I turned slowly, my heart pounding so hard I could hear it in my ears. There, stepping out from the shadows of an old tree, was Akame. She wasn't wearing her assassin's gear, but simple, dark civilian clothes that made her look like an ordinary girl, if not for the long sword slung across her back and her ruby-red eyes that stared at me with an intensity that felt like it could peel my soul away layer by layer. Her presence was silent, every movement controlled, but the air around her vibrated with a restrained danger.
We stood there in a long silence, the only sound the night wind rustling through the leaves and the creak of an old swing set as our soundtrack. She observed me from head to toe, her sharp gaze trying to reconcile me—this ordinary-looking fifteen-year-old boy—with the echo of draconic power she had sensed.
Finally, she was the one to break the silence. Her voice, as I remembered, was cool and flat, but underneath it, I could catch the tremor of a question that had been burning within her for days. "You're not him," she said, a statement, not a question. "Your face is different, your body is different, your aura feels foreign. But that armor... and my name... How?"
I took a deep breath, preparing myself. This was the moment of truth. I couldn't lie. I couldn't evade. The only way forward was through the most impossible truth.
"I died in my world," I said, my voice sounding hoarse in the quiet of the park. "My world was a world without magic, without Quirks, without Teigu. A world where your story... the story of Night Raid, of the Empire, of you... was just entertainment. A manga and an anime."
I saw a flicker of emotion in her eyes for the first time—anger? Confusion? Pain? Perhaps a mixture of all three. The idea that all her suffering, her loss, and her struggles were just a "story" for someone else must have felt like an immense insult.
"I was just an ordinary person," I continued. "I died in a ridiculous accident. And then... I woke up here. As a baby, in this world. The world of 'My Hero Academia'."
She processed my words, her face returning to an expressionless mask, but I could see her mind working behind her sharp eyes. "That doesn't explain the armor," she pressed. "Incursio chose Tatsumi. Incursio was bonded to him. Why do you have it?"
This was where I had to explain my own theory, a truth I was only just beginning to understand. "I don't know for sure," I admitted. "But... I don't think I'm alone in this body." I looked at her, hoping she could understand. "After I sensed your presence, after the incident at the warehouse, I started having dreams. Dreams that weren't mine. I saw forests, I felt a camaraderie with people I've never met. I felt an overwhelming desire to... protect you."
I paused, letting her absorb it. "I believe that when I was reborn here, somehow, my soul became bound to the legacy of Incursio. And within that armor, there are still remnants of him. An echo of the original Tatsumi's soul. Our meeting has begun to awaken it." I pointed to my chest. "I am a soul from another world, but this armor... this armor is still his. And I think a part of him is still there, inside me."
Akame was silent, completely silent. She stared at me, and for the first time, I saw her defenses crack. She remembered the resonance she had felt. That familiar draconic energy, now fused with a completely foreign human aura. She remembered my reckless sacrifice at the auction house, a foolish act so very much like the Tatsumi she knew. A possibility so wild and painful that she hadn't dared to consider it before now seemed like the only plausible explanation. The spirit of her most loyal comrade, somehow, still existed, trapped with the soul of this stranger.
"You came here alone," she said finally, changing the subject, her voice still trembling slightly. "You knew this was a huge risk. Why?"
I took the wooden token from my pocket and showed it to her. "You gave me a choice," I said. "The heroes wanted to set a trap for you. They wanted to capture you. But I chose to trust you. I chose to believe there was a reason behind your actions."
Our conversation shifted to the present. To our new world. "Akame," I said gently. "I know why you're doing this. I read the files on your victims. They're the dregs of society. But killing them... it's not the right way in this world."
"Not the right way?" she countered, her cold tone returning. "The heroes in this world of yours are slow. They're bound by 'laws' and 'procedures' that often fail to reach true evil. I saw a human trafficker who had been operating for a decade, destroying hundreds of lives, yet he was protected by expensive lawyers and corrupt politicians. Was I supposed to stand by and let him continue while the heroes gathered 'evidence' for years more?"
"No," I admitted. "But there are other ways. There are heroes like Ryukyu, like All Might, who truly fight for justice. There is a system, however flawed. Your actions, though perhaps born from good intentions, will only make you a target. You'll be hunted by heroes and villains alike. You'll be alone."
"I have always been alone," she replied flatly.
Those words stabbed me in the heart. "Not anymore," I said, more firmly this time. "You're not alone anymore. I'm here. And I know everything. I know about Night Raid. I know about the Empire. And I know about you."
She flinched at the name "Night Raid." It was the final confirmation she needed. I truly knew.
"I can't let you keep killing, Akame," I said. "But I swear, I won't turn you over to the heroes either. Not yet." I stepped closer, a desperate offer. "So let's make a deal. A truce. Stop for now. Give me time. Let me try to show you that the heroes' way here can work. My agency is pursuing Yozakura. The clan's existence is real in this world, just as it was in yours. Help me. Don't show yourself to me. But give me information from the shadows. Work with me, not against me."
Akame looked at me for a long time, weighing my words. She was a pragmatist. She knew that continuing on her path alone would be increasingly difficult now that the top heroes knew of her existence. And before her stood the only person in the universe who could possibly understand who she was.
"I will make no promises," she said finally, her voice barely a whisper. "But... I will observe. And I will not attack targets in this city... for now."
It wasn't an agreement, but it was more than enough. It was a start. A fragile truce.
A wailing police siren in the distance broke our silence. We both knew our time was up.
"You have to go," Akame said, her assassin's instincts taking over again, her eyes scanning our surroundings. "They'll realize you're missing from the agency. Sooner or later, they'll track you here."
I nodded, knowing the immense trouble that awaited me. I turned to leave, to return to my life as a hero intern, back to my lies and my secrets.
"Tatsumi," she called out.
I stopped and looked back.
"Be careful," she said, and in that one word, I could hear the echo of all the battles, all the losses, and all the friendships she had ever experienced. It was a warning from a veteran to a new soldier.
I gave her one last nod before running and disappearing into the city's dark alleys. As I snuck back to the agency, I knew that tonight had changed everything. I may have betrayed the trust of my mentor, but I might have also found my oldest ally. And in the midst of this world of heroes and villains, a new, far more dangerous shadow game had just begun.