Kamen Rider is the Villain in Pretty Cure Chapter 6

"In every fatal accident, there are at least 30,000 hidden dangers that pave the way, much like the vast portion of an iceberg hidden beneath the sea."

"If you don't treat minor issues, they'll eventually turn into major accidents. You're lucky this time because I saved you. If you encounter something like this again, even if it's just two minutes later at night, you might end up as ZX Unit 2."

Speechless, Hana lowered her head, appearing to listen humbly to Ash's lecture.

I know, I know all of this. It's just that sometimes, for various reasons, I can't follow the most correct path. Or perhaps, this world doesn't give me a choice. But...

"Thank you, Dr. Ash. I don't know what to say."

With nothing else to say, the words of thanks were all that came out. Nono Hana slowly slid off the operating table and onto the ground, enduring the returning ache in her waist and bowing deeply to Ash.

"This..."

As Hana reached into her jacket to pull out money, Ash blocked her.

"There's no need. I've already explained my reasons, and I'm not short on money. I opened this clinic to treat people and prevent certain things from happening again," Ash said, waving his hand and gesturing for Hana to sit back down.

"Wait a moment. Once the full examination report is out, I'll see if I can prescribe some medicine and check for any other issues. Don't worry, it's all free."

What a good person, Mr. Ash!

Although Dr. Ash's temper and tone were a bit strange, Nono Hana was sincerely grateful for being treated this way. She felt a warmth spreading through her heart. After all, such a good person had saved her and was giving her a full...

Examination!!

Nono Hana's head shot up as she realized something significant.

"Dr. Ash! You just said..."

"Ah, it's coming out," Ash said, watching the progress bar on the operating table fill up and reaching towards where the report would be dispensed.

"————"

Before that, a hand snatched the report faster than Ash could, and as she looked at the incredibly detailed report, the woman's face grew increasingly grim.

Traces of third-degree burns healing, traces of penetrating wounds, large-scale lacerations, minor misalignment of limbs and internal organs due to the healing of contusions and comminuted fractures, and abnormal proliferation of excess tissue with complete necrosis of some bodily structures.

Silence fell. Hana felt as though she had received the final verdict of fate. The joy of survival was replaced by the dread and worry that her secrets might be exposed.

Unknown harmful substances accumulated in her body. Her white blood cell count was approximately 119,278 per microliter, about ten times that of a normal person... Well, it's impossible for a normal person to be alive and talking in this situation. This basically slapped the fact that "Nono Hana is abnormal" right in everyone's face.

"Miss Nono Hana?" Ash's voice pulled Hana's wandering consciousness back.

"Wh-what is it?"

"Oh, don't be surprised," Ash said, assuming she was asking how he knew her name. He pointed to her wallet on the table. "I saw your ID. It's perfectly normal."

"So, Miss Nono Hana..."

"Ah, a UFO!"

Hana, who had been prepared to try anything, pointed at the window behind her and shouted. To her surprise, Ash immediately turned to look.

I'm sorry, Mr. Ash, I really didn't want to do this!

The shining energy that represented the future quietly altered the future on the report.

Ash, looking out the window, met the gaze of a disheveled man holding a book.

"..."

"What the hell are you looking at?" Without warning, Ash snapped at him.

"How strange..."

After "scaring away" the peeping Tom with a fierce glare, Ash turned back to the panting Nono Hana to lecture her.

"Miss Nono Hana, I understand you wanted to lighten the mood, but please don't do that again next time."

Still adjusting from his time in the Kyuranger world, when Hana mentioned a UFO, he thought the Space Shogunate was chasing them and almost called out V-REX to transform into a robot and fight to the death.

"Let me see..."

"See..."

"See..."

Ash frowned. It wasn't because of a major problem; quite the opposite, it was because there wasn't a major problem. And no major problem was the biggest problem.

But this was indeed a normally displayed report. Could it be that Doctor Shinigami got drunk on beer in the past and messed up the examination components while operating under the influence? Thinking about it, it seemed quite possible.

"Miss Nono Hana."

"..."

"Miss Nono Hana?" Ash asked again, receiving no response. When he turned his head, he saw Nono Hana curled up on the operating table.

"F▇▇K!" Feeling a sense of unease, Ash didn't have time to worry about the examination. He casually tossed the paper aside and rushed to her side, placing a finger in front of her nose. Feeling her steady and calm breathing, he finally let out a sigh of relief.

She fell asleep. Damn it, false alarm.

Wiping the sweat from his forehead, left from the surgery, Ash thought that Shocker's high-tech operating table was good in every way except for the lack of an auxiliary mechanical arm for wiping sweat. However, considering that the previous user of the operating table, Doctor Shinigami, had removed all his sweat glands and replaced them with coolant, the absence of this useless feature was quite normal.

The operating room quickly returned to its original state. The devices that looked like they would trigger an alarm reverted to their harmless appearances, and a pillow was even provided for Nono Hana where she slept.

"V-rex," he whispered the voice command. The Shocker logo on the tablet interface in his hand changed to the Time Ranger's emblem.

Thanks to Jiro's "Conscience Circuit" design, and with Ken Ryusei and Stronger Parson providing their own wisdom models as reference samples, Ash replaced V-REX's original intelligent chip with a "Super AI" chip circuit he designed himself.

Even if all the technological products on Earth were combined, they wouldn't match V-REX's intelligence.

"Did you find anything?" Before the surgery, Ash considered Nono Hana's condition and asked V-REX to review all traffic camera footage from the city in the hours leading up to her arrival.

Setting aside the internal injuries for a moment, the fresh internal ruptures were no minor wound. For a patient with such injuries to make it to the clinic alone was a testament to their physical and mental fortitude. If Nono Hana's internal ruptures were caused by a traffic accident and the driver had fled the scene, forcing her to come here alone, then Ash wouldn't mind doing a little "cleanup" for his savior.

[Side Story] Case File 9: Take Your Medicine on Time

"I apologize, but before Miss Nono Hana arrived, the system searched based on the estimated time of internal rupture from the database. During this period, there were no car accidents in Nursery City, nor any accidents that would cause such injuries."

"There weren't?" Ash found V-REX's search results somewhat unbelievable.

"Play the full playback, V-REX."

"The most recent potentially relevant video is from an hour ago."

The standby interface switched to surveillance footage of Nursery City. In the recording, Nono Hana was walking slowly, step by step, clutching the area of her internal rupture with her left hand.

She walked very slowly, swaying unsteadily. Many passersby approached her, asking if she needed help, but each time she forced a smile and refused their kindness.

"Fool," Ash shook his head and continued playing the footage.

After one area's recording finished, it immediately jumped to the next. From the moment Nono Hana left her home until she arrived at the clinic, it was a total of one hour.

Nono Hana was sleeping soundly on the operating table, a sweet smile on her face. Drool trickled from the corner of her upturned lips, as if she were having the most beautiful dream.

Perhaps she was dreaming of world peace, or of finding her soulmate and achieving her dreams. However, Ash didn't have time to look at her. He stared intently at the surveillance footage, not even blinking.

"Additionally, based on the injuries, the estimated time of Miss Nono Hana's internal rupture was between 12 AM and 8 AM today."

"In other words, she must have endured for some time after the rupture before seeking medical attention."

"If that's the case, the timing doesn't match."

Given these injuries, Ash naturally associated her with the true identity of that Pretty Cure, or rather, it was the first thing that came to his mind.

Although Ash wasn't as interested in the true identities behind the heroes' masks as he was when they were wearing them, he felt that as an opponent for the foreseeable future, he should "pay attention" to the other side.

However, Ash had now reached a conclusion: [Nono Hana could not be Cure Yell].

"Although she gives off a similar vibe, her appearance, voice, and physique are all off. And most importantly..."

The timing.

That's right, the timing didn't match.

Although he hadn't examined her like this, Ash had felt it during his brief encounter with Cure Yell. The opponent had sustained significant injuries. If she hadn't received immediate medical attention after their fight, she would likely be dead by now, certainly not able to hold on until this point.

Furthermore, yesterday's battle took place during the day. Even if she had been injured, it wouldn't align with Nono Hana's current condition.

Ash was deep in thought, unaware of the existence and peculiar effects of Tomorrow Energy, unique to this world.

"Master Ash?"

"I'm listening." Ash, lost in his own thoughts, closed his eyes to relieve the dry, stinging pain from the past hour. The shock he'd experienced over the last hour had given him a headache.

He opened his uncomfortable eyes, put in some eye drops, and stood up from the sofa, stretching his stiff limbs.

Then, he walked over to the operating table, slipped his arms under her armpits and behind her knees, and gently lifted the still-sleeping Nono Hana.

"So light..."

Her body, emitting a faint scent of disinfectant, was light, soft, and petite.

He carefully felt what he had overlooked during his race against Doctor Shinigami.

Nono Hana in his arms was as light as a piece of white paper, and her stature was small. She didn't look like an adult woman at all; no matter how you looked at her, she seemed fragile.

And yet, this was the body that had endured until now through the pain of internal rupture.

Based on his experience, Ash knew that such strong will and vitality were rare even among heroes.

"Sleep, sleep more and you'll feel better... Sigh, you dummy."

He gently placed Nono Hana on the sofa as if she were a sacred relic. V-REX, now the size of a DX toy after being equipped with the mass conversion device, brought over a blanket, which Ash draped over Nono Hana.

"Chinese medicine or Western medicine?"

"This unit suggests both."

Nono Hana had a dream.

In her dream, she wore a pure white wedding dress as a bride, walking down the aisle arm-in-arm with her husband.

In the frontmost seats on the left were her parents, wiping away tears, and her excited younger sister. Her friends, Homare, Saya, Emiru, and others, sat in the second row, applauding her congratulations.

A young priest stood before them, holding a Bible.

It was time for them to recite their vows.

"Sir, as you live in this world, you shall always tenderly care for your wife and fulfill your duty as a husband until your life's end. Do you take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife?"

"I do."

The man's voice sounded solemn and familiar.

"Madam, are you certain that this marriage is ordained by heaven, and do you promise to acknowledge this man as your husband?"

"I, I do!!"

The bells rang, and everyone cheered. Countless flower petals appeared from nowhere, flying into the sky before slowly drifting down.

A shy Nono Hana turned to face her groom, wanting to see what kind of handsome man had married her.

Then, she met the crimson faceplate of Time Fire. Reflected in the fiery, burning visor, she saw her own utterly bewildered face.

Nono Hana's expression rapidly shifted from embarrassment and happiness to shock and panic. She wanted to break free, but without her powers, his grip on her hand was like a vise.

Wait, wait a minute, I don't want this anymore!

"Now, the groom may kiss his bride."

"Mmmph mmmph wuwuwuwuwu—"

The man's hands gently cradled the woman's head as she turned it from side to side. As Nono Hana's face grew redder, Time Fire's silver lips, gleaming with metallic luster, drew closer to her soft, thin lips.

Beneath the brilliant shower of petals, their lips met.

"Waaaaah!!"

This is my first kiss, no!

Nono Hana's eyes snapped open, her mouth agape. The wedding scene from her dream had transformed back into the clinic. The operating table was now a soft sofa, and a blanket was draped over her.

"So... close..."

The embarrassment and anger from the dream wedding with Time Fire added even more color to her flushed cheeks, which had already reddened from her deep sleep.

Creak. The tightly shut clinic door opened.

"Awake?"

"Dr. Ash, I'm so sorry, I was just so sleepy—"

She stood up, bowed, and apologized in one fluid motion. Then, Nono Hana looked up and saw Ash, and in his hand... a bowl?