"Hydrogeddon?"
The male commentator immediately picked up the thread. "Tachibana from City First Middle School has chosen a reliable low-level Dinosaur to open with. With sixteen hundred attack points, it can apply solid pressure in the early game!"
Tachibana Shingo pulled out two cards in succession and set them in his back row.
"I set two cards."
"Turn end."
Two face-down cards settled behind Hydrogeddon.
Tachibana Shingo looked at Yūki and continued, "I've watched replays of both your decks. Needle Worm needs you to repeatedly set monsters to trigger its effect, while hand destruction relies even more on going first to establish control."
"I have a monster and two cards in my back row now. It won't be that easy for you to turn things around from scratch."
"I'm ready for you!"
The female commentator nodded.
"Tachibana Shingo's opening is very solid. Not only did he secure the first turn, he also used a monster and two set cards to establish his defenses."
"For Fujiwara, who excels at slowly stripping away his opponent's resources, this will be a difficult board to deal with."
In Third Municipal Middle School's stands, Sato Renshan said nothing.
Kurosawa's gaze fell on the two set cards.
"He really has studied Yūki."
Asakawa Suzune nodded.
Yūki looked at Tachibana Shingo with a slightly odd expression.
"Did you just say I have two decks?"
Tachibana Shingo did not answer immediately.
Yūki smiled and pointed at his Duel Disk.
"Who told you I only have two decks?"
Tachibana Shingo's fingers stopped at the edge of his Duel Disk.
A crack finally appeared in his composed expression.
"What?"
"My turn. I draw!"
Yūki glanced at the card he had just drawn and slapped it straight into his Spell & Trap Zone.
"I activate the Continuous Spell Card, Level Limit - Area B."
A giant projection of the card's artwork unfolded above the Dueling Arena.
In the artwork, several tall warriors were pressed into the ground by an invisible crushing force, while only the short monsters remained standing.
"As long as this card remains on the field, all level four or higher monsters on the field switch to Defense Position and cannot change their battle positions."
"If you want to attack with high-level monsters, you'll have to ask this area for permission first."
An invisible gravitational field spread outward.
Hydrogeddon on the field was level four, so it immediately switched to Defense Position.
Under the rules of dueling, "level four or higher" included level four.
Yūki pulled out three more cards and set them one after another.
"I set three cards."
"Turn end."
The stands fell silent for two seconds.
Holding his microphone, the male commentator began speaking a little faster.
"Level Limit - Area B? Fujiwara has opened with a Continuous Spell that restricts high-level monsters, but he hasn't summoned a monster. He's only set three cards in his back row."
"What kind of new strategy is this?"
The female commentator sounded a little uncertain too. "Or could it be that he simply doesn't have any playable monsters in his opening hand?"
"If he's only trying to avoid battle damage, this defense seems far too thin. Tachibana has two set cards on the field and resources still in hand. He could easily destroy this Continuous Spell outright."
On Third Municipal Middle School's side, Jaden leaned forward.
"What's Yūki up to this time?"
"I don't know," Kurosawa said gravely.
He had seen Yūki set five cards, and he had seen Yūki strip someone's hand until not a single card remained.
But even he had never seen this approach of playing a restriction card first, then following it with three set cards.
Tachibana Shingo stared at Level Limit - Area B, and the unease in his heart faded instead.
So that's it.
He wants to pin my big monsters in Defense Position with this card and slowly stall with his back row.
Is this his third deck?
"Fujiwara Yūki."
He spoke. "If you think a single Level Limit - Area B can keep you safe from battle damage, you're far too naive."
"The Dinosaur Dojo's decks have never relied solely on brute-force attacks."
"My turn. I draw!"
After drawing, Tachibana Shingo immediately revealed a Spell Card.
"I activate the Spell Card, Mystical Space Typhoon."
A small tornado sprang up out of thin air on the field. Blades of wind skimmed the ground, hurtling straight toward the projection of Level Limit - Area B.
"This card can destroy one Spell or Trap Card on the field. The card I'm destroying is Level Limit - Area B!"
The storm tore the Continuous Spell's projection apart.
The invisible gravitational field vanished with it.
"Beautiful!"
The male commentator shouted, "Tachibana wasted no time in removing the key card restricting his high-level monsters!"
Tachibana Shingo revealed another Spell Card.
"Next, I activate the Spell Card, Big Evolution Pill."
Green medicine surged out of the card's artwork and seeped into the ground beneath Hydrogeddon's feet.
"According to Big Evolution Pill's effect, I must tribute one Dinosaur monster on my field to activate this card. After activation, this card remains on the field and is destroyed during my opponent's End Phase on their third turn.
"As long as this card remains in the Spell & Trap Zone, I can summon level five or higher Dinosaur monsters without the tributes they would require."
"I tribute Hydrogeddon."
"Then I summon my ace from my hand! Ultimate Tyranno!"
Green light enveloped Hydrogeddon's body, turning it into motes of light that sank into the ground.
The next moment, the ground heaved with a thunderous crash.
A beast far larger than Hydrogeddon smashed through the rock, dark scales covering its entire body. Its thick tail swept through the air, whipping up a scorching gust.
It opened its jaws full of sharp teeth, and its roar left the spectators in the front row with their ears ringing.
"Come forth, Ultimate Tyranno!"
[Ultimate Tyranno, ATK 3000]
The beast slammed its foreclaws onto the Dueling Arena, sending broad, web-like cracks across the projected ground.
"Three thousand attack points!"
The female commentator rose to her feet. "That's a terrifying attack stat on par with Blue-Eyes White Dragon! Tachibana has actually brought out Ultimate Tyranno on his second turn!"
In the VIP seats, Mokuba Kaiba, who had been a little distracted, raised his head.
He looked at the Dinosaur with three thousand attack points on the field, then at the three set cards in Yūki's back row.
"Interesting."
Tachibana Shingo did not enter the Battle Phase immediately.
He glanced at Yūki's three set cards, and a hint of a smile finally appeared on his lips.
"Since you like setting cards so much, I'll clear your field first."
He placed his third Spell Card into his Duel Disk.
"I activate the Spell Card, Heavy Storm."
A massive projected storm formed in the center of the main arena. Dark clouds bore down, and columns of wind swept across the entire Dueling Arena.
"Heavy Storm destroys all Spell and Trap Cards on the field."
"All three of your set cards can disappear together!"
"Then Ultimate Tyranno will be free to attack directly."
The male commentator shot up from his seat.
"Perfect! Tachibana Shingo first used Mystical Space Typhoon to test whether his opponent had any countermeasures. After successfully removing Level Limit - Area B, he used Big Evolution Pill to bring out Ultimate Tyranno with its three thousand attack points, then finished by clearing the back row with Heavy Storm!"
"He's accounted for every possible line of defense Fujiwara might have!"
A wave of gasps erupted from the stands.
Tachibana Shingo's two set cards and his Spell Card, Big Evolution Pill, were also within Heavy Storm's range.
But trading three for three while clearing his opponent's three crucial back-row cards was, to him, a trade that could not have been more profitable.
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