The helicopter touched down on the landing pad, quickly going silent as it arrived at the docks of Duel Academy. Yet, it wouldn't stay quiet for long. Frustrated shouts and exasperated sighs poured out from the chassis of the vehicle. Soon after, the whole helicopter itself began to shake. With a triumphant cry, the door was thrown open and a teenager stumbled out.

"Here I come, Duel Academy!" he shouted, throwing his arms into the air. His dirty red blazer whipped in the seaside winds, as he took a deep breath of salty air. "Ahhhh, smells like home."

"Mr. Yuki, please!" Another man fell out of the helicopter, sweating straight through his black suit with a nervous jitter. "We're meant to wait until Chancellor Crowler arrives—"

"Ah, don't sweat it, man. At least not more than you already are," Jaden laughed, stretching after the long journey here. "Crowler's an old buddy of mine, he knows he can't tie me down to one place."

And with that, Jaden walked off, leaving the anxious attendant to whimper as his ward strolled off the tarmac.

"You're awfully cheery."

Jaden smirked at the voice, laying his head back on his interlocked fingers.

"Why wouldn't he be?" Another voice, this one male, joined in. "He's home."

"Ah come on Banner. Ya don't gotta be so sappy," Jaden said, speaking up. He glanced over his shoulder, catching the sight of his former professor floating idly behind him. Years ago that would've creeped Jaden out, but he was used to it. "We're just here for a bit to do Crowler a favor anyhow."

"Speaking of which," the first voice, leaning towards the feminine side, huffed. "You still haven't told us what exactly we're doing here."

The translucent body of Yubel floated across Jaden's field of view, her demonic appearance not even fazing him.

"Pffft, I'll be honest. I don't know either," Jaden shrugged with a smile. "Crowler just said to come, there'd be food. And you know I can't resist a shot at pulling a golden eggwich from the sandwich cart."

Yubel rolled her eyes, drifting back to Jaden's side as he strutted his way to the Duel Academy building. Though his confident attitude and lack of worry put her spirit at ease somewhat, there was a swarm of a feeling digging in her mind. Something was going to happen today. She could just feel it.

And it felt familiar.


"Welcome, authorized guest."

Jaden turned as he stepped through the sliding gate, glancing to the small box above the door where the voice came from.

"Dang. I see where you put all the money meant for the Slifer dorms," he jeered, wheeling around to finally face Crowler again. The headmaster rolled his eyes, glancing to his right and motioning Jaden's gaze to the desk. At once, Jaden noticed the chair was faced away from him.

"Jaden, I'd like you to meet a man I'm sure you're familiar with," Crowler began as the seat turned.

"I assure you, I don't need the introduction," Kaiba's voice cracked the quiet of the room, making Jaden's eyes grow wide in surprise. The man perched his chin on his crossed fingers, remaining seated as he let the air fall back to silence.

"Now, this is a surprise," the voice of Banner whispered as if the others in the room might hear him. "What exactly does—"

"Seto Kaiba!" Jaden exclaimed, grinning like a mad man as he stormed the desk. Seto was caught off guard as Jaden latched onto his hand, shaking once then twice with a weak tug. "Oh, man, I'm such a fan! I watched your Battle City match against Yugi a hundred dozen times when I was a kid!"

"Jaden, you still are a kid," Crowler groaned, rubbing his temples.

"Well I did just rewatch it the other day, so I guess my point still stands," he laughed.

All at once, Kaiba pulled his hand from Jaden's grip, glaring at the teen as he stood up in his seat. A few years ago he would've sent Jaden away without another word, the blatant disrespect being a slight he would not abide. But Seto had a problem, one he couldn't solve by himself. And he learned a long time ago to swallow his pride and get it over with.

"Just sit down," Kaiba groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose. As Jaden plopped down on the seat, leaning back without even an ounce of respect for the situation at hand, Kaiba resisted the urge to groan. He glared up at Crowler, who went stiff as a board. "You did tell him why he's here, yes?"

"I-I felt it'd be necessary to keep it to a need-to-know basis," he explained, his arms pinned to his sides.

Kaiba's eyes flicked back to Jaden, who kept looking at him with that stupid grin.

"Probably best to keep it that way," he said with a sigh. "Loose lips as they say."

"He's insulting you," Jaden heard Yubel comment, annoying him as he couldn't reply with other people around. Pursing his lips, Jaden resisted the urge to react as Yubel wrapped her arms around his shoulders, resting her chin onto the crook of his neck.

Kaiba stood up suddenly, reaching under his desk and pulling up a metal briefcase.

"I'll meet you two at the Obelisk Blue Duel Arena," he declared, stepping away from the desk and straight past the two. Pausing at the door as it slid open, Kaiba attracted the gaze of the two he left behind. "And Jaden."

"Yeah?"

"You better impress me out there, or it's Crowler's head."

"You brought me over to duel someone?" Jaden asked, reaching into his drawstring bag. Glancing around himself, Jaden took a moment to bask in the nostalgia of the good old duel arena. He'd had so many sick duels here, and he had a feeling he was about to add another to the list.

"You could say that," Crowler muttered from the sidelines of the main dueling area. His jaw was clenched shut, as he chewed on his trusty handkerchief in pure stress. "Dear god, this has gone way out of hand."

"Why do you say that?" Jaden asked, reaching past the sleeping body of Pharaoh the cat, and pulling out his duel disk.

"Jaden, my job is on the line!" Crowler shouted with a panic. "If you don't impress Mr. Kaiba with your duel today, I'll be destitute!"

"Ah don't sweat it, I'll blow his waist-high leather socks off!" Jaden laughed, throwing on his duel disk. "Plus, I haven't had a good duel, or any duel really, in a while, so I'm rearing for a real exciting match!"

Crowler narrowed his eyes as he folded his arm.

"When was the last time you dueled, Yuki?" he asked. Jaden gained a cold sweat as he gave an awkward laugh.

"Ah, it wasn't against anyone you'd know. Does a Paradox ring a bell?"

"The Paradox Brothers!?"

"No, no! It's— Never mind," Jaden shook his head. Best to not try to explain that whole debacle. "By the way, who'd ya get to duel me anyways? Aster? Jessie?"

"Me." The voice broke through the whole room, as the intercom system crackled to life. Jaden gained a cold sweat as he recognized it, turning to where he heard the sound come from.

"Ooooh boy," he muttered. Walking from the gate between the bleachers, Seto Kaiba strolled in, his head raised high as he approached the dueling arena. Decked across his left arm was certainly a sight for Jaden, the highly advanced solid vision duel disk that Kaiba had premiered years ago in his final duel against Yugi. Jaden gave another cold sweat. "You cannot be serious."

"Now this is a challenge," Banner commented with an exasperated sigh. Yubel remained silent, though the thoughts whirling in her mind sat heavy on Jaden's shoulders. "Jaden, if you're not up to—"

"Let's do this!" Jaden shouted out, taking a step forward and pumping his fists.

"Don't forget to breathe, Jaden," Crowler warned with a sigh.

Kaiba was taken aback, but he did not pause as he finished his approach to the dueling area.

"You're awfully excited," he commented, eyeing the teen as he began to run in place, stars in his eyes. "Most would be weeping in terror at this point, as any thought of victory drains from their minds."

"Seriously, how can you take this so, well," Crowler muttered, sighing as he took a seat in the bleachers.

"Pfft, you kidding me? This is a once in a lifetime opportunity!" Jaden tossed a pose at Kaiba, grinning with that same stupid smile again. "Testing my skills against one of the best, the number two duelist in the whole world!"

Kaiba broke out in laughter, causing both Crowler and Jaden to pause in confusion. Shaking his head, Seto smiled with a smarmy look. He flicked his arm forward, bringing the duel disk at his arm to life.

"I'll give you that, Crowler. The kid's got spunk. Let's see how much remains after I beat it out of him."

"Let's see who will be beating who, old man." Jaden mirrored him, his white and red Duel Academy duel disk extending and lighting up.

"DUEL!" they shouted in unison.