Is this the world of card dealers? Yada thieves!

Even if Samejima doesn't choose the three monsters he selected, it doesn't matter. Hayato can still use "Cyber ​​Load Fusion" to return the three "Cyber ​​Dragons" that were banished due to Samejima's "Scrap Fusion" to the deck for fusion.

Samejima had gathered information about Dan Kuroto beforehand. Among the five cards revealed due to the "Bitter Choice," "Primal Cyber ​​Dragon" could destroy "Dark Familiar" and revive "Cyber ​​End Dragon," and "Cyber ​​Load Fusion" could fuse with banished monsters. Neither of these were good choices; it was clearly a trap waiting for him to fall into.

As for the remaining [Cyber ​​Dragon Core], although I've never seen this card before, judging from the name, it should also be a monster related to [Cyber ​​Dragon]. Its effect is unknown, but the only thing that is certain is that its attack power is lower than that of [Dark Familiar].

Despite feeling that this card was also a trap, Samejima had no choice but to take it: "The card I chose is [Cyber ​​Dragon Core]."

"Hmph, a wise move. Then I'll add [Cyber ​​Dragon Core] to my hand and send all the other cards to the graveyard." Hayato retrieved [Cyber ​​Dragon Core], and then sent the other four cards to the graveyard one by one.

Having confirmed that all four cards had entered the graveyard, Hayato smiled slyly: "On the surface, the attack power of [Cyber ​​Dragon Core] is the lowest, only 400 points, which is not even enough to break through the weak defense of the flipped-over [Dark Familiar]."

“However, it’s not that those who seem harmless are without danger. On the contrary, the weakest are often more troublesome than the strongest.” With that, Hayato placed the [Cyber ​​Dragon Core] he had just added to his hand onto the Duel Disk. “I will Normal Summon [Cyber ​​Dragon Core] in Attack Position and then activate its effect.”

"If [Cyber ​​Dragon Core] is successfully summoned, I can add one [Cyber] Spell/Trap Card or one [Cyber ​​Tech] Spell/Trap Card from my deck to my hand. The one I want to add to my hand is [Cyber ​​Fusion Support]."

On Hayato's field, a mechanical "snake" with a design even simpler than the [Primal Cyber ​​Dragon], consisting of just a few spherical mechanical joints connected together, raised its head. Although it only had 400 attack power, it was as confident as an ordinary person with 3000 attack power and 2500 defense power.

Hayato now has an extra card in his hand, the one he just added to his hand using the effect of [Cyber ​​Dragon Core]: [Cyber ​​Fusion Support].

"【Electronic Fusion Support】?" This was another card that Samejima had never heard of before, but he could guess that it was probably a card used to assist in 【Fusion】.

Dan Kuroto proudly put his hands on his hips: "Most people's fusion is just fusing monsters in their hand and on the field, or using cards like [Dragon's Mirror] to fuse monsters on the field and in the graveyard. But don't underestimate my talent. With [Cyber ​​Fusion Support], I can choose fusion materials from my hand, field, and graveyard at the same time."

"The price is merely paying half of the base points!"

As he spoke, the [Cyber ​​Fusion Support] card was inserted into the Spell & Trap Zone before he could even warm it up: "It's just a few Life Points. As long as it doesn't go to zero, it's practically infinite. Take it! I'll pay half of my Life Points and activate the Quick-Play Spell Card [Cyber ​​Fusion Support]!"

[Dan Kuroto: 5000→2500LP]

Half of the Life Points were deducted from Dan Kuroto's account. At the same time, a high-tech-looking mechanical device rose up in his back row. As Hayato revealed the cards that had been face down on the field, the Fusion Spell Card, which was intended to be used as bait, came into play.

Not only the [Cyber ​​Dragon Core] on Hayato's field, but also the monsters in Hayato's graveyard appeared on the field one by one. [Cyber ​​Terminator Dragon] and two [Primal Cyber ​​Dragons] raised their heads and roared before turning into particles along with [Cyber ​​Dragon Core] and entering the [Cyber ​​Fusion Support] device, which began to emit electric light as it accelerated.

"I'll be using a total of four fusion materials. Among them, the [Cyber ​​Dragon Core] has the ability to be named [Cyber ​​Dragon] as long as it exists on my field or in my Graveyard." Hayato held up five fingers. "The material requirements are [Cyber ​​Dragon] and at least one Machine-Type monster!"

"Don't blink! This is the last monster you'll ever see. I'm going to fuse and summon [Chimera Overload Dragon]!"

The friction between the metal produced a piercing sound, and a mechanical dragon much longer than the [Electronic Terminator Dragon] appeared on Dan Kuroto's field. At the same time, one mechanical dragon head after another extended from the fork, making a total of four mechanical dragon heads that were majestic and domineering!

【Matching Overload Dragon】【ATK3200】

Samejima's expression was very serious. He thought that choosing the [Cyber ​​Dragon Core] was the safest option, but unexpectedly, "Dan Kuroto" used its effect as a springboard to utilize all the monsters in the graveyard, summoning the [Chimera Overload Dragon] with a whopping 3200 attack power almost instantly.

Each fusion material can provide Chimera Overload Dragon with 800 attack power. With a total of four fusion materials used, Chimera Overload Dragon's attack power has surpassed that of Blue-Eyes White Dragon, the officially recognized unit for calculating combat power in Duel Monsters.

"Then, let's enter my battle phase, Samejima Iemitsu!" Hayato waved his hand forward. "Although this isn't my limit, it's more than enough to finish you off!"

"【Chimera Overload Dragon】has the ability to attack monsters equal to the number of its fusion materials, so the first attack—"

"【Chimera Overload Dragon】, attack the 【Dark Familiar】 in face-down defense position! Meido Zangetsuha!"

Unlike the pure white laser beam of the [Electronic Terminator Dragon], the attack emitted by the [Chimera Overload Dragon] was an ominous, dark black filled with destructive energy, instantly destroying the weakly defended [Dark Familiar] and sending it to the graveyard.

Raising his arm to block the impact, Samejima declared, "Then, while being destroyed by the [Chimera Overload Dragon], the effect of the flipped [Dark Familiar] will also activate at the same time."

"Both players can choose one monster from their respective Graveyards that can be Special Summoned, and Special Summon it to the field in Attack Position or face-down Defense Position," Samejima said, reminding him, "However, Dan Kuroto, all the monsters in your Graveyard were just banished due to the effect of [Cyber ​​Fusion Support], so you cannot summon any monsters to the field."

To maximize the attack power of [Chimera Overload Dragon], Hayato deliberately eliminated all the monsters in the graveyard, including [Cyber ​​Terminator Dragon]. However, Hayato didn't care. Anyway, no matter what monster Samejima summoned, he could destroy and defeat it.

Could he possibly conjure up a monster with an attack power of over 3200?

Hayato had just mentally set this goal, and before he could even say it aloud, he saw a gigantic robot, tall and imposing, bursting from the ground on Samejima's field. Its two electronic eyes lit up, and yellow electricity surged from its thick arms. It looked like a tough guy capable of tearing apart a cockpit with his bare hands.

[Perfect Mechanical King] [ATK2700→3200]

"Attack power 3200?! When did this monster appear?" Hayato couldn't recall exactly when Samejima had sent this monster to his grave.

Samejima smiled and reminded him, "At the very beginning of the duel, I activated a 'Grace of the Angel' to exchange cards in my hand. 'Perfect Machine King' was the only monster in my hand at the time. Although it was very strong, I didn't have enough tributes to bring it to the field in the first turn."

As he spoke, Samejima glanced at Perfect Machine King: "Perfect Machine King's effect is that for each other Machine-Type monster on the field, it gains 500 ATK. Since there are only Perfect Machine King and Chimera Overload Dragon on the field, its ATK is raised to 3200, which is exactly the same as Chimera Overload Dragon."

"So, shall we continue our attack, Dan Kuroto?" Samejima smiled gently, but didn't tell Hayato one thing.

That is, in Samejima's graveyard, besides [Perfect Machine King], there is also a [Shield Warrior] monster that he sent to the graveyard with [Angel's Charity] in the first turn.

【Shield Warrior】has the effect of banishing itself from the Graveyard during battle calculations, preventing monsters on its field from being destroyed in that battle. In other words, if the attack power is equal, neither 【Chimera Overload Dragon】 nor 【Perfect Machine King】, which have the ability to be "undamaged by battle", will be able to survive when they attack each other. Only 【Perfect Machine King】, protected by 【Shield Warrior】, will survive.

Even though Chimera Overload Dragon has the ability to attack multiple monsters, it's useless to attack many times if it's destroyed.

However, if Dan Kuroto chooses to stop here and maintain a standoff with the Perfect Machine King, that situation won't last long. Because in the next turn, during Samejima's preparation phase, the Time Capsule he activated at the very beginning of the duel will take effect.

The card contained in Samejima's Time Capsule is Monster Resurrection. Once Samejima obtains the Monster Resurrection card, he can revive the Cyber ​​Dragon in his graveyard and summon it to the field.

With this, a [Perfect Machine King] with an attack power of 3700, plus a [Cyber ​​Dragon] with an attack power of 2100, can deal a total of 2600 damage. How could they possibly lose? Just because of Dan Kuroto's [Light of the Sealing Sword] in the back row?

Because of the [Electronic Fusion Support], Dan Kuroto only has 2500 points left in his base score, which means he can only use the [Light Guardian Spirit Sword] effect twice at most. This advantage is on my side!

Although Samejima remained outwardly calm, he was secretly thrilled at the prospect of an imminent victory.

Dan Kuroto, after hearing Samejima's provocation, remained silent for only a few seconds before smiling: "Do you want me to take your words as a challenge to my divine abilities?"

"There's only one answer. I, Dan Kuroto, am not the kind of person who would back down because of a small difficulty. The more difficult and incredible the task, the more it can demonstrate my divine talent!"

"I'll prove my talent, even if it costs me my life!" Hayato waved his hand. "Second attack, [Chimera Overload Dragon], attack [Perfect Machine King]!"

"Purgatory Shattered!"

Only a few seconds had passed since the last attack by [Chimera Overload Dragon], and Dan Kuroto once again came up with a strange name for [Chimera Overload Dragon], as a jet-black beam of light struck [Perfect Machine King].

Upon seeing this, Samejima couldn't help but respond excitedly, "Now! I'm going to activate the effect of [Shield Warrior] in my graveyard!"

"By removing the [Shield Warrior] from the graveyard during battle calculations, my [Perfect Machine King] will not be destroyed in this battle!"

A massive shield suddenly appeared in the hands of the Perfect Machine King. Despite being a medieval shield, it seemed to be coated with antiparticles, easily blocking the beam cannon of the Chimera Overload Dragon. The Perfect Machine King's fist was crackling with lightning, and he stomped his foot on the ground, attacking the Chimera Overload Dragon!

"boom!"

The fists of the steel giant and the body of the mechanical multi-headed dragon expanded, reinterpreting the most primitive violent aesthetics in an extremely sci-fi style, much like the battle between Susanoo and Yamata no Orochi in neon mythology.

The area on Chimera Overload Dragon's body that was hit by Perfect Machine King exploded with a bang, and a cloud of dust enveloped most of Chimera Overload Dragon's body and Perfect Machine King's arm.

Seeing this, Samejima couldn't help but smile and said to "Dan Kuroto" standing opposite him, "You're too eager for victory, Dan Kuroto. Fighting monsters isn't just a simple battle of intelligence; psychological warfare is also a very important part."

"It's a bit of a shame that this duel ended without us being able to show our full limits, but at least I've proven the power of 'Electron Flow'." Samejima paused, then said firmly, "The victor of this duel has been decided."

"Hmph, so be it?" Unexpectedly, upon hearing Samejima's words, "Dan Kuroto" revealed a healthy smile. "Even if a winner has already been decided, that spot will only go to me. If you ask why, it's because I am Dan Kuroto!"

"Roar!!"

"What?!"

As Dan Kuroto finished speaking, Samejima noticed that the Chimera Overload Dragon, which should have been destroyed and sent to the graveyard during the battle with the Perfect Machine King, actually let out a roar, and he looked up in surprise!

"How could this be!?"

"Watch closely, learn carefully, and don't be intimidated by just a glimpse of my divine talent!" Hayato raised his head and commanded the [Chimera Overload Dragon], "Stop wasting time over there, crush it!"

"Crack!"

"boom!!"

A second explosion rang out, and this time the shockwave completely dispelled the smoke and dust that had enveloped [Perfect Machine King] and [Chimera Overload Dragon], instantly revealing the outcome of their battle.

What Samejima couldn't understand was that the Perfect Machine King, which was supposed to be endowed with the ability to "not be destroyed in battle," was missing an arm. Upon searching, they could see that the arm that the Perfect Machine King had just used to attack was now being held in the mouth of one of the mechanical dragon heads of the Chimera Overload Dragon, and then crushed into scrap metal.

“If the attack power is exactly the same, [Perfect Machine King] can naturally use the effect of [Shield Warrior] to destroy [Chimera Overload Dragon] without taking any damage itself.” Hayato’s voice rang out, and as the smoke cleared, Samejima finally saw that Hayato’s last card in his hand had been inserted into the Duel Disk and activated!

Quick-Play Spell Card, [Partially Sealed]?

“However, if the attack power of [Perfect Machine King] is reduced, your plan will be ruined, Samejima!” Hayato said smugly. “Chaining the effect of your [Shield Warrior], I activated the Quick-Play Spell Card [Half-Sealed]. Its effect is to grant a monster on the field the ability to not be destroyed by battle until the end of the turn, but as a price, its attack power will be reduced to half.”

"I will decide the outcome of this duel. Now, [Chimera Overload Dragon], deliver the second blow!"

[Perfect Mechanical King] [ATK3200→1600]

【Matching Overload Dragon】【ATK3200】

The pitch-black beam of light burst forth once more, and this time, although the [Perfect Machine King], who had lost an arm, still managed to protect himself with his shield, he was unable to hold it steady, and the deflected beam of light landed in front of Samejima!

"Hmph—!"

Samejima: 4000→2400LP

Having suddenly lost 1600 basic points, Samejima grunted but wasn't greatly affected. Instead, he raised his head to look at the menacing [Chimera Overload Dragon]. Its two heads, which hadn't yet launched an attack, were wide open, ready to strike.

"Press your advantage! Third strike, Flying Dragon Strikes the Thief, Thunderous Cannon!"

Samejima: 2400→800LP

With another blow, Samejima's base score was reduced to a mere 800 points. In this attack, [Perfect Mechanical King] lost both his shield and the arm holding it, leaving him just two decorations on top that the big shot wouldn't understand, making him nothing more than a standard human skeleton.

"The so-called divine talent is not an ability that surpasses others, but an ability that is absolutely unsurpassable, invincible, and beyond the reach of even imagination. And the so-called miracle is controlled in my hands." Hayato said, clenching his fist. "In other words, this is not a miracle accumulated from one or two gacha pulls, but the inevitable result created by my talent."

"I am the victor, the indestructible Dan Kuroto! Shatter like a shooting star!"

"【Chimera Overload Dragon】, the fourth strike, and the ultimate final strike! God Fist Shatters!"

"Roar!!"

The pitch-black aurora completely engulfed the Perfect Machine King. Before this final blow, a brief flash of light appeared in Samejima's deck. Although all of this could not change the outcome of the duel, for a moment, Samejima, who had completely emptied his mind, finally saw through a layer of fog that had been blocking his view.

"So it was you. No wonder I lost." Samejima looked at Dan Kuroto and gave a wry smile. "He really is the strongest one that is hard to understand, Kobayashi Hayato."

"boom!"

The explosion happened just in time to cover up the last name that Samejima uttered.

Samejima: 800LP → 0

The shockwave forced Samejima to take a step or two back before he could stop. He looked up and his gaze met that of a somewhat surprised Hayato.

"The victor is Dan Kuroto!"

As the referee announced his verdict, Hayato noticed that the sound-collecting system set up at the edge of the dueling ring had been temporarily shut down. He couldn't help but show a helpless expression and said to Samejima, "As expected of Mr. Samejima, you actually saw through my perfect disguise."

"No, no, it was just an accident. But, Hayato, what did you do?" Samejima scratched his head, belatedly realizing that he had recently noticed that his hair loss was getting worse and he needed to pay attention to it. He quickly put his hand down again. "Even though 'Dan Kuroto' and 'Kobayashi Hayato' look exactly the same, I couldn't connect the two of them until just now."

"Well, it's a bit complicated." Hayato didn't know where to begin. "There's something that can prevent people from associating me with the identity of 'Kobayashi Hayato.' Normally, no one should be able to see through it."

Besides Kaiba, Yugi, Malik, Baron, Rafael, Ameruda... Strange, how come there are so many people? And now we have to add Samejima as well.

Samejima was also taken aback, as if he remembered something. He pulled out his deck from the Duel Disk, swept past a bunch of cards such as [Cyber ​​Summoner], [Necromancer's Temptation], and [Dimensional Confinement], and then flipped over a card with a knowing look: "If I'm not mistaken, it's probably this card?"

Hayato tilted his head and saw that Samejima was holding a Machine-Type monster card. The level was hard to see clearly because it was facing backwards, but it seemed to be nine or ten stars. The card art depicted a ferocious giant mechanical dragon head.

"【Electronic Celestial Dragon】?" Hayato blurted out instinctively, unaware of the surprised expression on Samejima's face.