Standing up to injustice

During lunch break, Kiyoshi sat on the steps by the playground, finished his lunch, closed his lunchbox, and set it beside him.

The sun wasn't too strong, and there were quite a few clouds. The breeze carried the scent of grass. He sat without moving, watching a few people run around the playground. They weren't running very fast, as if they were just working off lunch.

Then he spotted Naruto.

Naruto came over from the school building with a bread roll in his hand, eating as he walked. He moved slowly, his head down, as if he were thinking about something.

Kiyoshi glanced at him but didn't move.

Naruto stopped in the middle of the playground, took a bite of his bread, chewed, then looked up at the sky.

Then a few kids surrounded him.

Sitting on the steps, Kiyoshi watched them run over from the other side of the playground. It looked planned; they surrounded Naruto as soon as they reached him. There were three or four of them, a little older than him, or perhaps in the same year. It was hard to tell.

Naruto held his bread and didn't move.

The kids were talking, but they were too far away for Kiyoshi to hear what they said. Judging by their expressions and gestures, it wasn't anything nice. One of them shoved Naruto. He took a step back without dropping his bread, though a few crumbs fell to the ground.

Kiyoshi sat on the steps and watched for a while.

Oh, fine.

I'd finished eating anyway.

He stood, brushed the dust off his pants, and walked over.

He didn't walk particularly fast, but he didn't take a detour either, heading straight toward them. Some people on the playground were watching him. He ignored them.

He stopped behind the kids.

They were still talking and hadn't noticed him.

"Stay away from us, demon fox brat."

"Yeah, who'd want to play with you?"

"Even your mom and dad didn't want you, and you're still here being an eyesore."

Naruto held his bread, his head lowered, and said nothing.

Standing behind them, Kiyoshi spoke. "Move aside."

The kids turned, saw him, and froze for a moment.

"Who are you?"

Kiyoshi ignored him and looked at Naruto. He paused.

"You haven't finished lunch?"

Naruto raised his head and saw him. His mouth fell open and stayed that way.

"Bro Hao, you... what are you doing here?"

Kiyoshi paused.

"Passing by."

"Oh."

The kids exchanged glances. Then one stepped forward. He was half a head taller than Kiyoshi, and his voice was a little louder too. "Are you his friend?"

Kiyoshi turned toward him, his face expressionless. "Yeah."

"What do you mean, yeah?"

"Yeah means he's my friend."

The kid froze, apparently not expecting such a direct answer. The others behind him froze too, saying nothing.

My face value should've gone up, right? Can't see it. Whatever.

That wasn't a Jiahao move, just standard procedure. Next time, though, I could turn around after saying "yeah" and let the hem of my shirt flutter. That should add a little more atmosphere.

Kiyoshi watched them, his face blank, without moving. His hands hung at his sides, neither clenched into fists nor tucked into his pockets. They just rested there.

Another gust swept across the playground, stirring up dust. Kiyoshi narrowed his eyes, but his face remained expressionless.

The kid struggled for a moment, his face reddening. "You... you're friends with him? Don't you know who he is?"

"I do."

"And you're still friends with him?"

"Yeah."

"Are you... are you sick in the head?"

Kiyoshi remained expressionless. "No."

The kid had no reply. Neither did the others behind him. They looked at one another, unsure what to say.

Kiyoshi stood there watching them, his face blank, and added, "Did you need anything else?"

The kid opened his mouth, then closed it. He glanced at Kiyoshi, then at Naruto, snorted, and turned to leave.

The others followed, looking back as they went, but none dared say anything else.

Kiyoshi stayed where he was and watched them walk away.

Naruto stood there holding his bread, without moving.

Kiyoshi turned to him. "Finished?"

Naruto looked down at the bread in his hand. "...Not yet."

"Then keep eating."

"Oh."

Naruto took a bite, chewed, swallowed, and forced a smile. "Bro Hao, thanks. I'll treat you to Ichiraku Ramen next time."

Kiyoshi paused.

"Sure."

Naruto said nothing, looking down at the bread in his hand. It was a little misshapen. He had gripped it tightly while the kids surrounded him and hadn't let go.

He bit his lip, his smile fading. "Why... why did you help me?"

Kiyoshi thought about it. A moment passed.

"Because you're here, and so am I."

Naruto stared, not understanding.

Kiyoshi didn't explain. He turned back toward the wall across the playground. The graffiti on it had been painted over in white, but its outline remained, with a faint spiral still visible.

What the hell did I just say? Whatever. Better if he doesn't understand.

"Because you're here, and so am I" sounds like a line from some terrible movie. I'll phrase it differently next time.

He said, "Come eat here tomorrow at lunch too."

"Come... here?"

"Yeah. The sun isn't too strong here, and the breeze feels nice."

Naruto fell silent for a moment. "...Okay."

Kiyoshi said nothing more. He stood, brushed off his pants, and headed toward the steps. After a few paces, he glanced down at the crumbs on the ground, bent to pick them up, and dropped them in the nearby trash can.

Then he returned to the steps, sat down, picked up his lunchbox, opened it for a look, and closed it again.

Empty.

He had finished eating ages ago.

He sat watching the playground. The breeze stirred his hair. He didn't smooth it down, just stayed where he was.

After a while, Naruto came over and sat beside him, leaving enough room for one person between them.

Naruto held his bread, took a bite, and chewed.

Kiyoshi sat without moving.

After a while, Naruto spoke, a little louder than before. "Tomorrow... will you eat here tomorrow at lunch too?"

"Yeah."

"Then I'll eat with you."

"Yeah."

Naruto took a bite of bread, chewed, and swallowed. The corners of his mouth lifted. He tried to push them back down, failed, and they rose again.

Kiyoshi didn't look at him, but he knew Naruto was smiling.

He watched the playground with an expressionless face and said nothing.

Someone walked past them at an even pace.

Sasuke. With a lunchbox in his hand, he glanced at the two sitting side by side, his gaze shifting between them, his expression unchanged.

"You sure have plenty of free time."

Kiyoshi remained expressionless. "It's lunch break. It'd be weird if I didn't."

Sasuke said nothing more and walked away.

Naruto whispered, "Sasuke doesn't seem very happy?"

Kiyoshi said, "He's always like that."

Naruto said, "Oh..."

A little later, the bell rang.

Kiyoshi stood and headed for the school building. Naruto stood too and followed him.

They walked the whole way without speaking.

At the entrance to the building, Kiyoshi went left and Naruto went right.

Naruto took two steps, then turned back. "This afternoon... are you going to the playground after school?"

Kiyoshi didn't turn around. "Yeah."

"Then I'll go too."

"Okay."

He kept walking without looking back.

Naruto stayed where he was, watching Kiyoshi's back disappear at the end of the hallway. Then he turned and headed toward his own classroom.

After a few steps, he looked down at the squashed bread in his hand, then stuffed the last bite into his mouth, chewed, and swallowed.

The bread had gotten a little dry, but it still tasted all right.

The corners of his mouth lifted again, and he couldn't hold them down.

He didn't intend to, either.