"What?!"
Tartarus stared at the scene before him in disbelief. The golden lightning arcs he had been releasing from his hands abruptly ceased.
Hyper Zetton also stopped attacking, frozen in confusion as it looked on.
"That's impossible—Saga doesn't appear like this!"
Tartarus was well aware of Ultraman Saga's existence. He knew exactly how Saga was supposed to be born.
The fusion of Dyna, Cosmos, and Zero was never meant to occur directly in the midst of an enemy's attack.
Rather, Saga was formed through the intertwined beliefs and resolve of Asuka, Musashi, and Taiga—transforming amid intersecting radiance and shared conviction.
"Saga? What's that?"
Hyper Zetton suddenly spoke with the voice of Alien Bat, turning toward Tartarus in confusion.
Before Tartarus could respond, the cyan, blue, and crimson lights shot skyward, merging into a colossal giant—several times larger than Yuzhou—who descended before everyone present.
Brilliant, multi-coloured light swirled around the giant's body, dazzling hues spreading across the darkened sky and scorched earth, radiant beyond comparison.
Ultraman Saga had appeared.
His body bore a red-to-blue gradient, light overflowing from his chest. He raised both arms toward Hyper Zetton and Tartarus, assuming a battle stance—ready for war.
"Hmph! No matter what you become, I am invincible!"
The Alien Bat showed not the slightest fear, driving Hyper Zetton forward in an attempt to charge.
But Tartarus abruptly grabbed Hyper Zetton, opened a golden dimensional vortex with one hand, and dragged it inside—vanishing instantly.
"They ran?"
The voices of Taiga, Musashi, and Asuka rang out simultaneously from within Saga, filled with disbelief.
The real battle had only just begun—yet the enemy had already fled?
Leaving without so much as a backward glance?
"Yes. They ran."
Yuzhou sighed helplessly as he approached Saga and looked up at him.
Saga's current form towered far above him. Yuzhou could enlarge himself if necessary—but there was no need.
"Then… what do we do now?"
Inside Saga, the three were utterly perplexed.
Hyper Zetton was gone.
The Alien Bat was gone.
Even that golden warrior calling himself Tartarus had escaped.
Under these circumstances, how could this Earth possibly be saved?
Yuzhou remembered clearly: in the original timeline, once Hyper Zetton was destroyed, the world returned to normal. All vanished humans and lifeforms were restored.
But now Hyper Zetton hadn't been defeated at all.
So what were they supposed to fight?
"Saga, come with me."
After a brief pause, Yuzhou spoke decisively.
Calling out Asuka, Taiga, and Musashi individually was too troublesome. Addressing them as Saga was far more efficient.
"Go with you? Where to?"
The three voices asked from within Saga.
"To find Hyper Zetton. Only by destroying it can this Earth return to normal," Yuzhou replied.
"Where do we even look?"
Saga pressed further.
"Across time and space."
Yuzhou pointed to the location where Tartarus and Hyper Zetton had disappeared.
Saga disintegrated.
He had barely been born before dispersing again.
Yuzhou asked whether the three could still fuse into Saga, and received a firm confirmation from Asuka, Taiga, and Musashi.
At that moment, Yuzhou fully understood—
The requirements for Saga's fusion were not merely Dyna, Zero, and Cosmos.
They required Asuka, Taiga, and Musashi themselves.
Most critically, in the original timeline, Taiga had separated from Zero and remained on that Earth.
"So you're saying… in another parallel universe, there's another me?"
"And another us?"
Taiga, Musashi, and Asuka were all stunned.
Because Yuzhou had just told them—the destination ahead lay within a parallel timeline.
The Asuka of that world was not the Asuka Yuzhou knew.
Likewise, Yuzhou had not revealed his former identity as a GUTS member—because in that Asuka's memories, Yuzhou had never existed.
Taiga was easier to deal with. The young man never paid much attention to the past anyway.
"Let's go."
A white ring of light spiralled out from the suitcase in Yuzhou's hand, forming a temporal wormhole.
Yuzhou leapt in together with the three of them.
"Where… are we?"
Taiga scratched his head as he looked around.
The landing site clearly was not Earth.
Not only was the environment unfamiliar, but multiple planets were visible in the sky above.
"Still, this place feels pretty nice."
Musashi reached out and touched a massive nearby plant, speaking calmly.
"Wait… I hear fighting."
Asuka seemed to catch something, leading the group forward.
Passing towering plants and enormous rock formations, they soon located the source of the sounds.
"Ah—it's Taiga's Tri-Squad."
Zero's voice suddenly came from the bracelet on Taiga's wrist.
"Taiga? Tri-Squad?"
Musashi and Asuka looked puzzled. They had never seen these three Ultramen before.
"The Tri-Squad consists of Taiga, son of Taro; Titas from Planet U40; and Fuma from Planet O-50," Zero explained.
"Zero's explanation is correct," Yuzhou added, "but the Tri-Squad in front of us isn't the one you know."
"This is another timeline's Tri-Squad. And in this timeline… there is also another Zero."
"There's another me?"
Zero sounded more intrigued than shocked.
Given his own mastery over time-related powers, such matters were hardly beyond his understanding.
"By the way," Yuzhou continued, "the Zero of this timeline has already been acknowledged by Ultraman Leo—and has received his cape."
"Well, of course."
Zero chuckled confidently.
"After all, I am Zero. Ultraman Zero!"
"But if they're all Ultramen," Taiga asked, "why are they fighting each other?"
Especially Titas—his sheer muscular build was impossible to ignore.
"They're training," Cosmos said gently.
"I can sense that this planet's gravity is unusual. It should be extremely effective for muscle conditioning."
"Really?"
Taiga lifted his foot experimentally, but felt nothing out of the ordinary.
Just then—
A flash of blue light streaked across the sky.
A jet-black figure descended violently from above.
Glowing blue eyes.
An upright humanoid form.
A body resembling layered armour.
Twin sickle-like blades protruding from its head.
And in its hands—
A double-pronged weapon, gleaming with menace.