Yamatachi leans against a wall waiting in a sterile hallway.
"... I could use a smoke right now."
"You're better off without those."
Makoto remarks sitting in a waiting chair. She glances to her side at a silent Haru staring ahead at a hospital door. A doctor with receding hair leaves scratching his head. Haru is the first to speak.
"Rokkaku-san! Is he going to make it...?"
The elder man adjusts his glasses as he looks at a clipboard.
"Haru-chan... I'll be blunt with you. His skeletal structure is decimated. We'll have to keep him here for months at the latest..."
"...!"
Haru pales placing her hand on the bandage around her throat; her breath stolen by the news. Makoto's eyes widen with concern as she mumbles under her breath.
"N-No... That cant... Happen...! Not now..."
Yamatachi however grows skeptical voicing his cynicism.
"Doctor. Did you see this yourself through x-rays? Last I saw him, as messed up as he is, he was still in one solid piece."
"Are you insinuating something, sir?"
Haru shoots a fierce look at the adult.
"Kurusu-sensei! Rokkaku-san has been my doctor since I was a girl. He's a very good doctor."
Yamatachi rolls his wrist dismissively at them both.
"That's not what I said. The kid is a student of mine. I want to be absolutely sure of his condition. All you did was go in and check him up like he came in for the flu."
"... I see... I'll see what I can do. Haru. You should leave while you can. Now."
Haru tilts her head at her favored doctor but he refuses to let her speak back as he walks away abruptly. Makoto looks around.
"It's eerily quiet... Doesn't this hospital have other patients or staff?"
Haru nods as she begins to wonder as well.
"Of course they do. Several nurses and quite a few people come here. My father helped with construction of this building."
Makoto looks to both ends of the hallway, one leads to more rooms and a flight of stairs, the other to the front lobby. Both are exceedingly empty. Yamatachi hisses a whisper at Makoto.
"Hey, you catch that?"
She nods not addressing him. A nervous bead of swear trickles down her head as she comes to a terrible conclusion.
"H-Haru-chan... Does your father own this hospital?"
Yamatachi follows after her.
"And would he know if someone were admitted here?"
The posh girl looks between them both; the frown on her face growing deeper.
"He does but he wouldn't bother unless it was someone important to him."
Yamatachi clicks his tongue in annoyance.
"So he's notified but disregards them... Not unless it's a person of interest, huh? Damn."
Haru looks to the ground weary and short of breath.
"Sakamoto-kun is... My friend. Someone like him would be loathed by Father. I doubt he would come here for him."
"But not his own daughter?"
"..."
Both Makoto and Yamatachi glance at each other at her silence. Haru wants to answer that he would visit her. She would very much like that, but the man that he is, she remains unsure if he would even care. Even if to chastise her she wouldn't mind the visit. However, even she has to admit that the hospital being so empty is wrong, something had to have happened for thisbto occur. Why were they the only ones on the first floor? Makoto groans and stands to her feet.
"Kurusu-sensei. Trouble coming our way."
"I see them..."
Haru looks up to see her acquaintances glaring in her direction. She turns to the lobby and gasps.
"F-Father...! Sugimura-san?!"
Kunikazu Okumura, an astute business man with a perpetual air of superiority and wisdom, he gives his daughter a stoic frown.
"You've caused quite the commotion lately, Haru. I've told you to be a good girl."
Sugimura shakes his head with a smug sneer.
"You certainly have such an interesting taste... A bad boy like that... I can be plenty bad for you if you'd like."
Haru steps back disgusted. Makoto takes a stand between her and the well-suited men.
"She's recovering from her injuries and you condescend her like she's at fault?"
Sugimura's sneer skews into a scowl.
"Excuse you, girl? Who are you to shove yourself in other's business?"
"It's my business when it involves my friends!"
"A friend of my little wallflower? You?"
"She, isnt, yours."
"Yes. She is! Notaka! Takamata!"
Kun Woo Li appears from around the corner of the lobby hallway with the dead doctor by his side. A sharpened machete in the surgeon's hand as he stares ahead. Makoto pales considerably.
"No way...! I...! I saw you die!"
"Hm? Oh. Right. I got better."
Takamata smiles behind his mask at tge reactions of his targets. The sheer surprise and despair from such a simple yet inane answer. The truth is that he had the antidote on him. He had never really intended to kill Makoto for long. The plan was to use a drug that would make her body seem inactive, yet still functional, as at the time no one really knew who she was. Simply a document on her personal file that scarcely summarized her. No one would have paid attention if she were suddenly alive since no one would care... However now...
"I have a job to finish. Please. Don't struggle."
Kunikazu looks to his daughter beckoning her.
"Haru. Come over here. Your place is by our side."
"I... I..."
She looks between her friends and her family. Torn between the two, unable to decide, she looks to the door where Ryuji lies. It has yet to be said, but even she knows why those men are here, and she won't have it. She runs to the door and slams the door behind her. Sugimura growls at her as he directs Kun Woo Li.
"This insubordination has gone on long enough! Break that door down and get rid of that oaf!"
The Korean huffs as he reaches for the door.
"I can't wait to be rid of this once and for- Ow!"
He's stopped by a punch from Makoto. She shakes her hand feigning a glare to hide her apparent fear. She had to think quick. What would Ryuji say or do?
"Step back, asshole!"
She quickly realizes the error of her mistake as Kun Woo Li snarls as he advances upon her instead.
"You're going to regret that...!"
He stumbles back from a far more impactful punch. Yamatachi gently pulls Makoto back and huffs out an annoyed breath.
"Quit picking on little boys and girls. It's not very manly, Kun Woo Li."
The Korean fighter stops in his tracks with a panicked hiss. Takamata eyes Yamatachi cautiously before he near blurs in the eyes of everyone. His arm flashes to sever a limb, but his eyes widen before he can react properly, only able to grunt as he struggles with his arm caught in a submission hold.
"And Doctor Fujiyabashi. Whatever happened to that doctor's oath you took. The Hippocratic Oath, right?"
"U-Urgh! Who...? Are you?!"
Yamatachi shoves the killer ahead and away from the door before raising his fists up.
"Just a phantom."
Kun Woo Li rushes him with a furious storm of punches and kicks, hooks and jabs, elbows and flying knees all blocked or parried by Yamatachi. With every few blows a devastating counter is traded. Not long after until the tables are turned, Kun Woo Li desperately attempts to avoid the oncoming assault, for even blocking felt as bad as being struck.
"T-Takamata! Help!"
"I can't."
"What!?"
"I've tried looking for an opening and I foresee me making things worse each time. Back off of him and I should be able to do it."
"Tch! H-Here!"
The kickboxer tries to escape but is stopped by Yamatachi. The angered teacher sends a kick for his target's ankle, guiding the entire leg up in a circular motion, he pulls his leg back quick to kick at Kun Woo Li's standing leg. As Kun Woo Li falls back, his raised leg is caught by Yamatachi's hand, who raises it higher before swinging him off the ground and into the wall. He releases him just in time to deftly dodge a series of blades thrown at him.
"Backstabbing?"
"I'm an assassin. Not a warrior."
"I'm a school teacher; funny how life works, right?"
Yamatachi runs for Takamata, catching the thrown scalpel blades in the air with unseen skill, he spins the blades between his fingers; the two meet with Takamata going for a straight decapitation. The teacher weaves out of the way sending a fierce fist in the elderly man's chest. Takamata lets out a terrible wheeze before stumbling to the side as another fist strikes the side of his ribs. Yamatachi could feel the old man's bones crunch under his fists, yet that's not what worried the doctor, for as Yamatachi withdrew himself he left behind the scalpels now stuck inside the sender's body. Takamata trembles in place just trying to stay on his feet.
"You... You're... Far above our league..."
"So is the kid. It's selfish of me to say but I don't care about any of this money shit or politics. I just like screwing with fellow rich assholes. Nothing personal, doc."
He finishes Takamata off with a simple fireman kick to the stomach. The doctor flies back into the wall adjacent to his ally. Kunikazu, who has never been one to dirty his own hands; let alone fight in such a barbaric manner, is visibly shaken by the sight of two skilled killers be defeated so easily. Sugimura reacts in a similar manner with his foot instinctively drawn back from the fight. He hired men to do his work for him. He is part of the elite. How? How could some no name middle class peasant utterly defeat him like this!?
"... N-No... I won't lose like this!"
Sugimura snaps with a crazed leer as he takes out a small gun designed to be concealed. It isn't his, but a weapon he had been given by his now useless bodyguard to defend himself, oblivious and uncaring to Yamatachi's now passive stance. The teacher tenses despite his now tired face.
"You gotta be fucking kidding me..."
The gun shot echoes throughout the floor and building. Makoto throwing herself to the ground with Kunikazu taking a stand behind the mad nobleman. Yamatachi shakes his head as he points at Sugimura.
"You've never fired that thing before have you? There's a reason our country has such a strict law on firearms. You can't aim for shit."
"Stop acting so tough and drop dead!"
Sugimura roars as he aims lower and fires again. Yamatachi hisses as he falls to a knee with a bullet in his thigh. Then leans back from his shoulder being hit. A few more shots miss until Sugimura is satisfied.
"There's only one last bullet in the chamber... I'll make sure it goes through your skull!"
He approaches the man pointing the gun at point blank range, with his finger on the trigger, he begins to revel in his first life taken by his own hands. The feeling of superiority, the helplessness of his prey, this is a fine wine of a sensation he would savor. Then, the door to Ryuji's room swings open; Haru swings an emergency fire axe by it's blunt side at Sugimura's head, forcing the man to fire upon surprise with an off-aim. Yamatachi narrowly dodges with his cheek grazed as Haru pants with adrenaline rushing through her.
"Stop this at once or I'll force you! Now! Leave my friends alone!"
Sugimura backhanded her with fear overriding fury. Haru falls with a faint cry clutching the axe close.
"You worthless bitch! You're only good as a toy so know your place!"
Kunikazu watches with disgust. Disgust that his own daughter would resort to assaulting a man with such a deadly weapon. Disgusted that he would be involved in such a cruel society and business. Disgusted that he has only now started to see Sugimura's true personality... And at himself for sending his own daughter into the arms of this monster. It would all matter in the end though. It has to. Right now he is what matters most in this life. He has to look after himself and side with the winners. Right now that is the very monster Sugimura.
"I think that's enough. That's no way to handle your future wife. She's fragile."
"She's feisty... I despise it! I'll teach her a lesson she won't forget!"
Yamatachi grabs Sugimura's leg, only for the rich young man to strike him with the gun, a snarl as he glares fire at the older fighter.
"You! You think you can stop me with those wounds!"
"First off, your gun uses a magazine not a clip or a chamber, and secondly I could. It's just that whatever I could do wouldn't be half as bad as what he'll do."
"Who?!"
Sugimura looks up to a bright flash of white. His eyes ache, nose sore with a stiff harsh clogged nostril, his head throbs as he leans against the wall. Ryuji, face twisted into a menacing portrait of hatred, stalks towards the dazed nobleman. He slams Sugimura against the wall by his throat. The rich boy presses his gun against the blonde's head pulling the trigger frightened. He had used all of his ammo. Ryuji beats Sugimura ruthlessly. Blood flies from his mouth and nose. Teeth loosen and become chipped if not fly right out of the mouth. Oxygen forced out of body with each gut and chest punch. Eventually, Ryuji finishes his target off with a final punch to the face, the head slightly embedded into the wall.
"Before you pass out like a bitch... Take this with you to dreamland. Haru isn't yours. She doesn't belong to anyone. She's free! Your fight is with me! So if you wanna keep going you target ME! YOU WANT TO ROUGH HOUSE AROUND, YOU PLAY WITH ME, AND ME ALONE!"
The fist opens up to grab Sugimura's head and slams it further into the wall before letting the unconscious scum fall to the ground. Ryuji pants lightly as he takes to Yamatachi's side.
"Hey, you gonna make it?"
"What, this? It's just a non-fatal gunshot wound. His aim is shit. Help me up and check on the girls."
He stands ignoring the pain with Ryuji's aid. Yamatachi his hand on his student's shoulder with a proud smile.
"By the way. Could you try harder holding yourself back? You might've frightened your friends."
"Oh shit-! You're right!"
"Not too many girls like violent men these days."
He chuckles as Ryuji starts to panic slightly.
"I'm teasing. Go check on them though. Haru's going to want an explanation. I'll deal with her father."
Yamatachi's smile fades to a cold glare centered on Kunikazu. The man frozen from Ryuji's unabashed display of utter brutality. He is by no means upset by the ordeal. Sugimura is a known problem child, a spoiled brat that was but a step to take for his ascension to greatness, but now that step has fallen through with this ape's interference. Worst yet is that his own daughter hugs this revolting boy, tears and cries of joy, his own flesh and blood daring to rebel right before his eyes. She shouldn't even give this walking mouth breather the time of day. He notices Yamatachi approaching him and steps back.
"Hey. Stay right there, Okumura-san."
"You... You're quite stubborn to approach me with your wounds."
"The only reason me and the boy haven't broken every bone in your body is because we want a deal."
"A deal?"
"Yeah. Hear me out..."
Ryuji walks up to Makoto and Haru trying his best to look friendly.
"You two okay? Sorry I kind of just lost it there-"
"Aren't you broken?"
"Huh?"
Haru warily pokes him in his side garening a jump.
"My doctor said... Your bones were all broken..."
"For real!? I'm fine! Really! I just ran outta steam is all! It doesn't hurt at all!"
He winced as she abruptly hugs him tight. Makoto rolls her eyes at Ryuji's traitorous expression of intense pain.
"You're just full of surprises... How did you even manage to break that leg during training?"
"I-I'll tell you later. We should get outta here though."
"Agreed. We all are perpetrators of assault... Oh, what would Sis think if sge were here."
Ryuji attempts to turn around but Haru keeps him in place. Her arms continue to tighten around his torso. He lets out a grunt from the agonizing aches.
"H-Haru you can let go now."
"I will. When you promise to tell me everything after this."
Her grasp now squeezes against his ribs. With his current condition he feels as if he's being crushed under Kuma's foot. She looks up at him with a subtle glare.
"I just attacked a man with an axe for you. Don't try to say I'm not involved now."
Ryuji wants to scream, from the pain or the newfound fear he isn't sure which, but he smiles sheepishly seeing as there's no point in hiding the plot from her now.
"Y... Yes ma'am."
Just as Haru releases him, Kunikazu lets out a held breath, a shadow looms from around the corner with footsteps sounding nearby.
"You fools are done for! Notaka's gang, the men we've paid to kill you, all of them are right outside and they will rush you at once!"
Kunikazu sneers and looks back to his reinforcement.
"About time! What is that fool, paying you!? Get in here and finish the job!"
He orders with vindictive confidence. However, he stumbles back with a shriek as one of Kun Woo Li's thugs hobble in, hand over his eviscerated throat. The petrified portrait of terror on the dying man's face before he falls flat on the ground. A chilling giggle lifts the now heavy silence in the air.
"Hehehe..."
Leather boots stomp into the growing puddle of blood that step towards the group. A toothy grin with sharp canines, wild wine hair not cared for yet styled with a mid-part, connected to a thick beard that covers all but the lips. The man wears cargo pants with an open military jacket and a bare chest revealing a monstrous snake tattoo. In his left hand is a large curved knife with the handle acting as brass knuckles; the blade is wet with blood with splatters on his face and hands. He speaks in a rough language unheard by the teens. Haru, holding onto Ryuji tightly as the three of them hide behind the men, looks to her friends.
"C-Can any of you understand him?"
Makoto shakes her head.
"It sounds like English but there's so many words I haven't ever heard of in my studies."
Ryuji holds an arm out to stand his ground between his friends and this new threat.
"Hey, Teach. You have any idea what he's saying? You're awfully quiet..."
Yamatachi stands straight and walks towards the man against his student's protest.
"Hey! Don't move so much!"
"Take your own advice. He's speaking a form of English only known to the most deplorable of human beings. Scottish."
He speaks in fluent English, to which only Makoto can vaguely make out, attempting to following the new conversation.
"(Hey. Killing people is a terrible first impression.)"
"(Fock awf ya doaty baw! I's wants me sum o' that bloody festival behind ya! Ya can wait yer turn when I'm finish wit' bitch boy t'ere!")
The stranger leans to the side with crazed emerald green eyes leering at Ryuji. Yamatachi steps in front of his view.
"(He's nowhere near your level. It isn't fair to come after him so suddenly after a fight, is it?)"
The foreign man scowls at his obstacle. He brings his knife up to Yamatachi's cheek brushing his face with the edge.
"(I'm as much a challenge for you as you are to him.)"
The man eyes the human wall before him. Without warning he violently swipes across the skin, not tearing the flesh, but shaving the man of his facial hair.
"(Too focking sad!~ I's wants me o' piece o' th' scrote that crushed Kuma's bloomin' shovel chin! 'E ain't eatin' naught from a straw now! From what I 'ear me treasure boy 'as gold 'air, fierce eyes, fightin' fer his life each day! Aye, 'e sounds like a dream boat...")
"(If you want a fight so bad why not wait until he's at least fully healed? There's plenty of fights to be had in the Battle Ring too.)"
"(Ya nyaff scabby lavvy heid! If I wait, th' oth'rs urr gon' jump in soon! Stupid cunt!)"
Yamatachi leans back with fear at that.
"Others?!"
As if on cue, the floor trembles with great intensity. A van flies through the doors of the lobby in reverse; it slams through the counter and hits the wall, full of unconscious men. A single bipedal tower lumbers in. A giant of dark skin with a shiny bald head and thick lips stare ahead void of any emotion. His business suit does a poor job hiding the Herculean physique.
Ryuji never felt the need to compare himself to others. He only needed to live by his own standards until recently. However, for some inexplicable reason, the sheer visage of this titan makes him feel more than small. He feels weak, worthless, unworthy. Inadequate. He had just came to the wonderful feeling of strength. Of having overcome all of his arduous trials, the battles in his life, his growth. None of it matters now. Before him stands now is absolute. The sheer aura of this man radiates with strength. Before everyone there is Power. The black man stares at the group and raises a brow. His Japanese, stiff and with an American accent, jarring almost.
"This is an interesting scene. I had heard something is happening here. I find you, Mr. James Patrick O' Shaughnessy."
The Scottish man gives a feral snarl at his now larger target.
"(Tongue ma fart-box ya fockin' walloper! An' keep me name outta ya dirty charcoal lips, ya sunburnt goliath! 'E is mine!)"
"Do not be rude. You are rushing things again. I will have to get you a room at this hospital instead of my hotel. They have had a busy day."
"(I don't care!~ I wanna fight! You gonna fight in 'is place?!)"
"If I must."
He looks away from James and to the group. He has to lean forward slightly to keep his head from meeting the ceiling before bowing formally.
"I apologize. My name is, Quinton Pierce. There were a lot of men in my way. I will pay for the damages."
Kunikazu stammers out incoherent mess. Yamatachi speaks up for the party.
"Pierce-san. James. Why and how are you two here?"
The Scottish man scoffs and pute his strange weapon away. Pierce continues as he ignores the rude man.
"Information travels fast in my line of business. I have kept a close eye on Japan. Kuma Kobayakawa and I had once met on good terms. He works for one of my warehouses. More importantly, he is my muscle, although his official loyalty lies with his uncle. It mattered not to me. Imagine then, when one of my favored employees is hospitalized, twice by the same young man."
Pierce's gaze moves to Ryuji. The young man freezes with his breath halted.
"I am not here for revenge. Kuma lost a fight that he had picked. He meddled in the affairs of those not his to meddle in. I am here for that boy... To give him an opportunity. I want to make a deal with you, Ryuji Sakamoto."
All eyes turn to Ryuji as he becomes the center of attention. James claps with a laugh.
"(Aye!~ I's ain't ever seen ya so beguiled by a young'un! It makes me wanna fight 'im more!)"
Yamatachi and Kunikazu looks back awaiting Ryuji's response.
"It isn't quite what I was expecting... The choice is yours, kid."
"What is... What is he doing here!? A-And why that boy out of all people!?"
Makoto glances to her side at Ryuji trying to gauge what could be going through his head.
"I... I don't like the sound of this. What are you going to do?"
Ryuji sweats profusely as he pales further with all pressure. What is he going to say? What could he do? Just as he draws blank after blank, Haru steps forward, past all of those trying to keep her safe. She alone confronts the human skyscraper with a brave face.
"Excuse me. My name is, Haru Okumura. As you can see, my friend and I are in the middle of something, is it too much to ask that we postpone this for another time?"
Almost all are flabbergasted by the sudden move. Kunikazu reacts first reaching out to her.
"Haru, get back! You don't know what you're saying."
Pierce stares her down before nodding with another bow.
"I see. I apologize if now is inconvenient. Please, take my business card, contact me when all is concluded."
Pierce takes out a business card and hands it delicately to Haru. The elegant girl smiles with a genuine sweet tone.
"Thank you for your understanding! I'll be sure we don't forget, sir!"
James glances between the two with a face of disgust.
"(We done lickin' lollies an' frenchin' each oth'rs arse or am I ta die 'o boredom?)"
Pierce speaks in English to the Scotsman, the two have a quick exchange before they leave, Haru waits until they're out of sight to fall on her knees quivering. Everyone but Kunikazu hovers over her. Makoto helps her to her feet.
"My God, Haru! What were you thinking?! Anything could have happened!"
Yamatachi sighs rubbing his neck.
"I would have had to come up with some outrageous story if a student were harmed under my care, yeesh."
Ryuji shoves a finger in her face.
"Dammit, girl! Are you trying to get yourself killed!? I can't let you get yourself hurt!"
Haru looks between them all before looking to her feet as she speaks meekly.
"I... I... I wanted to be of real use. I don't know the whole story but... You all have stood up for me, against strange odds, regardless of what may happen to you. I have to repay that kindness somehow."
Ryuji groans leaning back.
"Shit, Haru, what did I tell you before? Friends got each other's backs."
Makoto punches the blonde in the shoulder.
"As much of an ass that he's being, he's right. We won't abandon you."
"Ow..."
Yamatachi remains silent. Instead, coughing to garner the other's attention as Kunikazu approaches them.
"Haru... You... You really handled that well. Especially not knowing who that man is."
Makoto raises her brow.
"But you do? You have a lot to explain for. To your daughter, to Ryuji, and that's just the tip of the iceberg."
"I intend on explaining everything... At this point, it would be foolhardy to seek that boy's separation from you, I daresay... I... Require... His aid."
Kunikazu struggles with his words as he lowers himself to his knees. His hands plant onto the ground as his head meets the floor.
"Please forgive me! I never should have escalated things! It was my idea to have Notaka and the others attack you at night! It was I who offered extra money to the other two to deal with you and any associates! It was I who pressured your principal into expelling you! Sugimura is a fool fueled by his fervor, even Notaka, no Kun Woo Li's employment is of my own! He was supposed to assure that idiot noble boy and my daughter would wed... Everything you have gone through is because of me... Please. Forgive me!"
The party all look to each other, then eyes fall on Yamatachi, yet he shakes his head.
"Hey. Hold on. I didn't do anything to make him like this. I didn't know he was the one behind it all..."
Makoto rubs her cheek taking the revelation in.
"I knew Haru's father had to be involved but to think he was the mastermind the whole time? It makes him seem... Smaller now, actually."
Haru stares at her father both ashamed and frustrated. Frustrated at him for his reasons and actions, at herself for being unable to be truly angry at him, she shakes her head looking away from him. Ryuji rolls his eyes speaking skeptically.
"Why now? This heel turn from big bad guy to sniveling dude isn't natural. What's really going on?"
Kunikazu raises himself with a shudder.
"Please. Follow me."
The group follow the business man to his personal limousine. Haru is caught up on all the details on the ride to the Okumura penthouse. Her silence unnerves everyone as she listens intently, a rare idle nod every now and again; everyone relocates to the living room where Kunikazu stands at the center.
"Thank you for your patience. Allow me to start from the beginning. When I had first started using my acquaintances to my advantage, I happened upon a unique group of individuals, among them was the man you have come to know as Pierce. At the time he and the others enjoyed my ideas for a better Japan, and with their aid, I ascended to the place I am now. I decided to make my move using Haru in an arranged marriage to take the first step into the world of politics."
Yamatachi huffs out a cloud of smoke as he stands near the balcony, the glass doors to the platform open, as to let the smoke out.
"So you used the aid of foreigners? That's why you have businesses outside of Japan. I bet you thought you could get away with anything, huh?"
"I admit I have grown a bloated ego..."
Makoto speaks up after sipping tea from her seat. Her harsh gaze burrows into the older man minute by minute.
"Bloated is an understatement. Why is it that he didn't even look at you at the hospital?"
"That's the kind of man he is... Once he loses interests in something or someone, it's as if they don't exist, so when that occurs he simply forgets. By the time he and I went our separate ways, I had done so well for myself I hadn't suffered in the slightest in terms of finance, I believed myself to be in the clear."
Ryuji sits next to Haru on a couch so comfy, were it not for the matter at hand, he would have fallen asleep. Regardless, he folds his arms with a blank stare.
"So it was through Pierce and his friends you learned about people like Kun Woo Li. I bet you used that knowledge to make it seem like you were deeper than you actually are, huh?"
"Y-Ye... There's an entire system of joining, a process I didn't actually go through, and so I am not recognized... Because of this, the protection that comes with recognition is not entitled to me, which means should word get out about the truth..."
Yamatachi shakes his head.
"You'll be hunted in the same way Ryuji has been. You've garnered too much attention due to one small thing. They think you're bored and using a boy for a game when in reality, he just turned your entire world upside down, and if he takes this deal with Pierce..."
Kunikazu shakes like a dead leaf caught in a torrential winds. Fists unclench as he hangs his head.
"If Sakamoto reveals my involvement with his ordeals, even leaving out all that I have told you, Pierce will come after me... He'll destroy me in ways that he won't even need to lay a finger on me to do permanent damage."
The smoking adult flicks his cigarette butt into the trashcan.
"Funny... Here I was preparing to use all my blackmail and charm to convince you to make a deal with Ryuji... And here you are in the light if truth needing him more than he needs you."
Haru speaks up at last letting out a held sigh.
"Father. I don't know when you became this kind of man, but it's ill-fitting of you, and you should face the consequences of your actions. Even if I cannot find it in myself to hate you, I can very much disagree with you, now more than ever. I am no longer your subservient puppet."
Kunikazu stares at his daughter shocked and stunned mostly silent. All he can muster out is a soft whisper.
"H-Haru... You... I see... Sakamoto."
He looks to Ryuji swallowing what little pride he has left.
"Whatever I have is yours. My wealth, my business, so long as you can keep me from being targeted I swear that I will give you anything! Name it! Please! I'll do anything... The things they do to people like me... It's unspeakable."
Yamatachi walks over to the group and nods.
"He's right. A bullet to the head would be a mercy. This is the real deal here, kid."
Makoto looks to Ryuji curiously.
"This is, again, your call. There's nothing I could do or say about this. He does owe you a lot for what he put you through... Both of us actually."
Haru addresses Ryuji despite her eyes locked onto her father.
"Ryuji. Do what you think is right. Even though he's my father, he has to be punished in some way, right now there's no one else in this room with more of a right to how than you."
Ryuji scratches his head. What a pain. Putting all the pressure on him again. He neber really did too well woth decision making in a state like this. All he has to do is make a choice. There's so many choices though. He goes through his mind before giving up halfway with a grunt.
"Screw it. Break off that engagement with Sugimura."
Kunikazu nods.
"I had done that while the tea was being made."
"Oh. Cool. Uh... Merge your company with Yamatachi's."
"What-?!"
Yamatachi raises a brow.
"Hey, kid. I'm rich enough as is."
Ryuji shakes his head.
"It isn't about the money. It's about keeping an eye on him. Keep your friends close and your enemies closer, right?"
Makoto gasps as her eyes widen in surprise.
"I understand...! With a merger as Yamatachi being the superior, Okumura would be under his watch, he wouldn't be able to try anything behind our backs without someone noticing!"
Yamatachi slowly nods gaining a sneer.
"That makes sense... He'll keep all of his assets and his name out of the gutter, but still be under our thumb, that's strategic thinking kid."
Ryuji waves his hand dismissively at them both.
"Yeah, yeah, but you're both forgetting the most important part here. This is his chance to redeem himself."
Kunikazu stumbles back perplexed by that of all things.
"Wh-What is that...?! What is that supposed to mean?!"
"Listen up then, asshole!"
Ryuji brings his arm around Haru. She squeaks from surprise with her face flushing red.
"This girl, kind and brave, is somehow your daughter. Even now, she hasn't said one bad thing to or about you, only the facts of how you screwed up. It's tough but she loves you."
He looks at her with a softened gaze.
"She's also my friend... When everyone else judged me for my appearance and past, she gave me a second chance, and look what I've done with it. I like to think at some point you were like her too. So..."
He hugs her with the one arm as he looks back to Kunikazu.
"I'm going to give you that second chance she gave me. I'm not so stupid to just say I forgive you, but I want to believe in her believing in you, alright?"
Kunikazu looks at the blonde delinquent completely dumbfounded. This certainly is the last thing he expected from him. The entire room shares this thought. The older Okumura surrenders and nods.
"I understand. This will need a formal contract to be official for our records."
Yamatachi laughs and takes the man by the shoulder.
"If you're saying that then maybe there's some merit to that redemption spiel!"
"I-I have to make an effort to change for the better..."
Makoto smiles at Ryuji with a prideful glow on her face.
"That was... Rather inspiring. You should go up to speak for the school festival."
Ryuji scoffs.
"Hell no! You'd have to drag me up there on stage."
Haru brings a hand up to hold his.
"I'd like to hear you speak."
"... W-Well... I-I guess I could do improv or some shit."
Ryuji blushes trying to hide his face by looking away as the girls giggle at him. However, he also can't help but think back on the two foreigners, the savage Scotsman and the overwhelming Quinton Pierce. Even though he finally ends one conflict in a way he could only dream of; there's the gnawing feeling that leaves him in great suspense. Things could just be getting interesting in his strange life.