𝐃𝐚𝐫𝐤 𝐑𝐞𝐝 - s. ᴍᴀɴᴊɪʀᴏ

𝟎𝟓𝟐: 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐟𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧

Since you got back home. You've been thinking about your argument with Naoto.

Now that Takemichi's back... And he's found out about Bonten. Is it really worth it...? You rethink your life up to this point. No matter how many times your friends insisted you stopped searching for Mikey. No matter how many arguments you got into with Chifuyu and Naoto about Mikey. You didn't stop your search. And with Takemichi finding out the group exists, it's only a matter of time until he finds out the truth about Mikey.

You think about what Naoto said.

"And what exactly is that?! Lying to your friends that you're over Sano? Self-sabotaging your own life to save Sano? You're telling me you have powers to see the future and you couldn't even prevent this from happening?!"

Now that you've finally caught a clear photo of him, you could track him at any time. But then what...? Talk to him? If it didn't work then, it won't work now. Not to mention, Sanzu will probably be by his side.

You started to feel conflicted. Maybe Naoto was right. Maybe you only cared and thought about Mikey. You were so clouded with desperation. You tried to excuse your behaviour and actions by taking jabs at Naoto. Your justification, whenever you did kill a member, was because they were from Bonten. You were just as much of a criminal as they were. You felt stupid, now reflecting on the past 12 years.

What have I been thinking?! I haven't seen that asshole in 10 years and I'm still stuck on him?!

The phrase 'absence makes the heart grow fonder,' couldn't be any more true for your case. You yearned for Mikey. The more years that passed, the more you missed him. As well as your desperation to save him.

You started to loathe the fact that you still loved Mikey. Even after what he said to you and your friends before he left. Even after he left. Even after everyone discouraged you and told you he wasn't the same anymore. You had hope that he had a bit of himself still in there. Buried in the darkness. You still hoped that maybe you'd see him smile again. Maybe he'd tell you he still loved you after all this time.

You close your eyes and hope to forget about the stress from today.

-

"You're one persistent chick," Kazutora comments. You invited him over. He was the only one you could talk to about the argument you had with Naoto the other night. Other than Naoto, Kazutora was the only person who knew you were still tailing Bonten.

"I think you're both pretty stupid," he honestly opinionated, "Naoto's basically inciting your investigations when he's a cop, while you have some kind of saviour complex."

"Thanks..." You monotonously respond. Kazutora puts his palm on his chin, leaning onto the kitchen table. "I kinda get it though, I mean..." Kazutora laughs lightly, "Before I turned myself in, I deemed Mikey as my enemy. I used to think I'd be a hero by killing him."

You stayed silent. Still thinking about the argument you had with Naoto. "What I'm saying is, I don't think you're seeing clearly enough," the long-haired man continues, "If the objective is to save Mikey, why target other Bonten members? What exactly are you achieving with that?" He asks, knowing fully that it was you who killed Mochizuki Kanji.

"I was trying to take out the pawns," you stated. "Without his army, the king can't move."

"This isn't chess, [Y/N]." Kazutora tells you, "In this case, the 'king'," he finger quotes, "Is the strongest piece on the board. Even if you take out his pawns and knights and horses, how can you possibly 'checkmate' him."

You were starting to think he was mocking your analogy but you ignore that. You point at your eyes, "I can see through him. No matter how strong he is, I can read him."