The days passed quickly for the students as they progressed through their classes.
Cooking class with Professor Sartyr, History with Stein on Tuesdays, Wednesdays with a double dose of Fusion with Banner, Gym with Miss Fontaine, Thursdays it was Crowler again, Fridays being English and Foreign Language Arts classes with Professor Sartyr again.
September turned into October, with a brief school-wide Halloween party. But it was the Friday of the first week of November that many students hit the books hard. Why?
Promotional exams.
Once every two months, the school held the first exams for students with a chance to be promoted to the dorm above. Naturally, Jaden didn't take it seriously, Syrus would try anything and everything to get a chance because he didn't study. Ibuki just read the books quickly, as if he didn't care about the results.
Soon after, Ibuki was outside, looking at the sea. He was watching on his Duel Pilot the video of the two Yellow Ra students found dead with the only evidence of what happened to them being the video showing what happened to them, even though the part showing their murder was missing and their murderer could not be recognized.
He seemed pensive as he watched the video, as if he was rehashing something.
His thoughts were interrupted by the rest of the standing Blue dorm in a hurry to get to class for exams.
He put the Duel Pilot in his pocket and quickly joined them.
"The sooner the writing part is done, the sooner I'll be done with the boring part." He thought before noticing something.
Once in the classroom, he saw that everyone was there except Jaden.
While the examinations were taking place, far out at sea, a fleet of naval vessels passed through the waters. Helicopters flew in tight formation around several destroyers and battleships. In the center was an aircraft carrier, several jets taking off to join the helicopters. On the deck, several men in uniform rushed about, sending orders or information to their superiors.
The captain of the carrier looked out to sea, his face stern. In his left hand was a holster with the Duel Academy logo and a handcuff on his wrist that was around the handle. A man in a dark suit approached the captain.
"We'll arrive at the Duel Academy in five minutes, sir." Said the man, waving him on.
"Very well. It's been a long trip for everyone; attacking subs, intruders and crazy card collectors. It seems like everyone wants to fight us. But everything is about to pay off. We are about to reach our goal and with the cargo. Now let's deliver the last shipment of rare cards from the Duel Academy!" Said the captain.
In the exam room, Ibuki had finished his exam way ahead of everyone else and couldn't hand in the paper right away, so he decided to sleep in the time he had left.
Fifteen minutes after the test started, Jaden finally arrived but only slept with Syrus during the written test, frustrating many students that someone as talented as Jaden and Ibuki for dueling was sleeping at this kind of exam.
Without anyone knowing, the person who Jaden beat in his entrance exam was watching.
"He's going to fail the written test, just as I suspected! All that's left is the practice test. I'm looking forward to it, especially to teach that impertinent man a lesson." He said looking at Ibuki while thinking back to the first day of class.
Flashback
The first day of classes had begun. Ibuki sat in his first class, it was a class. The students were talking until they were all interrupted when they saw the director of the male blue dormitory, Dr. Crowler, enter with an arrogant walk. He looked around the classroom, a grim smile on his face.
"Welcome to your first day at Duel Academy. Many of you will become businessmen and women, game designers, card designers, or even professional duelists!" He said, looking at several Blues with a smile.
His face had turned sour when he met the gaze of the Slifer Reds.
"Although for some of you, if this place will prove too hard for you, you should just consider quitting now." He said, making many of the Blues laugh before clapping his hands.
"To begin, I'm going to randomly select you to explain what some of the cards are. Starting with... Miss Rhodes!" He said as he pointed to Alexis who stood up looking at the professor.
"Yes, sir?" She said.
"Explain the monster cards... and please use small words so the Slifer Reds can understand." Chuckled Crowler before laughing as did the vast majority of the Obelisk Blues except Alexis and Ibuki whom he had questioned.
He didn't notice but Ibuki gave him a look of contempt, understanding from the teacher's attitude that the idea that Jaden had ended up with the Red Slifers because of the Vice-Chancellor came to his mind.
The Slifers seemed to be slightly downcast by this remark except for Jaden who didn't care.
Ibuki was disgusted by the behavior of his dormitory director, he even waited to be called to give the teacher a taste of his own medicine.
"Monster Cards are the backbone of any Monster Duel deck, although there have been rare exceptions where a duelist wins without them. They are separated into four categories: Normal, Effect, Fusion and Ritual monsters. They are used to attack or defend the life point of those who control them." Said the student.
Crowler clapped happily, happy that a Blue was doing things right.
"Excellent! I expected nothing else from a member of the elites!" Said he, looking around. "Now... who should I choose next..." Thought Crowler as he looked at the assembly of students in front of him.
"You there! Syrus Truesdale! Explain what ritual monsters are and give two examples, then you tell us about the Field Magic cards!" He said, pointing to Syrus.
"Uh... a Terrain Magic card... is the thing... that affects the thing..." Said Syrus with great stress and in a hesitant tone.
"Even kindergartners know the answer!" Said an obelisk at the back of the classroom in a mocking tone.
"Maybe he would be able to answer if some idiot didn't interrupt him." Ibuki retorted as he stood up from his chair before looking in the direction.
"And why are you defending one of his losers?" Retorted the Obelisk in question.
"Because he's a friend of mine, do you have a problem with that? If that's the case we can settle it." Said the teenager with golden eyes while looking fiercely at the other Blue Obelisk who was immediately silent.
"All right, uh..." Said Crowler awkwardly, surprised that one of his precious Obelisk Blues was friends with a Slifer Red. "Ibuki Kadoya. Since you're up, can you do what I asked Mr. Truesdale to do, and tell me what a Field Magic card does?"
The golden-eyed teenager looked at the Doctor with hatred and finally spoke up.
"A Terrain Magic card affecting the terrain between the two Duelists." He said, and before Crowler could have time to compliment him he added a comment. "Are you sure you should be teaching, 'Doctor'? If the Obelisks are indeed the elite, as the other idiot up there said, everyone knows what a Field Magic card is for. Why do we have a director who doesn't know what they do and was beaten by a Slifer?" He said, pointing to the Obelisk who mocked Syrus.
Everyone laughed, Alexis hid hers behind her hands.
The humiliation was total for Crowler. One of his Obelisk Blues had defended a Slifer Red, but on top of that, he had taken him on at his own game. All he could do was bite his handkerchief in anger at the laughter of all the students.
And that wasn't the only time this happened. In every one of Crowler's classes, when he was questioned, in addition to answering correctly, he threw some more or less subtle dig at him at the slightest opportunity.
End of the Flashback
Just as everyone had handed in their papers, a boy with cyan blue hair and a small pair of glasses woke Ibuki up.
"Uh... sorry to wake you up, but we can hand in our papers now." He said to the golden-eyed teenager.
"Oh, thanks Syrus." Thanked Ibuki as he stood up and walked over to Professor Banner to return the copy.
As he returned to his seat, he noticed that Jaden had finally arrived while he was sleeping.
"Alright, the written exam is now over! I would like to add that, the practical test will take place in the gym at 2pm! Now that everyone has turned in their papers, please walk, don't run because the rare cards arrived today." Said Banner.
Ibuki's face tensed up when he heard that, groaning.
"Well, here goes..." He said to himself.
"THEY'RE HERE?!" Shouted a student.
"Uh-oh." Said Banner sheepishly.
A sea of reds, blues, and yellows came out of every classroom, Ibuki watched him cross his arms sheepishly. For him the rarity of a card was only valuable for collection, not for strategy.
"I guess not many chosen ones can understand that." He said to himself.
"You know, it's a sign of madness if you talk to yourself." Said a girl's voice with a smile.
Ibuki looked up and shook her head as she saw Alexis.
"It's only madness if I do the same thing over and over and expect a different result. And are you okay?" He said politely.
"Yes, thank you for asking." Said Alexis as she leaned back. "Aren't you going to look for the rare cards?" She asked.
"No, I don't really need them. I'm not really interested in rare cards unless they are useful for my deck. As much as I respect them, the rarity of a card should only interest collectors." Ibuki explained.
Alexis nodded, remembering some of the cards she had seen her use. She was about to ask another question, when Bastion came up to them.
"They probably think they've found cards that will strengthen their decks." He says.
"And you Bastion, why don't you go?" Ibuki asked curiously.
"No, a stray card would ruin the balance of my deck." Answered Bastion.
"I'm really interested!" Said Jaden having heard the conversation. "I need to see what kind of cards they have! Let's go Syrus!" He said as he left the room, quickly followed by his cyan-haired friend.
"A real kid..." Ibuki muttered humbly, still amused by Jaden. "Alright, time for me to head to practice then." He said.
Before being followed by Bastion while Alexis left to join two other girls she used to hang out with.
In the hallways, Chazz and the two Obelisk Blues who used to hang out with him, were pacing the hallway.
"Who was that guy? How dare he buy all the cards?" Said the one with blue hair.
"We weren't able to get any... What are we going to do for the test this afternoon?" Complained the one with the spade hair.
"Calm down. You don't need to do so much, not for one new card or for a silly monthly event. There isn't a single person in Obelisk Blue who can beat me anyway." Said Chazz arrogantly.
"Even if your opponent is Jaden Yuki?" Asked a see coming from their left.
The trio turned to see a man wearing a black cape and a beret masking his eyes.
"Can you beat Jaden with your current deck?" He asked.
"He's the one, who took all the rare cards!" Exclaimed the blue-haired one.
"Rare cards? What rare cards? Oh, you mean... THESE!" Said the man as he opened his cloak revealing all the rare cards he had purchased.
"What's the point of buying all these cards?" Asked the spiky-haired teen.
In response, the man, his hat to reveal that he was, was the one who lost to Jaden on his entrance exam, Doctor Crowler.
"Doctor Crowler?!" The three teenagers exclaimed.
"A scum like Jaden Yuki must be crushed by elites like you before it's too late. That's why I'm calling on you to do it! Fight Jaden, Chazz!" Said Crowler as he looked at the black-haired teen.
"But the practical test is conducted between members of the same dorm!" Retorted Chazz.
"Let me handle this! You and the other qualified person on my list will remind those scum Jaden and Ibuki that we, the elites, are the rare ones here!" Said Crowler before letting out a laugh worthy of an anime villain.
A few minutes after giving almost all the rare cards to Chazz, Crowler went to one particular Obelisk Blue student.
He was an easily described as handsome, slender-looking teenager with blue eyes and brown hair. He was wearing an open Obelisk Blue jacket, revealing a medallion in the shape of a Monster Duel card with a size slightly larger than a basic card.
He was looking at the cards in his deck, one in particular before carefully placing it in his deck and putting it away.
Crowler approached him with a happy expression.
"Ah, hello Ren." Crowler greeted.
"Oh, hello professor." Ren greeted politely as he put his deck away.
"I'd like to give you this in exchange for a favor." Said Crowler holding out a card to Obelisk Blue.
"But... it's very rare. You should keep it." Said Ren, seeing which card it was.
"No, no, I insist. But this card will not be free. I want you to face Ibuki Kadoya during the exam in exchange. Said Crowler as his smile seemed more and more fake.
"Why do I have to face a specific opponent? Ren asked.
"I just want to make sure he's worthy of our dorm, nothing more. So what do you say, this card against a duel against the one who passed his entrance exam duel in one round? It's nothing too bad." Said Crowler. "That little arrogant kid, he's going to pay." He thought.
Obelisk Blue thought for a second, but the card could be useful for his deck, and he accepted.
Later in a room with several dueling arenas, Jaden was surprised to see that the one designated to be his opponent was Chazz whom he had already faced earlier in the year. Ibuki was in the arena next to him with Ren on the other side.
"Why am I fighting Chazz in a Duel?" Jaden asked.
"What does that mean, Doctor? As a Slifer, Jaden must face a Slifer, not an Obelisk." Ibuki stated coldly.
"Since he scored so well on the entrance exam, it wouldn't be a fair match against another Red Slifer. That's why we felt that Chazz was a much more suitable opponent for him. Of course, if he wins, he will be promoted to Yellow Ra. So what do you think Jaden? Do you accept this offer?" Said Crowler positioned in the middle of Jaden's arena pointing to both Chazz with one of his arms.
"As for you, Ibuki. I have deemed it appropriate for you to face one of the best in the first year class, Ren Kaito." Said Crowler as he introduced Ibuki's opponent.
In the stands, Syrus, Bastion, Alexis, and a burly student with a ball haircut on his head were all sitting in the stands watching the duel.
"This is not good. It must be a trap." Said the portly student.
"Indeed." Said Bastion.
"And you, Bastion. How did your tests go... and why haven't I seen you in class?" Asked Syrus.
"That's because I'm a sophomore. As for my tests, they were pretty easy." Said Bastion as he lowered his eyes. "Getting back to the main topic, it's an obvious trap. I'd say only a fool would agree."
"That's fine by me!" Said Jaden.
"Same here." Said Ibuki.
The answer of the two duelists surprised everyone.
"I want to duel all kinds of people. I want to face challenges, no matter who they come from!" Said Jaden confidently.
"And I don't give a damn about the rank of my opponents. A coat doesn't mean he's one of the elite. I will judge his skills myself during the Duel." Said Ibuki without giving Crowler a single glance.
"Well then, are you going to accept Chazz and Ren's challenge?" Asked the teacher.
"All right. I'll wrap up what we started earlier." Said Chazz.
"Me, I just hope to have a good time." Said Ren.
"Perfect, but of course so that everyone can enjoy the duel of their comrade, Ibuki and Ren's duel will take place after Jaden's." Said Crowler.
The four duelists nodded and Ibuki and Ren went to the stands to watch Jaden and Chazz's duel which was about to start.
"DUEL!" They say.
Chazz: 4000 Life Points
Jaden: 4000 Life Points
"No excuses this time, Chazz." Says Jaden.
"Bring it, Slifer Slacker!" Says Chazz.
"Oh, it's brought! My draw!" Says Jaden as he draws his sixth card.
"Coooo."
"Well, if it isn't my favorite furry friend." Jaden said looking at his Winged Kuriboh card he just drew. "Kuriboh, you're in for a treat, because we're about to rain down some serious moves on Chazz." He thought "You remember this guy from our first duel, don't you, Chazz? Elemental Hero Clayman!" Said Jaden as he summoned a bulky rock warrior in Defense mode. (LV4/ATK: 800/DEF 2000). "And he'd like to get reacquainted." He said.
"Not after he sees what I got for him. Don't think that overgrown pile of pebbles stand a chance against me, or against this!" Says Chazz as he draws a card. "Appreciate the rare cards, Crowler." He thought. "Fresh off the presses, Magical Mallet!" He says while placing the card he has just drawn in a magic and trap zone.
"What's that?" Jaden asked.
"A redo. All the cards in my hand that I don't want I return to my deck and then I can draw the same number of cards." Chazz explained, pointing to three cards in his hand.
"A rare card on the first draw?" Syrus gasped.
"And a very dangerous card at that. Now Chazz will be able to pick exactly which cards he wants and which cards he doesn't." Bastion explained.
"I didn't even get to the best part." Chazz said, redrawing from his deck and showing Magical Mallet again. "You see, Jaden, I got to shuffle Magical Mallet too! So if I drew it again, which I just did, I can play it again and again. And that comes in handy, know why? Because it comes in handy when I'm looking for this! V–Tiger Jet, sharpen your claws for ATK mode!" He said, summoning a yellow mechanical tiger, shaped like a fighter plane. (LV4/ATK: 1600/DEF 1800)
"Oh no, not those…" Ibuki groaned.
"And there's a lot more where that came from! Check out the magic of Frontline Base, it lets me summon a level 4 or below monster this turn. And I have just the one, W–Wing Catapult!" Said Chazz as he summoned a blue jet platform. (LV4/ATK: 1300/DEF 1500) "Gentlemen, start your engines!" The set of wings took off and the V–Tiger Jet soon joined it. "Now merge! Become, the VW–Tiger Catapult!" He said.
The Catapult revealed two missile launchers. The Tiger Jet landed on top of it. Thruster units appeared on the back of both the machines. (LV6/ATK: 2000/DEF 2100)
"Oh man… Jaden's gonna have a hard time with this duel now." Ibuki cringed.
"But wait, I'm not done yet, because he still has his special ability." Chazz told Jaden.
"That's not good." Jaden muttered.
"Is this guy's turn going to end sometime this century?" Syrus asked.
"By sending a card to the graveyard, I can force one of your monsters into ATK mode!" Says Chazz as Clayman goes into attack mode. "So after this Heat–Seeker Blitz from my Tiger Catapult, your life points are toast!" The Tiger Catapult fired its missiles and destroyed Clayman.
Chazz: 4000 Life Points
Jaden: 2800 Life Points
Crowler saw all this from the special viewing box where he was watching with Chancellor Shepherd.
"My goodness, looks like Jaden can't play with the big boys after all. I guess he's not as good as he thinks." He said.
Shepherd just stared out the window.
"I'll finish up with one card facedown." Chazz said as a reverse card appeared on the field.
"You go ahead and finish up while I'm just getting warmed up." Says Jaden as he draws a card. "Speaking of, here's a guy who can really turn up the heat, Elemental Hero Sparkman in DEF mode He said as a warrior in yellow and blue armor appeared crossing his arms (LV4/ATK: 1600/DEF 1400). "And I'll throw down a facedown and call it a turn." He said.
"Not much else he can do with all the new rare cards Chazz seems to have." Bastion said.
Alexis was also watching the duel but from behind.
"This is a complete mismatch, how can Jaden fight back if he doesn't know what he's fighting?" She thought.
"Ready for round two, Slifer Slime?" He said before a blue machine with a spiked ball lower region and two cannons on its shoulders appeared. (LV4/ATK: 1800/DEF 1500) "Well X–Head Cannon is and thanks to Frontline Base, so is Z–Metal Tank." He said before a yellow tank that looked more like some kind of cruiser than an actual tank also appeared. (LV4/ATK: 1500/DEF 1300)
"Wait, X and Z? That can mean only one thing…" Syrus said.
"Now I play my facedown card." Chazz said as his trap card was lifted up. "Call of the Haunted, and in case you slept through that class as well, it lets me bring a monster back from the graveyard. And I choose…" He said before a red metallic dragon appeared. (LV4/ATK: 1500/DEF 1600)
"It's him!" Syrus gasped.
"He has it!" Bastion confirmed.
"Oh no!" Alexis gasped.
"That's right, it's Y–Dragon Head! I discarded it with my Tiger Catapult's special ability." The new monsters flew away. "And next I'll combine them to create the XYZ–Dragon Cannon!" He said before the monsters then tied up with Cannon Head X on top, Dragon Head Y in the middle and Metal Tank Z on the bottom. (LV8/ATK: 2800/DEF 2600)
"Now Chazz has two monsters out with over 2000 attack points each." Bastion said.
"Damn it! It's over!" Ibuki cringed his face in anger clenching his fist.
"But wait, Jaden, there's more." Said Chazz making Jaden gasp. "Actually, less, you see they say that two heads are better than one. But I would have to disagree, especially when the one in question is the ultimate V to Z Dragon Catapult Cannon!" He said as the two machines came together and transformed. The new creation looked vaguely like a humanoid and was composed of all the monster-machines Chazz had. (LV10/ATK: 3000/DEF 2800)
Ibuki scoffed in relief. "Jaden, you lucky son of a gun. You lucked out."
"What do you mean he lucked out?" Alexis asked in disbelief.
"Chazz could've ended it right there, but his arrogance of making V to Z Dragon Catapult Cannon got in the way." Answered Ibuki.
"Makes your Sparkman look like a spark plug, or at least it did." Chazz said as Sparkman disappeared.
"My Sparkman!" Jaden cried as the audience gasped.
"Oh, I'm sorry, didn't I mention V to Z's special ability? He allows me to remove one card on your side of the field once per turn." Chazz chuckled.. "And if you think that's impressive, wait until you see its attack, an attack that will strike your life points directly." He said.
"Not so fast, Chazz, I have a trap, A Hero Emerges!" Said Jaden.
"Blast!" Crowler cried.
"A Hero what?" Said Chazz.
"Emerges, as in emerges onto the field. You see, now you have to choose a card from my hand and if it's a monster card, I get to play it. So take your pick, Chazz."
"Yeah, yeah, whatever, the far right."
"Sweet, Elemental Hero Burstinatrix, I'll play her in DEF mode." Said Jaden before the feisty heroine took up a defensive position.. (LV3/ATK: 1200/DEF 800)
"That's what you think, you Slifer Slacker, when Dragon Catapult Cannon attacks, I get to switch one of your monsters into ATK mode." Said Chazz before Burstinatrix stood up. "Which means not only will she get zapped!" He said before the Dragon Catapult Cannon fired. Burstinatrix screamed in pain as she was destroyed. "But your life points will too." He said.
Chazz: 4000 Life Points
Jaden: 1000 Life Points
The crowd gasped.
"Aww, what's the matter, Jaden, having some test anxiety?" Chazz taunted. "I knew scum like you didn't belong at this Academy, but don't worry because it will all be over soon!"
"No way, Chazz, I still have a whole army of vicious monsters in my deck ready to get at you. This isn't over, it's only just barely started! My draw!" Said Jaden as he drew a card before gasping in surprise. "Hey, this is..." He said.
Flashback
"Excuse me, ma'am? Do you have a few packs left?" Asked Jaden as he and Syrus went to the counter.
"Of course we do, but just the regular ones. Here you go." She slid a single pack across the table.
"We said a few packages, not one." Jaden complained.
"I'm screwed. I slept through the written part of the exam and now I'm going to fail the field part because I can't improve my deck." Syrus complained.
"Then you take the deck, Syrus." Jaden offered.
"Really? You'd give me the last deck they have? But what if... what if you fail?" Syrus asked.
"I may fail from time to time, but I never fail." Said Jaden confidently.
"Yoo–hoo! Auto club!" Said the voice of a person arriving from the front of the counter, it was a portly woman that Jaden helped earlier in the day.
"Oh hi, Ms. Uh..." Said Jadene trying to remember the lady's name.
"Dorothy." Said the portly woman.
"I get it. So you work here too?" Asked Jaden.
"No, I don't work here, I'm the owner. Pretty cool, huh?" Said Dorothy.
"No, it's really cool." Asked Jaden.
"How do you know her Jaden?" Asked Syrus.
"Oh uh, I think it was the carburetor." Said Jaden smiling happily.
"By the way, I have something for you." Said Dorothy making her giggle as Jaden and Syrus looked at her. "Consider it a thank you for helping me. I know I said we were out of cards, but I hid a few." She said as he pulled out a few decks of cards. "For polite students like you. Maybe you can put them to good use. When you're not fixing cars." She said as Jaden looked at her and the decks of cards with a stunned look on his face.
End Flashback
"What do you think, Winged Kuriboh?" Jaden asked. The card cooed in agreement. "Well, all right, if you say so, let's do it! I summon Winged Kuriboh in DEF mode!" The Kuriboh with white wings appeared. (LV1/ATK: 300/DEF 200) Suddenly, all most of the females in the crowd squealed at its cuteness with Winged Kuriboh actually sweat dropping at this. And unfortunately Syrus, Bastion, and Ibuki, they were in the center of it all. "And I'll throw down a facedown." Jaden concluded. "That's it."
"That's it?" Syrus asked. "All he's done is play defense."
"Let's hope that facedown of his helps." Ibuki stated.
"I sure hope Jaden knows what he's doing." Alexis thought looking at Jaden wide–eyed.
"That's all, huh? Good, because now I get to cook that Kuriboh and I like mine well done." Chazz said as he drew a card. "There's about to be a fried furball on the Field, you loser!" He Said.
"You don't scare me!" Jaden argued.
"I don't have to, that's his job." Chazz said pointing at the Dragon Catapult Cannon. "Dragon Catapult Cannon attack!" A giant blast of energy headed right for Winged Kuriboh.
"JADEN!" Syrus cried.
"Secret weapon time." Jaden thought as he sent two cards to his Graveyard. "Not so fast, Chazz, by sending two cards to the graveyard, I can activate my facedown card Transcendent Wings!" He said.
"WHERE DID HE GET THAT?!" Crowler cried.
Winged Kuriboh's wings suddenly grew and deflected the blast.
"It can't be!" Chazz exclaimed.
"Oh it be." Jaden confirmed. "Transcendent Wings has evolved Winged Kuriboh into a level 10 monster." He said as the new form of Winged Kuriboh was visible.
Winged Kuriboh LV10 was now wrapped in a helmet that looked like a dragon with extremely large angelic wings. (LV10/ATK: 300/DEF 200)
"And it gets better, by sacrificing itself, Winged Kuriboh destroys all monsters in ATK mode and deflects their ATK points back as damage to you. Kuriboh, show him how it's done!" He said before the Dragon Catapult cannon shot back at the machine and it was destroyed.
Chazz: 1000 Life Points
Jaden: 1000 Life Points
The crowd gasped at this.
"Lucky punk." Chazz said glaring daggers at Jaden.
"Lucky?" Jaden asked. "Nah, I just happen to have a soft spot for old ladies. But not for you, Chazz, and that's too bad because with a thousand life points apiece and my turn coming up, all I need is the right monster and you'll be finished." He said.
"You're bluffing!" Said Chazz.
"Maybe, but it would be interesting if that happened right? Here goes something!" Said Jaden as he draws a card. "Yes! Elemental Hero Avian!' The feathered E–Hero appeared, shocking all of the spectators (LV3/ATK 1000/DEF 1000). "Attack!" He said before the winged hero charged forward and brought his claws down on Chazz.
Chazz: 0 Life Point
Jaden: 1000 Life Points
Jaden waved to the cheering crowd, and pointed at Chazz.
"That's the game, unless you want to duel again." Said Jaden, doing his signature pose.
"Oh, we will..." Chazz murmured.
"He lost despite all the rare cards I gave him..." Crowler thought, grinding his teeth before smiling. "It doesn't matter, I still have Ibuki to humiliate. He thought before taking his microphone. "Ibuki and Ren, it's your turn. He said.
"Good luck, Ibuki. Alexis said to him with concern.
"Thank you." Ibuki told him with a reassuring smile before heading towards the arena.
"Congratulations Jaden." Said Syrus to his friend who had just sat down next to him on the seat just in front of Alexis'.
Ibuki arrived at the same time as Ren in the arena.
The two opponents activated their Dueling Discs and got into position.
« DUEL! » Disent-ils.
Ren : 4000 Life Points
Ibuki : 4000 Life Points
"I'll start!" Said Ibuki as she drew her sixth card. "Hmm...not a bad start" He thought, before starting his turn, "I'll start by playing the spell card Foolish Burial. This card lets me take one monster from my deck and send it to the graveyard." He then searched through his deck until he found the monster he wanted, "This one will do" he placed it into his graveyard. "Next, I'll place one card facedown and end my turn."
The crowd was shocked.
"Oh man, that was a bad first round!" Said Syrus.
"Maybe it's not all his fault." Remarked Bastion. "Maybe he had a bad starting hand."
"A very bad hand!" Noted Syrus, concerned.
"Let's hope this face-down card can protect him until he has a better defense." Said Bastion, hoping Ibuki would win.
Ren drew his sixth card and quickly decided on his strategy.
"I summon Valkyrie Vierte." Said Ren as a woman appeared on the field, she had green hair styled in a bun in very revealing armor armed with a sword and shield on a white horse. (LV03/ATK 1400/DEF 1400) "I then equip her with the Sword of Deep-Seated, which grants her a 500 attack point bonus." He said as the Valkyrie's sword became more imposing with a darker, demonic appearance. (LV03/ATK 1400-1900/DEF 1400) "With this she will be able to attack you directly." He said.
The Valkyrie ran on her horse towards Ibuki... who seemed totally indifferent.
"From my hand, I activate Battle Fader." Ibuki said calmly.
Une étrange et fine créature apparut sur le terrain, les bras étendus, avec ce qui semblait être une horloge sur le visage et un pendule suspendu en dessous.
Battle Fader (LV04/ATK 0/DEF 0)
"When I am attacked directly, I can summon this card specifically from my hand." Explained Ibuki.
"But it will still be destroyed." Said Ren as his Valkyrie came to a screeching halt as his sword came within inches of Battle Fader.
"Its second effect activates when summoned to the field via its effect, not only does it stop your monster's attack, but it also ends the combat phase." Explained Ibuki.
"Very well done. I didn't expect it. I'll finish my turn." Said Ren.
Ibuki drew a card and looked carefully at his opponent's field.
"My turn." He said. "It's a shame, Ren. I won't be able to evaluate if you are really a good Duelist. He said before sighing. "This duel is over."
The crowd was confused, Crowler more than anyone else.
"Finish the duel now?!" Crowler exclaimed in shock. "What madness! He can't destroy Ren's monster and reduce his Life Points to zero in one round!"
"I'm very skeptical of Ibuki's statement." Bastion observed.
"I don't think so." Said Alexis.
"Why?" Asked Syrus.
"His card face down." Alexis replied, pointing to the hologram of the card. "He's setting the stage to invoke something big if you ask me." She said.
"It's possible, but it's going to be very difficult to destroy Ren's Valkyrie, and make him lose 4000 Life Points in one turn." Bastion asked.
"No need to look too far, he must have the right cards in his hand" Said Jaden casually.
Ren drew a card and quickly looked at all the cards he has in his hand until he stopped on the one he just drew which he hesitated to use.
"First, I'll play the Pot of Greed." He said as he drew two cards. "And no, I'm not going to describe the effect of the card. Everyone knows what the Pot of Greed does and I don't know why everyone explains it every time it's played. You might as well explain that the sky is blue or the water is wet if you want to point out the obvious."
This sparked a few laughs in the crowd.
"Let's continue, I'll summon one of my most powerful monsters by activating Polymerization." Said Ibuki.
At that moment, three strange machine monsters appeared on the field, before being sucked into a vortex where they combined together in a flash of light.
"Ladies, gentlemen, and undecided, behold the monster that will end this duel, the Cyberdark Dragon!" He shouted, finally showing some excitement.
Zane's eyes opened so wide that Obelisk Blue next to him was afraid they would pop out of his head.
"Cyber-what Dragon?!" He said almost shouting.
"Zane, what's wrong?" Asked one of the confused Blues.
Then the light disappeared, revealing the fusion monster. It was metallic and skeletal in appearance, looking like a mixture of three distinct beings. Its dragon-like head opened its mouth and let out a roar, a sound that resembled a dragon's roar mixed with a metal squeal, causing most of the spectators to cover their ears as the roar shook the stadium.
Cyberdark Dragon (LV08/ATK 1000/DEF 1000)
Most of the crowd was stunned by the revelation. Meanwhile, Zane's shock hadn't yet subsided after the leap into orbit he'd made, with Alexis trying to get him off his back.
"This... this can't be happening!" He thought totally in shock. "Master said the deck was cursed! That it couldn't be used without killing the duelist using it!" He said that's why we were protecting it! How can this guy have it?!"
Syrus, meanwhile, got over his shock and was deep in thought. "Cyber... dark?" He wondered. "I wonder if it's related to my brother's cards..."
It was at this point that Crowler finally got over his shock. He began to chuckle...which soon turned into a full-blown laugh.
"Oh, oh that's good!" He said between bursts of laughter. "He almost had me worried for a moment!" He said before calming down.
"Uh... I think maybe you should have summoned a monster with higher attack points than my monster!" Said Ren.
"That's exactly what I did." Said Ibuki, confusing his opponent even more.
"What?!" Ren asked, shocked.
"For now." Replied Ibuki. "Let me change that by activating Cyberdark Dragon's special ability, when summoned by fusion, I can take a dragon monster from my graveyard and equip it to Cyberdark Dragon as an equipment card. For this purpose, I choose Dark Horus!"
A large black dragon made of metal appeared on the field.
Dark Horus (LV08/ATK 3000/DEF 1800)
"Wait, how did this happen in his graveyard?" Asked Syrus, confused.
"It was sent there by the very first card he played: Foolish Burial." Realized Bastion.
Cyberdark Dragon then descended upon Dark Horus, enveloping the dragon and attaching itself to him.
"Now the Cyberdark Dragon gains attack points equal to the attack of the monster equipped with it!" Ibuki revealed.
Both Dark Horus and Cyberdark Dragon roared as one and their attacks increased greatly.
Cyberdark Dragon (LV08/ATK 4000/DEF 4000)
"Four thousand?!" Ren shouted with surprise.
"Not quite." Ibuki answered him. "The Cyberdark Dragon also gains 100 attack points for each monster in my graveyard, and since I sent three of them to summon my metal monster..."
Cyberdark Dragon (LV08/ATK 4300/DEF 4300)
"Then I reveal my face-down card, the Lightning Vortex. This card will destroy all the monsters on your side of the field." He said as one of his face down cards, lightning bolts came out of it, destroying Ren's Valkyrie-Vierte.
"Oh no." Said Ren realizing what was about to happen to him.
"Now, if we're all done admiring my monster, it's time to end it. Cyberdark Dragon, if you will." Said Ibuki.
The metal dragon reared up, before firing a massive stream of energy at Ren.
Ren : 0 Life Point
Ibuki : 4000 Life Points
"He did it!" Alexis exclaimed happily.
"No way! Chazz lost with all the rare cards he gave Chazz, and Ren lost it's not possible!" Crowler exclaimed as he leaned against the glass.
"Rare cards, what exactly are you talking about, Crowler?" Sheppard asked.
Crowler flinched, now realizing he had spoken loud enough for Chancellor Sheppard to hear.
"Uh... nothing... I... uh... have to go grade some tests." He said.
He left quickly. Shepherd laughed at Crowler behind his back. Unaware of Crowler, Ibuki looked at everything and smiled.
"Hmph. Serves you right, Crowler. Your plot to humiliate and possibly expel Jaden has failed." He smiled as Ren approached him and held out his hand.
"That was a good duel." He congratulated.
"Thank you." Said Ibuki as he accepted his opponent's handshake.
"At least I didn't lose everything. Crowler gave me a rare card so that I would agree to fight you." Ren admitted with amusement.
After hearing this Ibuki looked back at the room where Crowler and the chancellor watched the duel with a mixture of contempt and determination.
"Then you target me too... We'll see if you're willing to take the risk." He thought.
"Ibuki!" Said several voices from behind Ibuki.
He turned to see Jaden, Syrus, Alexis and Bastion ran towards him.
"That was well done, Jaden, Ibuki." Said Chancellor Shepherd from the speakers. "Never in the history of our venerable Academy has a Slifer taken on an Obelisk at these exams. Not only did you stand your ground, you won! Your courage against all odds is... inspiring. It is with great pride that I grant you promotion to the Yellow Ra. Good job!" He said.
The crowd cheered again.
"You are the best!" Complimented Syrus as he hugged Jaden.
"I do what I can." Said Jaden with a smile.
"Great duel out there!" Congratulated Alexis hugging Ibuki, which made him blush without him being able to see it.
"Yes, good show, allow me to be the first to welcome you to the Yellow Ra dorm." Said Bastion.
"Thanks guys." Said Jaden as he shook hands with the Yellow Ra student.
Later that night, at the Slifer dormitory, a portly student with a haircut reminiscent of koala ears who had attended the duels and Syrus were in the room they shared with Jaden.
"Hey Syrus, if you're not going to do anything constructive, then you might as well make me a grilled cheese." Said the koala boy.
"You know Chumley, I just thought Jaden would at least say goodbye...that's all." Said Syrus sadly.
"Hi guys." Said a voice.
Syrus and Chumley turned around to see... Jaden?
"Jaden?! Why are you here?!" Syrus asked surprised.
"I wanted to congratulate you on passing your field test. Also, in case you forgot." Replied Jaden placing his hands on his hips. "I live here!" He said.
"Huh?!" Said Syrus surprised by his friend's answer.
Jaden shrugged.
"Sure, the Yellow Ra has nice clean sheets, the absence of roaches, and those fancy blazers, but without you Syrus, this isn't my house!" He explained. Syrus sniffed and dove at him, tears falling from his eyes like a waterfall. His roommate squirmed. "Hey take it easy, Syrus, you're going to soak my jacket!" Said he amused by the situation.
Syrus looked up, tears still in his eyes.
"I thought... I thought I had lost you forever! Now I'll never let you go again!" He said.
Jaden broke out in a cold sweat.
"Calm down, Syrus! Come on, get down!" He said.
"Just let me give you a few more hugs!" Implored Syrus.
"It's not the hugs, it's the tears!" Retorted Jaden as he laughed, which also made Chumley laugh.
Once the exams were over, Zane quickly made his way to his mentor's office.
"Ah, hello Zane!" Said Chancellor Sheppard. "What can I-?"
"Why does Ibuki Kadoya have the Cyber-Art Reverse Deck?" Asked Zane, not in the mood to talk.
"Because he stole it." Sheppard simply replied. "I wasn't sure, since in his duel with the examiner he only used the Ultimate Cyber Dragon. So to keep an eye on him, I promoted him to Obelisk Blue.
"So why not force him to give it back to you? He stole it!" Zane asked indignantly, not wanting to believe Sheppard would let someone use such a dangerous Deck. "You told me that this deck is cursed, that it slowly kills anyone who uses it! Then why did you just leave the cards we were supposed to protect to some random kid?!"
"Because he doesn't seem affected by the curse, Zane." Sheppard replied, shocking his student.
" ... What?" Zane said with wide eyes.
"We've seen two duels where he used his deck. Did you see any signs that he was dying? Sheppard asked.
"I... no." Zane said, lowering his head. "But, do you expect me to believe that a kid was able to break the deck's curse?" Asked Zane, still in disbelief.
"You saw him use it." Said Sheppard. "Did he look like he was cursed?"
"No, but... how did he do it?" Zane asked.
"I have no idea." Sheppard replied honestly. "I can hardly believe it myself."
"Master, are you sure it's wise to let him keep it?" Zane asked his mentor, "What if the curse comes back?"
"All we can do is wait, and watch." Said Sheppard paused. "Listen, Zane, I want you to keep an eye on our new friend. I think he's trustworthy, but there's something... different about him."
"Different how?" Zane asked, with a raised eyebrow.
"He's been through things that a boy his age shouldn't have to go through. He acts like he's older than he really is. Like he's dealing with a lot of weight, but I can't tell what it is or why." Sheppard replied.
"You think he's dangerous?" Zane asked.
"I don't think he is. Not to us or the academy, anyway." Sheppard replied, "But you can't be too careful."
Zane remained silent for a moment.
"Okay, Master," Zane finally agreed, "I'll keep an eye on him.
"Thank you, Zane," Sheppard said, "I'll feel more confident knowing you're keeping an eye on him.
"One more thing, master." Said Zane, curious about something. "What does the loss of the Cyber-Art Reverse Deck mean for Cyber Art?"
"Nothing." Sheppard replied. "Protecting the Cyber-Art Reverse Deck was not our real objective. Our true purpose is the same as it has always been: to pass our teachings from one generation to the next. With the burden of our greatest secret removed, our goal will become easier to achieve."
"I understand." Replied Zane, feeling a little better about the whole thing. "Thank you for sharing this with me."
"It's nothing, son." Said Sheppard, resuming his jovial attitude.
Zane walked out of the office, feeling more optimistic, but still somewhat worried about the future.