"Himura!"
The boy was fast asleep, hunched over his small wooden desk, his short violet hair covering up his right eye.
"Himura! Wake up!" His teacher shouted from his desk.
But his unconscious state could not be stirred so easily, nightmares such as this would keep anyone awake but Kenzo Himura was not anyone; he was the quiet the one with a lot to say.
Blood. The blood which had stained his hands was not his own. This blood had not only stained his hands but his soul. It was a permanent stain, one which could not be cleaned so easily.
"That's it Himura, if you don't wake up, I'll give you detention for the next three weeks!"
Finally, his hazy dream was pierced by the loud threats of a mere science teacher. He silently rose from his desk, picking up his backpack from besides the desk. His sharp yellow eyes met the dull eyes of his teachers.
He walked up to desk before bowing his head as a sign of respect.
"You better not sleep in my class again or else."
He walked down the hallways of the school which were empty as every single after school club was busy doing their own things in their own rooms. Which left him with the whole hallways to himself.
Even with the thought of a homecooked meal when he got home, he decided to hang out and explore the school.
"I've never been in the teacher's lounge." He whispered to himself.
He walked to the end of the hall, turned the corner and walked up a set of stairs. he then reached top and saw a wooden door which had the kanji for "TEACHERS ONLY, NO STUDENTS ALLOWED."
Unfazed, he entered the teacher's lounge which seemed to be completely empty except for a single person. He seemed to be in forties, with long blond hair and black eyes.
This was a teacher that Kenzo didn't recognize but yet, he felt as if he had seen him before. The man was playing an unfamiliar game one with wooden blocks like shogi but bigger and wider.
The man was inspecting each piece thoroughly as if his life depended on it. His focus seemed to be unbreakable.
"..."
Kenzo took a single breath which was louder than he how he breathed before and yet, this single break in his pattern in breathing managed to kill the man's concentration.
"Who's there?"
The man looked up and his gaze met Kenzo's as time suddenly froze.
Kenzo's heart began to pound as his mind raced, he didn't want to get caught and then get in trouble.
But he couldn't help but focus on the wooden board the man was playing the mysterious game on.
"Hey! What are you doing in here? You know the teacher's lounge is exclusively for teachers." The man said in an authoritative tone.
"Hey, are you listening to me!?"
All of Kenzo's senses were blocked out because for some strange reason, he was completely enamored with the board.
"Ah."
The man noticed that he was completely focused on the board and simply smiled as he had never seen someone with so much interest in this game before in his whole life.
"Do you...want to know how to play?" The man asked curiously.
Kenzo shook his head eagerly all the while still focusing intently on the board.
"Well then, pull up a seat."
"Right." Kenzo muttered.
He walked over and took a seat at the table, his hands shaking apprehensively.
"Well, I've seen you around kid. What's your name?"
"Kenzo Himura. My friends just call me Kenny."
"Well, you seem rather quiet Kenny. My name's Ren Akibara and I'm one of the janitors."
"Nice to meet you sir."
"You can drop the sir, just call me Ren."
"But wouldn't we have to be friends first to call each other by our first name's? And especially with no honorific?"
"Eh, don't worry about it. Today's Japan can be a lot more relaxed when it comes to honorifics so I wouldn't care. And besides we exchanged names so, in my mind, we're already friends." Ren said with a warm smile.
Ren's eyes suddenly narrowed sharply.
"Tell me, have you ever heard of a game called Yoso Moji?"
He asked as if it was a well-kept secret which only created confusion within Kenzo's mind.
Kenzo shook his head.
"Well then, basically it utilizes bigger and wider shogi pieces, and each block has an element on it. It's said that there are an infinite number of elements and at least a hundred new blocks are created each day. And to boggle it down even more, Yose Moji is a battle of elements and you and your opponent are only allowed to use three tiles each turn. And your also allowed to combine elements to make a stronger element that can defeat one of your opponent's elements. In order to win the match, you destroy and takeover all of your opponent's tiles. Each player is allowed twelve tiles, twenty-four in total. A player is allowed to regain tiles they lost by finding a stronger element which can defeat the element on that specific tile. Understand the basics?"
He furiously nodded his headed as he had followed every single word that fell from his mouth.
"So, you want to play against an old geezer like me kid?"
"Yeah."
Ren saw the potential in Kenzo's eyes which he had never seen before.
I've never saw such raw determination in a kid before! He thought.
"So why'd you accept my offer?"
"Well..."
Kenzo paused.
"I guess I agreed because I'm bored."
"So, you have no interest in this game whatsoever?"
"Nope. It sounds like the most boring and generic game ever created. Not to mention a waste of time"
Ren's eyes widen in surprised as he remembered something from long ago in his past.
--Ah. He's just like the one of the two fated players my father described to me long ago, he could be the hand of luck. A player with no interest in the game whatsoever. The player who only plays when he's bored and has nothing else to do. To him the game is a total inconvenience. if he is the hand of luck then, I gotta teach this kid everything I know. Tell me, who are you Himura Kenzo?