I think Ozaki-sensei is incapable of writing anything without intense moral and emotional dilemmas.
The more I read Kamitsuku, the more I come to realize just what a quintessential example of child abuse and abandonment the Suzumuras are. It's bad enough that they live alone and that Rio does all the housework and essentially raises her brother, but now we also learn that their father has presumably abandoned them for real. Everything about Rio's flashback implies that he ran out on his family and that he lied to them about when he would be back, and even worse he irresponsibly left them in the care of their elderly grandfather. That alone counts as neglect and abandonment, but even worse, when the Suzumura jii-chan dies in an accident, Rio is too terrified to call in the police. This is something that real abused families face; when a system of social welfare threatens to interfere and rip your family apart, you want nothing to do with it. After all, Rio still believes her father will eventually return, and thus she fears that if the social workers take her and her brother away, it will forever destroy their family. As a result, Rio takes charge on her own, burying her grandfather and the secret of her family to the best of her ability.
Natsuru, however, has no way to deal with such a revelation. His world starts falling apart, starting with his built up image of Rio. Even his own relationship with his mother is strained, and he finds himself in a helpless position. How does a child help someone with such a terrible secret? How does he do something that would mean anything to Rio?
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