"It's useless." The professor laughed as he explained, "I forgot to tell you: as long as Vennominaga the Deity of Poisonous Snakes is face-up on the field, she can't be targeted by any card effects other than her own, and she's unaffected by them."
"She's actually that powerful..." Everyone felt utterly helpless.
"What are you going to do, Jaden...?"
"Ugh..." Out on the field, Jaden clutched his chest in pain.
"You only have one turn left. You'll never beat me with that attitude of yours, grinning like an idiot and enjoying the Duel."
"Duels carry a heavy burden. With your frivolous attitude, laughing everything off, you'll pay the price sooner or later. You'll never understand what it means to lose something or carry a burden."
"Without those things in your life, you'll never grow. What drives you to keep going? Nothing at all, right?"
The professor's words left Jaden silent. He had never thought about any of this. It seemed he really had nothing driving him.
"Bro, don't listen to his nonsense!" Sho's shout from outside the Duel Arena snapped Jaden out of it.
Everyone kept encouraging him.
Jesse said, "What are you afraid of? Think carefully. Do you really have nothing weighing on your shoulders?"
Asuka said, "Have you forgotten why we came here? Think of all those unconscious students."
Axel said, "What will happen to them if you lose?"
Anzu said, "Don't let down Mr. Sato, Ms. Ayukawa, Professor Crowler, Professor Napoleon, Principal Samejima, or any of us!"
Yami Yugi said, "Don't forget your Deck! Those are heroes! You're the one carrying on the legacy of the hero before you!"
...and so on.
Their encouragement rekindled Jaden's fighting spirit. "That's right! Momiji wouldn't give up this easily. I still have to save everyone."
"There's no way I'm going