Disagreement (3)

After the disagreement over the toilets, a second one soon arose: drinking water. It seemed that choosing a campsite near a river wasn't enough to solve their water problem.

"We can talk about water later. Arguing will only divide the class, and I think this exam is largely testing our ability to work as a team," Hirata said, trying to smooth things over.

Putting it off wasn't a solution, but since Hirata had suggested it, no one was going to object outright. Then, to everyone's surprise, a boy suddenly interrupted.

"Shinohara, can you stop complaining about every little thing? We're supposed to work together as a class for this exam!"

The speaker was Sudo, the class's notorious troublemaker. His tone was unusual for him today; he actually sounded like he was trying to persuade Shinohara.

"Wait... This is hilarious. The whole class working together? And you're the one saying that, Sudo?"

Shinohara laughed so hard she could barely stand up straight. Sudo couldn't blame her for looking down on him—he'd caused trouble and held the class back plenty of times since the start of the year. Come to think of it, when it came to getting along with people, he and Horikita were just as bad as each other. No wonder he wanted to be Horikita's loyal dog.

Sudo knew perfectly well that he'd caused the class a lot of trouble before, but he pushed on anyway. "I know I've only ever made things worse in the past, so that's why I'm trying to say something now! If we keep annoying everyone over stupid stuff like this, we'll pay for it sooner or later."

"Sure. You just don't want to spend Class Points."

"That's not it! Kanji, don't get mad either. Most people wouldn't want to drink river water all of a sudden, right? Even I can't quite accept it just yet. Oh, right—I remember boiling water kills germs. Why don't we try that first?"

"Boil river water? Are you kidding? Stop coming up with ridiculous ideas! Boiling water only kills most bacteria with high heat, and river water has far more types of bacteria, and a much greater number of them, than tap water. What if there are heat-resistant bacteria in it?"

Shinohara was the type to pick a fight with anyone she didn't like, no matter who they were. She didn't go easy on Sudo, either.

As the argument grew more heated, Hirata tried to smooth things over again. "Let's all take a break for now. We still have time, so there's no need to rush into a decision."

Seeing Hirata step in, Shinohara gave him that much consideration and left without another word. Not long afterward, Hirata went to ask Teacher Chabashira to rent a portable toilet.

Ike was still fuming. He glared at Shinohara's retreating figure, picked up a small stone, and hurled it into the river. It skipped five or six times across the surface before flying straight to the other bank, its beautiful trajectory almost too perfect to be a coincidence. Most people probably couldn't throw it that accurately even if they tried.

"Come to think of it, you seem to know a lot about wilderness survival."

"Huh? N-no, not really. I just went camping in the wilderness with my family a lot when I was little, so I got used to drinking straight from rivers. I can usually tell at a glance whether the water's clean."

He said it so casually that, for once, he didn't sound like he was bragging.

"You should've said earlier that you had camping experience. Everyone trusts you, so wouldn't that have made things easier?"

If someone just went ahead and did something without explaining, even their skills could make people suspicious.

"What's there to brag about? It's just a little camping experience. Besides, look at those girls. Even if I told them I'd gone camping before, it wouldn't make a difference."

It seemed the girls' scolding had left Ike feeling pretty down. Usually, he was desperate to be popular with them.

"But..." Ike hesitated. "It seems like this kind of camping is a first for everyone. I thought they'd all know at least a little about it. Maybe I was expecting too much."

It was the first time Ike had shown any regret, and he quickly realized what he'd done wrong.

"Sorry. I don't think I can get my thoughts in order right now. I'm going to swim in the river for a bit."

With that, he stood up and walked away with his back to the others. They might as well let him cool off for now.

"Ayanokoji, can you catch up with him?" Horikita asked from beside me.

"Yeah... Why?"

After Ike had disappeared from view, Horikita spoke to Ayanokoji again.

"There's a chance his knowledge could be useful. In other words, he might be indispensable to Class D in this Special Exam."

"Why don't you go persuade him yourself?"

Horikita hadn't expected Ayanokoji to answer that way. She looked surprised. "Me? You want me to persuade him? Do you really think I can do that?" Then she looked over at Takahashi. "Takahashi, you go."

Takahashi's expression: →_→

Takahashi's inner thoughts: She says she can't do it with that smug look on her face. You really are far worse at socializing than the average person.

"Why not try it yourself? You managed to get Sudo to listen to you pretty well before, didn't you?"

"I'm too blunt, and I know I can't do it. So I'm asking the two of you."

Honestly, only a social misfit like you could fold your arms, look so imposing, and ask other people for help. Takahashi grumbled to himself.

"Fine. I'll talk to him when the time is right," Ayanokoji said.

"Since Ayanokoji agreed, let him talk to Ike. I'm leaving." Takahashi said, and walked off.

Seeing Ayanokoji agree, Horikita turned and left as well.

With Takahashi gone, Yamauchi seemed oblivious to the disgust in Sakura's eyes as he kept trying to make conversation with her.

After Takahashi, Ayanokoji, and Horikita finished talking, Sakura said, "Sorry, I have to go for a moment," then hurried over to Takahashi.

"Takahashi," Hirata said as he came over, "do you know how to put up a tent? The tents the school gave us are so big that we're not sure how to set them up."

"I know a little. Could you ask a few classmates to follow my instructions when the time comes?"

"That's great, Takahashi. Thank you."

After quite a while, they finished putting up two large tents meant for group camping.

Before Takahashi could even wipe the sweat from his forehead, he heard Shinohara arguing with Yukimura, one of the boys in the class.

"Why do both tents have to go to the girls? We're the ones who put them up!"

"Isn't it only right for boys to help girls? Besides, it's the middle of summer. You boys are sturdier, and you won't catch a cold from sleeping outside."

"Like hell..." Before Yukimura could finish, the boy beside him grabbed him and said, "Forget it, Yukimura. If we don't give them the tents, they'll probably spend points to buy more. We can find some dry grass and leaves to sleep on."

Seriously? Takahashi had worked his ass off putting those tents up, and now he was the joke? Just wait until he gave Yukimura a piece of his mind.

"Oh, looks like Little Kan's sleeping out in the open tonight!" Before Takahashi could go argue with Shinohara, Hasebe came over with a grin. "It's summer, but it'll probably still get a little cold at night. Want me to come keep you company?"

"Huh? Out... in the open? Maybe not sleeping in a tent wouldn't be so bad."

Takahashi's words made Hasebe blush. She let out a quiet "Pervert!" and hurried away.