That night, Hinata found a moment with Tanaka-senpai in the mess hall. The noise of the sailors downing their rations was overwhelming, and Hinata was not at all afraid of being overheard as he beckoned his senpai over to the wall so they could talk. Tanaka went with him willingly, busily stuffing his cheeks full of overcooked rice topped with vegetables and meat that had somehow all become lumpy and gray in the pot.

"What's troubling you, Hinata-chan?" Tanaka asked through his mouthful of food. "You look fair sick with worry. Did something happen?"

Hinata nodded. He clasped his hands together and looked over the crowd, but he couldn't see Billy Hanson and his companions. Yamaguchi sat in a corner not far away, shoulders hunched as he bent over his food. After Hinata spoke to Tanaka, they would both go and sit with him. Hinata didn't like leaving him alone even for a moment. He would have to make this quick.

He looked into his senpai's face. Tanaka looked back at him, kind and attentive, but there was none of the urgency, none of the gravity, that Hinata felt in his own heart. This situation was very serious, and Tanaka's casual expression did nothing to calm him.

"Tanaka-senpai, do you know who Billy Hanson is?"

At the grave tone of Hinata's voice, Tanaka's eyes flashed. He stood straighter in response, then finished chewing the food in his mouth and did not take another bite. It was possible that Tanaka had never heard Hinata speak in such a tone before—even when he was tired and discouraged, there was always a hint of cheer and light-heartedness in his voice. But not now.

Tanaka nodded. "Aye, Billy Hanson is known to me. When he and his two friends were conscripted two years ago, I offered to help them, but they wanted nothing to do with me. They did not want a senpai, preferring their own company. I let them be."

"Did you know they were bullies?"

Tanaka narrowed his eyes. "They were never kind. Even to each other. But I never saw them harass anyone. Did they do something to ya?"

Hinata shook his head. "Not to me. I'm fine. But Billy Hanson has been saying cruel things to Yamaguchi. I think he used to do the same when they knew each other in Karasuno, too. And now they're both aboard the Swan, it's started up again."

Now Tanaka's face was as serious and focused as Hinata could have asked for. "What did he say to Yama-chan?"

"He called him a wimp." Hinata felt the heat rise in his face again, just as the outrage rose in his heart. It was all so absurd, so unnecessary. He didn't understand why anyone would feel a need to cut others down with their tongue, but it made even less sense when it was about Yamaguchi, who was kind and smart and brave and the truest shipmate anyone could want. "He said he was scrawny and worthless, and he made fun of his appearance, too." Hinata's hands clenched into fists. "What can I do, Tanaka-senpai? I can't let that go on!"

Tanaka watched him closely. "And was that all? Billy Hanson didn't say anything against you, Hinata? Just Yamaguchi?"

Hinata blinked, drawing back on his heel. "N-no..." He had to struggle to think back on those moments, to remember if anything like that had happened. "Well, I suppose, because I was standing with Yamaguchi, Billy Hanson didn't much like me either. But he didn't do anything to me."

Tanaka's mouth twisted in a crooked smile. "That's interesting, it is. Because, ya know, Yamaguchi talked to me before you did." He tilted his head toward their friend, though his eyes remained fixed on Hinata. "And he said that Billy Hanson had threatened to throw you overboard. He asked me what he could do to make sure nothing like that ever happened."

"Oh." Hinata blinked. He'd been so focused on helping Yamaguchi, on seeking Tanaka's advice for dealing with the entire intolerable situation, that he'd completely forgotten that part. "Oh, aye, he did say that."

Tanaka's gaze did not waver from his face. He was utterly serious, now. "Billy Hanson is a problem, he is. I can't have him threatening my kouhai. When Yamaguchi told me that, I thought perhaps he'd misjudged the situation, seeing as how poor Yama-chan does tend to get overwrought at times. But now you're giving me the same news, and I can't dismiss both of ya. I shouldn't have dismissed the first telling, either."

Hinata let out a breath, immensely relieved and gratified. The hands he'd held clenched into fists released. "Aye, he frightened us both. What should we do? I've never had to deal with bullies before."

Tanaka frowned. He looked away from Hinata, eyes sharp and narrowed, sweeping over the gathered crew. "What should ya do? Nothing, that's what. I'll take care of this."

He pushed his half-finished bowl into Hinata's hands and started away from the wall, bent forward like a predator on the hunt. Hinata stood stunned for a moment, then slammed the wooden bowl down on the nearest surface and hurried after him. "Tanaka-senpai, no!"

He grabbed Tanaka's arm as it swung back, and Tanaka halted. He turned back to look at Hinata, his eyes flashing fire. Hinata caught his breath, but his grip on Tanaka's arm only tightened.

"What?" Tanaka forced out through gritted teeth. "If you're really going to try to stop me from having words with that guttersnipe..."

"Tanaka-senpai, please." Hinata squeezed Tanaka's arm. "Don't. If you talk to him now, in the middle of the mess while everyone is watching, you're the one who's going to seem like a bully. You're angry, and it means a lot to me, it does, but you can't talk to Billy right now. Not while you're like this. Yamaguchi won't like it if you get into trouble on his account, and neither will I."

Tanaka went still at that, his shoulders rigid, his back bowed and stiff. Then he straightened, slow and careful, and turned to face Hinata again. His face was a wooden mask of anger, and his teeth were clenched, but a semblance of control had returned to his eyes. "Aye, you may be right. It would be better to catch him in some quiet corner and have a word with him then. I'll be able to say what I need to with no chance of interference."

Hinata's grip on Tanaka's arm lightened, but he didn't let him go. He couldn't shake the feeling that this wouldn't fix anything, but he couldn't figure out why. "That might help..." he said slowly. "At least for a time..."

Tanaka watched him. "What's the matter, little shipmate?" he asked, low and rumbling. "Don't ya believe that your senpai can protect ya?"

Hinata wavered, grimacing. "Of course I do! But..."

"But it's not a true solution to the problem."

Yamaguchi's voice. He stood next to them, holding Tanaka's abandoned food balanced gently in his palms. He held it up with a small bow, and Tanaka's eyes softened the rest of the way as he took the bowl back with one hand and ruffled Yamaguchi's hair with the other.

"I'm sorry I didn't take ya seriously earlier, Yama-chan," he said. "Now, what's troubling your little head? Doncha want I should speak to Billy Hanson for ya?"

Yamaguchi hesitated, then shook his head, wide-eyed and tense. "Nay, you can't do that. Billy mocked me for a wimp and weakling, he did. If you step in for us, he might leave us be for a time, but it won't change anything. He'll just think I'm even more of a worthless coward, needing an older sailor to fight my battles for me."

Hinata could not have been prouder. That was exactly the problem that had been prickling at the edge of his brain, but he hadn't been able to form it into words. Yamaguchi had been able to say exactly what needed to be said without any struggle or any preparation beforehand. He truly was the smartest person Hinata had ever met.

"Hnh." Tanaka shoveled food into his mouth and chewed in contemplation, his eyes deep and far away. He nodded toward a stool against a wall. "Let's rest a bit and talk this through, aye?"

Yamaguchi nodded, then moved off to fetch his and Hinata's food. The three of them went to the stool, Tanaka sitting while Hinata knelt on the floor, Yamaguchi cross-legged beside him. They took a few moments to eat, to calm down and gather their thoughts. The food was the same bland, limp, mushy fare as usual, but Hinata always ate with gusto. Tonight was no exception.

Finally, Tanaka tucked his chopsticks away in a pocket of his vest and leaned forward, his elbows on his knees as he looked into the faces of his kouhai. "Now," he said, his voice calm once more, the kind-hearted teller of tales and singer of songs who soothed them into rest each night. "What are we to do about Billy Hanson?"

Hinata and Yamaguchi looked at each other for moment, then back to Tanaka. They shrugged in tandem. This was why they had both come to Tanaka for advice: they didn't know what to do.

"Hmm." Tanaka's eyes narrowed in thought as he looked between them. After a moment, he focused on Yamaguchi. "Yama-chan, Hinata said that you knew Billy in Karasuno. What happened then? Did he bully you? How did you deal with him?"

Yamaguchi shifted where he sat. His chopsticks lowered toward his bowl, and he gulped against a sudden tide of nausea, staring at the deck again. "It seems...so long ago..."

Hinata scooted closer and pressed his shoulder to Yamaguchi's. "Aye, was it? How old were you?"

Yamaguchi's shoulder lifted in a shrug. "Seven? Eight? We were in elementary school. Billy Hanson and his friends used to corner me in the schoolyard during recess. They pushed me around and made me carry their things, and they said I was scrawny and...and pimply...and...and all..."

Hinata leaned into his side, straining to hear Yamaguchi's voice as it fell quieter and quieter. "Didn't your big brothers stick up for you? If I'd been your brother and I'd been there, I woulda busted their noses!"

Yamaguchi shook his head and seemed to sink even further into himself. "My brothers didn't notice. I didn't think anyone noticed." He looked up, a spark brightening his eyes. "But someone did. Someone I didn't know, who didn't know me. Someone who had no reason to notice or care, but somehow he did anyway."

Hinata stared into his face, mouth hanging open. He was fully drawn into the story now, hanging on every word. "Who was it?" he asked, hushed and intent.

"Your friend?" Tanaka asked gently.

"Aye." Yamaguchi nodded. He met Hinata's eyes. "Tsukki. He noticed. I don't know why. But he stepped in. He laughed, and maybe he was laughing at me as well as at Billy Hanson and his mates, but it didn't matter. He was tall and strong and bright as a new penny. Billy tried to rile him up, but Tsukki wouldn't be riled. He just stood there and laughed, cool as a cloud, high above and all."

Hinata gaped. If only he'd been there! He would have stood by Tsukki's side and defended Yamaguchi from those bullies. It would have been grand.

"And then what happened?" Tanaka asked.

Yamaguchi looked up and met his eyes. "Billy got spooked. I don't know quite what Tsukki did or said, or maybe it was just the look in his eyes. But all at once Billy shuddered like someone had walked over his grave, and he backed down. His friends went with him. They walked out of the schoolyard, never glancing back. And Tsukki turned around and went back to class. We didn't truly become friends until later, he and I, and I never knew if he even remembered that day, or cared what he'd done. But it meant the world to me, it did. The world and all."

"Did Billy ever trouble you again?" Hinata asked.

Yamaguchi shook his head. "Those three...they stopped coming to school. I only ever saw them out and about town once in a while, and that always at a distance. Maybe it was because I was usually walking with Tsukki, or sitting by him, but they never came near me more. Not that I minded and all. I was grateful to be rid of them."

"Uwaah," Hinata murmured, overcome by the wonder of this tale. What grand friends Tsukki and Yamaguchi had been! All at once, he understood the great grief in Yamaguchi's eyes when he spoke of his lost buddy and the times they used to spend together. An ache took up residence in his chest on the behalf of his shipmate.

What a shame, to lose such a boon companion. Hinata would have to try harder to make up for this lack in Yamaguchi's life. He couldn't replace such a marvelous person as Tsukki, but he would try his best. Yamaguchi would never lack for companionship as long as he was around.

Tanaka nodded, slow and calm, at the finish of this tale. "Well, it's glad I am that your school life was not ruined by those scoundrels, Yama-chan. But I don't see many clues in that story for how to end the current fix we're in."

Yamaguchi raised his head and met Tanaka's eyes. "We?"

Tanaka nodded as if this was very, very obvious. "Aye, the three of us together. Ya didn't think me and Hinata would leave you alone with those arse-wipes, did ya?"

Yamaguchi hesitated. But then he shook his head. His pulled his knees up to his chest and wrapped his arms around them, staring at the deck again. "I suppose I didn't think at all."

"Well, it's time ya did, then." Tanaka patted his head, making his messy hair stand up all over the place.

Hinata sat up straight. "Aye, Tanaka-senpai, what did you mean by 'clues?' What were you hoping to hear in Yamaguchi's story?"

Tanaka paused, tilting his head thoughtfully. "Well, and I don't truly know, little shipmate. I suppose I hoped that what worked before might work again. But here it seems that Yama-chan's friend, this Tsukki person, was able to scare the bilge rats off for good. A ship is smaller than a town. There's no way we can avoid that poxy Billy Hanson and his mates forever. I can try to scare them away for ya, but it's true that it won't work for long. And much as I want to, I can't be by your side at all hours. They'll be worse than ever if they catch you alone and think they have the upper hand just because I'm not there."

Yamaguchi squeezed his knees closer to his chest. Hinata gusted out a sigh and fell backward on the deck, catching himself on his elbows. "Oi, it's all so maddening! Why do we have to fight with them? Why can't they just understand that Yamaguchi is an amazing person and be friends with us instead?"

"Ah, not everyone is as smart as we are, Hinata-chan," Tanaka said sadly. "The two of us can see Yama-chan's worth, and truly does it take a dullard to miss it, he shines so brightly. But it seems that those bully-boys are the dullest of the dull, and there's naught we can do to mend them. We have to deal with the world as it is, not as we wish it to be."

Hinata held still for a moment, contemplating the philosophy in this. "Aye, Tanaka-senpai. You are a wise man."

Tanaka nodded, accepting this praise as his due.

"But if we can't make friends with Billy Hanson, what are we to do?" Hinata asked. "Will we have to fight them?"

"Aye, I suppose ya will." Tanaka's voice was regretful, but no less certain for that. "We can't let them keep hurting Yamaguchi's feelings and threatening to murder you. If fighting is the only way, then that's what we must do."

Hinata kicked his foot at Tanaka in warning. "But not you! You're a gunner, a gunner on the fo'c'sle, so you must be above reproach! You can't fight a powder boy. It will have to be me and Yamaguchi who do it. We have to take care of ourselves." He looked to his friend, his eyes bright and sparkling.

Yamaguchi blew out a breath and pressed his face against his knees. "I don't want to fight," he said softly. "I was never any good at it. I don't have the constitution and all."

Hinata rolled over onto his hands and knees and scooted forward to look his friend's face. "Don't make light of yourself, Yamaguchi-san! You're brave, I know it! You can fight if you have to, and you'll win, too!"

Yamaguchi shook his head, tucking into himself even harder.

"Aye, Hinata speaks true," Tanaka said. His voice was solemn, and he watched Yamaguchi with a fierce and gentle regard. "You've proved it already, this very night."

Yamaguchi looked up, startled out of his funk, and stared at Tanaka with wide eyes. "What are you talking about?"

"You came and spoke to me." Tanaka nodded sharply, as if this proved everything. And maybe it did. "You wanted me to help ya protect Hinata, and ya didn't even mention yourself and what those rat children said about ya. For Hinata, you were willing to fight, even though you didn't know how. Isn't that still true? If it was Hinata they were mocking and harassing, instead of you, wouldn't ya stand against them? Wouldn't ya bid them to be silent and punch them in the mouth if they refused?"

Yamaguchi was quiet. He looked between them, staring into Tanaka's face, then Hinata's. After a long moment, mulling it over, he nodded. It was not a hesitant nod, like most of Yamaguchi's movements when only himself was at stake. It was a strong nod, firm and hearty and almost bold. "Aye, so I would," he said, and his voice was strong, too. "If they dared to push Hinata around, if they tried to bully him and all, I would fight even knowing I would lose. I would have to try, no matter the cost."

"Then let me teach ya how," Tanaka said. "We'll begin right away. I'll show ya how to throw a punch. Aye, Yamaguchi, you have the height for it. You could be a brawler." He looked at the other boy. "And Hinata, you're a scrapper. I knew it from the moment I laid eyes on ya. The two of you together will be nigh unstoppable, you will. Let Yamaguchi rain down a few blows from above while Hinata strikes from below, and even the most fearsome of schoolyard bullies will see the worth in running away."

"Aye, aye!" Hinata cried, leaping to his feet in excitement. His empty bowl was forgotten, rolling away on the deck.

Yamaguchi stared up at Tanaka, his eyes round with shock. "You...you really think we can? You really think we can beat them, just Hinata and I against three older boys?"

"Well, I hope ya won't have to." Tanaka climbed to his feet and reached down a hand to Yamaguchi. "It would be best that it not come to that, to be sure. But you need to have the will and the ability, if it comes to it. If they corner ya and there's no recourse, I want ya to win. So I'll do everything I can to make sure that's what happens."

Yamaguchi took Tanaka's hand and clasped it strongly, palm to palm. Tanaka hauled him to his feet with one pull, the muscles of his bicep pulling taut in effortless strength. Gone was Yamaguchi's protests that he didn't want to fight, that he didn't know how, that he couldn't. His jaw was tight, his eyes were hard, and his stance was steady. He had accepted the necessity of this task in the end, not for his own sake but for Hinata's.

Tanaka gave him a smile, broad and proud. "Let's go on deck for our first lesson, aye? I'll teach ya everything I know."

"Won't the other sailors see us if we do it on deck?" Hinata asked.

"And if they do, so much the better. Best yet if Billy Hanson and his plague-ridden friends hear of it and come to watch. They'll see that the two of you are naught to trifle with, and mayhap that'll be the end of it. If they learn to fear ya by sight, ya won't have to fight them in truth."

Yamaguchi nodded, his eyes narrowing. "Aye, that would be best."

"Let's hope for that, then." Tanaka clapped him on the shoulder and led the way.