READ NOVEL ONLINE Chapter 26
“That’s right; I hadn’t been here before.”
“Your feet had blisters back then, and we had to take a break.”
“You were quite accommodating back then!”
So, we started cutting bamboo. With the handsaw in our possession, it was an easy task.
“Look at all these bamboo shoots sprouting everywhere!”
Iori, bored with nothing to do, exclaimed with excitement.
As I focused on my work, I replied, “That’s true.”
“Let’s eat them! I really like bamboo shoots.”
“I like them too, but it’s better to leave them.”
“Why?”
“Probably because the bamboo shoots here might not taste good.”
“Really!?”
I cut down the first piece of bamboo and replied as I cut it into suitable lengths.
“Most likely, the bamboo here is a different variety from the ones you find in stores. It’s clearly thinner.”
“Wow, there are different varieties of bamboo? I thought bamboo was just bamboo!”
“There are various types. I’m not an expert, but I’ve heard that different varieties can vary significantly in size and thickness.”
This was information I’d learned from my great-grandfather during my childhood. Living in the countryside, he was knowledgeable about these things.
“I see!”
“Also, most bamboo shoots are usually not very tasty. It’s better to avoid bamboo shoots you’re not familiar with. We don’t know how to cook them, and they could give us stomach problems.”
“You’re right! We’re going to escape soon; we can’t afford to take unnecessary risks!”
I nodded in agreement.
We then brought the bamboo back to the house. We needed to disinfect it before using it for various purposes.
I was roasting the bamboo tubes over the campfire then I left this task to Iori while I focused on something else.
“What are you doing, Masato-kun?”
“As you can see, I’m stacking firewood.”
“No, I mean, why are you stacking firewood?”
“I’m doing it to dry it out. Most of our firewood got soaked during the recent storm.”
“Doesn’t wet firewood not burn?”
“That’s right. It just produces a lot of smoke and is hard to burn.”
I had set up a perimeter of firewood to dry. The rest of the firewood could dry naturally.
“Now, let’s start processing the cleaned bamboo.”
“Wait!”
Iori raised her hand, and the bamboo tube she was holding swung upwards, nearly hitting me in the face.
“Whoa!? What are you doing?”
“Sorry, sorry, I just had a question!”
“Hmm?”
“We cut down bamboo for some light work, but I realized I never asked what we’re actually making with it.”
“I guess I forgot to mention it.”
“There are two things I want to make. First, I want to make water bottles, just like the ones we made before. We’ll need a lot of water to stay hydrated out on the open sea under the scorching sun.”
“That makes sense! And the other?”
“A sieve.”
“A sieve?”
“Yeah, we’ll weave bamboo to make a sieve, and then we can use that sieve to make dried fruits.”
Iori exclaimed, “Oh!” in admiration.
“They have a longer shelf life, and they’re more portable because they lose moisture.”
We don’t know how much time we’ll spend at sea. Ideally, it might take around 10 hours if everything goes smoothly, but that’s somewhat of an idealistic estimate. It could take several days, and we might end up wandering the sea. Having dried fruits could potentially extend our time at sea.
“Impressive, Masato! You’ve thought it all through!”
“I’ve awakened to this since I washed up on this island.”
It’s all thanks to Iori. At first, I only saw her for her looks, a cute girl who talked to everyone like a saint. That was attractive enough, but now it’s more than that. Spending time together on this island, deepening our bond, has made her an even more important presence in my life.
People become stronger when they have something to protect — it’s a common saying, and it seems to be true.
“I’ve answered your question, so let’s split the bamboo.”
Sitting on the ground, I set up the bamboo tube, securing it with my feet. I placed the machete against the tip and used a hammer to strike its back. The blade entered the bamboo, and with another strike, it split apart.
(Not bad if I say so myself.)
Work progresses as I imagined, and I can’t help but smirk.
“Masato-kun, I bet you’re congratulating yourself inside.” Iori looked at me with a grin.
“Gah! Why would you say that…?”
“Because it’s written all over your face!”
“Well, I’m an honest guy, so I can’t tell lies.”
“What are you even saying?”
We both chuckled.
***
We split the bamboo finely and wove it to make a sieve. Iori was better at this task than me.
“Finished! Two sieves! They’re ready!”
“I’ve got the water bottles ready over here.”
We completed two sieves and a bunch of water bottles.
“The water bottles we can store at home, so next up is making dried fruits.”
“We’d better hurry. It’s getting dark,” I warned, noticing that it was almost 8 PM. If it weren’t summer, it would already be pitch black outside.
“Let’s go, Masato!” Iori started working in a rush. She placed banana leaves on a log and began cutting apples and bananas on them. She wielded the oversized hatchet like a pro.
My job was to arrange the sliced fruits on the sieve. After the earlier strenuous tasks, I was grateful for this easy job.
“All the fruits are cut to size!”
“Great, job well done!”
We hung the sieves on the roof of the shack, marking the end of today’s work. However, there’s still more to be done.
“I’ll do the laundry, so take off your pants and stuff!” Iori shouted from inside the house, bringing out a wooden pail with a hand towel inside.
“Oh, I sweated like crazy again today.”
I began to unfasten my belt and lower my pants, but my hands stopped midway. I heard a distant rumbling coming from the north.
“Iori, look! It’s an airplane!”
A small plane was approaching the island.
“Smoke signals!” I shouted, checking the campfire. However, there was no smoke; just a modest flame flickering.
“Hurry, let’s burn some leaves!” Iori exclaimed.
Iori and I quickly gathered leaves from the southern forest, whether they’re pine or broadleaf. We stuffed them into the fire, but the smoke started rising too late.
“It’s not going to make it!”
The plane was already flying over the island, but not directly over us. It was flying to the far east. By the time the smoke reaches the visible range, it will have passed us.
“No way…”
Iori dropped to her knees.
“We messed up; we shouldn’t have let the signal fire go out,” I added, also looking dejectedly at the plane. But then something unexpected happens.
“Hey, something just fell from the plane!” I pointed out.
Something was dropped from the plane, and it didn’t seem like an accidental drop; it looked intentional.
“It’s leaving!” Iori shouted as the plane circles and disappeared towards the mainland.
“Should we go see what they dropped?”
“Given the time, we could wait until tomorrow…”
I shake my head. “No, we’re going now. I can’t sleep with this hanging over us.” We dashed eastward in a hurry.
———–
All hail kenshi yonezu, this is my third chapter for this novel today~
What do you think will happen next?