trigger! Power to Clowdia and draw one."

"My damage check, no trigger."

Reiji quietly ceded the turn to Aichi.

"I draw," Aichi then said as he started his next turn. "Now it's time to stand up, my avatar! Blaster Blade Vision!" Reiji was surprised, but also excited to see a different Blaster Blade on Aichi's vanguard circle.

"A new Blaster Blade?!" Reiji asked. "That's so amazing!"

"I activate the skill of Blaster Blade Vision! By putting a Flogal and a Future Knight, Llew from my hand into the soul, I can unlock the door to the future!"

"The future..?" Reiji asked quietly. In his imagination, he could see a large white dragon slowly float down to the battlefield.

"A vision becomes so much more if you hold on to it! Superior ride! Soul Saver Dragon! Imaginary Gift, Force II! As well, Blaster Blade Vision's skill: Clowdia retires, and Soul Saver Dragon gets an additional Critical for this turn!"

So that's why Aichi Sendou is the best there is…

"Lastly, arise, my avatar! I call Blaster Blade! Soul Saver Dragon attacks! Shining Feather Saver!"

"Ahh! No guard!" Reiji shouted without thinking.

"Twin Drive! First Check, Critical Trigger! Power to Blaster Blade, Critical to the vanguard! Second Check, Critical Trigger! The same thing with this one!"

---

"So you got dealt four damage in one attack?!" Makoto asked Reiji.

"Yes…" Reiji answered him. "I was fighting the one I considered my idol at the time. It was very tough to keep my composure during the fight. Most of the time I spent admiring his skill and Vanguard prowess."

"How did your damage checks go?" Hanako then asked him.

"None of them were triggers, so I went from zero to five in one attack."

"What happened next?" Kotaro and Baku then asked.

"I had to guard Aichi's last attack quickly or I would have lost…"

"This is actually a pretty interesting story…" Agrise quietly told Asahi. He noticed something was wrong.

"You're not quite yourself today, huh Agrise?"

"Oh it's nothing," Agrise answered him. "Reiji's continuing the story…"

---

"I ride my vanguard!" Reiji said as he began his next turn, confident on the outside, nervous on the inside.

"Let's see what you got, Reiji…" Aichi told him. "Show me your image!"

"Arise, my avatar!"

"Hey! That's my line!"

"From the flowing plains to the frozen tundra, shine brightly across all the land! Ride! Beacon of Hope, Kuromi!"

"That's a pretty sweet move," Aichi said with his signature shyness. "What does the card do?"

"While it's on the board," Reiji explained, "all Blaster Blades get 5000 Power! On top of that, call two Blaster Blades!"

He's playing that deck like an expert...

"And when I have two or more Blasters on the board, Kuromi gets 5000 Power! On top of that, Kuromi's Counter Blast!"

Aichi was stunned. Reiji had just gotten these new cards, but here he was playing as if they already had a bond.

"I choose a hand card with Alfred in its name and place it in the soul. I choose Alfred Early, so I can search for a Monarch Sanctuary Alfred to add to my hand. Now, Kuromi! Attack Aichi's Blaster Blade!"

"No guard!"

"Drive check, Critical Trigger! Power to the Blaster Blade on the left! Critical to the Vanguard!"

"Damage check… no triggers that time."

"My Blaster Blades attack the vanguard!" Reiji then declared. Aichi guarded the first attack, but allowed the second to hit. Aichi now had three damage, while Reiji had five.

"You've done very well, Reiji," Aichi complemented his opponent. "But it looks like game over. I stand and draw. I call High Dog Breeder, Akane and Knight Squire, Allen, and then activate their skills. I call two Pongal to rear-guard, one from the hand and one from the deck. I then Soul Charge 1 for each one."

A crowd had appeared around the two fighters by this time. Everyone was excited to see Aichi suddenly call an entire board. Perfect for Soul Saver Dragon's skill, which Aichi activated without haste.

"Adding 15000 Power to the entire field," Aichi then told his opponent. "Soul Saver Dragon attacks the vanguard! Shining Feather Saver!"

"Perfect Guard! Flash Shield, Iseult!"

"Twin Drive!" Aichi quickly responded. "Critical Trigger! All the effects go to Blaster Blade! Attack!"

"That's an attack of 58000 Power... Perfect Guard!"

"Not bad, Reiji..." Aichi noted. "But if my memory is correct, the last card in your hand is Monarch Sanctuary Alfred. I still have one attack left, and you don't have nearly enough shield to block it. High Dog Breeder, Akane attacks your vanguard!"

Darn it! He's right! I've thrown away all my shields! "That's a no guard! Now for the damage check..."

"It's okay to lose sometimes, Reiji..." Aichi attempted to console the boy, but Reiji was having none of it.

"I refuse to lose anymore..." Reiji told Aichi, while trying to fight back tears. "All my life, I have been nothing but a loser... Not anymore..." Reiji drew the top card of his deck. "It's time for me to unlock my own future!" Reiji revealed the card to Aichi without looking. "Heal Trigger, Get!"

The crowd cheered Reiji on as he kept on fighting. Reiji, however, only stared at the card on his vanguard circle...

"So long as you're by my side, we can never lose..." Reiji said quietly to the card. The tears were still trying to flow. "Stand and draw! Standing here is the embodiment of the unbreakable will of Planet Cray's Holy Nation! I ride!"

---

On Cray, Reiji's spirit glowed an intense blue as he became the hero he could not have imagined previously. With newfound passion and burning desire, he declared that he would chart a new path!

---

"Monarch Sanctuary Alfred! With that comes Imaginary Gift, Force I!" He then put the marker on an empty rear-guard circle. Reiji seemed unusually confident, but with five damage to Aichi's three, it would be very difficult for Reiji to win this.

"Skill of Monarch Sanctuary Alfred, by paying one Counter and one Soul Blast, I place a Blaster Blade from my drop zone to my hand. Power+15000 and Critical+1 for Alfred. And now, I call two Blaster Blades, which means an extra 10000 Power to both of them!"

Reiji had to win it this turn...

---

"What happened next?!" Kotaro asked Reiji.

"I'm about to tell you what happened!" Reiji retorted rudely. "I had a Blaster Blade with 30000 Power, one with 20000 Power, and Alfred with 28000 Power..."

---

"I attack with Monarch Alfred!" Reiji then said, returning to the flashback.

"Sorry, Reiji, but I'll have to stop this attack right here. Guard! Epona! Wingal!"

"Checking the Twin Drive!" Reiji responded, putting all of his hopes on these two drive checks... "First Check... A Critical Trigger! All the effects go to Monarch Alfred! That's gonna put you at five damage."

"Understood," Aichi responded. "Continue..."

"Second Check... ... Second... Check..."

"Is... something wrong...?"

"It's... A Critical Trigger... I... I won..."

---

"You really defeated Aichi Sendou?!" Kotato and Baku shouted at the same time. "There's no way!!!"

"I did defeat him at one time..." Reiji told them. "But after that fight, I hadn't seen him since..."

"I think I read somewhere about Aichi going to a prestigious American university," Makoto answered Reiji. "He apparently doesn't play much anymore, but that's more because he doesn't have much time for it."

"That's going to be my goal then," Reiji replied. "To find Aichi and fight him again. After I find a way to defeat you, of course..."

"Now that's a fight I'm gonna have to see, Reiji."

"But first, we will have our rematch someday... Not today... But someday..." With that, Reiji had disappeared from the shop.

"Whenever you decide to have that rematch, Reiji, I'll be ready to defeat you..."