Karate Kick (8 page)

“Out!” Without moving his upper leg, he swung his foot straight out.

“In!” He pulled the foot back again.

“Down!” Finally, he put his foot down, stepping forward into a front stance as he did.

“Everybody got it?” At their nods, he said, “Then let’s go! Step!”

The students kicked their way down the floor. When that move was done, they went on to others: shutos, other blocks and kicks,
punches, and strikes.

“Nice job,” Sensei Joe said, clapping. “Now we’re going to break into separate ranks. White belts, you go with Sensei Ann.
Yellow, you’re with Sensei Dale.

Sensei Duane will take the oranges, and Cole, you’ll come with me. Good luck, everyone. Do your best.”

Cole followed Sensei Joe to a spot on the mat. “Let’s start with your kumites,” the instructor said. Without warning, he threw
a straight-in punch right at Cole’s head.

Cole didn’t have time to think about which of the kumites to do. He just reacted. His right foot took him one angled step
forward out of the punch’s path. At the same time, his left hand parried the punch away from his face and past his head. His
right hand pulled back into firing position — and thrust forward a second later when he twisted toward Sensei Joe and struck
with both palms simultaneously, one at his instructor’s groin and the other at his jaw.

“He-ya!” he shouted.

Sensei Joe stepped back and nodded. Then he threw a right hook punch.

Cole was expecting the sudden attack this time, but still, he didn’t have time to think, just react.

Wham!
He blocked the hook with a forceful blow to the inside of Sensei Joe’s upper arm.
Slash!
He unleashed a shuto at the man’s neck. Then he gripped his sensei’s gi collar, sidestepped past his right leg, and
wham!
drilled his left knee into the back of his thigh, pulling down on the collar as he did. He ended the move with a powerful
right punch to the midsection.

None of his strikes had met their targets with full strength. Not that Sensei Joe couldn’t handle the hits — he could, and
had taken much worse besides, Cole was sure!

On and on the attacks came. Cole messed up his kumites once or twice, but overall he felt he had passed that part of the test
— and the grappling maneuvers that followed — without a problem. He silently thanked Marty and his mother for the time they
had taken to practice the many moves with him. Without their help, he wasn’t sure he would have done them as confidently.

Next came sparring. This was Cole’s weakest area and one that he knew he had to work on in the future. But to his relief,
he didn’t make any of the mistakes he had made when fighting against Monique. Still, he was glad when that section of the
test was over!

As he put away his sparring equipment, he noticed that the dojo was almost empty. Only the two orange belts were left, and
they were just finishing up the final part of their tests. When they were done, Sensei Joe excused himself to present them
with their purple belts and to pose for a few pictures with the happy students. They left soon after, as did Sensei Dale and
Sensei Duane.

Now Sensei Joe, Sensei Ann, and Cole were alone in the dojo. A sudden quiet descended over the room. Cole was so used to the
training center being filled with laughter, shouts, and other noise that the stillness made him nervous.

Then Sensei Ann laughed at something Sensei Joe said and Cole relaxed. It was a good thing, too, because he still had to perform
all his katas for his instructors!

C
ole stood alone in the middle of the dojo’s main floor facing a wall of mirrors. Sensei Joe moved to one side of him, Sensei
Ann the other.

“We’ll start with Heian One,” Sensei Joe said quietly, “and work you up through Two, Three, Four, and Five. Then you’ll do
your other katas: Taikyoko Five, Yonsu, Wonsu, and Saifa. After that, you’ll get your bo staff and perform Bo One and Bo Two
for us. Got it?”

Cole nodded. Then he took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Usually, that helped calm his nerves.

This time, it didn’t. His heart was pounding. If he made it through all of his katas without faltering, he’d get his green
belt, but that was a big if! What if he missed a move, or a transition? What if he didn’t put enough power into the punches
and blocks? What if he skipped a part by mistake? Just thinking about all the ways he could mess up made his shoulders tense
and his back tighten!

Then suddenly, he remembered the underwater kata exercise. His moves then had been slow and controlled. His breathing had
been deep and relaxed. Just thinking about it helped him relax now. He closed his eyes once more and took another deep breath.
When he opened them, he was ready.

“Ki-ai!” He exploded through Heian One, delivering every block and punch with accuracy and power.

“He-ya!” Each strike, twist, and shuto of Heian Two felt sharp and precise.

As he performed one kata after another, he filled each with more energy and intensity than he ever had before!

When he moved on to his bo forms, he amazed himself with his ability. The slender pole whirled above his head with steady
control, stabbed at imaginary targets with ferocity, and whipped over and around his body with ease and grace.

Finally, he came to the end of his last bo kata. Holding the bo horizontal in both hands, he thrust it above his head and
then with one hand twirled it beside his body, where it came to rest up along his side. He bowed, making sure the staff didn’t
come forward with him. Then he straightened and stood stock still, staring at himself in the mirror.

I think I did it,
he thought wonderingly.
I really think I did it!

“You may put your bo away,” Sensei Joe said. While Cole hurried across the floor to stow his staff with the other bos, his
instructors disappeared into the office.

Cole returned to the floor to stand in ready position. His heart ticked in time with the clock on the wall. He heard the senseis
whispering together but he couldn’t make out what they were saying. Were they agreeing that he had passed — or discussing
where he had failed?

He got his answer a moment later. Both senseis came out of the office and stood before him.

“Cole, step out and remove your belt,” Sensei Joe ordered solemnly.

Cole moved his right foot one step sideways and undid the knot of his blue belt. He folded the belt in half, and half again,
placed it in his right hand, and resumed his ready stance. His throat was so dry he was sure it would split open if he tried
to swallow.

“Step forward,” Sensei Joe said.

His voice was so stern that Cole’s confidence left him. Any grace he had had during his test fled, too. He nearly stumbled
as he moved toward his senseis.

Then he looked up and saw that Sensei Joe was smiling.

His instructor reached into his gi top and pulled out a crisp, clean green belt. “Congratulations, Cole,” he said, his smile
broadening into a grin. “Very well done!”

He took Cole’s old blue belt from him, presented him with the new belt, shook his hand, and bowed.

Cole gripped his new belt tightly and burst into a happy laugh. “Woohoo!” he shouted. “I did it!”

To his surprise, his shout was echoed by others. He whirled around to face the waiting room. There stood his mother, Marty,
Marty’s mother — and Ty!

“Yes!” Cole yelled, pumping his fist and pointing at the teenager. “You got my letter!”

Ty didn’t answer. He just held up a wrinkled envelope and grinned.

I
s that who I think it is?”

Cole turned back to see Sensei Joe staring at Ty with a puzzled expression.

“Ty? Ty Matthewson?” his instructor said. “It is you, isn’t it!”

Ty’s smile turned hesitant, but he nodded.

“Well, get in here, son,” Sensei Joe cried, “and tell me what the heck you’ve been up to all these years!”

Ty did as his former instructor asked. He and Sensei Joe stood together in the dojo, talking animatedly. Cole watched them
with satisfaction. Something told him that Ty would be returning to karate soon!

“Way to go, buddy!” Marty grabbed Cole in a big bear hug. “I knew you could do it!”

“Thanks, Marty — for everything,” Cole said. He held up his green belt. “I couldn’t have gotten this without your help.”

“So you’ll return the favor when it’s my turn,” Marty said. “After all, I may be testing soon myself!”

Cole’s mother came in next. She took Cole’s old blue belt from Sensei Joe and then turned to her son, beaming. “We sneaked
in during the last minutes of your test,” she confessed. “You looked so strong and confident out there, Cole! I’m so proud
of you!”

“Thanks, Mom. Hi, Mrs. Bronson. Thanks for coming!”

Marty’s mother smiled at him. “I look forward to seeing Marty in your shoes — or rather, bare feet — in a few months. Now
what do you say we all go and get some lunch before the kata contest?”

“Marty and I have something to talk to Sensei Joe about first,” Cole said, giving Marty a significant look. Their mothers
sat down to chat.

“What is it, boys?” Sensei Joe asked when he saw Cole and Marty waiting for him to finish talking with Ty.

“It’s about the kata contest,” Cole said. “We were hoping to get your permission to do something a little… special.”

“Come into my office and explain what you have in mind,” Sensei Joe said. Then he shook Ty’s hand, saying, “Stop by after
school tomorrow and we’ll see about getting you a new gi. Something tells me you’ve outgrown your old one!”

Ty laughed. Then, as he turned to leave, he slapped Cole on the back. “Sure am glad I met you,” he said. “See you at the contest.”

“Now, boys, what is it you wanted to ask me?” Sensei Joe said.

“Well, sir, it’s like this…”

Ten minutes later, Cole and Marty had their instructor’s permission to do what they hoped to do. “Cross your fingers that
this works,” Cole said as they joined their mothers in the waiting area. “If not, I’m afraid I’ll have lost a friend I just
found again.”

The kata contest was being held at two o’clock that afternoon. Cole, Marty, and their mothers returned to the dojo at 1:45
pm. Other karate students and their families were there, including Monique and her parents. She glanced at Cole when he walked
in but then quickly looked away.

At two o’clock sharp, Sensei Joe came out of his office and asked everyone to please gather in the main dojo. “I’m sorry I
don’t have enough chairs for everyone,” he said. “But go ahead and grab some floor!”

When everyone was settled, he explained what the contest was all about. “At our dojo, we teach century-old techniques and
moves. We also work to build character, increase confidence, and encourage students to respect themselves and others. This
contest taps into all these things. After all, contestants are testing their karate knowledge by creating their own katas.
They’re also displaying confidence and strength of character by entering the contest. Many of them talked over ideas with
others, a sign that they trust that their concepts would be greeted with respect.”

He smiled then. “But most of all, we decided to run this contest because, well, we thought the kids would have fun making
up their own katas! So, without further ado, let’s get to it!”

He consulted a clipboard. “First up is Melissa Darlington. Come on up, Melissa, and let’s see what you created.”

Melissa was a yellow belt. She hadn’t been training for long, so she didn’t have a wide range of moves. But she did a nice
job with a series of upward blocks, straight-in punches, and a few kicks. The audience applauded her efforts appreciatively.

Next up was Dan, one of the students who had just tested that morning. He wore his new purple belt with pride. Unfortunately,
he seemed to forget how his own kata went, for after six moves, he just stopped, bowed, and sat down with a sheepish look
on his face.

“All right, Dan, no problem,” Sensei Joe reassured. “When we run the contest next time, you can show us the whole thing!”

A blue belt went next, and then an orange belt. Both had put together nice katas, Cole thought. But in his opinion, the winner
hadn’t yet performed.

Then Sensei Joe called out the next name. “Monique Cleary, you’re up!” As she rose to her feet, however, he held up a hand.
“But first, let’s take a short break. Five minutes, folks, and then we’ll be back!”

Cole and Marty exchanged looks. They got to their feet and, moving as stealthily as cats on the prowl, disappeared into the
storage room.

“Did she see us?” Marty whispered.

“I don’t think so,” Cole replied. “Now we just have to wait for the right moment.”

F
ive minutes passed. Cole could tell when the audience had resumed their seats because everything got quiet. He waited a beat
longer and then whispered, “Ready?”

Marty nodded, opened the storage room door, and tiptoed out with Cole at his heels.

Monique stood in ready position before the audience. Her eyes were focused forward. Her back was to the boys.

As quietly as they could, Cole and Marty moved to stand behind and on either side of her. Several of the people in the audience
whispered and pointed at them. Cole lifted a finger to his lips to plead for their silence.

“Whenever you’re ready, Monique,” Sensei Joe encouraged.

She nodded once. Then she took a deep breath and bowed.

Behind her, Cole and Marty bowed, too. And when she began her kata, they did as well.

Upward block! Palm heel strike! She had no idea that they were behind her until — “Ki-ai!” — her own cry was joined by those
of the boys!

She froze. For a split second, Cole thought she would stop altogether. But she didn’t. She turned into her next move, her
fists one over the other, and then stepped forward for the low straight-in punch followed by the kick.

Marty and Cole did each move with her in perfect unison.

“He-ya!” the three shouted together.