When Souta arrived at the scene, the fire had already spread completely.
The entire Nankou Street was engulfed in flames, with buildings and trees burning one after another.
All around, cries of distress and screams echoed as the residents on the streets fled in terror.
Souta activated his Quirk, "Half-Cold Half-Hot," and sent out waves of freezing energy with a flick of his hand.
Wherever he passed, a thick layer of ice formed on the ground.
The spreading fire was quickly extinguished, preventing further casualties.
Souta didn't know if the fire from five years ago had resulted in any deaths, but since he was here now, he wasn't going to ignore it.
As he continued to move forward, freezing everything in his path, he soon reached the source of the spirit energy disturbance.
Souta stopped at the outskirts of the park and didn't go any closer.
Based on the storyline, the five-years-younger versions of Shido Itsuka, Kotori Itsuka, and Mio Takamiya's phantom clone should all be inside.
If he got too close and was noticed by Mio Takamiya, that would be a problem.
Souta used his divine power to enhance his vision to the absolute limit, allowing him to see through everything with near-miraculous clarity as he observed the situation in the park.
Little Kotori was wearing her Spirit battle outfit and was crying loudly, while the young Shido Itsuka lay unconscious on the ground.
Upon seeing Shido Itsuka's face, Souta was a bit surprised.
"Why... does he look kind of too delicate?"
Although he found it a bit odd, his attention was quickly drawn elsewhere.
A silhouetted figure stood not far from the Itsuka siblings—or rather, calling it a silhouette might not be accurate, as its real form resembled a pixelated blur, like a mosaic.
Souta whispered her name.
At the same time, he concealed his entire divine aura inside his Divine Realm to avoid detection.
Back then, Shiroyasha and Kurumi had teamed up to brutally beat Mio Takamiya down!
If she still held a grudge over that event and decided to take it out on him, that would be bad news.
Her Angel abilities could bypass his divine shield, so if a fight broke out, he would definitely be at a disadvantage.
"I don't see future Shido Itsuka or Tobiichi Origami either... so how exactly did Origami's parents die?"
Souta couldn't figure it out, so he decided to leave the area and search for Origami and her parents from this timeline to see for himself.
However, just as he was about to move, a hand suddenly landed on his shoulder.
Since he was deep in thought and the surrounding chaos was too loud, Souta didn't notice someone approaching him.
So, when he felt the pressure on his shoulder, he was startled.
Turning around, he saw a tall and beautiful girl, about 1.7 meters (5'7") in height.
She had a delicate and stunning face, with long, silky blue hair flowing down her back, and lively brown eyes that shone with intelligence.
Her smooth, flawless skin looked soft and dewy, as if it could melt under the touch.
She wore sakura-colored lip gloss and had cute hair accessories. Her long eyelashes, likely false ones, made her expressive eyes seem even larger.
A faint perfume scent lingered in the air around her—she seemed to really enjoy dressing up.
"This place is too dangerous! You need to evacuate now!"
The blue-haired girl spoke urgently, her face filled with concern.
However, contrary to her serious tone, her voice was incredibly cute.
After saying this, the girl rushed past Souta and ran straight toward the park.
Souta watched her back, recalling her exquisite features, and slightly furrowed his brows.
Then, he looked over at the 11-year-old Shido Itsuka lying on the ground inside the park.
He compared their faces...
And they looked shockingly similar.
Souta's eyes widened, and his mouth dropped open, revealing a look of utter disbelief.
"Wait! No, no, no. This has to be a coincidence! Yes, just a coincidence!"
Refusing to believe it, he immediately took out his system phone and privately messaged Kurumi.
Souta: "Kurumi, you've seen Shido Itsuka before, right? I remember you even tried to test the Itsuka siblings by threatening them, only to get beaten up by Kotori, right?"
At that moment, far away in the Akame ga Kill world, Kurumi rubbed her temples, feeling both frustrated and confused.
"What is Souta doing?!"
"Why is he bringing up such an embarrassing memory out of nowhere?"
Sure, he could be annoying sometimes, but he usually wasn't this blunt.
Kurumi: "What's wrong with Shido Itsuka?"
Souta: "I want to know more about him."
Kurumi: "Huh? But back then, you were the one who gave me all the intel. Shouldn't you know more about him than I do?"
Souta: "Fine, let me ask this another way. The Shido Itsuka you saw—what did he look like? Was he dressed as a girl?"
Kurumi: "Dressed as a girl? He was just wearing a regular shirt and jeans. It wasn't very gender-specific. Oh, but he did have pretty long hair. He tied it up in a ponytail, which is rare for a guy."
Wait... he already had long hair back then?
Souta: "But in the anime, Shido Itsuka didn't have long hair. Didn't you find that weird?"
Kurumi: "The anime and reality are different. That's nothing unusual. After all, the system already said that each story world is independent and has nothing to do with reality. Some details being different should be normal, right?"
Kurumi: "Souta, what exactly are you trying to say?"
Souta exhaled lightly.
Although he couldn't believe it, his guess was probably correct.
Souta: "Shido Itsuka... might actually be a girl."
Souta: "No, more accurately... she should be called 'Shido Shiori.' Maybe we've been mistaken from the start."
Kurumi: "Wait a second, isn't 'Shido Shiori' just the fake name Shido used when crossdressing? And why would Shido Itsuka be a girl?"
Souta: "I have no idea! Maybe my world and the anime adaptation are just different. The story worlds are independent, and we don't even know which one existed first."
Kurumi: "This is truly shocking!"
Kurumi: "But that's not the main issue right now. Shido—no, Shiori—showing up in the past doesn't make sense. I already decided not to let her and Tobiichi Origami interfere with the timeline, so why is she still here? Other than me, no one else in the Date A Live world should have the ability to time travel."
Souta: "Because this past event existed before you even got your system phone. It's already recorded in history. It can't just disappear, right? I think the world's self-correction ability is bringing Shiori back to the past to maintain history."
Before Souta could send his next message, a deafening explosion suddenly echoed through the air.
Looking up, he saw a blinding energy beam descending from the sky.