Chapter Text
Tokyo Manji Gang had once walked a path with no direction– fighting others and spouting their ambitions mindlessly. It would have stayed like that was it not for Hanagaki Takemichi entering their lives.
For a whole year the boy spent with the group, he cried for them, shared their pain, and taught them the true meaning of friendship.
Afterward, he disappeared.
Since then, every Toman member became determined to continue walking the path Takemichi had paved for them so that the efforts their hero exerted would not be in vain.
Their convictions wavered, though, when 12 years later, news regarding a very familiar man's death occurred to them.
Takemichi Hanagaki was dead.
The reason?
''He slipped on a banana peel.''
"Hah??? Did 'ya smoke crack or what?? That shit only happens in cartoons!"
"Baji, if you don't want to believe me, go check the replay for today's afternoon news!!!!!" Kazutora screamed to his friend through the phone.
"Nah. I know you have some weird yearning going on for that guy, but I have rabbits to feed. Go bother 'Fuyu or something!"
Kazutora sighed exasperatedly. If only it weren't for the weight the information carried, he'd have laughed it off too. Who would even think that slipping on a banana peel could actually kill someone in real life? What type of sorcery was that?
"You're attached to him too, Baji. And we haven't seen Takemitchy in so long! You should know that I'd never joke about this! That's sick!"
The other line went silent. "... you're not kidding?"
"No!"
"Really?"
God, Kazutora wished he could teleport to their pet shop and punch this imbecile. "Everyone's talking about it on Twitter! And unlike you, no one else thinks it's funny. Someone died, for heaven's sake!"
"Hell Nah! Sorry! Okay? Sorry." Kazutora caught the sound of Baji whacking his face as he apologized. "I'm checking it, I'm checking it. How did that even make it to the news??"
He did not know. He panicked so much the moment he recognized Takemichi's name. It's not like every day you'd witness a report about your old friend passing away being broadcasted for the whole country to watch! The moment he gained his cognizance back, Kazutora instantly opened the only social media account he had (the Twitter account he made to post pictures of his pet dog) because who would have known if the dispatch was fake? or his television just glitched?
He did not expect to see infographics after infographics and articles about How To Not Slip-on Bananas, Why Loiterring Should Not be Tolerated, The Significance of Practicing Proper Waste Management.
Only a few sent Takemitchy their condolences!
Kazutora listened as Baji read, "It says here that Takemitchy slipped on a banana peel that was laying on a floor of a shopping mall, that's why a lot of people were there when it happened— and no one helped him?!?— then nobody bothered to check up on him at first because they thought Takemitchy fell asleep— THEY'RE SO FUCKING DUMB!!" Baji kept on spewing cuss words and insults like a mantra, and Kazutora did not bother to stop him because he, too, was cursing everyone inside his head.
Who eats bananas inside shopping malls?!
To be honest, he had. Just once. He was at the supermarket, and some overripe bananas were on sale. He remembered how worth it that purchase was.
But he at least did not toss its peel somewhere and unintentionally became a culprit of an indirect murder!
Baji picked up where he left of, "Hours later—HOURS??? 'Tora! I'm about to lose it!— A police acquaintance of Takemitchy happened to be roaming around the same mall with his sister, and there, they recognized Takemitchy's immobile bod—FUCKING FINALLY!!!- He was proclaimed dead on arrival due to internal bleeding."
"......"
"......"
''See? It's unbelievable, Baji."
"Has anyone contacted you about this?"
Surprisingly, no one in Toman had reached out to Kazutora yet. "The report is fresh. They're probably reacting to it the same way."
"......Hang on. Come to the shop if you can, I'm telling Chifuyu."
Tachibana Naoto and Hanagaki Takemitchy were not close with each other. Nevertheless, he knew how much his sister loved that guy. Hinata would often tell him stories about her hero, who treated her right even during the last moments of their relationship.
Although Naoto would often sneer and say, "If he treated you right, then why are you crying? Why did he end things between you two?"
Hinata would just pat him on his head and answer, "Everything happens for a reason." — as if that would explain everything. Why do people say that?
At present, Naoto was holding his sister's trembling hand. They had been inside the hospital for hours. Hinata refused to leave. She said she would not go until the funeral home came and picked up Hanagaki.
It was understandable. It had been a dumbfounding situation for them both. They were practically the first persons to find out about his sister's ex-boyfriend's peculiar death. This was the most unideal reunion between lovers ever. Naoto could empathize with his sister as he had seen this countless times in tragedy books.
"I TOLD YOU, I DON'T CARE ABOUT THE COST! JUST MAKE SURE TO FIND INFORMATION ABOUT EVERYONE WHO PURCHASED BANANAS IN TOKYO FROM YESTERDAY UP TO THIS MORNING!" Screamed someone Naoto could recognize– Kokonoi Hajime.
Should he not be looking for people who had loitering charges first?
Seating beside Kokonoi was Inui Seishu. As a police officer, it wasn't unusual for Naoto to identify the two men. They established a name for themselves due to their contributions to society. They respectively owned numbers of small private fire stations that had saved people's lives and provided protection for countless communities.
Naoto had came across some interviews of them in the net. The two friends would often claim that they should not be given credit for firefighters' hard work. They'd say that they were only doing what they should do after being influenced by the power of shared traumas, family loss, and fated friendship. They would never say anything else further than that. Naoto's brain hurt.
"W-where's Takemichi???" A scarred man asked to particularly no one; he was panting as he rushed in their direction.
"Hitto Kakucho." Naoto heard Inupi's comment. It was the first time he was breaking his silence today.
Naoto snuck a look on his sister when he noticed that her trembling had stopped. She was sleeping, definitely burnt-out from emotional exhaustion.
Hitto Kakucho, an administrator of multiple children's homes and orphanages. Naoto did not know anything much about the man, just the fact that he once went viral after footage of him saving a kid from bullies broke the internet because of the words he had said that struck everyone's hearts to the core— "We can be heroes."
Naoto caught sight of the tanned male trailing behind Kakucho. He did not recognize this one this time.
"Haruchiyo, you're here—?" Said the male to the guy with cotton candy pink mullet. Naoto reckoned him as the first one to arrive here after the siblings rushed Takemichi to the hospital. "—and you did not bother informing me sooner?!"
"We had an agreement to never interact with each other after Toman's fight with Tenjiku."
"That was 12 years ago! "
"You're not the boss of me." Replied Haruchiyo before turning his eyes back on the room where Hanagaki's lifeless body was resting– which only the person who introduced himself as Takemichi's father had the guts to enter, because he had to deal with everything that needed to be arranged.
Aside from the various individuals that Naoto had observed, he could also name the two other guys, who arrived here almost the same time as Haruchiyo.
Kisaki Tetta and Hanma Shuji. They were ex-convicts who turned themselves in and served years in juvie after heavily-injuring Sano Emma. Naoto could recall this because his sister cried so much over it in the past. He noted how not even once did the pair uttered a single word since their arrival, but the look of devastation on their faces was enough for Naoto to grasp that they also shared something unique with Takemichi.
Naoto considered taking Hinata home. They could come back for Hanagaki's funeral, anyway. However, he could not have his sister holding it against him. He decided that he would wait for her to wake up, then he would convince her to stop by their parent's house and take some rest.
He was amused by how wide Takemichi's circle of friends was.
There were: Shiba Hakkai, the famous model, and Mitsuya Takashi, a well-known fashion designer. Hayashida Haruki and Hayashi Ryohei, the real state agents who recently assisted Naoto in looking for an apartment in Tokyo. Two pairs of brothers; the first pair he identified as the twins that ran the bustling ramen shop near their police station. Naoto recognized the other pair as the influential business tycoons from Roppongi, the Haitani brothers.
A trio made their appearance.
"Look, Chifuyu. There's a reunion." Joked the man in the middle. Naoto spotted how a person with a two-toned hair raised his hands to hit him, but then deemed it unneeded because it only took one look at everyone's gloomy faces, and the playful facade his friend tried wearing had been immediately wiped off.
"How the hell did this happen?" they heard the one whom the guy referred to as Chifuyu mutter to himself. "We did not even get to say goodbye. Heck, it's been over a decade!!" his voice cracked as he let out his disappointment.
The revelation distracted everyone from their silent mourning.
"Wait, you too??" "It wasn't just us???" "No way!!"
Everyone stared at each other with pained expressions mixed with shock and confusion.
"I mean, we never questioned it because we can totally understand why Hanagaki would never hope to talk to us again after what we've done." Kisaki had spoken.
"He resigned as Black Dragon's captain. We had a small argument, then he vanished." Inupi mumbled.
"He used to meet up with former Tenjiku members for weekly meals after our fight with Toman. Not knowing the reason for his sudden disappearance had always tormented me." Kakucho admitted.
"Didn't we have a settlement that says all gangs should disband and never again talk to former enemies after the Kanto Incident to avoid reliving conflicts? Why was Tenjiku hanging out with a Toman captain?" A tall man with a dragon tattooed on the side of his head questioned, impassive.
Naoto almost jumped in surprise. He didn't notice the guy's entrance.
"Oh right, such a deal happened," Mitsuya stated. Shiba Hakkai commented after him, "What if Takemichi disappeared because he learned about that?"
"As far as I can remember, we all established that we should never let Hanagaki know anything about our agreement 'cause it might stress him out. Of course, Tenjiku can meet—"
Naoto could not stand this.
"Are you all seriously debating about a childish accord you've made as rebellous kids and hidden away from Takemichi-kun in a time like this? May I remind you of his current situation?"
His remark silenced everyone.
Finally. Some peace.
"HAH???!!! It was supposed to be a secret?????" A newcomer with shoulder-length chestnut hair exclaimed.
Behind him stood three other men who did not bother sparing any of them a single glance. Their swollen eyes indicated that they had all shed tears before coming here.
"You... from Mizo..."
The newcomer gave them a thumbs-up as he smiled from ear to ear. "Yamagishi Kazushi, Yo!"
Naoto thought someone should tell the guy that grinning was not an effective method to hide his snotty nose.
"Officer Tachibana is correct. You should not talk about unimportant matters in this situation! Michi wouldn't be happy!" Yamagishi appeared as if he was going to start weeping again when he mentioned Takemichi's name. "But to end your quarrel, Mizo Mid's Walking Delinquent Encyclopedia is here to enlighten—!"
"Takemichi didn't know about the agreement at first. Us, either–" Yamagishi's companion, the unfamiliar man with a plum hair color, said. "-Then Yamagishi's busybody ass overheard the deal from a former Toman member some weeks after their disbandment and told Takemichi about it. We were surprised when Takemichi suddenly cut off his connections with all of you including Toman. He kept on insisting that he couldn't talk to any of you anymore. I don't know how he ended up with a conclusion, but knowing how his mind works, he's dumb just like that–"
"–my point is, can you all fight over insignificant subjects some other time? At least have the decency to pay respect to our deceased friend." He then sent a displeased gaze to Yamagishi, "You talk too much. We came here to help Uncle. Let's go."
Then the four left.
"FUCK!" Naoto and the rest turned their heads to the man with a dragon tattoo. The previously detached expression on his face was replaced with more evident dread.
"Emma texted me! Mikey—
— Mikey was involved in a motorcycle accident."
Meanwhile, in Tokyo, 2005
"I WILL NOW ANNOUNCE TOKYO MANJI GANG'S NEXT ACTION PLAN!"
Cheers and chatters filled out the entire shrine.
Their commander could not stop himself from beaming at the nostalgic sight in front of him. He cleared his throat and declared,
"FROM TODAY ONWARDS, WE'RE STARTING A WAR AGAINST....''
Everyone held their breaths in anticipation.....
''-BANANAS!"
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