Onihunter Yuna 2

127 Back to the Hospital (Present)

The realization swept away the protection through her power like nothing. At the same time, she felt hot and freezing. Her breathing became irregular, while a strong tremor shook her body. Even Shinji flinched as if hit by something. He looked shaken. Tears gathered in Yuna's eyes.

"You knew," sobbed the blue-haired girl.

The nurse squinted at the oni, who was standing next to her, then looked at the girl again. "Yes."

In all the time that Yuna thought she was all alone, she had a close confidant as an ally to talk to about anything. Ayumi and Wataru had neglected her, and she didn't want to burden Nisha with everything, but Midori had always been there for her. The high-school student jumped up and threw herself at her guardian, howling loudly. "It's all my fault!"

The nurse put her arms around the girl, then began to stroke her. "Shh. It's all right, Yuna-chan. Everything will be fine."

"She's dead. I killed her!" the blue-haired girl whined.

"What do you mean? Who is dead? Yui?!" Midori squinted at Shinji, who shook his head. Relieved, she exhaled and looked at her protege. "Who is dead, Yuna-chan?"

"Hikari. My best friend is dead." Another cramp shook the girl.

Again, the black-haired woman looked to the undertaker, who shrugged. "It's not your fault, Yuna-chan."

"Yes! If I had told her everything, it would never have happened!"

Anxiously, the nurse looked around the waiting room, but fortunately only the three of them were present. "Try to calm down, Yuna-chan. Breathe deeply and slowly, okay?"

A sob came to her. "I can't."

"Yes, you can." Midori stroked her on. "It's the same as when we met for the first time. Take a deep breath, hold the air for a few seconds, and then exhale."

Hastily, the blue-haired girl sniffed a few times before she managed to hold her breath. Then she let out a slow breath. She repeated the process, broke away from her guardian and looked at Shinji, who gave her a friendly smile. Did he already know what had happened to Nisha? Why had Haruka sent him here?

"I wanted to check on you, Masuda-san," he explained quickly.

The door opened and a doctor came in. Midori whirled around. "How is Yui?"

"Omura-san. Good that you're here."

"Yeah, yeah. How is Yui?" the nurse asked.

"She is physically intact. She had a shock and an acute stress reaction occurred. She is stable, but hasn't yet attained consciousness."

"Can we see her?"

"Of course." He looked at the three persons. "Well, the relatives. And you as her guardian, of course." The doctor's gaze stuck to Shinji.

"I'm just a friend," he explained.

Yuna twitched. "I-I... I can't go to her..."

"It's okay, Yuna-chan," Midori assured her.

"No." The girl turned to the undertaker. "Can you take me home, Shiba-san?"

The oni looked indecisively at the black-haired woman. She turned to the high-school student. "It's good, Yuna-chan. We should be with her."

The doctor nodded. "I agree with that."

"I can't. It's my fault," the youngest breathed.

"Do you need psychiatric care?" the doctor inquired.

"No! I just want to go home." Yuna looked at her guardian. "Please, Midori-san. Don't force me to do it."

"But..."

"If I may say something, Omura-san?" the undertaker intervened. He had already learned enough from the girl's confused memories and also thought it would be better to not expose the younger sister to the trigger of her shock. Actually, he was here to figure out what exactly had happened. And now, whether Yui Masuda had developed powers through the annihilation of Yukiko, but with this discovery, he could catch up later. His mistress had other worries anyway. "Maybe Masuda-san really knows for herself what's best for her."

Thoughtfully, the nurse looked at the blue-haired girl. "All right. Promise me you'll stay home until I come to you, okay, Yuna-chan?"

Relieved, the girl nodded. "Promised."

"Well. I'll check on Yui, clear up some formalities, and then I'll come," Midori said.

"Okay."

Shinji nodded in understanding. "You don't need to worry about any details, Omura-san. Narusegawa-sama and police chief Watanabe will take care of everything."

Suspiciously, she eyed the oni. Whatever had happened, those beasts tried to cover it up. "Ah yes?"

"I assure you, we act in the interest of all persons concerned, Omura-san." He put on his most trustworthy smile. "If you wish, I will stay with Masuda-san until you arrive."

Midori exchanged a look with Yuna, who shook her head. "It's fine. Just drop her off at home. That is enough."

"I understand. I hope to see you again, Omura-san." He bowed briefly, then looked at the blue-haired girl. "Shall we go then, Masuda-san?"

The girl nodded, looked at Midori again and left the room, followed by Shinji.

"That's all very unusual," noted the doctor.

"Yes. These poor girls had to endure so much. It's unfair."

"I'll take you to your ward, Omura-san. Follow me."

"Thank you."

Concerned, Midori kneaded her hands as she strode behind the doctor through the corridors of the University Hospital. What had happened? Why did Hikari die? Why did Yuna blame herself? And what had Yui put into her current state?

She hoped that she could make the blue-haired girl talk later. The official version didn't interest her in the least, because most of it would probably have been made up anyway.

They reached the room. The doctor turned to her. "I guess you don't need me, right Omura-san?"

"No. Unfortunately, I know how this goes."

"I'm very sorry. If you need something, let me know."

"Thank you. See you then." The doctor nodded again, then set off and left the nurse alone. Midori breathed in deeply, then she entered the room. She spotted Yui lying in a bed with her eyes closed. After the black haired woman came to stand beside the bed, she looked at the blonde. She felt her skull and inspected her arms. She really was unhurt. Relieved, she released her breath, which she had unconsciously stopped.

"Hey, Yui-chan. Can you hear me?" She put her hands on the girl's face and massaged her cheeks. Then she stroked her hair. Then she put her hands back on her face and slowly pushed her left eyelid up with her right thumb. Surprised, she flinched when she recognized the eye color.

What the hell?

The black-haired woman blamed the dimmed light in the room, so she opened the top drawer of the dresser next to the bed, pulled out a small flashlight and turned it on. She lifted the eyelid again and lit Yui in her eye. The pupil didn't respond to the light, but now Midori could clearly see that Yui's iris had turned red. To make sure, she also checked the other eye. They were the same color as her sister's eye. What did this mean? She turned off the flashlight and put it in the drawer.

What happened?

She sat down beside the bed, put her hand on Yui's and silently watched the younger Masuda girl.