The bamboozling Balkan gambit

Okisato sat in disbelief and anger as Ginji and Refik finished handing in their scoresheets. He wasn't surprised Ginji had thrown, but to do it this quickly along with what happened to Azenira and Ryonosuke, raised his normally low anxiety levels to record highs. Refik was still in a state of shock that he had won against a player of Ginji's caliber in such fashion, but a win was a win. And his teammates would only praise him for doing his part.

Now 0-1 in the hole, everyone else would have to win on demand in hopes of winning. But the masked man didn't seem phased by anything in the slightest. In fact, he had made his starting move of pawn to e4 as soon as the round began, with Tvrtko following up by moving his pawn to e6. Knight f3 and d3 came next, and it was at that moment that Ginji's game ended decisively.

"One for us? Well that works out great. Now I just gotta hold the line," Tvrtko thought as he captured the pawn at e4 with his d-pawn.

Okisato, meanwhile still had yet to make his first move and was anxiously scratching his head. Ginji's stunt really had thrown him for a loop as not only was the team trailing in the match, but the women's side was effected as well. He knew Iori had at least made it to the venue, but he didn't know how well she truly was feeling.

"I can't focus. I know I need to make a move, but I gotta clear my head," he thought as he got up to go look around.

But before he went off, he made sure to at least make a move, opting to move his knight to f3. Miralem moved his knight to f6, before also getting up and trailing Okisato from a distance, keeping the psychological pressure up. Zago also appeared to be a tad rattled, but he appeared to be playing fine for now. Though Ognjen had a slight morale boost due to Refik's win.

"Ginji really laid a nasty trap for us. A shame Tanabe went off, but it's probably for the best. Now let's just hope he comes back in timely fashion," the masked man thought as he moved his knight to g5.

Tvrtko instantly captured the pawn at d3 with his e-pawn, prompting the masked man to predictably capture said pawn with his bishop, giving Tvrtko the chance to control the tempo.

"Looks like you tried to go for a Tennison, but against me? Ni chance. And since this ain't even a Tennison, I can kick you out with no worries," Tvrtko thought as he moved his pawn to h6.

But that very move was the one the masked man gad been hoping for. "Now, let's see how a denizen of the Balkans fairs when faced with the full might of the Balkan gambit," the masked man thought as he moved his queen to h5.

Tvrtko stared at the play before shrugging and moving his queen to d7, but surprise soon found it's way to his face as the masked man captured the pawn at f7 with his knight. "Well aren't you a character. You trying to threepeat? If so, I'm happy to oblige," he thought as he moved his knight to f6.

The masked man then delivered a predictable double check, by moving his knight to d6. Tvrtko moved his king to e8, and got hopeful of a threefold repetition as the masked man moved his knight back to f7, checking him, and allowing him to move his king back to e8. But drawing was not on the itinerary, as the masked man decided to move his knight to e5.

"Check. Sorry, but no threefold today."

Tvrtko wasn't the least bit saddened though, in fact he seemed a bit giddy. "Sorry buddy, but you just miscalculated. This queen trade you just set up is all benefits for me, but go ahead and take my queen. I'll be winning the moment you do," he thought as he captured the queen at h5 with his knight.

"Check. Sorry to burst your bubble, but this trade will be an even one," the masked man declared as he moved his bishop to g6.

An amused smile spread on Tvrtko's face as he moved his king to d8. "Well now you're really piquing my interest. Just who are you?" he thought.

Without hesitation, the masked man captured the queen at d7 with his knight. Tvrtko captured said knight with his bishop just as quickly, and then the masked man captured the knight at h5 with his bishop, leaving the trade with just as many points as Tvrtko.

"Well that's something. Now I'm the one being forced to think. Hmm... Guess we'll get the bishops out then," Tvrtko thought as he moved his bishop to d6.

Things picked up with the masked man castling king's side and Tvrtko moving his rook to f8. Both players were playing well, with neither one having a definitive edge, but the masked man did have a slight one, which he continued to maintain by moving his knight to d2. Even with Tvrtko following up perfectly by moving his knight to c6, the masked man didn't let up, and moved his pawn to b3, presenting Tvrtko with a bamboozling conundrum of where to move next.

And this time, Tvrtko lost some ground, as him moving his knight to d4 was not the right play, but it wasn't a massively detrimental play. The masked man pounced on it though, and moved his bishop to b2, prompting Tvrtko to capture the pawn at c2 with his knight. But the masked man countered flawlessly by moving his a-rook to c1, sending Tvrtko's knight to b4.

Now it was the masked man's turn to go on the attack, which he did by capturing the pawn at g7 with his bishop. Tvrtko defended perfectly though, by moving his rook to g8. The masked man tried again to crack Tvrtko's defenses, this time by capturing the pawn at h6 with his bishop, but Tvrtko captured the pawn at a2 with his knight, once again putting the masked man on the defensive. He quickly moved his c-rook to e1, giving Tvrtko the chance to mount a counteroffensive by moving his rook to h8. However, that gave the masked man the chance to mount a counteroffensive of his own.

"Check," the masked man stated as he moved his bishop to g5, causing Tvrtko to chuckle.

"I've never been pressed so much before. You really are an interesting fellow. All the more reason for me to beat ya and take off that mask, so I can see just who you really are," Tvrtko thought as he moved his bishop to e7.

Just when Tvrtko thought the surprises were over, the masked man moved his rook to e5, causing him to stop and think for a bit before moving his knight to b4. "Now you're playing with fire. This one's gonna be one hell of a case study to go over," he thought.

This game was still very far from over.