It wasn't as though all three gangs- the Brotherhood, the Ronin and the Sons of Samedi- all swooped in immediately after the disbanding of the 3rd Street Saints. Like any gang, it took them time to build up their reputations, to come to be feared and known the way the old gangs had. The first of the three to accomplish this was the Brotherhood.
Maero had been a run-around for the Los Carnales in his younger days, because in his neighbourhood, only gang members were respected. He'd known them through Victor Rodriguez, the gang enforcer, who he'd met while getting his first tattoo. He hated every moment of it. Maero wasn't the sort of person who liked to be pushed around, whether it be by neighbourhood bullies or higher ranked gang leaders. That was why he'd swooped in with his newly formed gang and taken all of the territory previously owned by the Los Carnales. It had taken him a while to get enough members that he could actually keep a hold on the territory, but he'd done it. After all, the only competition were the Sons of Samedi, who tried to avoid conflict for the most part, as long as they could keep a monopoly on both their own territory and the drug business. Maero didn't mind. He hated drugs and anything to do with them, so they could have that monopoly for all he cared. All in all, things had been fine- until the Ronin showed up.
The Ronin were a direct import from Japan, being one of the biggest and most influential organized crime syndicates in Japan, second only to the almost impossible to rival Yakuza. Back in its homeland, the gang was headed by the powerful and influential businessman, Kazuo Akuji. When it moved into Stilwater, however, the leader was not quite as charismatic and talented. In fact, it almost seemed like Kazuo had expanded into the United States as a way to satiate the desires of the current leader, because the current leader was his son, Shogo Akuji.
Shogo was selfish, reckless and arrogant, to name a few of his less than attractive qualities. His only desire in life was to please his father by making the Ronin powerful and prominent in Stilwater, one of the most competitive gang cities in the world, and because of that he didn't really care who he had to step on to do it. Whereas the Brotherhood and the Sons of Samedi had a sort of tentative alliance, the Ronin refused to ally themselves with either of them on Shogo's order, not that either The General or Maero were fond enough of the brat to forge one even if he begged them to.
Even though Maero and his gang had a few unpleasant encounters with the Ronin and no one was very happy about the Japanese gang's strange alliance with Ultor, for the most part the huge leader chose to leave them alone. Despite Shogo's arrogant attitude and overwhelming desire to please his father, he wasn't much trouble; once he carved out a nice little niche in Stilwater's territory and gained a monopoly on the extortion and gambling rings, he seemed to be content, and other than being a braggart, seemed to keep out of everyone's way. That was, until recently.
Maero had no idea what had changed, whether his father wanted him doing more or his ego had grown or what, but suddenly Shogo was no longer content with what he had. He wanted more power, more money and most importantly, more territory. And since all of Stilwater had been expanded into other than the three "neutral" zones, too heavily controlled by Ultor or the city for any gang to hope to take over, that meant that he was starting to challenge the other two gangs for theirs. The Ronin were picking fights with the Brotherhood and the Samedi wherever they could and frankly, he was sick of it. (The General was too, of course, but he was much too busy to bother with it, between running the Sons of Samedi and operated a lucrative Jamaican drug ring.) Of course, things couldn't just be left the way they were- there was no doubt in Maero's mind that if he simply ignored it, Shogo would attempt to expand his territory until either he'd claimed all of Stilwater or he was dead. And as much as he hated the little bastard, the city needed Kazuo Akuji descending on it like he needed a hole in his head. So he had no other choice; he had to meet with Shogo.
When Maero had contacted Shogo through a member of the Brotherhood with strong Ronin ties, the young Japanese gang leader had suggested they meet at a neutral location and that each of them bring someone with them- a smart idea, but Maero had "politely" declined the offer of a second, knowing that since he was the strongest person in his gang that it would really be no help and would probably only put whoever he brought with him in danger. They'd agreed to meet at a private club in the Saints Row District; Maero had brought up the concern that he was certainly in no position to get into an upper echelon club owned by Ultor, but Shogo had insisted that his contacts in Ultor could get them in with no problem.
Not exactly neutral territory then, is it.. Maero thought as he awkwardly passed the bouncer, who merely gave him a glance and nodded in approval. Either Shogo's connections had worked, or he was just intimidating enough that it didn't matter. It didn't really matter to him that Shogo had the upper hand when it came to location; he was certain he could handle anything the great Shogo Akuji could dish out.
As he ascended the stairs to the private rooms above the bar, dining and dancing areas of the club, he realized that Shogo really wasn't kidding about having contacts in Ultor; this place was even fancier than the already astounding outside of the building would lead you to believe. The walls and counters were pristine whites and marbles and stainless steel, while the furniture was modern and plush. Everything in the place screamed wealth and status
When he reached the room, he entered to see Shogo sitting at the long black table, smoking, with a muscled, bald Japanese man with an opposite coloured vest to the normal Ronin. He could only assume this was the infamous Jyunichi, Chief Lieutenant of the Ronin and Shogo Akuji's personal bodyguard and hitman. "Glad to see you could make it." he said, setting his cigarette on the side of the ashtray.
Maero gave a little shrug, trying his best to ignore the desire to punch the cocky bastard in his smug mouth. Just the way he was sitting there, feet up on the expensive table, giving Maero his iconic 'I'm better than you and I know it' look, made Maero temporarily forget why he hadn't wanted to take a swipe at him before. "Yeah, well. I arranged this meeting so it would be pretty rude of me to not show up," he pointed out, sitting opposite the rival gang leader. "But let's not beat around the bush. We've got a few things to talk about, Akuji."
"Oh? And what would those 'things' be?" he asked, feigning obliviousness.
"You know damn well what they are, Shogo," Maero growled, tapping his finger pointedly on the table. "This 'let's see how much shit I can get away with before the others start to do something' game stops now. I'm tired of hearing that your gang's attacking mine, or that they're trying to extort money from my gang's businesses or whatever."
"Oh, and here I thought it was normal for gangs to fight over territory. My mistake." Shogo replied in a mocking tone. Maero was about ready to punch the smile off his goddamn face.
"We all want recognition here. You've got almost the entire upper half of the island and the Ronin are the smallest and the newest gang in Stilwater. There's no need to mess with what little we have," Maero replied. "Besides, you've got the monopoly on the Ultor partnership. What more could you possibly want?" he demanded. Shogo leaned across the table and glared at him.
"I want it all, Maero," he replied, trying his hardest to sound intimidating. "You of all people should understand that. After all, with a past like yours, who wouldn't want to be in control?"
That was what made Maero snap. He jumped to his feet, slamming his hands on the table and nearly causing it to break. "Watch yourself, Akuji. Daddy's not here to protect you. You're on your own and you're reaaalllly pushing it." Shogo grabbed his cigarette, took a deep puff, and put it out before rising to his feet.
"I'll do what I please with my gang, thanks," he said. "Now, this meeting has been nice and all, but I think it's time for us to go." As he stopped to open the door, Maero intercepted him and grabbed him by his jacket, lifting him off his feet.
"You're way out of your league here, kid," he growled. "This isn't like back home, where you've got respect and daddy's money looking out for you. Out here, you're playing with the big boys and we're sick and fucking tired of your little games. Now-"
He was going to continue, but was interrupted by the sword pressed against his throat. "I would suggest you not do that," It was Shogo's 'bodyguard', Jyunichi, of course. "We came here to have a friendly chat. We wouldn't want that turning into violence, would we?" The man's Japanese accent was thick, but he didn't seem to have much trouble getting his point across. Maero growled.
"No, I guess we wouldn't." he replied, angry about having to miss his chance to scare the little bastard into co-operating.
"Then you should release Mr. Akuji before you start some sort of incident." Jyunichi said gently, almost as if it were a suggestion rather than an order with his sword one swing away from decapitating him. Maero obeyed the "suggestion", but not without shoving Shogo hard into the door, making sure it hurt.
"If I see you messing around in my territory again, Shogo, I'll kill you," he growled as Shogo rubbed his back where it had smashed into the doorknob. "Don't forget it."
Without another word and only a small glare at Jyunichi as he moved his sword away from his throat, Maero left, slamming the door behind him. Shogo fixed his jacket with a pout plastered on his face.
"I really hate that guy." he muttered, leaning back against the door, avoiding pressing the sore part of his lower back against anything.
"He does have a point, Shogo," Jyunichi said. "Maybe we should try to be a little less forward with our plans to take over the rest of the city." Shogo turned towards him and glared.
"Who asked for your opinion?" he growled. He reached into the pocket of his jacket and pulled out his pack of cigarettes. "I'm going to take over all of Stilwater however I damn please, and there's no way any tattoo-obsessed muscle head is going to tell me otherwise." He was starting to raise his voice, so Jyunichi decided it would be a better idea to keep quiet. "Let's go, Jyunichi. I'm tired of sitting around here."
Jyunichi nodded and followed Shogo as he left, looking very perturbed. Just another typical day in Stilwater.