The next day.
Hikari Amamiya wasn't exactly wide awake.
He'd stayed up too late the night before, adjusting and readjusting his Deck for the match ahead.
To be fair, even if he lost to Jaden Yuki, it wouldn't exactly be shameful—after all, the guy's the main character of the original series!
But still—if you're gonna duel, duel to win!No matter how stacked the odds, no matter how many superpowers—be it Neo-Space, The Supreme King, or the Darkness itself—Hikari wasn't about to give an inch.He came here to duel, and dueling meant victory.
"Yaaawn~~" Across the field, Jaden looked just as groggy, yawning openly.
Last night, he'd been kept up not just by Sho and Hayato pestering him over Deck builds, but also by Winged Kuriboh and Avian poking around inside his Deck, nitpicking over every little combo.
They all knew—Hikari Amamiya was not someone you could take lightly.
They'd crossed dimensions together. They'd fought side by side. That meant they understood each other, at least in part.
And when it comes to dueling, that kind of mutual understanding?It's both a blessing… and a curse.
Reading moves, predicting plays, countering cards—this was the essence of Dueling.When facing a stranger, you rely on instinct and wit.But when it's a friend across the field…Even if you don't know what's in their hand, you can guess what they'll do next.
Like if you were dueling Seto Kaiba, you already know his hand's got three Blue-Eyes and a Polymerization.
And that familiarity? It made things all the harder.
"Stay sharp, Jaden," came a firm, spectral voice at his side.Avian had appeared in ghostly form beside him, crossing his arms. "That guy Hikari… there's something in him that even I can't read. You'd better go all-out."
"Kurii~!" Winged Kuriboh chimed in, floating over to Jaden's cheek to give him a little pep cheer.
Jaden just grinned, fire rising in his eyes. "Heh… now it's getting good!"
Meanwhile, Hikari was calmly checking through his Deck one final time.
Once…Twice…Satisfied.
"Who is that?"High above the arena, in the VIP balcony of Duel Academy's duel stadium, a tall, sharp-eyed young man narrowed his gaze.
He was Ryo Marufuji—known across the Academy as "Zane Truesdale."The top of the Obelisk Blue third-years.The undefeated king.The Kaiser.
"That's Hikari Amamiya," answered the blonde girl beside him, resting her elbow on the railing. "Yellow dorm. First-year. Supposedly Jaden's friend. He was the one who went to the other dimension with him last time…"
Her voice dipped with a trace of annoyance, like she was still salty she wasn't invited.
Her name was Alexis Rhodes—Duel Academy's brightest star and top female duelist.Beautiful, graceful, and deadly with a Duel Disk.
And yet, for all her looks, the guys she was closest with—Jaden, Zane—seemed more interested in her decklist than her legs.
"A partner from the other dimension…" Ryo muttered darkly, eyes shadowed."…Reminds me of myself and Aster."
"Brother…" Alexis whispered, her expression softening.
"…We'll find him. I promise," Ryo said, shaking the memory away. "But right now, let's focus on this duel. If Jaden chose him as a partner, I expect something worth watching."
Back on the field, Professor Banner raised his hand.
"Both duelists ready! I declare the final Representative Match… begun!"
"Duel!" ×2Jaden Yuki LP: 4000Hikari Amamiya LP: 4000
"OOOOOOOOHHHH!!"The arena erupted with cheers.
"Let's go, Jaden! Watch out for his Fusion combos!"
"C'mon, Hikari! Show them the power of the Fusion Club!"
The stands split cleanly into two factions—Ra Yellow, Obelisk Blue, and Slifer Red students on one side, and the purple-uniformed members of the Fusion Club on the other.
The latter were fewer in number, but their cheers rang just as loud.Many had once dueled Hikari themselves, or trained with him.Maybe not friends—but fellow soldiers in the same war.Today, their identities as students didn't matter.They had only one name: "Fusion Duelists."
Among them sat Daichi Misawa, the only one in Ra Yellow, wiping his brow with a nervous grin.
"…Weird. Why do I feel like all those Obelisk guys are staring at me like I'm a traitor?"
After thinking a moment, he just sighed and shrugged.
"Whatever. Let's go, Hikari! Do us proud!"
"…Wow. That's some serious fan support." Jaden blinked, a little taken aback."You're kind of a celebrity, huh?"
"Heh. That's right. I'm the purest Fusion Duelist in this whole Academy!"Hikari laughed, proud.No one in the Fusion Club could out-fusion him!
"Then I'll take the first move—my turn! Draw!"
He scanned his hand.
…Nothing great. No Instant Fusion, no Polymerization, not even Field Spell support.Still, he had a few options.
"I Set one card face-down and end my turn."
"…Only one Set?"
"That's it?"
"Isn't that too basic?"
"He's gonna get OTK'd by Jaden for sure!"
Nervous muttering came from the Fusion Club seats.
Across the way, Jaden's crew was also murmuring.
"Careful, Jaden! That Set card could be something nasty!"
"Yeah, could be something like Sword of the Flame Dance!" Hayato shouted.
Jaden drew, scanning the field.
"Alright, I Normal Summon Elemental HERO Wildheart!"
Elemental HERO Wildheart – Level 4, EARTH, Warrior-Type, ATK 1500
"Wildheart's immune to Trap Cards!" Hayato grinned."This is the perfect way to bait out Hikari's Set!"
"Alright, attack!"Wildheart lunged in.
"Wait!"Hikari activated his face-down."Quick-Play Spell: Scapegoat!"
A bleat echoed across the field.In a flash, four colored tokens appeared—yellow, blue, pink, and orange.
The Four Goats of the Apocalypse had arrived.
"Wildheart continues the attack—destroying the pink Token!"
The goat bleated its last.
"Scapegoat…?"
"Did Hikari brick?"
"Is he just stalling?"
The Fusion Club was visibly concerned.
Jaden's fanbase, on the other hand, roared in celebration.
"Awesome! Looks like Hikari's stuck with a bad hand!"
"Finish him, Jaden!"
Even Zane frowned."…That doesn't feel like a bricked hand," he murmured.
"And Jaden doesn't look too confident either."
"Jaden! Be careful!"Avian appeared beside him, yelling in his ear."They're all Level 1 monsters!"
"…I know." Jaden's smile faded. He glanced at Hikari's field with genuine caution.
"I Set two cards. Turn end."
"My turn—draw!"
Hikari added the card to his hand, then pulled one from the far left of his grip."I activate… Metamorphosis!"
Avian's ghost flinched."…It's Thousand-Eyes Restrict!"
To be continued...