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One look is all it takes for Narumi's mood to nosedive into the center of the earth.
No, he's not being dramatic, and yes, it really is that big of a deal.
He could recognize that shiny bowl cut anywhere. There's Hoshina on the other side of the room, striding in through the doors of the First Division's base like he owns the place. He waves at Narumi with a smile—all lips, no teeth. Forcibly friendly; effortlessly annoying. There isn't a single ounce of sincerity in those eyes of his.
It's an understatement to say the man irritates him, but his reasons for disliking Hoshina aren't as shallow as losing to him in the small kaiju category. Narumi's not that petty.
No, he dislikes him because Hoshina's annoying, and he's frustrating, and he has a punchable face, a stupid bowl cut and a too-smug grin and he's shady and unlikable. False niceties behind a pleasant mask, refined like it'd kill him to be forthright for once. See? His dislike is wholly justifiable. Nothing petty about it. He groans and glares all the while Hoshina walks right up to his face.
"Captain Narumi," he says, all polite and gross, "how nice to see you."
Unlike Hoshina, Narumi says exactly what he's thinking. "Get out."
A small chuckle. "Y'know I can't do that. Wasn't my choice, but we need to stay here until the Tachikawa Base finishes its repairs—higher-ups' orders."
Narumi knows this already. Something about a week-long, joint training bootcamp with the First and Third Divisions in the meantime. Absolute bullshit.
“I don't care. I don't want to see you, get out. Why'd they send you instead of Ashido?"
Hoshina's gaze sharpens. "Captain Ashido, you mean. She had other matters to take care of. Not everyone can afford to be as careless and free-spirited as you, unfortunately."
Narumi takes a step forward, his fist hovering. "What'd you say? You picking a fight right now?"
He stares Hoshina down, watchful of any sudden movements when a weight comes crashing down on his head from behind.
"Don't disrespect your fellow captain like that."
Enter another annoyance: Hasegawa.
Damn. His hand's so heavy he's practically bowing. Narumi hurriedly shakes him off, turns to face him. "We're the same rank, why does it even matter? And speaking of rank, I'm higher than you, Hasegawa! I'm your captain, so why are you disrespecting me?!"
Hasegawa chops his head, and this time, it actually hurts. “Then act like one instead of behaving like a delinquent child. You really haven't changed at all from your teenage years.”
Hasegawa moves past him to give Hoshina a familiar pat on the shoulder. "Follow me," he says, and Narumi scowls as the Third Division invades his base like little ants.
• • •
They're in the training hall, the First and Third Divisions both, officers lined up in orderly rows as Hoshina and Narumi lead at the front. Hoshina looks way too comfortable standing there, relaxed like he actually has the right to be here. It pisses Narumi off.
Calm and composed, Hoshina says: "Everyone, we're startin' with some forward lunges. Gotta get your bodies properly warmed up. Take a step forward with your right leg, bend your knees. Hold it for five: one, two, three..."
Narumi eyes Hoshina as he models the stretching exercise. He's all clean lines and stability, muscles flexed taut. He looks so lean under all their protective gear usually but in just his skin-tight black shirt and pants, it's apparent how well-defined his muscles are. Toned core, toned arms, toned legs. It's a body cut from countless hours of rigorous practice.
So Hoshina's not as lanky as he thought he was. Whatever. They're both commanding officers, being strong is the bare minimum anyway.
"...four, five. Good, switch legs. One, two, three..."
Hoshina stops counting, says: "Kafka. Put your hands on your hips, don't go losin' your balance now."
Narumi's officer sheepishly laughs before obeying orders, and his fledgeling apprentice Shinomiya voices some snippy remark he doesn't hear because Narumi isn't listening.
This is his base, with his officers, in his practice room. Who does Hoshina think he is barking commands like he owns the place?
Narumi clears his throat. “Kafka! Hands straight out. Everyone else, arms to the sky. I want those arms pencil-straight, you hear me! Pencil! Straight! Keep lunging with your legs!”
There's a sea of silence before the shuffling of clothes comes in waves as reluctance turns to obedience. The First Division lingers behind the Third Division, their movements slow and unsure in comparison. Why the hesitation in the first place? Because Narumi hardly ever runs training sessions. That's a job reserved for Hasegawa, on Narumi's behalf, because why should Narumi have to oversee something so boring?
Hasegawa, clearly baffled, watches from the sidelines before stepping into position and stretching his arms out.
With everyone following his commands, Narumi glances in Hoshina’s direction, hoping to savor his annoyed expression but the man looks... completely unbothered, just following his orders nonchalantly. His stretching form is immaculate.
“Now, arms to the floor! Aim for your toes!”
The tips of Narumi’s fingers dangle just above his feet as his arms hang slack. He turns to look at Hoshina whose fingers are touching the ground, hands even reaching behind his feet for an extended stretch. His body's shaped like an I while Narumi must look like an upside down U. What the hell?
“You’re not very flexible, huh?” Hoshina says when their eyes meet.
Those are fighting words, easy bait. He throws in the hook and Narumi snatches it up like a starving, inundated fish.
“What? I’m the most flexible in this room!”
Hoshina rises to a standing position with a knowing smile. “Are ya now? Then let’s test that.”
• • •
It hurts. Burns. Fuck Hoshina Soushirou. The asshole's pushing him on his back, trying to make him stretch farther. Narumi's fingers have already passed his toes and he has to bite down on his lip to suppress any groans because like hell he'd let Hoshina have the satisfaction of knowing how much he's struggling.
Lithe little fucker. If this were a test of pure physical strength Narumi would come out on top and snap Hoshina right in half. But there's a stupid amount of grace to Hoshina despite his toned physique, and flexibility is just one of those areas where he unfortunately has Narumi beat.
Not that he'd ever admit that aloud, though.
Narumi bets Hoshina has that plastic, shit-eating grin on his face right now, eyes all crinkled like crescent moons. His fingers are digging into his shoulders and it has to be on purpose because Narumi doesn't like Hoshina, Hoshina doesn't like him. It's an uncontested fact, like cats and dogs and their inevitable rivalries.
But back to the stretching.
His calves and hamstrings feel like they're on fire. The tip of his nose hovers just above his leg, his back completely hunched over. So much for snapping Hoshina in half; Narumi's the one bent over at Hoshina's mercy. The air conditioning's cranked to max, cold air blowing hair away from his face and yet his skin feels glued to the rubber mat below him, all sticky with sweat. His legs are shaking, crying for relief. He hopes his upper body is doing a decent job of shielding the sight from Hoshina's prying eyes.
Fuck. Okay, so maybe it was stupid of him to claim to be the most flexible person in the room. That's obviously not true, wouldn't have been true even if Hoshina had walked out, but what else was Narumi supposed to say when provoked like that? It isn't his fault. It's all because of that damned bowl cut and his terrible personality.
Beads of sweat are dribbling down his face. They fall past his eyes, land around his mouth and Narumi licks his lips, tasting the salty aftermath of his hard work and effort. He squeezes his eyes shut and tries to focus on anything other than the pulsating pain.
Breathe in, breathe out. Try not to quiver. Fail at it.
Feel the cold breeze hitting your skin. Pretend your legs aren't burning. Fail at it.
Count to ten. One daikaiju, two daikaiju, three daikaiju, four...
"You're not cryin', are ya, Captain?"
He opens his eyes to find himself face-to-face with Hoshina. The tension leaves his legs like a popped balloon as he leans back.
Narumi wipes his face. "No. It's just sweat." Fucker.
Hoshina rests his back against the wall, surveying the troops. Narumi's a little ways ahead, resuming his position in the front and center as he commands yet another round of exercises. From behind him Hoshina can see the sweat clinging to his neck, strands of hair slicked to his skin.
He sure is working hard today.
The training session's been running for over an hour already and they still haven't finished warming up. He can see the boredom and tiredness oozing on the soldiers' faces, some of them being so overt as to drift their eyes towards the clock on the back wall. The smarter ones merely peek at their watches.
That isn't to say all of them are slacking.
There's Kafka in the front row, hardworking as always. Shinomiya, too. That passion to improve is always such a sight to behold, burning bright and furious. Shinomiya runs like a well-oiled machine while Kafka sputters, stutters at times, but never stops; stubborn and hardheaded is what he is. Hoshina can't help but find it endearing.
His own soldiers in the Third Division are also keeping up, particularly Izumo and Kaguragi. The rivalry between those two seems to keep them motivated. He'll have to keep an eye on them and reignite the flames if it ever fizzles out.
A little friendly competition never hurt anyone, after all. Keeps everyone sharp and on their toes. It seems to be especially effective on a certain Narumi Gen.
Some bickering and Narumi's already acting more like a captain than he has in months. Hoshina could tell from the hesitance flocking the First Division, like they're not used to Narumi leading. Looks like Hasegawa gets a break for once.
Hoshina wouldn't have believed they were around the same age if Narumi's combat prowess didn't reveal his years of experience. Not that he didn't start off as a prodigy, anyway. Hoshina's heard the story before: a seventeen-year-old civilian with no prior combat training, neutralizing a kaiju like it was nothing. Narumi has only grown more monstrous since then.
He's heard the other stories, too, like how Narumi was tossed around different divisions, on the verge of being discharged. Somehow he remained on the forces and secured himself as the Captain of the First Division.
He must have been persistent. Deathly headstrong. They're not so different on that front; Hoshina can't hate him for that—never has.
So when he teases Narumi, it isn't out of a place of hatred.
No, he just does it because it's fun. Isn't that plenty reason enough?
Hoshina smiles to himself before drinking a large swig of water. And if he's thirsty, he can only imagine the state of the troops. No better time for a break than now.
He brings his hands together and claps loudly. "Alright, take a five minute break. I want all of you back here by 8:52."
Unsurprisingly, Narumi seems to take issue with that. He storms towards Hoshina, eyes blazing. "What? Who gave you the right to hand out breaks?" He whips his head back around to face the troops. "Don't leave, we're continuing the training. Anyone who leaves right now shouldn't even think about coming back because you'll be dismissed on the spot once you exit those doors."
The few soldiers heading towards the doorway halt immediately. Silence and a tangible, sticky tension fill the room, muggy like the air before a thunderstorm.
"That only applies to the First Division. The Third Division doesn't stand by your orders, they stand by mine," Hoshina says. He makes eye contact with each and every one of his officers. "Third Division, take your break. When you get back, I better not hear any complaints or it's five laps for everyone."
It happens so quickly Hoshina feels it before he sees it.
The rush of wind blowing past his face, a sharp, explosive crack tearing through the room like a lightning bolt. The initial jolt of impact, and then the wall trembling behind him as aftershocks run from his head to his shoulders, leaving his arms tingly. His ears ring.
"You're getting real fucking cocky," Narumi snarls.
Hoshina glances at the foot beside his face. Narumi had just kicked the wall.
He's getting a little too worked up. If these walls weren't reinforced with titanium, Narumi could have shattered it.
Best course of action? De-escalate the situation, naturally.
But instead, Hoshina grabs Narumi by the ankle. "Tryin' to continue our flexibility test, I see." He raises his leg higher, intensifying the stretch and angle. Narumi groans, reaches his hand out towards the wall to maintain balance.
Hoshina smiles. "Hurts a little?"
"No," Narumi grits out, "doesn't hurt at all."
Right, right. Very convincing. Hoshina can even feel Narumi's leg twitching.