Vile: Weren't expecting me again so quick, were ya? Yep, here we are with a new Numbershot!

Yuma: Man, you work quick with this.

Vile: To be honest, I had this idea for quite a while, but I only did it now because this is where it fits in the timeline.

Astral: Well then, shall we begin?

Vile: I'm with you there. I don't ZEXAL or any of its characters (as if this hasn't been established already). I only own my characters and cards. Enjoy, everyone!

Numbershot 93: Duel Against The Dark Hunter

Chapter 1

Yuma laid back in his hammock under the starry, moonlit sky. He had a single card with his gaze trained on it: Number 10: Illumiknight. Astral floated beside him, also examining the card. "Kaito…" Yuma breathed. He remembered what happened to the Number Hunter not too long ago.

*Flashback 1*

The possessed Kaito quickly whipped out his Duel Anchor, tethering Yuma's arm. "This time, there is no escape. First I'll beat you, then I'll take your soul AND your Numbers! And once I do that… I'll take the souls of your friends as a bonus!" An evil laugh resonated from his throat.

*Flashback 2*

The darkness swelled around Kaito with his Number on the field. "Ah hah hah hah hah hah hah hah! This power is incredible! I never knew the power of the Numbers could be so… exhilarating!" He looked at Yuma with an evil grin. "You stand no chance against me this time, Yuma!"

*Flashback 3*

Kaito scoffed. "Kaito is gone now! The form you see may be him, but he no longer makes the choices. This body is now owned by Number 10!" He held up the 10 on his hand while laughing.

*End Flashbacks*

"To think Kaito could ever be possessed by the Numbers…" Yuma mused. "Something can't be right."

"What do you mean, Yuma?" Astral asked him.

"Kaito's will is too strong to allow him to be controlled by the Numbers, Galaxy-Eyes or no Galaxy-Eyes." The Number Hunter said. "How could the Number get through to him?"

"Hmm… perhaps the sheer amount of Number held by him was a factor." The spirit mused. "Kaito has amassed around 16 to 18 Numbers. The collective darkness may have broken through Kaito's defenses."

"That doesn't sound right. If that was true, all of Kaito's Numbers would've possessed him. Only Number 10 did." Yuma said. "Ngh… this is all so confusing. None of it makes sense!"

Astral sighed in defeat, not knowing what to do. "Perhaps we should wait until morning to continue this thinking. An idea might come to us over the night."

Yuma had no other ideas, so he nodded. "Yeah, you're right. No use losing sleep over this kind of thing, even if I don't have any school tomorrow." Yuma gave Astral Number 10, then turned over. "Night, Astral." The boy was soon fast asleep, and Astral returned to the Key.

*Inside The Emperor's Key*

Astral held Number 10 up to the other Number pillars, turning it into one itself with the orange "10" glowing on it. "Number 10… One would believe you were loyal to your owner just as Hope, but you were a Number similar to Black Mist. What could have allowed you to break through Kaito's defenses, even without Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon…?" All of a sudden, the "10" glowed harshly, blinding Astral's vision. All of a sudden, a vision flashed into Astral's mind.

*Vision* *Bolded Text Is Astral*

Astral saw Kaito in the middle of a Duel. Number 10: Illumiknight was on his field, but Astral noticed something: the "10" was glowing was on his right hand. "Kaito…?" He noticed something he didn't expect to see: Kaito's facial expression was absolutely frightened. Astral looked to the other side and noticed four shadow-like monsters, a different number of heads on each one, boring down on Kaito with their ten pairs of eyes. "Those monsters must be the cause…" But then he saw who it was that was controlling them. The dark-themed school-esque outfit of the owner was familiar, as were the purple eyes. However, instead of streamlined black, the hair was spiky and dark purple with lavender streaks, and he was equipped with a black D-Pad and an eye-themed D-Gazer. Astral was surprised at the change, but he knew who it was: Yamoto, the Number Hunter who took Number 55. "So it was him…?" His vision went white.

*End Vision*

Astral shook his head as he came out of the vision. He couldn't believe who was the (apparent) cause of Kaito's will being weakened. "Yamoto… why would he do something like this to Kaito…?" He wondered. He then flashed back to when Yuma was held hostage by Number 88: Mirror's Dark Half. When Yamoto finished the Duel and looked at Yuma, he recoiled. He remembered Yamoto shooting Yuma an odd, somewhat dirty look before he left, and it made Astral suspicious. "Hmm… perhaps he knows more than he's saying."

*The Next Day, 11:00 AM*

"Huh? You're saying Yamoto did that to Kaito?" Yuma asked Astral, Kotori also with them.

"I am positive, Yuma." Astral told him. "I saw a vision with Kaito and Yamoto in a Duel. Yamoto's monsters were affecting Kaito and actually frightening him. I can think of no other reason."

"But why would Yamoto do something like that to Kaito...?" Kotori wondered. "He doesn't seem like a bad guy at all. He even helped Tokunosuke that day."

Yuma's fist was clenched. "I knew there was something up with him…" He growled.

"Yuma?" Kotori asked him.

"I got a bad vibe from Yamoto the moment we first saw him. I knew something was wrong." Yuma said. "He might've seemed like a good guy, but maybe that was just while he got Tokunosuke's Number. Maybe he's even worse than Kaito!"

"We should not make assumptions, Yuma." Astral told him. "There is only one way we can say for certain. We must learn more about that boy."

Yuma nodded. "You're right. But how are we gonna learn anything about Yamoto? He's not part of the school database, so that won't work."

"Who said it had to be the school database?" Kotori spoke up. "I'm sure there are some people here in Heartland that know about Yamoto."

"But it's not like they'll be holding a billboard…" Yuma groaned. "The guy's a mystery! He can even teleport! How are we going to know anything about Yamoto?"

"Oi! Yuma! Kotori!" A voice called to them. Yuma and Kotori turned and saw Tetsuo coming up to them.

"Hey, Tetsuo. What's up?" Yuma said.

"I heard you talking about that Yamoto dude." Tetsuo told him. "To be honest, he's a better guy than Yuma thinks he is."

"How the heck would you know?" Yuma retorted.

"I met the guy." Tetsuo said, making the other three's (counting Astral) eyes widen. "I ran into him after Tokunosuke left the nurse that day."

*Flashback*

Tetsuo headed home when he saw someone in front of him. "Huh? Yamoto!" He realized, quickly running towards him. "Oi! Yamoto!"

Yamoto stopped when he heard the voice and turned towards Tetsuo, who had reached. "Hmm? Ah, I remember you. You are one of Yuma-kun's friends."

"Yuma-kun?" Tetsuo asked, raising an eyebrow. "Do you know him?"

"No I don't. I'm just showing respect, is all." The purple-eyed boy said. "I heard that Tokunosuke-kun was taken to your school's nurse. Is he all right?"

Tetsuo nodded. "Yeah. He said the pain had fully passed, just like you said."

Yamoto breathed out, relieved. "Thank goodness. I was hoping my Dark Matter Blade wouldn't cause any lasting damage that time."

"'That time'? You mean it's happened before?"

"Thankfully, no. But you can never be too careful." Yamoto said. "If you see Tokunosuke-kun, tell him I'm sorry for having to do that. I hate seeing pain, but it was all I could do to help him."

Tetsuo gave a small smile and nodded. "Sure. The name's Tetsuo, by the way."

Yamoto smiled. "Goodbye for now, Tetsuo-kun." He said before walking off.

*End Flashback*

"Whoa…" Yuma breathed. "I feel like an idiot for thinking he was a bad guy." His face turned serious. "Still, I think we need answers about Kaito. Let's go, you two." He was about to walk off.

"Go where, Yuma?" Kotori asked.

"To look for Yamoto, where else?" Yuma asked.

"But we don't even know where he is!" Tetsuo told him.

"I know that. We're gonna split up." Yuma explained. "The moment someone finds Yamoto, call the other two and let them know your location. If you get called, get to that location ASAP. Got it?" Kotori and Tetsuo nodded. "All right, let's go!" With that, Yuma darted in one direction while Kotori and Tetsuo headed in two different directions, out to find their target.

Vile: Not a bad start, but things get better. Let's see if they manage to find Yamoto next chapter.

Kotori: Hey, I thought Yamoto's hair stayed black when he Dueled.

Vile: Yeah, I decided to change that. It'll make much more sense in a later Numbershot.

Yuma: Man, I hope the next chapter is soon.

Vile: I'll try, dude. If you guys liked this chapter, leave a review for me! See ya later, guys!

Computer Voice: Vile, logging out.