New Sun Rising - Results and Post-Event

[duelacademynpcs]

[All of the duels at New Sun Rising are finished and the results are up...]

Date: 7.8.2018
(SJL) Action Duel: Yuya Sakaki defeated Shingo Sawatari
(SJL) Action Duel: Shun Kurosaki defeated Sora Shiunin
(NPD) Action Duel: Timur Vesik defeated Strong Ishijima
(SJL) TITLE CHANGE: Ryozanpaku (Isao Kachidoki and Lan Zheng) won the Super Junior Tag Team Championships by last eliminating Yasha Grave and Sylvia Signer
(SJL) TITLE CHANGE: Hayate Tendou won the Super Junior Championship by defeating Yuzu Hiragi, Ryoga Kamashiro and Isao Kachidoki
(NPD) Reiji Akaba (c) and Isabel Marias dueled to a No Contest in a duel for the Action Dueling World Championship

- Full Results for the Tag Team Gauntlet Match:
1) Landrobe and Garum defeat Euphemia Wakahisa and Tsurugi Akashiro
2) Yasha Grave and Sylvia Singer defeat Landrobe and Garum
3) Yasha Grave and Sylvia Singer defeat Yaiba Todo and Hokuto Shijima
4) Yasha Grave and Sylvia Singer defeat Mayu Akiyama and Homura Khang
5) Isao Kachidoki and Lan Zheng defeat Yasha Grave and Sylvia Signer

Notes from the Night:
- The "Mystery Duelist" who challenged Yuya Sakaki turned out to be Shingo Sawatari, a duelist from Maiami City and the Leo Duel School.
- In the tag team gauntlet duel, Yasha Grave and Sylvia Signer appeared to have the gauntlet won when one more surprise team came out, Isao Kachidoki and Lan Zheng, representing Ryozanpaku. Records of the gauntlet's entry showed Kachidoki and Zheng collectively grouped with the rest of Ryozanpaku, who were thought to only have entered one team, Mayu Akiyama and Homura Khang into the Gauntlet Duel, but very shortly before deadlines to enter close, Kachidoki and Zheng changed their grouping and entered as a team themselves, also representing Ryozanpaku. Kachidoki and Zheng drew the final spot, number six, in the Gauntlet and wound up winning the duel.
- Timur Vesik and Jean Michel Roget interfered early into the main event, a duel between Isabel Marias and Reiji Akaba for the Action Dueling World Championship, attacking Isabel Marias and causing a No Contest. The NPD has released a comment saying there will be consequences for Vesik and Roget's actions and a rematch between Marias and Akaba will be scheduled ASAP.

[But the night isn't over for every duelist just yet!

There's plenty of media around to talk to duelists at various points throughout the night. They may be spoken to in the hallways, in the locker room, after their own duels, after the entire night is done and any time or place in between. There's also an area set up with tables and chairs for press conferences.

Your duelist may want to talk about the night they just had...or they may just wanna shove past all the cameras and hit an exit ASAP. Their choice.]

Comments

[ohko]

[Isao sits down at one of the tables set up for duelists to talk to the media, Lan not far behind him. He's just come from losing the Four-Way Duel and he looks pretty scuffed up from it.

...but, as he sets his tag team title on the table in front of him, he has a smirk on his face.]

Bet you didn't see that coming, did you?

[kungfusion]

Why would they not have? [ Lan asks as she also sits down at the table. She doesn't look nearly as at ease as he does. She's not used to interviews. She doesn't like them. Or at least, she assumes she won't like them. The only time she likes to talk is when she's dramatically reading card text and directing her partners' actions. ]

[ohko]

[Isao gives Lan a little smirk, before he turns his attention to the media.]

Alright, so, before anybody asks, I'll explain the logistics of this real quick. [He rubs his nose. He seems to be taking point in this. Maybe 'cause he's the senpai and figures it's his job and all.]

In the last few months, while everybody from our school was dueling to climb the ranks, we dueled in multiple combinations. I partnered with Zheng sometimes. I partnered with Khang sometimes. Zheng and Akiyama partnered together sometimes. I even, unfortunately for me, partnered with Tendou a few times. We all did a handful of duels that way to keep each other fresh.

And then, a couple days before the cut-off to enter the gauntlet duel, I went to Zheng and asked her if she wanted to enter the duel. The two of us had enough duels together to qualify for it. She said yes. So we did it, and we decided not to tell anybody. Because we're the classy types that don't like to talk about ourselves a lot. [Jesus, did Isao just make a joke? He's smiling like he did.]

[Someone asks if Isao entered the gauntlet as a back-up plan in case he lost in the four-way duel tonight. He puts his hand under his chin.]

I entered the gauntlet duel because I wanted to win both championships.

[He gives Lan a light tap on the shoulder.]

You'dve done the same thing, right?

[kungfusion]

[ Lan starts, blinking once. She found she'd gotten a little lost for a moment, looking at the interviewers. When she realizes what he asked, she gives him a serious look. ]

I did do it for the same reason, senpai.

[ohko]

[Isao smiles at her. Then he looks back at the interviewers with a 'see?' expression.]

So, let me make this clear. I'm...disappointed that I only came away with one win tonight. I haven't given up on the Super Junior Championship just because I lost that four-way duel. I might not be setting my sights on it immediately. Right now… [He holds up his tag belt.] I'm focusing on this. I'm focused on defending this.

[Isao is asked about how he and Lan won the tag belts, entering at the last minute and entering the duel last.]

Well, we didn't know we were going to get the last number, that was random. I fully expected us to have to beat two, three teams and that was what we had planned for. I always had a good feeling about our chances. But when we drew that number... I was fairly certain we were going to win.

I'll make this simple -- if you're asking if we're happy about the way things went? We are. If you think the way we got that win was cheap, that we undercut another team that earned it more tonight? Fine. Feel free to think that. But after tonight, we're going to go out and defend these titles. And we're going to show without a shadow of a doubt that this was not a fluke.

[kungfusion]

[ Lan nods. ] Well put, sen-- [ Ah, wait. Interview. It bothers her that she forgot about it before, but... ] Kachidoki-san.

[ She then turns to face the interviewers with a hard expression. ] We could have faced them tomorrow and the result would have been the same. We are prepared to face anyone at any time. If someone challenged us now and we lost, you wouldn't hear us saying it was "unfair." Challenge... is what this belt means.

[ohko]

[Isao points at the cameras.]

I'll say this to Grave and Singer right now - if you want a rematch, done. Come find us. At the college. On the street. Whatever. We'll give you a duel for these wherever and whenever you want. And this goes to every single team on the roster and anybody who's thinking about making a team and coming after us.

You want a shot at the champions, then take your shot.

[They're asked about their school's physicality in duels.

Isao takes a moment to think about it before answering. He looks at Lan.]

You wanna take this first?

[kungfusion]

[ She doesn't, but she can't make him do all the work. Plus, this is actually a topic she's thought about since it was brought up after her and her classmates' initial appearance. It would be a waste of consideration if she didn't tackle it. ]

I do not think that I have an answer that will satisfy the kind of people who ask that question. But I will say that, personally, I see it as being no different from when any duelist has their monster attack another duelist. I also believe that even with the special properties of Action Fields, every duelist goes in with the knowledge that anything may happen while on the field. Their own mistakes, the effects of dueling cards and Action Cards, monster interactions... To me, our "physicality" should only be considered as another hazard of Action Dueling.

[ She pauses. ]

Again, though, that is my personal stance on it. I can not speak for all students of Ryozanpaku. I think that is obvious, but I want to state it again to make sure it is heard.

[ Clearly, this answer is a little rehearsed. Even so, it puts a strain on Lan. It shows by how tightly her fists are balled into her lap, and how adamant she is on looking straight ahead. ]

[ohko]

[Isao has thought about it for a few moments while Lan has discussed her own thoughts on it. Eventually, he takes his hand off of his nose for his own answer.]

Alright, I'm gonna go off track a bit before I answer this.

I know that when people think about our school and our dueling, they think about me more than anything. I know there's an image of me as a "wild animal", assaulting people during duels and sending them to the hospital afterwards.

...a little over a year ago, I participated in a tournament in my hometown called the Maiami Championship. The winner of that tournament moves up to the Youth division, and moving up to that division is the key to becoming a pro duelist. I made it to the finals of that tournament. I lost, to a duelist from LDS. That loss did two things - it meant that I was stuck in the Junior Youth division and it brought significant shame upon myself and my school. For the last year, those two facts have driven me - possessed me. And when I arrived in the Super Junior League, my goal was, above all, to rectify that loss and become a champion.

With hindsight, I know there were moments I went overboard. [He taps his hands on the table for a second.] To Yuya Sakaki and Shun Kurosaki -- I'm sorry that I injured them and forced them to lose time in this league and, probably, an opportunity to duel for the championship themselves. I'm sorry. If I were Super Junior Champion, I'd give them both title shots as soon as I could. But I'm not the Super Junior Champion, so, all I can do is apologize.

But I'm only going to apologize for my own individual conduct as a duelist, not for my school's dueling or for my fellow students' dueling -- before now, I was taught to duel emotionlessly, without applying any part of myself except what I needed to win to my cards. After that, when I started getting more desperate, I started dueling with anger. I don't want to do either of those things anymore. I want to take this. [He takes his deck out and slaps it on the table.] And this. [He picks up the belt and places on the table.] And I want to duel with pride. Pride in myself, in my cards, in my partner and in my dueling.

From this moment on, the two of us are going to represent our school, our league, these championships and ourselves with dignity and pride. You're going to see our form of Entertainment. You're going to see what two duelists at their absolute physical peak are capable of and you are going to see us revolutionize both Action Dueling and Tag Team Dueling. You asked me if this was a backup plan. [He holds up his belt.] This is not a backup. This is not a consolation prize. This is not second place. We are going to take these and with our dueling, we are going to make these the most prestigious, the most respected championship in the world. You are going to see us in the spot Reiji Akaba is in right now.

I'm going to say this point-blank. I am the best duelist in the Super Junior League. And I asked Zheng to be my partner, [he puts his hand on her shoulder.] because I knew nobody in this league is as dedicated to their own dueling as she is. And from this point, you are going to see us become the best team in the world.

[He glances at Lan.]

You got anything to add?

[kungfusion]

[ She... did not expect that. That is very clear by the expression on her face, which is a cross between a deer caught in the headlights and Senpai noticed me! all at once. For a moment, she could swear she's having something like an out-of-body experience, seeing the moment from outside of herself. Then, she seems to realize that the two of them aren't alone... and he, and they, expect an answer. In that moment, she swears she can feel her soul slam back into place, thunk-ing down into her seat before settling into the right place. She swallows, hard, biting down on her lip for just a second before she shakes her head. ]

No. [ Her voice sounds distant and hollow, so she swallows. Her voice comes out stronger, at least. ] No, I do not, senpai.

[ Later on she'll realize flubbed again, but for now all she can think is 'If you were going to say something like this, you could have at least warned me!' ]

[ohko]

[Isao looks at her. Then he looks at the press.]

Well, there you go.

[He picks up his belt and his deck. The deck goes in his pocket and the belt goes over his shoulder.]

See you guys later. I'm planning to come back here, real soon.

[kungfusion]

[ For a moment, Lan just watches. Then, she looks at the press. She's pretty sure her legs are about as strong as overcooked noodles, but... Let's be real, she'd rather walk out on her hands over broken glass than spend another minute answering questions from people she honestly doesn't care about. ]

[ So she gets up ] Then, you'll also be seeing me again! [ and bows to them. ] Thank you for your time.