12 Duty Calls! (Hah, Dooty.)

Kano stared at his phone screen and his small smile grew into a stupid grin. Tiffany had posted the cropped picture on her wall. 'She IS thinking about me.' He could not help but feel a bit warm in his chest at seeing the proof. He 'liked' the picture and sent her a message.

- Not worried about what people will say? -

He wondered how long before she would reply, but it was almost instantly.

-no why should i what are they going to say its my wall and i can post whatever i want -

-True enough. Still, scuttlebut being what it is, I am happy about it though. -

He watched as the little typing icon appeared, then disappeared, then reappeared.

-Having brain problems? -

-maybe-

-Oh? Something on your mind?-

-no -

-That was quick. Seems someone isn't being truthful.-

-how do you type so quickly and accratly-

-How do you not? I swype and tap the guesses.-

-really? that never works for me-

-Practice, I suppose. But still, what were you thinking?-

-nothin.-

-Nuffin?-

-nuffin-

-Oh. Well damn.-

-???-

-What? A confusing look is not enough. Words.-

-no. womans perogative.-

Kano laughed quietly and smiled at the image in his mind of a gorgeous blonde with her glasses on her face, even those stupid looking BCGs (birth control glasses) looked good on her. She was laying on her bunk and absent mindedly swinging her legs while holding the phone tightly, almost willing responses to appear on her screen. They chatted for a while, and occasionally he teased her about what she was thinking. He knew, it was him, but he let her have save face while he had his fun. He tried not to flirt too hard, just enough to keep her on her toes. As the call for lights out came, he sighed and gave a thumbs up to his buddy Rocky before saying goodbye.

"You gonna get it, Hoff?"

"I wouldn't say no." He returned with a wink. Rocky laughed at the overly exaggerated nature of it.

"Your asia face man! You can't wink right! Shit kills me dawg!"

***

The days passed and Kano found himself worrying about the old man. Bill was tough, but he knew that something was up. Probably Bill was going to tell him once he returned, reason he had Kano stay here longer was so he was not bothered by it. The longer he thought about it, the more he decided that he was going to finish Basic, work on his Advanced Training and after he was at his Duty Station and settled in, he would return. If he was right, he would return the very next morning after he went to sleep. On this particular day, Kano and Rocky found themselves on cleanup duty once again. The 'Hoff' himself was crooning together wtih his buddy while holding the broom like a microphone. "Girl we need some, girl we need some ACTION!"

"If we're gonna make it like a TRUE SURVIVOR!"

"If we're gonna make it like a TRUE SURVIVOOOOOOORRRR!"

They both laughed as they clowned around, it made the tedious work a little easier to do.

"Hoff, man, you gettin' better at dis. You might even have some talent by the time you graduate."

Kano laughed and cuffed Rocky on the shoulder. "Idiot. If I wanted to sing better, I would've joined the Navy."

"You excited for the UC later today?"

"Sure. Better than sweeping."

"So, you can sing as well?" a gorgeous sounding voice interrupted the two bros. Kano's heart leaped for a moment as he recognized to whom it belonged. He immediately walked over to the short hedge stepped around it. He stopped at the Dead Man Line and came face to face with Tiffany Vulf.

She whispered lightly so only she could hear, "I wonder what other sounds he can make."

"Wouldn't you like to know." Kano slyly returned with a wink.

Tiffany's face reddened as she realized he heard her whisper, but she didn't bother retracting it. She had a boyfriend before and knew how it was. Still, something about this young man kept entering him into her thoughts. 'Too bad, its basic training and I can't let some hormones control me. I bet with his physique, he would be amazing in bed.'

Kano grinned stupidly as if he could read her mind, and for a moment she wondered if he could. Truthfully, he could not, but her body language was more than enough to let him know the truth of her feelings.

"We are headed to the pit later. Just a bunch of sweaty marines grunting and rolling." He stretched his back and shoulders as he spoke, just allowing her to see his 'amazing physique.' "If I you want, maybe we could wrestle sometime?"

Images flashed unbidden in her mind as she thought of pinning him, or him pinning her in various ways. She giggled again and wondered just what the hell was wrong with her. Was it just hero worship because he was willing to sacrifice himself for her? Truly, she did not know, but was just as satisfied that he was just as into her as she was him.

"We'll see about that." She said suggestively before turning around and walking away. On an impulse, she turned her head back and blew a kiss at him. Kano reacted by acting as if he had been impacted by a huge weight and fell to his back, his hand clutching at his heart. For a moment, she thought he had actually hurt himself, but the enormous grin on his face immediately turned her heart to mush. Little did she realize, her step had a bit more bounce to it and Kano's eyes followed her now overtly sashaying rear.

"Damn, lil white girl got a nice booty!" Rocky stood over Kano with his hand outstretched, but his eyes were following the same path as Kano's.

"Don't worry, brah, that will be mine someday. World is pretty small with a plane ticket, you know."

"You would fly for a booty call?"

"You wouldn't?" The two looked at each other seriously for a moment, before busting up in laughter as they both knew they would.

***

The young recruit grunted hard as Kano slammed his palm into his stomach, before grabbing his arm and using his own shoulder to toss the poor marine to the dirt. The rest of their platoon cheered and booed depending on who they were backing. Kano extended his hand to the defeated recruit and helped him back up.

"Geez, Hoff. Where did you learn that? DI didn't teach us that shit."

"Mom's Japanese. She thought I needed discipline in my life and that's how they learn it back in Japan. Karate and aikido and other martial arts. She always thought it would keep me out of trouble."

"Did it work?"

Kano waved his hand around him, "I'm here, aren't I?"

The two shared a laugh as the loser walked back to the edge of the pit they were sparring in. Their DI, Drill Instructor Washington was looking at each of them in turn. She shook her head as she had just witnessed the resident clown take down each and every member of the platoon. Save one.

"Lafi! Live up to your name and take this little turd down a notch."

Immediately, the whole platoon chanted "ROCKY!" over and over as Lafi stood up from where he had been resting. He was the largest person in the platoon, and if anyone stood a chance against the powerhouse that was the Hoff, it was him.

"Sorry, brutha, but it looks like I'm the champ here."

"Bro, just call me Little Mac." Kano grinned back as he retorted. They wasted no time and rushed at each other. All could hear as the large men crashed into each and began to vie for a dominant position. Lafi used his superior build and height to lean Kano backwards, only to be stunned when he grinned and used that same weight to toss him over his hip and onto the ground. Lafi leaped back up and kicked out with a massive size 15 boot. Kano allowed it to sail past his side with a slight twist of his torso and chopped a knife hand into Lafi's thigh, right where it meets the hip. The larger man grunted as he landed his foot and a wild haymaker aimed at Kano's cheek. But again, with only a slight twist of his torso, the fist missed his cheek by a few hairs. Lafi saw an evil glint in Kano's eyes as he felt something impact his solar plexus. The wind rushed out of his mouth as his head lowered from the force of the blow. He could see it was Kano's palm what had struck him and he lacked the power to respond as he gasped for air. His tailbone hit the ground and he sat there stupidly as he kept trying to get his lungs to cooperate. When he finally got his breath under control, he saw that Kano was standing there with his hand out to help him up.

"Damn, Hoff! You got me good!" Lafi exclaimed as he grasped the proffered hand. Once on his feet, he clapped his battle buddy on the shoulder and grinned. "Never knew a lil asia boy could whup me! Just all Whaaaaa! on me!"

The entire platoon laughed along with the two as Kano got a little sheepish. He did not tell them that the only reason he was able to do this was because of the spells he had mastered. "Hey, its because you are used to winning that you lost focus. Bet you ain't lost a single fight in your life ya giant!"

"You gonna lose this one, Hoff." The entire platoon stopped short and went completely silent as they recognized the voice. DI Washington was looking at him coldly as she unbuttoned her Marpat blouse and strode into the pit. Her DI hat sat upon a nearby stool and Hoff knew that he was in for it. Her easy stance betrayed that she had some training from a source other than the Marines at that.

"Krav Maga?" He asked as he released his hold on his mates and stepped back down into the pit.

An arched brow was his only response. Kano's face slowly twisted into a predatory grin as he realized it was about to get fun. "Alright Drill, I won't let you win easily. I know you have to do this, but I still won't make it easy." He quipped as he settled into an easy stance, only slightly off from the usual shotokan style.