Kyoto, Yamatai Apartment Building Rooftop
Hiroki's somber thoughts were interrupted by a young voice asking, "Excuse me mister?"
He turned to find three young boys approaching him. They appeared to be around the age of ten with faces full of wonder and excitement. A smile formed on Hiroki as he decided to forgo his wish to be alone for some interaction with the youngsters. He asked them, "Yes, how may I help you?"
One of the boys, a lad with white skin, green eyes and short green hair asked Hiroki, "You're with the Giretsu right? We saw the ceremony."
Hiroki nodded and said, "Yup, the elite among the Star Army."
"Wow! Were you at the Battle of Glimmergold?" asked one of the other boys who had curly orange hair, blue eyes and tan skin.
There was a brief moment of hesitation from Hiroki at the question, but it was unnoticeable. All three boys had wide smiles, and Hiroki knew that he could not just leave them in the dark. After a silent gulp, Hiroki responded, "Indeed I was."
"So what was it like, did you take down a lot of Kuvexians?" asked the green-haired boy.
"I have defeated many at the battle. I even took down one of their transport ships," Hiroki answered, not enjoying talking about the experience, but keeping up the façade to remain in a positive light with the boys.
All three boys let out an amazed, "Wow!" at the same time.
The last boy who had dark skin, blue eyes, spiky, aquatic-colored hair and a purple ascot pointed at Hiroki and said, "I want to be a Giretsu just like you!"
His comment received nods of agreement from the other two boys. Hiroki grew nervous at the prospect, remembering the dead and wounded allies he had seen in space and the medbay of the Yukikaze. These poor young, innocent souls had no clue what war was really like. All they knew about it was more than likely from the entertainment media that had a tendency to glamorize warfare rather than ground it in reality like a documentary. Hiroki respected the aspirations of these lads, but he felt that they could be something more.
"How interesting. What are your names?" Hiroki inquired.
"Lucas!" said the green-haired boy.
"Akio," the boy with curly hair answered.
"Zento!" said the boy with the ascot.
Hiroki scratched his chin and asked the boys, "What are your hobbies?"
"I love to sing!" Zento exclaimed.
"I love to go on jogs with my parents," Lucas said as he jogged in place to demonstrate.
"I've always enjoyed reading about the weather," Akio replied.
"And how much do you three want to get into the Star Army and perhaps even the Giretsu?" Hiroki asked, locking his eyes on Zento.
"Oh, very much!" Akio replied and his two friends gave practically the same answer.
"Well, why don't you three look into your personal hobbies first? Zento, I think with enough practice and dedication, you'll be a great singer. Akio, with your hobby, perhaps you can pursue the path of being a weatherman. And for you Lucas, maybe you could participate in sports and become a champion that is known far and wide across the galaxy," Hiroki suggests, hoping that he can convince these boys to pursue other interests rather than ride the train straight into military service. Any sane person knew that war was anything BUT what was usually shown on the TV.