The Cat Ninja

by Erik DeLeo

  “If you don’t come down, your friend dies,” said Akihiro nonchalantly, his voice a sinister and low rumble. “If we have to chase you, both you and your friend will die.”

  “Your threats are idle, dog,” replied Miko with distain.

  The Tosa huffed and sat on his haunches and laughed and evil laugh. His entire body language was relaxed. This was not a dog who was worried or agitated. This was a dangerous adversary.

  “Cats don’t scare me. You and your ninja skills don’t scare me. And your little investigative operation doesn’t scare me. What should scare you, however, is the fact I can end your friend’s life, right here, right now. In front of you.”

  Miko hissed again and Akihiro barked a command in a language she didn’t understand. On cue, another, smaller dog appeared. And gripped in its mouth Sukoshi, who looked terrified.

  “This is Nippon. He’s a rat terrier. Not from around here, but he’s useful for my needs. All I need to do is twitch my shoulder, and your friend dies. I don’t even need to speak.”

  It wasn’t in Miko’s nature, or a ninja’s or a cat’s to give in to demands from anyone, let alone a dog. Especially a dog.

  “Fine. I have no use for him,” said Miko with a straight face.

  “What?” squeaked Sukoshi audibly. “Listen to what he says—I have twelve mouths to feed!”

  “Always forgetting your wife,” countered Miko.

  Akihiro cleared his throat. “Your surrender or your friend’s life. I have no time for games.”

  Miko let out a sigh. She was left with only one option—she surrendered.

  Chains

  “For the umpteenth time, it’s no use!”

  Sukoshi had been pleading with Miko to stop attempting to free them. They were both locked in a cage in what appeared to be a dim and smelly storage closet.

  “Unlike you, I’m not ready to give up,” replied Miko.

  “Who said anything about giving up? I just don’t want to get eaten before we have a good chance to escape.”

  “Now is as good a time as any,” said Miko, annoyance creeping into her voice. She was trying to pick the lock of her cage, her left paw gripping one of the bars as the other hung in front of the lock, claw inserted into the keyhole. It helped her focus and ignore Sukoshi, who had been fixated on the rat terrier non-stop.

  “Did you see how that thing was looking at me? He was salivating the whole time. He really wanted to eat me!” Sukoshi’s voice squeaked as he spoke, revealing his nervousness.

  Miko pulled her claw out of the lock and turned to Sukoshi.

  “Tell me again, exactly how many times have you escaped from a cage?”

  “I’m not entirely sure,” replied the mouse.

  “Liar.”

  “Fine. Zero. You happy now?”

  “Maybe. Unlike you, I’ve had lots of practice. And while this is the first I’ve had to do it under real world circumstances, I’m confident I can get us out. So, do you want to tell me to stop or do you want me to keep working?”

  “I want to not end up dead, thank you very much.”

  “Then be quiet and let me concentrate and I’ll get us out of here.”

  Sukoshi folded his arms across his chest, displeasure registering on his face. He began pacing nervously as Miko went back to work.

  It took a few more minutes playing with the tumblers inside the lock, but she was rewarded with the sound of a distinct click as she finally undid the padlock. It popped open and scraped against the latch on the cage door.

  “Oh, I knew you could do it! I never had a doubt! Never a doubt!”

  Miko eyed Sukoshi. She decided saying nothing was a better choice than voicing her real opinion—about how rat terriers made Sukoshi easier to bear by making him quiet. For once Miko held her tongue, which oftentimes was as sharp as her sword.

  Once the lock was removed from the latch, the barred metal door to the cage swung open lazily. Miko hopped out without much effort, but since the cage was resting atop some cardboard boxes and a few feet off the ground, Sukoshi had to carefully crawl down the front side. It wasn’t graceful, but he made it.

  Sukoshi turned to ask a question, but Miko was already working on the door handle. Neither cat nor mouse knew where they were. The barkuza had placed a towel over the cage as they were being transported. Not much had been said during the journey, other than Miko warning the field mouse to keep quiet otherwise he might risk being dinner.

  The familiar click of a lock being undone sounded, and Sukoshi looked at Miko expectantly.

  “Now what?” he asked in hushed tones, although Miko could hear excitement creep into his voice.

  “I’m going to listen, then open the door very carefully. If the coast is clear, we’re going to leave and try to stay alive.”

  “Oooh. I’m very much in favor of not dying. It’s one of my favorite things. Also, I’m getting hungry. I’m not a shrew, but I need to eat something soon.”

  She held the first finger of her front right paw to her lips and mouthed the sound ‘Shhhh.” Sukoshi hushed. Miko pressed her ear up to the door, cupping her front paws together to hear better. Both animals held silent as she listened. Miko heard nothing, but wasn’t certain the door was unguarded. She crouched down and sniffed. Her whiskers pulled back. Sukoshi worried it meant someone was out there. Possibly even the rat terrier. He shuddered.

  Miko sat back up, pushed herself up on her hind legs, and reached for the handle, pulling the lever down cautiously. The latch released, and the door cracked open. Thankfully, it was clear. Sukoshi let out a sigh of relief, and Miko pulled the door open a bit more. Not only were there no guards, there wasn’t anything. Just a big, open space.

  The warehouse was empty and seemingly abandoned. It was vast. Dust covered the smooth concrete floor and particles were visible in the few scattered sunbeams that managed to fight their way in. Someone had left Miko and Sukoshi here with no intention of letting them out.

  “Come on,” said Miko to Sukoshi. “I think I know where we are.”

  Escape

  The sun hung high in the sky and Sukoshi squinted in the bright light. The sounds of seagulls filled the air and the smell of sea salt was noticeable. He and Miko were crouched behind a wall of the warehouse.

  “Are these the docks?” asked the mouse.

  “Yes. Maizuro.”

  Miko peered around the corner, on the lookout for any barkuza. The docks were mostly quiet today, with only the occasional mechanical sounds of movement and the beeps of forklifts reversing while they moved cargo around.

  The coast was clear. She had no idea where the puppies were being held. And searching for things during the day wasn’t ideal. Sukoshi pressed up against Miko’s fur, poking his small head around her body to catch a glimpse of what she was looking at, which wasn’t much.

  “There’s nothing going on,” he said

  “Yeah, I think it’s what they call a holiday,” said Miko, without turning around. “Hopefully that makes things easier. We need to find out where they’re keeping the dogs.”

  Sukoshi yanked on Miko’s tail as hard as his mouse arms could. She turned on him, eyes wide, suppressing a hiss.

  “We need to get out of here,” pleaded the field mouse. “I have a headache. I need to get some food. I need to go see if my family is okay.”

  Miko could feel an instant flash of anger rise inside her.

  “Never yank on a cat’s tail. Ever!” she said through clenched teeth. She briefly fanaticized about how easy it would be to eat the mouse. Miko took a deep breath and tried to focus on Kobayashi’s lesson—to remain calm regardless of the circumstances. Sukoshi seemed to realize his mistake.

  “I apologize. I’m hangry and I’m stressed out. That’s not a good combination.”

  “We need to find where they’re keeping the dogs. Then you can eat. Can you handle that?”

  Sukoshi sighed. “I think so.”

  “Good. You take this side of the docks and I’ll take the other.
Meet me back here. You should be safe. I see only seagulls, and they have no interest in mice.”

  “What if they’re really, really hungry?”

  “Sukoshi,” said Miko in an impatient tone.

  “Fine. It’s Fine. I’ll be fine. Can’t be any cats here in this huge, open area with food coming and going everyday. Nope. Not a chance.”

  “The sooner we find where they’re hiding the dogs, the sooner you can grab a bite to eat and go check on your family.”

  “Well why didn’t you say so?”

  Miko looked exasperated. “I did. Now go. Meet me back here before it’s dark. Good luck.”

  “You too,” replied Sukoshi before he scurried off, running along the edge of the building before darting over to cover a short distance away, his hindquarters waggling as he went. Miko headed in the opposite direction.

  The docks at Maizuro were huge. Once Miko began searching, she was worried if she could cover half the area let alone Sukoshi.

  The wind had started to pick up which made using her nose to look for the dogs problematic. Miko wanted to stay hidden, because right now they had the element of surprise. As far as the barkuza knew, she and Sukoshi were still locked up in the abandoned warehouse.

  There was a group of buildings off to the far side in this section of the docks. Miko moved closer to inspect. Rusted barrels were placed haphazardly around the main building. They circled most of the perimeter, stacked three of four high, corrosion marring their blue paint. The windows were covered, blocking out sunlight and the door, with red, peeling paint, was chained and locked. It was uninviting. Miko thought, if she were part of the barkuza, this would be the perfect spot to hide a bunch of kidnapped puppies. She moved closer to investigate.

  A high line of windows lined the walls, and many were broken, the jagged glass littering the broken concrete along the perimeter. One of the windows had a stack of weathered wooden pallets piled underneath it. Miko saw there was a single pane that had been either totally broken or completely removed.

  She made her way up the side of the wooden pallets. They were piled haphazardly, and provided opportunity for her to scale up the side. Her claws dug in, giving added stability.

  Miko pulled herself up and over the last pallet. She craned her neck upwards, trying to judge the distance to the empty windowpane. It would be a high jump, but not impossible. She crouched low, and then launched herself up. The frame of the window came up quickly as she flew through the air, and her front paws landed inside the window put slipped. Afraid of falling, Miko quickly dug her rear claws in, which scratched repeatedly against the side of the building. She made a lot more noise than she wanted, but was finally able to pull herself up.

  Straddling the threshold of the window, Miko peered inside. It was dark and foreboding. She sniffed. Her whiskers pulled back. It smelled like old cardboard and something worse but unidentifiable. She went in anyway.

  Discovery

  Miko’s eyes quickly adjusted to the low level of light. She was perched on a walkway above the main floor and, unlike the warehouse Miko and Sukoshi had been trapped in, this one was full of junk and litter and even some things that were unidentifiable.

  It was quiet in here, seemingly a world away from the breeze off the water and the noise of seagulls. A heaviness hung in the air, and Miko wasn’t sure if those were her feelings or something she picked up from the place.

  She crouched down, and made her way down the walkway, splitting her focus between the walkway and what was below. When she got to the corner far corner of the building, she stopped. The walkway made a ninety degree turn, and then ran off towards the back and ended in a vertical metal ladder. There seemed to be what looked like an office tucked in the far corner. The door was slightly ajar, and a thin sliver of light escaped from inside.

  The room was small, with a flat section on top meant for storage. The walkway ended close enough that Miko thought she could safely make the leap. As she made her way down the walkway, she heard voices. Miko slowed. One of them seemed familiar, and one was foreign.

  “…you had better hope this goes smoothly. We don’t want any mistakes, hiccups or even minor issues. Commitments have been made to other members of our network, and it’s imperative things are handled on a tight schedule.”

  “You can be assured there won’t be any problems. We had a small problem, but it has been dealt with.”

  Miko recognized the first voice. She was positive it was Akihiro, the Tosa Inu barkuza member. The other voice had an off-putting grate to it. To her, it sounded like claws on a chalkboard.

  “For your sake, I hope so. I assume the local groups have been kept in line?”

  “Yes, the local street dog gangs have done as asked. They know the risks if they get unruly. Examples have been made in the past. Any complaints will be quickly silenced.”

  “Good. Once the delivery has been made, our organization expectsss quick payment. Any delaysss in delivery, minus your cut, will have severe consequencesssss.”

  The volume of the conversation dropped to a whisper, and despite her acute hearing, Miko strained to hear. She guesstimated the distance to the top of office, wiggled her butt back and forth in anticipation, and jumped. She landed as softly as she could, but her momentum made her landing harder than she wanted. She stood still for a moment and waited in silence. She held her breath and time seemed to slow.

  “You have company,” said the unknown voice. “Ensssure whoever it isss doesn’t leave here alive.”

  The door burst open and suddenly, the entire area erupted into an angry storm of shouts and howls. Akihiro rushed out the open door barking orders. In response, dogs seemed to materialize on the walkway and were making their way towards Miko. Akihiro turned around and looked up.

  “The reflection in your eyes betrays you, ninja. That, and your incompetence.”

  Miko swore under her breath. “Darn mutts must have been hiding in the shadows,” she muttered to herself.

  She didn’t have much time to think. A group of three dogs, fangs barred, were barreling down the walkway with Akihiro waiting below.

  “You’re trapped.” said the Tosa, who growled menacingly. “I’m not sure how you got in here, but we have the only exit blocked. This is not going to end well for you.”

  In response, Miko hissed. The dogs were almost to the end of the walkway, and she had no obvious means of escape. She wasn’t about to let this be her last stand, so she bolted. Miko ran the short distance to the edge of the office and jumped with all of her strength. Akihiro reacted, his claws scrapping on the smooth concrete floor. As she arced through the air, his jaws opened. IN anticipation of landing his bite, thick saliva flew of the ends of his sharp teeth. Miko flew just beyond the range of what likely would have been her last moments, escaping Akihiro’s attack and sliding across the flow, legs churning.

  “Get her!” shouted the Tosa as he came after her.

  A primal shriek erupted from Miko, a combination of a shriek and a howl, as she scurried along the floor. She raced between piled of crates and boxes, and unknown number of dogs giving chase. Miko rounded a corner, and scampered to her right as two dogs came charging at her from the left. Barking filled the air and she howled instinctively.

  Running for her life, Miko ran toward the other side of the building across from where the office was. There was a small door at the back. It was open. She kicked into high gear.

  Suddenly, and empty cardboard box skittered across the floor directly in front of her. She looked at the open door, then the box. Something deep inside pulled at her. Miko jumped. It felt glorious. Like everything was right in the world. But it wasn’t freedom she experienced. Miko didn’t make it over. She landed squarely in the center of the box. And it felt glorious.

  The flaps of the box closed on top of her. She was trapped. She pawed angrily at the interior, angry and afraid.

  Once again, her instincts had failed her. The pull of the box was too strong to escape. And it may have co
st Miko her life.

  Prisoner

  It was pitch black. Not even her cat eyes could see.

  Miko was stuck in the box, which had been taped shut with her still inside. And she didn’t know where she was. It had been unceremoniously dropped somewhere, and the stink from outside was slowly making its way in. The fall into the unknown hadn’t been too long, so she suspected some sort of garbage bin. After scratching and clawing at the thick cardboard in vain, Miko had given up. The sounds of dogs and barking disappeared. She was trapped there, alone and silent.

  A part of that may have been due to her self-disgust. She had been panicked when the dogs were coming for her. And she wasn’t able to fight her primal instinct. The Tosa had known she wouldn’t be able to avoid the draw of the open box. So here she sat, stewing in self-pity. She was glad Sukoshi wasn’t here to see her like this. He’d revel at such a thing.

  Cut off from the outside world in this stinking, paper prison, Miko found it hard to keep track of time. The bottom of the box was starting to get wet, soaked in whatever cesspool she was thrown into. The stench was beginning to give her a headache. She closed her eyes to think.

  Miko’s eyes snapped open. Something was crawling on the box. At best it could be rats. At worse, perhaps a rabid raccoon.

  “So help me, if you don’t get me out of this box, I’m going to eat you.” said Miko, raising her voice.

  A moment later, a familiar voice answered.

  “That’s not exactly an enticing offer. I prefer cheese.”

  “Sukoshi!” cried Miko, excitedly. “Get me out of here!”

  “Do you have any cheese in there? I’m still hungry.”

  “No!”

  “I find these turn of events…poetic.”

  “You can gloat later, you silly mouse. Just get me out of here.”

  “Very well. Give me a moment.”

  Miko could hear some gnawing from the outside. It sounded like Sukoshi was trying to chew through the tape.