Five or six days passed in a blur, and Hikaru Amagi, along with the others, returned to the real world under the careful watch of KaibaCorp staff.
Seto Kaiba himself had apparently been quite pleased with this round of interdimensional exchange. In true Kaiba fashion, he generously announced increased investment in Duel Academy—and even handed out personal bonuses to all the participants.
Naturally, the duelists—Hikaru and his group—got the biggest cuts. After all, they were the ones who'd risked everything in the matches. A rough estimate told Hikaru that even if he stayed at Duel Academy for eight years and claimed scholarship money every year, it wouldn't add up to this jackpot.
Classic Kaiba. Never skimps.
Though Hikaru had never actually met this world's Seto Kaiba, his respect for the man shot up like a rocket.
With that kind of cash, he could probably clear out every vintage card shop in Tsudono City.
Not that he needed to anymore.
After returning to the Academy, Hikaru checked in with Jaden and the others to get caught up, and was immediately greeted with the sight of Bastion Misawa sitting in the Red Dorm's cafeteria… chugging straight chili sauce.
"What the hell?"
Hikaru stopped just outside, blinking.
Alexis sighed, facepalming. "It's my brother's fault…"
"Huh?"
"Misawa… got dumped, I guess?" Syrus Truesdale tried to find the right words.
"So what exactly happened, Jaden? Chazz?"
Jaden laughed, scratching his cheek. "Bastion dueled one of the Shadow Riders, lost, and he's been like this ever since."
Was it that Amazon warrior chick? Hikaru thought casually, curious about what had happened while he was gone. But as he listened, he realized something—this version of events didn't exactly match what he remembered from GX.
Turns out, Jaden's group had already encountered three "Shadow Riders." Technically, more than three, but the count got messy.
First were the "Dark Scorpion Thieves." They infiltrated the Academy, posing as staff and teachers, stealing Spirit Keys. But when they realized three of the keys were no longer on campus—lost in another dimension—they couldn't complete their mission. Then Chazz, playing the detective, caught wind of their cover and they had no choice but to bail.
During the pursuit, Jaden and crew ran into the real Shadow Rider—an Endymion spellcaster thief. Chazz was caught off-guard and lost the duel. Jaden followed up and defeated the guy.
"Endymion? As in the Spellcaster deck with the crazy field spells?" Hikaru asked.
"Yeah," Jaden nodded, eyes lighting up. "His spell tactics were wild! Honestly, if Chazz hadn't figured out his ace card first, I probably would've lost."
So the Shadow Riders had been powered up, no doubt.
And Chazz got stuck playing the classic role—sacrifice the rival so the hero can shine. Classic.
"And after that?"
"Alexis beat this guy named Titan, another Shadow Rider. He's back too, I guess."
"Titan? What deck was he using?"
"Fiend-type. Dice rolls." Jaden laughed.
Wait a second… that's the original GX version. That guy was weak as hell.
"So this is the fifth one already?"
"Yeah." Jaden nodded again.
Chazz sighed. "Can't believe Bastion turned into a vegetable after one loss."
"Sure, it was a Shadow Game, but still… this is pathetic," he added, arms crossed, filling Hikaru in on the details.
It happened two days ago.
Some male students had suddenly gone missing. Chazz, despite losing to Endymion, was the first to notice and launched his own investigation, cross-checking every class's attendance.
"You did all that?" Hikaru turned to him, impressed.
Chazz snorted. "Heh."
"He really is sharp," Syrus chimed in. "When the Dark Scorpions were stealing keys, Chazz figured it out just from a few subtle clues. If it weren't for that ambush by the Endymion guy, he probably wouldn't have lost at all."
"A loss is still a loss. Don't glorify it." Chazz brushed him off, turning back to Hikaru.
Anyway—his investigation led him to the south side of Duel Academy Island, where a new coliseum had mysteriously appeared. But he no longer had a Shadow Key, so he had to call for backup.
The gatekeeper of the coliseum was a brawny woman. Bastion challenged her… and lost.
Ever since, he'd been a wreck.
Face flushed. Spirit broken. Swigging chili sauce like it was water. Dumping tomato juice on his head.
And honestly…
This was the Red Dorm cafeteria.
Bastion was from Yellow Dorm. He didn't even go here.
"What's that got to do with your brother?" Hikaru asked, skipping past the fluff. No point asking when Atticus regained consciousness—this was the real mystery.
"That idiot…" Alexis's temple throbbed with rage. "He said Bastion must've fallen in love. Told him to confess. Even gave him my Shadow Key so he could go do it."
When Atticus was still missing, she'd been worried sick. The moment he came back and woke up? She wanted to knock him out again.
"Don't tell me he lost again…"
Alexis sighed. "I wish. The problem is—she didn't even acknowledge Bastion. Said his behavior was pathetic and disgusting. That just broke him even more."
"This dumbass ocean of Bastion," Hikaru muttered. "If he loses his position as second in class over this, sure, I'll be happy to move up—but this is embarrassing."
"I know, right?" Jaden's eyes lit up. "That's why I'm gonna duel her myself today!"
His face glowed with righteous fire. "You with me, Hikaru?!"
"…Mmm. I've got something else to do."
"?"
"Hikaru, is something wrong?" Alexis asked, a little concerned. "You just got back from KaibaCorp. Feeling sick? Should we call the nurse—?"
"Nah, nothing like that." Hikaru waved her off and pointed to his uniform. "I'm quitting the Fusion Club."
"WHAT!?"
"Huh?!"
CLATTER—
Even Bastion, dazed as he was, fell off the bench, eyes bulging. He snapped to his feet, bolted to the doorway, and screamed, "THE SKY'S FALLING!? THE WORLD'S ENDING?!"
"Bwahaha, Bastion, you were still listening."
"What the hell, Hikaru?! You've lost your mind?!" Even Chazz dropped his arms, stunned.
"Did… did you get brainwashed in that other dimension?!" Syrus folded his hands in prayer. "This is a nightmare! I'm definitely dreaming!!"
Hikaru waved them off with a grin. "No, no. You got it all wrong."
"I just think the current Fusion Club… isn't very fusion-y. So I'm making a new one. Let's call it… the NEO Fusion Club."
He looked at Jaden. "Wanna join?"
"OOOH! NEO Fusion Club?! That sounds awesome!" Jaden's eyes sparkled. "I don't even have a club. If you're starting something new—I'm in!"
"Sounds interesting. Count me in." Chazz crossed his arms again, cool restored.
"…You have Fusion Monsters?"
"Don't you dare forget about VWXYZ, you bastard!"
"Then… I guess I'll join too?" The others hesitated, but seeing everyone else jump in, they started getting curious.
It was just a club, after all—something to do in their free time. Hikaru was a known quantity. If he ran the new club, it couldn't be as unhinged as the current Fusion Club.
That alone was a blessing.
Perfect. Hikaru smiled.
This was the whole point—recruitment day. A club with one member wasn't a club.
But with Jaden and the protagonist crew on board?
The NEO Fusion Club would rise.
The Old Fusion Army would fall.
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For this week I will do more release depending on the power stones !
100 Power Stones = 1 chapter (in addition to the daily update)
So give stones if you want mooooar !