Hello there! I am WritingwithGusto (but let's keep it informal. Gusto is fine).

And I am making my own Yugioh series in this Fanfic. Now, I'm actually just placing it here, because I don't know where the hell else to put it.

It's past Zexal in the timeline, but makes a ton of references to old characters, so I just decided to put it in the basic Yu-Gi-Oh!, because it involves so many other characters who are descendants of the others from 'Yu-Gi-Oh!' as well as all of the other series.

Also, It's an AU where 'Arc-V' doesn't exist (sorry any Arc-V fans who read this. It's nothing against that series. I just haven't seen it, and don't have the time to). But it will be introducing a ton of custom cards from my head, as well as a new kind of summon.

Also, since it's an AU, I'll be using my own pairings, thank you very much. But pairings like Jaden x Alexis, and Yusei x Akiza (that are generally accepted) will be part of this fic's canon. But other than that, I'll use my own discretion.

And with that, welcome... to 'Yu-Gi-Oh! Spirits of the Past!'


It was all black, and no one was around. The only one there was a teenage boy. He had messy black hair that was tied into a low ponytail, and front bangs tipped with crimson. Said bangs covered his left eye, while his right eye (which showed a Dark Green iris) surveyed his surroundings.

Finding nothing of particular interest, the boy wondered where he was. He looked to find nothing else, until of course, he saw a bright light in the distance. That light faded only a few seconds after he saw it, and a second later, something appeared in front of him.

If it weren't for the fact that he himself was floating in this dark place, he would've fell backwards in shock. But due to floating, he just seemed to do an unintentional back flip. And was stuck looking back at the creature.

It was humanoid, and looked to be made of pure light, but at the same time, a creature of fire. What would be it's hair looked to be a large amount of waving flames. It's eyes were a deep amethyst color, and there appeared to be a symbol on it's forehead...

Then he realized: The symbol on it's forehead was shaped similar to an eye.

He was not given time to focus on that, as the creature reached right for him. As its hand approached his face, a powerful energy was radiating from the creature, causing his hair to blow in all directions, as if he was in a windstorm. The creature's finger approached his left eye, and visions of things he had never seen before entered the boy.

And then, the boy heard something. He couldn't interpret the words, and it scared him. It made him feel like he was staring into the face of death itself. He was scared to open his eyes...


The boy bolted awake, to find himself looking up at his same familiar ceiling. He was in his dorm room, at the famous 'Seto Kaiba Memorial Dueling Academy'. He had been enrolled there this year, due to his skills as a duelist, and was sharing this room with his two best friends. Looking over, he found that one of them was sleeping on the top bunk, while the other was gone. No doubt she was getting to the cafeteria before anyone else did. That girl was always hungry.

As the boy got up, he thought to himself 'Dammit, Yuna! Why do you keep getting these dreams?' He was very pissed by this, but he's always pissed. He is Yuna after all.

Getting up, the first thing he did was look over to his dresser. On top of it was his duel disk. It started out as a mere KaibaCorb Duel Disk (the same kind used in Battle City), but Yuna had customized it, adding on a D-Pad, that way he wouldn't be behind the times.

He took out his dueling deck, so as to check it before classes. He had all of his cards, including the three he valued the most. The three copies of his grandpa's favorite card...

The 'Blue Eyes White Dragon'.

Looking at these cards reminded him of how many times he had played them. They were kept in pristine condition, due to his grandpa's love for these cards, and the fact of the amount of money their family had. Unfortunately, this reminded him of his nightmares, and pissed him off again.

'Such is the life of Yuna Kaiba. The boy who's always annoyed at something.'

Yuna got himself dressed, and, remembering his school does casual Fridays, went with wearing his blue jeans, a black undershirt, his black work shoes (with white highlights), and signature hoodie. It was a pure white hoodie that had several odd symbols on it.

On the left sleeve, right where his bicep would be, was a symbol in the shape of a small key with golden curves, looking nearly exactly the same as the pendant he always saw when he saw Yuma Tsukumo duel on TV. On the right sleeve, right where his bicep would be, he had a symbol made of bright red lines. He didn't know why, but it always reminded him of a dragon's head.

And on the back of the hoodie, right near the shoulders, was a large symbol, in the shape of an eye.

'Wait a minute! That eye looks similar to the one on that creature.'

He remembered the dream vividly, and recalled the symbol on the creature's forehead. He was right. Other than looking gold, the symbol on the back of his hoodie looked like the one on the creature...

"You up already, Yuna?"

Yuna almost jumped in surprise. He saw his roommate, Kano Muto, looking back at him. He was a boy with long blonde hair, tipped with hints of black and magenta. His grandparents were two of the most famous duelists in the world (in their time), Yugi and Rebecca Muto, yet he himself didn't like to show his skill in it.

"Yeah, Kano," Yuna said, "I figure I better catch up to Janine. We both know she's getting an early breakfast."

"Man, that girl is always hungry. I'm amazed how she ain't fat or nothing."

"Agreed."


Yuna walked out of the dorm room, Kano following close by. Kano was wearing a white t-shirt and black shorts, with his favorite white sneakers, as well as wearing his glasses (being out of contacts today). He also had his D-pad, with his deck inside.

"Yuna, when are you gonna get rid of that thing," Kano asked, referring to Yuna's custom Duel Disk, "Get something mainstream, man."

"And get rid of the Duel Disk I customized myself? Are you crazy?"

It was true. Other than the basic body, Yuna had done most everything on this duel disk himself, even finding a way to hook up a D-Pad and his Duel Gazer.

"And besides that, as the 'Last of a Dying Breed', it only seems fitting my equipment be considered 'outdated'."

With that comment, Kano kept his mouth shut, and they continued searching for Janine...

"Can it, Wheeler," Yuna heard from a distance "You lost fair and square." Looking over in that direction, he saw Janine Wheeler. She was a tall girl, nearly six feet (in comparison to Yuna's 5'7 and Kano's 5'5), with long blonde hair and deep brown eyes. She was dressed in her casual outfit: a black tank top with a faded blue jacket, short shorts, and her favorite converse shoes. To Yuna, she always looked amazing, even in just that.

"No way," Janine said, speaking with a light Brooklyn accent, "You were using some crazy cards to win! You had to have been cheatin'!"

"No one likes a sore loser," an upper classman told her, "Now hand over your deck!"

"Whoa whoa," Yuna cut in, "What's going on here?" One of the lackey's to the upper classman, jumped in and explain "What's going on is that Janine lost to Wake here, and won't give up her deck!"

'Oh...'

Yuna knew all about Wake. He was your stereotypical jock, being really big and muscular, with a blonde 'surfer dude' haircut. He was considered the best in the school, and was undefeated. But Yuna knew that Wake was only good because of his dirty tactics. He would cheat, and keep his best cards in his sleeve. He had heard that was a tactic some guy called 'Bandit Kieth' used to do.

"I ain't givin' up my deck to some cheater!"

"You have to, Wheeler," Wake said, reaching his hand toward her. Yuna however stopped him. Wake asked "Who the heck are you?"

"Name's Yuna Kaiba."

"Ah. The 'Last of a Dying Breed'."

Yuna didn't even give so much as a 'hmph'. He was known as the 'Last of a Dying Breed', because he still used Normal Monsters as his ace monsters in his deck. Something that no one at the academy does, and that very few people ever do competitively anymore.

"Listen up, Wake," Yuna responded, "I ain't letting Janine lose her deck."

Wake laughed, and told him, "You ain't got a choice in the matter." It pissed Yuna off, mainly because he knew it was true... or was it?

"Are you a betting man, Wake?"

It was obvious he had captured the older boy's attention, "What do you have in mind?"

"We duel tomorrow. If I win, Janine gets to keep her deck."

"And if I win?"

Yuna hesitated for only a second, but his resolve remained strong. "Then I'll give you MY deck in it's place." Wake laughed at this, and said "So you're gonna protect your little girlfriend's cards by losing to me? That's seriously rich!" As soon as he had finished his little laugh, he continued, saying "In one day, I'll have your cards."

And as soon as Wake was gone, Janine smacked Yuna upside the head.


"You goddamn idiot!" Janine yelled at Yuna. They were back at the dorm, and she was wanting to knock some sense into Yuna. "Why would you make that bet!? My deck ain't worth you risking your's over!"

"Yeah, Yuna," Kano added, "You have a lot of valuable cards in your deck, whereas Janine doesn't."

"She's got her 'Red Eyes Black Dragon'."

"Yeah," Janine said hesitantly, "But you got so much more than just that! You're gonna lose your cards if you lo-"

"Well I ain't gonna lose to a cheater!"

The two looked in shock at their friend. Both of them wanted him to elaborate, which he did. "Janine's a dueling prodigy. There's no way she'd lose to someone like Wake in a fair duel."

Janine was shocked, "You really think I'm that good?"

"Hell yeah! You're one of the best I've ever met."

Janine smiled at that, and Yuna was happy to see her smile. "Don't worry, Janine," he continued, "I'll beat that Wake and win. Neither of us are losing our cards. Now come on, let's go get some food." Janine then hesitated, saying "I kinda don't wanna leave the dorm tonight..."

"No problem, I'll just order pizza. Pepperoni, right?"

"Yeah!"

And with that, the three friends had a pizza party. Yuna, having a lot of money, was able to order as much pizza as they could eat, and they had the best night they'd had in a while.

To the point where it took their minds off of Wake, and the duel tomorrow.


Yuna awoke once more, in the area of black. He must have been in another dream. This time, at the very least, he understood it. Looking in the same direction as he did the previous night, he saw another creature. This one looked slightly different.

At the place this creature's hair was, it was physically different. Still wavy and gravity defying, but in a different shape. But that wasn't the only difference. Another was this creature's eyes...

Its left eye was a deep red color, and its right eye was a pure gold color.

The creature touched Yuna's forehead, and a jolt of lightning ran through his head. Closing his eyes, he opened them and saw a vision...

One of Yuma Tsukumo!

He was sitting on the couch with his wife Cathy. Her obsession with cats had died down (she and Yuma still have a couple of cats, though), wearing her hair without the cats ear design, and she was dressed in a normal pink tank top and jeans. In addition, Astral was there as well, floating lazily to the side. 'Wait... Astral? How do I know that name? And how do I know all of this!?'

"Are you sure you must do this, Yuma," this imaginary Cathy asked, interrupting Yuna's train of thought. Yuma nuzzled up against her, and said "Don't worry, Cat. I'll be fine. It's just a random duelist who wants a shot at my title."

"Yuma, you're wife is only looking out for you."

"I know, Astral" Yuma said casually, "And I genuinely appreciate it. But I'll come back. I refuse to lose!"

Cathy giggled, and said "You always know just what to say to make me happy." And with that, they kissed.

As soon as the vision was over, he was returned to where he had been before. The creature of flame stared at him, it's eyes piercing, almost as if it were staring into his soul. Raising it's hand, Yuna's hair blew in all directions, similar to how it did last dream. And once again, this creature muttered a many words that Yuna couldn't understand...

But out of all of them, he could've sworn he heard the word... 'Zexal'...


Yuna woke up once more, early in the morning. His dream had startled him awake, only this time, he was up when he needed to be. He also saw Janine awake, and was curious as to what was up. The moment he asked, she said "Check it," and showed him a newspaper:

'Famous dueling champion Yuma Tsukumo, better known as the 'Number Master' was found dead, along with his wife, Catherine Tsukumo, in their home. The two have no injuries on them, and there is nothing implying homicide, suicide, or overdose. We have blood tested the two, and found no signs of drugs in their veins, so we're completely unsure of what happened to the two. All that is known that the two have left their estate to his sister and her husband. An investigation is being done right now to find out the exact cause of their deaths.'

"Damn," Yuna said, unable to believe what he just read, "... Wait! What time is it?!" Janine looked over at the clock and said, "Aw damn! We got places to be! Duels to win!" And the two rushed out of the door, just happening to have enough time to get dressed.

They got to the middle of the school dueling grounds (Wake wanting more than anything to make this a big spectacle). Yuna came up and saw Wake standing there, saying "You ready to lose?"

"I don't know? Are you?"

"Not on your life, kid," Wake told him, and then they both said "Duel, Start!" Yuna dawned his Custom Duel Gazer, the frame of which is shaped like the head of a 'Blue Eyes White Dragon', over his right eye, while his left eye remained covered by his crimson tipped black bangs.

Their duel disks whirred to life, and with that, the duel started. "I'll go first," Yuna said, drawing a card and adding it to his hand. "Hmph. First, I'll play Monk Fighter in attack mode!"

(a white haired man in an orange monk robe appeared on the field. ATK: 1300, DEF: 1000)

"Try and get past his defenses," Yuna retorted as he placed two cards in his backrow, and signaled his turn's end.

"Oh, I will," Wake said as he drew from his sleeve (taking great care to make sure no one noticed). "First, I'll play Call of the Common! At the cost of 1000 life points, I can summon every copy of one level 4 or lower monster from my deck. And I choose my Black Stego!" Three stegosaurus-like monsters appeared on Wake's side of the field.

(ATK: 1200, DEF: 2000)

"So, you play three dinosaurs? They still have less attack than my Monk!"

"Alone, yes. Overlayed, not so much!" Wake began laughing, and set his three 'Stegos' on top of each other. "With this, I build the Overlay Network, and Xyz summon Gagagigo the Risen!" A giant lizard warrior, similar to a beefed up Gagagigo, appeared on Wake's side of the field.

(ATK: 2950, DEF: 2800)

"Now, Gagagigo, Attack his pathetic Monk!"

Yuna laughed at the older boy "That was your first mistake! And I'm certain it won't be your last! Any damage the Monk Fighter would take is always 0! You just wasted an attack!"

Monk Fighter braced himself, before vanishing.

"Draw!" Looking at the card in his hand, he saw his old grandpa's signature card. "Heh heh! I'll next play Ancient Rules, and special summon my favorite card! Come on up, Blue Eyes White Dragon!"

In a burst of light, the mighty dragon, known by everyone in the world, appeared.

(ATK: 3000, DEF: 2500)

This legendary card, that once served Seto Kaiba, now serves his dear grandson.

"Oh, no," Wake laughed sarcastically, "The useless hasbeen dragon! I'm shaking!"

"You should be!" Wake looked to Yuna in shock, "Because a light type monster was Special Summoned to the field, I can also special summon a personal favorite! Silver Divine: Priestess of Light!" A white clad girl in with short light blue hair, and a staff shaped like a spear, appears on the battlefield.

(ATK: 2400, DEF: 2100)

"And next, I play her special abilities. Since a monster was destroyed last turn, I can choose her type. And I'll switch her from a Spellcaster to a Warrior, just so I can equip Lightning Blade!"

(Priestess of Light grabs a giant blade covered in electricity. Current ATK: 3200)

"Now, she gains 800 attack, while all Water type monsters lose 500."

(Gagagigo's Current ATK: 2450)

"But the punishment doesn't end there! I next play shrink, to split your monsters attack in half!"

(Gagagigo shrinks to half it's normal size. Current ATK: 1225)

"Oh no!"

"Oh yes! Priestess of Light, destroy his lizard warrior!"

(The priestess cleaves through Gagagigo the Risen. Wake's LP: 1025)

"Blue Eyes! White Lightning!" Wake then draws a card out of his sleeve, and plays it. "Sakuretsu Armor negates your attack!"

(The Blue Eyes is destroyed, and everyone looking at Wake in shock.)

"See, Yuna," Janine yelled, "Wake is a cheater!"

"Yeah! After what I just saw, I could'a told ya that!" Everyone else started joining in, booing Wake for cheating, when he just laughed that same annoying laugh! "Big woop! So I cheated? I'll just sto-"

"Nah, you can keep cheating if you want. It won't change the fact that you're gonna lose."


With that, the two were dueling for real. "Fine then Yuna, if you want me to cheat, then get a look at this!" Wake threw down his Monster Reborn, and summoned back Yuna's very Blue Eyes.

"Aw damn," Yuna said, impressed by Wake's little move. Wake gave a smug grin, and said "Take a good look! Your favorite monster's gonna be an instrument to your downfall!"

"Pretty big words for someone with such a small brain!"

At this point, Yuna was just trying to lighten the situation. He saw something in Wake's eyes that he didn't like. He saw malevolence. Pure malevolence, to the point where Yuna almost called it evil.

"And now! I summon 8-Claws Scorpion."

(A giant green armored scorpion appears. ATK: 300, DEF: 200)

"Now, because your Blue Eyes is a Level 8 Light Type, and 8-Claws is a Level 2 Dark Type, I can send them both to the Graveyard, to Reaction Summon the Level 10 Arachne Dragon!"

(The Blue Eyes and the Scorpion turn into energy, and combine together to form a new monster. A giant black dragon with fangs like that of a spider, armor, and six wings, appears. ATK: 3500, DEF: 3500)

"HAHAHAHA! You have nothing in your deck that can stop my Arachne Dragon! Attack!"

(The giant dragon attacks the Priestess of Light, leaving Yuna defenseless.)

"I activate my Priestesses best ability! By discarding one card from my hand, I take no damage, and get back one of my monsters. I choose my Blue Eyes!"

The evil look in Wake's eyes simply went meaner "It doesn't matter if you summon back that hasbeen a thousand times! It still can't beat Arachne Dragon!"

"Oh, is that so? Well then, how about we raise the stakes on this bet," Yuna said, annoyed, "If I win, you have to give me your Arachne Dragon as well!"

This had Wake laughing like he had just heard the most hilarious joke in history, "Well then! I'll take a piece of that action! After all, that'll make it all the more satisfying when Arachne Dragon takes your life points!"


Wake wasn't lying about Arachne Dragon being powerful. Every card that Yuna played, it was completely useless against Arachne Dragon. Yuna was able to play some of his most powerful monsters, but they still weren't enough. Many of his greatest cards went to the grave. First his Silver Divines: Shodan Ryo and Sifu Kato, then his Mighty Dark Magician, and even his beloved Blue Eyes.

(Yuna's LP: 3500)

Wake had the most evil grin on his face, and with it, Yuna was genuinely scared. "What's the matter Yuna? Too afraid to even draw your card?" Yuna was shaking just slightly, as he noticed something amazing. There was an evil aura around him, and it had him shaking.

"Well too bad, because this will be your last move! Arachne dragon, attack!"

The giant dragon attacked Yuna directly, sending him flying. "NO!" Janine and Kano yelled in unison. This attack was just enough to take down Yuna, and that meant that he lost.

Or so they thought!

Yuna stood up, struggling and in pain, but still in the duel. Wake was shocked, especially when he looked at the D-Pad.

(Yuna's LP: 3500)

"WHAT!?" Wake was absolutely shocked to see that Yuna's Life Points. "How can this be!?"

Yuna stood up and looked at Wake, "A little something called Enchanted Javelin!" Wake was shaking just slightly, but not because of that strategy. Because of what he saw:

Yuna's left eye!

It's iris was pure white, and that was abnormal beyond anything he had ever seen.

"How!? I know you don't have that card!" Wake was flustered, barely believing that Yuna played a card he didn't have.

"Well then what do you call that?" Yuna sounded confident, far more than anything that they had heard out of him this entire duel. "You aren't as strong as you think, you cheater!" It was unknown to anyone what Yuna was doing. But then he said something they were not expecting.

"I will never lose to someone like you! I got the power to break anything that you can throw at me! This Arachne Dragon will be no different! Get set to get Decked, Wake, cause I'm FEELING THE FLOW!"

As Yuna drew his next card, an energy began to radiate from the boy's body. And as he looked at Wake with his left eye, it appeared to have changed color, going from a pure white to a deep red.

No one knew it, but this wasn't Yuna Kaiba anymore...


So here is the first chapter. And I figure I'll explain everything custom made in this chapter.

First and foremost, the 'Reaction Summon'. Basically, it's similar to a tribute summon, only a bit more specific. You have to have 2 monsters who equal the same level as the Reaction Monster. They also have to have two specific Atrributes (Arachne Dragon for example took a Light Type monster and a Dark Type monster). It's called a Reaction Summon because the summoning parameters are an equation (based on how Isaac Newton said 'Every action has an equal and opposite reaction').

Secondly, here's all the cards I made up in this chapter:

Call of the Common (Trap): At the cost of 1000 life points, you can choose one card in your deck, and summon every copy of that card in face up Attack Position.

Arachne Dragon (Dark, Level 10,Dragon/Reaction/Effect, ATK: 3500, DEF: 3500): 1 Light Type Monster and 1 Dark Type Monster. This card can not be destroyed by battle. Once per turn, you can negate the activation of a card that will destroy this card, by paying 500 life points. If there are no cards in your hand, destroy this card.

Silver Divine: Priestess of Light (Light, Level 5, Spellcaster/Effect, ATK: 2400, DEF: 2100): When a Light Type monster is special summoned to the field, you can special summon this card from your hand. If a monster was destroyed the turn before you summoned this card, you can declare 1 Monster Type. This card will become that Monster Type for the remainder of the Duel. When this card is destroyed by a Monster with 3000 ATK or more, you can send 1 card to your graveyard. Negate the attack, and special summon 1 Normal Monster from your graveyard.

Sliver Divine: Shodan Ryo (Earth, Level 4, Warrior/Effect, ATK: 1600, DEF: 2200): When this card is normal summoned successfully, you can special summon a Level 4 or lower 'Silver Divine' monster from your hand.

Silver Divine: Sifu Kato (Earth, Level 4, Warrior/Effect, ATK: 1900, DEF: 1900): When this card is destroyed by battle, you can draw one card. If that card is a 'Silver Divine' card, you can special summon to the field.

Lastly, the pairings that gave us the characters:

Seto and Ishizu (Yuna's Grandparents)

Yugi and Rebecca (Kano's Grandparents)

Joey and Mai (Janine's Granparents)

Yuma and Cat (the Parents of a character revealed later)


So that's all. Next chapter, we find out the secrets of Yuna and his mysterious left eye.