Kyle arrived at the hospital shortly after, and hurried over to the front desk, where a nurse was idly staring at the clock.
"Good evening, I'm looking for a patient here."
The nurse nodded and began scrolling through her keyboard.
Then she glanced at him. "What is her name?"
"Akiko."
She typed in their name and then after a few seconds, she turned back to him. "Room AO7."
"Thank you."
Kyle immediately left the desk and hurried up the stairs. When he arrived, even before he had walked up to the room, he saw Sakura in the distance, staring through the window with a solemn look on her face.
He walked up to her and looked in the direction she was staring at. Lying on a bed, with a respirator over her nose and several liquids being pumped into her body was Akiko.
She had looked okay just a few minutes ago. How had things gotten this bad in such a short span of time?
He heaved a breath and ran a hand through his hair as he watched her.
'I didn't expect it to be this bad…'
The little hope he was clinging to had completely vanished.
"Have you spoken to the doctor?" Kyle asked in a low tone.
Sakura sniffled, trying to contain her tears, before the dam broke, crystal-like tears rushing down her cheeks.
Kyle held her shoulders and pulled her to himself, gently stroking her arm. "Is it that bad?"
"Y-yes…" she stuttered in between tears while trying to wipe them in vain.
There was a short moment of silence, then Kyle turned her to face him.
Her violet eyes were glistening from tears, and her cheeks had become red and puffy from crying for so long.
"Don't worry Sakura, there is always a way. I promise, whatever it it's, I'll do my best to fix it, okay?"
She nodded, her tears reducing a bit, but not stopping.
Shortly after, the doctor arrived with a stack of files in his hands, most likely the results of several tests they had run on her already.
He was an old man with a greying beard and bottle thick spectacles that glinted whenever it would catch the light.
"Good evening, and who are you to the patient?" He asked while adjusting his glasses.
"We are both her friends."
"Oh…" the doctor's expression fell. It was subtle, but Kyle had picked it up the moment it happened.
"Pleae come with me…"
The man led them away from Akiko's room and into his spacious office. From the size of the place, Kyle could tell that he was pretty high up in the ranks.
When they sat down, the old man clasped his hands together, his expression solemn. "I'm sorry, it seems we have made a mistake."
Sakura's eyes lit up with hope. "Are you saying it is not as bad as we thought?"
"No, the earlier doctor was right. What I apologise for is the breach of confidentiality."
Kyle raised a brow. "What do you mean, doctor?"
"Well you see, Miss Akiko is already a patient here, and I am her doctor. The doctor you met was unaware of this and gave you more information than was necessary."
He sighed.
"I am sorry, but please forget everything you have heard here today—"
Bang!
Kyle slammed his hand on the table, causing the room to shake. For a second, he had lost himself to rage and acted without thinking.
"Are you saying we should forget that our friend is dying just to protect the fucking image of your hospital?"
His voice sounded calm, but his eyes told the true extent of his rage. Kyle stared at him in an unnerving manner, it was almost as though he could see into his mind.
"I-I'm sorry, I spoke rashly, forgive me." The doctor hurriedly said.
Kyle hissed, impatiently tapping his fingers on the table.
"Tell me, what is wrong with her? Does it have anything to do with her quirk?"
The old man was as mute as a fish, but he might as well have told him everything, because his face gave him away.
'So her quirk is the problem…'
There were some characters in the anime who had issues with their quirks, some worse than others.
If Akiko was having a similar problem, then all hope might not be lost.
After all, if the quirk was the problem, all you had to do was either take it, or destroy it completely.
Chisaki's drug could easily destroy the quirk, although that would mean allowing him to experiment on Eri…
Kyle bit the insides of his cheek.
As for his other option, in order to take the quirk, he would have to steal All for one's ability.
Kyle had already expected to fight him soon, but to steal his quirk he had to complete the current mission he had on ground.
"So… can I trust you to keep it a secret—"
Bang!
This time, Kyle's hit caused a narrow crack to spread through the desk, splitting it in two.
"Damn it! Look at what you've done! Don't you kids have any respect?!"
The old man grabbed his phone and began punching in some numbers.
"I'm sorry about your friend, I really am, but I cannot speak to you about her condition until she allows it. Please, leave, security will be here soon—"
The doctor suddenly froze, stumbling over his last words as he caught Kyle's gaze, his crimson eyes like two endless pools of blood.
"Sakura, please excuse us. I will like to have a talk with the doctor."
Sakura, realising that something was up, stood up and left the room, shutting the door behind her."
Then Kyle crossed his legs and glared at the man. "Alright, now tell me everything you know about Akiko's sickness."
•••
Sakura had returned to watch Akiko from behind the glass. By now, she had stopped crying, but her heart still aches whenever she sees her friend lying helpless.
'Please Kyle, find a way…'
Throughout the low moments of her life, Akiko had always been there for her.
They had been friends long before they found work at Kikimaru cafe, and yet, she had never once suspected her friend was so sick.
Soon, she heard the sound of his footsteps as he approached, her heightened senses picking it up before he even arrived.
Sakura, curious to hear what happened, hurried over to him. "So, what did the doctor say?" Shen asked, her tone pleading.
Kyle sighed and leaned on the wall.
"QDD, Quirk degenerative diseases." He muttered, his voice laced with an emotion Sakura could not place.
"Her quirk is powerful, but her body cannot handle it. Because of this… it is eating her up from the inside out."
Sakura's eyes widened, and then she fell to her knees, crying her eyes out.
Meanwhile, Kyle was battling with a different thought. 'It can work… right?'