Yuri was at the Slifer dorm early the next morning, much to the shock of Jaden and Cyrus. The three were standing just outside the dorm along with Chumley, Yumie, Kai, Fujin and Alexis.

"Wait … a duel?" Cyrus asked, looking between Yuri and Jaden, who had an excited look on his face.

"Yeah. You two team up and duel against me." Yuri explained. "If you two want to win your tag match, you need to get some practice in. So let me explain the rules for this particular duel. The both of you will have separate life point counters, and we'll duel in a pendulum formation. Meaning Jaden will draw first, then I'll go, then Cyrus, then back to me, then Jaden. Now since Cyrus is the last to draw in this duel, he'll be the first to attack."

"Well I'm down for it if you are Cy!" Jaden exclaimed, readying his duel disk.

The smaller Slifer was hesitant, but conceded as he wanted both to make sure they stayed at the academy, and to make Zane proud. "Okay."

"So…" Alexis began speaking to Yumei. "Something doesn't add up here. Why is your older brother challenging Jaden and Cyrus. If the two want to get some practice in, why don't they take on you and Yuki?"

"Because, Yu is a little … busy at the moment." Yumei explained, before a large explosion sounded off at the vicinity of the Obelisk dorm.

"What was that?" Alexis asked, before her eyes went wide. She could have sworn she saw an outline of a five-headed monster.

"Huh… Yu actually brought it out." Yumei mused, and then added. "He's only bought that monster out twice before now. He calls it his 'super ace' monster."

"If that what I think it was, he's right to call it his super ace." Alexis said, before the two turned their attention back to the duel that was just starting.

"Duel!"

Jaden-LP 4000

Cyrus-LP 4000

Yuri-LP 4000

"Alright, since we're going in the order you set, I'll draw!" Jaden announced, drawing his sixth card. "And I'll start by summoning my Elemental Hero Clayman in defense mode!"

Elemental Hero Clayman Atk-800 Def-2000

"Then I'll throw down a face down, and call it a turn." Jaden declared, setting his chosen card into his duel disk.

"Alright, my draw." Yuri said, assessing his hand. "Alright, first I'll play the spell card Arcane Barrier. This spell card allows me to place a spell counter on this card for each spellcaster that's destroyed. I can then send this card to the graveyard, to draw cards equal to the number of spell counters on this card."

"Next I'll summon this, it's a new monster called Tuned Magician!" Yuri's monster was a spellcaster with white and green robes. Atk-1800 Def-1600 "And I'll call it a turn, your move Cyrus."

"Okay, here goes." Cyrus said drawing. "Okay… I… I summon this, Gyroid in defense mode." Cyrus' cartoonish monster appeared on his field in a defensive stance." Atk-1000 Def-1000 "Then I'll place a card face down and end my turn."

"Alright, my turn again." Yuri said, drawing his next card. "Okay guys, get ready for this. First I'll summon Apprentice Magician in defense mode, but he's only sticking around so the first part of his effect can activate."

Apprentice Magician resembled a young man with purple robes, and a red ribbon tied around his forehead. Atk-400 Def-800

"See when he's summoned, I can place two spell counters on cards that require them. Like say, my Arcane Barrier. But like I said, I'm only using the first part of his effect … at least for now anyways. Because now Tuned Magician's effect kicks off. See he's a new kind of monster called a Tuner."

"Tuner?" Jaden asked sounding confused. "I've never heard of them."

"Nobody has, except for myself and Maximillion Pegasus." Yuri explained. "See they're a new type of monster that won't be available for the next few months. But I got some early, since I won the American Grand Prix Industrial Illusions was hosting. So you get to experience this monster's ability first hand, because he can combine with another monster on my field, in order to special summon a more powerful monster called a Synchro."

"See in order to do what Pegasus calls synchro summoning, you need a Tuner monster." Yuri explained. "And in order to summon the Synchro monster you want, you need to match or exceed the level of the intended monster, with the level of the monsters used to summon it. Sort of like a combination of contact fusion, and ritual summoning."

"So we're gonna see a brand new monster?" Jaden sounded like he could hardly contain his excitement.

"Oh yeah!" Yuri replied. "Because I tribute both my monsters, to synchro summon Explosive Magician!"

Magic sigils appeared on the ground in a circle in front of Yuri, and a powerful looking spellcaster dressed in white robes, with gold trimming rose from the center of said circle. Atk-2500 Def-1800

"This is sweet!" Jaden could barely contain his excitement. "We get to duel a professional duelist, and we get to see a brand new monster in action!"

"Sweet isn't the word I'd chose in this situation…" Cyrus supplied, though despite the fact he sounded nervous, on the inside he was just as excited as Jaden to see what this new monster could do.

"Now, the second part of my Apprentice Magician's effect activates. When he goes to the graveyard, I can search my deck for a level two or lower spellcaster, and summon them to the field." Yuri explained, his chosen card already in his hand. "And I know just who to bring out, Apprentice Magician, Mana in defense mode."

Yuri's new monster resembled a smaller, cuter version of Black Magician Girl. Atk-600 Def-300

"And with her on my field, her effect activates. I can add a card that has Black Magician in its name from my deck to my hand." Yuri smiled while selecting his newest card. "And I know just who to choose. But with that out of the way, it's time for my Explosive Magician's effect to kick off. I can remove two spell counters from anywhere on the field, to destroy one set card my opponent, or in this case, opponents control. And I think I'll blast your face down card Jaden."

Jaden winced, as Yuri's Explosive Magician destroyed his face down card. .

"Now, it's time to attack! Explosive Magician, attack Gyroid! Explosive Magical Burst!" Yuri's monster unleashed a torrent of magical energy at Cyrus' monster. Gyroid was engulfed by the attack, but when the smoke cleared Gyroid was still on the field, its helicopter blade spinning.

"Okay…" Yuri sounded confused at this result. "What just happened?"

"It's my Gyroid's special ability." There was a smile on Cyrus' face, as his monster's helicopter blades slowed to a halt. "He can survive a battle once per turn."

"Well… mark that down as something I didn't know." Yuri said while rubbing the back of his head. "I'll set a card face down, and end my turn. Your move Jaden."

"Hold on." Cyrus spoke up. "Since you attacked one of my roid monsters, I get to activate my trap card! It's a card known as Supercharge, and it allows me to draw two cards from my deck."

"Alright, well first I'll set another card face down, then I'll activate Polymarization." Jaden announced, setting the two cards into his duel disk. "This time I'll use it to fuse Elemental Hero's Avian and Burstinatrix, and summon Elemental Hero Flame Wingman!"

The two hero monsters were sucked into a vortex, and out of it emerged a new monster. Flame Wingman had a mostly green body, with a single white angelic wing on his left side, a red dragons tail, and his right hand had the head of a dragon instead of fingers. Atk-2100 Def-1200

"Sweet, that's one of Jaden's best monsters." There was a smile on Chumley's face.

"Yeah, but he doesn't have the attack points to deal with that Explosive Magician." Kai countered.

"Well that won't matter if Jaden has the card I think he does." Alexis said.

"And now I'll activate the field spell Skyscraper!" Jaden announced, placing the spell card into his duel disk. The playing field shifted into that of a bustling city at night, and Flame Wingman took into the air, only to land on top of the highest building in said city.

"Not bad." Yuri said, clearly impressed. "But nothing about my monsters attack points have changed."

"Maybe not." Jaden began. "But since your monster has a higher attack than mine, Flame Wingman's attack goes up by a whopping 1000!"

Elemental Hero Flame Wingman Atk-3100

"Now go Wingman!" Jaden ordered. "Attack Explosive Magician with Skydive Scorcher!"

Jaden's monster leapt from his perch atop the tallest building, and dove straight towards Explosive Magician.

"Looks like you forgot about my face down card Jaden." Yuri said smirking, while he revealed the card he'd played during his previous turn. "Go, Interdimensional Matter Transporter! This temporarily removes a monster from my field, like say Explosive Magician!"

"Which means, Wingman's attack is canceled out." Kai said. "He's really good."

"Kai, could you stop being such a fanboy for maybe five minutes?" Fujin asked with a note of irritation in her voice.

"But that's not all." Yuri smirked. "I have another monster for you to meet. And one of his effects allows me to summon him if I activate a trap during a specific part of my opponent's turn. Say hello to Magician of Black Illusions!"

Yuri's newest monster looked more of a shadow of the Black Magician than anything else. Atk-2100 Def-2500

"Weird…" Kai said, tapping his chin with his right index finger. "That kinda looks like the Black Magician…"

"That's because it is." Yumei said, causing everyone not dueling to look at her for an explaination. "Okay, first of all, you really need to pay more attention in Duel Monsters history class. Secondly, that monster, Palladium Oracle Mahad, and the Black Magician are all tied together. Magician of Black Illusions was Mahad's spirit monster. Mahad fused with it, thus giving up his life to create the Black Magician. It's also why the card version of Mahad can summon a Black Magician when he's destroyed."

"I'm glad someone pays attention in my classes." Professor Banner said, having heard the duel going on outside. "Practice for the upcoming tag duel?"

"And so far, it's been pretty evenly matched." Yumei said, giving Banner's heavy set cat a few pats on the head.

"Well, guess that ends my turn." Jaden said, slightly disappointed he wasn't able to defeat Yuri's magician, but still excited nonetheless when it reappeared on his field.

Flame Wingman Atk-2100

"Guess it's my turn again." Yuri said. "And I'll tribute Apprentice Magician, Mana, and summon Apprentice Illusion Magician in attack mode." The small Black Magician Girl vanished, only to be replaced by a dark-skinned longer haired version of Black Magician Girl. Atk-2000 Def-1700

"Not so fast!" Cyrus announced, revealing his face down car. "I have a trap! Threatening Roar, now you're unable to attack this turn!"

"Not bad, well looks like that puts an end to my turn." Yuri said, before Cyrus drew his next card.

"He's improved since his duel with Jaden." There was a smile on Alexis' face.

"Maybe Jaden's duel with Zane last night sparked something." Yumei said. "Hopefully it'll be enough to win their upcoming tag duel."

"Okay, first I'll activate Pot of Greed." Cyrus began, sliding the spell card into his duel disk before taking a look at his two new cards. "Right, I summon Drillago in attack mode."

Yuri visibly winced, when Cyrus' new monster that had spiralled drills all over its body appeared on his field. Atk-1600 Def-1100

"Hey you alright?" Jaden asked, noting the uncomfortable look on Yuri's face.

"Yeah fine … just not really fond of that particular monster." Yuri replied, hearing the faint but distorted and psychotic laughter from another duelist who used the same monster in his head.

"Well then, you're really not gonna like his effect." Cyrus continued. "Since you have monsters with attack points above 1600, Drillago can attack you directly! Now go Drillago, attack!"

Yuri groaned, as one of Drillago's drills hit him square in the stomach.

Yuri-LP 2400

"Look at that." Kai sounded impressed. "Cyrus drew first blood."

"Okay, now I'll set a card face down and end my turn." Cyrus announced, as a card appeared behind Gyroid, and Drillago.

"Okay, time to deal with that pesky monster of yours Cyrus." Yuri began, while his turn started. "Alright, so I'll start things off by playing the spell card Black Magic Circle. This card allows me to look at the top three cards of my deck in search of a Black Magician card. And if I find one, I'm allowed to add it to my hand."

"Looks like Yuri got what he wanted." Kai mused, as Yuri added one of the three cards to his hand.

"Yeah, but I wonder how many Black Magician cards he has in his deck." Alexis mused.

"Alright, now I'll use the second part of Black Magic Circle." Yuri announced. "If I have a Black Magician on the field, which Magician of Black Illusions is, I can remove a monster on the field from play."

"Well now Yuri has four targets to choose from." Alexis began. "It's a tough choice, because every one of them is a potential threat."

"Yeah." Fujin supplied. "Drillago can attack directly, Gyroid can survive one attack, Flame Wingman's attack goes up whenever he attacks thanks to Skyscraper, and Jaden can fuse Clayman with another Elemental Hero. I wouldn't know which monster to remove if I were in Yuri's shoes."

"Okay, say goodbye to Drillago." Yuri said, before Cyrus' monster vanished from the field.

"Now, Explosive Magician attack Flame Wingman! Explosive Magical Burst!" Yuri's spellcaster blasted the red and green hero away with a blast of magical energy, which made Jaden shield himself with his duel disk.

Jaden-LP 3600

"Now my Magician attack Clayman. Illusionary Shockwave!" Magician of Black Illusions raised its staff, and blasted Clayman away.

"Good thing Clayman was in defense mode." Alexis said.

"But that won't save Jaden from Yuri's next monster." Kai countered.

"And now, Apprentice Illusion Magician attack directly!"

"Woah, not so fast!" Jaden said, revealing his face down card. "I have a trap! A Hero Emerges. You pick a card from my hand, and if it's a monster then I get to summon it to the field!"

"Alright then." Yuri began, as Jaden held up the three cards in his hand. "The card in the middle."

"Sweet, now say hello to Wroughtweiller! And I'll play him in defense mode!" Atk-800 Def-1200

"Well he won't be around long." Yuri said, as his monster destroyed the mechanical dog.

"Glad you did that, because when he's destroyed, I get to take an Elemental Hero, and a Polymarization from my graveyard." Jaden smiled, choosing Clayman like he had done last night with is duel with Zane.

"Alright, since it's my turn now, I'll play the card I just drew!" There was a smile on Jaden's face, as he revealed his newest card. "I play my own Pot of Greed, and it's fusion time! I'll use Polymarization again, and fuse Elemental Hero's Clayman and Sarkman and summon Elemental Hero Thunder Giant!"

"Lishus! With Thunder Giant on the field, Jaden can seriously level the playing field!" Chumley didn't bother to hide the smile on his face.

Elemental Hero Thunder Giant Atk-2400 Def-1500

"And thanks to his super power, he can destroy any monster with an attack less than his!" Jaden exclaimed. "So say goodbye to Magician of Black Illusions!"

Thunder Giant gathered an orb of electricity in his hands, and hurled it at Yuri's monster, which shattered in a cloud of pixels.

"And that was just his effect. He still has his attack, so I think he'll attack your Explosive Magician!"

"Smart thinking." Kai began. "Since Skyscraper is still on the field, Thunder Giant's attack goes up."

Elemental Hero Thunder Giant Atk-3400

"A good attempt Jaden, but not good enough." Yuri said, holding up Apprentice Illusion Magician's card. "I'll activate her effect, which let's me tribute her when my opponent attacks another spellcaster."

"Huh?" Jaden looked very confused. "But why?"

"Simple." Yuri answered. "Because when I do that, I can give another spellcaster a 2000 point boost in their attack."

"What what!?" Jaden asked, completely taken by surprise at this revelation.

Explosive Magician Atk-4500

"Now, Explosive Magician, Explosive Magical Burst!" Jaden's monster was blasted away by Yuri's counter attack.

Jaden-LP 2500

"This isn't good." Alexis said worriedly. "Jaden has no more monsters on his field, and Yuri's turn is coming up."

"And with Explosive Magician's normal attack strength of 2500, Yuri can knock Jaden out of this duel right now." Fujin said frowning. "Unless Cyrus can help, Jaden' is in some serious trouble."

"Alright my draw." Yuri said, taking his next card off the top of his deck. "Alright, I think it's time to end this. I'll send my Arcane Barrier to the graveyard, and draw four new cards. Next I activate the spell card Cost Down! By sending a monster card from my hand to the graveyard, I can lower another monster's level. Now say hello to Dark Red Enchanter!"

The red robed, golden armored spellcaster that was Yuri's new monster made his way onto Yuri's field. Atk-1700 Def-2200

"And when he's summoned, he gets two spell counters placed on him. And for every spell counter, my monster gets a 300 point boost to his attack."

Dark Red Enchanter Atk-2300

"I think I know where this is going." Alexis said, remembering the finish of Yuri's duel with Zane the day before.

"Next I'll activate this, Premature Burial. By paying 800 life points, I can bring a monster back from my graveyard."

Yuri-LP 1800

Dark Red Enchanter Atk-2600

"Yup, I know where this is going." Alexis said.

"How could you possibly know where this is going?" Yumei asked, giving the Obelisk girl a quizzical look.

"Yuri did this same combo against Zane yesterday." Alexis explained. "It's how he won."

"Alright you two, time to meet the monster I discarded with Cost Down. Rise, Darkblaze Dragon!"

Yuri's wicked serpent-looking dragon rose, to take its place next to Dark Red Enchanter Atk-1200 Def-1000

"And since he was special summoned, my dragon attack doubles!" Yuri's announcement made Cyrus and Jaden share a worried look.

Darkblaze Dragon Atk-2400 Def-2000

"Alright, now Explosive Magician attack Jaden directly! Explosive Magical burst!"

"Hold on!" Cyrus said, revealing his face down card. "Forget I had another face down? Well this one's gonna cost you Yuri, because it's Mirror Force!"

"Totally Lishious!" Chumley exclaimed. "Yuri's monsters are gonzo!"

"Yeah, with no cards face down, there's no way Yuri can counter this." Fujin added.

Yuri had to shield himself with his duel disk, as Explosive Magician's attack was redirected, and had blasted away all three of his monsters. "That was a good play Cyrus … and I don't have anything left in my hand to play."

"That means…" Alexis began.

"With the right card, Cyrus can win right now." Yumei finished.

"Okay…" Cyrus said shakily, as he drew his next card. However, his expression soon changed to one of excitement. "Alright! I summon Steamroid in attack mode!"

Steamroid looked like Gyroid, as it resembled a cartoonish looking vehicle. That of a steam engine, with its front wheels resembling fists. Atk-1800 Def-1800

"Looks like this duel is about ready to wrap up." Kai said, as a smile formed on his face.

"Steamroid, direct attack! Steam Striker!" Cyrus' monster charged at Yuri, hitting him with what looked like a shoulder strike.

Yuri-LP 0000

The second the holograms had vanished, Jaden had Cyrus wrapped up in a tight hug. "Ya did it Cy!"

"I can't believe we did it." Cyrus sounded incredibly relieved.

"What do you mean 'we'?" Jaden asked. "That was all you. You saved my butt from elimination, and you scored the last attack."

"Jaden's right Cyrus." Yumei added. "You and Jaden may have teamed up for this duel, but that victory belongs to you."

"And if you guys perform that well in your tag duel, there's no way you two will get expelled." Yuri said, before shaking both of the Slifer's hands.