May 31st, another Thursday.
Hajime Kagami sat in front of his TV, waiting for Clannad season two, episode twenty-one.
He had never managed to find Yuta, but based on the social media post, the female lead Nagisa was going to come back to life and the family would be reunited. If that was the case, this episode should not be painful. At least that was what he believed.
As for episode twenty's cliffhanger where Ushio had suddenly collapsed with a high fever, he was not sure what to make of it, but it was probably just a scare.
Most likely it was a plot device to set up Nagisa's revival. The male lead would probably find a solution this episode, or maybe all those Light Orbs he had been collecting would finally come into play.
Since things probably would not get dark, and the female lead might even come back, he was definitely watching.
"I guess that bastard has a shred of decency left. At least I won't have to run laps naked and upside-down."
With that thought, ten o'clock arrived. Episode twenty-one began.
It opened with a doctor's diagnosis of Ushio's condition: the same mysterious illness as Nagisa. Cause unknown.
After about a minute of this, the OP played, then transitioned into a girl-and-robot segment.
It had been two episodes since the girl and robot had appeared.
Hajime still had no idea what these scenes meant or what purpose they served, but he did not overthink it. Just watch and see.
After that cryptic interlude, the episode title appeared: "The End of the World."
Hajime frowned. He could not quite figure out what the title meant, but it was probably referring to the world the little girl and the robot lived in.
It could not possibly mean the male lead's world was ending.
On screen, the anime continued.
Ushio lay at home in bed. The male lead stayed by her side.
One week. Two weeks. A month passed. Ushio's fever never broke.
She could not go to preschool. The male lead quit his job to take care of her at home.
Their peaceful days were gone for good.
Ushio said she wanted to go on a trip with her dad. The male lead said no, but inside he was in agony. He could not cure his daughter's illness, and he could not even grant her one simple wish.
Autumn turned to winter. Ushio was not getting better. The male lead had been caring for her nonstop and was reaching his breaking point, barely able to stand.
Ushio asked again to go on a trip. She wanted to visit the flower field from before. The male lead seemed to sense something, and this time, he said yes.
They packed their things, brought Nagisa's photo along, and stepped outside.
But they had not walked far before Ushio could not go any further.
Snow began to fall. A mournful BGM filled the air.
Ushio struggled forward one agonizing step at a time, then suddenly went limp.
"Ushio!" The male lead panicked and caught her before she hit the snow.
Ushio's eyes had already closed. In her father's arms, she barely managed to half-open them.
"Daddy."
"What is it, Ushio?"
"Where are we? Are we on the train already?"
"Yeah. We're on the train."
"It's dark. Is it nighttime?"
"Yeah. It's the middle of the night."
"I see... Daddy, I love you the most."
"Yeah. Daddy loves Ushio the most too."
After that brief exchange, Ushio managed one last, labored smile. Then her gaze went unfocused, her pupils dilated, her eyes slowly closed, and her hand fell limp.
"Huh?"
Hajime's mind went blank.
What just happened? Did Ushio just die? Was Nagisa not supposed to come back? How did Ushio die before that even happened? What happened to the family reunion?
On screen, the male lead was just as stunned.
He screamed her name. "Ushio!"
A montage of memories flashed across the screen, layered over a devastating BGM, and it completely broke Hajime.
There were a few more minutes of story after that, but by the time the episode ended, there was not the slightest hint that Nagisa was coming back.
Hajime erupted.
"DAMN IT!"
"That evil bastard Shido!"
"DIE! JUST DIE!"
He treated his TV like it was Yuta himself, unleashing a furious barrage of punches and kicks to vent his rage.
...
Hajime was far from the only one who was furious.
After episode twenty-one ended, the internet was a wall of rage.
"What happened to Nagisa coming back?!"
"I'm so angry! Nagisa didn't come back, and now Ushio is dead too!"
"Shido, you bastard! I'm begging you, just be a decent human being!"
"The razor blades I sent clearly weren't enough."
"I got wrecked again. I can't stop crying. Shido is absolutely evil!"
"My Ushio! Give me back my Ushio!"
"Who said they were forming a squad to protect Shido? Get out here! I'll fight every one of you!"
"Ushio was so sweet and innocent. How could you do this, Shido?"
If there was one word to describe how viewers were feeling right now, it was regret.
Regret for trusting Yuta Shido. Regret for watching episode twenty-one.
Some people even thought they should not have watched episode twenty at all. That they should have let the story end permanently at episode nineteen. Actually, stopping at episode fifteen would have been the best choice. Then they would not have been crushed over and over again.
Right now it was nothing but regret. Deep, bitter regret.
The phone lines at the TV station, Arcane, and Starfall were all blown up again.
All three companies' websites got brigaded again.
Under Yuta's earlier social media post, the comments section was an inferno of fury.
"Shido, I'm not done with you!"
"I can't believe I actually trusted that bastard. I was so naive."
"You said Nagisa would come back! You lied to us! And I was the fool who wanted to organize a protection squad!"
"Shido, drop dead!"
"I curse you to never find a wife for the rest of your life!"
"Come out and fight me, you coward! Stop hiding! I'll destroy you!"
The anger was overwhelming.
Even viewers from other countries were making the trip to that post just to curse Yuta out. The number of people cursing him privately was probably even higher.
When Nagisa died the first time, there had been plenty of outrage, but nothing like this.
This time it was a tsunami of fury, so massive that overnight, the whole thing broke out of the anime community and went mainstream.
Even people who had never watched a single anime in their lives now knew about this show and knew who Yuta Shido was.
Yuta was more famous than he had been after season one's first episode. The only difference was that instead of universal praise, it was universal rage.
The manhunt that had died down after his last reassurance came roaring back with a vengeance.
Only this time, the goal was not to find him for a polite chat or to pressure him into changing the script. This time, people wanted to find him and beat him up.
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