Disclaimer: I do not own Ranma 1/2, Card Captor Sakura, Tench Muyo and Gundam SEED FREEDOM
Crossover link to Stallion of the Cosmic Era
Chapter 1
The Passing of Touya Kinomoto
Cosmic Era 75
Aprillius Colony
Outskirts of the city
The negotiation went on for days. The AF ambassador rented a house/mansion for Washu and the others to stay while the mothers of Lacus and Kira went home with them bringing with them their belongings filled with memories.
Athrun Mother, Lenore Zala not wanting to stay in an empty house is staying with Washu until his son comes back to the Plants. Meanwhile, councilors Eilleen Canaver and Ezalia Joule and several others visit her almost every day (we call it some girl time) so as not to feel lonely.
Meanwhile, the Chaotic horse and the Mist is having them alone in a forest on the outskirts of Aprillius city. They are resting under a cherry blossom tree in a forest and though it was beautiful, both felt something missing in this manmade environment in space.
"This place feels so empty. The flow of chi is all wrong" Kasumi perceived "As beautiful as this place is, there are no birds, no insects and the trees that are genetically designed to be just efficient oxygen producers, not like Earth"
"This colony is a controlled biosphere, which is probably the best if you are living in outer space. Though I certainly don't like it" Ranma said
Ranma pulled out a picnic basket in his Ki space and set up the blanket to have lunch. During this time Kasumi explained that, when Akane had her fit of anger due to Ranma running his mouth off, she knew you were alive somewhere, and that the supposedly dead ex-fiancé was comparing her to another girl and she is not like her, which irked the third sister to no end.
Knowing this, Kasumi together with Nabiki and several of their friends (not the fiancée brigade) were tagging along, to go to the only person they believed to have the whole story of what happened to Ranma, and that's Ranma mother Nodoka and she pointed them to where they should go for answers.
The Masaki Shrine in the Ohkayama Prefecture.
"Katsuhito sensei told us what you and handful of trusted friends have done, the sacrifice you made to save countless lives, and that countless worlds and empire are eternally grateful to you," said Kasumi
"Yeah, but it came with a high price" Ranma remark sadly
"In truth, I went to the Masaki Shrine with Mother because of family matters"
"Family matters?" Kasumi repeated
"We came to seek help from Katsuhito Masaki sensei…we were out of options, we were desperate to save my cousin and my friend from Tomoeda, Touya Kinomoto who I knew back in my junior high school days." He spoke
"Kasumi do you remember when I first disappeared?"
She nodded "you got a phone call from someone, and just bolted without a word"
"I got a call from Mom, telling me return home right now because of a family emergency. I can still remember her frantic voice and why…my cousin Touya was dying"
Ranma explained that Touya is from his mother's side of the family, her hometown is Tomoeda. Touya came to Tokyo to live and work away from his hometown and his mother Nodoka offered him room and board until he could settle somewhere else better. For a week there was no problem, but then, something was terribly wrong with him as he was getting weaker and weaker by the day despite being in good shape, and yet his body was turning on him.
Nodoka brought him to the Emergency Hospital, when Touya started vomiting blood and they said that for unknown reasons, his body was deteriorating, organs were failing one after another and don't know why it was happening as they found nothing to cause it.
"When I arrived at the hospital, I saw Touya for the first time in a long time and he looked sick. Pale skin, his dark black hair turned snow white for some reason So, I used my ki to sense to see what was wrong and found out that his ki was bleeding out because his soul was like a shadow of itself and that it's not holding the lifeforce in his body. The doctors couldn't do anything, so we took him home and made him comfortable and safe as much as possible" Ranma leans on the tree trunk while he tells his tale
"I look thru every book and sacred scrolls about human souls and all of them say that a damage or weakened soul can have catastrophic consequences to the person no matter how fit they are" he said explaining about Touya condition
"Touya soul, contain an incredibly strong spiritual power which gives him the ability to sense and see spirits and even talk to them, which is a remarkable gift, and now those were gone and with that much gone from his soul, I knew he was in danger of dying and I don't know how to help him… but I know someone that could.
"At the Masaki Shrine" Kasumi said
Ranma looks up to the tree, remembering more "We rented an SUV to bring Touya to Ohkayama to see sensei. He practically couldn't move anymore because every exertion he made caused him unbearable pain. When we got there, Touya told us the truth of how he got into this kind of state and sensei was alarmed of what Touya did even if was for saving someone, and that's to willingly giving his spiritual powers to a creature named Yue, and that is like asking to shorten your lifespan and worst, dying from losing your spirit powers and dying by being drained by evil spirits"
Ranma tells Kasumi from what sensei explained that creatures born from magic needs magic or the lifeforce of people who created them or contracted to them. For a high-level magic creature like Yue who needs more than just magic and lifeforce far more than what their master gives them and that they need to take a powerful spiritual power of a willing soul to become strong again and sustain their human form.
No creature of magic can take another person spiritual powers unless that person is willing to do so. for a while, the person would feel and look fine but as time passes, he will start feeling weak despite looking physically fit.
There are signs, symptoms that start by feeling tired all the time, of muscle's atrophied in their body which can be explained out, but soon it will be followed by one internal organ shutting down and then recovering, then another will start to shut down and then recover.
"Touya was on a roller coaster ride of pain and suffering and we couldn't do much for him".
Katsuhito Sensei knew the creature Yue, and the person who created him was Clow Reed, a powerful sorcerer he once had the unfortunate confrontation with centuries ago. and from what he can tell, Yue was his creation along with another named Keruberos and the two are the guardians of a deck of magical cards called Clow Cards.
Centuries ago, Clow Reed was nearing at end of his life and plans to reincarnate to a new life in the future. The Clow Cards were put away by Clow Reed, but instead of retrieving them after his reincarnation, he plans to pass it on to a new master and know who it will be. To succeed, Clow Reed manipulated events to his liking, and that's to have Touya sister Sakura inherit the Clow Cards now renamed, the Sakura cards, and his two creatures Keruberos and Yue, the guardians of the card.
For his manipulation of events to be successful and without a hitch, he needs one other person to lay the groundwork, and her name is Kaho Mizuki who is in love with Clow Reed thru psychic connections. The plan was, get as close to Touya in order for her to get closer to Sakura, Touya sister, to trust her, where at the very beginning, she has no intention to have a real serious relationship with Touya but set the groundwork for Clow Reed entrance and manipulation.
Touya never felt so devastated, to the point of suicide. He was seriously in love with Ms. Mizuki, and he was hoping for hope that someday, when she came back, they would be together again despite breaking off their relationship years ago. it never happened.
"Touya condition would worsen overtime despite all the healing and lifeforce transfusion we tried giving him even tried body enhancement from Washu technology and that was just a stop gap… he was still dying, and I and everyone, can't do anything for him…I was watching my cousin die" Ranma never felt so angry at Clow Reed and to Kaho Mizuki at what they have done to Touya and gave reason why he hated magic so much.
"Touya, had less than half a year or less and he was preparing to die, even made a last message to his family and even for... that damned woman" he said darkly
"That time, I made a promise to avenge him by finding Clow Reed and break every bone in his body. But Touya didn't want that and instead, he made me promise to do no harm. It irks me to make that promise to him, but I did what he asks of me"
"He's a good man"
"Yes, and deserves better" he said
"However, fate has something else in mind. And it came from outer space"
There was a mission on the other side of the galaxy that needed attention from the Masaki. Tenchi Masaki and Seina Yamada were heading out to space to deal with the problem. Ranma offered his help and accepted it.
"Touya offered his assistance as well, asking to let him give his short life of his some meaning than waiting for death to come and take him" he said
"Reluctantly they accepted his offer, and gave us Washu prototype combat suits for the GP police and went after the leader of an invading armada and to everyone surprise, it was led by someone named Kagato the eternal criminal"
Ranma stiffen at the memories
"Kagato, was referred to as 'the eternal criminal' because, he is a long live being that terrorized the galaxy for five millennia and he was supposed to have died when Tenchi confronted him years ago, how he was still alive we did not know it then"
"We storm into his new battlefortress while the GXP forces fight the armada as cover for us. We went thru countless number of soldiers and warriors just to face one powerful man…we thought we can beat him, but we were wrong"
"Ranma" He wave her concern away and let him continue
"We lost Tenchi and would have lost Seina if Touya hadn't dragged him out to safety despite being badly injured and lost a right arm during the fight. I alone confronted Kagato"
"It was never known how Kagato was able to defeat Tenchi and Seina" Kasumi remembered a report she read during her stay in Galaxy Police Academy
"It was deemed 'high classified', and I can't tell you any further than that, I'm sorry Kasumi" he said, and she nodded in understanding
"Kagato was prepared to fight Tenchi and Seina, but he wasn't prepared to fight someone like me, of what I brought to the fight, I won, but paid a heavy price for it"
"You were in death door if it weren't for Tsunami keeping you in stasis as you heal and rebuild your body and spirit that's been irradiated with heavy radiation that almost carbonized you" Kasumi added which Ranma nods in confirmation
"For Touya, he survived when he received a blessing from Tsunami herself, one of the three Chousin Goddesses, and that is a big deal"
"Blessings from a goddess is always a big deal" Kasumi reasoned
"A blessing that is also a miracle, when Tsunami regenerated his severed arm, healed all wounds, his hair came back healthy black and made his soul whole again and even restored his spiritual powers which made him capable of talking to the spirit of his mother again" there was a sense of pride in his voice
"Yes, and for Touya bravery, he was adopted by Lady Kamiki Seto of Jurai had the honor of bonding with a Jurai treeship, a second generation treeship he named Nadeshiko in honor of his mother. Also, his bond to the treeship masks his presence to the world" that made Ranma smile
'Not bad for a non-Juraian' Ranma thought "He took the name Motoani no Saotome in honor of me, though I am a bit disappointed that he let his family think that he's dead but, I soon understand why he did it."
"I think, his first day back at Tomoeda in seven years later, it was his sister Sakura marriage to Li Syaoran" Ranma remembers
"He went there in disguise to see his sister who is getting married" thru the eyes of Ouritsuju, thru Nadeshiko bond with Touya and thru his eyes, he sees what had happened
Tomoeda Japan 200 years ago
Watching from the distance is Touya in disguise using GP holographic field (he looks like a middle age version of Ranma and even sound like an older version of Ranma) in formal wear for a wedding day. Like everybody else, they greeted the newlywed with shower of rice and the bride tossing the traditional bouquet to crowd of women and the one who catch it, will be the next to get married.
The bouquet landed in Sonomi Daidouji hands… 'wait, isn't she a married woman, so why is she participating in the bouquet toss?'
Anyway, this happy day for Sakura was marred with bittersweet feeling, as years ago, his brother went missing when he went to Tokyo to get a job all of the sudden. There was no communication from Touya for months and the feeling of uneasiness grew day by day.
So, Sakura used her magic to track down his brother using dowsing but couldn't get a lock as if his brother was never in Tokyo to begin with, so she widens her search across Japan and still nothing and then she went global and still nothing.
He even asks for help from Eriol, a.k.a. Clow Reed, and still nothing.
There was only one reason why they can't find him, one reason why they can't feel his presence anywhere and it's not something Sakura is willing accept, refused to accept and so, she kept on looking for his brother for years until she was forced to face reality, that her brother was gone from the world.
Sakura cried and cried for the loss of her brother until she cried no more.
In her wedding are two pictures were present in the church, one is the picture of her mother Nadeshiko, the other is her brother, Touya.
Motoani (Touya) watches them from a distance, and it made him smile to see Sakura very happy. Touya little sister all grown up and beautiful as he applauds her like the rest of the crowd as they follow them to the reception hall close by.
Now while the ceremony continued, he went to the liquor bar and asked for a glass of champagne from the bartender and joined in on the salute to the newlywed and after he drank the last drop, he walked out the hall
'I think, I will see dad first before I see little miss Kaiju' he thought smiling in remembering the name he uses to tease his sister. 'Ah, good times, good times'
He hopes to slip away unnoticed, but unfortunately, he didn't expect the woman that haunted Touya Kinomoto dreams would run over him like a Truck holding two pitcher of orange juice and accidentally spill it all over him
"Oh my, I am so sorry!" the woman apologizes to the man now drench in orange juice on the ground
"Dammit woman, watch where you are going!" Motoani scold her with a gruff harsh voice as the man remove his shades and look at the woman and was surprised to see who it is
'Kaho?' the man groan at his bad luck 'of all the people I must run into, it just had to be you. Ranma luck must be rubbing off on me'
"I am very sorry, here let me help you" she was extending her hand to him, but Motoani slap it away
'If she is here, then you can bet that bastard Eriol is here as well'
"No, I can stand on my own! So, thank you very much" he stood up as the spilt juice has just entered his inner jacket and into his underpants, invading his crotch of all places 'Ugh! I can feel it in my underpants is getting sticky already'
The accident that happened is now caught the attention of everyone including Sakura and Syaoran who is dancing
"What's going on over there?" Sakura asks
"It looks like teacher Mizuki bump into someone accidentally, and she's being scolded over" Syaoran observed
Both stopped and headed to where Kaho and the angry man she bumps into by accident and tries to apologize to him.
"Please, I am so sorry, please let me make it up to you" Kaho picked up two towel from a table and was about to
"Don't touch me woman!" he warned "Move away, just move away from me!"
Kaho did as she was told, and for the reason why Motoani try to keep her in arm's length is because Kaho possesses psychic powers and letting her touch him could blow his cover if he let just one touch
"Just try to be more careful next time and watch where you are walking, for God sakes!" said the man with a gruff voice as he tried to pull a handkerchief from one of his pockets, preferably not drenched from the spilt juice to wipe his face when an object fell to the ground, and it was a voice recorder, and it suddenly played back what was recorded.
"You can say what's in your heart Touya" It was the voice of an older woman
"What?" Kaho reacted to the name in surprise as another voice that sounded sickly starts talking
"Thanks auntie Saotome, I appreciate doing this for me in," another round of cough
"We are family Touya, but are you sure you don't want your father and sister to know," the woman tried to convince him
"No! I don't want them to see me like this (cough) It's better this way (cough, cough)"
"Touya, you are coughing blood. Here let me wipe it" the woman sounded worried terrified
"Let's just record my last goodbye to them and be done with it" Touya answered
'Oh crap, it's the old recording I made!' he quickly grabs the recorder and stop its playback and would have walk out if it wasn't for the one person he went to see was in front of him
"Sakura"
"That was Touya voice" said Sakura as it was the first time in years that she heard his brother voice and by the sound of it, he was not in good health
"That was Touya voice!" Sakura repeated but forcefully and her tears were flowing like a flood 'Oh crap! Kiddo, please don't cry, don't cry, this is your wedding' Motoani said pleadingly
"Ms. Kinomoto, please, please don't cry. This, is not the message I was supposed to bring to you from Touya" he suddenly realized, that wasn't the right words to say
"What! Who are you?" she demanded and seeing everyone faces could only means trouble and in Kaho face, the voice that she hasn't heard for a long time is making her cry as well as she suddenly to grab the recorder, and memories of Touya collapsing on the doorway of someone home and coughing blood all over. That scene horrified her as the next scene she sees a woman in traditional robes rushing outside when she saw Touya collapse.
"Let go!" Motoani pulled the recorder away and then quickly sprinted out of the reception hall.
Syaoran tried to chase him but somehow, he disappeared.
In Orbit
Onboard the Nadeshiko, Motoani no Saotome (a.k.a. Touya Kinomoto is cursing himself at the blunder he made as he cleaned up from spilt orange "damned that woman…Kaho" he went down on his knees
'She still looks the same way I last saw her…still as beautiful as ever'
"And you are still in love with her as ever, despite everything that she did to you" said by Ranma from the Ouritsuju connection Touya groan at the intrusion
"Don't you have something else to do than reading other people thoughts?" Touya shot back
"More like, you are broadcasting it cousin' Ranma answered him "Hmmmn, and let's see, no, I am not doing anything! I'm in a coma Touya, what is left of my body is in that glowing pool thing to heal for the next 200 years and the only thing I can do is go to school and learn millions of years' worth of knowledge for the next 200 years. So, yeah, I got nothing else to do cousin"
"Fine!" Touya raise his hand in surrender and stood up and change to his normal clothes
"So, how was the wedding?"
"Like you didn't see it through my eyes? It was beautiful of course, but I may have accidentally ruined it for Sakura"
"Damn!"
"Yeah"
"You do know, she will keep on looking for you, your father as well, until they get some closure"
"I was hoping to give them closure after the wedding, but because of my blunder, a change of plan is needed. I hope your mom is ready for it"
"She will do her part Touya, and then the world will know, that Touya Kinomoto is really dead"
"Yeah"
"So, how are you going to deal with Ms. Mizuki?"
"Let me handle her Ranma, don't worry" Touya assured him
Juban district
Saotome residence several days later
A knock on the door of the Saotome residence, and the one knocking on the main door of the house is Fujitaka Kinomoto and with him is his daughter Sakura Kinomoto, her husband Li Syaoran, Sakura best friend Tomoyo Daidouji along with her is her mother Sonomi Daidouji who happens to know a certain Saotome and that's Nodoka Saotome.
When the wooden gate was opened, it revealed Nodoka Saotome in mourning robes and she recognized Sonomi immediately as do most of them and then, she glared murderous daggers at another group behind the first. Kaho Mizuki, Eriol Hiiragizawa, Nakuru Akizuki, Yukito Tsukishiro.
An uncomfortable heavy feeling when Nodoka look at them and it was like a drawn sword pointed at them.
For Kaho, she was wide eyes to recognize the woman and the doorway where Touya collapses and throwing up blood all. Her heart raced so fast at the memory and knew this was the place.
The rest can sense the uncomfortable feeling coming from Nodoka and they don't know why
Nodoka greet "Sonomi, it has been a while since… Nadeshiko pass away"
"Dear cousin Nodoka, it has been a while" Sonomi greeted "Did we come in a bad time?"
"No cousin, I am…having a prayer vigil for my son, Ranma and…for Touya" the last name surprise everyone
"I am so sorry; you have my condolences" Sonomi then introduces the others and Nodoka then bow in respect to Touya father Fujitaka and Touya sister Sakura.
"I am so sorry to your loss, as you have mine" she then showed them in except to four people
Nodoka block them and made her feelings loud and clear "YOU, YOU FOUR ARE NOT WELCOME IN MY HOUSE!"
"Cousin!" Sonomi yelled as the others were confused
"I, know who they are and what they are, and I will not have mystic beast and trickster in my house, especially you" she pointed as she glared at Eriol which surprised him
"Mystic beast, tricksters?"
"Madam I'm,"
Nodoka icily threatened "Do not madam me, you foul trickster, I know who and what you are. So, take your beast with you and begone or I shall call the police and have you arrested for trespassing!"
"Auntie Nodoka, please they are my friends" Sakura pleaded
"Maybe they are to you my dear, but they are no friends of the Saotome" she said back, and then she suddenly felt a probing thought coming from Eriol and unfortunate for him, Nodoka will was monstrously powerful.
"You dare!" a chi burst push out Eriol probing and push all four to the ground like a burst of wind equivalent to a typhoon 'how dare you try to invade my thoughts!'
"Take your magic with you and begone!" Another burst of wind pushed them, which was surprisingly powerful as Eriol had never encountered anyone with such powerful will.
Without a single argument, Eriol and the others got up and started to walk away, except for Kaho. She stood there in emotional and mental turmoil on what to do. She wanted to follow Eriol, but she also wanted to know what happened to Touya after he left Tomoeda for Tokyo.
Years ago, when a frantic Sakura called them to help find his brother Touya, it made her deeply concerned. Sakura explained that her dowsing can't find a single trace of his brother which is impossible because her magic is quite strong.
To not sense his spiritual presence, that only happens when that person… died.
It was a thought that haunted her for years and that she even searched for him all over Tokyo but found not a trace of him. Then on Sakura wedding a man carrying a recorder was playback and she hears Touya voice and by the sound of it, that he was sick and in pain, and the images when she touches it. It played repeatedly in her head and made her heart ache so much that it was hurting her
'I must know!' and so, she quickly steps forward, kneel before Nodoka and bowed her head and surprised everyone
"Kaho?" she didn't respond to Eriol
"Teacher Mizuki!" Sakura yelled in surprise
"Please madam Saotome" she started "I beg of you, allow me to see Touya"
It was at that moment that a thunderstorm was forming, and the rain started pouring down on them. For over a minute, Nodoka look at this woman and she can see in her eyes, the pleading of a woman looking for answers, trying to find someone who was once part of her life.
There was Fear and dread in those eyes if she finds the answers she's been seeking
A question in her heart… 'was this my fault?'
"You can come in inside," and with that Nodoka led them inside while Sakura and Syaoran helped Kaho get back up to her feet and brought her in without so much as to glance at Eriol and the others now drenched in the pouring rain.
Sakura and the others were brought to the dojo where a shrine for two fallen people, and several monks are praying. one is Touya Kinomoto, the other is Ranma Saotome Nodoka only son.
Sakura can't believe her eyes, no, she refuses to believe what her eyes is seeing as she starts extending her magic and probe on the urn of her brother ashes supposed to be and sense the faint essence that was once her brother and this is where Sakura went down her knees and cried "no, no, no, no Touya!" Sakura screamed as she hugged her father and then everyone else.
Kaho knees buckled as she too went down and started crying and both yelled in emotional pain
"TOUYA!" both fainted in unconsciousness
Up above orbit surveillance cameras shown the scene and it broke Touya heart seeing them so hurt
"I'm so sorry sis" he mutters "But the world must know, that Touya Kinomoto is dead, and Motoani no Saotome is born"
"It's a good thing we retrieved that severed arm of yours and cremated it, otherwise this won't work at all"
Touya nodded in agreement "Sakura has powers to know the spiritual essence of anyone. This is the only way to fool her, to fool everyone"
"You do know that she's going to be very angry to certain people, right? People she thought were her friends"
"With the help of the people all around her, and who are her friends, I know she will overcome this"
"Maybe, but what of Ms. Mizuki? She's the one who set you up and I am certain, your sister will vent her anger on her and then there's Clow Reed, and you know what sensei told us about him"
"That is something we need to address later on"
The view change to see outside the residence and they can see Eriol and the other lurking around
"We should call the swat team over"
"That, along with a few news crews tagging along. That way, they can't use their magic to do anything else" Ranma added
"Good idea"
Five minutes later, Eriol and the others were cornered by a swat team and an army of news crews and were taken to the police station for being suspicious lurkers in a neighborhood that knows everybody.
Two days later, at the Saotome residence, both Kaho Mizuki and Sakura Kinomoto are mentally spent, and they wake up in one of the guest rooms of the house, as the two ended up getting a high fever and are being looked after by Nodoka while the others are at different rooms sleeping as well.
Seeing that both are in the same room, Sakura looked through Kaho to see her condition with her magic, and sense that Kaho fever is going down. Seeing that she would be fine Sakura stood up head to the sliding doors when she felt a familiar presence in a different room nearby.
It was Touya room, and she can sense the faint essence of her brother spirit all over.
'How could this be?'
Extending her magic senses, she can confirm, the futon, the blankets and pillows were all used by Touya during his stay here and something else, pain, so much pain. This was his room filled with his brother's pain, suffering and love, imprinted all over the room.
"This was my brother room…where he was dying" it was like she can see flashes of images of his brother, and feels the pain he's feeling which was excruciating
"Sakura?" The one calling her was Kaho who is now awake and was following Sakura to this room and the overwhelming spiritual presence of Touya laced with so much pain is everywhere that she had to shut off her psychic powers unless it overwhelmed.
"Why was my brother in so much pain, teacher Mizuki?" Sakura asked her Kaho sharply as she couldn't look at her in the eye as she kept asking.
"Did you know this would happen, to my brother, when he gave up his spiritual powers to save Yue?" she asks and again no answer and Sakura has had enough of her silence, so she grab her hand turn Kaho to face her
"ANSWER ME" she screamed at Kaho, demanding an answer
"This…this was not supposed to happen, it was supposed to just weaken him, and he will be fine later. Clow Reed says so. this was not supposed to happen!" she repeated
"Was there anyone you know who did this and were fine later, are they still alive Ms. Mizuki?"
"I- I, but…Eriol said,"
"I am not asking Eriol, I am asking you if you know anyone who survived having their spiritual powers taken from them!?" Sakura demanded
Kaho felt overwhelmed and fell on the floor as she can't answer that because she knows nothing about it
"In a perfect world, where the author of our lives would write it down and make everyone have a happy ending, maybe it does. But we do not live in that perfect world. We live in this…real world" Nodoka said from the doorway
"In Touya case, his spiritual powers are deeply part of Touya soul and taking it away will be like severing an arm or a leg, and leaving an open wound that will bleed and fester and unless its treated quickly, you will die" Nodoka who step forward from the doorway
"Auntie Nodoka" Sakura acknowledges
She continues "Have you noticed something about this room, other than Touya presence?" Nodoka pointed at Ofudas, spiritual talismans meant to shield the room from evil spirits coming in and harm the person inside.
"This room this house is spiritually protected with a barrier to ward off evil spirits" Kaho remark as she was once a shrine maiden
"You may not know this but, Tokyo is filled with wandering spirits, and some are considered malevolent especially here in Juban. Touya soul has an open wound, and it was bleeding, and because of that, it drawn these wandering spirits like flies, and they feasted on that open wound of his soul, shortening his life even further than he realized"
This horrified Sakura, she didn't know anything about it, ignorant of what was happening to her brother.
"If Touya had stayed in Tomoeda and healed that open wound in his soul then maybe he would still be alive" Nodoka said and directed her next words to Kaho
"But Touya, he came here because he couldn't stand living in Tomoeda anymore, where every part of that place keeps reminding him…of you, Ms. Mizuki" she said as Kaho look up to Nodoka
"He wanted to forget you, forget his first love, forget the woman who left him for another. Or maybe… you never truly consider him to be one,"
Those words were like a sledgehammer hitting her
"If people or fate, didn't play a terrible trick on him, then he would still be in this world today" Nodoka balled her fist as she look straight at Kaho and her next word was sharp as daggers
"You, you taught a boy to be in love, an impressionable, vulnerable and naive young boy. You taught him the joy of being in love and slap it away, in order to lay the groundwork of letting that trickster, Clow Reed, enter the Kinomoto lives, all to save his creations from dying"
"Auntie, you knew?"
Nodoka nodded solemn to Sakura "Touya told us everything and sadly, there was no humanly possible way for us to help him and all we can do is make him comfortable as we could… and wait for the end"
There was no lie in Nodoka words, they did everything humanly possible, and what she left out is, that it took the power of one of the three Chousin Goddess to find a way to save Touya, but they don't need to know that.
When Nodoka left them, they were silent except that Sakura was angry, no, angrier than anything that she ever felt
"Eriol-kun, no, Clow Reed you bastard" she cursed which is surprising because she never once throws cursing language at anyone.
Then she looks at Kaho, the woman her brother love so deeply is silent. Sakura walked out and did not say a word as she left the room.
An hour later, Kaho fixed herself up and was about to leave when she decided to look into Touya room for one last time and touches the things Touya touch and psychically sees images of Touya and feels the pain he left behind. Then, she spotted something familiar on the reading table, a paper fan that belonged to the shrine temple back at Tomoeda and underneath it is a letter addressed to her.
For KAHO
She took a seat and opens the letter, and it was in Touya handwriting and it contains words that will put a sword through her heart.
Kaho,
I don't know how many times I tried to write a letter to you and kept failing,
I don't know how many times I thought of sending a letter to you and then stop.
I don't know if you would respond to me in telling you…that, I still love you, and that I always will, and that I can't move on without you hearing my words of love to you that came from my heart and nowhere else.
But I wonder, would my words even reach your heart if you even had a place for me in there, but not as a friend, but someone you love.
When you stop me from confessing my love to you and ask only to be friends and give a cryptic prediction that you and I will find someone else. I refuse to accept it, for I will decide who I will love, and I always… keep on choosing you.
But as time passed by, I finally knew why, I finally know why you broke my heart.
I finally realized that I was just a stupid boy you just want to keep you company…I can't believe that I was so gullible to believe, that a beautiful woman like you, would be serious to be with a man like me.
Did you even consider me as a man or do you still see me as boy?
Well anyway, despite everything you did to me, I don't have the will to hate you, it's not in me to be angry, disappointed yes but never hate you or angry at you…
I forgive you, because I love you.
In this lifetime, we can only be friends and nothing more, I accepted that now.
Maybe in the next life… we could meet again and we...we would be more than just friends, right?
Maybe next time…
Maybe next time, you will tell me, that you love me and that I will tell you…
I love you.
Maybe next time, our love will be real.
Touya
On the reading table is a cassette player and for whatever reason, it play back a single song,
Maybe This Time by Michael Martin Murphey
Two old friends meet again
Wearin' older faces
And talk about the places they've been
Two old sweethearts who fell apart
Somewhere long ago
How are they to know
Someday they'd meet again
And have a need for more than reminiscin'
Maybe this time
It'll be lovin' they'll find
Maybe now they can be more than just friends
She's back in his life
And it feels so right
Maybe this time, love won't end
It's the same old feeling back again
It's the one that they had way back when
They were too young to know when love is real
But somehow, some things never change
And even time hasn't cooled the flame
It's burnin' even brighter than it did before
It got another chance, and if they take it...
Maybe this time
It'll be lovin' they'll find
Maybe now they can be more than just friends
She's back in his life
And it feels so right
Maybe this time, love won't end
She's smilin' like she used to smile way back then
She's feelin' like she used to feel way back when
They tried, but somethin' kept them
Waiting for this magic moment
Maybe this time
It'll be lovin' they'll find
Maybe now they can be more than just friends
She's back in his life
And it feels so right
Maybe this time...
Maybe this time
Maybe this time love won't end
"Touya, you fool… you stupid, romantic fool!" she yelled and crumpled the letter and started crying
In a whisper, she finally said the words 'Touya, I love you!'
From the other side of the wall, was Motoani who lowered his mask to reveal Touya and he was crying as Kaho read of his letter to her, it made his heart weep because this was hurting the woman he loves,
The whispered words were heard, words that he has been waiting to hear from Kaho for a long time.
Silently, Nodoka watches his nephew silently cry his heart out and can do nothing else but watch over him like she did before.
'I'm sorry Kaho'
Flashback
A few days before Sakura and the others arrived at the Saotome residence Touya brought Mrs. Saotome onboard the Nadeshiko with Katsuhito Masaki and Ranma in astral form
"Is this truly fine? To let it be like this" she asks them
"Clow Reed is not to be trusted, and if he truly had no untoward malice to the Kinomoto, then this elaborate plan he concocted was not needed." Katsuhito said shaking his head in disagreement
"No, they needed an alibi to get as close to Sakura with less suspicion as possible and Touya relationship with Ms. Mizuki was the perfect cover for him to enter their lives"
"But why Sakura?"
"She is gifted with magical powers greater than Clow Reed and he wants that power to save his precious magical creatures and the cards"
"If they are so precious to him, why give them away? Why not retrieve them himself when he reincarnated if they are so precious to him?" Nodoka questioned
"Because sustaining their existence became a burden to his powers as they are power intensive creatures that needed magic from a powerful source" Touya answered as he remembers Sakura had a high fever once thanks to those cards that needed an infusion of magic from Sakura.
"To the magical creature named Yue, he needed more than just magic but spiritual power to continue existing as he is a high-level creature and he needs it to stay human as Yukito, my best friend"
He gritted at his inaction "I should have taken those damn things away from her"
"It's not your fault Touya and I doubt your sister will allow that now that they have grown attached to her"
"So, what do we do?" Ranma asks
"Only one thing to do, and that's use the truth against Clow Reed to remove him from my family's lives, as we let the world know that Touya Kinomoto death was caused by him
"And what of Mizuki, she is an accomplice to what happened to Touya" Nodoka pointed out angrily and look to Touya "I know that you are still in love with her Touya, but that woman toyed with your life, and you nearly died if not for Nadeshiko, your mother, the treeship I mean"
"I know auntie, I know what she did…so please, let me deal with her my way" Touya asks her calmly
End flashback
This is how Touya dealt with her, and that's to forgive her.
When the guest went home to Tomoeda, Touya appeared to Nodoka, and she faced him
"Is this truly what you want Touya?" she asks
"Yes, it's better to say goodbye as I gave my last letters to My dad and little Kaiju of a sister and hope it will be enough for her to forgive Kaho because I can't bear the thought of her being angry to her"
"You are too kind Touya"
"Just like your son, Ranma"
"Of course, kindness, forgiving, understanding. We go to great lengths to help the people we care about even those we don't. it runs in the family I guess"
"Thank you, auntie, for everything" he said
"Take care of yourself Touya,"
"Touya Kinomoto is gone, my name is Motoani no Saotome of the Saotome Family" he declared
Nodoka disagrees "You will always be my dear nephew Touya, and I will see you soon"
"You decided?"
"Accepting the Masaki offer, yes" she replied
And with that, Touya was teleported back to Nadeshiko and quickly headed for deep space.
Present time
The Sakura petals were falling as Ranma continue to tell the tale
"Touya spent a year in Jurai, learning life as an adopted son of Seto Kamiki before he was called to return to Earth" he looks up the tree as the Sakura petals fall to the ground
"There was still unfinished business"