Natural Enemy 2-3

It took almost a half day at that speed to get to the next major island.

Well, "major" was doing a lot of heavy lifting.

Port Town.

That was the name on the map. Creative. 

Kai slowed the Naruto down as the harbor came into view, the jet stream from the skiff’s stern ports dying down to a gentle gurgle as he stopped pushing. As the bubbles popped harmlessly at the surface, he switched to the pedals. 

His legs worked in a slow, rhythmic circle—left, right, left, right—gliding the heavy wooden skiff into a vacant slip with barely a sound.

By the time he got near the docks properly, Kai only had one word to describe the whole of Port Town. Meh.

That was the first word that popped into his head. 

For one thing, the whole place looked almost as grimy as the guys he was here looking for. Really, it was almost like someone had taken a handful of dust straight from a vacuum cleaner bag and just blown it over everything. Water is right there, why’s the place so… The buildings were wood and stone, bleached by the sun until they were all the same depressing shade of beige. …shitty?  The docks were rickety, the wood gray and splintering underfoot asl the people at port walked around; each one of them almost slumped over and tired-looking.

Yeah, definitely a hive of scum and villainy type of town. If it wasn’t, then it had no reason to be this messed-up.

Kai tied off the Naruto with a knot he’d learned from months helping Uncle Haku with his fishing hauls, the loop-twist-pull as solid and tight as he could make it with the rope. With that done, he stood up to stretch his legs and the rest of him after about five hours at sea.

Oh… A satisfyingly loud pop sounded off as he pulled at his lower back, Kai waving his arms all around as he straightened up. That was good. Now… 

He clicked his tongue, the eyes of the people all around obvious to him the moment he pulled into the dock. It wasn’t anything he didn’t expect. Yeah, I’m new in town. What about it? On top of that, he looked really out of place.

He knew that much.

A chubby kid in a black bucket hat, a matching leather jacket (in this heat?), and ripped jean shorts, standing up against a weird, polished surfboard-boat that looked like a toy.

...I look like a tourist, don't I? Probably more like an easy mark, if he was being honest with himself. But both definitely hurt more than one. As far as he knew, tourists usually just got overcharged.

Marks?

Well, they got mugged.

Kai stepped out onto the dock, the wood of it creaking under his weight with a dry groan had Kai wince just a little bit. Yeah, even more attention. That’s great.

He adjusted his hat, pulling the brim lower as he patted his pocket to make sure the shell Lani gave him was there. He checked his other pocket for the folded-up bounty poster that brought him over here in the first place. Patch and Stench, right?

Terrible names, yeah, but when you were called the Grime Brothers, it was pretty much expected. Wonder if Grime is their real last name. Kai mulled that over as he started walking through the old Port Town, legs carrying him through the town until he found the bar where the bounty poster said they were last seen. 

It wasn't hard considering it was the only building on the waterfront that looked like it had been cleaned anywhere near recently, probably because they threw people through the windows often enough to let fresh air in.

Kai walked in, nose immediately wrinkling as he was slapped with the strong scent of stale beer, sawdust and a little bit of old throw-up. Yeah, makes sense. The place was dark too, the only light coming from dirty windows that filtered the sun into a sickly yellow haze and a few lanterns sputtering on the walls.

He walked up to the bar, shoulders loose and walking slow as several more eyes lingered his way in the quiet room. Cool, cool, play it cool. 

“Apple juice.” As cool as he could play it, Kai leaned an elbow on the wood and tipped his bucket hat down as the bartender looked his way. "And some info about where I can find a couple grimy brothers."

The bartender squinted at him, one eye seemingly half-stuck that way, the leathery old man raising the rag from the counter as he stopped wiping. “Y’say apple juice?”

“Yeah.” Kai winced as he jerked his head up and down a bit too fast. “Y-you don’t have that?”

“No.” The old man snorted his way. “We do.”

“Then what’s the problem?”

“Problem is…” The bartender rasped a sound that was half-laugh, half-cough; the noise from his throat coming out a dry rattle. “...folk that go asking after hard criminals usually don’t drink the soft stuff.”

Kai blinked. “Oh.”

“Imma guess, you…” The bartender turned that permanent squint Kai’s way again as he scoffed out loud. “You a bounty hunter, kid?”

The man said it more like an insult, and a lot less like the question it sounded like. He also didn’t even give Kai the chance to answer either. “G’home, boy. Go back to your mommy.” The dirty rag from before found its way back into his hands as the barkeep started wiping a glass that would never be clean, by the looks of it. “The Grime Brothers would eat you for breakfast and use your hat for a napkin. And it’s a stupid hat.”

Kai felt a twitch in his jaw, nerves grating against each other as he fought the urge to make a fist on top of the counter. Eat me for breakfast? As much as Mako joked that he had an ego problem, Kai never really let it get to him, but he knew he was pretty tough and years of practice had only made him tougher. Use my hat?

The heat in his chest slid out with a breath and instead of letting himself explode, Kai forced a lazy grin. Okay, be the bigger guy here. One hand dug into his back pocket and by the time it came back out, a couple of Beri coins clattered on the counter, three of them spinning and settling in front of the barman.

“All good, dude.” Kai drawled the way he’d learned on the island, lengthening the vowels until they were practically flat. “Just lookin’ for a good story. I like stories.”

– o – o – o – o – o – o – o –

Well, he got the info.

It took a little more smiling, a little more "dumb kid" act, and buying a definitely overpriced apple juice that tasted mostly like water, but he got it.

The bartender had told him all about the Grime Brothers, mostly the fact that they never really stayed in one place long. Apparently, they used to be part of a pirate crew before they broke out on their own as bandits, the both of them moving like locusts as they robbed as much as they could before hopping from island to island.

"Better off finding them if you keep moving..." The old man’s words came out Kai’s mouth as he stepped outside the bar, blinking in the dusty aftenoon sunlight. 

He let out a sigh. "Sure, why not? I need the cardio anyway.”

So, he explored the town.

It was a maze of narrow streets and alleyways that twisted back on themselves. Laundry hung from lines strung between buildings, dripping soapy water onto the dirt below. Drip. Drip. Stray dogs panted in the shade, watching him with hungry eyes. People sat in doorways, fanning themselves with old newspapers, watching him pass with eyes that were suspicious but too hot to be hostile.

It smelled of spices and sewage. Life and rot, mixed together in a soup that stuck to the back of his throat. Yeah, I’m not staying here.

For good or for long.

Barely a half hour later, he found someone who could help him. A merchant at a fruit stall, selling apples that looked sad and bruised, like they’d been dropped a few times.

“Those two dirty bastards?” The merchant spat when Kai showed him the sketches on the wrinkled-up bounty poster, wiping his nose on his sleeve as Kai frowned. “Yeah. I saw ‘em. They went into the general store down the street. Probably robbing old man Yaga again. They treat his place like a pantry.”

“Thanks.” With a nod, he walked to the store.

It was a squat building with peeling paint. He peeked in the window, careful not to let his shadow fall across the glass. Yep.

Patch and Stench.

They were shaking down a local merchant. Both of them were dragging the man — a terrified guy with thick glasses that were sliding down his sweaty nose — into the back room.

Jesus, man, they weren’t joking about you guys eating everything. Kai knew he didn’t have much room to talk, but these guys were mega-fat. As tall as Kele and Tano and as fat as the two island fishermen combined, they were both just raw bulk, pure mass under too many layers of grease and filth.

Layers weren't even a joke.

Patch’s skin was splotchy, pale flesh covered in dark, purplish birthmarks or rashes that looked like bruises that never healed. He looked like a piece of meat that had been left out too long. Stench looked like he should have been pale, but he was stained a uniform dark brown with a thick layer of dirt all over him, encrusted so deep into his pores it looked like armor.

Kai wrinkled his nose. 

Even through the glass, he was pretty sure he could smell them. Ugh… how? Do they just roll in mud for fun? He bit back a shudder. None of my business.

A half-second later, Kai felt his face turn all the way down in another frown. W-wait, no, It is your business. Literally. That’s the job, idiot.

Taking in a long, low breath, Kai adjusted his hat. Arlight, just walk in and be cool with it.

He did just that, the bell above the door announcing his entrance with a cheerful sound. 

“...w-we’re closed!” A voice called from the back, clear strain in the speaker’s tone. “Come back later, p-please!”

Yeah, no. Kai kept on walking, all the way past the empty front counter, as he followed the sound of the voice and the path of the scuffed boots all the way to the back room. 

Yeah, that’s them. The sound of the merchant’s whimpering guided him forward as Kai leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed over his chest as he tried to look bored. “Hey, dudes, party’s over. Momma Grime says you gotta go home.”

The taller one looked over, Patch holding the merchant by the collar up against the wall, the whimpering man lifted clear off his feet. “Who’s the sprog?”

Stench looked up from where he was rifling through a cash box on the desk, a handful of bulls in one hand. “Oi, he yours?” The grimer of the two brothers jerked a dirty thumb at Kai.

“N-n-no!” The merchant’s whimpers slid into a squeal, legs kicking uselessly in the air. “Never seen him before! Please, just take the money!”

“I’m a bounty hunter.” Kai answered the question that wasn’t aimed his way, voice as steady as he could make it even with blood already rushing under his skin. “Means I’m here to take you two in. Alive is better, but the poster said dead too.”

Patch blinked again as he looked over at Kai one more time, the confusion on the bandit’s face almost funny. Kinda like a dog looking at a card trick. “You? Bounty hunter?”

“Yeah.” Kai nodded. “Me.”

Stench stood up, the man looming like a mountain of filth as his boddy blotted out the light from the single bulb hanging from the ceiling. “But you’re so… small.”

Kai stared up at the two men, both of them nearly as tall as the Chief, but with no muscle or anything visible on them.

Just mass.

“Well, yeah.” Kai shrugged, uncrossing one arm to scratch his nose. “It’s my first day. Whaddya want from me?”

The room was silent for a few seconds.

The merchant stared. Patch stared. Stench stared.

Then Patch snickered, a giggle bursting free from his deep, gravel-chewing throat. 

Like a dam breaking, both of the Grime brothers started to laugh. Genuine, gut-busting levels of laughter filled the room as the two brothers slapped their knees, Stench wiping a tear from his eye with a hand that looked like a bear paw dipped in mud.

“Look what we got here, Stench!” Patch pointed a blackened finger at Kai. “A little beach blob wants to play hero! Aww, isn’t he cute?”

“He’s got a little hat!” Stench wheezed again, doubling over. “Maybe we should keep him. Like a pet. We can feed him scraps.”

Kai sighed as he uncrossed his arms, both of them forming tight fists as his leather gloves squealed. “Okay, I tried it the nice way.”