Log: Hiyoshi Wakashi & Zaizen Hikaru aka 'Z'

[get_to_the_top]

Rating: PG
When: A few days after Zaizen's first post, midday to afternoon
Where: Jungle, tennis courts, bathing pool
Summary: Hiyoshi confronts the mysterious 'Z'



Perfect, Zaizen smirked as his computer lit up once more. He found absolutely the perfect spot to sap electricity and internet from the main camp. Considering he would have a difficult time persevering in this environment without internet, Zaizen was beyond pleased.

So elated was he, that Zaizen paid less attention to his surroundings as he checked his email. Even tensai had their weaknesses -- the computer was Zaizen's.

Just as Atobe had suggested Hiyoshi had been revisiting the sites where each picture was taken before slowly moving outwards. He wasn't actually mad at this Z-person anymore but he was still curious who was hiding behind the acronym and besides the search gave him a reason to be away from the hut where Kirihara was still plotting how to win a prank war against a fourteen year old.

Crossing a small dip in between two gentle hills he brushed through a row of shrubberies when lo and behold an unfamiliar face was bent over a laptop. This had to be the newcomer and paparazzi.
"Z I presume." He announced his presence, ready to break out into a run should the other man try to bolt.

Fuck, Zaizen thought. He failed to detect the presence behind him until just before the person spoke. At least he had been prepared enough to bring a ski mask. Quickly, he removed it from his pocket and pulled it over his head. Fortunately, the mask hid his flinch; he hadn't the time to put a band aid over his lip ring before it caught on said mask. Oh well.

"Yup," Zaizen admitted, turning to face the confrontation. "You're Hiyoshi," he recognized the second year by his icons and the brief times they saw each other in middle school. There was no point in running, unless the guy tried to threaten his laptop.

A blond eyebrow curled upwards as the latest arrival pulled a ski mask out of all the possible items out of his pocket and over his head.
"Correct." He inclined his head in a sort of greeting the noted "You really are quite keen to keep your identity a secret, aren't you."

“It's more fun that way," Zaizen shrugged, shutting down his laptop. He had no real reason for keeping his identity a secret, besides the entertainment factor.That, and he wanted to 'introduce' himself in a memorable way.
"Were you looking for me?" he couldn't think of another reason why anyone else would be in such a spot.

"I was." Hiyoshi tipped his head to the side and gave the visible part of the mysterious Z a curious once over. About Kirihara's height and slender unlike many other internet geeks he didn't seem completely unfamiliar and he hazarded a guess. "Since you seem to think I would recognize you I imagine you're a tennis player?"

"Correct," Zaizen affirmed, putting his computer protectively in his backpack. "There's probably a fifty-fifty chance of you recognizing me," he admitted. "I'm not so well known around Kanto."

His journal already pretty much revealed that he was from Osaka and at least, was friends with Shitenhouji. "So why were you looking?"

"Curiosity." Watching Zaizen's computer disappear in his backpack Hiyoshi returned his attention back to the masked man's hidden face. "Do you still play?"

"Yeah," Zaizen said, standing in front of Hiyoshi. "I'm on the high school team." If Hiyoshi was asking, obviously the other still played tennis. "If I'm guessing correctly, you're in line for captain."

"I was this year’s captain." Hiyoshi's lips thinned for a moment as he thought about the team back in Tokyo while he was trapped here on the island. "Though I imagine they replaced me when we couldn't make it back in time." Forcing the frustration rising at the reminder of back down he nodded in the direction of the courts. "Do you want to play a match?"

"That makes sense," Hiyoshi had been in line for captain when they were at nationals together, it only made sense that things progressed. Zaizen didn't comment on the barely concealed frustration, as he understood those feelings quite well. That wasn't going to stop him from preying on that frustration during the match.

"Sure, I haven't played in awhile," most of the people worth playing with were gone.

"Did you bring your racket?" A lot of people hadn't, which amazed Hiyoshi, especially since most of them seemed to be part of the group that had not been on the cruise to begin with. "I can lend you one otherwise." He offered, before starting to head towards the path through the jungle leading towards the raised plateau. "Have you seen the courts yet?"

"Yeah," Zaizen said, pointing to the racket end sticking out of his backpack. He brought his racket because he figured that, eventually, he would be exposed and would want for something to do. As much as he loved World of Warcraft, there was only so long one could play. "They're on the highest point of the island, right?"

Really, the island could be much worse. All things considered, they were lucky to be in such a place.

"Right. It was the flattest bit they could find." Hiyoshi sighed with the memory of trying to motivate people to actually build shelters when all they had been interested in was creating the tennis courts while moving in that direction. "Do you have everything you need to manage on your own? If not we have some supplies that we moved over from the ship."

Zaizen nodded; considering the islands geography, he saw where it would be difficult to find enough flatland without removing any of the wildlife.

"Do you have batteries?" Zaizen asked, following Hiyoshi's lead to the area. "...And is the ship still there, or has it drifted off?"

If the ship was still there, he would definitely have to explore that as a resource.

"The ship is pretty much stuck on the sandbank we ran aground on. But it's dangerous to get there so you shouldn't go there unless you absolutely have to." Maybe it was Kirihara's influence or the short time spent as a captain that had Hiyoshi fall into lecture mode. "I don't think we have batteries but there are working generators if you need to charge your electronic appliances. Otherwise you can request somebody back home to send you some with the next airdrop which is how we have been receiving supplies so far."

Zaizen was definitely going to go there, regardless of what Hiyoshi said.

"Maybe I'll leech off the generators at night," he mused, he could charge up his electricity box for his laptop and have enough time to set up the net attachment for his laptop. "And once my mother hears how I got here, I doubt she will send me anything."

"So you can keep up with your stealthy ninja ways." Hiyoshi's lips twitched slightly. "Can I ask you why you decided to come here anyways?" God knew he would have given almost anything to be off of the island.

"Exactly," he smirked under his heavy facemask. "Things were kind of boring," though he would never admit he missed his friends, "So I came here for a story."

Both to make more of a story for himself and to watch the unfolding of everyone else's. "And yourself?"

"That sounds a lot like Oshitari-sempai's reasons." Turning his head the blond gave hiss mysterious companion a suspicious look. "You're not another Oshitari, are you? We already have two of those and that's at least one too many." As for the last question, Hiyoshi shrugged. "Atobe-sempai invited us to the cruise and it seemed like a good chance to play and defeat my sempai one last time, so I went."

Zaizen knew he definitely wasn't very much like the Oshitari on his team. Though he wasn't personally acquainted with Hyoutei's tensai, he doubted they had very much in common outside of their titles as geniuses. "Two is more than enough for one island," he snorted as they walked up the hill.

"So you were on the original cruise?"

Snorting softly Hiyoshi nodded in agreement "Two's more than enough for any place." Then a few moments later. "Yeah - half of the old team turned up later in some way or another though." He shrugged.

"One tennis player lures another I guess," Zaizen shrugged. Not even he seemed to be an exception to that rule. "After all, the best tennis in Japan is probably here."

It was a good note at which to arrive at the court. "Smooth or rough?"

"Smooth." Setting his bag down at the side one of the courts Hiyoshi unzipped it and withdrew his racket and after a moment of digging some not so worn tennis balls as well.

Zaizen removed his racket from his backpack and gave it a spin. The end came up smooth. "Your serve."

He settled on a side of the court and did a few easy stretches. Playing with a mask was not going to be fun, but he could manage all right.

Mirroring Zaizen on the other side Hiyoshi settled into position to serve. His plan was to start out strong to see what his opponent could do without giving his own techniques away just yet.

Zaizen met that strength easily with his own. They cruised the first few games in such a way, pushing at the borders of each other's strength, and gradually bringing forth their true tennis abilities to answer the challenge.

As the match went on, the level of tennis elevated beyond either of their expectations of each other. By the time the tiebreak came around, Zaizen was panting against his mask, spent. Still, he refused to just roll over and let Hiyoshi have an easy win.

Wiping the back of his hand over his forehead Hiyoshi smirked faintly. Playing tennis in the Japanese summer heat had been taxing at times but it was nothing compared to the sun beating down at them here, especially when one happened to be wearing a ski-mask. "You know, if you're feeling hot you can always take that off.”

"No way," Zaizen said, though he rolled up the mask enough to reveal his mouth so he could get a good, long breath. It was nice to not have his lip ring squished against the fabric either, since it hurt. "You'll just have to deal with me wearing it."

Despite his exhaustion, he managed to send a decent serve Hiyoshi's way.

"Your funeral." Hiyoshi shrugged nonchalantly though he noted the small hoop with curiosity. "It's not like I would tell anybody even if I recognized you.

"I like to start things the way I finish them," Zaizen said as they parried with the ball.

Zaizen managed to lose the tiebreak, but he found himself not particularly disappointed.

"Good game." Walking over to the net Hiyoshi offered the stranger his hand. "If you ever want to play again I'll be happy to."

Zaizen shook his hand, mouth twitched into a smirk. "I'll have to take you up on that," and maybe next time, he would rethink the ski mask. "I don't lose twice."

"We'll see about that." Hiyoshi smirked in return. "I usually go for a swim or bath after playing, if you fancy joining me?"

"Sure," Zaizen agreed. He could probably use a bath...though taking one with a ski mask would definitely be a first. Since he was all for interesting experiences, this wasn't an issue.

"Where do you usually go?" he imagined Hiyoshi knew the island far better than he did. Perhaps there were some specific areas good for bathing.

"There is a spot close to the camp where we usually bathe, but there's also a hot spring." Heading back to his bag Hiyoshi slipped the racket back inside. "Which would you prefer?

"The usual place is fine," he would overheat if he went to the hotspring in this state. "Maybe when I get around to taking my mask off, the hot springs will be better," he started packing his stuff in as well.

"Follow me then." Hiyoshi nodded and gestured for Zaizen to walk with him back towards the camp. "Do you want to get something to eat too?

"Nah, I'm all set. Had some cup noodles for breakfast," that would keep him set for a few hours. "If you want anything, I'll wait," he strolled along next to Hiyoshi.

Hiyoshi shook his head though he couldn't help making a face at the idea of noodles for breakfast. "I'm good, but if you don't mind we'll swing by the hut so I can pick up a change of clothes.

"That's fine," Zaizen had a change of clothes in his backpack, conveniently. Though he lacked a towel, he supposed he could make due with mother nature. "How long did it take you guys to build huts?"

"About a week." It was the longest Hiyoshi supposed a ragtag group like theirs could stay focused on any one task. "Though it's more like a work still in progress."

"Well it's warm," Zaizen shrugged. "So whatever holds out the rain is fine, right?"

Unless there was something else he needed to know about the island.

"Pretty much. Sometimes we get strong winds or a storm but so far nothing has been damaged beyond repair." Aside from Kirihara's attempt at a hut but then that wasn't really much of an example. "Are you planning on building one?

"Probably," Zaizen itched at his neck. "Right now I have a bit of a lean-to, and I figure that will do until typhoon season. Who knows if we'll be here that long."

For Zaizen, that would only be a few months. That would make it a full year for some of the island veterans.

"I'll see if I find anything useful on the ship."

"If you want I can give you a hand." Hiyoshi offered, remembering how strenuous it had been to build their hut for Kirihara and him. "If I've learned anything since coming here you shouldn't expect to leave any time soon.

"Don't worry, I never expect much of anything," Zaizen shrugged. He was a bit of a cynic by nature. "Though if you're offering, I'll take you up on that." He had no reason to turn down free help.

Perhaps Hiyoshi just wanted a reason to get away from his significant other for a few hours. From the comments, Zaizen couldn't exactly blame him.

"It's pretty much impossible to do on your own." Hiyoshi shrugged. "And I don't mind. We just finished building our own so I know my way around."

"I appreciate it," Zaizen said. "Just how far away is your hut, though?"

"We'll pass by it on the way anyways." Hiyoshi explained, diverging from the main path. "Didn't you take that picture there?"

"Hmm?" at first Zaizen wasn't sure which picture he was referring to. Then he realized, what other picture would Hiyoshi be thinking about than the one he was in.

"Yeah," he admitted. "From that shrub over there. Do you want the picture?"

"Didn't you delete it?" Hiyoshi asked after giving the shrub a misgiving look.

"From my blog, yes," he hummed. "But it's still on my computer."

Hiyoshi considered it for a long moment before finally nodding quietly. "I'll take it then."

"All right, I'll email it to you later," Zaizen promised. And he would certainly do so. At least Hiyoshi seemed to know better than demanding that he delete it all together.

"Thanks." Heading up the hill to the hut Hiyoshi climbed up and inside to grab some clean clothes before joining Zaizen again.

"No problem."

Zaizen waited against a tree for Hiyoshi to grab his stuff, and once he did, they were on their way again. Since he had no idea where they were going, Zaizen followed Hiyoshi.

Their way took them back toward the camp and then to the waterway winding it's way from the large pool toward the ocean. "Here." Reaching the spot designated as the bathing area Hiyoshi set his bag down.

"Looks good," he put down his bag near Hiyoshi's. He didn't want his laptop anywhere near the water. Taking off his clothes, he piled them on his backpack.

"Do you guys freeball it or go in with underwear?"

"Ah." Hiyoshi straightened from having pulled his shirt off. "Akaya and I usually don't bother with anything." He commented, feeling a bit awkward since Zaizen obviously wasn't his boyfriend. "Just go as you want."

"All right," Zaizen removed his boxers as well. He didn't want to bother with carrying a sopping wet pair of underwear afterwards. It was nothing Hiyoshi hadn't seen before.

He settled into the water and sighed with relief.

Following suite Hiyoshi removed his own underwear then slid into the water as well, mentally echoing the sigh. "It's good to wash up after a game.”

"Yeah, it's especially nice in freshwater," Zaizen had nothing but saltwater baths since he arrived on the island. Though it would be nice to wet his hair...

Oh fuck it.

He took off his ski mask and tossed it to his other stuff.

"Heh." Rubbing a wet hand over his shoulder Hiyoshi smirked at Zaizen. "I do know you."

"You won't tell anyone," Zaizen said. If Hiyoshi did, he could always put that picture back up.

The blond Hyoutei player shrugged. "Sure. If they can't figure it out it's their own fault."

"You didn't figure it out," Zaizen pointed out, "I took off my mask."

"It was pretty obvious that you're from Osaka." Hiyoshi shrugged and ducked his head under the water. "I just didn't know who."

"Considering I mentioned Shitenhouji and the title of my blog is Osaka Teen, it would be pretty difficult not to extrapolate that much," he splashed his face with water. After that tennis match with the ski mask, it was exactly what he needed

Another shrug was Zaizen's answer. "So are you hiding from your team ? I'm pretty sure most of the sempai around here wouldn't remember you anyways." Not that Zaizen wasn't a good player but the older players always seemed less than interested in those not in their own little circle. "Did you play in the nationals this year?

"Most of my team knows," Zaizen said. His entry probably made that obvious to anyone who paid attention; though, he didn't quite know what Chitose was thinking. Either way, he doubted his senpai would go out of the way to tell.

"I'm not really doing it for any particular reason," except perhaps to add interest for his blog and make spying more interesting. "Yeah, Shitenhouji made it to Nationals," they didn't make it too far, but they still made it.
"Did you play Hyoutei?" Pushing wet hair out of his face Hiyoshi stared intently at Zaizen.
"Yeah," Zaizen recollected, remembering the match up. "I won, but our team lost. Kintarou was pissed that he didn't get a chance to play."

He shook his head, "In the end, that random team won. More luck than anything else."

"Yeah..." Staring blindly ahead Hiyoshi nodded, remembering the shockwave the announcement of the results had wrought. "And...what about Rikkai?

"They made it pretty far," Zaizen tried to remember. "I didn't watch all the matches, to be honest."

He took the opportunity to do a little bit of exploring in the Tokyo area.

Ducking under the water, Zaizen scrubbed his hair with his fingers. "Your boyfriend wants to know, right?"

"Probably....yeah." Pouring soap into his palm Hiyoshi lathered up his arms and chest, stoutly denying the fact that he was flushing faintly at Kirihara being referred to as his boyfriend. "They came in second.

Hiyoshi's face went hot and his stance was so defensive that Zaizen had to chuckle. He almost wanted to say the word again to see if he could get his bathmate the same color as a tomato.

"Yeah, I saw a few of the matches," but he didn't really care who won. "Was he smug about it?"

"No." Rinsing the soap off Hiyoshi shook his head. "Second isn't good enough."

"Yeah, but his team made it farther than anyone else on the island's," Zaizen pointed out.

"I guess." That hadn't saved either of them from getting slapped by Sanada. "But I wonder if it would have made any difference if we had been there.

"I imagine it would," Zaizen hummed. "A team is led by its strongest players. Ability aside, morale was probably pretty low."

"Probably." Sinking lower into the water again Hiyoshi tried not to start brooding over being trapped on the island all over again. "Weren't you a second year too? Why did you leave so shortly before graduation?

Zaizen shrugged, "I was bored," he leaned against a rock. "High school is something I can finish online whenever I want anyway." Why abide by the laws of society when he could make up his own? "What are you gonna do? Just finish up when you go back?"

"If I can." Hiyoshi nodded. “I want to go to university and then take over our family dojo."

"That explains your tennis," Zaizen said, having noted the martial arts techniques employed by the hyoutei player.

"I tried playing a more conventional form but it's what I am most comfortable with." Hiyoshi nodded, remembering gratefully how Hyoutei's middle school coach had encouraged him not to try and change himself. "There are a few people here who practice martial arts actually.

"That makes sense," Zaizen said, stretching his arms over his head. He was surprised that it was already starting to get dark. "So you're saying I should watch who I insult?"

That didn't mean he would.

"It might be better." Not because of the true practioners of the art who would never attack an uniniated civilian but because there were those who had quite a temper on them. "Do you have an idea what you will be writing about next?

"Less fun that way," Zaizen was pretty good at hiding, and really had no fear of pain. "I'm thinking of writing about pets. For being stranded on an island, there's an awful lot of them."

"I know. First Echizen's cat then the quails, the bunnies and now the dogs." A little snort showed Hiyoshi's opinion on this topic. "It's a good thing there's only one woman or we'd have our hands full with pregnancies too." Maybe it was a part of being stuck on an island with little to do but play tennis and fool around.

Zaizen shook his head. "Pet: A Life or a Shiny New Toy. People see others with pets and want one of their own."

This wasn't true for everyone, but he figured it was the case in many situations. "...Aren't there three women?"

"Now. At first it was only Tachibana. Apparently she hid on the cruise as stowaway. The little girl only arrived last month and the last one..." Hiyoshi shrugged, "Who knows what is wrong with her to end up here."

"There's probably something wrong with most of the people here who ended up here of their own volition," Zaizen commented, even though that included himself. "And why the hell would she stowaway, that doesn't make any sense."

"I don't know." On the topic of Tachibana An Hiyoshi could only offer another shrug. "I suppose it was since she wasn't invited to come unlike her brother." And maybe out of her ridiculous need for attention that he found really rather irritating. "I know there is definitely something wrong with Oshitari-sempai. I can't vouch for the rest."

Zaizen still didn't really buy that. After all, they wouldn't have kicked her out in the middle of the ocean or anything. He could probably file her in with the crazies.

"Kenya-senpai's cousin," Zaizen assumed. "What's wrong with him?" Considering Kenya, it wasn't entirely surprising that the cousin was crazy.

"It's more a question of what isn't." Crossing his arms over his chest Hiyoshi scowled at the thought of his team-mate. "He is obsessed with cheap romance novels and chick flicks and spends all day getting drunk when he isn't propositioning most of the island in some way."

"Weird, but harmless enough," Zaizen had certainly dealt with worse. "As long as he doesn't proposition me, I'm all good."

Zaizen's stay away from me signals were usually loud and clear. He doubted he would have that trouble.

"He's anything but harmless." If possible the scowl on Hiyoshi's face grew even deeper. "He's the devil."

Zaizen raised a brow. "What'd he do to you?"

"What?!" Hiyoshi jumped like a scalded cat. "Nothing. He's done nothing to me." He hastened to correct Zaizen.

"Yeah....Sure," Zaizen chuckled. "If nothing makes you leap a foot into the air."

It was stupid but Hiyoshi still couldn't think of what happened without growing flustered. "It was stupid." He grumbled, moving back toward the river bank. "They said it was for my education.

"...Not sure I really want to know what that education was..." Zaizen looked away, a little bit embarrassed for Hiyoshi. "Just forget that I asked."

"Yeah." Hiyoshi was only too happy to agree. "Anyways I better get back for dinner now."

"All right," Zaizen figured he'd stay in the water for just a little bit longer. "Watch out for Oshitaris on the way there."

"Very funny." Rolling his eyes Hiyoshi climbed out of the water and dried himself off. "Let me know if you want to play again some time.

"I'll take you up on that," Zaizen said, a small smile tugging at his lip.

"Good." Shrugging into his clean clothes Hiyoshi nodded to Zaizen. "I'll see you then."

P.S.(ooc: Dear mods Zaizen needs a tag~♥)