"Jaden..."
When Jaden met Yugi again, Yugi had already returned to his usual appearance, wearing that familiar, gentle smile.
This time, he didn't speak at length like before. He simply reached out toward Jaden. He probably meant to pat Jaden's shoulder, but because of the height difference, his hand landed on Jaden's lower back instead.
"Be careful. If things get too tough, come back. We'll still be here afterward."
Jaden felt that the old man was worrying a bit too much, but he still nodded.
"Don't worry. I'll be careful."
Yugi looked at him deeply after hearing that. In the end, he didn't say anything else. He turned around, walked over to a fully prepared, highly mechanized chair, sat down, and pressed the activation button.
The moment Old Man Yugi did so, two screen-like projections appeared in the empty space before him, resembling three-dimensional displays.
On the left screen was Kaiba.
On the right screen was Atem.
From the angle of the projections, both of them were also seated in mechanized chairs identical to Yugi's.
"I'm ready on my end."
Kaiba spoke first.
Atem nodded, his gaze shifting through the screen until it landed on Yugi.
"Partner... the card you brought is Jonouchi's Red-Eyes Black Dragon."
Yugi nodded.
"In the end, the only thing truly required to suppress the Chaos Phantasm's dark power is the power of the three God Cards. Other me, the Winged Dragon of Ra that you and Jaden entrusted to me is still here."
"As for the rest, leave Kuriboh with Jaden. He may still need it at a critical moment. I have Red-Eyes here. That's enough."
Hearing the two old men speak, Jaden walked closer.
"Old men, I've heard that you need to use the three God Cards to suppress the Chaos Phantasm's dark power-but do you really need to use other cards here?"
Jaden hadn't originally planned to ask this.
But if Kuriboh was truly important to Old Man Yugi, he would absolutely leave Kuriboh behind.
It didn't matter whether he had Kuriboh or not.
If anything happened to any of the three old men, then for Jaden, that would be no different from losing outright.
Yugi saw through Jaden's thoughts and smiled, shaking his head.
"Don't overthink it, Jaden. In essence, only the three God Cards are needed to suppress the Chaos Phantasm's dark power. With the three God Cards in our possession, that dark power cannot backfire on us."
"The reason we bring another card is simply to let a Duel Spirit assist with the ritual. Any Spirit would work, and for this purpose, Red-Eyes is actually quite suitable."
"Kuriboh, on the other hand, can exert a greater effect by staying at your side."
"Oh, right," Yugi added. "Also take the replica God of Obelisk that the other me gave you earlier. Even though it's a replica, it still contains a portion of Obelisk's power."
"Without the amplification device here, it can't suppress the Chaos Phantasm's dark power, but at a critical moment, it can still help you block an attack."
The replica God Card was something Yugi himself had introduced earlier. It was created based on the God Cards, so he understood its properties best.
It could still help Jaden at a crucial moment.
Still, compared to that, what mattered more to Jaden was that the old men would be safe.
He glanced at Kaiba and Atem on the screens. Seeing that neither of them objected, he finally nodded.
"Since that's the case, I'm relieved."
"Alright, three old men. Let's begin. My condition is already at its best."
"Just watch me when the time comes~"
Hearing Jaden say that, Kaiba, Atem, and Yugi exchanged glances.
Then, at the same moment, all three of their eyes lit up.
'Preparation complete. Suppression initiation-'
As that mechanical voice echoed from Yugi's chair, the two projection screens vanished.
Purple flames erupted from Yugi's body.
The flames spread outward, then burned a triangular portal into existence within the void before him, firmly anchored in place.
"Jaden, go through."
Yugi spoke calmly.
Jaden nodded, smiling at him.
"Don't worry, old man. I'll be right back~"
With that, Jaden rushed forward and leapt into the portal.
The instant Jaden passed through, the gate created specifically for him snapped shut. The purple flames vanished as well, and the power radiating from Yugi's body no longer dispersed outward.
Because-
The suppression had officially begun.
Within the void, one beam of light descended from the Baki world.
Another came from the Underworld.
The third descended from Yugi's world.
The three beams converged at a single point, forcibly tearing a hidden sub-world out from behind the void.
That small world was instantly locked in place.
The three beams burned into it, suppressing the dark energy that had completely enveloped it.
Within the small world, Chaos Phantasm-Armityle-slowly raised his head from his throne, gazing toward the endless void and the three converging beams of light.
He had already known that Atem and the others would do this.
But even so, feeling his dark power suppressed to its lowest level, he let out a cold snort.
Three strands of dark force flowed backward along the beams of light, surging toward the three worlds.
He still intended to cause trouble for Atem and the others-within the limits of what he could still do.
However, this was also within Atem's expectations.
As the dark energy surged back, the card of Slifer the Sky Dragon floated before Atem in the Underworld. The divine light emitted by the God Card completely severed the black force traveling along the beam.
Seeing that everything had proceeded smoothly so far, Atem let out a quiet breath of relief. Then he looked toward the small world, his gaze becoming distant.
"Jaden..."
"The three of us are protected by the God Cards. When the three God Cards activate together, their holders won't be interfered with by dark power. None of us will have any problems."
"You, however, must be careful."
It would be a lie to say Atem wasn't worried.
But compared to worry, he had already prepared a contingency.
At the very least, he wouldn't stand by and watch Jaden die at the hands of Chaos Phantasm due to failure.
So-
"Jaden, be careful. But don't restrict yourself too much either."
"Just like I told you before, do whatever you want."
"Since this can only be entrusted to you, I support whatever method you choose."
"Even if you fail, don't worry. Even if a price must be paid, nothing is more important to me-and to my other self-than you."
"It's not a failure if something happens to us."
"It's a complete failure if something happens to you."
"So..."
"I'm counting on you for everything, Jaden!"
...