Ah, here it is! Chapter 1 of the fic! First of all I would like to say thank you to all those who reviewed, it really inspired me to get 5 reviews just in the prologue! I do hope you'd enjoy my installment, so just read on.
Note: This is where Uchi enters...
That night Tetsu and Minoru decided to have a break from all the work at the Kamiyama-chou. They heard that there was a new bar near the university belt of Keiko University, and thought they could go there and have fun with other partygoers.
They rode a black sedan to the Anzo Bar, anticipating the wine, the music, and, most especially, the girls. Too bad Wakamatsu-san and Sawara-san can't go with them, for the two were busy tending to the new construction business of the Ooedo Ikka.
As they neared the entrance of the bar, two pretty women went over and greeted them. The boys were very happy. This was going to be a night of their lives.
Shin sighed as he watched his two colleagues flirt with the girls. Even with the music going on, and the overflowing drinks, he was bored out of his skull. How he wished he hadn't accepted the invitation to go out clubbing.
He gazed languidly at his beer, trying to make sense of the swirling patterns making up the bubbles. Beside him, the girls giggled as Ichikawa-san and Sasuke-san made jokes with them.
Finally realizing he had enough, he stood up, meaning to get away from the flirting couples.
"Sawada-san, where are you going?" Sasuke asked, looking up at him.
"I just need a break," and with that, Shin strode out of the bar, desperate to exit the foolish realm.
He went into the men's room. Walking inside, he bumped into someone on the way.
"Hey you--!" Shin glanced up in shock as he stared into the menacing eyes of Asakura Tetsu, who transformed in surprise as well.
"T-Tetsu-san…" He couldn't believe it. Of all people, why did he have to meet him?
"Sawada Shin!" Tetsu looked surprised, then smiled, grabbing his shoulders. "Isn't it nice to meet you after all these time?"
Shin couldn't say anything, except to stare at him. Tetsu then put an arm on his shoulder as a comradely gesture and motioned him outside of the room.
"We're up at the VIP lounge, Shin-chan, I guess that's better than downstairs, isn't it?" He led Shin away from the noisy and crowded bar and up the stairs to a spacey room. As they entered inside, Shin saw Minoru, who was busy gulping down a huge cup of parfait.
"Aniki! Look who we have here!" Tetsu clapped Shin on the shoulder.
"Shin-chan!" Minoru waved cheerily at him in greeting.
"Apparently the boy has grown up, and he can now be seen at such bars at this time of the night." Tetsu grinned and propelled Shin to a couch.
"So, Shin-chan, what brings you here? A party, I expect?"
"My colleagues are persistent," said Shin. "They invited me to come here with them for a break."
"Really? That's good, then!" Tetsu poured him a glass of wine. "You're studying at some university, aren't you?"
"Hai," Shin agreed, then realized something. "How did you know?" He asked Tetsu.
"That Kumai boy told Ojou about you," said Tetsu. "He said you've been a good boy these past couple of years."
"Yeah," said Minoru. "What are you doing now besides studying, Shin-chan?"
"Well, I've been representing my father as a manager at his business firm," said Shin, drinking a bit.
"Sawada Enterprises? You've made up with your father, then," said Tetsu.
"Yes, I felt the need to restore my family connections," said Shin.
"You seem to be happy enough," said Minoru.
"I am," said Shin.
"Well, Shin-chan, away from the subject, l just wanna ask you, why haven't I seen you around Kamiyama-chou these days? Why didn't you at least pay us a visit for all those years you were gone? Kumai even told Ojou that you weren't communicating much with your past classmates." Tetsu said.
"Tetsu-san, Minoru-san, will you please do me a favor?" Shin said after a while.
"Anything for you," said Minoru.
"Please, don't tell her that you've seen me here," said Shin.
"Why, Shin-chan?" Tetsu asked, knowing who he was referring to.
"Please try to understand my situation," said Shin, his head bowing. "I have made up with my father, and the extent of my wild freedom is going to a bar with some colleagues occasionally. Being seen with a Yakuza member like you will not be appropriate. I cannot bear to bring the Ooedo group in danger, especially your Ojou's job."
"Shin-chan…" said Minoru, gazing at Shin with newfound respect.
Tetsu looked at Shin respectfully, touched by the way he cared for the Ooedo Ikka and his Ojou. "I understand," he said. "We will not inform Ojou of your appearance. Your secret is safe with us."
"Thank you," said Shin. "And Tetsu-san…"
"Yes?"
"I regret to say this… but… it would be much better if this will be our last meeting, too." Shin bowed his head lower.
"We understand," said Tetsu.
Shin felt bad after seeing Tetsu on that fateful night. Just when he thought he could just erase his past and start on with a new life, away from his delinquency that severed his ties from his high-profile family, here comes a meeting to bring back all the memories and the happiness he missed from all those years of keeping up the Sawada family reputation. Oh well, he thought. This is our last meeting anyway. I could just get on with my life after this.
Unfortunately for him, this isn't the extent of the past that has come to haunt him all over again.
After school Yankumi decided to go with Wakamatsu to the new construction firm the Ooedo family had set up near Ginza. It's not that she has any intention of taking over the business after a while, she just thought she'd go over to share some support as her obligation as the group's Ojou. She dressed in one of her kimonos and followed the wakagashira into the black sedan and rode over to Sakishima Enterprises. They arrived at the tall building and walked into it, greeted by the employees of the firm. They took the elevator upstairs into one of the offices to start their tour.
After going around some departments Yankumi began to feel bored. She wasn't fit for this job, that's one of the reasons why she wanted to be a teacher. Going around a really big building all day signing papers and inspecting oh-so-boring workplaces… No way they'd get her into that.
Wakamatsu led her to the employment section, where recent interviews are held. She heard that the applicants today are young men with hopes for a good paying job. She was a bit intrigued. Young men often reminded her of her students.
They entered the spacious room, greeted by one of the executives overseeing the job applications. They sat on the chairs, looking at the men trying to get the new job. Most were satisfactory, with college diplomas to keep them up the ground. However, Yankumi began to lose interest. Damn, another one of those stupid office businesses.
As they neared the end of the list, Yankumi was getting impatient. The interviewer called the next applicant over.
Who came through the door made Yankumi's eyes wide in surprise.
"So, you're name is Uchiyama Haruhiko, isn't it?" The interviewer asked.
"Yes," said Uchi. As he bowed down, he glanced to his right and caught his former sensei's eyes, who was gazing at him in shock.
"Y-Yankumi…"
"Uchiyama! What are you doing here?" Yankumi stood up, her fists clenched and shouting at her past student as if he'd committed some delinquent act.
"I'm the one who should be asking you that!" Uchi replied, eyeing her female Yakuza getup.
"Watch how you speak to the Ojou, Uchiyama," said the interviewer.
Uchi gazed at Yankumi in surprise. "You… you own this place?"
"It's my family's new business firm. Now, you're the one who shouldn't be here! This is a yakuza-managed firm! Go find a safer place!" Yankumi yelled at him.
"I'm not you're student anymore," said Uchi. "I'm here for the job."
"But we're Yakuza! Don't go near a place like this!"
"Whatever you say, I need the job, Yankumi," Uchi argued. "H-Hey!" He gave a start as his old teacher grabbed his arm and pulled him out of the room.
"Yankumi! What now?" He said, wrenching from her grip.
"Uchiyama Haruhiko! Don't ever dare go near this building again, you understand me?" Yankumi said.
"Why not?"
"I told you, we're Yakuza! It's not good for you to be here. Go find work somewhere else! I'll help you, only you'd forget this job!"
"No! Yankumi, the job is too good for me to ignore. And I'm old enough, am I not? I'm not a high school student anymore, so don't go ordering me around!"
"Uchi…"
"No!"
Yankumi sighed. "I… I guess you lost your old job, haven't you?" She asked him.
"I did," said Uchi. "They fired me. Only because I got into a fight with one of my coworkers after he insulted my mother and her work at the matchmaking agency." Uchiyama looked furious, then sad.
"Was it that bad?" Yankumi asked.
"Well," Uchi sighed. "We were in the middle of the construction site that time. I pushed him off the way, and he fell. Luckily we were just on the second story of the building, but the fall did hurt him badly, too. Knocked skull, they fired me, now I don't know where I'd get the money to pay for his hospital bills, and to help my mother out." He looked sad and frustrated, some of the things Yankumi didn't want his students to feel.
"Uchiyama…" Yankumi gazed up at him, pitying her former student. If only there was something she could do to help him with.
"I really need the job, Yankumi, I beg you," said Uchi. "Please let me be."
"I… I understand," said Yankumi. "Go on in there, Uchi, I'll be right behind you."
"Thank you," Uchi walked back into the room with Yankumi. As she entered, she addressed the interviewer with a firm nod.
"Ojou," the interviewer said, bowing.
"This young man is my former student." Lots of gasps issued from around the room. "He may have only finished high-school, but I guess me being his teacher is enough, ne?" The executive could only agree with her, in fear of what might happen to them if they won't. "I think that'll count for a good resume?"
"Of… of course, Ojou," said the interviewer. "Uchiyama-san," he addressed Uchi. "Please come back here next week for another interview."
Yankumi winked at Uchi as the interviewer prompted the next applicant. "Hey," she said, elbowing him.
"What?"
"Wanna have lunch? The building has a good restaurant."
"If you're buying."
"Of course I am!" Yankumi turned towards Wakamatsu. "Wakamatsu-san, do you mind if me and my student just have lunch for a bit? I haven't seen him for a while."
"It's alright, Ojou," said Wakamatsu, grinning.
The two sat in the restaurant, ordering their meals. Yankumi then smiled at Uchi, who was looking around, feeling apprehensive.
"Hey," she said.
"Hmm?"
"First time?"
"First time what?" Uchi asked.
"You know, to enter a fancy restaurant?" Yankumi gestured at the room they were in.
"Yeah…" said Uchi.
"It's been a long time, don't you think?" said Yankumi.
"About four years, I think," said Uchi.
"Four years… we've been living through four years not hearing from each other," said Yankumi, considering.
"I guess so…" said Uchi. "I mean, Noda, Minami, Kuma and I hear a lot from each other and all the other 3-d students, except for Shin-chan."
"Sawada? You didn't hear from him?"
"The last thing we heard about him was that he accepted a university proposal after a year, and he made up with his father. After that he just disappeared and never talked to us again." Uchi said these things, gazing at his cup of tea. "I didn't think Shin would do something like that."
"I'm sure he has a reason," Yankumi assured him, although inside she was also confused. "He may be preparing for something big."
"But he wasn't the Shin we knew since we started at Shirokin," said Uchi. "He's changed. It feels like he doesn't care for us anymore. For four years… only Kuma saw him, and just once. He went through college without even telling us what's happening in his life."
"Uchiyama, trust me, someday we'll be able to find out why he acted that way. Right now it would be best if we would just leave him like that, since this is his life. He'll come back eventually. There's no way Sawada would just forget about you all."
"I do hope that's right," said Uchi, and drank a bit of his tea.
"Anyway, enough of Sawada, I guess he makes us depressed," Yankumi began picking on her meal. "Uchi, what about you? How's life? Anything interesting?"
"Well, aside from the fact that I got fired from my last job, nothing interesting had actually happened to me ever since I left Shirokin," said Uchi. "I just started helping my mom with the household finances, we managed to move out of that apartment and go to a better one, just that stuff. However, if I don't get a job soon, we fear that we might lose the apartment rent. That's why I want to go as quickly as possible."
"Why this place, then?" Yankumi asked.
"Mainly because the salary is twice my previous one, and also because it's near our house. It's only now I knew that this is a yakuza business, that's why I came here bravely."
"Well, I guess you'll like it here, then," said Yankumi. "However, we are not through yet. What about your love life? Anything intriguing?"
"None at the moment," said Uchi, biting on a shrimp. "I've been immersed with my work, I hardly had time to consider straight dating. Minami, however, had gone through so many girls these past years, I lost count. I guess we all have our luck in romance."
"The time will come, Uchiyama," said Yankumi. "Who knows, the girl might just be around here somewhere. You just have to look around."
"What about you?" Uchi said. "You're, like, 27 years old by now. Isn't it about time you marry?"
"Me? Well, I still don't know about that," said Yankumi. "It's not like there's a worthy candidate."
"You're not still in-love with that goody-goody policeman, are you?" Uchi asked.
"I…" Yankumi couldn't answer. Of course she was still in love with Shinohara-san. However, the feelings are starting to fade now, as their time for each other wasn't much due to their background differences. She drank a bit from her cup. "I guess Shinohara-san and I won't work out well, would we?"
"Yeah, you're yakuza and he's police. Big differences. Gigantic." Uchi was speaking through mouthfuls.
"Yeah… I guess I'll have to find someone else then," said Yankumi, sighing.
"Who knows, you might end up being an old maid or something," Uchi joked.
"No way! I'd find someone when the right time comes, and I'll marry him. I won't end up loveless, unlike you!" She stuck out her tongue at Uchi.
"Hey! Take that back!" Uchi said.
"Haha. You're the one ending up single, Uchiyama-kun! Not me!" With that, Yankumi threw down her napkin, meal forgotten. She zipped from the restaurant to the exit, Uchi running after her.
"Take that back! Yankumi!"
"Ahh! Old man! Old man! I guess I'll have to call you Oji-chan then!" Yankumi ran even faster as Uchi lunged at her because the tease.
"Oji-chan! You'll pay for that! Yankumi!"
It has been a week since Shin had met Tetsu and Minoru at the bar. Because of their meeting, Shin had made it a point to avoid bars and clubs altogether. Instead, he focused on his role as college topnotch and heir of the Sawada Enterprise. His family role so far was indeed appreciated, and Natsumi was having a good time because he came back into the family. In fact, she even started becoming more motivated to go into a prestigious university for the sake of her brother. Shin couldn't be any happier.
That was all he could think of, for the past was too much for him to bear. After disappearing from his friends and classmates' lives for the past four years, he doubted if they'll ever take him back again. They might even think of him as an ambitious man, much like his father, and started to dislike him much as they disliked adults back when they were in high school. They might have even forgotten about him and went on with their lives. Right now that seemed to be the right thing to happen. However, much as he tried, Shin couldn't bring himself to seek out anything positive from these notions.
This was his world. Work, college, family. There was the occasional friends and colleagues, but nobody cared for him enough. He may be happy for his sister, for his mother, and even for his father, but, for himself, he was all but happy.
Sawada Shin knew that he was lonely, and he couldn't do anything about it.
Having learned that Uchiyama got the job he was vying for at the firm made Kumiko really happy. Since Uchi was the only person from 3-D that she saw often, the two made it a point to hang with each other as much as possible, occasionally even with Kuma, Noda and Minami and some of the other 3-D students. Much to her surprise, Kumiko found herself growing closer and closer to her former student.
Her closeness got to the point where Uchi began to get invited for dinner with the Ooedo Ikka. He started to associate with Tetsu and Minoru, much like Shin did back in the Shirokin days, and the family was happy with him, although it was mostly because they missed Shin, and Uchi was a perfect substitute. He even started a bit of training with Wakamatsu-san, and was beginning to get stronger and stronger as time passed. Kumiko was happy for him, for she knew that Uchi really needed the guidance of her family, that, even though they were yakuza, they'll be able to teach him the aspects of life and what he needed to keep on going. Uchi himself was thankful, and sometimes he even felt jealous of Shin because he was the first one to experience these, way back before the whole school knew of Yankumi's true identity.
Another thing was, much as he try to control it, Uchiyama couldn't help but feel a lingering sense of attraction for his former sensei. He felt as if she was one of the people who brightens up his day, and guides him through life. She was his beacon, and she was his hope. He had no idea how that actually happened, but the realization had started from the pit of his stomach, coursing through his spine, making his heart pump and beat wildly.
He was starting to fall in love with Yamaguchi Kumiko… Yankumi… his sensei…
"Hey, Yankumi," Uchi said as they sat at the riverside near Yankumi's current school, eating soda and chips from a nearby convenience store.
"Hmm?"
"Did you and Shin, you know, do stuff like this before, too?" Uchi couldn't hold himself. He had to ask.
"Yeah, we did," said Yankumi. "Although Shin was a lot harder to speak with than you are, and we ended up just eating the food."
"How come you treat me the same way, then?" Uchi asked.
"Hmm? Why are you asking me that?"
"I mean, do I really feel like Shin to you? To all of you?"
Yankumi stopped drinking from her can of soda, and looked at him. "Uchi, you're completely different from Shin. He was an entirely different case. Why did you ask that anyway?"
"I dunno," Uchi shrugged. "Maybe because I feel like I'm just a substitute for Shin. Like, they still wish that he was here, but he isn't, so they'll have to make do with me."
"Uchi, where did you get that idea? You're not Shin, okay? You're different. Shin is important to them in a way, and so are you. Don't feel so insecure."
"I'm sorry," said Uchi. "I was being childish."
"Damn right you are," said Yankumi. "Uchi, you're special to us, to me. Don't compare yourself to Shin. You'll only pressure yourself."
"Am I really that important to you?" asked Uchi.
"Of course you are! Why ask?" Yankumi looked at him.
"Nothing," said Uchi. He smiled to himself as he gazed towards the river. He was special to her, only her. That was enough for him.
"Hey, it's already getting dark. Why don't we call it a day?" Yankumi got up from her position and brushed off her pants. Uchi followed suit.
"Yeah, I think we should, but can't we just stop over at the convenience store? I forgot to buy something."
"Okay, then," the pair left the riverside and made for the shop that was just a few blocks away from the university belt. All the way Uchi was smiling and he looked happy, Yankumi was starting to get confused.
"Hey… you seem to be happy, eh? That love-struck look… any girl I know?" She elbowed Uchi on the side.
You know her, alright, Uchi thought to himself. To her he said: "No, nobody right now."
"Aww, you're keeping secrets from me? That's not fair, git!" Yankumi said, pouting.
"I told you, it's nobody," said Uchi.
"I'll let you slide this time, but next time you gotta tell me who the lucky girl is," said Yankumi as they entered the convenience store. Uchi bought his extra grocery while Yankumi waited near the door.
"I'm done," said Uchi as he approached her, carrying his bag of goods.
"Aw, come on, you shouldn't have bought this much, it's not like we don't have these stuff at Kamiyama-chou," said Yankumi as they walked out of the store.
"It's for my mom," Uchi replied.
"Uchi… You're mom must be so lucky to have you…" said Yankumi fondly, messing up his hair. However, Uchi didn't reply. Instead, he stared out in front of him, eyes wide in surprise.
"Hm?" Yankumi turned to see what he's looking at, and froze, for someone, a stranger for four years, had reappeared in front of them, wearing the same expression of shock the two wore.
"Shin…"
Fine, there we have it. Chapter 1. Just by looking at it I felt that I may be rushing things too much, so please do tell me if I am, and I'll do best to make the next chapters better and more tame. Well, just to tell you, this is not all that there is. Not just Shin and Uchi and Shinohara thrown in front of Yankumi. Just as the title says, it's Gokusen 3: a Fanfiction. If you want me to include some of your suggestions and make this story a bit more colorful, just as the real drama version, please include it in your reviews. This story is created for all those who enjoy gokusen and I will do my best so that this fic serves its purpose. That's all, guys. Arigatou gozaimasu!
Jade
P.S.
To Leaviel: "gozaimasu" is just an add on to make a word more formal and polite, I think. The most formal version of arigatou gozaimasu is Domo Arigatou Gozaimasu, and the most common and casual usage is Arigatou.
Hope this will do!