~.~
"Human hearts are full of strife. It's a fallen world, my dears. We can only do our best to establish safe havens where we can."
~.~
[ July 21st, 2005 - Thursday]
"So, what did you find out when you time-leaped?" (Y/N) blurted out, stopping at a red light alongside Takemichi.
As scheduled, the pair were now headed to the second MS in order to convince Mikey of calling off the battle between Toman and Moebius. And as troublesome as that sounded, (Y/N) saw no other option.
Her original plan had failed; both Mikey and Draken practically saw her hypertechnical assumptions as nothing more than a joke. And now, it was time for Takemichi to step in. "Well... Naoto and I went looking for Osanai in the future. Apparently, after he left Moebius, his whereabouts ended up with him working at this crappy construction sight." (Y/N) raises a brow; looking at the blond over her shoulder.
"...—But that wasn't the weirdest part." He adds. "He looked pretty shaken up when we mentioned Draken's murder on August 3rd. Even so, he swore to God that he wasn't the one who did it..."
(Y/N) turns back to gaze up ahead; contemplating this information. "Then who did? To me, it sounds like the bastard was afraid of something..." She pauses. "...—Or someone."
Takemichi nods in agreement; remembering the terrifying expression that draped over Osanai's face. "I agree but... he never gave us a name, he just kept talking in riddles before he stormed off; all shuddering and sweating."
(Y/N) gags at the mental image. "That's fucking gross," She commented; relating another sigh.
'Even so... that leaves us with an even bigger problem. Osanai may not be the mastermind behind all of this shit after all...'
"So, what was your conclusion after the interview? Did he let anything slip?" (Y/N) added; narrowing her lids nonchalently.
Takemichi falls silent, recollecting the horrid conversation. "Well... by his wording, I can humbly say that there's definitely someone else pulling the strings, someone scarier than Osanai." (Y/N) scoffs as her body stiffens, "You're kidding... Well, that's comforting," she comments sarcastically.
'An unknown mastermind...? There's no way...!' The thought alone made (Y/N)'s stomach turn inside out. She couldn't help but feel the hairs on the back of her neck stand up.
Through this, she leans forward on the handlebars of her motorcycle; resting her cheek in her palm. "A secret mastermind, huh...? Any more info I should know about this, Mr. Junior Detective?"
Sadly Takemichi nods once more, further irking (Y/N)'s nerves. "Well, from what Naoto and I put together? This unknown figure appears to be working from within Toman, and they're scheming against the gang to turn Mikey and Draken against each other."
(Y/N) jolts; raising another brow, "You mean...— someone within Toman is trying to cause a fraction between those idiots?! Why?" Takemichi shrugs softly. "I don't know yet... But what I do know is that the fraction started on this very day. Which is why we're gonna prevent that, here and now."
The female nods slowly. "And the backup plan? In case things go south..." She inputs.
Takemichi purses his lips; seemingly disturbed. 'Back up plan, she says... can we even say that we have one...?'
Takemichi disregards the possibility. "If Mikey refuses, then I can at least ask him to put the conflict on hold until after August 3rd," he humbly replied; staring up at the traffic light as it turned green again; signaling for the blond to hold onto her waist once more.
The nonchalent answer only made (Y/N) sigh as she sped past the traffic light. "I don't think that'll work, Takemichi. This conflict is by far the biggest one Toman has ever faced, Mikey said that at their last meeting." She asserted. "How can you be so sure that they'll even listen to you? You're not exactly a member, y'know."
Takemichi falls silent again.
"...—I saw that girl in the hospital..." The pair frown in unison. "...Hurting the innocent when they weren't even involved is by far enough to cause any sort of trouble between these two gangs. Frankly, I don't blame Mikey for coming to this conclusion, and for Pah wanting vengeance." (Y/N) acknowledges.
"You're right, (Y/N)." Takemichi nodded. "But we still can't risk this conflict happening. If Mikey goes through with this, and they fight? Then Draken's gonna die, and I can't prevent your death in the future..." The female purses her lips; purposefully staying silent. "...—I know you don't care for them, but at least think of how Mikey will feel if he loses Draken. Put yourself in his shoes."
Now nearing their destination, (Y/N) abruptly stops and looks arrogantly over her shoulder. "Takemichi, I know exactly how it feels to lose a person like Draken. So I don't have to put myself in anyone else's shoes. I'm merely guiding you so that you can correct your own errors, and that's it."
Takemichi frowns before hopping off of the motorcycle, observing as (Y/N) turned it off and tied it to a post. "The sooner we get this mission over with, the better. I just want to return to my normal life. I don't need people like them invading my space. And I don't need their friendship."
The pair then begin trailing off to the abandoned warehouse in silence.
Takemichi now appeared to be deeply regretting his past statement, seemingly wanting to apologize. But before he could do so, they were met at the warehouse entrance.
It was open and cold air was blowing out of it. (Y/N) takes a simple glance at Takemichi and he follows suit. That's when they marched over to the warehouse and looked in. Almost all of the captains were located inside.
Draken, Pah, Peh, and Mikey.
They all appeared to have started their conversation and were beyond serious. "Mikey!" Takemichi abruptly called out, earning the attention of everyone inside. Upon hearing the sound of Takemichi's voice, they didn't look too happy, besides Mikey.
"Huh? Takemitchy, (Y/N), what's up?" Mikey greeted; a confused tone in his voice.
"What the hell are you two doing here? This is a private meeting." Draken scowled, knitting his brows together. (Y/N) huffs as she shoves Takemichi forward, indicating for him to speak up. He gulps before gluing his eyes to Mikey. "Uh, hey! Mikey, we wanted to ask if you could call off the fight with Moebius."
(Y/N) deadpans. 'You didn't have to word it that way!' She pondered, fighting the urge to not facepalm.
It was indeed a bad way to start, as it immediately angered one of the division's captains, Pah.
He grumbles before stomping toward Takemichi. "You two again?!" He growled, clenching his fists. Peh soon follows behind Pah, as usual, pointing a finger toward Takemichi and then over to (Y/N).
"Just get outta here, you pieces of shit!" He inputted, gritting his teeth similar to Pah.
Despite their demands, (Y/N) walks up to Takemichi's side. Seemingly taking a different approach. "Mikey, you remember what I said back at the restaurant, right?"
Mikey perks up, appearing to remember. "...—I know this all sounds dumb but... there could be serious casualties if you go forward with this fight. Just hear us out on this one." She hypothesized, scanning Mikey's facial expressions. He appeared more perplexed than before.
Draken, on the other hand, sighs as he averts their gaze; intending to finish his conversation with the others. "Sorry guys, but we were discussing something really important right now."
(Y/N) grits her teeth in frustration, 'It's no use, they're not listening!'
She then takes a sharp inhale, feeling her nervousness build. 'I'm about to sound like a complete idiot...'
With this, (Y/N) steps forward, staring Mikey straight in the eyes. "Mikey, we need you to call off the battle. It's for your own good. And it'll keep everyone in Toman safe." She asserts, cringing on the inside.
Mikey paused, staring deeply into (Y/N)'s eyes, scanning them for a hint of a bluff. "What?" He spoke, his eyes falling half-lidded.
(Y/N) mirrors his expression, tucking her hands into her pockets. "I suggest you listen to us. This conflict will only bring nothing but undetermined losses. And as commander, you shouldn't risk that. That would be foolish, even for you."
Takemichi nods in agreement, returning to (Y/N)'s side, "Look. I can't tell you how I know, but... someone's secretly pulling the strings behind this conflict and—" Without another word, Pah races up to Takemichi and tosses him to the ground; catching him and (Y/N) completely off guard.
And as the blond collided on his side, Takemichi groaned; struggling to set himself up onto his knees. "Ow..." He whimpered, glancing over at (Y/N) whose mouth was left agape. "Takemichi—!" Pah then steps in (Y/N)'s line of sight, warning her not to move even a muscle.
He then trails back over to Takemichi as he scowled, "You two must think you're the hot shit, huh? Telling our commander what he should do?!" (Y/N) glares holes into the back of Pah's head, seemingly aching to strike him.
"Who the hell do you think you guys are? Right, Pah?" Peh added, strutting over to (Y/N) to ensure she doesn't intervene. "You got a lot of nerve fucking with the Tokyo Manji Gang, girly. Why are you even here? To play dress-up?" Peh mocked, causing (Y/N)'s eye to twitch.
"Get lost." Pah mandated; his hands in his pockets. "And if you say another word? I'll murder you." He whispered to Takemichi, watching as the smaller boy's body shuddered.
(Y/N) clenches her teeth at the notion, looking over Peh's shoulder. "You really are a dickhead, aren't ya?!" She exclaimed, silencing the entire warehouse.
Her tone was so loud that it echoed a couple of times. She then side-steps, allowing herself a clearer view of Pah. "You know, I knew there was a reason I hated guys like you." She scoffed, extending a finger, "You can't seem to use your damn brain. And you disregard warnings like this!"
Pah's eyes begin to twitch, similar to (Y/N)'s, "You don't care for others, you just do what you want. Not to mention you're all so damn selfish!" Her head tilts slightly, her eyes now half-lidded; displaying a mixture of boredom and annoyance. "Picking on the weak must be your specialty, huh? You're fucking embarrassing."
Peh proceeds to invade (Y/N) point of view as his tone increases. "Do you know who you're even talking to—?!"
(Y/N) slowly travels her eyes over to Peh, watching as he slightly jolted. "I don't know, you gonna teach me?" She murmured, blinking nonchalantly.
Peh is just seconds from responding before (Y/N) interjects, "It appears to me that neither of you has common sense. You're just obnoxious pieces of—"
"(Y/N). That's enough." Draken interjected, watching as (Y/N) turned in his direction, staring him down like a predator. She then simmered down as her shoulders relaxed. But despite such, she wasn't about to let her statement halt.
"...Idiots. Can't even think over a simple warning like this because you're blinded by vengeance. As captain, that's pretty immature." Her head turns back to Peh as she scanned him from head to toe. "I could do your jobs way better—"
That's when Pah pushed Peh off to the side and grabbed (Y/N) by the collar, not enough to lift her from the ground due to her height, but enough to silence her in seconds.
"Keep talking and I'll kill you both, you bitch!" Pah roared, tightening his grip on (Y/N)'s collar. She scowls as she uses her hand to claw at Pah's wrist. "Let me go, asshole. Or I'll wipe the floor with your bald-ass." (Y/N) retorted; her tone was dry and calm.
Pah didn't ease up despite this; he is now balling his fist to strike, "You little shit—!"
"Cut it out, both of you." Mikey mandated; causing both of their heads to turn toward the commander. "I don't want you guys to fight, got it?" His tone is soft, yet his gaze was sinister.
"And Pah." Mikey called, "Let her go. Now. We don't fight girls."
Mikey's ordering tone struck fear into Pah before he finally loosened his grip on (Y/N)'s collar, fully releasing her with a grunt. She proceeds to dust herself off while glaring deeply into Pah's eyes.
'Piece of shit.' She pondered.
Upon releasing (Y/N), Pah turns to resume his conversation with the commander. "So, what's our plan of attack?" Pah voiced.
Takemichi jolts in frustration, "You can't!" His voice echoes from within the warehouse. "You can't fight with Moebius. It's a trap for Toman!" He asserted.
(Y/N) gazes down at Takemichi before returning her eyes to Pah, who is now left infuriated once more. He then trails over to the injured blond with his hands in his pockets.
Upon reaching Takemichi, Pah stoops down, scanning his nervous expression. "Stand up," he ordered; Takemichi is hesitant but obliged. But upon standing to his feet, Pah strikes Takemichi right in the face, sending him stumbling backward.
(Y/N) attempts to intervene, but is only blocked by Peh. She irks from the notion. "Hey! What the hell is wrong with you—?!"
"You two keep telling us that we can't fight them, but won't tell us why?!" Pah interjected, silencing the duo. "Who the hell do you two think you are?!" Another punch is connected with Takemichi's swollen cheek.
"How about this question?" He punches Takemichi again. "Who the hell beat the shit outta my friend and his girl, huh?!" He roared, grasping Takemichi's bloody collar before he was able to collide with the ground yet again.
The smaller male whimpers, "But...—!"
Mikey then quickly interrupts; he clearly had seen enough, "Takemitchy, (Y/N). You two have made your points." He denounced; watching as the trio halted. Now, the duo awaited Mikey's final answer.
The commander's head lowers and his eyes close.
"...—But, in the end, you two still don't understand anything." He drawled; rising his head as a stern expression now rested on his face. "Once I've made up my mind, it stays that way. Toman is gonna fight Moebius. One way or another—"
An eye twitches on (Y/N)'s face. "Is fighting all you care about?!" She roared; her voice was beyond louder than Takemichi had ever imagined. Her patience was definitely tested for too long.
This was all too much to handle for much longer. Such obstinacy was putting (Y/N)'s patience and faith in the commander to the test; leaving her fists now clenched and her blood boiling. "What about what happened at the hospital, huh? What about "not letting innocent people get involved"?!"
Mikey falls silent, allowing the female to let out all of her pent-up rage. "I tried to convince you guys in private, but you just treated it as a joke, because you're immature! Just like when we met!!" She spewed; each word feeling like poison being shot into the air.
"...—I knew to never strive to be like you! After all, delinquents care about nothing more than just fighting. You don't care about the casualties. You don't care about who gets hurt, you don't care at all!"
Pah drops Takemichi to the ground with a thud, storming back over to (Y/N). "How dare you talk to our commander that way—?!" Mikey extends a hand; silencing Pah. "Allow me to ask you this, (Y/N)." He speaks, "How do you really see us "delinquents"?"
The female stiffens; fixing her hair while displaying a poker face. She then slowly gazed to her left and right; both glancing at Takemichi and Draken who stood there, dumbfounded. "...You just care about winning. That's how I see things. It doesn't matter who gets hurt because of your actions. You all just fight for fun, right? So..." (Y/N) shrugs sarcastically. "...—Fuck everyone else, especially those who get caught up in your mess..."
Another scoff is released. "To have such a mentality...? It's appalling. You're all... disgusting."
'That's how it's always been... ever since that day...' (Y/N) pondered; sharply exhaling.
Upon finishing her venting, (Y/N) observes as Mikey fell silent again.
There was nothing else said. Until, "I see." His head lifts again. "Guess there's no changing your mind, huh?"
(Y/N) purses her lips; not breaking her stern eye contact. It was such a simple question and yet, her silence strangely gifted Mikey the answer he was looking for. "Then the same goes for me. The fight is final."
The female's gaze falls to the ground in defeat; she couldn't help but curse out of frustration. 'I really did it this time... but what's said had to be said. I could care less about their feelings...'
That's when Takemichi scurries to stand; still in denial, "I won't back down until you guys call off that fight!" He rang, huffing. "If you guys fight, Toman's finished!"
(Y/N) averts Takemichi's desperate gaze as he pleaded for her assistance. His eyes fill with dread. '(Y/N)... please... don't give up on me now...'
"I—I just became friends with you guys, which is why I can't accept Toman ending like this!" He begged; countless tears spilling from his eyes.
"What the hell are you even blabbering about?!" Pah roared, turning to approach Takemichi yet again. His arm then raised as he attempted to strike him once more. But shockingly, he is held back by Draken.
Pah gasps, "What's the big idea, Draken?!" He screamed; looking over his shoulder and at the vice-commander. Draken's brows knit as he stares at the helpless blond.
"Takemitchy said he's not backing down. And (Y/N) is right about us being a bit immature..." He acknowledged; releasing Pah's arm and turning toward Mikey. "Maybe it wouldn't hurt to look into Moebius a bit more, Mikey." He asserted, staring down at the commander.
Mikey's gaze turns cold, "Huh...? Kenny, are you going against Toman...?" He hissed; his words feeling like poison through the air.
Draken's eyes narrow as he stares back at the blond. "Huh? I didn't say that—!"
Mikey interjects. "Well, that's what it sounded like to me."
There was now an odd tension filling the air. Takemichi and (Y/N) then turn toward one another with a similar look of concern.
But before any more words could be exchanged, the back doors to the warehouse were kicked open. "Sorry to interrupt your little catfight." A smug voice echoed, causing everyone's heads to perk up in surprise; glossing over to the male voice as its source stormed onto the scene.
The man was tall, blond hair combed back into a small glossy pompadour, and also wore an all-red uniform. All the while he just smoked a disgusting cigarette.
"Moebius this, Moebius that." The man chuckled darkly. "Would you keep our names out of your mouths?" He sneered, huffing out a large cloud of smoke.
"You're all just a bunch of Middle school pissants."
Takemichi could feel his heart sink as he helplessly watched the tall blond commander, Osanai, make his grand entrance.
Dread fills Takemichi's stomach as he hesitantly made eye contact with (Y/N) yet again. Despite his panicked demeanor, her expression looked stoic and calm; almost annoyed more than anything. He didn't even notice how the girl had started to maneuver over to Takemichi, slowly yet surely. Seemingly plotting to try and stand in front of him as his personal shield.
She was now only a few inches away from her helpless friend when, sadly, the man noticed her sudden movement. "Ay! You!" Osanai exclaimed; watching as (Y/N) halted with a scowl. "You think you're so slick? What exactly is a girl doing here in the first place?" He grinned.
"You should be aware of what big bad guys like us will do to helpless girls like you." The male purred; shooting a cocky smirk. Even so, (Y/N) remained silent; not moving an inch from her current spot.
The blond is left perplexed by her stoic behavior but resumes his taunting. "Well, Mikey? I gotta hand it to ya. You sure know how to pick 'em. Didn't think you had a thing for foreigners." He sneered; scanning (Y/N)'s figure from head to toe.
"...—I hope you don't mind if I take this one off your hands, right? As a reward for when I beat the shit out of you assholes." Pah's breath gets caught in his throat, "Just as I suspected...!" He exclaimed, grasping the blond male's attention. "You're Osanai! That filthy disgusting piece of trash that beat up my bud!"
Osanai's expression now displays aggravation, "Pipe down, dick cheese. I wasn't talking to you." He grumbled; his followers now laughing in unison.
Through this, Osanai's immature remarks enraged Pah even more; wrath began to cloud his thoughts, and his fists clenched, causing his knuckles to turn white.
"You bastard...!" Pah muttered; observing Osanai's every move.
"Hey, dick cheese! I'm two years older than you." Osanai retorted, "That's Mister Bastard to you brats." He sneered, pointing a finger toward Pah.
Not another word had needed to be said before something snapped within Pah, and he began rushing toward Osanai with immense speed. He was now punching and swinging at random, not caring that all his punches never connected.
Osanai then smirks with satisfaction before he cocked back and landed a punch square in Pah's face, sending him flying back to the floor in surprise.
Osanai grins with early victory as he scans Pah's expression of disbelief, "Yeah, thanks for proving that you're nothing more than middle school babies, or wait don't you go by—" Osanai pauses as he pretends to think.
"—The Tokyo Manji Gang, was it? Change your damn name." He cackled, "How does "Middle School Baby Alliance" sound?" He taunted, scanning everyone's irritated expressions.
None of the four Toman captains, including (Y/N) and Takemichi, said anything. How could they?
With this, Osanai proceeded to insult the younger generation in front of them; his voice booming with confidence. "Anyways, I heard you were gonna try and pick a fight with us!" He roared, his voice echoing for miles.
He then raised his arm into the air, snapping his fingers.
Upon using this signal, the dozens of Moebius members that were already present moved around the warehouse as a way to make room for the countless others that had suddenly stormed in.
Takemichi's eyes widen, 'There's gotta be at least 30 of these guys!' He pondered; his pupils shaky with dread.
"...—And if that's the case? I thought it'd be better to just bring the fight to you!" Osanai beamed, stepping forward.
As beads of sweat trail down Takemichi's entire body, the blond male could feel the shakiness in his legs return. Not to mention, this unexpected predicament just seemed to happen out of thin air.
And as the last bit of Moebius swarmed into the warehouse, Osanai held out his arms with pride, an evil grin still plastered on his face.
He almost looked like the devil himself.
"Mikey!" He called; speaking over the cheers of his underlings. "This is war, baby!"
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