For as much as Duel Monsters had been a central aspect of Ruka's life growing up, she honestly didn't like dueling all that much; she hadn't competed in the Fortune Cup willingly, and had wanted to sit this one out just as much. Especially after everything that had been going on recently: she'd somehow jumped forward a month in the City with no recollection of what occurred in the interim, the undead had risen and fallen (again), and many of the people most important to her had either been exPorted, or replaced by alternate selves with no recollection of this place—and, subsequently, no recollection of her.

Her heart was aching, but, just like a month before, she knew there was a more important reason for her to be here. If Aki, as vulnerable and as volatile as she was, was competing, Ruka needed to stay close as possible in case something happened. If she wanted to save this Aki from becoming that closed-off woman, Ruka would have to shield that girl's heart from harm, and keep the doors to that heart propped open until she could keep them open on her own.

Determined to meet Aki head-on when the time came, Ruka latched her customized duel disk to her wrist during Kaiba's speech, wondering who she'd have to face along the way.