Dazai and Dostoevsky
November 10, 2025 at 10:41 PM
In the chapter “Tiger and Rashõmon,” Dazai is searching for information about who paid seven million for Atsushi. A then-unknown foreigner is shown discussing the Port Mafia’s failure with someone. His interlocutors turn out to be Agatha Christie and Fyodor Dostoevsky.
Towards the end of the Guild arc, Hirotsu meets Dazai, and they discuss the duo of Akutagawa and Atsushi. Dazai explains that he created their team to combat a demon that had fought him in the past. This demon is none other than Fyodor, who is plotting something in Yokohama.
In “Dead Apple,” I was intrigued by the dialogue between them. Dazai says he didn’t want to team up with Dostoevsky. These moments raised a question in my mind: How long have they known each other? And what happened between them?
A few chapters ago, I wrote about Dazai and his criminal past, his involvement with a small-time gang. So, what if Fyodor was there with him?
Think about it: Dazai knows him very well, his thought process, his crime patterns, and so on. It’s the same with Fyodor. For someone who’s known each other for about six or seven years, they know each other well.
Perhaps it was like this: they were both the brains behind the gang. They stole money, jewelry, and so on. This continued until Fyodor decided to somehow destroy them.
After the gang was destroyed, their paths diverged for several years, during which Fyodor managed to commit several crimes, including the murder of Shibusawa at the hands of Atsushi.
Remember, in Meursault Prison, Fyodor told Dazai that after seven years, he barely got to know Chuuya or his abilities. How does he even know they’ve known each other for so long? Did you follow Dazai or learn about him through someone?
There was an interesting moment in the Season 5 finale.
As the helicopter takes off, Dazai says farewell words to Dostoevsky. As our genius hands over his hand to Gogol, Chuuya asks Dazai why he doesn’t shower him with ridicule and other insults, to which Dazai sadly replies that he doesn’t want to.
Based on this moment, it seems they’ve known each other for a very long time, so long that Dazai has some memories of Dostoevsky.
Although this could be because he had to kill someone again.
Basically, the story of their shared past hasn’t been revealed yet, so Fyodor simply can’t die at once for several reasons. Besides, he’s the manga’s biggest villain, and villains like that always die, only near the end.