#i mean usually majima will stand in front of saejima because he wants to be in front and saejima can protect his ass

[dirt-str1der]

If majima just calmly stands behind saejima he would be completely obscured from view , have you guys ever thought of that ?

[mariogman25]

Akira Kurusu, The Yakuza Prince of Kamurocho Part Zero: Friday Night, Beneath the Mask

(There are 2 ways to view this chapter. Read it after read Chapter 1 or after the 5th Chapter. All depends on you.)

December 1988 Majima was tired. More than usual. His day at The Grand, the Cabaret he was forced to work at had been hell so far. Some drunk fuck decided to get handsy with the women and he had to deal with him without laying a finger on him.

After putting on a show and convincing the guy to pay for everyone’s drinks, Majima left for the break room. Or rather, the balcony behind the Cabaret so he can get some fresh air. He grabs a cigarette and just stares off into the distance. Something’s been bothering him these past few days. And not just the normal spies that the Tojo and Omi have to keep tabs on him, as he spots a one now, a hobo. But something… funky is going on in the back of his mind, but he doesn’t quite know how to describe it. 

He decides to ignore it, probably some anxiety or something. Doesn’t help he got a weird message on his beeper that he doesn’t quite get. 56 020 074… ‘Sweet Dreams, Plans Changed, I need a favor’. He doesn’t get what the hell that was about, he’s given his number to nobody so it makes even less sense. He just hopes it’s a wrong number and puts it away. After the hobo stared at him for long enough, Majima just puts out the cigarette and walks back inside.

After getting some updates on the floor, he ensures that everything in the cabaret is running smoothly. Nothing will get in his way to get back into the Yakuza, and The Grand was his way of paying his way back in. The Tojo was his life and running The Grand was his own gilded cage as additional punishment for what he tried to do a during the Ueno Seiwa Hit*, trying to save his blood brother Taiga Saejima… Majima shakes his head after zoning out for a second there, remembering that day like it was yesterday.

After finishing up some updates, Majima heads onto the floor to tidy up some problems with a hostesses and bullshitting his way through and inspirational speech and helping out some other employees. ‘Gotta keep morale high. High morale means more cash…’. Seems that’s been his mental mantra for building up enough cash to pay back the Tojo Clan and Omi Alliance. Soon though, Majima is informed that a customer is being a bit more crazy with the orders than recommended now that he’s on some other guy’s tab. Majima scowls a little and asks the employee where the guy is. He wasn’t even at the table yet and Majima could tell who the orderer was just by looking at the short gray hair and piss brown suit: Tsukasa Sagawa. 

More or less his warden for this gilded cage of a city. Keeping tabs on him and checking up on the Grand occasionally. How Majima hated this man. Scowling at him as Sagawa tried to initiate small talk with him, Majima had to keep up the polite act. Majima finally asked him to come with him, and they headed for Majima’s office.

After some one sided small talk about Majima’s situation from Sagawa; highlights include “You’re the one guy in this town who has everything everyone wants, but you’re looking for something else… heh… Happiness is a bitch like that, eh?” and “Why the rush with getting back into the Yakuza, anyway? I don’t get it.” Sagawa asks. “It ain’t for you to get.” Majima responds while pulling out a large metal briefcase. It’s The Grands current take of this month. It’s the cash Majima’s been saving up and giving to Sagawa to convince Shimano to accept him back into the Tojo Clan. 100 Million by next month... Unfortunately, Sagawa has a change of plans and decides he’s going to need 500 million more yen to have that chat with Shimano. Majima, lost in anger, almost punches Sagawa right square in the nose, but he stops mere inches from it, fist shaking with anger. 

He can never hit him or else he’ll never get back in… Majima’s fist hovers in front of his face while Sagawa keeps on dropping his own brand of wisdom right to his face. Eventually he calms back down and stand back up straight. He steels his glare and says he’ll do anything or pay any amount to get back into the Tojo. Then Sagawa mentions if he would perform a hit, and Majima’s face shifts from anger to surprise mixed with some horror, making a noise comparable to swallowing his own tongue. Sagawa asks again “Which is it, then? If it meant getting back into the family, could you kill?” Majima just stares at him, the buzzing in the back of his mind is back again… stronger... and he’s still unsure of how to feel about it… He continues to scowl at Sagawa, ignoring it again. Moments pass, and soon Sagawa say “Relax, I kid.” and he gets up, takes the briefcase, and leaves. Majima has a strange feeling that he wasn’t kidding… Then he mentions he’s going to need to take the number one hostess from The Grand and place her in another place he feels needs a shot in the arm. Majima, helpless to object, just stands there until Sagawa leaves the room. Not wanting to scream, Majima just kicks over a tiny trash can so hard it slides across the whole room.

After a brief strategy meeting with the floor manger when he returns tot he room, Majima says this before heading out, “The nightlife biz is a jungle. The strong eat the weak. We trip, and the Grand’ll come crumblin’ down in days. My job is to do what it takes to prevent that. Hold down the fort.”, and Majima leaves the building to handle business.

A few hours later

After a long and strenuous night of work bullshit and random distractions involving some sort of martial arts teacher, a weapons dealer teaching him how to use a baseball bat in combat, and beating the shit out of some dudes who ambushed him outside of his house because of said work bullshit, Majima is a about to head into his apartment when he feels the back of his mind buzz again. It’s really starting to bother him now, so he decides to take some headache meds and just sleep it off. He walks in and sees his room. A low table covered in cigarette ash dust, a blanket in the corner, and a washing machine & sink. The literal base needs for a man like Majima. He never really felt the need for anything more or anything less, despite having all the money he could need. He throws down his suit jacket on the floor, and decides to smoke one last time before the night ends, and he opens up his one window and just watches the city go by. He spies more of the spies set up by Shimano and Sagawa… He scowls and contemplates his situation… ‘This city is my prison… How long until I’m free of it’s walls…?’

Eventually he lays down on his covers and drifts off to sleep…

He feels himself awaken yet again, but… he’s not wearing what he went to sleep in. He’s back in his Grand outfit, a fancy black suit and a tight bow tie... He gets up and looks around. The place he’s in… he gains a strange sense of Deja vu upon looking around… a small club of some kind… and a mini stage in front of all the tables, and a bar off to the side. There is opera singing coming from nowhere, and everything is tinted blue for reasons Majima cannot discern. 

On the stage in front of all the booths, one of which he woke up sitting in, has a desk sitting in the middle, with a… very odd looking old man sitting behind it. “Welcome to the Velvet Room... My my you have quite the journey ahead of you, and more importantly, it continues beyond this decade. Where will that journey will take you, I wonder? Hehehe… Now, Introductions. I am Igor, pleased to make your acquaintance.” Majima raises an eyebrow at the strange old man before him. His nose was as long as a banana and his eyes were bloodshot. Majima also notices how it seems that… Igor doesn't move his teeth when he talks, just his lips…

 ‘odd’ is the thought that passes through Majima’s mind…

“Hello!” Majima is startled a bit and jumps a little at the sudden other voice. He didn’t realize there was a third person in this strange dream. He looks to his side to find, sitting next to him in the same booth... some strange man in a blue outfit that Majima cannot describe. Like some sort of… Airline attendant mixed with police officer, the same shade of blue the room is tinted in. The man was a sickly pale and had 2 bright yellow eyes. He looks at Majima and tilts his head to the side in a way a woman would do that to look cute, “I am Alphonse.^ I will be here to help you on your journey, should you ever need it.” Majima looks back at Igor, silent, as does not know what to say. Igor explains, “This realm exists… between dream… and reality. Usually those who have forged contracts with others are allowed within the Velvet Room. It seems today you met quite a few, and you will meet more along the way, I assure you. Perhaps someone will forage a contract with you, allowing them access here as well... in fact, I’m hoping so.”

Majima spies Igor playing what seem to be… rather strange Tarot cards. Though… some have demons on them… while Igor’s been playing with them, Majima spied his Hannya tattoo on the… 1 card**. Majima’s eyebrow continues to be raised. He’s just letting this dream slide on by. It’s like he’s watching a weird ass TV show that he just happens to be in. He sees Igor looks around the room. “Such a strange place for a Velvet room. I never expected a Club… but very well…” He looks over at Majima with his bloodshot eyes. “It seems you think this place as a… prison… how strange, but none of this matters to me. You have many challenges ahead of you, and should the need ever arise, we shall be there to help. May we meet again.” Igor looks back down as it looks like he’s doing some sort of sleep, though his grin and bloodshot eyes remain wide open. Majima looks over at Alphonse, who is waving goodbye as Majima’s eyes begin to roll back into his eye, darkness overtaking his vision. “Bye Majima!” Alphonse yells as Majima’s head finally hits the back of his chair. 

Memories begin to play in his head. His final days with Saejima... His own screams from when his own clan stopped him from saving Saejima...

The days in ‘The Hole’ where he was tortured for so long, he almost wanted to die but never gave in… 

Finally ending on Shimano refusing to say what happened to Saejima, Majima shouting his name as he’s left to more torture.

Majima startles awake, breathing hard, covered in sweat. It’s essentially dawn right now. He doesn’t have work yet. He wipes the sweat off his face and takes a look at the headache medicine that he took last night, and he just throws it against the wall in anger, and goes back under the blanket. At least the buzzing in the back of his head is gone, his mind fading to black…

why is everything wavy…?

* Play/Watch the events of Yakuza 4 to find out more.

^ Alphonse is the name of Victor Frankenstein's very supportive father. As all Velvet room denizens are named after characters in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein.

** The Fool Card, as all Persona protagonists are.

(Sorry if this was overly long. I basically summed up the first 30 minutes of Majima’s first chapter in Yakuza 0 and I couldn’t figure out what to cut because it provides characterization for Majima before he went fucking nuts and shows what kind of person his is sometimes. If I get enough people saying to shorten it, I’ll create a shorter version of this chapter)