The written exams lasted three whole days, and by the end of them, Hikaru felt surprisingly confident.
Most of the questions were taken straight from lecture material. The few "advanced" ones were just older problems disguised with new wording. For a student forged in the fires of China's grueling academic system, once Hikaru got used to the phrasing, they were practically freebies.
Sure, even professional Yu-Gi-Oh! judges can get tripped up by the card rules sometimes—but thankfully, Duel Academy's written exams didn't go that deep into those rabbit holes.
And then there was the Alchemy course. Hikaru had a natural talent for it, but even without that, he could've just asked the Alchemic Magister spirit for help—although that would've counted as cheating if caught. He wasn't about to risk that for a couple extra points… but it was comforting to know the option existed.
Once the exams wrapped up, Hikaru began shuffling through his deck, mentally preparing for the practical duel assessment.
The written part mattered, sure—but here at Duel Academy, your real grade came from the duel.He was gunning for Top of the Class, so winning was non-negotiable.
And his opponent?Almost certainly Chazz Princeton.
Officially, all matches were randomized.But unofficially, some students were more "equal" than others.
In the anime, Chazz was a repeat offender for rule-breaking and had even been expelled once.But this wasn't that Chazz.This was Kaiba's protégé—like in the manga timeline.If Chazz wanted to duel Hikaru in the assessment, the faculty definitely wouldn't say no.
To be fair, it wasn't bad news.
Chazz was a main character. That meant high Duel Energy.A daily duel with someone like him would be worth gold.
And while he was technically the "rival character," he was constantly overshadowed. First by Zane, then by Aster Phoenix, then Jesse Anderson. Chazz's screen time might as well have been hand-me-downs.In other words, a beatable opponent—the perfect path to a scholarship win.
That said, this Chazz wasn't the anime's loser version.This was Kaiba-trained Chazz. A legitimate threat.
Hikaru shuffled his deck and checked his Extra Deck.
After two months of refining, most of the useless filler fusion cards had been culled.Now, his Main Deck was focused around things like Instant Fusion, Fusion Deployment, Fusion Reinforcement, and his custom "Sword Dance" cards.
While his deck still didn't contain that many monsters by normal standards, it was no longer in danger of running dry—especially since he kept a few staple monsters like Cannon Soldier, Techno-Wolf, and Burstinatrix to avoid bricking. At this point, nearly half his deck was monsters.
Still, a few cards were... experimental, to say the least.
As for the Extra Deck—far more stacked than ever.
He'd cut things like Armored Lizard and Gold Woolly Mammoth, which only existed to serve Vanilla Fusion options.His current core included two Flame Swordsman, one Darkflame Knight, Flame Wingman, Infernal Gainer, and the mighty Ancient Gear Ultimate Golem.Add to that a few high-impact mutative fusions like Ryu Senshi, Thousand-Eyes Restrict, and the card he couldn't yet use but loved to admire: Dark Magician the Dragon Knight.
Of course, there was a problem.
Extra Deck space.
He'd never thought about that before—anime characters carried whatever they wanted, after all.But a teacher reminded him of the official 15-card limit, and Hikaru suddenly remembered that even Jaden once agonized over what to cut when adding Shining Flame Wingman.
Right now, he was close to the cap—but not quite there.Even with his newest additions like Alchemic Magister, and a surprise fusion with Cyber Dragon that Super Polymerization gave him, he still had breathing room.
Still—he'd need to make cuts soon.
"Next match: Obelisk Blue — Chazz Princeton versus Ra Yellow — Hikaru Amagi! Duelists, report to the assigned arena!"
Hikaru quickly packed his deck and headed out.
Across the field, Chazz was already waiting.
"Ah, Hikaru's opponent is Chazz? Go Chazz, you got this!"
"Why the hell are you cheering for me, loser?!"
"Okay, then—go Hikaru!"
"You're dead next, punk—!!" Chazz shouted into the stands.
Then he turned back to face Hikaru.
To be honest, something about Hikaru's outfit unnerved him.The Fusion Division's violet uniform had a bad reputation among the regular students—mostly thought of as a cult of fusion-obsessed madmen.
Behind Hikaru, a group of Fusion Division students were whispering.
"That's Chazz Princeton? The one who got in through connections?"
"He ran away after losing to Jaden Yuki, right? What's he doing back here?"
"Man, I'd be ashamed to wear the same dorm color as that guy. Glad I switched to violet."
"Go Hikaru!" "Show him what a real Fusion Duelist can do!"
Chazz's fists clenched.But he didn't argue.
Hikaru sighed and called back, "Guys, seriously, can we not make me sound like the bad guy?"
This Fusion Division energy was a bit too intense.
Turning back, Hikaru gave Chazz a warm smile and extended a hand.
"It's been a while, Chazz. I'm Hikaru Amagi—first-year, Fusion Division."
Chazz scowled, but calmed a bit."Don't call me Chazz."
"I am—THE ONE, THE ONLY—CHAZZ IT UP!!"
He struck a pose and pointed to the crowd behind Hikaru.
"Uh… okay?"
Hikaru blinked.Apparently, even in this alternate timeline, Chazz's dramatic nonsense was alive and well.
"Duel!" ×2
"My turn!" Chazz declared, wasting no time as he drew his card.
That was fast. Hikaru smirked.
"I summon—Armed Dragon LV4 – Assault Armor!"
A dragon warrior clad in red-bronze armor burst forth with a roar.
Armed Dragon LV4 – Assault ArmorLevel 4 / WIND / Dragon-TypeATK 1900
"Whoa, 1900 ATK for a Level 4 monster?!"
"Totally unfair—he must've used KaibaCorp's connections to get that card!"
The peanut gallery erupted in whispers again.
Chazz grit his teeth. The noise was getting to him.
But then—
Hikaru took a breath and raised his Duel Disk.
"I've got fusion cards none of you have ever seen before, too."
"The question is, can you use what you're given?"
"Otherwise, you'll end up like that senior—Ryo Marufuji—who has all the cards, but none of the understanding."
Whether they idolized him or just came to study his moves, the Fusion Division had come to see him duel—and Hikaru wasn't going to let them down.
He turned to Chazz, snapped his fingers, and smiled.
"Show me what you've got, Chazz."
Chazz stood frozen for a beat.
Then slowly, he inhaled.
Now he got it.
Now he understood why Judai lost to this guy… and still smiled about it.
So even Fusion Division had guys like this…
"…Hmph. It's CHAZZ IT UP!"