Dazai And Oda 3

Ango's betrayal was coordinating a truce between the Port Mafia and Special Operations to deal with Mimic. The terms were simple: in exchange for more power, the Mafia would eradicate Mimic.

Oda continued the mission, and that resulted in the orphans under his care getting murdered. The Mimic, based on Gide's order, murdered the orphans Oda was protecting, in a brutal way.

Oda was planning to do the task alone and avenge the orphans' poor soul. Dazai told him not to go. He reaches out to grasp his shoulder, yells his name, it is the same as begging him not to go after Mimic because he knows he is walking to his death, but Oda didn't listen to him.

"Odasaku!"

As Oda leaves the Western restaurant, he heard a familiar voice calling him.

"Dazai? What is it?" he asked after he turned his face to look at his friend.

"Odasaku, I know what you're thinking, but I still have to stop you. Even if you do that—"

"Even if I do that, the kids won't come back?" Oda said, finishing Dazai's words before Dazai does.

Dazai falls silent, as though having exhausted by their argument. After which, he says, "Judging from the scale of the war, we already know Mimic's remaining forces number approximately twenty. They still have strength to spare, and their base should be around the mountainous region in the west. The details are—"

"I already know where they are because I received a letter of invitation."

Oda handed the map he found to Dazai. It is the map marked with 'The Cemetery of Ghosts'.

Dazai looks at it and furrows his brows.

"They're slowly concentrating their forces at one point. Even if we gather all of the mafia's forces, we don't know if we can defeat them."

"There is no need to gather them," said Oda with a stern voice.

"Odasaku, listen to me. A few hours ago, the leader seems to have attended a secret meeting. A meeting with the Special Ability Department, with Ango as a middleman. Because it is highly classified, there is no way to find out more, but there is something behind the scenes regarding Mimic. I can feel it, before I make sense of it—"

"Something behind the scenes?" Oda looked at Dazai. "There isn't anything behind the scenes, Dazai, everything's over. What happens next isn't important, what I'm about to do is the same, is it not?"

"Odasaku," Dazai says quietly. "I hope you will forgive me for speaking so strangely. But don't go! Go and rely on something else, hope that something good will happen next, that something will definitely happen. Ehh… Odasaku, do you know why I joined the mafia?"

Oda looked at Dazai. Although they are old friends, not even once, Dazai has ever brought that matter up.

"I joined the Port Mafia hoping that something would happen. Violence or death, instinct or desire, if I could hang around people who display these plainly, I would be able to see the qualities of mankind up close. This way, I would be able to find some—"

At this moment, Dazai pauses, and says: "This way, I thought I would be able to find some sort of reason to live on."

Oda looks at Dazai, and Dazai looks at Oda.

"I wanted to become a novelist." Oda speaks. 

"Even if it was for a mission, I believed that if I killed someone, I would lose my qualification to do it, so I didn't kill anyone. But, that too has ended, I no longer have that qualification. I only have one wish now."

"Odasaku!"

Oda continues to walk. He didn't look back despite hearing Dazai's shouts.

Oda has told Gide—the leader of the European organization Mimic before, that he wants to write a novel. Because that is the only way he could make the story perfect. He wants to throw his gun away and hold a pen and paper only, sitting in front of a table near the window with a cup of hot coffee that is perfect to drink in a rainy weather. Writing novels is writing about people so if he continued to kill people with his gun, he would lose the right or a qualification to write novels. He wanted to become a writer so bad that he stopped killing people.

But Gide wants to prove him wrong. He murdered the orphans— those who are precious to Oda so Oda would eat his words and would lose the qualification to be a novelist.

Oda carried out the task by himself. He murdered the Mimic soldiers with his own hands. Because he and Gide have the same ability, It's hard to kill each other as they both could predict what will happen 5-6 seconds in the future.

Gide and him did talk. On the other hand, Dazai is talking to Mori, saying that he would go to save his friend, Odasaku.

"To obtain that permit, Boss, you had started planning a few years ago." Dazai stands in front of the office desk, continuing to speak. "It should have been two years ago, when Ango travelled to Europe, that you started to roll out this plan. Gathering information there, you ordered Ango to get into contact with the enemy with the biggest hope, Mimic. The mystery of how Mimic left Europe and illegally migrated to Japan has a simple answer. Behind the scenes, the Port Mafia was the one assisting them. To make the Special Ability Department anxious, to force them to act, ​you specifically brought the enemy organization to Yokohama."

"Dazai." Mori Ogai, who had been listening to him silently, opens his mouth to interrupt Dazai for the first time. "This is an excellent deduction, there's nothing I need to correct. I just want to ask you something. ​What's wrong with what I've done?"

"..."

"I've already said it. I am always thinking of the entire organization. As you can see, now that we've obtained the Ability Business Permit, in truth, the government has already acknowledged our illegal activities. Oda Sakunosuke is now gambling his life to exterminate the troublesome thugs. It's a reversal of fortunes! But why are you so angry?" 

Dazai is silent. For the first time, Dazai is unable to explain his own feelings.

"I…"

—Nothing is worth prolonging a painful life to pursue.

—Wake me up from this rotten world of a dream.

"I… just…" Dazai forces the words out stiffly. "I just can't accept it. The one who secretly told Mimic where the orphans Odasaku was raising were hidden ​was you. Other than you, no one else could have obtained information on the hiding place I chose. You killed the children— to get Odasaku, the only ability user who can go against Mimic's commander, to go forth and fight the enemy."

"My answer is still the same, Dazai. If it's for the organization's benefit, I'll do anything.

Moreover, the Port Mafia gathers the city's darkness, violence, and illogical existences. As it stands, what else is there to say?"

Dazai understands. Ogai's logical calculations, thoughts, and plans are all for this organization—the Port Mafia's sake. Logically speaking, Ogai is right and Dazai is wrong.

"But…"

Dazai turns and heads towards the exit. In reaction, Ogai's subordinates point their guns at him simultaneously.

"You cannot go, Dazai." Ogai says with a tone persuading him to stay. "Stay here... Or do you have a legitimate reason to go to his side?"

"I want to tell you two things, Boss." Dazai said as he turns his head, narrowing his eyes and looking at Ogai. "First, you won't shoot me, neither will you order your subordinates to shoot me."

"Why? Because you're hoping that someone will shoot you?"

"No, because there is no merit in doing so."

Ogai smiles slightly.

"That's right. But the same can be said of you, there is no merit for you to defy me and go to his side, no?"

"That's the second thing, Boss.. I know there is no merit for me to defy you and go to Odasaku's side, but I am going for one reason... I am going to his side because he's my friend."

When Mori didn't say anything, Dazai continued. "I'll be leaving now."

The subordinates raise their guns, fingers on the trigger while pointing it to Dazai. Uncaringly, Dazai strolls towards the door.

The subordinates look at Ogai, waiting for him to give the order. Ogai crosses his arms, carrying a slight smile as he looks at Dazai's back without saying any words.

Dazai passes through the door and heads towards the corridor, then he disappears.