One Outs 8

One Outs, Volume 1, Chapter 8, (pp. 189~210)


<189>
Chapter 8: Destiny

CLU—NK...

=Betting your retirement!? That's insane!!

=Please think this over Kojima-san!!
=You still have things you need to take care of!!

=Were you lying when you said
=You wanted to lead your team to a championship this year!?


<190>
=So
=You think I'm going to lose?
=Uh...

=Beating that guy must be far simpler than winning the pennant, right?
=In other words...

=There's no way I could possibly win a championship if I can't even win against him

=When Kojima-san lowered his hatchet, he looked like a monk who had just reached nirvana


<191>
Chapter 8: Destiny


<192>
=What the fuck do you mean—!?

=I'm a customer!
=When I want my drink, you fuckin' hand it to me!!
=Terry's at it again
=He's ticked off 'cause he lost big money gambling and his wife ran away
BAM

=But Terry
=That was your second bottle//You need to sto...


<193>
CRACK

=Ack...
=Uck...
=Piece of shit!!
[bubble]PHWUCK

[x2]HUSH


<194>
=He—y
=Toua

=You're havin' a rematch tomorrow with Kojima, huh?//Heard he's gonna break your arm if you lose. Heh-heh-heh
=Now he's on Toua
=Yeah, Toua's screwed him over a bunch of times...

=But yo' man. How'd you do it?
=How do ya keep chuckin' it exactly where you want it to go?

=There's like a trick or something, right?//Tell me 'bout it

=It's not a matter of skill


<195>
=The reason you can't get it where you're aiming
=Is because you lack mental strength

=...Mental strength?
=Guess you wouldn't know

=You're just a violent drunk who gave up after he had a little stretch of bad luck

HUSH

=...Ha
=All right—

=Then let's have you show us that amazing mental strength


<196>
=All three darts
=Throw 'em straight in the middle

=No problem for you, right? With your mental strength

=You screw up...

=And I'll be taking this arm before Kojima does


<197>
GTHUCK

=It's harder than it looks
=I couldn't do it at first, either

=Trees contain flowing lines of fiber
=When the flow of the hatchet and the flow of the fiber match perfectly, the wood splits apart in one shot

=Like this

CLUNK


<198>
WHOA—

=I gave...
=A mission to myself to break a thousand pieces of firewood at this mountain

=And this... Is the 952nd piece...
=I'll get to a thousand by the end of the night
=A thousand...

=When I break the thousandth piece
=I will have regained my faded confidence...

=And reach a level of mental strength even beyond his


<199>
=Have faith
=I will definitely win

OHHH

OHHHHHH

No way can he do it

SWISH


<200>
THACK

OHHHHHH

Hah-hah... Just a fluke...

CLUNK


<201>
HA—

=987th piece...
PHEW—

THACK


<202>
OHHHHH
=Whoa—
=He made the second one—

=Fuck...!!
OHHHH

=What's up, Terry
=One more and its over for your arm
OHHHH


<203>
CLUNK

=999th piece...

=Just one more...

OHHHH
=One more!
=One more!

OHHH
=No way...

=He can't get lucky 3 times...


<204>
What's with that expression?
How can he look so confident!?


<205>
DASH
This'll screw him up!!

=Idiot!! Watch out!!
=Get away from the board!!

=Huh?


<206>
THACK

F...For real? That was about to hit Terry

=Unbelievable concentration...

=M...
=...M-
=My... Arm...
ZZZT


<207>
=Don't want it
=Cheap-ass arm like that

Just one more...

And I can surpass him
I can surpass that guy...
PHEW—

SST...


<208>
GTHUCK


<209>
=GAAAACK!!

Shit...
I see...


<210>
So this is how weak I really am...!

2 days prior to his rematch with Toua Tokuchi

Hiromichi Kojima
Injures his right wrist—

Volume 1: Ball and Chain (END)