Okay, so... 2020 is happening, and uh... yeah. Hindsight Year is definitely Hindsight.

This is now late March when I'm starting this, so please be kind in the reviews!

Disclaimer: Uh... am I even needed anymore...?

(Chapter Begin)

(Recap)

Setting up camp for the night, Ryo asked the others about what was going on in the real world, to get a better sense of time.

"So, why'd you come to the Digital World?" asked Kenta.

Ryo was silent for a moment before pointing to Cyberdramon, "I came here because of this guy. He's a bit on the wild side and always looking for a fight. I'm trying to help channel that desire to fight by helping him understand the when and where."

"So cool," remarked Kazu and Kenta.

"You skipped out on our rematch," reminded Rika, laying down on the sand and looking to the Earth above, "It was right after that Renamon and I became partners. Perk of being Digimon Queen."

"I've met a Renamon or two myself," remarked Ryo, "I've never met more talented fighters at the Rookie Level. They take on all challengers, even if they have a disadvantage. The fact that you were able to Digivolve all the way to Ultimate speaks highly of how you two work together."

'He seems the same,' remarked Renamon to Rika privately, 'I guess he didn't make the trip back with us.'

'If he did, he would have gone to Azulongmon and inform him of what would happen, causing a great shift in the timeline,' replied Rika. 'Anyways, I think it's time we headed out.'

'Agreed.'

Rika and Renamon got up and dusted themselves off.

"Anyways, Renamon and I are gonna head out," said Rika, "Don't follow us."

"But why?" asked Ryo.

"You're gonna ask a GIRL about having some alone time away from boys?" questioned Rika with a glare at all three of them.

None of them questioned her as Renamon Digivolved into Kyuubimon and raced off with Rika on her back.

(Recap End)

Back with Takato's group, they managed to find their way to what looked like a town, for the bizarre looking buildings they were. It didn't take them long to hear another group entering from the opposite direction. To their weird luck, it was Kazu and Kenta, joined by a somewhat familiar face, but also absent one Rika and Renamon. Takato's widened, it was Ryo. While yes, he shouldn't technically be surprised since he and Henry knew Ryo met up with them here in the Digital World before finally returning home, but it still felt surprising that he was seeing Ryo again. Particularly with his new history in mind, though he never officially met Ryo like he did Rika. They never actually had a card battle before Ryo left for the Digital World.

(AN1)

"Kazu, Kenta, good to see you," said Henry, as he and Jeri and the Digimon smiled at seeing their friends again.

"It's great to be back with the gang!" replied a grinning Kazu.

"We didn't think we'd be able to find you again so easily," added Kenta.

That's when everyone noticed Takato and Ryo staring each other down. Guilmon and Ryo's partner stepping in line, sharing a stern look at each other as well.

"Who's this with you?" asked Jeri, who hadn't followed the card game long enough to learn about the National Champions.

"Meet Ryo Akiyama, THE Digimon King of the Card Game, National Champion of Japan," introduced Kazu, to which Ryo would have had a reaction to, if not for his focus on Takato.

"It's been awhile, Ryo Akiyama," said Takato after a few moments of silence.

"Takato Matsuki, right? Came in 3rd at Nationals behind Rika and myself," replied Ryo, before scratching his head while looking embarrassed, "Sorry we never got a chance to fight. It's not easy to win against Rika Nonaka."

Ryo held his hand out, before Takato smirked and shook it.

"It's a real shame too, since all three of us have moved onto the next level of battling," chuckled Takato, "Always wanted to face you in the card game, but now... there's little point."

"I can see why," said Ryo, "Meet Cyberdramon, my Partner Digimon."

"Hazard," said Cyberdramon in a quiet voice, but Takato, Henry, Guilmon, and Terriermon all heard it alongside Leomon and Ryo.

'Hazard?' thought Ryo, 'That's not good. Need to keep him from causing damage to this place.'

"Heel boy," said Ryo, gently stroking Cyberdramon's left forearm, and Cyberdramon glared before kneeling, following Ryo's instruction.

(AN2)

"Huh?" noticed Jeri, "Where's Rika? She isn't with you?"

"She just took off not long after we met up with Ryo. Not sure why though?" said Kazu tactlessly.

"Rika sees the ONLY person who has ever defeated her in an official match and you'd think she'd be THRILLED to see him again?" deadpanned Takato, sighing, "Honestly, as the only other person who beat Rika in a card game, I KNOW she's not thrilled about seeing Ryo again. Heck, if I was anything like her, i'd probably deck Ryo for not even having one card game with me before he left."

Ryo chuckled and scratched his head again, "Thanks for not doing that...?"

"Anyways," continued Takato, pulling out his sketches, "In case the wonder twins hadn't informed you yet..."

"HEY!" cried out Kazu and Kenta in indignation.

"This is Calumon," presented Takato with Calumon's Sketch, before switching to Makuramon's Sketch, "and this is Makuramon, a Deva under orders from Zhuqiaomon. Calumon is our friend and Makuramon took him here to the Digital World. We've been looking for him for a couple days now."

"I see," said Ryo, looking over the sketches, "I'm familiar with the Title of Devas, who work for all four Sovereigns, but Calumon is brand new to me, and trust me: I've seen thousands of Digimon cards so I know a 'mon when I see one. What's so special about Calumon?"

(AN3)

"See that mark on his forehead," pointed out Henry, joining them, "That center Triangle glows and it allows Digimon to Digivolve, bypassing other requirements, including our own Digivolution cards. Considering how hard it is for some Digimon to Digivolve normally, Takato, Rika, and I hypothesize that he may hold the great key to Digivolution itself."

"That's news to us!" said Kazu.

"Yeah, you never shared that with us before now!" added Kenta.

"Would it have changed anything," said Takato, giving them a look, "Calumon's our friend. That's the first and foremost reason we came here in the first place. What powers he has should be a non-factor in WHY we're rescuing him."

Kazu and Kenta had the humility to be embarrassed by their outburst.

"AH!" yelled Jeri, getting their attention.

Everyone turned to see five Scarecrows standing there, doing nothing, but all the same it was a bit unnerving.

"'Nohemon'," said Henry, using his D-Power to scan them, "They're armor-level but actually very passive. They look like Scarecrows and their attacks would definitely frighten off more than just birds."

"They're not going to harm us, but it takes time to get used to them popping up," added Ryo, having seen them enough times before, "Follow me. I know a place we can stay tonight."

Ryo led the group to an odd looking castle.

"A 2-D version of this wouldn't look out of place in an Art Showcase," noted Takato, getting nods out of Henry, Jeri, and Ryo.

"Look at it long enough and it gives you a headache," mentioned Ryo, "It still does if I think about it too much. But still, it's completely safe. I've spent several nights here and never got attacked once."

"Sounds comforting," said Henry.

As they moved through the castle, Ryo led them to an empty room with several beds.

"Forgive the skepticism, Ryo," chuckled Takato, "But this reminds me of that episode early on in Digimon Season 1 where Devimon makes a mansion for the Digidestined. It had a bedroom just like this."

"Yeah, thought that too. Barely slept a wink the first few times I stayed here, and that's WITH Cyberdramon in the room at all times. Cyberdramon, as a higher-tier Ultimate, can take on most threats. It still didn't change anything when I first stayed here. That episode would probably have a lot of people on edge staying in a room like this," agreed Ryo.

(AN4)

With that, the light outside turned to darkness, signaling night time.

"So, any chance of supper?" asked Kazu.

"We still got some rations, though you'd think we'd've run out of them by now," commented Takato, taking out a few.

"It's strange though," said Jeri, "We've been here for two days and we've barely eaten enough for a meal and a half."

"That's actually a trait of being in the Digital World," said Ryo, taking a snack bar from Takato's offered hand, "I actually haven't eaten anything for the past two weeks. You're only hungry if you feel like it. Though eating food from the Human World is definitely enjoyable."

"I've heard of diets, but that takes it to a new level," smirked Takato, "And you haven't lost any weight?"

"Maybe a few pounds, but nothing too serious," replied Ryo, understanding where Takato was coming from.

(AN5)

"(yawn) Well, let's get some sleep," said Jeri, "We've probably got another long day of searching tomorrow."

Everyone picked a bed and tried to relax, but sleep was a bit hard to come by for some. Sometime later, Jeri couldn't keep quiet anymore.

"Hey Takato," said Jeri, loud enough for Takato to hear her from the opposite bed, "Do you miss home?"

"Honestly, I try not to think about it, because it could make me lose focus at the wrong moment. We've been lucky so far, but sooner or later we'll run into stronger enemies. Ones we can't beat that easily," replied Takato.

"I see," said Jeri, before hearing clanking footsteps outside the room.

Everyone was waking up to said footsteps as a Knightmon walked by the door, ignoring them completely.

"Who is that?" asked Kenta, a bit terrified.

"Knightmon," informed Ryo, "He guards the place at night. Anyone wishing to do harm to the place he executes with prejudice. He won't harm anyone in here though. This room is for 'Honored Guests' according to him."

With that, Ryo went back to sleep, ignoring questions from Kenta, who managed to calm down enough to get back to sleep alongside Kazu and the others. Hours passed and Takato woke up feeling restless. Deciding to back though his bag, he found something on the bottom. It was a note and a good luck charm from his mother.

Note: Dear Takato, I know we may not fully understand everything you're involved in, but know that we do still love you, no matter what. It's always hard for a parent to see their child grow up so fast and we had always believed that we would have had a few more years before you headed out on such a long term adventure. Know that we send our love to you with this charm, and that we have faith you can lead your friends back home when the time comes. Love, Mom.

(AN6)

Takato couldn't help but feel tears in his eyes. He smiled letting them fall.

"Takato, are you okay?" asked Jeri.

"I'm fine," said Takato, "I found this note from my mom. I know we'll succeed. And I know we'll all get to go home."

"I agree Takato," said Jeri, sharing his smile, "Once we find Calumon and Rika and Renamon, there's nothing stopping us from getting home!"

'If only you knew what we had to go through, but you're too pure for that. I only hope you can forgive me like before,' thought Takato, not letting his smile falter for Jeri's sake.

"Let's try to get some rest, tomorrow gonna feel long enough as it is," suggested Takato, and he and Jeri eventually drifted off into slumber.

Rika and Renamon were still walking, trying to figure out the best way to get back to Takato and the others. Following the boys' trail was useless thanks to the shifting weather in the Digital World and admitting defeat even if they still could follow it. Taking a deep breath, they soldiered on, choosing a direction that would hopefully take them back to their friends.

(AN7)

The next morning, After everyone got up and ready for the day, Ryo led them to a spiral staircase, one that transcended the planes of the Digital World's Southern Quadrant. They returned to an area that held the same desert-like look as to where they first came into the Digital World and almost immediately noticed a bright light in the distance.

"Well, if that light is any indication, we're close to finding Calumon," said Takato, breaking into a run and grabbing the backpack off of Guilmon. They were about to face a Deva, and this one was going to be big. Taller than even Vikaralamon. Henry was following close behind him with Terriermon on his head, ready to spring into action at a moment's notice. Ryo was no slouch and kept pace with them as Cyberdramon joined in with Kazu and Kenta behind them. Leomon carried Jeri so she wouldn't exhaust herself in this sprint.

As they approached, they saw Makuramon on the head of a Dragon, and given the markings, it was indeed another Deva. They noticed Makuramon jumping off as the Dragon closed in on them.

"Alright Henry, let's show them how we do things here in the Digital World!" said Takato, sliding to a stop and bringing out a familiar card.

Henry nodded as he slowed to a stop with Ryo right behind them alongside Cyberdramon, who recognized the Strength of the Deva before him.

"DIGIMODIFY! DIGIVOLUTION ACTIVATE!"

DIGIVOLUTION

Guilmon/Terriermon Digivolve to... Growlmon/Gargomon!

"Alright, let's get this done right! Henry?" proclaimed Gargomon, as he warmed up his literal hand machine guns.

"DIGIMODIFY! POWER ACTIVATE!" called out Henry as the others gathered with the group.

"GARGO LASERS!" called out Gargomon, jumping forward to increase the impact speed of his bullets, for all that they were deflecting off of the Dragon.

"Majiramon, Dragon Deva and servant of Azulongmon," informed Takato on his D-Power, "His Bao Shi is a powerful single arrow strike while Flaming Arrowheads rains downs dozens of them on his foes."

"That's a neat feature," said Ryo, trying to scan the Deva and failing.

"I got some top secret clearance," said Takato, transferring the data to Ryo's D-Power, "Now let's slay this dragon! DOUBLE DIGIMODIFY! SPEED AND HYPER WING ACTIVATE!"

(AN8)

Wings appeared on Growlmon as he flew at super speeds to get right up into Majiramon's face, "PYRO BLASTER!"

The power did some actual damage, but not enough to really slow Majiramon down as he countered with Flaming Arrowheads, forcing everyone to dodge.

"TAKE IT UP A NOTCH!" called out Takato, glowing red as the Hazard Symbol appeared on the back of his hand, but only Henry and Ryo noticed, "MATRIX DIGIVOLUTION!"

Growlmon Matrix Digivolve to... WarGrowlmon!

WarGrowlmon's increase in power allowed him to deflect the attack and get in close.

"Radiation Blades!" called out War Growlmon, and suddenly switched tactics to deflect the Bao Shi directed at him.

"DIGIMODIFY!" came a familiar voice, "GOLIATH ACTIVATE!"

Suddenly, Cyberdramon grew 10x it's original size and grabbed onto the the Dragon with the intention of deleting him. With speed that Ryo wasn't ready for, WarGrowlmon used his boosters to get in position, and blasted the Dragon out of Goliath out of Cyberdramon's hands and back into the clouds from whence it came. Cyberdramon was not pleased. Even as the Goliath card wore off quickly. Cyberdramon and WarGrowlmon stared each other down, ready to do battle at a moment's notice.

(AN9)

Even Ryo was staring down Takato. This had never happened before. No one had stolen a victory from Cyberdramon before, not even Rika and Taomon, though not for lack complaint afterwards. No one else mattered right now, and Henry seemed to realize that as he and Gargomon had everyone back away from the two most powerful Tamers in the vicinity. Unlike the child's play he, Takato, and Rika did on Earth, this was the real deal, with real stakes. Cyberdramon wasn't going to run off at the moment, so this wasn't going to separate them again right now.

"Takato, no one gets in Cyberdramon's way," said Ryo, "Now he wants to fight your partner. Are you sure you want to continue this path?"

"Henry, Rika, and I have fought our hardest not to destroy the Devas. I wasn't about to let Cyberdramon mess that up," replied Takato, as he and Ryo took an unspoken signal and to start circling each other.

"Why? They'll only come back to try again and again until you're forced to delete them or be deleted yourself," questioned Ryo.

"Because there is more to this than you realize. And it's BECAUSE you don't realize it that you can't understand that you're not the best Tamer in this Group. There's a reason why I am the Leader."

"So YOU are the one Rika was talking about when she said the Dynamic had shifted between the three of us. Honestly, if you wanted to battle, you could have just asked."

"What, and bore Cyberdramon with talk? He's a mon of Action. Are you a Tamer of Action?"

"Let's find out," smirked Ryo.

Henry, dreading where this was going, motioned for the others to get back, Gargomon doing the same.

"Henry, they shouldn't be fighting! Aren't they friends?" asked Jeri.

"Back when Takato, Rika, and I first started, we got into fights too. But this is different. These two truly are rivals," informed Henry, doing his best to keep Jeri out of the way, "Takato was robbed of a card battle, so this is to make up for that, and Takato definitely has the edge."

"What are you talking about?" denied Kazu, "I mean, sure Takato's gotten good at being a Tamer, but that's Ryo! He's the Digimon King for a reason!"

"Yeah, Takato shouldn't have the skills to dethrone him!" added Kenta.

"Guys, you seem to forget," said Henry, "The Card Game is very limited in it's potential, but here, on this level, a Tamer can bring out a card's true power. Not to mention combos that are legit impossible to pull off in the card game. That's why Takato has the edge. He can combo cards in ways Ryo can't predict."

Back with Cyberdramon and WarGrowlmon, both took to the air as they started clashing. Back on the Ground, Ryo and Takato focused on each other only, nothing else mattered but this battle. Neither would go for deletion, but everything else was a matter of pride.

"DIGIMODIFY!" called out Ryo and Takato at the same time.

"POWER/HYPER-SPEED ACTIVATE!" finished Ryo and Takato respectively.

While Cyberdramon was more acrobatic, and thus faster, WarGrowlmon was physically stronger, which is why they chose these cards, to balance the playing field. Cyberdramon was now hitting harder while WarGrowlmon was moving faster, making it harder for the others to keep track of the battlefield, but was moving backwards to get out of the blast range.

"RADIATION BLADES!" called out WarGrowlmon.

"DESOLATION CLAW!" countered Cyberdramon.

WarGrowlmon was bashing away the waves of slashes coming his way as he moved in.

"ATOMIC BLASTERS!"

Cyberdramon dove down to avoid the blast.

"DIGIMODIFY!" called out Ryo, "Cherubimon's Storm of Judgement Activate!"

"STORM OF JUDGMENT!" called out Cyberdramon, as storm clouds covered the area and sending out millions upon millions of lightning bolts towards WarGrowlmon.

"DIGIMODIFY!" countered Takato, "Dynasmon's Breath of Wyvern Activate!"

"BREATH OF WYVERN!" called out WarGrowlmon, a brilliant white wyvern dragon appearing around him, absorbing the Lightning Strikes and protecting WarGrowlmon from harm.

(AN10)

Everyone was so wrapped up in the battle, no one noticed a Data Stream approaching. Well, almost everyone. Takato's eye glinted as he noticed it and called forth Megidramon's power before jumping out of the way, strengthening WarGrowlmon further, getting Ryo's attention. He tried to pull out another card, but the Data Stream crossed his path and sucked him up. Cyberdramon felt his partner disappear but before he could react, WarGrowlmon grabbed onto him and toss him into the stream as well. Takato took a breath, letting the power die down as WarGrowlmon avoided the Data Stream and landed near his partner, reverting back to Guilmon in the process.

"That was close," sighed Takato, wiping sweat off his brow, "Ryo is no joke. And next time, we'll have the power of Biomerge on our side, so we'll be that much stronger in our next fight."

"Gallantmon is far stronger than Justimon, you know that, Takatomon," chuckled Guilmon.

"Hopefully Ryo will forgive the bait and switch by the time we meet up again," smiled Takato, clearly Guilmon's optimism is infectious.

"That felt great. You really hold back too much too often. Maybe next time you get separated from your friends, you can go full Hazard on some idiot Digimon who try to cross your path?" proposed Megidramon, feeling smug and satisfied.

'Well, maybe if I was the one that got sucked up into the Data Stream. Right now though, I have questions to answer,' replied Takato as he turned to his friends, who were in awe. Even Henry and Gargomon couldn't hide their surprise at what happened.

(Chapter End)

I'm gonna be honest, when I started this, it was before China had any news regarding the current event going on on a pandemic scale. Please don't mention it in the comments, for everyone's sake. But now that a majority of people are staying home, you'd think I'd be able to dedicate more time to my fanfics, right?

Not really. I work at a 24-care care facility and thus an Essential Employee. So... yeah. Still got that regular schedule. It doesn't change the fact that I find myself distracted reading other fanfics and watching youtube videos. Hey, people are streaming more these days so watching livestreams takes up peoples time too, right?

Author Notes!

AN1: Just a reminder of what changes I made in chapters 1 and 2.

AN2: Yeah, this town ain't sturdy enough for their battle!

AN3: Okay, Ryo may or may not canonically part of the Digidestined's dimension outside of that one flashback where he was in shadow. Point is, regardless he's seen and knows a LOT of Digimon and Calumon would have been created fairly recently irrespective of games and other continuities!

AN4: Did anyone else get that vibe when watching this? It's a chilling reminder of how parallel the Tamers can actually be with the OG Digidestined.

AN5: Yeah, that gets more disturbing the deeper you think about it. I mean, if it's the same with bathroom visits... yeah. Not a pretty thought!

AN6: Considering how much Takato has changed (chapters 1 and 2), I made the note reflect the change as well.

AN7: Probably the weakest excuse for a transition in this fanfic. SORRY!

AN8: I mean, Rika and Henry have the excuse of time traveling for Takato to share. He actually just felt like it with Ryo. Sometimes being nice is good.

AN9: Tensions... rising!

AN10: Okay, not gonna lie. I wanted to show some Mega Level Digimon Attacks for this fight as I was writing it and Cherubimon's came to mind instantly. I went to look up other Mega Level Digimon for a Shield Move when I saw Dynasmon and was like, you know what? Forget the shield move. An Offensive Counter as a Shield would be more appropriate with what I was just talking about so let's do it!

Next Time: Rika manages to find an old friend while the others keep up their search for Rika herself.

Later,

RDF1