Love of a Lifetime

with a clear path, and they went to the engine door, only to find it
locked. Of course, it didn't stay that way after Kiryu sent his heal into
the center, snapping the flimsy door clear in half.

As they stormed the engine room, Kiryu and Majima came across
the terrified conductor, and the two yakuza holding him at bay.
Unfortunately, Kiryu's entrance startled them so much that within a
split second, the smaller of the two Yomei accidentally pulled the
trigger, putting a bullet in the poor conductor's brain. The thugs
jumped as the fresh corpse dropped to the floor between them. "Ah,
fuck—!"

Kiryu and Majima didn't hesitate. They lurched forward and
disarmed the men with ease. While Kiryu managed to knock out the
bigger of the two, Majima actually kicked the trigger happy yakuza so
hard in the chest that he crashed through the window behind him
and tumbled out into the world. But there was no time for gloating.
Kiryu had turned to look just in time to see that their train was only
about two thousand meters out from another train, sitting innocently
at the next station.

"Shit..." Kiryu began desperately searching the console. "Where's
the break?" Majima joined the search, desperately pressing buttons
and flipping switches, none of which did much.

"Goddamn it—goddamn it! Why'd that motherfucker have'ta
shoot the one bastard who knows trains!?"

"Just keep trying things!"

651

The train got closer and closer with every passing second. They
tried everything, until finally, Kiryu noticed a lever under the left side
of the dashboard. Leaning down, he grabbed it with all his might, and
pulled.

With a horrendous screech, the train jerked forward, its wheels
locking up, but it kept moving forward. The car shook and rumbled,
knocking Kiryu and Majima around like unpopped corn kernels.
Through their shaking, Kiryu saw the butt of the second train get
closer and closer. There wasn't any time to jump, and they couldn't
get their footing enough to run. So Kiryu did the only thing he could
think to do. Grabbing Majima's shoulders, he held him tight, and the
two braced for impact.

An impact which... Kiryu slowly began to realize... never came. As
he opened his eyes, he and Majima realized that the train had finally
come to a rickety stop, mere inches from the caboose of the train in
front of them. Still holding onto each other, Kiryu and Majima were
gasping for breath, and glanced at each other. Majima broke out into
a wide smile, and with a laugh of desperate relief, fell to the floor,
arms and legs spread wide (the conductor's corpse, fortunately, had
slid into the previous car).

Kiryu let his muscles relax, sitting up against the engine room
wall. Their moment of piece was disrupted by the sounds of sirens,
and the unmistakable churning of a helicopter propeller. Kiryu lifted
his head and spotted a police chopper swooping in low as cop cars
surrounded the area.

652

"Attention! This is the National Crime Response Task Force! Come
out with your hands above your head and we won't open fire!"

Kiryu paused. That voice... sounded strangely familiar. He urged
Majima to stand, and the two of them stepped out through the
conductor's door, hands raised. The chopper swung in lower, making
Kiryu squint to avoid dirt into his eyes. The voice over the bullhorn
spoke again. "No sudden moves! Cooperate and you won't get
additional charges."

It clicked. Kiryu lifted his head, stared straight at the helicopter.
"Kaoru...? Kaoru! Is that you!?"

There was a pause from the chopper. It lowered even more, until
it set down on the dirt. Removing her bullhorn, Sayama Kaoru stared
at Kiryu in utter disbelief. "Kazuma...?"

Suddenly, Majima broke into an impish laugh. "Well ain't it a
small world!?" He clapped his hands together. "Real nice to see you
again, Copper-chan!"

"Kazuma... what...?" Kiryu hopped down from the train ledge,
motioning Majima to follow him. When they approached her, Kiryu
bowed his head lowly.

"Please. I know this is sudden, but... do you think you could give
us a lift?"

◈◈◈
"...so I've been thinking about importing them here. To sort of
bring the whole picture together. What do you think?"
"Yes, Sixth Chairman."

653

"Then again, fruit trees can be a hassle. If you don't pick them
every season, they end up falling off and rotting on the ground."

"Yes..."
"Still, I always wanted my own apple orchard, ever since I was
little. I don't know why."
"Dojima-san."
"I was thinking crab-apples."
"Sir."
Daigo turned from his garden to face Koshimizu. After a very long
lunch, and a brief visit to Daigo's personal bar, Daigo had insisted
they take a walk through the grounds of Tojo HQ. After all, it was
such a lovely day. It was a shame to spoil it by sitting inside. Entering
Daigo's beautiful gardens, the chairman head waxed poetic about his
various plants and flowers, often going off on their scientific names,
ideal weather conditions, their budding seasons, and so on. He even
pointed out what was edible and what was poisonous. All around, it
was starting to feel more like a field trip than a meeting of great
underground powers.
Koshimizu pinched his nose, trying to push back his irritation.
"Your garden is lovely," he said, stiffly, "but can we get back to
matters at hand? I'd really like to make this a done deal here. I got so
much to do once it's all official."
"Ah, of course, of course," said Daigo. He turned back around, his
hands behind his back. "I guess we should get this ball rolling."
"Thank you, Sixth Chairman."

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"Ah!" Daigo suddenly turned. "I just remembered I have some
work to do in my office. I'm so sorry, would you mind...? It won't be
long, I promise."

Clearly, Koshimizu did mind, but forced a smile all the same.
"Dojima-san..."

"Why don't you wait for me in the drawing room?" Daigo said,
already heading for the house. "I swear I won't be more than a
minute." With that, Daigo headed inside, making a straight line for
his office. With the doors bolted behind him, Daigo pulled up his
phone and rang Saejima's number. It rang. And rang. And rang some
more. Daigo ran his fingers through his hair. "Come on, Saejima-san.
Pick up..."

"The number for... '...Wait, when do I say my—?' ...is unavailable
at this time. Please leave a message after the beep." Beeeeeep.

"Saejima-san, where are you? I swear, you have got to learn to
text. It's so much faster than leaving a voicemail." Daigo paced,
glancing out the window. "Koshimizu is getting antsy. I don't know
how much longer I can keep this up. And I can't exactly back out now.
Please, call me back." Daigo hung up and rubbed his forehead in
worry. This was starting to get dicey...

As for Koshimizu, he was about one decent push away from
demanding Daigo sit down and put pen to paper at gunpoint. Of
course, that would cause one hell of a shitstorm, but it was difficult
to keep himself calm. Especially when he knew that Kiryu Kazuma
was mere hours away from HQ. Speaking off, Koshimizu's phone had

655

been going off like crazy, but he didn't dare check it while in Daigo's
presence. Now that he had some privacy, Koshimizu pulled his phone
out and took a look.

Dragon and Dog escaped.
In pursuit.

"What?" Koshimizu frantically searched through his missed calls.
All of them happened within the past hour. He dialed one and
waited. When he heard the line pick up on the other end, Koshimizu
started talking immediately. "The fuck is wrong with you assholes?"
he growled, lowly. "The hell do you mean they escaped? They were
on a goddamn train!"

"We're sorry, boss. They got picked up in a helicopter."
"Helicopter?" The door behind him opened, and Koshimizu spun
around. Tashiro, after glancing once to make sure he wasn't followed,
closed the door tightly behind him. Koshimizu turned away, speaking
even lower now. "Listen to me, you track that shit down and blow it
out of the sky, you understand?"
"Yes, boss."
"...Blow what out of the sky?" Tashiro said carefully.
Koshimizu hung up and spun around, his eyes like daggers.
"Nothing that concerns you," he spat. "What's the hold up with
Dojima-san? I thought you said he was ready to make the deal."
"He is, he is," said Tashiro. "I don't know what's up."

656

"Well you better find out what's up," Koshimizu snapped. "Or you
can consider our little arrangement terminated."

But rather than kowtowing, Tashiro glared. "Last I checked, you
need me a lot more than I need you, Chairman Koshimizu."

A vein in Koshimizu's temple throbbed. "Is that right? That mean
we're gonna have a problem, Tashiro-san?"

"Maybe," said Tashiro. "I took your deal cause you promised me a
bigger piece of the pie. If that don't come with respect, you can have
it back."

"Oh can I?"
Tashiro took a step forward, eyes blazing. "Don't forget where
you are. You came to me to be your partner, not your puppet. If
Chairman Dojima wants to wait till the end of fuckin' time, that's
what you're doing. The Tojo Clan has the power to wipe your little
family off the face of the Earth and still call it a short day."
Koshimizu sniffed harshly. His jaw ground, and his eyes narrowed.
He and Tashiro stared each other down like a pair of feral dogs, each
one waiting for the other to take the first bite. But finally, Koshimizu
put on a bitter smile, his hand slipping gently into his pocket. "Well
then... I guess we've hit a snag in this relationship, Tashiro-san."
Koshimizu jerked his arm forward. Tashiro tried to stop it, but was
too slow on the draw. He seized violently as volts of electricity shot
through his body from Koshimizu's stun gun, eventually falling to the
ground in a twitching lump of flesh. Stepping outside, Koshimizu
snapped in the direction of one of his on guard subordinates, and

657

directed them into the drawing room, where he gestured to Tashiro's
limp body.

"Find a closet. Lock him in there till I say otherwise. We don't
have time to deal with him right now. And make sure you take his
goddamn phone."

Tashiro struggled as Koshimizu's men hoisted him to his feet.
"You... fuckin'..." He couldn't get much else out before being swiftly
dragged to a side door, and out of sight. After all, they needed to act
fast if they were going to avoid being spotted by the rest of the
house. Koshimizu returned to his own phone, sending one last text.

Eliminate them both,
or don't bother coming back.

◈◈◈
Kiryu had never really liked helicopter rides, if he was being
honest. It was always too cramped, and never felt quite as safe as an
airplane. Too many individual factors and variables, too many things
that could go wrong. Fortunately, he was able to distract himself with
their host for the trip, who swung back and forth from irritation to
amazement as they flew. In the ten years since they'd seen each
other last, Kaoru hadn't changed much, except for some heavier bags
beneath her overworked eyes.
"So this is... not how I'd imagine I'd be seeing you again,
Kazuma," Kaoru said. "Though I can't say I'm entirely surprised..."

658

Kiryu rubbed the back of his neck. "This is just as weird for me as
it is for you, I'm sure."

"I promise you it isn't."
"Well..." Kiryu looked out the window, seeing skyscrapers pass
them by as they traveled above the interstate freeway. "Thank you
for doing us this favor. You look..." Kiryu glanced her way. "...good."
Kaoru cocked a perfectly arched brow. "You do too," she said,
"especially for a dead man."
"Ah, you know about that?"
"Of course I do," she said. "Your death made news among every
department in Japan."
"Hey now, what's with that salty tone?" Majima, who was having
too much fun gazing down on the ant-sized people beneath them,
turned back to the other two and wrapped his arm around Kiryu's
shoulders. "Shouldn't you just be happy that Kiryu-chan's alive and
kicking? What, you're not still bitter that it didn't work out between
ya, are you?"
"Majima..." Kiryu began.
"Or are you wonderin' if you should give it another shot?"
Majima continued. "Well hate to break it to you, sugar, but that ship
sailed a while ago. You coulda had your chance, but you gave him up,
sorry honey."
"Majima-san," Kiryu repeated. "I'm sure that's not what Kaoru's
thinking at all."
"Oh yeah?"

659

Kiryu pointed to Kaoru's left hand, which was on one knee. More
specifically, to the wedding band on her ring finger. "Yeah, I think
she's moved on."

"Wooooah!" Majima leaned forward with glee. "No shit! Hell,
congrats, Kaoru-chan! Who's the unlucky guy?"

"Someone without a criminal record," Kaoru said pointedly. "You
wouldn't know him."

"We gotta send you two a belated wedding gift, don't we, Kiryu-
chan?"

Kiryu shook his head with a sigh. He turned back to Kaoru with a
bow. "Sorry about him," he said. "You know how Majima-san can
be." His expression softened, and he chanced a smile. "I'm glad you
found happiness though, Kaoru."

After a moment, Kaoru returned the smile. "Thank you," she said,
earnestly. Her eyes flicked over to where Majima's arm was pressed
up against Kiryu's. "Looks like you found happiness, yourself." Judging
by the shy color on Kiryu's face, she was right on the money. A little
warmer now, Kaoru leaned back in her seat, relaxing her posture.
"It's all right. I knew years ago."

"You did?" Kiryu asked.
Kaoru nodded. "Why do you think I went to America so suddenly?
There were other reasons, of course, but I jumped at the chance in
particular because I was embarrassed that I didn't see it earlier. But
that's where I met my husband. So I can't say I'm too disappointed
these days." She and Kiryu shared a moment of warmth, after which,

660

she held up a finger. "But consider us even after this. I'm breaking a
lot of rules by not even forcing you two to fill out paperwork after a
stunt like that."

Majima scoffed. "Well considering how many Yomei got arrested,
I'd say we earned the good will, eh?"

Kiryu went back to his window, his smile faded. He didn't know
what his plan was, if he was being honest. Burst in, guns blazing?
Announce to the world he was back alive? What's more, he couldn't
help but feel that by doing so, he'd be once again pulled back into
that world that he'd tried so hard for so long to leave. Kiryu pressed
his forehead to the glass. I just need to fight this one fight, he told
himself. Just this one last fight. And then it'll be over. But would it?
Would it ever? Every choice had its consequence. Would this have
the consequence of denying Kiryu his peace? Possibly for the rest of
his life? And why were there so many black cars on the freeway?

Kiryu did a double take and looked again. Yeah... he wasn't seeing
things. That was a yakuza convoy down on the freeway below. Kiryu
pulled back from the window and turned to Kaoru. "Hey, Kaoru. You
might want to tell the pilot to move away from the highway."

Kaoru blinked. "Huh?"
RATAA-TA-TA-TATA! Gunfire littered the underbelly of the
helicopter, in some cases piercing the hull or shattering the glass
windows. The three inside were quick to curl up and protect their
heads and necks. When there was a lull in the gunfire, Kiryu stuck his

661

face out through the broken window to see the Yomei in sunroofs
reloading for another round. Kiryu turned back to Kaoru.

"We've got to get out of their line of fire!" He dove back down as
another hailstorm of bullets showered the chopper. The pilot turned
sharply, now flying perpendicular to the highway. However, as the
helicopter leveled out, Majima was quick to shatter any hopes they
might have had.

"Uhhh... Kiryu-chan?" He pointed, and Kiryu followed his gesture.
Another helicopter, black and fast, was taring ass in their direction.
What's worse, Kiryu saw a door open, and a yakuza slide out, holding
an absurdly large rocket launcher on one shoulder.

"Fuck." Kiryu strapped in, gesturing the others to do the same.
"Tell the pilot to drop altitude!" he shouted.

Kaoru looked up, panicked. "Kazuma—!"
"Do it!"
Kaoru turned and slammed her fist against the door frame that
lead to the cockpit. "Drop us!" With that, the helicopter tanked,
falling just as a rocket whizzed by overhead. Avoiding the explosion
all together, Kiryu unbuckled and lurched forward into the cockpit.
The poor pilot was nearly on the verge of a heart attack.
"Can you get us close to them?" he asked.
"Y-you wanna get closer!?" the pilot squealed.
"It's either that or we go down in a ball of fire!"
"Kiryu-chan!" Majima shouted. "He's reloading!"

662

"We're running out of time!" Kiryu thundered. "Do it!" The pilot
obliged and pulled hard on the stick, turning the copter sharp left. As
it came around, Kiryu threw open the side door. "Get us as close as
you can!"

"Oy, Kiryu-chan!" Majima shouted. "The fuck do you think you're
doing!?"

"Get us closer!"
"Kiryu-chan, wait!"
"Kazuma!"
Kiryu leapt.
He flew through the air, and through some divine miracle,
managed to swipe the leg of the Yomei helicopter just before falling
to his death. Hoisting himself up, he rolled in and knocked the deadly
weapon out of the thug's hands. As it spun out into the abyss, Kiryu
elbowed the user in his nose, sending him crumbling onto the floor.
He then grabbed the pilot with one arm, throwing he and his
passenger together. Turning, he slammed his foot into the console,
making the chopper spin out of control. Kiryu was sure they brought
parachutes, after all.
The helicopter started a wild spin towards the ground, and Kiryu
clung to the side of the open door. Seeing Kaoru's helicopter in his
peripheral, he prayed his timing was on point, braced his footing
against the steel hull, and jumped. The force of his legs and the
trajectory of the copter sent him perfectly flying towards Kaoru and

663

Majima's awaiting hands. Kiryu reached as far as he could, only to
miss completely by mere inches.

Tumbling frantically, Kiryu began freefalling towards the ground,
with no voice to even cry out in terror. His body turned, and just as
he was ready to meet the business end of a bank building, something
grabbed his ankle, making his whole body jerk to a halt. Gasping for
air, he looked down (or rather, up) at his feet, to see Kaoru and
Majima desperately clinging to his leg.

With a little clever maneuvering, Kiryu managed to hoist himself
to the hull. Once he was within grabbing range, he was tugged onto
the floor of the helicopter, an exhausted Majima collapsing on top of
him. After a moment to breathe, Majima pushed himself up on his
hands over Kiryu, completely red in the face.

"Will you STOP trying to GET YOURSELF fucking KILLED?!"
Kiryu, his chest still heaving, closed his eyes. "Sorry..."
"Yeah you'll be THINKIN' sorry after I KNOCK YER GODDAMN
TEETH IN!"
"My bad."
"YOU BET YOUR ASS, 'YOUR BAD'!" Kiryu was clearly in for even
more of a scolding, but both men were distracted by a distinct
snickering to their left. They looked up to see Kaoru, winded from the
experience, smiling and laughing into her hand.
"You two really are perfect for each other, aren't you?"

◈◈◈

664

Koshimizu checked his phone. No responses so far. It was
impossible to tell whether that was good or bad. He wanted to
believe that his boys had finally gotten the job done, but for now,
they were 0 for 3. Though, if that latest text was to be believed, at
least someone in his ranks had managed to do their job. Hopefully it
wouldn't have to come to it, but at least he knew that he had his
trump card if the worst should happen.

Bouncing his leg, he looked at the clock. Daigo had been in his
office for almost an hour now. It didn't help that he was still on edge
from putting Tashiro in a closet. For the last hour, Koshimizu had
stewed. This was getting sticky. This was getting very sticky. Damage
control wouldn't even begin to mop up the mess. It was maddening
to think about, and so Koshimizu focused on what was right in front
of him: getting Dojima Daigo's signature on that binding contract.
Which was, currently, laying open on the table in the drawing room.
Waiting.

Finally, that door opened, and Daigo stepped inside. Koshimizu
stood immediately, his hands behind his back. "Dojima-san." He
bowed his head. "I hope you got everything done."

Daigo smiled awkwardly. "Yes," he said. "So sorry to make you
wait." He hesitated, eyes lingering on the contract. With
painstakingly slow movements, Daigo took his seat in front of the
contract. He stared at it, not really reading. Koshimizu sat back down
and scooted his chair up. "So... this is our agreement then?"

"Yes. I hope you find it acceptable."

665

Daigo brought the first page up to read it better. "'As of April
24th, 2019, the Tojo Clan and the Yomei Alliance are henceforth
allies, and will be permitted in each respective territory for business
purposes.' Let me see here... 'All profits made henceforth...' Mhm...
Mm."

Koshimizu squirmed in his seat. He glanced out the window into
the garden, where some of his men were smoking, anxiously. They
were just as eager to get the damn thing signed and get out of there
as soon as possible. "Is there anything you don't care for, Sixth
Chairman?" Koshimizu asked pointedly.

"So far, everything looks fine." Still, Daigo read. He tapped his pen
on the table, he shifted in his chair, he paused to take a drink of
water. Koshimizu was losing his mind.

"Perhaps there's something you're stuck on?" he insisted.
"Oh no," said Daigo. "I understand it all." Daigo laid it on the table
top, running the back of his pen along one of the lines. "This
sentence here... should a particle be used like that in a legal
document?"
"GodDAMMIT!" Finally at his boiling point, Koshimizu slammed
his hands on the table and shot up from his seat, his neck throbbing
in fury. "Will you just sign the goddamn paper, Dojima!?"
Moments after those words left him, Koshimizu's face paled.
Daigo's eyes pierced his very soul, making his insides shrivel.
Koshimizu opened his mouth to apologize, but something else beat
him to the punch.

666

It was low, at first. A kind of whirring that distracted them enough
from the conversation to turn and look out the windows to the
garden. And as the sound grew louder, they weren't the only ones.
Both Tojo and Yomei men alike began to turn and look as a great gust
of wind began disturbing the perfectly manicured botanical space.
Eventually, the wind was so strong that it made the trees themselves
shake, and a whirlwind of dust and dirt kicked up, forcing the men
outside to protect their faces. Soon enough, the source of the wind
made itself known.

A beat up helicopter, barely limping its way to landing, slowly
lowered until it was smack dab in the middle of the open garden. It
clunked on a few garden rocks, sitting at a cocked angle. Daigo
peered at it. There were bullet holes and broken windows, and Daigo
could swear that there was smoke coming from the engine. The
propellers slowed to a stop, wobbling unevenly. As they did, the side
door opened up, and out came three figures. The first, being Majima
Goro, very much alive and well. The second, though it took a second
to remember her, was Sayama Kaoru, still clearly an officer of the
law. And the third...

"Kiryu...?" Daigo's heart gave a leap. There was no mistaking it.
The third figure to climb out of that helicopter was none other than
Kiryu Kazuma.

Ignoring the horrified Koshimizu all together, Daigo raced out of
the drawing room, through the hallway and out the back porch
doors. He nearly barreled over anyone and everyone in his way until

667

he was standing right in front of the Dragon of Dojima himself. Daigo
stared, slack-jawed, as Kiryu addressed him silently. Suddenly, Kiryu
bowed low and proper.

"Sixth Chairman," he said. "Forgive me for lying. It's a very long
story. I'm sorry for causing you any trouble." After a moment, Kiryu
rose, keeping his eyes tilted to the floor. A tense silence followed, and
then, Daigo stepped forward, bringing Kiryu into a tight, warm hug.
Kiryu blinked, surprised at the reception. Daigo's arms squeezed
Kiryu as tight as he could manage, without shame or hesitation.
Slowly, Kiryu's arms returned the hug, and he heard Daigo sniff
against his shoulder.

"Kiryu-san," he hushed. "You're alive. You're alive."
"I am," said Kiryu, keeping the hug going. "I'm sorry for leaving
you so suddenly." The hug finally broke, and Daigo was quick to wipe
the tears from his eyes. He turned to Majima, who nodded with a
smile. However, now was not the time for a loving reunion. Kiryu's
eyes immediately went to the man in the drawing room, who was
watching them embrace with sheer horror. The minute their gazes
met, Koshimizu turned, making his exit.
Kiryu wasted no time going after him. Without so much of a word
of explanation, Kiryu and Majima both raced into the estate, quickly
making a path to cut him off. Before too long, Kiryu managed to get
him cornered in the dining hall, with Majima and Daigo on the other
side. Koshimizu, sweating through his suit, looked frantically back and
forth between them.

668

"Don't!" Koshimizu whipped a gun from inside his jacket, pointing
it directly at Kiryu's chest. Kiryu stopped, his eyes never leaving the
Yomei chairman. Koshimizu's hand trembled, his face twisted in rage.
"You... you broke your word, Kiryu-san... You were supposed to stay
dead."

"I wouldn't pull that trigger if I were you," said Majima, carefully
stepping forward. "I promise ya, you won't kill Kiryu-chan in one hit,
and even if you do, ye're outnumbered."

"Fuck off!" Koshimizu shouted. "This... this is all your fault! You
just had to go looking for him, didn't you!? You couldn't leave it
alone! You've ruined everything!"

"Koshimizu-san," Daigo said firmly. "Put the gun down. This is not
a wise decision." For a moment, it seemed as though Koshimizu was
ready to listen, but just as he lowered the gun an inch, Kiryu was on
him. He yanked the pistol from Koshimizu's hand, and raising the gun
high above his head, was ready to pound the Yomei leader into a
bluddy pulp.

"I have Haruto!"
Kiryu froze, gun still raised. Kiryu searched those frantic eyes,
trying to see the lie somewhere. Anywhere. To his horror, he found
no such tell. "Prove it," Kiryu demanded.
Koshimizu fished his phone from his pocket and dialed a number.
When they picked up, Koshimizu hit the camera button, instructing
his men to do the same. He turned it around, and Kiryu saw none
other than Haruto, squirming and colicky. Next to his head was a

669

nasty looking handgun, pointed directly towards him. Kiryu felt his
blood turned to ice as he stared at the image. So much so that he
didn't even feel the gun as it left his fingers. Koshimizu managed to
pull himself from Kiryu's hand, clinging to his phone screen. His one
lifeline. Unraveling like a ball of yarn, Koshimizu laughed, manically.

"Not so big are ya now, Kiryu-san? One word from me, one word,
and you can say goodbye to this precious little face."

"Christ..." Majima breathed. "You're sick, man."
"All I wanted..." Koshimizu gasped, "was a place at the table. To
give my family the opportunities they'd never have in that pissbucket
town. I wanted my boys to succeed. Isn't that what a good boss
wants? For his family to flourish? What kinda chairman would I be if I
let them all squander themselves in that fuckin' shithole?"
"This isn't the way to do it, Koshimizu-san," Daigo said carefully.
"Please. That child and his family have been through enough. They're
innocent in all this."
"Innocent? Innocent?! Who gives a fuck about innocence!?"
Koshimizu whipped his head back to Kiryu. There was an untamed,
wild look in his beady eyes. Holding his phone like a bomb, he swiped
the discarded gun from the floor and held it up to Kiryu's face.
Despite his obvious leverage, there was still quite a bit of fear when
looking at Kiryu. Now that the shock of it all had subsided, Kiryu had
the look of a man unafraid to do the unthinkable. Put plainly, Kiryu
Kazuma was boiling.

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"Here's what I want." Koshimizu whipped his head back to Daigo.
"You're gonna let me leave here without a goddamn scratch. And
you're gonna let my boys do their business on your territory. Or I
swear to God I will have them strangle this kid and you fuckers are
gonna sit here and watch it all."

"Lay a finger on him," Kiryu breathed, "and I will rip you apart."
"Yeah!?" Koshimizu said, rounding to him. "Then I guess I better
tell 'em to go pay your daughter a visit, huh? Or how about them
other kids you got?"
"Yeah, cause that worked for ya so well the first time," Majima
interjected. "Seriously, Give up the ghost here, man. You lost. It's
over."
"It's not over... It's not over!" As Kiryu stared at Koshimizu's
screen, his eyes widened ever so slightly. Then, an eerie calm came to
his face. Followed, to Koshimizu's dismay, by a smile. Realizing that
he was seeing something Koshimizu was not, he flipped the phone
around. What he saw was not Haruto, but a new face. The face of
Baba Shigeki, smiling and waving at the camera. "What!?"
"Looks like you lost your leverage." Kiryu rose to his full height,
and in a panic, Koshimizu tried firing. Kiryu sidestepped the gun
easily, knocked it out of his hand, and grabbed Koshimizu by the
throat. With astounding yet not unfamiliar strength, he pinned
Koshimizu to the wall, half a foot off the ground.
Koshimizu gasped and choked, trying to whack Kiryu off of him.
Those fists might as well have been flies for how much they helped.

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The Yomei Chairman sputtered for breath, spitting and gasping as his
face turned blue. Kiryu's expression was hardened. Angry. And
fucking terrifying. If he wasn't stopped, he would strangle Koshimizu
to death without thinking twice.

"Kiryu-san, you've made your point..." Daigo stepped forward,
but Kiryu didn't even hear him. Through the open door, Kaoru and a
few Tojo men came upon the shocking scene, and immediately, she
drew her gun.

"Kazuma!" she called. "Put him down!"
"Kiryu-san, please," Daigo pleaded. "Don't make this worse."
"He was ready..." Kiryu muttered. "He was prepared to take
everything from me. Again."
"Let us arrest him then!" Kaoru pleaded, gun still raised. "Please,
Kazuma, let the law do its job!"
"Is this what Haruka would want?" Daigo asked. "What would she
think?" Kiryu said nothing, focusing only on Koshimizu's eyes as they
bulged from his face. Nothing, it seemed, would stop Kiryu from
draining Koshimizu's life with his bare hands. No person was able to
convince him to let that vengeance go. Not Daigo, not Kaoru, not
Haruka.
No person, it seemed, but one.
A gentle hand came onto Kiryu's shoulder. Finally, he snapped his
eyes from his victim. His gaze met Majima's stoic expression. Majima
said nothing. And yet, Kiryu understood what Majima was telling
him. As his fingers relinquished Koshimizu's trachea, he collapsed at

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Kiryu's feet, wheezing like a fish out of water. The minute he hit the
floor, Kaoru raced over, cuffs at the ready, and slapped them on
Koshimizu's wrists. He said nothing as Kaoru dragged him away. Even
if he had parting words, they wouldn't have mattered.

Kiryu's hands were shaking, his legs weak as though he'd run a
marathon. Majima's hand slid from his shoulder, up to his neck, and
he squeezed. Their foreheads came together, and Kiryu took a deep,
calming breath. They stood in silence, and Kiryu let the rage roll off of
him. It was over. For good.

The cleanup was definitely a process. Tashiro was found in a
storeroom closet down the hall from the drawing room, having
claimed he was jumped when he'd started to get suspicious of
Koshimizu's intentions. Daigo decided to let that little lie slide for
now. Though he made a note to keep an eye on Tashiro for the time
being. Kaoru had called in reinforcements to deal with Koshimizu and
his men, as well as someone to crane lift the now destroyed
helicopter from Daigo's garden. It was certainly not the way Daigo
was expecting his day to go, but considering that everyone made it
out alive... he'd take it as a win.

Daigo, Kiryu and Majima stood on the steps of Tojo HQ, watching
as Koshimizu was hauled away in cuffs. So much about this still felt
unreal. And despite the nefarious means by which Koshimizu tried to
get in good with the Tojo, there was still that nagging question in
Daigo's mind. A question if he, as Tojo Chairman, had ultimately
made the right call.

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Perhaps the Omi might one day overtake the Tojo. And perhaps,
should that day ever come, Daigo would wonder if this would have
been the decision that would have changed it all.

Daigo pushed the thought from his mind. If he spent all his time
wondering what could or couldn't happen if he made this decision or
the other, he'd go nuts. He turned to Kiryu, still in a little disbelief
that he was standing there, alive and well. "So?" Daigo asked. "What
next? I'd try to get you to stay but..."

A smile flickered on Kiryu's face. "We both know how that
conversation ends," he said kindly. He rounded to Daigo, far more
serious. "I need this not to get out, Daigo. I came for one last fight. I
don't want any part of the life for as long as I live. I need you to know
that."

Daigo's smile was sad, but he nodded all the same. "I do," he
said. "I'm just... glad that the man is still here, even if the dragon has
died."

Kiryu chuckled. "Well... If it means anything, you're always
welcome on Christmas and New Years."

"It does. Thank you." Kiryu glanced behind him. Majima hadn't
said a word, and in fact, had been curiously silent the entire time.
Daigo, reading the room easily, bowed out. "I'll give you two a
minute." He walked back into the house, leaving them to talk. Kiryu
wasn't sure who should start. Fortunately, Majima took that first
step.

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"I guess this means we gotta say goodbye again." Majima didn't
bother looking at Kiryu, finding it easier to stare off into nothing than
look him in the eye. "Dunno if I'm invited for the holidays but..."

"Majima-san."
Majima took a breath through his nose and turned. His eye was
steeled. Going through this heartbreak again was not something he
was looking forward to. But he knew as well as anyone that this was
the end of the line for Kiryu Kazuma. He wondered if he could ever
have the stomach to visit. Majima doubted it. Better to be out of his
life forever than torture himself with pieces of the past, slowly
growing apart over long, painful years. Majima was the kind of guy
who'd prefer to just cut ties. Get it over with.
"You treat that girl of yours good, Kiryu-chan," he said, trying to
be as even-keeled as possible. "She deserves to have her father
around, y'know."
"Majima..."
"And that kid... If he's anything like his mama, he's gonna be one
helluva handful. She might need your help from time to time,
y'know?"
"Stop talking." Majima blinked, but did as he was told. Kiryu,
without a hint of humor in his face, took Majima's shoulders and
squeezed them gently. "Come with me."
Majima's mouth dropped open. "...Haw?"
"Come with me," Kiryu repeated. "We're both too old for this
these days. I was so lonely without you. I..." Kiryu's hands squeezed

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tighter. "I know I don't deserve it. But if you were with me, Goro... I'd
be the happiest man alive."

A knot caught in Majima's throat, and he ground his jaw to keep
his lip from quivering. "Kiryu-chan..." He couldn't help it. A sad laugh
left Majima's lips, and he put his head in his hand, his shoulders
trembling. "You big fuckin' idiot..." He laughed again, and with a
heavy head, folded perfectly into Kiryu's chest. Kiryu embraced him,
and they stood there. Silent and whole. After a long moment, Majima
pulled himself together and took a step back. He turned to HQ, deep
in thought.

"Gimme a couple years," he said. "Let me get the family in order.
Get Saejima all set up. Just give me them two years and... I promise
I'll be there."

Kiryu nodded. "Two years," he said. They sealed the deal with a
solid kiss between them. Breaking apart, Kiryu kept their noses
together. "Don't make me wait, Majima-no-niisan." Majima smiled.

"Wouldn't dream of it."

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Five Years Later

It was a beautiful summer day in Okinawa. The kind that was ripe
for tourists and locals alike to partake in the white sands and crystal
clear waters. Along the countryside, a car drove down a winding
road. It was a little, two-lane highway that ran along the coastline,
giving its passengers a perfect view of the horizon. Usami Haruka
smiled as she stared out into the ocean, her cracked passenger
window letting in the pristine, salty air. As her mind wandered, a
warm hand took her own between the two seats. Haruka smiled
when she felt Yuta kiss her knuckles. His thumb, absentmindedly
almost, toyed with her simple, golden wedding band.

"Mommy?"
"Yes, Haruto?"
"I wanna swim with Ojīchan and Ōojisan."
Haruka chuckled. "I'm sure they'd love that." She looked in the
rearview mirror. Haruto, at five and three quarters years old, kicked
his feet up and down. He still had yet to lose a lot of his natural baby
fat, with hair that stayed messy no matter what Haruka tried to do to
it. Currently, he was playing with one of his sentai toys. There was a
frog bandage on his knee from where he'd recently fallen at the park,
and his fingernails always seemed to have fresh dirt underneath
them. He was like a fresh dandelion, sprouting endlessly. It seemed
like only yesterday he was just a little bean in her stomach. Maybe
one day he'd hear the story of how it all happened. One day, he'd

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know the struggles, the trauma, the tears. But for now, he knew
peace. He knew his family. And that was all Haruka could hope for.

Miles down the road, nestled into a hill away from most major
cities, was Haruka's destination. A simple, traditional house,
overlooking a private beach, with a secondary, smaller building
attached to its back lot. Inside the wide open room, Kiryu Kazuma
stood in his kitchen, chopping vegetables for their dinner. Sukiyaki
was Haruto's favorite, after all.

In the years since his retirement, Kiryu Kazuma was finally
starting to look his age. His hair sprouted silver tufts on each side of
his head. He had his own pair of reading glasses these days, and
occasionally would get cranky if they moved things around in the
grocery store.

Kiryu's phone rang. Setting his knife aside, he saw the caller ID
and answered with a smile. "Moshi mosh."

"Hey, Kiryu-han. It's Saejima."
Kiryu chuckled. "You don't have to say that every time, I keep
telling you. The phone tells me."
"Ah, I keep forgetting." Kiryu pinched the phone between his
shoulder and ear and began scooping the veggies into his cook pot. "I
wanted to wish you a happy birthday."
"Thank you," said Kiryu. "Am I seeing you this weekend?"
"Of course. It's been too long since we had a poker night. Baba-
chan won't stop bugging me about it."
"How is Baba-san anyway? How's the family?"

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"He's done really well as my captain so far," said Saejima. "For a
while, he kept doubting himself. But eventually, he figured it out. He's
been organizing some of our best revenue streams this year. He's
amazing."

"That's good to hear," Kiryu said with a nod. "And how are you
two outside of business?"

Saejima laughed on the other line. "We're good. I took him out
for that seafood place he loves the other night. We've got our
anniversary in a couple of months. Got a big dinner planned."

"Congratulations." Through the open house, Kiryu heard some
movement in the back lot. Finishing with his veggies, he looked
around the corner, seeing a small group of women leave their
secondary building. They were mostly older ladies, in their mid to
late fifties, all wearing various active wear like yoga pants and tank
tops. A good majority of them were sweating up a storm, but all
smiles. They turned as the final figure stepped out into the sunlight
to see them off. Kiryu smiled, his eyes full of admiration.

Just as time had aged Kiryu Kazuma, so too had it aged Majima
Goro. He'd let his hair grow out, though he kept his undersides
buzzed, and often had it pinned in a high ponytail. Though he kept
the rough shape of his goatee, Majima had let it grow into a proper
beard, and often took pride in waxing or curling it into various shapes
for fun. He also wore sweaty active wear, though his tanktop had a
logo on the front. It read "UNCLE GORO'S SELF DEFENSE DOJO" in
both English and Kanji. Majima had insisted on the English part,

679

though his first prototype tank top had read "GORO'S PISS HOCKEY"
on accident. English was still pretty tricky.

As his students left through the back gate, Majima took off his
shoes and stepped inside. "Whew!" He grabbed a water bottle from
the table and downed a huge gulp. "Those girls keep me on my toes."
He spotted Kiryu's phone and nodded. "Haruka-chan?" he asked.

Kiryu shook his head. "Saejima-san."
"Oh yeah? Tell him hi."
"Goro says hello.”
"Ah! Tell him hi back."
"Saejima-san says hello."
Majima walked into the kitchen and pulled on Kiryu's phone arm.
He grinned into the speaker. "Oy, you ready to lose your life saving's
to me this weekend, Kyodai?"
"Yeah, right. You've always had a shit pokerface, Majima."
Majima snorted and turned about face, heading for the
bathroom. "Yeah, yeah. I'm takin' a shower." Kiryu watched him
before returning to the conversation. He and Saejima chatted a little
longer until he saw Yuta's car drive up to the lot. With a quick
goodbye, Kiryu went to the front of the house to greet them.
There were hugs and kisses all around, and Haruka presented
Kiryu with a wrapped gift bag. Little Haruto was always excited to
visit Ojīchan's house, and after Kiryu gave him a big hug, he
immediately went into a frenzy about swimming. Kiryu promised that
they'd hit the water before the end of the day.

680

Once Majima was out and dressed, more pleasantries were
exchanged, and eventually, they were on the couch, with Kiryu
setting up his shiny new camera for a family photo. He'd gotten into
the habit of taking as many pictures as he could whenever they were
all together. All of them were printed out and framed perfectly along
the wall of the home's front room. Including his two oldest photos:
the picture of Morning Glory and the photo strip of he and Majima in
Kamurocho.

"Come on, it doesn't need to be perfect," Majima teased.
"Almost... gotta get the exposure right."
Majima rolled his eye and nudged Haruka with his elbow. "This is
what I get for givin' him a new one of these things." Haruka giggled.
"Right. I think I got it. Let me just set the timer here..." Once he
pushed the right buttons, Kiryu hurried to the couch and sat next to
Majima, his arm along the headrest behind them all. The camera
snapped a picture, and Kiryu went to check on it. As he did, Yuta
turned to Majima with a smile.
"So I wanted to let you know that I got a promotion, Majima-
san."
"No shi—!"
"Ahem."
Majima glanced at Haruka, who gave him a warning stare.
Majima looked down at Haruto, who didn't look the least bit
interested in Majima's potty mouth. Still, he started again. "No
kiddin'?" he asked. "I knew you had it in ya, kiddo. Well done."

681

"Thank you," said Yuta. "I never would have gotten it if it wasn't
for you. I can't thank you enough."

"Eh." Majima waved off Yuta's thanks. "So I pretended to be a few
CEO's for your resume, big whoop."

"I think we have to take it again," said Kiryu with a frown. "I didn't
get the lighting right."

"Jeeze, Kiryu-chan, we're dyin' here."
"One more, just one more." Kiryu pushed a few more settings
and went back to his spot on the couch. Nestled in comfortably, he
and Haruka shared a glance. Haruka gave him an encouraging smile
and a nod. Now was the time.
As the camera went off, taking a flurry of photos, Kiryu got down
on one knee, and held up a velvet box in his hand. When Majima saw
it open, his jaw dropped to the floor. Inside was a simple gold band, a
ring of marbled garnet in the center. It wasn't a diamond, but for
someone like Majima, it was utterly perfect. Majima tore his eye
from the box and stared at Kiryu in disbelief. "Kazuma..."
"Well?" Kiryu asked. His heart was pounding in his ears. "Majima
Goro... you wanna get married?" Majima's face broke into a smile as
twinkling tears ran down his sharp cheekbones. He laughed and
sobbed, and held his face in his hands. All around him, his family
leaned in close, and they hugged him dearly. As Kiryu put that ring on
Majima's finger, the light glinted off its beautiful detailing.
It was the best birthday Kiryu Kazuma ever had.

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Thanks!

Thank you so much for downloading and (hopefully) enjoying my
work. This collection of fanfiction was created over a span of many
moons, and wouldn't have been possible without the awesome
community of Yakuza fans like you.

Like so much of the rest of the world in 2020, I was locked inside
for months, and decided to sit down and play the series. I'd only
played the 3rd game, and so I decided to start from 0 and go from
there. I played 0-7 in a span of a few months, and instantly fell in love
with the world and the characters. In particular, I absolutely adored
the dynamic between Kiryu Kazuma and Majima Goro. Being a queer
author and screenwriter myself, I began to indulge in their
relationship. As you can see, I got a bit... carried away.

As for who I am, my name's Ruthie. And I'm no stranger to books.
Technically, this would be my fifth one. My other three active titles
are available on jmsbooks.com under the author name Ruth Hanson.
If you want to support more of my work, please consider checking
out my other, more “serious” stuff.

Thank you again for downloading my writing!

Peace and love,

TheBobblehat
Matriarch of the gay nonsense clan

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Twitter Artist Credits

relina_ru ✪ bananafoams ✪ 80sdisq
nishikimbos ✪ ramblingbat

Thank you for your beautiful contributions
to this project! Please follow these artists

on Twitter for more Yakuza fanart!

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