The yesterdays that were mine

The Ghost Behind the Dragon pt. 2

Fighting within the delinquent craze in Shibuya was common, so common in fact that gang members tended to facet off into fight clubs, typically between unwilling participants. Manjiro didn't like the idea of it, much like how Shinichiro didn't like the idea of it. Fighting was normal, and in some ways encouraged. So when Manjiro had gained in-tell of a fight club that was taking in first year slaves to bet on, he wanted to see it for himself.

That was until they saw Kiyomizu Masataka beating a blonde kid with a wooden bat. They were supposed to be fist fights, not public beatings; at least not those that involved weapons and obvious power imbalances. Draken walked ahead, and Nana was left unshielded by his body. She looked around for somewhere to blend and watched Manjiro, who had fallen back, walk towards the group with half a biscuit hanging from his lips.

Nana heard Draken say something to the crowd, but couldn't make out exact words. She knew he had said something because of the look on their faces.

"Hey Kenny" Manjiro spoke up, and Draken looked back over his shoulder.

"What? Don't call me by that stupid nickname in public" His face was serious, his voice fell deeper as if that was even possible.

"I'm all outta' Nana's biscuits, you got any food for me?"

When Manjiro's presence was sensed, most if not all of the guys surrounding the dirt patch that stood as the fighting ring bowed so far down and bid their hello's, and good afternoon's to he who commanded them.

After he had finished beating the shit out of Kiyomizu, he bent down to the blond boy who was leaning back on his shins, shoulders slumped and his white school shirt adorned in dark dirt spots that looked more like scorching burn marks. His eyes were pooling with heavy tears when Manjiro bent down to speak to him.

Nana could feel a sense of understanding from that boy. It seemed as if Manjiro liked finding broken people, and keeping them. That little bite of knowledge shocked Nana slightly. Because it was true, maybe it had been true this entire time, maybe her entire life.

Maybe they knew Nana needed saving, knew she was vulnerable and helpless. Maybe Manjiro liked it, and she fed into it. She let them hurt her and yell at her and tear her apart, then stitch her back together without another word. Nana let them do it. She stayed, put the jacket on, followed three paces behind, or three paces in front or right beside them. She was wherever they wanted her to be, and she let it happen.

From the bottom of the hole She had been abandoned in, they were her heroes. The first people who showed Nana attention and gave her something to fulfil; but that wasn't what she needed. She needed a place to fall, to rest her tired bones, even if it meant buying drinks and swapping her freedom for some stupid words across her back. After so long, Nana would have done just about anything for a quiet place to land. But as time welds together the past and present, she realises that she never really escaped it; and she realised that she would never escape it. Perhaps that's just who she was, an ever happy, never ending giver.

But she couldn't hate them, nor see them as bullies. That's not who they were, and that's not how Nana was. She didn't want to hate anybody. But it was never really about the violence, it was about the power. Masashi had power over Nana, and so did Manjiro, and Draken, Baji, Mitsuya, Pah and...Kazutora. They all held the power in their hands.

"Who are you?" Manjiro asked to the sniffling boy. He looked straight at Manjiro proudly, as if his cheeks weren't glossed with tears.

"I'm Takemichi Hanagaki" He said, through the hushed whispers of all the other boys around them.

"Ah, Takemitchy," he smiled, flicking something off his shirt. "We're gonna be friends" he said, standing up to walk away after his statement, his hands placed into his pockets again.

The unfamiliar boy's eyes flickered between the turned backs of Draken and Manjiro, until they finally landed on Nana. he stared at her intensely, as if he hadn't ever seen a girl before, as if he never expected Nana to be there. She looked over his crumpled form and turned, quickly catching up with the other two.