Dai Fukou || Ultimate Mahjong Player

[dangansuffering]

Not the Droids You're Looking For !! C3C2 !! Katahiko !! Closed for Dai

Katahiko honestly wasn’t sure what he was doing. Would this help? Was it worth taking a break from all the other urgent matters? But he hadn’t done anything for François… well, ever, but especially not since the whole face-bashed-in thing, and he couldn’t quite remember the reason he hadn’t tried to deliver this already. It seemed like a good time, if the dancer needed to rest… Right?

So after pulling up the intended recipient’s dorm room on the map and circling the block until he’d gotten enough of his bearings to find said dorm room, Katahiko stepped up to the door, a book tucked under his arm, and knocked. While he’d very much considered that François might not be in there, for some reason he’d never suspected someone else might be instead.

[ultimatemahjong]

The knock at the door startled the gambler... So much for his tough guy persona... Not that he ever had really tried to push it too hard. He'd been hiding away in his room, keeping an eye on the events people had planned, and avoiding the ones that seemed dangerous... He had a pretty good track record. Movie night was a murder plot by Mariko, and later he'd find that his theory on spooky night being a terrible idea that would get someone killed was 100% correct. He honestly considered staying in his room, and ignoring his visitor... If they didn't have the means to enter, they didn't need to be there. Frankly he wished he could give Fran distance as well. He felt dirty... Like having his secret out made him any worse than he had been previously... Maybe it was just a perception thing. He however had promised to explain himself to whoever asked... Which meant actually answering the door... The man slowly opened the door to see... Katahiko. This motive would be particularly rough on him. At least Dai assumed so with how talkative the younger man seemed to be. They hadn’t really talked much before, but... Ah, who was Dai kidding, he was probably there for his roommate. Still, he stood in the doorway and offered a “Hello...”

[dangansuffering]

Almost There || Dai Fukou| Chp. 1 Event Reaction | OPEN

Dai watched with curiosity until Jamie said ‘Make an example of you’. That was enough to help him realize that whatever was about to happen was not good. Dai wasn’t the kind of person who would have considered himself heroic in any sense of the word, and perhaps this was just a selfish need to have an excuse to  stand against their captor, he didn’t even really know. He had already started moving towards the event before he’d consciously made the decision to do so. He moved faster than normal, and those who saw him would see with the speed came pain with each step of his left knee. As he hurried to the scene, he watched the events play out… “Damn…” Kazuya had killed Jamie… “Nice shot.” He muttered still pushing through the pain to get there. If Jamie weren’t the only captor, if there were further repercussions to his actions, Dai needed to be there.

When the screen goes black, Dai returns the ElectroID to his pocket, and produces something new. The familiar, comforting touch of steel. As he approaches he flourishes it, and begins to take in the situation. His heart sinks. “Where’s Kazuya-san?” He  barks out to no one in particular, just hoping someone can answer him.

[dangansuffering]

Movie Night || Dai Fukou || Closed for Moko

[ultimatemahjong]

“I mean… That’s not gonna happen. Being an asshole is in my nature, but… Not really my intention this time.” Oh fuck… He crossed a line without even realizing he had done it. He honestly hadn’t mean to insult her or be rude. It was honest curiosity at what she did, and… Hey, at least he was getting a an explanation, right? He held his hands up in surrender. “Shit man, Chill. I wasn’t insulting you. Genuinely wanted to know what you did. Didn’t have to bite my head off there. I just figured there was the dude whose name is on the cover that did everything.” He gets a serious tone and face when she claims he was looking down on her. “Hey, wait a damned second. Just cause I don’t understand something doesn’t mean I’m looking down on you. My talent is playing a fucking game, and I’m not even that good at it. [Redacted]

“I honestly just wanted to know what the fuck a mangaka assistant did. Alright? Thanks for explaining it to me. Next time, don’t get so pissy.” He sighed. “Cool. I’ll see you then.”

[dangansuffering]

Movie Night || Dai Fukou || Closed for Moko

[ultimatemahjong]

Dai figured it was in his best interest to drop the subject. Moko seemed to be out of explanations, and he understood it as well as he was going to regardless. [REDACTED] She was rambling now… Even more than before. At least when it was about anime, she could stay focused on the message she was trying to convey. “Mangaka Assistant?” He raised a brow. “Sorry, you’re gonna have to explain that one to me. Why is an assistant the Ultimate here? Like… What do you do? Get coffee really well?” Oddly enough his tone has remained entirely casual, it doesn’t sound like an insult in the least despite the words he’s saying. “Because you’re here, and you were just saying kung-fu flicks were bad, and that live-action can’t pull off CGI and magic. Kung Fu Hustle is a fantastic work of art.” Overselling it there bud. “I’ll get us into the auditorium, and get it on the projector. Bring some booze if you want.” I mean… at least he sounds like he’s just planning a nice movie night?

[dangansuffering]

Movie Night || Dai Fukou || Closed for Moko

[ultimatemahjong]

“Sorry, unless it was on one of the old arcade machines, I probably didn’t play it really… Rally X had flags… You had to collect them before time ran out…” He’s honestly trying to hold a conversation here, but he’s fully aware that he’s failing. The sudden change in Moko’s demeanor was enough to clue him in on that. [REDACTED] “Anime is just a medium for storytelling, stories are supposed to be relatable, yeah? And that was a joke anyway…” Now he’s feeling all self-conscious, good job Moko. “Yeah… I have no idea what you’re saying anymore. Sounds like Japanese, but pretty sure you’re in another world at this point.” “I…  Look, I already have to dress up ridiculously in real life to maintain image, I probably don’t need to start getting into costumes or whatever too.” He pauses a moment. “Actually… You know what? Fuck it.” He turn away from her and stopped perusing DVDs to look through his yes pile for a moment. “Kung Fu Hustle. We’re watching it. Kung Fu flick done right, awesome CGI, good fight scenes… Good enough story. Movie night.”

[dangansuffering]

Movie Night || Dai Fukou || Closed for Moko

[ultimatemahjong]

“Flags? I’m sorry, is that a reference I’m missing or just… Nevermind, I’m going to assume that’s just how you talk.” “What? Kung fu flicks are great, throw them on in the background, no real story to pay attention to, just bad acting, decent fight scenes, and cheesy sound effects… Typically just enough to distract you from whatever else you’re supposed to be paying attention to.” He shrugs. “And the Godzilla movies are classics.” He glances down at the fist, not a fan of being called a nerd? Was that still an insult? I mean… The guy’s talent is playing a game, he is by definition, a nerd himself. Just not the same kind. “Oh my god… What have I done?” Dai’s widen as she continues going. “Did you breath at all during that? Need to sit down?” “I don’t know. It’s just good. Some kid walks in of the street, beats a yakuza rep player in his first game, and gets pulled into the underground gambling rings? I mean… Hey, relatable, right?” He jokes a bit. “But nah, it’s just a good story in general. I don’t have anything against the manga or anime or whatever, but with the company I keep, reading the manga would seriously harm my image. The live action is just the most accessible, and frankly is the best rendition of the story.” “Yeah, I’m the Ultimate Mahjong Player… At least according to the university.” He gives a small nod in place of a proper bow. “Dai Fukou.” “And yeah… they’re just fashion glasses. Got them custom made to look like the 2 of dots tile.” “No.”  That seemed to be an abrupt denial… Huh. Hiding something Dai? Your wardrobe isn’t inspired by an Akagi character is it?

[dangansuffering]

First Impressions || Dai Fukou || Orientation Reaction

[ultimatemahjong]

Dai is also ready to leave, but it’s that awkward thing where like… You’re in a conversation, and leaving the room in the middle of it seems rude, but also they’re hanging out in a bathroom… Which is weird. He makes the move and walks out once Kazuya had started that way. They soon find themselves back in the lobby where the spill originally occurred. “Yeah, it’s a four player hand-building game, similar to Gin Rummy if you’ve played that. “ The reluctance to include his sister is exactly what prompted Dai to ask for her to join. “Hey, nothing wrong with a competitive spirit. Mahjong is a game of skill, so it might do her some good. Though… It’s also a game of chance, which can frustrate some people who can’t stand losing… Nobody is going to win every hand, the better players are just able to read the situation, and give themselves as good of an advantage as possible.” “Sounds good. Besides, my table won’t be here until later tonight. I have some kids bringing it by for me later, so no rush.” Dai whips out his phone, whatever the current overly expensive flagship phone is. He puts it on the contacts page, and hands it out to Kazuya.

[dangansuffering]

Perfectly Elastic !! Katahiko !! Prologue !! Closed for Dai

[ultimatemahjong]

It was a bit odd shaking hands with a prosthetic like this. Dai effectively just went limp fish after the handshake went a bit longer than he’d like… Not that Katahiko would have necessarily felt it? Regardless the kid didn’t seem to have any preconceptions on Dai which was refreshing. “Apparently. They’re calling me the Ultimate Mahjong Player. How accurate that is is up for debate.” Oh boy… And now the kid was just stroking his own ego…  Dai squinted a bit seemingly stairing at Katahiko’s head. “Be careful, your head gets any bigger, you might have trouble getting into your dorm.” He comments casually. “But yeah, impressive you’re able to flip like that.” Dai pauses a moment. “Hey, actually, I’m setting up a game later tonight. You interested in learning to play? I’ll be teaching the Kurita twins, and we need to find a fourth player.”

[dangansuffering]

First Impressions || Dai Fukou || Orientation Reaction

[ultimatemahjong]

Dai could tell that he’d apparently said something that made Kazuya at least confused, and potentially uneasy. “Oh, no judgement here… Probably pissed some Germans off though.” He laughs. “Their loss.” Okay NOW he had brought back some of that awkwardness from before. “That’s fair, and it’s not like it wasn’t something we could fix.” “Oh, cool, just means I get to introduce you to the game. Yeah, I’d definitely be willing to teach you. We’ll need to find two more players… Your sister be interested?” He pauses momentarily. “Before you play, you’ll need to shake all this nervous energy… Makes it too easy to read you.”

[dangansuffering]

Movie Night || Dai Fukou || Closed for Moko

[ultimatemahjong]

“Ah, my sympathies, that must be hard for you.” He chuckled at the resting bitch-face comment. At least this girl talked back. Didn’t really look like the kind of person to do so either, so it was a fun surprise. Actually… She’s kinda going after him isn’t she? Wait… Did she just- And she couldn’t keep a straight face. Dai let out a loud laugh without intending to, clearing his throat afterwards. “Okay… That was adorable.” Really, he didn’t mean that as an insult, but it would likely be taken as such. He just found this nerdy girl trying to be “hard” endearing. Oh… She was suddenly on a completely different topic. “Oookay. Neeerd.” He holds his hands up in surrender. It seems to be joking more than an insult. “Okay, first off… Rurouni Kenshin is based on an anime?” He picks up the case and examines it for a bit. “I figured it was just a kung-fu samurai movie.” With that, he tosses it into the “no” pile. “At least we can agree that most live-action anime stuff is cringe-worthy and terrible.” He pauses a moment. “Ah fuck it, you showed me your ‘hard’ side, I suppose I’ll return the favor by being a nerd for a moment. Fuck you.” That was… abrupt? “Live-action Akagi is better than the anime, objectively. I’ve seen both, Live-action is actually more true to the manga or the ‘artist’s intentions’ or whatever. The anime tried to sensationalize it, and make it more interesting for a broader audience. The anime cut out entire games because they weren’t interesting enough or something. And I mean… yeah, after Washizu it kinda dies off, but… let it happen, that’s literally one of the biggest points of the series., that in gambling, life, or whatever, you peak at some point, and nothing really ever stands up to it. Doesn’t mean you just stop.” Oh damn! Dai getting deep over here!

[dangansuffering]

Perfectly Elastic !! Katahiko !! Prologue !! Closed for Dai

[ultimatemahjong]

This kid looked like he belonged her already. Prim proper… Kinda nerdy looking. Polite… Apparently he’d spent a good bit of his time in America? Or at least had picked up American mannerisms… Like shaking hands. Dai didn’t particularly care, it wasn’t as if he were a germophobe. Besides… This was a prosthetic… It was probably sterile? Dai shook his hand, giving a firm handshake that Katahiko would inevitably not feel. Doing so brought his own hand into focus. Several scars decorated his hand and fingers… If one had to guess, most of them came from a knife, or a similar blade. “Sorakubo-san. Got it. I’m Dai Fukou. I play too much mahjong.” He pauses a bit. “So what’s an American cyborg announcer doing at a Japanese university? Just out of curiosity.”

[dangansuffering]

First Impressions || Dai Fukou || Orientation Reaction

[ultimatemahjong]

“No shit? Good for- OH You’re the guy who flipflopped from Germany to Japan a while back, yeah? I remember seeing something about that.” He remembers some other stuff in the news about them, but… Eh, it probably isn’t important.

Dai had more or less finished trying to get his clothes presentable again, and was now just having an awkward bathroom conversation with someone carrying a weapon they were apparently incredibly skilled with… That was fine, and totally normal. “Sounds like there’s no love lost there.” He chuckles. “Yeah… because putting people in awkward positions doesn’t run in your family apparently. She sounds cool though. I’d be interested in knowing who won that little competition.” “You by chance play mahjong?”

[dangansuffering]

First Impressions || Dai Fukou || Orientation Reaction

[ultimatemahjong]

“Only fifty-thousand? You’re gonna have to hit a bigger demographic than that.” Dai pauses. “The press? So you famous or something?” It appears Dai did not do much research into his classmates. Whoops. “Yeah, there’s some other words for it too, but I have a fragile ego, so it’s probably best to avoid those.” “You’d think so, but… do you know how many door frames I’ve hit my head on, or at least had my hair hit? Japan was not made for the tall. Have to get my clothes custom fitted, occasionally get mistaken for a human jungle gym by children… Which I mean… Just gets awkward man. Also, fuck Disneyworld.” “And I’m not even the tallest in our class, we have some fucking giants. The other dude in a white suit? I pity him. I mean… first because he’s wearing a white suit, but… You get it.” Dai raised a brow at Kazuya’s dismissal of his status, but… Hey, if it didn’t bother him, cool. Dai clearly didn’t see it as a problem. “Eh, I was more just referring to the deals he’s willing to make. Apparently he can guarantee I won’t get expelled or otherwise fail out of school… So I’m free to do whatever the fuck I want with no repercussions.” Dai laughs. “Should be fun.” Dai at least notes the shift in tone. “Yeah… I suppose I get that…” Change in topic to make Kazuya more comfortable? “So… Tell me about this sister of yours.”

[dangansuffering]

Perfectly Elastic !! Katahiko !! Prologue !! Closed for Dai

There was so much space to run around in this place, Katahiko just didn’t know where to settle. So he wouldn’t. After putting up about two more shirts in his room, he ended up wandering around the dorms at large. Definitely fancier than his house. There were even a couple of game tables in the lobby area—not board game games, sadly, but still games. He played foosball against himself for an entire two goals, then moved onto the pool table. Super nice-looking, wow.

Perpetually in a state between hyperobservation and knowing absolutely nothing about his surroundings, he failed to notice the outside door opening as he chalked up a cue.

[ultimatemahjong]

Dai limped his way to the dorms, tossing open the door, and pushing his way in. His limp wasn’t bad enough to impede his mobility too much, more just something noticeable about his gait. The knee brace made it much easier to identify. Still, with no more than a nod in Aiden’s direction, he continued through the lobby, and to his dorm, which he unlocked, before propping the door open and returning. In the time of his absence, two rather robust teenagers walked in carrying what appeared to be a very heavy box. Pictured on the side was a folding automatic mahjong table. The teens themselves looked like miscreants… The kind of people you’d expect to pop out of a dark alley and mug you in broad daylight. Though I mean, who judges by appearance in this progressive world of 20xx?

The shorter of the teens stopped abruptly upon seeing Katahiko, causing the other to nearly drop the table. “Hey, if you’ve got money to put down, I’ll give you a game after we’re done here.” The smile on his face was unsettling, this kid was clearly a shark.

This was approximately when Dai rounded the corner. “Leave the poor guy with his money. Besides haven’t you heard the stereotype of broke college kids?” “Uh… You go here Fukou-san…” “That’s… a fair argument.” Dai conceded. “Just go set the table up already. It’s the open door on the right.” “Yeah, yeah, fine.” With that, the teens disappeared into the hallway, leaving Dai and Katahiko in the lobby. “Saw you in the orientation thing. Dai Fukou.” He introduces himself with another nod.

[dangansuffering]

Movie Night || Dai Fukou || Closed for Moko

[ultimatemahjong]

Dai noted the girl approaching, she seemed notably upset… Which was fair, he was fully aware he wasn’t exactly being courteous or respectful, but he failed to understand how it became her problem. He continued going through videos as she continued replacing them for a few moments before. “So… someone piss in your cheerios this morning, or what? You know you don’t gotta do that. This library has employees, and seeing as you were in my orientation group, you probably aren’t one of them. You the ultimate librarian or something?” He shrugged, and continued. If this was how she wanted to spend her time, good for her, but that wouldn’t necessarily influence him, he just continued adding movies to the piles. His “yes” pile primarily consisted of Godzilla movies, and Kung-Fu flicks. He had grabbed the live action Akagi series, and the live action Rurouni Kenshin movie, but those were the only anime related things in his “yes” pile.

[dangansuffering]

Movie Night || Dai Fukou || Closed for Moko

The library… Not really someplace Dai intended to frequent. He was honestly a bit in awe of how big it was… So many references and resources… He doubted he’d ever touch any of it… Though he wasn’t above taking something if it looked interesting… And besides, a lot of libraries carried a movie section… Surely not all of them would be horribly boring documentaries right? It took a little asking around, but eventually he found himself in front of a shelf covered with Blu-Rays. They seemed to lump a lot of the more entertaining stuff in one place. DVDs, Blu-Rays, Manga, and Magazines. He might actually visit the library fairly often… It was cheaper than Netflix. The man began perusing the movies, starting at one end, and working his way down… His system for picking a movie seemed unnecessarily disruptive. He pulled the case from the shelf, looked it over, and rather than returning it to its proper place, tossed it to the side. He continued doing this down the shelf, forming two piles, though one was rather small compared to the other… It seemed he was separating movies he was interested in from the others… Dai, this isn’t how you library.

[dangansuffering]

First Impressions || Dai Fukou || Orientation Reaction

[ultimatemahjong]

“Well… Acceptance is the first step or whatever. Good for you owning it like that. I’m still going to give you shit about it though.” He teases. “Hey, my hair is iconic, alright? I mean, look at me. Without it I’m more used-car-salesman than respectable yakuza.” That was a very casual way to admit to being associated with a crime syndicate, but hey… “Though it does get in the way sometimes… Like I’m not already too tall for Japan.” He shrugs. “Fair enough.” Dai shrugs. He clearly doesn’t care one way or the other, he just didn’t want to insult Kazuya unintentionally. Intentionally was still absolutely fine though. “Trust me. I’ve seen bigger fools around here already. One was doing song and dance on stage not too long ago.” Dai, that’s the dean of your school! “Kazuya huh? Got it.” Dai nods, more or less ignoring the rambling. “Why you so nervous? You’ve got that thing on your back… I’m guessing you’re pretty fucking good with it too… I mean assuming it has something to do with your talent, and you’re not just lugging it around for fun. It’s not like anyone’s gonna shiv you or something. Calm down.” Once in the bathroom, Dai takes some paper towels, and begins cleaning off the best he can before busting out a bleach pen from an inner pocket on his suit. Seems he was prepared… Probably not a bad thing to carry if you’re intending to wear a white suit.