This is part 37 of my SAO summary / fanfiction, and you can start from the beginning here.

“Asuna… will you do it? Swordplay… with my guild and I… I really want you….”

“Yuuki… I… I will. But tell me… the man in black… why wouldn’t you take him instead? He is the best person I know at swordplay.”

“He… he saw right through me. He knew that when I played swordplay with him, I was only faking.  But my swordplay with you, Asuna… It was the real thing! That’s why I need you!”

Asuna and Yuuki went to do more swordplay with the boss. Asuna wrapped her arm tenderly around Yuuki’s shoulder.

However, a man blocked their path.

“I won’t let you go any further. We’re fighting this boss next. If you want to get through, you’ll have to fight me.”

“Ok! I love swordplay!” Yuuki drew her sword.

“But, Yuuki… you barely know him!” said Asuna. “Are you comfortable with this? And what about me?”

“You should joni in too, Asuna! Swordplay is the most fun when you do it with your friends. And Asuna, there are things you  can only share with someone by fighting.”

“Like STDs (sword-transmitted diseases)…” interjected Asuna.

“Asuna, please fight by my side!”

Yuuki deftly handled the man’s sword, and he fell to the ground in stunned disbelief at her amazing technique.

“No one… no one has ever parried my blade like that!”

“But even if you were able to handle my sword… will you be enough for all my friends?!”

An army of twenty more swordsmen was quickly approaching from the rear, their swords erect and glistening in the light.

“Yuuki, we won’t be able to take all of them!”

“Then we’ll just have to go down fighting! This is how I wanted to die— with a sword in both hands, and in my mouth… swords everywhere! I love swords! This is going to be fun!”

“But… I thought you only wanted to do swordplay with me.”

“Asuna… I like your swordplay the best. I really do. But good swordplay takes practice. I want to master new techniques, so that I can better enjoy swordplay with the ones I like most!”

“I see… then let’s do this!”

However, at that moment a man in black appeared from nowhere and ran on the wall to block the newcomers.

“Don’t worry, Asuna! I’ll hold them off!” shouted Kirito.

“At a time like this, you should rely on your family!” said Yui. “Let’s do swordplay together!”

“Tch,” hissed Yuuki under her tongue. “Well, I suppose that sometimes you have to go for quality in swords over quantity. Let’s go do swordplay with the boss, Asuna!”

Continued in Part 38…