Yu-Gi-Oh ARC-V: Luna's Eclipse

by BackfireDuelist4

This story is about a girl from a world identical to ours who gets stuck in Yu-Gi-Oh ARC-V. As she travels through the dimensions, she will face many enemies and the darkness within herself.

7. Chapter 7

Hi there! Just a heads up, this will be a long chapter. So, as the singing goat once said, 'Be prepaired'. I will, hopefully, see you at the end of this chapter.

I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh ARC-V, only my character and the cards she uses. Any mention of other characters, shows and concepts are simply to help you understand the situation my character is in, nothing more, nothing less.

---

Chapter 7: It Was Bad Business, But The Show Must Go On

"Congratulations on the successful negotiations, Madame Chairwoman."

The man who spoke was the same man who ordered Sylvio to take Yuya's Pendulum Cards, and the person he was talking to was a woman wearing formal red clothing and had darker red hair, giving her a commanding appearance.

"Thank you, Claude." She said to the now named man. "It seems that everything is going according to plan so far. And what a plan it is, to grow the Leo Institute to new heights. Oh, it will be grand. Very soon with the help of the Leo Institute, Dueling will touch every part of the globe... It will become an entire way of life."

"Yes," Claude said, "your hard work is starting to show, and the President is pleased with the results, but…"

"But what?" The woman asked, frowning.

"While you were gone, Madame Chairwoman," The man continued, "there were some, shall we say, intriguing developments here. Developments that all seem to stem from something called Pendulum Summoning, and a young girl who recently arrived in the city."

"Pendulum?" The woman asked, frowning even further.

…

At the Leo Corporation headquarters, the woman strode into the room with the President of the Leo Corporation saying, "Welcome back, Mother."

"Ah, Declan…" She said, now identifying the man as Declan. "Have you heard of a new Summoning Method? From what I hear it's unlike Fusion, Synchro or Xyz Summoning. From what I hear, it's unlike anything that the world has ever seen before."

"Yes, Mother…" Declan responded, adjusting his glasses, "it's true. I think you'd better sit down…" he said, indicating to the sofa. He then pressed a button on a remote and a TV screen lowered down and switched on as he talked. "These bits of footage we've compiled tell the whole story."

The screen then started playing footage of Yuya's first ever Pendulum Summon during his Duel against the Sledgehammer. It also showed what happened in the monitoring room afterwards.

"Sir," A man said. "I picked up an unusual summoning signal from the city's coastal zone. The reading is off the charts!"

"Analysis, quick!" Another said.

"I have the results, sir." A woman said. "If the wave patterns are correct, then someone is using pendulum energy!"

"How can this be?" The Chairwoman asked as the video stopped.

"By way of a new type of card known quite aptly as a Pendulum Card." Declan replied. "As you saw, by utilizing two of them, you can summon numerous high-Level Monsters… It's a powerful technique."

"These cards… Where'd they come from?"

"We have our best people looking into that as we speak. So far, they haven't been able to find anything. But I found a lead that is quite promising, and I think you will feel the same way, dear Mother."

"I'm intrigued." The woman said. "Please, go on."

"It's in regard to the Duelist who first used the cards."

As he said that, the screen immediately showed Yuya Sakaki's data file in the Corporation's database.

"His name is Yuya Sakaki. He's a 14-year-old who attends a cut rate Duel School known as You Show. He's in the Junior Arc League and his Duel record is 46 matches with 26 wins and 20 losses."

"So he's an average Duelist at best." The Chairwoman said. "Surely, Declan… You're not suggesting that someone like this could be responsible for pioneering such a cutting-edge Duel technique."

"Did I mention he's Yusho Sakaki's son?"

The woman's eyes widened in shock at the name.

"Yusho Sakaki?" She said. "The same Yusho Sakaki that vanished years ago? Are you saying he's back, and back to cause us trouble?"

"I don't know," Declan admitted, "but we must find out. And I may have a way…"

"Yes?"

"Just the other day, I received reports of an incident not far off campus. A Duelist was sent to the hospital after a Duel. He says the one responsible was Yuya Sakaki."

"And what about the girl?" The Chairwoman asked. "I heard that she was a part of our problems."

The screen then changed to the file on Luna Midnight.

"We do not know much about her." Declan said. "We do know that her name is Luna Midnight. She's a 14-year-old girl who also attends the You Show Duel School. Her current record is 2 Duels, both of them being victories. We first learned of her existence after we detected a large energy surge similar to a teleportation. She was then spotted at the arena where she watched the Duel in which Yuya first used Pendulum Summoning."

"Are you saying that she's one of them?" The Chairwoman asked.

"I do not think so." The man said. "When she first arrived, she did her best to stay hidden from us, and she purchased a Duel Disk at an electronics shop shortly before she was seen at the arena. The only time we ever saw her Duel was against Sylvio Sawatari, in which she defeated the boy in a total of four turns."

"But that's impossible." The woman said. "No-one, not even our elite, is capable of finishing a Duel on their second turn."

"And yet she did. When she won, she set some conditions that said we could not try to take Yuya's Pendulum Cards by force or trickery. She also threatened us should we ever risk the lives of her friends again."

"What's to stop us from taking the cards anyway?"

"Some time after she arrived, Luna hacked the systems of the Leo Corporation and implanted a virus into our mainframe. Should we disregard her conditions, she will activate the virus immediately, wiping the entire Leo Corporation mainframe clean. We would lose all the valuable data we collected over the years and would have to start from scratch again. What's more, if we try to deactivate or remove the virus, it will automatically detonate, doing the work for her."

"Why don't we just capture her and force her to shut down the virus herself?" The Chairwoman asked.

"While I considered that option, I decided that it would be a bad idea. Because if we send our elite to capture her, we would most likely end up with them returning empty handed, defeated in a Duel, and with Luna still ending up walking free."

"So, what do we do with her?"

"I believe that Luna is a neutral party in these affairs, simply an observer. I suggest treading lightly and with caution when confronting her. She could make a powerful ally, or a dangerous enemy should we get on her bad side."

…

The seven of us were currently at the Duel School, doing something that I'd never think we'd do. We were learning how to summon a monster.

"First up, the Normal Summon." Skip said. "This is the most basic summoning method where you take a Monster from your hand, then place it face-up in Attack Mode on the field. Now who can explain a Tribute Summoning?" He asked. "Anyone? You, Tate. Tell us."

"Sure!" Tate answered. "A Tribute Summoning is similar to a Normal Summoning… However, there is one key difference: when calling out a Level 5 or 6 Monster, one must tribute a Monster on your field. If it's Level 7 or above, then one must tribute two Monsters."

"That's right!" Said the Principle. "Bravo… Someone's been studying." His face then switched to surprise as he saw the looks on the other's faces.

"This lesson is boring." Said Frederick

"Seriously, what time is lunch?" Asked Allie.

"Right now!" Said Sora, about to eat the food in front of him. "Because I'm Fusion Summoning my mashed potatoes, with yogurt, to create, the new food craze… mashed pogurt!" I looked at the boy beside me, sweat-dropping at his embarrassing sense of taste. "So sour and starchy."

"Hey," Yuya said, sweat-dropping as well, "you're being rude…"

"Oh, sorry." Apologised Sora. "Yeah, you're right. I should be sharing!"

Yuya and I then froze at that remark, and then I quietly scooted further away from the blue-haired boy, afraid that I might be forced to eat the strange food.

"No," Corrected Yuya, "what I mean… Is that you shouldn't be eating in class like that. Am I right, Zuzu?" The boy then looked at Zuzu, noticing that she didn't seem to be paying attention. "Uh, earth to Zuzu…" He said. "Uh… Hello? You there? I just don't understand… She's been spacey since the other day. Hm, hope she's okay. I'm worried."

"All right, next we'll be going over Fusion Summoning," announced Skip, "so which of you would like to volunteer?"

Sora then stood up. "Next I Fusion Summon, this donut and Principal Boyle's bagel! Here goes." He cried, much to said principal's protest.

"Hey! Not cool! I was saving that!"

"Hey, Dad…" Zuzu said standing up. "Xyz Summon!"

Whenever Zuzu says something like that, she is sure to draw the attention of everyone in the room, including me.

"Xyz Summon?" Skip asked in confusion.

"Since we're learning about summoning today," The pink-haired girl continued. "can you teach us how to Xyz Summon?"

"No, I'm afraid not. After all, I can't teach what I don't know!" Skip said sadly. "Xyz is one of the trickiest types of summoning there is. Why, do you know someone who's mastered it, Zuzu?" He asked suspiciously.

"I'm… Not sure…" She replied. Zuzu then looked at Yuya, and then promptly started in surprise.

"Uh, you cool?" Asked the Pendulum user.

"Yeah." She replied, smiling nervously. "Don't mind me."

"Well," I said, now mysteriously sitting at the desk behind Sora, "I guess I'd better be the one to describe the summoning methods then."

I then stood up and joined Principle Boyle at the front of the room. Everyone then payed rapt attention to me as I did this.

"Okay," I began, "Xyz is one of the three unique Extra Deck summoning techniques, with the others being Fusion and Synchro. To translate what Sora was saying earlier, to Fusion Summon, you require the Spell Card, Polymerization, or a sufficient substitute. Once you activate Polymerization, you can send two or more Monsters from your hand and/or your field to the Graveyard, then you summon the purple boarded Fusion Monster card from your Extra Deck to the field. Next up is Synchro Summoning. Can anyone tell me how summoning a Synchro Monster is different from Fusion Summoning? Anyone?" I was met with silence. "Well, in order to Synchro Summon, you need a Tuner type Monster and one or more non-Tuner types on the field."

"What's a Tuner Monster?" Asked Allie.

"Well," I said, "a Tuner Monster is a type of Monster that you need in order to summon a Synchro Monster. Without one, you can't Synchro Summon. When you have a Tuner and other Monsters on the field that aren't Tuners, you can send them all to the Graveyard and add their Levels together to summon a white Synchro Monster whose Level equals the combined Levels that you sent. And now, since Zuzu asked, Xyz Summoning. To summon an Xyz Monster to the field, you must have two or more Monsters on the field who each possess the same Level to one another. Then you construct an Overlay Network by using the Monsters as Xyz materials. Then you can summon a black Xyz Monster with the same Rank as the Levels that you used to summon it."

"Rank?" Asked Allie. "Don't you mean Level?"

"No." I replied. "Xyz Monsters don't possess any Levels. Instead, replacing them are black and gold stars called Ranks. Although it is common for a Duelist who has never encountered an Xyz Monster before to be confused and think that an Xyz Monster's Level is 0, That's not the case. If there was a card effect that would impact a Monster with a Level, an Xyz Monster would be immune to it. Although there could be a way to give an Xyz Monster a Level, it hasn't been discovered yet. And I guess that just about-"

"How dare you!" Someone shouted, interrupting what I was about to say. It took me a moment, but I recognised the voice belonged to Gong, who of which I haven't seen since I first arrived at You Show. Then I realised that today was the day Yuya, Zuzu and Gong fight to save You Show from being taken over by the Leo Institute. It was also the day that Declan conducted the first ever test of his Pendulum Cards.

"You've made the Gong angry!" Said man shouted, further confirming what I thought. "Now things get ugly!"

"What now?" Asked Yuya.

"Well, it seems that someone is really angry and is shouting at another person at the front of our school." I said, pointing out the obvious.

The elevator at the front of the school opened and we ran outside. In front of the school, facing his back to us, was Gong himself.

"What's the big brouhaha?" Asked Skip.

"Something's brewin'…" Replied Gong. "But it's no ha-ha matter. Gong was working out doing Duel sprints when he saw some suspicious characters loitering on your campus and confronted them."

"It sounded like you did more than that." I said as he finished his story.

"They're accusing Yuya of hurting their pal Sylvio in a Duel!" He continued.

We looked around Gong and I recognised the three boys that Sylvio always hung out with.

"Yuya?!" Said a shocked Skip.

"Me-ya?!" Said an equally shocked Yuya.

"Don't lie!" The violet-haired one said. "You totally know it was you!"

"Yeah that's right," The brown-haired one continued. "we saw you with our very own eyes!"

"We sure did…" The green-haired one finished. "And she did, too."

"Wait, she who?" Asked Gong, confused.

"One of Yuya's good friends…" He answered. "Right… Zuzu?"

He then pointed behind us and we turned around to see the pink-haired girl standing behind us in front of the elevator looking shocked and cornered.

"C'mon," they all said, "it's true… Don't deny it, Zuzu!"

She then backed up, even more stressed at the pressure.

"They're crazy, Zuzu, right?" Asked Gong. "They're making this all up."

"Or…" Skip said, putting even more pressure onto his daughter. "Aren't they?"

"Making what up?" Said the brown-haired boy. "That Zuzu was there and saw everything that happened! Yuya, you're so through!"

"No, he's not!" Said Tate. "Yuya would never hurt someone like you say!"

"It was Sylvio who wanted to hurt Yuya!" Said Allie. "And Zuzu only confronted him 'cause she wanted to protect Yuya!"

"Hold on there!" Said Skip. "You're saying that Zuzu confronted Sylvio?"

"Yeah!"

"So then… That means… The true culprit's ZUZU?!"

"No!" The three kids shouted at him.

"So much for parental support." I thought to myself, sweat-dropping.

"If this guy's the teacher…" The violet-haired boy said. "I feel bad for the students."

"Like we said," The brown-haired boy repeated. "Yuya's the guilty one!"

"And now, poor Sylvio…" The green-haired boy said sombrely. "He's holed up in the hospital."

"For real?" Asked Yuya.

"Oh, no!" Said Zuzu.

"And they say…" The boy continued. "He may never Duel again!"

"Oh, please." I said quietly. "With a guy with that big of an ego, the annihilation of this dimension wouldn't kill him."

"Poor, bedridden, Sylvio…" The purple-haired boy said. "How do you sleep at night, Yuya?!"

"Uh… with pillows mostly." Said the tomato-haired boy. He then looked at his childhood friend.

"Zuzu," He said, running up to her, "why don't you say something. You were there. You know I didn't hurt Sylvio!"

"Yeah. I was there, Yuya…" She said, trailing off. Yuya waited for her answer, then he remembered what she said when he saw her that night.

"Hold on…" He said. "Are you saying I could do this, Zuzu?"

"No, I-" She protested. She stopped, sighing sadly. I approached her and put my hand on her shoulder.

"I was there too." I told Yuya. "But I don't know what we saw. After all, it was getting dark and it was hard to see the culprit's face. It could have been easy for us to mistake him as you. I'm not saying that you would willingly harm a person, but the man seemed to look like you. However, he used a Phantom Knight Xyz Deck, so he couldn't have been you, because you use a Deck based solely on Pendulum Summoning, and he had none of your cards. But since Sylvio is convinced that you were the one who did it, it would be best that you stay calm, and until your name is cleared, you should consider yourself innocent until proven guilty. After all, you can't be in two places at once. Once the Leo Corporation finds that out, I'm sure that they'll leave you alone, okay?"

"Alright." Yuya said dejectedly, for I neither confirmed nor denied that he was the one responsible. All I said was to wait.

"Perhaps I could be some help in your predicament?" Asked a voice. We turned around and saw a woman getting out of a car that parked without us noticing. Honestly, I have to get my hearing checked, because I am tired of people sneaking up on me. Seriously, I'm supposed to be the sneaky one who notices everything, not the person who gets snuck up on.

"I know you." Said Skip. "You're Henrietta Akaba…"

"Yes." The now named woman confirmed. "Chairwoman of the Leo Institute of Dueling. Why don't we all have a little talk?"

…

"Thank you for having me." Henrietta said.

We took her up on her offer of going inside to talk, much to my dismay. We were now sitting in the break room, with Skip sitting on the couch directly opposite to the woman. The rest of us were dotted around the room, with Yuya standing directly beside the couch, and Zuzu watching the proceedings behind Yuya. Gong was keeping guard at the elevator, while Sora sat on the desk. I myself was standing in the corner with my arms crossed, staring intently at Henrietta.

"It's our pleasure." Said Skip.

"I only wish it was under better circumstances." She said. "But I'm afraid we must deal with the facts and the facts are that Yuya has created quite a row. And now we must figure a way to make things right."

After a second, the Principle looked at Yuya.

"For the last time…" He said. "Did you do this?"

"No, no, no!" The boy said back. "Why doesn't anyone here believe me?"

"Not so fast there, Yuya." Gong said. "Gong does. Now who is with me? C'mon, speak up!"

"We're all with you!" Declared Frederick.

Gong nodded and turned to look at me. "Well, Luna?"

"I am living proof that appearances can deceive." I responded. "I have already said that Yuya wasn't the one who attacked Sylvio, and gave my reasons why I believe it wasn't him."

The man with a pompadour then turned to look at Zuzu.

"And you?" He asked.

Zuzu looked unsure for a moment.

"Yuya!" She said. "I know what my eyes saw on that day… But sometimes looks can deceive… I-I…"

"It's okay, Zuzu." Yuya said. "Just… Just say what's in your heart then."

"My heart?" She asked, smiling. "My heart says your innocent!"

"How sweet." Said Henrietta, ruining the moment. "But that changes nothing. Because I have three witnesses that say that Yuya is guilty. So, unless you want me to get the authorities involved in this, I strongly suggest that you listen to my following proposal, and listen good." As she said this, her face suddenly became more serious and business-like. "As you know, I am the Chairwoman of the Leo Institute, the top Duel school in the whole world."

"So what's that have to do with Yuya?" Asked Skip.

"Yuya made a fool of our student!" She answered. "This is now about honour! Honour that we have all lost! But that we'll soon restore! By way of our students battling in a Duel!"

"Is it hot or is it just me?" Asked Skip as the woman in front of her was engulfed in a fiery aura.

"If your school wins," She continued, "then I'll forget about the Yuya incident, but, if we win the Duel… Then effective immediately, the Leo Institute will take over the You Show Duel School."

"Take over?" Asked a shocked Yuya.

"No way!" Said Zuzu in disbelief.

"How's taking it over restore honour?" Asked Gong. "This seems pretty fishy, if you ask Gong!"

"Yes, I agree." Said Skip. "Especially since I know how the Leo Institute has been aggressively expanding across the globe. You've been taking over Duel Schools left and right, and not always in the nicest ways. Tell me… Did you set this all up simply to take our school?"

"No, I did not." She responded. "But, I happen to be an opportunist, so… When I see an opportunity such as this, I can't resist. You see, there are three ultimate summoning methods, Fusion, Synchro, and of course Xyz. But it's come to my attention that there is now a fourth method, Pendulum. And though I don't know why or how, you're the only school around that seems to have any kind of connection to it. And with all due respect, the potential of Pendulum Summoning is wasted here. However, with the technological resources of the Leo Corporation it would positively flourish. Why, there's no telling of all the new monsters and Duel manoeuvres that could come from it. The possibilities are endless. Come now, doesn't that excite you?" She asked the three kids.

"Yeah, but the only way to Pendulum Summon is with Yuya's Pendulum Cards." Tate responded.

"So it would seem, little one, but why don't you just let me worry about that? I'm certain that I will be able to figure out some sort of solution."

"You treat Dueling like it's a business…" Said Yuya. "But here we believe it's all about show business! Don't you see? That's when Dueling is at its most powerful, when it's used to make people happy! Not when it's used to push people around in order to make some big shot school even bigger! But if you really feel like your school has lost its rep somehow and the only way you can get it back is by way of a Duel then that's fine, but that Duel is gonna have to be with me!"

For once, I agreed with Yuya wholeheartedly. When you Duel to have fun and to entertain others in the crowd, then you have found the true meaning of Dueling. But if you use it to hurt others and fulfil your own selfish desires, then it's up to people like Yuya to stop them, and I would help him in any way I can, even when things are at their darkest.

"Atta boy, Yuya!" Gong said. "Gong totally feels the exact same way that you do! And because he does, Gong's volunteering to face-off in a match, as well!"

"You can't Duel!" Said Sora, leaping off the desk and landing on his feet. "We'd lose for sure!" Gong's face turned to shock as he turned as white as a ghost at Sora's words. "What I mean is," he elaborated, "we'd be disqualified because Gong doesn't go to You Show and she said students have to Duel. So forget the big guy back there, if we're talking multiple Duels, talk to me!"

"Wait, did you say forget about Gong? That's totally unacceptable! Gong wants to Duel, Gong needs to Duel!"

"I have to agree with Sora on this matter." I said. "No matter how badly you want to Duel Gong, only us You Show students are allowed to. Sorry, but you'll have to sit this one out for now."

"It seems your students have agreed to my terms," Henrietta said after watching the conversation, "but what say you?"

"What I say, Madame Chairwoman…" Skip began, "… is you have a deal!"

"Let's Duel!" We all said after he accepted the proposal.

…

Henrietta put her phone away after finishing a phone call to the Leo Institute, excusing the three students she needed for the Duels from their classes, when I spoke.

"That was a risky move you just pulled." I said, surprising her.

"So," she responded, "you're Luna I presume."

I smiled. "I see that Declan filled you in on what happened. You're lucky that you found the only loophole in my conditions. If the Leo Corporation owns the You Show Duel School, then you won't need to steal or force Yuya to hand over his Pendulum Cards. You could just ask him to hand them over to you so you could analyse and produce your own copies. So, in a way, you would be meeting all my conditions to the letter."

"Where do you come from?" Henrietta asked me.

I smiled at the question. "Now that would be telling." I said cheekily. "Maybe, if you win the Duel, I'll tell you. Afterall, I also attend You Show, which means you would have the authority to order me to." I turned around and started walking to the arena. "I look forward to watching the Duels, despite the inevitable outcome."

…

Later, we were all standing in the Duel court, Skip and his chosen students on one side, with them being Yuya, Zuzu and Sora. On the other side was Henrietta and her three students.

"So that we're all in agreement," the woman said, "we will have three separate matches between three Duelists from my school and three from yours. Now then, who's first?"

"Right here!" Said Sora enthusiastically.

"No, me!" Said Yuya with a serious look on his face.

"A wise choice." Henrietta said. "Starting your strongest Duelist first. After all, getting blown out in your first match would be demoralizing. Save the weak for last…"

"Who are you calling weak?!" Said a ticked off Sora. "Let's arm wrestle, right now, you and me!"

Zuzu then slid over to Sora's side, laughing nervously. "Keep it together…" She said, putting her hand on the boy's head.

"Although," Henrietta continued. "I highly doubt that it will matter much whoever Duels first. You see, the students I've brought over from the Leo Institute are at the top of their class, and each one of them specializes in a unique style of play. The one facing Yuya will be Dipper."

The boy she chose strode forward. He was wearing white pants, a purple and navy jacket over a light purple shirt, and had purple spiked up hair, and was wearing a small crown that resembled a constellation.

"That's my name," he said, "and don't you dare forget it, or you'll pay…"

"We'll pay how?" Asked Zuzu.

"No way…" Said Allie after Tate brought up Dipper's file. "This guy's practically a pro!"

"Ja," said Frederick, "it says he's already met the requirements to enter this year's Championships!"

"Not just met them, Frederick." The young girl said. "His record is off the charts!"

"When you're getting ready for battle Yuya," Skip advised, "there's just one way to go! And that's with a battle cry! You ready? Let's go!" The two then let out a battle cry.

"I think I pulled something." Skip said.

The tension in the air was so thick, I think I could have cut though it with Frightfur Bear's scissors.

"Enjoy this while it lasts," said Henrietta, "because I doubt it will last long. Now… Shall we start?"

"Oh, yeah!" Said Skip, now in the booth above the field, ready to choose the Action Field. "And we're starting with a bang! Know why? Because we… Are blasting into outer space! I activate the Action Field Spell Cosmic Sanctuary!"

"Augmented reality combat system energized." Said a robotic voice. "Generating Action Field."

The field then changed into an ancient temple courtyard that was floating in the middle of outer space, the sky was dotted with stars and constellations as well as galaxies. After it finished appearing, I facepalmed, hard.

"Skip," I mentally scolded him. "you are a massive idiot."

Dipper was stunned for a moment, then started laughing.

"You fool…" He said. "Did you not realize space is my special style of play?"

"Say whaat?!" Asked Skip.

"His name's Dipper," pointed out Sora, "as in Big Dipper? He did warn you not to forget."

The principal then turned as white as a sheet and screamed as he realised his folly.

The two Duelists then activated their Duel Disks, ready for battle.

"Here we go…" Said Yuya. "It's showtime! And time for me to represent the You Show School with my best… 'cause the stakes are high… My school's on the line!"

"The Action Duel is set, and both the Duelists are too!" Said Allie.

"Then what are we waiting for?" Said Frederick. "Let's get this going!"

"Right!" Said Tate. "Do the honours, Allie!"

"Okay!" The young red-head said. "Yuya, Dipper, without further ado…"

"It is time to…" The two boys continued.

"Duel!" The tomato and purple-haired boys cried, beginning the Duel.

…

Outside the Duel School, someone arrived and entered the building. As they entered the viewing room, they stopped and waited behind the corner, out of sight, but still would be able to hear the Duel.

"Bring it on, Dipper." Yuya said. "I'm ready for your very best!"

And that was what Dipper did, summoning an Xyz Monster onto his field on his first turn. When he did that, I swear that Tate asked the same question as Allie did when I explained how Xyz Summoning worked, which Sora then answered, giving a quick recap of what I said in class. When Yuya's turn came around, he used his Stargazer and Timegazer Magicians to Pendulum Summon his Performapal Swordfish and his Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon, much to the interest of the people who were seeing Pendulum Summoning in person for the first time. Yuya then used Swordfish's ability to decrease Constellar Pleiades's Attack Points by 600, which meant the Xyz Monster's Attack Points reduced from 2500 to 1900. Yuya then attacked Pleiades with his Odd-Eyes, however, Dipper activated Pleiades's ability, using one Overlay Unit and sending Odd-Eyes back to Yuya's hand, successfully stopping the attack. When that happened, Yuya, who was riding Odd-Eyes at the time, fell onto the ground.

When Odd-Eyes disappeared, Yuya was only stuck with his Swordfish, who was not strong enough to defeat the Xyz Monster. While Yuya contemplated what he should do next, he noticed a meteor shower, and realised that each one of the shooting stars must contain an Action Card. One of them hit one of the temples and started glowing, revealing that it was indeed an Action Card. The boy started running for it, but when he reached it, Constellar Pleiades blocked him, with Dipper ending up being the one to get it. Yuya ran for another, but Pleiades blocked him again.

"Gong sure is mad." Gong said. "How can Yuya win like this?"

"I don't know." Said Zuzu. "It's like we played right into the Chairwoman's hands."

"Yuya," Skip cried, "it's all my fault! I chose the field! Forgive me! I'm sorry!"

"Darn right you are." I thought.

"He can stuff his sorrys in a sack." Said Dipper rudely. "The bottom line is I've never lost on this field and I don't plan on starting now. Especially to a second-rate Duel School flunky like you."

"No-one ever does." I responded mentally.

"Yeah?" Yuya responded. "We'll just see about that. I end my turn with a Face-Down!"

A card appeared on his field as Dipper drew his card to begin his turn. Dipper then ordered Constellar Pleiades to attack Performapal Swordfish, destroying it and reducing Yuya's Life Points to 2100. He then placed a card face-down and ended his turn. Yuya then drew his card and Pendulum Summoned once more, summoning Performapal Turn Toad and bringing Odd-Eyes back from the Extra Deck, much to the dismay of Sora. Yuya then spotted another Action Card making it's landing at a nearby temple, then hopped onto Odd-Eyes and started running for it.

"Seems he's going for the Action Card once more." Said Henrietta. "I guess he didn't learn his lesson the first time."

"Why's he taking such a risk?" Asked Zuzu.

"Gong doesn't know." Said boy answered. "Gong's never seen him Duel with such abandon. Sometimes it's like he's a different person."

When Gong said that, I knew that Zuzu was remembering the person who saved her, mentally comparing the two Duelists together.

"Could it be?" She asked.

As Yuya got close to the Action Card, Dipper activated Constellar Pleiades's ability once more, sending Odd-Eyes back to Yuya's hand once more. The Pendulum user started falling again, and in that split second, he activated the Trap, Performapal Revival, bringing Performapal Swordfish back in the nick of time, and used the Monster as a handhold as it stabbed into the roof of the temple, saving Yuya's life. When the tomato-haired boy picked up the Action Card, Dipper played his, revealing it to be Cosmic Arrow, destroying Yuya's card. With nothing else he could do, Yuya ended his turn. For the start of his turn, Dipper summoned Constellar Sombre. Then he activated Sombre's ability, adding Constellar Kaus back to his hand, but banishing Constellar Algiedi. He then summoned his Kaus as well, then activated its ability again to raise both its and Constellar Algiedi's Level's to 5. Then, Dipper Overlayed his two Level 5 Monsters and Xyz Summoned another Constellar Pleiades. Then he Overlayed his Overlay Unitless Pleiades to Xyz Summon his Rank 6 Constellar Ptolemy M7.

"Perhaps now you all understand why it's best the Leo Institute take over your teachings." Henrietta said. "That is, if we even go so far as to re-admit any of you."

Another Action Card impacted a temple and Yuya raced to get it. Unfortunately, Dipper took that moment to activate his Pleiades's ability, sending the Turn Toad back to Yuya's hand. The boy fell for a second, grabbing the edge of the courtyard in the nick of time to stop his fall. He heaved himself to his feet and continued running for the card. Dipper ordered Pleiades to attack Swordfish, unfortunately, the attack was too strong and when it destroyed the Performapal, it also started causing the temple to crumble around Yuya, burying him alive.

We waited as the smoke cleared, revealing a scratched up Yuya still standing, holding the Action Card he found in the temple.

"All right!" Cried Zuzu.

"He nabbed it!" Continued Gong.

"No way." Said Dipper in disbelief. "This can't be."

"Yes, it can," declared Yuya, "and now this show's gonna keep goin' on!"

"Way to go Yuya!" Sora cheered.

"Awesome play!" Skip congratulated him.

"You're our hero!" Cried Tate and Allie.

"I love a hero sandwich!" Said Frederick. When he said that, I sweat-dropped again.

"This Duel's ending right here and now." Declared Dipper. "Constellar Ptolemy M7, attack Yuya!"

"I activate the Action Spell Twinkle Comet!" Yuya said, playing the card. "Now until the end of the turn, Ptolemy M7's Attack Points decrease by 1000, and you take 500 points of damage."

Dipper's Life Points decreased to 3500, while Yuya's decreased to 400 due to the Battle Damage that was inflicted.

"You fool!" Said a now ticked off Dipper. "All you've done is prolong the inevitable. But if you want to experience more Duel suffering, works for me! I activate the Spell Card Constellar Tempest! Only when I have two or more Xyz on my field can this storm get brewing, or perhaps I should say firestorm!" As he spoke, meteors fell from the sky, narrowly hitting Yuya as they impacted the field. "And this fire'll take its toll, on your Life Points," he explained, "torching them in half when I end my turn. So, I'll end it right now."

When that happened, a meteor knocked Yuya off his feet, decreasing his Life Points further to 200.

"And that also means Ptolemy M7's Attack Points go back to normal. You're all mine next round." Dipper said sinisterly. "This Duel is over."

"Not yet it's not." Corrected Frederick.

"Yeah, how do you know?" Asked Allie.

"Because Dueling's a business," he explained, "and when you treat it that way, you're sure to win."

"I sincerely doubt that." I murmured.

"No!" Said Yuya. "Dueling's about…" he then groaned in pain as he got up, "… the passion of your play." He finished, unknowingly repeating what his counterpart said. "It's like I said before. Dueling's not a business at all. It's a show business. And now it's showtime! First up, I summon Performapal Trampolynx!"

A new Monster that resembled a cross between some sort of cat and a trampoline appeared on Yuya's field.

"And when this feline takes to the field," he said, "I'm allowed to return one card in play back to my hand. And I choose the Scale 1 Stargazer Magician."

"Wait." Said Tate. "But he was part of the Pendulum."

"Ya, so now what?" Asked Frederick, confused.

"Now, 'cause Stargazer left," Yuya continued, "I get to replace him with another Monster of my choosing. And I choose Turn Toad." Yuya then placed the Monster on his Duel Disk, creating a new Pendulum Scale, much to the surprise of everyone else. "And after you see what's next, you're gonna flip, because now with the Scale 3 Turn Toad and Scale 8 Timegazer, I have a brand-new Pendulum Scale to work with. And this premiere performance is totally going to have you on the edge of your seat. I can now summon any Monsters from Levels 4 through 7."

I smiled at him as he did this.

"Ready or not, here… they… come!"

Two streams of light emerged from the portal, depositing a new Monster to the field.

"First," Yuya said, "I'll cast Stargazer Magician in a starring role."

"So, instead of being part of the Pendulum," I heard the unknown man murmur, "he's now purely a Monster."

"And now for the super-starring role," the Pendulum user said, "give it up one more time for… Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon!"

"It again?" Said Dipper. "No worries. Because I activate Constellar Pleiades's ability! By using one Overlay Unit, Odd-Eyes returns to your hand."

"Yeah, but it won't be gone for too long." His opponent said, surprising Dipper. "And it's all thanks to Stargazer's ability! With it, once per turn, if a Pendulum Monster on my field leaves, I'm allowed to summon it right back. And this time, it's here to stay."

Stargazer lifted up his staff and the circular piece started glowing and turned. Suddenly, a white glow appeared on the field and Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon emerged from the light, exactly where it was before the Xyz Monster activated its ability.

"But I'm not done just yet." Said Yuya. "Next, I activate another ability. Turn Toad's Pendulum Ability, to be exact. I can flip a Monster's Attack and Defence Points. And the Monster whose points I'll be swapping is Stargazer Magician."

Stargazer's points then swapped, making its Defence Points 1200, and its Attack Point's 2400.

"Next I activate the Spell Card Magical Star Illusion. Since Stargazer Magician is out and about, I add up the Levels of all my Monsters, and they gain Attack Points equal to a hundred times the total. And it's not just me. You get to do the exact same thing with your Monsters, Dipper."

"Whoa, do the math. This has the potential to be really big! Odd-Eyes is Level 7, and Stargazer is 5. Trampolynx is Level 2, so that's 14. Multiply that amount by 100, and Yuya's Monsters gain 1400 Attack Points!"

"Ya, but won't all of Dipper's Monsters rise in power, too?" Asked Frederick.

"No, they won't." Said Sora.

"Oh, yeah!" Tate said, realizing what Sora was getting at. "Xyz Monsters only have Ranks!"

"So, Dipper's Monsters won't change at all!" Said Allie, catching on.

"This can't be happening!" Cried Dipper.

"Looks like you taking me down just wasn't in the stars." Yuya replied while jumping on Odd-Eyes' back. "Now, Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon, attack Constellar Ptolemy M7! Go Spiral Flame Strike!"

The attack hit, the shockwaves sending Dipper flying.

"Now, Stargazer Magician, attack Pleiades! Astronomy Attack!"

Stargazer traced a new constellation with his staff, sending it right towards Constellar Pleiades, destroying it as well and reducing Dipper's Life Points from 2300 to 1000.

"And now for the big finisher. Trampolynx, attack Dipper directly!"

The massive cat/trampoline hybrid ran towards Dipper, jumped into the air and landed on Dipper trampoline side down, curled up, and released him, launching the Constellar Duelist right for the stars in the sky, only for him to hit the wall of the Action Field as his Life Points dropped to 0.

As Yuya left the arena, I noticed Zuzu was now more confused then ever after the Duel.

"Yuya!" Cried Tate. The tomato-haired boy started in surprise as he saw the three kids pounce at him and knocked him over while hugging him.

"You were wunderbar!" Said Frederick.

"Yeah, Yuya!" Said Allie.

"Thanks, Frederick." Said Yuya.

"High-five. High-ten. High-twenty!" The four of them said, giving the Pendulum Duelist high fives.

"Yuya!" Said Gong, with tears in his eyes. The boy then went over to Yuya and gave him a soul crushing hug. "You did it! Your Duelin' made Gong happier than Gong on his birthday! Gong's never been prouder!"

"Okay, easy." The boy protested. "You're breaking my ribs!"

After Gong released him, Yuya then looked at the pink-haired Duelist. "Zuzu." He said, which startled her for a second. "You're up next, Zuzu, and we're counting on you."

"Don't worry." The girl said. "Just leave it to me. I know our whole school's at stake… so I know I have to win this!"

I looked over at the Leo team just as Henrietta started lecturing Dipper.

"You've allowed a student from a third-rate school to thoroughly humiliate you." She said. "And you've tarnished the reputation of the Leo Institute's Xyz curriculum."

"Zuzu," Yuya said, catching my attention as he talked to the girl, "just Duel the way you always do."

"Right." She said, nodding.

"You'll win."

"Begin the second Duel." The Chairwoman said to a girl behind her.

"Yes, Madame Chairwoman." She responded. She then walked over to our group, catching our attention. The girl was a dark skinned 14-year-old with dark hair and red eyes, wearing a light blue top over a yellow shirt and pants, and strapped to her waist was a Duel Disk holster. "My name is Julia Krystal and I'm a Fusion Summoner." She said.

"Huh." Said Sora after hearing this. "Well this battle just got a lot more interesting."

Julia then took out her dark blue Duel Disk and strapped it to her arm. "Do any one of you amateurs have enough guts to go against me?"

"Yeah, I do!" Said Zuzu.

Julia chuckled. "Ready?" She asked.

As the two then proceeded to enter the arena, I held Zuzu back for a second.

"Be careful." I said. "Unlike Dipper, Julia was upfront about telling us what summoning method she mastered, which means she is confident about her abilities as a Duelist. She'll probably try to catch you off guard with her words, so concentrate on Dueling her and try not to get distracted, Julia will use that to her advantage." Zuzu nodded in understanding and took her place on the arena floor. They both activated their Duel Disks and waited for Skip to choose the Action Field.

"The perfect setting for my precious little jewel would be…" he said, "this one! I activate the Action Field Spell, Crystal Corridor!"

When the Action Field finished generating, I facepalmed again.

"Zuzu," He said to his daughter, "this is the perfect field to reflect your flawless, sparkling skills! Time to twinkle and shine, sweetie!"

"This is so embarrassing." Said Zuzu, blushing.

"Your father may see you as a sparkling little jewel," Julia said, "but we know better, don't we?"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Zuzu said.

"You're a fake," the Fusion Duelist elaborated, "a liar, too afraid to tell the truth about your pal!"

"You don't know anything about me!"

"Maybe not, but I know a lot about jewels. My father is a gem merchant and I've seen thousands and thousands of them. I know how real jewels shine. You don't have that shine. Maybe you can fool your father and your friends, but you can't fool me, Zuzu. Cause' I can see it in your eyes, you're filled with doubt."

"You can believe whatever you want to believe!" Replied Zuzu. "The only way to really prove what's in my heart is to stop talking and start Dueling."

And so they did, with the Duel playing out exactly the same way as it did in the show, with Julia Fusion Summoning her Gem-Knight Topaz and setting a card on her first turn. Zuzu started her turn off with 1st Movement Solo, allowing her to summon her Aria the Melodious Diva, then she summoned her Sonata the Melodious Diva. Zuzu then tributed her two Monsters in order to summon her Mozarta the Melodious Maestra. The pink-haired girl then activated her Maestra's ability allowing her to summon her Canon the Melodious Diva to her field. Zuzu then ordered Mozarta to attack Julia's Gem-Knight Topaz with Graceful Wave, successfully destroying it. However, Julia did not seemed worried that Zuzu destroyed her Monster, almost seeming like she wanted it to happen. Zuzu then ordered Canon to attack the Fusion User directly, lowering her Life Points to 1800. Zuzu then switched her Canon to Defence Mode and ended her turn. Julia then summoned Gem-Knight Alexandrite to her field, then activated its ability, sending it to the Graveyard in order to summon her Gem-Knight Crystal from her Deck. She then activated the Trap Fragment Fusion, and banished her Gem-Knights Alexandrite, Tourmaline and Emerald to Fusion Summon her Gem-Knight Master Diamond. Julia then used Master Diamond's ability to banish Gem-Knight Topaz from her Graveyard. She then attacked Zuzu's Canon with her Crystal and destroyed it. Then the Gem-Knight Duelist attacked Zuzu's Maestra with Master Diamond, defeating her and dropping Zuzu's Life Points to 3700. Just when everyone thought she was done, Julia revealed that when Master Diamond banished Topaz, he gained the lost Monster's ability to deal damage equal to Mozarta's Attack Points, which reduced the Melodious Duelist's Life Points to 1100.

Julia then revealed that Master Diamond could now attack twice per turn, meaning Zuzu was about to lose. Zuzu spotted an Action Card nearby and dashed for it just as Julia declared her attack. However, when she tried to grab it, she discovered that it was a reflection in the column, and that the real card was next to the one behind her. But before she moved to grab it, Diamond's attack hit, reducing Zuzu's Life Points to 0, meaning Julia won the Duel. The field dissipated as Yuya ran in to help Zuzu.

"Boring." Said Sora. "That's what I call a total blowout."

"That was no surprise." Said Henrietta.

"Zuzu. Zuzu. Zuzu!" Yuya said as the girl opened her eyes. She groaned as she slowly got up.

"I'm sorry about your Duel." The tomato-haired boy continued to say.

"Yeah." She said quietly as she got to her feet, then she stumbled weakly and fell into Yuya's arms, much to the boy's surprise.

"Hey, you sure you're okay?" He asked as she did that.

"Is this gonna be over any time soon?" Asked an amused Julia.

Upon hearing this, Zuzu realised that she was hugging Yuya, then turned bright pink and promptly pushed him over.

"What'd you do that for?" Asked Yuya, in pain from the fall.

"I'm so sorry." Apologized Zuzu, bowing.

"Well, I forgive you, but my back's not so sure."

"I'm sorry about that Duel, too." She said. "I know how important it was… and I lost"

"Hey, lighten up, Zuzu. We just gotta win the next one."

"Oh, is that all you have to do?"

We turned around to see the third Duelist, a boy who wielded a wooden katana.

"That should be pretty impossible." The boy continued.

"Who are you?" Asked Yuya.

"The name's Kit Blade, and I'm the slickest Synchro Summoner you'll ever meet! Now which one of you do I get to beat?"

We all stood in the viewing room, deciding which Duelist was going to face Kit.

"Yuya won his Duel…" Allie said.

"And Zuzu lost hers." Frederick finished.

"The next Duel decides it." Said Tate.

"Oh man, Gong wishes he could get in there and get Gong some revenge for how that kid treated Zuzu!" The large boy said. "But since Gong doesn't go to You Show, Gong can't step up to take down the competition. Listen, Sora, this is a win-or-go home situation so you gotta beat him!"

"I'm not really into pressure situations like this," the blue-haired boy said while licking a lollypop, "and I'm sure the competition won't mind, so if you wanna Duel instead of me, I'm totally fine with it, big brows."

"Huh! Big brows?" Asked Gong, then he registered what the Frightfur boy said. "Did you say I could Duel instead of you?"

"Yeah. For some reason, I'm not getting a good vibe from that guy."

"But what about Luna?"

I smiled at Gong. "No worries," I said. "I'm not ready to reveal all I've got in store in my Deck, so you have my blessing to Duel instead of me as well."

"Then just leave this guy to Gong." The boy said.

"You know how much this Duel means, Gong." Yuya said. "But there's nobody else I'd want or trust more to fight for our school than my very best friend."

"Yuya…" Gong croaked; his eyes watery with tears. "Now Gong's really fired up!" He cried, surrounded by a fiery aura. "Gong's hotter than a jalapeno in a heat wave, and Gong's gonna beat that guy like a bass drum at homecoming!"

"Hey!" Kit said, now standing in front of Gong. "I don't have all day, big brows. If you're chicken, save us both some time and get someone else to Duel, you got it?"

"How dare you!" Said Gong. "Nobody calls the great and powerful Gong a chicken and gets away with it! Gong'll show you who's chicken. Now, let's get Duelin'!"

"If you think for one second I'm gonna roll over and lose like the wannabes who got beat before," Kit said, "grab a reality check, big brows. See, I'm a totally different kind of Duelist. I actually know what I'm doing!"

"Do you hear what Kit just said about us?" Asked Dipper angrily. "He—he just said we that we don't know what we're doing!"

"I hate to break the news to you," Julia said, "but he wasn't talking about us. He was talking about you."

"Ouch." I thought as I saw Dipper take his place in an emo corner as Julia burned him.

The Duel also went the same way as it did in the show, with Kit Synchro Summoning multiple times and Gong defending himself, and with Yuya revealing that due to Gong's absolute faith in the Heart of the Cards and his training in the art of the Heavy-Strong Dueling Style, Gong's Deck contained only Monster Cards. However, in the end, even Superheavy Samurai Big Benkei couldn't wing Gong the Duel, so he used the power of his Superheavy Samurai Soulbang Cannon in order to bring the Duel to a Draw.

"Madame Chairwoman," Skip said after the two Duelists left the field, "the deal was you'd take over this school if your team won the best of a three-match contest. Your team only won one Duel, so the school stays ours."

"That's absolute nonsense." Henrietta said. "This Duel is supposed to be the tie-breaker. The contest can't be decided by a Draw."

"It was a tie! The last Duel is over."

"Then we'll have another Duel. The ones who won their Duels can Duel against each other now, agreed?"

"You shouldn't get to decide! Leave it up to the Duelists."

As the principal said that, Yuya strode forward, wearing his goggles.

"Yuya?" asked Zuzu nervously.

"Your boy looks like he's raring to go." Henrietta said. "And so are we."

"Wait."

Everyone on Henrietta's side stiffened in surprise at the voice that suddenly spoke behind us. We turned around, and, to my lack of surprise, a young silver-haired man wearing glasses stood behind us.

"I'll be the one to Duel." He said.

Yuya and the silver-haired man stood looking at each other.

"Poor Yuya must be a nervous wreck!" Said Allie.

"If he doesn't win…" Frederick began.

"Our school's theirs." Tate finished.

"Forgive Gong for failing ya!" Gong apologised to the tomato-haired boy. "Gong wanted to save the You Show School. But it wasn't meant to be. Now it's come down to one final Duel and all the pressure's on you."

"No, it's not." Said Sora while eating a bar of chocolate. "It looks to me like Yuya's as cool as a penguin on an iceberg. I bet he's psyched that it's all come down to him winning this one last Duel."

"The future of my school's at stake." The Pendulum Duelist said. "But I'm up for the challenge!"

"All you Leo fanatics better watch out!" Said Tate.

"Your team is strong, but we have Pendulum power!" Said Frederick.

"We can't lose with Yuya on our side!" Finished Allie.

"It's gonna be Yuya all the way!" Said Tate. "He's number one!"

"You children are incredibly naïve." Said Henrietta. "Seriously, your poor friend doesn't stand a chance against Declan."

"The time for talk is over, don't you agree?" Declan said to Yuya. "Out on the Dueling field, it's actions that count. Words mean nothing."

The two boys stood on either side of the field, ready to Duel.

"Hey, Yuya, perk up!" Zuzu told the boy, surprising him. "Don't forget! You Show trains us to be Dueltainers! Your greatest asset is your smile!"

Yuya then took off his goggles. "She's right. I can't let the pressure of competition throw me off my game. My number one priority has to be to have fun. Let's make this the most awesome Duel ever! Hope you guys are ready 'cause this is gonna be epic!"

"All right! Go for it! Do it Yuya!" Cheered the three kids.

"Good." I heard the Chairwoman say. "I can't wait to see that grin wiped off his face."

"We need to pick an Action Field." Yuya said to Declan.

"Your school, your choice." The silver-haired man said.

"Pick a good one!" Yuya told Skip.

"Get set to Duel under the big top!" The principal cried. "I activate the Action Field Spell… Acrobatic Circus!"

Upon him pressing the button, the field now changed into the inside of a circus tent, giving it a now more entertaining feel.

"Only thing missing are clowns." Said Sora.

"Don't you worry none." Said Gong. "Yuya's got that covered. Since his whole life's a circus, this field's perfect for him."

The two Duelists activated their Duel Disks, ready for the battle ahead.

"The Leo Institute has chosen its champion!" Cried Zuzu.

"Declan is set to take on You Show's star student…" Began Tate.

"The amazing Yuya Sakaki!" Finished Frederick

"You're about to witness the ultimate School Duel!" Said Allie

"So get ready to Action…" The three kids and Zuzu said.

"Duel!" Finished Yuya and Declan.

"Since you did me a favour by letting me choose the field," Yuya said. "I'll let you go first."

"You're gonna regret that later." I thought knowingly.

"You really believe I was doing you a favour, don't you?" Declan responded. "Ha." he laughed. "That tells me a lot about what kind of competitor you are. All right. I will accept your offer. The first turns mine. To begin, I'm going to activate three Spell Cards from my hand. First this one. This legally binding Spell is known as Dark Contract With the Gate. This Spell deals me 1000 points of damage at the beginning of my next turn."

Yuya looked at Declan in confusion when he said that.

"That move makes no sense!" Said Zuzu.

"Yeah, it's like he's tryin' to throw the Duel away when it's just starting!" Gong cried.

"Actually, that move makes a lot of sense if you know what Deck he plays." I said, the two looking at me in confusion, noticing the serious look on my face.

"However, there is a benefit." Declan continued. "Once per turn, I can add a D/D Monster that's Level 4 or below to my hand from my Deck. I would like to introduce you to my D/D Cerberus."

"D/D?" Asked Frederick.

"It stands for 'Different Dimension.'" Responded Sora. "Those Monsters are out of this world."

"And Declan's mastered every one of those cards in his Deck." I said. "Which means that Yuya is currently in over his head. Especially since he's up against one of the most powerful D/D users that I ever met." Upon hearing what I said, everyone became more worried for Yuya.

"For my second move, I will activate this Spell Card. It's the same one I used before."

"What!?" Said Gong when the silver-haired man did that. "By doing that, when his next turn comes up…"

"He'll be 2000 points weaker!" Finished Zuzu.

"Once again," Declan continued. "I have the power to add a D/D Monster to my hand if it is Level 4 or below. In this case, the Monster will be D/D Lilith. And now I will activate a third Spell Card. It's called Dark Contract with the Swamp King, and like my other Contract Spells, once my next turn starts, I get hit with 1000 points of damage."

"Declan seems to be taking a huge risk." Yuya said to himself. "He must have something major up his sleeve."

"It's not up my sleeve, but in my Deck, Yuya." The D/D user responded. "With the power of Dark Contract With the Swamp King, I can summon a Fusion Monster without using a Fusion Spell."

"Huh?" Said the blue-haired Fusion Duelist, surprised that Declan can Fusion Summon.

"So that's his strategy! Now I get it." Said Yuya.

"Don't kid yourself." Declan told the Performapal user. "You understand nothing! Watch as I fuse Cerberus and Lilith together! I Fusion Summon D/D/D Flame King Genghis!"

"Oh, man." Said Yuya.

"The guy is a Fusion master!" Said Gong.

"Still he put a lot of points at risk for one Monster, don't you think?" Pointed out Zuzu.

"This one must be really powerful!" Said Allie.

"It has three D's!" Said Tate.

"That's a lot of letters!" Said Frederick.

"I got… a bad feeling." Said Sora. "I can't pin it down exactly, but if it's as powerful as it is terrifying, then Yuya's in for trouble."

"Believe me." I said. "He hasn't even begun to show his full abilities yet."

"I'm placing two cards Face-Down. It's your move."

"He played all the cards in his hand." Yuya said to himself.

"That's a really risky move." Said Zuzu.

"Believe me when I say that Declan doesn't need to have any cards in his hand to win." I said. "'Cause if Yuya isn't careful, Declan will win."

Declan stood there, adjusted his glasses and studied Yuya.

"Mr. Sunshine there sure is full of himself." Said Allie.

"If he's such a great Duelist, his school wouldn't have left him on the bench until now." Said Frederick.

"Good point." Agreed Sora. "He could be overconfident. Declan must thing he's way more skilled than Yuya, 'cause he's practically spotting him 3000 points at the start."

"He's right!" Zuzu Realised.

"If there's one thing Gong can't abide, it's a hot-doggin' Duelist. That skunk. he deserves to get his Deck demolished!"

"Put him in his place, Yuya!" Tate cried.

"That's right! Show him you're the best Duelist!" Agreed Allie.

"Shred that guy like a bowl of sauerkraut!" Said Frederick.

"Right!" Responded Yuya.

"You're missing one important detail." I said, surprising the others. "The reason he didn't participate in any of the Duels was because no-one even knew he was here."

Their faces showed shock at my words.

"What do you mean?" Asked Zuzu.

"I mean that Declan arrived shortly after the first Duel began, which means that no-one else knew he was here in the first place."

I then turned and watched as Yuya began his turn.

"I'll defeat Declan all right," he said, "but I'll do it with flair! It's showtime!"

The boy then took off running and drew his card. He then jumped into the air as he said. "Please welcome, Performapal Whip Snake!"

He then landed on a platform with his purple snake floating beside him.

"All right, Whip Snake," he told the serpent, "use your special ability! It can hypnotize your Monster into swapping it's Attack and Defence Points!"

"And just like that, it weakens Flame King!" Said Allie joyfully.

"Which means Whip Snake is perfectly set up to strike now!" Said Tate. "Nice going!"

"It's go time!" Announced Yuya. "Whip Snake, extinguish that Fire King!"

"You won't be putting anything out!" Said Declan. "I activate the Trap, Dark Contract With the Witch!"

"A Contract again!?" Said Gong.

"That means…" Said Zuzu.

"I will once again take damage at the beginning of my next turn." The silver-haired Duelist finished. "Another 1000 points to be exact. Meanwhile, my Flame King Genghis will benefit by gaining 1000 Attack Points."

"But that mean's Whip Snake's attack will go kerplunk!" Said Frederick.

"I've got a few tricks of my own," Yuya said, landing on a tall platform, "including my High Dive! This amazing Action Card will boost Whip Snake by 1000 Attack Points till the end of my turn!"

In the middle of its attack, the Snake fell thought the air and landed on a trampoline, launch both it and its Attack Points sky high.

"Okay, Whip Snake, get back to work and K.O. that King!"

Declan leaped into the air, grabbing an Action Card, then he activated the final card on the field, revealing it to be a Trap, activating its effect and clearing enough room to play the Action Card.

"Oh, yeah!" Cried the kids as the attack hit Genghis, in that moment it's Attack Points dropped back to 1500. As the Monster was destroyed, the three Leo Duelists were shocked at the fact that Declan's Monster was apparently destroyed.

"Wait! What happened!?" Said Frederick as the smoke on the field cleared, revealing the Flame King to still be alive.

"He survived?" Asked Yuya.

"Yes," confirmed Declan, "because I activated an Action Card of my own. The Spell Card Evasion to be precise."

Yuya smiled. "Couldn't have done it better myself." He said.

"Huh? Seems to be an even match." Said Skip.

"Well, I disagree!" Said Zuzu.

"Yeah, Declan still has to pay off four Contracts." Said Gong. "When they come due at the start of his turn, they'll cost him 4000 Life Points. He's toast!"

"All Yuya has to do is end his turn now," Zuzu pointed out, "and Declan won't know what hit him!"

"Yeah, and then it'll be game over!" Said Allie.

"Easy-peasy!" Said Frederick.

"Declan blundered big time!" Said Tate.

"Don't judge a candy bar by its wrapper." Warned Sora. "Think about it, guys. Why would he leave himself so defenceless unless he had other plans? Did you notice what happened when Whip Snake attacked his King? Just before impact, Genghis's Attack Points went back to 1500. There had to be a reason. It makes sense for Yuya to go for the easy win here, but if he does, I'm afraid he could be marching straight into an enemy trap!"

Declan started softly laughing.

"I don't see what's so funny." Said Yuya.

"Of course you don't." The man said. "What made me laugh was remembering the moment when you said you would do me a favour and let me go first. It's clear from your attitude that you're a nice guy, Yuya. But alas, you haven't learned yet that in a Duel, playing 'Nice' is the quickest path to defeat. By ending your turn now, you know you can achieve victory and yet you haven't made a move. Perhaps since you're a nice guy, your sense of fair play has caused you to hesitate. Such weakness will inevitably lead to your downfall."

"What is he yakking about!" Asked Frederick.

"It don't make no difference!" Said Gong.

"Ignore him, Yuya!" Said Allie.

"Just end your turn!" Tate said.

Yuya stared at Declan, trying to see anything that might be amiss.

"I'm afraid this is it for you, Declan." The boy said. "I'm ending my turn. Whip Snake's special ability wears off now, so Genghis's Attack and Defence Points will switch back to their original totals. High Dive's effect will also wear off now. Whip Snake's Attack Points go back to normal, too. And now, you have to pay off all the Contracts you activated. That will cost you 4000 Life Points!"

Declan smiled. "Excuse me?" He asked. "What Contracts?"

The four Contract cards that appeared on Declan's field then exploded into golden sparks, much to the surprise of everyone else.

"Where did they all go!?" Said Yuya.

"My Contracts have all been broken." The D/D Duelist explained. "If you had been paying close attention, you would have noticed that I activated a Trap. With Contract Laundering, I negated the effects of all my Contracts and destroyed them. I guess it's true what they say—a contract is only as good as the card it's written on."

"Of course!" Said Sora, catching on. "The Contract that boosted Genghis's Attack Points was negated, so when I noticed them returning to normal, that was why!"

"Since he put the kibosh on those Contracts," said Gong, "he doesn't take any damage!"

"I told you that he was the most powerful D/D Duelist I've ever heard of, and when I say something like that, I usually mean it." I said.

"Lastly, I draw one card for each Contract I destroyed." The man said. "The Duel continues, Yuya!"

"I'll be honest with you, Declan." Yuya said. "I'm glad I didn't defeat you just now for one important reason. It would've been too easy. Now I can win with the kind of Dueltaining performance I learned from my dad!"

"So then you're carrying on Yusho Sakaki's legacy?" Said Declan, surprising Yuya.

"Huh? You know my dad?" Asked the tomato-haired boy.

"Are you serious?" Asked Kit, laughing. "How could we not know him? After all, your old man was a famous Duelist!"

"Yeah, famous for being a complete chicken!" Said Dipper.

"Be quiet!" Commanded Declan, angry at the attitude of his students.

"Clowns." Said Julia.

"Sorry." Apologized Declan. "I greatly admire your father's exploits. Yusho Sakaki made Action Dueling as popular and exciting as it is today. He was a true pioneer. I've long waited to test myself against his Dueling philosophy, and now I have the chance. We must use all our skills. From here on out, I won't hold back."

"Won't hold back?" Said Yuya, shocked. "So you've been holding back!?"

"Perhaps." The man answered. "I draw! I'll summon a Level 3 Tuner Monster! My D/D Nighthowl!"

"A Tuner Monster?" Exclaimed Yuya.

"More like a Tooth Monster!" Said Gong at the sight of the creature.

"Perfect." Said Henrietta. "Now the real Duel can begin."

"Once I've summoned this Monster," Declan explained. "I can summon another. It must be a D/D Monster that's Level 4 or below in my Graveyard, and I have to reduce its Attack Points all the way to 0. I have decided to revive, D/D Lilith! I Tune my Level 3 D/D Nighthowl with my Level 4 Lilith! I Synchro Summon! Level 7 D/D/D Gust King Alexander!"

"A Synchro Monster?" Said Yuya.

"So he can Synchro Summon too?" Said Gong. "I wonder what else that guy's been hiding!"

"I'm not finished." Declared the purple-eyed man. "Flame King Genghis, activate your special ability and turn up the heat! When a D/D/D Monster other than my Flame King Genghis is summoned, I'm then allowed to summon a D/D Monster from my Graveyard. And that's what I'll do! Arise once again, D/D Lilith! And as a further twist, D/D/D Gust King Alexander's special ability activates! Whenever a D/D Monster is summoned, my Gust King can command another D/D Monster to rise from the Graveyard, as it will now. Return to me, D/D Cerberus! And now, Yuya, I intend to Overlay my Cerberus and Lilith. So it begins!"

"What's beginning!?" Exclaimed Yuya.

"Your downfall, of course! With these two Monsters, I build the Overlay Network! I promise you have never faced a warrior-king as magnificent or commanding as this one. I Xyz Summon! D/D/D Wave King Caesar!"

"He can summon Xyz Monsters too?" Said Sora.

"This is blowing Gong's mind!" The boy said.

"He can summon three different ways?" Said Skip. "That's amazing! I've never seen a Duelist command such power!"

"I should warn you that I have not even begun to unleash my most powerful Monsters." Declan said ominously. "The worst is yet to come. That sounds rather terrifying, don't you think? I can assure you that the reality is far worse. The true battle begins. Flame King Genghis, de-fang that Whip Snake!"

"I got something that'll dance to your defence Whip Snake!" Yuya said. "The Spell Hippo Carnival! It lets me summon three carnival craving Hippo Tokens in Defence Mode. Now my Snake's protected from getting scorched because your Flame King is forced to give one of my Hippos the heave ho!"

"Awesome!" Said Tate. "That was quick thinking in Yuya's part."

"Yeah, that move got Gong going!" Said Gong.

"Well, then this will surely blow you away!" Replied Declan. "Gust King Alexander, take out another Hippo! My Gust King isn't through, however, because he's also using his special ability. Since he vanquished one of your Monsters in battle, another of your Monsters will now meet its ruin as well! Caesar! His Whip Snake is now wide open! Crack that Whip!"

"Whip Snake!" Yuya cried as his Monster was destroyed.

"Four Monsters wiped out in one turn?" Frederick said. "That should be verboten!"

"I've accomplished everything I set out to do in this turn." Declan said.

"Nicely done!" Congratulated Yuya. "That was a great performance. I'm especially impressed that you were able to summon three different ways. Now I take center stage! I can't Fusion, Synchro or Xyz Summon like you. But with Pendulum power, I can swing this Duel my way! Ready or not, here I go! Friends and fans, your attention please! So far, I've been warming up in preparation for my main act! But now there's gonna be no holding back! I promise to dazzle you with my spectacular display of Dueling knowhow!"

"I know what's coming next!" Said Allie excitedly.

"I'll use Stargazer Magician and Timegazer Magician to set the Pendulum Scale. I'm taking control of this Duel starting now! I now have the power to summon Monsters from Level 2 through Level 7 all at the same time! Swing far, Pendulum! Carve the arc of victory! My Monsters are ready to swing into action! Turn up the heat, Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon! Let 'em hear you roar, Performapal Fire Mufflerlion!"

"Oh, boy!" Said Tate. "A new Monster!"

"He looks totally adorable!" Said Allie.

"Und ferocious!" Finished Frederick.

"Sic that Lion on 'em, Yuya!" Cried Zuzu.

"Attack!" Gong said.

"Your school is counting on you!" Said Skip.

"My Monsters are eager to entertain you!" Said Yuya with three spotlights shining down on him. "I direct your attention to Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon! Its act is truly overpowering, and guaranteed to make you leap out of your seats!" Then, much to everyone's surprise, Yuya jumped off the platform. He placed his goggles over his eyes and flipped, landing on his dragon. "Here we go Odd-Eyes!" He said. "It's showtime! Target that Flame King! Bowl this crowd over with the most intense attack they've ever seen! Spiral Flame Strike! And to pump up the excitement, Odd-Eyes will use its special ability! Since Flame King is at least Level 5, Odd-Eyes can double the damage! Reaction Force!"

"Aced it!" Said Tate after Genghis was destroyed. "Now keep decking Declan's team and don't let up!"

"Ja!" Said Frederick. "Bash 'em in their glockenspiels!"

"Fire Mufflerlion takes center stage next to showcase his incredible special ability! When a Pendulum Monster destroys one of your guys, Mufflerlion gives Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon 200 Attack Points and lets it attack again! Perfect! It's now or never, Odd-Eyes! Go for it!"

"That trick's too hot to handle!" Tate said after Odd-Eyes gained 200 Attack Points.

"No one outdoes Yuya in the razzle-dazzle department." Said Zuzu.

"When it comes to ranglin' Monsters…" Gong began, "the kid's a natural!"

"What a Dueltainer!" Said Skip, pressing his face on the window of the room he was in. "He's just like his old man, only shorter!"

"Gust King Alexander," Yuya told it, "my Dragon's setting its sights on you next! Spiral Flame Strike! Now, Odd-Eyes, use your special ability to double the damage! Reaction Force!"

"Ooh, I'm tingling from my hair to my lederhosen!" Cried Frederic.

"Thanks Frederick," I thought to myself, sweat-dropping, "of course I wanted to have that image in my head."

As Odd-Eyes ran with Yuya on his back, he saw and grabbed an Action Card.

"Yeah! I'm in the zone today!" He said after looking at it. "I activate the Action Spell called Wonder Chance! Wonder what it does? It lets one Monster attack again! Forward, Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon! Focus your firepower on King Caesar!"

As Yuya said that, I saw Wave King Caesar absorb an Overlay Unit. I then remembered its effect, and I knew that Yuya was in trouble.

"All right!" Said Allie as the Monster was apparently destroyed. "He dethroned King Caesar!"

"This Duel has taken a 180 and now Yuya's in complete control!" Said Tate.

"He's such a Monster meister." Said Frederick while shivering excitedly.

"It's such a relief!" Said Zuzu. "I was worried we'd lose the school, but even though Declan can summon three different ways, Yuya's Pendulum Summoning is overpowering!"

"Well, folks, I hope everybody enjoyed the act!" Said Yuya. "That's all for now, 'cause Fire Mufflerlion isn't allowed to attack. And my Odd-Eyes is also battled-out for this turn. Thanks for your support! And don't worry. Both Monsters will be back for an encore performance on my next turn… and it will be even more amazing! Good job, Odd-Eyes, you were great!" The boy said, praising his dragon. Then he seems to sense a presence, and turns to look at Declan's field. As the smoke cleared, Yuya gasped in shock, seeing that Declan's three Kings were now back on his field, despite being destroyed earlier. "What's going on?" He asked. "How is this possible?"

"They're back!" Said Zuzu, shocked at the sight of them.

"But I saw Yuya destroy them!" Said Tate.

"Gong too…"

"And you are both right." I said rather ominously.

"What happened?" Asked Yuya.

"My Monsters were saved thanks to King Caesar's special ability!" Answered Declan.

"What ability?"

"It's quite impressive." The purple-eyed man gloated. "After the battle, the mighty Caesar used one of his Overlay Units. This allowed him to re-summon all Monsters that were destroyed by you in battle!"

"Caesar can revive your whole team?"

"Is he a Monster or some kind of miracle worker?" Asked Gong in disbelief.

"It's an OP ability." I said. "Imagine if Declan possessed a Monster that, whenever it's in the Graveyard, and he summoned an Xyz Monster to his field, would attach itself to the new Monster. D/D/D Wave King Caesar could use its ability indefinitely." "Except for one fatal flaw." I finished in my mind.

"Of course…" Declan continued, "such immense powers come at a great price. Specifically, every Monster that Caesar revived will cost me Life Points on my next turn. In fact, I must give up 1000 Life Points for each one."

"So the damage will be 3 X 1000." Analysed Tate.

"Und if you add that up und subtract his Life Points…" Continued Frederick, counting on his fingers. "it means Declan will soon be going kaput!"

"Get real!" Said Sora, breaking the harsh reality to the two young boys. "Declan wouldn't have planned this without giving himself an out."

"I agree with Sora on this one." I said. "And I have a feeling that Declan's next turn will blow our minds off the face of the planet."

"The two of them are correct!" Declan declared. "I'm activating a Trap Card! By using D/D/D Human Resources, I can relocate three D/D/D Monsters to my Deck. Then I can recruit two D/D Monsters from my Deck and send them straight to my hand!"

"See," Sora said as the man made his move, "he moved his Monsters to avoid taking damage."

"I'll put one card Face-Down. Your turn!" Declared Yuya. "This is one of the coolest Duels I've ever been a part of. So far it's been full of surprises. You've done an excellent job of keeping me in the dark, and I love not knowing what you'll throw at me next!"

"I, too, have enjoyed our Duel." Declan replied. "The experience has been most educational… especially when you showed me what it's like to be on the receiving end of one of your Pendulum Monster's attacks. Now I'll return the favour."

These words surprised Yuya and sent shivers down my spine. No matter how many times I see this episode, I always found those five words the creepiest and most ominous thing Declan has ever said.

"I have unlocked the secrets of many forms of summoning," he explained, "including one that is highly prized by you!"

Cue another shiver down my spine.

"Prepare yourself for a surprise! Using these cards…" He said, holding two Pendulum cards up. "D/D Savant Galilei and D/D Savant Kepler, I'm going to set the Pendulum Scale!"

"No way!" Cried Yuya in disbelief as everyone except me, and possibly Henrietta, gasped in shock.

"I'll beat you at your own game, Yuya!" He then placed both cards on the far left and far right edges of his Duel Disk's hard-light blade. "Just like you, I can also Pendulum Summon!" The silver-haired man said as the two Monsters appeared on the field, taking their places inside the blue glowing pillars of light. "I can now summon Monsters from Level 2 through 9 at the same time."

"Maybe the guy is just bluffing…" Said Gong.

"I don't think so." Replied Zuzu.

"Me either!" Sora also said.

"The energy of the universe swings between the forces of darkness and of light." Declan chanted. "I shall now harness the power of this eternal oscillation! I Pendulum Summon, and call upon my three Monsters to emerge! Behold the three fearsome immortals who can command the obedience of all! My trio of D/D/D Doom King Armageddons!"

Three purple pendulum-like beings appeared on Declan's field, their red eyes glinting menacingly at Yuya, who was in shock at the Pendulum Summon that Declan just performed perfectly.

"But how?" The shocked boy asked. "How did he learn to Pendulum Summon?"

"Attack!" Declared Declan. "Your target, Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon! Destroy Yuya's Monster!"

Yuya quickly looked around and spotted an Action Card. As he ran, he played it.

"I snagged the Action Spell, Miracle!" He said. "It saves my Monster from destruction and cuts the damage I take in half!" A wave of darkness burst from Armageddon and hit Odd-Eyes, dealing 250 points of damage to Yuya.

"You'll need more than a miracle to save you!" Declan told him. "My second Doom King Armageddon now attacks!" The named Monster let out another stream of darkness, this time successfully destroying Odd-Eyes, dealing Yuya 500 points of damage.

"He lost Odd-Eyes!" Said Frederick.

"Well, at least it won't go to the Graveyard," Tate responded, "since it's a Pendulum Monster."

"I see." Declan mused as he saw Odd-Eyes go from the field into the Extra Deck. "His Dragon was sent to his Extra Deck. And the same will happen to that fiery feline. No matter. Doom King Armageddon, finish off that Mufflerlion!"

Yuya ran off in search of another Action Card as the third Armageddon prepared to attack. It let off a wave of darkness and impacted the lion, filling the air with dust. When it cleared, we saw Yuya's Life Points go down to 350, with the Monster nowhere in sight.

"I gotta know!" He said. "Declan, how did you learn to Pendulum Summon?"

"That is really none of your concern, Yuya." The man responded.

After a brief moment of fear and sadness, Yuya then got his courage together and drew his card.

"Okay, get ready!" He said. "Don't let me down, Magicians! Swing far, pendulum! Carve the arc of victory! My Monsters are ready… to swing into action! First, let's welcome back Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon! And it'll be joined by its old friend, Performapal Fire Mufflerlion! Plus, Performapal Partnaga is joining the party!"

"He went for a triple play this time!" Frederick said, amazed.

"That's a sure sign he ain't givin' up!" Said Gong.

"Yuya still has a chance!" Zuzu said excitedly.

"Partnaga, use your special ability to give Odd-Eyes a hand! Once Partnaga is summoned," the tomato-haired boy explained, "it can use its special ability to boost a Monster by 300 Attack Points for every Performapal on the field! I'm sure you don't need me to do the math for you, do I?"

"Indeed not." Declan said. "You have added 600 Attack Points to your Odd-Eyes."

"We're on!" Yuya said, jumping on Odd-Eyes' back. "Odd-Eyes, take aim, and take out Doom Armageddon Number 1! Spiral Flame Strike! Now, it's just like we rehearsed. You can use your special ability to double the damage! Reaction Force!"

The resulting increase of fire from Odd-Eyes destroyed Armageddon, but I knew that the rest of the Duel would not go as Yuya planned it.

"My Monster may have been destroyed, but it's only a temporary setback." Declan said calmly.

"Step two…" The boy continued, unaware of the danger he was in. "Fire Mufflerlion's special ability-"

"Will do nothing because I activate Armageddon's ability!" Interrupted Declan. "You should be worried, Yuya… very worried! Once Armageddon exits the field, its Attack Points are immediately sent to each of my remaining Monsters until the turn ends! As a result, the two Armageddons that are still on my field will both have their Attack Points increased by 3000!"

"6000 each?" Yuya said, now shocked and afraid. "That's incredible!"

I heard each of the others voice their shock as they realised that the school closing was a certain possibility. Yuya then ended his turn.

"We've reached the end… for you!" Declan said, drawing his card. Suddenly, the two Monsters in his Pendulum Zones started glitching, both their Scales decreasing to 2 and 5. The glitching also affected the two remaining Armageddons, destroying them both. Everyone stood where they were, stunned at what happened. I then remembered that Declan must have forgotten to add Pendulum Abilities to his new cards, meaning that they malfunctioned and tried to activate what wasn't there, leading them to be unstable and destroying his Monsters in the process. As everyone realised that Declan was exposed and Yuya had the path to victory, the silver-haired man started laughing as he pieced together another function for the summoning method.

"I didn't realize 'til now how complex Pendulum Summoning is," he said, "or how incredible its potential could be!"

"What's wrong?" Asked Yuya.

"Nothing is wrong." The man answered. "I just realised there's a way to evolve the Pendulum method! And I'm going to show you right now!"

As he said that, I noticed a man talking to the Chairwoman. A projection of the man appeared on Declan's Duel Disk.

"This better be important." He said.

"I'm afraid that we have an emergency on our hands, Mr. President." The man responded.

Declan then jumped down to ground level and placed his hand on the top of his Deck, indicating his surrender and switching it off.

"Wait… where're you going?" Asked Yuya.

"We'll finish this some other time." Declan responded.

"You can't leave now! What was the move you were gonna make?"

Declan stopped and turned to look at Yuya. "You'll see. Someday."

The field dissipated after he left.

"If the Duel hadn't been interrupted," said Sora, "those guys might've won control of the school."

Our attention turned to the door as Yuya walked out, goggles covering his eyes.

"Yuya, hey!" Zuzu said.

Yuya then fell to his knees.

"How did he Pendulum Summon?" He said. "I just don't understand. That's my thing."

"Are you okay?" The pink-haired girl asked.

"Our school is safe!" Said a relieved Skip as he walked into the room. "By forfeit, sure, but I'll take it!"

"And what happens if they come back to finish what they started?" Zuzu asked angrily.

"Well, uh, that's easy Zuzu." Her father replied. "It'll be just like today, we'll show 'em that the You Show Duel School does not mess around."

"Considering Yuya was the only one who won," Sora pointed out, "I'd say we do mess around."

"Like you have room to talk." Tate told him. "You didn't even Duel!"

"You big chicken!" Said Allie.

"The You Show Duel School has no need for you." Said Frederick.

"Just making an observation." Said Sora. He then started walking away.

"Hang on Sora, come back." Said Skip. "That wasn't a nice thing to say you guys."

"But you heard what he said." Frederick protested.

"He called us loses!" Said Allie.

"Well, the next time the Leo Institute barges in," Tate said with determination, "you can sign me up for the battle."

"Me too."

"Me three!"

"So keep showing us your Pendulum moves, and when they come back, we'll be ready."

"They aren't my moves; don't you get it?!" Yelled Yuya. He then took off, running towards the door when I grabbed his arm.

"What is your problem Yuya." I said to him. He turned around at my stern voice and saw a completely serious look on my face. "I know you're upset that someone else other than you can Pendulum Summon, but why are you making such a big deal about it. After all, Pendulum Summoning wasn't going to be just your thing forever."

Behind his goggles, I saw Yuya's eyes widen in shock.

"Listen, you thought that Pendulum Summoning was your thing, and believe me, you're amazing with it, but then Declan comes along and uses his own cards to do the same thing and you through a fit about it? I don't know how Declan got his cards, and frankly, I don't care. I mean, for all we know, his company is making more as we speak."

"His company?" Asked Zuzu.

Skip decided now was the time to chip in. "Declan Akaba is the president of the Leo Corporation." He said. "As in, the world's number-one creator and distributor of Duel systems. Maybe they've unlocked the secret to making Pendulum Cards. If that's the case, there's gonna be Pendulum Cards played in every corner of the globe."

"This is so unfair." Said Yuya, wrenching his arm out of my hand.

"So what are you gonna do about it?" I asked him. "Run and find a corner to hide where someone can pity you? I don't think so. And let me tell you why. We are going to Duel, and if you win, you can go wherever you want and pity yourself for something as menial as a summoning method that everyone will eventually use. But if I win, you will have to get over yourself and accept that everyone will be able to do the same thing you do. So you suck it up and get onto the Action Field. And neither of us will be leaving until the Duel is over!"

"He just wants to be left alone." Zuzu told me. "Can't you see that? Just give him some time Luna…"

"Might wanna stay out of this one." Said Gong, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"Why's that?"

"Gong may have never properly met Luna before, but Gong can see a look in her eyes. One that says that she is being completely serious, and I don't know about you, but Gong would not want to mess with her when she looks like that."

"Whatever…" The Melodious user said. Then she seemed to get an idea and put a bit of distance between her and Gong.

"Where you going?" He asked.

The pink-haired girl took out her Duel Disk and dialled a number as I continued talking.

"Let's go." I said. "The sooner we get this done, the better."

We both walked onto the field, and I took one side and Yuya took the other.

"Have you prepared the perfect field for this Duel?" I asked Skip.

"Yep!" He said.

"Alright, Yuya. Let the Duel commence."

"I activate the Action Field Spell, Showtime Street!" Said Skip.

"Augmented reality combat system energized. Generating Action Field"

The entire field transformed into a street with multiple stores and theatres and billboards advertising different forms of entertainment. Multiple glowing shapes floated in the air while Yuya and I were standing on either side of the street.

"You know what this is, Yuya?" Zuzu asked the tomato-haired boy.

"My dad's field." The boy mumbled.

"Correct Yuya." I said, gaining his attention. "From what I know, Showtime Street was Yusho Sakaki's favourite. In fact, from what I learned, this was where his style of Dueltaining started. This can't be a more perfect place for me to show you what Dueling is truly about!"

"You think I don't know what real Dueling is?" My opponent asked me.

"Compared to your dad or me? You know nothing about it." I responded. "You're only cards and no heart."

"I'll show you, you're wrong!" The boy responded angrily.

He raised his arm above his head and activated his Duel Disk, then thrust it down in front of him. I crossed my arm in front of me as my Duel Disk showed the standing by sign, raised it above my head and opened it up. I let it fall to my side and the blade generated itself and thrust it in front of myself in a similar fashion to Yuya. I could tell that the others watching were excited to see the Duel. Afterall, this is the first time they would see me do so.

"Two Duelists step into the arena of battle." Yuya began.

"But only one Duelist will exit victorious!" I continued.

"A clash of spirits!"

"A battle of wits!"

"Witness the dawn of the next evolution in Dueling!" We both said at the same time. "Let's do this! Time to Duel!"

The bubble above us exploded, showing the field with Action Cards and indicating the start of the Duel.

I smiled, dissipating the serious look I had earlier.

"Let's begin the show!" I said, and sprinted for an Action Card. I picked it up and smiled more. "The opening act for this performance is the one and only Magical Abductor!"

A Monster appeared on my field. It resembled a young woman wearing an ornate black and green dress and holding a wooden wand that resembled a question mark with a red orb set in the center of the curve.

Magical Abductor

Level – 4 – Attribute – Earth

Type – Spellcaster

Scale – 3

ATK – 1700 – DEF – 1400

Summoning Type – Pendulum

"And I think I shall increase the excitement by activating the Action Spell, Showman's Trick. This allows me to summon two more Monsters that possess the same type as the Monster on my field! Next up, is Defender, the Magical Knight!"

A man wearing armour and carrying a large rectangular shield appeared on the field.

Defender, the Magical Knight

Level – 4 – Attribute – Light

Type – Spellcaster

ATK – 1600 – DEF – 2000

"And last, but not least, taking center stage is Mythical Beast Medusa!"

Mythical Beast Medusa

Level – 4 – Attribute – Light

Type – Spellcaster

Scale – 4

ATK – 1500 – DEF – 1500

Summoning Type – Pendulum

"And with that, I end my turn."

"That was amazing!" Skip said. "Luna just summoned three Monsters in one turn without even needing to Pendulum Summon."

"Fine then." Yuya said. "Time for me to-"

"I don't think so!" I said, playing an Action Card that I managed to pick up. "I activate the Action Spell, Limited Sleight of Hand! Now I can declare one summoning method, and for the rest of the turn, neither of us can use it. And the summoning method I choose is Pendulum Summoning!"

Yuya's eyes widened as I knew they would, because at this moment, he had Stargazer and Timegazer Magician in his hand.

"Something wrong?" I asked. "Let me guess, at this moment, you possess both Timegazer and Stargazer Magician in your hand, and I just locked your only way to Pendulum Summon. Or am I wrong? Then again, I bet you're too scared to do it because it doesn't make you so cool anymore?"

"Okay, it's going a little too far!" Yelled and angry Zuzu.

"Not cool." Said Allie.

"I summon Performapal Friendonkey!" Said a frustrated Yuya.

A donkey appeared on the field, wearing a pair of saddlebags and a small top hat in between its ears.

Performapal Friendonkey

Level – 3 – Attribute – Earth

Type – Beast

ATK – 1600 – DEF – 600

"When this guy comes to the stage," Yuya explained, "I can also summon a Level 4 or below co-star from my hand. Enter Performapal Whip Snake!"

Performapal Whip Snake

Level – 4 – Attribute – Earth

Type – Reptile

ATK – 1700 – DEF – 900

"Nice one, is what I would say if I hadn't seen people do that before!" I said.

"I'll show you something you haven't seen before!" Yuya said. "Go Friendonkey! Attack Mythical Beast Medusa!"

"I don't think so!" I said, holding up an Action Card. "I activate Continued Act. This stops my Monster from being destroyed!"

The donkey impacted my Monster and didn't destroy it. I stood there as the shockwaves from the impact washed over me.

Luna – 4000 – 3900

"And here's the punchline." I said smugly. "If the Monster I control was Special Summoned, the attacking Monster is destroyed!"

"So much for Performapal Friendonkey." Said Tate as the Monster was reduced to golden sparks.

"He barely had a chance." Said Allie.

"Gong is starting to wonder what the lesson is here." The Heavy-Strong Duelist said. "An exercise in defeat?"

"Hope you're enjoying this Duel as much as I am, Yuya!" I said as I ran. I jumped and grabbed a circle floating above me and used it to launch me into the air. I grabbed an Action Card and landed on the ground holding it.

"I'll be having a lot more fun after Whip Snake attacks Mythical Beast Medusa!" The tomato-haired boy replied.

"Actually Yuya…" I said. "I think it's time for a little dance off! I activate the Action Spell, Illusion Dance!"

A lantern appeared as all our Monsters started dancing as I explained how the card worked.

"During this interlude, every Monster on the field dances into Defence Mode."

"No Attack Mode means no attack." Said Frederick.

"Whip Snake is just dancing now." Said Tate.

"Whip Snake!" Yuya said in disbelief.

"Goodness me," I said, "it looks like your Snake likes dancing more than fighting. Well then, have you cooled down yet? Or are you still in a huff?"

"No way." The boy said. "I'm just getting warmed up. I end my turn."

"Which means the effect of Illusion Dance is over, returning our Monsters back to Attack Mode."

"Are you trying to Action Duel the way my father did?" Asked Yuya. "'Cause I got news for you. He was a lot cooler than that."

"You bet he was!" I said. "I think there hasn't been a Dueltainer before or since that could entertain a crowd like Yusho Sakaki did. Although, it wasn't always like that. At least, not at first."

For the first time since the Duel began, I think I really surprised Yuya.

"At first, no-one enjoyed the shows that your father put on. They didn't find them amazing at all. But he didn't stop. Yusho kept pulling tricks and doing his best to keep the crowd entertained, and everyone started enjoying the way he performed. I bet whenever he Dueled, everyone was on the edge of their seats, waiting for the next trick he would pull out of his sleeve. And just like that, the door to the world of Dueltainment was opened. But new doors don't open themselves. Someone has to put their hand on the doorknob and shove it wide open. Just like you did. You opened the door to Pendulum Summoning! But that doesn't mean that it is solely yours to use. Of course other people will start using it. You just watch and see!" I drew my card and smiled. Then I ran and picked up another Action Card.

"First off, I activate the Action Spell, Ongoing Performance." I said as I played it. "When I activate it, I can draw a new card from my Deck." I did just that and smiled. "Looks like things are gonna swing my way." I thought to myself. I picked up the two cards and showed them to Yuya.

"I think I shall start off with this! I set the Pendulum Scale with Scale 2 Reflection of Endymion and Scale 8 Magister of Endymion!"

Everyone's eyes widened in surprise as I said that.

"Did she just say Pendulum?!" Yuya asked in shock.

"You bet it did." I answered as I played the two cards. After they were both placed on the blade of my Duel Disk, it then lit up with the word 'PENDULUM' written in a different colour for each letter. On either side of me, two blue pillars appeared, with my two Monsters rising to their peak. In one pillar, it had the figure of a woman wearing a bright white dress with a mask and a large white circle behind her back. in her left hand she held a large double ended wand, with each end possessing one orb set into it. In her other hand she held a chalice filled with golden light. And finally, underneath her she had a stylised number 2. In the other pillar it held a man almost completely covered in robe-like armour, holding a wand similar to Magical Abductor, except larger and looked like it was made of metal instead of wood, with a stylised number 8 beneath it. In between them a large pendulum appeared. However, unlike Yuya's, mine was glowing red and had black dragon wings where the silver bird wings would be on Yuya's

"Now I can summon Monsters from Levels 3 through 7 all at the same time! Swing far pendulum, and carve your arc through the sky! My Monsters are ready, to take center stage! Please welcome two new cast members, Rogue of Endymion and Mythical Beast Cerberus!"

Two new Monsters appeared on my field. One was a person wearing crimson armour with a golden mask, wielding two large serrated daggers. The other was an animal with two heads, one being some sort of blue furred fox, and the other being a snarling lion with a purple mane.

Rogue of Endymion

Level – 3 – Attribute – Fire

Type – Spellcaster

ATK – 1500 – DEF – 200

Mythical Beast Cerberus

Level – 4 – Attribute – Light

Type – Spellcaster

ATK – 1400 – DEF – 1400

"I mean… how did you…" Said Yuya, stunned.

"What's wrong?" I asked. "Are you upset that I could Pendulum Summon? When other Duelists started Action Dueling, I don't think your dad freaked out and pout about it. I bet he continued to have a good time."

"He wasn't mad?" Yuya asked.

"No, in fact, I'm willing to bet that he was flattered and happy that other people were trying to learn his style. And all his friendly rivalries made Action Dueling into the form of entertainment it is today."

"Declan said something like that." Yuya said.

"You can keep feeling sorry for yourself," I told him, "or you could set an example. Pendulum Dueling isn't yours. But as the person who invented it, you could be an example to others, not by being the only Pendulum user, but by being the best one you can be. So now I've drilled that into your head, I end my turn."

Everyone gasped in surprise as I said that.

"My dad wouldn't feel sorry for himself," Yuya said, holding his pendulum, "and I won't either. It's showtime!" He said, drawing his card.

"Ladies and gentlemen!" The budding Dueltainer said. "Prepare to experience the thrills and chills of Yuya Sakaki's Dueltainment spectacular! It's time to swing into action!"

Performapal Whip Snake wrapped around Yuya's arm and then latched onto a glowing circle in the air. He then ran on a streak of light and used Whip Snake to latch onto another one, swinging him to a building on the other side, grabbing the Action Card as he then started falling.

"I'm activating the hip-shaking Action Spell Illusion Dance!" He said. The lamp appeared and all six Monsters on the field started dancing as they switched to defence mode. "Now every Monster on the field dances into Defence Mode!"

"That's the same card that Luna used to Stop Yuya's attack earlier." Said Frederick.

"So why's he playing it now?" Asked Allie.

"Now for the main event." Yuya said after snagging another Action Card and landing safely on the ground. "Ladies and gentlemen, the moment you've all been waiting for! I'll use Stargazer Magician and Timegazer Magician to set the Pendulum Scale! I'm taking control of this Duel starting now! I'm allowed to summon Monsters from Level 2 through Level 7 all at the same time! Swing far, pendulum! Carve the arc of victory! My Monsters are ready to swing into action! Turn up the heat Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon! Soar to victory, Performapal Spikeagle! Stamp to it, Performapal Stamp Turtle!"

Along with Yuya's dragon came two new Monsters, one being a brown eagle and the other being a tortoise holding a stamp and a blank sheet of paper. Yuya then jumped onto Odd-Eyes' back.

"I'm firing up Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon and then activating Spikeagle's special ability!" He declared. I started running for another Action Card and spotted it. "When Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon attacks your Monster, you still take damage even if your Monster is in Defence Mode."

"There's the razzle dazzle!" Said Gong.

"And not the spotlight is on Stamp Turtle! Once a turn, he can increase the Level of every Monster on the field by 1."

Performapal Whip Snake

Level – 4 – 5

Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon

Level – 7 – 8

Performapal Stamp Turtle

Level – 4 – 5

Performapal Spikeagle

Level – 2 – 3

Rogue of Endymion

Level – 3 – 4

Defender, the Magical Knight

Level – 4 – 5

Magical Abductor

Level – 4 – 5

Mythical Beast Medusa

Level – 4 – 5

Mythical Beast Cerberus

Level – 4 – 5

"I play the awesome Action Spell Illusion Fire on my Odd-Eyes. It's time for my Dragon to turn up the heat! The Monsters I didn't select are on the sidelines, but Odd-Eyes gets to attack in their places."

"So Odd-Eyes can attack three times?" Said Tate.

"Looks like Yuya's finally learned his lesson." I thought to myself. "Good luck."

Odd-Eyes leapt off the building, ready to start its attack.

"Here we go!" Said Yuya. "Odd-Eyes take down her Mythical Beast Medusa! Spiral Flame Strike!"

When Yuya launched his attack, Spikeagle got in front of Odd-Eyes' flames and was enveloped by them, giving it a phoenix-like appearance.

"And guess what?" Said Yuya. "Now Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon's special ability activates! Since your Mythical Beast Medusa was at least Level 5, you get to enjoy double the damage!"

I winced as my Life Points got cut in half.

Luna – 4000 – 2000

"Go, Odd-Eyes, attack Defender, the Magical Knight! Once again, double the damage!"

Luna – 2000 – 1000

"And now for the grand finale, Odd-Eyes attacks your Magical Abductor! Don't forget to double the damage!"

I was flung back and landed on the ground with a grunt of pain as I lost the Duel.

Luna – 1000 – 0

Yuya – Win

Yuya took a bow alongside his Monsters as the field disappeared in wake of his victory while fireworks exploded in the sky.

"Luna!" The tomato-haired boy cried as he ran to my limp body. "You okay? Luna, say something!"

"Please stop yelling in my ear. I'm already aching after that Duel; do you want to add a headache to the list?" I managed to say.

"I'm sorry."

"Eh, there's nothing to be sorry about. You did well Yuya, congratulations, you earned it." I said before closing my eyes.

"Luna!" Yuya cried.

Then I felt a massive pain as something hit my face, hard.

"Enough with the corny melodrama!" Yelled Zuzu.

That was enough to wake me up again. I grabbed the fan and pulled it away from my face, giving Zuzu a look that would kill.

"I'm not dead or acting!" I told her. "That was an exhausting Duel and I was trying to sleep!"

Everyone laughed at that.

"Seriously though, thanks." Yuya said to me. "You're right. I can't run away from my problems. I gotta face 'em head on. 'Cause the show must go on! And just like my dad, I'll try to be an inspiration for Duelists everywhere."

I smiled. "Glad you learned your lesson. Now if you excuse me, I'm going back to my bed for some much-needed shut eye."

---

Finally! I have finished with this chapter. I apologize for it being so long, but I just had to write it. Anyway, this was the debut of Luna's Order of the Spellcasters Deck. As you may be wondering, why did I have my character lose? To put it simply, Luna didn't need to win this one. The whole purpose of this Duel was for Yuya to learn that he must accept the fact that, one day, everyone would be able to Pendulum Summon, not just him. It was to help him get comfortable with that fact. With that out of the way, next chapter they will be preparing themselves for the Championship, so stay tuned!