Seeing that Gates was about to act impulsively, Ryuga quickly stepped forward to stop him.
"Sougo, after learning about the future he had created, swore never to become the Demon King. And you—you're thinking of ending your own life just to escape it all?" Ryuga questioned firmly.
"If you really go through with this, who's going to stop Sougo if he ends up becoming the Demon King of Time?"
Gates said nothing. In his mind, images of Sougo's voice, his smile, and his unwavering confidence echoed again and again.
Sougo had dared to bet on his future self. Why couldn't Gates do the same?
Gradually, Gates calmed down. Ryuga smiled, reassured. These primary and secondary Riders—they were often introspective, self-guided, and stronger than they looked. All it took was a few carefully placed words, and they'd find their own answers.
"To be honest, even if you manage to obtain the Revive Rider Watch, you can't use it immediately," Ryuga warned. "To activate it, you need the determination to defeat the Ohma Zi-O."
"What?!" Gates was stunned. Wasn't Ryuga just telling him not to kill Sougo? And now he says he must have the will to do so?
"Just a friendly reminder—another Riders are Riders too." Ryuga smiled cryptically and returned to 2019 with Gates.
—
Back in 2019, Sougo rushed over to meet Gates.
"Gates! What did he say to you?"
"Nothing important," Gates replied calmly, masking his doubts.
"Alright, if you say so..." Sougo shrugged. "Anyway, another Kikai has shown up again. Let's go!"
Following the plan they devised en route, they confronted another Kikai. The two Riders locked eyes briefly before jumping into action—pretending to battle while discreetly scanning their surroundings.
"It's coming!" Gates shouted.
Sougo got the signal and quickly intensified his attack, defeating another Kikai in no time. This time, they saw it with their own eyes—strange wood embedded in its face.
Before they could act, a blur of motion appeared. Swartz had arrived and seized the wooden object.
"So the core of this another Rider's birth isn't a watch—it's a special material," Swartz muttered, glancing toward Heure.
Heure leaned in to examine it. At that moment, Swartz placed his hand on Heure's face.
"Swartz! What are you doing?!" Heure screamed, struggling, but Swartz easily pinned him down.
"I don't need your permission," Swartz sneered. "You're just a pawn—one that must serve its purpose."
"You betrayed your comrade! What are you trying to pull?" Sougo demanded. Until now, they had no idea how Swartz planned to help them.
"Using Heure as a catalyst to stabilize another Rider's power should allow me to create a Rider Watch," Swartz explained. Realizing he was revealing too much, he added, "I want the watch too. Let's see who gets it first."
With that, he vanished with Heure, leaving behind the yet-unformed watch. Sougo, unable to keep up, returned with Gates to the Kujigoji Hall.
—
At dinner, Sougo grinned. "Gates, I figured out how to get the Kikai Rider Watch!"
"Oh," Gates replied flatly, continuing to eat.
Sougo blinked. "???"
Was this the same Gates who had been so desperate for the Revive Rider Watch?
Gates, inwardly: What's the point? I can't even use it yet.
"So... what should I do then?" Sougo asked, turning to Yuedu.
"I had a dream about it earlier..." Sougo admitted sheepishly.
"You were napping again?!" Gates snapped. "Do you still want to graduate? Or become a dropout Demon King?!"
"Uhh... I was doing it for you," Sougo murmured.
"Oh, so now it's my fault?!" Gates exploded.
"Alright, alright, focus on the important stuff!" Yuedu stepped in to calm them both. "Sougo, continue."
"Okay, so... Kamen Rider Kikai is a robot, right? That means it has a command protocol that can activate or shut it down. If we can find that same command for the another Kikai, we can disable it and grab the watch!"
"What's the command?"
"WillBeTheBFF!"
"BFF?" Gates raised an eyebrow. "As in Best Friends Forever?"
Sougo beamed. "Exactly!"
"Stop right there," Ryuga cut in. "That's the wrong command."
"Huh? No way!" Sougo pouted. "It took me a lot of effort to figure that out!"
Ryuga shot him a glare. "You were asleep! That's not effort."
"Eheh..." Sougo chuckled awkwardly.
Ryuga pointed to a toy robot on the shelf. "Yuedu, bring that here."
"Alright." Yuedu retrieved the toy and handed it to him.
"No need to give it to me—just look at the back."
"What am I looking for?" Yuedu examined the toy. Behind the robot, she found an engraving: WillBeTheKing.
"That's the correct command," Gates deduced instantly.
"Right," Ryuga nodded.
"But why would that be the control phrase for an another Kikai?" Sougo asked, confused.
"Why do you care?" Ryuga rolled his eyes. Of course I can't tell them I don't know either.
Technically, according to canon, Kamen Rider Kikai existed because of Sougo. But that made no sense to Ryuga. The timeline of Kikai was a future branch of the salvation arc—one where Sougo failed to become Demon King and was killed by Gates. If Sougo had been killed, how could Kikai exist at all?
That logic was flawed. But none of that mattered. If there was a problem, let the screenwriters deal with it.
For now, they had a clear goal: defeat the another Kikai and acquire the final future Rider Watch to unlock Gates' Revive Form. Then, Ryuga could leave this world for a while.
After all, the next arc—Another Zi-O: Sour Rider—was so ridiculous, he didn't even want to see it.
Of course, that wasn't the only reason.
When Sougo eventually destroyed the world, Ryuga planned to leave with Ora. If he didn't act now, he might lose his chance to charm the lovely young lady—especially once she became powerful enough to challenge him.
And the third reason—perhaps the most important in Ryuga's mind—was simple: there was something in that world that could increase his power. And he would stop at nothing to obtain it.