WARNING: The following contains spoilers for To Your Eternity Episode 17, “The Defeated,” now streaming on Crunchyroll, as well as discussion of sexual assault.
Hayase is further cementing herself as the most despicable villain in To Your Eternity. Sure, the Nokkers are a problem with their vessel-stealing abilities and ability to take Fushi's memories away, but Hayase is much worse.
Ever since she met Fushi in Ninannah, she's been obsessed with the immortal being. At first, it seemed to be rooted in a hunger for his powers, like when she subjected him to heinous experiments. But now in Episode 17, Hayase's obsession is bordering on what she thinks is 'love' -- and that's much more dangerous.
The first few minutes of To Your Eternity Episode 17 bring up a whole mix of emotions. To the shock of everyone in the arena, Hayase soundly defeats Fushi. Then she has the audacity to stake a claim on Fushi and steals all the credit for taking care of him from March, Fushi's real mother. She's doing everything she can to insert herself into his life.
Finally, she implores all the citizens of Jananda to protect Fushi, citing that the heavens have been a factor in bringing him there. It's not dissimilar to how she brainwashed the Ninannah people with the myth of Oniguma to frighten them into essentially murdering young girls. She claims Fushi is the only one who can change their fates, leading to rousing cheers from everyone -- except Tonari and her friends.
Fushi, possibly due to the effects of the western morning glory, hallucinates being back in Booze Man's home where he's greeted by Shin, Rean, and Booze Man himself. He tells them he hasn't accomplished anything despite his immortality. They try to comfort him by telling him he isn't alone -- he has also March and Gugu -- but Fushi reminds them that they're all dead. Surprisingly, it's Shin who reminds him that his power to change into anyone allows him to help his dead friends start over.
His dream is disrupted when Hayase enters, her appearance not disfigured. She leans in and licks his face continuously but because of the drug, he's frozen in place. While Fushi remains stuck in his hallucination, Hayase strips naked and crawls on top of his body, her expression wild. The scene is absolutely awful but Hayase's sexual assault is stopped just in time thanks to Tonari.
Tonari and her friends charge into Hayase's residence, but there's no Fushi to be seen -- Hayase had instructed her soldiers to carry Fushi's body to the underground sanctuary. When the group arrives in the right spot and insist on taking Fushi away, they find themselves cornered by Hayase. They're ready to fight to the death, but Fushi materializes right beside Hayase with a sword at her throat. Right before Fushi's body had been taken away, he had managed to separate his consciousness into the mole's body.
Despite Tonari's protests, Fushi bargains his own freedom in exchange for his friends', allowing them to escape Jananda once and for all. Tonari readies a ship for her friends and all the youngest citizens, giving an impassioned speech that children deserve to choose their own fates. The group's farewell with Fushi gets cut short when Hayase knocks them all out and injects Fushi with the western morning glory.
Tonari is the first to wake up, and as To Your Eternity continues, she's now looking for a way off the ship. She knows she wants Fushi in her future, but that isn't going to happen if she leaves him alone on Jananda with Hayase.