Song: 02 LIFE GAME Anonymous;Code Soundtrack

...Okay, this isn't good.

Having detransformed back into civilian form, Kyon, along with Kohtaro and Acrobatter, noticed the frozen figures of the young women who were just standing near the door. He sprinted toward the two women while Kohtaro went inside to check the house for his wife, Jouji, and Hana.

Well, that's just great, they're just as frozen as everybody else, and there's no sign of Jouji. Fortunately, I at least know how to bring them out of this funk, thanks to the trusty superpower of my belt. You gotta love the man who designed it. Why couldn't he have been my mentor instead of Mr. I Know It All Because I'm So Cool, Sunnovabitch (*1)?

Kyon would begin to touch the shoulder of Hagumi. Light static emerges from her body before she manages to become conscious.

"Huh!" Hagumi sported a surprised expression.

"Welcome back to the land of the living," Kyon spoke casually as he walked toward Tsukuyomi. He did the same thing to Tsukuyomi, who was surprised to see Kyon.

"What the-" Tsukuyomi said.

"Oi, Tomorrow, where's Jouji?" Kyon asks Hagumi.

"I... Ah! Papa!" Hagumi now notices that her father is missing. "Wait, but! He was... He was right here...!"

Not good. Something or somebody must have taken him elsewhere while time itself has stopped.

"Kyon!" Kohtaro, along with a worried Reiko and Stewart, would join them. "Jouji isn't in the house!"

"Already knew that judging by this girl's face," Kyon moved his face a little to indicate Hagumi's anxious face. He looks at Tsukuyomi who has her own concerns etched unto her face. "Tsukuyomi, right?"

"Eh-Ehm," Tsukuyomi nodded.

"Alright, before we bring in the obligatory introductions and exposition dumps," Kyon snaps his fingers a bit. A grey aurora curtain would eventually engulf them all as they now stand towards a section in the suburban area.

"Wha-" Tsukuyomi showed a surprised expression.

Face to face, there was a large house, or may as well be an apartment building, combined to be a café and a photo studio. The words "Hikari Studios" were present on the front door. On the nearby sidewalks, various people were also frozen in time.

Alright everybody, welcome to Hikari Studios, my de-facto mobile base of operations that can travel to different worlds and timelines. Well, I say that, but I'm unfortunately not the owner of this apartment building. I'd rather not get the secret technique that would send me sprawling to the floor laughing out loud like an emoji gone incarnate. Even with time stopping everywhere, I'd probably bet that the occupants of this apartment were protected from it.

They say that appearances can be deceiving. It's no less true than this building. It's been through actual wars, you know?

Kyon steps forward, crossing the ramp to eventually press the doorbell on the right.

Beep.

"...Coming!"

The voice of a child was echoing inside the door. The door opens, revealing the speaker. A young girl, about six or seven years of age, with black hair and brown eyes, wearing casual clothing consisting of a dark blue and white shirt and grey skirt.

Now, to those who were wondering. This is my sensei's and his wife's pipsqueak daughter, Kadoya Akiko (*2). Despite my understandable disagreements with Mr. I Know It All, one thing we definitely agree on is that this girl must be genuinely protected at all costs. I will give my life, not for honor, but for you. And no, I did not just make a Metal Gear reference that correlates with this cinnamon roll.

"Oh, Kyon-kun," the child smiled brightly. "You're back from your trip with Hagumi-san. And, oh! Kohtaro-oji-san and Reiko-oji-san!"

"Ah, Akiko-chan, it's good to see you again," Kohtaro smiled a bit as he saw a running Akiko hugging him.

"Ara, Kyon-kun, Hagumi-chan, you're back. And Kohtaro-san and Reiko-san too."

A beautiful woman somewhere in her thirties, with dark brown hair and brown eyes, and casual clothing with a pink jacket, pink hat, and the words "Mrs. Destroyer of Worlds is the Law" tagged onto her white shirt.

And this fine and mature woman in her thirties is Kadoya Natsumi... Oh, sorry, Hikari Natsumi. She's still keeping her maiden name after all in light of running the family business that is the Gorgeous (*3) Hikari Studios. I would raise both of my hands to mimic my narration, but that would kind of make me weird as hell for everybody. I don't want to end up like that weirdo Dan Kuroto Shin.

"Ara, we have guests! Oh nice for Kyon to bring them here!" A white flying bat would hover towards Natsumi.

And this talking bat right here is Kiva-la, the younger sister of Kivat-Bat the 3rd, and Hikari-sama's pet that she got back in 2009. Very long story, I'd rather not bore one of the details.

"Hikari-san," Kyon spoke to the woman. "I'll leave them to you. I'm gonna go fetch a few other people who should be here as well. That way, I wouldn't need to explain all over again."

An aurora curtain would automatically be conjured up, moving towards Kyon as he and the curtain disappear.

And just like that, I leave, in style of course.

...

...

...

"Oh, that boy," Kiva-la mused. "Whether he admits it or not, it's obvious that he's emulating Kadoya-san."

"...Natsuki-san," Kohtaro would walk a bit towards Natsumi and talk with a concerned tone. "Do you have any idea of what's happening right now?"

Natsumi gave a grave expression, looking at both the concerned Minami parents, and nodded. "Hmm, I do, but..." She glances left and right. "We should all probably speak inside while we wait for Kyon to show up."

"Come on, Kohtaro-ojii-san!" Akiko spoke with an innocent, cheerful smile.

Everyone would walk inside the door of the apartment building, with Natsumi staying behind as she looked outside with a concerned expression.

She was silent. Whatever thoughts she had, she would keep to herself as she closed the door and headed inside.

...

...

...

"...Next Decade, huh?"

Swartz was looking at the Hikari Studios building from afar.

"I see... It seems that in this changed timeline, you would possibly be my enemy if the present actions of your successor are anything to go by, Kadoya Tsukasa," He said. "I see... If that's the case, then consider it a 'Challenge accepted'. Destroyer of Worlds you may be, but even gods of destruction... must die soon."

"Grrrrrr..."

Swartz smirked as the monstrous Another Build was growling behind him.

"...I have a mission for you, girl," Swartz turns around and looks at a photo that has the image of Jouji Minami. "Find this boy, for he is a threat to your precious Makoto-kun."

"GGGGGGRRRRRRRRRRRR!" The eyes of the monstrous figure glowed with a dark shade of red and blue. The voice seems to be distorted, covering the identity of the woman behind the armor.

"That's right," Swartz smirked. "Find him, and eliminate him, at once. That is the only way to ensure your boyfriend's safety."

"...Grrrrrrrrrrr. Makoto-kun. For... Makoto-kun! Grrrrraaaaaaaaaaaaagh!" Another Build roared.

Trivia For Chapter:

(*1) - References to a line that was uttered by the protagonist of the visual novel/anime Steins;Gate, Rintarou Okabe.

(*2) - Akiko Kadoya was named after Akiko Narumi, who in the World of Kamen Rider, was the head of the Narumi Detective Office after inheriting it from her deceased father and Kamen Rider, Sokichi Narumi - Kamen Rider Skull. Because of this, she is also the landlady and companion of Shotaro Hidari and Philip - Kamen Rider W.

(*3) - To Kamen Rider fans who are reading this, if you would headcanon this as the moment Kyon via narration is referencing Ho-Oh Kaguya Quartz - Kamen Rider Legend, then I can neither confirm nor deny it at this time, but I won't stop you from doing so. Just don't expect, at least at the time of this writing, for anything Reiwa-related, for a lot of good reasons. Mainly narrative ones.