A/N: Hello, readers! Unlike in the original, I'm actually going to be showing you what Ichirou was like in the bad Toman timeline. Enjoy!

edited on march 1st, 2025 @ 9:16pm

⊱ ────── {⋅. ✯ .⋅} ────── ⊰

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𝓒𝙷𝙰𝙿𝚃𝙴𝚁 𝙾𝙽𝙴,
𝓘𝚃 𝙸𝚂 𝚆𝙷𝙰𝚃 𝙸𝚃 𝙸𝚂.

┗━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━┛

《 𝖸𝖤𝖠𝖱 𝟤𝟢𝟣𝟩 》

A TWENTY-EIGHT YEAR OLD ICHIROU rushed up the steps, Kazutora quickly following on his heels when they heard a gunshot ring out from above.

"Shit!" Ichirou cursed.

"Hurry, Imaushi-kun!" Kazutora shouted.

"I know!"

They finally arrived at the room as Kazutora cuts the lights, confusing the guards in the room.

"What the hell?!"

The sound of fighting could be heard as Ichirou knocked out the guards while Kazutora went over to free Takemichi from his restraints.

Some time later, the three were soon safely away from the hotel. Takemichi had blacked out due to the pain in his leg while Kazutora bandaged it.

"I can't believe we were too late to rescue Matsuno." Ichirou thinks to himself.

Takemichi began to stir as he breathed heavily. "Where am I?" He wondered as he sat up. "Shit!"

He looks down at his now bandaged leg. "That's right! Kisaki shot me in the leg." Takemichi recalled. "Wait... But after that, someone..."

"I gave you first aid."

Takemichi looked over, seeing an unknown figure who had his back to him. "Baji-kun?" Takemichi questioned. But stopped when he saw a clear view of the person's face. "No."

"Kazutora-kun..." Takemichi corrected himself as Kazutora stared at him.

"Oh, right. It's been 12 years, so he's out of prison." Takemichi realized as he stood up, stumbling a bit. "It's been a while."

Suddenly, Kazutora sent a punch to his face.

"Kazutora—"

Kazutora continued beating up Takemichi, making Haruto sigh.

"I think he gets the message, Hanemiya."

Takemichi tensed upon hearing an unfamiliar voice. He turned to see an unknown male with black hair with white stripes. His hair was pulled up in a ponytail and he had a lollipop stick hanging out of his mouth. 

"Who is that?" Takemichi wondered, blinking in confusion as he's never seen this person before.

"The other day, some guys were beating the crap out of a chick like this in the street. When I jumped in to break it up, they said they were members of Toman." Kazutora glanced down at Takemichi. "When did your Toman turn into a gang that beats on women?"

"I don't give a shit about you. It was... Chifuyu I wanted to save."

Kazutora was shown walking out of prison with a bag in his hand, a honk was soon heard, causing him to look up and seeing a familiar person.

"It's you..." Kazutora muttered.

"It's been a while, Kazutora-kun. Need a ride?" Chifuyu offered.

Kazutora was soon in the passenger seat as Chifuyu was driving.

"Toman has gone to the dogs. They're a criminal gang with zero ethics, and the cops can't touch them." Chifuyu explained. "I want us to turn Toman back into what it used to be."

"He'd been fighting all alone this whole time. But you..." Kazutora turned to look at Takemichi in anger. "What the hell were you doing?"

"I get it now. In this timeline, I ended up so rotten, Chifuyu couldn't rely on me." Takemichi noted.

"Toman got so big, it lost its way. Still, you guys were the first to serve as Kisaki's lackeys." Kazutora said. "Draken, our only hope, ended up on death row. And nobody knows where Mikey is now. So, Takemichi, where is Toman headed? Remember how Mikey once said he'd build a new era for hoodlums?"

Takemichi was silent. "Just like he said, Toman has gotten huge." Kazutora continued on. "Drug dealing, prostitution, illegal casinos, loansharking, murder. Toman does every kind of crime and has grown huge doing it. But... But... Is this the era that Mikey wanted to build? Is this the Toman that Baji wanted to protect?"

Takemichi suddenly remembered Mikey's words.

"So, I'm going to build a new era for hoodlums."

Kazutora recalled what Baji had said when they just formed Toman.

"I want a gang where each of us is willing to risk our lives for each other."

"Back then, this wasn't the kind of Toman they wanted to build." Kazutora turns over to look at Takemichi. "Isn't that right, Takemichi?"

Tears began falling down Takemichi's face. "He's right! It's not!" He thought.

"It's not! The Toman I loved wasn't like this! It was always something to be proud of!" Takemichi exclaimed.

"Yes." Kazutora agreed. "Let's take back our Toman."

"By the way, we haven't met. I'm Imaushi Ichirou. I've heard great things about you from my partner, Hanagaki." Ichirou said.

"Partner?" Takemichi repeated in his mind, confused on what Ichirou was talking about.

⊱ ────── {⋅. ✯ .⋅} ────── ⊰

Ichirou was sitting in the passenger seat while Takemichi was in the back. "Kazutora-kun, Imaushi-kun, I... I don't really remember things well, so I might ask some weird questions." Takemichi started to say. "How did Toman end up like this?"

Kazutora and Ichirou both stayed silent. "Well, I mean... I'm still kind of in shock, so my head is pretty fuzzy." Takemichi corrected.

"It was Mikey." Kazutora finally answered.

"What?" Takemichi was shocked at the news.

"Mikey changed completely. Toman changed because Mikey changed." Kazutora continued.

"It can't be!" Takemichi said in disbelief. "Someone else must be behind it! Isn't Kisaki pulling the stings or something?"

"A month ago, Mitsuya went missing. Mikey sent for him, but he hasn't been seen since then." Kazutora explained.

"What?"

Ichirou's phone suddenly rang as he picked it up. "Hello?" He greeted as he listened to what the person on the other end said. "I see."

Ichirou soon ended the call, putting his phone back in his pocket, looking at Takemichi. "While Kisaki had you tied up last night, Pah-chin and Peh-yan were murdered." He informed, causing Takemichi's eyes to widen.

"This means Mikey has started purging the old Toman members. He doesn't even trust his old friends anymore." Kazutora added.

"It can't be..." Takemichi muttered. "How could Mikey do that to everyone?"

"It's all being done at Mikey's command. Kisaki is just carrying out the orders. Mikey has gone truly evil." Kazutora claimed. "As one of the people who changed him, I want to talk to him. He needs to get away from them!"

"'Them'?" Takemichi questioned.

"The violence of Kisaki and the money of BLACK DRAGON. Unless something is done about them, Mikey will never return to normal. He's not a hoodlum anymore." Kazutora responded, starting his car. "Help Imaushi-kun and I out, Takemichi. It's my turn to help Mikey now. I want to save Sano Manjiro."

Kazutora was driving as he continued speaking. "The remnants of the old biker gang, BLACK DRAGON, joined up with Toman and became Mikey's heavy hitters. Those guys will do anything for money." He said.

"Well..." Takemichi started to say. "Wasn't BLACK DRAGON the reason why Toman was formed?"

"That's right. I had connections with BLACK DRAGON in the past. But they're definitely not like they used to be." Kazutora replied. "The mounds of cash they can produce are one of the things that corrupted Mikey. I used my connections to find their hidden bank account. I plan to stop this by stopping the flow of that money."

"And the one who was going to handle Kisaki, Mikey's right-hand man, was Chifuyu." Kazutora said as the light turned green. "Chifuyu was killed because he backed Kisaki into a corner."

"Really?" Takemichi asked.

"That's why Imaushi-kun and I went to that building to rescue Chifuyu." Kazutora explained.

"How did Chifuyu... How did he have Kisaki cornered?" Takemichi questioned.

"One day, a police detective — Imaushi-kun's partner — approached us." Kazutora said.

"What?"

"He's the brother of a woman Kisaki had murdered."

"I want revenge."

"That's Naoto!" Takemichi exclaimed, realizing who Kazutora was talking about before looking at Ichirou. "I guess Naoto has a partner in this timeline."

"Wait! You mean you and Chifuyu helped that detective?" Takemichi asked.

"Yeah. We looked into the murder of Tachibana Hinata. We figured out who gave the orders. Sendo Atsushi, a Toman member, rammed a car into a microcar driven by a school teacher. They caught fire and blew up. They both died in that accident. You remember it, right?" Kazutora questioned.

"It's seared into my memory!" Takemichi thinks to himself.

"Kisaki gave the order. But he has an alibi. He was meeting with you guys in the top brass that day." Ichirou informed.

"What?" Takemichi said. "He was meeting with us? That must mean in this timeline when Hinata and Akkun died, I wasn't even there."

"But Chifuyu had proof... that it was Kisaki who gave the order." Kazutora continued.

"Proof?" Takemichi quoted.

"We had Kisaki cornered and were on the verge of getting him. But it's Chifuyu's fault for letting him slip through our fingers." Kazutora said.

The car suddenly came to a stop. "Come with me, Hanagaki. There's a guy in this alley who's waiting for you." Ichirou informed, getting out of the car.

"Me?" Takemichi questioned as he followed Ichirou out of the car. Kazutora got out as well.

"He wants me to see someone? Who could it be?" Takemichi wondered, following Ichirou.

The older male finally stopped. "I brought him." Ichirou informed.

"Thanks, Imaushi-senpai."

Takemichi's eyes widened at the familiar voice as well as the person leaning on the wall. "Naoto!" Takemichi exclaimed. "I've found him at last!"

Naoto walked forward. "I've been waiting for you, Takemichi-kun." He spoke.

"Naoto..." Takemichi mumbled. Suddenly, handcuffs were slapped onto his wrists. "What?"

"Hanagaki Takemichi, I'm placing you under arrest for instigating murder!" Naoto announced as more officers surrounded Takemichi.

"What?"

"I'm sorry, Hanemiya-kun." Naoto apologized to Kazutora.

"You bastard!" Kazutora said as he was being held back by the officers.

"I'm under arrest... for murder?" Takemichi repeated, as if he couldn't believe it.

"Too bad, Takemichi-kun." Naoto said.

"Naoto... Why?" Takemichi questioned.

⊱ ────── {⋅. ✯ .⋅} ────── ⊰

Ichirou was leaning on the wall in the interrogation room as Takemichi was seated down. A laptop was placed in front of him.

"Watch this." Naoto said, hitting play. Chifuyu was shown on the screen.

"That's Chifuyu." Takemichi realized. "What's this a video of?"

The sound of the door opening was heard as Chifuyu bowed.

"Good afternoon."

"You too."

In the video, Takemichi sat down at his desk. "It's sure as hell hot. Go on, sit down." He ordered. "I didn't want to have to call you about this, but it was ordered. We got no choice."

"Is that... me?" Takemichi asked.

"Matsuno Chifuyu secretly taped this." Naoto said as he went to sit down across from Takemichi.

"I don't know how to explain this. But in any case, as always, the moment you returned to the present, my timeline changed in an instant." Naoto stated.

Takemichi tensed as he glanced towards Ichirou, who showed no reaction. "Should we really be talking about this with him in the room?" He thought.

"Don't look at me like that, Hanagaki. I already know about the past and future business." Ichirou confessed.

"Huh? You do?"

Ichirou shrugged. "Naoto's my partner, why would I not know? Besides, he trusted me enough with that information." He replied.

"The changes you made in the past made big changes in the present. I'm still a cop, just as before. But this time, I got a partner, Imaushi-senpai." Naoto continued. "You don't work at a rental shop this time. You're a bigwig in Toman. Yet, just like before, on August 10th, my sister was killed in her car by Sendo Atsushi. Then, I teamed up with Hanemiya Kazutora and Matsuno Chifuyu to arrest Kisaki for my sister's death."

Takemichi began hyperventilating. "I'm sorry, Takemichi-kun. You must be in shock. Considering my position, I had no choice but to arrest you. Watch the rest of the video." Naoto finished.

"Okay..." Takemichi said, pressing play on the laptop and the video resumed.

"There's only one reason why I called you here. I want you to kill someone."

"Who?"

"I don't know who it is. I couldn't care less either! What's important is that they're a nuisance to Toman!" The Takemichi in the video slammed his fist on the table. "It's not like I want to make you do this. If it's not done, Kisaki will be on my ass. Got it, Atsushi?"

"Atsushi?" Takemichi repeated in shock as he stood up. "That's Akkun!"

"Who am I supposed to kill?" Atsushi asked once again over the video.

"I told you! I don't know! Someone will contact you with the details later. We'll get you everything you need to do it."

"Actually..."

"What's it?"

"I haven't heard from my wife since last night."

"What?"

"Come on, Takemichi! Talk to the bosses for me!" Atsushi pleaded. "My wife is pregnant with our second—"

"Shut up!" Takemichi cuts him off angrily. "It's your duty as a plebe to do what you're told, goddamn it!"

Naoto turned the laptop around. "I ordered Akkun... to kill someone?" Takemichi muttered.

"Here's another video." Naoto said, turning the laptop back around. "Matsuno Chifuyu secretly taped this too. Watch it carefully."

In the video, Takemichi was throwing things around angrily.

"Cut it out, Takemitchy!" Chifuyu told him.

"Fuck off!" Takemichi shouted.

"Destroying the furniture won't help!" Chifuyu argued.

"Goddamn it! I was set up! That Kisaki is the devil! I didn't know he was supposed to kill her!"

"Naoto, that's enough." Takemichi sits back down, making Ichirou frown at his state.

"We were after evidence proving Kisaki's involvement in Hinata's murder. These videos are proof." Naoto said.

"I told you, that's enough!" Takemichi exclaimed as Naoto closed the laptop.

"Matsuno Chifuyu had been hiding these videos from me. He was protecting you." Naoto stated.

Flashes of Hinata and Atsushi's death flashed in Takemichi's mind as he collapsed to the ground. He breathed heavily before chuckling. "This time, it's me." He spoke.

"I'm the one... who killed... Hina."

Takemichi looked down. "Isn't that right?" He asked.

"Takemichi-kun. You were used. That's all." Naoto tried to reassure him.

"I've had it. I can't do this. How many times has this been? But nothing has changed. In fact, it has gotten even worse. I killed... Hina. And Akkun and Chifuyu and all those guys died too!" Takemichi exclaimed.

Naoto stood up and caught Takemichi. "And there's nothing I can do for Baji-kun either! I can only go back to today 12 years ago! There's no way I can save him!" Takemichi continued.

"Screaming and crying won't help!" Naoto said. "This is just as rough on me."

"No, it's not! I murdered your sister! Let's just give up, Naoto! I can't change anything!" Takemichi said as Naoto hugs him.

"You saved me! What you've done has helped!" Naoto claimed. "In the first timeline, neither Toman nor Ryuguji Ken existed. There was no Matsuno Chifuyu, no Hanemiya Kazutora, and no Baji Keisuke either. None of them still existed, Takemichi-kun. Without their influence, we would never have gotten this far into Toman. The one who kept their influence alive was you! You're the only one who can change Toman and who can save Hinata! Please, transform this hellish world, Takemichi-kun!"

Footsteps were heard outside, getting Ichirou's attention.

"Naoto, the last time I traveled back in time, I became the captain of Toman's First Division. I was a step closer to becoming the leader of Toman. So, I thought things would be better in the present. But Hina was still killed. And what's worse, it was me who killed her." Takemichi said.

"This is just conjecture, but do you think Kisaki had you kill my sister on purpose?" Naoto questioned.

"What?"

"Don't you think it's odd? No matter how many times you go back, Kisaki always ends up having my sister killed. Could it be a coincidence? No. It has happened too often to be a coincidence. It never fails." Naoto said.

"You mean..."

"Kisaki Tetta clearly... has some obsession with you and my sister."

"What?" Takemichi said, recalling Kisaki's words.

"... my hero."

There was a knock on the door. "I want us to plan things out, but there's no time. You'll be sent to the detention center now." Naoto said.

"The detention center?" Takemichi quoted.

"It'll be difficult for us to meet like this anymore." Naoto informed as Takemichi nodded. There was more banging on the door.

"Now is your only chance to go back." Naoto said, extending his hand out.

"I'm gonna make this quick. Hanagaki, I won't tell you why I became a police detective. But I was once apart of BLACK DRAGON, the gang that merged with Toman." Ichirou spoke up, getting Takemichi's attention.

"Then why aren't you..."

"I left after the last leader was murdered by Shiba Hakkai. I didn't like the guy, but he didn't deserve to get killed." Ichirou explained, pulling out two photos. Takemichi's eyes widened upon seeing the two people he saw in the Toman exec meeting.

"These two are Kokonoi Hajime and Inui Seishu. They're members in Toman, so I assume you've met them." Ichirou explained as Takemichi nodded. Ichirou placed the photos back in his jacket.

"They were once good friends of mine. Actually, Seishu was more than a friend to me, but we don't got time for that story." Ichirou said. "One more thing, I don't know if you'll encounter my past self, but in case you do, don't take anything I say seriously. I was an egotistical brat back then."

"What do you mean was? You still are." Naoto teased as Ichirou whacked him on the head.

"That was just uncalled for, Naoto."

"Sorry, Senpai."

Takemichi smiled. "Looks like Naoto found a good partner." He noted.

"Whatever happened between you and Kisaki Tetta in the past must be the key to the mystery behind my sister's death." Naoto said.

"Right." Takemichi nodded in agreement.

Takemichi clasps hands with Naoto, causing a surge of electricity to go through him.

ZAP!

"Thank you, Chifuyu... Kazutora-kun... and Imaushi-kun... Thanks to you three, I know who the enemy is. The ex-BLACK DRAGON members and Kisaki Tetta. That's what corrupted Mikey-kun. I'll drive them out of Toman to save Hina and save everyone!"

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A/N: The first chapter is completed! Thanks for reading!

Word Count: 3018 words.