I suspect that some of the b-boys I practice with are yakuza. I haven't asked them, but half of them have indiscreet, uncommon tattoos (kanji on fingers, back-sized dragons). But them being yakuza wouldn't be too surprising. Afterall, breaking has ganglife intertwined at its roots.

What's surprising is how long it took me to start suspecting them. It didn't click until our 4th or 5th session. And I think it's because I recognized them as b-boys first, and Japanese guys with tattoos second.

My suspicions should have arisen earlier. Every teacher is inundated with warnings against tattoos and how taboo they are in Japan. And if you have them, you're told to take special care to hide them from students, parents, teachers or anyone even remotely-connected to your job or local community. Onsens and other public places even have signs forbidding people with them. I've heard the warnings a thousand times and usually keep an eye out for tattoos just to be safe. I'd hate to step on the wrong guy's shoes.

In other words, I'm usually quick to notice them and make the connection. Yet, here I was, some 5 sessions later, still in the dark.

The only difference between them and others was that they were fellow breakers. Though these were tattooed Japanese men in a country where tattoos unequivocally imply ganster, I only saw b-boys. 

Members of the b-boy culture--and hip-hop culture as a whole--come in all shapes, sizes and colors. They can be male or female, short or tall, and hail from all over the globe. It's an inclusive community where people aren't judged by the color (or colors and paintings) of their skin, but by the content of their (b-boy or b-girl) character. Not only that, but tattoos are extremely commonplace in breaking and hip-hop. And since I saw them break before I saw any markings, I marked them as b-boys with tattoos first, and Japanese guys with tattoos second.

I'm not trying to come across as some purist, hip-hop hippie ("we're all the same man!"); I haven't always seen the world through b-boy goggles. But here in Japan, where I'm such an obvious-foreigner, it's often easier to relate to people more on a b-boy/hip-hop level than any other one. I just had no idea that side of me could trump the other alarms and warnings ("watch out for tattoos!") that I was usually so conscious of!