I'm back! This time with a double release. I won't be speaking much here since most of what I want to say will be in the next chapter. These chapters will be much more story-heavy then the other two chapters, we're finally getting a dip into the good stuff narrative-wise.
Disclaimer: (As always) Minor spelling, grammar, and other mistakes may be present. I lowkey suck a revising long chapters like these, so I usually just go back and edit them overtime after release.
Without any further ado, enjoy!
New Revelations (1)
Yuuji found himself in a dystopian setting. Buildings were leveled, the corpses of people wedged in between debris. The aching pain in his body. It all felt so real, yet he couldn't control his body at all. It was like it was moving on its own.
A giant dragon taller than even the biggest skyscrapers decimated the area around it with intense rage. If one were to look at it closer, one could see someone seemingly fused with the dragon—becoming one with it. Unlike most of the other people who were running, Yuuji, or well, his body, continued walking towards the dragon.
A while later, he makes his way up a hill, facing the massive dragon being. A few moments later, to his side, he noticed a dark magenta-haired woman whose face was blurred standing beside him.
"Zarc, you bastard!" He shouted. "Look what you've done! You've destroyed everything, and for what!?"
"Brother. How can you say that I'm doing something wrong when this is what humanity has asked for." The dragon being, named Zarc, responded. Surprisingly, the voice came from the small human body that was mostly absorbed into the center of the monster. "They wanted more violence, anger, hate. They wanted to see blood. And now when they receive what they wished for, they want peace? Because they're scared?"
"Nobody asked for this and you know it, Zarc!" The woman spoke this time.
"Ray. You wouldn't understand. You're someone blessed with a heart too pure for the human race."
"That doesn't mean anything! There are many people with hearts just as pure as mine, who you've killed because of your wrath!" Ray responded. "You can't fix the human race by doing that!"
"Humanity is already far beyond the point of no return," Zarc responded. "The only way to erase the mistakes of humanity is to eradicate them. However, that's not my main reason for doing all of this."
"Then why, brother!?" The man Yuuji was possessing asked. "Why are you doing this!?"
"To ascend."
Just before he could learn any more about what the dragon being meant; everything turned white as the dream abruptly ended.
The next day...
"I couldn't sleep at all…"
Yuuji woke up with bags under his eyes. He couldn't get a lick of sleep last night due to the events that transpired yesterday. It didn't help that he ended up having that dream, which had him waking up at 3 AM, unable to fall back to sleep due to him constantly thinking about the strange dream.
Why did he have that dream? Who were Ray and Zarc? Who was the person he was possessing, was it him? Not to mention, what the hell happened yesterday? Who was Kurosaki, and why was he so against this Academia and Fusion? What happened to Sawatari's lackeys when they were carded? Are they dead? How did Akaba Reiji get there so fast? What's going to happen to Kurosaki?
Too many questions soared through his mind, each without an answer that could fulfill it. He dismissed these thoughts about his past before, thinking that they didn't matter much and that he would just peacefully wait until he eventually regained his memories.
But now, with that recent duel against Kurosaki, it finally got him thinking about his situation.
"Hah…to think that I was able to live peacefully for like two weeks before I started having an existential crisis…" Yuuji muttered. "What was that saying again? Ignorance was bliss."
He was barely aware of anything in his past, yet it was already making him stressed out just thinking about the little he knew.
What would happen when I learn more? Like, what if I was connected to some massive war that determined the fate of the world?
That couldn't be true right? He's not that important. His life wasn't some grandiose story like that, where he would be directly connected to some main conflict that would determine whether or not everyone would live to see another day.
…
"You know what, this isn't working." Yuuji stood up from his bed. "I need a breather. The Maiami Championships is tomorrow, I should be excited."
The idea of watching people of all kinds duel on such a big stage was exciting to think about. His friends would be up there, competing to see who was the greatest duelist there, something he sort of wished he had a chance to do.
Damn, my stage fright! It's like god knew if I were to participate, I would clear through the competition easily.
Yuuji then stretched and noticed his deck and duel disk which were neatly placed on his desk.
"Maybe I should optimize my deck some more. Some monsters don't fit into my deck."
He went into a cabinet, pulling out his side deck. He then placed his two decks side by side, examining the cards within them as he began improving his deck.
"My deck mostly uses Antique Monsters, so it would be better for me to remove some of the non-Antique Monsters that don't really have strong effects."
Yuuji took some Pendulum Monsters that were just random one-off cards and put them in a pile. Aside from his dragons and other boss monsters, he kept three non-Antique Monsters in his deck. Dark Mirage, Mirror Maker, and Maiden of Broken Mirrors. Those three cards were useful regardless of the situation.
Next, he optimized his Spell and Trap Cards, adding useful cards and removing pointless ones. He wanted his deck to have more synergy, as well as better adaptability whenever he faced an opponent like Sawatari who could just return his cards to his hand or destroy them.
"And…done! Now my deck is new and improved!" Yuuji happily held up his deck. "Now, hopefully, there won't be any more Sawatari incidents."
He was still not over the fact that his first loss was against him of all people.
A few hours later…
"Yo, Yuzu, Yuya!" Yuuji waved at his friends as they exited the school premises.
"Hey, Yuuji." Yuzu smiled. "How've you been?"
"A little tired, but I've been good," Yuuji said as the three began walking towards You Show. "How was school?"
"It was good, aside from one thing…" Yuya answered with a mixed expression. "It was something that's been bugging me all day since I heard it this morning."
"What's up?" Yuuji obliviously asked.
"Just one question. Did you…lose to Sawatari?"
"N-No!" Yuuji quickly evaded his gaze. "You know how that guy is, he likes to lie a lot."
"Sure, but Sawatari seemed awfully happy whenever he brought it." Yuya continued. "You can usually tell when he's telling the truth about something he did when he constantly gloats about it 24/7."
"...No comment," Yuuji replied, "It's not important."
"It is when you lose to him of all people," Yuzu sighed, "When did you even find the time to duel him?"
"He challenged me out of the blue, saying that he wanted to teach me a lesson on why he was the best duelist there is or something?" Yuuji explained. "I accepted, dueled him, and made some misplays. It wasn't anything serious."
The more I think about it, the less and less that duel makes sense. How did I make such stupid misplays like that?
Okay, time for a topic change.
"Enough about my dueling record," Yuuji changed the subject, "Are you guys prepared for the Maiami Championships? It's tomorrow right?"
"Yeah," Yuya nodded and resolutely pumped his fists, "I've been reviewing my deck and combos all day when I had the time."
"That's great," Yuuji smiled before turning to Yuzu, "What about you?"
"There are still some things that I need to work on," Yuzu said before remembering something, "Wait, Yuuji. Do you think you can help me practice for the tournament later?"
"Help you practice?" Yuuji raised an eyebrow. "Why aren't you asking Yuya for help."
"Yeah, why aren't you asking me to help?" Yuya wondered.
"I can't keep relying on you much, and Yuuji owes me some favors for letting him stay at our place."
"Hey wait!? I thought the only favor I had to do was join You Show!?" Yuuji frowned. "I never agreed to this on the contract."
"It's not like I'm asking much from you," Yuzu frowned back and sighed, "All I want are some pointers from you since you're incredibly knowledgeable at Duel Monsters."
"Well, if that's all, I'll help," Yuuji agreed.
"Great, thank you," Yuzu smiled as they arrived at You Show, "We'll talk more about this after Otou-san's lessons."
A few hours later, at the abandoned harbor…
"Back here once again, as if my first experience here wasn't traumatic enough…" Yuuji muttered as he arrived with Yuzu and Sora. He then turned to the two. "So what's the plan?"
"I've been teaching Yuzu Fusion Summoning for the past two weeks," Sora explained as he led them to an abandoned warehouse, slowly opening up an entrance. "Though, she hasn't had the chance to use it in an actual duel yet."
"Fusion Summoning?" Yuuji was surprised. "Wait, is that what you've been doing all this time?"
"Yeah, sorry about not telling you sooner," Yuzu apologized, "I wanted to keep it a secret."
"No, it's fine," Yuuji replied. The fact that you're telling me this means that you're close to a breakthrough, right?"
"Mhm!" Yuzu happily nodded. "Thanks to Sora, I think I got the main principles of it down."
"You seem confident," Yuuji smirked as he attached his duel disk to his arm, "Let's put it to the test."
"Right," Yuzu did the same as they entered the warehouse, "Don't be surprised when I beat you."
The two take their places on opposite sides, with Sora standing near the middle as referee.
"Come to think of it," Yuuji said to Yuzu, "I've never had the chance to see you duel yet."
"You haven't?" Sora was a bit surprised.
"I haven't seen how you duel either," Yuuji turned to Sora, "You think you can show me sometime?"
"You'll just have to wait until my match at the Maiami Championships then," Sora stated.
"Fine with me," Yuuji smiled before returning his attention back to Yuzu.
Unbeknownst to them, a figure stood concealed on the warehouse's upper level, quietly observing the trio below. This individual bore an uncanny resemblance to both Yuya and Yuuji. However, unlike Yuya's vibrant red and green hair or Yuuji's gray, this stranger's hair was a striking lavender, and their appearance was marked by rugged, worn-out attire.
"Are you both ready?" Sora asked the two duelists, who nodded back at him. "Alright then, on three, the duel will commence! Three!"
"Two!" Yuzu continued.
"One!" Yuuji said as they both activated their duel disks.
[Duel!] The three shout in unison.
Yuuji — LP: 4000
Yuzu — LP: 4000
"I'll start!" Yuuji declared. "I play a monster face down, set two cards, and end my turn!"
Three face-downs, one with a little chained spirit rising above it, appeared on Yuuji's field.
"No Pendulum Summoning?" Yuzu raised an eyebrow. "Are you taking this seriously?"
"I am taking this seriously," Yuuji replied, "I just want to see what you can do first."
"Alright then, I'll show you!" Yuzu declared as she began her turn. "My turn! Draw! I activate 1st Movement Solo, which allows me to Special Summon a Melodius Monster from my hand if I control no monsters on my field! Appear now, Mozarta the Melodious Maestra (Light/Fairy/Effect/ATK: 2600/DEF: 2000/LV: 7)!"
A female monster wearing a large red dress, with yellow butterfly wings appeared.
"My elegant monster has a special effect!" Yuzu announced. "Once per turn, I can Special Summon a Melodius Monster from my hand! Take the stage, Tamtam the Melodious Diva (Light/Fairy/Effect/ATK: 1000/DEF: 2000/LV: 4)!"
A smaller female monster with colorful attire, holding a staff and a red gong appeared.
"When Tamtam the Melodious Diva is Special Summoned onto my field, I can add 1 Polymerization from my deck to my hand!" Yuzu continued as she picked out a card from her deck. "Now I activate Polymerization, fusing my Mozarta the Melodious Maestra with Tamtam the Melodious Diva!"
"..." The Mysterious lookalike furrowed his eyebrows upon the mention of the card.
"Here it comes…" Sora slyly smirked from the side as Yuzu's two monsters rose into the air.
"Cheerful Gong! Genius Prodigy!" Yuzu chanted. "With the guidance of the baton, gather your power! Fusion Summon! Now take the stage! Bloom Diva the Melodious Choir (Light/Fairy/Fusion/Effect/ATK: 1000/DEF: 2000/LV: 6)!"
A pink flower appeared, and arising from it was a beautiful fairy-like monster with light-colored hair and elegant ribbons surrounding its body.
"So that's your new Ace Monster," Yuuji said in awe, "I'm a bit scared to see what it will do."
"And it's only going to get worse!" Yuzu smiled. "Tamtam's effect now activates! When it's used as material for a Fusion Summon, I can lower my Bloom Diva's ATK by 500, and inflict 500 damage to your Life Points!"
Tamtam rose from the grave momentarily, hitting its gong and causing Yuuji to cover his ears from the loud crashing sound.
(Bloom Diva — ATK: 1000 → 500)
Yuuji — LP: 4000 → 3500
"That hurt…" Yuuji complained as he held his ringing ears.
"There's more where that came from!" Yuzu declared. "I activate the Field Spell, Melodious Last Chorus!"
She plays the card, with colorful music notes floating around the warehouse. The humming of a chorus reverberated through the room.
"A Field Spell?" Yuuji was surprised. "Hey, aren't you taking this a bit too seriously? I thought this was just a practice match?"
"I have to do anything I can to win against someone as strong as you," Yuzu replied, "You better do the same, or else this duel won't last more than a single turn!"
Yuzu then takes out two cards from her graveyard.
"Once during my turn, my Field Spell allows me to Special Summon as many Melodius Monsters from my graveyard to my field as possible! However, monsters summoned by this effect are returned to the graveyard during the End Phase! Furthermore, Melodious Monsters I control cannot be targeted by my opponent's card effects!" Yuzu announced. "Welcome back, Mozarta (ATK: 2600/DEF: 2000/LV: 7) and Tamtam (ATK: 1000/DEF: 2000/LV: 4)!"
Yuzu formerly destroyed monsters return to her field again.
Wait, how is that even fair? She can just keep recycling her monsters as materials like it's nothing, along with gaining extra protection!? Yuuji thought. Then again, who am I to complain? My own summoning method basically does the same thing—with even fewer restrictions.
"Battle!" Yuzu moved into her Battle Phase. "Tamtam, attack his facedown monster!"
Yuzu's monster moves forward, whacking the chained spirit which causes the card to flip over, revealing Antique Emerald Broom (Light/Fairy/Pendulum/Tuner/Effect/ATK: 0/DEF: 0/LV: 3/SC: 7).
"Antique Emerald Broom's effect now activates!" Yuuji announces. "When this card is destroyed by battle, I can place it into an empty Pendulum Zone. Then, if this effect goes through, I can add 1 Spell/Trap from my deck to my hand!"
Yuuji added a card to his hand as a green, emerald-coated broom rose into an empty Pendulum Zone.
"My attacks continue!" Yuzu declared as Mozarta then moved forward. "Mozarta, attack Yuuji directly!"
Mozarta created a harmonious melody with her voice, hitting Yuuji and making him wince a bit.
Yuuji — LP: 3500 → 900
"Now Bloom Diva attacks you directly."
Bloom Diva emits a pink whirlwind with her shouts, which pushes Yuuji back a few feet.
Yuuji — LP: 900 → 400
"I end my turn with a facedown! And with the end of my turn, Mozarta and Tamtam are destroyed," Yuzu concludes as a facedown card appears on her field, along with her monsters being destroyed. "How was that?"
"Impressive," Yuuji complimented, "In just a few seconds, you already brought my Life Points to such a critical amount."
"Thanks," Yuzu smiled, "Though it's not much since you don't seem to be trying right now."
"Not trying?" Yuuji frowned. "I am trying. I always try my best in the duel. I just like to have fun as well."
"Well then prove it," Yuzu said, "Otherwise, I'll finish you off on my next turn!"
"We'll see. My turn! Draw!"
Yuuji looked at the card he drew and smiled.
"Alright! I set the Pendulum Scale with the Scale 4 Odd-Eyes Phantom Dragon, and the Scale 7 Antique Emerald Broom already set in my Pendulum Scale!" Yuuji declared as his purple dragon with amber eyes rose into his other Pendulum Zone.
"Looks like he's getting serious now…" Sora commented.
"Now I can summon monsters Levels 5 and 6 all at the same time!" Yuuji announced. "Shine, Pendulum of Destiny! Draw an arc across the ether, and reflect onto me a path to victory! Pendulum Summon! Appear from my hand, Antique Steamrail (Light/Fairy/Pendulum/Effect/ATK: 0/DEF: 0/LV: 5/SC: 5)!"
A floating steam-powered train appeared behind Yuuji.
"When Antique Steamrail is Special Summoned to my field, I can banish cards from my opponent's graveyard equal to the difference between my two set Pendulum Scale!" Yuuji shouts, much to Yuzu's shock. "Since the difference is two, I can banish two cards from your graveyard. I choose to banish your Mozarta and Tamtam!"
"Dammit…" Yuzu muttered as her two cards were ejected from the graveyard before she reluctantly placed them in her banish zone. "I didn't think he would have such an effect."
"Next, I activate Emerald Broom's Pendulum Effect!" Yuuji continued. "Once per turn, I can Special Summon an Antique Monster directly from my deck to my field! Appear now, Antique Silver Rake (Light/Fairy/Pendulum/Effect/ATK: 0/DEF: 0/LV: 5/SC: 2)!"
A pristine silver rake appeared on Yuuji's field.
"That monster?" Yuzu raised an eyebrow. "Do you plan on lowering my Bloom Diva's ATK?"
"Not quite," Yuuji answered, "The fact that you willingly lowered your monster's ATK when you used Tamtam's effect means that you want your monster to lose as many ATK points as possible. I have a different plan in mind."
Yuuji then extended his arms outward.
"Now with my two Level 5 Monsters, I construct the Overlay Network!"
[What!?] Both Yuzu and Sora cried out in shock as Yuuji's two monsters were converted into energy and absorbed into a galaxy-like vortex.
"An antidote lost through time," Yuuji chanted, "Appear once again, and bring about your legacy! Xyz Summon! Come forth, Rank 5! Antique Healing Remedy (Light/Fairy/Xyz/Effect/ATK: 0/DEF: 0/R: 5/OU: 2)!"
Appearing on his field now was a floating assortment of syringes with colorful solutions within.
"And with that, I end my turn," Yuuji concluded, much to Yuzu's surprise.
"That's it?" Yuzu was a little disappointed. "I thought you were going to summon out something big like your dragons?"
"If I did that, I would lose, right?" Yuuji smiled. "I don't plan on recklessly attacking that monster of yours until I learn about its effect."
"Quite smart of you," Sora commented, "It seems like you've improved as a duelist already."
"Thanks, though I wouldn't say that I improved that much," Yuuji scratched the back of his head, "More like I'm taking my time."
"That's still an improvement," Sora stated.
"Enough chatter, boys. It's my turn! Draw!" Yuzu drew a card. "I activate my facedown, Melodious Returnia! Now I can target a Melodius Monster that was banished from my graveyard, and add it to my hand! I choose to return Mozarta the Melodiuous Maestra to my hand!"
Yuzu takes out Mozarta from her banish zone.
"Then I activate the Spell, Second Stanza! With it, I can Special Summon 1 Melodius Monster from my hand, and one Melodius Monster from my deck! Take the stage once again, Mozarta (ATK: 2600/DEF: 2000/LV: 7)! And a new star, Soprano the Melodious Songstress (Light/Fairy/Effect/ATK: 1400/DEF: 1400/LV: 4)!"
Mozarta and green feminine monster with an elegant dress and maroon-colored hair appeared on Yuzu's field.
"Soprano's effect now activates!" She declared. "With it, I can Fusion Summon a monster from my Extra Deck using monsters on my field as materials! I fuse my Mozarta with my Soprano to bring out a new star!"
So she can Fusion Summon without a Fusion Spell too!? Yuuji thought as his eyes widened. I mean, I can do it too, but to do so when you've only learned the theory of the summoning method is amazing. Sora taught her well.
Yuzu two monsters rise into the air and begin to fuse.
"Angels song! Supreme Genius! With the guidance of the baton, gather your power!" Yuzu chanted. "Fusion Summon! Now appears the Maestra who controls the stage! Bacha the Melodious Maestra (Light/Fairy/Fusion/Effect/ATK: 2500/DEF: 1800/LV: 7)!"
A feminine monster wearing a black dress, with a red flat hat resting on the side of her head, appeared.
"Bacha the Melodious Maestra effect activates!" She continued. "When she is Special Summoned onto my field, I can Special Summon another Melodious Monster from my deck to my field! Appear now, Elegy the Melodious Diva (Light/Fairy/Effect/ATK: 2000/DEF: 1200/LV: 5)!"
A feminine monster wearing a purple dress, with green skin, hair, and one purple colored wing sticking out of its back appeared on her field.
"My Field Spell activates again, returning Mozarta (ATK: 2600/DEF: 2000/LV: 7) and Soprano (ATK: 1400/DEF: 1400/LV: 4) to my field!"
Her two monsters which were previously used for Fusion Summoning returned once again.
"Okay, that Field Spell is super annoying…" Yuuji frowned.
"Battle!" Yuzu moved into her Battle Phase. "Bacha the Melodious Maestra, attack Yuuji's monster and end this duel! Melodious Symphony!"
"Not so fast!" Yuuji shouts. "Antique Healing Remedy's effect now activates! When this card is targeted for battle, I can detach an overlay unit from it to reduce battle damage I receive from that attack to 0, and gain Life Points equal to half the ATK of your monster!"
(Healing Remedy — OU: 2 → 1)
Yuuji — LP: 400 → 1650
The attack connected, but neither Yuuji nor his monster felt the impact.
"Wait? How is your monster still here!?" Yuzu cried out.
"Antique Healing Remedy cannot be destroyed by battle," Yuuji explained. "Meaning no matter how many times you attack, it won't be doing anything."
"We'll see," Yuzu replied. "I activate the Quick-Play-Spell, Helping Hand! With it, I can increase the ATK of a monster on my opponent's field by 1000! I choose to increase Antique Healing Remedy's ATK!"
(Healing Remedy — ATK: 0 → 1000)
"Increasing my monster's ATK?" Yuuji frowned. "Just what are you planning?"
"Oh?" Sora raised an eyebrow as Yuzu continued.
"I now attack again with Bloom Diva!" Yuzu declared.
Attacking while my monster's ATK is higher? Is she crazy!?
Bloom Diva emits a pink whirlwind with her shout, which hits Yuuji's monster. However, Yuuji's monster stood strong, not being pushed back by the whirlwind.
"Antique Healing Remedy's effect activates once again!" Yuuji declared. "Increasing my Life Points by half your monster's ATK!"
(Healing Remedy — OU: 1 → 0)
Yuuji — LP: 1650 → 1900
"Bloom Diva's effect activates!" Yuzu shouts. "When she attacks a Special Summoned monster, after damage calculations, you take damage equal to the difference between our monster's ATK!"
"Gah." Yuuji winced as his Life Points dwindled.
Yuuji — LP: 1900 → 1400
"I'm not done!" Yuzu continued. "When this effect goes through, your monster is then destroyed! Reflect Shout!"
Bloom Diva's whirlwind grew stronger, destroying Yuuji's monster completely. Leaving Yuuji's field wide open.
"Now for the finale!" Yuzu announced. "Mozarta the Melodious Maestra attacks you directly, Yuuji!"
Mozarta begins singing, creating solid music notes that are then propelled toward Yuuji.
"Trap card, activate! Antique Restock!" Yuuji shouts as one of his set traps is flipped face-up. "When I control no Antique Monsters on my field, I can target an Antique Monster in my graveyard, and Special Summon it! Appear on my field once again, Antique Healing Remedy (ATK: 0/DEF: 0/R: 5/OU: 0) in defense mode!"
Yuuji's previously destroyed monster appears once again, shielding him from the oncoming attacks.
"And since Healing Remedy cannot be destroyed by battle, my Life Points are completely out of your reach this turn!" Yuuji declared.
"Tch." Yuzu clicked her tongue. "I end my turn. And with the end of my turn, Mozarta and Soprano are destroyed by my Field Spell's effect."
"They're neck and neck right now…" Sora muttered. "It's hard to figure out who will win."
"..." The mysterious onlooker silently watched the duel with a neutral expression.
Yuuji fell into deep thought.
Her Field Spell needs to go, somehow. Otherwise, I'll only end up losing the next turn thanks to her Bloom Diva's battle effect. I can use Antique Steamrail to banish the two monsters in her graveyard, but that won't change the fact that I have no way of removing her Bloom Diva.
He needs to come up with a way, right here and now.
"My turn! Draw!" Yuuji drew a card, his eyes widening when he saw what he drew.
Wait, this is just what I need. Yuuji smiled. With this, I can make a comeback!
"With my currently set Pendulum Scale, I Pendulum Summon!" Yuuji announced as a portal appeared, with two energies flying out of it. "Return from the Extra Deck, Antique Steamrail (ATK: 0/DEF: 0/LV: 5) and Antique Silver Rake (ATK: 0/DEF: 0/LV: 5)!"
Yuuji's monsters return to his field.
"Antique Steamrail's effect now activates, allowing me to banish two cards from your graveyard once again!" Yuuji shouts. "I banish your Mozarta and Soprano from your graveyard!"
Once again, Yuzu is forced to place her cards in the banish zone.
"Next, I now activate Antique Emerald Broom's Pendulum Effect, allowing me to Special Summon an Antique Monster from my deck!" Yuuji continued as he drew a card from his deck and played it on his duel disk. "Appear, Antique Golden Carol (Light/Fairy/Pendulum/Effect/ATK: 0/DEF: 0/LV: 5/SC: 1)!"
A golden bell that emitted a festive chime appeared on his field.
"When Antique Golden Carol is Special Summoned from my deck, I can add 1 Ritual Spell from my deck to my hand! I choose to add Odd-Eyes Advent to my hand!"
Yuuji added a card to his hand.
"A Ritual Spell?" Yuzu raised an eyebrow before her eyes widened. "Wait, don't tell me you're going to…"
"I activate the Ritual Spell, Odd-Eyes Advent!" Yuuji declared. "By tributing Pendulum Monsters on my field whose combined Levels equal or exceed the level of the monster I'm planning to summon, I can Ritual Summon any Dragon Ritual Monster from my hand or graveyard! I sacrifice my Level 5 Antique Golden Carol and my Level 5 Antique Steamrail!"
An altar appeared behind Yuuji, depicting various dragons on it. Yuuji's two monsters are converted into energy and absorbed, as the unlit flames of the alter begin to erupt with scarlet flames.
"Chained dragon who wields an unshakable power." Yuuji chanted. "Break free from your chains, and rise, as you annihilate your foes before you with overwhelming intensity! Ritual Summon! Come forth, Level 7! Odd-Eyes Gravity Dragon (Earth/Dragon/Ritual/Effect/ATK: 2800/DEF: 2500/LV: 7)!"
Breaking out of the altar was a giant dragon with orange and black scales. The orb on its chest was wrapped in golden armor, its blood-red eyes dripping with malice.
"Odd-Eyes Gravity Dragon's effect activates!" Yuuji shouts. "When this monster is Ritual Summoned, I can return all Spell/Trap Cards my opponent controls to their hand!"
"What!?" Yuzu cried out as her Field Spell was destroyed and sent back to her hand.
"Impressive…" Sora muttered as he unwrapped a lollipop and stuck it in his mouth. "You surprise me every time I watch you duel, Yuuji."
"Don't think this is the end Yuzu!" Yuuji announces. "I activate my second set Continuous Trap Card, Pendulum Trade! Once per turn, I can target 1 Monster in my Pendulum Zone, and Special Summon it onto my field! Descend now, Odd-Eyes Phantom Dragon (Dark/Dragon/Pendulum/Effect/ATK: 2500/DEF: 2000/LV: 7/SC: 4)!"
Yuuji's purple dragon descended from its Pendulum Zone, roaring as it moved to Yuuji's frontlines.
"Now he has two dragons…" Yuzu nervously muttered. "This can't get any worse, right?"
"Oh, it can." Yuuji smiled. "But first, Antique Silver Rake's effect now activates. With it, I lower Bacha the Melodious Maestra's ATK by 500!"
(Bacha — ATK: 2500 → 2000)
"Next, I activate the Fusion Spell, Starving Fusion!" Yuuji announced.
"A Fusion Spell?" Sora perked up at the mention.
"..." The mysterious onlooker clenched his fists at the mention.
"Now I can Fusion Summon a monster from my Extra Deck using Pendulum Monsters from my field, hand, and face-up in my Extra Deck as material!" Yuuji declared. "I fuse the Odd-Eyes Phantom Dragon on my field together with the Antique Golden Carol in my Extra Deck!"
Golden Carol temporarily appears on Yuuji's field, rising in the air together with Odd-Eyes Phantom Dragon before they fuse together.
"Festive bell! Fuse together with the phantom dragon, and give birth to the most sinister of dragons!" Yuuji chanted. "Fusion Summon! Descend now, Level 7! Starve Venemy Dragon (Dark/Dragon/Fusion/Effect/ATK: 2500/DEF: 2000/LV: 7/SC: 1)!"
An intimidating dragon with a purple and green color scheme, a tendril-like bottom half, and massive arms appeared on the field.
"Another dragon?" Yuzu frowned. "Just how many are you going to summon?"
"Don't worry, this is the last one," Yuuji said, "And the one who will help settle this duel! Starve Venemy Dragon's effect activates! With it, I can negate the effects of one of your monsters, copy its effect, reduce its ATK and DEF by 500, and deal 500 points of damage to your Life Points! I obviously choose to target your Bloom Diva!"
Vines erupted from the ground, wrapping around Bloom Diva and Yuzu's right arm, sapping away the two's energy.
(Bloom Diva — ATK: 500 → 0, DEF: 2000 → 1500)
"Gah," Yuzu gasped softly as her Life Points took a hit.
Yuzu — LP: 4000 → 3500
"Battle!" Yuuji entered his battle phase. "Odd-Eyes Gravity Dragon attacks your Bloom Prima! Blazing Inferno!"
Gravity Dragon shoots a breath of fire, engulfing Yuzu's monster and creating an explosion that creates a small explosion, causing Yuzu to wince.
Yuzu — LP: 3500 → 700
"Starve Venemy Dragon now attacks Bacha the Melodious Maestra! Savage Sinning Slashes!"
Starve Venemy flies forward, slashing through Yuzu's monster
Yuzu — LP: 700 → 200
"I end my turn with that," Yuuji concludes.
"Then it's my turn. Draw!" Yuzu drew a card. "I activate my Field Spell—"
"Odd-Eyes Gravity Dragon's effect now activates!" Yuuji interrupted. "While my monster remains on the field, my opponent has to pay 500 Life Points to activate card effects! Since you only have 200 Life Points, this duel has reached its conclusion!"
"What!?"
"Now for the climax!" Yuuji announced. "Odd-Eyes Gravity Dragon, finish this duel!"
Yuuji's dragon erupts into flames, shooting another breath of fire at Yuzu that creates an explosion, sending her tumbling back and concluding the duel.
Yuzu — LP: 200 → 0
Winner: Yuuji
Yuuji's monsters disappear as he approaches Yuzu, who is rubbing her pained head from his final attack.
"Ow," Yuzu whined as she soothed her head.
"Hey, are you okay?" Yuuji asked as he extended his hand to her. "I didn't mean to go so hard like that."
"No, I'm fine," Yuzu accepted the hand and smiled, "You used what you had and dueled with your full strength, just like I wanted. Thank you."
"I was cutting it a bit too close though," Yuuji replied, "I would've lost if I didn't draw Gravity Dragon there."
"Perhaps, but luck is a part of the game, and you happened to be luckier than me," Yuzu stated.
"Enough about me, this was about you, right?" Yuuji asked. "You're crazy good at Fusion Summoning. I couldn't even tell that this was your first time doing it in an actual duel."
Yuzu blushed a bit at the compliment, "R-Really?"
"Mhm." Yuuji nodded. "That probably was my hardest duel yet, which isn't saying much since I've only dueled five times now, but yeah. You're crazy strong."
"She was taught by me after all," Sora chimed in, "The best of the best—"
Sora stopped speaking as he heard something from above. He quickly became serious as he turned to see where the noise came from. However, when he did, he found nobody there.
"What's wrong?" Yuuji asked Sora.
"Nothing," He simply stated before walking towards the exit of the warehouse, "We should go now."
Yuzu and Yuuji both looked at each other for a moment, wondering what caused Sora's demeanor to change like that, before following the short cyan-haired youth.
At LDS Tower…
Akaba Reiji walked through the halls of LDS towards his office. Behind him was Kurosaki Shun, who followed a few paces behind the grey-haired man.
"Is what you're saying true?" Shun asked. "You know about the whereabouts of an Academia agent?"
"It is," Reiji answered without even looking back, "Shiunin Sora, someone who will be participating in the Maiami Championships soon."
"And you want me to join this championship of yours, for what?" Shun inquired.
"You've been on the front lines. You know what it's like to be in the face of war." Reiji spoke. "I want you to be there to judge the duelists of the tournament, to see if they're fit to join my Lancers."
"And you're sure that if you gather these Lancers, you'll be able to defeat Akaba Leo and help me get my little sister back?"
"You're asking an awful lot of questions," Reiji commented.
"Is that a no?" Shun furrowed his eyebrows.
"..." Reiji remained silent for a moment before finally answering. "They can. I'm certain of it."
"..." Shun then sighed. "Fine. I'll help with your scheme, Akaba Reiji. But don't think this means I trust you even one bit. You're a member of that sinner's bloodline after all."
"I don't expect you to put your full trust in me," Reiji spoke as they arrived at his office. "All I need is a small fraction of your trust."
The two walk in.
The next day…
Yuuji had woken up, a little more refreshed than he was yesterday. He had the same dream again today, which made him lose a few hours of sleep. However, he decided to just drink the tiredness away with some morning coffee. There was no time for him to be tired after all. It was the opening day of the Maiami Championships.
For the next week, he would get to see dozens of duels and cheer on his friends as they compete in such a big event.
He quickly got himself ready and was joined by Shuzo and Yuzu when they were ready. Shuzo then took them to You Show, where they met up with the rest of the You Show Gang who were all excited for the tournament.
A while later, through the use of Shuzo's custom "You Show" van, they arrive at Maiami Stadium.
"So, this is Maiami Stadium," Yuuji gazed at the giant stadium in awe, "I knew it was going to be big, but I didn't think it would be this big."
Aside from LDS Tower, this stadium was the largest building in the entire city.
"I heard that it can hold the entire city's population inside," Yuzu said.
"I can't imagine how long it took to build this," Yuuji continued.
"Yuzu-oneechan, Yuuji-oniiichan, stop admiring the stadium and get over you already!" Ayu shouted to the two of them, who had drifted off from the group.
[Hai.] The two say in unison as they join the group.
The You Show Group were about to enter the stadium when they realized that someone very important was missing from the group.
Yuya.
They decided to split up to cover more ground, each determined to find clues more efficiently. During their search, they crossed paths with Mieru, one of Yuya's opponents from his qualifying duels. Mieru, after her duel with Yuya, quickly develops a crush on him, much to Yuzu's visible annoyance and growing frustration.
Especially whenever she called him "darling".
However, eventually, Yuya arrived, and all of their problems were solved…for around two seconds. Ankokuji Gen then arrives, a supporter of Strong Ishijima and someone who had bullied Yuya when he was little. A few moments later, like a hero, Gongenzaka shows up and confronts Gen.
Gen then leaves shortly after.
Gongenzaka then reveals that he did manage to fulfill the qualifications for the Maiami Championships, much to Yuya's relief. Shortly after that, the group splits, with Yuuji making his way to the stands where Shuzo and Sakaki Yoko, Yuya's mother, were since he was a spectator just like them.
To say Yuuji was shocked when he saw Kurosaki Shun walk out on the pitch as one of the representing participants for LDS would be an understatement. Yuuji knew that Akaba Reiji had taken the man in for questioning after his duel against him two days ago, but to think that he was able to convince that nutcase and murderer to even work with him for a moment.
I'm sure he knows what he's doing.
He noticed that Yuzu and Yuya seemed to be shocked as well, which was weird since he didn't think that they had met him already.
Maybe it happened while I was knocked out after my duel with Hokuto.
After one suspenseful opening ceremony + a beautiful speech from Yuya later, the matchups were announced. Each is more shocking than the last.
Yuya vs Sawatari (Round 2)
Yuzu vs Masumi (Round 2)
Gongenzaka vs Ankokuji Gen
Sora vs Kurosaki
Yuzu's match would be happening this afternoon, while the rest would take place tomorrow. However, before even her duel, Futoshi and Ayu's matches were first, with Futoshi managing to take out his opponent using his ace monster Doodle Beast - Tyranno.
Ayu on the other hand was unlucky, going against the younger brother, or sister—Yuuji wasn't sure—of the Akaba Reiji. Safe to say that after she put up a bit of a fight, she was swiftly defeated by Reira's C/C/C Water Sword of Battle.
Yuzu's match was up next, against Masumi. Masumi put up a great fight, pushing Yuzu into a corner with her Gem-Knight Fusion Monsters. However, Yuzu seemed to be one step ahead of the LDS Fusion Duelist, managing to make use of her Bloom Diva to destroy Masumi's monster and deplete her Life Points to zero. Overcoming the one person she had been trying so hard the past few weeks to surpass.
"And the winner of the match is Hiiragi Yuzu!" The announcer, Nico Smiley, exclaimed.
"Well done, Yuzu!" Shuzo dramatically said with tears streaming down his eyes. "That's why you're my daughter!"
As expected. Yuuji smiled. There was no way she was going to lose to her now.
Yuuji stayed and spectated a few more games, like Hokuto (damn him…) and other rather interesting duelists. Time flew by, and eventually, the first day of the Maiami Championships came to a close.
The next day of the Maiami Championships was much more eventful than the first.
First of all, for the second time in two days. Yuya is not at the arena when he was supposed to. However, this time, it was due to Ankokuji's interference, luring Yuya away from the arena to try and get to his opponent, Gongenzaka.
It was a dirty tactic, but worked wonders as he was able to push Gongenzaka into a corner. However, when Yuya arrived with Gongenzaka's stolen stash in hand, the duel swung in his favor, as he was able to defeat Ankokuji Gen with his new Synchro Monster, Superheavy Samurai Warlord Susanowo.
Yuuji's already high respect for Gongenzaka's dueling style only grew after watching the burly man duel for the first time. It's inspiring the way the man stood his ground and held onto his belief, the belief that Yuya would be safe and sound. His unwavering faith and his impressive dueling skills left a deep impression on Yuuji.
Up next was Sawatari vs Yuya, which was a surprising match, to say the least, to everyone but Yuuji. He had already experience with Sawatari's use of Pendulum Summoning, so the reveal of his Pendulum Cards wasn't very surprising.
However, what did surprise him was how quickly Sawatari improved, both in personality and in skill with his deck. He seemed to take on the facade of an entertaining and did almost just as well as Yuya did when it came to that front.
The two had an intense clash of wits and monsters, with Sawatari managing to push Yuya into a really deep corner. However, with the use of Action Cards and the Beast-Eyes Pendulum Dragon he had unlocked during his duel with Yuuji, he managed to overcome the obstacle that was Sawatari.
The crowd cheered for both duelists, being thoroughly entertained by the two of them. Sawatari seemed to take his loss relatively well, bowing and waving at the crowd with Yuya after the duel. The crowd was incredibly moved by the Pendulum on Pendulum clash.
"You're up next, right?" Yuuji asked Sora, who nodded while licking his lollipop.
"Yup. I'll be sure to bring in another entertaining win for You Show." Sora declared.
The duel was anything but entertaining. It felt less like a match and more like an all-out war, with each move carrying the weight of life-or-death stakes. The tension only heightened as the two exchanged cryptic, unnerving phrases. Sora's cold remark about Shun's people being nothing more than prey in a twisted hunting game sent chills down Yuuji's spine, especially when paired with the memory of Shun's ruthless actions just days prior.
As if the intensity wasn't enough, Yuuji began experiencing brief but vivid visions of a city in ruins—a desolate, destroyed landscape flashing in his mind like haunting premonitions.
The battle reached its climax when Shun summoned Raidraptor - Revolution Falcon. Its devastating assault obliterated Sora's defenses, raining destruction onto the holographic high-tech city. The virtual city crumbled violently, and a building came crashing down on Sora, striking him and knocking him to the ground—his Life Points depleting to zero.
Yuuji almost leaped out of his seat, intending to jump into the stadium once he saw Kurosaki slowly approaching the downed Sora. However, he then suddenly stopped, listening to something in his ear that caused him to scowl for a moment, before making his way out of the arena. Sora was picked up by LDS personnel, who swiftly removed him from the arena and took him to receive medical attention.
After Shuzo and Yoko decided to take the younger You Show Students back home, Yuuji, Yuya, Yuzu, and Gongenzaka stood outside of LDS Tower, each silently staring out into the distance before Yuya eventually spoke up.
"So, what do you think?" Yuya asked. "Kurosaki is the culprit who attacked LDS. I saw him defeat the Top Team, and…"
"When Masumi was pursuing the culprit…" Yuzu continued. "...I saw someone attack her. But…Masumi said that he was always their teammate from the start."
"When did this all happen?" Yuuji asked. "I'm guessing it was when I was in my mini coma, right?"
"Yeah," Yuzu confirmed.
"Why would she call her enemy a teammate?" Gongenzaka asked.
"I'm not sure why she said that either," Yuzu stated, "But Yuto said that he was attacking LDS to save his friend, a girl named Ruri."
"Yuto, Ruri?" Yuuji raised an eyebrow. "Now those are new names."
"Those are also new names for me as well," Gongenzaka nodded.
"Yuto…" Yuzu looked down for a moment before speaking. "...he's someone who looks just like Yuya and Yuuji."
"That actually doesn't sound as surprising as I thought it would be. I mean, if it happened once, surely it could happen again right?" Yuuji stated before realizing something. "Wait, so he must be the one who attacked Sawatari! Is that why you were acting so off that day?"
"Yeah…" Yuzu answered. "I…just didn't know what to think at the time. It was all too confusing."
"But it should've been obvious that it was neither of them, right?" Gongenzaka began pressing Yuzu for information. "Why didn't you say anything about it earlier? If you had told the truth, Yuya and Yuuji wouldn't have been framed, and…"
"Gongenzaka, it's fine…" Yuya stopped his friend. "If I was in Yuzu's place, I would be confused too."
"I agree," Yuuji chimed in, "It would make sense why she would be suspicious of the two of us. People don't normally have the same face, so any sane person wouldn't completely assume it had to be someone with a similar face."
"Not to mention, isn't he the guy who vanishes whenever your bracelet glows?" Yuya added
"Vanished?" Gongenzaka spoke.
"But how can someone just vanish because of a bracelet? Unless…" A lightbulb sparked over Yuuji's head. "...that bracelet of yours is like a magic tool that's used to ward off some ancient evil!"
"It's not…" Yuzu turned to him with a deadpan expression for a moment before sighing.
Yuzu then looked at her bracelet.
"I don't get why Yuto vanishes whenever my bracelet glows," Yuzu stated, "At first, I thought it was either you and Yuya wearing a disguise, but I don't see a reason why either of you would do that."
"Your bracelet shouldn't be glowing even if that happened to be the reason," Yuuji said, "Maybe your bracelet is cursed. Do you remember where you got it?"
"I don't…" Yuzu answered. "...all Otou-san ever told me was that it was with me since my birth, and he wasn't sure why it was there either."
"Definitely the work of a magic tool then," Yuuji nodded knowingly, "Maybe we can take this to some fortune teller, and she can tell us about your destiny. Maybe someone like Mieru—"
—BAM!
"Take this seriously, you dumbass!" Yuzu shouted as he continued slamming her paper fan onto Yuuji's head.
"Ow! Okay! I get it!" Yuuji grabbed onto the fan before she could hit him again. "I just wanted to lighten up the mood a bit, all of this is frying my brain. Ever since my duel with Kurosaki, things have just been getting weirder and weirder."
"You dueled Kurosaki?" Yuya was surprised. "Why didn't you mention it before?"
"Wait, I didn't?" Yuuji was surprised as well. "Sorry, I guess it slipped my mind."
"When did you duel him?" Gongenzaka then asked.
"It was around three days ago, the same day I had my…unfortunate duel with Sawatari," Yuuji explained, "I actually ended up teaming up with Sawatari to defeat him, and throughout it, he spoke about this Fusion, or Academia…with such hate that you'd think he had been in a warzone."
"And just like you guys said, he was targeting members of LDS specifically, though he didn't seem to have any affiliation with them at all." Yuuji continued. "Oh…and when I say that he hated Fusion, I mean he HATED Fusion. I summoned my Fusion Dragon against him and he targeted it relentlessly instead of making more optimal plays."
"Kurosaki and Yuto are friends, right? And they both hate LDS, but Kurosaki then joined LDS and called Sora his enemy…" Gongenzaka trailed off rubbing his head in anger. "I don't understand! What the hell is going on!?"
"I'm just as lost as you, big guy," Yuuji replied. "But, I think I have some sort of explanation. Maybe Kurosaki and Yuto thought LDS was the enemy, but thanks to some convincing by Akaba Reiji, they then find out that Sora and his teammates are the actual enemies, who hunted down and took their friend away from them."
"..." Yuzu's jaw dropped. "You say that you're lost, but come up with something like that?"
"It's just a random guess," Yuuji stated, "We won't know more until we talk to any of them about it. However, I know with 100% certainty, that it has to be some conflict between Xyz and Fusion in some way. Something more than just some rivalry between schools or gangs."
Suddenly, the four hear some commotion from inside of LDS Tower.
"Find him?" An LDS personnel asked.
"He's not over here!" Another personnel responded.
"Where did he go?"
"I'll search over there!"
The personnel all begin searching for someone.
"What's with the commotion?" Gongenzaka asked.
"Don't know, maybe somebody broke in?" Yuuji proposed.
The personnel then reconvene once again.
"Hey may have already gone outside." A personnel stated.
"Someone contact headquarters immediately and tell them that Shiunin Sora has escaped!" Another personnel instructed.
"Understood."
Yuuji's eyes widened.
Escaped? But wasn't he like super injured from his duel against Kurosaki? Yuuji thought. Don't tell me he broke out to try and get a rematch?
Yuzu got off the phone, turning to the group.
"Otou-san said that he's coming soon," Yuzu informed.
"Okay." Gongenzaka nodded. "Let's split up and search. I'll take the ocean."
[I'll go to the central park!] Yuuji and Yuya said in unison, turning to each other. [No, I am! I said it first! Stop saying the same thing as me!]
The two stay quiet for a few moments, before suddenly playing rock paper scissors.
[Rock, Paper, Scissors!]
A draw, they both played rock.
[Rock, Paper, Scissors!]
Another draw, they both played scissors.
[Rock…Paper…Scissors!]
…
"Dammit!" Yuya cursed as he played rock into Yuuji's paper.
"Hah! I win!" Yuuji said with a cheesy smirk before turning towards the direction of the park and quickly sprinting off before Yuya tried to fight him for it. "Good luck with your search, guys!"
"That guy…" Yuzu sweatdropped before turning to Yuya. "Let's go search around that way too."
"...Okay."
"Where the hell could he be?" Yuuji spoke aloud as he arrived at the central park. "I doubt he would be here. It's not a very good hiding spot…though the scenery is nice here. I should visit this place more often."
Suddenly, a bright light appeared nearby, prompting Yuuji to go check it out. When he did, he found Sora, with his Frightfur Bear, staring down at someone with his and Yuya's face, but with lavender hair and rugged, punk-styled clothing.
He too, had a monster on his field, a headless, humanoid armored monster on top of a metallic mount, with a giant greatsword in its hand, and blue flames erupting from the open sections of its body.
"Sora…and Yuya…no me?" Yuuji's eyes widened as he stared at his lookalike. "He must be the Yuto that Yuzu spoke about."
"Battle!" Sora shouts. "Frightfur Bear attacks your Break Sword!"
Sora's menacing bear monster extended its pink arm with sharp, metallic claws—slashing through Yuto's monster and destroying it. The shockwaves sent Yuto back a bit.
"Break Sword's effect activates," Yuto stated, "When this monster leaves the field, I can Special Summon the monsters that were used to summon it as Level 4 monsters!"
Two more monsters, both being blue spirits that wore cloaks and other accessories, appeared on his field.
"The Phantom Knight's won't fall!" Yuto declared. "Even if you defeat them, they'll resurrect! This is how the Resistance fights!"
Resistance? Yuuji thought. Is that the name of their group?
"Frightfur Bear's effect activates!" Sora announced. "Once per turn, it can equip a monster that it destroyed in battle! And it's attack points are added to Frightfur Bear's attack points!"
Break Sword rises from the graveyard, being eaten whole by Sora's monster, which let out a small burp after it was done with its meal.
(Frightfur Bear — ATK: 2200 → 4200)
"Your Xyz Monster will be nothing more than nutrition for my Frightfur Bear." Sora smiled. "Go ahead and use those resurrected monsters of yours to Xyz Summon again. I'll just have my monster swallow it up too! I set a card and end my turn!"
"My turn! Draw!" Yuto drew a card. "I overlay the Level 4 The Phantom Knights of Ancient Cloak and Silent Boots!"
A galaxy vortex appeared in front of the Xyz Duelist, with the energy forms of his two monsters being absorbed into it before a bright pillar of light erupted from its center.
"From the black darkness, the fangs of rebellion that fight against the powers of stupidity descend!" Yuto chanted. "Xyz Summon!"
—Badump!
"Gah!" Yuuji's face distorted as he clutched his burning chest.
What the hell is happening? Yuuji thought as his head began to ring. What is this feeling of rage swelling up within me?
"Appear, Rank 4! Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon (ATK: 2500/DEF: 2000/R: 4)!"
A giant dark purple dragon with jagged wings, and horns—with a similarly jagged tusk on its chin—appeared on Yuto's field.
"Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon?" Sora spoke before smirking. "What's the point of summoning a monster with only 2500 ATK points? Frightfur Bear has 4200 ATK points."
"I activate Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon's effect!" Yuto shouts. "By using one Overlay Unit, until the End Phase, your Level 5-or-above monster's ATK points are halved, and Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon gains that amount! Treason Discharge!"
Sections on Dark Rebellion's wings expand, emitting electricity that zaps Frightfur Bear and saps its strength from it, subsequently charging up Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon.
(Frightfur Bear — ATK: 4200 → 2100)
(Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon — ATK: 2500 → 4600)
"This is bad." Sora's eyes widen. "If he uses his remaining Overlay Unit, Frightfur Bear's ATK will drop to 1050."
Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon will have 5650 ATK points. Yuuji thought. More than enough to wipe out Sora's life points.
"Battle!" Yuto moves into his battle phase, much to Yuuji and Sora's shock. "Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon, attack Frightfur Bear! Lightning Disober of Rebellion!"
Yuto dragon flies forward, piercing through Frightfur Bear and creating an explosion that sends Sora flying.
Sora — LP: 1300
"And with that, I end my turn," Yuto concludes. "And with the End Phase, Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon's ATK returns to normal."
(Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon — ATK: 4600 → 2500)
"Sora!" Yuuji quickly ran to his friend, who layed on the ground.
At LDS Tower, the control room…
The scene at the central park was being displayed on a wide monitor, with Reiji, Kurosaki, Nakajima, and a small child with light purple hair and a hoodie over his head.
"That's…" Nakajima spoke with surprise as he watched Yuuji run up towards Sora on the monitor.
"..." Shun furrowed his eyes.
"Haruki Yuuji," Reiji stated.
"Are you okay, Sora?" Yuuji asked as he went to help his friend up, however, he was pushed away instead.
"Leave! This doesn't involve you, Yuuji!" Sora shouts as he glares at Yuto with rage in his eyes.
"Are you stupid?" Yuuji frowned. "You were so hurt from your duel against Kurosaki already, and you decided to go duel his friend, who was just as strong, if not stronger?"
Yuto stared down at Sora from his spot on the stage with contempt, causing Sora to grit his teeth.
"How dare he! He's taking it easy on me!" Sora angrily shouted. "That damn Xyz, he's insulting me!"
Yup, he's crazy. Just like Kurosaki. Yuuji thought in exasperation.
Sora struggled to stand up, shouting, "I won't forgive him! I swear I won't!"
"You're losing though—"
"Be quiet!" Sora shut Yuuji up. "I haven't used my full strength yet! If I get serious, he'll find out that I'm the stronger one! I'll make him grovel under my foot like the disgusting prey he is!"
Red flag. Yuuji thought. What kind of sane person calls someone, "prey" like that?
"..." Yuto narrowed his eyes at Sora and spoke, drawing Yuuji and Sora's attention to him. "Even though you're my enemy, I can't bring myself to hurt you any further. If you surrender now, I will end this without having to make you suffer."
"And if he doesn't?" Yuuji raised an eyebrow.
"Then he'll just have to die," Yuto declared coldly, "In war, there are only three choices: submit, fight, or flee. Those who submit to me will be spared…"
"...but those who resist will meet the same fate they inflicted upon my comrades, death."
"Are we still playing a children's card game here?" Yuuji asked with concern. "You're not serious about killing him, right?"
"...It's up to him," Yuto states before addressing Sora. "So what will it be, Academia?"
"Why would I ever bow down to you, Xyz?" Sora sneered. "You already know my answer."
"Wait, Sora, think about this for a second!" Yuuji pleaded, trying to convince his friend otherwise. "He's serious about killing you. But he's giving you a chance—if you just surrender now, you can—"
"Shut up, Yuuji!" Sora snapped, his voice cutting through the air like a blade. "My patience is running out. If you don't back off and let me handle this my way, I'll card you right here and now!"
The venom in Sora's words froze Yuuji in place, a mix of disbelief and fear gripping him.
"I've already received orders from the Professor to do so, a while ago." Sora continued. "A rogue entity who appeared out of nowhere in the space between the dimensions, suddenly transporting into the Standard Dimension. The professor seemed very concerned about this person and wanted them eliminated as soon as possible. It's obvious that the person he was looking for is you."
"What…what the hell are you saying?" Yuuji looked at Sora as if he was crazy.
"I'm sure I'll receive a promotion if I carded you right now and brought you to him…" Sora stated before sighing. "But, I may have gotten a bit too attached to you as a friend, so I held off on doing so until now."
Sora then clenched his fists as he glared daggers at Yuto.
"So, if you have any value for your life, you'll leave now and let me deal with the Xyz Duelist!" Sora shouted.
"..."
Yuuji remained silent.
Ignoring the fact that my 'friend' just threatened to kill me. There was a lot of useful info about my situation packed into that outburst. Yuuji thought. But, now's not the best time to try and unpack it all.
For now, he would just move out of the way. If Sora wanted to go get himself killed, he could go do that.
"...Fine, do whatever you want." Yuuji simply stated as he walked off to the side.
"It seems like you've made up your mind." Yuto closed his eyes. "Very well, you'll be the first piece in the puzzle that is Academia's downfall."
"There's no way I'll lose to an Xyz loser! My turn! Draw!" Sora drew a card. "I activate my set trap Designer Frightfur and—!"
{Error! Duel mode disengaged!}
"What!?" Sora looked at his duel disk, which began bugging out and emitting a red glow. "Dammit! Not now! I don't want to go home yet!"
"Going home?" Yuuji asked aloud.
"..." Yuto just quietly watched the event unfold with a serious expression.
"Wait, Professor! I can't return to Academia until I defeat that Xyz user!" Sora pleaded before he suddenly disappeared into blue particles.
Since the duel was disengaged, Yuto's dragon disappeared, bringing Yuuji's psyche some much-needed relief. However, he didn't have time to think about this newfound relief.
"S-Sora!?" Yuuji cried out before turning to Yuto. "What the hell did you do to him!?"
"He just said all of those horrible things to you, and you think it's my fault he disappeared." Yuto frowned. "He returned home."
"Returned home?" Yuuji asked. "What do you mean?"
"He returned to the Fusion Dimension," Yuto stated, "The homeworld of Academia."
"Wait…" Yuuji's eyes widened. "Sora mentioned that we were in the Standard Dimension when he lashed out at me. Does that mean that there are other worlds like this one?"
"That's right." Yuto nodded. "Four to be exact."
"Going by the way Sora called you Xyz, you're from the Xyz Dimension, right?" Yuuji inquired. "And Sora is from the Fusion Dimension."
Yuto nodded.
"But I don't get it, why are your two dimensions fighting?" Yuuji asked. "I don't see any reason why Duel Monsters would ever get to the point of being used for something like this."
"It's because of Academia's ambition."
"Academia's…ambition?"
"They invaded my homeworld, killing my teammates by turning them to cards, and kidnapping my girl—no my friend's sister," Yuto revealed, "To fulfill their goal of creating a 'Utopia' under the professor's homeland."
"What!?" Yuuji tensed up.
"My peaceful home was one that never knew conflict," Yuto continued, "On that fateful day, we were powerless to fight back against the foes who had trained their whole lives for battle. Our strongest were taken by surprise and wiped out. From then on, all we could do was flee; else we would join the fates of our loved ones, sealed in a card for an eternity."
"..." Yuuji was silent at the reveal.
"It's a lot to take in, right?" Yuto said. "That's the same way we felt. But we had to adapt to our new world, and many of us have. Because of that, I've managed to survive 'till this day."
"I get that you guys have suffered and all, but…"—Yuuji clenched his fists as he remembered his encounter with Kurosaki when the man carded two of Sawatari's lackeys—"...that doesn't give you the excuse to take the lives of others as you've done."
"..."
"To fight violence with more violence," Yuuji continued, "All that'll come from that is more violence. Nothing will change if you fall into a cycle of killing like that. You'll only become what you hate the most."
"And what do you suggest we do, make peace with Academia?" Yuto frowned. " The ones who split us apart from our families, and destroyed our homeland!?"
"Of course not!" Yuuji replied. "But killing them isn't going to bring your family and friends back either. It won't bring back, Ruri."
"How do you—"
"She's the one you and Kurosaki are trying to save, right?" Yuuji asked. "How could you both face her if your hands are stained with blood? When the people she cares about turn into nothing but murderers who kill for the sake of revenge."
"..."
"I can tell that you aren't a bad person, Yuto. You've not fallen completely off the deep end like Kurosaki, judging by how you were willing to spare Sora if he had decided to surrender," Yuuji stated, "But if you keep going on the path of recklessly tearing through your enemies, you'll only end up digging a deeper hole for yourself."
"I'll…keep that in mind," Yuto stated, "However, I don't care what I have to do or what I have to become, I'll save Ruri one way or another…"
He then let out a small smile.
"...but, if you can find a better way, an actual solution. I might consider it."
Yuuji then smiled, "Glad to see that you're at least reasonable, unlike Kurosaki—"
The ground around the two shook as a green light filled the area. Cameras began short-circuiting as Akaba Reiji's feed was cut.
"What happened!?" Shun shouted towards those security personnel, who frantically began searching for what had caused the feed to be cut.
"The feed had been cut!"
"All the cameras in the area aren't responding!"
"What?" Nakajima said in shock.
Akaba Reiji silently stared at the static screen, deep in thought.
The light died down. From where the light was emitted was smoke. When the smoke cleared out, a young man on a white motorcycle, wearing a similarly colored gear was revealed.
"Ouch…" The newcomer whined as he noticed a pole that had a camera on top bent beside him. "Sheesh, why is this here?"
The youth removed his helmet, revealing yet another person who looked exactly like Yuuji.
"You're…" Yuto's eyes widen.
"Huh?" The newcomer turned to him. "Wait, it's you! I finally found you! I've been looking for you everywhere!"
"My head is going to explode," Yuuji commented, "Now that makes three people who look like me?"
The newcomer cracked his knuckles, "We didn't finish our fight last time because others interfered. But if it's one-on-one, I won't lose!"
"..." Yuto's eyes narrowed as Yugo continued.
"Duel me!" The newcomer shouted. "I promise to crush you for good this time!"
"Fine," Yuto agreed as he activated his duel disk, "I'll duel you, you Fusion minion!"
"Fusion?" Yuuji tensed up. "So, he's from Academia?"
"My name isn't 'Fusion!' My name is Yugo!" The newcomer, revealed to be Yugo, correct. "Get it right!"
Yugo's Duel Runner then activated as he put on his helmet.
"Don't plan on it, Fusion," Yuto stated, "Less talking, more dueling."
"That's fine with me!" Yugo said as he revved up his Duel Runner. "I'll force Rin's whereabouts out of you this time!"
"I don't get what's going on here," Yuuji spoke up, alerting the two, "But I don't plan on sitting idly by as a spectator. I hope you don't mind if I join this duel."
"...You're going to intrude even if I say that it doesn't involve you, right?" Yuto asked him.
"Yup."
"Do what you want then."
"That's just what I plan on doing!" Yuuji declared as he activated his duel disk. Marking the beginning of the duel as the three shout in unison:
[Duel!]
Custom Cards/Altered Cards:
Antique Emerald Broom
ATK: 0, DEF: 0, LV: 3, SC: 7
Light/Fairy/Pendulum/Tuner/Effect
Pendulum Effect: Once per turn, Special Summon 1 Antique Monster from your deck.
Monster Effect: When this card is destroyed by battle, instead of sending it into face-up into the Extra Deck, place it in an empty Pendulum Zone instead, then if this effect goes through, add 1 Spell/Trap from your deck to your hand.
Antique Steamrail
ATK: 0, DEF: 0, LV: 5, SC: 5
Light/Fairy/Pendulum/Effect
Pendulum Effect: (Quick Effect): Once per turn, banish a card from your opponent's graveyard.
Monster Effect: When this card is Special Summoned, banish cards from your opponent's graveyard equal to the difference between your two set Pendulum Scales. If there are no cards this effect can target, or if you do not have a complete Pendulum Scale; this monster is immediately destroyed.
Antique Healing Remedy
ATK: 0, DEF: 0, R: 5
Light/Fairy/Xyz/Effect
2 Level 5 Antique Monsters
Monster Effect: This card cannot be destroyed by battle. (Quick Effect): During the Battle Phase: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; if this card battles, reduce all battle damage involving this card to 0, then gain Life Points equal to half the ATK of the monster this card attacked. This effect does not target.
Melodious Last Chorus
Field Spell
While this card is active on the field, Melodious Monsters cannot be targeted by your opponent's card effects. Once during your turn, you can Special Summon as many Melodius Monsters from your graveyard onto your field. During the End Phase, destroy all monsters summoned by this effect.
Second Stanza
Spell Card
Special Summon 1 Melodius Monster from your hand, and one Melodious Monster from your deck. You can only activate 1 Second Stanza per turn.
Helping Hand
Quick-Play-Spell
Target 1 monster on your opponent's field; increase its ATK by 1000.
Antique Restock
Trap Card
When you control no Antique Monsters on your field, target an Antique Monster in your graveyard and Special Summon it.
Pendulum Trade
Continuous Trap Card
You can target 1 card in your Pendulum Zone; Special Summon it. You can target 1 Pendulum Monster in your Monster Zone; place that Pendulum Monster in your Pendulum Zone. You can only use 1 "Pendulum Trade" effect per turn, and only once that turn.
And that's the first of the double release. Lots of story stuff involved this time, as well as the debut of Odd-Eyes Gravity Dragon. I'll slowly be incorporating the different Odd-Eyes Variants into some of Yuuji's duels in the future, but it'll be difficult since I usually don't find a reason to use them over the manga dragon counterparts. Gravity Dragon happened to be the one that seemed to be just what Yuuji needed to get out of the bind Yuzu had put him in with their duel.
The next chapter will be similarly story-heavy, though it'll feature the duel between Yuuji, Yuto, and Yugo, which will create the first major change to the main Arc-V continuity (aside from Yuuji's whole existence in the first place).
That's all I'm going to say here, I'll say the rest that's on my mind about these two chapters in the next one. Go read the next chapter if you have the time. And if not, thank you for reading this chapter.