(V4) Chapter 6: Leap of Faith

It was already late morning and the school divided the students onto separate groups in order to perform team building and local terrain exploration.

It goes like this—all of Komorebi High School students are separated into groups of five. Then, we all have different starting points in the exploration of the mountain range near the coast.

These mountains have thick and lush forests, and we’re going to find some wooden blocks that act as a “checkpoint” to the next station. These blocks contain Kanjis that will be used as clues in order to find our next trail.

"I'm bad at Kanji." I immediately remarked in self-deprecation.

While phones are allowed for emergencies, navigating the forest through maps can be challenging as it doesn't show the directions of how to reach the shrine at the summit—the only choice was to find the Kanjis themselves.

I was grouped with two male students from Class 1-8, Kimura Jun and Shimabara Kaito. Then Sasaki Maya from Class 2-2, and lastly, Takamine-san and I from Class 3-2.

I adjusted the strap of my sling bag, turning over my shoulder.

“Seriously? How the hell did I end up with all of you?”

The three strangers somehow carried expressions similar to mine.

"Others were allowed to go on to choose their own members but for our late-risers, it was randomized." Jun said.

Well, that explains everything.

"This can be tough then. Let's get along." Takamine-san declared, arms folded. Her white baseball hat shielded her from the sun, but didn’t hide the irritation in her voice.

Kaito breathed. “We’re relying on you, student council president.”

"Don't expect much, and don't be left behind."

We're all in our P.E uniform so extra movements will feel relatively easier.

We took off with the rest of the groups into the light woods far from the beach. The other three from our team weren’t very athletic, and I felt kinda bad when I realized they were already lagging behind before the first checkpoint. But Takamine-san didn’t even blink.

"They're getting left behind." I voiced out.

"I already warned them not to."

"You're too harsh."

“If we slow down, we lose the puzzle and the buffet,” she said plainly, pushing past branches.

“I mean, we could wait for them—”

Takamine-san’s eyes sharpened into ice daggers.

“They’ll catch up, or not. It’s survival of the fittest.”

A shiver ran down my spine. Not from her words. From how easily she said them. She was too competitive, far beyond my league.

"Tell me, who are you competing with?"

“My rivals.”

Her answer was literal, but looking at her eyes, I can tell that the target was different.

***

After a few minutes, we reached the first checkpoint.

Below an evergreen oak tree, wooden blocks were slotted onto a stand, with a blank plaque below.

First block contained 木 (tree) and the second block had 寺 (temple).

I scratched my head, pretending to be thinking. “Uhhh…tree and temple...then it must be 'Tree Temple', right? That's it?”

Takamine-san exhaled sharply, "Too dense on Kanji, too dense on everything. I wonder why the heck did I even fall in love with someone like you."

I stifled a chuckle, nearly choking the air out at her blunt honesty.

"Do I take that as a threat to our relationship?”

"No, take that as a motivation to study grammar."

She stepped closer and inspected the wooden blocks, searching for possible further clues.

"If it's just like this, then it these two will form 森. 'Mori.' or Forest.”

"But are we already in a forest?"

"It says we venture deeper. Where we are standing is just a woodland, and a forest is a more enclosed canopy, and more bushes and shrubs."

She slid the two pieces into place, and shifted to the next direction.

“What are you, a trained ranger?” I asked, rubbing the back of my neck.

"My family hobby is hiking and skiing."

"Well, expected from a well-off."

The forest trail was calm. Birds chirping. The ground is soft beneath our sneakers. A breeze filtered through the leaves.

“It’s kind of peaceful,” I said, brushing past ferns. “Makes me forget this is technically school-sanctioned.”

Takamine-san didn’t respond right away. But then, quietly, “It’s too quiet. You always say dumb things when it’s quiet.”

“…You missed insulting me, huh?”

She didn’t answer. But her ears were red as she dashed forward.

"Hey, wait for me!"

As we ventured deeper, the place started to get dimmer and greener. It's getting harder and harder to push forward without tripping on either fallen branches or rotting wood logs.

A "Yusui-no-mori" sign was planted next to a lump of ground, meaning we may have already arrived at our destination.

And across the distance, the next checkpoint showed up.

Two new wooden blocks:

First was 氵(water radical), then the second was 青 (blue)

I stared at it.

“…Blue water? So we're going upstream?”

Takamine-san scoffed, "You nailed it. I also think that it would be a river since if you combined the two, it would be 'clear'. 清 means clean or pure."

She was right again, but at least I finally caught up.

The terrain started sloping upward, making it more exhausting to move forward.

But we continued smoothly, like two experts in navigation—skipping, perching and jumping over branches and logs like it was some kind of obstacle course in our PE subject.

When we heard the water cascading forward, we knew that we're already at the second spot.

The river loomed ahead, wide and calm.

Smooth pebbles and rocks stood below the sunlit surface. Dragonflies darted around, laying eggs and even some fishes swam free.

The water was only ankle-deep, but cold. We took off our shoes and rolled up our pants. She moved gracefully, like her feet had some royal training.

But before I could take my next step, I slipped. I reflexively planted a pivot foot into one smooth stone to prevent myself from buckling over.

Pain shot on my knee though.

"Come on! The next clue is across!"

We reached the third checkpoint, and I crouched down next to the puzzle stand, still catching my breath from crossing the stream.

"Will they be able to catch up?" I asked.

"It doesn't matter." she remarked. "None of the rules said you need to be a complete team when you reach the summit to win. Just by being first, you get the prize."

"So that's why you dragged me along so we can celebrate together?"

She sighed, a palm slowly landing on her forehead.

"You're so lost in a sense. Do receivers of confessions become stupid overnight?"

I didn't answer. I just scrambled and pretended that I'm focused on our mission. “Okay…we’ve got a mountain—” I tapped the block marked 山. “And this one’s… climb? 登?”

Takamine-san nodded, brushing her fingers over the symbols with a quiet kind of reverence.

“Together, it makes 峠. Tōge. It means a mountain pass. You’ve probably seen it on road signs before.”

I just thought of the kanji, 峠 'Tōge'. It was nostalgic, as if I was fond of it. Like it held thousands of memories.

Right...we used to pass by roads with these kinds of signages.

With my family. At least once or twice. That's all for the years I lived with them.

“You…like this kanji?” Takamine-san asked.

"Maybe. Mountains mean a hurdle in life, and sometimes they say to break your limits to get past them."

She paused. Then, without looking at me, she mumbled. "That's correct, but you look like a poetic dork. I never expected those words to come out of your mouth."

“Yet here we are. Making it out alive together.”

She looked away quickly. But not before I caught the faint smile tugging at the corner of her mouth. But then, a glare, laser sharp.

“I’ll finish you right here if you continue stealing glances at my embarrassed face.” she hissed slowly.

My breath hitched, and I slowly turned away.

“Apologies. I just don’t want to get left behind.”

She didn’t speak again. And my thoughts kept pounding—she did admit she’s embarrassed, right?

The third checkpoint led us to the higher parts of the mountain, and we are now overlooking the forest we already cleared before. At the far horizon, the hotel and resort with the endless line of blue. It was such breathtaking scenery.

I turned towards the other peak and there were clusters of red, our schoolmates wearing the same uniforms as I, also quietly appreciating the scenery the mountains offered us.

"They are doing stopovers. Let's use that to our advantage." Takamine-san muttered as she walked past me.

The climb started easy. Just dirt and roots. But the incline kept creeping steeper. The trail narrowed. Our breathing grew heavier. We weren’t talking anymore, just moving in sync.

Then she tripped after a bad step.

She gasped and faltered. Reflex kicked in—I reached out without thinking and grabbed her by the wrist before she could fall backward.

We froze.

My fingers wrapped around her wrist. Her hand clutched mine. Her heartbeat was fast. So was mine.

"...Thanks." she whispered.

"I could never let you die before my very own eyes."

Our eyes met, and hers were fierce for a second. But something behind that usual cold expression cracked a little.

“…You’re sweating,” she pointed out, pulling back.

“And you're probably tired,” I said, which made her turn away quickly.

Silence again, as we kept walking.

But I noticed after that—she didn’t walk ahead anymore.

Takamine-san stayed beside me.