Healing the Special Dying Heartful Tree
Kazuki tries to figure out what that vision he just saw and the girl with the glasses seemly talking to him though couldn't hear anything, but now he finds himself back in the old room inside the old house he and the girls have entered.
"Kazuki!" The girls shouted to get his attention.
"Huh?" Kazuki wondered if what he saw was really true or not.
"Kazuki, are you alright?" Kuriko asked concern.
"You should've been more careful. We were lucky it wasn't a deadly trap or anything." Sayumi scolded the werewolf boy a little.
"She is right, be more cautious in the near future." Rin advised.
"I promise." Kazuki said then notice the picture frame he is holding; he becomes shocked of what is in the picture.
"This is…?" Now all the girls look towards the picture frame as they too become shocked.
"Dr. Akai!" Kazuki said.
This gave the group the idea that Keyaki had a close tie with the doctor of the school recalling she did come to Aoi Academy to study medicine with magic, perhaps this doctor may also know what exactly happened to Keyaki and wonder where her blue magatama is.
They all decided to head back to school to confront the doctor about this and hopefully he will provide the answer about Keyaki's fate.
(Dr. Akai's Office)
The group came to the doctor's office telling him about what they know so far about Keyaki and her time being at this school.
"Under normal circumstances, I would never consider revealing a student's private data, but if you already know that much then I suppose there is no harm." Dr. Akai said.
"Just make sure not to leave our any details, even the smallest ones can help." Sayumi stated.
"Right." Dr. Akai nodded while still staring through the window of his office, remembering the young girl and her time here.
"Ms. Otomura did come here to consultant with me on many occasions." Dr. Akai recalled the time when Keyaki told him about her dream.
(Flashback)
Keyaki and Dr. Akai are seen together next to a tree with orange leaves because of the fall season upon them, Keyaki asked the professor to come for a private meeting as she wanted to tell him something really important and believes the doctor is trustful person to talk with.
"Professor, my dream is to become a doctor one day, just like you." Keyaki revealed her dream to her medical idol.
"I see, and with you grades it's more than possible. You just have to have do your best." Dr. Akai advised.
"I will, but it cost a lot of money to become a doctor. Is it?" Keyaki asked worry for the expenses.
"It is true that is costs more than normal university." Dr. Akai answered.
"We don't have any spare money. My father's hobby of collecting antiques has gone too far and he has many debts." Keyaki revealed.
"If your grades are high enough, then it would be possible for you to enter a national school and even get a scholarship." Dr. Akai believed seeing how much potential she has.
"You think I can do that?" Keyaki asked with a smile.
"Of course." Dr. Akai nodded with a smile of his own.
"Then I'll really try my best!" Keyaki determined to become the best doctor in the world.
(Flashback End)
Dr. Akai close the curtains with a slight sad face of remembering that day and sat down at his desk.
"Were her grades enough to get into a university?" Kazuki asked, at least wanted to know that part.
"She tried her best, but misfortune started when her mother passed away at a young age." Dr. Akai mentioned.
"An unusual illness, wasn't it?" Kuriko asked, having to heard that before.
"Yes, ones' magic power suddenly declined. So few people can track this illness that no one has yet to find an affect means to treat it." Dr. Akai said as he was fully aware of this rare illness too as the students felt bad for Keyaki.
"Her misfortune continues… When her mother was still alive, she was able to keep her father's antique habit in check, but when she died it quickly got out of control." Dr. Akai informed.
"That's why they were so in debt." Kazuki said.
"The debts continue to grow, but despite that, she threw herself into her studies. Determine that she would become a doctor." Dr. Akai mentioned how strong will Keyaki was.
"She cut back on the living expenses and somehow manage to save some money, but even that was taken by her father who spent all for more antiques for his collecting." Dr. Akai explained.
"How sad." Yuna commented.
This made the students felt angry to this father who was so stupid to only care for his antique collection than the lives of his own family, especially with how it's making Keyaki's life miserable as she was trying to best to make sure they would have a roof over their heads and food in their bellies. Sayumi and Kuriko secretly wishes in their heads that this father would burn in Hell for putting misfortune on his family and wasting his time with junk.
"Keyaki's father ended up dying involve in a serious traffic accident one week before she, herself passed away." Dr. Akai mentioned.
"It's almost as if her whole family has been cursed." Kuriko commented, now feeling bad thinking about the father burning in hell.
"She was a student of mine; one I shall certainly never forget." Dr. Akai said serious.
"If only she could have been able to become a doctor." Sayumi said softly.
"No doubt, she would have helped a lot of people as well." Rin felt sad for her dead senpai.
"Doctor, I wonder if it's true that Miss Otomura always wore a blue magatama." Yuna brought up the object the group has been looking for.
"Yes, and she always wore it close to her heart." Dr. Akai remembered that magatama.
He remembered how Keyaki said the blue magatama is very special to her as it was a gift from her father, letting her know that he still cared for the family despite liking antiques so much.
"That's what the four of you are looking for, isn't it?" Dr. Akai asked.
"Of course, it's the whole reason why we're looking for it." Rin answered.
"Her father bought it for her when she was a little girl, when her family was still happy and healthy." Dr. Akai mentioned.
"I wonder if her young sister, Kade has it right now." Yuna said.
"Probably so." Kazuki hoped that is the case and wonder if this Kade girl is still thinking about her older sister right now.
"But I'm sure Kade would never consider parting with such a precious family momentum." Yuna felt awful now for wanting to find that magatama help Kazuki with his spell counts.
"Then we can just go find her and talk with her." Kazuki suggested.
"Really?" Yuna asked surprise.
"Yeah, I think we can drop the magatama plan and just go meet her. She sounds like an interesting person to get along with and I also want to hear more about her older sister, I say we can be great friends with her." Kazuki smiled with his fangs showing.
"I believe I speak for all of us that we feel the same way." Sayumi believed.
"Then all we need to do is go look for her." Kuriko stated.
"I will be of help as much as I can." Rin offered her help on this.
"So doc, do you by any chance know where Keyaki's younger sister is?" Kazuki asked, but the doctor sat there quiet for a moment.
"I'm afraid you're all mistaken." Dr. Akai said, confusing the group of what the doctor means by that.
"Keyaki's younger sister, Kade is no longer alive. She dead several years ago." Dr. Akai revealed.
This shook the core of the four students of this new revealing to them about Kade being dead for years which is also very confusing to them, she can Kade be dead if Keyaki has spent years trying to find make her little sister feeling better like a healthy horse.
"Hold on a second, that can't be right." Sayumi slammed her fist on the table.
"You said that Keyaki entered Aoi Academy to become a doctor. Wasn't that because she wanted to learn how to cure Kade's illness?" Yuna asked.
"That's all quite true. Her younger sister had the same serious illness as their mother." Dr. Akai mentioned.
"But she said wanted to cure her younger sister's illness." Kuriko recalled that being mentioned.
"Now I'm more confused than ever…" Kazuki felt his head is gonna split from all this.
"She certainly did say that. Although her little sister must've passed away a long time ago." Dr. Akai said.
"Did you confront her about this?" Rin asked, wanting to know how she really felt about her sister's death.
"When I asked her about it, she would just smile. Even I wanted to know what that meant." Dr. Akai answered.
"It would seem this mystery has just gotten more deeper than we thought." Sayumi crossed her arms under her breasts
"I feel like we just hit a dead end." Kazuki exclaimed.
"Weren't there any clues or something she left behind?" Yuna asked.
"Sadly, no." Dr. Akai answered as there might not be anything the students can look into right now.
But then a thought came to his mind, another thing about Keyaki he can remember clearly that could perhaps help them, but not sure if this can.
"But you know, she spent a lot of time in the courtyard under the maple tree. She seems to like it, that's where she told me about her dream of becoming a doctor." Dr. Akai mentioned.
"Beneath the maple tree." Kazuki started to think if that could be the same maple tree he would always go to take a nap and relax from everything else.
And then he remembers hearing that strange voice from before, the voice that said "Save me" from before and then something sharp came through his head as realization hits him upon figuring out the important clue.
"Could it be that the Kade is actually…" Kazuki shocked, thought it was crazy but maybe it's the answer they have been looking for.
"Kazuki, what are you thinking?" Sayumi asked, noticing Kazuki seem to have thought of something.
"Come with me outside, I think I just found out something big about Keyaki." Kazuki said before quickly running and jumping through the window.
"KazukI!" Yuna called out worry for her future husband.
"Come on, we should see what he has in mind." Rin said before everyone ran out of the doctor office.
Kazuki is standing in front of the lone maple tree with his hand on the length as he wanted to see if what he thinks it's right, then he sniffs the tree sensing something odd within the tree almost like there is a small spark though couldn't make out what it is though he believes he has an idea or two.
"Kazuki, what on earth is going on?" Kuriko asked as she and everyone arrived at the tree.
"Yes, you ran off in such a hurry." Sayumi pointed out.
"Sorry to spook you all like that, but you see, I heard this maple wasn't being well lately. I think it's possible that Keyaki felt the same way to this particular tree as she did to her little sister." Kazuki explained.
"I see where you're getting at since Kade also means maple." Sayumi realized as Kazuki nods at her.
"And she would come here very often, right?" Kazuki asked.
"Yes, she does that." Dr. Akai answered.
"In that case, she heard that this tree was sick, and she would try to heal it somehow. It would make sense that she might've been preferring to this tree which she said she was going to heal Kade." Kazuki explained his theory.
"So, she tried to heal this maple tree." Yuna surprised.
"Can such a thing even be possible?" Sayumi wondered.
"It's true this tree has been called unhealthy. At one point, it was decided it would be cut down but it suddenly revied, so that was called off." Dr. Akai mentioned.
"It's possible that Keyaki strength the tree by using her magic." Kazuki stated.
"She couldn't. She simple couldn't have that much power left." Dr. Akai turned down the thought as he knew Keyaki's magic power, and it was nowhere strong enough to revie this whole tree.
But something clicks in his mind, something important that he hadn't consider the thought before until now.
"Professor?" Kazuki noticed that Dr. Akai seem to have just thought of something.
"There is something only a few people who were involved with the arrangement. Keyaki's body was NOT at her funeral." Dr. Akai revealed another shocking secret.
This shocked the girls again upon hearing that Keyaki had a funeral a week before the high school graduation and was honored by some but hearing that a body was never even present at the funeral in the first place, and this got them thinking that something else happened to Keyaki as well.
"Doctor, I believe she use the simplest and most affective method she could do to heal this maple tree. I'm sure of it." Kazuki believed.
"I see, that means..." Dr. Akai said, realizing that too.
"(What is this method that Kazuki spoke of, could this method be the cause of her own death and why her body wasn't at the funeral?)" Sayumi thought wondered.
"(If there is something here that can give us a clear answer, then I believe Kazuki is right.)" Kuriko thought looked toward Kazuki as he is digging up the ground.
"I believe Keyaki buried the magatama here, underneath the soil and close to the maple tree." Kazuki said as he starts digging faster until he found it.
"There it is, the magatama!" Kazuki alerted everyone as they come to see this for themselves and are surprised by it though notice some cracks on it as well.
It was then everyone now came to thinking of the same conclusion as Dr. Akai and Kazuki thought of what really happened to Keyaki, on her true final moment of this world.
"She used the magatama's magical power to heal the maple tree." Yuna amazed of how Keyaki was so thoughtful for this single tree.
"And now because of you, young Werewolf King, I finally found the reason of why Keyaki turned to ash." Dr. Akai said adjusting his glasses a little.
(Flashback)
Keyaki is trying to use every magical strength she can summon on both her sickly mother and little sister even though she knew this would be the cost of herself greatly.
"Not only did Keyaki used up a great deal of magic trying to heal her sister and her mother, but she also then tried to save the maple tree by infusing her magic into the magatama, burying it near the roots." Dr. Akai explained.
Keyaki buried the magatama in the ground to the roots of the maple tree. Once she finishes with that task, she hold out her hand toward the tree and used all and every last of her magic on the tree that causes her body to become ashes a second later as she died smiling with no regrets.
(Flashback End)
"She used the last of her magic right here and disappeared into the wind." Dr. Akai concluded the explanation.
Kazuki stare down at the magatama feeling its magic fading as it can no longer keep the maple tree alive and healthy like it has been doing since, clutching his fists and his eyes shadowed by his hair.
"Keyaki was willing to use the last of her power at the cost of her own life to safeguard this tree from destruction. That's because this tree was particularly a part of her." Kazuki smiled as he stands up.
"But this tree is sick again, isn't it?" Kazuki asked Dr. Akai who look closer at the magatama.
"I suspect the power of the magatama is no longer affecting it. The surface is full of cracks, evidence of the magic has weakened, it's quite old and has been emitting power for many years. It will disintegrate soon." Dr. Akai explained.
"Meaning if Kazuki were to take it now, the magatama will shatter and the tree will die suddenly." Sayumi figured out that much to which, Dr. Akai nods.
"Then there is only one thing to do!" Kazuki said as he is about to use his magic to fill the magatama with power.
But Rin strikes the shin of his leg causing the wolf boy to howl in pain and back away by Sayumi.
"There's no way we're gonna let you use your magic again!" Kuriko gathered her talismans and fired a strong magical blast the magatama, Rin and Yuna joins in, and Sayumi decided to help out as well.
The four girls combined with their incredible magical power were able to empower the magatama again and the maple tree became healthy.
"(Yuna, Rin, Kuriko, Sayumi. Thank you all.)" Kazuki thought smiled at the girls.
"Thank you, Sayumi. It would seem Kazuki was right to bring you along." Rin bowed at Sayumi.
"I'm glad to be of help, and you know perhaps we could start talking about the future of our clan." Sayumi offered her hand of friendship which Rin gladly accepts.
"The sign of illness has past and your four together have saved the boy from losing a spell count. Quite a lucky guy, you are." Dr. Akai complimented.
"Oh yeah, then why did I get hit in the leg for trying to help with Kade?" Kazuki asked.
But he didn't care about that instantly as he turns around seeing the maple tree known as Kade seeing that its happy and everyone here enjoy the peaceful moment right here, hoping Keyaki would watch over the tree some more.
KO a new chapter is done and hope you all enjoy it!
Bet you didn't expect Kazuki and the girls to save a simple maple tree in the school courtyard as it was all to make things easy for everyone, after finding out the mystery of Keyaki's death and now they can be at ease knowing Kade is going to be okay.
KO comment, favorite, and follow through of how this story will go!