Disclaimer: Hikaru No Go belongs to Hotta Yumi, Obata Takeshi & Co. In other words, I don't own it, otherwise Hikaru would finally win an international tournament…

Title: One Day with Them (a.k.a. In Which He Deals with Being Stuck in the Same Place as Those Juvenile Pros)

Warning: Contains mild spoilers up to Volume 21, mainly the appearance of a new character. Also includes possible OOCs and copious uses of exclamation marks, capital letters and arguments that start out intellectual but quickly descend into juvenile fights.

Summary: Amidst the games and disputes, Yashiro contemplates Go, his teammates and the possibility that such a friendship, strange as it is, exists (a.k.a. how they can argue over nearly every single move).

Inspired By: Chapter 172's extremely amusing opening page, especially the comments, as well as the verbal fights in Episode 75 and the 2004 special.

It was the third argument within an hour since the trio started training, and frankly Yashiro Kiyoharu was ready to pummel both their heads with his brand-new fan.

["How can you call that brilliant? If I'd move my piece here, your plans would have gone up in smoke!"

"No it wouldn't, I would have switched to here instead!"

"Then I would have gone into this territory instead!"]

They, in this case, referred to two of Tokyo's numerous up-and-coming pros, Touya Akira and Shindou Hikaru.

["Who would play tengen in response to that hand?!"

"I would! Anyway, your approach triggered my trap instead of defending that cluster!"

"I'll have you know that I got it back along with a part of that!"]

They also, in this case, referred to two of the most immature teens he'd ever had the (unfortunate) pleasure of meeting.

'Honestly… I'd expected some disagreements, but nothing of this scale! What's with these two quarreling during every post-game discussion?'

Nevertheless, Yashiro had to admit that they were two of the most unique people he had ever met.

The white-haired pro took a fleeting look at the player on his left. 'Shindou Hikaru… what an enigma.' Indeed, dressed in a plain yellow T-shirt and blue jeans, the blond-and-black-haired boy seemed every inch the typical high-school student at first glance, complete with a penchant for being late and getting lost. Then again, his looks were deceiving; beneath that normal exterior lay the mind of a genius, astute, brilliant and cunning. Also, unlike other pros, Shindou dared to play novel and unconventional hands on a whim, as evidenced by Yashiro's own pre-Hokuto game against him ('Really, tengen in response to 5-5? Who would have thought?'), and was famous for reading far, far ahead as well as winning matches via coming-from-behind and/or setting major mistakes that, more often than not, turned out to be deep, vital traps.

'I can't believe someone like him exists… He started three years after I did, coming from out-of-nowhere, and yet he plays so well! What's more, he has no public mentor! … Though I don't understand his obsession with defeating Ko Yong-ha and his weird rivalry-cum-friendship with Touya…' The Kansai pro shot a glance towards the player on his right now, his train of thoughts still running deep in contemplation.

Touya Akira, on the other hand… Well, it wouldn't be wrong to state (metaphorically, of course) that the green-haired boy practically lived and breathed Go; he was the only son of a now-retired Meijin and had been training and playing since he was old enough to walk (or so the rumours go). Having entered the pros at the tender age of fourteen, he had been, and still is, hailed as a Go prodigy of the highest calibre, intimidating both the younger and older generations, and yet… to think that he would look back for a fitting rival instead of just chasing the older and obviously more experienced pros…

'There're rumours that state his rivalry with Shindou started even before he went pro. Seeing them now, I most definitely believe the rivalry stuff, but to think that Touya spotted Shindou's talent in his insei days… Huh. All this thinking is giving me one heck of a headache.'

However, Yashiro was also pretty sure he'd heard somewhere before that the son of the ex-Meijin, although too straightforward, was generally a well-mannered, immaturely dressed and reserved gentleman; simply put, a perfect model of how a pro should act.

Supposedly.

Yeah right! He'd bet 10,000 yen that had whoever said that seen the way Touya was acting now (a.k.a. yelling at what seemed to be the highest possible decimals ever reached by a human voice), they'd promptly let their jaws drop open in shock before revising their opinions while simultaneously fleeing far, far away.…

And they were still arguing. Over the same game. For the third time. Don't those two ever stop?! Argh!!

"What about that nozoki? You didn't even notice that!"

"But you missed my kakari in that corner too! Besides, how many times have you said "Souka" already? Six, seven times?!"

"So? You've said the same thing FIVE times, Touya! FIVE TIMES!"

"I DID NOT SAY THAT FIVE TIMES!"

"DID TOO!"

"DID NOT!"

"DID TOO!"

"DID NOT!"

"DID T—Forget it, I'm not gonna take anymore of this!"

Ah, it's finally over, Yashiro noted as Shindou abruptly stood up and stomped out of the room. Finally, some peace…

"Shindou, if you're headed to the kitchen at least take the kettle with you and get hot water!"

What the--? … I guess Touya's more tired than he looks, if he's acting like this…

The door slammed open once more, revealing a furious (and tired, not that he'll ever admit it) semi-blonde ready to blow. "WHAT THE HELL DID YOU JUST SAY, TOUYA?!"

"You heard me!"

"If you want hot water so much, why don't you go get it yourself?!"

"I just went an hour ago and Yashiro went before that!"

"But I don't know where the kitchen is!"

"DIDN'T I JUST SHOW YOU WHERE IT WAS?! HOW CAN YOU FORGET THAT FAST?!"

Yashiro groaned inaudibly as both pros started yet another round of yelling into each other's faces. Here we go again…

"Admit it, my idea to play a tsugi there was better than yours!"

"You can't play there!"

"Yes I can! Look, I would have gone on with this, then you'd have lost that cluster!"

"Not if I do this! There goes your brilliant idea!"

"You won't call that a good alternative? Give it up Touya!"

"Certainly not!"

A friendship based on fighting? Why do I get to find this out the hard way? Closing his eyes in an attempt to block out the noise and grab forty winks, Yashiro muttered under his breath:

"You've gotta be kidding me. Are these two for real?"