#i just know haruka and nishiki are not having it most of the time

[ocrukoji]

credit for that one picture

[designernishiki]

as much as a i understand and respect ace kiryu truthers, i really feel like kiryu is the type to really take the idea to heart that sex is something vulnerable and meaningful and thus reserved for someone completely trusted and special to him– someone who feels right. after years and years he’s still never legitimately voluntarily slept with someone, always tries to turn women away or is at least apathetic when they try to get physical with him, never feels that deep and specific bond with a woman– nothing compared to some of his bonds with other men throughout his life. and maybe, hopefully, one day it’ll hit him that there’s a pretty big, glaring reason why no women have ever felt “right” to him.

[fabiansociety]

How do you interpret Kiryu’s sexuality?

Ah, the real Yakuza rorschach test! "Interpret" is right, because the games are a real hot mess of subtext and text, so it's definitely something that each reader of the series has to figure out for themselves, and you can make a case for just about any interpretation, particularly as you shape it through play.

Personally, I read Kiryu as a homoromantic heterosexual asexual, if that makes any sense? his relationships with men are usually the deepest and most passionate from an emotional standpoint, with the obvious standouts being nishiki, majima, and rikiya, but he also has similarly affectionate relationships with side characters like Pocket Circuit Fighter and shinji. he enjoys spending time with women, but it's almost always heavily ritualized and paid for through hostess clubs; none of the hostesses you talk to in the games come back, with the exception of yuki and koyuki, who he knew as coworkers rather than romantic partners.

he does sleep with women, but he's increasingly uninterested in pursuing sex as the series goes on. by yakuza 5 or 6 or so, he's much more the prize for the hostesses rather than the player — that is, he will sleep with them if they offer, but he doesn't particularly want to. in general kiryu has a very difficult time saying no to sex with people, even if he's not particularly interested in it, and seems to approach it as a man's duty rather than a passion the way shinji did. his approach to sex is utilitarian and voyeuristic, and primarily a biological need to fulfill. he does enjoy a certain amount of peeping — see his enthusiasm for gravure, webcams, and hot springs ping pong — but when his interactions with women move away from friendship or camaraderie he gets increasingly uncomfortable. it's notable in Infinite Wealth that he can name only two important romantic relationships with women in his life, both from decades prior, and he never actually dated yumi or kaoru. his affection for them is as symbols rather than as people.

in any case, i don't think kiryu thinks of himself this way. i think he knows he's put off by sex and doesn't really think about why he gets so particularly flustered when men flirt with him and not when women do. he was happy to devote himself to his jobs as a yakuza, as a prisoner, and as a father, none of which gave him an opportunity to interact with adult women particularly. he remembers hot men fondly — he comments frequently on how hot haruka's husband is, and reminisces fondly about pretending to be a couple going to a love hotel with rikiya. what his sexuality might have been if all his romantic energy wasn't channeled into brawling at a young age is impossible to know, but like many a man before him, kiryu is invested heavily in rituals that let him touch the skin of other men.

[rnn11203]

Unpopular majima opinion (DV mention) : I have a really complicated relationship w majima.. i think really it’s fandom perception that bothers me the most. I despise the narrative people push about his “mad dog” persona, saying it’s “just a persona and hes actually a really intelligent and thought out guy”. I HATE when a crazy character is revealed to not actually be crazy and is like a mastermind or whatever, i prefer him crazy, and disillusioned. I also am so tired of the “more majima” “majima backstory” “majima gaiden” especially when DAIGO is right there?? (Look im not going to go into a daigo rant rn but to summarize it, daigo literally hasnt gotten his time 2 shine and i think a daigo gaiden (daiden lol) would work really well, like this guy has had SO many people try to betray him, i would love to see a game where he earns, no demands respect!) but anyways, back to majima, he LIKES to fight yk? He LIKES violence, he has NO problem being violent towards anyone, literally threatened haruka?? Honestly i think majima lovers try too hard to make their fav a “good guy”, honestly i think the entire fandom has a problem with insisting some characters are good people.. at the end of the day, their yakuza. They hurt people. Good people. Bad people. Innocent people. Not so innocent people. And i hate when people try to say that the whole park DV situation is “ooc” when really.. is it? At the end of the day he is a man and she was literally 17-18 so.... (and also just to add this i HATE when people are like “oh she was so mean to that guy he literally killed her” like wow a man killing a woman because she was mean to him? Are you serious?) i want to add that i DO like him as a character, im just.. exhausted by him ngl T_T also due to personal reasons i do feel a little sensitive about people denying the DV..like seeming nice guys are still capable of such a thing, but also i acknowledge this is entirely fictional so i dont think defending him actually makes u a bad person or anything, i sorta encourage ignoring canon facts abt ur fav anyways (mine yoshitaka is in the fish shack i just know it) in fact this is all just my opinion yk.. im not saying “oh ur fav is problematic” or anything bc yk.. my favs r mine, nishiki, and aoki so really we r same coin diff sides

[koorinokujira]

Yakuza Kiwami is an AMAZING game and I'll shove my love for it in everyone's faces now

So, I kinda realized I didn't make this post yet, and I literally finished Kiwami 2 yesterday, so... whoops? But no matter, better late than never, as they say! Spoilers below, like always, so keep reading at your own risk!

So, Yakuza Kiwami. I've actually seen a full playthrough of it a few years back, so I roughly knew what was waiting for me, but my memory is not my greatest strength, so I luckily forgot most of it. And honestly, even knowing some stuff didn't take away my enjoyment at all!

Now, I gotta say, playing this right after 0 was insane. It made my immersion so much better, and really made me feel things more strongly. I was violently dragged out of the relative peace I got after the whole fiasco with the Empty Lot, the familiar streets with shops and minigames I knew and loved into a new, unfamiliar version of Kamurocho along with Kiryu. It was rough- a lot of things stayed the same or at least similar, but there were enough differences for it to feel like a mockery of all the things Kiryu held dear. He was lost in a place he used to know intimately, and that really got to me, because I had just finished the previous journey with him and Majima.

And slowly unraveling what happened to Nishiki and seeing him fall so far from the bro we used to know genuinely hurt. Especially knowing that he wasn't a bad person before and that he was a sensitive soul that got completely crushed by the circumstances in his life.

As for the story and characters in general, I loved it, it got me in the feels and I was hooked the whole time! While I still think 0 is the best from what I played so far, this story was also amazing. Majima going all out in all the fights and with costumes and disguises, Date-san being an incredibly pathetic man and father who pulled through in the end and sorta sharing that with the Florist, Haruka being a little badass, Reina's tragic, misguided love... there was so much that I adored about this game, and the characters in the main story never really fell flat for me. It also made me love Kashiwagi even more, I just love it when he's there. And the ending was pretty heartwrenching too, though I wish it focused more on Nishiki's death than Yumi's, as I felt their brotherly bond ran way deeper than Kiryu's relationship with Yumi. But that's just my opinion, I still cried and thought it was pretty solid!

Then there are the sidequests. Hoo boy. I have to admit, I didn't really like those that much. They just lacked the spark that the ones from 0 had, and seemed somewhat repetitive in their themes. And there was of course also those very questionable ones. Of course, there were some pretty good ones too! And I had a blast in the whole Pocket Circuit saga, I love Fighter with all my heart.

Speaking of Pocket Circuit, the minigames were still really enjoyable, but I really missed Disco, to be honest. I wish you could groove in a club somewhere at least. The Karaoke gave me whiplash because it was so different (post Yakuza 0 immersion strikes again), and I hated the new version of Heartbreak Mermaid. But I have to admit, I absolutely loved Iji Sakura 2000 and definitely sang it way too many times.

Gameplay was pretty good too! I didn't really like some changes to the fighting system, but overall, it was still really enjoyable to punch everyone in close vicinity. I learned to use Dragon Style a lot more, in 0 I barely used it even though I had it. Tiger drop is spectacular, I will never sugarcoat anything ever again. The upgrade system took some getting used to, but it ended up being my favorite as it was more clear-cut and it was mostly stuff I'd actually use. The Majima Everywhere thingy was pretty fun most of the time! It could get a bit tedious to find specific Majimas, but I got through it like a champ.

So overall, amazing game as the title says, and I will also make another post with some funny screenshots for this game soon! Thank you for reading, and like always...

Have a great day!

[overdevelopedglasses]

Tojoctober Day 9 - Fear

(I don’t have a telepathic heart)

Alt title is from “Telepathic” by Starset

Haruka has a nightmare.

(Kiwami spoilers, takes place in between Kiwami and Kiwami 2)

—--------------

A gunshot. Kiryu cries out in pain. 

“Kiryu!” Jingu shouts, somehow conscious and alive. He points the gun at Kiryu, ready to end his life. Haruka throws herself in front of him, ready to protect the one man who’s helped her all this way.

“Haruka!” Kiryu shouts. A second gunshot goes off. Haruka’s vision fades…

Haruka wakes with a start. Heavy breaths work their way through her, and she starts to shake, wrapping her arms tightly around herself. Why did she have to remember that guy? The awful man who took her mother from her, and almost ripped her world apart just when she got a grasp of it.

She saw the guy get stabbed and then blown up, so why was she so scared of him?

Haruka swings her legs out of bed and starts creeping towards the main room of the apartment she's in. As she walks into the space, the windows letting in just a fraction of moonlight, she sees the slumbering form of the only other resident here.

"Uncle Kaz?"Haruka whispers quietly.

The form on the futon shuffles, and a lamp turns on. Kiryu, shirtless and bleary eyed, sits up and stares back at Haruka. His voice is a bit deeper than normal, but still carries the soft tone he always uses with the girl.

"What is it, Haruka?"

"I, uh…" Haruka stops for a second, suddenly hesitating. Was she really going to admit that she's scared of a man she's pretty certain is partly rubble?

"Trouble sleeping?" Kiryu asks.

Haruka shakes her head.

“Nightmare?"

Haruka hesitates again, but then nods. Kiryu turns and sits on the edge of the futon. With the added lamp light, she can easily see the intricate design that adorns his back. The vibrant colors almost make the dragon pop out at Haruka, not to mention that the tattoo was a bit frightening the first time she had seen it. But, now the dragon houses a much more tender protectiveness within it as well.

Kiryu pats a space next to him on the futon. “Come here."

Haruka walks over and sits where Kiryu indicates she can sit. He places a hand on her back, gently rubbing small circles into her. The motion soothes her mind a bit. A comfortable silence falls between them before Kiryu speaks, his voice not as groggy as it was.

“I get them too."

"You do?  A beat passes, and Haruka asks, "What are they about?"

She worries that she's upset Kiryu before he finally responds. As he speaks, she looks up and sees him a bit lost in his own mind.

“Worst case scenarios of memories, most of the time. Sometimes they're fantastical. There was one where this thing," Kiryu moves his hand away from the girl's back and uses it to pat his own, “It grew out of my back and ate me whole. Made me delay finishing it for a while," he admits sheepishly. 

Haruka giggles a bit, but then yawns. Uncle Kaz sure had some silly dreams. She feels his hand return to the small of her back.

“Do you dream of people who aren't here anymore?"

“Yeah. Do you remember Nishiki?"

“Mhm."

“Well�� I had a dream about him the other night." Kiryu says. "He… he said he was proud of me, actually." It might be just him being tired, but Haruka thinks Kiryu's voice cracked a little as he spoke. 

“That's nice." Haruka responds, not knowing what else to say. 

“Yeah…"

A beat passes. Kiryu lets out a huge yawn, and Haruka suddenly feels a bit of guilt. She did just wake Kiryu up and then proceeded to ask him about his bad dreams. A little bit of childish fear washes through her.

“Are you mad at me for waking you up?"

“No, of course not! In fact, I'm glad you did." Kiryu's head turns, and makes eye contact with the young girl, his eyes softening almost immediately.

“I care about you a lot, Haruka. And not just because I loved your mother. In fact, I…"

She sees him take a deep breath, regaining a slight bit of composure. 

“You're important, ok Haruka? And sometimes it's okay to ask for help when you think you need it."

Haruka looks at her uncle. She yawns again. The relief and surge of love she just felt is quickly replaced by drowsiness. 

“Can I sleep in here tonight?"

Kiryu chuckles. “Sure thing. Do you want to just take the-oh, I see." He's cut off by Haruka grabbing onto his arm, holding it tightly against herself. “Alright, I get it. Come here."

Kiryu wraps his free arm around Haruka, and picks her up to shuffle back into a lying position. She giggles and then sighs as she's placed onto the futon. Her back is against his chest, and she's still clinging onto Kiryu's other arm like a koala, essentially pinning it to the bed. His free arm reaches and turns off the lamp before wrapping around her stomach.

“Is this comfortable?"

Haruka makes a noise of agreement. Kiryu shuffles down briefly and kisses the top of her head.

“Get some sleep, then. Goodnight, Haruka."

Haruka feels Kiryu's chest rise and fall against her, a rhythmic pattern that feels calming and safe. 

“Good night, Uncle Kaz."

I love you too. she thinks, but is both too tired and nervous to admit out loud.

As Haruka drifts to sleep, all she can feel is the warmth of Kiryu enveloping her, her fears born from her mind completely forgotten.

[squishylemonbubbles]

How about some of your favorite KZMJ headcanons? :Dc Or favorite tropes you like writing the most?

OOH MAN the hard questions!! ty!!! >:3

i love focussing on goromi and kazumi bc of those genderqueer feelings. i went on that rant the other day PFFT but it can be really hard to find characters that have a mixed/gnc presentation that aren't just treated as a joke, which. don't get me wrong, that is how goromi's introduction is treated, yet she's also given the hostess routine with a genuine conversation, which is. more than most i've seen lmao.

i think it's hard to come across online bc you don't see any of my physical mannerisms or my inner thoughts in their purest form, but my masculinity and being a man are extremely important to me - as well as my femininity, my being gnc, the days where i like settling down as a "cute girl" while never being solely that. soooo i love putting a focus on gender, presentation, the rules and what it means to break them. i will infect everyone in this series with gender if i have to (<- joke lmao)

i also love like… the interplay of majima and kiryu not necessarily taking care of themselves all the time, but absolutely putting it in for the other, and the kinds of tension that can bring when going too far to help. i do think i write kiryu in crisis more than majima - that's less trope preference though and more seeing myself in his problems a bit clearer than majima's, giving me more perspective to write from, and some of kiryu's troubles (or like, hypothetical troubles lmao) being lesser explored in my eyes

uhh hmm specific headcanons.

kiryu and majima both know JSL, but ironically it's majima who knows less - between them majima is the one with hearing problems, being another one of his complications from the hole, and another that he tries to hide. meanwhile, kiryu's generation in sunflower included a deaf kid, so it was ensured the caretakers and other kids would know at least the basics. nishiki and kiryu in particular took to becoming conversational, using it between themselves if they needed to keep things quiet, quickly flash each other a code, the works. so kiryu and majima use JSL together, not as much as speech, but it can help with keeping things quiet, or alternatively, when one of their brains is on the fritz lmao. both of them have times where they lose their speech, usually from stress, so it's nice to have signs to fall back on. (however, they can't use JSL to keep secrets from haruka, as she's learning it too!)

kiryu has kleptomania (impulse control disorder; the urge to steal is disconnected from one's thoughts on the morality of stealing, and even liking stealing at all), majima knows this, so sometimes he leaves around trinkets/straight up gifts to give him the thrill of stealing without the consequence. if he needs something back he knows he can just ask and kiryu will return it, and he trusts kiryu not to lie and say he didn't steal something when he really did.

if kiryu had to pick one favourite physical trait of majima's, it would be his face. but okay, let's say he's not allowed to do that and he has to pick any other part of majima's body? he'd say majima's back. he loves his irezumi and what it represents, not only for its intended symbolism, but also the numerous scars both physical and mental that his irezumi try to hide. he would spend hours focussing on the hannya if he could, comforting her to comfort majima in the process his next favourite trait? majima's hands. no further comment.

if majima had to pick one favourite physical trait of kiryu's, it would be his tits. this would, in fact, be a little bit of a lie. he likes the comfort of hearing kiryu's heartbeat - sometimes he has trouble feeling like he's still alive (hence my take on the zombie majima persona; it's not always a fun act) so getting to hear kiryu's life helps. but that's more embarrassing to say than just saying tits, and i mean, they are a good set of tits regardless hehehe his next favourite would be kiryu's arms. he loves that strength and, on a sappier note, those hugs.

okay i am now thoroughly brainfarting on any more to say at the moment WHOOPS 💖

[nyxqueenofshadows]

so officially finished kiwami 2, majima saga aside which won't take long. ignore how this isn't a screenshot, this was easier

i'm just gonna dump the thousand words or so of thoughts i put in my fic doc here for posterity and anyone who might get a kick out of reading them. lots and lots of messiness, vague spoilers for rgg online plus one itsy bitsy reference to the stage play

hot take that there were maybe some redeemable elements in the last bit (mainly all the times kaoru and ryuji talk to each other) but so much of it is so fucking stupid and full of HE WOULD NOT DO THAT (mainly kiryu). idk. i don’t hate it but it needed some work

interesting things learned tho, ryuji didn’t expect to live long, he says he made it further than he was expecting. as we now know from rggo, he already knew about his jingweonha connection and was actively ignoring it (which is why terada marks him for death in the first place. slot han in here?) and remembered the night where his father died (despite being like 2 at the time, at most). kiryu also reiterates that he sees nishiki in ryuji, which i think is fair (and the stage play people clearly agreed). ‘the least i can do is honour a man like that’ is an interesting attitude to have. also ryuji is like ‘i see why my sister fell fer ya’ which is not quite the japanese line (ish) but it’s also not the straightest thing he’s ever said. ryuji also very clearly would have doted on kaoru quite a lot, if they’d lived together as children or otherwise, and i really think we missed out on seeing more of them. maybe i’m just soft for that kind of thing.

i feel like a more interesting conundrum would have been both ryuji and kiryu being wounded from their fight, delaying it again (cos they’d done it once no reason not to do it again) but neither are moving the way they should and (believing the bomb is real) kaoru has to pick one to carry and one to leave behind. (maybe halfway down the stairs or smth?) it wouldn’t be especially original but it would make more sense imo. her going down the lift does nothing but slow her down (ig she has access to the controls and doesn’t use them for hashtag drama reasons) which i don’t think fundamentally changes her position that much from before the second ryuji fight. it also gives her smth to fucking do that isn’t just crying and grabbing fences and doing that dumbfuck charge that i don’t think she would have done (her gun hadn’t gone far! then again i have hindsight and am thinking clearer than she is). anyway kiryu pushes her to take ryuji (guilt over nishiki?) and locks them in the lift thingy and sends them down, fully ready to die now. his and ryuji’s wounds mirror each other but i feel like kiryu got the shorter end of the stick? plus he was shot slightly earlier so has been bleeding for longer.

i cannot say this enough, kiryu would not leave ryuji. like, he just wouldn’t. if there was even a chance he was still alive, he would make sure he got to someone or he would at least try. he’s at his most inactive in cutscenes in kiwami 2 (i think) and it’s frustrating as a player asdfghjkl

ALSO if sudo and date and haruka went to the effort of preparing and going up in that helicopter, why didn’t they also prepare a rope?? or smth to rescue people who were on top of the tower???? they clearly knew there was a bomb up there (beforehand or not is unclear but we don’t see them have a conversation about it) and want kiryu and co. to leave. (and not MAKE OUT ON A ROOFTOP they were really going at it huh, ryuji’s ?corpse? is right fucking there guys oh and goda jin’s? he sort of vanishes from that last bit)

also it would have been kind of funny if, while there was still that ten minutes, everyone sprinted for the stairs and made it down and they’re waiting for the building to blow and when it inevitably doesn’t they’re all just standing there checking their watches like is it late? did smth break? who wants to be the sucker and go check? can we call an ambulance for the two idiots? majima is down in the construction yard i think so he’d probably send nishida, maybe?

idk kiryu has no interest in kaoru to me. he treats her no differently to anyone else aside from the two times they kiss, both of which feel very out of character for him, and that romance subplot takes away any and all girlboss power kaoru had. she went from beating men up and threatening them with bokuto and shit to like, i love man, so sad. (they knew each other like a week!!!!!! and they’re dying for each other!!!! give me a break!!!!!) that’s not to detract from the awful fucking week she has of learning who her family are (some racism in there??? i’m not qualified to speak on that, maybe it’s just the gang thing, ) and then watching literally all of them die one after another. except mama, she’s fine and never appears again. it’s very much aiming for a ‘she can be a ‘woman’ (i.e. be emotional and like cute things and not try and match the locker room attitude of the men) and also take names’ but it doesn’t succeed at that at all. from kiryu’s conversation with her on their little date thing (which is cute, i’ll give it that) he was telling her to be true to herself, right? it's his go to line. which suggests that her kicking dudes in the face a lot and working incredibly hard (she’s a prodigy, in multiple fields! this doesn’t get explored enough) is NOT her true self, the one who plays with teddy bears and falls in love is. which, again, not that those two things can’t co-exist, but the game doesn’t allow them to either. just, ah. more wasted woman potential in a yakuza game. yayoi gets the same treatment :((( you gave me two step on me yakuza ladies and dropped the ball on both of them, come on guys. hopefully she gets to live a little in 8.

[uncleardyn]

📓 :3

its time for. the "nishikiyama and kiryu both go to jail" au! i probably should think of a better name for it

honestly the whole concept of the au is right what it says on the tin. instead of fleeing soon after kiryu arrives in the aftermath of shooting dojima, nishiki gathers himself long enough to remember the events at the end of yakuza 0 and argues that kiryu should take yumi and get out of there, which devolves into them arguing about it, mostly nishikiyama saying that he shouldn't just let kiryu take the fall for him, which means they uh. are both still there when the cops show up and both end up being placed under arrest.

they immediately both start pointing fingers at themselves as the murderer, claiming that if the other one is claiming to do it, they're trying to cover for the other. this lack of clarity at who actually killed dojima, combined with the fact that both kiryu's and nishiki's prints are on the guns, leads to both of them ending up in prison with the exact same charges. date finds this especially frustrating, since he knows one of them has to be the actual murderer, but there's little to no indication of who it truly is.

in the aftermath of their arrests, yumi dissapears soon after being released from police custody. nishikiyama, from prison, tries to get a message to kazama to ask him to look after yuko, although this responsibility seemingly gets passed on to kashiwagi, and even then only because kiryu also sends a seperate message of the same nature.

so 10 years later, the two of them get out of jail! yumi is still missing, but yuko is still alive at the very least! but she and nishiki have fallen out of touch during his stay in prison, so she isn't in kamurocho. but the two of them, unsure of what to do really, return to kamurocho, escorted by date, to see what has changed. the two eventually vow to find yumi and help her if she needs it.

most of the first yakuza just ends up playing out, with, of course, the Major Exception of nishikiyama no longer being an antagonist and having the story instead be two middle-aged men trying to figure out What The Fuck is going on at all times. honestly the plot gets a little uh. Blurry for me mentally after the two get out of jail bc i sometimes forget what the actual plot of yakuza 1 is and how'd i need to restructure it for this to work properly but also wow haruka how come you get two ojisans.

idk theres a lot of stuff about kiryu and nishiki being able to grow together, reforging lost connections and making new ones, learning that the people you look up to are very imperfect and how good friends help you overcome your perceived weaknesses. also the infinite power of fucking around with your bro

[iri-vail]

alright i finished gaiden and i need to scream

I MISSED KIRYU I MISSED HIM SO MUCH AND NOW HE'Ll BE GONE! I know he'll be in infinite wealth but...i don't think it will be the same. Feels like gaiden sent him off with a bang, and infinite wealth will finish the job.

I love this series' handling of tone so much. like, gaiden was 0 levels silly again, and kiryu was at his most uninhibited yet i think? But seeing him this defeated, it really hammered home again and again how over the course of the series, we've watched everything get taken from this man. and i haven't kept up with the promos for infinite wealth, but it seems he'll die soon, too. It's insane how real this man feels at this point, i've spent so much time playing as him, have seen so much of his life...

I really love that they included yumi and kazama again! I kept reminding myself, all of that happened in what, 2005? 20 years, and he still has that ring. He still sings that song for Nishiki, which I totally made Akame sit through again and again, because someone other than me needs to remember my brother!

The song for Haruto was also so great, and of course, everything else with the kids... the finale was heartbreaking, Kiryu getting shown just how much of their lives he's missed. I really hope there's gonna be some kind of reunion or Something, because I couldn't take it otherwise. Also, I need justice for Haruka! I need to see my daughter again, she was barely in 6, too, rgg let me see her!!!!

Hmm what else. I really loved the combat! And I'll miss it. I know there's the spinoffs that will stay action focused, but there's really nothing that can replace a Kiryu rampage. Tiger Drop my beloved.

I loved the characters they introduced and I'm glad they didn't kill them off. Nishitani and Shishido were amazing.

Oh yeah MY MAN DAIGO! My boy. The way he kept glancing at Kiryu, disbelieving, almost shy. He's such a wet blanket still, but with a backbone of steel, I'm so glad he got to see Kiryu again. I hope they'll get a proper goodbye. There's a lot Kiryu has fucked up during his life, and I'm glad gaiden at least touched upon that with his speech to Shishido, but I think he Really has shit to make up to Daigo. I hope they'll get that moment.

The last boss fight was amazing. Reminded me a lot of the showdown with Ryuji in 2 or the finale of 5. Though I don't even remember that guy's name, yakuza 5's last fight felt so gritty, so all out no holds barred violent, and gaiden managed this again. The game was a lot more violent in general I think? Or maybe I'm remembering wrong, but there were several moments where I couldn't believe they actually just did that. The whole execution scene for one, Nishitani being stabbed, something else I can't remember right now. It was good! It really made it feel like Kiryu had lost all faith, all idealistic notions towards this life, and was defeated enough to just go along with it. I loved his freakout when Nishitani "died". I can imagine a younger Kiryu who would have beaten Shishido and Tsuruno half to death for that.

Overall, such a great game. I think I had as much fun with this as with 0 and 6! At the same time, it's made me feel...queasy, kind of empty and unsettled. I'm honestly amazed at what they've created with these games. Sure, they're not perfect and some are better than others, but overall it's been such a journey. I played the first of these games in 2019, started with 0 and worked my way up, so this feeling that we're heading towards the end, that Kiryu's story and maybe his life will end... I don't know, it's unsettling.

I liked 7 well enough but the combat especially didn't really click for me...so I'm curious how I'll like infinite wealth. I've played the demo and....it's interesting, but I'm not fully on board yet. Anyway, that's it for rambling. I am emotionally exhausted and will go to bed now....

[woundedheartwithin]

In honor of this somehow becoming my most popular Yakuza fic, and being my 8th most popular overall (out of 78 total fics over the 7 years I’ve been on ao3), I wanted to give a little extended cut of sorts by posting, well, the rest of it. Because it was originally part of an AU that I was playing with and ended up not liking, the beginning of the fic, or how Kiryu and Majima ended up in the alley to begin with, got axed. So here it is! Full thing under the cut!

—

Blood shared, souls bound, tethered by an oath sworn in darkness. Together, indomitable. Invulnerable. Inseparable.

In their world, kyodai means more than brother.

—

He feels the bond thin, but they both know it takes more than words to truly break it. Words can stretch it, pare away the strands, weaken it until it feels as though it might break, but a bond forged in blood and shadow can only be dissolved in the same. Treachery of the highest order. Blood must be spilled, by one kyodai or another. Murder or suicide, the oath cares not for semantics. But neither of them are ready to cross that line. Neither of them are ready to sever the tether that binds their souls.

Renouncing the bond hurts like a punch to the gut, but nothing could compare to the real thing.

When Nishiki sacrifices himself for them, Kiryu can feel the flames licking at his flesh, can feel the impact of the bomb’s shockwave, can feel his body fly apart. And it hurts. Hurts like he’s dying as the tether frays and snaps, recoiling and sending him reeling. He exhales, long and hollowing, coughing as his heart stutters in his chest, and the agony that rips through him as Nishiki dies is the worst he’s ever felt.

Nothing else could ever compare.

How could it?

What could possibly compare to his soul shredding to pieces, irreparably damaged, tattered, rent beyond recognition?

It’s not a clean break. Kazama had told them as much when he’d explained the process. They’d be bound forever, their souls unraveled like thread and knitted back together, as inseparable from each other as they are from their own bodies. Only death could tear them apart, and death could only come at old age, at one another’s hands, or at their own. And if the other half survived it, they’d never be the same again.

Torn. Vulnerable. Human, for the first time in nearly 20 years.

To Kiryu, it feels like all his guts have been ripped out of him, leaving behind a charred shell, desperately going through the motions just to feel something. Anything.

Briefly, he thinks about stepping out into traffic on Showa Street, and recoils in horror at the mere idea of putting his kyodai through the pain of his death until he remembers why he’d thought to do it in the first place.

Haruka tries to help. Date, too. But they don’t know what it’s like. How could they, so far removed from his world as they are?

And then he comes across Majima Goro, the object of his frustration for days now, and if not for the older man’s own bond keeping him firmly in the land of the living, Kiryu is certain he would have killed him right then with his bare hands. Not out of any form of hate or want to kill, but because he’s so angry, so hollow, so utterly torn apart that he has to take it out on someone.

He wipes the Mad Dog’s blood from his hands and bitterly wishes Majima had taken mercy on him and put him out of his goddamn misery.

And he knows the older man could. Maybe Kiryu had managed to edge him out in strength before the disaster atop the Millenium Tower, but a bonded man is always stronger than a torn one. Even one with a tether as thin and tenuous as Majima’s is with his own kyodai. Majima had let him win, whether he’d admit to it or not, but Kiryu can’t find it in him to hate the other man for it.

“I’m sorry, Majima-niisan.” He says miserably instead, and the older man huffs and sits up from where Kiryu had laid him out on the pavement. He wipes the blood from his nose with the back of his hand and grins, his tongue sneaking out to taste it.

“S’alright. I get it.” He says simply, gathering his long legs beneath himself and rising, more graceful than he has any right to be after losing a fight. “I feel it, ya know. When Saejima thinks about how I betrayed him. When he thinks about killin’ me. It don’t compare, I know, but it still hurts. S’how I know he means it.”

“It feels like—“ Kiryu starts, never any good at sorting through his emotions, never really having any words to describe how he feels even to himself.

“Like yer dyin’? Worse? Like yer already dead, just waitin’ fer yer body to catch up.” Majima supplies, a knowing smile settling on his features. “If ya wanna beat on me s’more, I won’t mind. Whatever makes ya feel better.”

“I don’t want to hit you anymore.” Kiryu murmurs, and the older man sighs and puts a hand on his shoulder.

“Let’s go get a drink then, Kiryu-chan. My treat.”

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: 龍が如く | Ryuu ga Gotoku | Yakuza (Video Games) Rating: Explicit Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Kiryu Kazuma/Majima Goro Characters: Kiryu Kazuma, Majima Goro Additional Tags: Plot What Plot/Porn Without Plot, Alley Blow Jobs, Dry Humping, Humiliation, Finger Sucking, Come Eating, Facials, Dirty Talk, Grief/Mourning, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms, Implied/Referenced Character Death, jfc basically kiryu blows majima in an alley and then humps his leg okay, Yakuza 1 Spoilers, one shot Summary: Humiliating. Better than misery. Better than emptiness. It’s something, and Kiryu clings to it like a life preserver. – Or in which Kiryu just wants to feel something other than loss and heartache after losing his brother, his first love, and two of his dearest friends all at once, and Majima is happy to oblige.

–

Full fic under the cut

…I don’t have any excuses, I just wanted to write some nasty smut

Keep reading

[vergilberg]

i'm not in yakuza mode right now, which is unfortunate bc i love Happier Than Ever'verse! so have some fuckin . snippets or something 😭 im literally only capable of writing dialogue for this AU

[id: Haruka — “I buried you! I buried you, and I thought you were dead, and for the longest time I thought you were never going to come back and right when I started accepting that, you did. I just — I can’t do this anymore. I can’t keep seeing you leave and come back like it’s nothing, because it is something - to us, to me. You’re here but, to me, your feet are still in the grave. And you — you won’t let us pull you out of it.” /end id]

-

[id: 1969 is not the year of the tiger, but it is the year that Shintaro Kazama meets Futoshi Shimano /end id]

-

[id:

“It’ll be less if we leave now and if the police aren’t looking!” Sohei laughs, “you know how I drive.”

What was it Sohei used to say? He drives like how he fucks: hard and fast? Ugh. Shintaro was going to die.

/end id]

-

[id: If Kazama, Nishiki, and Yumi are dead, then Kiryu is a ghost - lingering too long around their graves, in the early morning mist and the light smoke from the burning incense. In a more literal sense, it’d be easy to mistake Kiryu for some kind of spirit, with his longer, greying hair, and tired eyes - not to mention the fact that, legally, he is supposed to be dead. /end id]

-

[id:

Shimano — “Look at this place. What the hell are you doing Kazama?”

Kazama — “You won’t — you won’t understand anything even if I told you.”

Shimano — “Really? Try me. Explain.”

Kazama — “An orphanage —“

Shimano — “Yeah, I know—“

Kazma — “For - for the children of … of those I’d killed. I … figured I’d save them. Give them a chance at life, and, you know, I could try to be—“

Shimano — “Try to be what? A good person?”

Kazama — “I … yes. Yes. To be a good person.”

Shimano — “Hah. That’s fucking funny. You think just … taking them in is gonna erase the fact that ya killed their parents in the first place? Ya think you can just…. atone fer yer sins by helpin’ the people ya hurt?”

Kazama – “What did you want me to do?! Abandon them?! Leave them to the wolves?! Is that what you wanted from me?!”

Shimano – “Nah… that’s not it. What I wanted was fer ya to own up to your shit, Shintaro. Ya think yer doin’ good, do ya? Ya think yer a good person, doin’ all o’ this?! Well, yer wrong.”

Kazama – “At least I’m better than you are. You probably would’ve killed them too.”

Shimano – “Nah, this isn’t about me. Now – are ya? Are ya really better than me? At least I have the fuckin’ balls to own up to the horrible shit I’ve done fer the clan. You – yer tryin’ to be noble to cover up the fact that yer a goddamn murderer. Bein’ noble doesn’t mean shit if ya ain’t got anything to back it up, and ya sure as hell don’t. Not with how ya keep yer hits all hush-hush nowadays.”

Kazama – “What are you trying to say then? That you’re the good person between us? That you’re noble? Don’t make me laugh. You – you revel in the blood, the violence, the death that we live in. You’re a fucking monster.”

Shimano – “Yeah? Well, yer not a good person either, Shintaro. I dunno how ya got it into yer head that ya were, but yer fuckin not. Yer a yakuza – we are yakuza – but yer hands…. they’re bloodier than most. How many people have ya killed? And how many o’ those kids of yer’s aren’t gonna know their parents ‘cause of you? Some o’ them? All o’ them? There ain’t a difference - not in the world we live in. Spilt blood is spilt blood, all th’ same. Ya have the damn gall – the nerve – to say I’m a monster? I have some fuckin’ news for you then. Yer a monster too, and I ain’t gonna let ya forget it.”

/end id]

-

[id:

Majima — “What’s worse, d’you think?”

Saejima — “Hm?”

Majima — “What’s worse? Th’ fact that he keeps leaving or… the fact he keeps coming back?”

Saejima — “Hm. Yer accent’s slippin’.”

Majima — “My — for god’s sakes, just answer the damn question.”

Saejima — “Sometimes people jus’ come an’ go like that, Majima.”

Majima — “And him? You call that just ‘coming and going?’”

/end id]

[kingzephy]

I have to drag this to a text post cuz my reply is getting way too long and I wanna put these together!!

@slothfuljeremiah @nowhere302

A8 - Favorite song(s)?

Ohhhhh strap in I have a lot of songs to talk about. Gonna break this down by game. I decided against doing any of the karaoke tracks cuz that would be its own big list by itself!

0 - ‘Pledge of Demon’ (Kuze’s theme from the sewer tunnel fight) is sooooo good I think most people would say thats probably the best track from 0

I also absolutely ADORE ‘For Buddy’ (Nishikiama’s ‘For Who’s Sake’ remix from the Nishiki Majima fight) it has a completely different vibe from ‘For Who’s Sake’ and the significance of it is so good. It somehow makes ‘For Who’s Sake’ even sadder.

Honorable mention to ‘Receive You the Subtype’ remix (Majima’s mad dog style battle theme)! And the Telephone Club minigame tracks also slap

1/k1 - Is it cheating if I say ‘Receive You the Prototype’? Although I have to say, the k1 remix of ‘For Who’s Sake’ (Nishikiama’s theme from the final battle) is SO GOOD. So good...

Also… how could you not love 'Funk Goes On'?? Get Fuuuunky

2/k2 - HUUUGE FAN of ‘A Scattered Moment’ (Ryuji’s theme that plays during the final battle of 2. Its absolutely amazing, not at all what I was expecting his theme to sound like but it *perfectly* encapsulates him and the desperation and pain and sadness of the final battle in 2. One of my favorite tracks just overall.

3 - ‘Fly’ (Mine’s theme) is. Really good! I think just about everyone would say this one, I can’t really think of anything else from 3 that I would note soundtrack wise

4 - ‘Receive and Bite You’!! Majima’s receive you remix in this game is really good. So much tension leading up to the Majima Saejima batting cage fight. It hypes me up Every Time and its just very Him

5 - I thiiink im gonna have to go with ‘So Much More’ (Haruka’s…. Theme? I guess) it was stuck in my head the whole time I was playing her stuff in 5. Her other songs are good too ofc but if I had to pick one it would be that one. I know, loophole. Whatever 5 is different

6 - I really really like ‘Theory of Beauty’ (Joongi’s theme). Idk it just gets me so pumped up every time. Songs to get naked and fight to the death in the underground bdsm fight ring underneath Stardust to. Iconic. 10/10

I also really love ‘Destiny’ (Someya’s theme) its similar to how I feel with ‘A Scattered Moment’. It encaptures him and his struggle so well.

7 - Big BIG fan of both Majima and Kiryu’s receive you remixes from 7, ‘Receive You the Hyperactive’/‘Receive and Turn You’, and ‘Rolling Eyes Fall Down the Dragon Wall’ of course. Both of them are just incredible.

I also really LOVE ‘Confrontation/Brutality’, (Sawashiro’s theme) it just perfectly captures what he’s about as a character so nicely, I love him a lot. Plus it slaps incredibly hard. I think overall 7 has my favorite tracks. All the battle themes are also very good

C9 - What was the most emotional scene in the series?

This is TOUGH. Theres sooo many gut wrenching emotional scenes and these games are really REALLY good at them sometimes. Im gonna have to say something from 0 probably, that game made me cry several times on my first playthrough. So many memorable emotional scenes, but I think im gonna go with the ending. Without spoiling too much I think anyone whos seen it knows exactly what im talking about. This or the scene in the empty lot after a certain characters death (you know the one)

Honorable mention to y3 and the thing w Rikiya. yeah

D1 - Who’s the most overrated character?

First off before I say this, I really dont think ANY of the characters in this game are overrated. I stewed on this for a while, I just cant think of anyone id call truly overrated. But. Listen. Okay I cant believe im gonna say this everyone knows I love him so dearly he is my everything- but it’s Majima? I guess? I really don’t wanna call him *overrated* per se thats not the right word because he deserves all the love he gets, but he is just. so. He's Inescapable. I almost feel bad for anyone who likes these games but doesnt like him because hes quite literally everywhere- and. hes not even in the games that much!!! I quite literally cant think of any other character I could possibly say here

And its not that hes overrated, hes a fantastic character and hes SO fun to think about and analyze I love him dearly more than anything but he just blows everyone else out of the water? No contest. Its amazing. Theres just no other character quite as beloved as him in this fandom. For better or worse.

E4 - Ramen or Takoyaki?

Literally go fuck yourself. Dont pit two bad bitches against each other like this. An impossible question. Id rather die than answer this for real

F3 - Who are you inviting to karaoke?

Majima! Duh!! No question, he’s just TOO much fun- no other character has even half as much of a blast as him at karaoke. Irl I would be WAY too shy to do something like that around anyone but I think doing karaoke w him would be SO much fun and it would make me laugh like. A Lot

A5 - Favorite final boss(es)?

Im gonna be boring and say Ryuji because I love him, and he deserved so much better and that fight is so devastating. But I also really enjoy the final battle in 7, not because its particularly tough or entertaining its just the story significance of it is really cool. I wont spoil anything about it but I enjoy it!

Also. Honorable mention to Nishiki of course. I have to say him as well Rook brings up a good point tho…. final battle w Majima in y5 also..

Feel free to ask some more!

[kulemii]

I wasn't sure whether to ask here or your other blog as this is the blog that made the RGG questionnaire? I'd thought i'd ask you some questions of your own post!! A.3, B.1, B.4, C.9, D.9 and F.7!!!

i betcha forgot all about this ask huh? well, i didn't- thanks to me leaving this one baking in my ask box since march i decided to start this shit up again today so i'd have an excuse to finally answer you after all this time lmaooo. hello saiiii, please forgive me! 🙇🏾‍♀️

A.3) Favorite protagonist(s)? Majima- I was so mad that I had to play as this man after I fell for Kiryu during those first chapters of 0. I really disliked him and by the middle of his first chapter I was already in love. Round of applause for Mr.Eyepatch man for breaking my 3+ year writer’s block slump. What a guy, that Majimuh! Haruka- Loved her as a protagonist almost solely based on how risky it was for RGG to create such a different form of gameplay just for her part and it was entertaining from start to finish. She upset me so much because Miss Girl, we don’t bow to these hoes. She really should’ve been able to fight. Ugh! Akiyama- He’s a sleaze but he’s a funny sleaze that goes Kicky Kick :) Honorable Mention: Kiryu- I mean, he’s alright. Like… Overrated as Fuck in my opinion. I mean.. And you know what though? That’s typically how the bullshit goes. Ya feel me?

B.1) Which character do you relate to most and why? I used to believe that it was Y0 Majima but after playing through the whole series up to 6, i realize that the real answer was Haruka! This one went one for a while but the "why" has been answered [here]

B.4) Who would you like to post more about but you don’t? Why don’t you? Oh, that's easy! Aizawa ^-^ I don't feel like I talk about him enough and i really should hehe 🥰 Jk. Umm, yeah last time I answered this, I said Majima and while I do believe that I wouldn't mind posting about him more I-- still think there's really nothing left for me to say. I've got such brilliant mutuals that can put their Majima thoughts into words in a way that I just cannot lol so i just, let everyone else have those conversations. I have been thinking about how I tend to keep my Reina obsession in private but i'm kinda tired of doing that- the reason why is pretty simple, the fandom ain't too kind to the ladies of RGG so to avoid those sorta debates I just keep between me and my moots. But, yeah fuck that. Reina deserves praise too! So be prepared for me to act mentally ill about my gorgeous wife. >:D Also, I feel like I could post more about Nishiki- i know that after I finished my Nishiki project I sorta closed the book and left him sittin pretty on my bookshelf because I channeled so much of my fascination with him into that project but I still love him so much. So, I should talk about him. Also, I feel like I could talk about--

C.9) What was the most emotional scene in the series? I don't now if I would call it the most emotional scene but it's certainly the freshest one on my mind- The Scene in 6 at the end when Iwami and that other bitch ass mf tried to murk Kiryu in front of Haruka. Hoooboy that was- I cried. Like, I ugly cried. Another scene that made me ugly cry, Nishiki and Kiryu in The Woods in 0. Another scene that made me ugly cry? Majima, Makoto and the watch. Another sce--

D.9) Any hot takes? (Something that might not win ya any new friends) I think my answer [here] remains my hottest take. I can't come up with anything else at the moment.

F.7) Who are you fighting on the Millennium Tower rooftop? Kiryu, I gotta teach this old man a lesson. Then, after that, I'm fighting the RGG writing team-all at once.

Wanna send in more? Questions are found [here]!

[twinvictim]

You've got all the ideas down really, now that it's not 4 am anymore a few more things bc I love to talk.

Kiryu sort of accidentally self-sabatoging is VERY good I think. Enough so that people dont really consider him as someone who's going anywhere unless he gets it together, because he clearly can produce results, and his family generally don't cause unnecessary problems, but he isn't trying most of the time. At least to the point that people have their doubts about if it wad a good idea to let him have power in the first place, though they don't say it, and again nobody would know why bc Kiryu won't tell anyone anything. Hearing this very likely would aggravated Nishiki at least a little bc it sure sounds like he's half assing everything and getting away with it and Nishiki knows he's capable of better than that.

I definitely don't think Nishiki would take up a fatherly role quite as earnestly as Kiryu, and I don't think he inspires that as much in Haruka, but the vibe is definitely "who is this kid, would you leave me alone" to "she's my friend. I guess." To something akin to 'older brother'/ sort of uncle vibe. I do think Haruka's kinda rude vaugly 'sassy' vibe she had early on before she learned what manners were would translate into reminding him alot of Yuko even if it's clear Haruka just doesn't always get when things are rude instead of purposefully teasing.

And yeah! To some degree it would follow some of the events of the game, Shimano having hands in a bunch of the Bullshit TM, Sera being killed etc, only of course you have both Kiryu and Kazama working against him in some respects, so natrually he tries to use Nishiki against them but Nishiki kinda just tells him to fuck off which starts more drama. So while he's making some attempt to rebuild his life while grappling with feeling genuinely abandoned and hated by people as well as dealing with Shimano trying to drag him back into a bunch of shit, where even Majima just tells him hes kinda fucked either way, And just who is this little girl anyway? And RE: Date, I think it only makes sense there's some animosity there. With Kiryu he's convinced for, no reason, that he's actually innocent and covering for someone, but Nishiki isn't, and won't tell him why he did it. Their relationship is just Date popping up every time he does something sort of out of line and threating to take him back to jail. (Prompting Nishiki go avoid him, lie to his face when he doesn't have to, and ask him when the last time he talked to his daughter was and if nothing gets him in trouble mouthing off to Date definitely almost does.)

Anyway those are most of my vibes, some of the plot is a bit ? Atm bc yakuza plots are always confusing to me but :) it's there anyway

hello!! i want to hear EVERYTHING about this!! aus with Nishiki usually go for a "happier" route, so making his situation worse is... an interesting take to say the least lmao. i need to know: is yuko still alive in all this or does she die and Nishiki just. doesn't hear about it until he gets out of jail??

Oh you have activated my Bullshit TM hehe. Don't get me wrong I love making things better for him, and even this au eventually would do that but not before it gets Way worse, sort or just expanding on all the implications of Nishiki serving those ten years. Truthfully it's like the worst option of the three outcomes of the situation. Forgive me if this is incoherent it's like 3 am right after work and also forgive me for shelling my various theories like "nishiki makes so much more sense if he has feelings for Kiryu" and "trans masc swag" readmore bc I can't shut up

To answer the first question, as much as I really want Yuko to be there as a character bc i feel like she could add some interesting dynamics and really a potential voice of reason based on me making shit up about her, I feel for this au it makes more sense that she still passes away. Possibly earlier this time as Nishiki obviously isn't around to try and save her as fervently. But I still feel like she would have an impact in a way, at least with how Nishiki sees the world and the people around him. Also for reasons I can't explain I feel like she was the only one of the 4 of them that just. Didn't really like Kazama, and Nishiki was the only one she would say this too, added doubt and such, added guilt for fighting with her about it bc he was so certain that Kazama did love him. (And also...does he though? Hmm)

Also a point I'll make, nobody even once tries to contact Nishiki while he's in jail except to expel him from the clan, and unlike Kiryu he doesn't even get the "Oh yumi is missing but we're looking for her!" Thing from Shinji. He just kinda, stops existing to everyone.

Also unlike Kiryu, he isn't some weirdo who just stares at the wall for ten years, I think despite it generally being very difficult and horrible he has a way of making some allies here and there, at least having friendly acquaintances kinda like Saejima in y5, he's personable and while it's not like he isn't really lonely it's definitely better than nothing. Also think he's generally smart enough to not let people know he killed Dojima bc it's rough enough already. Playing into the fact that everyone thinks he's a huge pussy (insert 10 years in the joint line here)

The first thing he does after getting out of jail natrually is trying to track down everyone important to him, it's not hard to find Reina and she is one of the few people that hasn't changed In some way, she's definitely sadder for sure, but she's still here and still cares about him. In the time away she hasn't seen Yumi at all, but the handful of times Kiryu has shown up he says she's okay. She doesn't really know much more than that but considering Nishiki is homeless and out of a job she does just kinda force him to sleep there so she can attempt to help him, Serena Hideout as usual.

Thing is Yumi isn't missing, not really, supposedly she runs a bar just outside Kamurocho, but Reina's been entirely unable to find it, Kiryu's been exactly no help, it seems like they don't talk much if at all anymore and that Yumi mostly just wants to be left alone. (Bc Kazama doesn't feel like he should hide her from Kiryu like he did with Nishiki, since she didn't accociate Kiryu with all the trauma, and thus isnt scared of him, she's just sort of left to her own devices. I like the haircut and tattoo tho so I always keep it with her) I think Yumi is just weary, she can't forgive the clan as a whole for what it did to both her, and two people she cared about, and there's alot of complicated feelings about being raised into it with no choice in the matter. Feelings I think she's always had but tried not to think about, and now she has to contend with them in some way, or she should but doesn't. Bc she's still deathly afraid, unable to fully come to terms with her parents as well as the second shooting and it was better for her health for a long time to simply pretend Nishiki didn't exist. Kind of a default now bc the last thing she remembers of him is so traumatic its sort of inadvertently triggering to think about even the good things. The only thing she is sure of is she wants none of that for her daughter and if that means she has to miss the people she cares about than that's what it means.

Everyone still speaks highly of Kiryu of course, and natrually he does have his own family. He doesn't decend into any kind of violent spiral because genuinely people look up to and respect him, Kazama wasn't stacking the deck against him either bc why would he do that to his favorite child. really the problem is everything is kind of too easy and he doesn't see a point in it. Surrounded by yes men and people who see him as something he doesn't really want to be, and it's like he doesn't have to try. Mostly I think he's depressed bc he saw what being to close to the yakuza does to innocent people so he's cut himself off from his friends outside the circle, and everyone inside the circle is the same as theyve always been, and he just doesn't see a point in it all but keeps doing it because thats what he promised he'd do. Maybe he resents Nishiki a little bit for encouraging their shared dream, maybe he just hates that everyone forgot about him, and it just feels like something is always missing. He still can't seem to handle seeing Nishiki again though, possibly ashamed or scared. Maybe he doesn't feel like he earned the right to invite him into something that wasn't built with any kind of effort. And in the end he still failed to cross that line with him and maybe he's never forgiven himself for that.

But it's not like Nishiki or really anybody knows all that. So doesn't it just seem like yet another person abounded him. And this time it's the most important one.

Kashiwagi is interesting and stuck in a tight spot himself bc of the two pseudo parental figures they have he's the one that does genuinely equally care about them. But being that he is Kazama's right hand man, if Kazama doesn't want him to have anything to do with Nishiki than there isn't much he can do. It's not like Nishiki doesn't know or understand that, and it's not like Kashiwagi doesn't try, but he can really only do so much and it still isn't a good roll of the dice for Nishikis health either.

Haruka in this is kind of fun to speculate on. Natrually being that the (kinda dumb ngl) plot point about her father being Jingu cannot really happen or rather I don't think it adds anything, that only leaves us with Dojima being her biological father, and the only real change I'd that she's a couple months older honestly, so go with that. So being that Yumi is a working, single parent who's also horribly depressed and lonely as she no longer has a support system of friends, Haruka does end up in that Weirdly Mature for her age situation where she can to some degree take care of herself and spends time wandering town bc she's bad at making friends her own age. She's met Kiryu once or twice by 2005 but doesn't remember him much, (same goes for Kashiwagi who has tried but was met with Yumi telling him to let them be for their safety, which he understood even if he wouldve liked to know Haruka better). And due to the aforementioned Trauma Shit she's just never heard of Nishiki and doesn't know who the hell he is when she happens across him. Nishiki obviously doesn't know who she is either, just that she reminds him of someone, and while he's not really thrilled about some random fucking kid following him around bc she's bored it's not like he has many options as far as friends and she's kinda funny anyway, though it doesn't look great for a convicted murderer to just kinda hang out with somr kid thats not his but Date doesn't like him at fucking all anyway and the feeling is mutual so he and Haruka just duck around the detective when he's trying to bug Nishiki. He probably just has some amount of fun with her and she won't leave him alone anyway, and he gets the sense she's kinda lonely too.

And bc I'm crazy, Majima :). I think their dynamic could be fun, mostly I think that when they don't have a mediator or they're both doing Very Bad mental health wise it's some kind of vauge self recognition through the other turned what if we did alot of coke, turned what if we just fuck and hit eachother with chairs. Majima everywhere 2! But not bc he wants to test his resolve or something but bc he finds that irritating Nishiki is really goddamn funny, and I think a part of him is really curious about why he did what he did, bc while people had speculations neither Nishiki nor Kiryu ever confirmed what exactly happened for Yumis sake. I think Majima also just finds him interesting in the 'nothing means anything" kinda way. At some point after being abandoned, snubbed, spit on, beat up, and even sort of erased out of both families he had, Nishiki reaches a similar 'I don't fucking care' scenario and Majima is an enabler, fully willing and able to help him indulge in life being pointless and nobody needing or wanting you around. But Nishiki also despretly wants to connect with someone in a genuine way and I think he's good enough at being just every so slightly manipulative and pushy in the right ways to sort of open Majima up too and that's a whole fucking thing bc Majima hates that. He's also unpredictable and does not want to be open or vulnerable in any way, so Majima also snubs him at times, blows him off or is outwardly mean. Not someone you wanna stake any bets on.

And finally as far as main characters that would play a role, there's Kazama. And boy howdy. Kazama for reasons I cannot get into now, I think feels mostly guilty when it comes to Nishiki (and to an extent Yuko) that he doesn't quite get from his other kids which definitely skews his favoritism. I think that Kiryu was so young, a baby of very young toddler, that Kazama was happy to easily mold him for a long time (until Kiryu watches him kill two people that is, bc I think that really sent some genuine doubts that he'd never had before into motion bur I digress) he Kay as well have found Kiryu on the road. And I think due to her directly witnessing the violence, Yumi cannot really remember much without panicking except that Kazama was there and she needed him. For various reasons I think there was something about Nishiki that told Kazama that he not only ruined this child's life (in my own hc about what happened very nearly killed him and yuko also) but that Nishiki still didn't need him to be successful or happy or whatever and that really rubs Kazama the wrong way, both bc he can't calm any of his guilt and bc it hurts his pride. So to him, Nishiki going away to jail and simply not existing other than a name uttered with scorn or mockery was fitting. He wouldn't say that for sure, he'd never admit that his pride and sense of usefulness was hurt, but it was. Still I think there is something in him that cares about Nishiki, despite their contrasting personalities and the more cold additude he always gave him compared to the other kids, he does to some extent love Nishiki and he doesn't really like that. Flies in the face of him being in control of everything. Nishiki comes back and he doesn't try to go out of his way to harass him at first, or make his life harder, but he doesn't really stop anyone from trying to attack him, nor does he ignore when Nishiki inadvertently gets somewhat involved in the clan drama or when he tries to find Kiryu or Yumi again. Only really speaking to him to tell him they'd be better off if he stayed away from them.

I realize this isn't much actual plot and just general Vibes of what I'm going for, as well as needless character analysis but I hope it's enjoyable anyway. I personally like it when things get really really bad for a character and then through sheer force of continuing to fight even if it seems pointless things get, just that little bit better bc they didn't give up and nobody refuses to give up completely quite like Nishiki. I can't say I didn't think of this as an excise to make Nishiki break down in tears again repeatedly but what can you I love when men cry. I'm sure I have more ideas for this but it is now. 4:30 am so! Another time! But I love fish boy I love to hurt him and then make him better.

[partylikemajima]

hope you enjoyed your bday! whenever you get the chance, can you answer the remainder of section C for the rgg game? if it's too many and you're not up to it, only answer the ones you want! <3

Thank youuuu!!!!!! its crunch time rn at uni sadly so didnt do much exciting stuff (≖͞_≖̥)  But omg hell yeah i’ll answer these!! procrastination for me at its finest at least it isnt me staring into space. btw idk if the spin offs are included in this so I just kept it to the main games. also kinda long so under the cut

C.1 What was the most infuriating moment?

Recently for me its something big that happened in Y7 im sorry lol I kept talking about Y7 but its just aaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhdilshilwnivw

C.2 Which game had the worst plotline?

Ok so saying Yakuza 6 has the worst plotline doesnt mean i hate the game, just wanted way more from it for it to be the last game focused on kiryu. I have my own gripe with Yakuza 5 because it felt all over the place before it came together but yakuza 6 to me felt like the biggest let down considering plot line overall just because so much felt missing from it.

C.4 Which character would you like to see as a protagonist?

Not sure if you mean playable protagonist or someone not really a main character so I’ll answer both ways lol why not

Playable protagonist I want Haruka again, because theres so much more they can do with her interactions etc can you imagine her fighting? learning from miss tatsu?? lol but more so more activities available to her

As a protagonist I want to see a story with Minami or Nishida or both heavily involved as main people in the story, I think sega has the potential to do that with them but i mean they failed a lot of other potentials loool Minami they spent time giving him such a cool design for only him to appear briefly in the whole series. Nishida has appeared so much more but I agree with others that he is the most puzzling how he got involved in the majima family AND hes a lieuntenant??? (btw looking at his model form Y2/Y5 he looked way cooler and sad in Y2 Kiwami i like that)

I hear a lot about rgg online but idk if its translated or.....

C.6 If you could revive any deceased character, who would it be and why?

Now we can say yeah Nishiki should be alive but idk thats a can of worms. Who should be alive is the someone from Y7 but I know you haven’t played it yet so we can discuss that when you have! ├┬┴┬|•⊖•)├┬┴┬|

C.8 What was the worst plot twist?

I think its been too long for me to remember how I felt when plot twists were revealed because now I only remember every reveal was like a plot twist in these games lool

I remember I didn’t like the reveal of Masato Aizawa and who he really is but reading up again about it i think its just the way sega executed it I didn’t like. On the wiki it sounds epic, my memory? not so much but again its been a while

C.9 What was the most emotional scene in the series?

I was very traumatised when they revealed how Majima’s eye was taken out, the way they animated it and the slow panning out as it happened was intense. I don’t think its the most emotional scene as there are many but its one i kept watching. My answer may change everytime I play a game again. Also a scene from Y7 comes to mind too.

C.10 Which game do you think should get a remake?

A proper remake, like Kiwami style, Yakuza 4 should be remade. Its such an epic game. The remaster is fine i guess i still need to play it but a remake like how they did Y1/Y2 is needed and i choose Yakuza 4.

C.11 Which character has the best taste in clothing? Who has the worst?

If you think about it, they all have pretty bad taste but majima does it pretty well to keep it consistent with his snake theme. The one who has the worst is uhh,, they all wear the same outfit most of the time id say that side quest guy who wears only underwear constantly in Yakuza 0 whats his name, if you compare all the characters to him then hes the worst

C.12 Whose voice do you enjoy hearing the most?

Idk if all the Yakuza games have dubbing but I always prefer the original voices for any media tbh (still remember my bro playing y1 in english it was hilarious)

So, Shin Oguri who plays Someya i like his voice. Idk if its because i loved the drama Hana Kimi so its a familiar voice but its niiceeee hella nice, love it. When Majima’s VA speaks in a lower tone, love it *chefs kiss*. Love Kaoru’s VA too felt strong but sweet. Makoto’s VA god she knows how to make me cry.

C.13 Which sworn brothers worked best?

Majima and Saejima for the win.

C.14 What dynamic would you like to see more of?

Akiyama and Hana!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Majima with his tojo family!!!!!!

KAORUUUUUUUUUUU WITH EVERYBODYYY

C.15 Who has the most tragic story?

Haruka. She didn’t ask for any of this. I mean listen none of them really did (young age, environment, upbringings) but even everyone is like protect the kid (or use her because she could’t fight back at the time) and she really was forcibly brought into this. Was it in Yakuza 5 when that goon said to her that she isn’t fazed from their intimidation because she’s used to it?