The Graduation Match, Part 2

"So, what now, Jaden?" Zane asked coolly, looking straight at the Slifer, "You think you can beat *my* dragon? You've got one monster and he is about to be blasted into oblivion! It's over for you."

*'It can't be over!'* Jaden thought, gritting his teeth. '*I **know'*** **I can beat that thing, I just gotta do it fast!**

"What's wrong?" Zane raised an eyebrow. "Are you afraid? Is that your problem?"

Jaden could only stare back in silence.

"If that's the case, allow me to put you out of your misery, Jaden!" Zane raised his arm, pointing at him.

"Cyber End Dragon, attack!" He commanded.

"Not so fast!" Jaden pressed a button on his disk. "I'm playing a Trap called Soul Union! This takes Bladedge's (2600/1800) attack points and adds them all to Wildedge!"

"That's close." Kaoru sighed.

"Perhaps. But Jaden needs to duel with his heart, not his brain." Davis added.

"It won't be enough. Cyber End Dragon's attack is higher than Wildedge's at the moment." Arisa pointed out.

"Farewell Jaden...Cyber End Dragon, attack and end this duel!"

Everyone watched as the three dragon heads fired off a separate burst of energy that converged into one powerful stream and blast Wildedge. Jaden covered his face from the smoke, peeking out as best he could, 'Man up, Jaden! Your whole year comes down to right now!'

He rose to full height, yelling at the top of his lungs as the attack continued.

"Sorry, Zane...but we're not done." He grinned slyly, holding a thumbs up. "Yet!"

The Shiba siblings breathed a sigh of relief.

"He narrowly avoided that." Ryan commented.

Zane: 2000

Jaden: 100

Zane's eyes widened in shock. "I don't understand, that hit you dead on. This match should be done!" he exclaimed as murmurs of surprise rippled through the audience.

Jaden stood there, breathing heavily after the devastating attack. "Talk about activating a Spell in the nick of time," he muttered, glancing at the one remaining card on the field, "Thank you Emergency Provisions..."

Obviously, Jaden had used the effect of Emergency Provisions to gain 1000 more Life Points at the cost of his Soul Union Trap card, saving him just barely.

Sheppard chuckled and nodded in approval from his place in the stands.

"Well played." Kaoru said.

"Now." Jaden pressed a button on his disk. "I'll play Hero Signal! With this, I can summon any monster with Elemental Hero in it's name! And what better Hero than..." He paused as a beam of light shot upward and his disk began to glow, followed by a very familiar, blue armored and caped man jumping onto the field. "Bubbleman!"

Elemental Hero Bubbleman: 800/1200

*'I may have survived this round, but just barely! So much for using my head over my heart...'*

Zane looked at the two cards in his hands and held one up, "Now, I'll summon Cyber Kirin, and if I should sacrifice him, all card damage this turn, goes to zero! That means that my Power Bond damage is negated!"

Bastion whistled at the move. "Flawless!"

"Totally." Atticus said with a nod.

"C'mon, where's the Jaden that almost beat me before?" Zane demanded.

"He's right here!" Jaden shot back. "I think...I dunno..."

"Of course you don't!" Zane snapped. "Because your heart is not in this..."

Jaden's face fell, Zane's words buzzing around his skull. As he stood there, he was suddenly assaulted with a loud growling sound, followed by a strange, empty feeling in his gut.

"Looks like my stomach isn't in this either..." He sighed, sitting down behind his Bubbleman, "I kinda skipped lunch."

"He what?" Arisa yelled, appalled. "No wonder his dueling was so appalling in this duel. How can he duel on a empty stomach?"

Zane stared at him, startled at what he just seen and heard while the audience murmured all around them. Jaden patted his stomach and looked around the arena.

"Dorothy! Are you around!" He called out at the top of his lungs. He looked around until he saw the plump woman and her assistant sitting to the right.

"Hey!" He waved at them. "How about some grub?"

Dorothy blinked, but smiled kindly and rose to her feet.

"You got it!" Jaden watched as she and the younger girl took off out of their seats.

"What's he doing?" Alexis stared in disbelief. "Having a snack?"

"Seems that way to me." Ryan shrugged.

"They say that the quickest way to a man's heart is through his stomach." Atticus nudged his sister. "Jealous?"

Alexis glared at him. "Oh please!"

"At this point, it's best to just go with it." Davis said.

In the stands, Doctor Crowler gawked at the sight. "He *can't* do that! There's no eating here! What does he think this is, some kind of buffet?!"

Sheppard chuckled. "Can't you give him a break? Remember, he *did* save the world."

Crowler slumped in his seat, eye twitching. "I'm trying *not* too."

Jaden sat there on the platform as Dorothy and her helper arrived with not only a portable cooking appliance, but a large supply of food, with bowls and plates.

The Slifer sniffed the aroma as the two women made him lunch.

"Smells good...I can't believe I went this whole time without eating!" He said as Dorothy handed him a plate of food.

Immediately, Jaden crammed the food into his mouth, and soon, everyone around him watched as Jaden stuffed his face only to stop here and there to wash it down with a bottled drink.

Crowler gagged. "How revolting...wouldn't you agree, Chancellor?"

"*I* think we're in for a match now." The bald man said with a warm smile.

The Head of Obelisk looked at him. "Just what do you mean?"

"I mean that Jaden learned a valuable lesson." He turned and met his colleague's stare. "He tried to be someone he just *isn't*, and almost lost because of it. You see, Jaden's a great duelist, but not because of his book smarts, but because he plays with his heart, his soul..." he let out a laugh as a loud belching sound echoed around them. "..and even his stomach. Zane helped him find the duelist that he left behind."

Ryan and the Shiba siblings nodded at the Chancellor's words.

"As I said before, Jaden should leave playing with his head to someone else."

"Like yourself?" Arisa asked.

"Exactly." He replied.

"Finally, the duel's about to begin." Kaoru said.

"Left behind?" Crowler turned and watched as Jaden stood up, adjusting his belt buckle as a pile of plates were at his feet. "Please, he left *nothing* behind!"

Jaden sighed in relief and wiped his mouth of crumbs, "Alright, let's go, Zane!"

"Good luck, Jaden, glad I could help!" Dorothy chimed from behind him as they picked up the dishes.

The Slifer waved at them, smiling, "Thanks for the grub!" he turned to Zane and held up his disk, "Now then..."

Zane chuckled. "Bring it!"

"Here goes!" Jaden drew his card.

"I play Pot of Greed! Which means, I get to draw two more cards." he paused and drew the new ones, "Now, I'll play one: Elemental Hero Avian in defense mode!"

Jaden's feathery friend appeared on the field, kneeling and arms crossed.

"Here's the other one!" Jaden held up the other card.

"A Spell called Spy Hero! It activates when I randomly discard two cards from my deck." He explained as he tossed away the cards and a dark figure appeared on his field, "Now my Spy Hero steps in and uses his Super Stealth to steal one of your cards!"

Zane smiled, "Seems like the old Jaden's back."

A blur of movement made Zane look down to see something grab a card from his Graveyard and throw it to Jaden, who caught it with ease.

Jaden looked at the card and grinned, "Thanks Zane! Future Fusion! Now, all I gotta do is sacrifice a couple of monsters that can be used for a Fusion and *bam!* I get what they woulda made." He tossed a couple of cards into his Graveyard, "So say goodbye Burstinatrix and Clayman hello to the Elemental Hero Rampart Blaster in defense mode!"

"Finally he's back in the game." Kaoru smiled.

The red armored soldier with a shield flew down from the sky and knelt down, blast at the ready.

"Next, I'll throw down a couple of face downs." Jaden slipped two cards into his disk.

"Impressive, but too little too late!" Zane drew his card. "I summon Cyber Phoenix in attack mode!" he declared as a beautiful, metallic bird with four wings appeared alongside Cyber End Dragon. "With Phoenix on the field, any Spell or Trap cards that target a specific monster are destroyed, meaning that their effect gets canceled out. See where I'm going with this Jaden?"

"A monkey could figure this out." Arisa said.

"Yeah, yeah, Zane, I get it." Jaden glanced at the metal hydra. "The Cyber End Dragon. I can't mess with it with Spells or Traps anymore with Phoenix on the field."

'Which means it's practically invincible.' he finished mentally.

Chazz looked down at them.

"Would one of them just lose already?!" He snapped, impatiently.

"This is a tough spot." Bastion reminded him. "What to do?"

"Search me." Davis said.

"I'm glad you got to enjoy your lunch, Jaden, but right now, try not to lose it! Cyber End Dragon, attack Rampart Blaster!" Zane roared.

Jaden watched as the familiar beams of energy came flying at his Fusion monster.

"I activate my Spell!" he cried as his face down reared upward. "De-Fusion! It lets me take a Fusion monster on the field and splits them apart!"

"Sorry, Jaden, but Cyber End Dragon can't be taken apart, Cyber Phoenix is protecting him, remember?" Zane reminded him.

"I'm not going after him!" Jaden looked at Zane, "I'm going after one of mine! By splitting Rampart Blaster, I get two monsters and you get no attack!" he explained as his Fusion monster split into Burstinatrix and Clayman just before the beam shot between them.

Now, Jaden had his Avian and Bubbleman in defense mode while Burstinatrix and Clayman were in here attack mode, all of them staring Zane and his beasts down.

"Alright, now that's a line-up!" Syrus whooped, "Jaden's got four Elemental Heroes!"

'Hmm...even if you add up all the attack points of those Heroes, they still wouldn't come even close to my Cyber End Dragon. Jaden's making a grave error...'

Zane's eyes widened when something popped into his head. "Unless-!"

Jaden grinned, as if reading Zane's mind, "Unless, I'm not attacking, I'm sacrificing! And you'll see why when I play this, it's one doozy of a Trap card!" He pressed a button on his disk and his face down was revealed. "Here comes Elemental Burst!"

"Oh no!" Zane stepped back a bit.

"Oh yeah! By sacrificing a Wind, Earth, Water, and Fire attribute monster, each and every card on your field gets totally destroyed!" He explained as his monsters went from humanoids to large pillars of elemental power.

"And since this card doesn't target, Cyber Phoenix can't do a damn thing about it." Kaoru said.

The four streams of power soared through the air and wrapped themselves around the Phoenix and Dragon, obliterating them with ease. Zane, as well as everyone else in the arena, stared in complete surprise.

Jaden snickered, "So long, Cyber End Dragon...can't really say I'm gonna miss him!"

Zane slowly turned and looked right at him again.

"You won't have to miss him, because by destroying Cyber Phoenix, I get to move one card from my deck to my hand." He paused, took the card and looked up, "Don't you see? The way I've calibrated my deck is that Cyber End Dragon is never really gone, I'll *always* find a way to bring him back!"

"You're bluffing!"

"But I'm not, Jaden." Zane looked down at the card. "Because the card I picked was a Spell called Time Fusion! With it, time is most certainly on my side,"

Jaden frowned as a bright light appeared above Zane. "How is that, exactly?"

"Because, by removing one card in my hand from the game, it activates." Zane explained. "Meaning, I can automatically call up a Fusion monster next turn, without having to wait for a single summoning requirement!"

*'So, he's right!*' Jaden bit his cheek. '*Cyber End Dragon **will'*** **return, and soon too!**

"You can't win, and you'll see why next turn, Jaden! Then, the Academy will see that you're a fraud!" Zane glared at him, a confident look in his eyes, "Don't feel bad, you lost to the best!"

"Already writing your Graduation speech, Zane?" Jaden raised an eyebrow. "Not so fast, 'cause I'm still here! It's my move now." He drew his card, "I'll throw down a face down and end my turn,"

Zane kept looking at Jaden as he drew his card. '*You'll have to do better than that, Jaden, especially after you see what I have for you!'* He took a card from his disk. "My turn, Jaden! First, this returns to me! Card From a Different Dimension! I removed it from play when I played Time Fusion, but now it's back and it doesn't stop there. Next, it's special effect activates and you know what that means: we both get to draw two cards!"

"I swear Zane needs to rely on all his cards, not just Cyber End Dragon." Arisa grumbled. "If someone uses Prohibition, he'd be screwed."

Both of them drew their cards and they looked at what they had drawn.

'Too bad nothing can help you now, Jaden.'

'Zane must be pretty confident to lemme draw cards...'

"And now, I call forth..." Zane raised a hand to the sky, towards the light above him. "CYBER END DRAGON!" he roared as his beast appeared in a strong whirlwind.

"Not again..." Syrus moaned in misery.

"For once." Alexis blinked slowly. "You think he'd do a combo without that dragon..."

"I swear Zane is becoming a one trick Pony." Arisa said.

"Of course!" Bastion snapped his fingers, "Because the monster was summoned by Time Fusion, it can't attack until next turn!"

"Next turn?" Chazz's eye twitched. "Grr...how long do I have to wait to see Jaden lose?!"

"Well there was the time Zane and Jaden first dueled and Zane crushed him." Arisa said. "You were not there at the time."

Crowler gulped and tugged at his collar.

"Dear me, I'm sweating bullets over here! Can't we just declare Zane the winner yet?" He pleaded.

"Not yet, Crowler, after all, if there's one thing I've learned is to never count Jaden out until his Life Poinst are out." Sheppard said quietly, his eyes dancing with excitement.

"My draw!" Jaden drew his card. "I activate the Spell known as Fusion Recovery! This brings both Polymerization and Burstinatrix from the Graveyard and add them to my hand," he paused and took the two cards that popped out of his slot.

"Sorry, Zane, but you're not the only one who can re-Summon a monster!" He said firmly as Burstinatrix appeared on the field in attack mode.

He held up another card, "Next, I'll activate Miracle Fusion! Now, I just remove Avian and Burstinatrix from play and I can create the Elemental Hero Flame Wingman!"

Elemental Hero Flame Wingman: 2100/1200

Everyone watched as Jaden's trademark monster, the green and red monster with a single feathery wing and a dragon-head on one arm appeared on the field.

"But wait, I'm not done yet!" Jaden held up his Polymerization card, "I'll fuse Flame Wingman and the Elemental Hero Sparkman to create the Elemental Hero Shining Flare Wingman!"

Elemental Hero Shining Flare Wingman: 2500/2100

Zane looked up to see another one of Jaden's more recognizable monsters, the armored counterpart to his Flame Wingman as it descended beside it's master.

"And here's the cherry on top!" Jaden continued. "For each Elemental Hero I got chillin' in the Graveyard, Wingman gets 300 attack points!" he looked down at his Graveyard. "Let's count off...Hero roll call!"

Quickly, an image of each Hero he ever used in this duel appeared in front of him before disappearing into thin air, while his Hero got a power boost.

"Nice." Kaoru said.

"Alright! Attack Cyber End Dragon, Flare Wingman!" He ordered.

The glowing Hero soared through the air and collided with Cyber End Dragon, making it explode with a great blast that made Zane cover his head as his Life Points went down.

Zane: 1100

Jaden: 100

"Oh yeah! But, Flare Wingman's not done yet! After your monster is destroyed, you get dealt damage equal to it's attack points...and that's 4000!"

Zane watched in shock as Flare Wingman floated down in front of him.

Jaden smirked. "School's out, Zane!"

"Not yet it's not!" Zane cried defiantly, pressing a button on his disk. "I play a Trap card! Damage Polarizer! Now, all damage from a special effect goes to zero!" he explained as an electric current went around Flare Wingman for a few moments before the Hero went back to Jaden.

Jaden rubbed his chin, growling a little, "I gotta admit, Zane, that's a sweet card..."

"And, as you said it, for the cherry on top, we both draw one card, and for your sake, I hope it's a good one!" Zane reached down and drew his card while Jaden did the same. They both looked at the card they had drawn.

"This one draw could decide the entire duel." Davis said.

'I can't believe...' Jaden stared at the card.

'...that I drew...' Zane looked at his.

Battle Fusion! the two of them thought at the same time.

"I'll just throw down a few face downs and call it a turn." Jaden said as he slipped a card into his disk. "I guess you're up." He looked at his opponent. "What's it gonna be this time?"

"You'll see!"

"Well, whatever it is, good luck, because I have a feeling that this will be the last round!"

"I agree." Zane said with a nod. 'The last round for you, Jaden. My victory is assured. Prepare for the bitter taste of defeat!' He thought as he drew his card. He looked at it and smiled.

Syrus gulped. "I don't like the way he's smiling..."

Alexis glanced at him. "Especially since Zane never smiles. Something's up here."

"Yeah." Atticus nodded behind them. "I think we're about to see what's up very soon...get ready for the final round between the school's two best duelists!"

"You do realize that once the final duel is over Jaden will be the school's best duelist now." Arisa pointed out. "Regardless of the outcome."

Meanwhile, back on the field, Zane looked up from his card, still smiling.

"Jaden, it's been fun, but now, I'm afraid that it's over." He held up the card he just drew. "I activate Power Bond! Now, by sacrificing the right monsters, I can once again summon the Cyber End Dragon!"

Chazz blinked and leaned over the railing, "How? You gotta have monsters to sacrifice 'em!"

"Chazz is right for once!" Bastion agreed, staring as well. "His field is bare!"

"Oh, I'm sorry, I forgot...I don't need monsters!" Zane plucked a card from his hand. "I activate Cybernetic Fusion Support! By trading in half of my Life Points, I don't need to make any sacrifices to summon my Fusion monster!"

"Oh great." Davis muttered. "I don't know who is more predictable, Crowler or Zane."

Zane: 550

Jaden: 100

"So, without further ado, let's welcome back Cyber End Dragon!"

Once again, the multi-headed metal beast appeared with a roar, a strong gust of wind blowing around it as it roared.

Jaden looked up at it. '*You know, I'm starting to get **really'*** **sick of this thing...**

"Don't forget, thanks to Power Bond, it's attack points are doubled!"

Zane held up another card. "Next, I'll activate this: Limiter Removal! Thanks to this, all Machine-type monsters on the field gets their attack points doubled, and guess what type of monster my dragon is?"

Ryan and the Shiba siblings watched waiting to see how this would unfold.

"You're through!"

"I don't think so!" Jaden pressed a button. "GO, BATTLE FUSION! If fused during a battle, my monster gains as many attack points as Triple Chrome Dome over there!"

The entire school watched wondering how this would end.

"He can't do that!" Crowler pointed and looked at his superior. "That simply must be against the rules!"

Sheppard shot up from his seat. "Oh please, this is what duelings all about!"

Zane looked at the Elemental Hero, but his smile remained. "Nice move, but it's all for naught. I use the Spell card Battle Fusion!" he roared, taking a card from his hand. "That's right, Jaden, I have one too!"

"Uh...oh." Jaden looked up at the Dragon as it seemed to grow larger with more and more attack points pouring into it's body.

Suddenly, it all became quiet. The excitement in the air, the noise from the audience, even the growling from their monsters were gone. Jaden Yuki and Zane Truesdale were now alone in their own little world, staring each other down with a look of both pride and admiration in their eyes.

"Wow, Zane, you really are the best!" Jaden praised with a grin, "I'm gonna miss ya."

"And I, you, Jaden." Zane said evenly, "That's why, I'm passing you the torch."

"Huh?"

"When I leave here, *you* will be the best duelist at this school. Despite your grades, or your rank, you will be the best, so make me proud, Jaden."

The Slifer's smile widened, "I'll give it my all, Zane, and I'll start right here, 'cause this duel's not over yet!"

Zane's head went back a little, a look of confusion in his eyes, "Huh?"

As quickly as it had disappeared, everything came back: the monsters, the electricity in the air, the anxious audience all around them.

"That's right, I still have one trick up my sleeve, and here it comes!" Jaden waved his hand and his face down card was revealed, "I activate the Trap known as Final Fusion!"

Zane's confused look became one of admiration, "How clever..."

"If this card's played, both of us take damage to our Life Points equal to our monsters combined attack points! You know what that means..." Jaden trailed off, a sly grin now on his face.

Zane nodded, his own smile coming back to his face. "Sure do!"

Everyone watched as both Cyber End Dragon and Shining Flare Wingman, both monsters with incredibly high attack points flew at one another. A bright glow filled the arena, making everyone watch in awe moments before a tremendous explosion rocked the room, a huge cloud of smoke covering the dueling platform.

"What happened?" Chazz demanded.

"Who won?!" Bastion cried.

"Wait, I think I see something." Arisa said.

Everyone rose to their feet, all of their hearts practically on the verge of stopping completely. They watched as the smoke cleared away, and they could see what had happened to the duelists. Zane was on one knee while Jaden remained standing.

Zane: 0

Jaden: 57800

"I don't believe it." Kaoru trailed off. "Guys, are you seeing this?"

"I see it too, but I'm at a loss for words." Davis added. "In all the years I've been here, this is the first time Zane lost to a student and a Slifer Red of all people."

"How did Jaden?-" Alexis whispered.

"He had another spell or trap." Arisa said. "It's the only explanation."

"From the massive increase in life points, it was most likely Rainbow Life." Ryan theorized.

"Either way Jaden is now the best duelist in the Academy." Arisa said. "And it looks like my time at the Academy has ended."

Jaden then laid down on his back.

One by one, a student or faculty member in the stands began clapping for the duel, and for the incredible duelists that showed them what they could do. Jaden opened his eyes and looked at the crowd, still laying on the platform.

"You okay?"

The Slifer looked up to the side to see Zane standing right next to his head.

"I think so..." Jaden said with a nod.

"How's my hair?" He asked as Zane took a seat next to him. "Is it still there?"

"Typical Jaden." Kaoru said.

Zane smiled and looked at the crowd. "Good job."

"Yeah..." Jaden nodded and looked out at the audience as well. "Does that mean...we gotta duel again?"

"Absolutely." Zane looked over his shoulder at Jaden. "Someday, we will."

Jaden looked at him, a familiar smile crossing his face. "Sweet! I guess...until then, Zane."

The Kaiser held out his hand. "Until then."

"Good." Jaden slapped Truesdale's hand. "I could use a break!"

"Me too."

With that, both duelists laid back and started to laugh while the crowd continued to clap for them and their awesome duel. Jaden's friends stood there among the clapping, proud of their friend and what he had done against the Kaiser, the best duelist in this school. This was a duel that no one would be forgetting anytime soon.