Who Let Him Play Yu-Gi-Oh!

"Whew… that was quite an attack."

Jaden, knocked to the ground, didn't get up right away. Instead, he sat up where he'd fallen, and then suddenly burst out laughing.

"What's wrong? Scared after taking that hit?" Kira teased.

"Huh, are you kidding?" Jaden patted the dust off and stood, grinning. "Honestly, I'm just happy.

This is how a duel should be—a clash of souls! Now I can finally feel it, Kira. Your burning spirit is really strong!"

Kira smiled. "So does that mean you surrender?"

"Heh, not a chance!" Jaden beamed. "My turn, draw!

At this moment, I activate my set card—Trap Card, 'Sixth Sense!'"

A trap in Jaden's back row activated.

"I call two numbers between 1 and 6. You roll a die. If it lands on either number, I draw that many cards. If not, I mill that many cards from my Deck."

"I see," Kira chuckled. "Activating it in the Draw Phase—so you can avoid 'Appropriate's' effect, right?"

Appropriate's effect is: if your opponent draws outside their Draw Phase, you get to draw two cards. But Jaden's "Sixth Sense" is being used in the Draw Phase, so even if Jaden draws here, it doesn't trigger Appropriate.

"Assuming you call it right," Kira pointed out.

"Hey, I'm not just lucky with draws, my luck in general's not bad," Jaden said. "I'll call 5 and 6!"

The die rolled across the table, coming to a slow stop.

It landed on 6.

"Alright! The die landed on 6," Jaden cheered. "So I draw six cards!"

Kira wasn't surprised. This kind of clutch luck was just classic Jellyfish-Head Jaden.

"I activate the Spell Card 'Soul Taker!'" Jaden declared. "Destroy one of your monsters, then you gain 1000 Life Points!"

He pointed at Kira's field.

"First, the most troublesome one… I destroy 'Black Luster Soldier!'"

Kira instantly responded: "I activate the Continuous Trap 'Dimension Gate!' I banish one of my monsters!"

He banished Black Luster Soldier with a dimensional vortex, escaping Jaden's destruction.

"Interesting, Kira! In that case, now comes my real power, my beloved ace!" Jaden announced. "First, Quick-Play Spell 'Burial from a Different Dimension!' I can return up to three banished monsters to the Graveyard.

I'll return the 'Elemental HERO Bubbleman' and 'Elemental HERO Sparkman' you banished last turn."

Jaden held up another card and shouted.

"Spell Card, 'Miracle Fusion!'

Banish Fusion Materials from my Graveyard to Fusion Summon an 'Elemental HERO'!

I banish 'Elemental HERO Sparkman' and 'The Light - Hex-Sealed Fusion' from my Graveyard to Fusion Summon!"

Sparkman and the substitute monster appeared on his field. The substitute shimmered and transformed into a Flame Wingman, combining with Sparkman in a fusion vortex.

"I use 'The Light - Hex-Sealed Fusion' in place of Flame Wingman, fusing it with Sparkman," Jaden declared. "Emerge in dazzling brilliance—

—Elemental HERO Shining Flare Wingman!!!"

A hero wreathed in holy light descended from the fusion vortex—Jaden's current strongest trump, the evolved form of Flame Wingman.

[Elemental HERO Shining Flare Wingman, ATK 2500]

"There he is—your strongest HERO," Kira smiled.

"Even against legendary monsters, my HEROes won't back down!" Jaden declared. "Shining Flare Wingman's effect! Its ATK increases by 300 for each 'Elemental HERO' in my Graveyard."

As he spoke, images of all the HEROes that had appeared, along with those milled by Take Over 5, the two Fusion Birth, and Card Blocker, gathered into beams of light and merged into Shining Flare Wingman, powering him up.

"There are nine such HEROes in my Graveyard!" Jaden declared. "So, Shining Flare Wingman's ATK is—"

[Shining Flare Wingman, ATK 2500 → ATK 5200]

"5200 ATK!" Even the faculty and students were shaken.

"That's higher than Obelisk… no, even higher than Five-Headed Dragon!"

"And that's not all—Shining Flare Wingman deals battle damage to the opponent equal to the destroyed monster's ATK!"

So no matter which of Kira's monsters he destroys, it's a 5200-point hit—a true OTK!

"Jaden's ultimate HERO really is an OTK monster. If it lands a hit, even at full LP, the opponent would be instantly defeated."

Kira paused, then smiled gently.

"I can't let a monster like that go unchecked. Activate set card!

Trap Card, 'Chthonian Polymer!'"

A roaring wall of fire erupted, threatening to seize Shining Flare Wingman before he could even stand firm.

"Chthonian Polymer's effect: when your opponent successfully Fusion Summons, tribute one of your monsters to gain control of their Fusion Monster!"

Syrus gasped: "If Kira activates Chthonian Polymer now, then bro's Shining Flare Wingman—"

"I tribute 'Black Luster Soldier—Envoy of the Beginning'!" Kira declared. "I take control of 'Elemental HERO Shining Flare Wingman!'"

Everyone held their breath.

At this crucial moment, if the Trap succeeded, Jaden's ace would be stolen by Kira, and Jaden might be unable to counter.

"Then I'll activate my set card!" Jaden shouted. "Continuous Trap—'Dimension Gate!' I banish one of my monsters!"

"I banish 'Elemental HERO Shining Flare Wingman!'"

A dimensional rift opened, absorbing Jaden's HERO, dodging the wave of flames.

Everyone: "!!!"

The same Trap again!?

Are these two really brothers in arms, countering each other like this?

"So that's how it is…" Kira smiled. "Seems we've influenced each other more than we realized."

"Maybe so!" Jaden laughed heartily.

"Kira, you really are fun! Duels with you are the best!"

Kira smiled. "Say that after you win."

"Heh, of course!" Jaden grinned.

Both aces vanished from the field, leaving both sides with empty fields.

"Next, I activate the Spell 'Remove Trap!'" Jaden said. "Destroy one face-up Trap Card on the field.

I'll destroy my own Continuous Trap, 'Dimension Gate!'"

The magic worked, and Jaden's Dimension Gate shattered.

"Dimension Gate's secondary effect: when it's sent to the Graveyard, you can Special Summon the monster it banished!"

Kira raised an eyebrow.

He almost wanted to protest, since most HERO Fusions can't be Special Summoned except by Fusion Summon.

But then he remembered—in the anime, Jaden tried to revive Flame Wingman with Monster Reborn in episode two. This restriction was only added in the real card game.

"So, by destroying my own Dimension Gate, Shining Flare Wingman returns!"

[Elemental HERO Shining Flare Wingman, ATK 5200]

"Now, battle!" Jaden declared. "Shining Flare Wingman attacks directly!"

Shining Flare Wingman spread his metal wings, soared high, and traced a brilliant path straight toward Kira!

"Then, I'll also use Dimension Gate's second effect!" Kira replied. "When my opponent declares a direct attack, I can send Dimension Gate to the Graveyard and return the monster it banished!

Come back, Black Luster Soldier!"

[Black Luster Soldier, ATK 3000]

"But the situation hasn't changed," Jaden said confidently. "Shining Flare Wingman has 5200 ATK. If it goes through—"

"Activate set card—Quick-Play Spell 'Battle Fusion'!" Kira said. "Activate only when a face-up monster you control attacks or is attacked. It gains ATK equal to the ATK of the opposing monster, until the end of the Damage Step!" (Anime effect)

(In the real game, this card was later changed to only work for Fusion Monsters, and only when they attack. In the anime, it could be used more flexibly.)

"So, Black Luster Soldier gains Shining Flare Wingman's ATK—in other words, 5200 more!"

[Black Luster Soldier, ATK 3000 → ATK 8200]

"8200 ATK!"

Syrus's jaw dropped wide enough to fit an apple.

"That's even higher than Five-Headed Dragon… no, even higher than my big brother's Power Bonded Cyber End Dragon!"

"Hey, as expected of Kira—amazing, truly amazing," Jaden laughed. "But I'm not done yet.

Quick-Play Spell 'Trap Booster'! Discard a card, and you can immediately activate a Trap from your hand as if it were set!" (Anime card)

Jaden discarded a card and revealed a Trap from his hand.

"Trap Card—'Universal Adapter!'

Choose a face-up monster on the field. Until the end of the turn, all other monsters' ATK and DEF become equal to the chosen monster!

Of course, I choose your Black Luster Soldier, making Shining Flare Wingman's ATK the same!"

[Shining Flare Wingman, ATK 5200 → ATK 8200]

"Are you trying to go down together?"

"Not at all," Jaden grinned. "I said, I'm the one who'll win in the end!

From the Graveyard, I activate the Trap 'Skill Successor!'

Banish it during my turn to give one monster +800 ATK until end of turn!

I boost Shining Flare Wingman's ATK by another 800!"

[Shining Flare Wingman, ATK 8200 → ATK 9000]

"9000 ATK!!!"

The audience was stunned.

"With this, plus Shining Flare Wingman's effect, if the battle succeeds, you'll take 9000 damage, Kira!" Jaden smiled. "This really is an epic duel!"

"It is… a truly fun epic duel."

Kira closed his eyes for a second.

"Thank you, Jaden."

After a pause, he opened his eyes and smiled.

"But even so… I'm not just going to hand you victory."

"Huh?"

"Activate Trap—'Unbreakable Spirit!'" Kira declared. "If I have only one monster, it gains ATK equal to the lowest-ATK monster on your field until end of turn!"

Jaden's eyes widened.

The lowest-ATK monster on your field…

"Right, your only monster is Shining Flare Wingman," Kira smiled. "Sorry, Jaden, but I'll take your ATK once more!"

[Black Luster Soldier, ATK 8200 → ATK 17,200]

The students were beyond shocked—nearly catatonic.

17,200 ATK!!!

Even Five-Headed Dragon is nothing compared to that.

Watching Black Luster Soldier's power soar to an absurd level, Jaden looked up, dazed, as the cosmic sword fell.

"Unbreakable Spirit… so this is what you found through dueling, Kira?"

Before the blade of light and darkness fell, Jaden smiled again.

"Then go, Shining Flare Wingman!" he called. "We have to answer Kira's fighting spirit with all we've got!"

Two ace monsters clashed with impossible power!

Blazing light and chaotic sword energy exploded in the arena, the holographic energy storm nearly tearing off the roof!

[Jaden, LP 6300 → 0]

PS: Best duel so far! Ace to ace.