Frankenstein's Monster draws back a hand and smacks Jonouchi across the face, demanding that he stop wasting their time. Jonouchi's head hits the side of the booth and he groans, wondering what's going on until he presumably starts to feel that throbbing in his cheek. He shoots out of his chair and grabs Frankenstein's Monster by his collar, asking him what he thinks he's doing as he shoves him up against the opposite wall of the booth. But when he catches sight of the bone-ridden environment on the other side of the glass, he starts freaking out again, wondering where the hell he is.
Kozuka informs Jonouchi that he's in The Crypt, the hidden Duel Monsters arena on the island. Jonouchi gulps, sweating profusely. He has taken his seat again as Kozuka points and claims that Jonouchi is surrounded by ghosts of soldiers in the Pacific War, unable to escape. Kozuka shouts that it's time to begin, and for a trembling Jonouchi to draw his cards. Jonouchi does as he's told while scared out of his mind, thinking he's dead meat.
Kozuka continues to be demanding, insisting that the both of them put all four of their star chips on the table. Jonouchi does this with a hammering heart, knowing that if he loses, it's all over. Keith hangs in the background, contemplating how it looks like he's won another four chips by using his stooges to win duels one at a time for him. He thinks it'll be no time before he's got the ten he needs, and wishes his idiot stooge good luck, because every time he wins it gets Keith closer to the castle.
Meanwhile, Kaiba calling him a loser pops back into Jonouchi's head. He silently curses and urges himself to fight, because if he backs down now, he really will be proving Kaiba right. And ain't nobody wants to do that. He's also convinced that if he acts like a loser, he won't be able to look Yuugi in the eye next time he sees him. So he summons every ounce of courage he has in order to agree to the match and get on with it.
They announce the start of their match. Kozuka is stoked at how perfect the 100% graveyard field is for his zombie cards, while Jonouchi tells himself that all he can do is trust his cards. Frankenstein's Monster urges Kozuka to bury Jonouchi, and Kozuka chuckles at the stupid joke. Telling himself not to listen and just play, Jonouchi slaps down his first card.
Anzu suggests that perhaps he got lost, but Honda shoots down that possibility, saying Jonouchi can usually sniff out which street he's on. Anzu asks Honda if he's calling his friend a dog, to which question Honda doesn't reply. I think we can take that as a yes. Yuugi worries that Jonouchi might have accepted a challenge to duel without telling them, and Honda thinks this is much more likely. He says Jonouchi has been desperate to prove himself ever since he got to the island, especially since Kaiba got the better of him, and surmises that Jonouchi might try to get more star chips by himself to rub in their faces later. Honda mutters about Jonouchi having no self-esteem.
Yuugi makes the executive decision to split up and search for him, and Honda agrees, telling Yuugi and Anzu to search the forest while he and Bakura go to look at the duel boxes. Yuugi and Anzu wander around, yelling Jonouchi's name. Honda and Bakura find an empty duel booth and resolve to check another together. Anzu gets in on the dog joke by calling to Jonouchi like he's Fido and asking him to come out. Yuugi mutters that he's not around there either, wondering where he might be.
Kozuka twists around to tell Keith that the card he's suggesting is weaker than Axe Raider and will get its ass kicked. Keith just tells him to do what he says and he can't go wrong, Frankenstein's Monster backing this up with the assertion that they've only gotten as far as they have because of Keith's solid advice.
Jonouchi shouts that Kozuka should fight by himself instead of getting help from his friends, and this spurs Kozuka into action. He decides to trust in
Jonouchi celebrates on the other side of the table, gloating about how he won. He tells Kozuka to pick a grave, and when Kozuka growls angrily, Jonouchi calls him "Uncle Creepy" as he asks what's wrong. Jonouchi points out that there's nothing on Kozuka's side of the table, so he'd better play something else. Flustered, Kozuka wonders what that last play was about, but resolves to play a zombie card this turn. Keith stops him again, telling him to play the second card from the left this time.
It's Crawling Dragon, which isn't one of Kozuka's zombies either, and he knows it will die the moment he puts it down just like the one before. Keith tells him that he has come up with a strategy for Kozuka to win if Kozuka just trusts his awesome intellect and his reputation as the original undefeated Duel Monsters champion. Still looking a tad unsure, Kozuka does what he's told anyway and meekly plays the dragon in defense. Jonouchi proceeds to have Axe Raider chop up the dragon, and Kozuka looks devastated while Jonouchi gloats again.
Keith laughs, saying that he just might. Jonouchi sweatdrops, probably not prepared for that statement. Kozuka is hunched over as he draws a new card and looks at it. He gasps, suddenly understanding the strategy Keith was talking about, having been waiting for him to draw the card he now holds. He thinks Keith really IS a genius. Keith shouts for him to play it, and Jonouchi looks a little concerned at their jubilation. Kozuka slaps down the card, telling Jonouchi that it's all over for him, and Jonouchi can do nothing but look on curiously.
Jonouchi is horrified by the zombie turn of events while Kozuka commands his undead dragon to chew on the Axe Raider. Axe Raider tries to smash the dragon's face with his weapon, but Jonouchi is amazed to see the wound healing up instantly. Kozuka tells Jonouchi he can't hurt zombies with his weapons because they'll just keep coming back.
So, what did I think of this chapter overall? It's a shame that Jonouchi got that booster shot of confidence at first and then had to get the gut-punch of this zombie hoard at the end. At the same time, though, it was absolutely necessary. In a way, Kaiba was right; Jonouchi's confidence did HAVE to be shattered at some point. Anyone who learns something new knows that there is a period in which you know all the rules, know how everything works, and still can't seem to get anything right. It's at times like these that confidence in your abilities is not enough, because that confidence is constantly being challenged with stupid mistakes. It takes resolve and determination to push past these in order to stay in the game.
Keith makes a good foil for this kind of struggle, actually. He's brimming with experience and therefore confidence in his strategy, which is what makes his followers cling to him and his advice so tightly. He's only agreed to this role of mentorship in order to steal all of their effort on his behalf later, though, which suggests that he's also lazy enough not to HAVE the resolve and determination that a collapse in ego would require. His ego is actually all that's maintaining his will to get back at Pegasus, which makes him a bit like Kaiba in Death-T, putting everyone through the ringer to only appear when there's a payoff for him and his interests.
We'll see how that works out for him.
I'm a little perplexed that it took Jonouchi's friends 20 minutes to start looking for him, though. 10 would have been enough for me to start wondering if he passed out or something.
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