Kuromu sat at his desk with arms crossed, eyes closed, and head down while irritably gritting his teeth.
Why, one might ask?
It was because all the Obelisk Blue Girls excluding Asuka and Rika were staring at him love-struck.
For those who don't know, this all started during the Golden Eggwich Incident. During that time, Taizan and Kuromu, who was possessed by Kintaros at the time, were wrestling shirtless. Exposed toned muscles and all, with Rex being caught in the middle of it all. Rika recorded the entire bout and made a profit of sending the video to all the Obelisk Girls on the island, the mutt being given a cut of the profits, after the incident.
Since then, the girls were trying to manhandle the poor boy at every chance they got. Asuka could only do so much to prevent them from harassing the Kamen Rider duelist. It was to the point that the D.E.C. had to be escorting him to his classes and dorm room for the past several days. It was becoming rather bothersome and annoying. He definitely did not need this.
"Jeepers, they're all lookin' at you like prime meat." Koji winced.
He was the only one who was out of the loop because he wasn't there that day, so Asuka had to bring him up to speed on what happened.
"Gee, ya think, Sherlock?" Kuromu snided.
"When do you think it will end?" Sho asked, nervously looking at all the hungry looks his friend was receiving.
"By my calculations," Misawa said, while typing on his Duel Pilot, "This will last an extended period of time. Taking into account that all of the adult sites are banned on our Internet server, the amount of highly physical boys on our island, and the probability that said boys would rather take off their clothes and partake in a battle of strength instead of a Duel… I predict that the duration of this hunt the girls have put out for Kuromu will last until… midterm exams."
*WHAM!*
Kuromu slammed his head, face first onto the desk with a groan of dismay, "I won't last that long!"
"Don't worry Kuro! We got your back!" Judai told him as he patted his friend's back for emphasis.
Kuromu turned his head sideways, glaring at the mutt and his childhood friend, "And you two, I demand compensation…"
"Hey, it ain't my fault one of your Duel Spirits turns you into every girl's wet dream." Rex shrugged.
"How is it my fault?" Kuromu cried out in dismay. "I didn't have a say in the matter for the other Taros'!"
"Relax, Kuro. I can give you a share of my profits." Rika reassured. "Asuka-chan didn't want hers anyway."
"Because it's bad to exploit your friends for cash." Asuka said dryly.
"You're just jealous because your man is now the most eligible bachelor on the island." Rika pointed out with a sly grin.
"Over my dead body." Asuka hissed.
"Don't give your new rivals any ideas." Rex pointed out.
"Alright class, settle down-nya." Daitokuji said, coming into the classroom with his cat in tow. "We're about to begin-nya."
Kuromu sighed as he glared at Rika one last time, "This isn't over…"
"Looks to me like it is." Rika gave the boy an impish grin.
"Tch…" Kuromu clicked his tongue in annoyance.
"Ah, right, before we begin class, I have an announcement to make-nya." Daitokuji said, grabbing the attention of the students. "Duel Academia will be hosting a special exhibition later on at the end of this week. The school will be showcasing Mutou Yugi's original Deck-nya."
"EHHHHHHHHHHH?!" The students cried out in shock.
"Yugi-san's Deck?! Here at Duel Academia?!" Judai shouted excitedly.
"Wait, does he mean the one he fought at Battle City with, or the one he used against Kaiba during Duelist Kingdom?" The mutt added in shock.
"Somebody call my mama and pinch me! This can't be real!" Koji said.
"Oh, man! Can this day get any better?" Rika gushed with obvious awe.
"Yugi-san's… Deck…" Kuromu got out, trying to contain his excitement. Who would've thought that the Duel King's Deck would be on display for everyone to see?
"I've also been informed that in addition to handing out tickets to see the Decks, they also will be handing out a limited number of special tickets for a surprise-nya." Daitokuji added. "Provided that you have enough Duel Points saved up for them-nya."
"Good thing most of us saved up our DP, right?" Rex asked Judai.
"Well…" Judai trailed off, looking away awkwardly.
"Judai? Did you spend it all on those Drawbread?"
The deafening silence was all the confirmation the mutt needed. He slammed his palm to his face.
"Yare yare daze…" he groaned, before pulling out his Duel Pilot. "I'm transferring some of mine. Don't spend it until we can buy those special tickets, you got it?"
"Yeah, thanks buddy." Judai thanked him.
"Heh~? The Duel King's deck is going to be here at the school, huh?" Tsukasa mused as he and Kuromu were walking down the hallways of Duel Academia.
The latter had just finished Daitokuji's class and was on his way to the next one when he ran into Tsukasa. So Kuromu thought of chatting it up with him and bringing him up to speed about the announcement.
"Yeah, it's amazing that we'll be able to see Yugi-san's deck." Kuromu cheered. "Daitokuji-sensei also said something about special tickets for a surprise. Do you know anything about them?"
"If I knew, it wouldn't be a surprise." Tsukasa pointed out, something Kuromu had to admit.
"Touché."
"At least the ladies will get off your back now." Tsukasa smirked, to which the boy slumped his shoulders with his head down.
"Don't remind me. Those were the worst few days ever…" Kuromu groaned as the other Duel Spirits appeared.
"I don't see how this is so bad Kuromu," Urataros said in a sing-song voice as he circled his friend. "You have the attention of most, if not, all the girls on the island."
"That's the problem," Faiz commented. "He has the attention of all the girls on the island when he only wants the love of one of them,"
"Oi, Urataros… Takumi-san…" Kuromu deadpanned, "You don't have to kick me while I'm down, you know."
"Obaachan ga itte ita: A flower will bloom in the blizzard of desperation." Kabuto quoted.
"Hai?" Kuromu looked at the Japanese Rhino Beetle Rider.
"I think he means that things will get better even if it looks hopeless." Tsukasa clarified.
"That, or Asuka-chan will actually stake her claim on you due before all of this nonsense," Shotaro told him.
"The probability of that is higher than 75%," Philip agreed, "Especially with that promise of yours."
"Mou~ we'll worry about that when everything's settled down." Kuromu grumbled, crossing his arms.
"It has been so long since I had last seen them." A familiar voice said, as Silent Magician appeared.
"Shizuka-sensei?" Kuromu blinked, before realizing, "Oh right, you were also a part of Yugi-san's deck. Well… a variation of you, that is. Wait… Do Duel Spirits occupy multiple decks or is it the same person in all copies of a card?"
"It's best you don't ask." Tsukasa advised.
"Eh?" Kuromu looked at him confused. "Why?"
"You don't wanna know." The dimensional Rider told him.
"Uhhh… okay… moving on…" the Rider Duelist noted, dropping the conversation. "Well… I'm just glad that you'll be able to see your friends again, Shizuka-sensei." He smiled a bit.
"So am I." Silent Magician smiled softly.
Meanwhile…
"Time to end this! Gladial Beast Diecarii attacks you directly! Taurus Trample!"
"With haste, general!" The bull gladiator affirmed before dashing forward and delivering a rapid flurry of punches that finished with him spinning his dominant fist and launching a strong haymaker.
Rex: 900
Kagurazaka: 0
Rex sighed as he dusted his hands off from another duel win, "And that's that. When it comes to Gladial Beasts, I'm the king." The mutt said before crossing his arms and walking away.
His opponent in question had an appearance that mimicked Atem - he has similar, but smaller bangs that fall over his face, his jacket flares out from the waist just like Yugi's did and the patch on his shirt bears the shape of the Millennium Puzzle.
This was Kagurazaka, a Ra Yellow student who tends to mimic other people's Decks, impersonating the owner of the Deck in almost every detail in order to get better as a Duelist without actually trying to get better on his own. Not to mention that his personality changes depending on who he is impersonating. Kagurazaka could be a jab to the phenomenon of netdecking and Cookie Cutter Decks, as he attempts to win Duels by copying the strategies and mannerisms of known professional Duelists.
"Dammit, one more time!" Kagurazaka demanded, trying to copy the mutt's voice.
"You said that the last two times." Rex reminded him, counting the wins against the copycat, "I've three-stocked you at this point. My advice? Stop netdecking. You won't be able to succeed by just mooching off someone else's power wholesale."
As he left, Kagurazaka was left feeling lost. He's used Professor Chronos' Ancient Gear deck against Judai, Pegasus's Toon deck against Rika, Ryo's Cyber Dragon deck against Koji, and he even just tried using Rex's own Gladial Beast deck against him in two prior encounters with the mutt. Yet nothing worked.
"Kagurazaka?" A voice blinked, as the imitator looked up to see Kuromu standing there. "You okay?"
Kuromu's dorm room was a couple of spots away from the imitator's room, during his time in Ra Yellow, so the two often talked whenever they passed by each other. The Rider Duelist then noticed that he had a couple of copies of the mutt's cards on his Duel Disk.
"Did you… just have a Duel with Rex?" Kuromu asked.
"Y-Yes… it didn't end well for me." He lamented, "I was so close though. If I could just pull off that one combo…"
Kuromu could only sigh in slight exasperation. He just copied another person's deck yet again. And this time it's one of his friends' decks. He didn't want to be that guy that constantly tells him what to do, but at the same time, what Kagurazaka is doing is starting to become a real problem. If he keeps this up, he's going to be demoted to Osiris Red, or worse, get expelled. The only thing keeping him in Ra Yellow was his actual school work.
"Alright, come on. Up and at 'em." Kuromu said, helping the imitator up to his feet. "Follow me to Obelisk Blue. I'll treat you to some lunch and we can talk things out there."
"You sure? I thought no one outside of Obelisk Blue's allowed into the dorm?" Kagurazaka said worried.
"I invited you over, so it should be fine. If it makes you feel better, I'll have Marufuji-senpai vouch for me." Kuromu said, then walked away. He then stopped and looked over his shoulder, "Well? You coming or what?"
"S-Sure." The imitator said, dropping the copy of Rex's voice for his real voice.
And so the Ra Yellow Imitator followed the Kamen Rider duelist over to Obelisk Blue, and as expected, they were met with some resistance. But Kuromu managed to convince them to let Kagurazaka through for the day. He assured them that the Ra Yellow wasn't to cause any trouble. They were only going to have lunch and nothing more. What was more difficult, at least for Kuromu, were the hungry stares from the girls of the school looking at him like a wounded gazelle. They still hadn't given up on the hunt, but it was something that the Kamen Rider duelist had to roll with until they all calmed down.
As of now, they had arrived at Obelisk's dining room and the two of them sat at the table, menus in hand.
"Go ahead. Order whatever you want." Kuromu offered the imitator Duelist.
Kagurazaka marveled at the various meals and drinks on display. "A-Are you sure?"
"Yeah, like I said, it's my treat." Kuromu nodded before the imitator Duelist began ordering the food that looked good to him. Minutes later, after Kuromu ordered his, the food came out and Kagurazaka gulped at how delicious the food actually looked.
"I-Itadakimasu!" Kagurazaka said, before digging in. The moment he placed the food in his mouth, he cried tears of joy. "So good, this food is heavenly!" He cheered.
"Glad you like it." Kuromu chuckled, before digging into his own food. "This is something you could actually eat and enjoy as long as you keep up with your dueling and studies."
"Yeah, I can't believe you reached this level." The imitator Duelist observed.
"It's all thanks to hardwork and determination." Kuromu grinned with a comical thumbs-up, making Kagurazaka sweat drop. The Rider Duelist then sighed as he got serious, "That being said… I heard from several of my friends that they dueled you." He informed him.
Kagurazaka fell silent, placing his fork and knife down on the plate, "Yeah, they did."
"You challenged them using Cookie Cutter decks again, weren't you." The Rider Duelist said, "What's going on, man?"
"…" Kagurazaka didn't answer, looking away with shame and bitterness.
"Listen, I'm not telling you what to do," Kuromu began, "But I'm getting worried. Your Dueling record isn't looking good, because you're imitating a Duelist's deck and their strategies without using your own. Granted, you could look to their cards and strategies as reference, but only as such. Trying to imitate their Decks and strategies can only get you so far."
Kagurazaka said nothing at first as he took Kuromu's advice in. "It's just… no matter what I do, what I try, I always lose… nothing that I do works."
"That's part of the process, Kagurazaka." Kuromu said. "Experimenting with the deck you make and the strategies that go with them, are essential in being a Duelist. The problem with you, is that you're using Decks that everyone knows. You can't always rely on replica Deck recipes and expect success every time. Decks are meant to be unpredictable, adaptable, and become capable of evolving. I mean, look at me. I've started using the Kamen Riders this year, and despite getting the hang of its Deck synergy, I'm still learning how to use my Deck."
"But…"
"Come on, you have to be willing to try and step out of your comfort zone." Kuromu hoped. "That's also another essential part of being a Duelist. Having the courage to step into the unknown and embracing it."
"I… I suppose."
Kuromu silently frowned at this. What could he actually do to help? That was when an idea formed in his head, "Alright, how about this? After lunch, we go straight over to the card shop. You're gonna build your very own Deck and I want you to use it in a Duel against me."
"Eh?!" Kagurazaka said surprised.
"This is a great opportunity for you to learn. After all, practice makes perfect, and I can guarantee you that it will help you out in the long run. I'll help you out with the deck building, but after that, the rest is for you to figure out."
"Okay, I just hope this works." The imitator Duelist hoped.
"It will. It's going to be a bit of a long process. But I promise you, you'll get there." Kuromu reassured him, before smiling, "For now, let's get back to devouring all this food. They're not gonna eat themselves after all."
"Yeah, you're right. Still wish I knew how Judai can pack away all that food."
"You know him, his stomach's a black hole." Kuromu chuckled.
With the two students now fully fed, Kuromu led Kagurazaka to the computer lab. Before they were to head to the card shop as intended, they were going to come up with an original Deck recipe for Kagurazaka to make. Once they made the list, they would then go to the card shop to find these specific cards before testing them.
"Alright, Kagurazaka, first thing's first, we have to figure out the Monster Type." Kuromu said to the imitator Duelist. "It could be Spellcasters, Winged-Beasts, Fairy, or even Zombies. What type do you feel is best suited for you?"
"Hmmmm… I suppose Warrior-Types could work…" Kagurazaka answered.
"Alright, Warrior-Types." Kuromu nodded, typing in the search bar and showed a list of Warrior-Type Monsters. "Okay, now which Warrior-Type monster do you feel is right for you? Once you choose that card, we can work around that specific one."
He soon looked over the various cards in the academy's database. There were some good ones he could use, but nothing really spoke to him, at least until he saw one.
"General Freed."
"General Freed, huh?" Kuromu said, as he enlarged the picture of the card, revealing a wizened man with long blonde hair that fell to his back, blue eyes, and a mustache, having a hand to his chin. He wore silver knight armor and had an olive green cape on him. "Hmm… his effect is pretty decent. And General Freed does have a decent amount of support cards. Alright, I think we can work with this." The Rider Duelist affirmed.
He soon listed down what cards the imitator Duelist could use. Once they compiled the list, they went to Tome-san to get these exact cards, which she was able to provide. Afterwards, Kuromu led Kagurazaka to the main Obelisk Duel Arena, in order for him to practice using the Deck.
"Alright, Kagurazaka, just remember. This is just practice for you to get used to your new Deck. Don't worry about winning or losing." Kuromu said, as he equipped his Duel Disk into his arm, "Okay, you ready?"
"Yeah, I think so." The imitator Duelist answered, looking at his new deck.
"Alright, then let's do this! Don't hold back on anything!" Kuromu said, before both of them activated their Duel Disks and inserted their Deck into their slot. They then drew their starting hand.
"DUEL!"
Kagurazaka: 4000
Kuromu: 4000
"You go first," Kuromu offered.
The Imitator Duelist nodded, "Okay. O-re no ta-n! Draw!" He declared, drawing his sixth card. He then began to look through his new deck, a bit confused on what to do.
"Everything alright over there?" The Rider Duelist asked.
"Y-Yeah, I'm fine! Uh… I summon Marauding Captain in ATK mode!" He called out.
Appearing on the field was a man with short blonde hair and tan skin, one of his eyes being cut, showing that he could only see with one eye. He wore silver armor, much akin to that of a knight, with a purple tunic and brown pants underneath and a cape with a red underside. He had two swords equipped to him. (3/ATK: 1200/DEF: 400) "And when he's Normal Summoned, I can Special Summon a Level-4 or lower Warrior-Type monster from my hand, so I summon another Marauding Captain!"
A second copy of the same warrior appeared, but this time with a slightly different tinge to the armor's color to differentiate between the two. (3/ATK: 1200/DEF: 400)
'Crap, he's got me in an attack lockdown!' Kuromu said in his thoughts.
"I'll then set down one card." He stated. "Ta-n endo."
"O-re no ta-n! Draw!" Kuromu declared, drawing his sixth card. He looked at his cards to consider his options, then found something he could. "Alright, I can work with this. First I summon Kamen Rider Den-O in ATK mode!"
The sound of an electronic keyboard tune echoed, then-
SWORD FORM!
Motes of light spread out on one space of the board before converging to reveal the black train track black bodysuit before the pieces of red armor and helmet started appearing and attached themselves to said Rider. (4/ATK: 1800/DEF: 1000)
"O-re… sanjou!" Den-O declared striking his pose.
"I then activate Form Change - Gun! This changes Den-O's attribute to DARK! Momotaros, switch with Ryuutaros!"
"Haaaaaaaaaah?! Why the hell am I switching with that snot-nosed brat?!"
"Nee nee! It's my turn now!"
"Why I oughta-!"
Before anything could happen, a purple haze took over and an electronic hip-hop tune played.
GUN FORM!
The yellow and black plates attached to his back while the red and white plates hit his shoulders. The front red plates, however, opened by joints near the top which had purple chest plates with silver sections on them. The shoulder horns had dragon's arms reaching up and looked like they were grasping purple orbs. When these plates finally became attached, a purple and gold dragon came sliding down Den-O's face. It had purple wings and a gold head with orange eyes and gold whiskers. When it covered his face, the wings folded downward before pressing together and attached to his face. He now had a purple visor which doubled as horns and gold whiskers which followed their direction.
Den-O suddenly did a break dance of sorts as he said, "Omae taosu kedo ii wo ne?" He said, before pointing at Kagurazaka. "Kotae wa kiitenai!"
"Uh… what?" Kagurazaka said, confused.
"Don't worry about it." Kuromu waved off. "Battle! Kamen Rider Den-O attacks… directly!" Kuromu declared.
"HUH?! You can't do that!" Kagurazaka exclaimed. "I got you in an attack lockdown!"
"Yes, you did. But with Den-O in Gun Form, I can attack you directly, as long as his ATK is cut in half during my Battle Phase." Kuromu said, as Den-O changed the DenGasher's configuration to its Gun Form. He then scanned the Pass over the SetTouch of the belt.
"Ikuyo!" Den-O shouted.
FULL CHARGE!
Purple energy appeared on the shoulder protrusions of the armor which melded into the DenGasher, lighting up the tip, as the ball of energy formed.
"Go! Wild Shot!" Kuromu ordered. Den-O fired the huge purple ball of energy at Judai, which flew erratically, prompting the onlookers to dodge and duck, before finally hitting its target.
"GAHHHHH!"
Kagurazaka: 3100
Kuromu: 4000
"Not bad on the attack lockdown though." Kuromu complimented. "I'll place one card face-down. Ta-n endo."
The imitator Duelist quickly shook off his initial shock. "O-re no ta-n! Draw!" After looking at his hand of four cards, he tried thinking of a plan, but it was clear to Kuromu that he wasn't used to working with a completely unknown deck.
"Relax, you got this!" Kuromu called out. "Just play what you feel is right!"
"O-Okay. I'll set down one monster." he stated.
"Anything else?"
"And then… uh… oh! I'll play this! Power of Unity!" Kagurazaka said, playing the card. "I can equip this to a Monster and it gains 800 ATK for each face-up Monster on my side of the field!"
"Crap!" Kuromu panicked.
"I'll equip it for one of my Marauding Captains!" Kagurazaka declared, as one of them felt a sudden surge of power. (ATK: 1200-2800)
"Kuro… this isn't good…" Den-O muttered.
"Yeah, I can tell. But the good news is that he's at least leaning into his new deck." he said.
"Battle! My 2800 ATK Marauding Captain attacks Kamen Rider Den-O!" The imitator duelist declared.
With his two swords unsheathed, the captain quickly slashes the train Rider in half and into pixels.
Kagurazaka: 3100
Kuromu: 3000
"And now my other Marauding Captain attacks you directly!" Kagurazaka said as the other warrior had his two swords unsheathed and dashed towards Kuromu.
"Sorry, but I'm gonna have to stop you there! Activate trap!" Kuromu declared, pressing a button to reveal said trap card. "Kamen Riders' Dramatic Entry! When I'm about to be the target of a direct attack, I can Special Summon a Kamen Rider monster from my deck and negate that attack! Kiva, come on out!"
In a flash, the other Marauding Captain saw Kiva appear and catch one of his swords while the other was bitten by Kivat himself.
"Hehehe~ Zan'nen deshita!" Kivat snickered, blade still in his mouth, before Kiva punched Marauding Captain away to gain distance. (4/ATK: 1700/DEF: 1500)
"Thanks for the save, Wataru-san." Kuromu thanked the bat Rider.
"It's no problem." Kiva waved off.
"Tsk. I set one card face down and end my turn." The imitator Duelist sighed.
"O-re no ta-n! Draw!" Kuromu declared, drawing his next card. "I play Pot of Greed, which allows me to draw cards!" He said, before drawing two. His eyes widened slightly at one of them. "Huh? Hey, this is…" He blinked in surprise before turning to Kiva, "Wataru-san, it's time for a power-up!"
The bat Rider's face quickly lit up upon hearing that.
"But first, I activate this card! Hammer Shoot! With this, I can destroy a monster with the highest ATK!"
"No, that means-!" Kagurazaka gasped.
"That's right! Meaning I'm free from your attack lockdown!" Kuromu grinned before a giant wooden hammer slammed the powered-up Marauding Captain into the ground, burying him. "Now I'll play this! The Equip Spell, Garulu Saber! This can only be equipped to "Kamen Rider Kiva" and when he attacks a Monster, said Monster's ATK gets cut in half during the Battle Phase!"
Kiva soon placed a blue wolf-shaped object that looked like a whistle into Kivat's mouth.
GARULU SABER!
Kivat blew the whistle letting out a shrilling noise.
A blue stone wolf-like statue appeared in front of Kiva who grabbed a hold of it. The statue transformed into an S-shaped sword with a wolf head guard for a hilt. Chains wrapped around his left arm and broke dispersing small blue flames to reveal blue armor on his arm. His red chest armor was enclosed in chains before dispersing in small blue flames to reveal blue chest armor. Kivat's eyes then changed to blue, and the lens on Kiva's helmet turned blue as well.
"He changed form!" Kagurazaka gasped.
"That's what Kamen Riders do. They can change their armor by equipping themselves with the right weapons to become more powerful." Kuromu explained. "Now… It's time to battle! Kamen Rider Kiva attacks your Marauding Captain! And don't forget, when he battles with this sword equipped to him, the targeted Monster's ATK is cut in half! Garulu Howling Slash!"
Marauding Captain (ATK: 1200-600)
Turning the Garulu Saber sideways, Kiva placed it in Kivat's mouth before biting it.
GARULU BITE!
A full moon shone brightly in the fake sky. The jawline of Kiva's helmet opened up and placed the hilt of the Garulu Saber in its place. He then got on all fours like a wolf then leaped up high while spinning as the moon turned blue. Once he got enough height, he spun down towards the warrior, slashing him before turning his back on all fours. Marauding Captain screamed as a huge blue bonfire burst out of him with the image of a wolf's head before disappearing and was destroyed into pixels.
Kagurazaka: 2000
Kuromu: 3000
"I'll place one card face-down. Ta-n endo." Kuromu finished.
'Grk. This isn't working. Even with this deck I'm still on the backfoot!' The imitator Duelist snarled in his thoughts.
"You're doing fine, Kagurazaka!" Kuromu called out. "Remember, this is all part of the process!"
Kagurazaka shook it off, "He's right. I gotta snap out of it. O-re no ta-n! Draw!" He drew his card to increase his hand to two. "I play Treasure Cards from the Heavens! We both draw until we have six cards in our hand!" He declared, before both of them drew. Kagurazaka looked over his hand and his smile was wide, "Yes, just what I need! First, I'll start by activating the two face-downs I have! Call of the Living Dead and Compensation of Blood!" He said, revealing the face-downs.
"Uh-oh…" Kuromu muttered.
"First, I'll use Call of the Living Dead to bring back one of my Marauding Captains back to the field!" Kagurazaka said, as the veteran warrior appeared once more. (3/ATK: 1200/DEF: 400) "Next, I play The Warrior Returning Alive allowing me to bring back a Warrior-Type monster from my graveyard back to my hand and I choose my other Marauding Captain and summon him back!" He said, before taking the card of the compartment, and the second warrior appeared once more. (3/ATK: 1200/DEF: 400)
"Shoot, back on the attack lockdown again…" Kuromu grunted.
"But there's more where that came from! Since I Normal Summoned Marauding Captain, I can now Special Summon a Level 4 or lower Warrior-Type monster from my Hand! So come on out, Tactical Warrior!"
A woman with red armor adorned with white feathers, a purple cape, and a red helmet that had yellow wings on it appeared and drew her blade (4/ATK: 1200/DEF: 1900).
"Tactical Warrior's effect activates! All Warrior-Type monsters I control gain 400 ATK. That includes Tactical Warrior herself!"
Tactical Warrior - (ATK: 1200-1600)
Marauding Captain x2 - (ATK: 1200-1600)
"Next I'll play the Equip Spell, The Allied Forces! All my Warriors gain another 200 ATK for every one I control! Excluding the face-down, I have three, so that's an additional 600!"
Tactical Warrior - (ATK: 1600-2200)
Marauding Captain x2 - (ATK: 1600-2200)
"Now I'll use Compensation of Blood's effect! I pay 500 Life Points to Normal Summon one more Monster, and I'll do it by sacrificing my face-down monster to Advance Summon, General Freed!"
Kagurazaka: 1500
Kuromu: 3000
Appearing on the field was a wizened man with long blonde hair that fell to his back, blue eyes, and a mustache, having a hand to his chin. He wore silver knight armor and had an olive green cape on him. (5/ATK: 2300/DEF: 1700)
"And due to Tactical Warrior and The Allied Forces, they gain more ATK points!"
Tactical Warrior - (ATK: 2200-2400)
Marauding Captain x2 - (ATK: 2200-2400)
General Freed - (ATK: 2300-2700-3500)
"Now I'll play the Field Spell, Gaia Power! All of my EARTH-Attribute Monsters gain 500 ATK but lose 400 DEF!"
As soon as he placed the Field Spell in the Field Zone, the arena shook and coming out of the ground behind Kagurazaka was a large tree that almost went up to the Duel Arena ceiling. Rays of light shone through the canopy and onto the two Marauding Captains and General Freed.
Marauding Captain x2 - (ATK: 2400-2900/DEF: 400-0)
General Freed - (ATK: 3500-4000/DEF: 1700-1300)
"Finally, I'll use Compensation of Blood once more! I pay 500 Life Points to Normal Summon this monster without tributing since this is the only card in my Hand! Gaia the Darkness Knight of Gale!"
Soon, a powerful knight on a purple horse appeared and raised his lance to the sky. (7/ATK: 2300-2700-3700/DEF: 2100)
Tactical Warrior - (ATK: 2400-2600)
Marauding Captain x2 - (ATK: 2900-3100)
General Freed - (ATK: 4000-4200)
Kagurazaka: 1000
Kuromu: 3000
"Man, look at the line-up you have," Kuromu scoffed in amazement. "You actually pulled off a powerful combo move!"
"Alright, let's battle!" Kagurazaka declared. "General Freed attacks Kamen Rider Kiva!"
Brandishing his sword, the general let out a war cry and rushed towards the bat-themed Rider.
"Sorry, Kagurazaka, but you fell right into my trap," Kuromu sighed, much to the Imitator duelist's horror. "I activate the trap, Attack Nullification! This stops your attack and ends the Battle Phase immediately!" He called out as the general found himself forced to step back.
"Grr… ta-n endo." Kagurazaka growled.
"I gotta admit, even though this is the first time you're using that Deck, you're already pulling off good moves!" Kuromu praised.
Despite that, there was still a nagging feeling in the imitator Duelist's thoughts.
"So allow me to return the favor in kind! O-re no ta-n! Draw!" Kuromu declared, drawing his next card, increasing his hand to seven. He looked at his hand and the card he drew. "I hate to do this to you, but this Duel's over."
"What?!" Kagurazaka gasped.
"First, is setting up my victory. I play Cyclone to destroy your Allied Forces spell card! Meaning your monsters lose the power bonus!" Kuromu said, playing the card and a tornado emerged from the card, destroying the targeted card in question.
Gaia the Darkness Knight of Gale - (7/ATK: 3700-2700)
Tactical Warrior - (ATK: 2600-1600)
Marauding Captain x2 - (ATK: 3100-2100)
General Freed - (ATK: 4200-3200)
"Now the stage is set! I'll activate the card I drew! Final Henshin!"
"Crap!"
"This time? It's Kiva's turn!" Kuromu declared. "Wataru-san!"
"Hai!" Kiva said, taking a thin gold and red Fuestle, placing it in Kivat's mouth before lowering the jaw for Kivat to blow into, playing a flute-like sound.
TATSULOT!
"Taa-daaaaaaa!" A voice cried out, startling the imitator duelist who looked around wildly. "Doramachikku ni ikimashou!"
"Who the- what-"
"Pyun, pyun, pyun, pyun, pyun, pyun! Pyun, pyun~!" The voice said, as a small golden mechanical dragon showed up, flying around Kiva, "Tension Fortissimo!" The golden dragon then swooped down and broke the chains on Kiva's shoulder armor. They then unfolded and became golden bat wings and the wings also released a swarm of golden bats.
Tatsulot flew around him and Kiva raised his left arm, allowing the dragon to attach to it. "Hen~shin!" shouted Tatsulot as the golden swarm returned.
The bats first covered Kiva's legs in golden boots with silver feet that had blades on the back of the ankles. Then his torso armor turned gold with a red chest plate resembling the unsealed state of his boots while also gaining golden gauntlets. The bats enveloped his helmet, turning the visor red while the lenses fixed itself; with extra red fangs, trimmed in white with a golden crescent moon ornament resting on top where the bat head was. The mouth guard also became pitch black. His shoulder armors were now spiked and Kivat's eyes were now a mixture of red, blue, green and purple. Finally, with a wave of his left arm, flames burst from his back and became a blood red cape before a golden shockwave of aura burst out. (8/ATK: 2800/DEF: 2200)
"Henshin Shōkan! Kamen Rider Kiva - Emperor Form!"
"You… upgraded your monster again?" Kagurazaka asked.
"Yeah. This is his final form. And now his effect kicks in. As long as he's on the field, all Effect monsters that don't have Kamen Rider in their name are negated!"
"No way! That means-!"
"Your power bonus and effect from Tactical Warrior, your attack lockdown strategy from your Marauding Captains, and even the effect of General Freed is nullified!"
Gaia the Darkness Knight of Gale - (7/ATK: 2700-2300)
Tactical Warrior - (ATK: 1600-1200)
Marauding Captain x2 - (ATK: 2100-1700)
General Freed - (ATK: 3200-2800)
"This duel is over! Battle! Kamen Rider Kiva attacks one of your Marauding Captains! Emperor Moon Break!"
Kiva raised his left arm and pulled on Tatsulot's head by the horn and a spinning reel spun inside Tatsulot's back before it stopped on a red emblem.
WAKE~ UP FE~VER!
Kiva crouched down with arms spread out as heatwave aura burst out from underneath his feet before leaping upwards. He then executed a drop kick as the aura formed energy blades at his feet shaped like pick-axes. The Marauding Captain, who was targeted, was slammed in the chest as Kiva started kicking him wildly, the blades doing additional damage as they hacked and slashed before he used one final kick to destroy him.
Kagurazaka: 0
Kuromu: 3000
The Solid Vision disappeared as Kuromu removed his deck from his duel disk and approached a stunned Kagurazaka.
"What… what just… I…" The imitator duelist got out, unable to comprehend what just happened.
"You did decent, Kagurazaka. Not bad for your first Duel with a new deck." Kuromu began with a grin. "I think we can call that a success."
"But… I lost…"
"And that's okay. Not every deck's going to have wins always guaranteed. I think my early losing streak during the start of this year can attest to that." Kuromu began. "It's as I said, despite having Deck synergy with my cards, I'm still learning how to use it properly."
Unbeknownst to Kuromu, the imitator Duelist's fist was shaking,
"This is just the first of many Duels with that deck. You have the potential. You just need to harness and utilize it to the fullest. Meaning you have to keep experimenting with your Deck, figure out its strengths and weaknesses, and practice by Dueling constantly. I can't stress that last part enough. There's only so much you can do with just a pre-constructed deck."
That was when Kagurazaka snapped, "And when the hell does that happen, huh?!"
"Whoa, Kagura-"
"You keep telling me I'm doing great when in reality, you could have steam rolled me or even did a FTKO!" The imitator Duelist roared.
"That's not-"
"Tell me, what kind of bullcrap do you and your friends use huh? Cards that can easily mill your deck, cards that focus on swarming the field with Monsters, heck you and two of your friends don't even need to use Fusion to get your ace monsters out! You guys have completely broken archetypes!" Kagurazaka snarled.
"Kagurazaka, you need-"
"What's the point in crafting a new deck when you're just going to get shanked by the meta? The only thing you need to choose is what broken archetype everyone's spamming in the current meta and that's it!" He then did the unthinkable of taking out his new deck and slamming down to the ground, spreading them all over the stage.
"What the?! Kagura-"
"I don't need your pity. All I need is just to find what'll give me victory." he said before walking away.
"Kagurazaka…" Kuromu muttered, before looking at the cards on the stage, kneeling down to pick them up.
"Yeesh, what happened to Kagurazaka?" Koji asked Kuromu a while after that incident.
"I tried to get him to use an original Deck instead of relying on copying others. He lost in the end, but he was doing so well with it." The Rider Duelist said, "I'm worried about him."
"Yeah, I get the feelin'." Koji sympathized. "If he wasn't such a copycat, then he'd be great. Like, do you see this guy's notes? It's littered with deck outlines, equations, and formulas that could probably rival Misawa' math in Dueling."
"Only those decks are ones he copies." Kuromu sighed. "They're supposed to be unique to that Duelist, and that Duelist only. Case in point with the three of us and our Decks. Koji, you love disco right? That's why the Boogie Knights resonate with you. Or with Rika, her cooking skills are great when she uses the Fighting Foodons."
"True that." Koji agreed.
"Judai has his Elemental HEROes to always turn the tides when things seem tough, Sho's Roids are nothing to sneeze at when he really gets going, Marufuji-senpai's Cyber Dragons are already a force to be reckoned with, and I've seen the look in Rex's eyes that matches the untamed nature of the Gladial Beasts. Heck, Misawa's math Dueling is second-to-none with a Deck for every attribute. I wouldn't be surprised if he would even be able to invent a brand new archetype based around math."
"Yup."
"So what I don't get is why Kagurazaka can't forge his own path in Dueling? He's only himself." he lamented. "I just wish that I can show him that…"
"Well, the jive-turkey is gonna realize it sooner or later." Koji shrugged. "Either way, he needs a wake-up call."
"And I hope it's a loud one." Kuromu hoped. "Speaking of wake-up… you got your ticket?"
"Clear as day, my man." the disco fan chuckled as he flashed his ticket to his friend. "The special one. You?"
"Grabbed one after I helped build Kagurazaka's Deck." Kuromu grinned, holding up his own special ticket. "I wonder who else got them?"
"I heard that Judai, Sho, and Rex got theirs… after Rex tried to keep Judai from going near the Drawbread…" Rika chuckled, as she approached the boys.
"Rika…" Kuromu blinked.
"Oh yeah, Misawa, Asuka-chan and Marufuji-senpai got their special tickets too. So now there's just one special ticket left."
"So ten special tickets for the surprise, huh?" Kuromu mused. "Wonder who'll get the last one."
"Who knows?" Koji noted, "Still, I can't wait to see Yugi's deck."
Meanwhile…
At Duel Academia's docks, a short statured old man who greatly resembled the Duel King in some capacity had just arrived on the island via boat where Principal Samejima and Tsukasa are there to greet the old man. The old man held out a steel briefcase and inside… was the very deck the Duel King had.
The dimensional Rider couldn't help but smirk, seeing what many see as Yugi's deck arrive. After all, he saw that the people of this world see him as the man who made everyone want to take up the pro-Dueling scene.
"Thank you for bringing your grandson's deck here at Duel Academia, Muto-san." Principal Samejima smiled. "I'm sure the students will be more than thrilled to see them."
"The pleasure's all mine, principal." the old man, Yugi's grandfather Sugoroku, reassured him. "It's not everyday that people get to see my grandson's deck."
"May I?" Tsukasa offered.
"But of course." Sugoroku smiled, handing the steel briefcase to Tsukasa who took it.
"I'll be sure to take good care of it." the dimensional Rider promised.
"I know it's in good hands. And with that, I must get back to my card shop." the old man said before he had to make his leave, towards the boat.
"Oh, Muto-san, about that other thing." Principal Samejima said.
"Not to worry, that surprise will come tomorrow. I guarantee it." Sugoroku said with a wave of his hand, as he kept walking towards the boat.
Unbeknownst to them, Kagurazaka was watching them from afar. He hadn't heard about the surprise as he was too focused on the briefcase itself.
"If I can't beat the best, I have to be the best."
"Hm?"
"Huh? What's wrong, Shizuka-sensei?" Kuromu asked the Silent Magician, while walking towards the dorm.
The Silent Magician smiled warmly, "They are here."
"Huh? Who's here?" Kuromu blinked.
"Sileyyyyyyyyyyyy!" A voice cheered as all of a sudden, a beautiful girl with blonde hair, green eyes, blushed cheeks, and wields a wand that matches her outfit. Her outfit is composed of an off-the-shoulders garment that extends to her upper-thighs and ends up as a pink skirt. It is blue with pink trimmings and a few touches of yellow. Her hat is pointed and blue, along with pink rings and a pink spiral on one side. She wears boots reaching halfway up her thighs, and her wand, which is blue, has a spiral which is similar to the one on her hat, except that it is yellow. She wears optional pink and blue gauntlets.
The blonde-haired magician proceeded to glomp on the older magician.
"Why hello Mana." Silent Magician chuckled, hugging her back. "It has been far too long since we have last seen each other."
"I knew I sensed your presence anywhere!" Mana giggled.
"It is good to see you again, Silent Magician." Another magician came out with purple robes, the hat being pointed as well, and has purple hair underneath the hat. He carried his weapon of choice, which was a lime green scepter.
"Master Mahad." Silent Magician greeted as the blonde-haired magician let go and bowed to him. "It has been quite some time. You look well."
"The same to you."
Meanwhile, Kuromu could only stare at the magicians in shock. This… This couldn't be happening! This couldn't be real! "Y-You're… Black Magician… and Black Magician Girl!"
"Oh, you can see us?" Mana observed, floating around the boy. She saw the Rider Duelist follow her every movement.
"Indeed. My apprentice had recently obtained the gift to see Duel Monster Spirits." Silent Magician informed.
"I see." Mahad observed.
"I-It's an honor!" Kuromu stuttered, bowing to them.
"The honor is all mine." Mahad bowed back.
"There are a couple others. You will meet them eventually during your stay here. That being said." She turned to Kuromu, "Dear apprentice?"
"Oh, of course. Go right ahead. You three and the rest of your old friends have a lot to catch up on." Kuromu gestured. "We'll talk later."
The Silent Magician nodded and left with the Black Magician to catch up on old times.
"See you later, cutie." Mana winked, much to Kuromu's bewilderment before following the Masters. Kuromu sighed as he still has a lot to learn when it comes to Duel Spirits.
"Oya, oya? The lovely Mana-chan seemed rather interested in you." Urataros observed.
"Urusai." Kuromu hissed. "I already have enough problems with the rest of the girls on the island, being thirsty over me." He then crossed his arms, "Besides, I'd rather not risk my life getting haunted by a different kind of ghost if I try anything with Black Magician Girl. I'd rather not end up in a sarcophagus of my own."
"Hm… fair enough." Urataros shrugged. "Though you could always-"
"Nope, not taking the harem route." Kuromu denied, "I'd feel dirty even if I was interested."
"Hah! You hear that, Ero-kame?! He's not a pervert like you!" Momotaros boasted, "It's bad enough that this place has two pervy spirits! I'd rather not have three!"
"You're no fun," Urataros groaned.
Later that night…
Kuromu couldn't sleep. He just had this nagging feeling that something was going to happen. Given Kagurazaka's recent attitude and the fact that Yugi's deck is now on the island… 'No… no way… he's too smart to even do something that stupid…' He thought to himself. Besides, now the deck is there, it's going to be locked up tight in the Exhibit Hall where the deck is being kept.
Despite that, there's that nagging feeling of his. So, he decided to get up and check the Ra Yellow dorm. However on his way to Ra Yellow, he saw the imitator Duelist skulking around the area.
"Kagurazaka…" Kuromu muttered. "Where is he going…?" He wondered as he decided to follow him. He made sure not to be seen, before finally finding himself at Duel Academia's entrance. "Why would he… Masaka…!" He gasped with realization, before quickly running towards the school.
Unbeknownst to him, Kuromu wasn't alone in figuring something was up as someone was following the imitator Duelist.
"I really hate going with my nagging instincts." Rex grumbled as he kept running.
"Rex, slow down!" Sho called out, as he and Judai were running after him.
"Come on, something smells rotten 'round here!" the mutt stated.
"You just want to see the deck early, don't ya," Judai pointed out. "I mean, not that I mind, I'm with ya right there."
"Shh." The mutt soon stopped as he quickly spotted Kuromu wandering around.
"Kuro? What's he doing, snooping around?" Judai muttered.
"Oh man, where did he go? Did he spot me already?" Kuromu wondered.
"Kuromu?"
The Kamen Rider duelist turned around to see Misawa, Koji, Ryo, Asuka, and Rika. "What are you guys doing here?" He asked, surprised.
"What else?" Koji pointed to the hall.
"We want to get an early sneak peek at the Deck..." Misawa finished.
"We all got our special tickets for tomorrow, so why do you wanna see it now?" Kuromu sighed.
"I was dragged here by Rika..." Asuka sighed softly.
"Oh c'mon, where's your sense of thrill?" Rika asked rhetorically.
"Back in bed where I should be," Asuka said dryly.
"I don't think we should be hiding from our friends. Come on." Judai said, before walking out of his hiding place. "I guess great minds think alike."
"Huh, so the gang's all here." Kuromu observed as the Osiris Trio made themselves known, "What brings you three here, outside of Judai's obvious answer."
"Well…"
"MAMA MIAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
"Did you hear that?" Koji asked them all.
"The exhibit hall!" Sho said, as the entire group ran towards it.
They went down a hall where posters of Yugi were plastered on either side. But when they crashed through the main doors, leading inside the Exhibit Hall, they saw a horrified Instructor Chronos at the display case. The dome cylindrical glass protecting the display case inside was already shattered.
"Shit, he's already taken the deck!" Kuromu shouted.
"Who did?" Asuka asked.
Kuromu ignored Asuka's question, as he rushed towards the Antique Gear teacher, "Instructor Chronos, where's Kagurazaka?"
"S-Signor Kagurazaka?"
"The Ra Yellow copycat! Where is he? Because I know it was him that stole Yugi's deck!"
"Wait, seriously?" Rika uttered out. "That guy?"
"Please Instructor Chronos, where did he go?" Kuromu pleaded.
"I don't know! The display case was broken by the time I arrived!"
"Great…" Kuromu sighed, before looking at his friends, "Everyone, split up and find Kagurazaka! He couldn't have gone far!"
"Right!" Everyone shouted before they began to search the island.
On the coast, on a large outcropping of rock, Kagurazaka stood there in the moonlight, a large green scarf wrapped around his neck. It and his blazer blowing in the wind. He was currently holding the Deck he had stolen. He had done it.
"Finally… now that I have the best cards, Yugi's cards," he reached up and pulled the scarf away from his face, "I'll be the greatest duelist in the world!" He then fanned them out and marveled at the deck. "Now there's no way I can lose!"
"Hey!" He heard Sho shout before he spotted the shortest of the Osiris Trio. "Kagurazaka-san! Give back Yugi's deck!"
"What the?! How did-"
"KAGURAZAKAAAAAAAA!" Kuromu shouted, as he and the others arrived.
"Sir, step away from the deck." Rex snarled.
"Kagurazaka… I can't believe you would do this." Kuromu said. "Why are you doing this?! I was trying to help you!"
"Why should that bother you?" The imitator Duelist said, looking away in both shame and anger, "You still got that fancy Transformation Summoning to rely on. If I have to beat the best, I need to be the best."
"Then do it in your own way!" Kuromu argued, "That's what we've all been trying to tell you. Kagurazaka, you are one of the brightest minds in Dueling next to Misawa-san. Don't waste it on just pretending to be someone else!"
"You don't understand!" Kagurazaka snapped. "Don't you see? This is the ultimate deck I've been searching for! And after thoroughly researching Yugi's deck, I… I can finally reproduce 100% of his Dueling! I'll be unstoppable! I won't lose to anyone anymore!"
"Damn you, Kagurazaka…!" Kuromu growled, clenching his fist
"I hate to say this, but he's gone bananas." Koji grimaced.
"Kid's a lost cause seems like it." Rika sighed.
"Are you really that desperate for victory that you'd steal Yugi-san's deck? Yugi-san, the Duel King who went through so much to get where he is now… the only reason he's Duel King is because he believed in himself and in his Deck! His Deck had heart! All the decks you've made are just copies of someone's heart!"
When it was clear that the imitator Duelist wouldn't listen, he turned to Asuka.
"Hey… still got my old deck with you?"
"Eh? Wait, Kuro, are you…" Asuka said wide-eyed.
"Wait what?" Koji asked, "Hold on, I thought you said you lost your old deck."
"Sorry Koji… I actually had Asuka hold onto it."
"For good luck on her exam, I'm guessing. Right?" Rika correctly guessed.
"Guilty as charged." Kuromu smiled sadly.
"So, we'll be on the backburner, huh?" Shotaro observed, "Fine by me."
"Sumanai… Shotaro-san… minna…"
"It's alright. It's best to speak to him through your Duel." Yuusuke said.
With that, Asuka gave Kuromu a nearly incomplete deck as he took out Silent Magician's card.
'Sorry to keep you waiting,' He thought before placing the card into the deck, completing it. Just like that, he could hear them. His old monsters. They may be a bunch of mish mashed cards with no real strategy, but they were still his friends.
He then stepped forward, deck shuffled and slotted into his Duel Disk, "Get ready Kagurazaka. It's time you see how a Deck full of heart really shines!" He declared, "If I win, you have to give that deck back. But if you win…" the Rider Duelist hesitated for a moment.
"If I win… then what?"
"…You get to keep it."
"WHAT?!" Everyone gasped.
"ARE YOU NUTS!?" Judai, Rika, and Rex gawked.
"Is that truly a wise thing to do?" Ryo questioned him, "You know how valuable that deck is."
"It's because it's so valuable that I could make this bet. Sure, when he copies a Deck, he remembers the characteristics instantly. He can read into the personality who built it, and reproduce their tactics. But that's all it is: imitations." He then activated his Duel Disk, "I know that I can win this Duel, because I believe in my cards, my friends, with all of my heart! And Kagurazaka will lose because he can NEVER copy Yugi's heart!"
"Kuro…" Asuka murmured.
"Well sheesh bruh, when you put it like that…" Koji scoffed in amazement.
"Spoken like a true Duelist." Judai cheered.
He then stood at the ready, "Now shuffle your deck and get your game on, Kagurazaka! And don't even think about imitating Yugi! That'll only piss me off even more! You're dueling as yourself!"
"Egads, I've never seen Kuromu-san this… passionate." Misawa commented.
"I've seen him pissed once, and that's one time too many." The mutt stated, recalling the silent fury he had for the Obelisk students heckling him after Kuromu first encountered Oogumo.
"What do you mean?" Misawa asked.
"It's a long story." Rex admitted.
Soon both players drew their starting hands.
"DUEL!"
Kuromu: 4000
Kagurazaka: 4000
"Non-thieves go first! O-re no ta-n! Draw!" Kuromu declared, drawing his sixth card. Looking at his hand, he smiled at what he had, 'Everyone… you responded to my feelings haven't you? Alright, then I won't waste this chance!' Out loud, "First I activate the Spell, Cost Down! By discarding a card from my Hand. All Monsters currently in my hand have their Levels reduced by 2 for the turn!" He then discarded one card. "And next, I play Dual Summon allowing me to summon twice this turn!"
"I'm curious as to what he's got in store with this Deck?" Misawa pondered as this was the first time he, and the rest, were seeing Kuromu duel with something other than the Riders.
"And the two monsters I summon are going to be Frostosaurus and Firewing Pegasus!" He shouted, slapping the two cards onto the tray. "Thanks to Cost Down, their Levels were reduced from Level 6 to Level 4!"
Emerging from their cards was a sauropod dinosaur completely encased in the jagged ice, the dinosaur releasing a frosty breath as it bellowed. And the other monster was a horse that had fiery wings on its back, flapping its wings as embers escaped from it. (6-4/ATK: 2600/DEF: 1700), (6-4/ATK: 2250/DEF: 1800)
"Fire and ice, neat." The mutt observed.
"Incredible. Two powerful monsters right at the start." Misawa said, amazed.
"But I'm not through yet. I'll activate my last card, Treasure Cards from the Heavens! We each draw until we have six cards!" He said, as Kagurazaka drew one, while Kuromu drew the full six.
"And now he replenished his whole hand!" Sho gasped.
"I place one card face-down." Kuromu concluded as a card appeared, "Ta-n endo. Your move, Kagurazaka." He stated.
Kagurazaka shook his head as he quickly drew a card to increase his hand at seven before making his move, "I activate Fusion to merge Phantom Beast King Gazelle and Baphomet!"
Rex stepped back upon hearing that, "A Turn 1 Chimera…"
"Huh?" Sho looked at Rex confused. "Turn 1 Chimera?"
"That means that his opening hand must have had either Gazelle or Baphomet, so Kuromu's turn gave him one of those components. All he needed to do was to draw Fusion as his first card to Fusion Summon on the first turn." Misawa observed.
Images of two Beast-type Monsters appeared, one being brown standing on all fours and a sharp horn on its head, almost looking like a lion (4/ATK: 1500/DEF: 1200). The other was a four-armed, red beast with yellow horns on the head (5/ATK: 1400/DEF: 1800). They swirled together in a vortex for a few seconds and then reappeared as a single monster. A two-headed monster with the faces of the monsters that formed it appeared. It stood on all fours, with two white wings and a tail that was a snake. (6/ATK: 2100/DEF: 1800)
"Fusion Summon! Chimera, the Winged Phantom Beast!"
As the phantom beast roared, Chimera turned its attention towards Rex. There was a silent level of familiarity between the mutt and the Duel Spirit that the Elemental HERO Duelist noticed.
Judai thought to himself, 'Was Chimera part of Rex's old Deck?'
"It doesn't stand a chance against my two Monsters!" Kuromu pointed out, bringing Rex and Chimera back to reality, though not without a nod from the phantom beast that made the mutt smirk.
"That's where you're wrong!" the imitator Duelist declared, "For I play Change of Heart, where I can take control of one monster you control until the End Phase, and so I choose Frostosaurus!"
"No!" Kuromu gasped as the ice encased sauropod's eyes glowed and walked over to the imitator's side of the field, albeit resisting.
"Battle! Frostosaurus attacks Firewing Pegasus! Frozen Spear!" Kagurazaka declared.
After letting out a bellow, the frozen dinosaur swung its icy tail and struck the pegasus. The pegasus was sent flying before shattering into pixels upon hitting the ground, with a sudden cold wind hitting Kuromu.
Kuromu: 3650
Kagurazaka: 4000
"Next, Chimera attacks your Life Points directly! Impact Dash!"
The chimera leapt and was about to pounce.
"Not so fast, I activate my trap card! Strength Enhancement Drug - Super Z!" Kuromu declared, revealing it. "If my Life Points take 2000 or more Damage, I get a 4000 boost before Damage calculation!" The said drug appeared in his hand, quickly opening it and downing the contents.
Kuromu: 7650
Kagurazaka: 4000
The chimera then came down and swiped it's claws on Kuromu, sending him on his back before jumping off and leaping back to Kagurazaka's side.
Kuromu: 5550
Kagurazaka: 4000
"Ow…" Kuromu groaned.
"Kuro, you okay?!" Rika called out.
"Yeah, I'm fine…" Kuromu answered, staggering up to his feet. "This is nothing."
"Dude, don't tell me that you just stepped into a Game of Darkness." Rex hoped not.
"No, I don't think so." Kuromu said.
"I'll place one card face-down. Ta-n endo. Now, your Frostosaurus returns to you since it's the End Phase." the imitator duellist said as the icy dinosaur trudged on back towards Kuromu's side.
"Grrr… it's gonna take more than that to take me down. O-re no ta-n! Draw!" Kuromu declared, drawing his card and increasing his hand to six. He frowned at what he got. 'Not what I'm hoping for, but maybe my Deck is trying to tell me something.'
"What's the matter? Bricked?" Kagurazaka taunted him.
Kuromu didn't respond as he continued his turn. "Battle! Frostosaurus attacks Chimera, the Phantom Winged Beast! Frozen Spear!"
The icy sauropod bellowed as it swung its tail to destroy the beast, sending a frozen wave towards the imitator Duelist.
Kuromu: 5550
Kagurazaka: 3500
"I'll place one card face-down. Ta-n endo." Kuromu finished.
"O-re no ta-n! Draw!" Kagurazaka declared, drawing his next card, increasing his hand to three. He smirked at this, "First I shall play my own Treasure Cards from the Heavens!" He declared as his hand size went back to six while Kuromu drew a single card." He then smiled, "As I have added this one from my deck to my hand, I special summon Cotton Pop in ATK position!"
Suddenly, a small white ball of fluff with two antennas and big old eyes appeared on the field (1/ATK: 200/DEF: 300).
"He won't be here for long as I use him to Tribute Summon Daemon's Summoning in ATK Position!" he declared before a dark aura surrounded the puffball and replaced it with a hulking monster with bone-like armor and black bat wings (6/ATK: 2500/DEF: 1200)
"Next, by tributing all three Magnetic Warriors, Alpha, Beta, and Gamma, I can summon their united power! I special summon Magnet Valkyrion the Magnetic Warrior in ATK Position!" he declared as he sent three cards into the Graveyard.
Then, as three magnet-themed monsters appeared, they quickly split apart and reconfigurated themselves into a large magnet-themed robot (8/ATK: 3500/DEF: 2850).
"You gotta be kidding me…" Rex groaned, "How the hell did he get all three Magnetic Warriors from that draw? He's gotta be topdecking somehow!"
"Gh…" Kuromu gritted his teeth, but remained defiant, "Do your worst, Kagurazaka! I'm ready for you!"
"Very well, let's battle! Magnet Valkyrion, the Magnetic Warrior, attacks Frostosaurus! Magnet Saber!" The imitator Duelist called out.
The machine obliged as it slashed the icy sauropod to pieces.
Kuromu: 4650
Kagurazaka: 3500
"I'm not done yet! Now Daemon's Summoning attacks your Life Points directly!" He declared, "Demon Lightning!"
"I won't let you! I reveal my face-down!" Kuromu declared, revealing said card. "A Hero Emerges!"
"Huh? How'd he get one of my cards?" Judai pondered.
"Since you're calling out an attack, you choose one random card from my hand. If it's a monster, I can summon it, regardless of summoning conditions. If not, it's straight to the Graveyard." Kuromu soon fanned out his hand, "Think you got the guts to roll the dice?"
"Tch. Second card to the left." Kagurazaka clicked his tongue.
"Nice choice… for me, that is." Kuromu smirked, placing the card-face down, reducing his hand to five cards. "I Special Summon Guardian Angel Jeanne in ATK mode!"
Suddenly the guardian angel made her arrival by descending down from the sky breaking through a cloud while light shined down (7/ATK: 2800/DEF: 2000)
"Tsk, ta-n endo." he snarled, canceling his attack.
"Phew… that was a close one…" Sho sighed in relief.
"This is getting real dicy. The guy is really acting like Yugi would." Koji feared.
"Indeed. Despite how annoying his copycat tactics are, in this situation, it is becoming a huge asset." Misawa said.
"And that's already dangerous as it is." Ryo added.
"O-re no ta-n! Draw!" he called out as he increased his hand from five to six, "Alright, here goes… I set two cards face-down." he declared as the carxs appeared behind the guardian angel. "Now it's time for battle!"
"Huh, no new monsters? Odd, but sure." Rex shrugged off.
"Guardian Angel Jeanne attacks Daemon's Summoning! Divine Light of Faith!" Kuromu declared. The angel placed her palms together and fired a beam of holy light towards the demon.
"Nice try, but I activate my trap card, Attack Nullification!" he declared as the beam of light was sucked into a vortex, "Looks like your Battle Phase is over before it could begin."
"Ta-n endo." Kuromu grunted.
"O-re no ta-n! Draw!" Kagurazaka declared, drawing his next card, "I shall play Pot of Greed, earning me two more cards." He drew his cards, increasing his hand to three. He then looked over his hand. "Now I'll activate Valkyrion's effect! By Tributing him, I can separate him back into his components!"
"Wait what?" Kuromu got out as the large magnet separated itself into three components.
Magnet Warrior Alpha (4/ATK: 1400/DEF: 1700)
Magnet Warrior Beta (4/ATK: 1700/DEF: 1600)
Magnet Warrior Gamma (4/ATK: 1500/DEF: 1800)
"What's he doing now?" Rika groaned.
"Next I activate this! Brave Attack! Now when I enter the Battle Phase, when my monster's attack, all of their ATK points get added in order to destroy it!"
"No way!" Rika shouted.
"Kuro…" Asuka said worriedly.
"Magnet Warrior Alpha and Magnet Warrior Gamma! Attack together and destroy Guardian Angel Jeanne!"
The two Magnet Warriors quickly teamed up and delivered a double-slash that destroyed the guardian angel.
Kuromu: 4550
Kagurazaka: 3500
"And now Magnet Warrior Beta and Daemon's Summoning will attack you directly!"
The yellow Magnet Warrior quickly dashed forward and delivered a rapid series of punches that the archfiend followed up on with a blast of lightning from its hands. Kuromu yelled in pain as the attacks rushed through him, before falling on one knee.
Kuromu: 350
Kagurazaka: 3500
"KURO!" His friends shouted.
"Now to enter Main Phase 2, I play one card face-down then play my last card. I summon Kuriboh in DEF mode!"
Soon, a non-winged version of Judai's signature Duel Spirit appeared on the field. (1/ATK: 300/DEF: 200)
"Kuri!" the creature cheered.
"Kuri! Kuri! Kuri!" Winged Kuriboh cried out.
"What's up, Winged Kuriboh?" Judai asked his winged friend.
"I think that's probably his cousin or something." Rex guessed.
"Kuri, Kuri! Kuri-Ku-Kuri!"
"Don't worry Kuriboh, I'll set you and the others free, just hang in there a bit longer." Kuromu muuttered.
"Ta-n endo. And now that I'm at the End Phase. All my ATK position monsters are destroyed." Kagurazaka said, as the Magnet Warriors and Daemon's Summoning shattered into pixels.
"O-re no ta-n! Draw!" He drew his next card to increase his hand at six. "I summon Alexandridragon in ATK mode!"
From a burst of light, the gem dragon appeared and let out a huge roar.
"Holy shit! That dragon got bling, man!" The mutt yelped.
"Battle! Alexandridragon attacks Kuriboh! Gem Shard Blizzard!" Kuromu declared, as the gem dragon flapped its wings and sent a flurry of gem shards.
"I'm afraid you'll have to destroy five of them to get to my Life Points! I activate my face-down, the Instant Magic card, Multiply! By Tributing Kuriboh, I can call out five Kuriboh Tokens in DEF mode to take its place!" Soon, the furry creature multiplied itself into five, and gem shards destroyed one of them.
"Great… a Kuriboh flood." Rika groaned.
"I place one card face-down… Ta-n endo." Kuromu grunted.
"O-re no ta-n! Draw!" Kagurazaka declared, drawing his lone card. "Now it's time for you to face the strongest Monster in my deck. I banish Cotton Pop and Kuriboh from my Graveyard!"
Kuromu's eyes widened significantly, "Bastard, you…!"
"What? What is it?" Sho asked.
"Dude, there's only one monster Yugi uses with that kind of summoning requirement!" Koji pointed out.
"No way… so the rumors were true?" Asuka gasped.
"Indeed, there are two rare cards that can be summoned this way. The first is Chaos Emperor Dragon - Envoy of the End. A card so powerful that it's been outlawed in official Duel Monsters tournaments." Misawa said. "But its counterpart is a different story altogether. It is comparable to the Chaos Emperor Dragon, but has never been forbidden on account of its scarcity. In fact, some say not a single one still exists."
"Yeah… something tells me your thesis is about to be broken, bud." Rex pointed out in fear as Kagurazaka declared…
"I summon forth Chaos Soldier - Envoy of the Begining in ATK position!"
From a burst of light and darkness, a man clad in blue and golden armor stepped forth, wielding his sword and shield (8/ATK: 3000/DEF: 2500)
"To think we'd see it before our very eyes." Ryo muttered in amazement.
"But this isn't good! Chaos Soldier has 3000 ATK and Kuro's Alexandridragon is only 2000!" Rex cried out. "If he attacks it's over!"
"Kuromu, you better have something to stop this!" Rika hoped.
"I'm afraid it's over! Chaos Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning attacks Alexandridragon! Double-Destruction Slash of Creation!"
After raising his blade, the fabled sword quickly leaped for the gem dragon with his sword raised into the air. Everyone else prepares for impact, but not Kuromu. In fact, he didn't look all that worried. He was… smirking?
"Activate trap! Half or Stop!" he called out, revealing the first face-down. "With this card, you either continue your attack with your monster's ATK cut in half or End the Battle Phase!"
Suddenly, the famed knight felt power drain from him.
"Ta-n endo…" Kagurazaka grunted.
"He survived this turn, but this next turn decides it." Rex said.
"He'll win it." Judai said firmly. "After all, Kagurazaka can't copy Yugi's heart, just like Kuro said."
'Please… give me the strength I need…' he pleaded with his deck, "O-re no ta-n! Draw!" He drew his next card to increase his hand at five. "Okay, first I activate Double Magic! By discarding a card, I can activate a Spell Card from your graveyard! And I choose… Treasured Cards from the Heavens! Now both of us draw until we have six cards!" He said, as both players drew but for some reason Kagurazaka, if one really paid close attention, had a surprised look when he saw the cards he drew.
That's when Kuromu struck.
"Starting things off, I summon Neo the Magic Swordsman in ATK mode!"
Appearing onto the field was a male with long blonde hair and glowing baby blue eyes, wearing knight armor and a cape while wielding a sword. But in his hand was a ball of magic (4/ATK: 1700/DEF: 1000).
"But he's not staying around, because I'm Tributing Neo the Magic Swordsman to Special Summon someone stronger!" He declared as the ball of magic created a glow that overwhelmed the swordsman. Moments later, the light died down to reveal the new person taking his place, revealing the silver-haired magician with blue robes.
"Magician of Silence - Silent Magician!" (4/ATK: 1000/DEF: 1000)
"Holy-" Rex immediately fought back a nosebleed, something Koji spotted.
"Damn straight, hound dog. She's a fine woman." The disco fan chuckled to the mutt's chargin.
"Silent Magician gains 500 ATK for each card in my hand! Currently I have four, so her ATK points shoot up to 3000!" (ATK: 1000-3000)
"Now she has the same ATK as Chaos Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning!" Rika said.
"But now it's gonna change as I activate my second face-down! Hand Exchange!" He called out. "That means we switch hands!"
"What?!" They said, confused.
"Hold the 8-trak, why would he do that?" Koji asked.
"He likely has something under that last facedown." Misawa theorized, as Kuromu and Kagurazaka met in the middle and exchanged hands before going back to their respective fields. Silent Magician's ATK also went up a bit. (ATK: 3000-4000)
Kuromu looked at new hand and sighed in relief. "Sorry I took so long…" He said.
Judai quickly caught on as he saw the relieved look on the Rider Duelist's face.
"Kagurazaka, this Duel is over." Kuromu said.
"Huh?" The imitator Duelist got out.
"This hand you gave me assured my victory. I told you that you can't copy Yugi's heart, and now you're going to see why. First I Tribute Alexandridragon to Advance Summon… Black Magician Girl!"
Soon, the gem dragon disappeared in a puff of smoke, and out popped Mana. (6/ATK: 2000/DEF: 1700), (ATK: 4000-3500)
"Hi everyone!" The apprentice cheered.
"Huh, okay then." Rex then turned to see a lovestruck Sho, "Uhh… anyone home?" He called out, waving his hand over the boy's face.
"Oh wow, it's Black Magician Girl~" Sho slurred, swaying from side-to-side as his eyes looked dazed and dizzy with a tinge of red on his face. "Hehehehehehe~"
"And he's lost it…" Rex deadpanned.
"Next I activate Sage's Jewel! Since Black Magician Girl is on the field, I can automatically summon Black Magician!"
Soon, Mahad materialized, joining his apprentice as Judai began cheering his little heart out. (7/ATK: 2500/DEF: 2100), (ATK: 3500-2500)
"I can't believe it! Black Magician and Black Magician Girl! They're practically the headliners of Yugi's entire deck!" Judai cheered.
"Master Mahad, Mana… I hope I didn't keep you both waiting." Kuromu said.
"Nonsense. You got us in the nick of time." Mahad reassured him.
"Thank goodness… Now it's time to end this! I play the final card that will win me this Duel! Black Burning Magic! With Black Magician and Black Magician Girl on the Field, I can destroy all of your cards!" (ATK: 2500-2000)
"NOOO!"
"And together with Silent Magician's ATK, they will finish you off! Black Magician, Black Magician Girl, and Silent Magician! Destroy Chaos Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning and the Kuriboh Tokens! Wipe out the rest of Kagurazaka's Life Points! Silent Black Burning Magic!"
The three magicians quickly brought their staves together as three prisms bearing their colors appeared before they let loose a light that merged at the center and fired a huge beam that vaporized everything on the imitator Duelist's side of the field.
Kuromu: 350
Kagurazaka: 0
The Solid Vision field soon dissipated as Kuromu looked towards Black Magician, Black Magician Girl, and Silent Magician's cards on his Duel Disk.
"Master Mahad… Mana… Shizuka-sensei… thank you…" Kuromu sighed as he looked towards Kagurazaka who fell to his knees, the cards of the Duel King dropping to the rocks after.
"I don't understand… not even the Duel King's deck could give me victory…!" Kagurazaka growled in frustration. "Why do I keep losing like this?! Do I really have no talent at all?!"
"That's not true." Kuromu called out to him, "We've seen what you're capable of. You're one of Duel Academia's brightest minds. If you put your mind to it and really apply yourself, you could potentially rival other students here."
Ryo then looked over his shoulder at something and smirked, "Looks like we weren't the only ones here watching."
"Huh?" Kuromu got out, as coming out of hiding from the cliffs and around it were various other students. "What the-!"
From what everyone could tell, there were plenty of people watching the commotion caused by the duel. There were people cheering for either Kuromu or Kagurazaka. This was especially a surprise for the imitator Duelist, he knew that most students didn't take kindly to him, giving him the derogatory nickname of "Mimic King." But despite that, they were able to witness Yugi's deck in action. That in itself made up for it.
"That was an incredible Duel!"
"You showed us some good stuff! We learned a lot!"
"Everyone…" Kagurazaka muttered.
"Sure, the punishment for something like this is expulsion," Ryo said. "But given how everyone wanted to see Yugi's deck in action, I'm sure all of us here can keep it a secret."
"I've never seen anything like it!"
"You wielded that deck well!"
"But… I still lost…" Kagurazaka muttered.
"Kuromu… get me on the disk." Kabuto said, appearing next to Kuromu.
"Eh? Uh… sure…" Kuromu said, activating his Duel Disk once. Searching his main deck, he pulled out Kamen Rider Kabuto's card, before placing it on the tray. The red-beetle themed warrior appeared, and approached the knelt Kagurazaka.
"Y-You're one of the Riders Kuromu uses." Kagurazaka realized.
"I am." Kabuto nodded as he flipped the horn back to its set position and took it out his belt. The mechanical beetle then flew off his belt, reverting him to civilian form. He had wavy black hair and wore a black jacket over a white shirt, a long white scarf, and gray jeans. "Copying another Duelist's ideas and strategies may be an asset to some extent, but it isn't what makes you a better Duelist. You need to make your own ideas and strategies, create something new, something people haven't seen before."
"…" Kagurazaka remained silent, looking away.
"But if you still want to imitate, take this to consideration." He said, then raised his arm, pointing towards the sky while looking at his finger. "Obaachan ga itte ita: There is nothing wrong with imitating a person… as long as it's to find who you really are."
"Who I… really am?" Kagurazaka asked, looking up at him.
"Instead of using your imitations to win for you, use them to find yourself," Souji said, before lowering his arm and looking back at him. "You are only one person, after all."
"I… I see…" he noted before Kuromu handed him something. It was the deck the two of them built for him, re-assembled.
"This is…"
"Your deck. What you do with it is up to you. But you need to make that decision to take that first step. Use this experience to overcome your weakness. Grow, evolve, and you'll find your true self."
After thinking about it, looking at the deck, he stood up as Kuromu was about to leave, "Oi!" He called out, catching the Rider Duelist's attention, "You still owe me a rematch."
Kuromu noticed the look in his eye and chuckled, "Heh… sure, anytime. But first… we need to put Yugi's deck back where it belongs."
"Of course." He agreed.
As the crowd of students dispersed, Mahad, Mana, Shizuku, Shotaro, and Phillip all smiled at the rekindled light within Kagurazaka.
"That kid… he had me worried there." The detective spirit chuckled, trying to use his hat to hide the slight smile he had.
"All's well that ends well, right?" Mana chirped.
"Given his knack for dueling, it could have gone either way." The bookworm spirit pointed out.
"Regardless, we cannot thank you enough to allow my apprentice to handle this delicate matter." Silent Magician bowed to Shotaro and Philip.
"I can tell that this was important enough for him to break out his old deck." Shotaro noted, "But I am surprised that Chimera knew Rex."
"Is that so?" Mahad pondered.
"Might have to ask Dicearri about that." Shotaro noted, "Confronting the kid about it might not be a good idea."
"Yes, well… in any case, shall we return? A new day begins tomorrow." Mahad suggested.
"Yeah, I'm bushed!" Mana yawned.
The next day had arrived.
As promised, Kagurazaka returned the deck to its original place after the Duel and a new glass case was placed to protect it. However, before the exhibit opened up for the rest of the students, Kuromu and his friends had woken up early to meet up at the exhibit before its official opening, given that they had the special tickets bought. There were ten tickets, but nine of them.
"Man, oh man! This exhibit looks so cool!" Judai eagerly said.
"Calm down man." Rex groaned before yawning, "It's too early to be this giddy. Besides, we all saw the cards in action last night."
"I heard there was supposed to be a surprise." Sho pointed out.
"Yup. Daitokuji-sensei ain't lyin' about it." Koji confirmed. "Though, are we too early?"
"Not exactly. The exhibit won't be open for at least a couple of hours." Misawa said, looking at his watch.
"Still, I wonder what the surprise is?" Rika wondered. "Hey, Asuka-chan, where's Kuro?"
"I don't know. Ryo said that Kadoya-sensei wanted him for something."
"Hey guys!" Kuromu called out, as the group turned around to see the Rider Duelist approaching… alongside Kagurazaka?
"Huh, there you are." Koji chuckled, "So, what happened? Ants in your pants?"
"Sorry, Kadoya-sensei needed me to bring Kagurazaka here. He gave him the last special ticket."
"After that duel last night, who could blame him?" Rex said, putting his hands to the back of his head lazily.
"Regardless, we're all here to see what this surprise is." Ryo said, arriving at the gathering last.
"Indeed." A voice said, as they looked to see Daitokuji-sensei approach the kids with Pharaoh in tow, "Sorry to keep you waiting-nya. There were some last minute preparations before the surprise shows up-nya."
"No worries, sensei." Judai reassured him, "So, what's the surprise?"
"I think you mean, who's the surprise?"
Everyone's ears perked up.
There was no way… was there?
The doors to the exhibit opened up once more and boy, were they in for the surprise of their lives. Standing in front of them was a young man with extremely extravagant hair features, having multiple layers including long blond crooked, pointy locks for his fringe; the rest features a set of five large spikes and two smaller spikes colored black with a magenta sheen along the edges. His attire consists of a black linen shirt and several pieces of wrist-chains, along with a pair of leather pants.
"YUGI MUTO?!" Everyone gasped in a mixture of shock and awe.
"W-Wait…! You're… the guy I ran into while on my way to the Entrance Exams!" Judai gawked.
"HAAAAAAH?!" Everyone looked at the Elemental HERO Duelist in shock.
"I'M SORRY, WHAT?!" Rex gasped while grabbing Judai by the collar, "I WASN'T TOLD THIS!"
"Y-You never asked." Judai grinned sheepishly.
"WHAT THE HELL, MAN!?" Koji shouted with equal confusion and jealousy. "Why didn't you bother telling us?!"
"Like I said, you never asked."
Yugi couldn't help but chuckle, "I see you've actually made it here. The lucky card I gave you must've helped."
"Kuri! Kuri!" Winged Kuriboh cooed in happiness as it flew around Yugi's head.
"Didn't I say he was meant for you?" Yugi asked the flying furry creature with a smile. Winged Kuriboh nodded in agreement.
This surprised Kuromu, 'So, he can see him too? I guess that makes sense. He is the Duel King after all…'
"So cool… it's the actual Duel King himself! In the flesh!" Sho said in awe.
"Somebody pinch me! This can't be real!" Rika begged.
"I… I kneel, my liege." Rex said, feeling the need to bend the knee before the Duel King.
"No wonder this was a surprise." Ryo said in slight amazement.
"Agreed. To stand before the Duel King… I feel somewhat unworthy to be in his presence." Misawa admitted.
"You're telling me." Asuka agreed.
Kagurazaka? He was doing his best impression of a fish floundering on land with how much he was gasping for air. These reactions made Kuromu and Judai's reactions the calmest out of their friend group.
"So… I've heard on the grapevine that someone used my deck for a Duel." Yugi said, making Kagurazaka flinch, and Kuromu to an extent.
Well… the Rider Duelist did use Black Magician and Black Magician Girl in that duel, so technically he was at fault as well.
"U-Uhh…" the imitator Duelist stammered.
"Yugi-san, please don't make a big deal out of it." Kuromu tried to petition. "He was going through a… sort of identity crisis with his own deck. He wasn't acting like himself, so I had to snap him out of it."
"Kuromu-san…" Kagurazaka muttered.
"I see…" Yugi said, placing a hand to his chin. "Regardless of what I've heard, it seems that they have wielded my deck with great skill. Admittedly, I was impressed that someone can almost mimic the strategies that I would use in a Duel."
"I-I'm flattered, sir." The imitator Duelist nervously chuckled.
"That being said…" Yugi began, walking over to the display case, then turned around to face the kids, "Before the exhibit opens… I might have some time for a Duel or two."
"W-We're not worthy!" The other two Osiris Trio shouted as they bowed before the Duel King, though Judai in comparison looked extremely determined.
"That sounds awesome!" He cheered, "I've always wondered what it would be like to duel the Duel King."
"Well, have at it Judai," Kuromu chuckled, "I already had my share… to an extent anyways."
"Alright then. Yugi-san, time to get your game on!" The Elemental HERO Duelist declared.
"Very well, it's time to Duel!" The Duel King affirmed as he took out his Battle City Duel Disk. Daitokuji then proceeded to lift the glass case for Yugi to grab his deck.
Judai also took out his Duel Academia Duel Disk and deck as well, before the two of them took their respective places.
"Yuki Judai vs Muto Yugi. To think we would see the day…" Misawa muttered.
"We can finally see how the deck is used by its true owner." Ryo smirked, as both Duelists drew their starting hands.
"DUEL!"