Gemotions

He’d expected a fight, a final sparring session, at least a handshake. Instead, the dojo felt empty, sterile, the air thick with unspoken words. Kai stared at the notice posted on the wooden door, the words “Sensei Tanaka – Retired” hitting him like a punch to the gut. His stomach clenched.

He kicked a pebble across the polished floor, the sound echoing unnaturally. Every muscle in his body felt taut, wound up. He went through the motions of his kata, movements stiff and uncoordinated. His strikes lacked the focused power Sensei Tanaka had instilled in him.

Later that evening, he sat on his futon, unable to eat, staring at the worn gi his mentor had given him. He felt… adrift. He wanted to scream. He wanted to train. He wanted, more than anything, to ask one more question.