Itou stopped beside several bamboo stalks and tapped one with his knuckles.
“Not this one. It’s too young. For spears, it’s better to choose mature bamboo, preferably straight ones that aren’t too dry.”
“But isn’t it better to choose dry bamboo? Aren’t they stronger and harder?” Akira asked.
“Not necessarily. A spear needs some flexibility. If it’s too dry, it can become brittle and break more easily.”
“Oh, I kind of get it. You didn’t choose the young one because it would bend too easily, so we need something in between.”
“Exactly. This one will do.” Itou nodded before pointing toward another bamboo stalk.
“Okay. Let me cut it, then.”
Akira swung his knife at the base of the bamboo.
“Ouch! That hurt!”
He shook his hand and rubbed his fingers.
“Idiot. Who told you to cut it like that?”
Itou took the knife and demonstrated.
“If you only have a knife, don’t stab straight into it,” he explained.
“Cut around one side first.”
He angled the blade and made several shallow cuts around the base instead of forcing it straight into the stalk.
He worked his way around it, cutting little by little until the base was weakened.
Then he twisted the stalk firmly, and it broke near the bottom.
Akira watched closely.
“That actually looks way easier.”
“It is. You just need to cut it properly,” Itou replied.
Akira immediately crouched beside another stalk and copied the same cutting angle more carefully.
Yarai quietly observed the grove while listening to Itou’s explanation.
His thoughts drifted back to the environment around them.
The bamboo looked strangely different from the rest of the vegetation they had seen, and somehow, that only made the island more confusing.
He couldn’t quite put his finger on it.
Every time he thought he was beginning to make sense of the island, it gave him something else to question.
Clearing his thoughts, he raised the hatchet and struck near the base.
The bamboo shook violently before falling sideways through the grove.
Akira blinked.
“…You sure that’s your first time?”
Yarai ignored him and continued cutting the bamboo.
Back near the riverbank, Rion, Kanako, Towa, and Kurusu sat near the edge of the water with their feet submerged in the cold stream.
A short distance away, Mariya sat on a flat rock with his laptop open, typing something.
Ono and Mikoshiba remained near the edge of the camp, occasionally glancing toward the surrounding trees whenever something rustled deeper in the forest.
Before long, several cut bamboo stalks had been gathered together.
Yarai examined them before pointing toward a few with thicker sections.
“Cut those as well.”
Akira looked over.
“What for?”
“We can use the thicker sections as containers,” Yarai replied.
Itou nodded in agreement.
Once they had gathered enough bamboo, they carried it back to the riverbank.
Kurusu smiled as they returned.
“Thanks for the hard work.”
Yarai nodded.
Akira turned toward Rion with a grin.
“Good for you, Rion. You got to relax the whole time.”
Rion immediately frowned.
“I was working too.”
“Yeah. Untangling paracord.”
“That still counts.”
Akira grinned before turning dramatically toward Yarai.
“Wait… don’t tell me you’re the type who gives all the dangerous jobs to the guys.”
The others looked toward Yarai curiously.
Yarai looked mildly confused for a moment.
“We didn’t even have proper weapons yet,” he said calmly.
“This area is close to where the Smilodon was spotted. Sending people deeper into the grove without protection would’ve been reckless.”
The girls visibly relaxed.
“Once the spears are finished, everyone will help gather supplies. Water, branches, fruit, anything useful nearby.”
He glanced toward the girls.
“You don’t need to fight predators. But at the very least, everyone should be able to protect themselves long enough for someone else to help.”
Rion crossed her arms.
“Hey, why are you looking at us specifically when you say that?”
“Y-Yeah,” Towa added.
“We were helping.”
Kurusu puffed her cheeks slightly.
“Yarai-kun, you make it sound like we’re helpless.”
Kanako looked genuinely distressed.
“J-Just don’t make us fight giant monsters…”
“Hahaha, Oomori-san already gave up,” Akira said.
“Akira-kun,” Rion warned, narrowing her eyes, “keep talking and I’ll throw you into the river myself.”
Akira quickly looked away.
A little later, Rion returned carrying several bundles of paracord.
“Here,” she said, handing them to Akira.
“Thanks.”
She huffed and walked away.
Itou sat beside the pile of bamboo and picked up one of the stalks.
He demonstrated, shaving away the uneven sections with slow, controlled cuts.
Thin strips of green fiber fell to the ground.
Akira immediately copied him.
“Don’t force the blade too hard,” Itou continued.
“Let it slide with the grain.”
“Feels kind of satisfying,” Akira admitted as he smoothed one side.
Nearby, Yarai dragged several bamboo poles closer to the camp.
As he lowered them beside a cluster of dark rocks near the riverbank, his hatchet struck one of them.
A burst of sparks scattered from the impact.
Yarai paused.
“…Hm.”
Akira looked over.
“What happened?”
Yarai crouched beside the rock and struck it lightly again, causing more sparks jumped from its surface.
Itou noticed and leaned closer.
“Oh. That’s useful.”
Yarai examined the rock for a moment.
“Looks like flint. It can make sparks when struck against steel.”
Akira stared at it.
“Let me try.”
Yarai handed him the stone without saying anything.
Akira gathered some dry grass, shredded bamboo fibers, and dead leaves before striking the stone again.
Several sparks scattered across the tinder, and a thin trail of smoke appeared.
A moment later, a small flame flickered to life.
“Oh!”
Kurusu leaned forward in surprise as the others gathered around.
“Whoa,” Akira said.
“It actually worked!”
Rion looked at the flame.
“…We still have lighters, though.”
“If we can make fire without using them, we should save the lighters for when we can’t,” Yarai replied.
“And this is cooler,” Akira added immediately.
Itou nodded seriously.
“Making fire manually is every guy’s dream.”
Rion stared at the three of them before sighing.
“You guys are seriously enjoying this too much.”
Akira laughed awkwardly.
Once the fire was stable, Itou placed several bamboo shafts near the heat and showed them how to dry them evenly by slowly rotating them instead of exposing one section directly to the flames.
Akira copied the movement beside him while Yarai watched carefully.
Once the bamboo had dried enough, they began making the spears.
Itou showed them how to split the upper section, insert the knives, and secure them tightly with cloth and paracord.
The work continued until the area around the camp was covered with shaved bamboo fibers, loose cloth strips, and unfinished spear shafts.
Akira struggled with his first attempt, while Yarai finished several in succession after watching Itou’s method only once.
By the time they finished, ten completed bamboo spears rested beside the camp.
Before leaving, Yarai wrapped several of the flints in a piece of cloth and stored them with the rest of their supplies.
He stood and looked toward the river.
“We should move to the waterfall where you stayed before. We still have enough daylight.”
Akira nodded.
The group packed their supplies and continued following the river downstream.
Compared to forcing their way through the thick jungle, traveling along the riverbank was much easier.
The flowing water gave them a clear direction, and the open ground made it easier to see anything approaching from the surrounding vegetation.
Even so, the journey was exhausting.
Several times they had to climb over fallen trees or carefully cross slippery rocks near the water.
Kanako nearly slipped once before Towa quickly grabbed her arm.
“S-Sorry…”
“Be careful,” Towa said.
Yarai walked near the front while Akira stayed slightly behind, occasionally helping Rion and Kurusu across the rougher sections.
Behind them, Ono, Mikoshiba, and Itou carried most of the heavier bags.
“…Why is surviving this tiring?” Ono muttered.
“Because this isn’t a video game,” Mariya replied.
“Shut up, four-eyes.”
After walking for quite a while, the sound of rushing water grew louder.
Akira looked ahead.
“…We’re close.”
They soon reached a waterfall pouring down from the rocks above.
Clear water collected in a pool below before continuing downstream through the jungle.
After making sure there was nothing nearby, he nodded.
“We’ll stop here for today. Let’s make a camp.”
Everyone began setting up.
They placed their bags near the rocks while Ono and Mikoshiba gathered firewood.
The others cleared a small area near the riverbank and prepared a place to rest.
Once the basic camp was ready, Akira and Itou took the fishing gear and headed toward a shallower section of the stream.
“You actually know how to fish?” Itou asked.
“No idea,” Akira admitted.
“This is my first time.”
Itou gave him a doubtful look.
“…That sounds unreliable.”
“It’s called gaining experience.”
Itou sighed and handed him one of the fishing rods.
“Try not to fall into the river.”
Akira grinned and cast his line.
For a while, nothing happened.
He stared at the water.
“…How long does this take?”
“You’re the one who said you wanted to gain experience.”
“Yeah, but I didn’t know it was this boring.”
Itou ignored him and kept watching his own line.
A sudden tug pulled Akira’s rod downward.
“Whoa!”
The rod bent sharply.
“I GOT SOMETHING!”
Akira nearly lost his footing as he tried to pull it in.
“Don’t yank it randomly!” Itou shouted, grabbing the rod.
Together, they pulled a large silver fish onto the rocks where it flopped violently.
Akira crouched beside it.
“…Is this fish supposed to look like this?”
Itou looked down at it.
“I’ve never seen one like it.”
Itou carefully turned the fish over with the tip of his knife.
“The scales are huge and look at those teeth.”
Akira leaned closer.
“…Are we sure this thing is even safe to eat?”
“We’ll let Mariya or Yarai check it first.”
Akira nodded slowly.
“…Yeah. Good idea.”
They took the fish to Yarai before continuing.
After examining it, he identified it as a Diplomystus, an extinct freshwater fish.
Satisfied that it was safe to eat, Akira and Itou returned to the river and continued fishing.
Ono eventually joined them, and the three continued catching fish near the rocks.
While the others continued fishing, Rion, Kurusu, and Kanako searched the area for fruits and edible plants.
Whenever they found something unfamiliar, they brought it to Mariya, who checked it against the information stored on his laptop.
He was cautious about anything they couldn’t confidently identify, warning them to avoid it.
By the time they returned to the camp, Towa had already cleaned several of the fish Akira, Itou, and Ono had caught, while Mikoshiba used several flat stones to make a proper fire pit.
The camp was almost ready when Mikoshiba suddenly stopped.
“…Something’s there.”
Everyone turned toward the opposite side of the river.
Several animals had emerged from the forest and were slowly approaching the water.
Rion instinctively grabbed Akira’s arm.
“…What are those?”
The animals moved cautiously toward the riverbank.
Some resembled oversized rodents with thick bodies and large front teeth.
Others looked like small, primitive horses with compact bodies and short legs.
Akira relaxed slightly.
Unlike the others, he, Mariya, and Kanako had already encountered these animals before.
“…Those things again.”
Yarai watched them for a few seconds, paying attention to their movements.
“They’re herbivores.”
Towa looked relieved.
“So they won’t attack us?”
“Not unless they panic,” Yarai answered.
“Right now, they’re more afraid of us.”
The animals continued drinking, keeping their distance from the group.
One of the horse-like animals lowered its head toward the water while another remained near the edge of the trees, watching them cautiously.
“…They’re kind of cute,” Towa whispered.
Akira watched the animals quietly.
“…I still can’t believe extinct animals are just walking around like this.”