Ruler of the Shadows: Battle City

Pairings: YamixYugi (main) with side pairings JoeyxSeto, DukexTea, RyouxBakura. Also a new pairing of MarikxMalik with possible TristanxSerenity

Summary: Most college students just have to worry about exams, but not Yami he along with his boyfriend must continue to unravel the mysteries that surround Yugi's millennium puzzle. That may not be so hard when new trouble arrives with the start of a new tournament being held by no other than Yami's own brother. Welcome to the Battle City tournament!

Sakura: So something that should have taken no time at all ended up taking forever to get together. But the wait is over here is Ruler of the Shadows: Battle City! I'm hoping it was worth the wait and sorry I couldn't get it done sooner. Big thanks to S2teennovelist as always for helping me get in gear and plotting out some rough patches. This first part of the story was a major pain, but so much fun to write. As mentioned with my other story I've taken the main plot from the Yu-Gi-Oh mangas and added in my own twist. Some will be similar to the mangas while some moments will be all my own ideas.

Disclaimer: Yu-Gi-Oh does not and never will belong to me!

Chapter 1

New Game

The day started out like any other summer day. The sun was shining, the birds were chirping their little songs, and people were out and about soaking up the fantastic weather Domino City was being blessed with. This did not exclude Yugi Mutou as he finished getting himself ready for a fun day out with his friends. He, along with his lover and friends had all recently finished their second year of college and we're attempting to make the most of their break before they would be pulled back to lectures, textbooks, and exams in the fall. It would also be different when they returned as most of them would no longer be taking the same classes due to all of them having different majors. A few may overlap here or there but other than that they were all moving on with their lives and following their dreams. Although they were all determine to maintain their friendships through it all one way or another.

Aside from not having to worry about classes for the new few months, a few within the group of friends still had part time jobs. However on this beautiful day somehow all of them managed to have the day off and planned a long overdue day out together. Whether it is goofing off downtown or possible fighting the crowds to spend time at the beach, there was no telling where the day would take them.

Well that is for those who would be a part of it.

"What do you mean you can't come?" Yugi asked to his boyfriend on the other end of the phone. If only he could see the pout Yugi was sporting he would probably crave in from cuteness. "We had this planned all week."

"I'm sorry but something came up." Yami tried to reason with his little lover. He was just glad he didn't have to face the look he knew Yugi was giving him. "I promise I'll make it up to you."

Yugi put his cell on speaker phone before tossing it on the bed beside him so he could put on his tennis shoes. "You wouldn't have to make it up to me if you would just come along. What is so important that you have to bail on us?"

"It's nothing you need to worry about love." Yugi rolled his eyes at the weak attempt on Yami's part at sweet talking him. "If I finish up early I'll meet up with you later."

"Even your workaholic brother is going to be there." Yugi felt the need to point out since it was extremely rare for Seto to want to go anyway with them. Joey was rather persuasive when he wanted to be. It was sometimes strange how well those two made a relationship work.

"Yugi! Tea's here!" The young duelist heard from his grandfather outside his open skylight where he was letting the summer breeze in. Moving over to the window he shouted that he be done in a minute before closing the window.

"I guess that's my cue to hang up…" Yami chuckled from the other end. "Have fun today and I promise I'll make it up to you."

Yugi glared at his phone as if Yami could see it. "You won't hear the end of this mister." He said before grabbing his phone and hanging up. Although as soon as he did he could not stop himself from sending a quick text to Yami that told him he loved him and to be careful with whatever he was doing. No matter how much Yami could make him mad or get on his nerves, there was this part of Yugi that would forever love him no matter what. They were like any other couple that had those moments where they fought enough to want to be away from each other and then they had those little fights that blew over in a few hours. Love was not easy but Yugi could not picture himself without Yami in his life.

With a sigh he pocketed his phone and remembered to grab his wallet before he hurried out the door. There was no point in keeping Tea waiting if she had come all this way to pick him up. Outside he found her standing with his grandfather who was sweeping the front path of the store.

"Sorry to keep you waiting," He told her as he pulled the strap of his backpack up a little higher on his shoulder. He had thankfully remembered to pack his small bag the day before of items needed for the beach if they ended up there.

Tea waved it off and smiled at him, "Not a problem I haven't been waiting long but I hope you don't mind walking."

Yugi almost looked confused at first until he realized Tea's car wasn't parked out front. "Let me guess, it's at Duke's?"

"He was going to be a minute so I figured I'd get a little fresh air." She informed him as they both waved bye to Yugi's grandfather and started the short walk to Duke's family game shop. It was only a couple blocks away and it was even in view of Kame, since the small little shop sat on a corner. Both stores had perfect spots for when kids and teens got out of school and had to head home. Thankfully despite there being this weird thing between Solomon and Duke's father, both stores were able to co-exist as they both sold different games. Plus it kind of helped Kame out that Yugi was the King of Games and thanks to Yami had a contact with Kaiba Corp now to help sells. Duke managed on his own since he was a great game designer and was able to reach out to the video game type customers.

The two looked both ways before they quickly crossed the street. "How has he been anyway?" Yuugi asked out of the blue since much like his own boyfriend, he heard from Tea that Duke had been all up into this new game he was creating that would put him on the gaming map.

"He won't talk to me about it wanting to keep it under wraps until the release." Tea let him know what she knew. "Last I heard he was pretty much done and the release should be sometime next week."

Yuugi nodded glad that his friend was doing well, "Yami won't tell me much either since I know those two tell each other everything. It is odd how wrapped up those two can be when they are working on their projects."

"This is what we get for dating game designers." Tea teased as she looked ahead at the Black Crown game shop.

"Duke's coming today isn't he?"

Tea nodded, "I told him he could take a day off to relax. I let him stress over his game all throughout our spring semester but he doesn't need to burn himself out over summer break too. Plus as far as I do know is that he is done with the game just has to put the final touches before its release."

Yugi was a little jealous to hear that, but did not let it show. "Wish it was that easy with Yami. I think I would have to drug him and drag him out of the house in order for him to get to join us." He looked to her as he asked, "So I guess since Duke's hanging out with us, that Yami's not helping him?"

"Wait Yami's not coming?" She asked in surprise to which Yugi shook his head. "Well that sucks I thought we would all get to be together today. I wonder what it could be that would make him cancel like that."

"You think Duke would know?"

Tea shrugged, "That or Seto would. I pretty sure Joey is dragging him along somehow."

Yugi made a mental note to ask Seto if he saw him unless he somehow wormed his way out of their little get together. But there was something else that Yugi had been meaning to ask Tea once he got a chance to talk to her in person. They had been busy with the end of the semester finals that he never had the chance before. "Speaking of Yami, have you noticed him acting strange lately?"

The question caused Tea to stop and look at Yugi in complete confusion. Thankfully they were just outside Duke's game shop and next to Tea's car so she could give all her attention back to her friend. "What do you mean? Besides some stress from those finals I haven't noticed anything. However I really don't get to hang out with him as much as you do."

"You're not the only." Yugi said with this sad look in his eyes. "Lately we haven't been as close and it feels weird. Normally I get a surprise date or Yami's calling me up wanting me to stay with him at his apartment. But recently there have been no dates and I feel like the only time I get to see him is when we were in classes together."

Tea had no idea how Yugi had been feeling lately. "How long as this been going on?" She found herself asking wanting to help him in any way she could.

"A month…"

A month really wasn't that bad but for Yami that was a little odd. Yugi and Yami were normally glued to the hip and always looked every bit the fairy tale happy couple minus a few bumps in the road. It really wasn't Tea's place to be drawing any conclusions but it was odd for Yami to distance himself so much from them.

"Do you think he's tired of me?"

"Wait…NO!" Tea found herself saying a little too loudly and nearly scared a few kids passing by. She blushed a little and offered the children a smile before turning back to her friend. She placed her hands on Yugi's shoulders and made him look up at her. "If anything you are Yami's world. He loves you and don't you ever doubt that mister." She gave him this stern look that told him he better listen.

Yugi was glad for the words of encouragement from her but for some reason it did not make him feel that much better. "But what could be keeping him away. I figured after exams we would spend as much time as we could together. I barely see him anymore and I only get these phone calls now and again. If this keeps up Tea I don't know what I'll do."

Tea let go of her friend and put one hand on her hip while the other hand she placed on her chin getting into her thinking pose. "Let's see…. I've heard before that normally when couples become distance it's the start of the end." She noticed Yugi's horrified face that she quickly said, "However we know that there is no way in hell Yami would be breaking up with you. So either he's busy with some super-secret project…no I don't think that would be the case, but he could be planning something big for your birthday…however that's still a few weeks away and no reason for him to become distance unless…."

Yugi watched as Tea got his big smile on her face and clapped her hands together, "He could be planning the perfect way to propose."

"Propose?!" Yugi shouted going tomato red within a second.

"I'm just saying it's a possibility," Tea said before she added with, "However if he was going to do it I figured he would have already done it before now. You two have been together for what feels like forever. Hell I thought maybe you two would have at least gotta engage after high school."

"Uh…" Yugi couldn't even form a proper sentence anymore. The idea was not beyond him but just the idea of Yami planning to propose was another story. Sure they had been together but were they ready for marriage. They were still in college and there was no telling where their careers would take them. Marriage was for people who were ready to settle down and have families. Were they really ready for that?

Tea saw the gears turning in Yugi's head and she started to get worried. He had been quiet and was staring at nothing as if lost in thought. She hadn't meant to scare him if anything she thought he might be excited by the idea that Yami might propose. Truth is they had no idea what Yami was planning. Her and her big mouth… "Yugi," She spoke up placing her hands back on his shoulders and gave him a gentle shake. "Hey, don't start freaking out on me. It was not my place to say anything…"

"Do you really think he might?" Yugi found his voice and asked. "I mean are we ready for something like that."

"Ready?" Tea questioned back. If anyone was ready it was Yugi and Yami. With Yugi's reaction it was like marriage was just dropped on his head and he was going to get married that day. "Honestly only you and Yami can figure out if you are ready to get married."

"Who's getting married?" They both turned as Duke walked up to them only hearing the end part of Tea's sentence. He looked between the two wondering what he had missed. "Anything I should know about?"

Tea shook her head as she went in search of her keys in her purse. "No nothing important. All ready to go?"

Duke nodded as he tossed his bag in the backseat once Tea found her keys and unlocked the doors. "Where are we meeting the others?"

"The park," Yugi spoke up knowing most of the plans for the day. Although now it felt like a million thoughts were running through his head making it hard to focus. "It would be easy if we all meet up to figure out the rest of our plans."

Duke agreed with him, "Sounds good to me. You can sit up front if you want Yugi."

Yugi nodded and moved as if on auto pilot to the passenger seat as Tea got in the driver seat with Duke in the back. "Hey Yugi try to forget what I said and have fun. I didn't mean to worry you." Tea apologized before she started the car. She did not mean to cause her friend any trouble.

"It's okay, if anything it's left me with some things to think about." Yugi offered her a smile to show he was okay before he turned his attention to his friend in the back. "By the way have you heard from Yami?"

Duke shrugged, "Here and there. He called just the other day to see how I was doing since the release is so close on my game. My schedule has been so crazy lately I feel like I haven't had time to do anything else. Why isn't he coming too?"

Yugi faced back forward answering with a simple, "No…"

Duke looked at the rear view mirror to see Tea giving him look as they stopped at the red light. He knew that look, so he gave her a smile before pulling out his phone. One way or another he would find out what his best friend was up to that he would ignore his boyfriend.

"That really wasn't smart do to that. One day isn't going to kill you."

"I know but this couldn't be done on any other day," Yami told the spirit sitting beside him as he looked over the papers in front of him on the coffee table. He was at his brother's place which was much better for having a meeting at than his small apartment which needed a serious cleaning.

"You should have rescheduled. Your lover is more important than anything else." The spirit really couldn't speak from any experience since he had no memories of his past. It wasn't long ago that both he and Yami just thought he was a split side to the teen that he created. Thankfully that was not true but they still had no clue who or what he was and what his purpose was living inside Yami's head.

Yami sighed as he heard his phone buzz but ignored it for now. "I'll make it up to him. This is the only day I can get this done and if I don't finish everything won't work out like I want it to."

The spirit rolled his eyes as he looked at the papers shattered about. He knew what Yami was up to and he supported him but he did not understand all these meetings and paperwork. It was keeping his host very busy and if he did not watch it could hurt his relationship with his friends and family and most importantly his boyfriend.

The constant buzzing of his phone finally forced Yami to pick it up and look over the texts he had gotten. One from his lover, one from his brother and about three from Duke. The one from Yugi he had already read but always held on to his text. His brother was texting him updates of their plans in case Yami ended up free and then Duke was blowing up his phone wondering what the hell his problem was.

Judging from the text Yugi had told Tea who probably somehow talked her boyfriend into finding out what Yami was up to. He wanted to tell the others he really did but he did not want them ruining everything by letting Yugi find out. The less people knew of his plans the better. At this point only his twin and the spirit beside him knew of what he was planning and he wanted to keep it that way until he revealed everything to his partner.

Sending a quick text to get his friend to stop, Yami turned his attention back to his work. "I still worry what his answer might be. If he says no then all of this will be for nothing."

"Never doubt your partner you'll never know the answer until you ask."

"I sure hope your right…"

"Who are you talking to?" The question nearly caused Yami to jump out of his skin as he turned to see his younger brother standing there. He was dressed to go out but Yami had thought he had already left.

Yami quickly put on a small smile for Mokuba and said, "Oh just thinking out loud. I thought you had already left with your friends." Sometimes he hated that his friends couldn't see the spirit because it really did look like he was talking to himself. It made it twice as hard since Yami had never told Mokuba about the spirit. Seto knew but Yami did not want to worry his younger brother.

Mokuba waved his cell phone, "My ride just got here. What about you, I thought you had plans with your boyfriend?"

"I did but I had some work to do."

"Well don't let it keep you from enjoying the beautiful day," Mokuba informed him as he walked away shouting over his shoulder, "I'll see ya later."

Yami listened for the front door to shut before he went back to work. His meeting would be taking place before long and he had to be ready. The spirit watched on silently as he watched his host work. He really did pray that things work out for Yami.

It was no surprise the park was crowded but at least it wasn't hard to find the large group of friends. Tristan, Joey, Seto, Ryou, and Bakura were already there hanging around one of the many picnic tables throughout Domino park. Seto sat at the table with his arms crossed and eyes closed looking somewhat out of his element. Which honestly was no surprise really since he normally was either on his laptop or his phone and since neither were around he had nothing to do. Joey sat beside him with Tristan across both talking about something that seemed unimportant.

Ryou and Bakura looked to be minding their own business as Bakura watched his partner who was drawing something in a stretch pad. After getting to know the two over the past year they found that despite being so opposite the two were perfect for each other like Yugi and Yami. They created a balance that only they understood.

No one had really changed that much since Ryou and Bakura joined the group as they were the same young adults going to university to give themselves a better education. About the only thing that had changed was the missing of Tomoya. He had left not long after classes ended for the summer to join his parents in America. There was talk that Tomoya's mother was going to move to the States to be with her husband since Tomoya was growing into a find young man who could take care of himself. He had changed a lot since his high school days making his parents both proud of him. However there was also talk among the group that Tomoya was thinking of studying aboard starting in the fall meaning he would be staying in the states even longer for either only a semester or his whole third year. It was a big step for Tomoya wanting to broaden his horizon by continuing his studies outside Japan where he was born and raised.

All of them were supportive of their friend and wished him the best in whatever he decided. Nothing was set in stone yet and that was one of the many reasons Tomoya went to visit his parents in the states for the summer to see if it was something he really wanted to do. He would have to carefully weigh the choice, but his friends had no doubt he would choice to be with his parents.

So other than missing one of their friends and Yami deciding to skip out on them everyone was together as it should be on a day like that. As soon as they walked up to the table Yugi moved up behind Seto placing his hands on the tall CEO's shoulders. Seto did not even jump at the contact and simple opened his eyes turning his head to look at Yugi.

"Can I help you?"

Yugi gave him his best smile as he said, "You're not the reason Yami didn't come is it?"

"Whether I'm here or not my brother would not care" Seto scoffed as he turned back forward, "And if you're asking if I have him working on some little project, no I do not. He's reason for not being here is his own business not mine."

Well at least that was one of the many things on Yugi's list marked off. He was pretty sure Seto wouldn't lie to him because even though they were not all too friendly with each other, Seto had still come a long way from hating Yugi. It was kind of nice being able to visit the Kaiba brothers without Seto and Mokuba wanting to kill him. They all had come a long way making Yugi feel more welcomed.

"Wait a minute Yami is not coming," Joey stated like he was just coming up to speed. He turned from facing Tristan to facing the other three who had just showed up. "We had this planned out for like a week. Why he bail?"

Yugi shrugged, "Just called this morning saying he had something to do and he would meet up with us if he got done early." He made it sound like it was no big deal but all his friends knew it was. "It's not the first time it's happened…"

"Still…"

"He's got his reasons…" Seto interrupted his own boyfriend before he could say whatever he was going to say. All eyes turned to him so he added, "I don't know what those reasons are, but he's been busy with something and we all know it's probably something special for Yugi if he's willing to skip out on today."

The idea Tea had put in Yugi's head from earlier resurfaced causing the duelist to blush for no reason.

Tea knew what he was thinking but quickly changed the subject to keep the others from noticing, "So what are we going to do first?" They had the whole day ahead of them with nothing in their way.

"I don't know about you all but this heats getting to me," Tristan said pulling at the collar of his short sleeve shirt. "I say we hit the beach first before all the good spots are taken."

All around no one could disagree with him with that plan. So they gathered themselves and headed back to their vehicles with talk of what else they could do once they were finished cooling off.

Yugi did not make it back home until well after the sun had set for the day. After spending hours at the beach, then going to the arcade, and a little shopping downtown, he was worn out. Tea dropped him off at the side door that lead into the house on her way to take Duke home next. Yugi bid them both goodnight and watched as she drove away before he turned to unlock the door knowing his grandfather and mother were probably both already in bed. However he stopped in his tracks when he noticed something taped to the door.

Taped there on the door was an arrow pointing toward the front of the store. He walked forward taking it off the door and looking at it. In the light of the streetlamp he did not see anything else on the paper and it caused him to wonder who may have put it there. If there was something wrong with the door his grandfather or mother would have called to tell him. Before he could get too deep into thinking about it he noticed something else out of the corner of his eye. Looking down he saw rose petals in a line going down the sidewalk and around the corner to the front of the store.

Now something like that was both romantic and a little on the creepy side. However curiosity still was getting the better of him as he slowly walked toward the front of the store. There was only one person who would pull something like this off and he hoped it was who he thought it was and not some creepy stranger.

Turning the corner Yugi let out a sigh of relief to see it was Yami standing happily in front of the game shop with a dozen roses in hand. He had been leaning against his new car that he got about half a year ago. It was a lot better than borrowing his brother's limo if they wanted to go anywhere and Yami wasn't sure why he did not do it sooner.

"Hey…"

"Hey…" Yugi replied back as he stepped up to Yami. He was glad to see him but also still a little mad and there was that nagging reminder of what he and Tea talked about. However the more he thought about it the more he did not mind the idea.

"These are for you, sorry I didn't finish early." Yami apologized as he handed the roses over to Yugi.

Yugi took them loving the smell that reached his nose. "It's alright, did you get everything done?"

Yami nodded as he put his hands in his pockets. "Yeah and I'm here to make it up to you."

"It's kind of late," Yugi informed his partner. He was glad to see him and all but he was tired.

"I understand…." He pulled something out of his pocket and handed it to Yugi.

Taking the brochure in his hands Yugi looked at the cover and noticed it was from a familiar hotel in Tokyo. He recognized that place because Yami took him there once after their high school graduation. It was the same time that he and Yami… Oh just the memories caused Yugi to fight down the blush. "Why are you showing me this?"

Yami had a blush of his own on his face as he said, "I figured we could get away just the two of us for a whole weekend. We haven't taken a trip together in a long while and I know I've been busy not spending much time with you or the others."

There was no reason to truly say no to Yami, but Yugi didn't want to go on a trip just because Yami felt guilty about skipping out on him and his friends. Then again getting away from Domino to have some alone time with his boyfriend. It was hard to get that when Yugi lived with his mother and grandfather and Yami lived with two of their friends while sometimes staying at his brother's place. There really wasn't a place they could be alone.

"Are you sure? Because you know what happened the last time we made plans."

Yami grinned at him as he proudly said, "That's why I didn't plan this out. We'll leave now and spend the whole weekend in Tokyo and see where each day takes us. That is under one condition…."

"And that is?"

"We don't answer our cell phones during this trip." Yami replied showing his own which was turned off. "If there's an emergency I left all the information with Seto so he can get in touch with us through the hotel."

The idea was sounding more and more appealing by the second, "So we'll be completely cut off for a whole weekend. Just the two of us to spend the days how we want…"

"If you will come with me…" Yami held out his hand and loved the feel when Yugi's hand reached out to hold his. He wasted no time pulling him close to wrap his arms around. No one was around as they kissed under the street lamps lost in their own little world.

Only when they needed to breath did they break apart with smiles on their faces. Yugi couldn't wait to get going however when he went to pull away he found Yami's grip tighten. He never even got to ask the question as Yami as if reading Yugi's mind said, "I've already packed your bags and your family knows I'm kidnapping you for a few days."

"Oh I love a man who thinks ahead." Yugi said feeling all giddy inside just from Yami's kisses and touch. He missed this moments so much and if true to his word there would be many more to come.

"Just as I love you," Yami affirmed as he took the roses back along with Yugi's bag. He led Yugi like a gentlemen to the passenger seat. Once he was in the car, Yami put Yugi's items in the back being careful not to kill the roses and then hurried to the driver seat. Yugi considered himself extremely lucky to have a man like Yami in his life and no matter what he really knew how to sweep Yugi off his feet.

Sakura: I hope I didn't bore everyone too much with the first chapter. It's a little filler one to start things off before all the action happens. Kind of the chapter that goes between this story and the one before it. Plus I left a puzzling question for all my readers to try and figure out what Yami is up to. No it's wasn't the trip that was simply to make up for not coming to the friendly outing with their friends. Yami is up to something much bigger and it will be revealed in a few chapters so you won't have to wait long. Just curious to see what all the readers think. Oh and before people ask, no the next chapter is not Yugi's and Yami's trip to Tokyo... that I'll just leave to your own imaginations.

Yumi: Please Review!