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Ichiban was sure taking his sweet time as Mitsuo waited by the riverside in Isezaki Ijincho, and the cold transition into the new year was not helping whatsoever. He desperately blew on his frozen fingers and rubbed his arms to spread the warmth just a bit more, but it would quickly leave with a quick rush of wind.
“Dammit, aniki…” He grumbled under his breath as he pulled out his phone for the upteeth time. If he called again, Mitsuo was fairly certain he’d come off more as a clingy girlfriend than a concerned friend. Maybe a text instead? No, that’s just another notification to blow his phone up with.
In reality, Mitsuo was just very nervous. This was his first time back in Ijincho after the funeral, and of course the first thing Ichiban offers is to introduce him to his group of friends. On paper, that didn’t sound so bad, but taking into account that there was seven of them, loyal enough to Ichiban to help him fight both the Mad Dog of Shimano and 18-Count Saejima and were strong enough to survive. Meanwhile, Mitsuo in comparison was “just some guy who used to be friends with your friend”. If he had to be honest, he never got far enough with a girl to be able to meet her parents, but he was very certain the nerves he would have felt would feel something like this.
Mitsuo was sure Ichiban meant well and will reassure him that nothing will go wrong, but that’s how it always was in their friendship. Ichiban was the optimist. Mitsuo was the realist.
“Ah–”
Mitsuo looked up at the voice, expecting Ichiban to be there despite the voice sounding nothing like him. Standing before him, however, was someone he did recognize: the man with the green coats and the tired eyes hiding behind those horn-rimmed glasses. He was one of Ichiban’s friend, the one that always seemed to follow him like a shadow (not that the others were as well, but this particular one Mitsuo recalled seeing at the funeral).
“It’s you,” The man looked at him curiously before narrowing his eyes, “Something up with the security firm?”
“No! Nothing like that!” Mitsuo internally winced at his raise in volume as he quickly shook his head, “Ichiban-aniki invited me here. Have you seen him– uh…”
Mitsuo trailed off, realizing he didn’t know the man’s name. After a beat of silence, the other seemed to realize as well.
“Nanba.”
“Nanba, right…”
Another beat. Mitsuo could feel the awkwardness rising as his fingers started to feel progressively numb in the cold. To try to distract himself from it, he quickly blew on his hands again and shivered.
That seemed to do something, as that made Nanba look at him with that curious expression again. Wordlessly, he continued walking, but stopped to look back at Mitsuo once he was a few steps past him.
“This way, come on,” Nanba motioned his head in the direction he was walking in. Dumbly, Mitsuo nodded and followed along.
“So where is Ichiban?” Mitsuo spoke up once he caught up, observing the two of them were walking in the direction of the homeless camp.
Nanba paused, looking a tad apprehensive as he responded.
“He had to buy cleaning supplies for Hamako.”
“Hamako?” Mitsuo raised an eyebrow, “That the landlady?”
Nanba blinked, looking like he hadn’t put too much thought into that, “Yeah. I guess when you think about it, she is.”
The two crossed the threshold into the homeless camp proper and immediately Nanba made a beeline for a little cardboard shack nestled in the far corner, leaving Mitsuo to just stand there and wait. Admittedly, he felt like he stuck out as he glanced over at the raggedy men that huddled around their little bonfires for warmth. A few even glanced his way, whispering to one another before going back to their business. Talk about being an outsider among other outsiders.
There was something off about all this, a tenseness in Nanba’s voice. Everything that happened in the past year was still on everyone’s minds. Could he be still on-edge? Mitsuo was working with Arakawa after all, and Arakawa shot Ichiban– ulterior motives be damned. That certainly leaves things with an awkward aftertaste.
Speaking of Arakawa: Mitsuo recalled the old man reassuring him when he first found out he had shot his friend. The two were in a private room at the time, Mitsuo shaking with anger that made his resolve wane as Arakawa explained it to him.
“He’ll be taken somewhere safe. Isezaki Ijincho is far outside the grasp of both the Tojo Clan and the Omi Alliance, and the homeless will know what to do when they find him.”
And here Mitsuo was. In Ijincho. In the homeless camp. Following around a man who was apparently a former nurse.
“Here it is,” Nanba finally returned, a large thick coat in his hands, “One of the old jackets I found. Smells a bit musty but it’ll do.”
Mitsuo could only blink as he stared at the coat, the puzzle pieces clicking together. It took a few false starts, but he finally spoke.
“Uh… Did you– er, with Ichiban…”
“Hm?” Nanba raised an eyebrow at the mention of their mutual friend. Mitsuo took a deep breath and tried again.
“When I heard what happened, the Boss told me that one of the homeless here was going to help Ichiban. Was… Was that you?”
Nanba hummed, sharing the same serious expression Mitsuo knew he undoubtedly had, “I didn’t know Arakawa personally, and honestly at the time I thought he was a dick for shooting his own. But yes, I treated the gunshot wound.”
Mitsuo’s expression bloomed with relief, and with sudden movement he lowered himself in a bow.
“Thank you. Seriously, thank you!”
That definitely startled the other man, but nevertheless Mitsuo continued.
“I was so scared Ichiban died that day, no matter how many times Boss Arakawa tried to tell me otherwise. I don’t know if you believe me, but he… he was my only friend, so thank you. Thank you so much for saving him and taking care of him!”
He could definitely feel multiple eyes on him as he was still bent over, eyes firmly screwed shut so he wouldn’t have to endure any stares of judgement or scrutiny. A beat of silence passed, and then another, and then another, and by the time the fourth beat passed he dared to open an eye to look up at Nanba.
The ex-nurse was looking uncertain, his grip on the coat tightening. The other dared to look at Mitsuo as well, and tentatively responded.
“Ichiban… He’s staying, right? You’re not here to make him go back with you?”
“Huh?” Mitsuo quickly straightened, “Of course not! He loves it here!”
Nanba didn’t look convinced, “That wouldn’t stop you if you wanted.”
That wasn’t surprising, the man certainly saw the worst people could get if he had been following Ichiban around through everything. However, Mitsuo was undeterred.
“Frankly, I think Ichiban would kick my ass if I tried.”
That rewarded him with a small smile from Nanba, and he kept going.
“Even when we were texting, all he would talk about was this place and you all. I don’t know how much he’s told you about his time with the yakuza, but he was pretty much an outsider. He didn’t have much else aside from Boss Arakawa and myself. Seeing him here, though, surrounded by everyone… It makes me happy. Honest! He really found a place to belong, y’know?”
He found himself smiling at the last part, at the thought of Ichiban finally being able to be a part of something that wasn’t out to work him to exhaustion or threaten to cut off a finger or two. He could go drinking the night away, visit the arcade whenever he wanted, speak to people who actually understand him.
“I don’t want to take him away from that,” Mitsuo voiced his last thought aloud, his smile turning a bit sad, “Actually, I’m a bit jealous of him.”
Nanba’s expression shifted, the distrust and suspicion fading from his eyes. Slowly, his grip relaxed, and quietly he handed the coat over to Mitsuo.
“Sorry,” he looked away in shame, “Can’t be too careful these days.”
Mitsuo simply smiled as he accepted the coat, “I understand.”
He quickly put the coat on, sighing in relief at the extra layer of insulation right as a set of footsteps rushed up to the two.
“Mitsu!” Ichiban exclaimed, bundled up in extra layers as well and gripping onto several plastic Poppo bags, “Sorry, I had to make you wait long! I thought you wanted snacks, so I sent Nanba to distract you!”
Mitsuo raised an eyebrow at his friend’s line of thinking, glancing over at Nanba who shrugged in-kind with a simple “just go with it” expression. Mitsuo chuckled and looked back at Ichiban.
“You’re making this sound like this is some formal meeting or something, aniki. I was expecting more on the lines of being dragged to your bar of choice.”
“I mean,” Ichiban’s smile grew coy, “We can do that too!”
Mitsuo narrowed his eyes suspiciously, “What were you planning to do in the first place?”
“Uhhhh…”
“You were going to take me to the arcade were you?”
“No! … alright, maybe I considered it.”
“You never change, Ichiban,” Mitsuo smiled, casting another glance at Nanba who seemed to be a bit left behind, and a thought came to his head.
“Hey, aniki? Can Nanba come with us?”
“Huh?” Nanba and Ichiban both voiced their surprise in unison. Mitsuo laughed and shrugged.
“Yeah! You were the one who wanted me to meet your new friends. Why not start with him, since he’s here?”
The two other men glanced at each other, still a bit taken aback. However, the effect didn’t last long as Ichiban grinned from ear to ear and pumped his fist in the air.
“Hell yeah! We should! C’mon guys, last one to Survive has to pay!”
With that, Ichiban dashed off with his bags in tow back down the roadway, leaving the other two in the dust. Mitsuo and Nanba exchanged looks, and Mitsuo smiled, extending his hand.
“It’s nice to meet you, Nanba.”
Nanba’s lips quirked up in a small smirk, and he took the outstretched hand to shake it.
“I guess you big shot yakuza-types aren’t so bad after all.”
Mitsuo barked out a laugh, “Big shot? Me?! Hell no, I’ve always been the errand boy. Didn’t Ichiban ever tell you?”
“Not really, no.”
Mitsuo let go of the other’s hand to gently nudge him with his elbow, “Come on, then. I’ll tell you all about it when we get there."
Nanba looked downright mischievous at that, “Any embarrassing stories?”
“Oh yes.”
“MITSU! NANBA!” Ichiban’s voice could be heard calling out from the bridge, “ARE YOU COMING!?”
The two looked at each other one last time before running after their friend, looking forward to what came next.