Editing Kirby Fighters: The Destined Rivals!!

{{Good}}{{Infobox-Novel
|title=Kirby Fighters: The Destined Rivals<nowiki>!!</nowiki>
|image=[[File:Kirby Fighters The Destined Rivals Cover.jpg|200px]]
|caption=Cover art for '''''Kirby Fighters: The Destined Rivals!!'''''
|volume=19
|published=March 12th, 2021
|story={{N}}
|adaptation=''[[Kirby Fighters 2]]''
|chapters=14
|pages=216<ref name="amazonjp">[https://www.amazon.co.jp/-/en/高瀬-美恵/dp/4046320737/ Amazon JP Product Details]</ref>
|character= [[Kirby (novel character)|Kirby]]<br>[[Waddle Dee (novel character)|Bandana Waddle Dee]]<br>[[Meta Knight (novel character)|Meta Knight]]<br>[[King Dedede (novel character)|King Dedede]]<br>[[Waddle Dees (novel characters)|Waddle Dees]]
|code=978-4046320735<ref name="amazonjp"/>
|previousvolume=''[[Kirby: Uproar at the Kirby Café?!]]''
|nextvolume=''[[Kirby: King Dedede's Great Escape Mission!]]''
}}{{DISPLAYTITLE:''{{PAGENAME}}''}}
{{about|the Japanese light novel|the Story Mode or theme song with similar names|[[Story Mode: The Destined Rivals]] or [[Kirby Fighters 2: The Destined Rivals]] respectively}}
{{Quote|Kirby receives a challenge letter from King Dedede and Meta Knight. It says to take a buddy and challenge the Buddy Fighters Tower: a battle tower that decides who's the strongest. With great joy, Kirby, who mistakes the written challenge for a party invitation, heads to the tower with Bandana Waddle Dee. There, strange challenges and formidable foes await them!! Can the duo beat King Dedede and Meta Knight waiting for them at the summit, and the mysterious "dark Kirby?!" A story about the hit game, Kirby Fighters 2!|Unofficial translation of the back cover synopsis of '''''Kirby Fighters: The Destined Rivals!!'''''}}
'''''Kirby Fighters: The Destined Rivals!!'''''{{derivedTitle}} is the nineteenth volume of the [[Kirby (novel series)|''Kirby'' novel series]], released exclusively in Japan on March 12th, 2021.<ref>[https://tsubasabunko.jp/product/kirby/322010000733.html Official Japanese website - Tsubasa Bunko]</ref> It is an adaptation of the [[Nintendo Switch]] game, ''[[Kirby Fighters 2]]'', featuring many of the scenarios and characters depicted in the game.

Kirby is given a challenge by King Dedede and Meta Knight to head to the Buddy Fighters Tower with a buddy in tow and see if they can conquer it from bottom to top. Mistaking the challenge letter as an invitation to a food party, Kirby rushes on over with Bandana Waddle Dee in tow and the two of them scale the 50-floor tower together, encountering Kirby copies aplenty, including run-ins with a [[Shadow Kirby|certain Kirby from the Mirror World]] before encountering the Destined Rivals at the tower's summit for the final battle.

==Characters==
{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" border="1" cellpadding="2"
|-
!colspan=5|Characters of "Kirby Fighters: The Destined Rivals<nowiki>!!</nowiki>" &nbsp;
|-
!colspan=5|Main characters
|-
|{{center|[[File:V19 Illustration 9.png|110px]]<br>'''[[Kirby (novel character)|Kirby]]'''}}
|{{center|[[File:V19 Illustration 15.png|110px]]<br>'''[[Waddle Dee (novel character)|Bandana Waddle Dee]]'''}}
|{{center|[[File:V19 King Dedede Illustration.png|110px]]<br>'''[[King Dedede (novel character)|King Dedede]]'''}}
|{{center|[[File:V19 Meta Knight Illustration.png|110px]]<br>'''[[Meta Knight (novel character)|Meta Knight]]'''}}
|{{center|[[File:V19 Waddle Dees Illustration.png|180px]]<br>'''[[Waddle Dees (novel characters)|Waddle Dees]]'''}}
|-
!colspan=5|Supporting & minor characters
|-
|{{center|[[File:V19 Illustration 5.png|130px]]<br>'''[[Kirby (species)|Kirbys]]'''}}
|{{center|[[File:V19 Shadow Kirby Illustration.png|100px]]<br>'''[[Shadow Kirby]]'''}}
|{{center|[[File:V19 Twin Woods Illustration.png|100px]]<br>'''[[Twin Woods]]'''}}
|{{center|[[File:V19 Ignite Edge Illustration.png|100px]]<br>'''[[Duo Edge]]'''<br><small>[[Gigant Edge]] and [[Ignite Edge]]<br>(only Ignite Edge is illustrated)</small>}}
|{{center|[[File:V19 Illustration 22.png|80px]]<br>'''[[Waning Crescent Masked Dedede & Waxing Crescent Masked Meta Knight]]'''}}
|-
!colspan=5|For characters lacking illustrations, see [[Minor characters#Minor characters in the Kirby novel series|this page]]
|}

{{clear}}

==Plot synopsis==
===Chapter 1: A Mysterious Shooting Star===
[[File:V19 Illustration 1.png|thumb|left|130px|King Dedede and his Waddle Dees investigate the shooting star.]]
One night in [[Dream Land]], as King Dedede is about to go to sleep, a shooting star falls from the sky and crash lands into a forest near [[Castle Dedede]]. The self-proclaimed king and Bandana Waddle Dee both head to the crash site for a closer look at the star about the size of a small house. Dedede in particular gets up close and touches the star, causing it to break into many small fragments before disappearing altogether. As both King Dedede and Waddle Dee are about to head back to the castle, Dedede notices a whole bunch of peaches growing on the nearby trees. Despite Bandana Waddle Dee's protests, King Dedede takes a bite off a peach and gives some to Waddle Dee. After eating a few, Bandana Waddle Dee speculates that the shooting star's power managed to cause the trees in the area to suddenly grow a lot of fruit really quickly. Upon wondering how to bring the peaches to the castle, King Dedede suggests the Waddle Dees build him a villa, specifically to take advantage of the peach trees.

Construction starts the next morning. Bandana Waddle Dee leads the other Waddle Dees to construct the villa as King Dedede arrives at the build site after sleeping in the night prior. The great king finds Bandana Waddle Dee to be unusually filled with energy, as are the other Waddle Dees. Dedede even finds himself full of energy upon trying to doze off, but it is short-lived as a few Waddle Dees dig up two Masks of Dark Bonds that glow much like the shooting star did. Merely holding both masks close to Dedede's face ends up putting him in a trance that seems to fill him with some sort of power. After stuffing both masks in his robe, he makes a change of plans - instead of building a villa for all-you-can-eat peach parties, he decides to build a battle tower where challengers would try to get to the summit by fighting opponents on each floor. After a bit of hesitation, the Waddle Dees agree to build the tower without realizing what is going on.
{{clear}}

===Chapter 2: King Dedede's Challenge===
[[File:V19 Illustration 3.png|thumb|130px|Meta Knight walks in on the Buddy Fighters Tower under construction.]]
Construction continues in the days that follow. King Dedede and his Waddle Dees set up tents near the construction site so that when dawn broke, they could immediately resume building. It's not long before Meta Knight happens upon the tower site alone to take a closer look at the tower rumored to be under construction. King Dedede explains to the knight exactly what happened several nights ago and, as he gets to the end of the story, Meta Knight suggests he and Dedede work as a pair at the tower's summit. Dedede hesitates, insisting that solely he be the final boss since he was the one who came up with the tower idea in the first place. After the two figure that Kirby will most likely be the one who could easily get to the tower's summit, they eventually agree to both fight Kirby at the end as a battle team and to let Kirby choose a partner before making it to the tower. King Dedede then writes a challenge letter for Kirby, but Meta Knight disapproves of the "King Dedede's Strongest, Most Dangerous Tower" name, thinking that the name should describe what the tower is like, suggesting the "Buddy Fighters Tower". Dedede reluctantly agrees to the name, stuffs the letter in an envelope and instructs Bandana Waddle Dee to deliver it to Kirby as fast as he can.

As Bandana Waddle Dee runs through the woods to get to Kirby, he starts getting more and more tired. He eventually hypothesizes that his burst of energy at the build-site was caused by the shooting star and worries that the masks that were dug up at the crash site might spell trouble. Waddle Dee eventually meets up with Kirby, who was taking an afternoon nap after having lunch at Chef Kawasaki's restaurant. After waking him up, Bandana Waddle Dee hands him the challenge letter, but makes the mistake of telling him about the peach trees. Kirby, who has his mind fixated on the peach trees, mistakes the challenge letter to the battle tower for an invitation to an all-you-can-eat peach party. Unfortunately for Bandana Waddle Dee, he isn't able to change Kirby's mind and ends up inadvertently getting chosen as Kirby's buddy for the battles that await.
{{clear}}

===Chapter 3: The Tower that Decides the Strongest===
[[File:V19 Illustration 6.png|thumb|left|130px|Meta Knight fights [[Shadow Kirby]].]]
On the ground floor of the Buddy Fighters Tower, both the king and the knight deliberate over a gimmick to face the challenger. Meta Knight thinks that a progressive difficulty curve would suffice, while King Dedede tries to come up with something to make Kirby specifically struggle. As they debate, two copies of Kirby spontaneously appear, each with a different [[Copy Ability|ability]], but also very weak. Confused by the Kirby copies that Dedede thinks should no longer exist due to the [[Kirby Printer]]'s destruction, Meta Knight speculates that the tower is filled with the shooting star's power and created those Kirbys in response to the king's murmuring. Upon hearing this, Dedede tries to summon a whole bunch of [[food]] items, but nothing happens since the tower only causes battle-related things to materialize into existence. After figuring the gimmick out, Dedede climbs the stairs that lead to the next floor.

Meta Knight follows after a quick delay and realizes upon hitting the next floor that the tower can also create battle arenas, with [[Haldera Volcano]] being the battle arena of choice. After dispatching two of the Kirby copies that arrived, a third Kirby soon appears. This Kirby is way more aggressive than the Kirby copies that had attacked previously. After a quick battle, the dark Kirby disappears just as quickly as he had arrived. Meta Knight suspects that this Kirby was different than the others created by the Buddy Fighters Tower and hypothesizes that this Kirby is a lot like the real Kirby in many ways and was drawn to the shooting star's power. The king and the knight eventually continue scaling the tower.
{{clear}}
===Chapter 4: Trek up the Buddy Fighters Tower===
[[File:V19 Illustration 7.png|thumb|130px|Bandana Waddle Dee angrily telling the Waddle Dee impostors off.]]
After arriving at the Buddy Fighters Tower, Kirby and Bandana Waddle Dee are stopped at the entrance by King Dedede and Meta Knight... or at least, what appears to be King Dedede and Meta Knight. Bandana Waddle Dee has his doubts almost immediately, as both of their voices are cuter than usual and Meta Knight's [[Galaxia]] looks as if aluminum foil was applied on it. After a quick fight, it is revealed that both the king and knight were Waddle Dee impostors. Bandana Waddle Dee starts to angrily tell them off, but both Dees say they wanted to look cool while explaining the rules to the team, likely due to the shooting star's influence. After clearing up the misunderstanding, Kirby picks Bandana Waddle Dee as his dance partner, still mistaking the tower for a party venue. Bandana Waddle Dee reluctantly follows Kirby into the tower.

The first floor of the Buddy Fighters Tower resembles the halls of Castle Dedede in many respects. As Kirby tries to climb the stairs heading to the second floor, two Kirby copies, one with the [[Whip]] ability and the other with the [[Bomb]] ability, stop them. Mistaken for Waddle Dee impostors, the two copies attack the real Kirby and Waddle Dee but are very quickly defeated. Bandana Waddle Dee figures out the tower's gimmick: fighting opponents on each floor with progressive difficulty. Kirby, enthusiastic about defeating anyone that dared stand in his way, climbs the stairs, with Waddle Dee following close behind.
{{Clear}}
===Chapter 5: The Dark Kirby===
[[File:V19 Illustration 10.png|thumb|left|130px|Shadow Kirby waves good-bye before disappearing altogether.]]
On the sixth floor of the Buddy Fighters Tower, King Dedede decides to have someone other than a Kirby copy be the challenger on the floor. As Dedede describes what this floor of the tower would look like and who the opponent would be, a grassy field and [[Twin Woods]] spontaneously appear. After King Dedede clarifies that the Twin Woods in the tower are not the real [[Whispy Woods]], he trains the tree twins by smacking them with his hammer, much to Meta Knight's chagrin. After a while, King Dedede, satisfied, proceeds to head up the tower. Meta Knight, suspicious about King Dedede's behavior, follows him up the stairs.

Kirby and Bandana Waddle Dee's battles on the second and third floors of the tower go by smoothly, however, both of them start to grow tired and think that three floors was as best as they were gonna get. Bandana Waddle Dee suggests that Kirby should exit the tower and coming back with a different partner, but Kirby's insistent on having Waddle Dee team up with him, still focused on the peach party. Right as Waddle Dee tries to clear up the confusion, Shadow Kirby shows up again, with the [[Sword]] ability in tow. Kirby tries fighting back with [[Air Bullet]]s, but they prove to be ineffective. As Kirby tries going in for another blast of air, Shadow Kirby tosses the [[Yo-Yo]] ability hat over to Kirby. Bandana Waddle Dee tries to convince Kirby not to touch the hat, thinking it's a trap, but Kirby picks it up anyway and subsequently gains the Yo-Yo ability. The fight resumes, with Yo-Yo Kirby effortlessly taking down Shadow Kirby with the Yo-Yo Orbit, Break Spin and Hammer Drop moves. After recovering, Shadow Kirby waves at Kirby before disappearing altogether. Both Kirby and Waddle Dee speculate about Shadow Kirby and his motives, alongside mentioning the Copy Ability hats and how putting them on give Kirby said abilities without needing to inhale anyone. Concluding that Shadow Kirby wanted to fight Kirby on equal footing, both Kirby and Waddle Dee proceed to head up the tower.
{{Clear}}
===Chapter 6: Match! Twin Woods!!===
[[File:V19 Illustration 11.png|thumb|130px|Yo-Yo Kirby attacks Twin Woods with the Gazer Spiral move.]]
The duo is able to get past the fourth and fifth floors with ease. As they climb the stairs up to the sixth floor, Bandana Waddle Dee tries to explain to Kirby that he initially felt aggressive because of the shooting star's power, but feels a lot closer to normal thanks to sticking by Kirby's side for the tower climb, while also wondering exactly why Kirby is immune to the shooting star's influence.

On the sixth floor of the Buddy Fighters Tower, Kirby runs up to one of the Twin Woods, mistaking them for Whispy Woods. Bandana Waddle Dee tries to get Kirby to stop, but it is for naught. Both trees begin to attack by dropping [[apple]]s on Kirby and Waddle Dee. Kirby, mistaking the apples as fruit for the party, tries gobbling them but finds they literally have no taste. After Waddle Dee states that Twin Woods was created by the Buddy Fighters Tower, Yo-Yo Kirby starts to fight back with the Yo-Yo Throw move. It isn't long until both trees produce a giant apple with the intent of crushing Kirby. Kirby narrowly avoids the attack by [[guarding]] and takes the opportunity to counter-attack with the Gazer Spiral move. Kirby and Waddle Dee both get the impression that they won, but Twin Woods use the last of their strength to try to crush both of them with the Stomp Jump attack. Kirby grabs onto Waddle Dee's hands and tries to jump out of the way. As soon as he frees himself from the trees' grasp, Kirby deals the finishing blow with Yo-Yo Up. After the trees' defeat, however, Kirby's Yo-Yo hat gets caught in some branches and is torn to pieces, instantly returning Kirby to normal as a result. Bandana Waddle Dee promises Kirby to knit him another Copy Ability hat after they finish the tower climb, lifting his spirits as the two go up the stairs.
{{clear}}
===Chapter 7: Strong Enemies===
[[File:V19 Illustration 12.png|thumb|left|130px|Kirby inadvertently obtaining the Water ability from a goldfish bowl.]]
On the 12th floor of the Buddy Fighters Tower, King Dedede and Meta Knight both start to get suspicious of one another. Meta Knight is suspicious about Dedede possibly hitting him while he's down, while Dedede is suspicious about Meta Knight possibly attacking him when he leasts expects it. In response to Dedede's words, [[The Empyrean|the Empyrean]] is formed as the battle arena and [[Duo Edge|two armored swordfighters]] spawn shortly after that. Meta Knight decides to test both [[Ignite Edge]] and [[Gigant Edge]]'s strength as a pair. After striking both of them effortlessly, Meta Knight tells them to practice their swordsmanship in preparation for Kirby's arrival. Duo Edge do as they are told as the king and knight continue up the tower.

Kirby and Bandana Waddle Dee spot a goldfish bowl on the stairs that lead to the seventh floor of the tower. Again, Bandana Waddle Dee suspects that the fish bowl could be a trap, but Kirby picks up the bowl and sets it on his head with the intent of bringing the fish bowl to the party. As soon as he puts it on, it magically sticks to his head. Both Kirby and Waddle Dee soon realize that the goldfish bowl was actually a Copy Ability hat, but they aren't sure of which ability it is.

Upon arriving at the seventh floor of the tower, they figure out the gimmick within the first few seconds as a small pebble gets smacked by [[Springy Hand]]s far off in the distance. No doubt about it - the battle arena for the floor is [[Springy Hand Land]]. Combined with the stage hazards are opposing [[Archer]] and [[Fighter]] Kirbys. The battle starts with Kirby using the "Goldfish" ability's "Goldfish Beam" attack. Much to Kirby and Waddle Dee's surprise, it turns out to be the [[Water]] ability's Wave Attack. Kirby continues the assault with more Wave Attacks and the Water Crown move. The opposing Archer Kirby tries to aim at Bandana Waddle Dee, but is foiled by Water Kirby's Wave Surf attack which blocks the arrow intended for Waddle Dee and knocks out the opposing Kirby. However, the opposing Fighter Kirby intends to knock Bandana Waddle Dee out. Kirby is unable to make it over to them fast enough, but Waddle Dee makes use of the Springy Hands to lure the opposing Fighter Kirby into a trap - just as the Fighter Kirby tries to go for the knockout punch, the Springy Hand springs out and smashes the opposing Fighter Kirby into the wall, knocking him out in the process. After the battle, Waddle Dee wonders if Shadow Kirby was the one who left the goldfish bowl out on the stairs to give Kirby a fighting chance after losing Yo-Yo. After giving that some thought, both Kirby and Waddle Dee continue the climb up the tower.
{{Clear}}
===Chapter 8: Clash! Duo Edge!!===
[[File:V19 Illustration 14.png|thumb|130px|Water Kirby struggles against Duo Edge.]]
Kirby and Bandana Waddle Dee get past the 8th, 9th, 10th and 11th floors effortlessly and it isn't long until they encounter Duo Edge on the 12th floor. Kirby starts with a Wave Attack which had been effective against the opposing Kirbys, but he's stunned when both swordfighters block the attack altogether. Both Ignite Edge and Gigant Edge proceed to down thrust, with Ignite Edge's attack producing spreading flames that necessitate Kirby cooling them down with more Wave Attacks. No matter what combination of moves Kirby uses, the swordfighter that is aimed at blocks the attack, while the other strikes from behind. Kirby eventually gets increasingly tired trying to fight them off. Bandana Waddle Dee, worried for Kirby, considers hopping in to serve a distraction. Just as he's about to do so, the [[Cheer Pom-Poms]] fall from the sky right near Waddle Dee. He immediately uses them to cheer Kirby on, powering Kirby up in the process. Using the opportunity to his advantage, Kirby proceeds to decimate Duo Edge with the Water ability's repertoire of attacks thanks to the Cheer Pom-Poms' attack boost. Waddle Dee, happy to be able to aid Kirby with the pom-poms, proceeds up the tower with his partner.
{{Clear}}
===Chapter 9: Meta Knight's Secret===
[[File:V19 Illustration 16.png|thumb|left|130px|King Dedede and Meta Knight, both suspicious of one another, get into a fight on top of a Waddle Dee Train.]]
As the king and knight create gimmick after gimmick the higher they scale, they grow even more suspicious of each other. They eventually reach the 35th floor of the tower, producing the [[Waddle Dee Train Tracks]] as the battle arena of choice. Shortly after the arena is formed, a [[Waddle Dee Train]] heads straight for them. Both Dedede and Meta Knight accuse the other of deliberately trying to off the other right then and there. They hop up and land on top of the train cars at the same time, and a fierce fight ensues. Blows are traded and arguments are made, but it cools down when Dedede notices the Waddle Dees frozen like deer in the headlights on the train tracks. The king and knight both hop on the tracks and grab hold of the Waddle Dees before landing in the water below.

Now at the 36th floor of the tower, King Dedede and Meta Knight start to dry themselves off by starting a campfire. After a brief talk about how Dedede values his Waddle Dees no matter what, Meta Knight finally clears the misunderstanding and tells the king upfront that he noticed the latter is hiding something. Dedede still doesn't want to reveal the Masks of Dark Bonds to Meta Knight right away. Meta Knight then clarifies that his mind is at ease after seeing Dedede save his Waddle Dees from danger and is convinced that Dedede wasn't influenced by an evil power of the sort, at least for the time being. After a while, Meta Knight suspects that the shooting star's power might come back to bite them when they least expect it and advises to keep their guard up. As they head up the stairs, both of them still have their doubts about the other - Dedede has doubts about Meta Knight's true face, while Meta Knight is concerned about what Dedede is hiding in his robe.
{{Clear}}
===Chapter 10: A New Copy Ability===
[[File:V19 Illustration 18.png|thumb|130px|Kirby gets the Wrestler ability.]]
Kirby and Bandana Waddle Dee are able to best all the opponents that stand in their path on floors 13-34 of the tower. But upon reaching floor 35, the difficulty curve of the tower starts to become a bit too much for them to handle. The Waddle Dee Train Tracks feature [[Hammer]] Kirby and [[Staff]] Kirby as opponents. Kirby expects a quick battle as per the previous ones they've had so far, but the opposing Kirbys are stronger and smarter than the previous ones. In particular, the opposing Staff Kirby immediately realized that Kirby's strength came from Waddle Dee's pom-poms. In no time, Staff Kirby attacks Bandana Waddle Dee, sending the pom-poms flying into the water below. As soon as this happens, Kirby powers down and the opposing fighters take advantage of it. Waddle Dee tries to turn things around by clinging onto Staff Kirby's staff, while Water Kirby and Hammer Kirby try to finish each other off, each one hoping to be the one to win it all. Eventually, Staff Kirby lets go of his staff, sending Bandana Waddle Dee into the water. Shortly afterwards, Kirby tries to help with a stream of water, but he too falls in. As Staff and Hammer Kirby try to come up with a victory pose to celebrate, a Waddle Dee Train roars on through and sends both of them flying. Kirby and Bandana Waddle Dee have won by the skin of their metaphorical teeth. But such victory comes at a cost: the goldfish swims out of the bowl, thus de-powering Kirby back to normal. Waddle Dee is also worried about whether he'd be able to help Kirby out without the pom-poms, but he realizes he still has the staff from one of the opposing Kirbys. Kirby picks it up, hoping to get something out of it, but nothing happens. As they climb up the stairs leading to the 36th floor, Kirby picks up some sort of mask and puts it on. To his immediate surprise, he gets the [[Wrestler]] ability from the mask, leaving him and Waddle Dee dumbfounded.
{{clear}}
===Chapter 11: Showdown! Shadow Kirby!!===
[[File:V19 Illustration 19.png|thumb|left|130px|Wrestler Kirby dishes out some serious damage to Shadow Kirby.]]
The next floor is fashioned after [[Dedede Arena]], with a copy of [[Walky]] reporting on the match live. A match-up with Kirby vs. Shadow Kirby, both with the Wrestler ability, is soon underway. Kirby begins with a Chop Barrage and Final Chop combo, knocking Shadow Kirby down for a brief moment. The Kirby of the [[Mirror World]] retaliates with a Flying Dropkick, knocking Kirby down. After he recovers, Shadow Kirby goes for a Lift, but Kirby dodges the attack and counter-attacks with Rolling Sobat. Facing defeat, Shadow Kirby switches out Wrestler for [[Cutter]] and rejoins the battle. However, Kirby dodges the ensuing Hyper Boomerang attack, leaving the window wide open for Kirby to go in for the Meteor Plancha and Blazing Back Breaker combo to defeat Shadow Kirby. As soon as Shadow Kirby retreats, the entire arena goes with him. Bandana Waddle Dee guesses that the floor's gimmick was Shadow Kirby's doing, instead of King Dedede and Meta Knight's. He also guesses that Shadow Kirby came from the Mirror World, drawn to the shooting star's power, and just wanted to play with Kirby. After talking about it, Waddle Dee notices a piece of Shadow Kirby's cutter blade on the ground and is able to fashion a spear by piecing the cutter fragment on top of the staff he still has from the previous fight. Both Kirby and Bandana Waddle Dee finish scaling the tower, defeating any of the opposing Kirbys that guard the 37th to 49th floors. It isn't long until the two of them finally make it to the tower's summit, the [[Stage of Destined Rivals]].
{{clear}}
===Chapter 12: The Destined Rivals===
[[File:V19 Illustration 20.png|thumb|130px|Bandana Waddle Dee fighting King Dedede at the tower's summit.]]
King Dedede is stunned that Bandana Waddle Dee is Kirby's buddy for the tower climb and also concerned about Kirby's Wrestler mask. Kirby, not wanting to hurt Dedede's feelings for supposedly getting a party set up, claims the mask was for the party itself. After some more talk, it becomes apparent that Kirby and Waddle Dee are in sync while Dedede and Meta Knight lack coordination. Once the battle gets going, however, both teams show their prowess, trading blows and trash-talking the opposition aplenty. Kirby and Waddle Dee start to struggle as King Dedede keeps on batting [[Gordo]]s over and over, eventually launching one of them into Waddle Dee's spear and sending a Gordo flying straight into Kirby. Meta Knight takes the opportunity to use Meta Multithrust - while Kirby doesn't get hurt from the attack, his wrestler mask, unfortunately, does. Waddle Dee tried to help, but it is too late - Kirby gets sliced and diced, leaving him unable to move. In an act of desperation, Shadow Kirby arrives on the scene and gifts Kirby the [[Sword]] ability hat before disappearing just as quickly. As soon as this happens, both teams were trading blows once again. Kirby and Meta Knight's swords keep clashing while Bandana Waddle Dee valiantly challenges King Dedede, who still has doubts about whether Waddle Dee would fight. Eventually, Meta Knight sends Kirby's sword flying and Bandana Waddle Dee strikes Meta Knight with a Back Thrust, giving Kirby time to grab his sword again and launch a surprise attack, slashing Meta Knight's mask in half.
{{Clear}}
===Chapter 13: The Final Battle of Bonds===
[[File:V19 Illustration 24.png|thumb|left|130px|Kirby and Bandana Waddle Dee use the Buddy Star Blaster to destroy the Masks of Dark Bonds.]]
King Dedede is worried about Meta Knight's true face, thinking back to the conversation they had on floor 36. Concerned about keeping the secret, Dedede pulls out the Masks of Dark Bonds, and throws one of them to Meta Knight without even thinking. Meta Knight puts on the mask with horns like the waxing crescent, while King Dedede puts on the mask with horns like the waning crescent. Both masks completely take over both the king and knight, giving them immense power in exchange. Bandana Waddle Dee's concerns can no longer reach their ears, so all that he and Kirby have to do was find a way to forcefully knock the Masks of Dark Bonds off their faces. Nevertheless, Waning Crescent Masked Dedede and Waxing Crescent Masked Meta Knight find a way to deal immense damage to Kirby and Waddle Dee, even while Waddle Dee hides behind the King Dedede and Meta Knight statues. Eventually, both Kirby and Waddle Dee fear that they may be killed at this rate, causing them to reminisce about the fun times both of them had playing with each other. Luckily, the shooting star magic is able to produce another item to aid Kirby and Waddle Dee - two halves of the [[Buddy Star Blaster]]. Kirby and Bandana Waddle Dee, each with one half of the shooting star, join both halves together and fire Star Bullets at both Meta Knight and Dedede, leaving them in just the right spot for a giant laser blast to knock the king and knight out, shatter the Masks of Dark Bonds, and cause the Buddy Fighters Tower to start collapsing. Meta Knight is able to flee from the scene with an unconscious Dedede in tow, while Kirby and Bandana Waddle Dee quickly run down the stairs to ground level as fast as they can.
{{clear}}

===Chapter 14: The Strongest Buddy Fighters===
[[File:V19 Illustration 25.png|thumb|130px|Meta Knight lifting Dedede to his feet after the destined battle.]]
The Buddy Fighters Tower eventually collapses into a pile of rubble. No one is injured, and Kirby immediately recovers after eating some nearby food. But King Dedede and Meta Knight seem to be nowhere to be found. Kirby, still thinking about a party, wants to wait until the two of them arrive to start partying, so he and Waddle Dee quickly set off to try to find the king and knight.

King Dedede doesn't remember how he escaped, only that he gave Meta Knight a Mask of Dark Bonds and put the other on himself before blacking out. Walking near a running river, he laments that he couldn't beat Kirby, even with the Masks of Dark Bonds. He also thinks that his downfall might've been relying on the masks in the first place. While thinking this through, he eventually trips on his feet. Meta Knight flies over and tells Dedede that the two of them lost to Kirby and Waddle Dee. Dedede apologizes to Meta Knight for giving him the mask, but the knight stuns Dedede by thanking him for not letting his secret be revealed. Shortly after Meta Knight lends a hand to lift Dedede on his feet, Kirby and Bandana Waddle Dee are finally able to find the two of them. Kirby, still thinking about peaches, proposes to get the all-you-can-eat peach party started.

After all the rubble from the tower's collapse is cleared out, the party officially goes underway with Kirby and Dedede chowing down dessert after dessert, but tensions rise when Kirby takes the last peach daifuku after eating 100 without realizing that King Dedede wanted to savor the last peach daifuku himself after eating 99 of them. Despite that hiccup, the party shows no signs of stopping, as the Waddle Dees keep on bringing dessert after dessert to the party grounds.
{{clear}}

==Trivia==
*During the Buddy Fighters Tower's construction, Meta Knight's emblem can be seen on one of the Tower's shields despite him not having teamed up with Dedede yet.

==Gallery==
{{center|<gallery caption="Illustrations">
V19 Illustration 2.png|King Dedede getting entranced by the Masks of Dark Bonds
V19 Illustration 4.png|Kirby runs off to the non-existent peach party with Bandana Waddle Dee in tow
V19 Illustration 8.png|King Dedede tests his strength on Twin Woods
V19 Illustration 13.png|An opposing Kirby gets knocked out by a [[Springy Hand]]
V19 Illustration 17.png|King Dedede and Meta Knight sit by the fire, clearing up the confusion
V19 Illustration 21.png|Kirby gets the [[Sword]] ability while on his last legs
V19 Illustration 23.png|One half of the [[Buddy Star Blaster]]
V19 Illustration 26.png|The all-you-can-eat peach party that concludes the story
</gallery>

<gallery caption="Artwork">
Novel Kirby Artwork V11.png|Kirby
Novel King Dedede Artwork V14.png|King Dedede
Novel Meta Knight Artwork V17.png|Meta Knight
Novel Bandana Waddle Dee Artwork V18.png|Bandana Waddle Dee
Novel Waddle Dees Artwork V18.png|Waddle Dees
Colored Novel Wrestler Kirby and Bandana Waddle Dee Artwork V19.png|Wrestler Kirby and Bandana Waddle Dee ([[wikipedia:Dust jacket|dust jacket]] illustration)
Obi Illustration V19.png|Sword Kirby and Bandana Waddle Dee ([[wikipedia:Obi (publishing)|obi]] illustration)
V19 Table of contents artwork.png|The Kirbys, King Dedede, Meta Knight, Bandana Waddle Dee and Shadow Kirby (table of contents illustration)
</gallery>}}

==Names in other languages==
{{names
|ja={{furi|星|ほし}}のカービィ カービィファイターズ {{furi|宿命|しゅくめい}}のライバルたち！！
|jaR=hoshi no kābyi kābyi faitāzu shukumei no raibaru-tachi
|jaM=Kirby of the Stars: Kirby Fighters: Fateful Rivals!!
}}

{{ref}}
{{Navbox-Novels}}