AN: Hello, I have the next chapter here. This one marks the start of the last arc before the midseason finale. With it, we start with the gang meeting up before shifting focus to Jaden on his trials to get those new cards. We even have a couple of cameos and mentions in here that were fun. This duel was super challenging to write, so I do hope you like the way it turned out. Hope you enjoy this chapter, leave a review with your comments and questions, and have a nice day.

See Datasheet Chapter for cover art details.

Chapter 38 – The Fusion Dance

In the Slifer Red cafeteria, many students from multiple dorms were gathered at a couple of tables. Ruby sat between Jaden and Bastion, who were sitting across Blair, Nora, and Tyranno. Behind them at the other table, Alexis and Weiss sat with Chazz and Atticus, "So, that's what happened with the Shadow Riders last year." Ruby concluded, "I'm sorry we didn't tell you this sooner."

"It's okay, we're learning of it now." Nora responded with a smile, "Still, it's all crazy. And Blake was one of them?"

"Yeah, but it sounds like her ex-boyfriend was who caused her to get involved." Tyranno added on, but looked down in worry, "Still, that's how Sarge lost her arm?"

"I'm afraid so," Bastion responded, "Of all our shadow duels, she suffered the most physical damage from the outcome." He before noticing a look of rage in Tyranno's eyes, seeing them become more reptile-like.

"Trust me, we all felt the same." Jaden said with Tyranno looking up, seeing a look of remorse in the spirited Slifer Red's eyes, "But we can't let ourselves get filled with hatred now." He spoke with the dino Ra Yellow remained silent.

"…You're right, thanks." Tyranno said after he took a breath, his eyes changed back to normal, "And that Creep is no longer with us."

"Yeah," Jaden said in a slightly weaken voice, causing Blair to look at him in worry.

"We all won back then because we stuck together and trusted each other." Ruby spoke, "And right now, we have to do the same again." She said before having a look of focus in her eyes, "There may be another threat to this island."

"You think it might be Cinder?" Weiss asked, "I mean, they never did find her after your duel?"

"I thought about it, but with how our duel ended, I don't know how she would have gotten back up from that." Ruby responded, recoiling a bit the memory of the final duel with the Fall Shadow Rider, "If it is Cinder, we have to be ready for her. However, I think I know of someone we need to keep an eye on first."

"You mean Yuri?" Alexis responded, her arms crossed, "I agree, that kid rubs me the wrong way." She said with a focused gaze, "He knows more than he's letting on."

"You said he hinted that he knew about what happened about the missing Obelisk Blues." Atticus responded, "The same group where I got turned into a Shadow Rider."

"He might have saved us from that pit," Chazz responded, "But that does not mean we should forget what he did Weiss."

"I don't need your pity; I already don't like that brat." Weiss responded with her arms crossed, then sighed before looking to the hooded Slifer, "But he is dangerous, we should be on the lookout for anything suspicious he does."

"Well, why don't we just ask the Chancellor?" Blair offered, "He's got to be your said after saving this island."

"The thing is, we still don't have hard evidence against Yuri," Ruby responded.

"She's right," Alexis responded, "We can't go accusing students unless we have something definitive." She said before a sigh, "Not to mention that Yuri is Dr. Crowler's favorite student, so he has the support of a headteacher on his side."

"We just need to keep an eye out for when he slips up." Blair responded, turning back to Jaden, "And we do have Sienna on our side. After all, Yuri was walking around at night near the hot spring before it erupted."

"Yeah, she mentioned that to me." Jaden said before standing, "Right before telling me to meet her in the woods soon for my second attempt at getting that special deck."

"Good luck, hope you win this time." Ruby said with a smile, "The rest of us will keep brainstorming here what our next step should be or who else we could suspect."

"Thanks." Jaden responded, "I don't think I would be any help here anyway. The only other person I can think of is the phony shadow duelist guy who kidnaped Alexis." He said before walking out of the room.

"Who?" Weiss asked with Ruby having a matching look of confusion.

"It was before you all came here." Alexis said with a sigh, "I'd rather not talk about it."

Blair sighed before turning over to Ruby, who was looking down in slight remorse. "What is it?"

"Well, I know of one more person to suspect." Ruby spoke before looking to the group, "Her name is Salem. She was … I do not know what she was. She ordered Cinder around and turned Jaden into this King persona. But during the final duel, she vanished. Then only appeared one more time to give Jaden that Super Polymerization card." She said with everyone looking at the hooded Slifer Red

"Why didn't you or Jaden tell us this before?" Weiss asked.

"He told me that she seemed different, that she wasn't a threat to us anymore." Ruby said before sighing again, "Now, I don't know what to think." She said before looking back to Blair, "But I know not to hide anything from my friends." The hooded Slifer Red said with her friend responding with a smile, then looked to the entire group, "No matter who our enemy is, we will defeat them and save the world!"

"Yeah!" Blair, Nora, and Tyranno added on in a cheer.

"You don't have to be so melodramatic over it," Weiss commented causing Ruby to giggle.

At the same time, Jaden walked down the stairs of the Slifer Red dorm and towards the nearby forest. There, Sienna was leaning against a tree with her arms crossed, "Good, you didn't get cold feet." She said with Jaden grinning, "Now before I will accept your second attempt to earn your new deck, you have to prove yourself more than before."

"Okay," Jaden responded, "What do you have in store for me, Teach?"

"Two more opponents. Both of which I have talked with about pushing you to your limit and beyond." Sienna responded, "You have to beat them before facing me again." She said before extending her open hand, "As well, I am prohibiting you from using Super Polymerization." The headteacher of Slifer Red said with Jaden having a look of slight shock, "If you rely too heavily on one spell card to win, it will warp your mind." Sienna said with a focused gaze, "I tried to tell this to a student before, and he did not to listen."

Jaden's eyes widened for a second, knowing exactly who Sienna was referring to. He then took out his deck back, pulling out the fusing card, and handed it to Sienna, "If I fail, do I still get this card back?"

"I'll think about it," Sienna said with a smirk, "You should be able to already make the fusions you think you need this card for." She said before putting Super Polymerization away, "At least, I have faith that you can." She then crossed her arms before turning towards the woods, "Now, go and find your first opponent."

Jaden nodded before walking into the woods. After a few minutes of travel, the spirited Slifer Red could not find a soul. Suddenly, he caught a glimpse of someone. It was her back, but the shadowy Obelisk Blue was standing still in a small clearing. Jaden let out a small chuckle, then looked away and towards his right, "So, you're my opponent?" he said as another Blake was standing there, reading from a black book.

However, this one smiled before closing the book, then walked up, "You could tell that one was a hologram." She said while making it to the small clearing. In picking up a duel disk off the ground, the fake Blake vanished, "I should have guessed that wouldn't fool you again." She turned back to Jaden with a smile, "Come on, let's go for a walk first." She said before leading the way, causing Jaden to follow, "You and I don't talk that much." The shadowy Obelisk Blue spoke, "And I think we both know why."

"Yeah," Jaden responded, his smile fading as the memories of last year flowed back into his mind, "I'm sorry about what happened with Adam." He said with Blake having a matching look of melancholy, "I wish things could have been different."

"Me too," Blake responded, looking up at the sky. "He needed help, but I could never get him to take any from anybody. So, I just tried to put up with it until I could make my escape." She said before closing her eyes, "Then, I heard about his plans with Cinder, and knew what I had to do."

As memories of the past filled her mind, the shadowy Obelisk Blue recalled a moment back when she was still in Ra Yellow. In the middle of the woods, her body was blown back into a tree as her life points hit zero. Upon struggling to push herself up, Blake was staring down a master dragon slayer clade in purple armor and a massive sword of his fallen prey. As this monster faded, a red-headed Slifer student stood in its place, one who had a sinister grin form on his face, "I win again, Darling." Adam spoke.

"Yeah, you did," Blake said as she pushed herself up, a scowl on her face.

"That woman was right, the damage we now deal is real." Adam commented while looking at his right hand, "I feel so powerful."

"We need to be careful, otherwise the rest of the school may notice." Blake said before patting herself down, then starting to walk away, "Come on, let's head back to class."

"Hold on," Adam interjected, "What was your last facedown, Darling?" he said with Blake stopping mid-step, a line of sweat running down her face, "You didn't let me win now, did you?"

"…Adam, it was just a buff card," Blake responded, not turning around.

"Show it to me." Adam responded, "Prove your loyalty."

"Please, just let it-" Blake said before Adam grabbed her right arm, pulling it towards him.

"Do not defy me." Adam spoke with a glare towards the shadowy Ra Yellow, "And never try to humiliate me." He said as his grip tightened, "Now, what was your last card!?"

"Adam," Blake spoke with tears starting to form in her eyes, "You're hurting me." She said, but Adam tightened his grip more. Blake wanted to scream but gritted her teeth as to not alert anyone.

However, someone did show up. Out of the corner of their eyes, the two watched the cyber Obelisk Blue approaching, a scowl on his face, "Let her go." He spoke to the enraged Slifer Red.

"Zane," Adam commented with a glare, however, the cyber Obelisk Blue remained unflinching. The enraged Slifer Red let go of Blake, slightly shoving her aside as he stepped towards Zane, "What are you doing here?"

"I went out to find you two." Zane responded, "Everyone at the school is calling the three of us the strongest of each dorm." He said before crossing his arms, "More than before, that means we should respect one another."

Adam scowled back, "You think you're better than me? Just because I'm a Slifer Red and you're an Obelisk Blue?"

"The classification is arbitrary. It is skill that is valued more than what dorm you are put in." Zane responded, "If you wish to duel someone to prove your skill, I'm right here. If not, then leave."

Adam gritted his teeth and clenched his fists, but Zane remained focused. "…Tsk." Adam scoffed before turning around, "I'll make you pay in due time." He said before walking away. However, without breaking his stride, he glared back at Blake, who was still cupping her hand in slight pain, "We'll continue this later." Adam said before leaving.

Blake let out a small sigh of relief before seeing Zane walk up to her, "You okay?" he asked.

"I'll be fine," Blake responded, "But, thank you."

Zane had a slight smile form, but then had a look of worry and the shadowy Ra Yellow turned around, walking in the same direction Adam went, "You can't keep doing this to yourself." He said with her stopping.

"…I have to." Blake responded, then turned back to Zane, "Please, I don't want you to get involved with this." She said with a slight smile forming, "You're going to be leaving the island soon anyway, to go and get pro-league sponsorships for after you graduate. But with your skill, I know you'll get them all."

"Blake, you know I can't get out of those obligations now." Zane responded, "But I've asked Atticus to help while I'm gone. If you need to go to someone, go to him or even one of the teachers. If I come back and see that you are still in danger." He said with a look of focus in his eyes, "I promise to save you."

I that moment, Blake slightly gasped as her face went red for a second. However, she quickly turned back around, "I have to go, goodbye Zane." She said before running away, leaving the cyber Obelisk Blue standing alone.

Back in the present time, Blake opened her eyes with a slight smile forming, "Back then, Zane was the only person who looked out for me."

"Yeah, he's super cool." Jaden said with his arms behind his head, "Wiped the floor with me when we dueled."

"I remember hearing about that." Blake said with a chuckle, "I think I got closer to winning than you did though." She said before the duo made it to a familiar clearing, "That was before my time as a Shadow Rider. I knew I could not beat him, nor did I want him to get hurt because of me. So, I was able to convince the others to make the move when he was off the island. Then, I could put my plan into motion." She said before sighing, a smile on her face, "But as you know, it completely backfired."

"Yeah," Jaden said with a smile, "New friends will do that to your plans." He said before lowering his hands, "So, what now?"

"Now, I'm going to help my friends get stronger rather than try to do everything myself." Blake said as she walked to the other end of the clearing, "But that means, I'm not going to hold back." She said before loading her deck into her duel disk. "Jaden, if you want to move onto the next phase of your fusion training, you'll have to beat my fusions first."

"Is that so," Jaden said with a focused grin, loading his deck into his duel disk as well, "Okay, Blake. Get your game on!"

"Duel!" both friends spoke as the first trial was about to being.

Jaden: 4000 Life Points

Blake: 4000 Life Points

"I'll go first." Blake said as she drew, smiling at her hand, "I summon Lunalight Kaleido Chick." She said as the yellow bird girl was summoned to her side of the field in attack mode, (1400 ATK / 800 DEF). "With her, I can send Lunalight Panther Dancer to the graveyard to change her name to that monster." The shadowy Obelisk Blue said before sending the fusion to the grave, causing a silhouette to appear behind Kaleido Chick, "Now, I play polymerization to fuse my newly named Panther Dancer, Black Sheep, and Yellow Marten to make Lunalight Leo Dancer!" she said as her Kaleido Chick was pulled into a vortex with two other monsters, forming the prideful Lunalight fusion with her masking shattering upon summoning, (3500 ATK / 3000 DEF).

"Wow, already busting out your ace," Jaden commented.

"And I'm not done." Blake said as two cards were pulled from her grave and one from her deck, "Since they were sent to the grave by a card effect. Kaleido Chick lets me add Polymerization back to my hand, while Black Sheep lets me add Kaleido Chick as well. And Yellow Marten lets me add a Lunalight spell or trap from my deck to hand." She said by taking one of the cards out to play again, "I activate Polymerization again. I fuse my Kaleido Chick, Wolf, and Purple Butterfly to summon Lunalight Sabre Dancer!" she declared as another vortex appeared with the merger of three monsters. This time, the vicious Lunalight jumped out with her blades at the ready, (3000 ATK / 2600 DEF). "Thanks to her effect, she gains 200 attack points for each beast warrior banished or in the graveyard. Which I have six of now." She said as a blue aura formed around Sabre, (3000 + (6 X 200) = 4200 ATK).

"Awesome!" Jaden commented, "You brought both of them out in one hand!"

"I did." Blake said before setting the sole card in her hand, "How will you respond?"

"Let's see," Jaden said as he drew, playing the result, "I summon Elemental Hero Stratos in attack mode." He said the jet-equipped hero was summoned in a green cyclone, (1800 ATK / 300 DEF). "I can use one of his effects to add Elemental Hero Necroshade from my deck to my hand." He said before the card ejects, causing him to take out another card from his hand. Blake saw the spirited Slifer Red look at the card for a second, taking a breath before closing his eyes. When reopened, they glowed with a faint golden aura, "I play Polymerization, fusing my Stratos with Necroshade," He said as the jet-equipped hero was engulfed in a darker green cyclone, "To make Elemental Hero Grand Tornado!" Jaden declared as the tornado faded, revealing a new hero of the wind with yellow armor and a tattered cloak, (2800 ATK / 2200 DEF). Jaden exhaled his breath, his eyes returning to normal. In looking back at his opponent, a smile formed on his face, "Grand Tornado's effect now activates, allowing me to halve the attack and defense of all my opponent's monsters."

"What!?" Blake exclaimed before the wind fusion hero raised his right arm, causing a hurricane to form around the area. Leo struggled to maintain her stance against the wind, (1750 ATK / 1500 DEF). While Sabre clenched the ground as to not fly off, (2100 ATK / 1300 DEF).

"Now, go Grand Tornado," Jaden declared as he pointed, "Attack Sabre with Soaring Sky Uppercut!" he said as the wind fusion hero dashed in, carried by the current of the hurricane while clenching its fist. The vicious Lunalight gasped before the hit collided with her chin, sending her into the air before exploding with the wind current.

Blake: 4000 – 700 = 3300 Life Points

"I reveal my face down, Lunalight Reincarnation Dance." Blake said through the windstorm, "When a Lunalight monster is destroyed, I get to add two more from my deck to my hand."

"Okay then," Jaden said as Grand Tornado returned to his side of the field, taking two cards out of his hand as Blake added two cards to hers, "I'll throw down a couple of face downs and call it a turn."

"My move," Blake said as she drew, putting the card in her hand before taking out another one, "I summon Lunalight Emerald Bird in attack mode." She said as the green feathered dancer was summoned to her side of the field, (1200 ATK / 1000 DEF). "With her effect, I can discard one Lunalight monster to draw a new card." The shadowy Obelisk Blue said before doing so, sending a monster card to the graveyard, "And now, the monster I sent was Crimson Fox, whose effect now activates." She said while pointing to the wind fusion hero, "One of your monster's attack points now becomes zero." Blake said as Grand Tornado was encompassed in a crimson aura, (0 ATK / 2200 DEF). "Now, I use Sabre Dancer's effect from the graveyard. By removing her from play, my Leo Dancer gains 3000 attack points." She said as the prideful Lunalight gained a large blue aura, (1750 + 3000 = 4750 ATK). "Leo Dancer, attack with Semilunar Slasher!" she said with her fusion monster rushing into Jaden's.

"Wow, that's a high attack." Jaden responded, "But I activate my face down, Mirror Gate!" he said with Blake gasping, "With it, my hero and your dancer are about to switch sides."

"Oh no, that card does not target." Blake through as a mirror appeared before both fusions. With its reflection, both monsters went to the other side of the field. The shadowy Obelisk Blue gritted her teeth before taking a card out of her hand, "I play Battle Fusion, giving Grand Tornado now an attack boost to match Leo Dancer." She said with the wind fusion hero now gaining a strong yellow aura, (0 + 4750 = 4750 ATK). The two fusions then rushed into each other. Leo Dancer's blade clashed with Grand Tornado's fist, causing sparks to fly before an explosion occurred. Blake let out a sigh of relief before seeing a spotlight emerge from the smoke.

"Nice move, but I reveal Hero Signal," Jaden commented, "Since a monster was destroyed, I can summon an Elemental Hero from my deck." He said as the smoke faded, revealing a dark armored female hero with long blue hair, (1000 ATK / 1500 DEF). "I pick Elemental Hero Shadow Mist in defense mode."

"I see," Blake said before picking up her sole monster on the field, "I use Yellow Marten's effect from the grave to return Emerald Bird to my hand to summon herself in defense mode." She said as the green feathered bird faded, now replaced with the yellow weasel in a knelt stance. (800 ATK / 2000 DEF). "I'll set one card and end my turn."

"My draw," Jaden said as he drew, "Due to Necroshade in my graveyard, I can normal summon a high-level Elemental Hero without tributes." He said before slamming the card onto his duel disk, "I summon Elemental Hero Bladedge in attack mode!" the spirited Slifer Red said the golden armored hero with blades equipped to his forearms appeared, (2600 ATK / 1800 DEF). "Go, attack Yellow Marten." He said as Bladedge dash forward, slashing the yellow weasel across the chest, causing her to explode, "While your monster was in defense mode, mine still inflicts piercing damage."

Blake: 3300 – 600 = 2700 Life Points

"I'll end with a face down." Jaden concluded his turn, "You're move."

"I draw," Blake said before making a familiar play, "I resummon Emerald Bird and use her effect again." She said before the green feathered dancer reappeared, (1200 ATK / 1000 DEF). In discarding one Lunalight monster, she drew a card that she played, "I activate Fusion Recovery, adding Polymerization and Lunalight Black Sheep to my hand. Now, I activate Polymerization with Emerald Bird and Black Sheep to make Lunalight Cat Dancer." She said as the ballet Lunalight emerged with a twirl, (2400 ATK / 2000 DEF). Suddenly a card ejected from her graveyard, "Like before, Black Sheep lets me get Purple Butterfly back from my graveyard. As well, Emerald Bird now lets me special summon a level four or lower Lunalight that was banished. And it just so happens that Yellow Marten was banished because of her effect the last turn." She said as the yellow weasel reformed, (800 ATK / 2000 DEF).

"Wow, all your monsters have such cool effects," Jaden commented.

"And now, I activate my trap card, Call of the Haunted, resurrecting my Lunalight Blue Cat." The shadowy Obelisk Blue said as the young feline dancer appears in a battle stance, (1600 ATK / 1200 DEF). "With Blue Cat, I can double my fusion monsters attack point." She said as Cat Dancer gained a powerful blue aura, (2400 X 2 = 4800 ATK). "Cat Dancer can tribute my other Lunalight to attack all your monsters twice this turn! While your monsters are not destroyed the first time around, Cat Dancer will burn you for 100 with each attack." She said as Blue Cat faded back into the graveyard, "Go, attack with Moonlight Shadow Strikes!" Blake declared as Cat Dancer dashed in, throwing her daggers one after at Shadow Mist. The first one caused the dark hero to recoil in pain, the second causing her to explode. Cat Dancer grabbed her daggers before they could hit the ground, then rushed Bladedge. The gold-plated hero tried to slash the ballet Lunalight, but she jumped to dodge, landing her own slash behind his back, "This is it!" Blake said as the final attack was about to be declared. However, a spinning barrier pushed Cat Dancer away from her target, "What?"

"Hero Barrier, it allows me to block one attack." Jaden responded with his trap revealed, "And since it's the second attack that destroyed the monster, Bladedge is sticking around." He said before a dagger almost landed near his foot, lucky moving out to the way, "Too bad I could stop the declaration of it." He said before the total damage lowered his life points.

Jaden: 4000 – 100 – 100 – 100– 2200 – 100 = 1400 Life Points

A card then ejected from Jaden's deck, "And since Shadow Mist went to the graveyard, I can add a Hero from my deck to my hand."

"You are persistent, that was the combo I used to take out Alexis before," Blake said with a smile, her monster's attack returning to normal, (4800 – 2400 = 2400 ATK)., "I end my turn."

"I draw." Jaden said, "I attack Yellow Marten with Bladedge." He said as the gold-plated hero rushed in with his arm raised to slash, obliterating the yellow weasel again.

Blake: 2700 – 600 = 2100 Life Points

"Now," Jaden said while looking at his hand, "I summon Elemental Hero Flash in defense mode." He said as knelt sparking hero in a blue uniform was summoned, this one with a yellow bolt on his head, (1100 ATK / 1600 DEF). "I'll throw down a face down and call it a turn."

"Mine then," Blake said as she drew, putting the card in her hand before taking out another one, "I discard Purple Butterfly to give Cat Dancer 1000 more attack points." She said as the ballet Lunalight gained a purple aura in the shape of butterfly wings, allow her to soar in the air, (2400 + 1000 = 3400 ATK). "Hope you're ready!" she said before her monster was divebombed with daggers in hand.

"Well, before you attack, how about this!" Jaden said as his facedown revealed itself, "I activate Edge Hammer, by tributing Bladedge, your monster is also destroyed, and you take its original attack points as damage." He said as the gold-plated hero gained a massive war hammer, realizing it back with green electricity. The Warhammer was about to collide with the Cat Dancer, but a red spirit blocked the strike, "What?"

"I can remove Crimson Fox from play to negate your targeted effect." Blake responded as she put the card away, "We both gain 1000 life points, but my Cat Dancer can still attack your Flash." Blake stated before Bladedge exploded. Out of the smoke, the ballet Lunalight swooped down to slash Flash across the chest, then tossed one of the daggers to pass through Jaden's head. It grazed past his chin before Cat Dancer landed next to Blake, the wings fading, (3400 – 1000 = 2400 ATK).

Blake: 2100 + 1000 = 3100 Life Points

Jaden: 1400 + 1000 – 100 = 2300 Life Points

"Due to Flash's effect, I can remove himself, Shadow Mist, Stratos, and Bladedge to add Polymerization back to my hand," Jaden responded.

"I see," Blake responded, looking at her hand. "I set one card and end my turn."

"My turn," Jaden said as he drew, leading to him playing the card he added to his hand during Blake's turn, "I play Polymerization, fusing my Sparkman and Liquid Soldier," he said with his eyes turning golden again, but a smile still on his face, "To summon Elemental Hero The Shining!" out of the vortex of water and electricity formed a bright light. Emerging was a white clade hero with a red jewel in his mask and a type of yellow halo around his body. He stood with majestic brilliance over the area, (2600 ATK / 2100 DEF). "For every banished Hero, The Shining gains 300 attack points." The spirited Slifer Red said as the light fusion hero grew in radiance from four monsters, (2600 + (4 X 300) = 3800). "Also, since Liquid Soldier was sent to the grave as part of a fusion, I get to draw two cards then discard one," Jaden said before doing so, smiling at the result with his eyes back to normal. However, he looked over to Blake's set card before turning to his monster, "I'll attack Cat Dancer with The Shining. Go, Illumination Laser!" he said as his monster extended its arms, gather a ball of light before unleashing it as an all-encompassing beam of energy.

"I activate my trap card, Lost Winds." Blake responded, "With it, I can just your monster attack in half while negating its effect." She said as the beam of light grew dimmer, ((3800 – 1200) / 2 = 1300 ATK). Cat Dancer then dashed through the beam, cutting through it to slash The Shining across the chest. Jaden shield himself from the explosive wave of his attack backfiring.

Jaden: 2300 –1100 = 1200 Life Points

"His effect was negated on the field," Jaden responded as he took out two cards, "But when destroyed and sent to the grave, I can add two Heroes that were banished back to my hand. Like Stratos and Shadow Mist."

"The longer you try to use those monsters to add more Heroes to your hand." Blake said her fusion returned to her side, "The more life points you will lose along the way."

"That wasn't my plan this time." Jaden said as he revealed the card he drew earlier, "I play Miracle Fusion, allowing me to fuse my Necroshade and Wildheart in the graveyard."

"Wildheart? When did you-" Blake asked, then recalled when Jaden discarded a card this turn, "So, you had a backup plan?"

"Not really, just worked out this way." Jaden responded with a smile, seeing his two heroes merge, "Say hello to Elemental Hero Necroid Shaman!" he said as a red-haired spiritualist hero was summoned to the field, repossessing his staff, (1900 ATK / 1800 DEF). "When summoned, he lets me swap one of your monsters with one in your graveyard."

"No way." Blake gasped as her Necroid Shaman raised his staff. Suddenly, Cat Dancer's body vanished, now replaced with a Black Sheep, (100 ATK / 600 DEF). "I can still use Lost Winds second effect. Since you summoned a monster from the extra deck, I can set the trap directly from my graveyard."

"Guess it's a good thing I still have my normal summon." Jaden responded, playing one of the cards he added to his hand, "Welcome back Stratos, who can use his other effect to destroy your face down card thanks to having another Elemental Hero on the field." He said with Blake gasping watching as the jet-equipped hero was resummoned, (1800 ATK / 300 DEF). Stratos then dashed in, destroying the Lost Winds before it could ever activate again.

"Lost Winds is banished when it leaves the field again." Blake said as put the card away, seeing a smirking Jaden, "Heh, this is tougher than I thought this was going to be." She said with a smile before having a look of focus in her eyes, "But I am not finished yet, I draw!" Blake said while smiling at the result, "I play Pot of Avarice, allowing me to return five monsters from my grave to my deck or extra deck, then draw two cards." She said before showing Lunalight Emerald Bird, Panther Dancer, Leo Dancer, Kaleido Chick, and Blue Cat. Shuffling her deck, then drawing two. "Once again, I can return Black Sheep to hand to summon Yellow Marten in defense mode." The shadowy Obelisk Blue said as the yellow weasel reappeared in the same kneeling stance, (800 ATK / 2000 DEF). "Now, I can discard Black Sheep to return Lunalight Wolf to my hand. Then, I remove Purple Butterfly to special summon my Lunalight Wolf from my hand." She said as the purple canine dancer was summoned, its right leg lifted and ready to attack someone, (2000 ATK / 1800 DEF). "I can now normal summon Lunalight Tiger to the field," Blake said a small feline dancer with yellow stripes was summon the to field, (1200 ATK / 800 DEF). She stood on Blake's far-right side, while Wolf was on the far left, "Now, Wolf attacks your Necroid Shaman and Tiger attacks Stratos." The shadowy Obelisk Blue declared as both monsters, rushed in for their attacks. While Wolf's kick launched Necroid Shaman into oblivion, Tiger was the one thrown back by Stratos's jet tornados. A double explosion occurred on both sides of the field.

Jaden: 1200 – 100 = 1100 Life Points

Blake: 3100 – 600 = 2500 Life Points

"Since Tiger was destroyed, I can special summon a Lunalight from my graveyard." Blake said as the smoke cleared, revealing the ballet Lunalight again, (2400 ATK / 2000 DEF). "Now Cat Dancer will finish what Tiger started." She said as her fusion monster rushed through the winds, tossing her daggers into Stratos's jets. They stalled for a second before exploding with Jaden's last monster. As the spirited Slifer Red shielded himself from the damage, he saw another dagger go to his head, grazing his other cheek this time around.

Jaden: 1100 – 100 – 600 = 400 Life Points

"You're move." Blake offered as she still had one card in hand.

"Right," Jaden said as he drew, "Sweet, I play Legacy of a Hero. I can now return Grand Tornado and The Shining from my graveyard to my extra deck. Then draw three cards." He said before doing so, taking one of the cards out to play instantly, "I activate Parallel World Fusion. This time, I can return the banished materials to my deck to perform a fusion summon." He said as the vortex appeared behind him, "So with Bladedge and Wildheart, meet Elemental Hero Wildedge!" he said as a partly armored warrior entered the field, a massive sword on his back, (2600 ATK / 2300 DEF). "I was hoping to show you this one. You see, it has an effect similar to what your Lunalight fusions can."

"Which is?" Black asked.

"Wildedge can attack all of your monsters!" Jaden said before pointing, "Go, Wild Blade Rush!" he declared as Wildedge rushed in with his sword drawn. In one slash, he bisected Wolf before the halves exploded. In moving onto the defense position monster, Yellow Marten sighed before getting slashed the third time in this duel. As Wildedge raised its blade against the other fusion on the field, Cat Dancer parried it with her daggers.

"I am still have taken damage, but Cat Dancer is not destroyed by battle," Blake said before her life points lowered.

Blake: 2500 – 600 – 200 = 1700 Life Points

"Okay," Jaden responded, taking two cards out of his hand, "I'll end with a couple of face downs."

"Right then," Blake said before she was about to draw. In seeing the result, a smile formed on her face, "I'm sorry Jaden, but you aren't getting past me." She said before playing the card, "I activate Lunalight Fusion. Since you have a monster special summoned from the extra deck, I can use one of my extra deck monsters as a material this time." She said the spiral formed, "I fuse my Cat Dancer on the field, with my Blue Cat in hand, and my Panther Dancer from the extra deck." She said the three monsters formed in the vortex, transforming into waves of red, blue, and purple energy. "To summon forth again my Lunalight Leo Dancer!" she said as the vortex exploded, causing the prideful Lunalight to stand with her mask shattering her forming on the left side of her head, (3500 ATK / 3000 DEF). "Now to end this, attack Wildedge with Semilunar Slasher!" she said as Leo rushed in with her blade drawn.

"I reveal my face down card, Elemental Recharge." Jaden responded Wildedge reequipped his sword, "For every Elemental Hero on the field, I regain 1000 life points." He said before the two fusions clashed blades. Each swung as they looked for an opening, but one was quickly losing steam. Wildedge jumped back before extending its left armored arm, firing a barrage of blades at the prideful Lunalight. Leo dashed to evade the projectile before jumping into the air. She dove towards her prey with her blade raised high. Wildedge gripped his sword with both hands before letting out a battle cry with an upward slash. The two weapons collided in mid-swing, but the Lunalight's blade cut through the Elemental Hero's. In one slash, her sword pierced the helmet before running down the rest of the body. Once Leo landed and reposed her sword, Wildedge fell forwards with a thud.

Jaden: 400 + 1000 – 900 = 500 Life Points

"Nice try, but Leo can attack twice." Blake said before pointing, "I attack you dire-" Blake said before the body of Wildedge was engulfed in a yellow light, "What?"

"My first face down was to make sure I didn't lose, but my second was to make sure I could win!" Jaden responded, "I activate Change of Hero – Refractor Ray. When an elemental hero fusion is destroyed by battle, you take damage equal to its level time 300."

"But you're monster was level eight, so that means-" Blake responded before a beam of light was fired at her body. The shadowy Obelisk Blue shield her eyes from the light but felt no pain. As she opened them, her Leo Dancer was already gone. Jaden was now standing before her, his right hand extended. Blake was still in shock for a second before sighing, then smiled as well, "That's game." She said before shaking his hand.

Blake: 1700 – (300 X 8) = 0 Life Points

"Yep, but a real close one." Jaden responded with a smile forming, "You really are great with fusions."

"Same goes for you," Blake responded before letting go of his hand, "Now, you have to beat your next opponent." She said before pointing, "They are just past the forest to the beach." The shadowy Obelisk Blue said with Jaden nodding, "Good luck, you'll need it against her." Blake said before Jaden walked away, causing her to go the opposite direction.

As Blake went deeper into the woods, she soon ran into the Headteacher of Slifer Red, "So, how would you rate him?" Sienna asked with her arms crossed.

"Last year, even knowing that he dueled Zane, I thought I could beat him no problem." Blake responded, "Now he's completely different than what I thought before." She said before looking back when she came, "He's determined to win that new deck, but that's not what he's obsessed with." The shadowy Obelisk Blue said before looking back to Sienna with a slight chuckle, "I think he just wants to have fun duels."

"Well, we will see if he can get both outcomes." Sienna responded with a smile, but then it quickly faded, "Also, I wanted to apologize for Ad-"

"It's okay," Blake interrupted, then sighed with the smile returning to her face, "I'm okay now." Sienna had a look of slight shock, then had a smile return to her face as well, patting Blake on the right shoulder.

Jaden walked through the woods, looking down at the Shadow Mist that was still in his hand, "I wounder who I'll be going up against next?" he said before putting the card back in his deck. As he approached the end of the forest, the sunlight at the beach radiated out through the leaves. Upon reaching the end, the spirited Slifer Red saw someone standing at the shoreline.

With her yellow hair matching the glow of the sun, Yang turned to with a smile on her face, "Sup." The fiery Ra Yellow spoke, causing Jaden to grin.

AN: There you go, the two fusion focused archetypes go head-to-head this time. Jaden managed to beat Blake, and he did not even need Super Poly to make the attribute heroes. Like I have said, Lunalight cards are super good, which makes them extremely hard to write. After reliving a bit of her past, Blake finally accepts what happened with Adam and can move forward more than before. We also get a Zane cameo and bit of the spark of Blake's crush on the cyber duelist. And I have said before, but the start of this series was partway into season one of GX. While some context was slightly altered, those prior events played out basically the same with Zane beating Jaden and even the Titan mini arc. (Also, Jaden only has Shadow Mist for the search of hero monsters, not for Masked heroes). Now, Jaden is up against Yang. That means it is a remix of the Strongest Slifer Red against the Strongest Ra Yellow. You will have to see whose fire burns brighter, and what new cards are going to be played. That is all for now, thanks for reading, and hope to see you in the next chapter. Since I have no new questions, I can end the chapter here.