Tomoko never was for fancy food. She preferred stuff like fast food, so when Majima offered to buy food, she wanted to go to Smile Burger. It was like WcDonalds, but better. Majima was a little confused, but hey... He wasn't against it. Food's food. Plus, he got to save a little bit of pocket change. Tomoko got herself a cheeseburger with a shake, Majima bought the fast food equivalent of a three course meal. Together, they sat in silence for a bit. It was pretty awkward, with Majima chomping down without a care in the world, and Tomoko carefully chewing.

Majima was the first to break the silence. "So, who's yer worst enemy? Some punk guy who's always beating on weaker kids? A smug, uppity bitch that you just REALLY wanna slap? Spill it!"

"I..." Tomoko started, after taking a sip of her shake. "She's... Uh..." Before she could even start spilling the details, Majima interrupted her. "There ain't no need to be nervous! What's this bitch like?"

Had this conversation began one year ago, Tomoko would've stuttered and shaken then entire time. However, the past year had brought her two things: Confidence and indifference. Plus, Majima's tone made her feel more... Relaxed. When he was around, she felt like she didn't have to put on some kind of false personality. After one last stutter, like with the punching bag, Tomoko let it all out. "...She IS a bitch! All she ever does day in and day out is punch me, or torture me!" With a mad glint in her eye, she ranted about her many issues with Yoshida. But she wasn't done. Oh, she was far from done. She ranted about her brother, Komi-something-san, everyone that had ever wronged her at any point in time.

When her rant had wrapped up, everyone in the restaurant was staring. Majima began applauding. Tomoko began blushing, and sat back down. Sure, he already saw her outburst with the bag, he just liked seeing her get riled up. It was kind of cute. Like watching a puppy barking and growling, as if it were a fierce wolf. After finishing up their meal, Majima and Tomoko returned to the dojo, where Sodachi was sitting. "Sure, go out and eat... Don't invite me..." He muttered.

And with that, Tomoko's first day of training was complete. She went to give Sodachi her cash, to pay for her training, but Majima paid for it instead. When questioned why, all Majima said was, "Training's fun!"

Tomoko sat down, and suddenly came to a realization: She didn't have a place to stay. She had money, but not enough for a long term stay in Kamurocho. Quietly, she walked up to Majima again, "I... I don't have enough money for a hotel room..." Sodachi, however, had a solution. "You can just stay at the dojo, you know. You can sleep on the mats."

She didn't like the idea of sitting on those mats, but it sure as hell was better than nothing. Plus, Majima and Sodachi were staying, so she felt safe, safer than being in some seedy hotel. Majima was staying for the hell of it, whereas Sodachi was staying so he could focus his funds on improving the dojo. Tomoko was soon sleeping on one of the mats, which was surprisingly comfortable. Huh.

It didn't take long for Tomoko and Sodachi to drift off. Majima opted to stay up a little longer. He wanted to head out and grab himself a pack of smokes, which he did. He came back to hear an odd noise. A "brrrrrrr." He looked and noticed a cellphone, next to the sleeping Tomoko. The caller? "Mom."

Majima didn't want to disturb the young girl. She was gonna need her rest for tomorrow, after all. He picked up the phone, and answered. "Sorry, Tomoko's Sensei here. She can't make it to the-"

"Who is this?! Where's my daughter?!"

"What? She's in Kamurocho, at-"

"You listen to me! You let her go! I'll call the police!"

"E-excuse me, ma'am, I think you have the wrong idea, Tomoko's perfectly fine..."

"What do you want? Money? You ain't getting any! The only thing you're gonna get is a stint in the joint, you sicko!"

Majima was forced to raise his voice, "Listen to me! She's perfectly fine! I ain't gonna hurt her! No one's gonna hurt her! There is no ransom!"

With a groan, Tomoko woke up, to see a very displeased Majima. "Didya get permission from yer mom?!" Tomoko shook her head, and took the phone. "M-m-mom, everything's fine!"

"...So you lied about going to Yuu's?"

A defeated Tomoko muttered a "Y-yes..."

Tomoko received the chewing of her life. Majima could see every single ounce of regret in Tomoko's face.

"You better get back here right now, Tomoko!"

"W-what? B-b-but I..."

Majima snatched the phone from Tomoko, and before she could even get in a word, he already began speaking. "Look, I understand your anger... But Tomoko, she came to us with hope in her eyes. She was willing to spend every cent of her hard-earned cash to learn martial arts. She wants to do this, and badly. She may have done this against your wishes, but that only shows how much she wants this. How much she's dedicated. It'd be a real shame to cut her dreams short." Majima spoke softly, something he hadn't done in a long time. "Just let her go through the training. You can chew her out all you want when she gets back, but for now, let her live her dreams."

After a moment of consideration, Tomoko's mother replied, "I don't know..."

Majima smiled, and handed back the phone to Tomoko. "C-come on, mom! I'll call regularly!"

When Tomoko's expression brightened up, Majima knew that his smooth talking had succeeded. She soon said goodbye to her mother, and hung up. "Whew, crisis averted." Majima's voice was back to normal, "You almost got me an' Sodachi here in trouble, Kuroki-chan! Aw well, back to bed. You've got plenty of training in store tomorrow!"