DOJOLAND (Elementary)

Chapter 10 - Elementary-level thugs

"The gang of Two" received a few more challenges once their reputation began to spread beyond their district. Much to Monky's dismay, there wasn't another royal melee like Hei had before.

"We were supposed to get into fights every day... what's with these boring, peaceful days?", Monky complained.

Hei narrowed his eyes at Monky as he checked the latter's homework before turning it in and writing red marks in every misspelling. There was close to a 50/50 rate between black and red ink by that point. "Are you sure you really need to pick a fight? Didn't you have to attend 5 make-up exams last month?", Hei scolded.

Monky put his nerd glasses on. "nonsense, Hei, ye've been sorely misinformed", he replied conceited.

"He had to take 7 make-up exams", Presto corrected, so sleep-deprived from cramming he ignored Monky's glare. He was asking Hei to check his own homework.

Hei's eyes grew more narrow.

"Hey, c'mon, stop staring, I passed every single test on the second try, okay?"

"He means, he passed after the second attempt after failing the original exam", a girl yawning nearby supplied, smirking at Monky's blushing glare.

The part that annoyed Hei the most wasn't that Monky was very clear about doing his absolute best to never, ever getting anything beyond a passing score but that he really could cram for a single hour and earn his undeserved 51/100 mark. He had tried confiscating his classroom's banana stash and hold it hostage but, with a deadpan expression, Monky simply stood before Hei, raised his hand, showing his palm, then the back of his hand and with a seriously professional sleight-of hand, pulled a banana out of thin air; then he proceeded to eat the banana with an equal-parts blissful and annoying smile that read "you mad, bro?".

Monky continued to play the annoying nerd. "As always, the normies complain to us, geniuses blessed by the heavens with brawn, skills, brains, beauty, grace and regal charisma".

In the end, Hei threatened to go pick fights outside of their districts while Monky was taking remedial tests and the annoying ape-human got a 51/100 on the first try. The class grumbled in unison.

On Valentine's day, Hei received a small basket of chocolates from the girls in his year. A month later, Hei replied in kind with home-made sweets made with fruits he had picked himself.

Monky received an even bigger basket of assorted types of chocolates. He boasted to Hei throughout the day until he tried them and realized about 50% of the whole pack had laxatives, 30% smelled like a used toilet, 15% had rotten food inside and the rest were rocks or coal in bombon wrappers . He went on a panty-raiding rampage that same night.

Before the year ended, what seemed to be a collection of promising young thugs gathered in front of the school.

"Yo! Where's the gang o' this 'ere school?", a rather short kid with brass knuckles asked Monky by sheer luck.

Monky cried out in berserker joy inwardly as he looked at the little gang. He had been itching for a good brawl for a long time after Hei had made him settle down seriously to study. Still, he held back and waited for Hei.

"Can...we help you?", Hei asked civilly.

"Yo, we 'eard there's a wee gang 'ere an' we's jus' thinkin' we nevah got acquainted-like, wot"

"Oh, I see, well, I'm really sorry to disappoint you, this school's gang only has two members... I trust you don't mean to look for a fight here, in front of the school, with teachers watching? and against only two", Hei replied and nervously looked at an already-stretching Monky.

Another boy, carrying a bat came forward staring at Hei and at Monky. "Oi, Knuckles' this 'ere's the lot o' 'em. They's the 'gang o' two'. Them Calico lads sent me their pic jus' now, see"

Monky was cracking his knuckles. Hei shrugged and put his backpack on the ground. His father had just gotten him heavier weights to wear and, while not entirely confident he had gotten used to them, he was sure Monky would probably be done with the brawl before they got surrounded.

The short boy with brass knuckles looked at the Bat boy's smartphone and corroborated. "Well, that' ll save some time, then", he said, content.

Monky and Hei had already assumed melee positions.

"Wanna 'ead out for a cuppa, then?", the boy offered tea with a friendly smile.

Hei grabbed Monky's belt before his flying kick connected.

During Tea, Monky grumbled in frustration as the little gang explained Hei that less and less elementary students started looking for a 'career in brawling' as was known by some adults but that even within this dwindling number, the percentage of kids who didn't know what they were getting into kept increasing. And so, they had taken to themselves to correct this and thus, anyone interested in the 'road of battle and blood' was sooner or later approached by a representative and received a lecture on what it meant to discard a Civilian profession in favor of following martial arts as a full time profession.

Hei was a bit confused. "what do you mean 'discard a civilian profession'?"

The boy with the bat took a sip of his Earl Grey, his pinky so vertical it could have been drawn and posted on dictionaries to explain the word 'posh'. "Regular lot jobs, mate: from sweepin' streets to Doctors an' lawyers"

Hei scratched his head. "Wait, that doesn't make sense. Everyone has to have a job, right? anyone who doesn't work has to be a delinquent and delinquents end up in jail, right?", he told them.

Everyone around him stared with wide eyes. The Knuckle boy addressed Monky. "Fella's lived under a rock, roight?"

"He can be a pain, but his naivete is part of his charm, really", Monky replied as he condescendingly pat Hei in the shoulder.

They explained that a 'fighter's job' was to make it clear that his battle prowess was high enough to entitle him privileges in his community. A hood's brawlers patrolled the street and attempted to avoid influence from outside bullies and even criminals or worse, door-to-door solicitors. By making themselves known, fighters generally received local food and lodge. Extraordinary fighters could be hired by wealthy conglomerates or syndicates as security ops or trainers and more often than not, ended up with a dojo of their own, got to write their memories or became seminar spokesmen or security consultants. It was said the Head of the Turtle Clan amassed such wealth simply as a lecturer of philosophy in several universities after he had retired that it matched the gross profit from working in the financial sector all his life.

"So you see, Hei, Although the temple's my safety net, I'm planning on getting big early and fill my life with colorful experiences", Monky concluded excitedly.

"Colorful? sure, if you like the color of blood", Hei retorted.

This got a general laughter from the little gangsters.

"All in all, mate, if we evah meet n' fight, no 'ard feelings, eh? We's got ourselves' a gentleman's pact to not fight to the death. It does no one any good and it'd be bad for tradition 'n all."

Hei had imagined himself as either a teacher or a biologist and, after he met Monky and fought a small gang himself, as a police officer so the idea of spending all of his time doing nothing but fighting didn't fit exactly right with his sense of values. Still, he told everyone that even if he decided to leave the 'career of brawling', he could still try and find a different job so as to not have to clash with anyone else in the future.

The little gangsters looked puzzled at Hei and then looked at Monky, as if this was some kind of inside joke.

Monky uneasily looked away from Hei.

No one found it in themselves to tell him...

The only way out of the brawler road when you were in the middle of it was to end the brawler life, with a special emphasis on both "end" and "life"...