A family thing

Chapter 42 Crops

Tobio took a deep breath as he was inside his showers. His official meditating place. He looked at the bathroom. It was also way too big for him alone. At least, that was his actual conclusion. He sighed and leaned back at the cold wall. His shoulders relaxed under the pouring water from the showerhead. He did need someone or something to keep him company. His mother always doted on a girlfriend. Now that his sister was almost at the stage of being engaged, there was no one else there to distract this kind of parents' attention. 
"Oh, Yoichi, you're so fucking lucky that you are the youngest of all of us. Fuck you.", he muttered and slightly slammed the wall behind him. The fact that his greatest rival got a partner long before him didn't make it better in any slightlier way. But he wasn't ready for love right now. Now was his prime. The years where he was supposed to be at the peak of his game. Distractions like love, weren't helpful at all. Tobio sighed and closed the tap of the shower. He pushed the door out of glass open and walked out of it. Then he quickly grabbed his towel and started drying himself up. Once he was finished he put on some pants and walked out of the door. No one was there in his huge penthouse anyway. Tobio then pulled out a comfortable T-shirt from his drawers and some jogging trousers. 
'Movie night doesn't sound so bad right now...', he thought and walked towards his huge television. However, just after some minutes he shut it off and leaned back again. Until his head hit the headrest of his ridiculously huge couch. 
"This house is so freaking huge...", he muttered. "Which makes watching a movie alone, plain and boring..." 
His eyes were fixed onto the ceiling. The glass that showed him the nightsky of Rome. Starless as always. Another way to remind him of his loneliness. 
"But what the hell am I supposed to do about it?"

"HELL YEAH!!!!", Chigiri shouted after he has scored the goal. "That was a great pass, Kageyama!!!!" 
"Well thank you...", Yoichi said with a sweat dropping down his forehead. He walked back to his defense position. There was no way in hell, that the game would stop right after two goals from here on. It will at least be four and a fierce fight. Not that he had anything against it, but right now, he just wanted to end the fight in two goals because getting scored on, in any sport in the world, was just frustrating. It somehow made him remember the night inside the home gym with his mentor. 

"Here's a question for ya. Frustration comes with loss, with loss comes improvement and innovation, with improvement and innovation comes victory. But what comes after?", Hinata asked him that specific night in Sao Paolo while doing squats. 
"Are we getting in some sort of philosophic talk here? What is that all of the sudden?", Yoichi asked a bit confused by the question he was asked. 
"Just answer the question.", Hinata insisted.
Yoichi thought for some seconds, "I don't know...? Celebration, perhaps?" 
"Then you'll be moving in cycles.", Shoyo replied and set down the barbell. "What else do you have in mind?"
"I don't know, you tell me...? I guess...?", Yoichi answered or asked. 
"I should tell you what you have in your mind? That's crazy. Do I look like someone who can read minds?", Hinata replied with sarcasm. 
"Well uhm... no?", Yoichi said insecure. 
"Well, how do I explain it. Have you ever heard about the story of the race between the rabit and the tortoise?", Hinata asked. 
"That one in like all children books? Yes. I've heard of it. Everyone has probably heard about it.", Yoichi said. 
"Well then, you probably know the answer then."
"What do you mean?" 
Hinata sighed at the confusion of his pupil, "Think about it. What happened in the story?" 
"The rabbit knew that he will win and got himself a very long head start through his speed. However, right then he decided to have a nap since he saw, how slow the tortoise was. The tortoise on the other hand continued to run at his full speed and managed to overtook the rabbit who was still sleeping.", Yoichi answered the obvious answer. 
"And then? What happened then?", Hinata asked with great expectations. 
"Then the tortoise managed to win the race, since the rabbit woke up way too late from his slumber.", Yoichi replied. "But I don't really know what you want to tell me with this stupid children story." 
"Alright then, hot shot, what is the moral of this story?", Hinata asked him like they were on a quiz show on television. 
"You shouldn't rest before the job is done?", Yoichi managed to answer. Although it seemed more like a question in Hinata's opinion. 
"That is definitely one of the answers, but I want to tell you about the other.", Hinata replied. Yoichi thought more about it. But nothing came on his mind that could fit the story. 
"Think about it this way. Why did the rabbit lose?", Hinata adviced. 
"Because he stopped running.", Yoichi told him the obvious answer. 
"Not bad. So think about it more. What is the second moral of this story?" 
"Puh, I don't know...", Yoichi answered and gave up on answering the question he was met with. Hinata massaged his forehead after this act. For years he had to deal with the older one and thought the younger Kageyama might be an upgraded version of Tobio. Right now, he started to doubt his conclusion at the beginning. 
"What?!?! I'm not a freaking elementary school teacher!!!!", Yoichi reasoned, desperate to get out of this awkward situation in front of him. Hinata took a deep breath, "Alright, so the rabbit stopped running, but when it comes to running, who of the two animals had the absolute advantage in this race?"
"The rabbit." 
"Correct. Now think about it. If someone who has so much talent and advantages stopped doing the thing he was so good at, what would happen to him?" 
"Eventually, he will be overtaken."