Kemuri

Chapter 29: Gomen

Huitzi was frozen to the bone. He struggled as he crawled on the beach, the stab wound on his side was killing him. Who the fuck were they? Motherfucking...

He laid on his back, breathing heavily, looking up at the early morning sky. A pale sun was visible behind a blanket of cloud, the salty sea breeze caressed his body, and shallow waves slithered around his legs, the cold hurting his extremities. Where am I again? The air smelled different than in England, and he noted that he hadn't heard a car yet, only the faint chant of early birds. He managed to finally sit up, his hand clutching his wound. I gotta find clothes... This power is so annoying...

Huitzi wandered in the street, it was a small village, calm and empty, too empty. The houses were small and simple but sophisticated in their details. Huitzi only crossed path with cats; a grey one and a white one, playing together, and escaping in between houses once they noticed the young man. Huitzi could still feel them observing him, but he continued. Huitzi noticed that they left paw prints on the rough cobble street, wet spots wherever they had padded. Strange cats.

Finally, he noticed clothes hanged in front of a house, and he decided to help himself. He grabbed loose dark blue pants that were too big for him, he didn't remember how to tie the belt in a proper knot. He picked a beige top, oversized as well, it draped loosely over him, then...

Godammit! He reached for his neck, then padded at himself. For fuck's sake! He had lost his necklace again; this time he was certain it was since he landed on the boat. This power is the fucking worst!

He was fuming, his fist as well. "HEY!" he shouted. "IS THERE ANYBODY HERE? HELLO?!" He cupped his mouth for his voice to reach farther, as he walked down the small street. But no response. He peeked his head in half-open doors, but nobody was in sight. He stopped in the middle of the street. "WHERE IS EVERYBODY?!!"

Then, he heard somebody approaching. He turned and saw a short man trotting towards him, he barely reached Huitzi's shoulder when he ran past him. His head was shaved almost bald, the hair that remained gave him a squarish face, itself resting on a squarish body. He wore clothes similar to the ones Huitzi had taken, but they were actually fitted properly. He wore a dark grey gi, tied with a red belt.

"Wai-" started Huitzi, but the short man bumped into him, Huitzi felt as if a boulder just hit his shoulder. The man seemed to snap out of it and he turned.

"Gomen," he said, raising a hand, and kept running.

"WAIT THE FUCK UP!" Huitzi dashed towards him, his left hand balled in a fist, aimed at the stranger. The man easily dodged the punch, stepping to the side, his feet set up to pivot quickly. Incoming! Huitzi stopped his momentum, and quickly turned, putting his guards up and...

The man was bowing down, his hands clasped together and he repeated himself "Gomen." Huitzi was confused for a moment, then his anger boiled over.

"Quit playing!" He threw a roundhouse left kick, but the shorter man blocked the attack, Huitzi felt as if he had kicked a piece of metal. Huitzi didn't stop here. He set his left foot down and instead opted to a direct right kick to the man's stomach. The stranger seemed to get distracted for a second, and the kick landed, forcing him to take a couple steps backward. Huitzi dashed once again, but the stranger raised hands in front of him.

"Matte! Matte!" he repeated, but the boy didn't listen, continuing to attack, in the back of his mind he was confused of his opponent's behavior. Their scrimmage raised some hell in the early morning, the cats from earlier reared their heads again, watching from a distance. By now, the short man was sweating and speaking gibberish, Huitzi was getting more and more irritated.

Huitzi was about land another attack when a large hand grabbed his arm, stopping it right in its track. Instinctively, Huitzi's hand sparked aflame and he wrenched his arm out, taking a few steps back. The man was wearing the same clothes as the first one. His hair was grey, with hints of red and pink. He sported a large grey beard, and his tanned skin was wrinkled, especially between his eyes, making it seem like he was constantly frowning (he was indeed frowning in that moment). Despite the sleeves of his top, Huitzi could tell he was muscular. He reminded him of his father in a way, he was probably taller, and stronger.

He spoke to the shorter man, he couldn't understand what they said but Huitzi could tell right away their relationship was one of respect, most likely student and teacher. "Who are you?" the teacher said. Huitzi was shocked to hear him speak in his native tongue.

"W... Why should I tell you? Who are you?!" Huitzi got in a defensive stance, that man seemed dangerous.

He crossed his arms, studying Huitzi from head to toe before exhaling loudly. "Show me your right ankle."
Huitzi took a step back, considering the question asked by the tall man. He complied, rolling up his pants, showcasing the sun tattoo on his right ankle, it seemed to have gotten lighter with time. The man groaned, as if Huitzi had done something wrong. "What? What's deal, old man?"
"Call me Zenis... Although... I guess, you would have probably heard of me under the name Totec." Huitzi's eyes widened. He had heard that name pronounced countless times by his father, a fabled best friend he once had, but Cenit using past tense anytime he talked about him, the boy assumed he must have died.

"Y-...You know father?" Huitzi loosened up, dropping his hands.

The man sighed loudly, but Huitzi could see the hints of a smile on his face. "Of course, you're Cenit's son too... Something about being a reckless annoyance seems to run in your family... Well calm down, follow us before you bleed out."

"Huh?" Huitzi was confused for a second, but looking down he saw crimson blood covering his side, slithering down his leg to pool at his foot. "I don't need your he-" he started, but his legs gave out mid sentence. The short boy held him up but Huitzi push him off. "I can walk..." he said. Turned and start to walk away, his student followed, trotting to walk at his teacher's side. Huitzi stood back for a second.

Goddamn it...