Warrior's Mask

5. The Wonder Boy's Protection

Ishido's POV:

I ran out of the training grounds building, suddenly realising that I was late; AGAIN! I really need to stop doing this. I continued to run towards the park but stopped when I caught a glimpse of baby blue. I scanned the place, and then soon noticed Yoshimura walking somewhere. I wonder where he’s going. What if he’s going to a secret training place? That would be awesome! If it’s anything like his training room then I bet it looks epic! I would love to see that. Maybe I should follow him. But he’s super scary when he’s mad, and if he knows that I was following him then he will be super mad. And his training is super intense, and I don’t know whether I could keep up with him. Plus, he could hurt me or break my prism and no one would be there to help me or know other than us, and then he’d probably threaten me so I keep my mouth shut.

He started walking out of sight, and I grinned. I’m going to follow him anyway; I don’t care what happens. If bad turns to worst, I can always call Shin and he’ll come running. I began running after him, and when I caught up, I started trailing behind him, careful not to let him see me. He doesn’t need to know that I’m here, otherwise, he’d kill me. Literally, kill me. Well, it’s not my fault that my curiosity got the better of me. They do say curiosity killed the cat - whatever that means.

That was surprisingly correct, which is not like you to be literate like this.

I’m not that bad, Kagemiko. You make me out to be a complete i***t when I am perfectly average. Wasn’t there a second half to that quote? How did it go again?

I believe it went something like “but satisfaction brought it back.”

That sounds about right. I may get in trouble, but the satisfaction of knowing what he’s up to will be worth it.

You’re crazy, and I don’t know how you’ve survived this long while striving for such ridiculous knowledge. What good will come out of this? You’re walking into a death trap.

Then you clearly don’t see what I do, Kagemiko. Which is a shame, if I’m honest. I thought, out of everyone, you’d be the one to see the opportunity at hand. Clearly not.

Opportunity? Seiji, what are you talking about?

Just wait and watch the events unfold.

We walked for about ten minutes before Yoshimura stopped at a house. Is this where he lives? I don’t know why, but I have always imagined something completely different. What? I’m not so sure. Just not a normal house, I guess. I was a couple of houses down when he went to open the door, but a man beat him to it. Who is this dude? So, it seems that this trip may turn out to be more interesting than I had expected. This may have been more than I bargained for. As long as it doesn’t make things more complicated, then I’m happy to watch the events unfold. I feel like ‘happy’ is the wrong word for this situation, but I can’t think of anything better, so we’ll just roll with it for now.

“You’re late.” He said, and Yoshimura kept his eyes trained on the ground, and all I could sense from him was fear and regret. It was a strange combination coming from him, and if I’m honest, I hope I never have to witness it again. I hated every moment of it. It just didn’t sit right with me.

“I’m sorry. I got caught up with some other matters.” Yoshimura murmured, shifting uncomfortably from foot to foot. The air was tense as the man just stared at him. This was starting to make me uncomfortable.

“How did it go?” The man asked, narrowing his eyes at Yoshimura. It seemed to be more of a demand than a question, and I shuddered when he said it. He’s scary. I wonder if he’s a Yoshimura. That’s gonna get confusing if he is. I guess I’ll have to use Sho’s first name. I just won’t tell him. Then he can’t get mad at me. I’m a genius! I smiled, my mind returning back to the scene in front of me. He kinda looks like Sho. They both have an intense stare and emerald eyes and a bad attitude and he’s a Yoshimura, I see it now.

“I won, sir,” Sho replied, any sense of pride, confidence or arrogance gone from his voice, his hubristic personality had now dissipated. What the heck? He knows how to dial down and not be such a buttwad to everyone he meets? Neat trick. How’d that dude do it? Colour me surprised. I thought he answered to no one. He doesn’t seem like the kind of guy who has an ounce of respect in him. Maybe it’s a parent thing. Mum can make me calm and Shin knows how to keep the prisclub under control. Most of the time, anyway. I tilted my head to the side when I realised what he’d called the man. Sir? Hmm…

“How much did you crush him?” Yoshimura-san asked, his intense gaze on Sho not shifting, the tense atmosphere rocketing sky high. I watched as Sho squirmed under the pressure, not wanting to answer the question. This is why he was so mad. He wanted to crush me with his own raw strength, not just based on a fluke, not just because of his pride, but because of his father. That makes sense. I guess that means I should have said yes. I should have accepted his challenge for another battle. Shoot. I screwed this one up. Sho looked less content to be there with each passing second. I wonder if that’s actually his father. Heck, it might not even be a Yoshimura. But he more than likely is. I’m now wondering whether I should use honorifics on him. He may be an adult, but there’s nothing there to respect or honour. I don’t know if he deserves them. I’ll just continue using them for now, I guess.

“He almost beat me, sir,” Sho murmured, and Yoshimura-san's eyes filled up with rage. He picked Sho up by his collar and pushed him against the wall. Sho grunted in pain but bit his tongue for the time being.

“You let a wannabe wielder - a nobody - almost beat you? How could you live with yourself after doing such a thing? You should be ashamed for being able to resort to his level. How are you capable of stooping down to such a level where you could almost get crushed by another wielder other than Fukunaga? You’re a f*****g Yoshimura, for crying out loud. You are an insult to the Wieldism community! This is worse than letting that other nobody score a couple of points off of you! That red-eyed kid that thinks he’s someone!” Yoshimura yelled, and I took a deep breath. That’s definitely his father. Only a Yoshimura can be this insulting to Shin and me. It seems to be a gift they have. I don’t think I should tell Shin about this because he’ll get mad at Sho, and then Sho will get mad at me, and I don’t need that. And honorifics are out the window at this stage.

I want to help, but I don’t want Sho to know that I was following him. He’ll be more furious about that than me not helping me. Plus, that man looks scary, and I don’t want to know what he’ll do to me if I step in. But I’ve never met someone who takes tradition so seriously. Actually, can you even call this tradition anymore? It’s just a desire to win, which is a good thing to have, but there’s a limit which he seems to have gone past. Sometimes it’s just for fun, or for show. It shouldn’t be all about winning, that’s just wrong. There’s a time and a place for certain aspects of the sport to shine through. He’s lost respect for the tradition and has focused on the wrong parts of it. It’s not like Sho has brought dishonour to their family or anything. Despite being a family of monsters, they’re still well-respected for their contribution to the tradition, and that hasn’t lessened at all.

You knew this was a tradition? Well, that’s a first.

I pouted. I know I’m not the brightest crayon in the box, but geez. That’s kinda harsh, and for what? I’m not that stupid, Kagemiko!

Oh, really? What do you know other than the fact that it’s a tradition?

…Nothing…

Do you even know what the tradition is for?

No, why? Kagemiko sighed. Well, it’s not my fault the meaning got lost in time, is it?

Pristonia, where prisbeasts are from, and Earth were once two separate entities, two different worlds that were almost impossible to move between. But, when the moon turns blue and the sacred chant is said, the seal gets broken, and it’s quite easily done. In fact, there’s a bridge that leads between the two worlds.

And my kind got greedy and power-hungry? That was usually the case, especially when power like theirs is waved in someone’s face. They’re basically Gods.

We are Gods. But, as you said, your kind got power-hungry and greedy and tried to take control. Eventually, they succeeded, encompassing us in these metallic balls and sealing our power away, limiting what we could do. We were essentially their slaves for decades to come. People soon realised their mistakes, and we soon came to a truce, coming to terms with the fact that we had to live together until the next time the passage between worlds opens again. They decided to hold tournaments in our honour, which we agreed to as that is what we used to do at home so we wouldn’t have to fear the darkness taking over. But, I fear the true meaning of these tournaments was lost a long time ago, and that will give the darkness a chance to strike back.

I had no idea… Sorry, Kagemiko. I will do my best as the wonder boy to fight against this darkness! I can’t let another generation fall.

Don’t be absurd. You may be the wonder boy, but even you have your limits. And how were you supposed to know something you were never taught? Just focus on the Yoshimura’s and everything will be just fine, Seiji. This world is strong. It will not fall so easily.

I watched the two of them, and an irking feeling bugged me. This feels really weird. Not just because I’m spying on Sho, but because I’m usually already in there arguing with someone like Yoshimura because of what they do to people like Sho, and I do it all based on an impulse to help whoever was in need, but this time doesn’t seem to be the case. It’s strange. I thought I’d want to help him, dunno why. It’s not like he’s ever done anything to deserve my help. Maybe I just don’t have that connection with Sho. Or maybe it’s because I agree with a few things the father said. I don’t know. Either way, I continued to watch.

And when my mind finally wandered back to the scene in front of me, I saw something that made my blood boil. I watched Yoshimura’s hand reach for Sho’s arm before there was a snap, and Sho let out a short scream. Yoshimura scowled at him, his hand reaching for Sho’s wrist, and it happened again, and I had to look away. I couldn’t keep watching this. I don’t know what to do. There was only one thing I could do - and that was to save him. I went to rush in, but Kagemiko held me back. I looked up at her, and she shook her head.

Now’s not the time to be a hero, Seiji.

But-

Being the wonder boy can wait. He knows what he’s doing, and he’s gone through a lot worse than this. He’ll be fine. There will be no more of this ceaseless violence.

So why can’t we stop the current violence? He had to suffer for no reason!

That’s nothing to worry about. I know what I’m doing. Have faith in me, Seiji.

I nodded, turning my attention to the scene in front of me. There’s not much I could do, even if I wanted to. With Kagemiko here, it was next to impossible for me to escape from her grasp. She was surprisingly strong.

“Sir, you’re hurting me.” Sho choked out, and I felt a pang of sympathy. Did he really deserve this and all the other abuse he receives? On the way here, people were glaring at him and spitting at him and blatantly saying horrible things about him and he just took it all. The only reason they don’t get physical is because they know he will fight back. But he had such a lonely aura surrounding him. It was so sad. He just wants to be strong, but for all the wrong reasons. He was alone, and he probably always will be unless something changes. This might be a job for the wonder boy to take on. It’s been a while since I’ve had to perform a miracle like this. Trauma is a difficult thing to get around. And so is an abusive father, intent on controlling his son’s every move.

“I don’t care. You’re a worthless piece of trash who deserves so much more than this. I don’t want a failure as a son, and this seems to be the only way I can get it to stick in your damn mind. Punishments aren’t pretty for nobodies, or did you forget?” His father growled, and Sho’s eyes widened in fear. He was terrified. This isn’t going to end well, and I will not let him hurt Sho just because I grew stronger. It’s not right. My growth shouldn’t be at the price of Sho, or anyone else. I’m supposed to be everyone’s hope. I’m the wonder boy. It’s my job. A miracle is a miracle, doesn’t matter what aspect of life it’s performed in.

“Hey! Put him down!” I shouted, and they looked in my direction, sending shivers down my spine. This may not have been one of my greater ideas. I should have planned something first, but no. I have no idea what to do past this stage. It’s not like I can fight him or anything. At least I had a chance every other time. I mean, I have a chance, I could kick his butt if I wanted to, but it would look suspicious if I suddenly knew how to fight. At least everyone else who tried to fight me was an even match, so it would make some sort of sense if I won. I’ll just have to wing it, I guess. Kagemiko sighed, letting go of me and fading out of existence, deciding that using her powers was useless when her presence made no difference to what I did. I honestly don’t know what she expected me to do - it’s not like I was just going to stand there and watch him forever. The wonder boy had to take a stand, and now was the time to do so. Even if it means screwing everyone over in the process. But they weren’t to know what was bound to happen later down the line, so it’s all good. They just have more time to recover now, so, in a way, I’m doing them a favour.

“Ishido, what the hell are you doing here?” Sho shouted back, his fear turning into anger at the sight of me. Dang, he’s mad. I’m kinda glad that his father’s holding him, otherwise, he would have ripped me to shreds. At least I took his mind off of things - that’s something positive, right? It’s definitely something. I almost feel bad for chasing after him. I know he wanted to keep this a secret - nobody had ever known what his home life was like, and he made damn sure that no one would ever witness this.

Or rather, no one cared enough to do anything about it. You have to remember, Seiji, that you’re not like the rest of them - society, I mean. They all follow the crowd and turn a blind eye to this boy’s suffering. But you, a boy who has walked through the darkness of the earth himself, refuse to turn your back on someone who hurts just like you once had.

And society will pay for being a bunch of sheep. If men do not learn their lesson, then they will learn it in fire and blood and anguish, as they have done many times before. One of these days, they will learn the consequences of their actions. As the wonder boy, I will make sure of that, even if it costs me my life.

You have strong convictions. Something that is truly terrifying taking into account your abilities and the power that you wield.

The darkness does a lot for a person, even if we hate it and long to run away. It can make or break a person - and for me, it has saved me more times than I can count. Having walked through darkness a lot of my life, I know how to make a difference, even if it’s the smallest one possible.