The H era. The time after the war had stopped. It was then that women became part of the government and all creation/usage of weapons were banned. In turn, another thing came into being: "Hypnosis Microphones". Microphones that give power to lyrics and can effect the opponent's mind in different ways, some ways just end up in the opponent dying. It's terrifying, but there are people out there that I know that use these microphones for good. And with a new way of battling, comes new rules. "Territory Rap Battles" are battles that divisions fight over who's territory. Basically, 2 teams or representatives fight, the winner gets part of the loser's territory, and so on until 1 leader gets to the top. But there is another version of those "Rap Battles" I've heard about: "Alternative Rap Battles". These battles are similar to "Territory Rap Battles", the difference is that these battles are for the "entertainment value" rather than "territorial value" and there is a grand prize for the winner.

Me and master were on our way towards the Colosseum of Chuuoku, and it was just the 2 of us. It was really tiring carrying Master's luggage... But it's part of my training, so I don't really mind it. After Master took his medicine, we went in...

And at that moment, I think my life changed.

Scenario 1: Welcome to the Rap Battles!

"W-Wow... It's so big...!" The boy said out loud. He stood there, starring at his surroundings. The stage was quite big, and it was placed where in it's front is a large platform where 4 divisions' logos are written down. 'Those are representatives if I'm right...'

"It's not just big. The Colosseum's optimized for Rap Battles. You won't see anything like this." A man continued. He looked at the boy as he was explaining. "Size, equipment, no matter how you look at it - this facility dedicated to Rap Battles by the pride of Chuuoku is state-of-the-art. Look." He then looked back at the Colosseum.

It was then, the boy over heard some of the audience's conversation.

"Wow... This is going to be my first live Rap Battle!" A girl squealed.

"We've still got some time left, but let's go sit in the audience. I'm so excited, I can't wait! I can't keep calm!" Another girl squealed.

"I get you~! I can't wait~! Who are you rooting for today?" Another girl asks one of her friends.

"Hmm... I'm a little worried, but "Buster Bros!"!" One of them said.

""MAD TRIGGER CREW"'s cool too, right?" Another said.

"It's gotta be "Matenrou" for me!" Another also said.

"But, "Fling Posse" is hard to ignore... Hmmmm!" Another one said in frustration.

The boy can't help but notice; there's a lot of women, planning to watch the battle. Another thing was the amount of seats to the audience, the venue is massive but the people now present can't fill it up.

"There's so many women! But, it looks like this place is so big that there's even more seats than people..." The boy wonders.

"That's right, since today is the Alternative Rap Battle's semi-finals, all the women in Chuuoku come to watch. It's different from the street raps you're used to with the scale and prize money on the line." The man explained.

'It really is different from the regular...' The boy wondered.

"Oh look! Over there, isn't that DJ ROKURO?" One of the girls from before asked out loud.

"Ah, it's really him!" The other girl said as well.

"Huh? Who's that...?" The new-comer girl asked.

"He's a DJ! The Chuuoku Ward specially invites a DJ for the Alternative Rap Battle." The former girl said.

"Huh? But in the Territory Battles, don't the speakers come out when the MCs activate their Hypnosis Mics?" The new-comer girl asked.

"Yup. In the Territory Battles, or in the standard Rap Battles elsewhere, the MCs speakers will start the beat. But in Alternative Rap Battles, it's the DJ with both popularity and skill who leads the match." The other girl explained.

"Huh... Then DJ ROKURO must be pretty good...?" The new-comer girl asked.

"Of course! You can't be into Rap Battles and not know who DJ ROKURO is!" The other girl said.

"You don't get anyone better scratching on the decks like DJ ROKURO!" Her friend said.

DJ ROKURO

A 43-year old DJ that suffers moderate numbness in the right arm and shortness in breath he does physical activity for more than an hour. He has an unpretentious, straight forward personality.

"Master... They're all looking at you..." The boy shuddered as he said so. DJ ROKURO looked annoyed.

"Tch. Don't bother getting involved with them. Let's go." He said.

As he was leaving, the girls that were talking before suddenly came up towards him.

"Ah! Wait! DJ ROKURO, I'm a fan!"

"Can I shake your hand, please?"

"Eh? DJ ROKURO? Where?" Another girl from a different group asked.

"I want to get his autograph!" Another girl said.

"You over there! Make way and get away from that man!" A voice boomed. And at that point, the group of girls stood still, while the boy was just stuck in place not knowing what to do.

"Excessive contact with the participants will be regarded as obstruction of business and you will be removed immediately." A woman came up. She was wearing a uniform, meaning she's a Party of Words Official.

"Don't make extra work for us, Rokuro Doudantsutsuji. Come with us." The Official stated as she looked at DJ ROKURO.

"Yeah, yeah." He started to walk away, leaving the boy behind.

"Eh, no way...!" The girl said.

"Look over here!" Another said. One of the girls bumped into the boy as she was chasing DJ ROKURO. "Hey, you're in the way! Move!" He tried to, but was too shaken. Another girl then ran into the luggage that the boy was holding on to. "What's with this big luggage, it's so annoying!"

"W-Wait, master! Don't leave!" The boy yelled out as he regained his composure and ran towards the direction DJ ROKURO and the Official went.

After running for around a minute or so, he couldn't find DJ ROKURO or the Official anywhere in his sight. And it was a good thing he lost the girls trying to chase him.

He stood by and catches his breath while an announcement came.

"Customers going to the venue, please listen for guidance. Today's match is expected to be very crowded. Those who have completed registration procedures, please take your designated seats as soon as possible."

The announcement echoed through out the halls and the boy saw the same group of girls trying to chase DJ ROKURO. He overheard their conversation.

"I've already lost sight of DJ ROKURO." The new-comer girl (A) said.

"Ah... No... I thought I'd meet someone famous." The girl who first noticed DJ ROKURO (B) said.

"It's be dangerous if you were called out by the Party of Words Officials, so it's not worth the risk." B's friend (C) said.

"Well, I'm sort of nervous since the audience is so big this time." B said.

"The number of people's definitely increased." C added. "Even people who aren't as interested in hip hop are coming to watch now."

"Of course, that's cause when you fight with Hypnosis Microphones, it's so cool! The performances are amazing!" A said.

"Security for the Alternative Rap Battle is supposed to be tight and pretty safe, but it's also easy for beginners to enter as well." C explained.

"Unlike Territory Battles over territory, the Alternative Rap Battles are way more entertaining." B continued.

"Yeah, yeah! It's pretty easy to watch." C said.

"Oh, hey, our seats- I think we can get in from that gate." A said.

"You're right! Let's go!" C said. After that, they all left, leaving the boy in wonder. 'Rap Battles are pretty popular, huh... I wonder if I can...?' He then shook his head. 'No... That couldn't be... After all, I am a DJ. I can't just join in as a DJ and a participant that easily.' He continues to wonder before a voice interrupted him.

"-Hey you."

It brought the boy back to reality and he panicked for a little bit before realizing it came from the other side of the hallway. It was a man in a red jacket and red headphones. What stood out to the boy was that he had heterochromia, his left eye was red and his right was green.

Ichiro Yamada

A 19-year old manager of "Yamada Odd Jobs" and the leader of the Ikebukuro Division Representative Team: "Buster Bros!".

"Yeah. I'm talking to you." Ichiro continued.

"Uh... What is it, sir...?" The boy asked, still trying to process what's happening.

"Tell me something. Earlier, didn't you call that person your "Master"?" Ichiro asked.

"E...Eh?" The boy stuttered.

"No point in hiding the truth, cause the logo's embroidered right there on your bag-DJ ROKURO." Ichiro pointed to the boy's luggage after that statement. Before the boy could speak out, 2 other boys came into his view.

The first boy was wearing a hat and a blue jacket with ripped jeans, the other was surprisingly almost the same height as the boy in question, wearing a middle school uniform with a yellow jacket as the undershirt. The boy in question saw some things striking about the trio standing before him. First; their badges. They all had badges with "BML", the one that noticed Ichiro had just "B", the one in blue had both "B" and "M" and the the one with the yellow jacket had all three. The second and last thing; They all had heterochromia. The boy knew that heterochromia was rare, but to see it in 3 different people was a little bizarre. It led the boy to think of, quite the most obvious answer to his own question: they're brothers.

Jiro Yamada

A 17-year old high school student that idolizes his older brother. The second member of "Buster Bros!"

Saburo Yamada

A 14-year old middle school student that is more intelligent than what meets the eye. The third member of "Buster Bros!"

"Hey, you. Don't think you'll get away with lying to Nii-chan!" Jiro yells.

"Unlike some morons, Ichi-nii is a smart person. There's no point trying to deceive him." Saburo said.

"You little...! Who are you calling a moron?!" Jiro at his younger brother.

"It's obvious without me saying who it is." Saburo complained. "Ah, of course, you wouldn't know who I'm talking about. Talk about pitiful." He continued. Visibly, Jiro was pissed.

"What'd you say?!" Jiro threatened the 14 year-old before being questioned by the boy that Ichiro approached a while ago.

"Um... You know about DJ ROKURO?" He asked the trio.

"Of course we know." Saburo answered. "You'd definitely know the name if you were even a little caught up with modern Rap Battles. What's more, we're participants in the Alternative Rap Battle." That raised another thing the boy wanted to verify.

"Are you "Buster Bros!"?" He asked.

"What's that to ya, huh?" Jiro yelled. The boy shuddered a little. Ichiro then approached the boy and asked something.

"...You, what's your name?" Ichiro asks.

"Me...?" The boy asked for clarity. He stayed silent for a moment before revealing his name. "Yuuto. That's my name."

Yuuto

A 15-year old DJ trainee. A silent, yet caring boy that doesn't know anything about his past.

""Yuuto"? I don't think I've heard of you..." Ichiro said.

"What's this? 's there something wrong with my eyes? Or am I seeing that bastard Ichiro over there." Another voice boomed. It came from a white-haired man with piercings and a white shirt with skulls as the main design.

"Samatoki...!" Ichiro growled slightly.

"It's "Samatoki-san" to you, you shitbag." The man angrily said.

Samatoki Aohitsugi

A 25-year old member of the yakuza. The leader of the Yokohama Division Representative Team: "MAD TRIGGER CREW".

"Wait, Samatoki!" Another man stopped Samatoki. He was in a business suit with red gloves and wears glasses. "We're deep in Chuuoku. Try not to make a fuss. You'll be eliminated before the match even starts."

Jyuto Iruma

A 29-year old police officer that secretly does favors for the yakuza. The second member of "MAD TRIGGER CREW".

"Shut up, damn bunny cop. When'd you turn from a dirty cop into a fortune teller, huh? Ya change jobs?" Samatoki said as he looked at Jyuto.

"You don't need divine powers or clairvoyance to know that." Jyuto argued. "Listen to me Samatoki. If you cause a problem here and are disqualified, your hatred for Ichiro Yamada will have to wait another year." He continued. "Anyways, if you act up here, you'll only cause trouble for yourself."

Yuuto was watching the argument between the 2 member of MTC while noticing Saburo mumble to himself.
"Tch. If it was my way, these lot wouldn't have to bother Ichiro." He said. "That glasses guy... Making extra work for us."

Yuuto wondered what he meant but the argument between Samatoki and Jyuto stopped when another voice appeared.

"Wait. Samatoki, Jyuto. You 2 seem to be in high spirits before the match." It was a man wearing military gear and had a gun on his back. Yuuto can't help but notice him and some what recognize him. It wasn't clear to him, but he vaguely remembers something about him.

Rio Mason Bushijima

A 28-year old ex-navy member. The third member of "MAD TRIGGER CREW".

"In such case, I have this snake drink..." Rio brought out 2 small bottles of a clear green substance and Yuuto noticed Samatoki's behavior changed.

"A-Ah... Ri-Rio, I'm good thanks... Hey, Jyuto. You should have some since Rio recommends it for ya. Drink up." Samatoki looked at Jyuto with a pleading look while Jyuto looked betrayed.

"Is that so. Then Jyuto, have Samatoki's too." Rio looked at the police officer and handed him both bottles.

"No, it's u-uh alright... Actually, I'm allergic to snakes..." Jyuto said looking quite uncomfortable.

At the sidelines of the argument, Ichiro added a comment to what he's seeing. "What's this? Samatoki's having trouble with his team?"

"Leave them be, Ichi-nii." Saburo said. "They're simply the same as Jiro; they're bird brains that forget whatever's happened even a second ago. They forgot that they were even talking to you, Ichi-nii." After those arrangement of words, Jiro (obviously) got pissed.

"Saburo...! You don't have to start bad mouthing me! You should only be dissing those guys!" Jiro yelled as he pointed towards "MAD TRIGGER CREW".

"I just called it how it is." Saburo argued in a calm manner. "Though, you really are the best at getting angry, huh?"

Yuuto just watched while Ichiro tried to dissolve the fight. 'Is this really how they feel towards each other...?'

"...Oh. It seems that today's participants are all gathering here." Another voice came from down the hallway.

It came from a tall man with a doctor's coat.

Jakurai Jinguji

A 35-year old backstreet doctor. The leader of the Shinjuku Division Representative Team: "Matenrou".

"Jakurai-san!" Ichiro said the name of the man out loud.

"It's been a while, Ichiro-kun. You seem well." Jakurai said.

Along with Jakurai, 2 other men were there. One was a blonde man in a suit of some sort, the other was a red-haired man in a business attire (as he has a tie and a business ID of some sort).

Hifumi Izanami

A 29-year old host. The second member of "Matenrou".

Doppo Kannonzaka

A 29-year old salaryman. The third member of "Matenrou".

"Are you a friend of sensei's?" Hifumi asked the doctor before Doppo answered instead.

"Look closely, Hifumi. Everyone gathered here is a contestant." Doppo said.

"Hm?" Hifumi did so and realized. "Ah, so it seems. It was rude of me not to greet them." Yuuto wasn't in their sight and sighed a bit. 'Well... Not everyone... After all, I'm still here...'

"Greet them...? Is it okay to be so flippant when they were fighting just now?" Doppo asks.

"Doppo-kun. Greeting your opponent properly is important when we'll be fighting soon." Hifumi answered. "If you don't say hello, how are you supposed to give it your all in the future battle!"

Doppo then looked stressed and started mumbling. "Ugh… What a stressful situation…" And he continued.
"I'm such an awful man that I can't even say hello… Nevertheless, this is my duty… It wouldn't be surprising if you thought that I should quit because I'm not suited for this. So why does my balding manager always put up with me?" Doppo continued to mumble while Yuuto felt, quite worried and uncomfortable to say the least. "I should just quit… I should quit already… I want to say so already… Ah, that's why… It must be because of that… I'm fully indebted to my company… Hahaha… I work so hard for the livelihood of the company… It's because I'm insane… because I'm gloomy… Because I'm miserable… I am… I am, I am, I am…"

Hifumi stopped the atmosphere from getting worse by talking some sense into Doppo. "Doppo-kun! You're not the kind of person you think you are! Even if you couldn't greet them, my friendship with you will never change!"

Yuuto then had a slight sigh of relief. But the attention was then on the host and the salaryman.

"With all that noise, it must be Kannonzaka-san… and Izanami-san." Jyuto pointed out.

"Well, with Sensei around, things are always interesting." Samatoki thought out loud. "Well, those 2 are at least. Though, how the fuck did an officer worker, a host, and a doctor wind up together?" He continued to wonder.

"The fact that they've come this far shows the skill of their rap…" Jyuto said in some awe. "But, it's certainly an interesting combination." He pointed out.

"Hifumi Izanami and Doppo Kannonzka are Jakurai Jinguji's swords after all." Rio added. "Judging them by only appearance and occupations is dangerous."

"I look forward to a good match. I want you to see the strength of Shinjuku Division, "Matenrou"." Jakurai proclaimed.

"I'll prove to you that "Buster Bros!" are the strongest, Sensei." Ichiro also proclaimed.

"I'm looking forward to it. Seeing your determination, Ichiro-kun, I'm sure this will be more interesting." The exchange continued.

"Looks like Sensei's all fired up. With this battle, things are about to get crazy. There's no backing down now."

Yuuto still stood by the sidelines and watched the entire thing go down. 'Wow… Not even starting and I feel the air is getting tense…'

"Ah~! Over here, here! Ichiro~!" Another voice came from nowhere. In Yuuto's vision, he saw a small pink blur that passed him and reappeared next to Ichiro. It turns out it was just a man(?).

"Uwah…! You- Ramuda!" Ichiro grunted.

Ramuda Amemura

A 24-year old fashion designer. The leader of the Shibuya Division Representative Team: "Fling Posse".

"Hehe~ ! It's been a long time Ichiro! I'm glad to see you~!" Ramuda said. His tone of speech changed when he noticed Jakurai. "Oh… Jakurai's here too."

"…Amemura-kun. Did you say something?" The person in said statement asked.

"It's nothing~! It's just that I don't think I feel well after seeing your face~" Ramuda tried to insult him as he let go of Ichiro.

"It's useless trying to anger me." Jakurai said while Ramdua just "hmphed".

Another duo appeared as well. One was wearing something that resembled traditional Japanese historical clothing, while the other was in a long green coat with ripped white jeans.

Gentaro Yumeno

A 24-year old writer that has a gimmick of telling lies to others. The second member of "Fling Posse".

Dice Arisugawa

A 20-year old gambler. The third member of "Fling Posse".

"My, my. What's this?" Gentaro asked. "It seems that we've already stated on each other before the battle. But, was this not inevitable? All of us gathered together by fate, it's an unavoidable flow."

"Geez Gentaro, you starting to sound like you know who now. Still, I have no clue what you're sayin'." Dice said.

"It is an observation of humans. It's clear to me that some deep, dark secret lies between the 2 of them." Gentaro pointed out. "Don't think so too, Dice?" He then asked the gambler.

"Right… I wouldn't know." Dice simply answered. Yuuto still being unnoticed, also began to wonder about the relationship between Jakurai and Ramuda.

"Whatever's goin' on is between them. We're about to butt heads with them in the upcoming match. It's fine for them to have at it now." Dice continued.

"Well, you do have a point." Gentaro agreed.

After overhearing the conversation, Yuuto then looked at the center of the talk.

"Hey, Ramuda. Give it a rest." Ichiro said.

"Eh? That's mean, Ichiro~! Backing up Jakurai, but also bullying me~? Boo hoo…" Ramuda started fake crying.

"I'm not scolding you, but that doesn't make sense to be wasting time here." Ichiro complained.

"Well, it can't be helped~ I just really despise Jakurai~!" Ramuda said.

"Ichiro-kun, he doesn't bother me." Jakurai added.

"Well, well! Jakurai, you're just really annoying~ !" Ramuda cheerfully said.

Sounds crazy that by complete coincidence that I would be there, right? Well, the first one to notice me were "Buster Bros!", but it was surreal. All the teams that were gonna fight in the semi-finals just gathered here. The teams that won their battles up until now with their overwhelming lyrics and sophisticated rhymes…

After a while, I remembered seeing them before and now I'm sure that this is right.

"Buster Bros!" The 3 brothers that are distinctly different. Co-ordination, clever words and expressing the oldest brother's ideas with superior rhymes.

"MAD TRIGGER CREW" The insane champions of Yokohama of both justice and malice. They destroy the opponents' fighting spirits the moment they face their lyrics.

"Fling Posse" A lot of fans adore them for their characters and performances. I certainly see that there is a lot of charm that leads them into provoking their opponents.

"Matenrou" The group's mysterious atmosphere and unique rhythm attract others with an outstanding flow.

But I remembered more. There were 2 that I heard were going around lately during that time.

"Bad Ass Temple" A group that is unique in terms of style of rapping. From what I've heard, they're composed of people that are compassionate towards each other, despite their difference in character.

"Dotsuitare Hompo" Their outstanding style of rapping and rhythm attract some sort of silliness and seriousness. I've heard that it came from the leader's influence on the members.

But that's just something that I wanted to share. Right now, it's the first 4 that are battling in the semi-finals of the Alternative Rap Battle.

The sounds from the announcer echoed through out the hallway that the 4 teams were in.

"The rap battles will commence in 30 minutes. Please may those who have completed admission procedures take their seats as soon as possible."

"...It's time."

And eventually, everyone here would come to know that this encounter was the beginning of it all. That included me and my story into the world of Rap Battles.