[AllTakemichi] Control

Chapter 31

Takemichi lies unconscious until the next morning. When he wakes up, he vaguely sees a group of people in his hospital room. This scene reminds him of the time he was hospitalized after the Battle of Valhalla. Oh no, at this rate, the hospital might as well become his home.

The doctor comes to check on him. His condition is stable, but he has a mild traumatic brain injury causing neurological dysfunctions that could last from a few days to several months. Takemichi realizes he really needs to be careful.

Takemichi leans back on the hospital bed and now realizes he is in a VIP hospital room with too many people around. He doesn't mention the people from Touman, but Taiju with a bandage on his forehead, Inupee, Kokonoi, and the Haitani brothers are all here.

"You guys haven't told Mikey yet, have you?"

Thinking of others as soon as he wakes up - should they scold him for this?

"Don't worry. We haven't said a word," Chifuyu sighs as he answers. Takemichi smiles with relief and turns to look at Ran and Rindou.

"Thank you both for waiting for me until now. You've been here all night, so please go home and rest."

"I waited all night for you, and now you're already trying to kick me out?" Ran replies, pretending to feel hurt.

"No, it's not like that... It's just that you were already tired yesterday, and since you're all the way from Roppongi, I think you need to rest," Takemichi responds sincerely.

His genuine concern leaves the Haitani brothers momentarily speechless. Takemichi's genuine care for them, especially when he's still injured, makes it hard for them to continue teasing him. Besides, Touman is glaring at them with a fierce, threatening look. It's clear they shouldn't stay any longer. After all, now that Takemichi is awake, their worries have eased.

"Well then, see you later, Takemichi-kun," Ran says with a gentle smile so unexpected it almost startles Takemichi, who wonders if he's imagining things. Touman, however, notices how "Hanagaki-kun" has suddenly turned into "Takemichi-kun." What does that mean?

"See you, Takemitchy. I'll visit you again soon," Rindou says mischievously, winking at him. Takemichi just smiles back, too tired to argue.

Next, Takemichi knows he has to deal with some matters regarding Black Dragon.

"Could everyone wait outside for a moment? I need to talk to Taiju-kun," he says.

Even though they don't understand why he wants to have this conversation in his weakened state, they just nod and step out.

Taiju crosses his arms and looks at him seriously. His tone is still rough, but at least he's a bit gentler now.

"You want to talk about Black Dragon?"

"Yes!"

"I'll never accept losing to a punk like you, but I've decided to step back. If you want Black Dragon, it's yours."

"Actually, I want more than that, Taiju-kun. Please, hear me out," Takemichi replies.

Takemichi and Taiju talk for a long time - over 30 minutes. The others don't want to intrude, so they move down to the hospital lobby. Kokonoi and Inupee stand apart from the Touman members.

"What's your plan now, Koko? Taiju has stepped back," Inupee asks.

"I'll follow you, of course. Whatever you decide, I'm with you," Kokonoi replies with a shrug, as if it's the most obvious thing in the world.

"Then I'll hand Black Dragon over to Hanagaki," Inupee decides.

Kokonoi raises an eyebrow, looking intrigued. "You seem to like that guy a lot, huh?"