Chapter Text
I met her when I was barely old enough to know my own name.
Her eyes bore into mine, red, wide, and full of innocence, and in her left fist, a stick-like object seemingly bigger than her.
That was the day I met Peko Pekoyama. She was only a month or so older than me, so I figure she would not have known what was going on either.
In a sense, today was supposed to be a special day for both of us, but later in life when I would look back on this day, a strong, almost overwhelming sense of sadness would envelop my whole being.
I soon realized that that day, that day was the last time I would ever see her eyes like that, so innocent, and full of life. I didn’t know it at the time, because back then, as far as I knew, I was a normal infant and so was she.
It wasn’t until I grew up a little bit that I learned her story. Abandoned by her parents hours after she was released from the womb, she was brought from one of the clan-controlled hospitals to my father, who took her in.
The doctor sensed great potential from her from that point on, and she would later be proved right.
‘The Pekoyama Clan is an honorable clan of swordsmen, from samurai warriors, bodyguards, and kendo masters, all the way to forging their own blades to use in combat. They have served the great kings of the past and the respectable leaders of the present. While we do not know why they would bring leave their heir to us, we believe it was fate that allowed these events to play out.’
My father had explained that to me soon after I turned three-years-old, and I had already becomes used to seeing Peko around almost every waking moment of the day. I would watch Peko train, and I would string her along to the koi pond to look at the fish and the frogs.
‘We will raise her to be the best hitman the underground has ever seen. I believe that is something the Pekoyamas would have wanted her skills used for.’
As far as I was concerned, back then, swords were just cool but far too heavy for me to ever dream of holding.
And then he said those words I would find myself resenting many, many years down the road.
‘When you are old enough, you may use her however you wish.’
These words were the catalyst for many events later in life, words that wormed their way into my brain and refused to leave for years and years to come. Words that would forever fill me with guilt, regret, and shame.
Even at that age, I knew exactly what those words meant because he used that exact same language when referring to my mother.
Back then, I thought it was the words couples used to refer to each other lovingly, but I would soon come to learn that wasn’t the case at all.
In the world I would soon begin to find my place in, nothing was ever what it appeared to be on the surface.
Years had passed, and one day my father decided to bring Natsumi, Peko, and me to oversee a deal going on in the mountains. He wanted us to know exactly what we were getting into as direct links to one of the biggest Yakuza syndicates in Japan.
Halfway there, it began to snow. Mere minutes passed and the snow only got worse.
And just like that, the SUV holding Peko and I swerved off course and slammed into a tree.
At some point, I lost consciousness, because at some point I was barely awake, and all I could feel was the warmth of my own blood against the snow.
“-aster! Young master!”
I woke up and saw Peko staring at me. I noticed the right sleeve of her long-sleeved button-up was missing, leaving her arm completely exposed to the cold.
“All the adults are knocked out, come on, we have to go.”
She took my hand, and I followed her without question.
Peko seemed to have a great sense of intuition as she led me through the snow, my body vibrating at the cold with my face at her back.
Peko showed no fear, her entire body completely still despite the cold, but I knew better.
I could feel the way her hand was tensing around mine, and it wasn’t shaking. In my conscious ignorance, I believed she just wasn’t cold…
But, there was another part of me that knew much better.
Why wouldn’t she be shaking? It was freezing…
And without knowing, I immediately began sobbing, slowly delving into uncontrollable crying.
I quickly tried to console Peko, and why I thought I would be successful, I had no idea… But I had to try, didn’t I?
In the end, I believe I only served to make Peko more anxious. She started visibly shaking and never regained that firm exterior she had before. Her voice was almost completely unchanged aside from the occasional, out of place, stutter, and even so, she did all she could to protect me.
That very same night, due to my focus on Peko over everything else, I hadn’t been able to warn her of our captors…She was caught off guard and subdued and I could do nothing.
Even though Peko still lived, I couldn’t help feeling a little hopeless.
Some time passed, and we were presented as bargaining chips to both my father and the other members of the Kuzuryu Clan. He gave my father an ultimatum: The Kuzuryu Empire, or us.
I knew my father would pick the clan over us, but he knew something I didn’t: Peko was an absolutely extraordinary woman.
The potential seen in her from the moment she was brought to our door hadn’t even been on full display then, but that didn’t stop me from being absolutely awed as she brought down our captors with practiced ease… Someone the same age as me doing something so extraordinary…
The sight filled my heart with so much hope, and as I was sent off to get my head wound treated, I was blissfully ignorant of the war within myself this would cause.
All I could think about as I looked at her by my side was: “I want to be like her.”
|-|-|
This was a pattern I soon came to realize.
After that incident, I noticed it: Whenever I got myself into trouble, especially then, she was always there by my side.
When I gave Natsumi trouble and vice versa, Peko was there. When I had childish whims I “needed” to act on, Peko accompanied me with a firm grip on my hand. Hell, even when a year or so after that incident, I climbed into a monkey cage at the zoo to show off my “strength” to her, she was helping me back out with a barely visible smile on her face.
That’s why… I couldn’t believe the situation I had put her in.
After that incident, I still couldn’t help but find myself absolutely enamored with the Kuzuryu clan and all its internal workings.
‘Fuyuhiko, there are many things you will need to learn before taking over this empire. You have everyone in your pocket, from the police to local doctors, but you must remember this and remember it well. You must be willing to compromise, but never be afraid to take what is rightfully yours. You must be firm and unwilling to waver, but most importantly, you must treat those under you with the utmost respect. This empire was built on their foundation and continues to stand tall on their shoulders. If they feel they have no reason to respect you or support you, the foundation will crumble. Do not forget these words, Fuyuhiko, lest you be thrown to the wolves by the very people who swore to protect you.’
While I usually found myself disgusted by the man that raised me, when he talked of his work and the people behind the curtain, I respected him.
I wanted to continue what those before had started, but there was one woman who firmly disagreed with that… In fact, she fought my very existence.
The cycle was full of hatred… They would fight over my future like rabid animals for their prey, and then the next thing I knew, my mother would be at my father’s feet, begging for mercy.
I know why she begged… She was a tool too.
Haruhi Nakamura was her name before she married into the Kuzuryu clan. Per my fathers' description, she was a whore who married rich, only good for serving as a bargaining chip for when he didn’t get what he wanted.
I remembered how after the fights were over after her tears seemingly dried up, she would turn her sights on me.
“Hiko… Hiko please, please tell me you won’t do it! Tell me you won’t!”
Every time it was the same thing…
She’d beg, she’d cry, and when it was apparent I had tapped out, she would strike me, and tonight was no different.
I remembered her pale skin, her grey eyes… Her bruised face, broken nose, and smeared makeup…
I remembered her screams… And I remembered her hands tight around my neck.
At my mother’s mercy, I felt true despair.
And then she appeared, a silver lining in the darkness, cutting through the despair that stared me in the eyes every day. She stood tall, unwavering, her blade clutched in both hands. She helped me to my feet, staring at me with those red, dull eyes.
‘Are you ok, young master?’
Initially, I had been speechless, but eventually, I managed to choke out the words:
‘H-How did you-?’
‘Your voice called out to me, so I came.’
She grabbed my hand that night and led me away, talking about my wounds and how Natsumi wasn’t around to help “this time.”
As I followed her around, the disgust with myself only grew…
And then I did something I would regret for years to come.
I wrenched my hand away, and when Peko reached out to me, I shoved her away and started yelling, saying anything that popped into mind at the time.
It was like I was completely out of both my mind and body, like I had no control whatsoever…
And that made me afraid of myself.
Even so… After I had done something so unnecessarily cruel and hurtful, after not stopping to apologize for it, she still patched my wounds up for me. Peko still showed me kindness I knew I had done absolutely nothing to deserve.
She had spoken to me once she was done, and her voice was so commanding I couldn’t help but meet her eyes. In those eyes where that wide-eyed innocence once laid was a calculating stare. The moon reflected off her glasses as she spoke to me, the words of truth that had been planted in her head flowed from her mouth effortlessly as she said:
“I am your shadow, young master. And wherever you go, I shall follow.”
Even then, all I could think about was myself… I never once thought about Peko and how she must have felt about her situation.
All I could do was sit in absolute fear and disgust of myself.
Peko said… She said my voice had called out to her, but as far as I know… I had stayed silent.
And yet the thought lingered.
I saw Peko’s wounds that she obtained from the scuffle. A bruise there, a few bleeding scratches… They were minor and would fade, but they were wounds nonetheless.
If she got involved like that because I called out to her… And if she continued getting involved because of me…
Then it was my fault she was getting hurt.
The pattern once again became glaringly obvious to me, and the reality of the situation finally began to sink in.
Almost every time I got myself into trouble, it was at her expense. I was making unnecessary trouble for her, and for what?
Peko didn’t deserve to get hurt because of me, and she shouldn’t have to be spewing that young master shit either!
I was going to fix this… I was going to fix this and reverse the effect I actively played a part in.
|-|-|
Admittedly, when I was eight years old, that goal seemed so simple, something I could accomplish overnight…
I should have known it wouldn’t be that easy.
As I grew older alongside her, I began to become painfully aware of my flaws, my focus shifting once again.
My physique. I stopped growing before the end of middle school and there was jack shit I could do about it. My face was still childish, and all my peers sprung up like trees around me. It didn’t help that my knack to cause trouble in this state seemed to have ruffled feathers of some of the members.
My cousins called it “Little-Man Syndrome,” in which I made up for my lack of stature with brash words and obvious posturing, and they were so right, it hurt.
And in my haste to prove myself a worthy heir, I lost sight of that goal…
Again, and again, she came to my rescue when I got in too deep. As grateful as I was, my anger only increased at my uselessness.
If I couldn’t find it in myself to help her, how could I even find myself worthy of running the clan? If I couldn’t help myself, how could I help others and protect those close to me?
These questions were constantly on the forefront of my mind, and at times I lay awake at night not only fearful for my life, but hers as well.
What if she died protecting me?
What if I died and she could do nothing and-and-.
I didn’t want to think about it, but after my middle school graduation, I forced myself to come to… A realization of sorts.
Maybe I dreamed too big… If I let my ambitions get too ahead of me now, I would always fail to catch up and, I’d never be able to reach them… I had to focus on what I could do right now, and in the close future.
I may not be able to protect everyone in the clan, and some may have to lose their lives, but that’s a given…
However, the people close to me, the people I loved, and the people whose lives mattered to me above all else, I could protect them…
If I could protect Peko and Natsumi, that would be enough.
|-|-|
While I think Peko knew, she never made any moves to confirm she knew. Natsumi, on the other hand, was nosy and assigned herself my right-hand woman.
“Peko hates sweets… Try leaving her some savory or salty snacks! And a water bottle with a towel for when she takes her breaks. Some bandages and stuff like that would be good too I think, you know, just in case.”
I listened to every word Natsumi said like it was the gospel, writing down a list just in case she forgot.
“How the hell do you even know this stuff?”
Natsumi crossed her arms and legs with a roll of her eyes, “How do you NOT know this stuff? We spend alone time together from time to time, probably because she’s the only broad here that tolerates me. She probably feels comfortable with me or somethin’…”
She must have seen something on my face because she immediately followed up with, “Or maybe it’s a hitwoman thing!”
“Yeah… Something like that.”
“Anyways, she’s always in the garden from about 6 pm to practice and takes a 10-minute break around 7:30-.”
Thanks to Natsumi, I had a plan.
At around 7:10 pm, I grabbed a tray from the kitchen and began to load it up with a water bottle, a couple towels, rubbing alcohol, and a few snacks and brought it to the garden by 7:20. I placed it near Peko’s things, which consisted of her shoes, her blade cover, and some extra hair ties.
Peko was really in the zone… She wore a lot of clothes, but I can only assume it was apart of her training, but… Every hit she took was so practiced and precise, so smooth and yet sharp all the same. Her body and mind were in complete sync with every hit she took at the dummy.
I sat by the koi pond and watched for only a brief moment, completely taken in by the way she moved.
She was absolutely incredible, and if I didn’t know any better, I’d say she was otherworldly.
This was the first time since that incident I had really, truly watched her at work. With every movement, she took my breath away, and I occasionally caught myself cheering for her in my head despite the fact she was fighting a dummy and… I had to see more.
The way she moved had me in a trance up until she stopped to take her 10-minute break. I took that as my signal to go as I didn’t want to intrude any longer.
I kept up this routine, even during the summer, except now I did it twice a day instead of just once: one time at 2 pm, and again at 6:30 pm. And each time, I stayed behind for a while to watch Peko train.
Peko was truly amazing… Truly, I couldn’t peel my eyes off of her because I didn’t want to miss a single second. While usually, I would only watch for ten minutes until her break, this time I stayed behind even after her break. She was fighting a training partner, and she was holding her own very well...
It was like I was in a trance of some kind…
“Young master?”
Busted.
I jumped a little bit when I was face to face with her, “A-Ah! Peko, what’re you-.”
“You were staring off into space,” she pointed to the koi pond, “If you weren’t paying attention or had fallen asleep, you could have fallen in and drowned.
I think at this point she must have expected for me to shrug her off or snapback with some smartass comment, but the words never came.
I was far too focused on the open wound on Peko’s forehead.
“Dumbass, you’re bleeding! That guy musta hit you too hard!”
“It’s only a small wound yo-.”
I grabbed her hand and immediately brought her over to where I knew I put down the tray.
“Tch, dumbass! Just sit still!”
I doused one of the towels I brought with some rubbing alcohol and gently dabbed at the wound of Peko’s forehead to clean it, moving some stray hairs out the way so they wouldn’t get wet.
“I can dress my own wounds, young master...”
“Didn’t you hear me? It’s fine!”
Peko visibly withered, and I immediately regretted raising my voice.
“L-Look, I just wanna prevent you getting an infection… Lord knows the old man’ll throw a fuckin’ fit if you get one. It’s no big deal ok?” I sighed, “Besides, you did the same for me way back when right?”
“But… That’s different.”
“How’s it different? I got hurt, you fixed me up and now I’m doing the same.
She didn’t appear to have a good argument for that, because her eyes refused to meet mine afterward.
The heavy silence became too much, even if it had only been a few seconds.
“I’m sorry for yelling at you, Peko.”
“There is no need for you to apologize, young master. You need not have any consideration for how I feel.”
I began to unwrap the bandages, cutting off a small portion that I believed would properly cover and protect the wound. “What are you talking about?”
“As your tool, it is my duty-.”
And the world seemed to stop the second those words left her mouth.
“The hell did you just say?”
“Only the truth.”
I hesitantly applied the bandages to the wound on her forehead.
“The truth? Don’t be fuckin’ ridiculous!” I stood up abruptly, “You’re not a tool at all!”
“But it is my duty and purpose to act as such in your name… And if you are to deny that, are you trying to deny my existence, young master?”
“I... I don’t know! All I know is that you’re not a tool!”
I couldn’t bring myself to watch Peko’s practice any longer after that.
|-|-|
One day, all three of us were called into my fathers’ quarters. The air was tense and foreboding, and none of us knew what was to come.
The room was surrounded by Kuzuryu clan guards. A few minutes after our entrance, my father walked in with two women by his side, my mother on his right, and someone unfamiliar on his left.
She had a black, bobbed haircut, and she wore a pantsuit. She had three letters in hand, and glasses that rested on the bridge of her nose.
“Fuyuhiko Kuzuryu, the eldest child and heir to the Kuzuryu yakuza syndicate. Natsumi Kuzuryu, the youngest child and second in line in the circumstance something happens to your brother. Peko Pekoyama, excellent swordswoman and raised by this household,” the woman nodded, “Excellent, all here and accounted for!”
She laid her predatory gaze on all of us, and as her mouth twisted into a smile, I swore I saw her teeth glint.
I was uneasy, and I could tell Peko was too. One of her hands and moved ever so slightly to anticipate grabbing her bamboo sword. Natsumi, on the other hand, was completely still, almost scarily so. She stared straight ahead, facing that woman head-on.
“Peko Pekoyama, we are offering you a once in a lifetime opportunity to attend our school. You see, I’m a scout for Hope’s Peak Academy, and many of our trained men have reported you to have the makings of an ultimate, the ultimate swordswoman, in fact.”
Peko’s hand moved back to its standard position on her lap, which in turn made my heart settle a bit.
“Your skills are absolutely exemplary Miss. Pekoyama! It’d be a crime if either of us let this opportunity go to waste.”
The woman handed Peko a letter with a shiny, red stamp on it, and Peko hesitantly took the letter.
The woman turned her eyes on Natsumi and Me next, and that uneasy feeling returned full force.
“Now, I’ve heard very interesting reports about you two… Fuyuhiko, they say you have the work ethic and confidence, but you are also arrogant and brash and it gets you into trouble.”
I sighed, “It’s true… Sometimes I can come in too strong and end up trying to overcompensate.”
She looked over at Natsumi, “Now you, young lady, about you, I’ve heard just the most interesting things!”
“Oh yeah? Like what?”
“Like you’re a complete ice-cold bitch, unwavering, bold, and never afraid to take what you believe to be yours. You have a way with words unlike your big brother, a natural charisma I’d say. You have the makings of a wonderful yakuza heiress, wouldn’t you agree?”
And then Natsumi did something I never would have expected from her.
She rolled her eyes and scoffed at the woman, “Tch, you’re just sayin’ that ‘cause you think I’m some dumb broad right?”
“P-Pardon?
Natsumi had the whole room in the palm of her hands now, and everyone was anticipating her next words.
“You think I don’t see what you’re tryin’ to do here? You’re trying to disrupt the chain of command!” her face turned up in a hideous sneer, “Fuyuhiko was meant to be fathers’ successor, I’m tired of all this pushy bullshit!”
“So what if I’m the mirror image of Uncle? That doesn’t mean shit to me!” she pointed her finger right at herself with an intimidating tilt of her head, “I’m not gonna get into HPA’s main course by leeching off of someone else, you hear me?! I won’t take a position by taking a position that wasn’t ensured to me by blood, understand?!”
“All the more reason to have you in the main course, but after that show of refusal…” she adjusted her glasses and cleared her throat, “Fuyuhiko, we expect to see you at Hope’s Peak Academy to partake in our main course as the Ultimate Yakuza, do you have any qualms with that?”
“N-No ma’am..”
“Then it’s settled. Orientation is in a few weeks; the date is stated in your letters.”
And just like that, as quickly as it had begun, it was over, and I had barely been able to absorb anything that the scout had said.
My mind was stuck on what Natsumi had just done.
I chased her down the first second I could, “What the hell was that?! Why would you give up such a big fuckin’ opportunity the way you did?!”
She brushed me off with an irritating scoff, “Isn’t it obvious?”
“Hell no!”
She turned to face me, hand on her hip with a smirk, “I’m gonna get in using my own damn talent! Those old bastards in there? All they want is someone perfect, someone just like Uncle, who “lead them to greatness!” to hell with that! I think you’ll be a great heir, but they don’t see it at all! That’s why I turned ‘em down, ‘cause you already fit the role! I’m not gonna fit a role that doesn’t fit me no matter what they say!”
I was stunned into complete silence, but Natsumi still had more to say.
She turned back around and looked back at me with that same annoying smirk, “Besides, you and Peko are a package deal, right? Wherever one goes, the other has to follow right? I couldn’t bring myself to tear the two of you apart like that.”
I went red immediately, “What the hell are you fuckin’ talkin’ about dumbass?! It’s not like that at all!”
Natsumi already started to walk off with a wave of her hand, “Don’t worry, I won’t tell anybody, especially Peko!”
I wanted to yell something back, but I knew she would shake it off as usual so…
“Thanks… For what you did back there.”
She stopped in her tracks and looked back at me, “Are you sick or something? You’re barely ever this sincere!”
I went red once again, “Sh-Shut up! It’s not that serious… I’m just thankful is all.”
Natsumi’s laughter immediately filled the hallway, “Get some rest ok? I think you might be coming down with somethin’!”
I knew she was just showing she appreciated the sentiment, even if it came off a little bit mean… But that was just Natsumi.
And in the coming weeks, I would be off to Hope’s Peak Academy, Peko still by my side.
I had to pull her outside before the first day.
“Is there something my young master requests from me?”
I closed the door behind us, “No one’ll interrupt us here…”
I felt a sudden spike in Peko’s uneasiness, so I turned the lights on so we could face each other.
If I screwed up here…
I pushed those thoughts aside without finishing them.
“Listen, I brought it up to the old man a while back, and we both agreed that while we’re at school, we should only act like classmates. If the Ultimate Yakuza and the Ultimate Swordswoman were caught acting all chummy it might be a bad look.”
I knew I was lying through my teeth, but I knew her better than anyone, and I knew that if she kept all her focus on me, she would do something reckless…
Not here, not at Hope’s Peak. I can’t let her do something like that and risk it all for someone like me.
She doesn’t deserve a fate like that.
“I don’t believe I will be able to abide by that request, young master.”
“How many times have I told you not to call me-.”
“My purpose was given to me by the clan. They gave me a reason to live as both your sword and shield, and they also gave me something to die for. Without someone at the helm, I am nothing but a tool, an object to be used at one’s disposal.”
“How much longer are you going to go on about that crap?!”
“As long as it takes for you to see my truth.”
“You’re being ridiculous! I don’t care how many damn times you say it, you’re not a damn tool!”
“Young master… The day you accept the fact that I am both your sword and shield, the easier it will be for you to accept it when I inevitably meet my end.”
All words were lost on me. What should I say? What could I say?
Every day, Peko was so close, but it still felt like we were drifting farther and farther apart, never able to see eye to eye on this subject. The words I wanted to say were dying on my tongue, and even if I wanted to say them, it felt much too soon to…
All I knew… I wanted Peko to see herself through my eyes, the way I saw her. She was more than she thought she was, but she didn’t know that.
And yet, despite my overwhelming desire to tell her all these things, to come close and never let her get hurt again like she did that night… I found myself staring at her retreating back, her resolve unshakeable.
I would have to do better.
If there was one thing I knew I never wanted, it was for her to leave me behind. Even if I had to act distant, I would still be by her side, no matter what.
That was a promise I knew I could make to myself and her.
|-|-|
I didn’t remember then. I only remembered when I woke up from the simulation.
I remembered the good times at Hope’s Peak: Ibuki and TeruTeru’s rock ‘n roll barbecue and Akane who would happily indulge with Nekomaru’s oversight. I remembered the odd love corner between Sonia, Kazuichi, and Gundham, along with Mikan and Hiyoko’s push and pull dynamic paired with the sibling dynamic Hiyoko had with Mahiru and Nagito’s knack to get into unnecessary trouble. There was Ryota’s passion and Chiaki’s hope along with her love for gaming.
And I remembered Peko and I getting to act like we were somewhat normal for once, despite the circumstances.
I cherished them and the memories I made before they had been forcefully ripped from my grasp and replaced with the memories of the things I had done under Junko Enoshima’s insurmountable despair.
Blood and carnage decorated my mind, and I knew that no matter how long I ignored it, the damage I caused could never be erased.
Once again, I became something I absolutely despised and lost track of my ambitions.
In my despair, I had done the one thing I never ever wanted to do: I gave in to the notion that Peko was my tool, my property, and nothing else but that.
I became the worst version of myself, and never had I been more disgusted with myself.
My memories were still hazy in that regard, but in all that remaining despair, laid a hope that would conquer all else.
Because these memories are mine… These memories of mine, I can grow past them, and I can become better than them.
Because they gave me another chance. Those in the Future Foundation gave us another chance.
Another chance to live.
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NOW ENTERING THE NEO WORLD PROGRAM
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