Wanderer

Arata listened in rapt attention as the man continued, hanging on to the stranger's every word. Tea Country, that's where the sea was. He had to somehow find his way to Tea Country and then suddenly everything would fall into place, or so the child believed. But before he could pelt Tatsumura with questions about how to get to this place, the man extracted what looked like documents.

Arata's dark eyes shone a the offering, even though he wasn't sure what it was. Already going out into the world was looking like the best decision he'd ever made. Even a stranger was willing to help him whereas at home, where he'd been a so called "prince" he'd only been trapped and weakened in a golden cage.

"I don't have any money," the boy admitted grudgingly, not happy to reveal that weakness but realizing it was hard to lie to this man who seemed to know a lot more about everything in the world. "But I can change my looks," he added. Reaching for his backpack, the boy slid out a kunai. Another cautious look around to ensure no one was watching closely enough and the blade moved through his thick raven locks.

It took perhaps five minutes if his companion wouldn't interrupt but one by one and in haphazard angles, the raven locks fell from his head, leaving Arata not quite bold as the kunai couldn't give a close enough shave for that but looking more like a plucked chicken nonetheless. Finally, as a gesture of his authenticity, the boy dragged the kunai across the left side of his face, carving a full swirl on his cheekbone and letting the blood fall into his cape.

Having a mother who was a semi accomplished medical ninja made it so the boy knew a few things, one being that facial wounds bled a lot more and were far more superficial, he also knew that the resulting scar would go a long way towards hiding his identity. From that moment on, he will only be known as the boy with the scar.

If the boy was not interrupted, he would raise his hand and order some ice, the lady who came this time gave a small scream but was silenced almost immediately and scuttled away. No one would disrespect him now, Arata concluded, placing the kunai back into his bag. He'd clean it later. Once the ice pack arrived, the boy would press it to his face.

"My name's Koi," he finally spoke, gesturing to the document that would now be his identity. "Koi Feesch." The sea would be his home soon so he might as well get a head start.

xuba silently watched the boy work and continued to eat as the boy worked. his work was admirable. amazing how the person can physically change with a single kunai and a simple fresh wound across the face. it was going to be an interesting case.  The child was truly going through with this and xuba watched him. Although young the transformation dawned upon him was a subtle yet powerful effect on the child. He was ready to go by the looks of it.... well almost.

"hm? very good. you took the name and change, but you must take the heart. repeat after me koi.  who am I? I am koi. koi the boy who grew up in a small village by the sea. My father was a carpenter. He made boats and blanks. My hands are steady and strong. I will work from dusk to dawn. I learned little from my  father, but I am ready and willing to work. Please offer me work."

xuba paused as he waited for the boy to repeat his identity  three times. before continuing and speaking up. making sure the boy knew not to repeat his the following words, but remember the words.

"that is who you are. every three hours you repeat that. you embody your identity. you take your heart and understand that your identity is your life. you know that to break your identity means you are in danger. you will grow koi. into a fine strong man, but if you do not embody your identity you will lose your purpose. am i understood? forget your old life, and live as koi."

xuba would say as he continued to eat.

"what does koi like to do? what time does koi go to sleep?"

Still holding the ice pack to his face, the boy did as ordered, repeating the words of Tatsumura carefully. "I am Koi," he began, softly at first but his voice and the lie within it strengthening with repetition. "Koi the boy who grew up in a small village by the sea." With each sentence repeated over and over, the story started to become real. He was no longer Arata, he was Koi. " My father was a carpenter. He made boats and planks." The workshop appeared behind his closed eyes as the pain on his cheek began to dull with the ice. That's how he'd gotten this scar, a nasty end of a fish hook by an unsatisfied customer his father had overcharged and under delivered to.

"My hands are steady and strong. I will work from dusk to dawn." The words echoed all around him as he spoke and for a moment, he was the only one in the world. There was no eatery, no people going about their business, no Tatsumura eating his fish. There was no Arata either. There was just Koi and his words. "I learned little from my father, but I am ready and willing to work. Please offer me work."

By the end, Arata was truly lost and in his place sat Koi, a boat maker's boy who had never shown an aptitude for carpentry and had been used as an errand runner by his father. Koi took orders, delivered things, pretended his father wasn't in when someone came in to complain about a shoddy patch job. Koi was a nobody, and Koi would continue to be a nobody until the time was right.

"I like to work on deck," Koi replied, confident now in his identity. "My father didn't let me work on boats but he was wrong. I have sturdy sea legs." To the other question the boy replied. "I don't sleep until the work is done sir. Sleep is for the weak. I am not weak."

He wasn't, he was Koi. That was it.

xuba listened carefully. listening to the boy and his work. the dedication of his change was smart. but xubas blow was decisive. a terrifying blow which was for years would leave a boy lost. still the blurring of truths was a simple technique used by the wise. 

tell a child to repeat a lie. they will turn the lie into fiction and soon live a long life of a lie. im sorry mother but i will do as i desired


xuba thought as he thought back.Still his mind was made up was made up. whomever the boy was before was long gone. and koi was going to remind himself of whom he was for years upon years. until even the real identity became a lie. a cruel method of self assurance and personal hypnosis. the harshest lie always came from within. but xuba knew he could come back from it. the boy however, he was simple to manipulate.

"discard your items of the stranger that you wear. because koi. it is time to go home. all that you bare resemblance to shall be vanquished and hence discarded. koi your journey shall be swift and safe. because you have work to do koi. your hands will grow strong, and you shall make your father proud. do not forget whom you are koi. now hand over the valuables that tied the stranger to you. for you are an honest boy whom does not steal nor harm."

xuba tapped the side of plate softly including the kunai and any weapons and heirlooms of any sort that tied the boy to his past barrings.

The carpenter's boy nodded, his uneven short hair bobbing up and down to reveal the bold patches where his father have given him a particularly drunken haircut. Releasing his bag pack, he pushed it towards the stranger. It would contain a few extra kunai and shuriken, nothing more. Unclasping his cloak from around him, Koi wiggled out of the garment as well. Such finely threaded clothes didn't belong to him, neither did the sturdy, high quality boots which Koi shook off, leaving him with nothing but bare feet and simple trousers and west.

With nothing save the clothes on his back and the tantalizing bit of paper head of him promising a new life, Koi waited. He was ready to take on work, to go to the sea, to do whatever it took to gain the strength he needed, even if it was to learn to be weak first. the promise was enough for him, the promise of an open world full of opportunity.

"I just want work aboard a ship," the spoke, looking up at Tatsumura earnestly, big dark eyes pleading innocently. "I heard there are vessels in Tea Country. if I got there somehow, I'll find work. I'll make my father proud."

xuba noted the fabrics and the kunai with a sharp eye and agreed with the boy. 

"the shipyards will be proud of you koi. it is the perfect place for you. remember tatsumura taki sent you to the shipyards after getting lost. it will be fine mi boy. be safe and may the waves serve you well. ill be back home after i catch my mother's killer."

xuba said with honesty. his sinister plan in the works as the clock finally began to tick. this boy was of importance at one point and he had known the boy. there could be a reward for such a report. however xuba was a crafty guy. arts of espionage and slander on the disappearance of a child. it was all too easy to make the workers of the land of haven go into a frenzy and cause inter turmoil. 

slow and easy xuba. scatter the clues and rub dirt on the lands.


xuba thought as he smiled at koi. waving him a goodbye as he finished his meal.

Ship yards, Tea Country, father, all these words were cemented in the child's mind as he rose to his feet once again, his own food forgotten and now even the ice pack unnecessary as the bleeding had stopped and the wound began to scab over. The scab would hold for now.

"Thank you Mr. Tatsumura," Koi managed, bowing his head in respect at the stranger. This man had gotten him a job, gotten him a new shot at life. Koi was alive thank to him. Reaching out to take the false papers now inscribed with his only identity, Koi waved goodbye.

"I hope to see you soon, sir. Please come visit me on a ship. You can meet my father." With that last word, Koi walked out of the eatery, his new life safe in his pocket - along with the only thing Koi hadn't parted with. The key chain of a small wolf cub. As for teh bill, well perhaps the kind stranger would be just a bit more generous.

Even Koi was allowed to have dreams.

(Exit Arata/Koi)

xuba enabled the boy to leave with a small nodd and smile. the scent of the boy's blood fresh on his once cape. it was all that xuba needed as his plan was seemingly flawless. xuba's shadow came over the baggage of clothing as he nodded quietly. scooping up the remains of his dinner. perhaps the boy would die mid a sea exploration. 

that was beyond xuba right now as he managed to in case the boy would in fact run home one day kept his tracks safe by using a falsified name. easy enough to hide with his identity swapping tags.  taking the kunai and the boy's bag xuba tipped the waiter leaving tatsuma on the tip. and hence headed out the door towards the glorious bird keep. easily accessible for such occasions. as he waved the boy off. it was time to get to work.

(exit)

Exit approved for both