—
The masked figure—Hoshiro's future self—stood at the heart of the Spiral Nexus, where time, memory, and possibility converged into one endless spiral.
"I've seen thousands of versions of us," he said. "Some broke. Some ruled. Some died screaming. But only *you* made it here."
"Why?" present Hoshiro asked.
"Because you chose *balance*."
He extended a hand.
"Come. There's something you need to see."
—
They walked through impossible space.
Each step passed through timelines like glass. Hoshiro saw…
—A world where Ayame never joined him.
—A world where Kazuki *was* the Spiral Twin.
—A version of himself that embraced the Spiral… and conquered Earth.
Each universe locked in its own fate.
Until—
They arrived at the *Fracture Engine*.
A living map of all Spiral touchpoints. And at the center… a *crack*.
"It's growing," Future Hoshiro said. "Even now."
"What caused it?"
"You did. By rejecting your original Spiral purpose. You disrupted the design."
"…Good."
"No," he said. "Because *now* the Spiral's true core is waking. The part even I couldn't stop."
—
Hoshiro stepped closer to the crack.
Inside, something was staring back.
Not a clone.
Not a twin.
Something deeper.
Something *beneath* the Spiral.
It whispered:
*"You are not the first Hoshiro."*
—