Rectitude.
We’ve all seen the movies of where a warrior trains in a Lotus garden or under a waterfall or some shit like that. And it was always under the watchful gaze of a grey whiskered master with infinite knowledge of the human soul and the universe. Just so that the warrior could gain spiritual enlightenment and become a better version of himself. The warrior would always be this muscle bound ape with more abs than sense and perfect hair to match. But this ain’t the movies; it’s the dirty, hard reality of my life on the streets of Tokyo. It wasn’t the place they showed in the glossy brochures to the tourists or where the fat masses would camp out with their tacky flower shirts and expensive cameras. No, it was the blood soaked, razor blades lying in the dark gutters of our minds side of town. You had to scrap for every damn inch here or the place would eat you alive in a heartbeat. We stood looking over the city, night having already fallen and the creatures of the night lurking in the stygian shadows, looking over their shoulders at the demons chasing them. I felt the rough concrete of the apartment roof under my fingers and smelt the ammoniac reeking from the laundry hanging between the windows. Somewhere in the dark, the whining sounds of a broken air conditioner sounded out as an alley cat nimbly hopped between the creaky bars of a fire escape, flecks of rust clinging to his paws.
“This is the first principal of Bushido. Rectitude states that the warrior must know when to strike and that he or she must understand the consequences and be willing to live with them. There cannot be a hesitation or fear, not even for a split second. Total conviction or total destruction of who you are. This is the fine counter point on which Rectitude is balanced. Do you understand Helena?” Momo asked, slurping some noodles from a cheap take away carton.
“I do.” I replied, taking in the teachings of the Sumo standing beside me.
“Do you really? We shall see.” He pointed with a chopstick down to the streets below. A rat like man scurried along, knocking over trash cans and swearing to himself as he hurled an empty bottle of cheap whiskey down the street, laughing stupidly to himself as the glass smashed to pieces. “That’s one of Madam Rhi’s little helpers; the piece of shit has been pushing Ecstasy and Heroin down at the local club and now he’s heading home to sleep off the booze. This vermin has been a cancerous sore on this part of town for years but the police refuse to do anything. No, Madam Rhi has her claws too deep in the police command and judges for them to do anything.”
“Then why not go after her directly? Why are we wasting our time on this lowlife nobody?” I asked, unsure of Momo’s intentions.
“Because at this moment, that bitch will kick your ass and secondly…well look.” He motioned downwards as we watched the pathetic sight of the gangster fumbling with his keys, falling down and crawling into the refuse bag filled flat. With cold eyes, I saw him stumble into his apartment and slither leech like on top of a young girl. Even through the broken and dirt stained windows, I could see the horror on her face as he slipped his hands under her nightgown, grunting as his fingers dug into her flesh.
“His daughter. I’ve heard rumors for years that the fucker had been raping her but this is the first time I’ve seen it.” I charged forward but Momo calmly held out a hand, stopping me in my tracks. “Now comes the consequences part. Kill him and you will take a father away from his daughter. Let him live and he will destroy her eventually. You cannot hesitate in your actions and you must be able to live with the repercussions. Can you do that Helena?” He pulled a short and razor sharp Tanto from his long leather jacket and held it out to me. I knew it was a cross roads in my life, a point of decision that would pave the rest of my journey. Take a step back and live out the rest of our life in quiet but tortured circumstances or embrace the weapon and accept the impossibly difficult path of the warrior. My hand grasped the hilt of the short sword as I nodded at Momo and headed down the fire escape.
