Tsurune: Kazemai Koukou Kyuudoubu Volume 1 Chapter 5 Part1

In this chapter: discord in the club, fishing, and I officially give up on trying to make sense what all the kyudo stuff actually looks like.

Once again, sorry for the bad photo.

Glossary

Full list of translations

Translation Notes

1. The yumifutokoro is the s.p.a.ce formed by the rounded shape of the arms in yugamae

2. A Satokawa is a “River flowing through human settlements that is maintained through the appropriate use and conservation of the environment surrounding it.” ()

3. A point in fishing is a “a location where the bottom is shallower than the surrounding area.” It is a good place to find fish. ()

4. Amanojaku is a j.a.panese demon. It can apparently see into people’s hearts and is a contrary demon.

Raise your voice.

I want to hear your voice.

After the prefectural tournament qualifiers, the Kazemai High School Kyudo Club was working hard at practice.

Tomi-sensei spoke.

"All of you have worked hard in the qualifiers. The other day, there was a gathering of tournament staff, and we received compliments from the judges on our wonderful taihai. Continue to work hard in this way. Today, Ma.s.san is taking a day off and I will also be away to take care of some business, but you must not shoot sloppily just because we aren’t here watching.”

“Yes, sir.”

After seeing Tomi-sensei off, Nanao brushed his slightly curly hair upwards.

“Even now when I remember it, it’s still amazing. Kirisaki’s Fujiwara Shuu being at the top in the individual compet.i.tion. And then continuing to get kaichuu on the second day. Is he a monster?”

Even though Nanao was expressing his honest impressions, everyone’s responses were slow because Kaito, who was in disarray at the qualifiers, was acting strange. Increasing his shooting count as though he was thirsty for blood, on that day as well he went straight to the targets without taking any notice of others.

Minato also felt impatient ever since he reunited with Shuu. There probably wasn’t any archer who didn’t feel anything when shown those kinds of shots. That overwhelming difference in power was carved into his eyes, ears, and skin.

Minato and Nanao went to stand in front of the targets side-by-side, but Nanao immediately left his spot right after he shot once.

“What’s wrong, Nanao?”

“I cut myself again. Minato, do you have a tissue?”

He looked and saw blood coming out of the first joint of Nanao’s thumb. He licked it to wipe off the blood, but because it did not stop, he had to suspend shooting. His kokou—the s.p.a.ce between his thumb and index finger—was also swollen red.

When Nanao finished sticking a bandage on his thumb, Minato took out something that looked like leather finger cot from his dragonfly-patterned pouch.

“Nanao, try using this.”

“Is that an oshidegake?”

“Yep, it’s a yugake for the left hand. This one is one-fingered, but I have a two-fingered one as well.”

“Well then, I’ll use it. I wonder why I’m cutting myself there.”

“I’ve heard that beginners cut themselves there because they’re grabbing the bow too tightly and pushing too hard, but you’re not doing that at all.”

“I’ll try asking Tomi-sensei or Ma.s.san tomorrow.”

Hearing that, the three girls frowned.

“Would Tomi-sensei know the reason? Even though the finals are in less than a month, he’s still only talking about taihai, which is hardly advice for shooting, don’t you think?” Seo said.

“Oh yeah, I’ve also worried about that for a while. He said the judges praised our taihai, but I can only think that they were just being polite. Taihai isn’t something you can win a compet.i.tion with no matter how good it is,” Hanazawa said.

Then, Shiragiku continued, “That does not only apply to taihai, but also shooting posture. No matter how good our shooting postures are, it is meaningless if we cannot hit. And Takigawsan, he was invited by Tomi-sensei, so he just seems like a hanger-on. I wonder if we can really defeat that Kirisaki like this…”

Hearing those words, Kaito could not keep himself from objecting.

“Oi, don’t talk about our sensei and coach like that.”

“Oh, but weren’t you in a bad condition because your tenouchi was tampered with during the training camp? Although it seemed to be fine because you pa.s.sed the qualifiers, as it is difficult to adjust a tenouchi in a short period of time, the coach is also responsible, since he did not stop you even though he knew that.”

“That was my request, so Ma.s.san’s not responsible. And didn’t Tomi-sensei entrust everything shooting technique-related to Ma.s.san? Isn’t that what they call a division of roles? Aren’t you just blaming other people for your own lack of results?”

“I wonder if the same could be said for you.”

“Huh? What are you——”

Before Kaito could finish saying everything, Nanao cut him off.

“Now now, let’s all have fun drawing our bows. As for me, I’m having lots of fun now drawing my bow.”

“…Nanao.”

Kaito pressed closer to Nanao.

“You might be doing kyudo just to get girls to go crazy for you, but I’m doing it seriously. If you just wanna have fun, then there’s no point in you doing official compet.i.tions!”

“Onogi, cut it out!”

When they realized, it was Minato who raised his voice.

“Narumiya, you got somethin’ to say?”

“Look at Nanao’s left hand. Isn’t that the hand of someone who practices a lot? It’s not a bad thing to have fun drawing a bow. Don’t take your anger out on Nanao.”

“You must’ve become so great if you’re lecturing me.”

“I am also to blame for you not doing well at the qualifiers. We were the ones who did something to upset you.”

“…Don’t talk like I’m some mentally weak guy… And what about you? Weren’t you all shivering and scared because of your hayake?”

“Okay, that’s enough!”

Seiya’s voice resounded.

“Because you’re all still tired from the compet.i.tion, your heads are not working properly. Let’s discuss this at another opportunity.”

Kaito gave a sidelong glare at Seiya, then left.

On the next day as well, Kaito was standing before the targets more than anyone else. The heels of his tabi socks became worn-out and tattered, but it seemed that he couldn’t afford to worry about his feet.

Tomi-sensei tapped his shoulder.

“Onogi-kun, you’ve been drawing too much recently. Your shots are also getting faster, and there’s no point in hurting your shoulders, so let’s slow down a little.”

“No, Tomi-sensei, I’m fine. I can still draw.”

“You don’t have to draw so much.”

“In my case, if I don’t draw a lot my tenouchi will go back to what it was before. ——I’m going to continue practicing.”

“Hmm.”

Minato felt that his own appearance when he was falling into hayake was mirrored in Kaito. Even now, his feelings of impatience for quickly wanting to be an archer worthy of Shuu, and his anxiety that his hayake might start up again, followed him around, like he was carrying a bomb.

The ambition to become better was also desire, if looked from another perspective. The act of asking for the impossible was named “longing.” Dreams encouraged people, made them shine, and sometimes drove them to despair. Kyudo demanded strict self-control and emotional stability, all left to the person’s own willpower in the end. If you got too heated up, only you could cool yourself down, and you could not borrow anyone else’s help.

Minato and Nanao went to collect the arrows. When they were alone, Nanao lowered his brows and smiled.

“Minato, don’t get angry with Kacchan. He’s really happy about partic.i.p.ating in team compet.i.tions, so he’s really enthusiastic.”

“Huh? But Onogi said he doesn’t want to be in them.”

“Yep, he’s just unaware of it, but he really wants to take part in them. He longs to head towards a single goal with comrades. He’s pretty cheeky for a weakling, isn’t he?”

Nanao stuck out his tongue.

“Aren’t kyudo compet.i.tions surprisingly strict? In baseball, if you mess up at defense you’ll work hard at offense, so there might be a chance to recover, but in kyudo the game is decided by either hitting or missing, and the outcome is decided in the blink of an eye. You feel a lot of responsibility because your misses are directly connected to your team’s loss.”

“Oh, I really get that.”

“Since training camp, it seems like you and Kacchan are feeling impatient about being able to adjust your tenouchi.”

“I still can’t do it at all.”

“Even so, don’t you do a beautiful yugaeri? When someone skilled is close by, of course people are going to compare themselves with them. Even I want to get a beautiful shooting posture that wouldn’t lose to yours.”

Although Nanao seemed flighty and superficial at first glance, Minato felt that he was actually the most grown-up among the five of them. Those who maintained their usual self without going through an emotional roller coaster about things were strong.

Minato put his arm around Nanao’s shoulders. He felt like he somehow understood Ryouhei’s state of mind when he puts his arm around people’s shoulders. It was a feeling of I’m so happy to meet you today.

It was a cheer of encouragement.

“Nanao, let’s go ask Ma.s.san about the thing from yesterday.”

“Oh, that’s right.”

After returning the arrows, Nanao called Ma.s.san over.

“Ma.s.san, why am I skinning my thumb? I know that I’m sc.r.a.ping it against the arrow feathers.”

“The position of your nock a little bit too low. Try raising it a few millimeters.”

Nanao blinked rapidly. It was an unexpected answer.

“Really? That’s all?”

“Yep. Because the grip of the bow is low, your string might have stretched. Your kokou might have swollen red because you’re putting too much force on it.”

Everyone gathered as Ma.s.san showed an example.

“After you adjust your tenouchi, gently tighten your elbows and spread both shoulders in order to keep your yumifutokoro (1) wide. Then, pull the feathers slightly so as to not let them hang on the bow. This is called ‘habiki,’ and it’s brought up all the way to kai which is when this opening is expanded. After that, properly turn your head towards the target and gaze at it steadily. This is called 'monomi o sadameru’ (fixing your eyes on the target).”

Ma.s.san gently raised both his hands to the same height.

“'Uchiokoshi’ is raising your hands slightly above your forehead as though you’re scooping something up. The arrow is almost always horizontal and parallel to the body, so that both shoulders sink. Next is 'hikiwake.’ Use your pectorals and back muscles to open the bow to left and right.”

Ma.s.san pulled to about half the arrow’s length, then stopped.

“This form is called ’daisan,’ where you stretch the inside of your right elbow so that your right fist is in front of your forehead and one fist away from it. Daisan comes from the phrase oshi dai moku hike sanbuichi (push big and pull one-third). By prioritizing the bow pushing force and pulling with a third of that strength, the bow is evenly parted to the left and right.”

When he finished talking, he drew his bow to the limit and released the arrow. A sigh escaped from the surroundings at the sharp arrow’s flight.

“Do you know where the ’tsunomi’ is?”

Nanao touched the base of his thumb between his index finger and thumb.

“By using the tsunomi and lightly tensing the little finger, the arrow will fly to where you are aiming at. You lightly tense the little finger in order to make use of the trapezius brachii muscles, so that the lower part of the trapezius muscles will also work because of that. From the outside, ’daisan’ seems like you’re coming to a stop, but it is a form that takes into consideration the workings and tension of the entire body.”

“In other words, it’s no good if you only try to fix your tenouchi?”

“Well, I wonder if it’ll come to that. Kaito, bring your arrow here for a bit.”

Ma.s.san stood Kaito in front of a target.

“Do you remember the relationship between the thumb and middle finger on the left hand?”

“…They are lovers.”

“That’s right. In order to not let those two separate, the cooperation of another person is necessary.”

“Another person?”

“The index finger. The trick to not let the index and middle fingers separate is to slightly raise the base of the index finger up. So that the thumb springs up without bending at the joint. Try it.”

Kaito released his arrow as Ma.s.san supervised, and his bow quickly rotated in his hand. The muddiness in Kaito’s eyes disappeared with the matooto.

“That was a beautiful yugaeri—a good shot. After daisan, make the back of your hand face upwards so that your right wrist doesn’t bend. Like 'Oh, that’s Mount Fuji,’ like you’re getting a view of Mount Fuji.”

Ryouhei immediately copied him.

“It’s like something from a period drama or kabuki.”

“Oh, that’s Mount Fuji,” Nanao also said in a kabuki voice, and then he and Ryouhei posed together, before giggling when their faces met. Their laughter was infectious and everyone else burst into laughter as well, and it became the usual serious but amiable sight. Ryouhei’s and Nanao’s exchanges were a specialty of the Kazemai High School Kyudo Club, and it was unsatisfying without them.

At the very end of practice, Tomi-sensei made an announcement.

“On the weekend, I will give you five boys a mission. If you clear the mission, I shall teach all the members how to raise their hitting rates without having to fix their shooting postures or anything else.”

“Ehhh! Really!?”

“Yes, really, Yamanouchi-kun.”

Tomi-sensei laughed loudly.

In the early morning of the weekend, Minato, Ryouhei, Nanao, and Kaito were at a mountain stream. Seiya was unusually late.

It wasn’t the same stream where they had a barbecue during training camp, but a Satokawa (2) river system that was about thirty minutes by bike from Minato’s house. The new green leaves burying the riverside was wet with morning dew, and the mountain cherry trees were dotted with small red fruit. The river sounds that resounded on the bank imparted the abundance of water.

Ryouhei said to Nanao, “Why are we fishing? Is it a thing where we have to learn patience? Plus, we have to send Tomi-sensei a picture of the five of us with today’s catch.”

“But it’s fine, since it seems like fun. But, I never really did much fishing. People often ask me why I can’t fish even though I live by a river.”

Nanao was dressed in the latest fashion that seemed like it was decorating the cover of an outdoor magazine rather than a local fisherman. He started with the looks first, and because of his stance that he should just ask someone on site about how to do things, his fishing kit was completely borrowed.

“If that’s the case, then work with me and Minato. In elementary school, Minato was the best at fishing among us. They say that working independently is forbidden because you can’t call for help when something happens. Is it okay with you, Minato?”

Minato turned to Ryouhei with a look of amazement.

“It’s fine, but the two of you will have to catch bait at least by yourselves. Tomi-sensei gave us a sport fishing pa.s.s, but we have to source the bait locally.”

“I don’t wanna touch river bugs! I’m going to buy bait, not deal with bugs.”

“Wimp. Bugs aren’t a big deal if you think about suddenly encountering a bear.”

“Minato, you’re a wild child even though you really don’t look it. You didn’t catch a cold even though you fell into a cold river, and you run on snow-covered roads without hesitation. Even if you run into a bear, you’ll probably not react to it and the bear will be the one who’ll be surprised. Rather than being suited for surviving outdoors, if anything, you’re kind of a natural airhead?”

“Ryouhei, the only person who I don’t want telling me that is you.”

“Why?”

“You just proved my point. Besides, a real bear will be coming soon.”

“Eh, what do you mean?”

Kaito was watching Minato, Ryouhei, and Nanao talk from a distance. From his perspective, Minato and Ryouhei were fundamentally similar, and they were both clearly airheads.

Shortly after, Seiya arrived.

“I kept you all waiting. Sorry for being late.”

“Is this dog maybe 'Bear?’”

“Yes, isn’t he handsome? I brought him because Ryouhei seemed to have wanted to meet him before. He’s a four-year-old Bernese Mountain dog. Bear, say hi to everyone.”

When Bear barked, Ryouhei’s eyes sparkled.

At first, Bear was simply watching Ryouhei, but when Seiya finished his fishing preparations, he completely let down his guard. Minato and Nanao joined in on playing around, and they ended up on the ground jostling each other, causing a pa.s.sing fisherman to laugh at them.

Kaito called out to Ryouhei.

“Hey, get going.”

“Ehh, but I want to play with Bear more.”

“Once it gets late, the fish will probably take a nap. Then fishing will be over.”

“Oh, that’s true. I did hear that it’s easier to fish in the early morning and evening.”

Wiping off a cloud of sand and Bear’s hair from their clothes, the five people and one dog then separated into two groups and headed off to fish.

Kaito and Seiya first turned over a rock at the bottom of the river. Because the hiding river bugs were being swept away, they used a hand net to scoop them out and catch them. They had been fishing since they were children, but the outcome relied on searching for a point (3). As they weren’t equipped to enter the river, they looked for a place to stretch a rod and reach from land. Since they could walk alongside the river here, there were no worries about getting stung by black flies in the bushes or getting bitten by snakes.

Mountain stream fishing was a dynamic activity. Instead of hanging one’s fishing line down and patiently waiting, one repeating the action of circulating the bait from upstream to downstream then dragging it up, and if there was no tug, then one would steadily change the point to throw the bait into.

Seiya left Kaito, went along the rocky area and crossed over to the opposite sh.o.r.e. Bear also skillfully followed along. He quickly aimed at the shade of a rock where fish seemed likely to be and tossed his line. When he felt a tug and lifted his rod, he only took up bait. He baited it again and threw it in, and felt a great bite. Thrilled, he pulled up, and saw a dark lump—a piece of wood. He removed the hook from his pulled-in spoils and let it drop to his feet.

He then took about two hours to catch one masu salmon. Bear, with his considerably large size, was constantly sniffing its scent. Putting it away at the bag that hung at his waist, he returned to Kaito.

Kaito was trying to unravel his fishing line that was entangled with an overhead tree branch. When casting the line for mountain stream fishing, the hook could get caught on a tree branch or the roots, and the work to undo it was troublesome. Compared to sea fishing, the catches were small, so it wasn’t suited for people with short tempers.

Seiya put his pole on the ground.

“Do you need help?”

“Oh, Seiya. Could you please pull that branch over here? It seems to have gotten stuck in a weird way.”

The two worked together and unraveled the line from the long branches.

“Thanks, you were a big help.”

“How did your fishing go?”

“I’ve got absolutely nothing. If this keeps up I might not catch anything at all. What about you?”

Seiya proudly showed what he was hanging from his waist. When he took a picture of it with his phone and sent it to Minato and the others, a picture of Ryouhei with a small fish in each hand was sent back. It appeared that Minato and Nanao still hadn’t caught anything.

They found a shaded area and sat down. Seiya opened the day pack he was carrying on his back.

“I thought that we’d get hungry, so I brought bread. Do you want half?”

“Sure. Thanks.”

They stuffed their mouths with tomato curry bread, then drank from their water bottles. Bear was also given dog food. After he finished eating, Seiya brought his face to Bear’s nose.

“He’s a smart dog. Were you not able to do anything about his name?”

“Isn’t it a good name? It’s easy to remember, and it sounds strong.”

“Hmmm, is that the kind of concept behind it?”

“Also, he really is smart. He immediately got attached to Ryouhei, but he usually doesn’t get familiar with people he doesn’t know so easily, so he has a good eye for people. He seems to be showing respect for you, Kaito.”

“Thank you for that.”

When Kaito stroked Bear’s jaw, Bear stood up and sat near him, as though to nestle close to him. He looked up with jet-black eyes.

Seiya slowly opened his mouth.

“About everything with Kirisaki’s Shuu—it was wrong of me to keep it all a secret, sorry. I will talk about it properly from now on.”

“Oh no, you don’t have to talk about it. You have nothing to apologize for. You had something you didn’t want anyone else to know about, and it was wrong of me to get curious about it. Even if I knew, it doesn’t really mean that I can be helpful to you guys either.”

“That’s not true. I’m counting on you, Kacchan.”

“You…even though I was talking seriously… Can I punch you?”

“Well, since the compet.i.tion is over. I think Tomi-sensei gave us this mission not to acquire stamina and patience through fishing, but to make us get away from the bow once in a while and relax. Minato seems to be conscious of Shuu and getting fl.u.s.tered by him as well.”

“Rather than him, I’m a little worried about you.”

“Me? Why?”

“Aren’t you more worried about Narumiya’s hayake than he is? Other than that, what can I say, uh… Anyways, you’re also a disappointment.”

“I don’t quite understand, but well, I’m thankful that you’re worried about me.”

“You’re kind to everyone, and yet you act rebellious towards me.”

Kaito swallowed the words that came to his mind.

——Do you have some sort of guilt towards Narumiya?

That question lacked sensitivity too much. By some chance Seiya answered yes, would he be able to find the words that he should respond with? There was no kindness in the att.i.tude of speaking of speculation as though it was true, or being okay with saying whatever one wanted if it was the truth. Just like a tag question, he was just criticizing the other party under the pretext of asking a question.

“Seiya, when I first saw you at the information session, I thought that you were a guy who was well-composed and really good at kyudo. I was watching you for a while, and I thought maybe you were similar to me in some way. You have a pa.s.sion, some kind of conviction, don’t you? I want to respect it. I respect the you who worked hard to obtain a calm and collected self.”

“You praising me feels unpleasant. Should I say that you should go practice if you had the time to observe me?”

“I want to win the prefectural tournament—with all five of us.”

“Yeah…, that’s right.”

There was the sound of a cuckoo deep in the forest. There was a maple tree spreading its leaves and branches with all its might to seek sunlight. The green wall before their eyes was slowly swaying, the flower petals from the trees dancing in the wind. The river surface shone brilliantly, and Bear closed his eyes, probably from the glare.

After that, they joined Minato’s group and finished fishing by noon. Minato, Kaito and Nanao each caught one fish, Seiya caught two, and Ryouhei caught three young fish. There were days where not even a single fish could be caught, so those were excellent results. The five took pictures with the fish in their hands, salted the fish and ate them, and thus their mission was completed.

The next day, Tomi-sensei spoke in front of all the club members.

“Mission cleared, congratulations. Then, as promised, I will teach you all the three ways to increase your hitting rates.”

“Hooray!”

Ryouhei answered, looking as though he couldn’t wait. Hanazawa, Shiragiku, and Seo watched on with expressions that said “show me what you’ve got.”

“The first way is 'equipment.’ Using a bow that matches your own physical strength and using arrows and strings that matches your bow strength. Because a heavy arrow will fly badly. The second way is 'equipment adjustment.’ Making the height of your grip and the position of your nock correct and always the same. I believe everyone was able to do all that. And now, the third way. It’s 'aiming.’ How do you all aim at the target at kai? Takehaykun?”

“Yes. You open both eyes and align the left edge of the bow with the center of the target. That is 'hangetsu no nerai (lit. Half moon aim),’ where you conceal half of the target with the bow’s yazuridou. I am generally aiming around that area.”

“Oh, what a wonderful answer. But, that 'my aiming is generally around that area’ thing is tricky. There are those who hit often in practice but cannot hit at all in compet.i.tions. Even though they aren’t especially nervous, even though they are drawing with their usual shooting postures. Why is that? That is because they aren’t aiming like usual.”

“What do you mean, sir?”

“I am saying that human vision is affected by the situation of the surroundings. When the location changes, the target feels distant, or if there is only one tree growing on the arrow-collecting path, the consciousness is pulled towards there. If your aiming is ambiguous from day to day, your aim will be off because the way you see will be different depending on location.”

“Oh, even in the same kyudojo, the target seems smaller in the evening than in daytime.”

“The j.a.panese yumi has no sighting device, so you cannot see where the arrow is facing. If there is someone who can see it, that is only because they are doing hanare in front of their bodies (maebanare). In order to know whether the arrow is correctly facing towards the center, you need to be in the correct kai state where your arrow is touching your cheek—’hoozuke’—and your string is touching your chest—’munazuru,’ and then you must ask someone to look at you from behind. Especially from left and right to up and down. Just a deviation of a few millimeters can create a deviation of about ten centimeters at the target twenty-eight meters ahead. I think you all understand just how much accuracy is required. Well then, everyone, try doing it for yourselves.”

First, Ma.s.san showed them by drawing two arrows. Because he was tall, they had to stand on tiptoes to watch. And then, his arrow tips precisely faced the middle of the target. Then, with Ryouhei going first, Ma.s.san checked everyone’s aiming.

“Bring your chin down, you have to look at the target (monomi) properly. A little righter, then a little further down. There, that’s right in the center.”

“Eh, really? This right?” Ryouhei expressed surprise.

As a result, there were a few people who were aiming left rather than at the target. When someone was a beginner, because they didn’t utilize tsunomi and didn’t do yugaeri, it was unavoidable for the arrow to fly slightly to the right, so they memorized with their eyes to aim at the very edge of the top of the target. It was forbidden to put a mark on the bow’s yazuridou.

“Know the correct aim, and don’t change it. This is very important. For compet.i.tions, since your arrows are only going up today, it is unavoidable that you would try to lower them a little, but I want you to practice without changing your aiming everyday. If your aiming is the same, when you think that your arrows won’t go to the right today, you will be able to judge for yourself whether or not your left hand is weak.”

“I see,” Seo said in wonder.

Even the girls who had questioned Tomi-sensei’s teaching methods seemed to have been convinced.

“Correct shooting makes for correct hitting—don’t hit incorrectly, hit correctly. Remember that well. The "G.o.d of Hitting” is Amanojaku. (4) Rather than those who only speak of their dreams of wanting to hit, he approaches those who seem to not have that sort of greed in mind. Besides, it is difficult to fix bad habits once you have acquired them. Many people who were self-taught in their student days and after becoming working adults, quit kyudo because they were told that their shooting postures were bad. I do not want you to become like that. Perhaps this is the selfishness of an old man.“

While Ryouhei turned towards Tomi-sensei with a look of respect, Kaito whispered into Nanao’s ear.

"Nanao.”

“Hmm? What is it, Kacchan?”

“…At the qualifiers, because of you and Seiya hitting for me, we can go to the finals…thanks.”

Nanao’s cheeks seemed to loosen, and then he promptly headb.u.t.ted Kaito.

“Owwwww!” Kaito’s shout reverberated, and Tomi-sensei gave a big thumbs-up.