In the Twilight Rain (Chapter 27)
Fandom: Kuroko no Basuke Pairing: AkaFuri, others implied Rating: M Warnings: Language, violence, drugs, sexual situations Other: Yakuza AU Chapters on Tumblr: [Previous] [Next] AO3
Seas are wild tonight Stretching over Sado Island Silent clouds of stars
- Matsuo Basho
“No word yet?” Seijuurou asked Higuchi as they walked down the hall of the manor. He opened his office door as the man followed, bowing respectfully before sitting in a seiza.
“None. As far as we know, there is no indication of an ‘IW’ in Seiho’s past records and we can’t find anything with those initials indicated by the Kirisaki,” Higuchi replied with the papers in his hands. “The 600 could be time. It’d be too cheap if it was the price, so if we deduce that it was at six ‘o’ clock, Hayama-san has been going around the market during that time to test it out. So far, we have nothing.”
‘What a pain in the ass,’ Seijuurou kept to himself as he leaned back in his seat. He was aware of these nightly and morning trips Hayama has been taking to the black market and getting no results. Hayama’s got more important things to do than to wander around aimlessly, looking for something they don’t know a thing about.
“Get Terasaka to taking over Hayama’s search,” Seijuurou stated as he took the papers from Higuchi. “He’s got his own projects to work on and is already losing focus on those. He needs to be in better shape than that.”
“Yes, sir.”
“How’s business back at Mibuchi’s?” Seijuurou asked as he flipped the pages.
“Average. I believe he mentioned that people are still wary to return after what happened,” Higuchi explained.
“Of course.”
Seijuurou was silent as he sifted through the pages but could feel Higuchi trembling. He looked up at the man with confusion – Higuchi has been working with him for a long time; he wasn’t scared of him anymore.
So something must be wrong.
“Higuchi,” Seijuurou was calm. He leaned across his desk, watching the man look at him nervously. “What’s the matter?”
“I-I apologize, sir, but with everything happening, I wasn’t sure how to bring it up,” Higuchi bit his lower lip. “We thought it was just a mistake at first and went through all the calculations again just to be sure but…the numbers do not match.”
He narrowed his eyes.
“What do mean the numbers do not match?”
“The profits do not correlate with the estimate,” Higuchi announced. “Even with Blue Bar and Club Kaijou’s temporary close, the profits we have are much lower than what we expected. At first, we thought it was just an accounting error so when we checked again, we realized that the gap in sales is much wider than expected.” Higuchi visibly swallowed under Seijuurou’s narrowed gaze. “It is believed that…someone has been taking our funds.”
Seijuurou tapped his fingers on the table.
Higuchi flinched.
This was the last thing Seijuurou wanted and needed; someone from the inside damaging their profits. He could possibly narrow it down to the lower associates – an excess amount of drinking had happened therefore they had to dip into it, Mao somehow weaseled their members into paying extra for whatever reason, or even praying that whatever program the accountants were using was faulty.
But Seijuurou didn’t pray.
“Find the culprit,” Seijuurou leaned his chin on the back of his hands and smiled to Higuchi. He saw the stout man shiver and Seijuurou could feel his left eye twitch. “Bring him to me. Alive. We’ll have to question this perpetrator and get them to talk.”
Higuchi nodded. When he finished his report, he bowed and stepped out only for Hayama to enter in his stead. Hayama looked back at the anxious Higuchi as he disappeared and turned to Seijuurou – eyes dull and lifeless.
“Right on time,” Seijuurou didn’t say anything about those blank eyes. Hayama has been like this since their last trip to the hospital and has, in fact, brought down the morale of the group. Hayama had always been prone to mood swings so Seijuurou thought he would bounce back.
He didn’t and he was the reason why.
He squashed down the feeling of his stomach coiling and his face remained impassive.
“After your report, I need you to move on to more…important matters,” Seijuurou announced. The blond didn’t react as he continued. “Terasaka will take over for you. You’ll move onto the assignment we discussed earlier albeit a little early. My patience is running thin and I’m sure Kasuga wants some peace of mind.”
Hayama nodded obediently and looked down at his paper. This compliance unnerved Seijuurou but he didn’t say anything.
“There is a lead outside of Kirisaki’s usual district,” Hayama announced flatly. “They’re trying to build traction in Yamanishi. The branch that’s setting up there is still fresh though defensive. It’s apparently headed by Hara Kazuya, someone who has been rising in the ranks recently in Kirisaki and Hanamiya decided it was time for him to test his abilities. Since my assignment is going to change, giving Terasaka permission to engage will be next.”
“Noted,” Seijuurou nodded as Hayama handed him the report. “Excellent work. I’m glad that you’re concentrating fully on this.”
Hayama didn’t say a word.
It’s not in Seijuurou’s style to empathize with people – he had developed an underwhelming sense of that, able to separate himself from others. Even so, he could feel the pain radiating from the other man.
If he had told himself that he couldn’t see Furihata again, he would probably be conflicted. His moral code told him to stay away, keep civilians out of this, and move on. He was yakuza and knew that he brought upon death to everything he touched. The complexity of the situations, ranging from his businesses to shunning himself from society to becoming the next head – no matter what, it was not a path for anyone to take.
But Furihata made everything ridiculously simple. Even when Seijuurou knew he should push him away, he brought with him something free and straightforward. There were no hidden motives in his eyes or movements; he could be read so easily. Yet everything he does makes Seijuurou baffled, wanting to unwind and twist at the puzzle that is Furihata’s mind, needing to know more.
They had known each other for a few short months and this was how he felt.
He looked at Hayama’s tired face. Dark bags were under his eyes and his face was thinner and paler. Hayama had been burying himself in work and getting more than great results if being able to track down a lead in Yamanishi was anything to say about it. However, he was unsettling others without his usual energy.
And it was only going to get worse from here.
Seijuurou leaned back and stared.
“You leave tomorrow.” Back to business as usual. He couldn’t break his word. “If you run into trouble, contact Higuchi as soon as possible.”
For the first time since he entered the room – and perhaps since he returned from the hospital – there was a flicker of surprise.
“Not you?”
“I will be absent for the next couple of days,” He wasn’t going to reveal how he was going to a mountainous location alone with a civilian that he happened to be dating. “It was suggested by Mibuchi to have a short break. Higuchi will relay to me a summary each day so I am not completely off but if you feel the emergency is dire, do not hesitate to contact me.”
Hayama stared at him evenly and Seijuurou had no choice but to look back. There was a muted silence that Seijuurou could sense something was off about.
“Okay.”
Shoichi didn’t know how he got dragged into a guys’ night out by the station, but somehow he did.
He sat in this little bar with a sharp silver and forest green palette, mixing with modern and traditional Japanese-style floors, slowly drinking his shochu. Aomine was downing whatever beer had been brought to him in high spirits after managing to bust a small (but impactful) drug deal going on in the Sogo district where he and Wakamatsu were patrolling.
Turns out that they were just young juveniles in the end but they were selling drugs, claiming it to be the new miracle drug on the market. They were naïve and stupid and it was nowhere as potent as what the King Drug is, but the fact that they were able to find someone who has heard of it in their own hometown – well. Aomine definitely though he deserved free drinks.
Which he didn’t but he probably wouldn’t remember paying for them in the morning.
“He’s going nuts,” Kasamatsu snorted from across from Shoichi. He had a bottle of beer in his hand as he watched Aomine swinging his arm around Wakamatsu like they were best friends. The yelling from Wakamatsu said otherwise. “Control your guys.”
“Nah,” Shoichi had a grin on his face. He lifted up his phone and took a picture of his subordinate’s drunken state. “It’s more entertaining this way.”
“You’re awful.”
“I need some sort of material to use against him, you know.”
“You’re some crooked cop,” Mikoshiba landed next to him with a chortle. Yamazaki had taken a seat next to Kasamatsu, stern-faced like normal. Mikoshiba clucked his tongue but it sounded more amused. “You’re gonna give us a bad rep.”
“I think that lies in Aomine’s territory,” He said as he watched Aomine slur something to their sketch artist, Sakurai, before a red-faced Wakamatsu slammed him down to the floor. He was glad they got a private room.
“S-Satsuki!” Aomine groaned, his arm reaching out as Wakamatsu sat on his back. “H-Help! Get this gorilla off of me!”
“She’s not here!” Wakamatsu scowled. “For fuck’s sake. Get a grip!”
“Start blocking the drinks from him!” Kasamatsu took command and raised from his spot. Sometimes, Shoichi wondered why he was just a vice-captain before remembering that Riko was his boss.
More alcohol was placed next to Shoichi. He glanced up to see the smiling face of the bar owner, Kiyoshi, rather entertained at the rowdiness.
“Some water for the drunkard over there, please, Kiyoshi.”
“No problem,” He nodded and walked out of the room, closing the sliding door behind him.
“Wakamatsu,” Shoichi called out to the detective. “Try not to knock him out.”
“Are you sure? It might be easier to do so.”
Luckily for them, it wasn’t too long until Aomine fell asleep, lying on the floor against the wall. Everything else resumed smoothly (if not for the slightly drunken wails of Fukui as he challenged Wakamatsu to arm-wrestling) and Shoichi was only slightly tipsy – but it was enough for his tongue to slip.
“So, Imayoshi…” Mikoshiba was slurring a bit, looking pleased with his bottle of beer in his hand. “What’s yours and Aida’s deal?”
“Hmm?” Shoichi immediately noticed Yamazaki flinch and he could feel a dark gaze on him. He tried to hide his smirk but knew he was failing as a slithering feeling emerged in his chest. “What do you mean?”
“Like…” Mikoshiba paused, placing his chin in his palm. He waved his other hand absent-mindedly. “Are you two dating or something? You guys flirt around the office so much, it’s sickening.”
Ah. Of course Mikoshiba was interested in discussing this. He was a fiend when it came to this kind of information, always looking for the latest gossip. And based on how he kept glancing over at Yamazaki, he had an inkling to why this was being brought him.
“Riko and I have a very…special relationship,” He watched from the corner of his eyes as Yamazaki tense. He took a sip of his shochu and tried to not to snigger. “We’ve always been together. Can’t recall a time when we haven’t.”
“Hmm,” Mikoshiba sounded amused. “Even with that trip to Osaka a couple of months ago, you took her along even though she was given other stuff, yeah?”
“She was helpful during the trip,” Shoichi said as he filled his small cup again. Maybe he should stop drinking soon. “It’s not like I brought her just to be with her.”
“Oh ho, but that was a reason?” Mikoshiba’s eyes sparkled at the news and Yamazaki’s fist clenched on the table.
“If I say such a thing, she’d skin me alive,” Shoichi made it seem like he was laughing at the joke rather than Yamazaki’s reaction. It was just too easy. “But I can’t deny that being with her makes me feel…good.”
“Masochist,” He looked over at Kasamatsu who had his brows furrowed. There was also a hint of disgust that Shoichi cackled at.
“It’s true,” He took one last swig of his shochu before grabbing one of the untouched glasses of water on the table. “I don’t know how many times my ass has been saved by her. Of course, it’d probably be better if we were in the same division, but who am I to stop her from doing whatever she wants?”
“Even if she dates some other guy?” For the first time since the conversation started, Yamazaki spoke up. Shoichi looked at him and saw the challenge in his eyes. “If she was swooped off her feet and taken by some other guy?”
“Now, now,” Mikoshiba sat up when the tension suddenly got thick. “Don’t plant those things into her boyfriend’s head, Yamazaki—”
“That’s not what I heard from her,” Yamazaki leaned on the table with his forearms, eyes staying on Shoichi. “From what I know, she only considers you as a friend, Imayoshi.”
“Ah, really?” He knew better than to lie in a room full of cops. The alcohol may be affecting his brain but he wasn’t stupid. He clucked his tongue. “That hurts, Riko.”
His body moved on his own as he took out his cellphone without a word. He could feel curious stares as he pressed the number ‘2’ and it immediately rang. He lifted the phone to his ear, waiting for the other person to pick up.
“What the fuck, Shoichi?” He immediately grinned at her irritated voice. “It’s one-thirty in the morning and I’ve had a long day. Someone better had died!”
“Riko-tan~” He whined and heard her groan. He made sure to raise the volume louder. “You love me, right?”
“Get off the phone and get some water.”
“Not until you say it,” Shoichi’s eyes met Yamazaki with a taunting grin.
“Don’t force her to say something against her will,” Yamazaki growled and Shoichi heard Riko’s voice rising in his ear.
“Who are you with?” He could imagine her narrowing her eye. “Was that Yamazaki? Shoichi, what are you trying to do? I’m going to hang up—”
“Riko,” He interrupted with a much more serious and sober voice. For some reason, the cold water didn’t cool him down. His body became hot as if he was still drinking and his heart was thumping against his chest. His breathing became shaky. “I love you.”
There was a collective silence from both sides of his ears that he could only conclude was blood rushing through. Something settled and unsettled in his stomach, flopping around irritably after he said those words.
He heard her sigh from the other side. He knew he had put her in a rough spot and was taking advantage of that.
She couldn’t say no to that.
“I love you, too,” She sounded exhausted and Shoichi concluded that it must have been due to her long day. “So hurry the fuck home so I can beat you up.”
“Roger.”
He hung up, almost forgetting that he had an audience of at least ten officers. Even Aomine had somehow woken up from his drunken slumber, looking more alert than before.
He ignored their gazes and slowly got up. He threw a few bills on the table before walking up to Yamazaki with an arrogant smirk on his face.
“If Riko chooses to date another guy, she’s free to do so,” His smirk became much more cheerful though the unsettling feeling in his stomach remained. “However, he’ll have a lot of problems coming his way – her pride, her father, and me.
“So,” He made his way to the sliding door, still smiling but he opened his eyes slightly to look down at Yamazaki, “They better be ready.”
Note: This was supposed to come out earlier but I came home late and fell asleep so I didn’t really get a chance to post it.
Something is afoot on Akashi’s side and Imayoshi is showing some...possessiveness?
There was a lot of things I wanted to include but I didn’t feel like this would be the right time. I’m also changing a little bit of how I’m writing because it’s pretty stressful to cram everything I want in one chapter.
The scene with Imayoshi was supposed to be different but I ended up with this instead? I guess that’s how the flow of things work. And I want to advance their relationship a bit more, whether platonic or not.
