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Naoto wondered what he had done in his past life to deserve this unluck.
He was quickly rising in the police ranks, solving cases on cases, his colleagues respected him, his bosses had high expectations of him. He had just moved into a decent apartment in the middle of Tokyo, he was never short on cash and was able to eat out when and what he wanted when a craving suddenly hit him. Maybe his love life was the one that was suffering the most, but Naoto was more focused on his carrer and the few girls he dated didn’t leave a strong impression on him, so he wasn’t in a rush to find companionship. Plus his sister was getting married, all of his energies after work were placed in helping her have the best day ever, he didn’t have the time for other women in his life.
So what was the problem in what seemed the perfect life? Well, Naoto found a problem in the guest list. Or several. Many. Dangerous ones too.
The guest list wasn’t even Naoto’s job, he had just checked it out of curiosity to see if he knew someone, but when he read it he was one step away from a heart attack at twenty five.
Manjirou Sano . That name sent a shiver down Naoto’s back, remembering the fearsome Toman’s boss who held Tokyo in his grasp and could kill anyone he wanted with only a snap of his fingers. But surely it was a coincidence, there wasn’t only one Manjirou Sano in all of Tokyo. He hoped. Naoto was optimistic.
He kept reading.
Ryuuguuji Ken. Another familiar name to Naoto. Toman’s vice-commander, able to fight against a mountain and break more bones than Naoto knew of. Naoto’s heart sank down in his stomach. Surely it was another coincidence, it wasn’t possible that these criminals were invited to his sister’s wedding -
But the more he read, the more his hope got dimmer.
Keisuke Baji.
Chifuyu Matsuno.
Seishu Inui.
Hajime Kokonoi.
Izana Kurokawa.
When he reached the Haitani brothers’ names Naoto slammed the guest list shut.
His fingers were trembling and he was itching for a smoke - something he hadn’t thought about in years - while his brain was running a mile. Was someone blackmailing his sister to make her wedding a gang battle? Naoto hadn’t finished the list but he was sure he had seen the names Senju and Akashi between the guests which only fueled the fire.
Toman. Tenjiku. Brahaman.
The top executives of the three most fearsome gangs in Japan all in one place. And his sister’s wedding on top of that. It sounded like a disaster. Naoto was starting to feel a headache coming and had to take a seat.
“Naoto, are you okay?” His sister, the light of his eyes, walked concerned towards him, placing her soft palm against his sweaty forehead. “You look rather pale.”
Naoto was one step from ruining Hinata’s mood. He could ask her if she was being blackmailed, if there was something he didn’t know, if there was anything he could do to help. But no, he couldn’t.
Naoto knew how the criminal organizations worked, he knew they had ears and eyes everywhere. He couldn’t put his sister in such a danger.
So he settled for something more casual, neutral. Something that wouldn’t raise much suspicion.
“Hina… this guest list…” Naoto pushed it in front of her, cold sweat pouring down his back.
Hinata tilted her head to the side confused and scanned the names. But instead of looking wary or fearful she was rather excited. “Oh! These are Takemichi’s guests! They are such busy men, but they managed to take the day for us! Takemichi is so happy they can attend.”
What. The. Hell .
Naoto’s mind came to a halt, his soul felt like it had left his body. “Takemichi’s friends…?”
Hinata nodded and clapped her hands. “Yeah, he has known them since middle school! It is thanks to them we have managed to find this nice location, they’re good with this kind of stuff. When I called it wasn’t free for our day, but then Kokonoi-san pulled some strings and we managed to secure it!”
Naoto was pretty sure someone had been threatened for allowing his sister’s wedding here.
“Why? Have they done something?” Hinata’s eyes turned sad, her fingers tapping against the table. Oh no, Naoto couldn’t win against that expression at all. This was Hinata’s happiness, her big day, how could he be the one to ruin it for her?
“No.” Naoto almost choked on his next words while he forced his mouth to curl into a smile. “I’m just excited to meet them.”
He really needed that cigarette.
So Takemichi was friends with three quarters of the underworld. Naoto would have preferred not knowing this about his future brother-in-law.
Of course Naoto had known Takemichi had been a delinquent in middle school and high school - Naoto still remembered the day Takemichi threatened his bullies with a broken bottle and how that day changed his life - but it completely flew over his head the fact that Takemichi had been the Toman first division captain while Baji Keisuke was into the hospital after being stabbed almost fatally during a turf war against another gang.
Naoto wasn’t sure what he should think.
He wasn’t surprised Takemichi made friends with anyone he met, but having the most fearsome criminal organizations on the leash was something Naoto wasn’t prepared for.
It all started when Hinata asked him to help with the menu choice. Naoto was full of work, but if his sister called he was going to answer in a heartbeat.
What Hinata failed to mention was that Takemichi was the one who would accompany him and that he had brought some dangerous guests with him.
And that was how Naoto found himself sitting around a table with Manjirou Sano, Kurokawa Izana and Takashi Mitsuya. It seemed like the start of a joke, one where the detective ended up killed or maimed. Naoto wasn’t excited at all.
Naoto’s flight instincts were screaming at him to run in Thailand and live in a desolate house in the middle of a forest.
“Takemitchy… I don’t like spicy things, don’t put peppers on the menu.” The one who was supposed to be the boss of Toman was draped over Naoto’s brother-in-law, his blond hair pulled to the side to show the fearsome dragon tattoo on his neck. But there was nothing fearsome in someone who was acting like a child and making heart eyes to Takemichi.
Naoto wondered if it was too late to throw himself out of the window.
“Spicy things are tasty though.” Izana interjected with a grin, moving closer to Takemichi until his lips almost touched his neck. “We can’t let my brother always have his way, right?”
Mikey furrowed his eyebrows, the air around them dropping. Naoto felt a shiver running down his spine.
“ Do you want to die, Izana? ”
But Izana only grinned in response. “Not before you, Mikey.”
“Oh, dear, here they start fighting.” Mitsuya muttered beside Naoto. He was the only other sane person in the room, but he wasn’t going to stop the two brothers from fighting - dangerous criminals who definitely had killed and tortured more people Naoto wished to think about.
“Is this normal…?” Naoto asked in a whisper, his fingers sinking in his pants, regretting not having brought his gun with him.
“Oh? Yeah, Mikey and Izana have completely opposite tastes. I tried telling Takemichi it was a bad idea inviting both of them, but he never listens.” Mitsuya laughed like two bosses of the underworld weren’t just seconds away from killing each other in front of them.
They heard a bang on the other side of the table. Both Naoto and Mitsuya turned their heads and saw Mikey on the verge of standing, his eyes throwing daggers at Izana with an aura screaming murder. Naoto wasn’t sure he wanted to put himself between them.
And then the most bizarre thing happened.
Takemichi lifted his hands and flicked the foreheads of two of the most dangerous men in Japan.
Naoto felt despair rising in his throat. How was he going to explain Takemichi’s sudden death to Hinata?
Yet neither Mikey or Izana took out a gun or got ready to kill Takemichi. Both of them turned towards the other boy annoyed, displeasure clear on their faces but Takemichi’s stare didn’t waver for even a second.
“Stop that, you two! You said you would have behaved!” Takemichi pointed an accusing finger to both of them.
Izana and Mikey glared at each other for a few more seconds, then they both sat back down their chairs sulking, but without the murder air that oppressed the room before. Naoto could breathe again.
Mitsuya smiled like it was something he saw every day and pointed to the papers in front of them again. “So about the menu…”
Happy for the distraction, Takemichi enthusiastically began to share his ideas but Naoto could only hear white noises.
“-Naoto, what do you think?”
Naoto snapped his eyes up and was now definitely aware about all the eyes on him. Takemichi’s smile was blinding, but Naoto was too conscious about two stares on him that promised pain and suffering if he said the wrong thing.
“I…” Naoto gulped, quickly scanning the papers in front of him like they could save him. “I think we should have two dishes…? One spicy and the other sweet so the guests can choose what they want…?”
Naoto was totally bullshitting but he would do anything not to be shot right now. And Izana and Mikey looked satisfied enough with his answer so Naoto guessed he had said the right thing…?
Takemichi clasped his hands. “Oh! That’s a wonderful idea!” Then his expression froze on his face. “But the budget...”
“Don’t worry about it.” Mikey interjected with a smile. “I told you I would cover the costs.”
“But Mikey, this is my wedding-”
“Nonsense.” Mikey patted Takemichi’s head. “It’s my wedding gift for you and Hinata.”
Naoto was too drained to even be angry that his sister’s wedding was being paid with dirty money.
“Wait, we were supposed to share the costs.” Izana’s murder aura flared up again, this time he looked ready to claw Mikey’s eyes with his bare fingers.
“Ops?” Mikey smirked, not intimidated at all.
Mitsuya chuckled while sharing a knowing gaze with Takemichi. “Here they go again.”
Naoto wanted to go home.
All in all the preparations were going well.
Of course, Naoto had to turn a blind eye when he saw Ken Ryuuguuji helping putting the lights on the venue like he was some kind of underpaid worker while Chifuyu Matsuno talked with Hinata about her dress, but Naoto had become rather smart in avoiding the criminals around him that usually would be placed in jail.
He thought he could keep a low profile, not talk to them, pretend they didn’t exist. Naoto could do this.
Then he got the call .
“Naoto Tachibana? This is Haitani Ran. I’m calling for Takemichi’s bachelor party.”
Naoto almost slipped and smashed his face against the concrete. He made a choked sound from the back of his throat before he managed to take a seat.
The Haitani brothers were suspected of various murders and torture. The fact that one of them knew Naoto’s number made him want to run as fast as he could and hide until death knocked at his door.
“You still okay there? Well, whatever, I’m going to send you the details. Make sure to be free.”
It wasn’t a question, but an order. Naoto had no choice but to go even if he broke a leg. He was sure the Haitani brothers would do worse if he didn’t show up.
“Wait, how did you even get this number-” But Ran had already dropped the call, leaving Naoto with his fingers trembling.
Was it too late to ask his sister to cancel the wedding?
The bachelor party was rather tame. Naoto didn’t know what to expect - maybe some dead bodies or drugs or some illegal activity - but this felt cozy and nice.
They ate in one of the nicest restaurants Naoto had ever stepped inside - and the entire thing was booked for them, Naoto really didn’t want to know who had done it - the food was fantastic and the alcohol burned down his throat enough to make him forget his problems.
He hadn’t talked much the entire evening, not wanting attention to himself and just enjoyed various criminals pulling Takemichi to their sides with morbid enthusiasm.
It probably should worry Naoto how attached these men were with his brother-in-law, but hey, he was only a detective who graduated three years ago, he wasn’t going to pull anyone’s legs.
Plus, thankfully for him, he was placed beside Brahaman’s Akashi and Tenjiku’s Kakucho, two of the chillest criminals he had ever met who pretended Naoto didn’t exist. Naoto was grateful to both of them and swore that, if they ever needed help, he would put a good word for them.
Naoto lifted his hand to grab the bottle of beer in front of him but he stopped when Akashi reached for it at the same time. His long, manicured fingers wrapped around the cold glass before they lifted the bottle.
Naoto turned his head towards Akashi who wasn’t exactly looking at him, yet Naoto could feel his eyes on him.
“Here.” Akashi tilted the bottle towards Naoto’s glass and Naoto hurried to lift it to let the alcohol fill it up.
Akashi spoke again, his voice was calm and relaxed as his lips were pulled up into a small smile that deformed the scar on the side of his face. “Must be difficult for a detective to be here, please drink up.”
“Ah…” Naoto bit his lower lip and looked at the now filled up glass. “Well… it’s for my sister and Takemichi’s sake… and it’s not like you’ve been doing anything illegal… not that I know of.”
Akashi nodded, satisfied by Naoto’s answer - was it a test? - and poured the remaining of the bottle in his own glass before he reached in his pocket to light a cigarette. Usually people couldn’t smoke in a restaurant, especially not a high class like this one, but with all the money they had spent to book it, Naoto was sure no one would tell him anything.
“Yeah, it’s better if you don’t know it.” So there had been some illegal activity. Naoto really didn’t want to know.
He downed the glass in one go, letting the alcohol burn his throat and settle in his stomach and waited for the effects to make him forget that he was an officer surrounded by the three worst organizations in Japan.
“Want a smoke?” Akashi asked, lifting the packet towards Naoto while he twirled his own cigarette between two fingers.
Naoto really shouldn’t smoke. He had during university, but after becoming an officer he had stopped and was never tempted again. Yet in the last week, the urge to just inhale some nicotine became stronger than ever.
“Takemichi, come on, drink more… or do you want something else to feel high?” Naoto looked to the side where a man with pink hair - Sanzu, one of Toman’s executives - had crawled in Takemichi’s lap and was holding a glass against Takemichi’s lips with a wicked grin on his face while Mikey was whining at their side like a kid in need of attention.
Naoto wondered if it was too late to ask Izana to claw his eyes out.
He turned towards Akashi with despair written on his face. “Give me that smoke.”
Akashi wordlessly let Naoto take his pack. Naoto placed a cigarette between his lips, the familiar weight already calming him down, then he realised he didn’t have a lighter and turned towards Akashi again to ask for one.
He was met with a small flame coming out from a golden lighter that Naoto was sure was anything but fake. Naoto looked up wary at Akashi, but the older man simply smiled down at him, allowing Naoto to lean forward and light up his cigarette.
The first breath of nicotine filled Naoto’s lungs and he pressed back on the chair with an appreciated sigh, his eyes half-lidded as he looked up toward the ceiling ignoring the noise around him.
“There, that’s a good boy .”
Naoto refused to acknowledge the way his guts tightened at Akashi’s words.
Fucking criminals and their nasty charm.
The wedding was amazing.
Hinata was crying, Takemichi too and even Naoto shed some tears when they finally could be called husband and wife. Everyone was cheering, smiling or crying or doing all of that at the same time.
There weren’t criminals that day, just people being happy for a newly wed couple that stayed strong after all the years of fighting.
It was embarrassing how Takemichi stared at his new ring like it could talk, his eyes looking at it in disbelief every time they landed on it. Naoto thought he deserved that happiness, he had clawed with his teeth and nails to achieve it, Naoto was proud of him.
And well, he was sure that if someone threatened his happiness there were many people who would get angry and use everything they had to destroy their enemies.
Naoto wasn’t worried at all.
“Takemitchy looks so happy.” Naoto heard Mikey say, the Toman boss who was currently attacking the food like a starved man. “When is Hinata going to share him with us? She has promised us…”
What.
“Don’t be greedy, Mikey.” That was Chifuyu, Naoto recognized his voice. “After the honeymoon.”
What the hell are they talking about.
“No… too late, want Takemitchy now… he was squirming so prettily last night… not fair Hinata can keep him for two weeks… should we just crash their vacation?”
Naoto had to sit down, his head spinning like a hammer just hit him straight on his forehead.
Too much information. He could have lived without knowing about those private details of his brother-in-law and the fucked up relationships he had going on with Hinata’s blessing.
Was it too late to beg one of those guys to end Naoto’s miserable life?