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Joey and Yugi glared at Marik from their kneeling positions. He only chuckled darkly as all of them began to realize who he really was. It really was a wonder how they actually thought that Odion was him. It mattered not, the cat was out of the bag so to speak. They knew now. It would now just be a matter of defeating the Pharaoh to get the puzzle.

“Yes, it is true. I am indeed the real Marik you fools!” He stated bluntly, an evil smirk tugging at the ends of his lips.

“So Namu lied to us the whole time!” Tea cried, her voice wavering with shock. This caused the silver haired man to chuckle once more at their foolishness.

“Namu? He was simply a disguise to get me closer to Yugi!” He growled, taking vicious pleasure in having fooled them so completely. He would have gone on fooling them if something hadn't gone wrong with the fake god card! Which gave him pause for a moment. He'd been sure that Odion would be strong enough to force the counterfeit to work! What had gone wrong?

“You worm!” Joey yelled, helping Yugi support Odion.

Marik barely heard what the Pharaoh said next because of the rumble of thunder that sounded from the sky above the blimp. All of them grew silent and warily stared up at the turbulent sky above them. An uneasy feeling crept into Marik's stomach. The duel was over and the gods had exacted their revenge on Odion and Joey for the insult Odion had served them, right? As the thought crossed his mind the rod in his hand began to pulse angrily. At the same time the thunder began to grow louder and more frequent. All around the blimp lightning flashed and the wind began to pick up.

Yugi let out a small grunt of surprise as the puzzle began to pulse as angrily as the Rod was now doing. He held it in both hands as if to try and hold it still but it was no use. As the seconds passed the pulsing grew worse and worse, as if the items were going to blow into a million pieces in a matter of moments.

The thunder began to grow in volume and a bolt of lightning stuck the space between Marik and the others on the ground and Yugi and Joey.

Pharaoh! What's happening?!

I'm not sure but I think that Marik angered the gods more than he guessed.

Down below them Ishizu and Bakura's items were acting in almost exactly the same manner. Ishizu had to remove the necklace from around her neck, her lips tugging down in a frown. She let her eyes slip closed as she concentrated on what was going on at the top of the blimp. At first she saw everything fine but as she tried to concentrate harder to see what was going to happen next the vision began to blur and warp. She caught a flash of a man with long black hair wearing a purple rope around his waist before the picture switched to a man wearing a long black cloak with blood red clouds sewed onto the cloth. His eyes glowed red and then his image was replaced by an image of a blond haired youth with a large, friendly smile. The image seemed to linger longer than the other two. Ishizu watched as he ran to catch up with two people, one with pink hair and one with silver. She could hear his happy laughter as she was pulled out of the vision roughly by the necklace pulsing angrier still.

She gasped and placed a hand over her eyes, trying to make sense of what she'd seen. Those three people must have been important for her to see them but why? She'd been trying to see the future of those on the top of the blimp! Were they important to their futures? She forced herself into a standing position and began to make her way toward the door. She needed to get to the duel arena and warn them that Marik's mistake had angered the gods more than they even realized. As she pressed the button for the door to open someone toppled into the room and fell in a crumpled heap at her feet.

“Damn it, that hurt,” a voice muttered from within the heap.

Unfortunately Ishizu recognized the voice, along with the mop of white hair that stood out from the sides of Bakura's head. She was hesitant to help the boy, sensing the presence of the Millennium ring, but brushed aside her better judgment and helped the teen to his feet.

“Bakura, what were you doing outside my door?” she asked suspiciously, helping to support him as he got his footing once more.

“I was trying to get down the hall to the elevator. Something is going on up in the duel arena and I want to know what.” Bakura growled, his eyes narrowing in annoyance at the state his host's body was in. Last damn time he was going to listen to anything Marik suggested. He winced as the ring hanging from he neck gave another violent pulse. What in the name of Ra was going on?

“You need to get back to your room Bakura, you shouldn't be wandering in your condition!” Ishizu said, not able to help the motherly tone of her voice. Though she regretted her words a moment later when Bakura glared at her, his look clearly saying that he was not amused.

“When I want your opinion woman I will ask for it,” he growled, wincing as the ring began to pulse once more.

He removed his arm from around her shoulder and stumbled toward the door, grabbing the frame of the door to keep his balance. Ishizu watched him struggle for a moment more before rolling her eyes and moving to help him once more. She may not like the spirit that lay within the ring but she couldn't allow him to injure the body any more that it already was.

He glared at her as she ducked under his arm and pulled his arm over her shoulder, supporting some of his weight. She said nothing but helped him down the hall, toward the elevator that would take them to the top of the blimp. They said nothing as they entered the small, enclosed space, and Bakura touched the button that would get the elevator to move.

The ride lasted, at the most, only a minute but it seemed like forever to Ishizu as her Millennium item began to pulse more violently. Beside her Bakura could feel the ring doing the same. When the doors opened at last the sight the met them was rather frightening.

Lightning lit the sky around the blimp and Thunder sounded louder than before. The wind began to grow more violent and it cut at the people in the dueling arena viciously. Kaiba was on the ground crouched protectively over Mokuba, keeping the boy from being blown away by the wind. Yugi and Joey had gotten off of the duel deck and were now crouched down next to Odion while Tristan and Duke were shielding Tea and Serenity against most of the wind. Marik was hunched over, trying to stay in a standing position as the wind slammed against him. Ishizu stumbled out of the elevator, unconsciously pulling Bakura along with her, her hand outstretched toward her brother.

“Marik! What have you done!” Ishizu cried against the wind, her voice barely audible to the people trying not to be blown away. Ishizu barely registered the fact that just as the others were being beaten by the wind that the Blimp was in the same predicament. Bakura leaned heavily on her as the wind began to pound against them as well, a grunt of pain leaving his lips. Ishizu stumbled once more, catching herself before she sent both of them tumbling to the ground.

As the wind beat at them they didn't notice that the pulsing of the items began to grow more and more sever and a glow was emitting from them. Ishizu and Bakura fought their way toward the others but the wind made it difficult to move at all.

Yugi squinted against the wind to see who had called out, he couldn't make out the words or voice through the wind. He gasped as he saw Ishizu and Bakura slowly making their way towards them. Why were they up here? He was forced to duck his head once more as a stronger gust of wind slammed at his face, beside him he heard Joey growl in pain. His mind raced as he tried to think of a way to get out of here, and quickly. He took a quick peak at the others and bit his lips to keep from gasping. A thin gold line of light had shot out from the Millennium rod and connected to the puzzle and another had connected to Ishizu's necklace, where a light had come out of the necklace to connect to the ring that hung from around Bakura's neck. Another had extended from the ring and connected it's self to the puzzle. Vaguely he and the Pharaoh noticed that it made something resembled a triangle. He thought no more though as a clap of thunder sounded, louder than all that came before it, and a bolt of lightning struck Marik directly.

He screamed out in pain and a golden energy formed around him as he began to fade. Yugi heard Ishizu scream out to her brother as he disappeared completely but was quickly distracted as the energy began to run down the connections that had come from the rod, moving toward the other objects quickly. Yugi franticly tried to break the connection but to no avail. He screamed in fear as the energy completely engulfed him, Joey, and Odion. The last thing he saw before they began to fade themselves was the golden energy engulfing Tristan and the others. Then his vision went dark and he saw nothing.

- - - - - - - -

“Get the stretchers.”

“Yes Lady Tsunade!”

Yugi's mind registered the fact that there were voices speaking that he didn't know but he didn't open his eyes. His mind reached out for the Pharaoh, trying to determine if the spirit was okay. The spirit was doing the same, a bit more calm than Yugi at this point. Why did all of this seem to happen to him?

If we could answer that question Yugi we wouldn't be in this situation.

A groan reached his ears and he realized that Joey must have awoken as well. He struggled to open his eyes but they didn't seem to want to co-operate with him at the moment.

“Don't move boy!” A female voice demanded nearby and he heard Joey's grunt of a response.

“Do you know how you got here?” The voice asked, directly to Yugi's left.

“Huh...no. All I remember was that jerk Marik getting hit by lightning.” Joey muttered, slurring his words.

Yugi almost jumped out of his skin when a hand was place on his forehead, some sort of energy buzzing against his skin. His eyes flew open as he jerked away from the hand, a squeak of surprise escaping his lips.

The woman whose hand had rested on his forehead blinked at him curiously. Her golden eyes narrowed as she reached out a hand to drag him back toward her.

“Come back here brat, I have to make sure you're not injured.” she growled. Yugi noticed Joey peaking out from behind the woman curiously, his hair almost the same shade as the woman's.

“I'm fine, it's Odion you should worry about.” Yugi said with more bravery than he felt. This woman vaguely scared him and he didn't know why. She frowned at him and he was glad when someone came running up to distract her.

“Granny Tsunade what's gong on?” The blond boy asked, his eyes flickering between Yugi and the woman he now presumed was named Tsunade.

She looks a bit young to be called 'Granny'.

You never know Yugi, I don't look 5000 years old but I am.

You have a point.

Yugi's eyes wandered over to the boy. He was wearing an outfit that made him look like he was color blind. The top was a combination of orange and black while the pants were solid orange. His blond hair stuck up at odd angles. His blue eyes shone with curiosity and a suspicion as he stared back at Yugi.

“What are you two's names?” Tsunade asked, her voice impatient as she moved over to the only person not moving at this point. Yugi's eyes flickered over to Odion and worry began to bubble up. Even if he was supposed to be the enemy he couldn't help but worry about the man. It seemed he'd also been used by Marik.

“I'm Yugi Muto,” Yugi said uncertainly, his eyes flickering to Joey.

Joey's eyes flickered from Tsunade to the boy then over to Yugi. He seemed to relax a little and Yugi raised a brow at him as he scratched the back of his head.

“I'm Joey Wheeler.” Joey said with a large smile.

- - - - - - - - -

Ishizu groaned and tried to roll over, her head pounding. She quickly found that she was pined down by something heavy. She forced her eyes open and blinked against the light filtering through the trees. Once her eyes adjusted she could see what was pining her down: Bakura had apparently collapsed on top of her. She gently slid out from under him and glanced around quickly.

On the ground a few feet away from her were Kaiba and Mokuba, the latter's hand wrapped tightly around his brothers coat. She froze as someone moved in her peripheral vision. She turned, half expecting to see Yugi or her brother, but gasped quietly as her gaze was met by a pair of blood red eyes.

The man raised a dark brow at her, his black cloak fluttering slightly in the breeze. His dark bangs framed his face and Ishizu realized that she'd come face to face with one of the men from her vision. He didn't say a word as he turned away from her and moved toward Kaiba and Mokuba, kneeling down in order to press two fingers against Kaiba's throat. He seemed to find what he wanted as he repeated the process with Mokuba.

“Wh..who are you?” Ishizu asked in a shaky voice.

The man glanced over at her, his face blank. Ishizu shifted slightly, uncomfortable beneath his piercing stare. He seemed to notice because he switched his gaze to Kaiba, whom was beginning to stir slightly.

“I could ask the same of you.” He answered softly, rising to his feet once more.

Ishizu tensed as he began to walk toward her. Something about the man put her on edge but she couldn't place her finger on the exact cause. Her eyes watched him warily as he walked over to Bakura's side and gently flipped the teen over. She noticed the slight tensing in his shoulders as he placed his fingers on Bakura's neck. His eyes flickered upward and met hers, his brows lowering as his lips pulled down into a scowl.

“You're friend needs medical attention.” he stated bluntly.

Ishizu opened her mouth to answer when a groan sounded from Mokuba. Her eyes flickered over to Kaiba and Mokuba in time to see Mokuba force himself into a sitting position. His dark eyes flickered over to Ishizu and the man before settling on his brother.

“Seto,” he cried out, shaking his brother slightly. The older brothers hand grasped his brothers wrist as his eyes blinked open.

“Mokuba...why am I laying in a forest.” Kaiba muttered, his voice annoyed.

“I..don't know bro.” Mokuba said, biting his lip as he glanced around once more. His gaze lingered on Bakura for a moment, worry entering the younger Kaiba's eyes. His eyes quickly moved back to his brother as the older boy began to sit up. Mokuba gave his brother a hand while Ishizu bit her lip. She knew from what she'd already seen of Seto Kaiba that he was going to blame this on her somehow, stating that it was some sort of mind trick.

Kaiba growled slightly as he sat up. How the hell had he and Mokuba gotten into the forest? His eyes swept over his brother quickly, making sure that his younger brother was okay. He noticed that the boys eyes kept flickering away from him and toward something else. He followed the boy's line of sight and growled again. The first person he saw was Ishizu, then he realized that there were two other people beside her. He recognized Bakura but the other man he didn't know. He looked barely older than himself, maybe in his early twenties. The man's eyes were staring at him curiously, studying him and Mokuba.

“Where the hell are we,” Kaiba said, glancing back toward Mokuba.

“The forest outside of Konoha.” the man answered for Mokuba, his eyes leaving the two brothers and moving back to Bakura. His eyes lingered on the Millennium ring before flickering upward to the necklace that hung from around Ishizu's neck.

“You should take the boy to Konoha.” He stated, speaking to Ishizu. She shook her head softly and he frowned, wondering why she would refuse to help her friend.

“I..I don't know where that is.” Ishizu stated quietly.

Itachi sighed inwardly. He hadn't expected his day to go this strangely when he'd decided to take a walk. A simple desire to get away from Kisame had become something troublesome. His eyes lingered on the two brothers once more, going over the options in his mind. He could just leave them here, go about his business and forget that he'd ever seen these strange people. His eyes fell once more on Bakura. The boy wouldn't last long if he didn't help them get to Konoha, which was taking a very large risk for him.

“Who are you?”

Itachi glanced over at the younger boy, he seemed to have gotten over a little bit of the shock at waking up in a strange place. He had risen to his feet and was moving toward Itachi and the white haired boy. He raised a brow and decided that he should at least answer that question.

“My name is Itachi,” he said, his eyes flickering back down to Bakura's face.

A soft sigh escaped his lips, deciding that he couldn't just leave them out here. He reached down and lifted Bakura off the ground, groaning slightly under the boys weight. A soft groan left the boys lips but Itachi ignored it, at least it meant he wasn't dead yet.

“You, in the white coat, help me with him.” Itachi said, a little surprised that the boy weighed as much as he did.

Kaiba stared at him, raising a brow at the man he didn't know. Why should he help? It wasn't like he was friends with Bakura. He did was he was told though, there was something about this Itachi person that gave him the feeling that he wouldn't take no for an answer. He moved over and pulled one of Bakura's arms over his shoulder.

“Good, I'll take you as far as I can.” Itachi said, motioned for Mokuba and Ishizu to follow him as he began to move in the direction of Konoha.

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I hate this chapter with the glowing passion of six dying suns but it's necessary to explain why they are there and such >.> Doesn't mean I have to like the chapter though....