The Purple Heart

by Vincent Yee

  Kenji then got down in a combat stance and pretended to hold a rifle and arced the fictitious gun in a sweeping motion as he mimicked the sound of gunfire. “But that’s after I kill me some damn Nazis!” He swung his arms back and repeated the sound of gunfire.

  Peter placed his arm over his eyes. With much effort he mumbled, “I’ll write my letters tomorrow.”

  “Hey Kenji, have you written to your parents yet? Or maybe you might want to write to Miho,” said Hiroshi as he tore a couple of sheets from his notepad.

  “Hey, thanks Home Run. Yeah, Miho huh? Hey, if I marry her, we can be like brothers,” said Kenji with some excitement.

  Hiroshi smiled just as Akira chimed in on the conversation. He had just come up to the three men and he was shirtless as well. His body was still soaking wet and a tattoo of a Japanese character was displayed prominently on his left shoulder. “That is if you make it back alive, Kenji,” he said bluntly.

  Hiroshi shot Akira a look of contempt, but he ignored it.

  “Of course I’m coming back! Give me a rifle and nothing is going to stop me!” said Kenji as he acted out the rifle scene once more.

  “Yeah, and what happens if they do this to you?” Akira threw his arm around Kenji’s neck and jabbed his fingers into his head. Akira was bigger and stronger than Kenji and pulled him away as Kenji struggled back with his flaring arms.

  Hiroshi watched the scene with some amusement but as much as he didn’t appreciate Akira’s comment, there was some truth to it. The reality was some of them might not come back. He reflected on this for a moment and then brushed it aside as he went back to writing down his last sentences to Minami. He then signed it and read it over.

  Dear Minami,

  I’m sorry it’s taken so long for me to write to you. I arrived here at Camp Shelby in Mississippi. I never thought I would ever visit Mississippi. It’s taken a few days to get settled in and now that my company has been put together, they’ve started training. The whole entire place reminds me of the camp. It has barracks very similar to the ones we lived in and though just about everyone here is Japanese American as well, there is one big difference. It’s all guys.

  Kenji is here and he’s in my company. He’s quite the joker but he needs to grow up. I don’t think some of the people here understand what they may be facing yet so tell Miho that I will keep an eye out for him. His brother is in a different company.

  Please tell my parents that I miss them. Tell your parents, Miho, Yuka and Yoshi that I miss them too. But when I think about you, which is often, I can’t tell you how much I miss you. I miss you every day with the passing of every painful second. I felt so strongly about my decision when I left the camp but now that I’m here, I feel myself aching for you. I now have second doubts about leaving you.

  I wish I were back at the camp with you, holding you, feeling you and being with you. You are everything to me and when I come back, after having won our freedom, we will live the happiest life together. I will do everything in my power to make you happy so that you can smile. Your smile is so beautiful that it makes me appreciate how lucky I am to have you as my wife.

  I am so grateful that you came out to meet me that morning. I was so sad when the bus was leaving and I had not had the chance to see you one last time. I sat in that seat as the bus started and I felt like my insides were hollowed out with a spoon. But then the other guys in the bus started yelling Home Run. I had no idea what was going on until one of the guys made me look out the window and I saw that odd wave that they did at the baseball game. I knew it was a message for me and then I looked out the window and saw someone at the fence. That person was all alone and I couldn’t make the person out but I knew that it was you. My heart jumped, as I demanded that the bus be stopped. Then I jumped out of the bus and hesitated when I ran to the corner because I was afraid that you may not be there but you were. I wasn’t sure what you were feeling because I was so afraid still of what you may want to say to me but as I got closer, I heard the urgency in your voice and I knew. I ran as fast as I could to you and I could feel my heart pumping with every step but I had to get to you and when I felt you, when I kissed you, I just melted into you and was so happy beyond words.

  I miss your face. I want to see your deep brown eyes once more and be totally lost in them. Your voice isn’t here to comfort me. I may remember everything about you but it’s simply not the same. But I will fight with every last ounce to come back to see you and be with you forever.

  Lovingly yours,

  Hiroshi

  T W E N T Y

  Over the next two weeks, the drill sergeant tormented the Japanese American troops, hoping to see them fail. But not one of them succumbed to failure. Instead, the men’s endurance improved, their bodies toughened and became stronger. They also started to work as a team. However, the biggest improvement was not visible to the naked eye. Their hearts grew stronger, driven by sheer determination of will to simply be, the best soldiers.

  Many men were in fairly good physical shape that was simply improved with the training. But Hiroshi and Akira were obviously the most athletically gifted. Though they kept their growing rivalry to themselves, it was there, lurking quietly and growing insidiously.

  Peter was in average shape. He had a few years of karate that he had taken from a friend’s father, but he hadn’t kept it up. Still, his endurance and physical strength improved over the two weeks of rigorous training.

  The rigor of the training had finally begun to discipline Kenji’s lanky clumsiness. His moves were more deliberate and coordinated. His sinewy muscles became more toned and defined. Even his attitude became more serious and driven by a need to prove to everyone that he was no longer a boy, but a man.

  It was in the third week, after a five-mile run that the drill sergeant collected the troops into a grassy area of the camp and sat them down. He took off his shirt that showed his broad chest and muscular arms that was covered in grayish curly hair. He took off his hat and passed it along to one of the other two soldiers who always accompanied him.

  He walked in front of the seated troops and stared out at them. Hiroshi was sitting in the front, towards the right, flanked by Peter and Kenji. Akira sat a few feet down from Hiroshi, closer to the center.

  “Today, I am going to teach you the basics of combat training,” belted out the drill sergeant. “In battle, you will surely come face to face with your enemy in hand-to-hand combat. I will teach you some basic moves that will save your very lives.”

  The drill sergeant scanned the crowd, imposing his brawn on the seated men and walked deliberately in front of them looking into their eyes. The stares that came back however were resolute. He turned to Hiroshi and barked, “Private Satoh, front and center now!”

  Hiroshi rose up confidently as all eyes focused on him. Hiroshi strode toward the drill sergeant who watched him steadily. He took up a position opposite of the drill sergeant and stood tall and calm in an unassuming manner with his arms at his side.

  “In combat, when you meet your enemy, you will need to disable him. You can put him into a submission hold, and you may even have to kill him,” said the drill sergeant matter-of-factly. “Private Satoh, come at me with a right hand punch.”

  The drill sergeant assumed a defensive posture with both of his arms cocked upwards. Hiroshi was motionless for a moment as he looked at the drill sergeant and then moved his right foot back, raised his left fist level with his chin and pulled his right fist to his chest. The drill sergeant’s eyes narrowed as he focused on Hiroshi, his expression unchanged. Then as everyone watched anxiously, Hiroshi lunged forward, throwing a straight punch at the drill sergeant’s head.

  Hiroshi had done exactly what he was told and the drill sergeant was prepared. He stepped outside of the punch and caught it with his right hand. As he drew the punch downward by following through on Hiroshi’s momentum, he firmly placed his other hand onto Hiroshi’s upper arm and twisted it with his right grip. It forced Hiroshi onto his
knees and the drill sergeant held him there.

  The drill sergeant enjoyed the moment as the will to fight swelled up within him. He looked down at his helpless adversary and firmly applied more pressure. He could see that Hiroshi had shuddered in pain for a brief second but then it stopped. The drill sergeant looked up at the crowd with a pleased look.

  “This is one way to take down your opponent and to place him into a submission hold. Getting out of this move is extremely difficult, if not impossible. In this position, you have total control over the enemy. If he resists, you can apply more pressure that will tell him who is in control. Now, I’m going to demonstrate how this hold can inflict so much pain, the enemy will be forced to submit. Private Satoh, when the pain is too great, nod your head three times and I will release you. Nod your head once if you understand.”

  Hiroshi slowly nodded his head once and stared firmly at the ground as he tensed up the muscles in his arm. The sergeant began to gradually increase the pressure but Hiroshi did not nod his head. The sergeant suddenly felt an unexpected steady resistance and applied more pressure on Hiroshi’s arm. But Hiroshi did not submit, even as his arm was twisted further. The drill sergeant looked over Hiroshi and though nothing would have made him happier than to break Hiroshi’s arm, he grew increasingly frustrated with his inability to get Hiroshi to submit. “Private Satoh,” barked the drill sergeant as a bead of sweat trickled down his right temple. “I fear that your pride is making you stupid so let me ask you, are you ready to submit?”

  Hiroshi did not budge.

  “Private Satoh, I can feel your very arm about to break but because I do not want to injure one my own soldiers, I’m going to ask you once more, are you ready to submit?”

  Again, Hiroshi did not flinch.

  “Very well, Private. I will hold you in this position since I have superior advantage over you. Your damn pride and stubbornness will be the death of you. So if you can, you may try to escape.”

  Hiroshi didn’t need any more encouragement. He suddenly threw himself into a forward roll. The sergeant had anticipated an attempt from Hiroshi and reapplied the pressure, but he lost his grip on Hiroshi’s upper arm as he rolled forward, landing onto his two feet. Before the drill sergeant could react, Hiroshi was already standing up with his back to the drill sergeant. Hiroshi turned his head to meet the gaze of the stunned drill sergeant and gave him a back kick to the chest.

  The drill sergeant landed on the ground flat on his back. His first thoughts were fury and anger as he tried to lunge himself at Hiroshi, who had just humiliated him in front of his troops. But found all of sudden, he couldn’t breathe. His lungs suddenly felt like they had collapsed in on themselves. His upper body fell against the ground as his head landed with a thud while he looked straight up with bulging eyes. He was gasping for breath. His two personal aides suddenly rushed to his side. He suddenly realized with alarm that Hiroshi was standing over him. Hiroshi’s lips moved, but he could not hear him. The sight of the three men above him disappeared as his eyes rolled backwards. He tried desperately to inhale. Finally his lungs expanded, allowing air back into his chest. He inhaled quickly and felt the tension in his eyeballs ebb away. He inhaled again and his lungs expanded fully as the dull thud of the impact pulsated away.

  When the dulling pain drained away completely, the drill sergeant started to rise up with help from his personal aides. He was oblivious to everything around him as he placed his hands on his waist, his breathing now back to normal. One of his aides came up to him and tried to offer support, but he angrily brushed him away. Finally, the drill sergeant looked up and saw Hiroshi standing directly in front of him with his arms at his side. He glanced behind Hiroshi and saw the rest of the troops staring on in silence, which he found peculiar. He paused, as he thought about how he would recover from the embarrassing incident.

  “That was pretty lucky,” said the drill sergeant. “You must have been able to escape when my hand slipped. But I think everyone saw the effectiveness of the move. But again, in combat, the enemy will come at you vigorously so I will now demonstrate an offensive tactic.”

  The drill sergeant walked up boldly to Hiroshi, thinking what had just happened must have been a fluke. He stopped a few feet away from him. He stared at Hiroshi, who looked back at him. Then the drill sergeant attacked.

  The drill sergeant stepped forward with a right hook, which Hiroshi moved outside of with blistering speed. He still had his hands down as the sergeant turned and threw a left punch that Hiroshi ducked and stepped away from. The drill sergeant’s patience grew thin as he turned once more toward Hiroshi and threw a right hook that Hiroshi avoided by ducking and took another couple of steps back.

  “Will you fight like a man!” barked the drill sergeant in frustration when suddenly he saw Hiroshi’s entire posture react.

  Hiroshi threw his hands up in a defensive posture and the drill sergeant threw a straight right punch that Hiroshi deflected away harmlessly. The drill sergeant moved forward with a left punch that Hiroshi deflected as well with ease. He was less than an arm’s length away so he threw another right punch at Hiroshi’s head, thinking surely it would connect. But Hiroshi’s hand shot up and the punch was stopped in its track with a thud. Before the drill sergeant could react, Hiroshi delivered an opened palm strike directly into the drill sergeant’s chest that sent him back onto the ground.

  The drill sergeant landed on the ground once more with a thud. This time, the wind was not knocked out of him. Hiroshi had pulled his punch. The drill sergeant looked up stunned and saw Hiroshi with his hands at his sides, looking down at him once more.

  The drill sergeant slowly got up, his body bending oddly with every moving joint. He dusted off the dirt from his pants. He didn’t look at the troops, as he could not conceal the massive embarrassment that he was now feeling. Hiroshi’s unexpected moves were quicker and more responsive than he had ever seen from anyone. He couldn’t deny that. But he couldn’t accept that he had just been humiliated by one of his troops, especially one that was a Japanese American. As the drill sergeant, his duty was to train the troops and to also be an example to his men. But the growing humiliation was not alone as a festering emotion started to spiral alongside it. It was a dark searing emotion, which began to overtake his better judgment. It was revenge.

  The drill sergeant shot his two aides, who stood on either side of Hiroshi, a stern look. “Take him down now!” he barked with such ferocity that it reverberated through the air.

  The two other soldiers hesitated at first, and then turned their heads toward Hiroshi. Together, they rushed Hiroshi, who shot each of them a look. The soldier on Hiroshi’s left arrived first with his right arm cocked, but Hiroshi’s right foot on his left cheek sent him spinning onto the ground. Hiroshi’s back was turned to the second oncoming soldier, who lunged at his waist. But before the soldier could lock his arms around him, Hiroshi jumped into the air with his legs split apart and the soldier flew underneath Hiroshi and uncontrollably into the crowd. Akira, who looked amused, caught the soldier. Akira pushed the soldier back onto his knees and when he regained his senses, he looked into Akira’s eyes. Akira smirked at the soldier and pushed the soldier back into a standing position.

  The soldier recovered and spun around with his fists up to face Hiroshi, who simply looked at him. The other soldier, who was kicked to the ground, had gotten up and maneuvered behind Hiroshi. He met his fellow soldier’s eyes and nodded. He rushed Hiroshi from behind and wrapped his arms around Hiroshi’s torso. Hiroshi had an unworried look on his face as he kept his eyes on the soldier in front of him who was yelling, “Now you’re going to get it, you Jap!” as he sent his right fist toward Hiroshi’s face.

  Hiroshi’s eyes narrowed along his brow. Then he moved his head aside as the fist landed squarely on the face of the soldier behind him, sending him backwards as his grasp around Hiroshi’s waist broke. The soldier in front of Hiroshi pulled his fist back in shock and turned his eyes toward Hiroshi’s smir
k. Before the soldier could react, Hiroshi leaped straight up into the air and with a spinning back kick, landed his left foot on the left side of his cheek sending him to the ground, face first. Hiroshi landed onto the ground having hardly moved from his original position.

  Hiroshi looked at the soldier in front of him, who was on his knees shaking his head. He then turned to look at the soldier behind him, who was holding his bloody nose. Hiroshi turned around to look at the drill sergeant who had a stunned look on his face. “I’m Japanese American.” Hiroshi reminded the drill sergeant.

  The drill sergeant had fought many men in his life and thought he had seen the best, until that day. Hiroshi had effortlessly fought against him and had just sent his two aides to the ground like rag dolls. The drill sergeant wanted nothing more than to rush Hiroshi, but his good sense returned. He knew he could not beat Hiroshi. He looked at the Japanese American troops. They were quiet, but there was something more to their cohesive silence. The drill sergeant took a few steps forward, walking past the aide who was moaning as he pinched his bloody nose. He walked alongside Hiroshi and averted his gaze and stared out into the troops. There was a burgeoning question that he needed to ask. “Can all of you fight like his?”

  “Yes Sir!” replied the men.

  “Mother Mary of God,” muttered the drill sergeant under his breath as he stared back at the unfazed faces of his Japanese American troops.

  Hiroshi, Peter, Kenji, and Akira were waiting in the lunch line. Kenji was still playfully reenacting Hiroshi’s moves along with excited sounds. “Damn, Hiroshi, you showed those guys. They barely touched you!”

  Peter interjected, “I’m not sure if it was good idea for you to beat up the sergeant like that…”

  “Don’t forget those two other soldiers!” exclaimed Kenji.