As Yu Zhou drove the off-road vehicle, he suddenly felt a brief weakness in his body—but just as quickly, it vanished.
"Unbelievable! Two Ultramen appearing at once!"
Naomi and the others on the ground watched, thrilled, as Ultraman Orb and Ultraman X appeared.
Until now, they had only ever seen one Ultraman at a time. Even with Orb's multiple forms, it was still a single Ultraman. Seeing Orb and X together was entirely unprecedented.
"That's Ultraman X!" Matsutoshi shouted excitedly. After talking about him so long, he was finally seeing X in person.
"Focus on filming! The world has to see this!" Naomi adjusted the camera in Shenta's hands, beaming.
The monster, Diaborigu, was a fully weaponized, mechanically enhanced kaiju, covered in heavy firepower and armor—capable of both offense and defense.
As Orb and X appeared, Diaborigu unleashed a barrage of ammunition and energy beams, attempting to obliterate the newly arrived Ultramen.
Orb quickly formed a basic shield to block the initial attacks. Then, he and X used their hands to deflect incoming fire, spiraling toward Diaborigu.
The two pulled and leveraged each other mid-spin, closing in on the monster.
Just before reaching it, Orb threw X directly onto Diaborigu.
X landed atop the monster's head, interrupting its attacks, and stared in confusion at Orb. Though he wanted to understand Orb's tactic, he saw Orb kick Diaborigu's arm-mounted cannon and decided not to question it further.
Rolling across the ground, X slammed into Diaborigu, then sprang up to launch a rapid assault.
Orb grabbed the monster's head and swung it toward X. X delivered a flying kick to its head, sparks flying, forcing Diaborigu to retreat.
Orb and X then backed away, preparing to unleash their finishing moves.
"Spario Ray…"
"Zanadium Beam…"
Before they could finish the incantations, a barrage struck them, interrupting their attacks.
"Two-on-one? That's unfair! Let me join the fun!"
Smoke and debris filled the battlefield as Orb and X looked toward the source: Sadis, who had long sought a fight with Gai.
"What's he doing?!" Daichi's voice rang out from within X.
"Focus, Daichi!" X replied, firing a concentrated beam at Sadis. Orb simultaneously launched an Eightfold Light Wheel at him.
Sadis swung his great sword twice, dispersing the attacks in fireworks and debris.
"Such weak attacks—pathetic," Sadis sneered, pointing at the two Ultramen.
Meanwhile, Diaborigu's cannons resumed firing at X and Orb. The Ultramen rolled to dodge, then stood once more, their chest color timers flashing red.
Yu Zhou finally arrived at the battlefield.
Just as he was about to store the off-road vehicle in his spatial wrist device, explosive energy struck it. A blast of heat scorched him—the vehicle was destroyed.
Yu Zhou smelled burnt hair, checked the mirror from his device, and saw a patch of his hair singed.
"You…!" His gaze shifted to Diaborigu, still attacking Orb and X relentlessly.
"Time's running out!" Daichi, inside X, shouted, glancing at his flashing timer.
"Leave it to me!"
"Zoffy!"
"Belial!"
"Lend me your power, light and darkness!"
"Ultraman Orb—Dark Riser Form!"
Orb, infused with Zoffy's and Belial's powers, transformed into Dark Riser. Charging through Sadis's barrage, he closed in.
"Embrace darkness, become light!"
Dark Riser punched Sadis squarely in the face, retaliating for earlier blows. Sadis flew back, landing in the dirt.
"Not bad," Sadis said, oddly exhilarated. Unlike others, taking hits excited him. "Finally, someone worth fighting."
While Orb engaged Sadis, X fought Diaborigu—but without Orb's support, he struggled.
Most attacks were ineffective; one strike even sent X sprawling under Diaborigu's arm.
Daichi realized his strength paled compared to Diaborigu.
Orb endured Sadis's punches, his formidable defense nullifying the blows. After a series of strikes, Orb slammed his head into Sadis's shoulder, forcing him back. He patted his chest, inviting another attack.
Sadis charged again, and the two clashed.
X noticed Diaborigu aiming a cannon at Orb, preparing a sneak attack.
"No!" Daichi shouted, shielding Orb with his body alongside X.
At that critical moment, a silver, purple, and red giant emerged, wrapped in light. He struck Diaborigu's arm-mounted cannon, deflecting it into a nearby building, which crystallized instantly.
"This…!!!"
Orb pushed Sadis aside, turning to see the giant in awe.
"Tiga!" Gai exclaimed. The sudden appearance of Ultraman Tiga shocked him.
"Tiga!" X breathed a sigh of relief. Without Tiga's timely arrival, he might have been in serious trouble.
"Tiga! Tiga! Tiga!" Inside the villa, Murunau stared at the screen, eyes wide. "Why is Tiga here?!"
"Tiga-senpai!" Orb greeted the unexpected ally warmly. Having borrowed Tiga's powers for so long, he was naturally familiar.
"Yu Zhou, you're finally here!" Daichi, within X, called to Tiga.
"Who told you guys to run off without me?" Yu Zhou muttered. His delay wasn't his fault—they hadn't taken him along!
"Well… it was urgent at the time," X scratched his head.
"Tiga-senpai… Yu Zhou???"
Orb's eyes widened, realizing the truth: Tiga was Yu Zhou. Yu Zhou was Tiga!
No wonder X had said Yu Zhou had helped him before—everything made sense now. Orb had always wondered how a human could support him so effectively.