"Hikage, are you alright?"
Sato came over with Fujimiya Konomi to her side.
Miyauchi Hikage, who had just looked like she was about to cry from the pain, immediately returned to normal. She waved her hand and said nonchalantly, "I'm fine! It's just a small problem!"
"Oh? Don't feel embarrassed in front of us. If you want to cry, just cry, Hikage."
Fujimiya Konomi covered her mouth and laughed softly.
"Wh… who would cry! Konomi, you're too much!"
Miyauchi Hikage glared at her angrily.
This gentle-looking girl was actually the most scheming one here.
"By the way! Where's the crab king from earlier?!"
Koshigaya Natsumi suddenly looked around, only to realize the crab had already disappeared who knew where.
"Then I'll start counting!"
Fujimiya Konomi faithfully carried out her duty as referee, bringing everyone's buckets in front of her.
Just from a glance, the number in Koshigaya Komari and Ichijou Hotaru's bucket was less than half of the other two groups.
Koshigaya Komari was struck as if by lightning. She froze in place, muttering, "Lo… lost… I actually lost to elementary schoolers?!"
"Ko… Komari-senpai, are you okay…"
"I'm… I'm fine. I just need a moment."
"That leaves Natsumi's group and Ren-chan's group."
Fujimiya Konomi crouched down and placed the two buckets in front of her, counting them one by one.
After a round of counting…
"Natsumi and Hikage have a total of twenty-six!"
"Next is Ren-chan and Kanna-chan. One, two… twenty-six, twenty-seven, twenty-eight! This side has a total of twenty-eight!"
"Tw… twenty-eight?! We actually lost?!"
Miyauchi Hikage stared at the two buckets in disbelief, staggering back a few steps.
"I actually lost to elementary schoolers too?!"
"Hah… it's all your fault, Hikage-nee! Why didn't you catch that crab king earlier!"
Koshigaya Natsumi sighed regretfully at the side.
"Huh?!"
Miyauchi Hikage looked at her in disbelief. Since when had this kid's skin become so thick?
"We won! Kanna-chan, we won!"
Miyauchi Renge happily looked at Kanna.
"We won!"
Kanna's blue eyes also looked at Miyauchi Renge. Influenced by her, she showed a faint, rare smile.
"As a reward, Hikage-nee has to treat me and Kanna-chan to shaved ice!"
"Huh? There's a punishment for losing too? Well… fine. But is the candy shop even selling shaved ice now?"
Miyauchi Hikage looked confused for a moment, then resigned herself.
"Sato, what's that in your hand?"
Suddenly, Kanna noticed the object in Sato's hand and asked.
It was half of a plastic drink bottle. Sato had cut a large bottle in half with a knife, made several holes in the upper part, threaded yarn through them, tied the strands together, and attached a single string for lifting.
Inside the bottle were some leftover rice.
"This? It's something used to catch fish."
Koshigaya Komari explained to Kanna, then seemed to recall something and turned to Ichijou Hotaru.
"Hotaru, you've never tried this before, right?"
"Mm! Mm!"
Ichijou Hotaru nodded without hesitation, her eyes shining as she looked at the half bottle in Sato's hand.
Sato smiled and pointed to where he had been earlier. "I made a few over there just now. Anyone who wants to try can go get one."
"Hehe! Then I won't hold back!"
Koshigaya Natsumi grinned and rushed over first.
"Natsumi, why are you so fast?!"
Miyauchi Hikage chased after her, gritting her teeth.
…
Soon, everyone came to the bridge.
Below the bridge was the deepest and calmest part of the water. Standing on the bridge, they could see many small fish swimming below, their silver scales glinting under the sunlight.
"Put a stone inside first to weigh it down, otherwise it won't sink!"
"And when you put it in the water, move gently. Don't let the rice spill out."
Sato explained the precautions, mainly for Ichijou Hotaru and Kanna, who had never tried this before. The others were already experienced.
There were only four tools, held by Kanna, Ichijou Hotaru, Koshigaya Natsumi, and Miyauchi Hikage.
They each placed a stone into the half bottle. Actually, if it were filled with water, the stone wouldn't be necessary, but the path up from the stream was steep and inconvenient, so they had only brought empty bottles up.
With the stones added, they dropped the bottles straight down from the bridge.
With several dull splashes, the bottles sank beneath the surface, the rice inside shifting gently.
"Wait a bit. Let the rice settle before lowering the bottles fully, otherwise it'll scatter."
Sato reminded them from the side.
Koshigaya Natsumi and Miyauchi Hikage were experienced and handled it skillfully. Ichijou Hotaru and Kanna followed along steadily.
Soon, the bottles settled at the bottom of the stream.
Through the crystal-clear water, they could clearly observe everything below.
As the bottles sank, fish in the water smelled the food and began to gather frantically around the rice. Some found the opening and swam inside.
"S- senpai… the fish went in!"
Trying this method for the first time, Ichijou Hotaru's eyes widened when she saw fish enter the bottle, and she exclaimed excitedly, almost stumbling over her words.
Compared to her, Kanna also widened her eyes in curiosity but remained quiet.
"Wait a bit longer. Let more fish go in first. They're just small fish, they won't eat all the rice right away."
"Yes!"
Ichijou Hotaru calmed down, though excitement still showed on her face.
"Get ready, listen to my command!"
Nearby, Miyauchi Hikage stared intently at the water and suddenly spoke in a serious tone.
"Three, two, one, pull!"
As her voice fell, everyone pulled at the same time.
The loose yarn tightened instantly, and the bottles that had sunk at the bottom broke through the surface as they were lifted. The fish that had been swimming calmly scattered in panic.
Under the sunlight, the trapped fish darted around inside the bottles, their silver scales flashing brightly.
"Oh."
Kanna's eyes sparkled as she looked at the fish trapped inside the bottle.
"Fish! Fish! Fish!"
Ichijou Hotaru was so excited she could only repeat the same word.
Seeing this, Sato and Fujimiya Konomi exchanged a glance and couldn't help but smile faintly.