#bonten goes to an arcade

[celestica-1988]

Some other Tokyo Revengers characters headcanon. There will be SPOILERS.

When Mikey left the Sano household he brought with him his towel and some pics of the people he lost. Almost every night when he's curled up in his towel ready to sleep he watches the pics and cries. Yes, even when he's in bonten.

Draken biggest regret is not confessing his feelings to Emma. So when he gets up and goes to bed he always says "I love you" to her pic on the wall.

Baji is so scared of his mother tears because when she cries she turns in a really strong opponent. She's the female version of the blue ogre.

Chifuyu thought that his mother hated Peke J till one day when he got home from school and found the two sleeping together snuggling.

Takemichi finds some notes of his past self in which he's confused about being friends with people he doesn't even remember he knew and lately being involved in a gang. Past Takemichi is afraid he's going insane so our Takemichi writes te a note in which he explains everything. Not surprisingly past Takemichi is even more confused and thinks he need a therapist.

Kazutora is proud of his tattoo. He just wish people in Japan wouldn't be so scared of tattoos because sometimes is tired of hide it with turtlenecks.

Takuya likes to watch wrestling.

Yamagishi dream is that his delinquent encyclopedia would be published one day.

Akkun dies his hair red by himself as a training to be an hairdresser.

Mitsuya is very good at karaoke, he likes to sing rock songs.

Hakkai is the first and more hardcore shipper of Mitsuya x Yuzuha. He really wants Taka-chan to be a part of his family.

Sometimes Taiju babysits Mana and Luna. One time they asked him to watch IT (the 90s version) with them since Takanii forbid them to watch such a scary horror movie, Taiju accepted but not much longer the movie started Mana and Luna started to cry and Taiju did his best to comfort them (he said he would punch any clowns that goes close to them or something similar). In the end the little ones fell asleep in his arms and Taiju had to live for a week with the Mitsuya because Mana and Luna felt safe only near to him. Needless to say an angry Mitsuya scolded Taiju.

When Pahchin gets released all the Toman members throw a party for him. He was sad Mikey was not there though.

When Yasuda confessed to Pehyan he malfunctioned and froze for a solid 15 minutes.

Angry thought for a while that he would be a nurse when he will be an adult. He changes his mind after seeing Nahoya smiling with his eyes wide in delight while eating the ramen that he prepared. Since then Angry wants to be a ramen chef.

Smiley once stole Angry favorite stuffed animal, Souya got so upset that accidentally unleashed the blue ogree. Since then Nahoya always politely asks to Souya if he can borrow one of his plushies.

Mucho goes to punk rock concerts, one time he brought Sanzu with him, but it wasn't a good idea. Sanzu beated almost all the people in the venue.

Sanzu ends up regretting killing Mucho, he misses the older brother he was for him. Especially when he feels lonely and he realizes he has got nobody to talk to.

When Kisaki reaches the afterlife Baji punches him in the face so hard that for a moment he was sure he would come back in the world of the livings.

Hanma likes to play shooting games at the arcade, but when he loses he usually punches the machine.

Kokonoi lives in a traditional house when he's in bonten. There are a lot of candles, lanterns and things that make it a cozy place. Only Miley is admitted in his house and only for urgent matters. The house is his sanctuary to find inner peace after dealing with his crazy coworkers.

Inui likes goth girls more because they understand and appreciate his hobbies.

When Izana listens to Queen the whole neighborhood listens to Queen.

Kakucho learned to cook from Mochi.

Mochi hates creeps who harass women and always beat them down to a pulp. Harassing a woman is not an honorable behavior for a man!

Shion always fails tests of courage since when he was a kid. He believes in ghosts and he's afraid of them.

Rindou panicked when Ran slept for a whole day, he thought he was dead or in a coma. That's when he realized how important Ran is to him. When Ran woke up he cried for joy and ran to buy a mont blanc for his brother.

Ran cut his hair because he was tired of Sanzu calling him Wednesday or Annabelle.

Never insult someone because they are not fully Japanese in front of South, he will punch the living shit out of you. Since he's also a mixed race person he hates when people are bullied for that reason.

Wakasa saved a stray cat once and let the kitten live with him. Now when he doesn't wanna hang out with Takeomi he said he's busy... Busy cuddling his cat that he treasures so much because it help him avoid unnecessary social situations. And because... Who doesn't love a cat?

Benkei likes to built copies of castles in miniature. It relaxes him cause it takes great concentration and ability to do that in the right way.

Takeomi gossips like an old lady with his coworkers (may God help them)

Shinichiro cried the first time he watched Titanic, it's one of his favorite movies.

Yuzuha meets with Emma and Senju every month to talk about how hard it is dealing with problematic brothers.

Hinata is a fan of Avril Lavigne and sometimes she dreams of touring around the world playing the songs she wrote. Unluckily she can't sing but she has got some alternative fashion clothes.

Emma talks and sleeps with the plushie Draken gave to her. She calls him Kenken.

Senju goes often to Harajuku to take inspiration for her outfits.

[chao-thicc-hcs]

Hi there I really love your work and I was wondering if you could make a head cannon with hanma, manjiro/mikey and sanzu about "if their little sister was sexually harassed or touched inappropriately", not for any weird reasons I just really want comfort✌️😎 ( this is like my first time requesting anything so if it doesn't immediately notify when you respond could you maybe tag me? )

thank you!

a/n: my love goes out to everyone who's experienced such horrible things, including you, anon. ♡ i hope you're all feeling better and i am incredibly sorry, you never deserve it, nobody does.♡ love you all.♡

also, for further notice, i cannot tag you if you're anonymous, because i don't know your username. but your request was sent, thank you for the kind words!

featuring: bonten!sanzu, mikey; toman!sanzu, mikey; hanma shuji

warning(s): mentions of se!ual assault, death, bl00d, bone breaking, drug usage, weapons in general, torture

If their little sister got harassed

Hanma↷

The fucker that did this to her has signed a death contract

You know that shit is gonna go bad when he loses his grin

Will ask her to give him all possible details of the fucker, where she saw him, when it happened, how they looked

He's going to be with her the whole entire time, accompany her everywhere she goes, glaring at anyone who keeps their gaze on her for longer than 2 seconds

If she doesn't feel well, he will understand that, and won't force her to go outside if she refuses to. But he will always be in the same room as her, comforting her with pats and snacks

He's not good with words at all, and will comfort her by watching shows, playing games, or just buying her food

If she has the power to go out, Hanma will spoil her with gifts

Takes her to her favorite bakery and eats sweets with her, trying to make her forget about the encounter

Gives piggy back rides, deffo

For shits and giggles, he will tease her about their childhood memories and probably will chase her around a field, or play hide and seek with her

Always makes sure to check up on her, though, and walks with her to and after school

Definitely gets Kisaki involved and both devise a plan to hunt the bastard down and kill them

Spoiler - it's successful.

Hanma makes sure their death is slow and painful, torturing them first

Kisaki is filming everything

They touched you? Both their arms are now broken

They did something more? Their genitals are cut

If she has a strong stomach, Hanma won't hesitate to show her the video

Even after months and years, he will still interrogate every single new friend his sister makes, especially if it's a guy

toman!Mikey↷

He will cry

No, really, he deffo will cry with her

Buys tons of dorayaki and taiyaki to eat with her and bawl their eyes out together

Has a big blanket wrapped around them and asks Emma to make them lots of ramen to eat together

He will bring her with him at all times, and even when he cannot be around, he will tell either Draken or Takemichi to look after her

Follows you like a dog, he's way too afraid to let you out alone anymore

Emma will also comfort you with him, taking you shopping, making you cook with her and etc.

Mikey will be goofier so he makes you laugh, or he will do stupid shit that will make your life flash before your eyes, just so you forget about all that for a while

Always tries to talk to her and develop very deep topics (without any sexual ones) so she can relax around him and talk in peace

Asks for in depth narration of how her day went, listens to all the new gossip from school or just in general

Goes to the arcade with her. A huge try-hard that wins all the games and gets her plushies, competes with her on who will eat more taiyaki (he always wins but lets her win instead)

However, deep inside, under all this happiness, Mikey will be boiling with rage and is desperately trying to find the person who did this to her

He wants to deal with them alone, and he does so

Manages to get some information from her beforehand, and he makes sure the bastard never touches another human being again

Mikey ambushes him, and beats him to a pulp, carrying the blood of the assaulter with pride

bonten!Mikey↷

Oh lord

He will be furious, and it will be prominent even under his blank expression.

Goes insane, trashing and walking around the entire building like a maniac searching for their stash (after she's left, he doesn't want her to see him like this)

Asks her to tell him everything, absolutely

Immediately orders Kokonoi to take her out shopping, buy her all the shit she lays her eyes upon, and lets her order everyone around for the time being

If not, he doesn't leave the room without her, always supervises her and stays near her

Not good with words , but somehow tries making his presence more.. comforting around her

Doesn't act too harshly in front of her, so to not scare her

Pats her head and tells her "It's not your fault" "I'll make sure this never happens to you again."

Teaches her self defense, and buys her all sorts of pepper sprays, knives (he'd never let her use a gun or katana in her life) and etc.

Still asks his subordinates to keep an eye out on her when she has to go out (he cannot go out for obvious reasons)

Doesn't sleep until he finds who did this to her

Makes sure their death is gruesome and slow, and uses all torture methods bonten has to offer

toman!Sanzu↷

Doesn't say anything, nor has a hasty reaction

Would take her to a bakery, order cheesecake and listen to her vent about it

Listens attentively, and doesn't dare to interrupt

Abides by her wishes the entire day, buys her food, carries her on his back, does everything she asks him to

Another one who isn't good with words. But his love languge will be cleaning her room and taking over her chores, placing a packet of snacks on her desk, every time

Tells her teachers not to bother her too much until she's feeling better

Hugs her, but for no longer than 5 seconds

For the sake of her wellbeing, Sanzu lets her do his hair, his skin care, pluck his eyebrows, and even try on new make up

Watches her from the shadows, all the time. She doesn't notice him at all, but he's there, ready to act when needed

If she manages to give him information on how the person looked, Sanzu will hunt them down with Muto

Muto will beat them to a pulp, and Sanzu will cut off their fingers one by one

bonten!Sanzu↷

Man's furious

Doesn't even fucking wait, demands to find the fucker right now on the spot

He cannot sit straight knowing that the person hasn't been dealt with

Makes her choose how the bastard is dealt with. She wants him to get killed? Good. Drugged to death? Done. Tortured to the point of complete insanity and desperation? Hell yeah.

If she doesn't want to watch nor stay around, Sanzu will keep the bastard in a basement, torturing them every day.

As for comfort, he's not much different from his younger self.

Will probably ask her to do drugs with him but Ran and Rindou will punch him

Brings her random stray animals for her to pet and play with

Long, long night walks around the city, talking about random shit that makes her forget about everything

Lets her style his hair, again

Books trips to whenever, asking Koko to help with the money, of course. Most of the time it is outside Japan

Makes sure the memories are unforgettable (most of the time it's him doing crazy shit like starting random fights, tripping over, doing hand stands on children's playgrounds)

Enjoys playing their favorite music and dance with her

Gives her in depth lessons of how to use weapons, and would even lend her his katana (but will always supervise her)

©chao-thicc-hcs; reblogs are deeply appreciated, i always read your tags

[carminewill]

HANMA + BIRTHDAY

Hanma doesn't have very STRONG feelings about his birthday, but he's certainly not opposed to celebrating it either. It's just not something that he goes out of his way to make a big deal about or tell anyone. He does have some good memories. While his father was nonexistent in his life and his mother flitted in and out, his grandfather always made sure to do something for Hanma for his birthday. Even if it was something as small as making Hanma's favorite meal and getting him dessert or taking him to an arcade. ( And sure, even when little Hanma was perfectly capable of doing things on his own, but he's not going to complain about someone spending money ON him. ) Even to this day, Hanma knows if he shows up at his grandfather's restaurant, he will make him his favorite dish even without asking. It's a silent gesture that Hanma DOES genuinely appreciate even if he doesn't make it known.

As he's gotten older, the day became less important to him. BUT others he's known make a big deal of it - especially within the gangs. He'll celebrate it at their insistence and he genuinely has a good time. Kazutora was very insistent they celebrate it properly and he was happy to let the younger orchestrate it. A pre-Bloody Halloween and birthday celebration all thrown into one. Hanma finds it FUNNY. Sometimes he uses the day just to be extra playful or annoying to people with the " It IS my birthday after all. " just to mess with them and see if they'll give him more grace than they typically do. He doesn't EXPECT anything of it - just amusement for the time being and something a little fun. The night typically ends with his choice of cheap beer and a cigarette - nothing drastically different from any other night.

After Tenjiku, depending on the time frame, he does sometimes sit at Kisaki's grave or pay a visit. Isn't it fitting the reaper visit the cemetery? No one but the dead might celebrate Hanma's birthday anyways. He doesn't linger longer, but at least spends a short while with someone who had - if nothing else - tolerated him being around for a long time. Someone who had painted color into his life.

In the future timelines, be it the originals or bad toman or bonten or any other, he typically DOES celebrate a bit more - but its more of a duty than his personal desire. Being an infamous figurehead in the underworld and/or high rank of a powerful gang, people EXPECT it. Others are typically the ones to orchestrate it, although Hanma does enjoy seeing what they can come up with to entice him to actually bother attending his own celebrations. He DOES tend to treat himself to a bit of spending as well around then, but that's about all.

[takenyoomies]

Bonten Abbey: (mis)Aventures to the Arcade

Summary:

Sanzu Haruchiyo was known for many things...pill-popping, being late, and most importantly, wrecking the flow of the weekly Wednesday board meeting. What would this week hold? None of the other members of Bonten wanted to find out when he was once again late to the meeting which only spelled one thing for them. Disaster. Word Count: 8.7k Read on AO3

It was a Wednesday, and a Wednesday meant one thing for the Bonten gang. The weekly board meeting that nearly every single member in the top brass gang seemed to dread, loathe, and despise. It was often typical for each member to discuss their part for the designated five minutes. However,  going over time would cause extreme tension in the sardine-can-sized conference room that would rival being trapped in a room with a rabid badger. In addition, there were times when other off-topic conversations occurred that in Akashi Takeomi’s quoted words were “an absolute fucking mess.” All in all, the meetings tended to go through without a hitch. However, today was not one of those days as Sanzu Haruchiyo strolled into the conference room with a shit-eating grin that rivaled no one else,  fashionably late, of course.

“Hey, Sanzu!” An annoyed Mochi shouted at the man who entered, whipping his head around at the sound of the door closing, teeth barred and fists clenched in anger.

“Yo, Mochi.” Sanzu waved, trouncing over and sliding down into the uncomfortable and hard leather seat.

“We have a set meeting time, jackass.” Kokonoi hissed.

“Like he’d  ever  listen to that Koko….” Ran laughed, shaking his head.

“Important business called me.” The pink-haired man sighed blissfully, shrugging almost sarcastically to the platinum blond accountant’s dismay.

“I doubt that highly.” Rindou breathed.

“Oh, and what would that be?” Takeomi chimed in, a brow raised as he put out his cigarette.

“I’m  so  glad you asked!”

Reaching into his pocket with excited fingers, the pink-haired mullet sporting man pulled out a folded piece of paper. One would think this was some grandiose plan, some information regarding their competition, something important. But, no, Haruchiyo Sanzu unfolded the piece of colorful paper and slammed it onto the mahogany conference table, looking up at the group of men with a smirk.

“...Please tell me it’s actually important this time.” One of them said with a sigh. It didn’t matter which one.

“Oh, trust me, it’s of the utmost importance.” Sanzu assured, holding up his right hand, “Swear on Mucho’s grave.”

“The last time you used that, we ended up deserted at some movie theater that was showing a crappy porno...so that’s out the window, and you’re about to be too if this is something-” Mochi ranted, taking a glance at the piece of paper, “Are you fucking serious?” He asked in disbelief.

“What is it this time?” Kakucho finally spoke with an exasperated sigh, standing up from his seat and walking over to take a look at the piece of paper, “An arcade?” He asked with a raised brow as he looked over to the pink-haired man.

“Yeah, they’re running a deal where if eight people come as a group, you get 50% off.” He leaned back in the chair, putting his feet onto the table with a thud, “Therefore, I think we should take advantage of it and get off our depressed asses for a change.” Sanzu concluded with a nod.

There was a click in the background as Takeomi lit another cigarette. “I’m fine without having to babysit for the day.” Takeomi stated, then taking a heavy hit off of the cigarette, exhaling upward, “Interrupting a meeting for this is rather pointless, Haruchiyo Sanzu….”

“I think it sounds like a good time. Reminds me of when we were back in Tenjiku, right Rindou?” Ran turned to his brother, who sighed and shook his head.

“Yeah, I guess there’s some nostalgia there.” The younger Haitani agreed.

“2-1.” Sanzu stated, pointing to the others in the room, “Mochi, Kakucho, Koko….” He said to each as he pointed to each of them with his index finger, pausing as he hovered over the sleeping Mikey, not daring to wake him up.

“It’s a waste of our funds, and judging from the fact we recently recovered from the great  Bonten Has To Eat Instant Noodles For Two Months issue...It’s a no from me as well.” Kokonoi explained as he slid his hands together, “I’m sadly not in the mood for instant noodles again.”

Sanzu rolled his eyes, “Stop being a drama queen, and it wasn’t  that  bad.”

“It was fucking awful. What the fuck are you talking about?” Mochi argued, “Just for that, it’s a no from me too.”

“Bullshit, you’re voting based on emotions.” Sanzu cried out, swinging his feet off the table and slamming his fists onto it with a loud thud.

“What if I am?!” Mochi screamed, holding his fists up, dropping the flyer onto the floor for Kakucho to pick up.

“Oh god, here we go again…” The younger Haitani laughed, laying onto the surface in front of him as he watched the fight unfold.

“Zero days without incident at a Bonten Board Meeting….” Takeomi sighed, shaking his head in dismay.

“Did we ever have a positive count…” Kokonoi asked in confusion.

“Nope.” Ran snorted as he shook his head.

“I think it’d be interesting.” The normally quiet Kakucho spoke up, placing the flyer onto the table near the sleeping blond.

“See? I knew Kakucho was my favorite for a reason.” Sanzu pointed towards Kakucho, who blinked and pointed towards himself to ask ‘who, me?’.

“Didn’t you say Rindou was your favorite last week?” Ran questioned, an index finger on his cheek in sarcastic thought, “Oh right, it was for  ‘agreeing with you about how strawberry shortcake is better than strawberry cheesecake’  …” Pointing at Sanzu.

Rindou jabbed his brother in the stomach with an elbow, causing the taller of the two to emit a dull ‘ ow,’  “Don’t bring me into this.”

“That was an important conversation. Mochi was trying to say cheesecake was better than real cake,” Sanzu clarified, “I’m not going to rehash old beef, though.” He held up two hands as if to say he didn’t care. However, it only seemed to anger Mochi more as he drew back a fist. Kakucho began to get ready to hold the brawny man back for the umpteenth time.

However, a small yawn from the front of the table, causing every person to freeze. Mochi and Kakucho returned to their seats quickly as the blond who had once been asleep opened his dark, inky eyes.

“...All of you are unnaturally quiet,” He finally spoke, looking around at each of the men seated at the table. He then glanced down at the sheet of paper that was settled in front of him, “What’s this?”

Sanzu gulped. This was officially a make-or-break moment for his plan, “Ah, Mikey...it’s for an arcade that’s running a deal….” He trailed off nervously.

The blond’s obsidian eyes glanced over the information listed on the paper before pausing at the section relating to food and looking back up at the group of men, “We’re going.”

Sanzu smirked and looked directly at Takeomi, who looked as though he wanted to crawl into a ditch and die, “Sanzu - 1 Takeomi - 0.” He jousted.

“If we were keeping track history-wise, you’d be so far in the red you’d be begging for someone to come save you,” Takeomi shot back, shrugging his shoulders and standing from his seat. He walked towards the door of the conference room, turning his head to Sanzu, “but you do that enough already, huh?” Finishing with a dry laugh as he exited the conference room.

“What the fuck? I’m not Koko.”

“I’m right here…?” Kokonoi shook his head in disbelief, standing from his seat at the table with a huff and kicking the chair back into place, “If I have to eat instant noodles for two months again, I will  never  forgive any of you assholes….” Pointing a finger around the room, stopping before Mikey, turning on his designer heels, and walking out of the room. You could hear the faint echo of his heels trailing down the concrete hallway.

“And then there were….” Sanzu counted himself and the heads in the room, holding up one hand to count only to realize he didn’t have enough fingers, “Anyways, when are we going?”

“The flyer said the deal is only good until Sunday; therefore, we need to go before then.” Kakucho informed the group, “Since it’s Wednesday, and we each have jobs to do until early Saturday morning...I’d suggest Saturday afternoon.”

“Overall, that sounds like it would work with our current plans, Kakucho.” Mikey agreed, his obsidian gaze staring holes into the heterochromatic man’s soul.

Kakucho nodded his head, “I’ll be taking my leave now. I have some things I need to tie up.” Then, standing up from his chair, pushing the chair in, and silently walking out the door to the conference room.

“We’ll get going as well, then.” Ran suddenly spoke as he stood up lazily, a scuffling noise coming from the chair.

“You act as though we’re going to the same place….” The younger Haitani breathed, shaking his head and rolling his lavender eyes at his brother’s statement.

“I thought you said we’re going out for lunch?” Ran pouted, hands on his hips.

“I said I was going to get lunch, and you invited yourself again.”

“I don’t see what the problem is with that?”

“Everything, everything is the problem with that.” Rindou turned to his brother as he finally stood from his place at the table with a huff.

“Can I come wi-” Mochi started to ask, only to be interrupted.

“NO!” Both Ran and Rindou yelled simultaneously to Mochi.

“Tough crowd…” Sanzu snorted to Mochi.

“Listen-” Mochi started, cracking his knuckles, only to be shot a look by Mikey.

“I’d be careful Sanzu, Kakucho already left, and that makes the chances of your face getting smashed in about 8-2.” Ran pointed with some underlying amusement, almost hoping that there would be another fight.

“Wow! Is everyone Koko today?!” He asked incredulously, putting his head in his palm and looking at the older Haitani, “If I didn’t know better...you did our taxes, Ran!”

“...But, I do help with those?” He questioned in a confused tone, blinking.

“Leave him. He’s hopeless.” Rindou sighed, “Mochi, come with us to lunch before you get put on punishment duty by Mikey.”

“I wasn’t gonna do shit.” Mochi huffed, glaring at the pink-haired man, “What are you lookin’ at?”

“Nothing, nothing...it’s just-” Sanzu paused, leaning forward in his seat to get a closer look at Mochi.

“It’s just what?” Mochi spat.

“Your beard...you shaved it crooked this morning, and it’s the funniest fucking shit I’ve  ever  seen.”

Yes, it was at this moment that Mikey indeed questioned if he formed the deadliest gang in all of Tokyo...or if he formed the most immature band of toddlers in all the land of Japan.

---x---

“So, who's driving?” Sanzu asked lazily on that faithful Saturday afternoon.

“The last time Rindou drove, he floored it past an old lady because she was driving the speed limit and nearly crashed us into a gasoline tanker, so...I vote not Rind-OW what was that for?!” Kokonoi yelped, getting elbowed in the side by Rindou.

“She was going eight under the speed limit, number one, and number two. I drive fine compared to somebody!” The long-haired man glaring over to Mochi.

“Eat shit.” Mochi replied, flipping Rindou the bird, “Let Kakucho drive; he’s safe.”

Sanzu groaned loudly, “But Kakucho drives like a grandma.”

“And how is that a bad thing?” Kakucho sighed, shaking his head.

“We’re gonna get there at sundown if you drive.” Sanzu pointed out.

“Oh, true.” Ran chimed in with a thoughtful nod.

“I don’t drive  that  slow.”

“Yes, you do,” Sanzu breathed, “Next.” Kakucho held out his hand, only to put it down in defeat.

“Alright, since Sanzu is an absolute fuckwit about this, I’ll drive. One catch, though,” Takeomi spoke up as he threw his cigarette onto the pavement, crushing it under his shoe.

“Ooooh, Takeomi enters the chat.” Sanzu mooned.

“Shut up,” He shook his head, “I get full control of the radio.”

Everyone went silent, staring at one another in horror.

“Sanzu, let someone else drive,” Kokonoi spoke up finally.

“Yeah, please, let someone else drive.” Rindou shook.

“I don’t want to deal with this for 45 minutes.” Mochi looked over at Takeomi, lighting another cigarette, who had a sinister look in his eyes.

Mikey finally strolled down into the parking garage, noticing no one was in the bus, “Who’s driving.”

“Takeomi is,” Sanzu replied, a collective sigh from the group as Takeomi chuckled to himself.

As everyone began boarding the bus, Mikey clung behind with Kakucho, only to ask a singular question, “Does this mean he has control of the radio again?”

“We’re sadly going to be listening to Russian death metal for 45 minutes….”

Mikey stared ahead before reaching into his pocket and fishing out two pairs of earplugs and handing Kakucho a couple, “Tell no one.”

The dark-haired man blinked as the other walked onto the bus, Sanzu slamming on the horn while screaming at Kakucho to “get his ass on the bus,” much to Takeomi’s annoyance as he tried to shove the pink-haired idiot away. Inwardly, he wondered about the kindness as he embarked on the self-proclaimed Bonten prison bus, holding the earplugs in his fist.

The route navigation guidance will start…

“Yeah, yeah, shut the fuck up.” Mochi chided the navigation system.

“Don’t insult her. You’d get lost getting out of a paper bag.” Rindou snorted.

Takeomi turned his head around and glared, “I hear any more arguing, and all of you will wake up in a walk-in freezer.” He said with a sweet smile, putting the bus into gear and starting to drive out of their base.

“You’ll never take me alive!” Sanzu retorted after a moment, snickering to himself as Takeomi visibly winced in anger.

“Yeah, that’s the point, dumbass,” Kokonoi replied, slapping the back of Sanzu’s head with an open palm.

“Takeomiiii Koko hit meeee-”

Takeomi gripped the steering wheel with one hand, his knuckles on that hand turning white as his other hand skillfully reached for the pack of cigarettes and a lighter that laid on the center console. He plucked a stick out with his lips, throwing the pack back down and flicking the lighter to light the cigarette. He inhaled deeply, holding the smoke in for a long while as if to contemplate his current life choices, such as why in the world he ever agreed to play babysitter to a group of overgrown idiots and be their chauffeur for the day. Finally, his eyes looked into the rear-view mirror, meeting Sanzu’s mischievous cerulean ones, “Good, you deserved it.”

“Fuck off, Takeomi.” Sanzu puffed, Takeomi only turning up the music louder in a petty act of revenge.

“Look what you made him do!” The blond man shrieked in horror, everyone else on the bus, minus Kakucho and Mikey, glaring at the pink-haired offender.

“I didn’t do anything! He turned it up himself!” Sanzu defended.

“I’m rating Takeomi 1 star on Uber,” The older of the Haitani brothers joked, “Worst music choices, worst attitude, smokes in the car-”

“You can walk if you want,” Takeomi called out, “But remember, I had to carry you home after that mission because you twisted your ankle because you decided to wear those new Gucci shoes...I think you’d be too far up shit creek to stand on your own.”

Ran blushed furiously, “You said you wouldn’t tell anyone!”

Rindou snorting and holding his sides, “Bro, that’s why you were limping that week? You said you slipped on the ice...It was your shoes?!” He wheezed.

“Oh my god, you’re absolutely hopeless, Ran….” Kokonoi facepalmed, chuckling.

“I am not. I’m reporting you to HR!” The short-haired man pouted, crossing his arms.

Sanzu snorted, “Did you mean Kakucho?” Looking over to the dark-haired man who was staring out the window, “Oh shit, he’s brooding.”

Mochi sighed, “Someone get the tissues ready.”

“Earth to Kakucho, come in to Kakucho...Return to planet earth!!” Sanzu yelled, causing Takeomi to glare at him in the rear-view mirror.

“Sanzu, that walk-in freezer has your name on it...I know a place relatively close by.” Takeomi threatened.

Turn left at the next intersection, then turn right.

“Bullshit, that’s the long way.” Takeomi hissed, throwing his cigarette out the window angrily, “Who designed this.”

“Please do not take us on another scenic route again…” Sanzu whined painfully, “It’s on the GPS for a reason. We do not need to relive the Black Dragons glory days.”

Takeomi rolled his eyes, “For your information, my glory days have nothing to do with getting us there faster.”

“Mhm...keep telling yourself that.” Sanzu replied snarkily, “Are we there yet?”

“Mikey, do you still have the duct tape in the bus?” Kokonoi perked up suddenly, clapping his hands together, “I suddenly thought of a great project for us!”

“I don’t like the sound of this project.” Sanzu objected.

“Oh, I’m sure you’ll just  love  it.” The light-haired man reassured Sanzu, brushing his hand against his arm gently, the other retreating with disgust. Kokonoi snorted with laughter, “What, scared?”

“No, I don’t want to catch your reverse sister complex.”

Kokonoi stared at the other with his mouth wide open, Sanzu rolling his eyes in return, “I was at the Kanto Incident, don’t act like people don’t have ears when you and what’s his face were out there screaming about it….”

“Yeah, you were screaming about it, Koko.” Mochi agreed, Sanzu blinking that the man had agreed with him.

“Oh yeah, I remember that!” Ran exclaimed.

“Survey says Tenjiku remembers it Koko.” Sanzu shrugged.

“Go to hell, and stay there.” Kokonoi huffed, blowing his bangs off his face.

Sanzu crossed his arms, smirking smugly, “You’re just mad because I won.”

“Oh god, he’s crying.” Mochi whispered, nodding his head toward Kakucho, “Sanzu, you just fucking  had  to bring up Tenjiku, didn’t you?”

“Nice going Sanzu, that’s the 3rd time this month you did it, too.” Rindou pointed out, “I don’t think we have tissues in the fucking bus anymore.”

“Why the fuck not?!” Mochi hissed, “Oh wait….” His eyes trailing over to the elder Haitani, who was looking to the side inconspicuously.

Rindou’s eyes narrowed as he looked at his brother, “Yeah, hm, perhaps because someone decided to hop in with a fresh bullet wound….”

“Listen, it was a bad night...week...month….” He attempted in defense, each increment of time making Rindou raise his brow higher and higher, “ Year?” Finally, causing the younger brother to nod in agreement.

“Wow, Ran...it’s almost as though you’re more useless than Sanzu,” Takeomi muttered sarcastically, offended gasps resonating from both Sanzu and Ran.

“At least I know how to cook without setting the fire alarms off,” Ran spoke incredulously.

“You forgot the sprinklers too.” Rindou chimed in.

“Hey,” Sanzu spoke, turning his head to them.

“Please, let us all not forget about the time he came to a meeting to discuss the fine intricacies of how orange juice makes you taste weird after you brush your teeth,” Mochi added, shaking his head in disproval.

“I’m right here!” Sanzu yelled in a huff.

You have arrived at your destination.

“Thank fucking god,” Takeomi sighed, putting the bus in park, “Someone wake Mikey up.”

---x---

Surprisingly, the arcade was located in a relatively remote part of town compared to where Bonten typically walked their regular routes. However, this did not stop several people from staring as the rag-tag crew disembarked the converted prison bus.

“Hey, hey...who are those people…”

“They look kinda scary.….”

“Alright, so game plan time.” Sanzu began as they walked towards the doors of the arcade.

“I’ll go in, so you get the deal. However, I’ll be standing outside to smoke otherwise.” Takeomi concluded.

“What?!” Sanzu shrieked in disbelief, “No, you have to participate.”

“No, I don’t.” The scar-faced man replied coldly.

“Let it go Sanzu, Takeomi can keep watch.” Kakuchou offered, “And he needs a break too. He just drove for almost an hour.”

Takeomi nodded his head in agreement, “Couldn’t have said it better.”

Sanzu clicked his tongue in annoyance, looking over to the blond for help, “Mikey….” He pleaded in a petulant manner.

“Let him rest.” Mikey stated, “He’s been pulling overnights, too.”

Takeomi smirked towards Sanzu, who only seemed to get more aggravated as he aggressively pulled open the doors to the arcade with a loud, “Fine!”

The arcade was anything you would expect, loud, smelled a bit musty, and was vibrant beyond compare. However, there was a slight scent of cheese for some strange reason. Heading towards the counter, the eight members of Bonten cashed in for several game cards that were quickly handed to none of than Hajime Kokonoi himself.

“Wait, why me?” He asked incredulously.

“Weren’t you the one who said,  oh, I don’t wanna eat instant noodles for a month ?” Sanzu mocked, shaking his head.

“Yeah, but we’re all adults here and can manage fine….” The platinum blond trailed off, looking around in a confused manner.

“Yeah, Koko, don’t be a hypocrite.”The older Haitani agreed, hands on his hips.

“Are you seriously agreeing with him?!” Koko cried in astonishment.

“Well, I think that settles it,” Sanzu said with a smirk, “You can go play like, one game or something like that.”

“Sanzu, is the word ‘nice’ in your dictionary, or did that get removed when you started your drug usage?” Kakucho asked, blinking.

Sanzu turned and looked at the other man, “I could say something right now, but it would amount to the fourth time this month.”

“Alright, let’s just get on with this shit.” Mochi finally said, shaking his head.

“Yeah, Yeah...I’m going….” Sanzu waved his hand as he walked in the other direction, likely off to find something that piqued his interest.

Ran turned to Rindou, “I wonder if they have DDR here….” He wondered aloud, his lavender eyes glancing around the area only to light up in amusement, “I see it!”

“Oh, it’s on.” Rindou smirked, “Ready for a revenge match, bro?”

“Like I’d ever miss it for the world.” Ran laughed as they both made a bee-line for the machine.

“What are you gonna, do Kakucho?” Mochi asked, turning to the jet-black-haired man.

“I’m not sure; I haven’t been to an arcade since….” He trailed off and looked to the floor.

“Get out of your head for once.” Mochi punched the other lightly in the shoulder with a grin, “Can’t stay in there forever, huh?”

Kakucho looked towards the other man and nodded, “You’re right.”

The two began walking around, attempting to find something to do in the vast array of games and activities, stopping now and then for Mochi to try something and only failing at it miserably, only to have Kakucho show Mochi how to do it properly. Eventually, both came upon a motorcycle racing game, their eyes lighting up as they used to long ago.

“Mochi?” Kakucho asked quietly, though loud enough to hear over the several kids screaming in the background.

“Yeah?” He asked.

“We’re playing this.” He declared.

“I mean, I figured when you stopped right there and were staring at it like it was some sexy chick at the strip club.” Mochi snorted, Kakucho staring at him as though he had two heads.

“Your disrespect for women is unimaginable.” He huffed as he hopped onto the motorcycle.

Mochi let out a hearty chuckle as he climbed onto the adjacent motorcycle, “Preaching respect women while in a gang that deals with prostitution,” He slid the card into the reader twice, “That’s some funny shit.”

“Oh screw, you.” Kakucho pouted as he swerved the motorcycles to select the rider, pausing over a white-haired rider and selecting them.

Mochi stared a moment, blinking at the fact Kakucho had chosen a character that looked like Izana. He shook his head and chose a random character, not exactly caring.

3...2...1...START!

“Oh fuck me, this ain’t nothin’ like the real shit.” Mochi cursed as he attempted to steer, crashing out several times with a string of curses.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about; this is pretty easy?” Kakucho replied, already in 1st place.

“How the fuck!” Mochi swore in anger, attempting to climb back into a semi-reputable position, only to realize he was in 9th place, closing in on 10th.

Kakucho tilted his body through a turn and smiled; he was having fun with this. He truly missed being able to go to the arcade with friends, with Izana. He wondered if they could do this more often...if Bonten could. He was drawn from his thoughts as Mochi swore loudly again, making him laugh, “Mochi, do you need help?”

“How the fuck are you gonna help me from there?!” The bulky man swore, now in 12th place—dead last.

“I...don’t know,” Kakucho admitted, crossing the finish line and setting a course record for the game.

“This is some ungodly level bullshit right here,” Mochi complained, trying to back himself out of an in-game ditch.

Kakucho continued watching for several minutes until Mochi finally crossed the finish line, “Well done.” He congratulated.

“Oh fuck off, enter your damn name.” The bearded man hissed in envy.

Kakucho entered his initials into the game, listed under 2nd place. He wondered who had set the 1st place record for the machine, though it was likely impossible to figure out.

His head turned when he heard a cry of frustration nearby, one that he knew...Koko?

---x---

When the group had split up earlier, Haruchiyo Sanzu had given him one rule. That was he was only allowed to play one game. Several ideas ran through his head, virtual poker, which allowed him to recoup the money they were blowing here, the weird slot machine game that looked rather promising, and then, of course, the game where you had a coin and slid it down a slot to push more coins off a ledge… All of those were lovely ideas, Kokonoi thought, that was until he landed upon a red stool in front of a screen that read Deal or No Deal. He’d heard of this reality television series before, and he knew the premise.

The blond pursed his lips as he sat down, assessing the machine. There were 16 buttons on the front labeled 1 through 16 in the shape of what looked to be briefcases. Kokonoi assumed they were to represent the motifs from the show. He sighed, figuring that, if anything, this was going to be the game for him. He slid the game card through the reader, slumping onto the stool.

Get ready to play: Deal or No Deal.

“Fuck me…” Kokonoi sighed in annoyance, watching as the said sixteen cases appeared on the screen with various ticket amounts ranging from one to five hundred. Large letters appearing stating to ‘follow the cases,’ which essentially signified you were supposed to pick the largest amount.

“Oh lovely, some RNG?” He muttered sarcastically, “It’s not like we don’t get enough of that in those gacha games kids play these days….” The cases shuffled around the screen, stopping and showing designated numbers that corresponded to the buttoned below. He thought a moment before pressing the nine button.

Choose your case...this will be your personal case.

“Yeah, I already did that-” Kokonoi hissed in annoyance, spamming one of the buttons to no avail.

You chose case number nine.

“Oh.”

Now pick five cases.

“I feel like I’m playing some fucked up lottery.” He sighed, noticing the clock and swearing under his breath as he scrambled to choose a number, “Let’s continue with the ongoing theme of my name.” He pressed the 1 button.

One.

One of the virtual women on the screen opened the case to reveal a low ticket amount, Kokonoi nodding his head in approval. He pressed the 13 button, the game echoing his choice once again to show yet another low ticket amount.

“And I thought poker was a rush.” He mused to himself, pressing the 8 button. This time, a larger amount was revealed.

“And all good things come to an end.” The light-haired man sighed as he then pressed the 15, another low.

“Back in black,” He joked, leaning back as he assessed the board for the final number, “Alright, let’s try 6.” It was a high number.

There was a ring from a telephone, causing Kokonoi to look around in confusion, only to realize it was the game, “This is such a weird game….”

That’s the bank.

“Oh good, am I getting paid?”

Here is the offer...Deal or No Deal...

A ticket amount appeared on the screen, Kokonoi’s inky eyes narrowing, “That’s it?!” He cried in frustration, hitting the NO DEAL button quickly, “I think that one gang we took out last week had a better offer for us than that.” He huffed.

Now open four cases.

“Again?” He asked incredulously, shaking his head, “Fine.” He pressed the 2 button, revealing a large amount, “Goddammit.” He thought a moment as the clock ticked down.

Hurry up.

“Oh, this game did  not  just tell me to hurry up.” The fair-haired man stated saltily, pressing the 16 button, low. He smirked, “See, can’t rush perfection.” He pushed the 10 button, low again.

“One more until the bank comes crawling back to me….” Kokonoi thought aloud to himself, hovering over the 14 button and then pressing it gently. Another low amount. The phone began ringing again in the game, music to Kokonoi’s ears, in all honesty.

There’s the bank again.

“Who else would it be?” Kokonoi mocked as he waited for the offer to appear on the screen.

Here’s the offer...Deal or No Deal…

Kokonoi thought a moment as the in-game clock ticked down. While this was a remarkably better offer than the last, he knew that there was still a significant chance he would be able to win big, and after all, it was an arcade. And not to mention, the bragging rights over Sanzu would give him mental clarity for the next month. With that thought, he pressed the NO DEAL button.

Now pick three cases.

Kokonoi sucked in a breath, his heart pumping, and he rubbed his hands together, “This is starting to feel like poker.” He pressed the 3 key. High. Swearing under his breath as he then pushed the 12 key high again. He stared up at the ceiling, his grand plan starting to fall apart as he looked down and pressed the 7 key, hoping for some luck. Low. Kokonoi sighed to himself as the phone rang, knowing the offer would look like garbage compared to the last, and laughing hysterically when it was less than half of what it originally was, quickly pressing the NO DEAL button as if he had never seen it.

Now open two cases.

“I don’t know if it’s good or bad, that the highest amount is still there, or that the offer they just made was so bad I wanted to leave here and never return..” Kokonoi chuckled to himself, questioning his life choices up until this point, pressing the 5 key. High. He then pressed the 4 key, also high.

“Wait...doesn’t that mean…” He stared and blinked, “I have either the 1 ticket or 500…”

The phone ringing again to make another offer, Kokonoi spamming the NO DEAL button as he came to the realization.

Now, let’s open your case.

As the in-game woman opened the case, Kokonoi leaned forward, only for the case to reveal...One ticket. Hajime Kokonoi had won, one ticket. He screamed, slamming his hands onto the machine before holding his head in his hands, staring at the floor in anguish. By now, Kakucho and Mochi had made their way over to him.

“Koko, what happened?” Kakucho asked, leaning down to attempt to make eye contact.

“I took a calculated risk...and for what.” The blond sobbed, his hand nearly tearing his hair out in frustration.

“Uh...Koko, it’s just a game.” Mochi laughed, amused by the entire situation.

“Do you think we can put a hit on Howie?” Kokonoi asked after a moment, looking up at the two of them.

“Who the fuck is Howie?” Mochi asked.

“Isn’t that the Deal or No Deal guy?” Kakucho asked, and then noticing where they were standing, “The answer is no, we are not killing someone for your petty revenge.”

Kokonoi huffed and crossed his arms, “Fine.” He looked around, “Where’s Ran and Rindou?”

“Oh, they’re with their fan club.” Mochi snorted, “Go see for yourself.”

---x---

“They really do have it, bro!” Rindou said with a huge grin, pointing towards the bright and colorful Dance Dance Revolution machine in front of them.

“Why wouldn’t they? They had it when we were growing up in Roppongi?”

“Okay, but who the fuck knows about a weird arcade Sanzu chose.”

“You speak only the truth…” Ran laughed, stepping onto the pad and sliding the card through the reader, “Oh nice, we get three songs?”

“Remember before we’d have to keep a cup of quarters on the floor, and we’d always spill it?” Rindou asked, tying his hair into a bun and joining his brother on the game’s vibrant pad.

“Yeah, and you’d always blame me for it even though you were always the one who did it!” Ran pouted, flipping through the songs and pausing on one, the music filtering through speakers as he turned to Rindou with a sinister smirk, “What was that about a revenge match?”

Rindou grinned, crossing his arms triumphantly, “I’ll gladly bust your ass at Kimagure Mercy any day.”

“Do you still remember how we do it?” Ran questioned as he selected it, sliding off his suit jacket and slinging it over the back of the railing.

“How couldn’t I.” The bun-sporting man rolled his lavender eyes, “Aren’t you the older one, gRANdpa?”

Ran’s eyebrow twitched, “I’m not above sibling punishment Rindou.”

“Oh, I’m shaking.”

The was applause from the game, signifying the song was about to start. The two brothers faced forwards, the intro starting and patterns beginning to fall down the screen. The two started to move in unison, swaying back and forth to the beat. It wasn’t until the first verse hit that what Ran mentioned began.

The Haitani brothers had begun to dance while playing Dance Dance Revolution.

Rindou glanced over to his brother, “Oh my god can you stop being such a show-off for once?” He huffed through a laugh, clapping hands with his brother to the beat.

“Please, it’s on my wiki article!” Ran cried out, “Just like you’re a big brute.” He bopped his head.

“I am not!” The younger retorted, squinting at the screen.

“Don’t mess up, Rindou!” Ran teased and purposefully pushed the other a bit in one of their claps.

“Fuck off!”

A crowd began to grow, mainly teenage girls enamored by these two men playing the game in such a spectacular way. All of them were excitedly watching as the two played, starting to ask each other questions such as “Does anyone know their names?” “Who are they?” “Do they have an Instagram?”... Eventually, when Rindou’s name was mentioned, people began to cheer for him. Naturally, this caused a significant issue for Ran Haitani.

“Hi ladies, I’m Ran~” He sang, causing them to squeal, a smirk plastered on his face, and an annoyed groan from Rindou echoing in response.

“In another life, I wonder if you were destined to be a host.” He sighed, accidentally missing the tile on the floor, “Shit!” he swore loudly.

“You see what you get, Rindou; respect your elders.” Ran snorted, the other man glaring at him from the corner of his eyes.

“When this song is over, you better run…” He whispered, “It’s over in 23...22...21…”

“I’m so old, my hearing…” He joked, Rindou nearly grabbing his hand during one of the claps and breaking it.

The song wrapped up, Ran turning around and waving to the group of girls and Rindou slouching forwards, primarily due to rage, though also due to an insatiable desire to beat his brother to a pulp in Dance Dance Revolution.

“Again.”

“Oh, you want more?” Ran asked with a lazy smirk as he waved to the “fans”.

“We have 2 more songs.” Rindou huffed, rolling his eyes, “It’s a waste of money.”

“True,” Ran nodded his head, “Let’s pick an easier song then!” He reached for the buttons only to have his hand slapped away by the younger, a dull ‘ow’ leaving his lips.

“No, we’re playing this song until I beat you. It’s that simple.” Rindou explained, hands on his hips.

“Fine, fine.” The older relented, “Don’t blame me if you can’t beat me.”

By the time Kakucho, Mochi, and Kokonoi made it over to the Haitani brothers. The crowd was sizeable. The arcade staff attempted to get the crowd to disperse, as it was becoming a fire hazard to the facility.

“Hey Ran, Rindou, what happened here?” Mochi asked as he finally made it to the front.

The two stepped off the machine and walked over to the group, Rindou grinning as the elder brother shook his head, “I reminded him who the rightful heir to the DDR throne is.”

“Please, you only beat me once.” Ran sighed in exasperation and exhaustion.

“And that still means I beat you.” The long-haired man spoke smugly.

“Wait, so that crowd...was all for you two playing a rhythm game?” Kokonoi questioned, “That’s insane.”

“I hope they don’t follow us home, or Mikey is going to have our heads,” Kakucho pondering the probability, “Then again, they might see Takeomi and get a bit scared.”

“Is he still out smoking?” Kokonoi pondered, tilting his head to see if he could see him, “I can’t see him.”

“I thought I saw him come in with Sanzu earlier?” Ran spoke up, the entire group staring at him.

“That can’t be right. Takeomi would never go with Sanzu…” The blond-haired man stated, slightly bewildered by the information.

“Oh, there he is.” The younger Haitani pointed, Takeomi wearing a shit-eating grin as he walked back outside, the entire group then spotting a pissed-off Sanzu.

---x---

Sanzu was officially bored. He thought that coming to the arcade would be an excellent way to spend some time away from things, though it only seemed to create more issues. What was worse was everyone else seemed to be doing their own thing, so there was no one left to mess with or bother. After an hour of wandering around and playing several games that held his attention for a few minutes or less, he set his sights on a bigger and better prize: Akashi Takeomi.

Yes, in actuality Akashi Takeomi was dangerous. He likely could kidnap Sanzu as he slept, lock him in a freezer, and then feed him to the fish...Though where was the fun in not messing with someone like that? He smirked to himself as he walked outside to see the scar-faced man unsurprisingly smoking.

“Ew, how many have you smoked today?” Sanzu spoke, holding his nose in mock disgust.

Takeomi didn’t even look at him, “Half a pack, give or take.”

“Smoking’s bad for you, y’know.”

“Drugs are too, but you don’t see me trying to give you a 12-step lecture.” Takeomi retorted dryly, Sanzu cackling in response.

“I gotta hand it to ya. That one was funny.” The pink-haired man pointing to the other.

“What exactly do you want?”

Sanzu clasped his hands together, “Dearest Takeomi, you’ve been out here for over an hour...I think it’s about time you came inside and actually enjoyed what we came here for.”

“No.” He replied with a laugh, “Nice try though, really love the theatrics...maybe we can get you a job with the prostitutes.”

Sanzu groaned, “Can you stop being a stick in the mud for once and be fun?”

Takeomi felt something inside him snap. Honestly, he just wanted to sit outside and smoke. He wanted not to have to deal with a specific pink-haired buffoon who continued to ruin his Saturdays over and over each week. Instead, however, he turned to the other man with a sickly sweet smile, throwing his cigarette onto the ground and crushing it under his shoe, “Sure, Sanzu, I’ll play one game...let’s go.”

“Really!” Sanzu’s face lit up with excitement, “Okay, let’s go!”

As they entered the arcade, Sanzu and Takeomi walked around a moment, regret beginning to wash over the older as his head began to pound from the noise and light.

“So, what do you want to play.” The pink-haired man asked, tipping his head to meet the other’s gaze.

“I don’t know, and I haven’t been to an arcade in fuck all knows.” Takeomi hissed, rubbing his temples, “Can you make it quick?”

“Jeez, I didn’t know they made you when the dinosaurs still walked the planet.” Sanzu grumbled, “Let’s go for a shooter then.” The two of them walking towards a Western-style shooting game that had plastic guns.

“Why am I not surprised.” The dark-haired man breathed, shaking his head.

“What? Sorry, I’m good at what I’m good at?” Sanzu mocked, shrugging his shoulders, “Anyways, it’s pretty self-explanatory...aim, pull the trigger, boom.”

Takeomi smirked. What Sanzu didn’t know was, he knew how to play this game. He knew far too well how to play this game because, during his days as a Brahma captain, Senju and himself would often sit in arcades and play. Sanzu Haruchiyo had sentenced himself to an early grave with this one, no matter how good a shot he was.

“Well, what are you waiting for?” The pink-haired man nodding his head towards the machine.

“I’m broke; you pay for it.”

“How the fuck are you broke if you- Nevermind.” Sanzu started, shaking his head and sliding his game card through the reader, “Let’s settle this.”

The older stepped up to the gallery, picking up the model gun and testing the weight in his hands before settling on a position.

Ready...Start!

Enemies started popping onto the screen, Sanzu quickly shooting the targets that were his color. He thought to himself it would be easy to best the older man until he realized he was keeping pace, and his score was already twice his based on the accuracy bonus.

“Hey, hey, hey…” Sanzu started, beginning to get ruffled by the sudden turn of events.

“What is it Sanzu, maybe you should aim a bit better, or is that too difficult?” Takeomi replied cooly as he blasted the head off of a zombie, “Oh, that was a good one.”

“Are you  shitting  me?” He cried out in response, “You actually know how to play this?” Sanzu was aiming for one of the enemy bonuses. However, he missed miserably. He swore under his breath, much to Takeomi’s delight.

“It’s been a good oh, what did you call it...era.” He mused as they made it to the boss level, “But for someone as young as you, this must be easy, right?” His voice dripping with poison.

“There’s still the boss level. I can-” He looked at the scores, feeling the color drain out of his face.

“What was that, Sanzu? My old deaf ears can’t hear you over the sound of your absolute thrashing.” He chuckled, “But don’t worry, I’m sure they’ll recover in time to hear you cry.”

“Do we just need to get you a nicotine drip? I don’t think the patch is gonna cut it with you.” Sanzu groaned, “Or, do you want one of my pills? Those might take your edge off too.”

“Take the joke, Sanzu,” He sighed, the game finishing out and Takeomi writing his initials in the records list, “Have a good time trying to beat that, though.” The older smirking, patting the other on the back as he walked towards the entrance, shit-eating grin plastered across his face as he pulled out another cigarette from his ever-dwindling pack.

Sanzu stared at the score in disbelief. He couldn’t beat that score today. He would have to come back another day to beat it, but he would beat it, no matter what. He stomped his foot in frustration, only to notice the entire Bonten group was looking, sans Mikey. He blinked and did what any person with an IQ between 85 and 115 would do...make a break for the food court before he could be harassed.

---x---

Was this the main reason Mikey agreed to this excursion? He didn’t want to admit to it. However, when the flyer said they had six different types of taiyaki in the featured food court, Mikey was sold instantly on the idea, as embarrassing as it was. He quietly walked towards the counter, scanning the menu with his pitch-black eyes only to discover there were, in fact, now eight taiyaki options. He smiled softly to himself as the person operating the counter looked on in confusion at the strange man in front of them, “Can I help you?” The food court employee asked him, tilting their head to the side slightly.

“Taiyaki, all of them,” Mikey said, sliding a large bill onto the counter.

“Do you mean all of the kinds or...all of them, all of them.” The employee clarified, thinking to themselves.

His eyes lit up, “I can have all of them?” He asked.

“As long as you pay for them, I don’t see why not...It might take a bit, though, because we warm them in an oven, so they get kinda crispy.” The employee explained, noticing the glimmer in his eyes.

“All of them, then.” Mikey clarified, adding another bill on the counter.

“Do I know you from somewhere, though?” They asked as they handed him his change, causing Mikey to pause for a brief moment.

“I haven’t ever met you before.” He replied, walking to one of the tables and sitting in the uncomfortably hard seating. It was nearly impossible to take a nap here due to how loud and bright it was, as well as how unbearable some of the smells were...Who honestly authorized it to smell like nacho cheese? Though, he also realized he was in a food court. Slouching down into the chair, he wondered what the rest of his gang had decided to put their minds to that day. He assumed Sanzu had found something involving guns and roped Takeomi into it as well, smirking because he knew that Takeomi had played before. Kokonoi had likely found something involving money, and The Haitani brothers honestly were talking up a storm about Dance Dance Revolution before they even arrived. Mochi and Kakucho were the two members of the group he wasn’t quite too sure about. He made a mental note to ask Kakucho when they boarded the bus again later that day.

“Alright, here are the first few, careful though, because they’re extremely hot.” The employee warned, setting a tray in front of the light-haired man, “I’ll keep them coming.”

Mikey reached forward and grabbed one of them, mentally noting that his hand was burning, though not exactly caring as the gratification of the taiyaki was going to be worth it in half a second. He bit in and leaned back in bliss. He was elated as he continued to eat through the pile of confections, completely losing track of time. He inwardly began to feel that the Russian death metal car ride from hell was worth it, and so was having to deal with Sanzu complaining about everything. And so was-

“Mikey, are you okay?”

He wanted to snap his neck.

Sanzu stared at the fair-haired man, who looked as though he had passed out in his chair, only for him to lean back up with a menacing stare slowly, “I’m fine.” He said coldly, taking another angry bite of the taiyaki.

“O...Oh…” The pink-haired man replied, nodding his head nervously as he backed away, “That’s a lot of taiyaki there.” He pointed towards the ever-growing pile of confections.

“I know. They’re mine.” Mikey responded as he finished the first, licking his lips and picking up another, “Where is everyone else?” He questioned as he bit into the sweet and bitter flavor of matcha.

“I saw them a couple of minutes ago; they’ll probably be here in a minute...Takeomi is smoking.” He informed the other, omitting the absolute ass-kicking he had received.

As if on cue, the group walked into the food court; however, the mood quickly changed as Kokonoi held up his phone, “We need to go, one of Ran’s fangirls posted them on their Instagram; and we need to get out of here,  now .” His eyes narrowing.

“Why are we blaming my fangirl for this? They’re just as much of Rindou’s as mi-OW” Ran once again getting elbowed in the side by his brother.

“We wouldn’t be in this mess if you didn’t name drop both me and yourself, so now you’re  really  more useless than Sanzu!” Rindou scolded him, “And you’re supposed to be older than me!”

“I’m RIGHT here!” Sanzu replied, raising his hands in exasperation.

“Cry me a river Sanzu, oh wait-” Mochi snorted, laughing at his own joke.

Kakucho grinned, “Mochi, that was surprisingly good coming from you.”

“I know, right. I surprise even myself sometimes.” The brawny man beamed.

“I hate all of you.” Sanzu huffed, crossing his arms.

“We hate you too; now let’s get going before we have to shoot our way out of a fucking arcade?” The long-haired blond replied in a haughty tone, motioning for the exit.

“Mikey, get a to-go box,” Kakucho suggested to the blond sitting at the table, eyeing the remaining taiyaki sadly.

“I’ll leave them.”

“Shotgun!” Sanzu yelled as they exited the arcade, Takeomi making eye contact with him and shaking his head.

“There isn’t even a passenger seat. What are the drugs hitting you that hard?” Kokonoi questioned him with a laugh.

“I’m assuming the cops are coming then?” Takeomi asked as he fished the keys to the bus out of his pocket, starting to walk with the group.

“ Oh yeah, Ran and Rindou are Instagram famous; Koko show him.” Mochi snorted, shaking his head in disbelief.

“Why is it always...fine.” He attempted to argue as he pulled up the post on his phone, revealing a video with nearly 500 likes and 130 comments.

“Wait, I didn’t see it yet!” Ran yelled as he ran over to Kokonoi, smushing his head in to see, “Wow, I look good… Rindou does, too, of course.”

“Shut the fuck up, you cretaceous period cretin.” Rindou hissed, flipping him off from afar only to have Ran run after him.

“Stop running in the parking lot!” Kakucho yelled, shaking his head, “I swear to god…”

“You have to admit, though, it was a good time.” Mochi stated with a smile, “We should do this again.”

“Alright, everyone, get on the fucking bus, or I’m leaving without you,” Takeomi yelled, hopping into the driver’s seat.

“And who died and made you king?!” Sanzu yelled only to smack his head on the roof while boarding the bus, causing Mikey to snort from a laugh uncharacteristically.

“Wait, did Mikey just laugh?” Kokonoi asked, genuinely amazed.

“I made Mikey laugh!” Sanzu cheered, patting himself on the back.

“Wow, if only we could hurt you more...then maybe we could restore all of his emotions…” Takeomi whispered to himself.

“What was that?” Sanzu questioned, leaning forward.

“No, nope, nothing.” Takeomi lied badly.

“That’s what I thought,” Sanzu replied with a smile, sitting back in his seat, Takeomi groaning and reaching for his pack of cigarettes only to realize there weren’t any left. He sighed heavily, leaning back into the cushion of the driver’s seat and staring up at the tattered ceiling. It was going to be a long drive home, huh.

---x---

In Toyko, the conflict with a group named “Bonten” intensifies...However, they seem to have a soft side too…

It was once again a Wednesday, except this week Sanzu Haruchiyo was on time, and there were no off-topic discussions. Instead, all that was discussed was saving Bonten from the PR nightmare the Haitani brothers had created for the gang. And, of course, the now planned hit on Howie Mandel. However, the damage was done, and the gang’s reputation seemed to go from “dangerous and deadly” to “upcoming idol group.” However, Mikey didn’t seem too troubled by it, though it wasn’t exactly possible to tell what he thought until it was too late.

Takeomi sighed as he once again lit a cigarette, staring off into the distance, “Here’s to another fucking Wednesday.”

[b0nten]

POLAROIDS & CIGARETTES

[SYNOPSIS] ˚⁀➷｡ them finding out you have a polaroid of you in your phone case

[NOTES] ˚⁀➷｡ ran sanzu and hakkai being goofy

hakkai

bro is SO excited

literally the happiest man alive

he just wanted to see what the time was and next thing he knew he was hit by a sudden rush of euphoria, happiness and everything positive

my guy looked at you like you had just commited the BIGGEST, MOST SINFUL crime ever

“what’s wrong, hakkai?”

“are you REALLY asking that 🤨?”

“….”

“UR PHONE CASE IS SO CUTE☺️☺️!!!”

and then he kisses you

literally so wholesome

would URGE you to take another pic for him to keep in his phone case.

boy adores showing you off

speaking about showing you off,,

i think his photo would be REAAAAAALLY similar to yours or maybe even a re-enacted version of yours

matchy king

the photo is of you two on your anniversary, at tokyo disneyland. it’s so pretty — the sky is dark and there’s fireworks dancing on it, and the castle’s towering behind you. you and hakkai are wearing matching mickey and minnie mouse ears and you’re holding a giant koala plushie that the won for you at an arcade. it’s the most beautiful picture ever, especially because you’re both laughing and oozing out that same happy energy through the photo!

ran

ALSO SO EXCITED

HE’S SOOOOO SMUG ABOUT IT TOO

like “what’s that you got there. y/n😏?”

“oh, this?” you lift your phone and show him the back “it’s a polaroid we took when we went to West Walk”

unlike hakkai, he doesn’t keep a polaroid in his phone case, only because he tried to but somehow lost it :(

he likes to show it off SO MUCH THO

like, when he’s with friends every 10 minutes he’s like “btw did you see this cute pic of me and my queen?”

LOVE THAT FOR HIM

get urself a man like ran

the photo is one of you in a bigass fitting room in saint laurent, looking SO extra.

bonus: you actually have two polaroids, the second being one of you two fooling around in a department store.

the picture is of you two, and you’re sitting in a cart, while he’s the one pushing it.

also, both of them are SURELY mirror pics. i will not argue or elaborate.

another bonus:

years later, when he works for bonten, he comes up randomly to you and tells you to get dressed. then, he takes you to West Walk into YSL and you guys take photos like the two cuties that you are. then, he tells you to put it in your phone case. before you leave, you have him unknowingly recreate the department store photo that he STILL doesn’t know of.

sanzu

first things first

let me start by describing the polaroid

your polaroid consists of a drunk, blurry selfie you took with your boyfriend when the two of you had one too many drinks.

he’s leaning against a brick wall on the street, struggling to light a cigarette. he’s got one leg propped up, the other fully out in the street, and his white hair is messy. he looks so grumpy too 🥹🥹

then, in the opposite corner, there’s you! your face is so zoomed in and blurry but your contagious smile ia still noticeable, through the crinkle of your eyes and very very stretched skin around the mouth from how hard you’re smiling (since the mouth can’t even be seen)

i think it’s cute

actually really cute

he’s not really of the same opinion as i

but that’s ok! we don’t care!

“ Y/NNNNN WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCKKKK”

^ his first reaction

then he actually started panicking

“what if your parents see this?”

“my parents live an ocean and plenty of kilometers away”

“YEAH BUT STILL”

you try to reassure him that the picture is very nice and you’ve actually gotten a lot of compliments on it

“PEOPLE REALLY SAW IT????” now he wants to crawl into a hole and die

almost goes into septic shock when mucho sees the picture and points out that it represents your guys’ dynamic pretty darn good (doesn’t say anything bad or laughs maliciously, genuinely think it’s cute)

[fic-dumpster]

Okay okay but imagine doe hanging out with bonten and she sees a cute stuffie in one of those claw machines.

But but but

The best part imagine bonten trying to win it for her, but they all lose the whole time. Koko just gets so upset and buys the whole claw machine for her

Can we pretend I didn’t take a whole year to answer u 😔💕

HAHSHAHHAS THEY ALL LOOSING JANDJJA DANI YESSS 😈😂💕 || DIH

Yes, they made Koko go and change some bills.

Kokonoi Hajime, Bonten executive, and his jingling pockets.

Yes, they tried to get the plushy.

Key word: tried

after many attempts from everyone’s part, Koko goes to talk with the owner.

Rindou takes his jacket off and wraps it around his fist, and… tries to break the plastic-like-glass machine.

It does not work.

Sanzu rolls his eyes and calls Rindou an amateur.

Sanzu proceeds to pull out his gun (with a silencer) and shoots

*glass breaks*

Kakucho and Ran start pulling out the stuffed animals.

Sanzu mocks Rindou.

Children in the establishment see a group of grown men emptying a claw machine.

Someone calles the police

Kokonoi came back after paying the owner for the machine, only to see the disaster Sanzu, Rindou, Ran, and Kakucho made.

Mikey ordered Sanzu and Koko to do something, and they took the Haitani brothers with them, leaving you in the car with him and Takeomi.

The sound of police sirens alerted you. Turning around, you saw the four missing Bonten members bolt out of an arcade—arms full of stuffed animals as a police car veered around the corner.

“GET IN THE CAR!!” shouted Rindou, holding three hello Kitty plushies and four blue elephants, struggling to open the door.

Like an avalanche, four bodies clashed in the back seats—Rindou’s leg hanging from the window.

“DRIVE TAKEOMI! DRIVE!!” Screamed Ran as he threw the monkey and snake plushies to the back.

Takeomi, without asking any questions, did as he was told.

“Here,” Kakucho handed you a baby whale.

“Oh, thank you... But I wanted the tuna fish,” you said.

Four groans filled the car, “Takeomi! We're going back!” Sanzu said, hitting his head on the back of the driver’s seat.

“No, you didn't,” murmured Mikey. He was sure of what animal you had pointed earlier, and everyone was struggling to get.

“Hmm,” you hummed, “I’m sure it was a tuna fish, Mikey,” a fit of giggles left your mouth.

“You’re evil,” Takeomi commented as he saw his brother and the Haitani brothers drag Koko back into the arcade.

Meanwhile, Mochi had to distract some police cars so that they could get the stuffed animals.

[ewitsren]

#@! HARUCHIYO SANZU AS YOUR BOYFRIEND

pairings : haruchiyo sanzu x reader

cw/tws ⚠️ : toxic relationship, drugs, nsfw

requested : no

#SANZU

first of all, sanzu ain't boyfriend material. let's face it, a relationship with him would be toxic as fuck :(

makes you question his sanity a lot </3.

gaining his trust is not easy at all so it probably took a long time for you two to get together but once sanzu let you in it was all worth it. he slowly started to open up to you as you accepted him for who he is.

you're the only person sanzu doesn't wanna manipulate, use or lie because he knows you'll stick with him till the end no matter what.

sanzu is overly affectionate behind the close doors, he's always touching you somehow (whether it's his fingers on your neck, hands resting on your back etc) he never leaves your side when you two are alone bcos he tries to make up for the times he's not there.

i don't see sanzu as a guy to go on a cafe or picnic date so prepare yourself for arcade, shooting range, scape house etc kinda dates. the simplest date he'd agree to is watching movies at home and going shopping.

he sucks at racing games but will cheer up if you treat him an ice cream after </3.

as much as sanzu wants to keep you out of bonten shit, he talks about what's going on with you to update you on how he's doing mentally.

he talks about killing people so easily that it makes you worried sometimes, tho you get used to it because it's sorta a weekly occurence.

"so i took the bastard's organs out and slashed the other one. ya know it's no big deal, just sum usual shit."

love confessions when he's drunk >

"shit." sanzu muttered as he clumsily wrapped his arms around your waist and rested his head on yours. "c'mere babygirl."

sanzu pulled you closer to himself, you felt his pink hair brush against your forehead.

" 'm sorry 'm so fucked up." he sighed into your hair, gently squeezing your shoulder.

"i swear i'm trying, i'm fucking trying. i love you 'n it's fucking hard loving someone."

100% takes you to club whenever he goes there. he just sits and watches your body move along with the music. watching you curl up your hips and mess your hair drives him mad, he grins and keeps his eyes on you all the time. (if anyone dares to approach you, they're dead now.)

takes you on late night walks when you can't sleep </3.

lets you kiss his scars </3.

unlike everyone else i can see sanzu randomly saying he loves you, he'll blurt it out like it's no big deal. he doesn't feel the need to pour his love into words tbh but he knows it reassures you so does it anyways.

probably has tricked you into taking drugs multiple times just to see how you would act when you're high.

sanzu is okay with you harmlessly flirting with other guys once in a while but if you ever cheat on him he'll kill you, we all know how he responds to disloyalty.

if you tease him in public, he'll grin and whisper lewd things in your ear while pushing his fingertips on your neck

texts you in the middle of the night when he's high and asks you to pick him up

cuddles with you, does your hair, takes you on a walk by the beach and goes shopping with you when his soft boyfriend mod's on.

nsfw !!

now as for the sex part of your relationship, sanzu never goes easy on you.

hard dom

blood kink, knife play, choking, exhibitionism...

he loves it when you cry under him, your tears and sobs get him going. he moans into your neck as you scream his name with tears streaming down your face and he overstims the fuck out of you.

sanzu's open to anything you wanna try and talking about sex is so casual for him, has no shame </3.

his fingers are wrapped around your neck as he pounds into you, calling you his doll and talking about how good you take him </3.

loves it when you beg him to fuck you.

leaves hickeys all over your body

100% would fuck you in public. his fingers would slip into your panties and find his favourite spot, enjoying the sight of you biting your bottom lip while trying to control your reaction.

bites your pussy when he's eating you out... sanzu loves the sight of your fist clenching the sheets and the feeling of your fingers pulling his hair </3.

yeah, sanzu's obviously not the best boyfriend but still he loves you in his own way

@ewitsren 's work, do not translate/repost on other apps and platforms.

[yokohamabeans]

Hello Yoko, I hope you're well! I really enjoy your blog and thoughts. I have a few questions if you wouldn't mind, one translation-related and two for analysis/hc stuff. First: re the Tenjiku folks, do they have different/specific speech patterns each or do they all more or less talk the same? Second: Mocchi was said to come from Kawasaki in 227, does that give us any clue about his socio-eco bg? Last: Kakucho said Mucho taught him "how to be a real man", what are your thoughts on that?

ANON Thank you for your lovely words! AND I DO NOT MIND AT ALL! In fact, I got really excited by your questions! I have a soft spot for Tenjiku/Bonten/Rokuhara members so they're always a topic of interest for me.

Disclaimer / Warning: You may have overestimated my understanding of the Japanese language and knowledge of Japan ahaha... I am still a learner, so please take my attempts at translations with a big fistful of salt! This is also an open invitation to anyone fluent in Japanese to jump in and correct me if I've gotten anything wrong.

Alright, here goes!

On: Tenjiku Speech Patterns / Mocchi & Kawasaki / Kakucho’s Relationship with Mucho

1. Speech Patterns of Tenjiku Members

This one’s hard for me to answer because I don’t have a native grasp of the language, so I’m very likely missing out on a lot of nuances / slang in their speech patterns. So far, to me, it doesn’t seem like there are any particular differences in the way all members speak. They’re all speaking roughly and impolitely, the way anime boys are typically portrayed to speak hahaha. And even though Tenjiku is from Yokohama, they don’t seem to speak in an exaggerated ‘Yokohama accent’ where ‘jan (じゃん) is often used as a sentence-final particle. I guess this is because most Tenjiku members are said/implied to be from Tokyo, except Mocchi. Even so, Mocchi and the other Tenjiku mooks do not seem to have any distinctive speech style or Yokohama accent. Then again, accents can also come from the intonation as well which we can’t hear from manga. Maybe any linguistic differences may be more apparent in the anime? (Anyway, I don’t think Yokohama accent is as huge of a thing as other accents like Osaka-ben. I believe people who live in Yokohama mostly speak just like Tokyoites.)

TLDR: Tenjiku members don’t seem to have any distinctive speech patterns between each other (or even in comparison with the general rest of the cast). Then again, I could be wrong about this.

2. Mocchi & Kawasaki

Hmm, I'm afraid to say that we simply do not have enough information about Mocchi to conclude his socio-economic status.

Firstly, Kawasaki is a city, not a district like Roppongi, so the scope is entirely different. Because it is a city, there are varying levels of wealth across all sorts of wards and areas in Kawasaki, whereas Roppongi is a particularly affluent area in a city. Therefore, it's hard to decide if someone's rich/poor just by knowing they're from Kawasaki, but if someone tells you they’re from Roppongi, you can kinda assume they're rich.

That said, Kawasaki is generally considered to be cheaper to live in than Tokyo, or even Yokohama. And because of its convenient location and close proximity to Tokyo, it's a good option for people who work in Tokyo but cannot afford to live there. Kawasaki, especially its southern area, is industrialized and home to many factories since the post-war period. In the past, the city had more factories and somewhat had a reputation of being an industrial / 'blue-collar' area, so people had the impression of it being a rough place (i.e. home to more ruffians, less safe, less clean). However, this has changed in recent times with de-industrialization. It still has many factories, but it's also become more residential (especially in the northern areas) and contemporary, with many tourist spots like museums, so I don't think people still think of it as a 'rough' place. I’m just sharing what Kawasaki’s like in case you wanna make any guesses about Mocchi based on it! (Fun fact: I've been to Kawasaki for a quick stop at their famous arcade (Anata no Warehouse), and found the immediate area around the main station to be really chill! It had a suburban feel to it.)

Back to Mocchi; perhaps if Wakui-sensei had told us where in Kawasaki he is from, we could have more of a clue. BUT! In the manga, Mocchi is simply said to be from Kawasaki, though it did not specify if it's Kawasaki the city, or Kawasaki the ward in Kawasaki City. I guess common sense tells us he meant Kawasaki City, but IF we ASSUME that Mocchi is from Kawasaki the ward too, we can perhaps squeeze something out about his background? Kawasaki Ward is home to one of the largest ethnic Korean populations in Japan, with its own Koreatown. Perhaps, PERHAPS Mochi might have Korean blood in him, from this fact? Many Zainichi Koreans (permanent residents/citizens of Japan who are ethnically Korean) adopt Japanese-style names, so it's not impossible that Mocchi has this heritage even though his name is Japanese. Zainichi Koreans were historically discriminated in Japan and could only mainly take on 'undesirable' jobs (like construction or gambling), so socio-economically they were not high up on the list. Some Zainichi Koreans also turn to crime and criminal organizations, which could perhaps provide some context to Mocchi being a delinquent? I feel like I’m reaching for straws here though. Please let me emphasize that Mocchi being Korean is not my conclusion or personal HC. I am only LIGHTLY TOYING with the very vague idea that he might be, haha. It's better if you just disregard this whole spiel, really!

TLDR: We simply do not have enough information about Mocchi to conclude anything about his socio-economic background, or even his background at all haha. I'm sorry to disappoint, anon!!

3. Kakucho and Mucho

Oh it certainly does seem that Kakucho’s relationship with Mucho is one of his more positive and healthier ones!! That scene where Kakucho stopped Mucho from stabbing Angry/Takemichi with a knife in Chapter 164? It’s brief but quite revealing about their relationship. I know you’re only asking about one particular line, but I think there’s more to be said about the whole scene so I hope you won’t mind me rambling about it too! Let’s break it down:

Firstly—“You taught me to be a man among men.”

In Japanese, Kakucho says: 「アンタから漢を教わった」 the meaning of which is what’s conveyed in the translation, so I don’t have much else to add.

In case you were wondering: the word for ‘man’ used here, 漢 (otoko), is slang for ‘manly man’, someone who is tough, strong (both in terms of personality and physical power), courageous and honourable. Basically, the traditional image of masculinity. Kakucho by nature is an honourable person, even as a kid he thought it was wrong to gang up on others (Chap 165). Therefore, I’m sure that in Tenjiku, he would’ve gotten along best with Mucho, who also holds strong moral values of honour and is portrayed as the ‘elder brother’ type. Mocchi also seems to value honour in fights, so he’s another person who could be on friendlier terms with Kakucho, but Mocchi is comparatively more chaotic and battle-thirsty than Mucho haha. I personally think Kakucho didn’t interact or hang out with the Haitani’s or Shion as much because they seem to be sneakier and generally not so respectful in disposition, so Kakucho probably disagreed with their views. Also, Tenjiku!Kakucho seems to have a particularly strong ‘tough guy’ vibe in his appearance and dressing, so he could also have been influenced by Mucho in this aspect.

Secondly—“I don’t want you to be ruined by Tenjiku.”

In Japanese, Kakucho says 「アンタまで天竺に染まるな」, which honestly is kinda hard (for me) to convey the nuance in an English sentence that is grammatically correct, haha. Instinctively and immediately, this sentence strikes me as “Don’t be tainted by Tenjiku. Not you too.” I’m not saying this is how I’ll translate it, but more like the impression I got from the line.

The fan-translation is more or less correct I suppose, though I feel that ‘tainted’ is closer to the original than ‘ruined’. It also doesn’t highlight that Kakucho is saying 「アンタまで」, which means “even you”. This implies that to Kakucho, Mucho is the pinnacle ‘good guy’, who the corrupting influence of Tenjiku should not reach. This further implies that Kakucho views Mucho differently from the other Tenjiku members, which provides more evidence that after Izana, Mucho was most special to Kakucho within Tenjiku. (Lmao sorry Ran!)

Thirdly—Kakucho’s pronoun for Mucho

In English, the pronoun ‘You’ just means ‘You’, but in Japanese, there are several ways of saying the pronoun ‘You’, and it can show what the speaker feels towards the person they’re addressing.

As of Chap 247, Kakucho generally uses Omae (お前／オマエ) and Temee (テメエ), depending on who he’s talking to and his mood at the moment. (This is the same for the rest of the TR boys (and Senju), and is typically the norm for most male characters in animanga.) However, it is only with Mucho that he uses Anta (アンタ). They’re all rude ways of saying ‘You’, but this is how they differ:

Omae (お前／オマエ) - This pronoun is generally considered to be very informal and rude, though it’s used by boys and men for people they know who won’t mind it, like close friends or spouses/partners. I’ve also heard it used by superiors to subordinates in workplaces. Kakucho uses this with Izana and Takemichi, or when he’s in a neutral / positive mood. 

Temee (テメエ) - This pronoun is considered to be derogatory and more vulgar than Omae, so please don’t use it with anyone you know haha. It feels like a word a guy will use on someone he wants to beat the crap out of. Kakucho uses this when he’s mad / hostile, such as with Takemichi (when he was being spiteful about Takemichi not understanding his bond with Izana), Takeomi and Mikey.

Anta (アンタ) - Out of the three, Anta is the least rude. Boys and men also use it with people they’re close with, and I feel that it’s more acceptable to use it with elders you’re close with (like parents) as opposed to Omae. Women sometimes use this too with their husbands, though it may come off as more admonishing. It’s generally still very informal though, and if you use it on a stranger you’ll sound like you’re picking a fight. Nonetheless, between the three, Anta is the most ‘respectful’. Kakucho has only used this for Mucho (not even Izana), so it further insinuates that Mochi had Kakucho’s respect. (Kakucho hasn’t been shown to use the ‘you’ pronoun on other Tenjiku members yet btw.)

You hear second-person pronouns in animanga like Omae / Kimi (君) a lot, but in real life, Japanese people tend to avoid using it and prefer to simply refer to the other party by name. Even the neutral / formal Anata (あなた / 貴方) should be used as little as possible when speaking to someone. This link here explains the differences in the ‘You’ pronouns used in animanga really well, if you want a deeper understanding!

Bonus: I noticed that Ran referred to Hakkai as Otaku (おたく) when they were starting their fight in Chap 156. Otaku (おたく/お宅) is an old, respectful way of saying ‘You’, but Ran used it playfully (Ran uses Omae for other people). And yes, Otaku also has the entirely different meaning of a person who has obsessive interests haha.

Lastly - Mucho’s Relationship with Kakucho

Again, the only interaction shown between them is when Kakucho stopped Mucho’s knife. In the fan-translation, Mucho says “Get out, you shit” but in Japanese, he says 「どけクソガキ」, which translates better to “Out of my way, damn brat”. To me, Mucho calling Kakucho a brat highlights the age difference between them. Knowing Mucho and his inclination to be the ‘big brother’ type, he probably saw Kakucho as another youngling he could take under his wing, or at least be a role model to, like Sanzu. 

We don’t know exactly when Kakucho was introduced to the S-62, but based on the S-62′s jail term and ages, I’d say that Kakucho met them when he was 13-14, and probably only had a year or two with them before the Kantou Incident. So it’s not like Mucho was there to guide Kakucho through his formative years like Izana, but I think because of how ‘manly’ and ‘big-brotherly’ Mucho was, and how Mucho at his core was a good guy, Kakucho looked up to him the most and was most definitely influenced by him in some way. 

In addition, Mucho was one of the most shocked people around when Kakucho stood up to Izana. Attention was specially given to his thoughts about it: 「誰より忠誠心の強い、あの鶴蝶?!」/ “The one whose loyalty is strongest [to Izana], that Kakucho?!” I’m sure it’s very clear to every Tenjiku member how loyal Kakucho is to Izana, but from how Mucho found it so incredulous, it kinda implies that Mucho knows Kakucho’s feelings on a deeper level than other Tenjiku members, perhaps? 

TLDR: After Izana, Mucho was closest to Kakucho in Tenjiku, and Kakucho looked up to Mucho a lot. 

-

And so, here you have it! I think I ended up being... not so helpful in answering your questions about Tenjiku speech styles and Mocchi, but I had lots to say about KakuMucho hahahaha. IT WAS SO FUN ANSWERING THIS ANON!!  THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTIONS!!! If you have any more, I’d love to answer them! Especially if it’s about Kakucho hehehe

I hope you have a good day/night!!

[takenyoomies]

-Master List-

•Fanfiction•

Longer Fics

A Tenjiku Birthday (Tenjiku Group Fic)

Bonten Abbey: (mis)Adventures to the Arcade

Cold Brew & Carburetors Masterlist

I Have It Under Control (Takeomi's Cats Part 1)

I Wanna Hold Your Hand (HanKisa)

Kick 'Em Out The Classroom

Takeomi's Cigarettes

Takeomi’s Day Off

Your Life Through My Eyes (Baji's Mom + Baji)

HCs

Bonten Airport HC

Bonten Goes to the Racetrack...kinda.

Listening To Their Character Song (Part 1)

What Ice Cream Would They Get From DQ...

•ReaderxCharacter•

ReaderxCharacter Fics

Bandages Won't Fix My Lovesickness Part 1 (MuchoxReader)

Bitter Kaku Decoration (Kakucho x Reader)

Summer Birthday: Chifuyu (ChifuyuxReader)

The Lighter Things In Life (Hanma x Reader)

There are Other Ways to Stay Warm(RanxReader)

Ask Box Requests

If You Were Sick... (Sanzu x Reader)

Life With Terano South (SouthxReader)

Senju’s Umbrella (SenjuxReader)

100 Follower Event

LOVE is a Word I Never Learned To Pronounce (Hanma x Reader)

Counting Stars (Koko x Reader)

HCs

Bonten Airport HC

Bonten Goes to the Racetrack...kinda.

Listening To Their Character Song (Part 1)

What Ice Cream Would They Get From DQ...

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