Question noir's post got me thinking. the end of chap. 53 Asami is making his move to ki...

Actually, he has seen some of this before - two to three dead on the Casino boat, plus Kirishima wounded (and possibly dead - he thought at the time) Plus he shot Yuri. Then at the warehouse, Sudou and Kuroda were shot. Then his reaction to the intruders was to not cower, but to leap into action and knock one out, since the only weapon he could find in the kitchen was a fry pan. I think he has become more accepting of this lifestyle. He really wants to protect Asami now, so his emotions seem to be fully involved in that.

Takaba investigated crime and injustices. That's how he met Asami. He is now part of that world. He tells Asami I will watch your back. do you think this will change who Takaba is? should it?

Pretty much this, couldn't have said it any better myself. He's more resolved to stick with Asami now than he was in those circumstances so while I think it won't exactly become easier for someone of his morals, I think the motivation and drive of protecting Asami will serve well enough to get him through better than the previous times.

This has not really changed who he is, I don't think. He now has a less black and white perspective on the world, so some of his naivete is gone and he can now see some shades in between. But much of that can also be attributed to him growing up a bit, and to having fallen for someone who is on the dark side of life. I think his passion for justice will always remain, it will just be tempered a bit by his experiences. Plus he obviously still has his fire and stubbornness (judging by his reactions in the warehouse and in the recent attack) This new experience have just given him some extra depth of character.

Akihito is ride or die.

For me I think akihito need to get use to asami lifestyle faster, because asami have many enemy, a very powerful man,good in using his gun (good in BED to ),always keep dangerous stuff like guns and other and the other cool stuff 'bout asami...u all know what I mean..
I think akihito a bit gettin use to asami lifestyle so there should be no problem for now..what I'm worried about now is rather asami,akihito and asami people are gonna survive or not..but I'm pretty sure they are not gonna die and they will survive.. I wish..
And one more thing,this comment place is use like a meeting place..well it not bad..

We've talked before about how this is a battle between light and dark. In a battle like that, there can only be one loser, and that's Akihito. If he's pulled to the dark, he is lost. If Asami is pulled to the light, they both win.

I don't want Akihito to lose, but I don't see how he can stay with Asami--loving Asami and hating what he does--without being tainted by it, being complicit in some way. He has already compromised his morals for Asami. If it's to protect Asami physically, I wouldn't mind as much. I don't like him getting involved in Asami's business, like when he went looking for the source of the leak. Asami was none too happy with it, either, I think because Akihito's inherent goodness is a huge part of his attraction for Asami.

But I don't see the mangaka pulling Asami out of the underworld for Akihito's sake. Sigh. Call me old fashioned, but I always want the good guy to win. I don't want Akihito drowned in the abyss.k=

Ha ha! That extra k= is because I sneezed just as I hit "Ok,Post"

People seem to forget that Akihito isn't as innocent as he seems, he's not some pure untainted kid like the embodiment of light, he has a three times protected police record and the reason he was close with officer Yamazaki in the first place was to get him off the street to stop him from causing trouble(that's how I interpreted their relationship). He's naive, not stupid or ignorant, it's his job, he knows what goes on. He stole that van with the stalker in it, punched him out and did it all on his own got in a fight defending someone at the park and ended up at the police station, he's got a bad streak himself and people seem to forget that part.

We don't know what he did as a juvenile that landed him in trouble. I doubt it was anything like murder or even robbery. It could have been as simple as loitering or vagrancy or minor property damage like tagging. Regardless, the transgressions that we have seen--those that haven't been directly influenced by his association with Asami--aren't comparable with organized crime. So while he isn't a perfect innocent, he isn't a criminal on anything like Asami's level.

I never implied he was on Asami's level, what I'm saying is that people seem to get caught up in the idea that Akihito is some innocent little angel that's never done a bad thing in his life, and that's simply not the case.

I don't think he's a perfect angel. But there's also a difference in motive in the things he's doing now. Like stealing the van and the fight in the park. Those things were in service to his sense of right. Where the things Asami does, in the end, are for personal gain. That's the difference between light and dark that I see in the story, that's all.

OK, I understand what you mean better now, light vs dark is like a good vs evil thing to me, so I was like o_O but if you put it on a moral compass in terms of ambition then yeah, I get that.

I agree, I can definitely see him doing small crimes like stealing cars or going into fights when It's needed... I never saw him as a perfect good boy - more like the type that just looks for trouble and extreme. And let's not forget how he got into the security room in asami's club - how he faked helping that drunk man. Our Akihito is pretty cunning - and I love him for that x3

Yeah Akihito's a trouble maker. He is a delinquent, his behavior made him famous to the officers in the Yokohama precinct. He takes risks and can be badass at times.

I think it is telling that Aki shot someone when he thought Kirishima was dead. Aki said he did it because he was angry--not scared, or not defending himself (though he was), but angry. He freaked out about it later, and he then went back to hating guns when he found them at Asami's, but Aki is capable of going dark when he gets angry. I don't think Asamni wants that, but Asami will let Aki take whatever path Aki chooses. Aki has just volunteered to use a gun to defend Asami.

I think it is a mistake to think in absolutes. In order to survive in either Asami's world or Aki's profession, Aki will have to wise up, and think at least defensively. If this makes him a little darker, then maybe he will have to live with it. As for Asami, if he wants to keep Aki's respect and regard, he may have to be a better man. I don't mean he has to fall to his needs, confess the error of this ways,. and vow to change everything he is. All Asami has to do is keep enough of a code so that Aki can live with it.

I think Asami already has a sort of code. I think that's why he tends to shoot guns out of peoples hands and not kill as a rule. The first time Asami rescues Aki, Asami tells Aki to look closer at the guards Asami had incapacitated--none of them were dead. If my memory serves, I think the only two times we have seen Asami shoot to kill was Fei's bio-dad (after he shot Fei) and the traitor messenger who told Asami Mikhail had Aki. Both times Asami seemed angry, and only the second time seemed out of control. It is possible some of the people in the penthouse are dead now, but it is also possible Asmi just wounded them so they can't get up.

I think Aki and Asami are like the yin/yang symbols. There is a spot of light in the dark part and a spot of dark in the light. Aki is nice, and very often good, but he has a dark side just like everyone else.

Yes, I like this idea of the yin and the yang. But this is an extremely delicate balance to hold. It's what keeps the story interesting.

Asami's in an interesting position. He may have a sort of a code but he is at a level where he is able to keep his hands relatively clean, where he has minions to do the real dirty work for him. But he is still implicit in those crimes, as he is in the work that he is doing. He's running guns. So he definitely has blood on his hands, just not always directly.

This relationship reminds me of a story line on an American soap opera I used to love, where it was a father/son where the son was a cop and the father was a mob boss. In order to have any relationship at all with his father, the son was always in constant danger of compromising his own integrity. While the father had reached a level where even if he had wanted to quite for his son's sake, he could not.

I think Asami is at that same level. Even if he wanted to go down on his knees and repent all of his sins, how could he ever fully step away from the criminal side of his business? Someone else would sweep in to fill that void and that person would almost certainly see Asami as a continuing threat that needed to be wiped out. Asami is kind of stuck.

It is what keeps this story interesting. But also the dialogue that people have here about this manga and the issues it raises.

I agree about Asami being too far in to just quit. In a way, Tao had it right when he told Aki that Aki had no idea what it takes to survive in the world Fei lives in. Aki is just starting to see what it takes for Asami.

Curse me if you must but Loyalty In Darkness fic just read it goes so well with this thread no matter your view.I It matched with the topics well. sneaks off