Zuzu Boyle

Yuzu Hiragi ( Hīragi Yuzu) is one of the main characters and a childhood friend of Yuya Sakaki in the Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V anime. She gives powerful pep talks. Her father owns You Show Duel School, the Duel school that she and Yuya attend, where they spend their time honing their Dueling skills. She functions as the straight man in comedy acts with Yuya.

Appearance
Yuzu has dark pink hair which she wears tied up in pigtails, clipped down by blue, spherical hair clips. Her hair also features two lighter pink bangs that fall to the side of her face. Yuzu's outfit consists of a sleeveless light-blue and white shirt with a musical note on the right collar, along with a red tie, which she wears with a dark red skirt and dark stockings. She notably is not shown wearing the school jacket from Miami Second Middle School that other female students wear. She also wears a bracelet with strange abilities. These powers seem to be connected to Yuto and Yuya, activating whenever all three are in close proximity.

Etymology
Yuzu's name is derived from the fruit Yuzu, a citrus fruit and plant originating in East Asia.

Personality
Yuzu is shown to have an extremely short temper, often resulting in her actions causing huge consequences. An example of this would be when she smashed her fists down on the Solid Vision technology computer at You Show Duel School out of annoyance of how Yuya was Dueling, which ended up destroying the machine. Yuzu also has a tendency of whacking a paper fan on other people's heads, primarily Yuya and Shuzo, whenever they do something foolish. She is also shown to be quite argumentative, wanting to argue with a spectator who insulted Yuya and his father before his Duel with Strong Ishijima, showing that she can be just as defensive and caring of Yuya and his belief in his father.

Her perception and judgement begin to falter after her successive encounters with Yuto, due to Yuto's resemblence with Yuya, and her lack of knowledge of the subject frustrates her.

Anime biography
Yuzu monitored the Duel between Yuya and Gongenzaka in You Show Duel School. Angered at Yuya for not focusing on the Duel, she pounded on the Solid Vision machine's keyboard, causing it to malfunction. As Yuzu panicked, the machine exploded right in front of her face. After the incident, Yuzu was still upset at Yuya for goofing off. As her father, Shuzo, was excited at Nico Smiley's offer for the newest Solid Vision technology, Yuzu smacked him on the head with a paper fan and criticized him for going against his word for not letting Yuya Duel against Strong Ishijima. When Yuya disappeared, Yuzu wondered where he went. Later, she, Gongenzaka and Shuzo went to the Dueling arena to watch Yuya's Duel against Ishijima. She was shocked when Yuya performed a Pendulum Summon, and even more so when he actually defeated Ishijima.

Afterwards, the You Show Duel School was flooded by applicants, which proved difficult for Yuzu to keep up with, alongside the fact that she was scheduled to Duel Yuya in an exhibition match. Before the Action Duel started, Yuya began acting foolishly, earning him a smack from Yuzu's fan, prompting the ire of Yuya's newfound fans. Realizing that she would be portrayed as the villain, she urged Yuya to exchange insults with her, and Yuya came up with the concept that she was looking for revenge for Ishijima. However, Yuya failed to Pendulum Summon during his turn, so he instead urged Yuzu to attack him, under the impression that the pinch would allow him to Pendulum Summon. Instead, Yuzu's attack went through, winning her the Duel. She examined Yuya's Pendulum Cards afterwards to try and figure out how the Summon worked, but they were unable to do so, and all the applicants save Tatsuya left, despite Yuzu's protests. She introduced Tatsuya to Yuya, and the boy was accepted into the Duel School.

At school the next day, Yuzu frantically tried to wake Yuya (who had been up all night trying to Pendulum Summon again), before their teacher could notice; unfortunately, her efforts were unsuccessful, resulting in Yuya embarrassing himself by trying to claim the answer to the problem he'd been asked was "the right one." Yuzu whacked him over the head with her fan, pointing out that that was never the right answer. After school, Futoshi, Ayu, and Tatsuya all asked to see a Pendulum Summon, but they were interrupted by Shingo Sawatari, who threw sucker-tipped darts at Yuya (to Yuzu's disapproval.) When Shingo, claiming to be a fan of Yuya, offered the use of the Center Duel Field at LDS, Yuzu was somewhat insulted that the school owned by her family was being passed over, but she went along to LDS regardless. Shingo then asked to see Yuya's Pendulum Cards, and swiped them when they were offered, then he offered to return them to Yuya if he won against him in a Duel, holding Yuzu and the other children hostage on top of a suspension bridge in "Dark Town's Prison Tower." When Yuya picked up Action Trap Cards that were set in the area, the place where Yuzu and the children were standing was damaged, and Futoshi almost toppled off were it not for Yuzu's intervention. Scared by the heights, Futoshi began crying, prompting Yuzu to try and reassure him, stating that boys shouldn't cry. After Shingo Pendulum Summoned, the Duel began to go badly for Yuya until he was able to reclaim his stolen Pendulum Monsters with "Empty Fishing." At that point, the tower crumbled beneath Yuzu and the others, but she and Ayu were saved by "Stargazer Magician," and she cheered Yuya on as he won the Duel with his own Pendulum Summon. Afterwards, Shingo tried to take the Pendulum Cards by force until he was knocked out by Sora Shiun'in, who proceeded to declare himself Yuya's apprentice. Yuzu was more shocked about the state of Shingo and his friends, until Sora reassured her that he'd siply knocked them unconscious.

As she walked to school with Yuya the next day, Yuya explained that Sora had followed him home and continued to follow him around, Sora proving so by popping up behind them a few seconds later. After Yuya's continual refusal to show Sora a Pendulum Summon, Sora asked Yuzu, whom he thought was Yuya's girlfriend, to help him ask. Yuya and Yuzu denied that they were dating, Yuya claiming he'd never date a "strong, crude girl" like Yuzu. Though somewhat uncomfortable after Sora's statement, Yuya's remarked earned him a swat from Yuzu's fan, and she angrily walked off, muttering furiously that Yuya didn't have to describe it like that. Nevertheless, her anger eventually faded, though Sora continued to interrupt them over the course of the day, putting Yuya in a bad mood. Yuzu managed to snap him out of it, pointing out that he was an entertainer, but Sora was waiting for them at You Show Duel School. His begging Yuya to Duel him and his reaction after being turned down yet again by Yuya earned Yuzu's sympathies. Eventually, Yuya agreed to Duel Sora. During the Duel, Yuzu appreciated Sora's cute-looking monsters, though she was surprised when he Fusion Summoned and she comforted a scared Ayu. After Yuya's "Odd-Eyes" was destroyed, Yuzu sympathized with him, knowing that the card represented both Yuya's courage and his Pendulum Summoning. She was relieved for him when he won the Duel.

One day, Yuzu and Ayu, on their way back to the You Show Duel School with ice cream for everyone, overheard two of Shingo Sawatari's friends commenting that Shingo was planning on getting revenge on Yuya for humiliating him. She decided to go after him, intent on repaying Yuya for saving her in his Duel with Shingo. When she got to their hangout, she told Ayu to go and tell Yuya what was happening before entering the warehouse. Her interruption caused Shingo to choke on his food, and she angrily yelled at him, shooting various insults and not letting Shingo get a single word in in response. She demanded to Duel Shingo, and he accepted, locking them inside the warehouse.

Before they could begin, the warehouse door was thrown open by a mysterious Duelist, who raised his Duel Disk, indicating that he intended to take Yuzu's place in the Duel. She protested, but the Duelist told her that he didn't want to see her hurt anymore. The Duelist Set his entire hand on the first turn, only to have it destroyed by Shingo's new "Monarch" cards. Yuzu realized in shock that she could feel the wind from "Mobius the Mega Monarch" when it used its effect and attacked despite the fact that they weren't in an Action Field. The Duelist used the effects of the Spell Cards in his Graveyard to block the direct attack and then performed an Xyz Summon on the next turn, calling out "Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon," then using it to reduce Shingo to 100 Life Points, violently damaging the warehouse with its attack. The Duelist questioned Shingo, then turned to leave, but Shingo attempted to win the Duel, only to be countered by another card from the Duelist's Graveyard, "Phantom Des Spear," which pierced Shingo's jacket. The Duelist removed his mask and revealed himself to be a boy with a face that resembled Yuya so much that Yuzu, Shingo and his gang mistook him for Yuya. She attempted to ask him what he had been doing, but her bracelet suddenly glowed with a harsh magenta light, blinding her. After the glow faded, she found that the Duelist vanished. As Yuzu tried to locate the mysterious Duelist, Yuya ran into the warehouse and asked her what had happened, commenting on the smell of smoke.

The next day, Yuzu attended class at the Duel School with Yuya and her friends, but her thoughts remained preoccupied by what she'd seen the previous night. She asked her father whether their school taught Xyz Summoning, only to get a negative response. Yuzu was somewhat relieved until everyone heard Gongenzaka shouting. Shingo's friends had showed up, claiming that Yuya had hospitalized Shingo. They pointed out that Yuzu had seen it too; she remained silent, unsure of what she'd seen. Himika Akaba, Chairwoman of the Leo Corporation, then arrived, also accusing Yuya. Eventually, she stated that regardless of whether Yuya had attacked Shingo or not, the loss would damage the reputation of LDS and could not go unanswered. Akaba then made a bet that the two schools would Duel; if LDS won, they would acquire the You Show Duel School and add Pendulum Summoning to its curriculum. Yuya refused to give into their ideals, though Yuzu still wasn't sure about what she'd seen. She asked Yuya if he'd attacked Shingo and Yuya denied it. Convinced that he was telling the truth, Yuzu agreed to fight with him, and Sora joined them as the three representatives to fight the three elite students from LDS, with Yuya going first against Hokuto Shijima.

After Yuya won his match against Hokuto, Yuzu offered to Duel against Masumi Kotsu next. Yuzu went in with confidence, knowing that a win would protect the You Show Duel School and Yuya. Masumi pointed out that Yuzu's eyes were clouded and she was hesitating. During the course of the duel, Yuzu kept seeing Yuya as Yuto, affecting her actions. Even though she got an advantage after her first turn, Masumi rebounded and used the effect of Gem-Knight Master Diamond to finish Yuzu off. Yuzu jumped at the opportunity to grab an Action Card, only to find that she was looking at a reflection of it, proving Masumi's analysis of Yuzu's current state of mind. Yuzu was blasted back by "Master Diamond" and lost her duel. As Yuya tried to wake her up, she saw him as a vague silhouette of Yuto at first. With the score tied at 1-1, Gongenzaka Dueled with with Todo to determine the You Show Duel School's fate. After the Duel ended in a draw, she watched the tiebreaker duel between Yuya and Reiji.

After Yuya's win against Reiji, she tried to console Yuya after he realized he was not the only one who could Pendulum Summon. Throughout Shuzo's Duel with Yuya, she was extremely irritated by her father's antics, and after her father lost his Duel to Yuya and pretended to die dramtically (with an equally dramatic response from Yuya), she slapped him with her fan.

While eating lunch at school with Yuya, she was approached by Shingo, who offered her a handkerchief, but she turned his gesture down. She later learned from him that Reiji left the duel due to an attack on an LDS professor. After school, when Yuya pleaded with her to help him qualify for the Junior Youth Championship, Yuzu reminded him that she had already qualified and thus can't Duel him. After hearing of Yuya's goal to become stronger, she also decided that she should do that as well. She went in search of Sora, whom she found at LDS, and led him to the hangar where Shingo was attacked. Yuzu asked him to train her in Fusion Summoning, troubled over her loss to Masumi. Sora gave her a "Polymerization" card and explained the basics of Fusion Summoning. Sora detected the presence of another person then; Yuzu watched as Sora chased down the person and fought with his Duel Disk, then recognised the third party to be the masked Duelist that Duelled Shingo. Masumi then showed up, believing that the Duelist had attacked Marco, and attempted to Duel him herself, but as Yuzu desperately tried to calm the group down, her bracelet glowed again, transporting the Duelist away. As before, Yuya came running in soon after looking for Yuzu, and explained that he'd got the four Duels he needed to enter the Championship.

Rather than go with Yuya to watch his Duels, Yuzu instead went with Sora, who was seeking to qualify himself. Sora made sure to Fusion Summon in his Duels to demonstrate some of the basics to Yuzu. The two later had a practice Duel, but Yuzu's Fusion Summon failed as she'd forgotten to put her "Schuberta the Melodious Maestra" in her Extra Deck. Sora chided her for not remembering that Fusion Monsters went in the Extra Deck instead of the Main Deck. He noted that she was still thinking about the masked Duelist, and that it was throwing her concentration off. Yuzu confided with Sora of the Duelist's ability to cause physical impacts outside of an Action Duel, and was surprised when her bracelet suddenly began to glow. Unbeknownst to her, this warped the eavesdropping masked Duelist away. Yuya showed up afterwards, as Shuzo had sent him to find her.

Yuzu later returned home and asked her father about her bracelet. Shuzo told her that she'd had it since she was born, an answer that didn't satisfy Yuzu. She left for her room, slumped on her bed and removed the bracelet, telling herself to get her act together. She continued watching Sora's qualification Duels, making sure to pay more attention. She improved to the point of being able to correctly discern his winning move and chant along with his Summon.

As they walked towards the warehouses later, she noted that he could have won earlier, but he replied that he'd held back to show her Fusion Summoning again. Yuzu thought she had Fusion Summoning down, and she was ready to practice her skills in a real match, and Sora accepted. Masumi then showed up again before them, asking where the masked Duelist was, believing Yuzu to be hiding him. Masumi explained that several LDS members had vanished, and blamed Yuzu for letting the Duelist escape. She challenged Yuzu to a Duel, but Sora commented that Yuzu should be able to defeat Masumi easily, as LDS Fusion Summons weren't much of a threat. Masumi took this as an insult and challenged him instead, but her claims of LDS being the strongest attracted the attention of Shun Kurosaki, who ran up and knocked Yuzu aside, scattering her cards. He held out his Duel Disk, challenging Masumi himself; however, before they could Duel, the masked Duelist jumped in to stop Shun, who addressed him as "Yuto". When Shun finally noticed Yuzu, he mistook her for someone called Ruri. Yuzu was taken aback, but before he could go on, Shun was punched in the gut by Yuto, who told him that she wasn't Ruri, before Shun fell unconscious. Yuto picked up "Polymerization" from Yuzu's scattered cards and remarked that Fusion Summoning didn't suit Yuzu. Yuya came running to Yuzu with Hokuto and Yaiba soon after; her bracelet glowed as it did in past incidents, teleporting both Yuto and Shun away. When Yuya asked if she was alright, she expressed confusion over being called "Ruri" and the recurring events that had been happening around her. Yuya helped her gather her Deck and returned it to her, but later picked up her "Polymerization" card, thinking he had overlooked it earlier.

Yuzu returned to the warehouses the next day to search for her missing card, but was disrupted by Sora's call to watch his final qualifying Duel. They made it to Yuya's Duel against Mieru right as he used her "Polymerization" to Fusion Summon; when the Duel ended, Yuya thanked Yuzu for her card as he returned it to her, since it had been an important factor in helping him clinch the match. However, they were interrupted as Mieru jumped onto Yuya, thinking that he was her "fated person", causing her to become angry and chase Yuya with her fan, somehow thinking that it was his fault.

After they left Mieru's Duel School, Yuzu looked at her returned "Polymerization" and remembered Yuto's comments regarding it. She then saw Masumi up ahead in the streets, heading down an alleyway, and giving her friends the excuse that he was doing something that she'd just remembered, she pursed Masumi, but quickly lost her and instead ran into Yuto, who prevented her from going any further, as Shun was currently Dueling Masumi. Yuto didn't want Yuzu involved, nor to get hurt, but she called him out on letting Shun hurt Masumi regardless, and angrily asked who Yuto and Shun were. Yuto explained the situation: He and Shun were fighting to get back their captured comrades, one of which was Ruri. And while he had indeed initially mistaken Yuzu for Ruri, Yuto explained that Yuzu was not Ruri, as their enemy used Fusion Summoning, which Yuzu had learned happily. Yuzu explained that she had done so to try and protect You Show Duel School. Yuto was quite surprised, and he ended up encouraging her to keep trying to protect her friends, saying that it wasn't wrong, before smiling, causing Yuzu to compare him to Yuya. Before leaving, her told her his name, and explained that Ruri was in fact Shun's younger sister. Yuzu eventually arrived at the place where Masumi and Shun had been Dueling, but by then, only the crows remained.

The next day, Nico Smiley requested that Yuzu come to Gongenzaka Dojo so that she could watch Yuya's final qualification match against Gongenzaka, but without Yuya knowing that they were there. When her father was torn between cheering for Yuya or Gongenzaka, Yuzu had to smack him with her fan to calm him down. During the match, she expressed worry for Yuya and held the opinion that she should have left her "Polymerization" card with him, but fortunately, he was able to Fusion Summon twice using his "Performapal Trump Witch" and defeat Gongenzaka. She congratulated him after the match and again smacked her father to calm him down.

At the beginning of the Junior Youth Championship, after some pep-talking by Shuzo, Yuzu was the first to notice that Yuya had snuck off and was in danger of being late. At the tournament venue, she frantically looked for him, but it was to no avail until they ran into Mieru, whose constant comments about Yuya, "her darling," sent Yuzu into a rage. The kids did their best to hold her back, only calming her when she saw that Mieru had divined Yuya's direction and she seemed to realize where he was. Yuya eventually showed up, much to everyone's relief, as did the barely-qualified Gongenzaka. The six You Show Duelists walked out onto the tournament field after many of the others, and Yuya was asked to make the pledge of fair play, though he initially messed it up, he made a speech about his father and his determination instead. Afterwards, the group used their registration cards to learn who their opponents were and when they'd face one another. Yuzu realized that she was up against Masumi again, while Sora was against Shun, who they'd seen walking in with LDS. Yuya revealed to Yuzu that he'd met Shun and seen him attack the LDS top-team, and Yuzu asked Mausmi why Shun was with them. A confused Masumi explained that Shun had been a part of their group from the very start.

Manga biography
Yuzu has made an appearance in the special manga chapter. She is seen several times cheering Yuya in his Action Duel against Reiji.

Deck
Yuzu uses a "Melodious" Deck, focusing on Swarm tactics through cards such as "Sonata the Melodious Diva" and "Solo: First Movement", giving her early access to her ace, "Mozarta the Melodious Maestra". After her loss to Masumi Kotsu, she decided to learn how to Fusion Summon, and began practicing incorporating that strategy into her Deck. She is also shown to utilize a large amount of Fairy and LIGHT support cards.