Durarara!! Epitome of Eighteen Histories Chapter 9

Awakusu Ninkyō Episode

This is a story—of past and future.
A story of twisted history.

In the future. A certain park in Ikebukuro.

“You are very curious, miss. Or is fearless the right word?”

“To even think of interviewing yakuza like me.”

Kinomiya Kazane.

She was a greenhorn freelancer who specialised in investigating dubious leads and urban legends, and wrote for news and gossip magazines here and there.

“It’s just that the magazines I write for have many readers curious about the lifestyle of people like you.”

Akabayashi shrugged as he said this. Kazane started the interview conversationally:

“Ahhh… You mean, the types that help the weak and crush the strong, even though they’re yakuza? Well, when I was young I might have thought it was pretentious. If you keep being faced with an ugly reality, there comes a time when you just want to spit on pretty things.”

“But if you go on that way, eventually you’ll come to think, maybe it isn’t that bad to have yakuza that say pretty things, if only in books and movies.”

“That’s too much praise. A good person wouldn’t be in this line in the first place. This isn’t a confession or anything, just an example… If someone says he can’t stand drugs, but he goes around beating people up, supporting underground casinos, or even selling illegally smuggled crabs, he’s still a criminal to society, right? What would you think about a serial killer going around yelling ‘I hate drugs!’?”

Kazane answered honestly. With a wry laugh, Akabayashi said,

“In that case, Akabayashi-san… Have you ever thought of starting a clean slate?”

His gaze remained far away.

“Hm?”

“You speak too highly of me. I was just a useless fellow who couldn’t protect his own boss properly. It just so happens Old Man Awakusu was the one who picked me up.”

Chuckling, Akabayashi leant back on the bench, and gazed into the sky.

And as he watched the sky, abruptly, the memory resurfaced:
Of the day he first arrived at the Awakusu-kai, after he had let his chief die before him.

In the past. Awakusu-kai office.

“Da… Chief, are you sure?”

“Yeah. As I just said, from today onwards he’ll be under our roof as a guest. …You’ve heard the rumours of the Red Demon, surely? Surely he’s someone we’d want on our side.”

Akabayashi.

But ever since his previous chief had been stabbed in the stomach by the Slasher in front of him, there had been rumours he was the actual killer.

With this in mind, Mikiya’s protests were only to be expected—but Dōgen merely, expressionlessly, said to his son,

“‘What of it’… Chief…”

“…”

“Chief, that may be enough for you, but if he seems about to turn on us, we have the liberty to put an end to it ourselves?”

“Honestly, you’re dry as always, Kine.”

“That’s a given. Not just Akabayashi; all of you here are in the same situation, aren’t you? You’re not quietly sitting here to play house, last I checked. That kid Kazamoto’s been raking up revenue like no tomorrow; he’s an upcoming candidate. Shiki, Aozaki, now’s not the time to relax. Keep that in mind.”

After chiding them the Chief left the room, and the remaining officers began to talk.

Blatantly sighing was the young head Mikiya.

“Listen up. I don’t know what you’re up to, but since you’re the Chief’s guest, we’ll treat you like that. So long as you watch your actions.”

“…Call me Manager. That’s the rule around here.”

Akabayashi’s lackadaisical attitude was met with sharp glares.

Instead, Shiki, who had been silent so far, spoke to the scar-faced officer beside him.

“The old man’s word is law. He says do it, we do it. It doesn’t make a damn difference if the guy’s the one who offed his boss.”

“But no one says I have to like you. I don’t care how much you’ve bullied your way around out there—we don’t give prizes for that here, Mister Playground Bully.”

“Who’s an Aodaisho!”

“Oi, oi. You mocked him first.”

“But why did you choose to come here? With your reputation, you must have had plenty of offers from elsewhere.”

Akabayashi answered evasively. Aozaki, recovering his calm, replied.

“Oh, you’re into movies? I’d like to see you so moved you’re in tears.”

Aozaki clenched his fists and stood, heading for the door.

He cracked his knuckles and neck, and bloodlust flashing in his eyes, said,
“I still need to go destroy that gang of brats who picked a fight with us, after all.”

A few hours later. Somewhere in the city.

“Really, Aozaki is naïve.”

“He underestimated that gang. Now they even have his lover’s address.”

By right Aozaki should be launching a raid on their hideout right now—but Shiki’s network had caught news that a section of the gang had split off and begun to mobilise independently, and appeared to be headed towards the home of Aozaki’s lover.

—Either way, it’s a good chance to have Aozaki in my debt.

Two men stood in the parking lot behind the building.

Looming imposingly on the scene, one with a blithe smile, the other expressionless.

There was no need to check; those on the ground were probably Gyaraon members. But what were these two doing here?

“Oh, Shiki-san. The Jyan Jyaka Jyan I beat down recently, somehow they’ve taken a liking to me. They passed on a bit of information, so I got curious and took a stroll.”

Shiki could only sigh, pressing his fingertips to his temple.

“Your entourage is a bit flamboyant in itself, I think.”

“More importantly, your men are just on time. Help us move all these rascals onto the cars.”

“Good grief, what a motley crew we have here.”

Kine took in the exchange between Shiki and Akabayashi, and with a faraway look, said half to himself,
“…And right about now there’s probably another fool lighting these kids’ base on fire.”

The following day. Awakusu-kai office.

In the end, the Gyaraon base was razed to the ground.

Aozaki clicked his tongue, and as they passed one another, without even glancing at Akabayashi, he spoke.

“That’s perfectly fine. It’d scare all the girls at the bar away if someone with such a scary face liked me.”

“…I’ll return the favour sometime. Crushing you will come after.”

And with that day as a catalyst, the Awakusu-kai entered what some would call its golden era, gaining significant power under the umbrella of Medei Group—but at the time they themselves had no idea of this.
Other than the man who had assembled them; Dōgen Awakusu himself.

Future. A certain park in Ikebukuro.

“Thank you so much for today!”

The interview had drawn to a close, with Akabayashi sharing only what was safe.

“I have an interview scheduled with Shiki-san next.”

“Yes… That’s why I want to find out with my own eyes what he’s like.”

After saying this jokingly, Akabayashi thumped his cane on the ground, and continued.

“?”

“…!”

“There’s no need to be so wary. Just as you can research on us, we can find your information easily enough.”

“You know already, right? What your brother works as?”

Kazane nodded resolutely, to which Akabayashi, smiling, replied,

“…I wanted to understand what kind of world my brother is in. Because I couldn’t bear to just be afraid, or feign ignorance, or simply assume he’s a bad person and scorn him, or just ignore it like someone else’s business…”

There Akabayashi’s face turned sober, and he continued,

“Akabayashi-san…”

Kazane absorbed Akabayashi’s words, and after some thought, she smiled.
“…You’re a good person, Akabayashi-san. This is why you’re like a movie outlaw.”

“Don’t get fooled. I’m only pretending to be good.”

****EPISODE END****

Chapter end