Once Ibuki Mio had disappeared into the undergrowth, Shikime Natsu withdrew his gaze, turned away, and resumed his leisurely stroll through the forest.
The whole thing had been nothing more than a minor diversion.
The morning was still young. Shikime Natsu raised his wrist and glanced idly at the digital display on his bracelet.
There was still a comfortable stretch of time before the midday meal. And as for food — he'd already taken care of that. No need to rush.
So Shikime Natsu chose to spend this window of free time exactly as he pleased: wandering.
Of the four class base camps scattered across the deserted island, he had so far visited only Class A's and Class C's. He'd originally intended to head for Class D's camp, but he'd run into Sakura Airi on the way, and that plan had quietly dissolved.
Now that he had time on his hands, Shikime Natsu decided to take a look at Class B's base camp first. Even before they'd officially set foot on the island, he had already committed its topography to memory — every ridge, every clearing, every patch of terrain suited for making camp.
He cut through a dense stretch of undergrowth in the direction he'd mapped out in his head, and before long, a faintly level path appeared beneath his feet.
The path was obviously not a natural formation.
The weeds along the ground had been pressed flat in an orderly fashion, and the soil was covered in overlapping, chaotic-yet-purposeful footprints — the unmistakable mark of many students treading the same stretch of earth, again and again, over a short span of time.
Following the man-made trail, the resistance underfoot eased considerably.
Shikime Natsu followed the path without much effort at all, and in short order arrived at the outskirts of Class B's base camp.
He pushed aside a broad leaf blocking his line of sight, and the full spread of Class B's encampment came into view.
The location had been chosen well.
At the center of the camp stood a simple well, clearly hand-dug, ringed by a stand of tall, thick-trunked trees. Class B's students had made clever use of those trunks, stringing hammocks between them — their solution to the problem of where to sleep at night.
The camp was far from idle at this hour. Students moved about in an orderly way, attending to the small, unglamorous tasks that survival demanded. Some sorted firewood. Others reinforced the ropes on the hammocks.
Everyone was smiling — but the mud-caked uniforms and the sheen of sweat on their foreheads gave away a weariness that no amount of good cheer could fully mask.
The moment Shikime Natsu stepped out from the shade of the trees, his figure drew every eye in the camp.
The noise of the encampment faltered into a brief, collective silence.
"Ah — Shiki-san!"
A bright, melodious voice, brimming with surprise, broke the stillness.
Ichinose Honami was standing near a fire not far away, her trademark strawberry-blonde hair catching the sunlight and gleaming with particular brilliance. The moment she made out who it was, those clear blue eyes of hers lit up with an unmistakably joyful spark.
She immediately set down what she was doing and trotted over, greeting Shikime Natsu with a warmth that was entirely characteristic of her.
Shikime Natsu stopped walking and returned a mild smile.
"Sorry to intrude."
Ichinose Honami waved a hand in quick protest, a touch of delight dancing on her face.
"Not at all — everyone's happy to have you visit us here in Class B."
Hearing so completely unguarded a welcome, Shikime Natsu raised one eyebrow slightly, a glimmer of amusement passing through those pale golden eyes of his.
"Ichinose-san, aren't you at all worried that I might have come to Class B to gather intelligence?"
Faced with that blunt little provocation, Ichinose Honami didn't so much as flinch.
She laughed softly, her eyes curving into gentle crescents.
"Not in the slightest."
She looked at him, her voice carrying the unhurried certainty of someone who had already made up her mind.
"If you hadn't come by our camp, Shiki-san, I'd have been more worried, honestly."
In Ichinose Honami's eyes, the very fact that Shikime Natsu had appeared at Class B's camp so openly, without concealment or pretense, was reason enough to rule out malicious intent. If it had been almost anyone else from Class A making this visit — well, that might have been a different matter entirely.
But beyond that tactical reasoning, there was something deeper at work in Ichinose Honami's heart — a feeling of reliance she couldn't quite put into words. That afternoon when she had laid bare every ugly piece of her past before this young man, Shikime Natsu had listened with a quiet smile and accepted all of it — accepted her, the girl with that kind of history — without hesitation.
He hadn't weaponized what she'd told him. He hadn't gone around the school spreading it. After she'd spoken, he had, for all intents and purposes, treated the whole thing as if it had never happened.
And so — Ichinose Honami held Shikime Natsu in genuine regard. Of course, even setting all that aside, Class B wouldn't simply turn away any visitor at the door.
Hearing those words of trust, Shikime Natsu smiled faintly and let his gaze drift over the Class B students still busy at their tasks. Not a single one of them was looking at him with any trace of hostility.
That was probably down to two things. The first was Shikime Natsu's own particular brand of personal magnetism. The second — and more important — was simply that Class B, at its core, was made up of fundamentally decent people.
They were bound tightly together by Ichinose Honami — no scheming, no betrayal among them. A good-natured group, through and through.
"Shiki-san, are you thirsty after walking all this way?"
Ichinose Honami stretched out a hand toward the well at the center of the camp.
"If you are, you're welcome to have some of our water."
As if worried he might hesitate, she quickly added an explanation.
"At first, we weren't sure whether the water from this well was clean enough to drink directly. But yesterday, one of our classmates volunteered to be the test case — and by this morning, they hadn't shown any symptoms at all. No stomach trouble, nothing."
Ichinose Honami smiled with evident relief.
"Which means the water is safe. Perfectly fine to drink as-is."
Watching her warm, hospitable manner, Shikime Natsu gave a small wave of his hand and declined politely.
"I'm fine, thank you. I'm not thirsty."
Water wasn't something he had much need to worry about. Class A's camp sat beside a small river — and while Shikime Natsu had no particular knowledge of how clean that water was naturally, a quick application of [One-Touch Clean] had made it safe to drink without any concern whatsoever.
Ichinose Honami accepted the refusal without pressing the point, simply nodding with characteristic understanding.
Shikime Natsu took the opportunity to survey Class B's campsite facilities more carefully.
Class B had been diligently conserving their precious class points as well — but under Ichinose Honami's leadership, they'd still managed to secure a baseline quality of life for everyone. He even spotted a rudimentary shower setup, housed inside a tent, which offered both convenience and privacy.
Just then, Shikime Natsu's gaze shifted toward several Class B students who were emerging from the trees on the far side of the clearing. They carried things bundled in leaves — evidently just back from a food-gathering run.
Ichinose Honami followed his line of sight and immediately noticed what had caught his attention.
"Shiki-san, if you're hungry... you're welcome to eat here, too."
Before he could respond, she gave a warm smile and gestured toward the freshly collected ingredients.
"Really — please don't stand on ceremony. We just gathered some food, so sharing a little with you is no trouble at all."
Several Class B students who had just set down their haul overheard this and turned around, offering Shikime Natsu friendly smiles in ready agreement.
Even with two classes in direct competition. Even knowing that Shikime Natsu might very well be after their key card leader intelligence — they were still this willing to share their rather modest provisions with a guest.
Looking at this earnest, uncomplicated bunch, Shikime Natsu gave an exasperated shake of his head.
"No need, thank you for the kind offer."
He looked at Ichinose Honami and said, his voice mild:
"I've already got my own food sorted out — more than enough."
He paused, his gaze settling on the unprocessed fish and river shrimp the students had just brought back.
"Though — if you don't mind — I could give these ingredients a bit of a hand. I could put together something for everyone."
At that, Ichinose Honami blinked, and a flicker of embarrassment rose to her fair cheeks.
She hastily waved her hands in refusal.
"Oh, but that wouldn't be right at all — Shiki-san, you're our guest. There's no rule anywhere that says guests are supposed to cook for their hosts."
Shikime Natsu simply laughed the objection off, entirely unbothered by such formalities.
"It's no trouble at all. Just a small thing."
At those insistent words, Kanzaki Ryuuji, who had been standing quietly nearby, stepped forward.
He looked at Shikime Natsu, adjusted the glasses on the bridge of his nose, and spoke.
"Ichinose — since Shiki-san has already said as much, there's no need for us to stand on ceremony either."
Kanzaki Ryuuji settled his glasses again.
"I've heard before that Shiki-san's cooking skills are quite exceptional. I'd very much like to judge that for myself."
With Kanzaki Ryuuji taking the lead, the rest of Class B — who had been quietly salivating for some time now — immediately chimed in, one voice after another, a cheerful chorus of hungry enthusiasm.
Looking at those expectant faces all around her, Ichinose Honami found it rather hard to keep refusing.
She turned toward Shikime Natsu and offered him a slightly bashful smile.
"Then... we'll be in your hands, Shiki-san."
Shikime Natsu smiled and dipped his head.
"Leave it to me."
Several Class B students immediately crowded around him, eagerly asking whether there was anything they could help with.
Shikime Natsu simply waved them off.
Too many cooks in the kitchen would only disrupt his rhythm.
He moved to the fire and took the raw fish and river shrimp from Class B's students with practiced ease.
Without another word, Shikime Natsu went to work.
His movements were fluid and unhurried — the fish and shrimp cleaned and prepped in short order. Then, threading them onto sharpened wooden skewers, he set them steadily over the fire.
Under Shikime Natsu's careful management of the heat, the surface of the fish soon began to shimmer with an appetizing golden sheen. The shrimp shells deepened under the high temperature, shifting gradually into a vivid, brilliant red.
As the fat rendered out and dripped down onto the burning coals —
Tzz —
A sharp, clean sizzle rang out, and in an instant, a wave of pure, intoxicating meat fragrance rolled outward through every corner of Class B's camp.
Just the smell of it was enough to set mouths watering and appetites roaring to life.
The Class B students who had still been busy a moment ago all drifted to a stop, one by one, swallowing hard and fixing their eyes on the food over the fire.
When the heat looked just right, Shikime Natsu lifted the skewers from the flames and smiled at the assembled crowd.
"Done. Eat up."
At those words, Class B let out a collective cheer and descended on the food at once.
They took the skewers, bit into that first careful mouthful —
And the camp erupted in a wave of overlapping exclamations.
"This is incredible!"
"No seasoning whatsoever — so how is the fish this sweet?"
"The shells are so crispy, but the meat inside is so tender — I swear this is the best thing I've ever eaten in my entire life!"
They devoured it — practically licking the oil from their fingers.
On this resource-starved deserted island, the appeal of food was... intoxicating. To be eating something this delicious in conditions this harsh — it was almost too good to be real.
Class B was entirely absorbed in the pleasure of the meal, radiantly happy.
Ichinose Honami, meanwhile, had quietly slipped away from the crowd and made her way to Shikime Natsu's side, where he was resting by the fire.
She looked at him, those blue eyes full of gratitude.
"Shiki-san, thank you — truly. I don't think any of us have ever had food this good."
She expressed her thanks to him again, with quiet sincerity.
Shikime Natsu returned a light sound of acknowledgment and reached behind him — producing a grilled fish with a particularly fine, golden color — and held it out to her.
"Give it a try. This one I set aside especially for you."
Looking at the skewer before her, fragrant and gleaming, a flash of delight crossed Ichinose Honami's face.
She took it with both hands, murmured a soft "thank you," and parted her rosy lips — taking a careful, delicate bite from the richest part of the belly.
Crisp on the outside, tender within — the sensation burst across her palate in an instant.
Ichinose Honami's eyes curved shut with pleasure, and she let out another heartfelt sigh of appreciation.
"It really is wonderful..."
She swallowed, then looked at him, a shade of poorly-concealed envy in her voice.
"Everyone in Class A who gets to eat Shiki-san's cooking every day — they really are incredibly lucky."
At that, Shikime Natsu only gave a quiet, easy laugh.
He watched the flames dancing in the fire and replied in an unhurried tone.
"That's where you'd be wrong. I only cooked one meal for Class A — on the very first day after we landed."
He turned to look at Ichinose Honami's slightly startled expression and continued.
"As of now, I'm not even staying at Class A's shared base camp anymore."
That thoroughly unexpected piece of news stopped Ichinose Honami in her tracks. Even the grilled fish in her hand was momentarily forgotten.
"Not staying at the camp? Then... where are you living, Shiki-san?"
She asked, genuinely puzzled.
A mild curve settled at the corner of Shikime Natsu's mouth as he explained.
"Masumi and a few of the others — we found a quiet spot in the forest and set up on our own."
There was a note of easy contentment in his voice.
"We built a little cabin there ourselves. That's where we're living now."
At those words, Ichinose Honami's clear eyes filled with an envy she couldn't begin to hide.
Deep in the forest — separated from the rest of the class — sharing a private space built by their own hands with someone they cared about.
The image of it, just imagining it, felt indescribably romantic.
On this harsh deserted island, spending the days together with the person you loved, living this quietly idyllic little life.
What a warm, enviable thing that would be.
Ichinose Honami let the thought wash over her in silence — and somewhere deep in her heart, a longing she couldn't quite bring herself to look at directly stirred to life.
Watching the girl's slightly faraway expression, Shikime Natsu smiled and continued.
"Even with the Class A leader title officially on my shoulders, what I actually did after we landed was build a few cabins and cook one meal — got everyone settled in, basically."
He spread his hands with an expression of mild helplessness.
"After that, there was really nothing left for me to do. So I've just been wandering around, taking it easy."
That extraordinarily understated account of things made Ichinose Honami's expression go just slightly strained.
A few cabins. Just like that.
Was that really something one could describe as a casual, easy affair?
As Class B's leader, Ichinose Honami kept herself informed of developments across other classes. She had heard the reports from her own classmates — students who'd gone deep into the forest looking for fruit and inadvertently strayed close to the edge of Class A's camp — and what they described had been nothing short of astonishing.
They'd come back practically tripping over their own excitement to relay what they'd seen. A cluster of wooden cabins by a river, where Class A was living — each one capable of housing eight people, with a dedicated outhouse structure on top of that.
The cabins were solidly built. The timber joints fit together with barely a gap. And there was something almost naturally beautiful about the way they looked — as if they had simply grown there.
That level of construction, by any normal person's reckoning, would have taken far longer than a day or two to complete.
Let alone on a deserted island with no modern power tools to speak of.
In the end — Ichinose Honami quietly stacked it all up in her mind and arrived at a verdict she was one hundred percent certain of: if it had been her, even with every last member of Class B working alongside her, they couldn't have come close to pulling off something like that.
Among all of the first-years, only the young man standing before her now — Shikime Natsu, who seemed capable of anything — could describe something that outrageous as easily as commenting on the weather.
And what he'd accomplished in those first hours on the island had already been, for Class A, an immeasurable boon. With his efforts alone, he had fundamentally raised the floor of the entire class's chances of survival.
All the small, tedious survival challenges that followed — they simply didn't need him anymore.
Watching the complicated parade of emotions crossing Ichinose Honami's face, Shikime Natsu spoke, breaking the quiet.
"Ichinose-san."
He looked at her, and extended an invitation.
"Would you like to... come and see my camp?"
At that unexpected offer, Ichinose Honami visibly hesitated.
His private camp. Come and see it.
The invitation carried an almost fatal pull for her. She genuinely, deeply wanted to see the place where Shikime Natsu was living.
But in the end, her sense of responsibility won out over her personal feelings.
She lowered her gaze slightly toward the fire, and spoke with a note of genuine regret.
"Thank you for the invitation, Shiki-san."
There was an apologetic thread in her voice.
"But... Class B still has a lot of things that haven't been finished yet. Everyone's working hard — I can't just slip away and take a break while they do."
Just as the last word left her mouth —
Shiranami Chihiro, who had been standing off to one side quietly working her way through a piece of grilled fish, stepped forward.
She had clearly caught the whole exchange between them.
Shiranami Chihiro looked at Ichinose Honami and said, in a coaxing tone:
"Honami-chan, you really don't need to think so much. You can go with Shiki-san and take a look."
"All those little odds-and-ends around camp — we're still here. We can handle things, all of us together."
"Actually... everyone's been saying it among themselves. Ever since the ship docked and we came ashore on this island, you've been running yourself ragged. So we really do want Honami-chan to get some proper rest."
"We want to try having Honami-chan lean on us for once."
Those words struck Ichinose Honami somewhere deep, and her heart gave a sudden lurch.
They sounded so familiar.
She remembered — it was during that conversation with Shikime Natsu that afternoon that he had said much the same thing to her. But even so... she'd found, when it came down to it, that she still couldn't let go. Because she wasn't as capable as Shikime Natsu — she didn't have the luxury of stepping back from everything.
The other Class B students nearby had noticed the small scene unfolding and, after a quick round of questions among themselves, turned toward Ichinose Honami one by one, all of them smiling.
"Don't worry, it'll be fine — leave things here to us."
"Exactly, and it's not like Honami-chan is leaving for good."
"Didn't sensei say it herself — this deserted island trip can be an outing, a chance to relax and clear your head."
Voice after voice, they called out to Ichinose Honami with warm, easy smiles.
Listening to them, even Shikime Natsu had to quietly concede that Class B's people were remarkably good at setting things up for others.
All he'd done was invite Ichinose Honami to come take a look at the camp — it wasn't as if it were some grand leisure excursion — and Class B had already unanimously decided she was heading off for a well-earned rest.
"Then... I'll leave things to everyone."
With those words of support from all of Class B, Ichinose Honami gave a gentle nod — and then turned those blue eyes of hers back toward Shikime Natsu.
____
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