When Osomatsu awoke the next day, he had already dressed up and prepared for his little play-date with Jyushi. Naturally, the other four were coming with him, because he needed them by his side just in case something were to happen. So while Chibita was helping him put on his clothes and Iyami was fixing everyone's clothes back to their backpacks like an exasperated soccer mom, Kara was helping Todo apply his hair dye, as well as pick out his clothes for the day. Since it was Kara, it wasn't a challenge for him to convince Todo to wear something less edgy and dark and a bit more comfortable and bright for the day. Osomatsu had to point out that all of Todo's clothes consisted of the colors black, white, and pink, in which Todo responded by tossing a pillow straight at his face while he was drinking his coffee.
Nothing special, thought Osomatsu. It was snowing, so he decided to wear his beanie, mittens, and the rainbow scarf, naturally. As for his outfit, it was just a white shirt with his family symbol, red plaid pants, a black cable knit jacket, and red sneakers. His hoodie had to be washed, and so did his gray sweatshirt, which was apparently still stained with Atsushi's blood from two days ago. Poor Iyami had to scold him like a parent as he ranted about how hard it would be to wash off the blood.
Besides, Chibita and Iyami were wearing their casual outfits, and Iyami didn't even wear a coat or scarf! Chibita was a different case and had layered a coat over his shirt and wrapped an orange neckerchief around his neck. His scarf was probably going to get washed as well, since Chibita and Iyami had used that scarf to wrap around Todo's bleeding head two days ago. "Here's your bag, idjit." Chibita handed him the small red sling bag containing his important items. Though he decided to leave the bottle for today, the syringe was still with him, just in case. Chibita wrapped the scarf around his neck, adjusting it so it wouldn't fall off. "Here ya go, you idjit. All set?"
"Yeah. I dunno about Kara and Todo though."
The first to wake up out of five of them was Iyami, who had ordered mugs of coffee for everyone and had watched the early news. Next was Kara, who had took a bath and prepared Todo's clothes for the day. Next was Osomatsu, who had also taken a bath, but lazed around a bit in only his boxers until Chibita woke up and hit him with a ladle, demanding for him to get dressed. Last was Todo, who Kara had to drag to the bathroom due to the pink eyed male's constant refusal on letting go of the bed. And Kara told him to not oversleep too! He was probably playing games on his phone all night long again.
Osomatsu was actually thankful that Kara decided to wear something normal, something that didn't have his face. Though Kara did say he was going to be wearing the sunglasses, at least it wasn't as painful as his glittery tank top with his own face printed onto it. It was a white polo similar to Todo's, and he just layered a blue jacket over it. As for the pants, he thankfully decided to skip the blue sequin pants in favor of jeans, and his blue winter boots. Unlike Todo's wardrobe, Osomatsu didn't get to see Kara's. According to Todo, it was like his wardrobe, but with less leather and pink, and more comfy clothes and the color blue. There were blue earmuffs, mittens, and Rosa's sequin scarf on Kara's bed, so Osomasu could at least confirm that Kara was much more simple in his fashion choices compared to Todo.
Though the yells of Todo from the bathroom were hilarious to listen to, at least.
"It burns! It burns!"
"Todo, please, it's just the hair dryer, and please don't move around so much! You're lucky I decided to bring my apron with me, otherwise, you could have stained my clothes."
"It's burning my skin! And why're you pulling off my hair?!"
"Maybe if you cooperate, we'll get this done faster. I'm just combing it, so just hold still- Todo, stop biting my arm. I put on metal bracelets for a reason. Ever since you bit me the first time you asked for assistance regarding hair dye, I have never left these metal bracelets wherever I went, and the area you bit me at has a mark now."
"Fine."
Todo's a giant nerd, it's confirmed.
Osomatsu decided to check his phone for today, as well as greet his brothers a good morning. "Good morning, Choromatsu. Or if this is Karamatsu, good morning to you too. I'm just waiting for Todo and Kara to finish getting ready. We're meeting up Jyushi at Flag Corporation. Hopefully, there won't be any riots for today. There were two yesterday, and they were annoying as fuck. Like, they stopped a limo just to protest about some shit. Anyway, Jyushi wanted to go somewhere, since we only talked at the building yesterday and he wants to have some fun. We're probably going to be out playing all day. I guess you don't have to stress yourself for today, so just text me if our life signs are flickering to death or something. That goes with any programs too. Just send me anything about dimensional bullshit later, alright? Take some rest, you, Karamatsu, and Professor Dekapan definitely need it."
Once he sent the text, he instantly got a reply. When he checked it, it didn't seem to be a text reply. Rather, it was a file. Tilting his head, he pressed the file and waited for it to load. "The hell is this?" He murmured under his breath. And then it opened. Like a video file. The screen flickered from a loading screen to black, before a green color replaced the darkness.
"Osomatsu-niisan!"
The noise came from the phone. Iyami looked away from the piles of clothes and Chibita turned from the TV to Osomatsu. The noise seemingly startled Kara and Todo, because Todo ran out of the bathroom with a towel over his head, shirtless, and only in his black leather pants. Kara ran after him, wearing his glittery blue apron and glittery blue rubber gloves, his blue jacket tied around his waist, and the sleeves of his white polo rolled up, revealing two metal bracelets on each arm. "What the fuck was that?!" Todo yelled, agitated at the chorused voices for some reason.
"This is a recorded message, so if you reply to this, you're an idiot."
That voice.. Ichimatsu?
"Ichimatsu-niisan! Don't be so gloomy and mean! Hey, Osomatsu-niisan! It's me!"
Todomatsu?
"Ichimatsu-niisan, can you help me up? Hi, Osomatsu-niisan! You're okay!"
Jyushimatsu?
"It worked! It actually worked! Doctor Dekapan is amazing! Brother, it's us!"
Karamatsu?
"Calm down, everyone! You're gonna make me drop the damn phone! Oi, Karamatsu-niisan! Don't dance all over the place! Ah! Ichimatsu! Help Jyushimatsu sit up, he's falling! And put the blanket over him, Todomatsu, he'll freeze! Argh, whatever! Osomatsu-niisan, this is a recorded video message!"
And Choromatsu?
Chibita and Iyami were now sitting next to Osomatsu, with Todo and Kara peeking from behind Osomatsu. The eldest Matsuno was shakily holding the phone as it's screen displayed a blurry video of the five Matsuno brothers, Osomatsu's little brothers. Choromatsu was holding the phone with his arms outstretched, and Todomatsu was trying to grab it from him. He could see Karamatsu dancing in joy in one corner of the room, and Ichimatsu was sitting on the couch, Jyushimatsu's head leaning over his shoulder as a blanket was wrapped around him. Choromatsu was in his casual outfit, Karamatsu, Todomatsu, and Ichimatsu were all wearing their jumpsuits, and Jyushimatsu was in his pajamas. They were all at the living room, as it seemed. And Choromatsu, Karamatsu, and Todomatsu all had eye bags under their eyes. Ichimatsu's hair looked messier, if it was possible. As for Jyushimatsu, his eyes looked tired and glassy, but at least his hair was still normal. His single cowlick seemed droopy though.
Osomatsu's hands trembled and his lip was quivering. This was a video. A video of his five little brothers just acting as normal. He felt tears stream down his cheeks as the video played out, consisting of Choromatsu and Todomatsu bickering on who should be holding the phone, Karamatsu in that one corner simply posing and looking cool with his painful shades covering his eyes, and Ichimatsu and Jyushimatsu watching everything play out, small smiles on their faces.
"So, uh.. we're recording this at.. night? Yeah. Professor Dekapan just wanted us to test out if this is working. We're gonna send this to you in the morning, since you probably need rest. But it works fine! He says he's going to see if he can make video calls too! But this'll work for now! Anyway, we're all here! Um, mom and dad are.. out, but it's fine! I'm here, so is Karamatsu-niisan, Todomatsu, Jyushimatsu, and Ichimatsu! See?"
"Hi hi, Osomatsu-niisan! I wish I can give you a hug, but I can't even stand up! And you're somewhere else entirely, aren't you? Well, don't forget to muscle hustle always! We all miss you a lot!"
"I heard you nearly got shot. Good thing you didn't."
"Yamimatsu-niisan, what the hell? You shouldn't say stuff like that casually. Anyways! Chorofappyski told me my other self is a punk! Once Professor Dekapan makes the video call application, you are sending me a video of my other self as soon as possible! I must see if it's real!"
"Heh. I've never seen our brothers so happy and relieved before, Osomatsu-niisan. Our bonds as brothers are definitely stronger than steel! Our hearts beat us one!"
Okay. Osomatsu was crying now. The tears were falling on the phone's screen and his hold on the phone was shaky. Everyone's eyes softened at the way Osomatsu reacted to a simple video. Kara wanted to give him a pat on the shoulder, but he was still wearing gloves that were tinted with pink hair dye. To his surprise, Todo patted Osomatsu on the back as he let out a few sobs, and so did Chibita and Iyami. "Let it out, Osomatsu. It's alright." Said Todo in a soft voice, which actually surprised Kara, seeing as how they were bickering yesterday. He didn't say anything about it though.
"Well, that's all for now, Osomatsu-niisan. I'll text you again!"
"Heh. I'll help Choromatsu in case he needs a break from the phone. And I'll look after all our little brothers in your absence! C'est la vie, my dear older brother!"
"I'm off to work, then. I'll treat you to Sutabaa once you get back if you want! Let's all go on a picnic, too!"
"Stay alive."
"Bye bye, Osomatsu-niisan! I promise to get better soon so we can play once you get back! I'll gather loads of acorns for you too! Hustle hustle! Muscle muscle!"
The video ended and Osomatsu was bought back to the text screen. Even as it ended, Osomatsu still couldn't stop the tears from streaming down his cheeks. Chibita took the phone away from him and started wiping the screen with a towel as Osomatsu started to rub his eyes with the sleeve of his jacket. Iyami stood up and went back to his task of organizing their clothes, but not before glancing at Osomatsu worriedly.
"I'm fine." Osomatsu said, wiping his eyes. Despite the tears blurring his vision, he was smiling brightly. He was now full of hope, and all it took was a simple video. Choromatsu really knew how to handle things, despite his absence. "I'm fine, really! I'm just.. happy. Really happy. I.. I just.. I missed them so much and wanted to see how they were doing.. and.. I'm glad. Things may not be as bright as they were, but they're okay, they're alive, they're working hard-"
And Todo hugged him. Osomatsu's eyes widened. "This is a one-time thing only. Don't get used to it." He murmured.
Osomatsu would have teased him for being such a tsundere about a simple hug, but he really couldn't muster enough energy to do so. Todo was being nice to him and he really needed a hug right now, so he just hugged Todo back and started crying on his shoulder. Todo wished he was wearing a shirt, because Osomatsu's hot tears against his cold skin wasn't really a pleasant feeling. It was kind of gross, but for now, he'd let it slide. It wasn't everyday he'd get to comfort someone who was separated from what was important to them.
Kara smiled, watching as Osomatsu pulled away and made a cheeky grin and rubbed the remaining tears out of his eyes. Todo huffed and ran over to Kara with a slightly amusing expression on his face. Was that embarrassment? Todo really was such a softie. "C'mon Kara. It's time for you to kill me with that hair dryer again. And don't give me that look!"
...
"Alright, I've got his outfit ready. Yuki, dear, help Jyushi stand up so I can help him put this on."
Fuyu and Yuki were told by Hatabou to help Jyushi get dressed for today, so they came earlier than usual. Usually, they'd drive to a restaurant to get Jyushi some breakfast and do the same at lunch, but since he was going to be out for the entire day playing with his new found friends, they decided to come earlier. Plus, Jyushi was probably going to have three meals with his friends too, so Fuyu suggested that Jyushi should bring a small yellow backpack instead of his small yellow sling bag. They were similar in design, as they were both yellow and had a purple paw print patch, but the backpack was bigger. Fuyu suggested that Jyushi should bring extra clothes just in case his current ones were to get dirty.
It wasn't too different from what Jyushi wore, if Yuki had to be honest. It was a yellow sweater with white stripes and orange sleeves, orange plaid shorts, black suspenders, black and yellow striped socks that reached his kneecaps, and orange winter boots. But the sleeves of the sweater was so long that it obscured Jyushi's hands. Nonetheless, Fuyu still told Jyushi to put on his yellow cat mittens, so his hands wouldn't feel cold. To shield Jyushi from the snow, Fuyu had told Jyushi to also wear a cute little beanie that Ichi got for him two weeks ago. It was a yellow beanie with cat ears and orange spots, and Ichi had found it cute and had bought it for Jyushi. Fuyu then took the yellow scarf and wrapped it around Jyushi's neck as a finishing touch.
"Aw, you look so cute with that beanie on!" Cooed Fuyu. "President Ichi's really good at picking out your clothes, huh? He made sure that even if we mix and match, all your clothes will fit you perfectly."
Yuki remembered that Ichi also got himself one, and it was purple with black spots. It was probably with him at France.
Yuki picked up a small automatic umbrella from the far corner of Jyushi's bedroom. President Ichi really had a fascination with cats, because besides all of Jyushi's bags having a paw print patch, Jyushi's mittens being cat mittens, and Jyushi's beanie having cat ears, the yellow umbrella Yuki picked up and opened also had cat ears popping out. Jyushi was really childlike with all his stuff being rather childish in appearance. "Jyushi, you should bring this too. It can fit in your backpack, right? What are the contents?"
Jyushi opened his backpack and showed the contents to Yuki. His locket, a small yellow cellphone with a keychain of a cute yellow duck, a yellow journal, a yellow metal pencil case, a yellow water bottle, a yellow cat coin purse, and folded clothes that are also yellow. Yuki made a small smile as Jyushi showed him his backpack, his bright smile plastered across his face. Jyushi was really such a kid. His stuff was enough proof of that. And yellow was a color that fit him all too well, it seemed. While purple, President Ichi's seemingly favorite color, usually represented royalty or mystery, yellow represented energy and happiness. Those colors fit President Ichi and his younger brother. He put the umbrella inside the backpack and zipped it, giving Jyushi a pat.
"Very good! You have everything you need, don't you? And remember to call us every hour to update us on what you're doing! Don't lose your phone too!" He chided, almost like a parent. "Ah, wait.. I'll fix your scarf."
"Okie dokie!"
As one of his many caretakers, Fuyu and Yuki always helped Jyushi in the things he couldn't do, such as walk without the aid of his cane of his wheelchair, or help him get dressed. But other than that, Jyushi loved to play with them when Ichi was busy. Yuki was the one that suggested Jyushi should draw to let out all his energy that he couldn't release due to his limited movement, and had taught him how to play simple board games like snakes and ladders and Monopoly. Chess was hard for Jyushi to comprehend, but Ichi seemed to love that game.
Speaking of chess, Ichi sometimes played that game with any of his employees. While President Ichi was definitely not someone you could simply fool around with and act casual with, he was as unpredictable as his little brother. He was sometimes kind to his employees, and Fuyu and Yuki's wedding was proof. He was Yuki's best man and didn't even bother to pay for a pianist, seeing as Ichi shifted between standing next to the groom and playing the piano himself. His scary side often showed when something bad happens, and he sometimes acts like Hatabou in that state. Another way to get to his scary side was do something that would hurt Jyushi; he would never forgive you if you did something to his little brother.
Maybe Ichi liked chess so much because it was like his life. Maybe Ichi thought of himself as the black king, while the white pieces were the rest of the world. He and Flag Corporation were the black pieces, Jyushi included. Fuyu thought about it for awhile; it did make sense. Ichi was the king in the dark side of the board, everyone listened to him and his orders were absolute.
Jyushi probably represented the black queen, with unlimited potential and the strongest piece on the board, as Ichi's entire mindset seemed to revolve only around the happiness of his little brother.
Dekapan and Hatabou were probably bishops, in Fuyu's opinion. Dekapan was the brains of the entire building and Hatabou often took over for Ichi when Ichi wasn't around. Ichi and Hatabou also seemed to get along well.
As for him and Yuki, Hatabou had always told them both that they were considered people that Ichi kept closest to him, besides his own brother. Maybe Fuyu and Yuki were knights.
He didn't know about anyone who could fulfill the place of a rook, but his mind drifted to two people. Though those people weren't as close as Fuyu, Yuki, Dekapan, and Hatabou were to Ichi, those two girls seemed to be close with Jyushi, and they often chatted with each other whenever Jyushi decides to roam around the building instead of staying in his bedroom.
One of them was a girl that Jyushi had met when he and Ichi went on a little vacation, and she had started working at Flag Corporation four months ago, but as one of the many people that gathered information, since Jyushi already had many caretakers. The other person was a girl younger than the other by a few years, but just as capable. Those two were rather close and were working together to gather information regarding the personal lives of their clients, while the others gathered information on current events in Japan or the personal lives of random people who their clients seem to despise.
If Yuki remembered correctly, their names were Warai Homura and Chiisana Hana. He wasn't close to them, but Fuyu seemed fond of them and acted as if she was their older sister. While Homura seemed somewhat shy, she was calm and was able to do her job with diligence. As for Hana, the smaller girl with a blue flower on her hair, she was more energetic and much more loud than her friend Homura, but was friendly and caring. Those two were often doing their jobs with everyone else, so they weren't able to play with Jyushi as much as Fuyu and Yuki were able to.
As for the pawns, maybe the rest of Flag Corporation.
Ichi seldom talked to any of them and even if he did, it was probably only once or twice. Unlike Fuyu, Yuki, Homura, Hana, Dekapan, and Hatabou, everyone else just seemed to listen to the orders of the king, Ichi, while not bothering to find the reason behind those orders. Those who were deemed important got a chance to learn more about President Ichi other than the fact he was a busy man with a little brother he doted on. The pawns listened to all of the king's orders with no questions asked, just like what pawns should do. And as important rooks, knights, and bishops were, the most important pieces were definitely the king and queen.
But they were on the dark side of the board. Whoever was the king and queen on the brighter side had remained anonymous, but Ichi had always said that the world had always been against him and his brother. And if the light couldn't accept Ichi and Jyushi, then Ichi would gladly walk to the path of darkness, reluctantly bringing Jyushi with him. And he did it. He became the king to his own world. He studied hard and with the help of Dekapan and Hatabou, he rose to the top of the food chain and had become the president to Flag Corporation, the company that was the reason Akatsuka City was doing as well as it was. But in exchange, the citizens would get their personal information leaked in exchange for cash.
As sad as it is, that's life for you. Ichi made a good choice though; if the world rejects you, you make your own. And when they come crawling back once you show them your power, it's better to turn a blind eye.
"Yuki-san?" Jyushi tilted his head. "You're spacing out!"
Whoops. That was rather embarrassing, staring at Jyushi's scarf while he thought about chess. Fuyu was giggling while covering her mouth with her hand. He would admit that his wife is adorable, but he was still flustered about getting such a reaction to him drifting off somewhere else. "Ah, sorry! Anyway, you're all set?"
Jyushi smiled. "Yup, yup! All set!"
"Good. You're still bringing your cane with you, right?"
"And wheelchair!"
Of course he'd bring his wheelchair with him, that was the reason it existed in the first place. Fuyu patted his head. "Of course. Your friends have probably arrived. Hatabou had sent a limo to fetch them."
As Fuyu helped the wobbly Jyushi walk to his wheelchair, Yuki couldn't help but let out a sigh. Thankfully, his wife and Jyushi probably dismissed it as a sigh of exhaustion. If Ichi really thought he was playing a game of chess, he should be more careful; the game was still not over. Ichi and Jyushi were still reigning on the top with Fuyu, Yuki, Homura, Hana, Hatabou, and Dekapan supporting them, and the pawns were doing all the dirty work. But even if Ichi was reigning on top of Akatsuka City, Yuki wondered if Jyushi was able to do the same.
Because there was something about his new friends that just bothered him.