Prologue

An earthquake struck Tokyo when I was only ten years old. My father and I were on our way to see mother, because she was in hospital and was in labour. Dad never left Mum's side and I was left in the hallway to wait for my new sibling; it was a difficult birth.

Dad appeared with a baby boy in his arms 'Kanaru Hagino' he smiled. He never once smiled at me like that. Mum sometimes did, but never Dad – in his opinion I was a waste of chromosomes and a 9 month pregnancy. But, each to their own.

That's when it began. Vibrations in the floor grew to violent shakes, people ran about shouting in each ward. Then the buzzers began blaring from Mum's room. My little brother was shoved roughly into my small arms, causing him to cry out, as Dad ran into the room to see what was going on. That's when the celling collapsed atop of us. I began running out of the hospital along with patients, doctors, nurses and fellow visitors.

Turns out that the seventh levels foundations had been destroyed, causing it to collapse under the strain of the eighth – killing everyone on the sixth level. Mum and Dad's floor.

I stood in the sea of people outside the ruined hospital with my baby brother in my arms. I knew I needed help – not for my sake, for his. Kanaru's. He had only just been born, meaning that his immune system was weak to disease and illness.

I searched for a doctor, a nurse, someone who know what they were doing. He could've died. My voice wasn't loud enough over the screams and loud shouts. I was desperate. He was my only family I had. There was no way that my, our parents had survived. There was like a ring of cloud that pushed away from the building were the levels flattened each other…no way they could have come out alive.

An old man had noticed my distressed expressions and useless pleas. His large hand gently placed onto my shoulder and called for help on my behalf. Kanaru got his treatment quickly. I followed the nurse silently, like a shadow – there, but not really there.

The old man watched with eagle eyes and spied my every movement.

After some of the commotion had dies down the man approached me again while I held my sleeping brother.

'Where are your parents, little one?' he asked softly.

'Dead,' I replied with a monotone voice and blank expression. 'I have been told that there will be an orphanage which they will take us in, but there is no guarantee that we will stay together.'

The man crouched down so we were talking face to face. 'My name is Nakamuru Hideyoshi, you see, I have no children – so I have no grandchildren. I need someone to succeed my family business or else the…craft will die out. Would you by any chance agree to living with me as my grandchildren?' He asked with a sincerity that I had never seen before.

'Will you be able to promise me that you can take care of my brother and I, Nakamuru-san? Can you spoil and love my brother and me as if we were, in fact, your own grandchildren?' I asked roughly. I didn't care about myself. I have no doubt that nobody will ever truly love me. But for Kanaru, I want him to live without a worry that the people around him love and cherish him. I don't want him to feel like I did; never.

'Of course I will young one,' his eyes softened. 'Please, may you tell me your names child?'

'Yuzuru. And my brother is Kanaru Hagino.' I struck out my hand for I couldn't give him a proper bow of respect for the new human in my arms. Understanding my situation he took my hand gently and shook it, but didn't let go. He held our hands up to my face and smiled at me.

'Well Yuzuru, we are now a family.'

Our future can only get brighter – that is what I believed. Well, at the time I did; but now…I'm not too sure.

XXX

AND I DON'T OWN THIS MANGA/ANIME!