The portal shimmered shut behind them.
Itachi and Hulk emerged into a distorted reflection of New York City. The sky was not blue but ash-gray, cracked by red lightning bolts that pulsed like the heartbeat of a dying world. The familiar cityscape was in ruins—skyscrapers broken in half, streets covered in rubble, and statues melted like wax under unrelenting heat.
"This isn't our timeline," Hulk muttered, eyes scanning the decay. "Something went wrong."
"No," Itachi said calmly, his Sharingan glowing softly as he stepped forward. "This is a possible future. One that shouldn't exist."
In the distance, screams echoed—followed by the mechanical screech of something inhuman.
From the shadows of a collapsed building, a figure emerged. It was Iron Man… or what used to be him. His armor was cracked and corrupted, oozing dark energy, and his Arc Reactor pulsed erratically. Half his mask was gone, revealing a twisted, hollow-eyed version of Tony Stark.
"Too late," the figure rasped. "You couldn't stop him. None of us could."
Hulk stepped forward, clenching his fists. "What happened here?"
The twisted Stark didn't answer. Instead, he raised a hand—and from behind him, other corrupted Avengers appeared. A blackened Captain America with a shattered shield, a limping Thor dragging a rusted Mjolnir, and a Scarlet Witch with blood-red eyes and tendrils of chaos magic spiraling wildly.
"They're echoes," Itachi whispered. "Fragments of fallen timelines. If they touch us, we could be pulled in—erased."
With a battle cry, the corrupted Avengers charged.
The Battle Begins
Hulk let out a roar and slammed into the ground, sending shockwaves through the cracked concrete. Debris shot into the air, knocking Thor's corrupted form aside.
Captain America swung his fractured shield toward Itachi, who sidestepped effortlessly. With a flick of his hand, crows exploded from his cloak, forming a Genjutsu barrier to distort the enemy's sense of direction.
But these weren't normal enemies—they were twisted by time itself. Resistant to illusion.
fired a bolt of crimson magic, disrupting the Genjutsu and forcing Itachi to draw his blade. He met her power with his own, channeling pure chakra into a fire jutsu that clashed with her magic in a blinding explosion.
Meanwhile, Hulk and the twisted Iron Man locked in brutal combat—metal against flesh, repulsors firing wildly as Hulk absorbed the blows and retaliated with crushing force. He punched Stark straight through a half-standing building.
"I've fought you before," Hulk growled. "But not like this."
Stark coughed up oil-black blood. "That's because I'm not him anymore."
Itachi, bleeding from a gash above his eye, dropped low as Cap hurled his shield again. This time, Itachi caught it mid-spin with one hand, spun it like a shuriken, and flung it back—embedding it into Cap's chest with a metallic crunch.
Scarlet Witch shrieked and sent a wave of energy across the battlefield, knocking both Itachi and Hulk backward.
A Fading Timeline
"This isn't just a broken future," Itachi said as he stood, voice tight with pain. "It's a timeline trying to consume us—to overwrite us."
Hulk spat dust. "Then we end it."
"Together."
As Scarlet Witch gathered energy for one final attack, Itachi formed hand signs rapidly.
"Amaterasu."
Black flames engulfed her chaos magic mid-air, swallowing it whole. Her body lit with the cursed fire, her scream echoing across dimensions until she vanished into ash.
The timeline trembled.
The remaining enemies cracked like glass, their bodies fracturing into light. The world around them flickered. They had undone the corrupted version of this future.
"Time's collapsing," Hulk warned. "We need to leave—now."
Escape and Reflection
Using the Time GPS, Itachi reactivated the portal. Just before stepping through, he turned back to the dissolving ruins.
"I saw what I could become," he murmured.
Hulk glanced at him. "You mean that wasn't your future?"
"No," Itachi said. "But it's what happens if I lose myself."
They stepped into the portal—and the broken sky vanished behind them.
To Be Continued...