Kanji Ike

Class D arrived at the agreed-upon location. Fortunately, no other class had claimed it yet.

After confirming there were no other classes nearby, everyone gathered around Horikita. She successfully scanned her Key Card at the site, and the next scan would be in eight hours.

Hirata assigned everyone their tasks, and they set about putting up tents and clearing the brush in an orderly fashion.

Ike went over to the river and called for everyone to come over.

Then he scooped up some water with his hands, his eyes sparkling. "Look, the water's really clean! That means we won't have to spend points on water."

"Yeah, it looks like it's safe to drink, but..."

"Is it really okay to drink river water? Couldn't it make us sick?"

"Are you sure it's safe? What if we get stomachaches?"

"Seriously?"

"What's everyone making such a fuss about? We finally found a river, so we should make good use of it."

"That's easy for you to say. Why don't you drink it, then?"

Ike immediately scooped up some water and drank it.

"Mmm, it's good! Shinohara, come try some!"

Shinohara took half a step back.

"...You...you actually drank it? I was just saying that. I'm not drinking it. Gross."

Qiuyue: (Go ahead and drink it. Just be careful—someone upstream might've peed in there. At least spend some points on a filter.)

"Shinohara! You!"

"Gross. I hate guys like you."

"What!"

Qiuyue: (...Don't hate him too much, you bickering lovebirds. You two end up dating later on...)

(...Go ahead and argue. Making up and fighting are just two sides of the same coin with you two.)

"Now, now. We've got plenty of time, so there's no need to rush into a decision."

"That's true."

Hirata stepped in to defuse the situation once again, and Karuizawa chimed in.

Once the argument was over, everyone went their separate ways.

Ayanokoji asked from nearby:

"Ike, are you good at camping?"

"...I used to go camping with my family all the time when I was little. You can tell whether water's clean just by looking at it."

He didn't seem so much proud as simply stating the obvious.

Qiuyue: (I see. So this is where Ike excels. Anyone who gets into this school must have something they're especially good at.)

(...Honestly, Ike, I don't dislike you as much as I expected.)

Qiuyue walked over, picked up a stone, then bent down and skipped it diagonally across the river.

It bounced three times before sinking. Qiuyue crouched down beside Ike.

Qiuyue: (Even in the original story, he worked hard and eventually got together with Shinohara. He just tends to get carried away. That's not too serious a flaw for a teenage boy. It's good enough if he works hard and doesn't hold everyone back.)

(He has a talent but doesn't use it to show off. That's far better than Yamauchi, who bragged about how good he was at baseball during his self-introduction.)

(You're often an idiot and a bit careless. And, well... you're a sleazy creep who secretly takes pictures of girls in the changing room. But you're not devious, and you say what you think. You'd probably be pretty fun to be friends with.)

(Besides, having someone with plenty of camping experience lead us could save us a lot of points. That'd be good for Class D, too.)

"Ike, would you be interested in leading our class through this camping trip?"

"Me? Can I do that? The others in class wouldn't accept me... I think I'll go for a swim instead."

Ike pointed at himself in confusion, shook his head, and turned to leave.

Qiuyue stood up and headed toward the base camp.

"What are you planning to do?"

As Qiuyue passed by, Ayanokoji spoke up.

Qiuyue: (...Why does that sound like a double entendre? I get the feeling you've already got your eye on me.)

"I'll do whatever I feel like. Most of the time, I just go with my mood."

Qiuyue replied with a smile, not stopping as he walked along with his hands in his pockets.

Qiuyue: (Who knows... I just want to do this. I guess I'm a little different from before, too.)

Qiuyue reached the central area and saw Hirata assigning tasks. He waited by a tree until Hirata finished what he was doing.

"Hirata, could I talk to you for a moment?"

Hirata looked surprised. Then, after a brief daze, he greeted Qiuyue with a cheerful smile. "Of course, Qiuyue."

"Ike has a lot of camping experience. I think he'd be a great choice to lead us during our time on the Uninhabited Island."

"Really? That's great! I'll go find Ike and ask him to lead the class."

With that, Hirata got ready to go find Ike.

Qiuyue: (...You really are quick to act. That's not what Ike needs right now. He needs a chance to show everyone in class what he can do.)

"Wait, Hirata. Even if you go find Ike now, he just took a hit. He's not ready yet."

"Oh... I see. Do you have an idea, Qiuyue?"

"Hirata, gather everyone in class later and tell them we're going to discuss food for the days ahead. Leave the rest to me."

"...Oh... All right. Thank you, Qiuyue."

Hirata was surprised by what Qiuyue said, then gave a relieved smile.

Qiuyue: (...What the heck? What's with that fond smile? (๑•̌.•̑๑)ˀ̣ˀ̣...)

Ayanokoji and the others returned to camp with a collection of branches, along with a blue-haired girl. More people trickled in after them.

Qiuyue: (So this is Ibuki. Are all the girls at this school this pretty...?)

The last group, Kushida and her friends, returned to camp just after five o'clock. They were carrying nothing but fruit.

Qiuyue went over to Kushida.

"Kushida, could I take a look at the food you collected?"

"Um, sure, Qiuyue. Do you recognize them?"

Kushida handed him the fruit without hesitation and asked him.

Though his voice wasn't loud, it drew everyone's attention. After all, they all wanted to know if those strange-looking fruits were edible.

Qiuyue turned the fruit over in his hands, examining it from every angle.

Qiuyue: (Hmm... I don't recognize it at all.)

"I don't recognize it, but I know someone who definitely would. He's been going camping all over the place with his family since he was little."

"Wow, that's impressive! Who is it? Can you tell me, Qiuyue?"

Qiuyue didn't answer. Instead, he looked around the class for someone who hadn't come back yet.

"Qiuyue?"

Then Qiuyue spotted Ike emerging slowly from the shadows of the forest.

Qiuyue raised his hand high and waved toward Ike, calling out loud enough for everyone in class to hear.

"Hey—! Ike! Come over and help me figure out if this is edible!"

Qiuyue had asked the question everyone in class cared about most.

"Oh, that's a Purple Plum! It's really tasty—sweet and sour."

Kushida picked up a fruit and started to ask Ike, "Ike, do you know what this one is?"

"This one? It's called an akebia. It's really sweet. I think it's also used as a medicinal herb in Zhonghua Family."

"Oh... And what about this one, Ike?"

"..."

Qiuyue quietly slipped away from the crowd surrounding Ike. Hirata naturally came over to him and thanked him.

"It was nothing, just a small favor. I did it for the class, too. Besides, you'll probably be giving us one last helping hand soon."

Qiuyue smiled casually.

"Calling it a helping hand is too much, Qiuyue. I only asked Ike to lead the class. That's all I can do for everyone."

Hirata said with a wry smile. Qiuyue didn't respond, and Hirata didn't mind. He headed toward Ike in the middle of the crowd.

Qiuyue took a deep breath, then shook his head with a smile and quoted a certain invincible man's classic line.

"Yare yare."