Laid-Back Life in Tokyo: I Really Didn't Want to Work Hard
Chapter 126: Bamboo Forest Retreat

Chapter 126: Chapter 126: Bamboo Forest Retreat

The following Monday, weather: Clear.

Last night was really a bit rough.

Uesugi Sakura, carrying a bow bag, walked to the school entrance’s school trip meeting point on the damp ground, looking listless.

In his hand, he also carried a black suitcase filled with clothes.

"Uesugi, why do you look a bit off?" Seisuke Yooya helped him put his luggage into the school bus and turned to say.

"My head feels a little dizzy." Uesugi Sakura took off the bow bag from his back and put it inside too, saying lazily.

Rather than lazy, he looked more like he was unwell.

Uesugi Sakura suddenly sniffed.

"Caught a cold?" Seisuke Yooya asked.

"A little."

"Then should you perhaps skip the school trip for now? Get rid of the cold first."

"No need." Uesugi Sakura, half-opening his eyes, waved his hand to refuse.

Seisuke Yooya examined his tired face closely, "Resting for a day or two isn’t a big deal, we can practice shooting form on our own first."

Uesugi Sakura yawned, his eyes drowsy, "It’s just a mild cold, nothing serious, a bit of medicine will do."

"It’s just that the medicine is making me sleepy now."

"Are you really okay?" Out of concern, Seisuke Yooya asked again.

"No problem," Uesugi Sakura waved his hand, sleepy, "I’m not weak."

"Alright then."

After getting on the bus, Uesugi Sakura leaned against the window for a short nap, and once all the Kyudo Club members participating in the camp had arrived, the bus departed from Shinjuku District.

The towering buildings along the way went by outside the window, gradually becoming distant in his hazy eyes.

The concrete structures turned into low houses, and the sleeping Uesugi Sakura didn’t know how long the journey took, only feeling that after a nap, his position had changed.

Stretching lazily, Uesugi Sakura got off the bus with Sugita Shuhei, who had woken him up.

The fine bamboo leaves rustled, surrounded by swaying green bamboo.

There was nothing but green in front of him.

Not far away, Chitose Mai was taking selfies under the bamboo with Sakurai Fumiko squatting beside her.

Most of the Kyudo Club members participated in this training camp, although there weren’t many of them.

"Where is this place?" Uesugi Sakura blinked around, the refreshing air clearing his head a bit.

"Didn’t you see the message in the group chat?" Sugita Shuhei said.

"No, I didn’t look." Uesugi Sakura said.

Sugita Shuhei didn’t waste words, "Kurokawa."

"Kurokawa?"

Uesugi Sakura glanced at the blue sky; it should be just noon, "How did we end up in Kumamoto Prefecture!?"

"Near the Kurokawa Station next to Tama."

"..."

Sugita Shuhei continued, "We asked the Ogasawara Fan Shi here to help train everyone’s shooting forms."

The bamboos near Ogasawara Manor were very tall, over ten meters, straight and orderly, bending only at the top.

The winding paths through the bamboo grove, with scattered patches of sunlight occasionally filtering through the gaps, shimmered like fine golden dust around the Kyudo Club members.

The sun made the emerald leaves shine brightly, and their faces were tinged green by the deep shade.

The air was infused with a coolness, making it a rare summer refuge from the heat.

Ogasawara Shikyo was the owner of this manor; with thick sharp eyebrows and gray hair, he gave the first impression of being a strict traditional old man like their math teacher.

But in fact, this eighth-dan Fan Shi was not pretentious and personally came out to welcome everyone.

The members participating in this camp, carrying their bow bags over two meters long, curiously nodded and greeted the eighth-dan Fan Shi.

"Teacher." Among everyone, only Sugita Shuhei had a special way of addressing him.

Ogasawara Fan Shi, dressed in a crisp white Kyudo uniform, waved dismissively, speaking amiably, "No need to be formal; haven’t I always told you, ’Learn Zen and understand the mind’?"

"When hungry, eat; when sleepy, sleep. Be free from thoughts or worries, and maintain a calm mind."

"Got it." Sugita Shuhei lifted his head.

"This must be the Uesugi you often mentioned?" Ogasawara Shikyo smiled kindly at Uesugi Sakura behind Sugita Shuhei, "I can tell from his demeanor that he’s a skilled archer."

Uesugi Sakura nodded slightly and greeted him again, "Ogasawara Fan Shi."

"Just call me teacher, like Shuhei over there."

Ogasawara Shikyo looked towards the Kyudo Club members, "Everyone will be learning here with me for some time. As I mentioned earlier, ’Learn Zen and understand the mind.’ No need to be formal, just relax."

The crowd responded politely.

Approaching noon, Ogasawara Fan Shi did not rush to start the arrow-offering ceremony but first invited everyone to dine and rest at his manor surrounded by bamboo.

Though called a manor, it was actually only Ogasawara and his wife living there.

They did everything themselves, and according to Mrs. Ogasawara, having the Kyudo Club members over was quite invigorating.

"Has Ogasawara Sensei practiced Buddhism?"

The meal was casual, and Uesugi Sakura often heard Zen-like words from the old man, but his straightforward demeanor was unlike a temple monk.

"No," Sugita Shuhei put down his chopsticks, "it’s just that the teacher likes to talk about these things."

"It sounds quite Buddhist." Uesugi Sakura said while stuffing his mouth with rice.

Sugita Shuhei didn’t argue, as it was a fact, "Kyudo has many ties to Buddhism; the Bamboo Forest Sect deeply resonates with it."

"Which school does Ogasawara Sensei belong to?" Uesugi Sakura swallowed a piece of tofu along with the rice.

The lady of the house was quite a good cook.

Sugita Shuhei glanced at him and lowered his voice, "The Ogasawara Style."

"Oh," Uesugi Sakura understood, "No wonder it sounded familiar."

In the afternoon.

After concluding the camp’s arrow-offering ceremony hosted by Ogasawara Shikyo, his mild cold improved quite a bit.

After the warm-up, everyone read aloud from the "Shooting Technique Training" and "Ritual Records - Shooting Meaning," and began practicing.

In the dojo filled with rustling bamboo sounds, the elegant green surroundings accompanied by the chirping of some unknown birds rose and fell.

The five members of the team event first demonstrated their shooting forms, then, under the watchful eyes of the other Kyudo Club members, received guidance from the eighth-dan Fan Shi.

Ogasawara Shikyo closely observed everyone’s every move, occasionally reaching out to correct some unnecessary movements:

"The Shooting Technique Eight Steps: Set foot, settle body, ready bow, raise, draw, hold, release. Remember that each step starts with inhalation, maintains breath downward, and ends with exhalation. Breathing should be natural and adequate."

He gently patted Kanai Hideyoshi’s abdomen, signaling him to tighten up.

"Focus your attention, and after inhaling, gently send the breath downward, allowing the abdominal wall to expand as much as possible."

"Relax," Ogasawara Shikyo, with a calm expression, pinched Hirata Masanobu’s muscles, taut from drawing the bow, "maintain rhythm between the eight steps, one breath in and one out, keep it even so that your movements won’t be stiff but continuous and smooth."

...

The afternoon was all about correcting shooting form and rhythm.

Despite constant adjustments, the group still couldn’t grasp the main points. Ogasawara Fan Shi remained patient and courteous, wrapping up today’s training.

The air was steamy and hot.

Uesugi Sakura leaned against the heated rock, his face flushed, exhaling softly with closed eyes.

"Whew~~"

The manor in the bamboo forest surprisingly even had a hot spring.

With his head feeling a bit spinning from the soak, Uesugi Sakura picked up his phone and initiated a video chat with Hanamaru Hanabi.

The video connected quickly.

On the other end of the phone, Hanamaru Hanabi’s little face was drowsily red, sitting on the bed wrapped in a blanket, her little nose twitching a bit.