"Hahaha!"
The student Kagurazaka from Ra Yellow Academy at Duel Academy was standing on the edge of a cliff, faced toward the sea, excitedly looking at the legendary card deck in his hand.
Magician, Swordsman, Dark Knight Gaia, Black Luster Soldier... all these were top-tier monsters from the legends of old!
Back in the day, Duel King Muto Yugi used this card deck, wielding these monsters to reach the pinnacle of the Dueling Domain, becoming a King worshipped by countless people!
It was mentioned before that Kagurazaka's specialty was being able to mimic the behavior, speech, and even the psychology of a strong person, completely copying that person's thought process.
And now, in his hand, he held the card deck of the strongest Duelist of all time, Muto Yugi!
So, by immersing himself into the role of the world-conquering Duel King, Kagurazaka felt he should be confident, let himself swell with pride, and think ambitiously.
Yuki Judai, Caesar Ryo, Cronos... all these strong contenders would bow before him!
...Well, even if he did manage to get the Duel King's card deck, his ambition would only amount to becoming a big shot within the school...
As he was feeling puffed up with pride, he heard a voice from behind: "Sorry, student, that card deck... isn't yours. May I have it back?"
"Huh?"
Kagurazaka, who was feeling proud, turned back in disdain, but almost had a heart attack upon recognizing the person.
The shining pendant, the explosive, three-color starfish hairstyle, the V-neck black T-shirt...
...Damn, isn't this Muto Yugi himself!?
Indeed, it was Yugi himself.
After hearing the circumstances from Youyu, Yugi, Jonouchi, and Youyu split up on the island, each going to a crime scene in search of the student who stole the card deck.
As fate would have it, Kagurazaka just happened to run into the real Yugi.
"The pursuit of powerful cards is a duelist's instinct, which isn't wrong in itself," Muto Yugi stepped forward slowly, speaking softly, "but simply having powerful cards doesn't make one stronger. Only cards that suit oneself can..."
Before he finished speaking, Kagurazaka suddenly covered his face and started laughing in a low, strange manner, as if possessed.
Yugi: "?"
What's up with this kid? Is he having a meltdown or what?
"Hehehe... Hahahahaha!"
Kagurazaka threw his head back in laughter, only stopping after a while, looking at Yugi with a mischievous expression.
"Oh boy... I almost fell for your trick."
Yugi: "??"
Kagurazaka circled him, scrutinizing him with a weird grin.
"Pretty neat, you've got the outfit down pat," Kagurazaka remarked, staring at Yugi's starfish hair for a long time, "This hairstyle... Hehe, it's really something. Where did you get it done? You actually look a bit like Muto Yugi..."
Yugi: "..."
Yet here stands the real deal; how could he not look like himself?
Though Yugi's temperament toward the younger generation was rather good: "You mean, you think I'm a fake?"
"Stop bluffing, if you're really Yugi, then I'm Youyu, the principal," Kagurazaka scoffed, "Though I've never seen Muto Yugi in person, I've seen him in videos.
He should be a whole head shorter than you, his face more... um... round? And look at your sturdy frame, those muscles... Muto Yugi doesn't have a build like yours? You look more like a boxer than a Duel King."
Yugi: "......"
Hearing what Kagurazaka said... it seemed plausible.
Yugi indeed hadn't been in the spotlight for years, and most people's impressions of him as the Duel King were still stuck on footage from years ago.
Back then, even the little fanboy Yuki Judai ran into him and didn't recognize him, so it's understandable others couldn't either.
"I see," Kagurazaka seemed to have realized something, suddenly filled with hostility, "You... are you trying to pull the same stunt as me tonight?"
Yugi paused: "What stunt?"
"Stop playing dumb, the Duel King's card deck!" Kagurazaka spoke as if it was a given, "You've even changed into the outfit, styled the hair the same way, aren't you emulating the Duel King, trying to become like him intentionally?"
Yugi: "I..."
Emulating myself, huh.
At this point, Kagurazaka noticed the upside-down triangle pendant on Yugi's chest, his expression froze, revealing a face of shock: "Eh? That..."
Yugi let out a long breath.
It seemed this student was finally realizing something was off.
Then he gently caressed the Millennium Pendant, smiling as he spoke: "Yes, this is the 'Millennium Pendant,' a very important treasure to me. It's something my most important person left for me..."
He didn't expect Kagurazaka to roll his eyes.
"Stop it." He scoffed, "Just last month, some moron named Titan barged onto this island — it spread across the entire academy!
Back then that guy also had this thing... yeah just like this 'Millennium Pendant,' identical to yours!"
Yugi: "..."
No words to say.JPG.
"But where did you buy this then? Looks quite legit." Kagurazaka was curious, "And your outfit, where'd you get it? Is it expensive, how much was it?"
To be honest, Kagurazaka was somewhat tempted.
As a master of COSPLAY, he always pursued perfectly integrating himself into the role he mimicked. He believed it had to be done from the outside in, by mimicking even the most subtle habits, even catchphrases, of the character in order to learn the tactics of the strong.
If he could assemble a perfect Muto Yugi outfit like the one this person had, wouldn't it greatly assist him in getting into character?
"Not expensive..." Yugi was a little amused, "And my hair is natural..."
"Natural?"
Kagurazaka stared at the bizarre hairstyle, black with red highlights, its bangs a golden lightning bolt...
...Ridiculous!
Do you really see yourself as Muto Yugi? The chosen one or something?
Yugi, ever patient with the younger generation: "You believe that if you can emulate me... Muto Yugi, from both appearance and mindset, using his card deck, learning his tactical approach, you'll become stronger, isn't that right?"
After pondering it, he chose not to dwell on proving his identity any further, referring to himself in third person.
"Of course."
Kagurazaka displayed a smug expression of 'nothing can faze me.'
"Right now, I hold the card deck of the strongest duelist in history, and I've thoroughly studied the tactics of Duel King Yugi.
I can perfectly replicate his duel, becoming an entity that reigns at the pinnacle of the Duel World!"
"I see..."
Because Youyu previously mentioned it, Yugi was also well aware that the replica card deck Kagurazaka held was the same one Atem used back then.
If Kagurazaka truly could perfectly reproduce another version of Yugi's thinking and duel, Yugi was actually quite looking forward to it.
"In that case... Would you like to duel with me to test it?" Yugi said with a smile, "To validate the strength of your 'strongest card deck'?"