Morning light crept through the clouds over Musutafu, but to Koku, it felt like the world hadn't changed.
Not after what happened last night.
He could still feel it — the cold hand of the shadow, the way time screamed when it appeared.
Even now, the watch in his pocket pulsed faintly, as if beating to a rhythm he didn't understand.
Koku walked through the quiet halls of U.A., heading toward the training grounds where Professor Erina waited.
Her usual calm demeanor was gone. Today, she looked… cautious. Almost afraid.
"You saw it too, right?" Koku asked quietly.
Erina nodded. "The entity was a Temporal Phantom — something that shouldn't exist in our timeline. It's not a person. It's a memory of time itself trying to correct what went wrong."
She paused, then looked him straight in the eye.
"And it was hunting you."
Koku stayed silent. His fingers brushed against the watch. "If it wanted to erase me… it means I'm not supposed to be here."
"Not exactly," she said. "You are from here — just… not from this version of here."
Her words sank into him like lead.
Not from this version…?
Erina turned toward the city skyline beyond the glass wall.
"When the Chrono Fall happened fifteen years ago, a hero named Chrono Blade tried to stop a time quake created by an experimental Quirk weapon. The blast fractured time itself. He vanished — presumed dead. But the records we recovered showed something else."
She tapped a control on her holographic tablet. A 3D image projected into the air — a man in black armor, cloak torn, silver eyes glowing.
The resemblance was undeniable.
Koku stared at the image — at the same metallic eyes, the same expression.
"…That's me."
"No," Erina said quietly. "That's him — but the readings match your Quirk signature perfectly. You're a fragment of his timeline, Koku. A piece of Chrono Blade that slipped into this reality when time collapsed."
Koku's hands trembled.
"So I'm… just an echo?"
"An echo," she agreed softly. "But one that grew real."
Before Koku could respond, the door hissed open.
Rex and Aina entered, both looking tense.
"The teachers told us what happened," Rex said, arms crossed. "Is it true you were attacked by some kind of… time ghost?"
Aina added, "And the Hero Commission's here. They're scanning for 'temporal anomalies.' U.A. might be in trouble."
Koku frowned. "They're after me, then."
Rex scowled. "If you're dragging us into something—"
"Enough, Rex," Aina interrupted. "He didn't ask for this."
Erina turned toward them. "Both of you — listen carefully. None of this leaves this room. If the Commission confirms what I suspect, they'll classify Koku as a Temporal Threat. That means arrest… or erasure."
Koku clenched his jaw. "So what do we do?"
Erina hesitated, then said, "We find the Echo Point — the location where Chrono Blade vanished. If we can trace the energy, we might learn why you exist… and how to stabilize you."
Later that Night — Outside U.A.
The city was quiet, the streets painted silver by the moonlight.
Koku stood on the edge of a rooftop, the watch in his hand glowing faintly.
He closed his eyes — and for a split second, the world shifted.
He saw flashes: broken buildings, heroes lying motionless, the sky bleeding red.
"Koku…"
A voice — deep, heavy, and familiar — echoed through his mind.
He turned, and there he was — standing at the other end of the rooftop.
A man wrapped in dark armor, his presence radiating power and sorrow.
The original Chrono Blade.
"You've come far," the man said, his voice distorted by layers of time. "But you shouldn't be here."
Koku's breath caught in his throat. "Who are you really?"
"I am what remains of the hero who tried to save this world — and failed. When time shattered, pieces of me scattered across realities. You… are one of those pieces."
Koku stepped forward. "Then tell me how to fix this! How to stop the fractures!"
Chrono Blade's expression darkened.
"You can't fix time without breaking it again. To end the Chrono Fall… you'll have to erase yourself."
The words hit like a blade through his chest.
For a moment, neither spoke. The wind howled through the city — and then, Chrono Blade's form flickered and vanished like dust in the breeze.
Koku stood there alone, the weight of destiny crushing his chest.
Below him, Musutafu's lights shone brightly — unaware that time itself was crumbling.
He clenched his fist.
"Even if I'm just an echo… I'll rewrite my fate."