Part IX: Out to Sea

In the months since he had left, he had learned to take care of himself. First, he learned how to steer a boat, which had resulted in him returning to Japan over twenty times, by accident.

Then, he had learned to guide himself by the stars. Unfortunately, he didn't know where he was going, specifically, so he just sort of headed towards the pretty ones.

Over time, he had also learned how to catch fish from the sea, and cook them. He had also learned you shouldn't set a fire to cook fish on a wooden boat.

Hiro had learned a lot in the past few months, but he had also grown quite lonely. The X-Ball had always been there for company. He had thought of giving it a name sometimes, maybe… Wil-san? No, X-Ball would do just fine.

Sometimes, Hiro and the X-Ball would lie awake for hours, talking about anything that came into their heads. Or rather, Hiro's head. Soon, all Hiro talked about was fish and how blue the water was. He missed other people. He missed his wife.

He knew he could not go home, though. And so, he floated on the sea, with no end in sight. Would he die there? Would he meet his end, alone, floating on the sea? Would this be the end of Hiro Nakamaji?*

*No. See Below.


NEXT WEEK: The Great Fish


THE COMPLETE HISTORY OF X-BALL:
PART I       PART II       PART III       PART IV

PART V      PART VI      PART VII      PART VIII

PART IX