Chapter 95

Dawn (Part 3) (の) is the ninety-fifth chapter of Jibaku Shounen Hanako-kun by AidaIro.

Summary
Standing on a cliff with a view of No. 6's boundary collapsing behind her, Sakura asks Nene what it is that she wishes to know.

Thinking to herself, Nene surmises that because Sakura is Tsukasa's assistant, she must know things Nene doesn't. However, Nene is wary that she may be getting lured into a trap. She bluntly tells Sakura that she can't trust her, as Sakura keeps lying to her by saying things like she's an "esper", and about how she tricked Nene once before during the Tea Party.

Sakura plays a trick on Nene again by telling her she was secretly planning on getting Natsuhiko to stab with a lance when her guard was lowered, but laments that maybe she should have actually plotted something considering how much Nene was expecting her to have.

Struck by the earnestness of her senpai, Nene's legs and willpower collapse. She supposes that maybe because Sakura isn't with Tsukasa right now, then maybe it's safe to lower her guard with her.

Giving her a chance, Nene asks Sakura to tell her about her friend, Aoi. Not fully convinced Sakura is telling the truth yet, she posits potential questions like whether Aoi has safely returned to the world of the living, or whether her lifespan has returned back to how it once was. She expects nothing from Sakura, but Sakura asks if Nene means the girl that came from a lineage of kannagi.

Sakura further begins to explain how Aoi was a kannagi that was supposed to live and Nene was a kannagi that was supposed to die, but someone had tried to switch their lifespans. Aoi's lifespan would have been transferred to Nene if she had reached the Far Shore, but that didn't happen because Nene and her friends stopped it.

After making a side comment about how No. 6 will probably give up on using Aoi for his ceremony after losing his seat number, Sakura guesses that the eldest son of the Minamoto has probably found a way to bring Aoi back to the mortal realm. Just to be sure, she summons Kokujoudai, and discovers that Teru and his party are no longer in the boundary. Sakura assumes that this means Aoi has probably gone back and recovered her lifespan, and turns to Yashiro with a smile.

Starstruck and dazzled, Nene is impressed that Sakura managed to answer her questions so thoroughly. Still, Nene can't fully trust her, and worries whether or not Sakura is lying to her again. The thought of Aoi being okay makes her very happy though, so she hopes it's true. Nene also wishes to hurry up and see her friends again, like Akane and Kou.

Suddenly remembering her own troubles, Nene asks Sakura if she won't immediately die when she returns to the mortal realm. Sakura confirms this, and tells her that it isn't time for Nene to die yet.

Nene wants to ask her what that means, but the ground suddenly collapses into triangular fragments beneath her. The boundary has been collapsing, and it reminds Nene that she still hasn't found Sumire. She asks Sakura where she is, and with a darkened expression, Sakura takes her to her.

At the cave where Sumire and No. 6 took shelter from the rain, Nene discovers a giant pool of blood on the floor. Stepping through it, she finds something glittering in the blood, and discovers that it's the bell bracelet Sumire wore. In the midst of Nene's confusion, Sakura begins to explain. She tells her that yorishiro, outside of being destroyed by a kannagi, can also be destroyed by a school mystery. However, when a kannagi doesn't do it, the yorishiro must be completely destroyed, so that it loses its original form.

Piecing together what she means, Nene asks how No. 6 could have done such a thing to Sumire, when Sumire had waited so long for him to come back. Sakura then asks Nene why she thinks the thing most precious to a school mystery is what is chosen as a yorishiro. Not waiting for an answer, she tells her that it's because it prevents a school mystery from abandoning their duty, as they would never be able to destroy it themselves.

As she stands in the remains of Sumire left behind by No. 6, though, Sakura laments that sometimes that very logic causes something like this to happen.

In Nene's mind, she sees a glimpse of a young Sumire and No. 6, and with tears in her eyes she asks Sakura if this all happened because she hadn't wanted to peel off Sumire's seal. Sakura says that isn't so, and that she shouldn't take the blame, but Nene can't accept that.

Sakura then tells her that if she doesn't want the same thing that happened to No. 6 to happen to No. 7, then Nene should destroy his yorishiro for him. This pauses Nene's grief, her now becoming interested in the topic of Hanako's yorishiro. Sakura further explains that a yorishiro is the most precious object to a school mystery, listing examples like the scissors Yako received from someone she loved, the moon rock Tsuchigomori was entrusted to by the student he couldn't save, and the art book used by Shijima's creator, who hoped to live another day.

As we see an image of Hanako on the rooftop, staring up at the moon, Sakura asks Nene if she knows what his yorishiro is. Realization begins to dawn on Nene, as she sees a flashback of Hanako telling her that he had a younger brother and that he killed him. She also sees the baby Tsukasa from the Red House, from when he told her that Amane was going to go to space and bring him back a star. There's another flashback from the Picture Perfect world, where Tsukasa excitedly pointed out the meteors to Amane, with Amane staring back at him in wonderment. Finally, we see Tsukasa clasp his hand around Amane's knife and take his hand, a scene from where they met up in Chapter 91.

After all this time, Nene finally figures out that Tsukasa is Hanako's yorishiro. Immediately after voicing it, however, Hakujoudai appears, swirling around Nene like a vortex. The orb begins to take Nene away, much to her protest, but Sakura says they should stop here. Nene still wants to know more, though, and Sakura guesses she must be wondering about her lifespan. She tells her not to worry about it for now, and that her lifespan is only going to end when the yorishiro of every school mystery is destroyed.

As Nene is dragged into the darkness, Sakura bids her farewell, and hopes they can talk again.

Later, we see Sakura sitting on a clump of the shattered pieces of No. 6's boundary, floating in the darkness and observing the fragmented memories. Natsuhiko finds her and calls out to her, coming from the entrance of the cave, which is still intact. He asks her if she's done talking to Nene, but quickly becomes disgusted by the mess left behind from No. 6's meal. He makes a wry comment about how both Sumire, who wanted to be eaten, and No. 6, who wanted to eat his lover, are both out of their minds.

Sakura asks him if he really feels that way, and Natsuhiko says that he only wishes for the girl he loves to smile. Still, he thinks they must have been happier ending things this way than letting someone else do it for them, and adds that Sakura must think so, too, as she ordered Natsuhiko to take No. 6 into his boundary in the first place. He teases her and calls her a softie, much to Sakura's annoyance.

Moving on, Natsuhiko comments that Sakura told Nene a lot of stuff. He asks her what they'll do if Nene decides she doesn't want to destroy the yorishiro anymore after learning all of that, since they need her to carry out their plans. Sakura isn't worried, though, and says that whether Nene wants to or not, Sakura and Natsuhiko will ensure that Nene destroys the yorishiro for them. She asks Natsuhiko if he can do that, and he joyfully confirms.

Back at the school, it's now night time, and Nene is passed out by the school entrance. Hanako stands above her, before crouching down and placing a hand on her head.

"Welcome home, Yashiro."

Characters in order of appearance

 * Nanamine Sakura
 * Yashiro Nene
 * Tsukasa (mentioned/flashback)
 * Aoi (mentioned)
 * No. 6 (mentioned)
 * Teru (mentioned)
 * Akane (mentioned)
 * Kou (mentioned)
 * Sumire (mentioned)
 * Hyuuga Natsuhiko
 * Hanako-kun