"Jinzo, Summon!"
On Jinzo's side, he was still in his half-transparent ghostly form, watching helplessly as a full 3D projection of himself, revived by Monster Reborn, jumped over to the opponent's field, crossing his arms and scrutinizing him.
Even more infuriating, Jinzo felt like this avatar inhabiting the opponent's side was looking at him with a hint of disdain.
Royal Oppression was also one of Kira's main spoils from his recent trip to KaibaCorp. As previously mentioned, Royal Oppression was only mediocre in the early Yu-Gi-Oh! meta. In slow environments, many decks didn't fear its lockdown, and its effect could easily backfire if the enemy used it.
But Kira just happened to have a deck that paired perfectly with Oppression.
It was the Abyss Control deck he'd used before.
Back then, Abyss Control builds had many variants. Later, some duelists even made builds focusing on Royal Oppression, calling them "Oppression Abyss" to distinguish them from the original and treat them as a special variant.
Though the construction changed, the core philosophy of "not letting the opponent play" remained, as you could tell from the intense reactions of opponents.
For example, Jinzo's spirit now, seeing his doppelganger summoned, flickered in and out of visibility faster and faster, as if gasping for breath.
Perhaps he, too, was silently admiring the genius of this strategy.
Jinzo's inside: "@#*%!"
"Battle Phase," Kira announced. "First, 'Jinzo' attacks 'Mad Dog of Darkness'."
Jinzo crossed his hands, a psychic energy sphere crackling with electricity forming in his palms. With a roar, it shredded Mad Dog of Darkness to pieces.
[Jinzo, LP 4000 → LP 3500]
The shock made Jinzo's spirit body flicker rapidly. Being hit by his own signature move, the pain wasn't just physical, but also psychological.
And now, with his doppelganger on the field, his powerful backrow traps were as good as blank paper. Maybe this was the first time Jinzo found his effect a bit disgusting.
"Abyss Soldier's direct attack," Kira pressed on.
The Abyss Soldier's trident surged with water, piercing straight through Jinzo's body.
"Ugh—"
[Jinzo, LP 3500 → LP 1700]
"To make me suffer such humiliation…" Jinzo gritted his teeth. "Unforgivable!"
Kira: "I'll set one card to the backrow, and end my turn."
Jinzo's voice was now distorted, as if gasping.
"My turn. Draw!"
Another card appeared in his hand zone.
Last turn he'd been completely suppressed, losing half his LP in one go, and was humiliated by seeing his card turned against him. But at least with his doppelganger on the field, he didn't have to worry about the opponent's backrow for now.
While Jinzo is on the field, neither player can activate Trap Cards—including Royal Oppression.
This gave him a chance to fight back.
"I summon 'Jinzo - Jector'!"
[Jinzo - Jector, ATK 800]
"Jector's effect! By tributing itself, I can add a 'Jinzo' monster from my deck to my hand!" Jinzo declared. "Become the sacrifice to guide my appearance!"
The Jumper disintegrated, transforming into a new card image, which appeared in Jinzo's hand zone, briefly flipping to show Kira.
Jinzo No.2.
"And Jector's follow-up effect: after that, I can check your set backrow cards," Jinzo continued. "If any of them are Traps, I can Special Summon the same number of 'Jinzo' monsters from my hand!
Let me check your set card!"
Kira's set card flipped up. Unsurprisingly, it was the "Royal Oppression" he'd retrieved last turn.
"Hmph, I'll let you taste your own trap's power," Jinzo said darkly. "Since there's one Trap, I can Special Summon a 'Jinzo' monster from my hand.
So I Special Summon myself—
—Jinzo, again!"
As he spoke, Jinzo's spirit flickered and vanished from the Duelist Zone. Electricity crackled at the power plant, and in a flash of thunder, his tall, imposing, metallic form appeared on the field.
Jinzo Psycho Shocker descends!
[Psychic Commander, ATK 2400]
"Finally! It feels good to be alive again!"
Jinzo clenched his fist, watching himself go from transparent to solid. If he weren't a robot, he'd probably be moved to tears.
This duel—he simply couldn't lose!
"I attack 'Abyss Soldier' with myself!"
Abyss Soldier, whom he hated most, faced a palm crackling with electricity. A roaring energy ball formed in his hand, surging with thunder.
"And in this instant, I activate a Quick-Play Spell from my hand!"
Another card flipped in Jinzo's hand zone.
"Limiter Removal!
My Machine monster—myself—doubles its ATK!"
[Jinzo, ATK 2400 → ATK 4800]
The psychic shockwave blasted through Abyss Soldier. The water warrior was KO'd, and Kira shielded himself from the shockwave.
"Kira!" Judai instinctively tried to rush over.
"Relax, I'm fine."
The smoke cleared. Kira stood calmly, waving Jaden off.
[Kira, LP 3200]
Jinzo was shocked: "Why no damage?"
"Discarding 'Kuriboh' from my hand makes all battle damage this turn zero." Kira smiled. "Looks like your all-out attack was for nothing. Too bad."
Jinzo: "Tch, using some low-level trash card again…"
Kira glanced over.
Did you just call Kuriboh trash?
In the world of Yu-Gi-Oh!, calling Kuriboh trash is practically forbidden. Anyone breaking that taboo is doomed.
Kaiba is the classic example—Kuriboh has haunted him since the Duelist Kingdom, all the way to the Pharaoh's departure.
"At the end of the turn Limiter Removal is activated, and any boosted Machines self-destruct," Jinzo said grimly. "But before that, in Main Phase 2, I'll tribute myself!"
Kira narrowed his eyes.
Huh? Are you going to tribute yourself too?
Jinzo on the field was wrapped in electricity, energy and lightning surging around him, his body evolving rapidly in the light.
"From the far reaches of the cosmos, accepting mysterious power for the final evolution—now, witness the form of a king!"
Jinzo's arms spread, body growing, armor transforming, his form rapidly upgrading.
"Jinzo - Lord, Summon!!!"