Yusei Fudo

Yusei Fudo is the main antagonist of Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, was one of the Signers. He is known for and respected by many other characters in the show for his genius style of dueling, his considerable duel skill, and his cool and clever personality. He uses a Duel Runner, which is called the Yusei Go. In the English anime, "Let's rev it up!" is a common catchphrase that he uses when he summons a Synchro Monster.

Design
He has black hair with gold highlights and blue eyes. The upper layer of his hair points upward while the lower layer points down. Yusei wears a long-sleeved blue jacket with a high collar and amber gems, over a sleeveless black shirt with a red symbol, and wears gloves below his elbows with an amber gem on them. His lower body consists of black jeans with amber knee pads, a belt with two Deck boxes hidden under his jacket (one for his standard Deck and one for his Turbo Duel Deck), and calf-high motorcycle boots. After episode 5, he acquires a jagged criminal marker on the left side of his face which later was somehow covered in episode 116 and episode 117, which is thought to be covered by makeup. His Mark of the Dragon was a red outline of the tail, which was permanently burned onto his right forearm after the events concluding the Fortune Cup story arc. It is later replaced by the dragon head mark upon his defeat of Goodwin, with Crow receiving his former mark. During his time in Crash Town, Yusei replaced his Duel Disk with the Duel Disk revolvers used in the town, and he wore a brown poncho over his normal clothes with his Mark of the Dragon designed on it. He wears the poncho in the manga at the start of the D1 Grand Prix. However this poncho is white and lacks the Mark of the Dragon design.

During the WRGP, he gets a new Turbo Dueling outfit that is similar to his old clothes but is more form-fitting. The new oufit consits of the same blue jacket with amber gems, but the bottom right part is replaced by a black strap with an orange outline. He wears blue jeans with amber gems at the knees and knee-high boots.

Personality
Yusei is usually depicted as being serious, calm and clear-minded; even in very dangerous situations. Due to this he rarely acts on impulse and usually thinks things through before he plays any cards, always trying to stay one step ahead of his opponent. This is made obvious during his duels, as he regularly visualizes card flowcharts in his mind in order to devise his strategies. He is also very close to his friends and very hesitant to put them in harm's way. In the English version, Yusei has had a fear of insects ever since a cockroach nested in his ear, as said by Nervin. He was however able to conquer this fear after his Duel against Lenny.

Childhood
Yusei was born in the Tops area of New Domino City. His parents were lead developers for the Ener-D Reactor. Dr. Fudo named his son Yusei after the Planetary Particle (Yuusei Ryuushi), as he wished for Yusei to be able to connect people with bonds. As the Zero Reverse was about to take place, before dying, Yusei's father placed Yusei in an escape pod, saving him from the disaster that would follow. Yusei's parents were both killed in the Zero Reverse and Yusei was sent to an orphanage in Satellite, where he was fostered by Martha. Growing up he was interested in auto shop and Jack defended him and his friends from bullies.

Yusei grew up in Satellite, where he befriended Kalin Kessler, Jack Atlas, and Crow Hogan. As residents of Satellite, they were made to do labor for the residents of New Domino City and denied many luxuries which were enjoyed by the residents of New Domino.

The Enforcers
Being forced to survive on what he could, Yusei developed expert dueling skills. He, along with Kalin, Jack and Crow, became part of a group known as the Enforcers (Team Satisfaction in the Japanese version).

Believing they could never leave Satellite, the team tried to make the most of their lives there. They began taking over various regions.

While facing another Duel Gang, one of the members tries to kill Yusei, by throwing him off the roof. Kalin catches Yusei by a Duel Disk cuff, stopping him from falling. As Kalin's platform begins to give way, Yusei tells Kalin to leave him and save himself. Kalin refuses to abandon his friend and pulls Yusei up. With that gang defeated, the Enforcers have captured all the zones in Satellite. They finally dominated the whole of Satellite.

Sometime later, Kalin forces a kid into a Duel and assaults him after winning. The rest of the gang realize Kalin is becoming cruel and is letting the power get to his head. Crow and Jack leave the gang, but Yusei stays by Kalin's side. Sector Security later arrive in Satellite, armed with Duel Runners. Kalin decides to go up against Sector Security. Yusei leaves the team, hoping that Kalin won't decide to go through with the fight when he's alone.

Kalin still proceeds with the fight, and the rest of the gang return to help Kalin when he is on the run. The team faced Security, in what Kalin believed to be the Enforcer's last Duel. Yusei gets in a fight with Kalin when Kalin murders a Security Officer. Crow and Jack held Kalin in a room, while Yusei went to tell that he, himself, was the leader, in the hopes that Kalin won't get arrested. Before he could do this, the Securities found and arrested Kalin. As Kalin is dragged into a Security wagon, the officer pats Yusei on the shoulder, thanking him for assisting in the arrest. Kalin sees this and believes Yusei sold him out, but is taken away before Yusei can explain himself.

Later life in Satellite
Yusei spends his time with Jack, Blitz, Nervin, Tank and Rally. During which, he develops impressive skills in hand-to-hand combat, engineering, computers, motorcycle riding, and comes into possession of the card "Stardust Dragon".

Yusei duels and loses to Jack. Jack tells him that he cannot win a Duel with Monsters, Spell or Trap Cards alone, only with them joined up. Jack points to his heart, saying that all he needed to amass a victory is right here. At the time, Yusei did not understand what he meant.

Yusei was able to pick up TV signals from New Domino City, allowing his friends to witness Turbo Duels. He fell out with Jack after a difference in goals, as Jack wanted power and to lead people.

With his friends' help, Yusei was able to make his own Duel Runner. However, Jack stole the Duel Runner and "Stardust Dragon" in order to escape to New Domino City and become the "Turbo Duel King." Yusei had considered these stolen items to be "bonds of friendship" belonging to him and his friends and vowed to get them back.

Two years later, after building a new Duel Runner with the help of Rally, Blitz, Tank, and Nervin, Yusei makes plans to venture to New Domino City to recover "Stardust Dragon" from Jack.

In the process, he runs into Trudge, a Public Order Security officer, who wants to arrest Rally for stealing an acceleration chip. (In the English version, Rally was framed.) Trudge agrees to duel Yusei under the condition that if Yusei won, Trudge would forget the events of that day; if Trudge won, Yusei would give himself up to Trudge. After accepting the challenge and losing, Trudge swears to crush Yusei, but lets him go.

While the only pipeline connecting Satellite to New Domino City, which is a chute for waste, was closed for maintenance, Yusei took advantage of this to escape to New Domino. On the way, he gets chased by Trudge, who forces him into a Turbo Duel. Yusei wins one second before the hatch to New Domino started closing. Avoiding the trash flooding through the pipeline, Yusei slipped through the maintenance hatch right before it closed, leaving Trudge stuck in the pipeline now full of trash.

Arrest and the Facility
Yusei manages to find Jack. Jack tosses "Stardust Dragon" back to him, telling Yusei he can have it. Yusei refuses and tosses "Stardust Dragon" back to Jack, saying that he would rather duel him for it to prove he can get it on his own. Jack agrees, but their Turbo Duel is interrupted by the appearance of the Crimson Dragon right before the winner is determined, later revealed to have been Yusei. The Dragon causes Jack's already permanent Birthmark (Mark of the Dragon) to glow and burn as well as revealing Yusei's Mark, the Dragon's Tail. Yusei is arrested shortly after for trespassing into New Domino while Jack leaves safely. Rex Goodwin and Lazar, who had been monitoring the Duel, reveal that if the Crimson Dragon hadn't appeared, Jack would have lost.

After his arrest, Yusei was scarred with a large mark on the left side of his face that signified his criminal record, and was sent to the Facility, where he met Tenzen Yanagi. Yanagi informs Yusei of the Crimson Dragon and the Signers, telling him that those who have the birthmarks were chosen by the People of the Stars. Yusei's birthmark is the Crimson Dragon's Tail, which appears on his arm when he fights alongside Stardust Dragon or encounters another Signer.

Yusei meets former pro Duelist, Bolt Tanner, who imposes a Duel. Since Yusei's cards had been taken, Yanagi duels Tanner. Disgusted at Yanagi's poor dueling and his cards, Tanner stamps on the cards, despite their sentimental value to Yanagi. Yusei knocks Tanner down and challenges him to a Duel, borrowing Yanagi's Deck. Yusei defeats him without ever attacking once and Tanner offers his assistance to him.

Under Goodwin's orders, the warden Armstrong is made carry out tests on Yusei. Armstrong also has Yusei sent to a different part of the Facility.

Yusei's new cellmate Alex offers Yusei a chance to escape through a tunnel he's been working on for months. Yusei agrees to come if they can take Tanner and Yanagi too. However Armstrong has Tanner and Yanagi beaten for knowing Yusei. Yusei stands up to Mr. Armstrong, causing him to impose stricter rules. Goodwin then unexpectedly shows up, and grants Yusei freedom from the Facility - on the condition that he defeat Armstrong in a duel and come to work with him. Yusei, though feeling suspicious, accepts Goodwin's offer.

Yusei refuses to escape with Alex, as Tanner and Yanagi are unable to come too and escaping wouldn't grant true freedom. Without a Deck to use against Armstrong, the other inmates give Yusei cards to use against Armstrong.

The next day Yusei faces Armstrong, using the Deck of random cards. The Duel is setup to shock players if they suffer damage, but Armstrong rigs the arena to stop himself receiving shocks and uses surveillance cameras to see Yusei's cards. Alex, however uses his tunnel to sneak into a security room and switches Armstrong's shocks back on. Yusei defeats Armstrong and is released by Goodwin.

Before his release, Yanagi gives Yusei his "Totem Pole" card. Tanner gives him his "Giant Ushi Oni", instructing him to go to Bootleg, order some milk, and ask for a guy named Blister, then use the card to prove he met Tanner.

Yusei is followed by two men working for Goodwin at Bootleg, but is pulled away by Blister on his Duel Runner. Blister jams the signal emitted from Yusei's criminal mark to stop them being followed.

Despite believing it to be suicide on Yusei's part, Blister helps him in infiltrating an Impound warehouse to recover his Deck and Duel Runner.

Disguised as an electrician, under the pseudonym Yusei Adams (Taro Daimon in the Japanese version), Yusei was able to sneak into the warehouse. When he gets to the crate, where his Duel Runner is held, he is ambushed by Trudge. Yusei hops onto his Duel Runner and smashes it through the crate. Trudge forces him into another Turbo Duel. While trying to escape, Trudge closes all the security doors, making Yusei's chances of escaping very slim. However, Blister blows up the elevator door and at ground floor, Yusei rides out while Trudge gets stuck in the elevator. Soon he catches up. After Trudge starts physically attacking Yusei, Blister arrives to help, having had a change of heart over what Yusei told him about friends. Yusei wins the Duel, but is electrocuted by a huge crowd of Security and left unconscious outside at the Tops, where the richest people live. Luna feels Yusei's pain and rushes outside with Leo, only to find Yusei outside their front door unconscious.

Fortune Cup
Yusei is later given refuge by the twins Leo and Luna. In the Japanese version, he fears that he would only cause them trouble by staying, but they manage to talk him into a Duel and staying for the night. In the English version, Yusei has lost his memory after his Duel with Trudge and can't even remember his name. He duels Leo in the hopes of regaining his memory, whilst in the Japanese version, Yusei is reminded of Rally through Leo's personalities.

After leaving the twins, he is threatened into participating in the Fortune Cup by Lazar, who holds his Satellite friends hostage. Yusei is later given more incentive to participate when Jack gives "Stardust Dragon" back and personally demands that he face him. In the quarter-finals of the Fortune Cup, Yusei faced Hunter Pace, disguised as Shira, and won, moving to the semifinals. His opponent in the semifinals is Greiger.

After Yusei defeats Greiger, Greiger attempts to take revenge on Goodwin for what he did to his village, but Yusei manages to stop him. Before security takes Greiger away, he tells Yusei to fulfill his own mission. In the English version, Yusei stops Greiger from knocking down the tower Goodwin was in to get revenge on what Goodwin did to his village, but a spike broke through the glass at the top of the tower (where Goodwin is) from the collision with Greiger's Duel Runner and Yusei's Duel Runner and Goodwin stopped it with his metal hand. As security takes Greiger away, he tells Yusei to be careful in the finals in the English version.

Yusei faces Akiza in the finals. Previously, he had thought that she only felt anger and rejection. But after Akiza's first move, he notices and points out that she has a pleasure and joy for destruction. Akiza replies that cannot be true, however, later on the duel, after people insult her again, she accepts it all because of being the "Black Rose". According to her, this other side of her is the one who enjoys destruction all because of the powers caused by the Mark of the Dragon. He learns that after she was found by Sayer, he told her to feel but not to think, to let him do that for her. But even still, she puts on her mask just to feel; this prompts Yusei to fight this duel to change her.

By the end of the Duel begins as he says that her pain which came from all the destruction she caused was turned into one that the other Signers shared. Yusei tells her that the birthmark may hold the answer for her pain, but in order to find out, she must think and love herself. Akiza still intends to deny this by winning the duel without noticing, as pointed out by Yusei, who has seen through her, that she is crying. Thus he eventually wins, resulting in her mask cut in half due to "Cosmic Blast" and after she falls, Akiza tells him to "help her".

He faces Jack near the end of the Fortune Cup. Although he is pushed to a corner in the middle of the Duel, Yusei wins using various combos with "Stardust Dragon" to destroy Jack's "Red Dragon Archfiend" and becomes the new King of Turbo Duels. He tends to ignore his victory however, concerned about the vision of the Spider Nazca Line which he and Jack saw during the Duel.

Dark Signers
Following his victory against Jack, Yusei flees the stadium with Tanner, Yanagi, Luna, and Leo to avoid being mobbed by reporters and fans. They hide out at Blister's place at the edge of the city.

Yusei spots a man with a glowing birthmark. Believing him to be a Signer, Yusei chases him to a construction site where he faces him in a Shadow Duel. The opponent reveals himself to be a Shadow Drone and states their motives to destroy the Signers. After Grady loses, he has no memory of the Duel, his Deck changes, and his Mark of the Shadows disappears. Yusei runs away after Security appears to examine the damage caused by the Shadow Duel. After returning to the hideout, Security led by Trudge track him down. Yusei walks out to meet them and says he wanted to talk to Goodwin anyway (in the English version, Yusei called Trudge to take him to Goodwin).

Yusei is taken to meet Goodwin at an incomplete bridge pointing in the direction of Satellite. Here Goodwin tells him about the battle between the Crimson Dragon and the Earthbound Immortals, where the Signer Dragons sealed the Earthbound Immortals in the Nazca Lines. Goodwin says that those bearing the mark of the Crimson Dragon and the Earthbound Immortals' servants, the Signers and Dark Signers have been battling for 5,000 years. Their battle is destined to determine the fate of the world. The Original Ener-D Reactor in Satellite is a door to the Netherworld itself, which the Dark Signers plan opening, to release the evil sealed in the Nazca Lines. Yusei understands Goodwin deliberately isolated Satellite from New Domino to restrict the battlefield to Satellite, only harming the Satellite residents. Yusei requests that they evacuate Satellite, but Goodwin says can't, since it would allow the Dark Signers to target the city, insuring a greater amount of casualties. Goodwin arranged a helicopter to airdrop Yusei and his Duel Runner into Satellite.

After arriving in Satellite, Yusei is reunited with Crow. The two head back to Yusei's Satellite hideout, where he is reunited with Rally and the others. Security had been following Crow, so everyone splits up. Crow takes on the Security, and Yusei arrives to help, resulting in a Tag Turbo Duel. After winning the Duel Yusei and Crow meet up with Rally and his others at Crow's base at the Daedalus Bridge. Here Yusei tells his friends about the disastrous vision shown by the Crimson Dragon and the story told by Goodwin. He listens along with the others the story about the man who made the bridge. During the night both he and Crow had head to the B.A.D., where the Original Ener-D Reactor is. They are confronted by Kalin, who is now a Dark Signer. Kalin shows great hatred to his old friends and forces Yusei into a Shadow Turbo Duel. Kalin takes the upper hand with "Hundred-Eyes Dragon". Yusei is able to comeback with "Stardust Dragon", but Kalin turns the tables and Summons his Earthbound Immortal, "Ccapac Apu". Before Yusei is defeated his Duel Runner breaks down and the Duel is canceled. Yusei is then found impaled in the abdomen by a large shard.(In the English dub, the shard and blood was removed, despite the fact that the scene in which Rally and the others watching it was not, and he is said to have cuts and bruises.)

Crow takes him to Martha's refuge facility, in order to receive the required surgery. Dr. Schmitt, assisted by Martha manage to save Yusei's life. After waking up he sees that Rally and the others brought his Duel Runner all the way from the B.A.D. Yusei gets scolded by Martha for putting himself in danger, without asking his friends for help. She reminds Yusei of his idea of "believing in friends" as they will always be there supporting and helping him out. As he recovers, he checks his Duel Runner and thinks that Kalin is too powerful for him to defeat.

As Akiza is about to duel Misty, Yusei's mark reacts. He rushes outside and sees Hummingbird and Lizard Earthbound Immortal marks. He is aware a Duel between a Signer and Dark Signer is about to begin, but is unable to assist. After Akiza is taken to the hospital, her parents turn to Yusei for help. Yusei is initially reluctant, but prompted by Martha, who teases him, asking if he had a crush on Akiza, agrees to try.

When Akiza awakens, she is initially glad to see Yusei, but after seeing her parents, turns against him. Unable to calm her, Yusei tries to reach her by dueling. Yusei takes damage through the Duel, but Hideo steps in to protect him. With Hideo's determination, Yusei is able to show Akiza that her parents love her.

Mina shows Akiza and Yusei information regarding the Arcadia Movement and Sayer's true motives, involving the abduction of children to create an army of Psychic Duelists. Yusei comforts Akiza from the devastation.

The Signers are invited to Rex Goodwin's house. Despite his distrust of Goodwin, Yusei decides to go, as this is the only way he get information on the Signers and Dark Signers. Yusei asks about reverting a Dark Signer back to normal. Goodwin reluctantly tells them that Dark Signers cannot be brought back as they are dead and no longer of this world (Otherwise is said in the English dub). Yusei loses confidence in returning Kalin back to normal and blames himself for Kalin's current state. Jack, who is sickened by Yusei's self-doubt, punches him in the hopes of returning some sense to Yusei. Jack's actions and words, along with some moral support from the twins, restores Yusei's confidence.

When the four Signers return to Satellite along with Mina, Leo and Trudge meet up with Martha. They learn that Rally, Blitz, Tank, Nervin and Crow have disappeared. While everyone is sitting down to supper, Roman interrupts. Jack wants to duel him, but Yusei tells him that its too dangerous to duel here with the flaming geoglyph. Yusei instructs Jack to take Martha and the kids to a safer place.

Yusei duels Roman, while accompanied by Akiza. During the Duel, two of the children are nearly sacrificed to the geoglyph; however, Jack jumps his Duel Runner over the border of the geoglyph and uses his Mark of the Dragon to protect them. Martha, who was on top of a nearby damaged building with Trudge, falls into the geoglyph and gets sacrificed to Summon Roman's "Earthbound Immortal Uru". After Yusei Summons "Stardust Dragon", Roman leaves and revives Rally as a temporary Dark Signer to face Yusei. Rally sacrifices himself to help Yusei. To avenge Rally's sacrifice, Yusei swears the Dark Signers will be defeated with everything he has.

The four Signers separate and head to each of the four control units of the Original Ener-D Reactor where their respective opponent is waiting. Yusei head's towards Kalin's tower, but spots a column of light coming from where Luna went. Yusei finds Leo dueling Devack. Yusei tries to stop the Duel, but cannot due to the natures of the Shadow Duel. Yusei is left with Trudge to watch helplessly.

He witnesses Luna come back and assist Leo, shortly after Devack Summoned "Earthbound Immortal Cusillu". Together the twins, defeat Cusillu and Devack. Afterwards Ancient Fairy Dragon and Regulus appear to thank Luna, who tells them she couldn't have done it without Leo or Yusei. Yusei and the twins proceed to the tower to activate the control unit.

When the Killer Whale geoglyph appears, Yusei finds Crow dueling against Greiger, who is now a Dark Signer. Yusei tries to talk them out of the Duel, but both feel that they are fighting for the people they love and refuse to stop.

After Crow's Duel, Yusei proceeds to Kalin's tower, intending to save him. Both engage in a Shadow Turbo Duel. Towards the end of the Duel, all of the birthmarks disappeared from the Signers' arms and then unite to form an image of the Crimson Dragon on Yusei's back. Because of this, Yusei is able to Summon "Majestic Star Dragon" and destroy Kalin's Earthbound Immortal. Yusei manages to reconcile with Kalin before the Dark Signer turns into dust.

Yusei heads to Roman to request a final Duel. During the Duel, he learns of what happened in the Original Ener-D Reactor incident and more about his father. Yusei manages to defeat Roman, but in the latter's moment of defeat, Roman triggers an explosive that destroys the bridge they were dueling on, leaving Yusei to fall into the pool of Ener-D.

Yusei ends up in a strange place, where people who died during the Zero Reverse accident reside. The souls start to attack him, but are stopped by Yusei's father. Professor Fudo helps Yusei to escape the Netherworld.

Yusei and his companions go up through the same stairs they used before. In the distance, they see purple sparks and deduce that Jack has won his Duel and activated the third control unit.

Yusei goes to the last tower, where Akiza is dueling. He encounters Sayer in disguise, who lures him into a room. Inside, Mina is locked in a cage below. Sayer reveals himself and tells Yusei that Akiza is not a friend but a mind slave of his. He quickly subdues Yusei and throws him into the cage with Mina. Before leaving, Sayer seals the cage by using a "Hinotama" and fills the cage with water before leaving them to die.

After being rescued by Trudge, Yusei confronts Sayer, who by then has gained control of Akiza. They get into a fight and Sayer reveals that he was the one who killed Misty's brother, Toby. Just when Yusei was about to be blown off the building, he tricks Sayer into revealing this to Misty through his Duel Disk's microphone.

After Sayer is eaten by Misty's Earthbound Immortal, Yusei snaps Akiza out of her daze and she manages to defeat Misty. However, the sun sets before they can activate the control unit, and so the Condor geoglyph appears in the sky.

Yusei, Jack and Crow face the last Dark Signer, Rex Goodwin in a 3-on-1 Shadow Turbo Duel. Crow protects Yusei from the effect of "Earthbound Immortal Wiraqocha Rasca", and his Life Points become 1. Yusei and Jack continue the duel without Crow. After Jack is unable to duel, Yusei has his Life Points reduced to 1. The Crimson Dragon mark on Rex disappears and three of the five birthmarks return to their original owners, with the Head Birthmark instead going to Yusei and the Tail Birthmark choosing a new owner in Crow. Yusei then summons "Majestic Star Dragon" and defeats Rex. The Crimson Dragon uses "Majestic Star Dragon" to gain a physical form and destroy the King of the Netherworld.

Pre-World Racing Grand Prix
Half a year after the Duel with Rex Goodwin, Yusei spends most of his time preparing his Duel Runner for the World Turbo Grand Prix. He assists in investigating damage caused to Duel Runners, caused by Ghost and ends up dueling Ghost. When it appeared that Yusei was beginning to have the upper hand, Ghost summons his Synchro Killer, "Meklord Emperor Wisel". Utilizing "Majestic Star Dragon", Yusei was able to defeat Ghost and discovered that he was a robot. After meeting with Trudge, he explained that the robot he faced was known as a Duelbot and that it was a test robot designed to see if they could be used in Sector Security's forces. Yusei feels that something big was coming and had to prepare for the worst.

He goes to Duel Academy and duels Heitmann, a teacher who plans to expel Leo and Luna's class because they are weak for using low level monsters. Using some cards that the kids gave him, he wins the duel and proves that low level monsters can overcome high level ones.

Yusei later has the misfortune of being targeted by a rival team from the Grand Prix and kidnapped. He is rescued then by Akiza and as the 2 of them escape from the truck he was trapped in, a female Turbo Duelist named Sherry LeBlanc appears. Yusei and Sherry then engage in a Turbo Duel, with Akiza witnessing as she's sitting on his Runner. Sherry offers Yusei a spot on her team for the World Grand Prix. Sherry questions him, asking him what is his purpose. The Duel finishes with no result.

Yusei then asks Jack to Turbo Duel to see if he can win without using a Synchro Summon. Jack ends the duel with no result. Later, he and the others went to the WRGP celebration, but in the middle of the celebration, a partycrasher by the name of Dobocle interrupted it. After he was stopped by Akiza's "Black Rose Dragon", Trudge sent reinforcements after him, but Primo got to him earlier. One of the Security agents thought that he was Ghost, so he informed Trudge. After Yusei heard that, he quickly went to follow Ghost, but he is then challenged by the mysterious masked duelist, Vizor. Vizor shows Yusei how he can surpass his own limits through the use of a new method: Accel Synchro Summon. Yusei is intrigued and vows to surpass his limits, because he knows that Accel Synchro Summoning is the only way to beat "Machine Emperor Wisel".

Yusei watches Akiza during her Duel Runner lessons, and helps her improve and learn various Duel Runner tricks. When Akiza passes her Turbo Dueling exam by dueling Trudge, Yusei congratulates her and welcomes her to the world of Turbo Dueling.

After these events Leo asks Yusei to construct him a Duel Board so he can duel with Lester. After a night of construction he completed the board for him. The next day Yusei notices his mark glowing, signaling him that Luna's dueling. After Luna and Leo lost their fight with Lester he's determined to defeat Ghost and his "Machine Emperor Wisel Infinity" and learn about Accel Synchro.

Crow has always known Yusei as a man who keeps his feelings to himself rather than share them with his friends. Yusei left before Jack and Crow woke up one morning to try and match the speed of Accel Synchro. He believes that he lucked out during his Turbo Duel with Ghost and that he would've lost had the Crimson Dragon not shown up in time.

Yusei, however, could not reach that speed, and stops off at the place where Old and New Domino City began to change. Jack and Crow later find him, and he reveals his unease around Ghost. He also tells them that he suspects that Yliaster is behind everything, as Roman had told him that it was a man from Yliaster who set him down the path of becoming a Dark Signer. Furthermore, they are using the WRGP for a plan, if Sherry's story proves true. The three decide to work towards mastering Vizor's Accel Synchro as a means to effectively combat the new Yliaster plot and protect the city.

Mina and Trudge invite Yusei, Jack, and Crow to dinner, attempting to convince them to take in Bruno, an amnesiac with mechanical aptitude. After a mishap in which Jack believes Bruno vandalized his Duel Runner, Yusei takes up the favor and clears the misunderstanding. The two bond due to similar knowledge and make progress with developing the engine.

Later that night, while the four are asleep, someone breaks in and steals the engine program. The next morning, they try to hack into Security's database, which includes a simulation duel. After Crow and Jack fail the simulation, Bruno steps in and easily beats the simulation. Finding out that Lazar has stolen the engine program, they follow Lazar through a mall, where they almost lose sight of him due to holographic technology. Bruno and Yusei follow Lazar to a factory, where they are separated. Bruno goes to call for help while Yusei finds and subdues Lazar.

Using the stolen program, Primo activates a legion of Duelbots, and leaves after activating a self-destruct sequence to destroy the factory. Primo also traps Yusei and Lazar in a room with a Guard Robot programmed with knowledge of Yusei's strategies and a Lockdown Deck designed to stall him as the self-destruct sequence counts down. While the rest of his friends escape, Yusei defeats the robot, and Lazar helps Yusei escape. Lazar warns Yusei about the enemies he will be facing before departing.

Crash Town
Later Yusei travels out far to a small western town called Crash Town where the town is a battle ground for two gangs, one side has his friend, Kalin. He observes from up on a cliff where he meets Barbara who explains the history of the city. The Duel Gangs in the area duel for money, but if they lose, they become slaves and are forced to mine in a mountain for the rest of their life. Yusei watches a duel between Kalin and a gang member, which he quickly defeats in one turn. After the duel he tries to call out to him as he is riding away, but Kalin simply rides off, paying little mind to his appearance. Yusei realizes that he needs to duel him to get him back, and he and Barbara create a plan to rescue him when he loses.

Joining the opposing gang, Yusei duels Kalin the next day. During the duel, Kalin reveals his guilt for becoming a Dark Signer and fighting Yusei, and thus wishes for defeat so that he may die. When Yusei defeats Kalin, however, Barbara double-crosses him, which causes him to be hauled off to the mountain along with his friend as Lawton arrives. Yusei disables the shock collar around his neck and attempts to convince Kalin to escape with him, knocking him when he refuses. Yusei takes Kalin and escapes into the mine, retrieving his Duel Runner with the help of West and Nicko. When Lawton appears to stop them, Yusei initiates a Turbo Duel with him to allow his friends to escape, almost losing to "Gatling Ogre". The duel in interrupted due to Kalin's appearance, and Lawton uses dynamite to escape, throwing Yusei and Kalin off the mountain. Returning to the town (recently renamed Lotten Town), Yusei and Kalin duel Lawton. When Lawton is pushed into a corner, however, Barbara takes West and Nicko hostage and demand Kalin and Yusei's surrender. With the arrival of Crow and Jack, Lawton attempts to escape, but Kalin borrows Yusei's Duel Runner and finishes Lawton off. With Lawton defeated and the town renamed Satisfaction Town, Yusei, Jack, and Crow bid farewell to Kalin, who stays behind in the liberated town.

World Racing Grand Prix
After the events at Satisfaction Town, Yusei returned to New Domino City where he meets with Trudge and Mina to find out more about Bruno. However, a bomb explodes and another bomb threat is issued, causing an evacuation of the building, but Yusei and Bruno become unable to escape. Finding Sherry LeBlanc, who set off the first bomb, they pursue her, but her butler Elsworth is able to stop Yusei and challenge him to a duel. Yusei defeats the butler, and convinces him to try and stop Sherry. As they enter the room where Sherry was attempting to analyze a mysterious card, the analysis computer mysteriously begins to glow and the four are transported to a mysterious white space with a comma-shaped machine, which analyzes them. The four wake up on the shore shortly after the event.

He later appeared to help Crow work out the kinks in his Duel Runner with Bruno's help, finding a strange circuit in the process. He later watched Crow's duel against Bolton and is the first to know that he is dueling with an Anti-Blackwing Deck. While watching the duel, his birthmark, along with Crow's and Jack's, began to glow as Crow summons his Signer Dragon "Black-Winged Dragon". Crow defeats Bolton, who is arrested but gives the three new, more powerful engines.

Forming Team 5D's for the WRGP, the group headed out to the practice track to get a feel for their new engines. During this practice run, Crow accidentally ran into a member of Team Unicorn. Andre, the team's ace, challenges Yusei to a Turbo Duel, which he accepts. During the Duel Yusei realizes that Andre can analyze every possible scenario before playing his cards, like himself. Summoning Stardust Dragon, Yusei attempts to seize victory, but the time limit for the practice run stops the duel. He also notices he did not have a confirmed victory because of Andre's unknown set card.

During the first round in the WRGP, Yusei faced off against all three members of Team Unicorn because Jack and Akiza lost to Andore. Yusei was able to claim victory over Andore, who managed to halve Yusei's Life Points before losing. He then struggles against Breo's Mill Deck, but manages to defeat him with "Junk Destroyer". Yusei then barely defeats Jean without any cards in his Deck. With this, Yusei pulled off a seemingly-impossible victory and won the first match of the preliminaries.

He celebrated their first victory with his teammates when Sherry arrived to discuss what had happened to them up until now. They discussed the events about Ghost and the Machine Emperor monsters, Lester, what she, Yusei, and Bruno saw that day at the Sector Security's compound, and the Imposter Jack Atlas. Sherry believed that Yliaster is behind all this and that they are being targeted because they are the Signers, which everyone is shocked to hear that Sherry knows about. The next day, Yusei, Jack, and Crow decided to see how Team Unicorn is doing in their match. Once they got there, they discovered that they lost due to their Duel Runners crashing unexpectedly in their match against Team Catastrophe.

While reviewing the duel, they figured out that when ever a player crashes, they managed to have the monster "Hidden Knight -Hook-" out on the field. While deducing this, Akiza got involved in an accident similar to the one Crow was in and fell into a coma. They know that Team Catastrophe was behind this and decided to beat them fair and square in the tournament to pay them back. Yusei and the rest of Team 5D's watched Crow's duel very closely to see what is the relationship between the crashes and the monster, Hidden Knight -Hook-. They soon discovered that after its effect activated, a hooked hand appeared from the shadow of its opponent's Duel Runner and caused their wheel to lock up. Even with this deadly monster on the field, Crow managed to stay in the game long enough, despite his still wounded shoulder, to win the Duel, destroying Hidden Knight -Hook-, and trading places with Jack. After the first two turns of the duel, Team 5D's managed to win the second duel due to Nicolas's Duel Runner being destroyed by his own card's effect. Both of the cards were given to Team Catastrophe by Primo, who attempts to eliminate Team 5D's from WRGP. After his plan failed, he unleashed an army of Duelbots into New Domino City.

Because of that, Yusei and others decided to fight against the Diablo army. Yusei teamed up with Sherry and Elsworth. After they defeated some of them, Primo sent all Ghosts to the trio. They quickly defeated Elsworth and Sherry, leaving Yusei to fight alone. Bruno, who saw this, wanted to help Yusei. A voice in his mind reminded him of his "task"; this prompted him to get his Duel Runner and go to help Yusei. Transforming into Vizor, he helps Yusei escape from the Ghosts. Fed up, Primo faces Yusei on his own. Vizor stalls Primo with a duel so Yusei can obtain the last element needed to obtain his Clear Mind. Yusei overcomes his fear of "Meklord Emperor Wisel", causing a tablet to fall from the sky. Touching the tablet transports him to the white space where the machine stood, which gives him a blank card. Returning to the city, Yusei duels Primo, who merges with his Duel Runner.

Primo, determined to win, used stole Skiel parts to boost the power of his Machine Emperor. This gives Primo an advantage, and his remarks prevents Yusei from using Clear Mind. Primo's Wisel absorbs Stardust Dragon, but Yusei is able to retrieve it and finally Accel Synchro Summon his new "Shooting Star Dragon", whose effect destroys Wisel and eliminates Primo's Life Points. With Primo's body destroyed, Jakob and Lester appear to take his remains. Jakob explains the team's purpose to Yusei, Jack, and Crow, obtains his Granel tablet, and leaves.

Yusei then accompanied Jack to Greiger's hometown after receiving an e-mail from him saying that Jack needed to find a new method of fighting. While Jack was absent, Yusei talked with Greiger, who realized that he was used by The Crimson Devil. Later he went with Greiger and Max to temple where Jack was dueling the Familiar of Red Nova, and witnesses as Jack obtains Burning Soul and defeats the familiar.

Later, he went with Jack, Crow and Bruno to search for cup ramen, Jack's favorite, because they were sold out. There they met a disguised Lazar, but before Yusei could ask him about Yliaster, he disappeared. Yusei, Jack, and Crow lure Lazar into a trap, and Yusei uses a tracking device to corner him as he escapes. After Crow defeats Lazar, Yusei helps interrogate him about Yliaster, who takes them to an arcade game with stored information. Yusei helps complete the puzzle needed to enter the passowrd, and they see that the Momentum Express Development Organization was involved in the scheme.

Yusei and the others then went to Rick, Bolton's former associate, in order to find information about the Momentum Express Development Organization. He agreed to help them infiltrate the headquarters under the guise that they were testing their Duel Runner-sized Momentum engines. Yusei, Sherry, and Bruno enter the building and began investigating the company, including their mysterious Infinity machine. Sneaking into the office of Clark Smith, the Momentum Express President, Bruno and Sherry obtain an access key to the highest-security checkpoint at the facility while Yusei distracts him with a Concentration Duel. Yusei is barely able to defeat Clark, who used underhanded techniques to gain an edge. Clark then activated an alarm and trapped the three in a shuttle, forcing them through a wormhole using Infinity. Sherry is sucked into the wormhole while Yusei and Bruno are transported to the future, where Dr. Fudo appears and sends them back. Because Clark revealed his plans to the three, Yliaster promptly changes history to erase Momentum Express from existence.

When Yusei and Bruno return to their own time, they realize that Yliaster has entered the finals as Team New World, and Lazar is promoted as the new Director of Sector Security to keep the WRGP in operation. Yusei, Jack, and Crow decide to train in order to defeat Team New World, and in the process meet Team Taiyo, a kind group who they help to fix their Duel Runner. However, they quickly realize that their next match is against the very same team. In the wake of Team Taiyo's "Sleeping Giant Thud", Yusei was able to defeat the team using cards left over from his friends.

After some time, Yusei, Jack and Crow met Team Ragnarok. Leader of the team, Harald, explained to them how they got Aesir. After Yusei asked to combine their strength with them, Harald refused, saying that Yusei's father made Zero Reverse and they believe Yusei might be trying to continue the destruction his father left behind. Harald challenged Team 5D's tomorrow, saying that team who win will have right to duel Team New World in the final. Yusei accepted, saying that he and his friends cannot afford to lose.

Yusei enters the final stretch of Team 5D's match against Team Ragnarok against Harald. Even though Jack and Crow manage to defeat their opponents, Dragan and Brave, their ace cards, "Thor, Lord of the Aesir" and "Loki, Lord of the Aesir" remain on the field due to their ability to Special Summon from the Graveyard. In his first turn, Harald Synchro Summons "Odin, Father of the Aesir" and starts a powerful assault on Yusei. Odin's effect nullifies Yusei's Spell and Trap Cards, but Yusei is able to Summon "Majestic Star Dragon" and later "Shooting Star Dragon", finally stopping the Aesir and defeating Team Ragnarok.

During the duel between Team 5D's and Team New World, Yusei watches the first two duels and feels that both Lester and Primo held back considerably, eventually realizing their strategy revolving around their "Infinite Spirit Machine". When Jack fails to destroy it, Jakob quickly summoned "Meklord Emperor Granel", which promptly destroyed and absorbed "Red Nova Dragon", defeating Jack in one turn. Crow attempted to fight back with his Blackwings, but also fell to the colossal monster, sacrificing his Life Points to pass his "Black-Winged Dragon" to Yusei. Jakob then reveals the destroyed future to Team 5D's, but Yusei chooses to continue the duel, using Black-Winged Dragon to summon his own "Stardust Dragon" and Accel Synchro Summon "Shooting Star Dragon", which destroys "Granel" with its effect.

With "Granel destroyed", the Three Pure Nobles merge into Aporia, who summons his "Meklord Astro Mekanikle" and absorbs "Shooting Star Dragon". Yusei struggles against this new monster, but is finally able to call on his friends' best monsters to his side, and destroys "Meklord Astro Mekanikle" with Crow's "Black-Winged Dragon", Jack's "Red Nova Dragon", and his "Shooting Star Dragon".

With this, the WRGP is finished with Team 5D's as the winner after a long tournament. However, the Grand Design is completed and the Ark Cradle appears in the sky, ready to crash into Neo Domino City. Yusei resolves to stop the giant structure, but Sherry returns and warns him that death will await him if he boards.

Divine Temple: Final Confrontation


Despite knowing what future he may have if he went, Yusei decides to go up to Divine Temple. At first, he planned on going alone, but the rest of the team convinced him to let them go with him and fight by his side. With the help of Team Ragnarok and Vizor, they make it to Divine Temple. They were suddenly separated into three groups because of ZONE's trickery. Yusei travels with Vizor to the center of Divine Temple.

Vizor and Yusei reach their Planetary Gear and find that there was no opponent there to face them. However four orbs float towards Vizor and engulf him in light, forcing a complete return of his memories. Vizor then faces Yusei and removes his visor, revealing his true identity. He identifies himself as Antinomy, who is an ally of ZONE and Yusei's opponent. Yusei is reluctant to face Antinomy, knowing that he was Bruno, but thinking of his mission and everyone that was relying on him, he accepts the Duel.

Antinomy and Yusei mount their Duel Runners and the setting changes to outer space, where the two of them ride along a white path near a star, which becomes a black hole that the loser would be sucked into.

Antinomy begins his assault quickly by Synchro Summoning Tech Genus Hyper Librarian on his first turn, allowing him to draw 1 card for each Synchro Summon. Though Yusei tries to destroy it by Synchro Summoning Junk Berserker, Antinomy blocks that attack and, during his turn, performs an Accel Synchro Summon bringing out his Tech Genus Blade Blaster which does a great amount of damage to Yusei, putting his life at 1600. After that, Yusei does an Accel Synchro as well and counter-attacks, decreasing Antinomy's Life Points to 1800. Antinomy then tells to Yusei that Accel Synchro is nothing more than a mere exhibit and, by putting Tech Genus Blade Blaster back to the Extra Deck and bringing back its material monsters, along with Synchro Summoning Tech Genus Recipro Dragonfly, Antinomy performs a Delta Accel Synchro, bringing out Tech Genus Halberd Cannon. Due to its effect, Antinomy was able to prevent Yusei from removing his "Shooting Star Dragon" from play, as well as allowing Yusei to summon a monster. However, Yusei then pulls off a combo with his weakened "Shooting Star Dragon" with "Balance Shooter" and "Endure Soul" to successfully defeat Antinomy.

As the black hole starts to absorb Yusei and Antinomy, Antinomy tells Yusei to save the world. Yusei, confused, seeing how Antinomy was trying to destroy New Domino City, asks why. Antinomy responds that despite him getting his memories back, he has seen Yusei's possibilities, and thus believes in him. Yusei calls to Antinomy as Bruno, to remind him that he was a part of Team 5D's, as well as their friend. Remembering his memories with the team, Bruno tells Yusei to master the Delta Accel Synchro. As Bruno's Duel Runner falls behind, Yusei tries to save Bruno, but Bruno reminds him that only the winner could escape. Bruno then removes his visor and uses his Runner to push Yusei out of the dimension, and falls back himself after doing so. After Yusei escapes the dimension, he sees Brunos damaged visor and mourns over his death.

Once he caught up to his friends, he informed them of his duel with Bruno and that he showed him a way to defeat Z-one. They all found Z-one in a strange room filled with junk. Once the confronted Z-one, Aporia appeared and challenged him to a duel. However, Aporia quickly falls to the might of Z-one's Temporal Machine Gods and gives Yusei's Duel Runner the power of flight to fight Z-one with. Yusei receives the other Signer Dragons from his friends and begins his battle against Z-one.

Yusei battles Z-one with great skill and power, summoning his friends' Signer Dragons despite Z-one's tactics. When Yusei deals damage to Z-one, however, his mask breaks, revealing a mark similar to Yusei's criminal mark. After Z-one explains his appearance, he Summons and overwhelms Yusei with 5 Temporal Machine Gods. Yusei struggles to defend himself with Ancient Fairy Dragon, but a shockwave from the Divine Temple colliding with Neo Domino city thrusts him off his Duel Runner, seeing his father one last time before he recovers. With this he achieves Over Top Clear Mind and uses his friends' Signer Dragons to Limit Over Accel Synchro Summon his final monster, "Shooting Quasar Dragon", which decimates the Temporal Machine Gods. When Z-one counterattacks with the final Temporal Machine God, Sephiron, Yusei uses one final card with Stardust Dragon to defeat Z-one.

After the Crimson Dragon transports his friends away from the Divine Temple, Yusei flies at its core with the intent of sacrificing his own life to stop the structure (Believing it will be his final role to the city). Z-one then appears to redeem himself, rescuing Yusei and sacrificing himself instead. Yusei then returns to his friends, who become overjoyed to see him after his supposed death.

Team 5D's future
Sometime after his Duel with Z-one, Yusei becomes a researcher for New Domino City. However, he is unsure if he wants to continue as a researcher or continue on as a duelist. After a call with Crow, he decides to throw a party for all his friends. During the party, Jack challenges Yusei to a duel to regain his former title to which Yusei himself accepts. Despite a valiant effort on Jack's part, Yusei defeats Jack, who decides to leave New Domino to pursue his own future. The night before everyone goes their separate ways, Yusei shares one last moment with Akiza, who is trying to confess to him her feelings' before they leave each other. Yusei takes her hand, and the two stare into each other's eyes intimately. Yusei decides to stay in New Domino to protect it, as he says farewell to Akiza, who has decided to study medicine abroad, Crow, who has decided to leave to return to dueling, and to Leo & Luna, who are leaving to live with their parents. With one last ride together, Crimson Dragon appears and removes all the Signer marks, allowing the heroes, including Yusei, to move on to their respective futures, without the heavy destiny of protecting the world anymore.

Jack Atlas
Jack and Yusei have known each other since they were little kids. Along with Crow they always seemed to be together. When they were in their teens, they joined The Enforcers, led by Kalin. After Kalin was arrested, Jack was offered the chance to go to New Domino City and become the duel champ. Jack and Yusei still seemed to be friends, but when Jack tied Rally up and put him in a boat, he gave Yusei the option to either duel him, or save Rally. When Yusei went to save Rally, Jack stole his Stardust Dragon. Their friendship seemed to end then and there, but later on, you can see that Jack and Yusei are like brothers and will always be best friends. Most of the anime's first season is driven by Yusei and Jack's rivalry, which has many similarities to Yugi and Kaiba's from the first series.

Crow Hogan
Both Yusei and Crow have been friends since they were kids growing up. The two trust each other as much as Jack and Yusei trust each other. However, there are instances where Yusei and Crow will disagree with each other. Despite this though, Yusei and Crow still respect the other's decision and support each other.

Kalin Kessler
Yusei met Kalin back at a young age when he was in a group known as The Enforcers with Jack and Crow. Kalin was the leader of this group, and it is said by Jack that all three of them thought of Kalin as their "Savior". Yusei has a higher respect and concern for Kalin than Jack and Crow, as he was the only one who stayed when The Enforcers separated. He tried to give himself up to Security in order to save Kalin from punishment. Even after Kalin attempted to take his life, Yusei continued to try to save him. Later in the series, after Kalin's ressurrection, Yusei received a letter and headed out to Crash Town to bring Kalin to his senses, after he claimed he wanted to die in a duel.

Akiza Izinski


Akiza and Yusei are both experienced duelists and Signers. Yusei has helped out Akiza many times and she always tries to return the favor by helping him, hinting at her special feelings for him. It is not exactly shown straight out whether Yusei shares the same feelings for Akiza, though Martha appeared to be aware of them as she has teased him about liking her. Also, in the English version, he made no objections when Martha said Yusei was right and that Akiza was pretty, hinting that Yusei might in fact think that about her.

Yusei has displayed protectiveness and care for Akiza. He has also demonstrated that he has a considerable amount of trust in her, since he gives her his "Stardust Dragon".

Also, the night before they all left, he talked with Akiza alone in his garage. Akiza blushed while trying to confess to him, but then decided not to. They continued their conversation until they took each others' hands, and the two gazed at each other with the other person's image in their eyes. This is the greatest hint that Yusei might share Akiza's feelings in the Japanese ending.

Leo and Luna
Leo and Luna helped Yusei have a place to stay after he escaped Security. The two look up to Yusei as an older brother or father figure, since their real ones are not with them most of the time. In the English dub, however, Yusei lost his memory and Leo called him, "Mister Amnesia Man". Leo also said that he was a superhero, while Luna insisted that he was a knight in shining armor. Leo seems to idolize Yusei, as he is always trying to help Yusei. When Yusei was going to Turbo Duel Greiger, Leo sneaked into his garage to see his Duel Runner to help Yusei. The Twins both look up to Yusei for his strength, courage, and protectiveness of his friends.

Sherry LeBlanc
Starting from Season 2, Sherry showed an interest in having Yusei joining her WRGP Team and seen in later episodes trying to convince him to join. However, despite her attempts, Yusei refuses, saying that he will win the tournament with his friends. Despite this, the two are on good terms with each other and can even work together in a duel. Yusei cares for her safety, always trying to convince her to not get too close to the tournament because of the danger; he even tries to save her when he, her and Bruno are launched into space. In short, the two are good friends despite their agendas.

Bruno


The two have very similar interests, the first and foremost being the upgrading of Duel Runners, and due to this, they bonded very fast, to the extent that when they were doing a project, they were so absorbed in their own work that they didn't even notice anyone else's presence in the room. Yusei is shown to care about Bruno, first not wanting to believe he is Antinomy. After the second duel-with Vizor ended with Yusei's win, he tried to prevent Bruno from being sucked into the black hole. However, Bruno sacrificed his life to save Yusei. Yusei actually kept Bruno's glasses, which is shown in the final image on the extended ending.

Manga biography
The manga is set in an alternate universe than the anime and as such contains different events. At the start of the manga, Yusei is living in Satellite and has already acquired a criminal mark.

3D Bonds Beyond Time
Yusei appears in Yu-Gi-Oh! 3D Bonds Beyond Time, where he joins forces with Yugi Muto and Jaden Yuki to face off against Paradox, a Turbo Duelist who can travel through time, and to save "Stardust Dragon", who was stolen.

While Yusei is riding with Jack Atlas and Crow Hogan, he is suddenly challenged to a Turbo Duel by Paradox. Yusei quickly Summons "Stardust Dragon" by tuning his Junk Synchron with Junk Warrior. Paradox, however, has been waiting for this, as he uses his powers to capture "Stardust Dragon" and turn him to a "Malefic" monster. Paradox bids Yusei farewell and tells him to perish along with his era, as he disappears into the past.

Yusei, Jack and Crow look through the archives to find where Paradox disappeared to, until they find a record of "Stardust Dragon" attacking a duelist named Jaden Yuki in Venice. Bringing all of the Signers together, they summon the Crimson Dragon, who opens a hole in time into the past. Yusei then follows the dragon into the past to Jaden's time.

The Crimson Dragon intercepts "Stardust Dragon"'s attack at Jaden and "Elemental Hero Neos", disappearing in the process. Paradox is confused by Yusei's appearance in the past, as Yusei looks at "Stardust Dragon" before Paradox takes his leave. Jaden, glad to have survived, tells Yusei that Paradox's true intentions are to kill Maximillion Pegasus, thus preventing the creation of Duel Monsters to change the future.

Using Jaden's powers, the two travel to the time of Yugi Muto, only to find Paradox attacking an event where Pegasus was giving away cards to young children. Paradox attacked the crowd with Cyber End Dragon, killing almost everybody, including Pegasus, and Yugi's grandfather, Solomon Muto. Yugi was the only survivor amongst the ruins, as he mourned over his grandfather's death. Yusei and Jaden confront Yugi and ask for his help against Paradox. Yugi agrees to help.

The three travel 30 minutes back in time. Paradox arrived at the event again, but this time, was confronted by Yusei, Jaden, and Yugi. Although they tried to persuade him to stop, Paradox refuses to do so, and a 3-on-1 Duel begins with Yugi, Jaden and Yusei sharing 4000 Life Points.

Yusei shows his skills as a Synchro duelist by Summoning "Junk Gardna". However, after Yugi manages to rescue "Stardust Dragon" and destroy Paradox's "Malefic Paradox Dragon", Paradox Special Summons his most powerful card, "Malefic Truth Dragon". He then fuses himself with the dragon, and destroys all of Yusei, Jaden and Yugi's monsters on the field. Yusei loses hope and prepares to surrender, until Yami Yugi and Jaden manage to convince him to keep fighting until the end. With new hope, Yusei manages to re-Summon the monsters Paradox destroyed in his last turn and gets a power boost from Trap Cards played by Yami Yugi and Jaden, increasing "Stardust Dragon's" ATK to 10000, allowing him to destroy "Malefic Truth Dragon" and defeat Paradox.

With Paradox defeated, all the damage he caused is repaired. Yusei bids farewell to Yugi and Jaden, before returning to his own timeline, where his friends await. Yusei vows to protect the future so he can meet Yugi and Jaden again.

Evolving Duel! Stardust VS Red Demons
In this non-canon episode, Yusei has another Turbo Duel with his rival, Jack Atlas. During the duel, both Yusei and Jack Summon their ace monsters and evolve them with "Assault Mode Activate", creating "Stardust Dragon/Assault Mode" and "Red Dragon Archfiend/Assault Mode".

Although Jack struggles to defeat his rival, Yusei still ultimately wins, by attacking "Red Dragon Archfiend" with "Stardust Dragon" in combination with "Skill Successor" and "Synchro Destructor".

This episode was also released to help promote the Crimson Crisis set, as many of the cards used in this duel were released in it.

Abilities
Yusei is shown to be very gifted when it comes to computers and machines, able to build and program seemingly anything as he was to build his own Duel Runner (D-Wheel in the Japanese version) from scrap parts, twice, and how he jams the criminal mark on Rally. Along with the ability to construct one, he is also shown to be very adept at riding a Duel Runner, evidenced numerous times throughout his duels. He is a highly adept fighter, as evident from how effortlessly he knocked out two of Goodwin's security guards. He appears to have expertise in physics considering the fact that at one point Akiza came to request his assistance on the subject and later takes over his parents' job as head of overseeing the completion of the Ener-D. As Team 5D's team captain, Yusei showed to be a very capable strategist and tactician, able to see through his opponent's plans and devising plans for his own team. He is also an adept teacher, shown in Episode 75 when he was helping Akiza Izinski get her Turbo Dueling License.

Later, Yusei learns to Accel Synchro Summon via Clear Mind, which enables him to control the Ener-D in his Duel Runner with his heart and go at critical speeds without stopping. With it he is capable of summoning "Shooting Star Dragon". Bruno also confirmed that he is capable of achieving Delta Accel Synchro via Top Clear Mind. However, in episode 150, Yusei instead achieved Limit Over Accel Synchro Summon via Over Top Clear Mind, a god-like power that greatly exceeds Top Clear Mind itself. With this, Yusei is capable of summoning "Shooting Quasar Dragon".

In Yu-Gi-Oh! 3D Bonds Beyond Time, he is seen able to see and hear the spirits of Duel Monsters and humans, thanks to the power of his Signer mark.

Deck
Yusei plays a "Warrior" Deck, which revolves around the Synchro Summoning of the monsters in said series, most often "Junk Warrior". He uses Tuner monsters from the "Synchron" archetype that correspond to each "Warrior". He originally kept his ace card, "Stardust Dragon" in reserve, using it during special occasions and as a backup plan. From the WRGP arc onwards, he puts much more emphasis on its Summoning than before.

His most powerful monsters are "Majestic Star Dragon", "Dragon Knight Draco-Equiste", "Shooting Star Dragon", and "Shooting Quasar Dragon". Most of his non-Synchro Monsters are low in Level, giving him more fine control over which Synchro Monster he is able to summon at a given time. His basic strategy usually entails either swarming the field with many low-Level monsters all at once for a high-Level Synchro Summon or else using his lower-Level Synchro Monsters as a bridge to summon the higher-level ones.

Thematically, many of Yusei's cards lean towards being either Warrior or Machine-Type monsters, and even his non-Machine cards tend to have a Machine-like appearance (such as his "Warrior" Synchro Monsters) or are similarly themed, like "Scrap-Iron Scarecrow", "Junk Barrage" or "Iron Resolve". Some of his cards also focus on Burn effects, such as "Armory Arm", "Junk Barrage", "Cosmic Blast", and "Meteor Stream".

His contains a large array of Trap Cards, which he uses in Turbo Duels to supplement his Speed Spells. Even his Ground Decks tend to contain higher amounts of Trap Cards than most other characters.

Trivia

 * Yusei is currently the first and only main protagonist of a Yu-Gi-Oh series to have never once become evil.