Chapter 0159: Could You Play a Song for Me?
True to his word, after enjoying the lunch prepared for him by Chocolate and Vanilla and doing some post-meal exercises, Hayashi took the already impatient Ho-Oh and left the Pokémon world.
Their first stop was the world of Anohana. They arrived precisely at the moment when Menma (Meiko Honma) was about to slip off the cliff, saving her before she could fall. Then, they quietly concealed themselves, watching as Pidgey found the unconscious Menma by the roadside and carried her back to the Super Peace Busters' secret base.
"Is this good enough?" Hayashi sat cross-legged on a nearby tree branch, with Ho-Oh—now shrunken to the size of a Fletchinder—perched on his head, gazing contentedly at the Super Peace Busters. "You could totally disguise yourself as a wild bird and fly over to play with them, or appear before the unconscious Menma and chat with her."
Ho-Oh snorted and said, "You just don't get it, do you?"
Hayashi raised an eyebrow. "Oh? So you're the expert here?"
Ho-Oh puffed out her chest proudly. "Damn right, I'm the expert!"
Hayashi chuckled, resting his cheek on his hand as he peered through the window of the little house, watching the group of kids apologize to Menma after she woke up. "Then enlighten me."
Ho-Oh, clearly observing the same scene, murmured softly, "This is enough! I came to save her to fulfill my own wish—to change the tragedy. Not to receive her gratitude or anything else."
In the end, from Ho-Oh's perspective, her actions weren't "fulfilling someone else's request" but purely for "self-satisfaction." And if it was just for self-satisfaction, what need was there for rewards or thanks?
None at all.
"You sure have a way of looking at things." Hayashi grinned, rummaging through his pockets before pulling out a pack of raisins. He tossed a few to Ho-Oh on his head and poured the rest into his own mouth. "Next stop, then?"
Ho-Oh nodded, satisfied. "Let's go!"
"Hmm?"
Suddenly, inside the house, Menma turned her head toward the window, as if sensing something. But all she saw was the lush green canopy of the trees.
"What's wrong, Menma?"
"I felt like... I saw someone over there—"
"Someone? Where?"
"I don't see anything—"
"W-Wait, it's not a ghost, is it?"
"Honestly! Pidgey, you're still such a scaredy-cat—"
"Shut up!"
"Hahaha—"
The Super Peace Busters today are just as super peaceful as ever!
'No, it wasn't a ghost—'
Menma leaned against the window, watching the figure disappear through the door, recalling the silhouette she'd seen before losing consciousness in the water. A sweet smile unconsciously spread across her face.
'Thank you, God!'
...
...
"I think we were spotted at the end."
After bringing Ho-Oh into the world of Your Lie in April, Hayashi rubbed his nose and said, "I definitely felt eyes on us when we left."
Ho-Oh thought for a moment, then said with a serious expression, "It was probably that world's Creator God who noticed you. They might have already followed us here, preparing to turn you into a Fire/Flying-type Pokémon!"
"?"
Hayashi's face darkened as he retorted, "First of all, does Anohana even have a Creator God? And even if it did, why would Anohana's Creator God turn me into a Pokémon!?"
And specifically a Fire/Flying type! Isn't this just your own twisted wish!?
Damn it!
"You ungrateful bird! After all the effort I put into raising you, this is how you repay me? By wanting to turn me into Fire/Flying!?"
"Ew! You're the one who grew up eating that stuff! And what's wrong with Fire/Flying? Fire/Flying is awesome! It's practically invincible!"
"But you're quadruple weak to Rock."
"That's my only weakness! Just one! And I'm quadruple resistant to Bug and Grass!"
"Who cares—"
Hayashi rolled his eyes, then checked his bearings before heading toward the hospital. "Gengar, I'm counting on you later! Hypnotize the people around so we can sneak into the operating room."
"Geeheehee!"
Gengar extended his right hand from the shadows and gave a thumbs-up.
Leave it to me! Go ahead with confidence!
"Wow, Gengar is so reliable—"
Hayashi sighed sincerely, then subtly started provoking Ho-Oh: "Ah, if only Lugia were here. Psychic powers are so handy!"
Ho-Oh: "???"
She immediately bristled!
"That's bullshit!"
"I can use Psychic moves too!"
"I know Calm Mind, Extrasensory, Light Screen, Reflect, and Psychic!"
"I can hypnotize people for you too, so you can sneak into the operating room!"
"You don't need Gengar!"
"And you definitely don't need Lugia!"
"Raaah!"
Someone's getting worked up, but I won't say who. Those who know, know.
"Really?" Hayashi feigned surprise, widening his eyes. "Ho-Oh is that amazing?"
"Hmph!"
Ho-Oh lifted her head so high it might as well have touched the sky, declaring proudly, "Duh, my coverage is insane! Aside from my STAB Flying and Fire, I can use Psychic, Grass, Ground, Electric, Ghost, and Steel moves, okay?"
"But you're quadruple weak to Rock, and Lugia has no quadruple weaknesses."
"You jerk! But I only have two double weaknesses, while Lugia has five! Five!"
"So... you're kinda strong?"
"Kinda!? What do you mean 'kinda'? I have two quadruple resistances, and Lugia only has one!"
"Ohhh, so you really are strong!"
Seeing that he'd teased her enough, Hayashi decided it was time to smooth Ho-Oh's ruffled feathers.
"As expected of the legendary Life God Ho-Oh, truly extraordinary!"
"Hmph, glad you know it!"
"Now look at Lugia, what kind of trash is that? Supposed to be the Sea God, yet its typing is Psychic-Flying—completely mismatched!"
"Exactly!"
"And its base stat distribution is just awful—154 Special Defense? Pathetic!"
"..."
"What's wrong?"
"I also have 154 Special Defense."
"Oh, I mean, its Defense is 130, while Attack and Special Attack are only 90—clearly built to get beaten up!"
"Right! I have 130 Attack and 110 Special Attack—absolutely unstoppable!"
"Yeah, Ho-Oh is unstoppable!"
Through a sky full of star-level flattery, Hayashi successfully made the Ho-Oh perched on his head puff up with pride again, its cowlick (if you could even call it that) swaying in the wind.
Like a red scarf.
...
...
February 18th.
Hospital.
Operating room.
"Vital signs… dropping…"
"There's… nothing more we can do."
With the doctor's voice filled with despair, the atmosphere in the operating room froze over.
"Doctor, is there really no hope left?"
A voice echoed through the operating room.
"Unless a miracle capable of reversing life occurs, otherwise…"
"I see."
The voice murmured softly.
"Then perhaps you've just encountered such a miracle—one that can reverse life?"
Though the speaker was invisible and their words strange, neither the doctor standing bowed by the operating table nor the surrounding nurses showed any signs of confusion or alarm. Instead, they continued staring helplessly at Kaori Miyazono, whose breathing grew weaker by the second.
"If… if a miracle truly exists…" Though a doctor, he now prayed from the depths of his heart, "Please, let it happen."
Listening to the doctor's whisper, the Ho-Oh perched atop Hayashi's head lowered its gaze and said gently, "A good child, isn't he?"
Though Ho-Oh wasn't the brightest, given her age, she could indeed refer to any ordinary human as a "child"—even the longest-lived elder would likely seem like a mere youngster in her eyes.
"I'll use Aura to create a barrier, sealing her soul—" Hayashi spread his arms, and blue energy visibly expanded throughout the operating room. A misty aura swirled within, transforming the space into something akin to a fairyland.
Beep… beep… beep—
Seconds later, the electrocardiogram representing Kaori Miyazono's heartbeat flatlined completely. Yet, strangely, the doctors and nurses remained bowed, as though unaware that Kaori had already lost her vital signs.
"What's… happening to me?"
Minutes later, a faintly transparent Kaori Miyazono slowly rose from her body, her voice tinged with confusion. She looked down at the "herself" still lying on the operating table, then at her own translucent form, and understood. "So… I've died?"
"To think the world really has souls…" Kaori let out a bitter laugh, her expression turning desolate as she gazed in the direction of Kousei Arima's competition. "I… can't perform with you anymore. You must have won first place, right? But I can't even celebrate with you… How frustrating."
As Kaori muttered to herself, the surroundings quietly shifted, transforming into an endless expanse of pure white. The vast, desolate space instantly made her tense, and she began glancing around nervously.
"There's no need to panic."
An elegant, solemn woman's voice sounded from behind her. Kaori whirled around—only to find the voice belonged to the bird perched atop the man's head.
…Huh? The bird on his head?
If this were a Detective Conan scene, Kaori's expression would undoubtedly have morphed into the classic dot-eyed stare. She blinked rapidly, staring dumbfounded at the Ho-Oh on Hayashi's head before murmuring, "A… talking bird? Are you… a god?"
"Who knows? Perhaps I'm a demon vying with the gods for radiant souls—" Hayashi chuckled softly as he walked up to Kaori Miyazono, gazing into her large, curious eyes. "Miss Miyazono, would you play a piece for me?"