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From the moment Mine Yoshitaka first saw the Sixth Chairman he knew he’s stumbled into something unprecedented. The tragic figure of a man surrounded by the bodies of allies and enemies after an assassination attempt was enough to convince Mine to make the leap from chairman of a successful capital firm to yakuza. He made more than a few enemies in his pursuit of a meeting with the Chairman, but that was just the price of ambition. Perhaps not all of it had been easy, but it was absolutely worth it.
Dojima Daigo had proven to be an incredible man, worthy of devoting his life to. That fact was confirmed when the Chairman of the entire Tojo Clan ran out of a meeting, offered up a billion yen, and took a bullet meant for Mine to save him from the before-mentioned enemies he made in his ruthless striving for purpose. The Chairman even saw fit to elevate him to patriarch of his own family.
Today, devoting the rest of his life to the one person in the world who deserves it means ensuring the financial figures he’s assembled for their meeting are perfect. The Chairman’s warm light only shines on Mine during these brief meetings and he intends to prove himself worthy of these continued stolen moments in the sun.
As Mine arrives and begins to walk toward Headquarters, he is surprised to see the Chairman meandering through the grounds. He’s on the phone, speaking in a casual tone Mine has never heard the Chairman use. He’s laughing and joking around with someone. Perhaps a friend? It’s difficult to picture the stately, inspiring Chairman as someone who jokes around with friends, but something about the very intimate, human nature of that connection stirs a deep longing in Mine’s heart.
Too short a time later, Mine is disappointed when their meeting concludes with none of the friendly banter of the Chairman’s earlier phone conversation. Not that he needs it. A relationship characterized by unspoken, professional distance from a brilliant man is plenty. Safer. Preferred, even. Mine doesn’t need anyone. He’s fine. Everything is fine.
Still, some of Mine’s displeasure must have shown itself on his face, because as Mine stands to leave the Chairman asks, “What is it, Mine? What’s wrong?”
“It’s nothing, please excuse me.”
Mine’s opportunity to safely escape the office is lost when the Chairman fixing him with those deep black eyes and asks, “Really?”
Mine is suddenly struck by the irrational fear that reading minds is among the Chairman’s many skills. He frantically reassures himself that his purpose of supporting the Chairman should be his only concern, not his own unreasonable hunger for attention.
Mine’s suspicion that the Chairman may be psychic is not helped as he continues, “Wait a second. Mine, are you free tonight?”
Unsure of why he would be interested in that, Mine responds, “I don’t have any plans.”
The Chairman smiles slightly and asks, “Then do you want to go out for drinks?”
Mine, certain he misheard or is currently having a stroke, only manages an insufficient response of, “Huh?”
“I know it’s late, but consider it a celebration for our new patriarch. On top of that, I haven’t had a drink with you yet.” Mine is trying to figure out if the polite thing to do in this situation is to trip over himself to accept like he wants, or if he’s expected to decline. He must have taken too long as the Chairman prompts him again with, “How about it? I know a good place.”
---
Being sent ahead gives Mine much needed time to consider his strategy for tonight. He had of course hoped for a social invitation from the Chairman, but never expected one. Especially so soon. The entire taxi ride to Kamurocho and short walk to the Champion District is filled with Mine trying and failing to come up with things to talk to the Chairman about. If he doesn’t impress tonight, there’s no telling if he’ll ever get another chance. Maybe the Chairman is just being nice and doesn’t even really want to spend time with Mine. Why would he? No, Mine just has to be prepared to-
Mine is shaken out of his spiral by a yakuza and unaffiliated thug loudly shouting and shoving each other just down the alleyway. When one of them is shoved into Mine, he takes the opportunity to send them off. “If you two have a dispute, can you solve it elsewhere?”
This does nothing to calm the two men, who begin shouting about their right to pointlessly shove one another wherever they like. Mine, grateful for the chance to stop worrying and channel his energy to something productive responds, “You are nothing but trash dirtying the Chairman’s path. I will not allow you to make him uncomfortable. Leave. Now.”
Mine is almost relieved when the two men rush at him, their new common enemy. He quickly and soundly defeats them, opening his mouth to continue his declaration when he hears a sound that freezes his blood. “I think they’ve had enough, Mine.” Mine immediately stiffens and bows to the (hopefully) recently arrived Chairman.
It seems best to forget that Mine has spent the past 20-odd minutes pacing and failing to come up with conversation topics, so Mine lies, “I just arrived. Still, this is where you want to meet? The location is somewhat suspect, and the potential security threat-”
The Chairman cuts him off with, “This is my favorite bar. It’s the best place to drink in Kamurocho.” His smile and that statement are enough to convince Mine that either this bar is a hidden gem, or the Chairman is a very different man under his suit than Mine realizes. He’s shaken out of that possibly dangerous line of though by the imposing figures of two suited men appearing behind the Chairman.
The Chairman, surely noticing Mine’s gaze, explains, “They’re coming with us. They’re at work, don’t mind them.”
Truth be told, Mine is relieved that there are bodyguards present to help ensure the Chairman’s safety. He’s certainly been threatened enough on Mine’s account already.
As they sit down in the underwhelming bar, with its worn furniture and 20 years out-of-date light fixtures, Mine reminds himself that the most important responsibility now is to be an enthusiastic drinking partner for the Chairman. If he enjoys himself, the Chairman is more likely to feel the same. So all he has to do is forget about work and focus on enjoying the Chairman. Time with the Chairman. Easy.
The Chairman waves to the bartender with an easy smile and is immediately brought what must be his own bottle of bourbon. He visibly relaxes after taking a sip of his drink before saying, “Finally. Can’t do without this.”
That was a more… enthusiastic response to alcohol than Mine expected. Still, it draws his attention to the familiar dark circles under the other man’s eyes. Mine asks, “Chairman Dojima, you seem tired. Are the duties of a Chairman difficult?”
“Yeah, it’s hard. It seems like there are days and days where I do nothing but work.” Before Mine can respond, a nearby couple begins quietly speculating between themselves what Chairman Dojima might be chairman of. This is one of the things Mine was concerned about when the Chairman picked such a pedestrian, easily accessible location. He’s trying to figure out how to correct his error when the Chairman interjects, “Hey, Mine. Why are you calling me Chairman Dojima today? It’s too… stiff.”
This feels like a test. But… Mine pushes past his fear and embarrassment to say, “Sorry, I didn’t realize. Dojima-san, then?”
The Chairman grimaces for a split second before correcting, “Daigo-san is fine.”
“Daigo-san, then.” They drink in silence for a few moments before Daigo-san picks up the conversation again.
“You know, the Fourth Chairman, Kiryu-san, is an even greater figure than I realized. It seems like even those who don’t openly oppose me are dissatisfied with having me as their chairman.” It’s said like a joke, but the impact is greatly changed by the way Daigo-san’s smile wobbles and fails to reach his eyes. How is it that others don’t see the chairman’s incredible leadership? The mention of Kiryu Kazuma pokes at Mine in a way both novel and irritating, like discovering that a piece of gravel has made its way into his shoe. Perhaps this is Mine’s opportunity to learn more about their relationship. “That man, Kiryu. Is he your aniki?”
Daigo-san’s brow furrows and he swirls his drink before answering, "Aniki… Something like that. It’s hard to explains. He’s like family but… he’s more than that.” Closer than family? Something about the idea of Kiryu-san being on such intimate terms with Daigo-san twists Mine’s heart. Is he jealous? Of course there are many other members of the Tojo Clan who require the chairman’s attention, but Mine had hoped…
After a short pause, Daigo-san continues, “Now he runs an orphanage in Okinawa. It seems like he’s living in peace with his new family. He finally has the life he wants. I want to protect that, whatever happens.” There’s a far-off look in Daigo-san’s eyes as he talks about Kiryu Kazuma and his ‘new family.’ Mine has certainly heard stories about the ‘Dragon of Dojima,’ but he must be an even more impressive man in real life if Daigo-san is so devoted to him. Not wanting to think about the chairman’s possible connection to another man any longer, Mine begins telling the most ridiculous stories he can think of from his brief time with the Nishikiyama family.
Two hours pass in a blur as they banter about the wild things they’ve witnessed around the Tojo Clan. Mine’s heartbeat comes in a giddy rush after making Daigo-san laugh out loud with a story about Kanda’s oversized reactions. As Daigo-san catches his breath, he turns to Mine, cheeks still flushed, and asks, “By the way, Mine. Are you a private person when it comes to friends?”
Mine unsure how to respond and is happy to be spared from spending any more time trying to decode what his drinking companion really means by the sound of a phone notification. “That’s me,” Daigo-san says before opening his phone. The warm, buoyant mood immediately dissipates and Daigo-san stills, color draining and eyes blown wide, as he views whatever is on the screen.
“What’s wrong?” Whatever it is, Mine wants to fix it. With nothing more than a vague indication of a problem or concern from Daigo-san, Mine will run out that door, not to be seen again until he’s made everything right. Unfortunately, the other man says a little too quickly, “No. I mean, it’s nothing. Just a work email. Wow, they must be really bored over there. I don’t usually get email at this hour.”
The minutes begin to drag as Mine tries to discern what Daigo-san is hiding from him. He keeps checking the time and suddenly seems anxious to leave. Mine finally wills himself to ask, “Daigo-san, are you okay? You don’t look well.”
“No, it’s fine. I just feel a little sick.” Another deflection. The sound of a commotion outside, more inconsiderate local thugs no doubt, rises and draws out both of the chairman’s bodyguards. Mine is about to complain about the noise in this area when Daigo-san says under his breath, “This is my chance.”
“Excuse me?”
“Mine, there’s something I need to tell you. I need to get out of here alone.” Daigo-san’s hushed, conspiratorial tone has Mine even more concerned.
“Get out?”
“Lately, my bodyguards are always around and I’m sick of it. They even follow me into the bathroom. I can’t stretch my legs anymore. I want to be alone for once and take a break.” The ideas of getting Daigo-san alone has an appeal to Mine that he doesn’t want to examine at the moment, so he settles for asking,
“By any chance, does the email you received have something to do with this?”
At that, Daigo-san looks alarmed. “No, Mine, it’s not about that. Like I said-“ His eyes keep darting around the room. Looking for… what?
Even if the chairman won’t be honest with him, Mine knows his answer. “Understood.” After all, Mine would follow him anywhere.
“So you’ll let me go?” Daigo-san seems urgent and in disbelief at that. Mine has no intention of just letting him just walk out alone, however.
“Yes. I imagine you’ll try to leave even if I say no. However, please allow me to accompany you as your bodyguard.” Daigo-san seems ready to argue, so Mine pushes on, “You’re the Sixth Chairman, you can’t be walking around alone. And the oath I swore binds me to protect you. I take that seriously.”
There’s a pause before Daigo-san responds, “Come on, then. We should be able to get out the back door.”
---
The two make it all the way to Children’s Park before Daigo-san lets out a sigh, saying, “Found it.”
Whatever ‘it’ is, he is clearly still lying to Mine. The man was considerably calmer after taking a bullet. “Daigo-san, what are you doing? You said you wanted to stretch your legs.”
“Right. I’ve been wanting to get my blood pumping.”
“Alright. Then how about we go to the batting center?” If Daigo-san comes up with an excuse, perhaps Mine can get a better sense of the situation.
“Yeah, that’s great! It’s been a while, let’s go!”
Unless the chairman is a habitually nervous, enthusiastic baseball fan, something else is going on. He’s barely looking at Mine, still scanning his surroundings like prey expecting a predator around every corner. Mine has a responsibility to protect Daigo-san, so he tries again. “By the way, Daigo-san. The email earlier. Are you hiding something from me? If you are in trouble, I may be able to help.”
Being asked so directly seems to focus the other man. He takes a deep breath in and out before finally saying, "Mine, I understand your concern. In my position, it feels like I’m always in danger. I don’t know what the threat will be, or when. There’s no guarantee of safety.” He stops to think for a moment before continuing, “No, it’s a long story. Don’t worry about it. You said the batting center, right? I haven’t been there in a while. Will you join me?”
“Yes, I’ll take you up on that.” If Daigo-san won’t be honest with him, at least Mine can do everything in his power to protect him.
“Great. I’ll just go to the bathroom first.”
“Understood. I’ll stand guard out front.”
Daigo-san smiles and says, “I’ll be right back.”
As soon as Daigo-san disappears around the corner, Mine realizes the mistake he’s made. After a few minutes, Mine can’t fight his growing paranoia anymore. He bursts into the bathroom to find it complete deserted. Daigo-san must have… climbed out the window the moment he left Mine’s sight?!
With no other course of action, Mine begins frantically searching through the familiar streets. He is relieved to soon encounter a barker who saw a man matching Daigo-san’s description (a man in his mid-thirties with a black hair, black suit, and a good physique). The man has just finished telling Mine that he saw Daigo-san get into a taxi with a beautiful woman when the chairman’s bodyguards decide to finally reappear.
“I thought he was acting funny when he got that email. He looked like he got in trouble. I bet he accidentally blew off a hookup.”
Mine begins to put the pieces of the evening together, “Daigo-san wanted to be alone…”
The other bodyguard chimes in, “Because he had a secret rendezvous. I don’t know who with, though.”
“So, Daigo-san somehow found…” Mine isn’t sure the hastily drawn conclusion of the bodyguards is correct.
“Women love a bad boy. On top of the Chairman’s money and status, he’s a handsome guy. I bet he’s with some model or actress right now.”
Mine feels himself blushing as he recalls Daigo-san’s statement from earlier. “He said he wanted to get his blood pumping…”
The bodyguards seem very satisfied with their conclusion and decide to head home, telling Mine to do the same.
Mine sighs as he pinches the bridge of his nose with a frown. After all this is over, he is going to have a serious conversation with the chairman about the quality of his bodyguards. Daigo-san’s face at the bar was horrified, far beyond someone in trouble with a woman. Besides, Mine has never heard of Daigo-san being interested in… that sort of thing and frankly, he can’t picture him suddenly leaving for an illicit meet-up. Left on his own as always, Mine has no choice but to find the chairman by himself. Even if he doesn’t want to be found.
But how? Well, wherever Daigo-san went he almost certainly took a taxi. As for finding which one and its destination, that will require Mine to access the customer databases of the dozens of taxi companies in Kamurocho. Mine immediately begins making calls to a few competent members of his family he has identified so far to make him a stakeholder in every Kamurocho taxi company they can find. This gives Mine the access he needs. He searches in a controlled frenzy until he finds a very recent trip from Daigo-san. With an address in hand, Mine calls a taxi with the most ease he’s ever had in his life and tells them to hurry.
---
The seemingly abandoned, nondescript office building Mine arrives at is not reassuring. He truly doesn’t know if his sanity can survive seeing Daigo-san pained and bleeding in his arms again, so he makes his way through the dark corridors as quietly as possible. From one of the only lit rooms, Mine can hear a conversation between Daigo-san and someone else. It certainly doesn’t sound like a woman.
“So, you’ll keep your end of the bargain?”
“Yep, won’t lay a head on Kiryu Kazuma. He’ll be living in peace in Okinawa from now on. Although... this Kiryu guy must be really important to you. He your weakness?” Mine’s heart drops as his fear that Daigo-san put himself at risk for Kiryu is confirmed.
“What are you trying to say?”
“It’s amazing that the Tojo Clan’s Sixth Chairman can be lured out over one person.”
“What?”
“You still don’t get it? Idiot, you’re about to be our hostage! We wanted to get you alone from the beginning. Do you have any idea how much ransom money we’ll get for you?”
“Fuck...”
At that sound of Daigo-san cursing for the first time, Mine finally turns the corner. “So, this was all for Kiryu-san. I figured as much.”
Daigo-san whips his head around at that and asks, “Mine? Why are you here?”
“I had a hard time finding you. Did you think you could get away with such an obvious lie? You paid off that barker to throw us off the trail.” Mine had clearly caught Daigo-san, but the other man continued to look lost. So Mine explained how he found them by buying almost every taxi company in Kamurocho, the most efficient method.
“Mine, why did you do all this just for me?”
Daigo-san deserves an honest answer from Mine, even if he won’t trust Mine with the truth just yet. He looks deeply into those hypnotic eyes and says, “Daigo-san, I made a vow to you. That’s not something I take lightly. I’m ready to sacrifice everything for you. Forever and always. There are absolute bonds in the yakuza. You taught me that.” As he talks, Mine is surprised to realize that he’s never said anything like that before. He’d heard lots of other men make similar declarations of sacrifice and eternal devotion to their wives or girlfriends, but they had always rung hollow to Mine. He’d had a string of girlfriends who hung on his arm at important events, wrapped in silk and gold Mine had bought for them. But he never insulted them by lying about the limits of his devotion. And here he is, just a few weeks into knowing the chairman, genuinely reaffirming that he would give up anything to protect him. Mine was right that first time he laid eyes on Daigo-san; he is a man worth dying for.
“Mine…” Daigo-san practically sighs out Mine’s name and it gets even harder to breath. Mine is shaken out of the moment by the interjection from the irate, and very much still there, gang leader.
“Who are you to barge in and interrupt us? I’ll kill you if you interfere!”
Daigo-san leans back and smirks at that. “Kill him? You don’t seem to understand the situation. With him here, you’re the ones in trouble. Mine looks like a regular businessman, but did you know he’s actually incredibly strong? I can trust him to have my back.”
Daigo-san then turned to Mine and says, with the eagerness most people reserved for friendly sporting events, not possible fights to the death, “Mine, with you here, we could take on 100 people.”
Mine feels himself begin to smile at the praise. “Yes. Let’s show them how it’s done.”
It is, in fact, fairly trivial to take down the 6 gang members in the room. While Mine is alarmed to learn that the men are the leftover members of the Omi Alliance’s Takashima Family, Daigo-san seems eager to avoid any more conflict with the Omi.
So as they walk out after an anonymous tip to the police, Mine asks, “Daigo-san, will you finally tell me what’s been going on?”
Daigo-san looks so tired as he finally answers. “Yeah. I was being threatened before today.”
“Before?”
“I got an email telling me to pay to protect Kiryu’s Kazuma’s ‘peace,’ along with a covert photograph of him. They were very clear that I couldn’t tell anyone.”
“His peace? So they didn’t directly take Kiryu hostage?”
Daigo-san scoffs at that. “Right. If they tried, they’d have a problem.” He briefly has an amused look in his eyes like he can very clearly picture how that would go wrong for any would-be kidnappers. The chairman blinks and his face falls as he continues, “But there are a lot of ways to ‘disturb the peace.’”
“I see. And you’re you. You wanted to protect him at all costs.” Daigo-san is the most caring man Mine has ever met. Of course he would do anything to protect someone special to him.
“Yes. I’ve secretly put a bodyguard in place around Kiryu-san. This evening, I received an email with a photograph of the bodyguard’s corpse. I knew I had to move.”
“Daigo-san, why didn’t you tell me this sooner? If you had, I would have been able to help.” Try as he might to keep his tone soft and compassionate, Mine knows that his frustration is starting to bleed through.
“The email said someone was watching me and there was a man at the bar keeping an eye on us. And this is my personal problem. I didn’t want to get you involved.” Mine feel the familiar pull of burning anger as he thinks about how differently things could have ended. How could he risk himself like this? Daigo-san’s safety is the most important thing in the world. Does he not see that?
“Still, it’s unreasonable for you to act on your own. You are the Sixth Chairman of the Tojo Clan, an organization with hundreds of thousands of members. I don’t know the Fourth Chairman or the Legendary Dragon, but acting alone to protect one person-”
“It couldn’t be avoided. Kiryu-san is important to me.”
Mine finally snaps. “And which is more important, the clan or one person!? You told me that the clan members are like your family. Isn’t that right? And you, the Chairman, are prioritizing someone who isn’t even a member!” He knows he can’t admit the jealousy he feels at Daigo-san going out of his way to protect someone else, but at least he can try to convince the chairman not to make such as foolish mistake again. He realizes far too late that this is an unacceptable way to address the Chairman, but Mine is surprised by the response he receives.
“Mine … you’re right. I’m sorry. I still have a long way to go.” Daigo-san’s shoulders slump and he looks utterly defeated. Mine has heard the grumblings from other men who don’t think Daigo-san is fit to be chairman. It must be weighing on him. Mine is spared from more time trying and failing to craft a response to lift his spirits when Daigo-san looks up and suddenly asks,
“Do you want to be the Headquarter’s Junior Head Assistant?”
Mine finds the suggestion flattering if… confusing. “But I haven’t raised any money since becoming a patriarch.”
“So… do you not want to?”
“No, I just haven’t earned such a position.”
At that, Daigo-san leans forward in a way that Mine has learned means he won’t continue until Mine meets his eyes. Once satisfied that Mine is appropriately hypnotized, Daigo-san continues, “Didn’t you trust me with your life? Didn’t you say you would sacrifice everything for me?”
Mine knows he’s expected to formulate a response, but can’t seem to put air back into his lungs. Mercifully, Daigo-san continues, “Mine, I realized something. You… you’re the only one I can trust. And right now, there’s no one in the Tojo Clan who can be honest with me, other than you and Kashiwagi-san.”
For the first time, the chairman seems uncertain. Mine meant what he said about doing anything for Daigo-san, even if it is embarrassing to remember his passionate declaration now that he has a slightly cooler head. However, he trusts Daigo-san’s judgement completely. So Mine gratefully accepts and is rewarded by another dazzling smile.
When Mine finally makes his way home, he knows innately that his purpose is to be there for Daigo-san as he shares his brilliant leadership with the world. The chairman is the most remarkable, compassionate, true person Mine has ever met.
And this Kiryu-san, despite his absence, seems to take advantage of that. There is no doubt this man will put Daigo-san in danger again and again, if given the chance. Mine will happily take on the duty of protecting Daigo-san from the cruel world that does not deserve him. Including this ‘Legendary Dragon’ he will need to keep a closer eye on.