(Day 6; Takeyama, Keisuke POV)
Horikita and Ayanokoji had, for some reason, left the basecamp together, and had headed out into the forest. I had been looking and keeping an eye on Horikita's movements, ever since I gave her my Keycard. Ibuki had been standing in the line for showering, but she had mysteriously disappeared as soon as Horikita had entered the river to wash off what seemed like mud in her hair. Why did she even have mud in her hair? The way it looked, it was definitely not an accidental fall on the wet trail. It was smeared on her hair on purpose. I wanted to meet the person who had the balls to smear mud on Horikita's hair. I wish I could give them flowers.
Ibuki had gone towards the river. Did she change her mind, and decide to go swim in the river instead? That seemed unlikely, since she had been standing in the shower room for 5 minutes, and there were literally only 2 people in front of her. It was a really bad decision if she really had gone towards the river for swim instead, after waiting so patiently in front of the shower room.
I glanced at Ibuki, who was now sitting on the rocks next to the river, lost in thought. Her hair was not wet in the least, indication that she did not in fact skinny-dip in the stream. Why did she then suddenly decide to exit the queue?
Did she, by any chance, have the Keycard already?
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(Night 6; Ayanokoji, Kiyotaka POV)
Me and Horikita were drawn back to the camp by what seemed like a smoke signal.
"What the hell!? Why's our stuff on fire!?" Ike shouted, garnering the attention of everyone in the vicinity.
"Everyone, please calm down!" Hirata, the ever-present mediator, said. "We must extinguish the fire immediately!"
Horikita looked around behind the toilet, the location of the fire. What seemed to be burning was small bits of paper. Some of it was still legible, but most of it had been turned to soot. Ibuki was present at the scene as well, and the expression on her face was just so genuine, I couldn't possibly single her out to be the culprit. Horikita had noticed that.
"I don't get it. If the keycard was stolen, Ibuki must've done it. If there is a fire now, it definitely must have been Ibuki. But she's as surprised as we are, and her expression is just so genuine. I don't get it. I don't get it at all," Horikita mumbled to herself.
"Did the manual get burnt?"
"Looks like it."
Hirata appeared at the scene to save the day. "The manual was in my bag. This is my responsibility. I did not expect it to get stolen in broad daylight, though." He scooped up 2 plastic water bottles, and ran down to the stream. I followed Hirata.
"Why? Why can't we all just get along?" Hirata muttered under his breath, crushing the plastic bottle in his hand. It was terrifying to see this change in personality. Hirata, the eternal peacemaker of the class, was carrying a huge burden, which could not be carried by anyone.
"I don't think you need to take so much on yourself," I said quietly. Takeyama was also there to Hirata's right, scooping up water in a bottle, and looking at Hirata with worried eyes. Guess that makes sense. They were pretty close, after all.
"Thank you," Hirata mumbled a soft statement of gratitude.
"Hey, who did this? Is there a traitor in our class?" Karuizawa started again.
"Why are you looking at the guys?! This had nothing to do with the underwear incident!"
"This could just be a ploy to distract all of us and mislead us, right?"
"Stop jerking around. Like we'd do something like that!"
"Everyone, please calm down!" Hirata cried out. "We must douse the fire first. It takes higher priority." Hirata and Takeyama continued to pour water onto the fire.
"I can't believe it. First an underwear thief, and now an arsonist," Karuizawa continued her hate speech.
"I'm telling you, we didn't do it! Why would we do it!?" Ike started shouting.
"Hey, Ibuki isn't here," Yamauchi noticed this anomaly and pointed it out.
"She isn't here? Wait, could she be..." And with that, both girls and boys were finally reunited with a common enemy to consider.
"Now that I think about it, Ibuki could have been the one to start the fire," Shinohara said. "It's highly probable that she wants to mess with out class unity."
I stared up at the sky. A few drops of rain had already started to fall onto the earth. "Rain, uh?"
"Oh shit! We need to take all the food and luggage inside the tents, or it's gonna get wet!" Ike screamed. "Hey, Hirata, tell us what to do!"
But Hirata continued to stand motionless, staring at the ground, with a lifeless look in his eyes. I had never seen him this way. Hirata continued to stare into space, his head swimming with thoughts and fears of not being able to control the class.
"Why does it always have to turn out like this? What did I do wrong this time? It's just like back then..."
"Hey, they need your help, Hirata," I softly placed my hand on his shoulder, making sure not to startle him.
"H-Huh? Yeah, yeah right. They need my help," Hirata slowly regained his composure and looked at me. "Thank you, Ayanokoji-kun."
Saying so, Hirata managed to get everyone else on track again.
It didn't surprise me that Ibuki had disappeared, but Horikita and Takeyama had disappeared as well. I had enticed this situation, and I stepped out onto the path into the woods.
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(Day 6; 5:43pm; Horikita, Suzune POV)
I dragged my body across the muddy road, pushing myself to run through the ever-increasing rain. Ibuki must have gone ahead. She had started the fire to give herself an opportunity to escape. I did not know where she had gone off to, but if I continued to follow the muddy footprints on the ground, I'm sure I'll catch up to her.
I walked for almost 100m before coming down to a slow trot, once I spotted Ibuki a bit ahead of me. I instinctively jumped behind the nearest tree to hide my presence, but I don't think that did any good.
"Why are you following me, Horikita?"
I realized there was no point in masking my presence anymore. I slowly came out my hiding spot, and I turned to face her.
"What are you doing here, Horikita?"
"You know very well why I'm here."
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"The underwear theft and the arson. You were behind all of it, weren't you?"
"I don't understand why you're suspecting me. Given, I'm a student from another class. But can you prove that I was the one who initiated all these events?"
"I cannot. I do not have a shred of evidence pointing to the fact that you were behind all of these misfortunes. But I think it was you."
"That's a very terrible thing to say, Horikita-san."
I was surprised at how well Ibuki-san was handling this situation. She knew the predicament that I was in. I was almost 99% sure that Ibuki had stolen the keycard from me. However, there still remained the slim 1% chance that Ibuki did not steal the Keycard. If that 1% were to be true, trying to ask for the Keycard would inevitably narrow down the suspects of the Leaders by a lot. If she were smart enough, she could even narrow it down between Takeyama and I.
"Let me cut to the chase. I want you to return something you took from me," I said.
"Something I took from you? I did not take anything from you. I don't know what you're talking about," was Ibuki's brisk reply.
Ibuki started walking forward, and I trudged along behind. Huff, puff, huff. My sickness was growing steadily worse. The rain had soaked all the body heat that I had left, and I was cold. The dense trees also meant a lot of mist and fog, and the reduced visibility was noticeable. Left, and then right, and left again. Slowly, I was losing my sense of direction, following Ibuki and stumbling through the flora.
She stopped walking, and looked up at a certain tree, with a handkerchief tied to its lowest branch. She put her bag down, bent over, and started digging the dirt in front of her with her hands.
"I'm gonna continue following you till you admit it, Ibuki-san."
"How long are you going to keep following me? It's getting annoying."
"Until you return what you stole from me."
"Why don't you calm down and try thinking? If I really did steal the Keycard, why would I hold onto it? I could have just looked at the name and kept it back. There is no benefit in me stealing it."
Ibuki had just confessed to stealing the Keycard. I hadn't mentioned what I meant when I said 'stolen', but Ibuki had brought up the topic on her own. She had just admitted to knowing what I was talking about, so she definitely stole the Keycard.
"You thought I just confessed, didn't I? You're wrong."
"...?" Wracked by intense dizziness, coupled along with weakness and nausea, I leaned back against the tree, trying to slow down my breath. Huff, puff, huff, puff.
"Your condition had gotten a lot worse."
"Ibuki-san, I want to investigate you with all I've got. I'm not leaving unless you do."
"Fine." Saying so, she placed her bag in front of her feet, and raised her hands above her head, as if in surrender. I slowly walked forward towards the bag.
Instantly, Ibuki's right leg lashed out towards my face, and I had to use every last ounce of alertness I had left to avoid the impact. I stumbled back a bit, but regained my balance, and took a fighting stance.
"An act of violence means immediate disqualification."
"And who is around to see whether I committed an act of violence against you? The school does endorse all these values and rules, but have you ever wondered how they would even manage to figure it out?"
Ibuki lashed out her right arm, but I knew it was a feint. Her left leg rose up in a high, fast kick and I raised both my hands up on my face to block it. I threw out my right fist towards her jawline, and Ibuki, sensing the danger in case it made contact, jumped back on the wet mud, and continued switching between a dizzying cycle of offense and defense.
The mud ground was slippery and soaked, and yet Ibuki had a constant footing and grip over the surface. She had definitely practiced. She proceeded to close the distance between us, and put both her arms on my shoulders. My movements were slow and weak, and she immediately threw me to the ground, and I gasped up for air.
"You've been trying really hard for the last few minutes. As a reward, I'll show it to you." Saying so, Ibuki thrust her hand inside her pocket, and took out a small green Keycard, with the name 'Keisuke Takeyama' written in bold at the back.
"You had a good strategy. Takeyama decided to give you the Keycard. So in case I saw the Keycard on you, I would think you were the leader instead, right? Well, it doesn't really matter now. I have definitive proof."
I had to somehow get the Keycard back. I had thought about reporting this incident to the school, but it would inevitably rope in Class D as well. Class C, however, had already exhausted all their Points, so they need not worry about taking any penalty. Class D had Points to lose. I cannot act carelessly.
If I did get the Keycard back, I could coerce the school into launching a thorough investigation regarding the incident, since the Keycard would have Ibuki's fingerprints on it. Ibuki would, however, never make such a mistake. I had to give up on that option.
"Still, I do not understand. Huff - what did burning - puff - the manual mean?" I asked her, as I mustered up the remaining of my strength to speak.
"I don't know about that. What would I gain by burning up the manual? I'm anyways an outsider in the class, and doing something which stands out like that would inevitably put suspicion on me. There's no benefit in me doing something so bold yet so meaningless."
"Wait. Does that mean..." I racked my brain. Who, then, burned the manual? Whatever Ibuki said right now made perfect sense. There's no point in her burning the manual. As the image of the person who I thought was responsible started to clear up in my head...
Thunk!
I felt a light instrument hit me on the side of my head, and I fell to the ground, whimpering in pain, clutching my head. The next moment, I saw a leg reaching out towards my face, and I closed my eyes.
There was a terrible pain, and I dropped down to the floor, unable to comprehend anything going on outside. I saw Ibuki's distorted figure in front of me, and my eyes slipped down, closing and welcoming the darkness.
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(Day 6; 6:05pm; Ibuki, Mio POV)
I looked down at the unconscious girl who laid down at my feet. I wiped the sweat of my brows, which had gathered despite the cool and wet atmosphere. It had been a while since I had experienced fighting such a strong opponent. This fight could have gone either way if she had not been sick.
I dug up the spot I had buried my items in beneath the tree. I felt my hand hit something hard, and I uncovered the transceiver and flashlight that had been kept in a vinyl bag. I felt something off. Was this the same way I had kept the bag? It was suspicious. Was it due to the rain?
No, I was overthinking it. I snatched the vinyl bag and headed down the trail deeper into the forest, leaving Horikita behind. I walked a bit, reaching a small clearing, not more than 1m wide, and I saw a light in front of me. It blinked 2 times, 3 times, just like Morse Code. I took out my own flashlight from the vinyl bag, and responded with the same signal. The bushes in front of me wavered a bit, and I saw an irritating face that I didn't want to see. Ryuuen appeared.
"Yo, Ibuki. Good work."
"Naturally, yes?"
"Naturally? If you hadn't made that mistake, I wouldn't have had to risk coming out over here."
"It wasn't my fault that the digital camera broke. It was an accident."
If the camera hadn't broken, I would have taken a picture of the Keycard and that would be the end of it. I wouldn't have had to run the high risk of stealing the Keycard itself. It led to Horikita discovering me.
"Do you have the card?"
"Yes. It's here."
Ryuuen took the card from my hand, and shined his flashlight on it. The name 'Keisuke Takeyama' was clearly engraved on it.
"You come over here and confirm it too. There's no one around. Relax, it's dark, and the weather sucks ass. There's no one here."
From the bushes, a man, Katsuragi from Class A, appeared. Ryuuen had said that he would coax Class A into helping us in this situation. But how in the world had he pulled it off against someone as paranoid as Katsuragi?
Katsuragi took the card from Ryuuen's hand, and carefully went over it. In this island, there was no way to even make a fake. Why was he being so cautious? Weirdo.
"Looks like this is the real thing. How did you infiltrate the class? Did nobody suspect you?"
"Well, I do my things my way. As for how, it's a trade secret.
"You know, rumors have been spreading rather fast that you're an incapable leader, ever since you got rejected by the Student Council," Ryuuen licked his lips as if he were looking at his dinner. "This might be the chance for you to finally gain control over the class that is slowly coming to distrust you."
"Bastard. Why are you telling me this now?" Katsuragi snapped.
"Because you are slowly losing control over the class. Class A has another potential leader in Sakayanagi Arisu. Class A consolidates its position by making alliances. I wonder what will happen if you reject my proposal now?" Katsuragi had signed a contract with the devil.
"She is absent. A leader who cannot be there while taking decisions is not a capable leader."
"I agree to your contract," saying so, Katsuragi raised his right arm. Ryuuen simply smiled.
"I don't want to stay here any longer. I want to get going. We do not know who could be watching," Katsuragi said, and he left and walked behind the bushes.
Ryuuen simply stood there, smiling at his eminent victory. I hated him; he had punched me in the face and threw me out of the class. Yes, all the hatred that I felt towards him was real. But that was the reason that Class D was not able to find out my true intentions. If I did not have the injury on my face, I don't think it would have been this believable.
I slowly got up, and wiped off the fingerprints on the Keycard. I placed them back in Horikita's hand, who was still lying unconscious on the ground. Poor girl, I thought. She had no choice but to stay silent as she consumes the fact that their leader was found out by not one, but 2 other classes.
We quietly disappeared into the woods.
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(Day 6; 7:23pm; Horikita, Suzune POV)
It's..... good..... to lie down..... not get up..... I felt at peace.... tranquil....
I slowly opened my eyes. I couldn't see anything too well, but I could make out those bangs and brown hair.
"A-Ayanokoji-kun? How.... ?"
"Shh. Don't speak. You're not in the condition to."
He was right. I was definitely not in a condition to. I sighed a little, and I could feel the pain in my legs, and a throbbing sensation in my head. Then suddenly, everything dawned back upon me.
"A-A-Ayanokoji-kun, the k-keycard, I'm sorry, I'm so u-useless.... "
"There's no point in telling me that. Tell that to Takeyama-kun. You must rest now. I'm taking you to the beach."
"No, I c-cannot retire now. We've come too far to lose another 30 Points. We'll lose out on so many Points anyways. It's my fault, it's all my fault.... " The guilt weighed down on me, chipping away at the last remaining bit of sanity I had left. Then, I felt a strong surface against my head. I closed my eyes, and enjoyed the warmth while it lasted, as Ayanokoji-kun hugged me closer to his body.
"I'm w-weak. I can't do anything alone.... "
"I'm glad you understand that, Horikita. You need allies. You cannot do it alone. Let me help you."
"I c-cannot burden you with my problems, Ayanokoji-kun.... "
"Shh. Quiet."
I felt a reassuring warmth come over me, and I slowly closed my eyes again, giving in to the fear and guilt resonating in my heart.
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(Day 7; 8:00am; Takeyama, Keisuke POV)
August 7. The day the results of the Deserted Island Special Test Results would be announced. All classes had already assembled on the beach in front of the makeshift podium, on which Mahima-sensei, homeroom teacher of Class A, stood, with a loudspeaker in his hands.
I was standing with Chiaki on the beach, and I took a lemonade from the stand that had been put up for all students to finally ease out and relax a bit, after the grueling survival session. The lemonade tasted so much better after a week's worth of almost no food.
"Hmm, stuff tastes soo good if you don't have it for so long, right?" Chiaki said, looking at me slyly.
"It does," I said. "It tastes unusually sour."
"That's because we've been basically living on fruits and vegetables throughout the entire week!" Chiaki said playfully, and poked me on my ribs rather hard.
"Ow — the hell?" She simply snickered to herself, as though she had just cracked the world's funniest joke.
I looked around the area we were currently in. Except Class C, all classes had already arrived. Bur before Mashima-sensei could begin the announcements, Ryuuen Kakeru emerged from the thickets, covered in soil and mud, and laughed as he made a grand entrance.
All classes went abuzz as to how Ryuuen was still in the exam.
"Wait, I thought Class C retired!" Sudo ejected angrily.
"Hey there, idiots," Ryuuen said, as he walked towards Class D. "Hmm, where's Suzune? I thought she was in this class?"
"Horikita-san has retired from the test," Hirata said, looking at Ryuuen.
"Who're you? And she retired? What a pain. I was dreaming of squeezing her bottom."
Sudo grabbed Ryuuen's collar. "Watch what you say, jerk!"
"Huh? What's with you? Getting all excited with yourself, huh?" Ryuuen sneered.
Hirata, who had noticed fists were about to fly, quickly stepped in and played mediator. Just then, we heard an audible click of a megaphone. Mashima-sensei started speaking.
"Over this past week, we, your teachers, have closely watched your efforts in this survival test. There were some students who took this challenge honestly, head on. There were others who devised several strategies to win. Overall, the the results were splendid. Great work."
"Well then, let's get straight to the point. Here are the results of the Deserted Island Special Test. We will not accept any questions regarding the results. You must face the results, and take them head on."
"I think we did fine, we have 125 Points left," Hirata said.
"Bah. 125 Points. What a joke," Ryuuen pretended to vomit.
"What the hell? You Class C bastards will be still on zero Points, you know?" Sudo spoke up.
"Have you forgotten the additional rules of this exam? We can expose the Class Leaders. I've already written down the Leader of Class D on the clipboard that was passed around this morning. Class A and B know it, as well."
Sudo's face showed visible panic, and Ryuuen turned slightly to look at me, and gave me an audacious grin. I kept quiet, and faced the front. Hirata tried to not show any expression.
"In last place, there is Class C, with zero Points"
"Bwa ha ha! You guys came in last place! Suck it!" Sudo screamed, clutching his stomach in laughter. Ryuuen didn't seem to understand the situation.
"In third place is Class A, with 120 Points. In second place, Class B, with 140 Points. And in first place," Mashima-sensei slightly stiffened, but resumed. "Is Class D, with 225 Points. This concludes the announcement of the results."
Class D students gathered around Hirata, all confused and excited at the same time.
"Wait, wait, wait! What happened!? I don't understand what's going on!" Ike screamed at the top of his lungs.
"I'll explain everything. Let's all head back to the ship now," with these words, Hirata comfortably postponed the topic until later. There were several shouts centered around Class A, and Katsuragi was in the middle of all of it, his face as calm and stoic as ever.
"You're kidding me," Chiaki whispered beside me. "What in the world did you do?"
"Nothing, really," I shrugged. "I was expecting more Points, though. We could have gotten more."
Chiaki widened her eyes in surprise. "More? We could have got more than 225?"
"No. Let me rephrase. We could have widened the gap more. It was only a 50-50 chance though."
"I don't understand what you mean by that. It's the same thing right? Getting more Points or widening the gap?"
"No, it's not. Think about it. I'll fill you in later," with that, I headed out into the ship, stretching out into the morning horizon.
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A/N's:
Phew. It's over. The Island Exam Arc is almost over. There's still the explanation and stuff remaining, but if I included that in this chapter as well, I wouldn't be able to complete it on time, and it would have made the chapter unnecessarily long. So I decided to leave that for the next one.
Thank you for reading, cheers.
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