Washed Up
A/N: Momo gets beaten up because of his increasing paranoia towards Kite! Kite is actually from the military.
Authors: Celianna (Momo), Happiestwhen (Kaidoh), Gottis (Ryoma) & DA (Kite)
Rating: T for violence
Events leading up to this log:
- Within two days of the last log, Kite becomes increasingly more interested with trolling Momo, and gets him to believe he'll 'take Ryoma for himself'
- Momo is paranoid and believes what he says, and is very protective of Ryoma
- Ryoma and Kaidoh try to calm Momo down, but he's still very alert and has threatened Kite he'll kill him if he comes close to Ryoma
- Kite decides to go fishing, but gets a little bit too close to Momo's turf ...
Date: June 8, 2012
It was early morning. Not so early that the sun wasn't up yet, but still early enough that the heat of the day wasn't an issue. Not that the heat would ever be. For a man who had been born and grew up on a tropical island, this place was as close to home as he had ever been recently. It even had nearly the same sort of fish. All it was missing was the star sand and the endangered wild cats. It even had the same sort of people. Namely idiots he didn't really enjoy mingling with. Not because he was anti-social...okay, exactly because he was anti-social. He didn't have patience for stupidity. Not when it was a matter of living until someone came to get their sorry asses off this lump of rock in the middle of the ocean.
This was why he chose odd times to appear out of the thick jungle and step foot into semi-civilization. Less likely for most morons to be awake yet. And those who might be would know better than to bother the darkly tanned man melting from the jungle like a camouflaged ghost. Which meant he could go about his business in relative peace. And this morning, his business was simple. Fishing.
As always, he was armed to the teeth. Ever present knife tucked away in his boot, spear cum harpoon, a hand tied net, and...of all things a bamboo fishing pole. It looked more like Kite was going to be going to war with the fish instead of catching one for his breakfast. And perhaps he was. Being like he was, he wasn't going after the little fish. He wanted something much larger. Maybe a shark. Cooked and dried properly, the meat would last for a week. He could add it to his small stock of other dried delicious dead things hanging from his pantry. That way, he wouldn't have to hunt for a while and should there be an emergency, he had extra rations. Not that he would be humane enough to share them with the rest of the idiots down here.
Footsteps were, as always, silent, even in heavy boots, even on sand. A dark shadow, approaching his favorite fishing spot and setting down his equipment to watch the waves for a second, looking for the tell tale signs of shark. Crossing his legs under him, he sunk to the sand and cast his line into the water, contemplating how to put blood in the water to attract his dinner.
Kaidoh wasn't sure how long he'd been walking, but he was conscious of the sun rising steadily above him and knew the shack was a ways behind him by now. Which was good, since Kaidoh didn't want to be seen. His goal was to get back to where he'd first encountered Momoshiro, because the fish seemed to be biting there, if Momoshiro's ability to catch them was any indication. Kaidoh didn't want to admit that maybe Momoshiro was just a better fisherman than him. It simply wasn't possible.
Kaidoh had been up at the crack of dawn every morning since he arrived, first finding a branch to carve into a primitive spear, and then fishing, fishing, and more fishing. He'd been out for several hours every morning, standing in the shallow water, jabbing the pointy end of his spear at everything that moved, but he wasn't having any luck. It was downright pathetic. Each morning, he'd return to the shack empty-handed, stash his sorry excuse for a fishing tool around the back, and come in pretending he'd just come from a long run.
This morning he was determined to get something. Up ahead he could see where the island curved around into a long peninsula and knew he was close. Something sparkled in the water and Kaidoh saw the shiver of movement beneath the waves. He steeled himself with determination. I can do this, he thought firmly.
Then he saw something strange. He noticed, as the shoreline tapered back around the bend, that he wasn't alone on the beach this morning. There was another figure, one Kaidoh didn't immediately recognize, already sitting on the sand with what looked like a hulking mass of tools and weaponry assembled around him.
Kaidoh stopped walking. He was never as good at spying as the rest of his teammates. He usually didn't care enough to try and be stealthy, but this guy looked dangerous, so Kaidoh crept closer, suddenly very aware of the sound of his breath.
And then it all clicked into place: He looked dangerous. He didn't look like he belonged here.
He was wearing camo.
Oh crap, Kaidoh thought, eyeing the long and rather menacing harpoon at the man's side. Sure, he'd sort of thought Momoshiro was spouting bullshit when he ranted about the creepy yakuza freak in the jungle who was coming to kidnap Echizen and eat him, and it had been beyond annoying to put up with that kind of blabbering day in and day out for the past week, but maybe Momoshiro hadn't been totally delusional. This guy looked like he meant business, and Momoshiro would probably smash his face in if Kaidoh didn't at least warn him that he was hanging around on their beach.
Kaidoh turned and sprinted back to the shack, leaving his spear sticking upright in the sand, abandoned. Well, it wasn't like he was going to catch any fish with it anyway.
When he got back, Momoshiro was already up. Kaidoh was sure he looked a bit flushed, but he didn't care. He marched over to Momoshiro and grabbed him by the shirt.
"I need to talk to you," he growled, voice serious. He moved in closer and lowered his voice so that Echizen was out of earshot. "That guy is out on our beach," he said, and narrowed his eyes meaningfully, just in case Momoshiro didn't know exactly what guy he was talking about.
Blink. Blink. "Huh?" was Momoshiro's intelligent reply. His brain was still trying to figure out how to make a lock for the door of their shack, so he was only half listening when Kaidoh pulled him at his shirt. A bunch of tools to help aid him in making one were spread out on the ground.
"What guy?" he asked, completely oblivious to the real lurking danger.
"The one you never shut up about," Kaidoh replied flatly. "You know, the one you hate?" He sighed. "I just saw him out on the beach while I was... running. It looked like he had a bunch of knives with him."
"That yakuza? Kite?" Momoshiro looked serious all of the sudden, dropping the wrench that he had in his hand. "He's really fucking here?" He had actually gotten the nerve to waltz up at their place?
Rage welled up inside of Momoshiro, and he was overcome by this need to protect Echizen, as well as his own territory. Swiftly, Momoshiro tore himself away from Kaidoh, then snatched his fishing spear—the one with the steaknife attached to it—and he turned to face Echizen, deadly serious.
"You, stay here. Don't come out. Don't you dare and come out." It wasn't a question, it was a command. He turned to Kaidoh. "You, come with me. I can't take that guy alone." Even if there were two people, Momoshiro knew in the back of his mind that this was still not in their favour, not with the military freak who had training experience. But Momoshiro was blind with fury; all he wanted to do was keep Echizen safe and away from that creep.
Kaidoh glared at Momoshiro and grabbed him by the wrist.
"What's the plan?" he hissed. "Just march out there and poke your spear at him? Don't be an idiot, idiot."
But Kaidoh knew that look, and he knew that words weren't going to sway Momoshiro's mind. He sure hoped that Momoshiro had learned some better fighting skills in their time apart. He certainly didn't want the dumbass to get his ass kicked just because he overreacted to a dumb taunt. Especially not when it was Kaidoh's fault he even knew Kite was there in the first place.
Momoshiro glared right back at Kaidoh, and yanked his wrist free. "Yes. I'm going to shove my spear down his throat. Or perhaps fling it at him and stab him through the heart. Either way works for me. Why, got any better ideas?" he asked sarcastically.
Kaidoh thought back to what he'd learned in high school about conflict resolution. He hadn't really been paying attention at the time because he'd been busy fighting with Momoshiro about something, but wasn't there something about how the two parties should attempt to talk it out first? How violence was the last resort? He knew he couldn't very well suggest to Momoshiro that he and Kite should sit down and have a friendly chat and work out all their differences; not now when Momoshiro's spear was glinting ominously and the look on his face was just as threatening.
Kaidoh wasn't used to being on the same side as Momoshiro in a fight. "We have to assess the situation first," he said levelly, parroting back words he'd heard Inui-senpai say in the past about how to approach an unfamiliar tennis game, or a particularly difficult math test. This was nowhere near the same thing, but he'd had a point. They had to be prepared.
Momoshiro's spear had done a decent job of catching fish, but Kaidoh wasn't sure how it would be against a soldier. Or, rather, he was pretty sure how it would be, in that it wouldn't pan out so well for the two of them. They'd both been in physical fights before, namely with each other, but this seemed different and Kaidoh was worried Momoshiro might do something truly stupid and get himself hurt.
Worried was maybe a bit of an overstatement. More like, he felt vaguely concerned.
"We should find out why he's here," Kaidoh said, before adding, "and then you can stab at him all you want."
"Like I need your permission," snorted Momoshiro. But Kaidoh might have had a point there. A teeny tiny, unimportant point. He couldn't simply barge out there, spear in hand, with a wimpy Kaidoh right behind on his tail, and intend to actually beat Kite down.
No, they did need to have a better plan than that. Momoshiro lowered his gaze at the ground for a few long seconds, pondering on what to do, staring emptily at the wrench on the floor. He was definitely not going to be nice and talk it out—they were way beyond that point. Kite meant business, and so did Momoshiro. He had repeatedly warned him to stay away, so if he was here, that meant he was simply out there looking for a fight.
Or worse, kidnap Echizen and rape him.
Fury flashed onto Momoshiro's face once more. "You're right. This spear won't do." He then shoved the spear into Kaidoh's chest, as he bent back down to grab the wrench from the ground that he had been using to create a lock with (don't ask how). "This will be much better, blunt trauma will definitely knock that guy out compared to a few measly stabs." Momoshiro looked at the decent sized steel tool in his hand and nodded.
Kaidoh's eyes widened and then narrowed again. So this was really happening. They were going out onto the beach to fight some guy Kaidoh didn't even really remember ever knowing, all because of what? Things Echizen had assured him were probably just jokes. He and Momoshiro were going to beat this guy up. Or die trying, a tiny voice in his head whispered. Kaidoh hissed at it. He didn't need that kind of discouragement right now. Not when he was already feeling nervous. Sure, stupid Momoshiro could feel confident with his wrench. He hadn't seen that guy's weapons.
"It'll be good if we can catch him off guard," Kaidoh said, willing his voice to sound as confident as Momoshiro's did, like he knew what he was talking about and was himself a seasoned fighter. "We've got surprise on our side." He thought about his pointy fishing stick back on the beach, the one that couldn't even really stab fish. He hoped he wasn't about to look completely embarrassing in front of Momoshiro.
"Then let's ambush him!" Momoshiro's tactical and analytic skills went as far as 'charge in running', which is what he referred to as a surprise attack. No one could see that coming.
"Now, are you with me? Or are you going to stay here and," Momoshiro tilted his head sideways to glance over at Echizen. "Try and prevent him from leaving?" Like a chicken, was what he also wanted to add, but Momoshiro would in all honestly be glad if someone stayed behind to keep watch on Echizen. It might have been several long years, and they might have had more fights than they had conversations, but there was one thing Momoshiro knew; Kaidoh would keep his word—and he was damn persistent. Freak.
At least if someone watched over Echizen, it would make him feel a little bit better going into battle. If he didn't return then … then … suddenly this was starting to look a little bit frightening. What if he didn't return, and Kaidoh had to take care of Echizen all this time? He couldn't even take care of himself! Let alone another person who was still in the process of healing up.
Kaidoh couldn't even catch those damn fish. They were doomed if Momoshiro didn't return.
Which was why Kaidoh had to come with him; to prevent Momoshiro from dying, if at all possible. Or to warn other people of Kite if he eventually does die, so that they could all swamp on him and finish him off. That'll show him.
"No one's going to watch me. And Momo, are you fucking listening to yourself?!" Ryoma had gotten to his feet, arm draped around his torso. "You know what? I'll go out there right now and talk to Kite-san. Gotta warn him about you, you moron..."
"You're not going anywhere!" His voice sounded much more fearful than he had wanted to. "I'm not letting you near that guy. Over my dead body." Literally. "So stay here. Kaidoh and I will deal with him."
"What—I... Oh... God, you're so stupid! Are you listening to yourself? Have you heard anything Kaidoh said? Why do you even think you're in any position to threaten Kite? Why are you so dead set on getting your ass busted?"
Momoshiro was torn between walking out, and gagging Echizen with a sock in his mouth. He didn't have time to explain that all he wanted was to keep him safe. He knew Kite was serious, and he was right there on the beach to prove it too!
"Look, that guy made it clear he wanted to do some crazy shit with you. And now he's out there walking on the beach, coming towards our direction. Do you really think—after repeatedly telling him to back off—that I should leave him be? Do you even know this guy enough to be sure that what he said was a joke? How do you know? Huh, tell me that, Ryoma."
Ryoma threw up his arms in exasperation. "Oh, I don't know. Maybe because I think that a guy who's intelligent enough to be a first class yakuza or whatever he is, is maybe smart enough to not announce to the world that he's going to do this or that or whatever it is that you think that he's planning to do." He refused to put the exact words that he was thinking into his mouth.
"Maybe that's just what he wants you to think," concluded Momoshiro confidently. "To make everything seem like one big joke, while he's secretly planning to kill us all or something. You know that stupid book people keep talking about? Lord of the Flies or something like that? Yeah, I heard they all eventually killed each other on the island. Well—look no further than military man himself, announcing proudly that he prefers your type, and will get you before I do—and I don't even know what that means! But it's gotta be something bad."
Momoshiro lowered the wrench and sighed with a deep breath. "Look, I won't do anything rash. I guess Kaidoh's right—I can't just barge in. I'll see what he's up to, okay? Will that make you feel any better?"
"... If you won't demand me to stay put like some damn damsel in distress." Ryoma pouted. "I can keep myself out of trouble, okay?"
"... Yeah, I'm gonna lock the door on my way out."
"You had better be joking." Ryoma's face darkened.
Momoshiro actually managed to grin a little bit, despite being faced with a life or death kind of situation. "Don't be stupid," he said, and then referred to the make-shift lock he was making earlier. It was a simple hook mechanism, which still wasn't finished. "You're still staying here—don't tell me you actually want to come with us. That's insane!"
There was a quick tug at the corner of Ryoma's mouth, but then he crossed his arms over his chest and looked at Momoshiro, jaw set stubbornly. "Not more insane than you going after him. Of course I'm coming."
Momoshiro started to chew on his lip as he pondered about what to do. Unless he could physically restrain Echizen (which he didn't want to do in fear of worsening his injuries), there was no way he would stay behind on his own. And with no lock on the door … what could he do?
"Okay, fine," he bit out after thinking it over for a bit. "But not before I dress you up with pillows." Momoshiro sauntered over towards their bed and yanked off a fluffy white pillow.
"Yeah... No." Ryoma started towards the door after one quick, incredulous stare at said pillow.
Before Echizen could reach the door, Momoshiro had softly flung the pillow at his head. "No!" he yelled. As the pillow fell down, Momoshiro slumped his shoulders and gave him his best puppy dog eyed look he could muster. "I'm doing this so you won't get hurt … it's kind of pointless if you do get hurt. You've already been hurt. Please don't let me see that happen in front of my eyes ever again."
Kaidoh grimaced. "Momoshiro's right, Echizen." Well, maybe not about the pillows... Did Momoshiro know nothing about armor at all? "It could be really dangerous."
"Ow! You know my head's sensitive, right?" Still, it unsettled him a bit that even a soft pillow tossed without too much force could make his head spin for a moment. He couldn't look at those puppy dog eyes without caving in, so instead he turned to Kaidoh. "Could be dangerous for you guys as well. If anything, there's at least safety in numbers. And I still think we should simply talk with Kite. Okay? Diplomacy? It's not a bad idea, Momo." Now he could turn to him again.
Momoshiro could talk with his fist, he was thinking quietly. But then he smiled at Echizen cheerfully. "It's okay, I'll die for you." And he did mean that rather seriously. He wasn't so sure about Kaidoh though. So he elbowed him hard in the side and gave him a creepy smile. "Right, Kaidoh?"
"You're not going to die, moron," Kaidoh said, although he wasn't so sure about that, what with Momoshiro being so gung-ho about this stupid plan.
"Of course I'm not. I'm just saying … " Momoshiro wasn't quite sure what his point was anymore, but he did know it was to prevent Echizen from tagging along. "Do you really have to come? I promise I'll talk first. No promises if he attacks though." And if he said anything lewd about Echizen again, then Momoshiro would throw out all the promises in the world and kill him. Except for the one about keeping him safe, he'll take that to the grave.
He was definitely taking his wrench with him though.
"... Just get out and get yourself killed then, I don't care." If it would shut Momoshiro up, he could pretend that he'd stay put. He couldn't bring himself to outright lie to the two of them, but there were other ways to indicate that he'd stay behind. Like moving over to his bed and sullenly flopping down on it, back turned to both Momoshiro and Kaidoh.
"I will," he said with a smile. "I mean, I won't," he quickly corrected. "Yeah. Stay here, don't let me catch you sneaking away. Or there will be hell to pay. Like … like …" Momoshiro quickly found out that there was no way he could ever punish Echizen. "I'll figure it out when you do it, and I'm sure it won't be pleasant." Yeah, that was better. An empty threat. "So don't do it."
Taking one last look at Echizen, Momoshiro walked back over to the door and tugged at Kaidoh's arm. "Come on, let's go."
Kaidoh hissed and shrugged Momoshiro off.
"Let's get this over with," he grumbled, holding tightly onto Momoshiro's fishing spear and marching outside.
Momoshiro glanced behind himself at Echizen's back one last time, before closing the door and following Kaidoh towards purple yakuza man.
Kaidoh explained to Momoshiro where he'd seen Kite; down the beach near where they'd met before. He avoided saying, Where you caught and cooked fish for me and I drank all your water, because that sounded embarrassing, and he was sure Momoshiro knew where he was talking about anyway.
He led Momoshiro through the trees at the shoreline, careful to maintain their cover. The last thing he wanted was for Kite to spot them. They were already at enough of a disadvantage as it was.
Soon they were nearing the peninsula and Kaidoh could see his stick speared into the sandy ground up ahead. He glared at it for good measure, silently blaming it for all of this, and then he slowed his pace, crouching down in the bushes and pulling Momoshiro down with him.
"There," Kaidoh hissed, pointing ahead to where Kite was sitting in the sand. His figure was slightly obstructed by a low hanging palm, but it was unmistakably him.
Alright, diplomacy. Momoshiro would take a few minutes to honour Echizen's suggestion, and if that didn't work, well, then, the outcome was obvious. "Okay then, here we go." With the wrench still clutched in his hand, Momoshiro walked out into the open to announce himself—eyeing a suspicious stick standing up straight in the sand—and he stared right at Kite.
"So, you decided to show your face," said Momoshiro with a chillingly calm voice. It was then that he finally spotted the weaponry lying down in the sand. Tons of them; that guy was going to a war, and he was heavily prepared. Screw diplomacy—he came here to kill them! Momoshiro clutched the wrench possessively in his hand and snarled at Kite.
Peace and quiet. Just a man, the sea and...the sound of footsteps in the sand. Kite kept his focus upon the waves, however his attention was on the sound. Someone was trying to be quiet. Someone was trying to get behind him. There were probably maybe three people on this island remotely allowed to do that without his noticing. And two of those three were absolutely harmless. Everyone else immediately brought his guard up. Even if at the moment, he didn't look guarded at all. At the moment, Kite was just alone, sitting in the sand, drowning worms and considering how to chum the waters.
He didn't even turn when he heard the owner of the footsteps break whatever cover he had. He didn't make a visible move. However, in front of him, his left hand had dipped just slightly, to rest upon the hilt of his boot knife. Nothing visible to anyone behind him. Then the voice. Kite smirked to himself. He didn't need to find chum to bloody the water; chum had found him.
With utter calmness, as if he wasn't concerned at all at the tone of Momoshiro's voice—which honestly he wasn't, he started to pull in the line. "Loud idiots scare all the fish away you know. No wonder there were none. They heard your stupidity long before I did." Finally with his fishing line reeled in, he stood. It was a motion that was smooth and graceful, the flowing of a man that had no wasted energy or movement. The deadly rise of someone who could kill a man in 78 different ways—with just his bare hands—and innumerable more with something in them. With that same fluid calmness, he dusted off the knees of his military issue pants, looking from the moron to...well, the poor asshole that seemed to have been dragged into this somehow. Smart move for a dumbass. Bringing backup. For only a brief moment did he even glance down to the other's hand. Armed too. "I wonder what brings the dumbass brigade here so early in the morning."
Amused, he straightened up and crossed his arms over his chest, making the ID tags he wore clink just so softly. "And no Echizen in sight. Pity. I'd love to give him my pole."
Momoshiro pointed his wrench at Kite, a glint reflecting off of the metal and shining directly into his own eyes.
"I'm not letting Echizen anywhere near you, perverted bastard. What the hell are you doing here? I told you not to come close to us." It was all a trick; Kite was simply 'pretending' to fish, all the while he was hatching a plan to kill them in their sleep. To pretend to be innocent until he pulled a knife from his military boots and tossed it at their retreating backs. There was no way Momoshiro was going to believe a word he said, not with that smug look on his face, and with all the cruel torture devices at his whim.
Good thing Echizen stayed behind, Kite would have surely gone after him if he was there.
He still didn't move, even when the wrench was pointed at him. Probably because he was so amused by the reaction to what was a not quite innocent remark. The idiot really was far too easy to rile up with the slightest of things. Kite wondered how much more he could push before the other just proved his utter lack of intelligence by attacking. After all, if Momo attacked him, then he wasn't bullying the weak. He wasn't starting the fight. He was ending it.
"And unless you have a different definition of close, it was you that approached me. I would have happily fished and gone back home. But here you are, approaching me. I'd almost think that you want me to come closer. I think...all the way over to..." And then it happened. Kite moved. He was standing there in the sand, away from the duo and the next second, he was right next to them, almost shoulder to shoulder, as if he had teleported there. "Here. Or maybe down that way. Your hut is that way, isn't it? You're not good at hiding your footprints. If I follow them, I'll know just where to go when I want to visit a fluffy kitten."
Momoshiro sprang apart from him and Kaidoh, both from surprise, and from instinct at staying away from him. He glowered at Kite and examined all his closest options right now; hit him while he's still cocky, run away while he still can, or try Echizen's way and talk his way out of it.
But when Kite was suggesting to go find Echizen himself, there was hardly any rational thoughts left in Momoshiro's brain.
"Go into that direction, and I will attack you," said Momoshiro in all seriousness. "So kindly turn your ass around and walk away."
"He'll really do it," Kaidoh growled, voice more exasperated than threatening. His fingers gripped the spear more tightly and he tried to look serious too.
So the other could move. That was obvious. The other wouldn't have been able to place semi-decent tennis if he had been a lazy ass. It also showed Kite that maybe the other's smarts were completely a lost cause. But then he was proven wrong yet again. He was being threatened. And on top of that, being told what to do. "I think not." He muttered, looking from Momo to Kaidoh. Already he was judging the reach of the spear.
"I can go where I want. And I doubt either of you could stop me. So let's cut to the chase. Don't make threats you have no ability to keep. It just shows how weak you are." He then looked to Kaidoh. "And as for you, I'd suggest that you just stay out of this. This isn't your fight and I believe in a lot of collateral damage."
"Kaidoh's here to make sure you don't get anywhere near Echizen," Momoshiro spat out. "I don't care how many threats I need to make, just get your ass away from our side of the beach. Go back to your stupid jungle." He can rot there, for all he cared. "And if you make another stupid comment about Echizen once more, I swear I will lose it and smash your face with this wrench." Momoshiro tightened his grip on the wrench to show he was serious.
So that was how he was going to play it. Kite could only stand there and let himself be threatened so long before he got sick of the stupid. And he was at that point. There was just so much dumb he could take and he'd had his fill for the day. "The beach." He stated, quietly. Coldly. "Belongs to everyone." He raised one hand...and flicked the man in the forehead. "Dumbass."
He lowered his hand and out of trained habit—due to the fact that his friends back on Okinawa were all martial artists, his back foot slid back, bracing for a retaliation.
A flash of disgust was stretched all over Momoshiro's face, and he immediately reacted to the flick to his forehead by swinging his arm, and hoping he could hit Kite with the wrench in his hand.
He was ready for it and honestly, he had been wondering if Momo would even try or if he was just going to keep barking. It seemed that pushing was an effective way to get idiots to do what one wanted. He'd have to let Echizen know this fact. He didn't seem too concerned by the attack though. He continued to smirk even as he moved to the side, the wrench moving past him without hitting anything but air. Once more, his hand went up and one more, he flicked the angry man. "Bravo. You've managed to hit nothing." And though he was focused on the man before him, he kept himself aware of the bandana clad male that could make things a little more challenging.
Like in true Mamushi fashion, Momoshiro hissed through his teeth, already aggravated, and completely provoked by Kite. He was so going down, Momoshiro didn't care how it would happen; someone needed to beat that guy down a notch. Or twenty. Or completely dead—that's what he preferred at least.
Momoshiro took two steps sideways, wrench hanging dangerously from his hand by his waist, and then he gurgled up some spit inside of his mouth, and—one step forwards now—spat it at Kite's face.
"Drop dead."
Wet. Nasty and dripping. He scowled and reached up to silently wipe the spit off his face. Any idea of talking things over had just died. Then again, it had probably died the moment the two men had approached him. Kite wasn't a diplomat, he was a soldier. And even before that, he was a yanki. He didn't take kindly to being spat on, regardless of how many times in his life such a thing had actually happened. And he didn't take too well to being told to die. Even though that happened with disturbing frequency as well.
"Since it's going to be like that...your friend should have brought a shovel. You've just put one foot in your grave. I'll put the rest of you there." And in that calm tone, it was obvious it was not a threat. It was a promise and Kite was going to be more than happy to show this idiot that there were just some people it was better off just running the hell away from as fast as possible. Starting now.
Once more, Kite moved. Once more, he all but teleported that short distance, fist stopping just right before it actually hit the shorter boy's windpipe. A proof of the absolute control over his own skills. "Dead." He wondered how many more times he'd be able to kill Momoshiro before he actually didkill him or his friend tried to step in and stop them.
Kaidoh felt something churn inside of him and he launched himself forward, half expecting someone to be behind him holding him back—most of his fights didn't get this far—but there was no one there. That meant he was going to have to actually do something now, instead of just standing there like Momoshiro's cowardly sidekick and hope the situation sorted itself out. He felt frozen in motion for a moment, because he sure as hell wasn't going to try swinging at that guy. That would be suicide.
His hand didn't seem to be listening to his brain because it flew out and caught on Kite's wrist, as though Kaidoh was going to, what? Somehow hold him there and keep him from ripping Momoshiro's throat out? If Kite possessed that kind of skill, which Kaidoh thought he probably did, he'd just turn and rip Kaidoh's throat out next.
"Momoshiro may be a complete moron..." Kaidoh hissed, voice low and dangerous in a way he hadn't expected it to be. He shot a sidelong glare at Momoshiro, eyes narrowed, because that idiot really was a moron. "...but if he dies, so do you." It sounded a lot cooler in his head, but when he said it out loud, the words came out with a squeak.
Oh crap, Kaidoh thought. Now he was probably going to die too, and he let go of Kite's wrist abruptly. So much for not embarrassing himself. At least the spear in his hand still looked menacing.
While Kite was momentarily distracted—or so Momoshiro thought—by Kaidoh's very inspirational words (he'll have to probably teach him how to fish now), Momoshiro ducked below their intertwined arms, and swung his fist at Kite's ribcage. If any time was a good time to get in a lucky shot, now probably was. The wrench in his other hand was temporarily forgotten.
If he had wanted to rip the other's throat out, he already would have. As it was, he had been letting the other know just how deep he was wading into very very deep shit. And it seemed that his poor loyal toady had just got on his hip waders too. Had he any heart, he might actually have felt sorry for Kaidoh. The problem was that he didn't have a heart. And so he didn't feel a damn thing for the hissing man other than annoyance. Even more annoyed because this novice had actually grabbed him. It didn't matter that he had been let go a moment later. He had still been grabbed. He decided then and there he was going to train himself even harder than before on his situational awareness.
His awareness however did key him in to the fact that there was a fist coming his way. And that Momo was under his arm. However, Momo didn't know one thing. Kite didn't just know Okinawan karate. He had learned a few other arts as well. Muay thai ki boxing was great for close in combat and with his unnatural balance, he could easily shift and perform a knee strike, not to dodge the hit but to injure the arm and make it unable to be used. A knee strike that could go through 15 wooden boards piled against one another. Only he didn't want to break it, so he exhibited more of that control and just deflected it with as much pain as possible.
Rebalancing, he looked to Momo. "Next time, I break it."
A surge of pain shot through his entire arm and Momoshiro winced back on reflex, taking back a few steps and holding his arm possessively to his chest and narrowing his eyes at Kite. So this was it, no more holding back. Kite certainly wasn't—and so Momoshiro wasn't going to either. And if there was one thing Momoshiro was bad at, it was at thinking things through; he had tunnel vision, and was blind to what might happen to him if he would keep this up.
Momoshiro simply did not want to admit to defeat. Never. Not with Echizen on the line. He'll die trying.
With his previous demonstrated lack of skill, Momoshiro simply launched himself at Kite, intending to tackle the man to the ground so then they could beat the crap out of him. Down on the ground is always a good thing.
Actually, the sad fact was that Kite was sort of holding back. Had he not, Momoshiro would have been holding a shattered arm to his chest. But it looked like maybe he would have to put a little more effort into this than before. That was fine with him. He would consider it an early morning workout.
The shorter man came at him and Kite just shook his head. It was reckless to just launch yourself at someone far more trained. Without hesitation, Kite dropped one shoulder just slightly and continued the other's momentum. It was simple. Even with the other's power and his rage fuling his speed, the Okinawan simply took hold and flipped Momoshiro. Sending him from heading at him to being up on the air to being slammed into the sand.
Momoshiro bit back a mouthful of sand, and promptly started gagging on it, spitting it out as fast as he could. The wrench that had been in his hand, was now flung away, lying uselessly ways ahead of him, buried in the rich golden beach sand. He sat up straight with a growl; this was seriously pissing him off. He couldn't land a hit on him, fucking arrogant bastard.
Wiping away some sand from his lips, he looked up at the yakuza. "Hold still already," he bit out. As if this would actually keep the other man still so he could hit him, but hey, he could try. And then, as he tried to get up, Momoshiro kicked out one of his legs, aiming for Kite's shin, and hoping to every god known to man that this would bring him down too.
He raised an eyebrow. Hold still? Every time he thought that the man couldn't get any dumber, he defied all the odds and managed to get one step worse. Honestly, the depths of idiocy was astounding. Very astounding. Because there was no way in hell that Kite was ever going to lose his balance. Instead, he caught the foot as it came at him and twisted it. "Idiots should stay on the ground."
Lost with no sense of direction for a moment, Momoshiro went down face-first into the golden sand. He groaned in pain as his foot got twisted, and then kicked up a sandstorm with his other foot, and in the confusion, jerked it away from Kite's hold. This time he really did pick himself up, in case Kite was going to do something else to him. This was not going well for him, and Momoshiro was starting to get really damn pissed. For crying out loud; he had been in fights before, but never this one-sided. Then again, he'd never tried to land a hit on someone who served in the military. They were definitely something else. He walked in a circle around the arrogant bastard, glaring at him the entire time, and waiting for an opening. But Momoshiro wasn't very good at spotting them (much less create one), so he did what he does best; taunt his opponent while throwing a fist at them.
"Then why don't you stay down!" Momoshiro braced his feet into the sand and then tried to give Kite a mean right-hook with his fist.
At no time did Kite ever allow the circling man to stand behind him. Of course that meant he had to make the sacrifice of letting the other man behind him. He didn't like it, but so far, the other had only made one move. Momo on the other hand seemed unable to stop himself for continuing on this collision course with his inevitable death.
And then Momo threw a punch, Kite did as well, his fist hitting Momo's. But unlike him, he then shifted and his elbow swung to knock him under the chin. "You make no sense. You're the only one who's been on his ass on the ground." He kept moving, flowing around the other as if he was standing still to press a palm hard against his back and push. "And if I pulled my knife, this is the second time you'd be dead." Yes, Kite was going to start keeping count of the number of times he could have easily killed Momo and made the world short one idiot.
Getting more and more agitated by the lack of any result, and being toyed around with as if Momoshiro were nothing but a punching bag, he quickly whirled around on his feet as he got pushed away, ready to counterattack and shove him back. Though this time—through neither one's fault—Momoshiro stood on top of his shoelace, and then as he moved forward, he got pulled back and tripped over his own feet, landing in front of Kite's shiny polished military boots, face down in the sand once more.
Well, at least he's sure he didn't expect that.
Lifting his face up, before he could get his face kicked in with those boots, when he noticed the long handle of a very big military grade knife stuffed in his boot. Well … since he's there already. Momoshiro shot out his hand to reach for the knife, his fingertips grazing the handle only barely.
Kaidoh saw a window of opportunity with Kite's back turned to him and his attention on Momoshiro who'd just fantastically faceplanted in the sand. He decided to seize it, and shot forward as out of a cannon, whipping the spear to the side. As soon as he was within striking distance, he knocked the blunt end hard against Kite's shoulder.
With Kaidoh finally getting some action (if this thing was over, Momoshiro was going to shower him with fish every single day), Momoshiro saw his chance and slipped all his fingers around the long brown metal handle of the knife and pulled it out in one swift moment. He rolled backwards and shot up straight, knife dangerously clutched in his hand—and wow, that thing was huge, what else did he store in that boot of his!? Whatever it was, Momoshiro was going to use this opportunity, it was a fine knife indeed, once which he pointed at Kite.
How could he have made such a green mistake? It was...it was humiliating really. Had this been war, Kite would have been dead because he had forgotten the second rule of combat. Onlookers were just as dangerous as anyone else. Anyone could be the enemy and he had turned his back on Kaidoh. Perhaps the idiocy was spreading. He had to put them both down before there was an epidemic and Momoshiro ushered in the Idiot Apocalypse.
It was hard to hide the fact that the hit had hurt. He was good at hiding pain though. Or forcing himself to enjoy it. He hadn't survived sadistic coach Saotome and been captain of Higa without such an ability. And what was more, Momo had managed to disarm him. Not that he had pulled a weapon yet. He was still unarmed and now the idiot had his best knife. One that Kite was going to get back. But not before he repaid Kaidoh for his cheap hit with a cheap hit of his own. A beautiful roundhouse kick that shattered the spear.
He landed gracefully and eyed his knife and his eyes grew dark with murderous intent. A fool with a wrench was one thing...this was a moron with a knife. A moron that would be giving him back his knife. Without hesitation or doubt or even the slightest bit of fear, Kite set himself. He had learned to unarm people while Momo was still learning how to pee standing up. He was sure that in the mood he was in now, the shorter man would be getting stabbed in the process.
Momoshiro was suddenly a lot more serious with that big knife in his hand. It felt real, somehow. Knives could stab, and stabbing lead to bleeding, and he sure as hell hoped he wasn't on the side with the pointy end. He didn't really want to stab anyone, but Kite's eyes were dangerous, and he wasn't fooling around either. If he had to, he'd stab the hell out of him, but for now, he'd keep the knife safely clutched in his hand.
Except of course, Kite had to go and break the awesome fishing spear he had created for himself, and that really rubbed him the wrong way. So Momoshiro lashed out at Kite, intending to slash his arm or something, or his hands, anything would be good in his book.
The knife came at him in a way that was almost comical. Kite would have laughed had he not been busy showing Momo just why coming at him with a weapon was a big mistake. He was faster than before, showing just how much he had been playing around. His hands hit harder too. A rapid succession as he traveled around the stabbing, slashing motion as if it was in slow motion, freeing the knife by transferring it to his own hand still moving. It all happened so quickly that when he finally stopped, he now had the blade and it was pressed quite firmly against the other's throat. Enough that Momo could feel the razor's edge. His voice was a dirge in the other's ear. "Don't pull a knife unless you really are ready to kill someone." He could already see a small stain of crimson on the very edge.
"Yeah well, why don't you go fuck yourself," choked Momoshiro out.
The cold steel blade of the knife was pressed up against his throat so hard, that he could already feel it pierce his skin. His breath quickened, and his heartbeat was going fast as well, but strangely enough, it wasn't his own life that he was fearing. It was actually Echizen's and Kaidoh's at the moment.
Speaking of Echizen... A rock suddenly came flying through the air, towards the knuckles of the hand holding the knife.
The moment it hit Kite's hand, Momoshiro sprung free from the momentary confusion, and he looked at the direction the rock came from. Kaidoh was standing off near the side, looking useless and completely scared that Momoshiro had just gotten a knife to his throat, so it couldn't be him. His eyes widened when he realized who it was.
Momoshiro didn't know what to do anymore. He told him to stay put, told him to stay behind so that he couldn't get hurt himself. But now that he was actually here, Momoshiro didn't know whether to tell him to go back, or pretend it was a magical flying rock so that Kite didn't know Echizen was out there hiding. Well fuck.
The rock hit with pinpoint accuracy. There was no question where to came from. Or who it came from. Very few had that sort of skill with small ball shaped objects. He didn't drop his blade though, even though he did allow for Momo to get away. His mark had been made. There might even be a small scar across the man's throat as a reminder of this day if it wasn't taken care of properly. Perhaps it would make him think a little before doing anything.
Without hesitation and without removing his gaze from Momo, he spoke. "And there's the last player. I was wondering when you'd show up. You know none of this would have gotten this far if you were just honest with yourself and this dumbass." He wiped his knife and tucked it back into his boot. "So, get out here and tell him that next time he pulls a knife of me, he'll be breathing out a different hole."
Momoshiro furiously whirled around. "Shut the hell up! Don't talk to him." He turned back to Echizen, and now fear was displayed all over his face. "Why did you come!?" Now he could actually hurt him!
"You can't pin it on me if the two of you act like morons," Ryoma muttered, stepping out from the shadows. "And for fuck's sake, the hell do you pull a knife on someone like that? If you want this island to turn into the next Lord of the Flies, you're doing a damn good job." He ignored Momoshiro for now, glaring at Kite.
Torn between wanting to run over to Echizen, and keeping Kite in check, Momoshiro simply stood in between them, glancing worriedly at Echizen. "Go back home!" he yelled. "This guy's nuts!"
It wasn't him who had pulled the knife, but he wasn't so childish as to point that out. He had other things to point out instead. He didn't like turning his attention away from Momo, but he wanted to say one thing to Ryoma. Just one. "I'd stop looking at me like that if I were you. You're the one that asked for this. If you'd be more honest with yourself and this dumbass here, none of this would have needed to happen." He slipped the knife back into the sheath as he spoke.
"Well, screw you," Ryoma muttered, his cheeks a deep red. "Momo, Kaidoh, let's just go back, okay? Stop bothering Kite." Everything was just so stupid. And Momo bled from his throat. Ryoma tried not to stare, but his eyes kept coming back to the wound, his mouth dry.
"No!" Momoshiro yelled back. "This guy has to leave. Not us. This is our side of the beach. He can go rot in the jungle in his stupid treehouse for all I care. Right Kaidoh?"
"Right…" Kaidoh said, but the truth was Kite was making him nervous and he just wanted the whole thing to be over with. He looked at the slivers of the fishing spear scattered on the ground and imagined that could easily be one of them just as smashed up. But they had strength in numbers now at least. Or something. "We're not leaving until he does," he finished, and balled his hands into fists.
"There's your answer, Ryoma, now please go back. I don't want him anywhere near you." Momoshiro turned to Kite and glared at him. "Don't know what the fucker will do." He wiped away the trail of blood on his neck with this thumb, his eyes still glued to Kite.
"But... But..." Ryoma threw his arms up in exasperation. "Listen... Kite-san. This is getting out of hand, yeah? Please..."
It was getting out of hand. It had when his happy little fishing trip had been interrupted. And it was going to get even worse very quickly, not that it hadn't already gone there and well beyond. But Kite wasn't going to stand there are play gradeschool games of "my side, your side". Because he didn't like being told where he could and couldn't go. He'd had enough of that in bootcamp.
He glanced from Momo to Kaidoh and then to Echizen, gaging the distance. He knew they had all seen him move before. He knew they all knew he could move from where he was to where ever he wanted, in any direction like he was teleporting. He was going to show them the true horror of that ability now and closed the distance between himself and Echizen. Standing, looming over him, looking like he would be living up to his old tennis nickname of "hitman".
"Wrong answer, Echizen." He reached out and placed a hand on the other's shoulder. "Try again. Or do you need a push as well, to get over that cute little Tsundere streak of yours."
One moment, Kite was behind Momoshiro, the next he was in front of Echizen. And then he placed a hand on Echizen's shoulder. What little rationale Momoshiro had inside of him was shoved to the depths of hell as he saw nothing but deep red.
Everything seemed to slow down for Momoshiro, everyone's movements were like slowmotion for him. The surprised look of horror on Echizen's face, Kaidoh who whipped his head around to look at them—and then there was Momoshiro, who took each long step in tune with his heartbeat thumping loudly in his throat.
One, two, three; Momoshiro was right behind Kite's back. The silence was ringing through his ears as he tuned everything out. Another loud thump went down his throat. He bent through his knees, before springing up his left leg high in the air, and he gave a well aimed roundhouse kick to the side of Kite's face. It made contact, and the older man had been seemingly caught off guard, because he went down to the ground from the hit.
Momoshiro's eyes watched as he fell, and without even looking at Echizen, he jumped on top of the man, his knees on both sides of his waist, and his hands holding his black tank top in a knot. He yanked Kite closer to him and raised a fist at him so that he could pummel the man's face in with his rage. But before he swung at him when he still had the chance, his worry took over his anger, and Momoshiro glanced back at Echizen standing behind him. To see if he was okay, to see if he wasn't hurt—and that was probably Momoshiro's most fatal mistake. In the split second he could half-way turn his face back around, he knew he had lost.
It wasn't quite his most fatal mistake. He had made that when he had picked a fight with Kite Eishirou. He had driven the nail deep into his coffin when he had done something very very few had done. He'd managed to upset the one man that could not fall down. He'd managed to get Kite onto the ground. And what was more, he had managed a hit that did make Kite's ears ring. It was a small victory but one Kite was not going to let his savor for very long.
Though he was on the ground with Momo above him, he had learned how to get out of such things. It was a simple procedure of grabbing the other by the shoulders and headbutting him. Usually the shock was enough to get let go. But that wouldn't be the end to it. He'd learned one more thing, though it was something he was still trying to integrate into his already bastardized Okinawan martial arts. A strange twist of the hips and his legs were out. One foot already connecting to the temple, right at the spot he had just headbutted. Then as he spun back to his feet, the other foot connected. He wasn't done yet. The last boot to the head was a skull crushing heel drop. Confident that Momoshiro wasn't going to be moving anytime soon, he looked back to the others gathered. His voice was a freezing wave of promised death. "Pick up your idiot and leave before I break his neck."
Momoshiro lay face down in the sand, a thick stream of blood going down from his temple, and rolled over his cheek, pooling up below his face. He wasn't moving.
Kaidoh didn't need to be told twice. He glared daggers at Kite and immediately rushed over to Momoshiro's side, pulling him up and draping him over his shoulder. As he rose to his feet, he could feel blood hot on his back.
"You fucking moron," he muttered to the unconscious idiot, his voice thick with worry. "Echizen, let's go."
It had happened so fast. Too fast. In a second, Kite was there, in front of him, and he felt his heart stop for a minute. That way Kite looked at him reminded him too much of his ex-boyfriend, and it froze him completely. His mind blank, he couldn't come up with a single word to say to his defense... And in the end, that didn't even matter, because just as suddenly, Kite wasn't there anymore. All he saw was Momoshiro's back, and the sounds of flesh hitting flesh rang through his ears. He swallowed. Took a step forward. Or rather, he tried. He couldn't move. Couldn't move when Kite turned the tables on Momoshiro, landing one, two, more, far too many hits to his head.
Ryoma vaguely registered how odd it was that Momoshiro went down without a sound. Shouldn't there have been sounds? Screams? Something? He couldn't hear a thing. Kite stepped back, looked at him, at them—Momoshiro didn't move and there was blood—and said something—blood—but he couldn't hear it. Kaidoh moved Momoshiro—blood, so still, his fault—and said something as well, lips were moving again. He could see it—could see the unmoving body blood and could see Kite and—but he couldn't hear. Numb. He felt—blood, Momoshiro's blood—completely numb.
No, not completely. He felt something. Something. He felt sick. Far, far too sick. He stumbled over to some vegetation and threw up. Again and again. Didn't know how long. How—too much blood, Momoshiro's, his fault—much. But once he had finally finished up, he stumbled over to Kaidoh. Yes, they had to get him back. He'd help.
He didn't say a single word.
The blood seemed to stain the sand where it dropped, but Kaidoh could feel Momoshiro's pulse and it made him feel a tiny sliver of relief. At least the idiot wasn't dead, he thought. He looked at Echizen, who appeared completely stunned and a bit sick. Kaidoh understood the feeling... This whole thing was hard to process, and he felt a bit like he was on auto-pilot. All he could think was that they had to get Momoshiro somewhere safe and away from here and then take the next step as it came.
Kaidoh threw a final, dangerous glare at Kite, as if to say, Try this again and it will be your blood in the sand, before turning and carrying Momoshiro's slumping body away from the beach and back to the shack.