He hasn't always been obsessed with money. No. Actually, as a young boy, he didn't have any interest in material riches at all. He used to be quite a dreamer, the romantic type, if you will. Living in his own world made up of books and the girl he liked. She was five years his senior, his friend's older sister. It was quite a big age gap for them back then, they were just that young. And maybe one would think that a child at that age cannot develop such strong feelings toward someone. But how utterly wrong would they be!

Not only were his feelings strong (maybe even too strong for him to properly deal with at such a young age), they were also pure and genuine. He honestly thought that once they grew up they'd get married. He wholeheartedly wanted it to happen, he looked forward to that future! However, it never came. The fate betrayed him, betrayed them both.

He lost her. And he kept blaming himself for it. "If only I was paying a better attention back then! How could have I made such a stupid mistake?! How could have I not recognized her?! Why wasn't I capable of saving her?! Why did it have to be her brother?!"

Having heard that she might be saved from her vegetative state with a surgery that cost way too much for her family to afford, he resorted to any way possible he could find, and think of, to make money. He devoted his whole being to the purpose of making and collecting money. And he wasn't picky about his methods at all. He didn't mind dirtying his hands if it meant even the slightest chance of saving her.

But even that was a futile effort. She succumbed to the burns and injuries, long before he could make enough money for her treatment. And the real self blame has started from that moment.

As a way of punishing himself for failing to save the person he thought was the love of his life, he kept finding new dirty ways to make money. Over the time, it became his way of life, his obsession, and the only thing that kept him going, aside from his best friend, his lost love's younger brother, that shared an almost identical face with her. So much so, that he confused the two in the fire, and saved "the wrong one".

Having to look at his scarred face was both a blessing and the curse. On one hand, it provided the comfort of being able to imagine what she would look like as a grown up, on the other, whenever he would look at his friend, he'd be reminded of his failures and that horrible, fateful day. And yet, he grew oddly fond of that boy. Whether it was that face, or simply the fact that the two of them grew really close over time, or both, nobody could tell for sure. But they certainly were the most important people in each other's lives.

Being involved with gangs, Black Dragons originally, especially Shiba Taiju's generation, and later on Toman and Tenjiku, then Kanto Manji and Brahman as well... it kept them both living in a very specific world, world of misfits, delinquents, petty, and not so petty, criminals, and everything in between.

Fights were a mundane thing. People getting beaten up to a pulp, ending up in the hospital on intensive care, or even dead, those things were considered normal, if not common.

Collecting money by indecent means meant having to risk a lot and deal with a lot of danger constantly. One cannot simply swindle a Yakuza organization made up of adults for a few million, and get out of it unscathed, without being an absolute genius, and willing to risk their life and everything else. But even as a teen, he'd find multiple ways to do it without any losses. No wonder so many gangs wanted him on their side. A money making genius, indeed.

On the other hand, his friend had kept that romantic, dreamer nature that he had lost to money. His friend only wanted to recreate the Black Dragons in their original glory. His methods weren't always the best nor the most successful ones, but his heart was on the right course.

Except for the fact that he grew to hate his own face, and almost grew to hate his late sister. "Why do I have to share the exact same looks with her?! Why, God?! What kind of joke is that, huh?! Like this... looking like this, he'll never see me in me, he'll always see Nee-san! He only stays by my side because I remind him of Nee-san! Even that time when he kissed me... he wasn't kissing me, he was kissing her ghost on my face!" His frustrations have brought him to the verge of tears countless of times. Looking at the mirror often made him want to break it. But his calm, gentle nature and proper self control never let him do it.

As time passed and things happened, the two of them had gone their separate ways.

Kanto Manji Kai, under Sano Manjiro, aka "the Invincible Mikey", after having defeated both Terano South's Rokuhara Tandai and Kawaragi Senju's Brahman, and having fused with some of their remnants to grow in size, had taken over Tokyo's underground, and came to indirectly control most of the Japan's underground as well, steadily turning into a rotten, organized crime syndicate, later on known as Bonten.

It provided a perfect opportunity for dirty money making, and a big share of credit for its notoriety sure did belong to the money making genius, because after all, money does make the world go round. And, as true as that is for the world of regular people, it's twice as true for the world of those who live on the other side of the law. One could say, money is their world itself.

. . . . .

A big transaction needed to be made with an up and coming rival gang. They started posing quite a threat to Bonten's supremacy, and weren't to be dealt with in the usual manner. The plan was to bribe them into joining under Bonten's rule. This time, the negotiations had to be done by Bonten's top financial executive himself. He was supposed to meet in person with the other gangs representatives, at an abandoned car park. However...

He was greeted by a sight of a familiar young man with blond hair and a burn scar on his left eye, tied to a pillar, his mouth taped up.

Shock. Panic. Fear.

He hasn't felt any of those in a very long time. Being one of the Bonten's top members provided him with a false sense of security and might. But this... this brought him back to reality. They were all in danger. Constant danger.

- We know eeeverything about you, Kokonoi-san! - the rival gang representative spoke in a mocking tone.

- Let him go. He's unrelated to Bonten, me, or any of our business. Otherwise, our deal is off.

- Hmm, and what exactly makes you think we could profit from the deal with you?! - the guy pointed a gun to the hostage.

- What do you want?

- Bonten's disbandment.

- ...

- You guys disband, we kill your boss, and take the rest of you in with us. Especially you. You're quite useful, aren't you, eh? - the man chuckled with confidence.

- Then I guess the deal was off from the start. - he sighed. - Let him go.

- Then give us Mikey instead.

- Can't do that. But I'll give you my money making skills. That's what you wanted, right?

- Alright. - he put the gun away. - You sure are as good a negotiator as I've heard, haha. Go ahead... untie your friend!

"As if we'd ever strike a deal with you Bonten shits! That Mikey's been an eyesore ever since he was a kid! None of you are getting out of here alive! It's finally our chance to shine! But first, you suffer! Go ahead, watch your beloved friend getting killed riiiight in front of your eyes! Relive those past traumas! You can't save anyone, hahahaha!"

. . . . .

A gunshot echoed within the wall of the abandoned car park. Dusty concrete soaked up the sudden gush of blood. A few loud indistinct shouts could be heard in the background.

Through indistinguishable murmur and noise, one particular scream sounded familiar. Blurred vision made it hard to confirm, but it was probably him. It must have been him. "If he's crying out for me, then it means I saved him... thank goodness...", thought the white haired man, as he could feel his skinny body being held up in the arms of the blond one.

- Koko!

- I...nupi... - struggling to keep his slanted eyes open, Koko mustered some strength to call out for his friend.

- What are you doing?! That bullet was intended for me!

- Haha... they wanna kill us both... but, I'm glad... you're safe…

- You're an idiot! - Inui's voice was shaky.

- I'm... sorry, Inupi... for everything… Please, go! Save yourself...

- Don't speak! I'll make sure to take you to a hospital... - the blond fought back his tears.

- Don't bother... Inupi... Call... San...zu... - he tried to take his phone out. Inui helped him and did as instructed.

As if the time had stopped for a few moments, or for the whole eternity, Inui forgot where they were and what was going on. His mind had completely erased the fact that they were at the enemy territory, both targeted, and quite probably surrounded by the enemy gang members who took sadistic joy in watching the drama show in front of their eyes. For him, at that moment, there were only shock and terror of watching Kokonoi bleed in his arms, because he jumped in to save him from the certain death.

Inui softly broke the silence, his voice trembling with fear and worry.

- Koko... "He seems to be losing consciousness, this is bad!" - Koko! Hang in there! A bit longer... hey! You hear me?! - Inui was getting more and more flustered.

Kokonoi must have heard him, as he recuperated the last bits of consciousness and slowly opened his eyes a little. The hazy image showed a familiar silhouette. The face he could barely distinguish through the vision that started blurring even more with the welling up of tears, but the face that was so very dear to him. The face he would have done even the impossible for.

- A..ka...ne-san?

Inui's chest went tight with a pang. He had to bite his lip to prevent himself from bursting into tears.

It was a bad sign. "He's hallucinating..." - thought the blond. "And he's lost quite a lot of blood already... he's so pale... damn it! Shouldn't Bonten be here by now?!"

-...el cold... - Kokonoi's barely audible, breathless words.

Inui quickly took his jacket off, and covered him with it. Without thinking, he just acted.

With the last bits of strength he had left in him, Kokonoi tried to raise his hand toward Inui's face. He understood his intention, and held his hand, raising it to touch his own face.

- Hajime-kun... - with a bout of inexplicable strength, Inui managed to smile. He suddenly felt extremely calm. As if he subconsciously knew there was no hope left anymore. "I guess this the only thing I can do for him now... If he still only sees Nee-san in me, then so be it. The least I can do is play along." - He put all of his mental effort into suppressing the urge to cry, and brought out his best acting skills. However, the shock and terror he felt earlier, were starting to change into a span of different, pleasant, but bittersweet, emotions. His heart was still fully honest.

Kokonoi's expression, too, softened a bit, as if it was too difficult for him to smile at that point, but he still had the need to.

- Hajime-kun... - Inui started bringing his face closer down to Kokonoi's.

- I...ve...y...A...ne...sa…

As soon as he managed to put up a struggle to utter those words, their lips gently touched. And nothing else mattered in this world anymore! There was no gang strife, no money making schemes, no death... Akane was there. She was holding him. She was smiling at him. She kissed him. What a bliss! He had nothing more to wish for. His life was complete.

- I love you, too! - an honest voice responded, filled with sorrow, regret, and pain. But more than anything else, overflowing with love. There was something oddly soothing and warm in the way those words sounded.

With a single tear rolling down Kokonoi's right cheek, his body went limp. His eyes closed for good, his breath no more…

- I LOVE YOU, TOO! - having dropped the act, a desperate, but soulful and genuine cry rang out in the building, drowned in the rivers of tears.

- I've always loved you... - he repeated, whispering barely audibly. - But I'm not Akane... - he couldn't control his sobs anymore. - I'm Seishu! Hajime, I'm Seishu…

With another burst of tears and cries, Inupi let his heart do the talking, gripping Koko's lifeless body in a tight embrace.