It was a sad day that day, as Dokoku was finally destroyed.
That might sound weird, as his defeat was the very thing the Shinkengers were fighting so hard for. They were happy, don't think otherwise, but they knew that Dokoku's defeat meant that they were no longer needed at the Shiba house, that they would go their separate ways. None of them were particularly fond of the idea, none more so than Mako and Kotoha.
Kotoha was packing her bags with both clothes and gifts from her friends. A kabuki fan from Ryunosuke, a book on how to defeat a video game at an arcade that Kotoha could never beat from Chiaki, a sushi making book from Genta (not his own recipes, of course), and a framed photo of all them from Takeru. Kotoha smiled at this, as he smiled at her request for the picture. She wiped the single tear from her face as she looked at all her mementos and remembered all the happy times she had with each of them.
However, there were plenty of tears when she came to the object she valued most: the locket Mako gave her on Kotoha's birthday. This was because she dearly loved Mako with all her heart. Kotoha had met both men and women she thought was cute, but Mako made Kotoha feel... well, it was hard to explain but it was the best feeling in the world, which only made them leaving each other much more difficult.
Kotoha felt a hand gently touch her shoulder. Kotoha didn't have to look to know that touch, but she turned anyway to see the lovely but tear stained face of Mako. Kotoha turned so she could properly hug her girlfriend.
"I'm sorry Kotoha. I'm so sorry." Mako said crying, burying her face in Kotoha's neck.
"Mako, I'm just as guilty as you. You don't have to apologize." Kotoha said, crying but keeping a little more composure than Mako. Mako broke the hug but kept her hands gently on Kotoha's shoulders.
"I haven't seen my mother and father for so long, I just..." But Mako couldn't finish her thought. Kotoha kissed her to let her know she understood.
"And I'm not going to Hawaii with you because Mitsuba needs me, so we're even." Kotoha said, stroking Mako's face. Mitsuba was Kotoha's older sister and the one who would've been Shinken Yellow if she hadn't fell ill. It made Mako guilty, but she was glad Mitsuba wasn't her Yellow teammate. She doubted if she would have ever felt the way for Mitsuba as she does for Kotoha.
The two hugged each other for a while longer and, after saying goodbye to their other friends, went their separate ways. They promised to write and to, someday, be together again, although they had the fear in the back of their mind that their reunion may not be.