HA2 12.1 – Endurance Training
After the busy day in the firearm workshop, Hide, Takeo, and Shizuka took their time to rest in the living room. They spread out three sheets of camping mat on a corner and then laid down their body on it.
Working in the firearm workshop was boring and exhausting actually. Only people with good amount of determination or having lot of love for firearm would persist and do the job wholeheartedly. Therefore, after seeing Takeo and Shizuka gave their best and now they slept like a log, Hide couldn’t help but smiled.
‘Glad to have them around,’ Hide muttered before closing his eyes and fell asleep too.
For around two hours, the three was sleeping next to each other like a row of mackerel in a can. Then, they took afternoon bath before having dinner. After that, it was free time and Shizuka in an instant widened her eyes when she saw Hide and Takeo took out their text book and silently studied in the dining table.
Wasting no time Shizuka cancel her intention to watch anime and walked over to dining table, “You two bring your schoolwork here?”
“Yeah,” Hide calmly replied. “I plan to take acceleration exam and graduate as fast as possible, so I have to use my free time to study as many as I can.”
Shizuka nodded before turning her gaze to Takeo. “What about you?”
“I also plan to graduate as fast as possible,” Takeo casually replied.
“What the…” Panic instantly filled Shizuka’s face to the brim. “You two will leave me alone in the school.”
“Technically,” Hide calmly said. “After completing Knosses job we will walk on our own path.”
‘Fuck!’ Shizuka inwardly cursed before asking in pleading tone, “Twig, help me with my study.”
“Nope, I don’t even have enough time for my own study.”
“Hide,” After Takeo’s flat rejection, Shizuka instantly shifted her hope to Hide. “Help me with my study.”
“Sorry, my hands are also already too full with my own study.”
“The fuck…” Shizuka cursed before resolutely pressing forward. “Hide, as team leader, you have the responsibility to ensure everyone in your team achieve good academic result.”
“As if,” Hide refuted without turning his eyes from his laptop.
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“What an irresponsible team leader,” Shizuka complained.
“As your team leader,” Hide calmly said, “I will kick you out of the team if you keep bothering me with your nonsense.”
“You, you,” Shizuka said as she pointed her finger at Takeo and Hide in turn, “are truly heartless jerks.”
After heaving a deep sigh Hide turned his gaze to Shizuka. “After graduating from high school, what is your plan?”
“Working in a restaurant while polishing my culinary skill through weekend course.”
“No plan for university then?”
“Nope,” Shizuka firmly replied.
“In that case, I and Takeo have no time to babysit you with your study.” Hide deeply looked at Shizuka eyes to eyes as he continued, “I and Takeo don’t plan to only graduate early, but also with the best possible score to ease our path to enter the university we aim for.
So, please spare us some consideration. I beg you.”
“I see. Good luck with your study,” Shizuka sulkily said before returning to living room and resuming her intention to watch evening anime.
At the same time, Hide heaved another deep sigh before putting his attention back to his study. As for Takeo, from the beginning, he never shifted his attention from his laptop and text book.
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Exactly at 9 pm, Hide, Takeo, and Shizuka gathered in the shooting range to carry endurance training. In casual tone Hide explained, “As we agreed on, we will use the shooting range to carry some march while it’s still clear of lead dust or gun powder residue.”
“Carry some march,” A question mark appeared in Takeo forehead as he continued, “do you mean the enduring training we will do is a march?”
“Yes,” Hide firmly replied. “It’s a 90 minutes of 16 km march, two water stops without pausing the timer, 10 kg kits and assault rifle.”
“Is it an exercise you adopt from military?” Shizuka curiously asked.
“Yes, the original set up is 90 minutes of 9 miles or 14.5 km march, 10 kg kit and assault rifle, multi-terrain, multi-weather, two water stop without pausing the timer, and still fit enough to fight.” Hide calmly explained. “But because we don’t do it in a multi-terrain, I add the distance we have to cover.”
“Okay,” Shizuka replied while nodding her head.
“Other question in mind?” Hide waited for a moment and made sure Takeo and Shizuka had nothing that bothered their expressions before continuing, “Well then, let’s get it done.”
““Okay,”” Takeo and Shizuka replied simultaneously.
Without delay the three prepared the march. They used hanging scale to weigh the kit they had to carry. Other than personal kit such as tactical vest, water canteen, extra magazines, flash bang, radio, and combat knife, the three also included a few pieces of claymore, small ice-bag, medic pouch, and some other things.
As for the weapon, the three would carry M4. After dividing everything so they would carry a same amount of weigh, the three then put everything on.
“Fortunately, we already washed and cleaned the vest,” Shizuka said as relieved filled her face.
“Yeah,” Takeo expressed his agreement. “I don’t mind we use looting equipment, but the smell from tactical vest was really unbearable. Even to this moment, I still wonder how it can have a very strong rotten smell. ”
“Well,” Hide took a deep breath before adding, “That’s because the bastards who wore it never cleaned it. As a result, the accumulation of sweat and blood on it root into worst possible level.”
“No wonder,” Takeo weakly said. “Glad we put the job to wash and clean it as our first priority along with the firearm course.”
“Yeah.” Hide nodded while inwardly he dejectedly complained, ‘And you two didn’t have to wear it to infiltrate those bastards’ formation. Not to mention, I also had to wear their smelly balaclava and hand gloves at that time.’
A moment later, the three already put their equipment on. Then, Hide killed all the lighting except the one small light bulb in the middle of the range.
“Are you ready?” Hide calmly asked while looking at Takeo and Shizuka in turn.
““We are,”” Takeo and Shizuka firmly replied.
“Let’s start the march then.”
Without further ado Hide hit the start button on his watch and started the timer. Under the almost total darkness the three then walked in a single file, following the yellow line in the edge of the shooting range.
Then, Takeo suddenly asked, “Hide, can we talk along the way?”
“Of course we can,” Hide casually replied. “This is not an infil simulation.”
As he looked at the small bulb in the middle of shooting range Takeo asked, “Can you tell us, why we only use one small light bulb as lighting?”
“It’s to help us deepen our intimacy as teammates.”
“How so?” Shizuka curiously asked.
“Well…”
After pausing for a moment, Hide give Takeo and Shizuka a short explanation about how a family member who lived together under one roof for many years, could recognize each other even from the smallest detail they captured with their five senses.
*****