"If you're here, that means you sealed the Demon King..."
"Of course. I wouldn't be here if I hadn't..."
As confident as ever....
There was a reason Yuki sent The Beast to his Spiritual World so the Demon King could kill her, even though he knew the Ocarina would be destroyed and that he didn't have the strength to seal him.
It was because this was the plan his other "self" had made. He was only connecting the crumbs that had been left across time through his girls and leaving the rest of the work to him.
There was a lot he didn't know. He only knew that his other self had lost and that he was alive-dead. He didn't know how he escaped from Requiem, but his power was no joke.
And because he trusted himself, he had faith that his other self would seal the Demon King.
He wasn't wrong. And because he knew himself so well, he also knew what his other self was doing.....
"I won... and now I've come for my future..."
As both sides stared at each other, First Timeline Yuki declared as he materialized his Spark Pistol, while the other Yuki sent Mio into his Shadow and materialized his own Spark Pistol at the same time.
"You'll have to go through me if you want it."
"Master, Master...."
Mukuro struck the Crown, but it was useless. She couldn't open even a single crack in the Absolute Shield.
"What's happening? Why can't we see?"
For Origami, being unable to do anything was hell. She hoped that at least the cursed fog would disperse so they could look inside.
"It's because of the Domain...."
Nia shrugged in resignation. Even with Rasiel, she couldn't know what was happening inside the Crown. For someone who hated spoilers, now she desperately needed them, but it was a shame—she couldn't see anything.
"Nooo! I want to help Darling~"
Miku cried as she struck the Absolute Shield. She wanted to rush into her beloved's arms, to be by his side, just like Mio Takamiya...
"Approval: I also want to help..."
"Hmph, as hurricane sisters, our help is necessary...."
Yuzuru and Kaguya agreed, but Raphael had no strength left. They could barely stir the wind, yet their will didn't waver. They firmly believed they could help, even if it meant sacrificing their vital energy.
"Yuki... please be careful..."
"Yay, Yoshino-chan, I'm sure Yuki will be fine."
Yoshino curled up into a small ball and murmured through her tears, while the puppet Yoshinon comforted her at her side.
"You have to come back... you have to..."
Natsumi also expressed her feelings as she clutched her broom.
"Kuhh! Open up! Open up! Damn it! Kuhh!"
Tohka was the one who fought the hardest. She didn't care about her own safety and struck with all her strength using Sandalphon. Every time she attacked, the Absolute Shield repelled her, but that didn't stop her. Tears streamed from her eyes, yet she grit her teeth and kept striking despite her injuries.
"That's enough, all of you! We don't have the strength! We have to trust Onii-chan!"
It was Kotori who put an end to the Spirits' struggle. Like the others, she also wanted to enter the Absolute Shield, but she knew Camael wasn't enough. As awful as it was, the only thing she could do was trust Yuki.
The Spirits argued fiercely. All of them wanted to enter the Domain and help Yuki, but unfortunately, they had already used all their strength maintaining the Domain and fighting the corruption. They had entered "recharge" mode and were defenseless. They couldn't break the Domain's defense...
But among the eleven Spirits, there were two who remained silent. Those two were the Hidden Spirit, Mayuri, and the Spirit of Time, Kurumi Tokisaki.
Mayuri, as the materialization of the Kerk System and the one who maintained Order among the Thrones, had been present in both timelines. She knew more about what the first Yuki had gone through, and it was thanks to him that she could be summoned in this timeline.
His ambition to pursue Yuki's victory was clear to her...
That was why she felt sad, yet also relieved....
(It's coming to an end.... You'll be free... Yuki-kun)
Kurumi, on the other hand, was the most worried of all. Her legs trembled, as did her clenched hands, but as Yuki's soulmate, she managed to stay calm and keep a cool head. As the Spirit of Time, she knew the paradox created by having two Yukis from different timelines within a single "space" was enough to tear this planet apart. But because both Yukis possessed a Crown, such a catastrophe was impossible due to the energy of Order. Still, she also knew that in the end, only one Yuki would remain.
The winner.....
(Danna-sama... you must win)
In the middle of the chessboard, both Yukis aimed their Spark Pistols at each other.
"I should thank you. You followed my plans perfectly, just as expected of 'me.' Even being lazy, you still understood. Good job..."
First Timeline Yuki had always pursued victory. To him, everything this Yuki had done was within his calculations. He trusted that only "he" himself could tie up all the loose ends and resolve the paradox.
Uniting the Spirits, closing the paradoxes, convincing Reine, bringing The Beast to his Spiritual World.
The only thing left was to defeat this "me" from this timeline and usurp his identity.
That way, all the suffering he endured in the first timeline would mean nothing. He would be the winner. He would return to his girls, return to his Goddess, to Tsunade, Inori, everyone who was waiting for him in the World of the Gods. And not least of all, he would be able to use the Chat Room again.
That Chat Room was extremely mysterious. From the moment it became a Paradox, it vanished from sight and never reappeared, no matter how much he called out. Because of that, he couldn't travel to other worlds or consult the World of the Gods.
But if he defeated his other "self," he would recover everything he had lost....
That was why he couldn't allow himself to lose.
Not again....
Yuki didn't feel fear. He faced his other self without hesitation. Both had the same level of power. They were exhausted. First Timeline Yuki had used all his strength against the Demon King and this Domain, while Yuki no longer had the Spirits' support within the Crown and had exhausted himself fighting The Beast.
All they had left was a Spark Pistol in hand, resistance to the Apocalypse Virus, and a Three-tomoe Sharingan...
A final, worthy duel....
"No, I should be the one thanking you. Because you sealed Mio on the Moon of Mars, Kurumi didn't die. You saved her and everyone else. But.... this is my timeline! My women! I won't give them to anyone, not even to myself!"
Yuki understood what his other self had been through, but he was selfish. He was grateful, but that didn't mean he would give up his happiness. He wouldn't. Kurumi, Mukuro, Nia, Natsumi, Origami, Yoshino, Kaguya, Yuzuru, Kotori, Miku, Tohka, Mayuri.... Even Mio Takamiya.
They were his women! All of them belonged to his Crown and to Requiem...
He wouldn't give that up....
"Heh~ just as I expected of myself. You won't give them up without a fight..."
"I'd be an idiot if I did..."
Laughing at the same time, the two looked strangely harmonious, like a pair of twins—if not for the fact that they were aiming weapons at each other.
Bang
Bang
The sound of gunfire marked the beginning. Both knew what the other was about to do, so they acted first and fired...
"Then I'll force you!"
"Try it!"
But being the same person, their actions were identical, and the bullets collided...
Bang, bang, bang, bang...
The bullets crashed into each other as both Yukis advanced step by step...
Bang, bang, bang...
Only when they were less than a meter apart did they stop firing.
"We're the same. Using firearms is pointless..."
"Heh, you're right..."
Tossing their Spark Pistols aside, both pulled a Kunai and a mask from their Shadows. They had decided on their next fight. If there was one way they could be different, it would be in close combat...
They put on their respective masks and stomped the ground hard....
Clang...
And the sparks from the collision of Kunai were the next thing to follow...