The many fathers of yokohama
2024-05-17

The many fathers of yokohama

The beginning

Yakuza: Like a Dragon is a game about many things, is about how crime sets in places devoid of government support, how conservatives politicians want crime to rise because it suits their agenda, about how our society is comfortable thinking that there are people that doesn't count as "real" people, in my case I hanged on one thing, the father and sons relationships . For Ichiban Kasuga, the main character in Yakuza: Like a Dragon, having a "normal" family was never an option, he was born as a child of a Soap Land worker, a place that works as a facade for prostitution, abandon there to his luck, the workers could choose to give him away or just throw him in the trash instead they showed him love, he was raised by prostitutes and the owner of the parlor, his early years were rough but he was loved, the owner treated his workers and Ichiban with as much respect as you can in that kind of business, but one doesn't get out of a rough start that easily, Ichiban eventually got into trouble as a teenager and ended in the hand of the local Yakuza, luckily for him Masumi Arakawa, the patriarch of the Arakawa family, is a stand up guy for being a criminal, honorable and respectful to the Yakuza roots, and in true Yakuza fashion he cut his finger as payment for Ichiban transgressions, "A Yakuza only has his reputation" he said to him, he'll look weak if he didn't help in that situation, after that event Ichiban Kasuga dedicated his whole life to be as devoted as he can to Masumi Arakawa, the most honorable man he had ever met.

I live in a country of fatherless children, is a grim reality that even gave birth to special laws in order to punish those fathers who run away without giving their children or the women who raised them a penny, we even have a special word for it, when you don't know who you're father is you're a "huacho", I'm not a "huacho" for the most part, my father did what any insecure boomer man with their midlife crisis does and just cheated on my mom and then going away for a couple of years, he came back to our lives, eventually, now he tries to stay in touch with their children, or at least that is what he seems to be trying in some capacity, you wouldn't know if he even cares most of the time, for a tons of other children in Chile, fathers are just as ephemeral as the wind, you only feel their presence and their existence is merely suggested, some behavior you copy from him, the shape of your nose, maybe high colesterol or diabetes, congratulations you won the genetical lottery an inherit diseases from someone who barely talks to you. I digress, with Ichiban I felt that need that festers in a lot of children, the need for a father that isn't there, he looks up to Arakawa and wants to repay for what he did for him, he thinks highly of his patriarch and believes in him, the need that Ichiban has is not about power or glory is about mending that hole in his heart, the father that never existed, and now Arakawa occupies that father shaped hole in his life.

Arakawa asking for a great favor
Arakawa asking for a great favor

The family

After begging for an eternity to join the Arakawa family Ichiban finally got in, eventually he became like a child to Arakawa and like a unwanted brother to Arakawa's son Masato, he puts his patriarch on a pedestal, he's his role model and father figure. As a low level Yakuza, and a clumsy one at it, he's usually looked down by the lieutenants of the family, specially Masumi Arakawa's right hand man Jo Sawashiro, a cold and efficient man who never misses a chance to punish Ichiban for his mistakes. Despite some close encounters with physical punishment Ichiban is a happy young man, he really lives by the words of his patriarch and by the honorable tradition of old time Yakuza, trying to do good even when he is collecting money for a criminal organization is no easy job but he manages to do so. His patriarch asks for him to take care of his son during one of his nights out, Ichiban's usually stuck with babysitting Masato Arakawa, a sickly man bounded to a wheelchair by a disease that keeps him feeling like a weakling in the shadow of his father, Ichiban treats the young master, as he calls him, with respect and love, he genuinely cares about his wellbeing and looks up to him as a little brother, Masato on the other hand doesn't care much about his lackey, it doesn't matter how much money or servants his father gives to him he's just bitter, despite all of the love that his father and Ichiban gives to him he's still feels empty inside. This is Ichiban's family, kind of a distant one but for him is better than none, Ichiban's gratefulness is evident in every second he's on the screen, having the chance to repay Arakawa's sacrifice is what drives him, he feels devoted to his father just like a little child who thinks a superhero out of his dad.

On new year eve Sawashiro comitted an awful crime, he killed someone, having no choice Masumi Arakawa sits down with Ichiban and asks him to do what is needed, he wants Ichiban to go to jail for his lieutenant, Ichiban, breaking down in tears says yes a thousand times, this is what he was hoping, a chance to repay his debt, he will do it not for Sawashiro or even for the family, he will do it for his father. Ichiban walked in the police station and admited to commit a crime he didn't do, he spent 18 years in jail and never once admitted to anyone that he wasn't guilty. What it can feel like an entire life after, Ichiban Kasuga goes out from jail as free man, not a Yakuza but as an ex convict, but now he can go back right? he's out so he can go back to his father and his brother at last! but time has passed and things are never bound to stay the same, Arakawa's family not only has raised in power but it did by betraying the Tojo clan and submitting to their rivals, the Omi alliance, Arakawa was now more powerful than ever but it made him a traitor without honor, Ichiban's is confronted by this tale by a cop that was waiting for him outside jail, an older man called Koichi Adachi, he tries to make Ichiban understand that Arakawa is not the same that it was and that if he goes back to him he's not going to be welcome back with open arms, of course Ichiban doesn't believe him, why his father will betray what they believe and stand for? it just doesn't make sense. After trying to get back to his patriarch and being stopped by other Yakuza Adachi tells him about a secret reunion that is going to be held at the top a building downtown and Ichiban decides that he will meet Arakawa in person, convinced that he's going to get an answer to many questions, after they fought they way into the meeting Ichiban stand there in front of Masumi Arakawa, he looks straight into his eyes, asks for him to die for him as he shoots straight into Ichiban's chest.

There are few more confusing moments in our lives than feeling betrayed by our parents, children trust their parents with their lives, it's supposed to be that way, but when we realize that our fathers are human beings with wants and needs we found ourselves confronted by the fact that maybe they are not worthy of devotion, when a parent betrays that trust between father and child is like breaking a holy oath, giving away something so precious as the trust and love of your children is sadly not alien to me, I don't have many friends but between us most are members of incomplete families, divorced dads, alcoholic dads and even plain fatherless, there's a plethora of variants of relationships with our fathers, I don't meddle in those relationships much, you are entitled to have your own opinion about your father and my opinion doesn't really matter, in Ichiban's story we see him in denial of what happened to him, his new found friends keep telling him that he can't trust Arakawa anymore, but still he keeps on keeping on through life with his patriarch good teachings, he fights for people in need and doesn't allow injustice, it doesn't matter that he feels betrayed by his father and to everyone else on the outside this seems foolish, but sometimes our bonds with our fathers are so strong that we can take abandon, beatings and even getting shot in the chest.

The chief

After he was shot, Ichiban was left to rot in a dumpster near a homeless camp in the middle of Ijincho Yokohama, with an open wound and slim surviving odds, he was lucky enough to be mended by an ex nurse living in the camp, Yu Nanba, now Ichiban has to learn how to survive in the streets and also follow the rules the homeless camp, an old and wise man called The Chief, he's like a father to homeless and quickly puts Ichiban up to speed on his new life, Ichiban, is grateful and bows to the chief with the same respect as he would do for his patriarch, to him it represents something that he can make sense, order, a bit of sanity in between all the craziness, but trouble doesn't take too much time off when it comes to Ichiban life and once again he's in between thugs and the people he cares about, the local Chinese mafia comes into the camp requesting retribution, demanding money to homeless people is something that's below Ichiban standards so he gets in the way even when The Chief asks him not to, The Chief doesn't want trouble and prefers to pay but that doesn't matter, Ichiban's got a way to get into the Chinese mafia thug nerves and a fight eventually breaks out, after kicking his ass Ichiban shows that he's not so dumb and uses his streetwise to put the thugs into their place, if their boss founds out that they were beat up by a couple of homeless dudes the thug was going to be humiliated to say the least, they will never come back after that. The Chief offers his thanks to Ichiban but still feels the need to explain it once again, he has only one goal as chief and that is ensuring the survival of the camp and the unlucky ones that ended up in there, as a father to all those homeless children the chief cares more about them having a place to sleep and something to eat, as any father he can't even imagine that there was another option, he was blind to his ways and one of the unlucky children teach him a valuable lesson, a child can give their parents lessons too, that is something that parents tend to forget.

After a few days as a homeless person Ichiban still doesn't understand, he thinks "why this guys just don't get jobs? of course they can easily get one and in a few weeks they will be back on their feet" of course Ichiban is wrong, as Nanba puts it, being homeless is not something that they choose, is a combination of poor luck and bad choices, sometimes you lost your job because of a mistake, others had bills that destroyed their bank accounts and in other cases, like Nanba, they make a big mistake that took their lives away from them. Even after listening, Ichiban is sure that he can get a regular job from the local government assignment office called Hello Work, they go there in hope to find some low income job to help them work their way up to a hot meal and a roof on top of their heads, of course the government disappoints with the lack of opportunities, as men with a criminal record they are not desirable to do any kind of work, Ichiban's in the most dire situation between the bunch, as an ex Yakuza he has a criminal record but also doesn't has a work history as fallback for experience. Is sad that this is kind of the norm, when people make mistakes the state doesn't forget nor forgive, thus getting back on your feet after hitting rock bottom is almost impossible, the government doesn't have jobs, doesn't have homes and doesn't want you around, the state as a father figure is extremely harsh as it's absent, it says "its my roof so it's my rules" and they will not hesitate to enforce the law with the whole police force and legal system (unless you're a rich fuck of course in that case you are welcome to do whatever the fuck you want) but the state is also absent when we need it the most, poor people don't have easy access to education, health or opportunities and when poor people make mistakes the state destroys them leaving them with even less education, health and opportunities. Maybe the cruelest of the fathers is the one who wants you to be a square cut of what they believe is right, a good citizen in the case of the state, there's no place for personal growth, no room for missteps do what I say and you will thrive do otherwise and you'll never get up on your feet again, if you fall under the cracks or if you don't fit the mold then you're out of my house forever and don't you dare to come back, they can call it though love if they want, I called it being an asshole, parents should nurture their children not stomp them to the ground, I'm just sad that it feels like wishful thinking on my part.

The cold right hand of Arakawa, Jo Sawashiro
The cold right hand of Arakawa, Jo Sawashiro

Siblings in Ijincho

The children of Yokohama, the three gangs that rule Ijincho, the Korean Geomijul, the Chinese Liumang and the local Yakuza Seiryu clan are three brothers fighting for the scraps left by their fathers. As a place devoid from the ruling of the state Ijincho is left to these three criminal gangs, they splitted the place into three leaving them in a sort of cold war between each other, the one who fights first is risking putting themselves in danger of being attack by the other two. The power struggle between these gangs has kept Ijincho in a state of lockdown, no other criminal gang can get in to get piece of the pie or they will be risking a counter strike of three gangs at the same time. As brothers fighting for what they asume is theirs there's a lot of friction, but what we found out with time is that this friction is somehow fabricated, yes of course there's not much animosity between them, but they understand they are siblings here in Ijincho, they know that if they show weakness the outsider gangs will come in a matter of seconds so what seems like a cold war on the outside is in fact a pact. Of course things are not that simple, the low ranking members of their respective gangs are into the narrative that you should fight the other gangs, the pact is a secret well held and as such is condemned to be brought up to light sooner or later.

The delicate balance that these three gangs maintain will be disturbed by the presence of a conservative right wing protest movement called Bleach Japan, their motto is "Bleach out the gray zones" this is alluding to business on the fringe of the law, for example the Soap Land that was home to Ichiban when he was a child, let's just say that this group is composed of people who are not pleasant at all, their argument is that these kind of business should be closed, that immigrants should be deported and that the city should be only for standing up honest citizens, citizens just like them as it always turns out to be with this kind of people. In between the "gray zones" lives an old lady called Hamako, she's a "restaurant" owner in the bar zone on the south side of Ijincho, Ichiban first meets her when someone finally decided to help him out at "Hello Work", turns out sometimes you have to bend the rules if you want to help people out, the director of the local "Hello Work" looks at the bunch and realize that no one is going to give these 40 something year old men in disgrace a job so he slide one under the table, bureaucracy at its best, the job? help Hamako as body guards for the evening, turns out that the Korean mafia, Geomijul, has been draining electricity from the bars raising their bills and making them barely profitable and Hamako just had enough of it, after dealing with a guy who came in to destroy the place Ichiban's rewarded with more work, Hamako asks him to come next morning and help with clean up, that's when Ichiban gets the hint on why this restaurant wasn't serving any kind of food besides crackers, cleaning up mattresses on a prostitution parlor is hardly a glamorous job but is something he can do no problem and he's grateful for the chance to do it, at this moment he first encounter the nut jobs from "Bleach Japan" they want Hamako's business to go the fuck away, so called protesters are threatening the lively hood of a group of women that don't have anywhere to go, some of them ran away from abusive families, others came from China or Korea looking for jobs and wellbeing, they all have one thing in common, all of them end up alone and without a penny, to this women Hamako is their mother and only family they have, she takes cares of them, she provides them a place to work, a place to eat and to sleep and in a world where these women can't aspire to get any regular jobs there are worst places they can end up. Homeless and prostitutes, their safe haven built up by the Ijincho gangs, is not perfect but is their only place in the world and a mother like Hamako knows their is not going to be an alternative for them any time soon.

The governor of Tokyo, Ryo Aoki
The governor of Tokyo, Ryo Aoki

Fathers and sons

After doing more odd jobs the director at "Hello Work" can finally give them some honest work to do, he's reprehended by a colleague for breaking the rules and he just shrugs and reassures us and the employees that if we don't give people the chance to stand up on their own then they will keep falling into the worst places. The new job is at a Soap Land in the red light district called "Otohime Land" the owner is in need of some assistance, when we get there we meet the man that runs the place, a somehow despicable men with disgusting things to say about women, he's not a good guy by any means but he's definitely worried about one of his "girls", Nahona, she was calling in sick more often than not and he suspects that maybe she's dealing with customers on her own time, a dangerous thing to do and a bad thing for business, we investigate and found out that Nahona was only working there because she needs to pay for her dad retirement home or he's going to be kicked out, on top of that he's in need of a surgery, turns out that the guy running the retirement home wasn't exactly a regular business man but instead was a Yakuza from the Seiryu clan scamming her, the only solution that Ichiban finds is going directly to the clan chairman and he telling him about the side business of his lackey, after a few fights in a true Yakuza style, the scammer is punished an Nahona can now finally put her father in a true retirement home that doesn't bleed her dry, Nahona did some dark things for her father, I can feel the weight of the debt we take for their wellbeing, specially when they stayed with us on rainy days and feel we need to return the favor, my mother never went away when my father did, she can sometimes be annoying and calls too many times during the week, but I will always have a minute or two for her, is the least I can do, when she fell sick and needed surgery me and my sister put out the cash zero questions, it was annoying but it doesn't mean I wouldn't do it again and again. Our gratitude can get us to go very far to take care of someone, I suspect that it can't be easy for fathers to go from taking care to being taking cared, feelings of uselessness must flourish specially between men who don't know how to go on after being devoted to their jobs their entire adult lives, no longer being able to provide for their children or even for their own well being, children have to grow up pay their bills and their father's too, in worst cases you have to take care of them on you own, feeding them and giving them shelter, but only true love and respect can make this happen.

The secret cold war of the gangs in Ijincho turns out into a hot one, the "Omi Alliance" used "Bleach Japan" as a cover to get into Yokohama and now the local gangs are under attack, The Geomijul is under siege, the Liumang is under a coup d'état and the Seiryu clan is struggling to keep his lines in order, the plan was always to make a whole in wall keeping Ijincho safe from outsiders influence, The governor of Tokio Ryo Aoki is the man behind the plan, he was the one who dealt with the Tojo clan years ago and let the Omi Alliance set in and now he looks to do the same in Ijincho, all for political power. At this moment Ichiban realize something, Aoki is indeed the son of Masumi Arakawa, Masato Arakawa, he changed his name and went to North America to get cirgury and a professional career in politics, that's when he met Hajime Ogasawara, both of them founded "Bleach Japan" Aoki did it to increase his power and Ogasawara did it because he is a conservative who really believe in the cause, now as the governor of Tokio, Aoki has his hand on the Yakuza, the government and people's support, he is basically invincible. At the same time the chance for Ichiban to meet with his patriarch is handed to him by a friend from way back then, Masumi Arakawa is stated to surrender his position as acting captain of the Omi Alliance to the real captain who's going to be release from jail, the rumors is that Arakawa is going to kill that man and take over the Omi for his own interest, Ichiban's decided, he's gonna get into the same room as Arakawa infiltrating right into the lion's den, after fighting his way through he's finally reunited and finally he learns the truth, turns out that the plan is not to take over the Omi but instead disband it, the Yakuza are a dying breed, not longer useful and now their are just used as a weapon to be wield by politicians and the police, turns out his counterpart coming out from jail thinks the same and the Tojo clan chairman agrees too, they area about to break the news, a lot of Yakuza are going to be out of their way of life, their families, no longer exists, suddenly a lot of confused men are going to be fatherless. Of course none of them took the news happily but with the help of Ichiban and his friends Arakawa, the Omi captian and the chairman arrived safely to the police station to announce that the age of the Yakuza is finally over.

After the dust has settled, Ichiban can finally have an honest talk with his patriarch, Arakawa talks to him about his regrets, his failures as a father, why he had to betray him and cast him aside. Arakawa's afraid that Masato's going on the wrong path. Ichiban's just happy to be able to talk to him again, somehow he doesn't seem to be able to see Arakawa as a man who can make mistakes, he just took thought decisions, he just wanted to serve him again, but the Yakuza are no more, no more patriarchs and no more reasons for Ichiban to forgive him for what he did to him, when Arakawa shot him it never was part of a plan, he never did miss his heart intentionally, he shoot him because he had to at the moment, he then cries while looking away, Ichiban still loves him even after he almost killed him. Arakawa says goodbye to Ichi telling him about a dream he had, a dream where his son was born in a Soap Land just like Ichiban did 43 years ago. The day after the reunion, Arakawa is found dead, the police says is probably revenge for what he did to the Omi, Ichiban's destroyed by the news, his father was taken away from him, meanwhile Ryo Aoki is in need to clean up the mess, he's sending captain Sawashiro to kill the Seiryu clan Chairman, to father of the Ijin Three, Ichiban tries to stop him but he's too late, after beating him Sawashiro tells us that Aoki command him to kill Arakawa but he refused, now Aoki punish him by treating him like a disposable hitman, when Ichiban asks him why he accepted to kill the chairman he tells Ichiban the truth, he is the real father of Ryo Aoki.

Two brothers meet at the train station
Two brothers meet at the train station

Locker box brothers

When Arakawa was a low life Yakuza he was intended to married a woman from another Yakuza family, it was part of a deal and both patriarchs agree that it had to be done, Arakawa had a different idea, he was in love with a women and was going to have a child with her, his patriarch didn't enjoy the news at all, they beat him up to the fringe of death, his son mother running away while in labor, Yakuza on her tail, they were going to kill her and the child within her. She managed to deliver the baby while hidden in a Soap Land and then left a message to Arakawa, she hid their son inside a locker box on a train station, cold and alone waiting for him, he rushed there and pry it open with his bare hands, his son Masato Arakawa lived, the baby ended up with health issues because of his trauma, Arakawa loves him none the less and gives him everything he wished for, Masato had money, leisure and even a personal servant in Ichiban that didn't even matter, what he wanted was being respected and loved, he wanted that so much that he didn't even realize that he was looking for it in the wrong place. When captain Sawashiro was a young teenager he roamed the streets of Kamurocho getting into trouble, he was destined to become a Yakuza, but one day he met a young women in the streets, they were cast aside by society both lonely, they felt in love, it was a matter of time for her to get pregnant, Sawashiro didn't want the baby and was angry about it, he pushed her for to have an abortion but she insisted in keeping him risking his rage, they didn't have money or a home so he ended up convincing her that they could just abandon him, maybe someone will pick him up they were thinking, they choose to put him in a locker box on a train station, they stood there in silence for an hour or two, then Arakawa came in and pryed open the locker box and took their baby, Sawashiro was content with this resolution but they wonder why this Yakuza guy came in and took a baby from a locker, how he knew about it? and just by coincidence it turns out there were two babies on locker rooms that night, a couple of men came in an open a second box taking out a baby from within and took it back to a Soapland, one child Masato Arakawa the other Ichiban Kasuga, brothers born from a locker box on a subway station.

Sawashiro dedicated his life to the Arakawa family, he look from a distance at Masato, his real child, he knew that he wasn't a good father at all and it never was going to be, his child is now someone else's and he can only keep an eye on him from a distance, he never told Arakawa the truth, Masato didn't knew either, it was his secret to beheld and now Ichiban knows it too, Ichiban now knows deep inside that he was Arakawa's son all this time. Before he died Arakawa express his fears about Masato to Ichiban , he knew that he was risking to much, that he was too far gone and if he didn't do something he was going to loose all that he has strive to achieve, after he disbanded the Yakuza, Masato, now called Aoki, has no underworld ties and in a fit of revenge he ordered his father murdered, Aoki went too far and is willing to go even further to keep grip tight and Ichiban's the only one willing to stop him. The unwanted son grew up full with love from Arakawa and Ichiban but Masato always felt empty inside, his real father just a few feet away never gave him a single word of love, the wanted son Ichiban grew up lacking a family, always with surrogates fathers but it didn't matter to him he took the little love he had and made a treasure out of it.

A young man takes a bullet for someone else
A young man takes a bullet for someone else

The number one between us

Ichiban's been through a lot, from father to father and from home to home, he's never being putted down by the circumstances and he always trusted Arakawa until his death, he was after all his only real father, Aoki on the other side didn't trusted anyone, he pushed aside everyone that loved him and cared for him, he was bitter and angry and he let those feelings fester within him, these brothers are now face to face, Aoki tells Ichiban "don't talk to me as if you know me" he had told him this many times, Aoki looks down on Ichiban as a simple servant and never realize that he was his brother, Ichiban genuinely cared about the Young Master, he didn't want go this far but it was the only option, if he exposes all his wrong doings he can start over again, from rock bottom, just like he did. Aoki is no going to go down willingly and after a fight the incriminating evidence goes out and he's done, he's not going back to politics ever, after stumbling down the streets the exact same way he did when he was younger he arrived to the subway station where he was born all those years ago, Ichiban's there waiting to convince him again to surrender, "don't talk to me as if you know me", Aoki repeats but now the fact that Ichiban's knows him better than anyone else is evident even to him, Aoki breaks down, he wanted respect he wanted love and he looked for it anywhere but right by his side, with Ichiban, Arakawa and captain Sawashiro, all of them respected him and loved him, they didn't demand anything else from him, but that wasn't enough, he felt humiliated, he felt less than anyone. Now, after Ichiban stopped him, losing all he had in the process, Aoki comes to the realization that he was wrong, "starting from rock bottom, I like those odds" he says while smiling to Ichiban, but the viral video about his crimes was already getting all the attention it needed and finally got to the eyes of the conservative puppet from Bleach Japan who truly believed in the mission, when his idol Ryo Aoki was found out to be a liar and a murderer his mind crumbled and decided to punish Aoki with his own hands stabbing him right in front of Ichiban, now after all of this Ichiban is without a father and a brother. After the funeral Ichiban's decided that he doesn't want to know if Arakawa was his true father, it doesn't matter, he is lucky to have 2 fathers, Arakawa the Yakuza and Kasuga Soap Land owner, he is going to live by the values of both men and the fathers of Ijincho after all he had more fathers than two, The Seryiu Clan Chairman, The Chief of the homeless camp, Hamako the Mother of the prostitutes and all of Ichiban's friends, everyone chipped in to become as one father to Ichiban and the people of Ijincho Yokohama.

Nature and nurture

I was raised by an emotionally immature father that didn't known better, he put his own value in a son who didn't share his interests and ignored his daughter trying to get attention from her father, eventually he left us fatherless for a couple of years and still today he doesn't know how to connect with his children, after all he has never asked for our forgiveness or admitted that what he did was wrong and I don't think he ever will, but after meditating a lot I think that the fact that he's still here is somehow good to me, I can talk to him and kind of see through the pile of years and bullshit a raw gem of the father that I think he was a long time ago, when I was a kid I wasn't able to see my father as someone capable of doing wrong despite everything that he messed up, he did a lot of good things that I still carry with me but he also behave like an asshole, he payed for our education but forgot our birthdays, he spoke up against injustice in his work place but then he doesn't give my mother a penny when she was hospitalized, he wanted me to learn how to play tennis but didn't give two fucks when I enrolled in a cooking class calling me a faggot, hits and misses, some of them are more important than others clearly but that image of my father that my child self had, the one of a perfect person who can't do wrong never truly existed. Ichiban kept the good things from his fathers and became better than all of them combined, a 43 years old child deep inside, he looked with hopeful eyes at his father Arakawa and believe his words because he could see behind the Yakuza and see his dad, and I don't know for how much long I can do the same, every year my father becomes more of an asshole and less like a father, I just hope that I can still see light inside him when he eventually passes away. We can never really escape our fathers influence, we can try to run from them but the shadow they cast looms over us during all of our lives, their failures and triumphs sticks to our marrow like lead, forever and never degrading, Ichiban became able to purge the bad from his fathers, I'm never going to be as good as him, none of us are, a person that good just doesn't exists, but I can still try to live by my parents good teachings and learn from their bad ones, after all my father, just like any other father, is just a man failed and frail just as I'm in many similar but different ways, thanks for reading.

Citations

  • Yakuza: Like a dragon - Steam
Written by: Pablo Vergara /// Edited by: Pablo Vergara