HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH
This was pretty good but i wish the final act could've been longer. It felt rushed and it lacked a little aftercare lol
Went to reread bc of the "felt an electricity in my heart and my dick" and now i remember why i didn't like it that much lmao
Ohhh now i get it. Ijin is probably the youngest among the numbers, with maybe 032 the only one around the same age. Ijin also had amnesia and spoke an entirely different language. Humans are naturally drawn to underdogs, so each of them started giving ijin tiny help here and there (giving him extra food, teaching him how to fight, etc). He also had no ego, but became strong enough to keep others in line. And most of all, 001 *cared*. He doesn't say a lot, but he delivers, both to their higher ups, and to the numbers themselves. If, say, 005 became 001, she's snarky and expressive enough that someone might act out. 002 is that, second best -- because he can be overbearing too. 008 is on the softer side a little too much to hold the highly individualistic numbers in line.
Having ijin as 001 make them all want to work together to keep this tiny ass amnesiac kid somewhat safe (to some level). And that was VERY evident when Ijin betrayed them to escape. 25 of them LET him go. Because they wanted to keep him safe. And safe was away from them.
And when 001 was gone, the numbers started to operate individually. To prevent them from planning a rebellion, but also because they don't work as good as they used to anymore. But they found out Ijin is alive and suddenly a rebellion actually happens lol. They united again because 001 is "back"
Also funny how 003 is a direct contrast to ijin -- she looks soft, promises a lot, but doesn't really follow through. While Ijin has the intimidation factor down, doesn't say much, but always follows through his unspoken promises.