Authors note: I do not own the original story line or characters, just my added plot line.
Takemichi's POV
November 27th 2005
I couldn't help the smile that plastered its way onto my face as we walked up the stairs. Myself and many other members of Toman were meeting here tonight for a very special reason.
"Oi, Takemichy! Hurry it up would ya?" Peh shouted down to me, he and Mistuya walked ahead.
"I can't help but be a little embarrassed." I admitted, but the stupid grin would not wipe itself off my face.
"Well, even so, I worked hard on your uniform. So, I'd at least like to show you off." Mitsuya teased.
He did do an amazing job on this uniform after all. I was so excited when I got to go in earlier to see him working on it too. The large amount of Toman members stood around at the top of the shrine. Being able to see all the captains and vice captains was surely a sight. To think I could stand with men like this.
I was eventually able to spot one of the men I was intending to look for. Darken stood closer to the front of the area, his eyes lingering back at me when he heard my footsteps.
"Well, well." He smirked, turning to face me.
"Hanagaki Takemichi, wow, the look does not suit you." He joked, light hearted in nature.
"Yeah....Mitsuya did a great job. But I know the uniform is outshining me." I rubbed the back of my head; I couldn't help but be a little embarrassed about everything.
"Now." Draken began, looking at me with a more serious expression. "I officially welcome you to Toman."
"Thank you!" I bowed slightly, joy coursing through my being. I was actually getting somewhere now it seemed.
Draken turned back around, and in his loud booming voice he announced the start of the meeting.
Without turning back around, Draken spoke lowly to me.
"This is going to be important for everyone, but especially you." He warned. It felt ominous but I couldn't be sure why.
By the time I looked back up there were four figures standing tall above the rest of us. The whispers turning into genuine concern from the others around me.
Mikey stood front and center, capturing everyone's attention first. Next followed (Y/n) slightly behind him but at his side. Then to my ultimate surprise, Hanma stood up, an unconcerned expression on him. Chifuyu was the last one to stand up.
"This probably won't go smoothly. Were finally settling things from that day. From Bloody Halloween." Draken frowned, he looked stressed in a sense.
It was clear as day that nobody around me was happy about the head of Valhalla being at a Toman meeting. Who would be? It felt like a threat even if we didn't know the situation.
At least for me, I couldn't picture why Hanma was here, or why Chifuyu was up with Mikey. Not a trio I would normally picture, I guess. I could only assume (Y/n) was up with them and not down here with Draken in case something was to arise.
After what felt like forever, Mikey finally began to speak, breaking the whispering and silence.
"October 31st, the day of Bloody Halloween. That day Toman faced Valhalla, 150 to 300. With the situation we were in, it didn't look like victory was in our favor. But despite that, we managed to pull through. Your hard work and dedication took us to victory. Now, Hanma, the vice commander of Valhalla, would like to speak." Mikey announced, letting the attention fall on Hanma as he stepped forward, before the other three.
"I am the vice commander of Valhalla, Hanma Shuji. As you may have known, Valhalla had lacked a leader for a long time." Hanma began.
I could see all the unhappy faces around, nobody looked like they wanted to hear what he was spuing out.
"Because of that, and losing this battle. Valhalla has decided to join the Tokyo Manji Gang. So now, we will be considered a part of Toman!" Hanma seemed to raise his voice at the last part, asserting a truth I did not want to hear.
It did bring a clear and potentially good outcome though. Toman would be going from only 150 members to a solid 450. In such a short time period too, it was amazing. So amazing to everyone that many of the members started to chant and cheer.
'Wait...'
My mind felt like it was starting to spin, flashbacks from that day made its way back to my head.
'That day, Hanma, Kazutora...'
I shook my head in an effort to calm my rising anxiety.
'If Toman and Valhalla become one.....it can't be good.'
"But there is someone who was able to make this happen, the one who brought Mikey and myself together." Hanma continued, snapping me out of my worried thoughts for only a moment so I could listen.
"Kiskai Tetta!"
I let myself look behind me, the said man stood expressionless.
I knew full well at this point that Kisaki was the enemy here. He was the reason everything was turning out the way it was and would.
He began to walk through the crowd. Never did I think I'd see so many people smiling at that man of all people. He walked up the stairs all the way to stand right before Hanma and Mikey, then the cheering started.
I felt an overwhelming sense of dread flood through me. I know I couldn't contain my fear and anxiety at this point. I knew it had to be obvious if anyone was paying attention, and of course there was someone.
(Y/n) looked in my direction, he looked uncomfortable but still stood tall. Like he was masking his own fears and anxiety. His eyes only seemed to widen when he caught a glimpse of me.
Before everyone stood Mikey and Hanma, their hands met in a handshake as Kisaki placed his hand over theirs. The chanting never ceased; all I could think was how Baji had tried and risked his life to protect Toman from this threat. Now Kisaki was going to still be the one to ruin that.
Mikey stepped away and back towards the crowd. He spoke again as everyone quieted down.
"On that day, we may have taken victory, and now have gained something from it. But we lost something too. Baji Keisuke our 1st division capatin is no longer with us."
Dread and sorrow filled everyone's expressions. How could it not? Especially for the founding members who considered him a close friend.
"Regardless of what we want to do, it's important we look upon the truth and accept it. Now..." Mikey trailed off and gave the stage to Chifuyu.
Chifuyu stood above us, his hands behind his back as he looked over the crowd. His eyes eventually leading down as he began to speak.
"I am Matsuno Chifuyu, the 1st division vice captain." He cleared his throat. "I was going to leave Toman. But our commander asked. 'Was I going to diminish the flame of the 1st division for good?' I reflected on that. And I've come to realize that taking over Baji's position would be too much for me. So, I talked to the commander, and we talked about if for days, but now we have a conclusion."
The buildup was finally here as Chifuyu shouted.
"I will choose who I will follow! Hanagaki Takemichi!"
I will say, I was shocked when I heard my name, but even more so at what followed next.
"You will take over as the 1st division captain of Toman!"
The whispers were quick to spread, and I honestly didn't have a good answer or really anything to say to him.
"I truly believe, this is what Baji wanted. He chose you, the commander and I just made it official."
Everyone turned to look at me, my head faced the ground, I wasn't sure if I could face anyone right now. But luck was not on my side when Mikey spoke up.
"Lift your head up and greet everyone Hanagaki Takemichi!" His voice was as commanding as ever.
Naoto, Akkun, Hina, Baji....even my own words flooded into my mind at that moment. I had a goal, I had people I needed to save.
My fists clenched tightly, tears falling effortlessly. My head shot up and I spoke loudly with my hands held behind my back in respect.
"Thank you!"
Smiles filled the crowd, Draken and Mistuya being the first ones I noticed.
"You're lifting up your head too high, come on, let's finish this." Mikey smiled back.
With that we ended our meeting. We closed out as usual. Even through the sadness, we did gain something potentially good, and over all, at least for me. I was closer to my goal, not only was I accepted into Toman, but now I am the captain of the 1st division, something I didn't expect to climb so quickly.
My emotions were in a whirlwind. I felt so many things that were both positive and negative that I wasn't really sure how to feel. But I did know I needed to meet with Naoto and soon. That was my goal for tonight, after the few who wished to talk to me did, I was preparing to make my way out and to my destination. But as I was saying my goodbyes, I felt a hand grab onto my wrist. I turned to see (Y/n), a smile on his face.
"You got a moment to spare? I know you're kinda popular right now." He winked at me, his carefree attitud at least cementing a little comfort for me.
I nodded, not really sure what he could want from me right now. He kept my wrist in his grip and dragged me away from the groups around us. He led us up past the shrine and further to the top of the hill. In front of me was a gorgeous view of the city from where we stood.
"Pretty ain't it?" (Y/n) smiled wide, looking from me to the view. It was dark and the lights shone so beautifully.
"What did you want to talk about?" I asked, not that I wanted to rush him but I did need to see Naoto as soon as possible.
"Ah sorry, I know I'm taking up your time, especially cause I dragged you up here too. Forgive me for that." (Y/n) took a seat on the grass, still staring ahead. I soon joined him, letting the silence envelope us for a moment.
"I guess I should start off with congratulating you. I trust you will lead the 1st division well. Plus, Chifuyu will be by your side. I'm excited to see your duo form to be bad ass!" He said, a joyous tone in his voice.
"Thank you.... That means a lot coming from you." I admitted, after all, he was genuine. He wanted the best for everyone so it felt good to hear him say those things.
"Anyways...." He began again. "Be honest with me, as both your friend and your superior. What are your thoughts on Valhalla joining Toman? On Kisaki, Hanma, all of that in general." He pulled his knees up to his chest, resting his face on them as he waited for my answer.
"Do you..." I hesitated, should I really be honest with him? "Why do you want to know?" I decided it might be best to look for his intentions first.
"Keep this between us, though I did slightly express these concerns to both Mikey and Draken. But I have a bad feeling about it." He sighed. "I don't trust Kisaki at all, and bringing in a gang that tried to kill Mikey? Their full intent was to kill him and bring down Toman. So why would they surrender to us?" (Y/n) turned his head to me.
"I saw your reaction to hearing this. I saw your reaction when Kisaki became the 3rd division captain. You seem like you have the same bad feeling I do. I feel like these concerns are valid too. As smart as Mikey is, he is sometimes reckless, and it really scares me. It's not like I'll always be around to fix his mistakes or take care of him."
I felt a lump in my throat, more anxiety bubbling up.
"(Y/n), honestly...." I tried to form my words. "Kisaki is bad news, I don't trust him even a little bit. Baji told me he was the bad guy, Chifuyu also believes that."
"Is that so?" (Y/n) looked away again. "Glad to know I have a valid point. I wish I convinced Mikey to get rid of Kisaki. I should've been more assertive, or talked to you earlier. But it's not like I can tell you everything going on before we openly discuss it." He shrugged his shoulders.
"Hey (Y/n)?" I asked.
"Hm?" He still didn't look at me as he hummed.
"Do you plan to always stay with Toman?"
(Y/n) stretched himself out, placing his hands behind him to keep himself up.
"What are you going on about? If you're worried about not being friends in the future or something. We'll be friends as long as you want to be." He assured, but that wasn't what I was looking for.
"I'm not concerned about us not being friends. It's just, sometimes you say things...They sound ominous, like something bad is going to happen. Or that you won't be here." My brows furrowed, I didn't want to be accusatory, and it wasn't like I could tell him I knew what has happened in the futures I've been through.
"Do I? My bad, guess I'm not always great with my words then. Things will be fine. I don't know what the future of Toman holds, but I'll be by Mikey's side till the day I die." (Y/n) said, smiling as always.
'He did it again, he said it like something bad is going to happen.'
"Well," (Y/n) stood up, offering a hand out to me. "We should get going, it's getting late. Thanks for talking to me Takemichy, I really appreciate your incite."
I nodded, taking his hand to help myself up. I wanted to talk to him more, get him to open up. If he did, maybe I could change things even further. Could there be a future where he was still here?
We began to walk back down, (Y/n) making sure to be careful of slipping as we did so. By the time we got back to the shrine, everyone was long gone. We walked down the stairs and to the parking lot.
"Let me give you a ride since we stayed out later. It'll be my thank you." (Y/n) reached for the helmet on his backseat to give it to me.
"(Y/n) ..." I pressed my lips in a thin line.
"What's wrong?" (Y/n) looked concerned at my current state.
"You know you can talk to me if you need right? I'm your friend, so I'm here for you. And I know Mikey and Draken also would be willing to talk to you too if you needed."
(Y/n) tilted his head, letting out a light hearted chuckle. He walked up to me and placed a hand on my shoulder.
"I don't know what's got you concerned but I promise I'm alright. Besides, I did talk to you, so everything is okay, right?"
"That's not what I meant." I took ahold of his wrist on my shoulder, bringing it down to look in his eyes.
"Can you promise me, if you need someone that you'll come to one of us at least?" I wanted him to tell me the truth, to look me in the eyes as he gave me an answer.
(Y/n) looked blank, like he was trying to comprehend what I said. Then he grabbed my hand with his other.
"Of course." He said, his eyes closed as he smiled at me.