The Flower of Sorrow

The Flower of Sorrow (哀しき妖花, Kanashiki Yōka) is the 49th episode of the Kekkaishi anime adapted by Sunrise.

Summary
"Sen Kagemiya and Yoshimori were captured and taken to the stronghold of the Kokuboro. Tokine made her own way through the castle looking for Yoshimori. And meanwhile, in yet another part of the castle, Heisuke Matsudo faced off against his archnemesis, Shiranuma, also known as Byaku, in a fight to the death. With Kagami's aid, Matsudo claimed his victory over Byaku, and his fifty year old grudge was finally settled. With Byaku now gone, the Kokuboro weakened, spiraling deeper into chaos."

- English dub narration

The worm that Byaku placed inside of Aihi is suddenly ejected from her body. Realizing that something has happened to Byaku, she decides to finally escape the castle while she has the chance. As Tokine continues to fall, she creates a Kekkai to catch herself, and another around herself to protect her from falling debris. Her only concern is reuniting with Yoshimori so they can escape together. Tokine approaches a bridge, and is startled to see Aihi standing on the other side. Aihi is equally surprised to see a human. The bridge begins to collapse behind Tokine, and she runs to the other side. Aihi pulls Tokine to safety and leads her away. Sen is frustrated that Yoshimori and Tokine didn't listen to his warnings, but after reaching steady ground again, decides to go and help them. Aihi brings Tokine to her lab, and tells her it should be safe to leave now. Tokine questions why Aihi saved her, and Aihi admits she isn't certain herself, but that she lost her head the last time she met a human.

Long ago, Aihi encountered a man in a forest. Though he feared her true form, once she assumed human form, he became fixated upon her. Aihi allowed him to live because she wasn't hungry at the moment, but instead of escaping as she instructed, the man asked if he could see her again. From then on, he repeatedly visited her, despite warnings that she would eventually eat him. The man finally admitted that it was fine if she ate him. Because of his poor health, his family never let him do any work. The only thing he had to pass the time was studying spellcasting, which he was apparently proficient enough in that no other Ayakashi in the forest presented a threat. He dreaded his empty life, especially the sleepless nights. One night, he claimed to be weakening to the point where he would be unable to leave his house, and suddenly grabbed Aihi's arm, revealing a hidden spell around his hand that prevented her from leaving. He begged Aihi to either eat him or come home with him, and Aihi chose to follow him home. After he gave her a tour of the house (and made excuses for why she shouldn't eat the various occupants), Aihi lost her patience and tried to leave, but found he had applied a spell to the house that prevented her from leaving. Because the only way to end the spell immediately was to eat him, Aihi chose to stay. Though her life with him was uneventful, over time she found herself growing accustomed to his presence. The man's older brother died unexpectedly, causing him to take over the family despite his illness. He grew overworked, and weakened enough that the spell over the house lost its power, giving Aihi her freedom.

Aihi tells Tokine that she could not understand how someone so weak could suddenly find the strength to take care of others. She researched everything she could about humans, and shows Tokine several incomplete human skins in tanks. Tokine asks if Aihi was in love with the man, which startles Aihi. She again tells Tokine to leave, and Tokine realizes that both humans and Ayakashi can have sad memories. As Tokine leaves, Kaguro approaches the lab. Sen finds Yoshimori and tells him what happened to Tokine. Yoshimori immediately begins to searching the lower levels of the castle for her.

As Aihi starts to leave her lab, Kaguro blocks her way, revealing that he overheard Aihi's story. He provokes Aihi by cruelly teasing her and destroying one of the tanks, and she agrees to fight him, transforming into a giant plant. Kaguro accuses Aihi of wanting to be human like the man she loved, which she strongly denies. Even though Kaguro avoids her strikes, Aihi says he has no chance because she is older and more experienced. Kaguro points out that because she stopped feeding on humans, there is no longer any evil in her aura. Kaguro slashes Aihi's vines, and she quickly finds that she cannot regenerate the damaged ones, so she extends the surviving ones instead, but he cuts them as well. Aihi showers Kaguro with pollen, causing him to see illusions. Aihi crushes Kaguro's body, but as she starts to leave, he suddenly appears without his human skin and drives numerous swords through her body. Kaguro is about to finish her when he senses Yoshimori approaching. Seeking a better challenge, he leaves Aihi barely alive. She warns him that it is Ayakashi that are weak, not humans as he thinks, but Kaguro ignores her. Aihi manages to drag herself outside of the lab, where she reverts to her plant form and releases many flowers into the air. One reaches a young girl, who is revealed to be the great granddaughter of the man that Aihi knew. She gives him the flower, and he is able to recognize it as Aihi's. He welcomes her home and appears to die peacefully. Meanwhile, Tokine and Yoshimori finally find each other in the castle.