Shiki: New Life chapter 26

"But Doctor, your theory is completely crazy!" Shigure Mashita commented on Hotaka's belief in the Shiki. "I have to agree with my husband, why should we believe vampires exist? They are stories made for children who misbehave, not nonfiction." Yutsuko Mashita replies, Hotaka shook his head, all of the concil was going against him now. "Hotaka my boy, you were the one who took my daughter, Naoki as your fiance, and where is she? Gone. So why should I believe that she could rise up as a member of the living dead?" The Mayor, Mr. Shirane stared hard at Hotaka who held his head down in shame. "I wasn't able to save her but I swear, open up the grave of Chiyo, Naoki, Yoshiko, Chinatsu, anyone. You will be suprised when the grave is empty." Hotaka yelled at Mayor Shirane, everyone looked at him with upset eyes, even Naoki's cousin, Satoko Ohira and her best friend, Shinju Mikuni looked at him with a gasp. "Enough with your theories, Doctor! Don't you think we had enough?" Mayor Shirane pointed to see the Mashita family galring at him, clearly they haven't gotten through with mourning their daughter, Chiyo.

Hotaka looked down at his feet, everyone lost family members the last two to three months, and still everyone is blaming him for their deaths and possible ressurection. "So, I am suggesting you have nothing else to say for us, Doctor?" Says Mayor Shirane's executive, Kanika Seta. "No... No I don't..." Hotaka says, sighing as he got up. "I bid you all farewell for now and I hope you all will realize the danger we are all in." Hotaka said as he quietly pushed his chair in and left the room silently. Hotaka looked to see Sunako sitting outside, she looked at him with big eyes.

"So, how did it go?" She asks which Hotaka shook his head. "They think I am crazy, turning out like my father." Hotaka admitted, Sunako sighed despite not being able to breathe. "They always think that vampires are fantasy when you can easily see from me standing here that there is more to them." Sunako says, Hotaka nods knowing that Sunako was right. "Yeah... We need to really get everyone to become aware, just like how my father did to you." Hotaka leaned on a post, trying to not think about the meeting. "That reminds me, what ever happened to Doctor Ozaki?" Sunako asked Hotaka who had blue eyes filled with sorrow as he looked at the violet haired Shiki.

"Dead. My father is gone." Hotaka muttered to Sunako, Sunako held her hands over her mouth. "But, he should still be clinging to life still roughly he would be around seventy or eighty years old." Sunako said, Hotaka shook his head. "Not when he got a heart attack. I want to help, I really do Sunako. But unlike my father, I will send the Shiki back less painfully compared to my father's ways." Hotaka told Sunako, she looked up at him with black eyes. "Really? How are you going to do that?" Sunako asked politely to the orange haired young man, Hotaka looked at the young Shiki. "Decapitation, I will use stakes only on Ko since she started this, but if all of the villagers that were killed have came back, I will kill them quick and painlessly." Hotaka said to Sunako who smiled softly.

"But I should ask you something, Hotaka." Hotaka looked at Sunako ask she was talking. "If any of the villagers or any Shiki that worked with Ko decide to come to our side, can they stay with my group? I mean, you villagers probably wouldn't want Shiki in the village." Sunako said with a hopeful look in her dark eyes, Hotaka nodded. "Of course. Honestly, I don't want to kill everyone. But if you can find them a home, I would be more than grateful." Hotaka said with a smile and Sunako nodded with happiness. "Of course! In fact, me and Seishin have become close to owners of a hospital. Every month they ship us blood packets so we could drink, they give us enough blood to last us until the next batch arrives. So the Shiki we have will never go hungry." Sunako smiled and Hotaka had to admire the young girl, she had figured out how to save most of his old friends, and Hotaka would be grateful. Hotaka sighed and got up, he looked at the sky, it was turning a bit blue.

"You better hurry home Sunako, the sun is about to come out." Hotaka walked off as he heard the young girl dash off to the forest. Her footsteps stopped and she turned to Hotaka. "By the way, tell Mitsuo that you have formed an alliance with me. He would be happy to know that you are going to help." Sunako smiled and ran back on her trail. Hotaka walked his own way, smiling for the first time in a while.

"The time is nearing for a war..." Hotaka said, shuddering...