Lunchtime rolled around soon enough and Gengyo marched confidently toward the open-walled hut in which everyone was starting to gather for lunch.
Aritada and Yoritomo trailed behind him with fury on their faces. He’d made them receive the scorn of the entire field, and to make matters worse they still had not landed a single stone on him.
"F.u.c.k... Hurry up Yoritomo I won’t be able to eat until I beat that little shit up."
"Yeah. I hear you."
Rin and Masaatsu were already feasting on some rice balls, and waved to Gengyo as he came closer.
"Oyyy, how’s work little bro?"
At this Gengyo could not help but laugh, recalling the events of the morning.
"To be honest, Masaatsu, I think I’m starting to enjoy it."
Rin raised her eyebrows at this.
"For someone who got nailed on the head with a stone yesterday, you sure are optimistic. Aren’t those two picking on you today?"
Gengyo smiled.
"No. In fact, someone else is picking on them instead today."
"Ehh... I don’t get it but if you’re having fun, I guess its fine."
Masaatsu agreed, whilst handing Gengyo a ball of rice.
"Yeah, if they don’t bother you that’s what matters. Here you go. I’m looking forward to having meat with dinner for a change – that should be nice."
Rin looked a little curious at this.
"Are we? How come?"
"Masaatsu caught a crow this morning."
"Really? But he’s never caught anything before... anyway you’d need a bow."
"Yeah, Tadakata borrowed one from old man Azai yesterday"
Masaatsu chipped in.
"Mmm... You’ve never been interested in stuff like that before Tadakata."
"Yeah well I—"
Gengyo was cut off by the seething Aritada.
"You. Come with us."
He forcefully grabbed Gengyo’s shoulder, and started to drag him away.
Masaatsu moved to get up, as did Rin, but Gengyo shook his head and shot them a confident smile, freezing them in their tracks.
"Come on. Let’s take a walk down that mound. People can see us here."
Aritada pushed Gengyo from the back, forcing him to walk forward. But Gengyo was only too happy to oblige.
Instead, he maintained his façade of innocence.
"Do you have something secret to tell me Hijikata-kun? If you want to be friends you don’t need to go through all this trouble to ask."
At that Aritada brought his palm to his face before turning to Yoritomo and laughing a little madly.
"Haha... Yoritomo... I’m just going to kill him, okay?"
It seemed he’d all be broken down, as he raised his hoe toward Gengyo preparing to swing
Yoritomo quickly went behind him and secured his arms, preventing him from attacking.
Aritada thrashed about wildly in response.
"LET ME GO! I NEED TO KILL THAT LITTLE F.U.C.KER!"
Yoritomo’s grip remained firm however, as he attempted to talk some sense into him.
"Calm down bro! If you really do kill him then we’re f.u.c.k.i.e.d. No one’s going to let us get away with murder. Just calm down and we’ll beat him up a bit okay?"
Aritada took a few deep breaths and stopped struggling.
"Okay... You’re right. Let’s get this over with."
Yoritomo slowly nodded, and tentatively released him, ready to quickly lock him down again should he attempt to attack Gengyo.
"What’s wrong Hijikata-kun? You really don’t need to be that embarrassed about asking to be my friend."
This time Aritada just attacked instantly, seeing red.
Yoritomo managed to secure his arms just in time before the hoe cracked open Gengyo’s head.
"F.U.C.KKKKKK THIS LITTLE SHIT! I CAN’T. HE’S TOO ANNOYING. JUST LET ME KILL HIM!!!"
"Aritada! Calm down bro. He’s just being stupid and messing with you."
"Ok bro. I’m just going to hold your arms all the way there, ok? Then we can stop and beat him up."
"Nah! I’ve calmed down now. Let me go."
"Sorry bro. I don’t trust you. This is for your own good, ok? Miura, get moving, yeah? No more talking from you."
Gengyo merely smiled innocently as he walked in front with a spring in his step.
"F.u.c.k... I’m going to mess him up so bad."
"Yeah bro, just wait till we’re out of sight. And don’t touch the face, yeah?"
...
...
"Ehh? What do you mean you want to beat me up? I thought we were all going to be friends..."
Gengyo said with a hint of sadness.
Aritada didn’t respond, he merely put all his anger into a fist sent toward Gengyo’s stomach.
It landed, and hit hard.
Gengyo bent over, winded from the blow. He struggled to keep his thoughts sound as he coughed, struggling for air.
’Not yet... need the right moment.’
This time it was Yoritomo’s turn. A kick to the side sent Gengyo sprawling on the floor.
Aritada moved in, and sent more kicks to his stomach and chest, as Gengyo used his arms to protect his face.
Aritada grew tired of the kicking, and searching for a way to make him feel more pain. He decided on blows to the back, which Gengyo would be unable to defend from.
Gengyo struggled to get up, as his whole body wracked with pain.
They allowed him to his stand, but not for long. Yoritomo used him as a human training doll, and tested out his shoulder throw, sending him flying.
He landed hard on his back again, also slamming his coccyx on a rock causing an excruciating amount of pain.
But he used this pain as a stimulant, and quickly crawled on his hands and feet.
’Silly boy. This is what I was aiming for from the start.’
Gengyo stood up, slightly bent over from the pain, but with a look of ferocity about him as he held his new weapon – Aritada’s hoe.
His aggressors looked at him measuredly, with a hint of fear, wondering whether he really would strike them with the hoe.
"Pah! Cut the shit Miura. You don’t have the balls to use that – the injuries would be too serious. You’d definitely get punished."
Aritada taunted, slowly getting closer.
"Oh, you’re quite right."
Gengyo nodded in agreement. His goal was not to use this as a weapon, but rather as insurance.
"Now, watch closely. Aritada, Yoritomo – you lose."
Gengyo secured the cutting edge into the ground, whilst gripping the end of the shaft tightly. He then brought his foot down on it, quickly and deliberately.
SNAP
...
"THE F.U.C.K!? WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT MIURA?"
Aritada’s anger burst forth at the sight of his hoe getting broken, and he rushed forwards towards Gengyo, intent on giving him a serve punishment for his actions.
"Ah. Hold on there. Do you really have the money to fix a broken hoe?"
"EH!? You broke it dumbass! You’re the one who has to pay for it."
"Tutut. You really think they’re going to believe that? I left my hoe with Baba. You called me out over here, and you return with a broken hoe...? Hm. What’s everyone going to think?"
"They’re going to think what we tell them to think! Let’s beat him up Yoritomo!"
"No, not at all. Why would they believe that I broke it? Everyone knows that you two are good for nothings. Do you really think they’ll believe that weak little me overpowered you both and broke your hoe? They’re going to call bullshit, and you’ll get punished twice as bad."
Yoritomo looked a pitifully toward Aritada at that.
"That sounds right bro... I’m sorry but my folks don’t have the money to buy a new hoe. This is on you man."
"!? Mine don’t have it either dumbass. We can barely eat. How the f.u.c.k are we going to pay for a new hoe?"
"I dunno man. I’m just telling you – I can’t help."
"Yeah, whatever. Miura. Even if what you said is true, and we’re going to have to buy a new hoe anyway, what’s to stop us from just beating the shit out you right here and now? I’m f.u.c.k.i.n.g itching to do it."
’Well this is going rather well.’
Gengyo thought to himself with a smile.
"Simple. I can fix it – before lunch ends even. You just have to agree to some of my conditions."
Aritada’s eyes virtually bulged out his head as he listened to this, he grasped his scalp as though he had a headache.
"You can fix it... Huh. Don’t believe you, but I lose nothing by making you try... And do you really think you’re in a position to be asking for conditions, eh? We can beat you up whenever we want little man."
At that Gengyo simply shrugged his shoulders.
"Yes, you can. However, that won’t bring the money your family needs to buy a new hoe."
Aritada ground his teeth in irritation. There was not a single floor in Gengyo’s reasoning.
"Pah. What are these conditions then, punk?"
"Oh, they’re very simple. You just need to ask to move to a different field to me."
!?
"The f.u.c.k? You know that shit is hard to do. Baba is going to hate it."
"That’s not really my problem, but if you say something like: ’I’d like to be moved to a field where there is more work, as we get bored easily’. I’m sure he’d oblige."
"You little punk... You’re really pushing me here."
"Aritada, bro, that condition isn’t even that bad. We’ll just get moved and it’ll be fine, right?"
Gengyo nodded.
"Yes, that’s all. Of course I’ll need you both to swear on your warrior’s honour – since you two are into that – so that you will uphold you promise."
Aritada smiled bitterly at that.
"Since when were you so smart, kid? F.u.c.k it. Whatever. I swear on my warrior’s honour, that I, Hijikata Aritada will move fields upon receiving a fixed hoe from Miura. May the death god’s take my soul should I be lying."
Yoritomo similarly repeated the vow, and Gengyo nodded in satisfaction.
"Good. I am also a man of my word. Take this hoe and broken shaft, and find me a piece of bamboo similar in diameter and length. The diameter must be lightly bigger than that of the hole in the cutting edge, understand? I will remain here and start a fire."
Aritada instantly turned to Yoritomo.
"Yoritomo, I need you to do as he says. I’ll stay here to keep an eye on him, and make sure he keeps his word."
Yoritomo looked a little begrudging, but still assented and jogged down the path between the fields toward a public bamboo patch.
"What’s this fire for?"
Aritada asked, as he watched Gengyo begin to lay the base, before taking a flint and steel out from inside of kimono – the same one he had used the night before – and lighting the kindling.
Gengyo didn’t begrudge him this information. He had nothing really against the boy, apart from the bullying.
"Bamboo starts to go bad after a while."
Aritada wondered if this was another trick, and responded carefully.
"It does..."
"Heating the bamboo in the fire helps to kill it whilst hardening it, preventing it from going bad."
Aritada watched Gengyo carefully as he explained this, making sure there were no lies passing through his mouth. But what he said seemed to make sense so Aritada nodded.
"How do you know that anyway? Your family are just farmers same as mine."
"I make it my business to know, Hijikata-kun. Knowledge is a powerful resource, is it not? It is through knowledge that I managed to beat you."
Aritada frowned slightly at that, clearly still bitter.
"Yeah. I guess it is... What happened to you anyway? You suddenly started to know shit? We’ve been pushing you around for years. At first I felt a bit bad, but you just didn’t resist at all dude. Like a dog."
"Mmm. The weak are still people. I’m a different man now though, Hijikata-kun. You will no longer be able to push me around. In the future, it might even be beneficial for you to work with me."
Aritada flinched slightly at that, but then thinking over the recent events he nodded.
"I’d never work under you. Only as equals."
Gengyo looked at him and laughed slightly.
"I wouldn’t have it any other way."
//Author’s Note
Decided to add a little note to this chapter, as it has proved to be controversial. He starts off as a character that is essentially looking for peace and quiet. He acted in a way that would move toward that goal. Instead of acting out revenge, he sought peace. The teens were, after all, teens, and not a serious threat.
That is not to say that he continues to be kind for the rest of the book. Who he develops into is a strong character that I’m proud to write about. By chapter 25, he has killed his first man. Read on if you’re interested to see how a normal person develops and adapts to his circ.u.mstances, becoming a force to be reckoned with.
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