Walking through a dark void, Yumi moved forward without any real direction, hands tucked into his pockets like he was just taking a late-night walk instead of… whatever this was supposed to be.
There wasn't anything around him. No walls, no ground he could really see, just something solid enough to walk on and an endless stretch of nothing in every direction.
Eventually, he stopped in front of what looked like a mirror. Or at least, something shaped like one.
Yumi tilted his head slightly, looking at it.
"…Huh."
Because the reflection staring back at him wasn't his.
On the other side stood Kaito, staring back at him with a glare that looked like it had been there long before Yumi showed up.
Yumi glanced at him for a moment, then spoke casually.
"…So," Yumi started, tilting his head slightly, "does this mean you died and you're just a leftover fragment, or are you freeloading inside me now?"
"What is it like to you?" Kaito asks coldly.
Yumi didn't even hesitate. "I'll go with freeloading."
That didn't help.
If anything, Kaito's glare only sharpened, like that answer alone was enough to irritate him further. Not that it did anything.
The two of them stood there, staring at each other through the mirror, neither moving, neither really sure what they were supposed to do next.
After a moment of awkward silence, Kaito finally asks. "What is this place?"
Yumi glanced around again, seeing the same thing he had seen since the start. Nothing.
"Don't know," he said simply. "I woke up here too."
Kaito narrowed his eyes. "Do you really expect me to believe that?"
Yumi looked back at him, calm as ever. "Do you have proof I'm lying?"
That actually made Kaito pause.
For a second, he didn't answer, not because he agreed, but because he didn't have anything solid to throw back. The situation itself wasn't exactly normal enough to argue logic with.
The two of them just stood there, staring at each other through the mirror. Neither of them seemed interested in backing down, but neither of them had anything useful to add either. It left them stuck in that same quiet, unsure space where neither of them really knew what to do next.
Then, out of nowhere...
Something smacked Yumi on the back of the head, and he woke up.
Yumi's eyes snapped open as he sat up slowly, blinking once as the real world came back into focus. The sky above him was bright, the air normal again, and the feeling of solid ground under him replaced that empty space.
Next to him, Jaden shot upright at almost the same time, taking a sharp breath like he had just woken up from something unpleasant.
"Man… that was a weird one," Jaden muttered, rubbing the back of his neck before looking around. "Winged Kuriboh, that was you, right? You woke me up?"
Winged Kuriboh floated nearby, letting out a soft "kuri~" in response.
Yumi shifted his gaze slightly to the side.
Raye was there too, standing a bit off to the side and very clearly pretending she hadn't just done anything. She was even whistling, though not very convincingly, and trying to hide her katana behind her back.
Yumi looked at her for a second.
"…You know," he said, voice calm, "a kiss would've worked too."
Raye didn't hesitate. "I would've done more than that if we were alone."
Yumi: "..."
He didn't respond to that.
At this point, he couldn't even argue. Most of his Duel Spirits had ended up like this, and a good part of that was on him. Complaining about it now would just be pointless.
Raye gave him a small smile before dissolving back into light and disappearing into him again like nothing happened.
Jaden glanced between them, then decided to said. "You've got some weird interactions going on with your Duel Spirits."
"That's my problem to deal with," Yumi replied calmly. "You don't need to worry."
"Fair." Jaden shrug.
Before that could go any further, Winged Kuriboh suddenly tilted its head, letting out a curious sound.
Both Yumi and Jaden followed its gaze.
A small glow flickered nearby, faint at first, then a bit clearer. It looked like a red gem, but as it moved, they realized it was attached to something.
A small, purple, cat-like creature stepped into view, its red eyes glinting slightly as it moved. It had four ears, a long tail, and at the tip of that tail was the glowing gem they had noticed earlier.
The moment they saw it clearly, both of them understood.
A Duel Spirit.
"What's that thing?" Jaden asked, squinting slightly. "A squirrel?"
Yumi shook his head. "Looks more like a cat."
"Hey, Ruby!"
A voice called out from behind them.
The creature perked up immediately, then turned and padded over without hesitation, climbing up onto the shoulder of the boy who had just arrived.
He looked about their age or maybe younger, wearing white shoes, black pants, and a layered outfit with a long-sleeved white shirt under a short-sleeved Obelisk Blue jacket. His teal hair stood out easily, and his bright green eyes made it even more noticeable when he smiled.
"So that's where you went," he said casually, glancing at the creature on his shoulder.
"Hey," Jaden called out as he stood up properly, Yumi following right after him. "Is that spirit named Ruby?"
"Yeah," the boy replied. "This is Ruby Carbuncle."
"Carbuncle?" Jaden repeated, tilting his head.
"A legendary creature," the boy explained with a light grin.
Ruby nodded along proudly, like it understood exactly what was being said.
Jaden looked at it again, then back at the boy. "Legendary, huh?"
The boy laughed a little at that before looking back at them. "Is that a Winged Kuriboh?"
Winged Kuriboh floated up happily, letting out another cheerful "kuri kuri~."
"Then you must be Yumi Uzushi," the boy said.
Jaden grinned and hooked a thumb toward himself. "Nope, I'm Jaden Yuki. Yumi's my AIBO. He's right here."
"Oh," the boy blinked, then scratched the back of his head with a sheepish smile. "My bad. Sorry about that."
"Don't worry about it," Jaden said easily. "Happens more than you think."
The boy nodded, then stepped forward slightly and held out his hand. "I'm Jesse Anderson. Nice to meet you both."
Jaden took his hand right away. "Nice to meet you too."
For a moment, the two of them just stood there, shaking hands, looking into each other's eyes.
"I feel kind of a weird sensation." Jaden suddenly said.
"Same here. Almost like we've met before." Jesse agrees.
Yumi: "..."
He stares at the two without saying anything, now finally understanding why there are so many people shipping these two.
He sighed, turned away, looking at the open sky, his magenta hair and red jacket waved gently in the wind.
...
Later, the students gathered in the lecture hall as Chancellor Sheppard officially began the first day of the new year.
The room was packed, filled with returning students, new faces, and the usual low chatter that came with a fresh start. Teachers stood along the sides, trying to keep things somewhat organized, though that rarely worked for long in Duel Academy.
"Kazuko Kawakami," Sheppard called out.
Kazuko stood up from her seat without hesitation, smiling as she walked forward. She was already in her Slifer Red uniform, properly buttoned up, with a red short skirt layered over black shorts, knee-length black stockings, and red shoes. Her long red hair was tied into a neat ponytail, done earlier that morning by Yumi, before he disappeared somewhere to slack off.
She stepped up to the stand, holding the small paper she had been given.
"…Uhh, let's see…" she muttered, glancing down at it. "We, the freshman class…"
She paused.
Then she lowered the paper slightly.
"…Forget it."
Without another word, she folded up the prepared speech and tossed it aside, and looked directly at the crowd instead.
"As the freshman class, we aren't weaklings who just learned how to hold a Duel Disk," Kazuko said, her tone clear and confident. "We're duelists."
The room quieted a bit.
"A duelist's journey is measured by the courage to begin again. Bravery isn't about winning every time, it's about standing your ground even when things aren't going your way. If all you care about is the result, then you'll never understand why you lost, and you'll never get better."
She crossed her arms lightly, still smiling.
"So don't just aim to win. Aim to understand what you're doing. Taking the time to delve deeply into the reasoning for why you duel. That's how you actually move forward."
There was a short pause after she finished.
Some of the students looked surprised. Others looked impressed. A few just nodded along like that made sense.
The teachers, on the other hand, looked a bit unsure how to react.
Midori pressed her fingers against her temple, already feeling a headache coming on.
As expected of the younger sister of those two menaces.
They hadn't even made it past the opening ceremony, and she was already deviating from the script.
Kazuko didn't seem to care. She simply gave a small smile and walked off the stand like nothing unusual had happened.
Sheppard cleared his throat, stepping back up. "Right… thank you, Kazuko."
He then continued. "This year, Duel Academy has invited the top students from each of our foreign branches to join us here at the main campus."
That got everyone's attention.
One by one, he began calling them out.
"From East Academy, Adrian Gecko!"
A tall boy stepped forward, fair-skinned with a solid build. His brown-red hair was slicked back neatly, and his glasses gave him a more composed look. He wore a sleeveless brown uniform, and around his neck hung what looked like a set of black beads.
"From West Academy, Axel Brodie!"
A muscular boy followed, standing out immediately since he wasn't even wearing the standard uniform. Instead, he had on a red tank top, a black sleeveless vest, and pants. A gold pendant hung around his neck, catching the light slightly as he moved.
"From South Academy, Jim Crocodile Cook!"
Another figure stepped forward, dressed more like a cowboy than a student. A brown sleeveless leather vest over a white shirt, a small yellow scarf, and a wide-brimmed hat. His right eye was covered with a bandage, and he casually held a large green crocodile up like it was completely normal.
A few students blinked.
"…Did he bring a crocodile?" someone whispered.
"And from North Academy… Jesse Anderson!"
Jesse stepped forward, waving casually. Some students immediately recognized him, especially after what had happened earlier.
Jaden leaned slightly toward Yumi. "Hey, it's him."
"I noticed," Yumi replied.
"And lastly," Sheppard continued, "we have one more introduction. Joining us from Academy West as a special lecturer, Professor Viper!"
A tall, muscular man walked forward. His black hair was neat, his posture straight, and his expression serious. His uniform had a dull purple tone, designed more like a military outfit than anything academic.
Viper stopped beside Sheppard, who gave a small nod.
He turned to face the students.
"Hello, everyone," Viper said. "Normally, I'd give a longer introduction, but I don't see the point. Results matter more than words. That's my motto."
A few students exchanged looks.
Celina leaned slightly toward Yumi. "I don't know why, but I already don't like him."
Yumi didn't look away from the front. "That's fast."
"Look at him. Are you sure he is in the right school?"
"Understandable..."
Viper continued without pause.
"And in line with that, I'll be holding an exhibition match."
That immediately caused a stir. Even some of the teachers looked surprised.
"I'll be choosing the participants myself."
He scanned the room briefly before pointing.
"Jesse Anderson!"
Jesse blinked, then pointed at himself. "Me?"
"Yes. You." Viper's gaze shifted again. "And your opponents will be…"
"Jaden Yuki!"
Jaden stood up with a grin. "Alright!"
"And lastly…" Viper continues, briefly pausing.
"…Yumi Uzushi."
Yumi: "Heh!?"
After that, the three walked up to the stand and stopped a few steps away from Viper, forming a loose line as they faced him. The entire hall had gone quiet again, everyone watching closely to see what kind of "exhibition match" this was supposed to be.
"The three of you, hold out your right hands." Viper said.
Jaden didn't hesitate and stretched his arm out immediately, Jesse followed right after, while Yumi took a second longer, eyeing the man before finally raising his hand as well.
Viper moved down the line, snapping a metallic band onto each of their wrists. It locked shut with a soft click, a dull blue gem embedded at the center that gave off a faint glow, not bright enough to be flashy, but noticeable enough to feel intentional.
Jaden turned his wrist around, inspecting it from every angle. "Whoa… what is this thing?" he asked, tapping the gem lightly like it might respond.
"It's not a tracker, right?" Jesse added, half-joking but still giving it a curious look as Ruby peeked out beside him, sniffing at the device like it might be edible.
Yumi didn't say anything at first. He rotated his wrist slowly, studying the way the light reflected off the gem, then pressed a finger against it once, testing for any reaction. Nothing.
"What's this supposed to do?" he finally asked, tone flat but direct.
Viper didn't answer immediately. He simply straightened up, hands behind his back, expression unchanged. "Presents from me to you. Consider it a celebration for the new term."
"That doesn't explain anything," Yumi replied without missing a beat.
Viper's gaze shifted to Yumi for a second longer than necessary, clearly not a fan of being questioned, but he didn't push back. "It's something important. You'll understand later."
Yumi hummed lightly, not convinced at all. If anything, that made it worse, so he overlapped his thumb with The Earth, and cracked the device without anyone noticing.
He didn't exactly trust this professor, since he couldn't exactly recall anything about him from his memory in the original GX story.
In fact, that purple uniform reminded him a lot more of whatever man in Arc-V who also takes over Duel Academy from the Fusion Dimension, wears purple, turns the place into what seems to be a military school, and uses them to invade other dimensions.
So much has happened, and Yumi's memory of the original work was getting hazy, but it didn't matter as he could still recall a few key events.
Like, Season 3 is when Yubel, Jaden's ex, will come back only to find him got a new boyfriend, grew jealous, and took over Jaden's boyfriend's body.
And Season 4 is when Jaden's desperation grew, and his friends continue to be a burden, forcing him to continue carrying the team to the very end.
"Now, we will begin the duel one hour from now." Viper continued, already turning his back on them as if the matter was settled.
After the welcoming ceremony wrapped up, the crowd naturally shifted toward the duel arena. The energy in the air picked up again, students filling the stands, some standing just to get a better view.
Yumi, Jaden, and Jesse stepped into the center stage, each taking their position. The triangular formation formed naturally, the distance between them just enough to keep everything clear.
Jaden rolled his shoulders once. "Alright, this feels kinda exciting."
"Yeah," Jesse nodded, glancing between the two of them, "but also kinda weird. Three-way duel right off the bat."
Yumi casually cracked his neck. "This should be fun."
The three raised their Duel Disks at the same time.
"DUEL!!" x3
[Yumi, LP 4000]
[Jaden, LP 4000]
[Jesse, LP 4000]
"Draw!" Yumi moved first, pulling a card from his deck in one smooth motion.
Without wasting time, he slid a card forward. "Spell Card, Graceful Charity. I draw three cards, then discard two."
He drew three, glanced through them quickly, then casually sent two to the graveyard without much thought.
"Now by discarding one card, I get to Special Summon… Black Magician Girl."
He placed the card down.
A circle of magic appeared beneath him, glowing briefly before a familiar figure stepped out. The magician girl floated slightly above the ground. Her appearance was already familiar to many, but her outfit was now red and gold, her skin tanned, her pale blonde hair swaying gently.
[Black Magician Girl, 2000 ATK]
The moment she appeared, the simps community in Duel Academy wailed seeing Yumi pull out the legendary Dark Magician Girl, and not just any normal Dark Magician Girl, a shiny version with an alternative color too.
Many even break down in tears, saying how unfair this world is.
Yumi ignored them like always, as his Black Magician Girl narrowed her gaze toward the two standing before them.
She recognized Jaden but not Jesse; however, she could feel the presence of the group of Duel Spirits gathering around him.
"Master, he look kinda cute, do you mind if I play with him a little?" She asks, leaning slightly back onto Yumi while still floating above the ground, causing the simps' wail to grow louder.
The spirits within Jesse's hands and deck react instantly, growing protective over him.
"Not now," Yumi replied flatly.
She pouted a little but didn't argue, turning her attention back to the field.
"Black Magician Girl's effect," Yumi continued. "Based on the card I discarded to summon her, her effect changes."
A faint image of the discarded card appeared beside her, revealing it as a Spell.
"Since I discarded Card of Compensation, I draw two cards. And since it was a Spell, I draw one more." Yumi drew three more cards.
"I now activate the Ritual Spell, Sky Striker Bonded."
A ritual circle formed beneath Black Magician Girl, glowing faintly before dark-red flames started to rise around her.
She smiled at that, then gave a small wave toward the crowd, which only made things worse for the already overwhelmed simps in the audience.
"I tribute the Level 6 Black Magician Girl on my field and Ritual Summon, the Level 6, Sky Striker Ace - Doombroker!"
The dark flame rose and wrapped tightly around the magician girl, as shadow and crimson light spiraled together. The flame condensed and reshaped, then burst outward.
From within, a figure stepped forward.
Raye appeared, her long pale blonde hair moving with the faint digital wind. The tail end of her long black trench coat waved dramatically, a scarlet scarf trailing behind her, floating in the air like burning fire. She adjusted her fedora slightly as she stepped into position.
[Sky Striker Ace - Doombroker, 2500 ATK]