(A/N- From now on a lot of the dialogue will be differentiated for immersion purposes.
Regular writing – Speaking English
Italicized writing – You can guess )
Ahh. The smell of the sea.
While some people might not like it, Akira did.
It was oddly refreshing.
"The sea actually gets its iconic smell due to the dimethyl sulfide released by phytoplankton."
Though, It smelt kind of strange. Like fertilizer.
He was still stuffed in a box in the back of a cargo boat and they had been on the sea the entire time.
What changed?
Wait is this fucking piss?
"Did someone piss?"
"Shénme?"
It was a Chinese person. Of course it was.
"Do you cultivate the dao?"
He didn't get a response but he just hoped the boat would land soon.
Civitavecchia[1], Italy
Two men were talking by the harbor.
"So, you're carrying Fridges and such in the boat."
The one speaking wore a vest that read 'Polizia di Frontiera'
"Yes, sir."
"Japanese electronics. I heard they're pretty good."
"Of course, Sir."
" Any stowaways?"
"Of course not sir."
The ship's chief officer was trying to appear calm.
"Would you mind if I checked the cargo with my fellow police men?"
'I guess there's no other way now.' The Chief Officer reached into his pockets.
A big wad of cash came out of his pocket. It was about 2,000,000 Italian Lira(14,000 USD).
"Perfetto, Have a good day."
'Can we all stand up and clap for our good friend corruption.'
Rome, Italy
'Finally here in Rome. At least I won't have to worry about Public Safety here.'
Akira felt relaxed for the first time in quite a few years.
As for why he was in Rome when Diavolo and his mafia were from Naples? There was one big reason and it had to with the building directly in front of him.
It was a small building that resembled a hotel that read 'Dilit International House Rome'.
To be able to join the mafia he had to speak Italian.
"Here goes nothing."
*Knock Knock*
"Who's there?"
Luca Picasso asked in Italian. He opened the door to see a tall young man, he had dark hair and a broad frame like many Italians but his eyes and nose didn't quite fit the bill.
"Ah, a foreigner. You must be here to learn Italian, Come in, come in."
Luca welcomed the boy into the establishment and started looking for a register.
"You know I shouldn't take in anyone who didn't call first but I'm feeling generous today. Boy what's your name?
"Ak- JoJo it's JoJo."
Not wanting to stand out too much in Italy, Akira chose his nickname.
"Are you making fun of Italian pronunciation perhaps? You know we have a tough time saying the 'Jo' sound so most people will call you 'GioGio'."
Akira thought that would be quite the funny reason to call himself that.
"No sir. It's really my name."
"Sure kid. You wanna learn the Italian language and pass off as Italian? First, you're gonna need to learn our sign language."
Sign language? What does he mean by that.
"I don't understand sir."
"You gotta be expressive with your hands, boy."
That made sense
That made a lot of sense actually. Everyone he had spoken to on the way here had been quite expressive with their hands.
"I see."
Luca looked at him then spoke again,
"So why do you want to learn Italian kid? Get a nice job, learn at University or do you want an Italian wife?"
"None of those, Actually."
"What is it then?"
"I want to be a man of honor. (i.e I want to join the mafia.)"
Luca's eyes widened for a second before he calmed himself down.
"Do you know what you're talking about? Don't joke around like that."
Why did this old man react so seriously when most people would just think of it to be an immature joke made by a foreign youngster?
Was this old man-
'Nevermind maybe I'm just stereotyping Old Italian men with bald spots.' Akira got rid of the thought quickly.
"In truth I was star struck after seeing the beauty of Italian culture. The food and the views. Italian society in general y'know?"
'So he want's to sleep around.' Luca thought.
Luca gave him the 'I know what kind of man you are' look.
"You know my father[2] was just like you, only thinking about the women."
13 day Italian learning montage.fmv
"Alright, you want to be a made man huh. Tell me how you would thank the boss for letting you into the Family."
Luca asked his student, who had sped through the course and learned faster than anyone he had ever heard of.
"Signore, thank you for this opportunity. It is a great honor for me to be here. I promise to always be faithful to your cause."
Luca chuckled,
"Listen kid, your grammar is perfect and your speech is good. The problem is you sound like an Aristocrat instead of a gangster and your speech is like that of a Priest. If you say it exactly like that they'll think of you as a weirdo at best or a government rat at worst."
Seriously?
I'm "too good" at the language?
"Oh, and you don't know any slang kiddo, Go outside and listen to how people actually speak."
Did he just ask me to touch grass?
Fine, I guess I'll go interact with some people.
Akira took in the scenery of the city around him.
Rome
The capital city of a populous European country.
Is it safe for someone like me?
A wanted man.
Surprisingly so, actually.
'I guess you could say I'm hiding myself in a smokescreen'
The year was 1982 and Italy was dealing with a 'Difficult Situation'.(Now known as the years of lead)
There were Carabinieri (Military Police) just about everywhere. They had SMGs in hand and were looking out for people from 'The Red Brigade'.
'A bunch of far left Marxists doing terrorist acts in Italy. I have a strong feeling it's built on the back of Soviet funding.'
I don't really care. It's not my problem.
The big problem for today is that I'm going to a rooftop bar to blend in as a rich foreigner who's learning Italian.
Why is that a problem?
I don't have a suit or a tie or a blazer or a jacket or a .... I don't have any drip at all really.
'I would be fine being a without style in any other country but this is Italy we're talking about.'
" I really want Armani fashion but I don't want to pay an Armani price tag."
Akira technically had enough money to buy the suit himself but a man paying for a suit with a bar of gold would always be a "bit" suspicious.
'Guess I'll do Italy a little favor and rob this so called Red Brigade'
(A/N; Never thought I'd skip reading for my exams to research the geo-political state of 1980's Italy for my CSM x JJBA fanfic)
[1] Port city near rome
[2] Take a wild guess