KULEMIWRITES| Yakuza Headcanons & Scenarios

Saejima-sensei (Teacher AU Headcanons)

◈EARLY YEARS | Education of Self◈

Saejima was a great student himself, usually scoring highly on his exams, very courteous to staff and while he didn't take shit from his fellow classmates, he was generally kind to everyone. For a while there, he wasn't sure what he wanted to be until he'd met his favorite teacher during his third year of junior high– an elderly man in his final year of teaching . He had a heart of gold and Saejima admired him.

Many of the man's teaching's didn't stop at the classroom door at the end of the school day- much of it he still recalls and uses in his day to day as an adult. Before the school year came to a close, the teacher suddenly passed away despite being the picture of health (even in his old age). Saejima was devastated. He hadn't yet decided but he often found himself comparing the teaching styles of his high school educators to that of his late teacher and it was then that he realized the respect he'd gained for the profession.

By the time he was in his third year of high school, he had his eye on a few colleges that he hoped to get into and he'd been learning as much as he could, wherever he could about prefectural examinations for when the time came and when it did, he couldn't have been more prepared. The exams were roughly what he expected and he successfully passed them without a hair out of place then he went on to complete his one year internship at his designated school with ease.

◈EARLY YEARS | Level, Prefecture and Students◈

Dressed in uncomfortable suit and tie combinations with his black hair cut short above his ears and brushed out of his face, he kept a polite smile on his lips as he just tried his best to get through the days.

His first year as a tenured educator in Kansai proved to be far more strenuous than he ever predicted it could be. Not even the extensive training he had to under-go before being assigned his first group of elementary school third years could prepare him for the hell he went through that first year. Since he was a new teacher with few to no connections, he was assigned to an underfunded school with a reputation of having 'hopeless children' and the only warning he had was the whispers he heard over the years of working toward his certification- educator hopefuls wishing to never wind up there.

The first few months was a constant cycle of: enduring disrespect, attempting to teach, pausing to cautiously scold, enduring more disrespect, bargaining, allowing tantrums, seeking assistance from his seniors, basking in the moments of peace, only to endure more disrespect while attempting to teach as chaos ensued behind him.

It was slowly breaking him down. He had moments when he wondered if he'd done all of his education and training for nothing. He doubted if he even wanted to return the following year but one night, the gentle smile of his late junior high teacher appeared in his mind and it was as if a light bulb flashed in his head. He sat down in the apartment he still shared with his younger sister as he formulated a plan he referred to in his head as, 'What Would Sensei Do?' .

The reason he looked up to his old teacher so much was because he was a genuinely kind man who was patient and understanding while still silently commanding respect from his students. He didn't tolerate poor behavior but he never dignified it with a response. For the kids acting out for attention, being actively ignored while others weren't tended to discourage them and when they decided to behave themselves, he treated them just as he did the others. He never penalized the good students for the behavior of the bad, and he never held the poor behavior of the bad kids against them. Most important of all, he loved his students and never gave up on them. That was the type of teacher Saejima wanted to be.

Saejima swapped his ill fitted suits for a comfier range of polos and chinos to allow him to move about the same as his students and he cut his hair just an inch or so shorter. Feeling more relaxed, brought about a calming peace within him and when he slid the classroom door open that morning, his students could feel his energy and it resonated with them without them even realizing it.