'Freedom in solitude… ah, when did I become such a sap?'
He slid the keycard in and the door opened with a soft click. Yawning, he kicked his shoes off at the door and put his glasses on the top of his head.
'But… maybe, it's not so bad to talk about that sort of stuff. I kinda liked it.'
His phone rumbled and he fished it out of his pocket quickly, hoping to see a message from Muna. However, when he saw the notifications, the bridge of his nose crinkled.
Yuu-chan: aniki, how was your first day?
Yuu-chan: mine was more of the same. I ditched halfway though
Satoru ignored the messages and slid his phone back into his pocket.
'Just a few more steps and I can take a break from all of this. Then it's back to work.'
He tossed his backpack on the kitchen island, startling Toge from his phone.
"Welcome back, oyaji."
Satoru smiled and strode towards the dark main room. "It almost feels as if I never left."
The hideout was a modest two-story condo in a quiet part of the city, cut off from the rest of the civilized and gang world. It was their quiet patch of life where the abnormal was the status quo. The blinds were drawn so that only a sliver of golden sun leaked through, while a large ceiling light in the kitchen beamed a smooth blue stream.
"Bah. If you sent Toge and me on that Dotonbori job, you could've slept in." Fushiguro said. "You look like shit."
"No, it's the first day of the semester. Wanted to make sure you little ones got to school just fine." Satoru fell back onto a plush couch and sunk into the pillows. "Besides, I had to be the one. Utahime wasn't happy about me being there. Junior members would've only enraged her more."
Fushiguro sipped his iced tea, "Why'd you go anyway? That's so far outside of our territory."
"Our friends in Osaka were the only people with enough inventory to fulfill the order." Satoru said, his mouth widening into a grin.
Toge looked up from his phone, "Oh, wow. What have you and Okkotsu-san got planned?"
Fushiguro ribbed him, "I bet Gojo-san's gunning for regional manager."
'Fuck that. I already have too much responsibility as it is.'
Satoru was the leader of a sub-level gang of the Yagamichi-gumi, known among other yakuza as the Onidouji. Under his leadership, they gained a reputation for being a group of overly-ambitious and aggressive upstarts, with many other members jealous of Satoru's proximity to the head of the family, Masamichi Yaga.
"Not quite. Who wants to be known as the most average gang?" Satoru put his hands behind his head and kicked his feet up on the couch. "I'd rather be the best."
''Cause there's no other choice. If they only knew what Yaga-san did to the under-performers…'
Satoru's mind filled with images of a man with long black hair. That muted smile on his face.
'I I turned out to be just like you, Suguru. How about that?'
"Bro, are you almost done? Who are you texting?" Fushiguro looked at the phone through narrowed eyes.
Toge locked his phone, "The new girl, Michiko Ningyouji."
Satoru glanced over in their direction when he heard the name, remembering it from Muna's papers in class. 'That's Muna sister. Hope she knows what she's getting into with Toge. He's too wild.'
"You can't do that later?"
Toge rolled his eyes, "I talk to you all the time, Fushi. Besides, she's—"
Toge's phone rang and he instantly picked up. Fushiguro crossed his arms, his lips tightening in annoyance, but Toge merely held up a dismissive hand.
"Right. Okay. See you soon." Toge slid off the barstool. "We've gotta go. C'mon, Fushi."
Fushiguro obediently followed after the older and the two quietly left the condo.
'Wonder where they're off to. Those two do everything together. I bet whatever Toge eats, Fushi shits.'
Satoru rolled over on the couch and nestled his face in between the soft pillows, in hopes of a moments peace. His pulse slowed and soon the dull hum of the AC faded into the background. He was falling deep into the dark pit of sleep. Then his phone vibrated.
Nanamin: come to sparkle now. we're doing the tally early.
Satoru: alright, on my way
–– * ––
Satoru was caught off guard by Nanami's text, as the money counting days were usually every third Thursday of the month. Being that it was the first Monday so far, he didn't know what to make of it.
'Shit. What are they playing at calling this so soon after the last one?'
He found himself running around downtown like a madman collecting from all the Onidouji stash spots, cursing himself as he went. When Yuta was in town, Satoru delegated the duty to him, but he'd sent his second-in-command away to foster a relationship with a new supplier.
After he hit the last spot, he got in his car and looked through the spreadsheet in his phone.
'Alright, simple enough. Let's see if this balances out. Says they moved ¥118m so far…'
In his glove compartment, he found his portable money counter and set it on the seat. He ripped open the bags and quickly placed the banded stacks on the cold metal. He was sure it would balance out, as Yuta told him it always did, though he liked to be thorough. So, when he placed the last stack of money on the counter and the numbers read ¥98m, his heart stopped.
'I haven't done this in awhile. Maybe, I messed up.'
He reset the machine and slowly recounted the money, doing it just the same as before. The number's bore false witness to his expectations. Satoru double checked the spreadsheet; still ¥118m. Then, he doubled back to the counter; still ¥98m.
"What the fuck? What the fuck…"
He ran a shaky hand through his hair. The gang had never come up short before, but when he was younger, he'd heard tales of bosses from years past who'd stolen from the family. Satoru thought they were overblown, until Nanami showed him a photo of a red man.
"What'd they do with his skin?" Satoru had asked.
"Fed it to the dogs. Yaga-san thinks of it as a great deterrent," Nanami had said. "I found it rather garish, but we haven't had any problems since."
Satoru remembered the words flowed out of his mouth effortlessly, "You won't have any problems with me."
There were few moments in life where Satoru realized he was out of options. The first realization occurred when he joined the family. Since that day, breathing felt like a twisted/tortured luxury.
The second realization came when he was instructed by Nanami to kill a traitor, who'd said it was to teach the newly promoted leader responsibility. The time after it happened, his world felt sluggish and discombobulated, as if running on antiquated machinery. The panic attacks that had seized him without rest in the middle of the night, where he'd fought just to breathe, hearing only the rugged thump of his heart.
And now, this time was different. Slenderly tendrils coiled within his chest, as his lungs slowly filled with lead.
'So, ¥20m worth of drugs is missing… and I never would've known if they didn't fuck up the numbers. If Nanami hadn't called so early. Would this have happened if Yuta were here? Have I slipped that fuckin' much?'
Satoru picked at his fingers and stared at his phone screen. It was true, he'd been slacking. For the past couple of months he hadn't been as invested in the business as he was before.
In the beginning, his ambition and drive to succeed were motivated by fear of death, but as the years passed and the higher up he rose in Yaga's respect, the more detached he became.
But as of late, he'd relied more on his second-in-command to attend to the matters he'd found remedial, and he found most everything remedial. The life was always an albatross, but now he'd found himself wanting to succumb to the weight.
'Who would be stupid enough to steal from the group? We've all been doing this for years… nothing like this has happened before. The fuck is going on?'
Satoru steeled his nerves and opened up an encrypted messaging service on his phone. He created a group message with Fushiguro, Yuuji, Toge, Yuta, and Panda.
Satoru: all of you, take your haul and whatever you made back to the storehouse asap
Gritting his teeth, he pulled out of the parking space and headed towards his bank.
'No matter what, I can't come up short.'
–– * ––
Sparkle was one of the several host clubs under the Onidouji's supervision. Without any exception, all of the working girls gave extra services, and the club accommodated special clients in a secluded backroom.
Satoru sat on the edge of a large white couch, trying his best to act as if the smoke didn't bother him while Yaga puffed away on his cigar. Nanami, still as a statue, was engrossed in his phone, muttering to himself every so often. Sweet laughter leaked out from the cracked doors of the surrounding talent rooms. Their levity almost felt offensive to Satoru.
'The ending of this can't come soon enough. But, I got the money. If they're expecting my group to be under, not this time.'
"Glad you could make it on short notice, Sa-chan." Yaga took a long drag of the cigar. He put his foot on the edge of the glass table, which happened to be right next to the money counter.
Satoru nodded, "Of course, oyabūn. Shall I begin?"
The boss nodded and took a swig of his whiskey. "Let's get on with it."
Satoru picked up the bags from off the ground, coolly going through and placing each bundle on the counter. With every movement he felt like he'd sunk deeper into a dense slog of mud. His ears began to fill with a faint buzzing noise, gently trickling through his ear canals.
'This must be why they called the count. They know someone is skimming off the top. They just don't know who.'
"That new girl you got at the club." Yaga started, swirling his glass around.
Nanami kept his eyes on the money. "Cheri."
"Cheri." The name resonated in his throat, sounding more like a growl than human speech. "Where is she from?"
'There's no way he noticed a new girl. He never comes here.'
"They found her in Shizuoka."
"Why the new hire? I thought your stable was full."
Nanami nodded. "It was. She was a replacement for an old girl that went missing. A shame, really. One of our highest earners."
Yaga smoked his cigar, "They ever find her body?"
"No. Only her hand."
The laughter from the dressing rooms ceased and the doors shut with a soft click. An ugly grin spread across Yaga's face as he exhaled the smoke from his nose.
"Shouldn't treat a whore so cruelly. But, then again, whores shouldn't steal."
Satoru held his peace. "Nanami-san, I've finished counting. 118 million yen."
Nanami stared at the neon numbers on the counter for longer than he needed to, as Yaga held his cigar limply in fingers, twiddling it around. Neither of them spoke. And in the absence of their voices, the buzzing in Satoru's ears sounded like a host of roaring drones.
He exhaled, "Not bad. Suguru's boys have done 130, though."
A tinny wail pierced through Satoru's eardrums, then returned to nothingness.
Nanami adjusted his glasses, "Is that with his official Saitama numbers included?"
"No." Yaga laughed. "I'm expecting higher, no doubt."
"Suguru's out in Saitama now?" Satoru asked, putting the money back in the bags.
"He's been working out there extensively for the past couple of months, establishing new connections and all that."
Satoru raised his eyebrows, "Didn't mean to run him out of Tokyo."
"Ha! The two of you are my favorite upstarts. Too bad you shitheads can't get along." Yaga took his foot off the table and leaned in towards the group. "But fuck all that, Sa-chan. Good work on that pickup from Osaka. I've already opened negotiations with a buyer in Yokohama."
"It might be worth the effort to reach out to our associates in Chiba, Yaga-san." Nanami said.
"Eh." Yaga waved his hand back and forth, sending the wisps of smoke into a fury. "I'm not interested in dealing with those cheap bastards. I'll find the right buyer. Satoru, I want you to handle the transaction. Nanami will be there in a supervisory capacity."
'Great. So, he always planned to give me the job. Just how long have they known about these missing drugs?'
"Thank you, oyabūn. I'm honored to take on such a responsibility."
Yaga shrugged, "With the numbers your group pulls in consistently, it only makes sense. But, if you let Suguru catch up to you, it'll be him in your place."
"Thank you, oyabūn."
Nanami adjusted his glasses. "If Yaga-san has nothing else for you, then you're free to go, Satoru."
Satoru looked expectantly at the boss and at his nod, rose from his seat and bowed. Satoru left out the backdoor of the club and passed by a few girls on break. From the smudge of their blush to the crumbles of their mascara, he could tell they were already worn out for the day.
"Hi, Sato-chan!" The girls cooed in unison.
Satoru put his sunglasses on and waved. "How are we doing?"
"Good. But, y'know. Business has been a little slow—"
A girl smoking a cigarette hit her in the side. "We've been good. Great, even. Thanks for asking! You're always so considerate, Sato-chan."
"Yeah!" Another piped up, all of her teeth on display. "Business has been amazing."
"Alright." He smiled. "I'll be seeing you."
"Bye, Sato-chan!"
As he walked away, he heard them talking amongst each other.
"What the hell is wrong with you? Don't you ever tell him that. Don't you know what he does to low-earners?"
–– * ––
Satoru strode into the back entrance of the storehouse, a cavernous building that was previously the main receiving center for a mid-level retailer. Satoru and Yuta converted it to a manufacturing lab and used it as their main distribution hub. He wrenched the weathered twine down and shut the rusty rollup, catching the attention of the masked employees.
They all stared a little longer than they should have, for they didn't know who he was. Satoru never visited, leaving the storehouse to Yuta to run. He pushed back his suit jacket and flashed his oni-embossed tantō and they turned back to work.
"Oh, you must be Gojo-san!" A young lady said, muffled through her face mask. She shuffled from her station and bowed. "Welcome. Usually, Okkotsu-san checks up, but we haven't seen him in awhile. Did you want to see the morning shift? We're almost done."
Satoru shook his head and slid his hands into his pockets. "No. What's your name? How long have you worked here?"
"Ami! I've worked here for two and a half months."
Satoru flashed her a smile, "Ami-chan, have you noticed anything unusual? People coming here more often?"
"No." Her ponytail shook back and forth. "Well… no. It wasn't that unusual."
"You can tell me." He looked over the top of his sunglasses into her eyes. "What happened?"
"Well, Itadori-kun got into it with somebody from another gang. I don't know his name. I know it was the same family, 'cause I saw the knife, but he definitely didn't belong to the Onidouji." A red haze passed over her cheeks and she glanced at the ground. "I'd never seen Itadori-kun so angry."
'How would she know what he's like? Just how often has he been around here that she's got such a crush?'
She stopped suddenly and stroked her arm. "He's not gonna get in trouble is he?"
"What emblem was on the knife?"
Her voice got quieter, "A hannya."
Satoru's nostrils flared. "Thank you. That'll be all."
Ami bowed awkwardly and spun around on her heel, rejoining the line of packaging workers.
Satoru made his way slowly towards the open-air office, feeling like a stranger in his own land. He sat back on the dented steel desk and surveyed the workers. They reminded him of tiny little ants. Hustling for a ruler they'd never see. All of them inconsequential.
'What are Geto's boys doing here? And why didn't Yuuji tell me about it?'
Satoru's pocket rumbled and he took out his phone. A message from Muna and a missed call from Yuta.
mu: yeah but I don't see the point in thanking you for taking responsibility
'Cute.'
Yuta picked up the phone before the second ring.
"What's this about bringing the haul to the storehouse?" Yuta asked. Satoru could hear blaring music in the background and the hubbub of people talking.
Satoru leaned back on the desk, his leg swaying to and fro. "Someone's stealing from us."
"Yeah?" Yuta's voice was metallic. "And how'd you find that out?"
"Nanami-san called an early count count today. I counted the money and it was ¥20m short."
"Hold on." Satoru could hear Yuta's fingers tapping the screen. "I've got the earnings report open. So, they never sold more than ¥98m."
"Right. But they stole ¥20m worth."
Yuta scoffed, "Fuck. Who tipped them off to count today?"
"Your guess is as good as mine. One of the girls here said that Yuuji had gotten into a fight with a Dodomeki member. It seems too coincidental."
"You really think Suguru would set you up? Why now of all times?" Yuta tutted his tongue. "He's in Saitama right now. Mahito's overseeing in his absence. Does that guy hate you, too?"
"Ah! Who knows?" Satoru shrugged. "Until I get a handle on everything, I'm just going to have 'em all turn their runs in."
"Then what? You can't sell it all on your own." Yuta paused.
'I can't reveal everything, Yu-kun.'
"Don't worry about it. It'll be okay."
The background noise died out. "Should I come back, oyaji?"
"No. If we get that Seoul connect, it'll look better for us."
Yuta sighed, "Okay."
"Welcome, Itadori-kun!" Ami's voice reverberated throughout the storehouse. "Oh, and welcome Shiroi-kun!"
'That girl is too sweet.'
Satoru looked up to see Yuuji walking in with two large black duffel bags, while Panda followed close behind. Satoru was expecting to see Fushiguro and Toge close behind them, but they were nowhere to be found.
Itadori smiled, "Ami-chan's always so nice."
She blushed and continued working. Their interaction causing a small stir amongst gossiping workers in the back.
"Hey!" Panda barked, silencing them. "Cut that shit out."
"Call you later."
"Alright." The line clicked.
Yuuji dropped his bags on the ground and sat down on top of them, while Panda stood off to the side and gently placed them down. With Yuuji hunched over in his baggy clothes and Panda standing straight in a tailored suit, they couldn't have looked more dissimilar.
"What's up, aniki?" Yuuji asked, leaning his head on his fist.
"I'm getting to that." Satoru said with a sharp tone. He turned his attention towards Panda, "Oyabūn called you in?"
Panda stood with his hands in his pockets, "Yeah. Nothing too serious. Town hall meeting. I think Ijichi-san will be there, too. "
"Oh? Sounds like you're being primed to become a liaison." Satoru tapped his fingers on the desk. "Enjoy it."
Panda laughed, "Yeah. I'll try."
"How does that girl back there know your first name?"
Panda pointed at Yuuji, "Blame that one."
Yuuji grinned, "She's so cute. I just like talking to her."
"Yeah? You make it a habit to get comfortable with every bitch who's nice to you?" Yuuji's grin receded. "Panda, you can go."
"Alright, oyabūn." He bowed and waved at them, "See you guys later."
Yuuji tilted his head to the side, "Aniki, what's going on?"
"Why didn't you tell me about the little fight you had with a Dodomeki member?" Satoru asked, his gaze piercing through Yuuji.
Yuuji's eyebrows knit together. "How'd you know about that? I just… I just wanted to handle it. To show you that I could hold my own. You've always taken care of me—"
"Fuck that." Satoru said, his voice like a riled snake's hiss. "You should've told me."
"Sorry, Sa-chan." Yuuji bit his lip.
Satoru exhaled and ran a hand through his hair. "You know the kid's name?"
"No. I'd never seen him before. I guess, he's new."
Satoru regarded Yuuji's shrinking form and where he would usually feel pity, he only felt scorn.
"Why the fuck was he here anyway?" Satoru narrowed his eyes. "He shouldn't have known this place existed."
"Aniki," Yuuji raised his eyebrows. "That's why I fought him. He followed me here."