To The Stars | Tokito Muichiro x OC

67 • Heart-Moving Influence

Inori widened her eyes. She could feel the tip of the blade grazing her neck, but her focus wasn't on that. She felt her eyes water in relief at the sight of Gyomei's axe that stopped the demon's sword from decapitating her.

"Another one? And the sun is already rising."

The sun! Inori felt another batch of tears flowing down her eye, mixing with her blood. Relief rushed through her veins because the cruel night was finally over.

Gyomei swung his iron ball, but Kokushibo dodged with ease, jumping a distance away from them. Veins popped all over Gyomei's neck and temples. He may not be able to see, but he knew that Inori was hanging on death's door.

"Hoshizora, focus on staying alive. I'll deal with him."

"Yes...thank you." Inori clenched her eye shut, trying to focus on her breathing. She may have managed to voice her words out loud, but it came out more as a muttered whisper than a reply that Gyomei could barely hear.

Stone Breathing: Fourth Form: Volcanic Rock, Rapid Conquest

Moon Breathing: Second Form: Pearl Flower Moongazing

"Your body has been refined to the max." Kokushibo noticed the incoming sunlight that nearly reached him. "Though as much as this entertains me, the sun is already up, and that girl will die soon. She already lost too much blood." He narrowed the middle pair of his eyes at the bleeding girl. "Still, I congratulate you, Hoshizora Inori...for you have managed to stall me until sunrise."

Moon Breathing: Sixth Form: Perpetual Night, Lonely Moon-Incessant

Kokushibo swung his sword, and Gyomei was forced to be on his defense, protecting Inori and the other immobile slayers. By the time the slashes finally stopped, the sunlight had reached him, and Kokushibo was nowhere to be seen. He didn't have time to dwell on that, immediately rushing to Inori's aid.

"Hoshizora!" He checked her pulse. It's weak but she's still alive, unconscious. I have to bring her to Kocho. But will she survive that long? The Butterfly Estate is too far away and there aren't any Wisteria Houses nearby. He moved her as gently as he could to not further aggravate her injuries, wrapping her in his happi.

"Hime...jima...san?" Inori tried to stretch her arm, needing to alert Gyomei of the state of her crow. "Kana...ma...ru...please...save...save him."

Gyomei scooped up the injured crow with one hand, relieved to feel that Kanamaru was still breathing. Now, he just needed to find a place that could save Inori, preferably somewhere close because the Star Pillar was running out of time.

"Um, sir." Gyomei raised his head. Though he couldn't see who exactly was in front of him, he knew it was one of the townspeople. "We, um, we have a doctor here. We...we can help her."

"Please." Gyomei didn't even need to think twice. He followed their instructions, carrying Inori to the hospital. He stayed by her side the entire treatment process, standing at the sidelines as the townspeople ran around the town in a frenzy.

"Immediately prepare a room! Call all the doctors needed! Quickly!"

"Hey! She's lost a lot of blood! We need donors immediately!"

"Get more doctors! Call Murashita-san! I don't care if his shift is in the evening, this girl just saved our entire town!"

"Her blood type is rare! We don't have any in stock! Do we have any O-negative blood in stock?"

"Hurry and find a donor! She already lost too much blood! I don't know how she's still alive, but we need to move quickly!"

The townspeople, from doctors to nurses to people with no medical-related occupations, ran around town to help. Whether it be to fetch medicine from the neighboring towns, help with the cleanup of the battlefield, make some blankets or towels for her apparent fever, or simply pray for her survival, everybody in that town helped. It stunned Gyomei to know how desperate they were to keep Inori alive.