Hoshikita was once again rowing along on the high seas, having finished his two days of leave on Karate Island he was making the distant journey back to Base Seventeen. The skies were clear and sunny, which was a blessing. Tumultuous waters could mean death for a lone marine in a row boat, but such were the troubles of a world comprised entirely of islands and Hoshikita merely hoped that the fates would be gracious enough to deliver him safely. His long legs were stretched out in the small rowboat, and he rowed steadily along through the calm waters of the South Blue that gently rocked him back and forth as he pushed onward. It would be some time before he'd be able to reach the base, but Hoshikita had already made the row once before, so he wasn't too worried about the return trip. He whistled a cheerful tune to himself as he continued going through the motions and pushing his boat through the placid waters for another hour or so before he decided to allow himself a short rest. He had procured a couple of bottles of fine Karate Island Sake on the final day of his leave, and he had been intending to give one as a gift to the commander while keeping one hidden for himself to enjoy on special occasions.

Despite his original intention of saving the bottle for auspicious events, the temptation of the sake was too great and Hoshikita pulled one of the bottles out from under the seat of his rowboat. He then worked away at the cork of the bottle with his fingers until he heard the audible pop of the tiny blockage freeing itself from the neck of the bottle. The young lieutenant then brought the nape of the glass up to his nose and allowed the potent vapors to singe his nostrils and tease his sense of taste. Hoshikita was a lover of liquor, and as a military man he didn't get to enjoy it very often. This would likely be his last chance in a while to enjoy the dizzying pleasure of drink and he wished to truly savor it. He breathed in the salty air of the sea and let out a loud and forced sigh towards the lazily drifting clouds above him as he shook the bottle slightly and listened bemusedly to the liquid sloshing around. He then brought the bottle up and took a small swig, swishing the burning substance around in his mouth in a moment before swallowing and allowing it to fall into his gut. The warm and tingling feeling pulsated through his belly and he savored the bitter taste as it persisted on his tongue. As he allowed that first swig to move through him and seep into his blood, Hoshikita looked off into the vast oceans.

There was blue as far as the eye could see in every direction but one, where a small black dot on the horizon seemed to be approaching.The young marine strained to see what that small dot in the distance could be. As it drew closer to him he thought that he could make out another rowboat in the distance, and he thought to himself of what a coincidence it was that someone would be rowing about in the same patch of South Blue as him. Still, he hadn't finished his break yet, and while he would likely call out if the boat passed nearby, he would make no effort to reach out to it himself.

As the figure in the distance drew closer, Hoshikita realized that while he was certainly closing distance between the two of them, his boat was moving rather erratically and slower than one would normally think. The young lieutenant took another sip of his drink as he waited for the boat to get closer so he could ascertain the reason for it's strange movements. He certainly hoped that there weren't any sea kings to be escaping right now, or any other manner of heinous sea creature that could easily spell the end for a lone rower out in the Blues. For a moment, he thought about capping the bottle and grabbing his own oars to try and find another spot to rest, but it was then that he ascertained the answer to his question. The man was moving so strangely in his boat because he wasn't using two oars; in fact, he wasn't even using one oar. He was using some sort of great sword to try and push himself through the water, and upon realizing this, Hoshikita couldn't help but laugh out loud. The ridiculousness of a man paddling through the ocean with his sword was just too humorous to ignore, and Hoshikita continued to laugh until the man approached close enough to ask for help, and then for around half a minute after that.

Wiping a tear from his eye, Hoshikita looked up at the man asking for assistance. The young Marine wasn't exactly sure what sort of assistance he could offer him so he figured the best thing to do was ask. "Well, I don't have any extra paddles if that's what you're asking. Did you want a ride, or just a drink or something?" Hoshikita asked genuinely curious, holding up the bottle of sake to emphasize what he meant by drink. On the Blue, water was more precious than liquor and he certainly didn't have any of that to share. He was also willing to give the man a ride, but he was still heading back to Base Seventeen, so the man would have to figure out his own way from there if that was the case. Regardless, Hoshikita didn't think the man was getting far with a boat and a sword.

After ascertaining that the man wanted neither a ride nor a drink, Hoshikita headed back to Base Seventeen and could only hope that the guy would be alright.