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Years have passed since ToMan's last meeting. Mikey disappeared shortly after that, the events of the Battle of the Three Deities occurred without any intervention from Takemichi, and Bonten rose to the top as expected, becoming the largest criminal organization in all of Japan. The “happy” future of his friends is now the long-awaited future that Mikey had been in charge of protecting from the walls of shadows that he had created around him.
This future was the closest they get to anything perfect, even though Mikey is unhappy, the rest have the best they never got in previous future lines, until now.
For example... the Kawata twins, who managed to open their own restaurant, a ramen shop quite popular for their iconic Tonkotsu Angry and Smiley, simple and spicy respectively, the business is going well, unbeknownst to them they have been protected and favored by Bonten, under the care of a certain man with achromic hair and his right hand man with bubblegum pink hair.
. . .
It's a cool autumn night, the cerulean-haired Kawata twin comes out carrying a large black garbage bag from the restaurant he runs with his older brother Nahoya after his last cleaning shift. He prepares to deposit the waste in the large rectangular garbage container that is in a small dark alley behind the store, it is a narrow corridor, but he has a good time, the wind does not reach this small passage that connects to the street, When he notices a figure sitting on the floor of the place, he raises one of his eyebrows curiously, squinting to improve his focus on the mysterious silhouette.
It takes him a moment but he seems to be recognizing that slightly androgynous appearance, those long, blonde lashes fluttering over those bright sky blue eyes failing to throw him off. Could it be...?
"This... is it you, Haru?" —
The mature voice of that guy with the afro catches the attention of the Bonten executive. Who looks up with an expression that tries to be pleasant despite the large scars in the shape of diamonds arranged at the corner of his lips.
—Hey "Angry." —
He playfully calls him by his boyish nickname as he briefly waves at him, patting the floor of the alley beside him, a subtle invitation for them to chat for a moment more quietly.
The opposite seems to hesitate for a moment, but after a few seconds he approaches the man in the purple suit with more confidence and settles next to him, hugging one of his knees as he sits down. He looks a little uneasy about his scars, but the lack of a comment highlighting it relieves Sanzu, he had always been annoyed by people pointing out the obvious about his scars.
There are a couple of minutes of silence, it is as if at first such an unexpected reunion did not bring any mutual topic of conversation to both men, who only looked away to other places in a slight tension. Until finally Souya decides to talk and break the ice between the two of them a little.
—So... How have you been, Haruchiyo? —
Sanzu shrugs his shoulders, a gesture that feigns and indicates a clear disinterest typical of his person.
—I have had better days. But good as far as possible. —
It's not as if he can reveal too much about his past or his current present. It would be a bother to have to silence someone that his beloved Mikey had come to appreciate so much in his past and youth. The seconds pass in silence again and Haru decides to return the question out of simple "courtesy."
—What about you, Angry? —
Souya seems to think for a few seconds and then responds with his voice already a little more relaxed, stretching to ease his sore muscles.
—I'm pretty good. Nahoya and I have managed to get the business on its feet and everything is going quite chill, almost as if it were going smoothly. —
Sanzu seems to have his interest in every word, which makes Souya's cheeks blush lightly, covering one with the palm of his hand to hide his blush.
—Lately I've been reminiscing a little about old times. You know, riding a motorcycle and such. Nahoya still maintains his beloved RZ250 from time to time. —
A small suppressed chuckle escapes Sanzu's lips, who nods, completely believing it, is typical of the old Smiley that he knows from so many years ago.
—And... Is Smiley still seeing that pretty girl he used to date? —
Haru already knows the answer obviously. But he must pretend that he lacks personal information about them.
-Oh no. She and my brother stopped seeing each other after ToMan dissolved, she didn't feel completely safe after what happened to that girl who Moebius... you know. And what happened to Emma ended up confirming to her how dangerous it was to be a woman surrounded by bad young man. And that... took her even further away from Smiley, even though he's not like them. —
An awkward pause was present. Souya looked up at one of the walls of the cramped hallway, then further up at the cool night sky, with a visibly sad frown.
—Their relationship was broken by the incidents, and the hearts of both of them drifted hopelessly apart. —
-What a pity. They made... a very good couple. —
Souya looked at him with a small, faint smile, as if it had been a joke.
—You don't need to be nice, the truth is that they weren't very compatible, I assure you. I think she only used it because she was a ToMan captain. You know, earn some reputation. —
After that statement Souya sighed softly, these days he has been feeling quite lonely, Nahoya had found someone else and that left him extra shifts and work.
—Honestly... I miss those days a little, the fresh wind in the hair, the smell of sea salt, the beach, Nahoya had so much fun... your motorcycle was very cool too.—
—Tch, several bastards thought I was a “little lady” because of my color. —
—Oh... the truth is I thought your motorcycle was adorable... —
He whispers softly before Sanzu continues to finish his sentence.
—I'm sure they had it much smaller than mine, ha. —
Sanzu scoffs just remembering it and Souya almost chokes on his own saliva at Haru's unexpected comment, what a time those were for the loyal dog. Where he had little or nothing to worry about anything other than Mikey. Deep down, although she refuses to admit it, he misses those simple times, where Mikey seemed happy, where he apparently could be satisfied with just a sweet bean dorayaki or some other simple dessert. The pink haired man knows that now nothing is enough to satisfy him, not today, and not ever again.
There is a brief silence between both adults as Souya takes a deep breath before making his own confession.
—Well, I have to admit... I thought you were a girl for a while too. —
The younger Kawata scratched the back of his neck somewhat nervously. Giving the pinkette a soft, brief glance out of the corner of his eye. Those long eyelashes and delicate appearance had always confused the boy with the cerulean curls and the rest of the ToMan members. Those delicate features and that mask that he remembers he always wore made him doubt Haruchiyo's gender.
—Yeah, but at least you weren't bothering me about it. —
Haruchiyo put a cigarette to his lips, trying to light it with some difficulty, his old lighter is failing him when he needs it most in the evening. His teeth were pearled with a yellow undertone as his pale lips clung to the small roll of tobacco. The excess of nicotine consumed for so many years was revealed in his slightly stained teeth.
—Do you want? —
The pink man said, giving the pack a shake, sliding a cigarette out, he is offering it to his companion, although he shakes his head slightly, making Sanzu sigh heavily before trying to light his cigarette again, to light his own relief. Finally he held the flame long enough to light his cigarette, taking a deep and slightly desperate drag, feeling his lungs fill with the noxious smoke and the relaxation form part of his muscles, lowering his tension, relaxing his shoulders. and back.
—I don't smoke, thanks. —
Sanzu slowly lets the smoke escape from his lips as he looks at the Kawata, leaving a small screen of smoke between them before leaning his head back against the wall of the dirty, dark alley. Souya brushes away some of the smoke that has reached his face, giving a small sigh before continuing with his words.
—Honestly, I quite liked you back then. —
Those unexpected words from the boy with the light blue afro made the pink-haired man open his eyes wide, drowning in his own smoke. Coughing loudly as he pats his chest over his purple suit. Turning back to see him with some disbelief. No, that must be a joke. He doubts the Kawata could even fully remember him, their interactions were rather sparse in those past times.
—You're kidding, right? — Sanzu blurted out with a slightly forced and uncomfortable smile.
—It's not a joke, Haruchiyo. I really liked you, I thought you were a very beautiful girl, then… I found out that you were a boy actually, a very handsome boy. Man, you made me question my sexuality for quite a while. —
A small sincere smile formed on Angry's lips as he placed a hand on the back of his neck. The pinkette remained silent for a moment with an unreadable expression, a silence that became awkward after a couple of seconds, so Souya continued talking, playing with one of the curls of his sky blue afro.
—Well… I liked you, my younger self liked “ToMan's Barbie.” And then…beyond just appearances, I liked Haruchiyo. —
Haru remains silent, lowering his gaze as he allows the younger Kawata twin to continue his sentimental narration. Souya looks up again, keeping the small, faint smile on her soft lips. A blush is making an appearance on her face, still somewhat youthful.
—I know you were very quiet, almost like a ghost in the fifth division, but I really liked your presence anyway, we could just be next to each other in meetings, or with Hakkai, and it wasn't even necessary to say a word to be at ease. —
Even with his slight smile framed on her lips, he shows her teeth a little. What Sanzu would give to have a normal, pearly smile like the light blue boy's and not carry everything in silence as she has done since she was a child to ensure Manjiro's safety and fulfill what he promised Shinichiro. Sanzu also tries to curl his lips into a smile, making his scars crease a little.
—Muto really knew how to take care of you, didn't he? Before you were in his division you really were kind of hard to deal with. —
He said trying to ease the awkward silence after his not-so-accidental confession. Sanzu sighed heavily.
—Heh...yeah, Muto really was someone cool. Before Tenjiku... —
His facial expression seemed to soften a little, but after that he frowned somewhat in annoyance, although it was somewhat difficult to distinguish that in the darkness of the alley. Souya scratched the back of his neck again. Sighing too.
—Nahoya still wonders what happened to him... just one day... he disappeared. —
Sanzu swallowed without saying anything, lowering his gaze. He must admit that deep down, on long days and bad trips, he feels a lot of guilt for being the one who took care of Muto. After all, Muto was the only one who gave that puppy abandoned by his own family a second chance.
—There isn't a day when I don't think about him... —Sanzu lied. —We were very close back then. —
Again silence drowned out his interaction, and Souya checked his phone, after checking the time Souya finally waved goodbye as he returned to the back door of the small restaurant.
—Maybe one day you can stop by for lunch with a good tonkotsu, the house invites, Haruchiyo. You are always welcome here. Surely Smiley would be very happy to see you. —
It is a subtle and friendly invitation, urging him to come back to meet him soon, something in that last little interaction stays in Sanzu's chest, fluttering a little. That lightness among all his most personal sorrows and sins relieves him.
And when the time came to leave, Sanzu couldn't help but drop a piece of paper, a card from his purple jacket... hoping that maybe, with some luck, in the near future he could receive a message from the youngest Kawata in his temporary phone number. Although... maybe that was dreaming too much while he was awake.
Bonten is not a game. He can't afford to socialize much with people outside that circle, for the sake of those other people.
That lunch would probably never come... since ToMan's Barbie had died 12 years ago...