Bara no Ki ni Bara no Hanasaku

In early Showa-era Japan during the height of World War II, prestigious boys' boarding schools cultivate the nation's future leaders. Kaname, a handyman at Shintoku Academy, discovers a dead bird beneath the school's rose garden and plans to bury it. That night, he's ambushed, drugged, and brutally assaulted by an unknown assailant. The next day, a photograph arrives at Professor Tsukimura's office—evidence of Kaname's violation. As Kaname investigates the mysterious "Hanakuihidori," student attitudes shift suspiciously and his friend Junya vanishes without trace. How many witnessed his degradation? What became of Junya? And who is the enigmatic perpetrator lurking within the academy's walls?