Desert Punk 2

Desert Punk, Volume 1, Chapter 2 (pp. 35~66)


<35>
=Kanto Great Desert
=Skeleton City

=These are the ruins of a civilization that was destroyed several hundred years ago from their own evil doings.
[x3]WHAP
RA-TA-TA-TA
=The site itself serves as a graveyard for those perished.

=And their surviving descendants...


<36>
GU-GU-GU-GU-GU
=Hadn't learned their lesson, at all.


<37>
GU-GU-GU-GU

SWUP

=Wha!!
=Impossible!
=Tamo-san!
=He's flying!

=Desert Punk!
=So the rumors were right, he is a demon!
=Tamo-san!


<38>
=D-Don't worry. Just a little farther, and our friends will be able to help us.
=Then I'll be able to blow that midget demon to bits!

=Th-That way,

=Nobody will be able to mess with you!
=We can be together forever!

Our burning love,
Will never be torn apart.

Tamo-san.

Kichiko.


<39>
=I'll tear it apart for you.
=Ahh!
=Bastard—!
GU-GU-GU

GU-GU-GU
=Da...!

=...Mn—!

=Shit!
GACHUK
=M-My ammo...

FWUSH


<40>
=I was waiting for this to happen.
UCK

WHACK

=Tamo-san!

=Geez, shooting like crazy just because I can't shoot back.
=What a waste of effort.
[x2]SWOO—P


<41>
G..
GWISH..

KASHUCK

KWEEE—T

SHRRR
GASHUCK

=You're the daughter of East Oasis land mogul Daikichi Tagame, aren't you.
=So what if I am!
=The bad girl who stole her father's money and ran away...

=Is coming back home—
BWUSH

=Ahh—! What're you doing!?
THACK
THUD
=You're not running anymore!
[x3]TOSS
=You won't last a day without your desert suit on!

=Ohh!!


<42>
=S-She's cute!!

=Hmm... With an old man like that,//I thought she'd look more like this, but...//My oh my!

=I'm not going home!
CLONK

=I'd rather die here!
=Than be separated from Tamo-san!
GRIP
=Hmm!


<43>
=I don't—!
=Get it—!

=Why would a cute girl like you,
ARR—GH
=Ever think of running away with such a dirty little third-rate desert scumbag!//And your family's super rich!

=Hi-ya!
THUD
=Ahh!

=Hey, you better listen to me, or else...
GASHUCK
=No...! You're horrible...!

[x?]POKE
=Uh,//Uhh,//Uh—
=Stop!

=Stop!//Alright, I'll do as you say.
=Just,//Don't hurt Tamo-san!


<44>
=Ahh... All I need to do is persevere, and Tamo-san will be safe.
=No matter how far apart we are, we'll still have our love.

=It's very sad. And very difficult.
=But love will give us strength!!

So touching—
Now that's true love..

=Right, walk quickly.
=Ahh—I change my mind—
=Uhh...

=Kichiko...
=I'll get you back, I swear...
ZZT..


<45>
WHAP
=You foolish girl—!

Ouchie—
=Wearing pretty clothes, not having to starve, drinking water to your hearts content!

=To think you would abandon your happy, peaceful life, and steal your parents' money to elope with a filthy man from the desert!
=What more could you have possibly wanted, you ungrateful child!
=What's so appealing about a desert man!?


<46>
=Look at this!
BWIP
=This vile desert inhabitant!
THUMP

=People like this never take a bath or brush their teeth!//They're super dirty and smelly!//They're ugly, vulgar creatures that don't have an ounce of refinement in them!
[x3]THUMP

=They're the lowest human beings on the Earth!
The lowest—
AHHHH

THUD
=UGH

=Don't you dare say that!
=This midget and Tamo-san are nothing alike!

=Tamo-san is brave, kind, handsome, and...//He's more honorable than anyone! Especially you, Father!


<47>
[x5]Especially you

=K-Kichiko, my adorable, well-behaved girl is... Talking back to me...
[x2]*panic*
=I'm not the well-behaved little Kichiko anymore.

=I'm sick of you thinking everything you do is right, and refusing to listen to what anyone else says.
=You're conceited and arrogant, Father, and I'm tired of having you run my life!//It's suffocating!

Wh-What is going on...? What in the world is Kichiko talking about!? Why is she blaming me!?
What could I have possibly done wrong!?
I can never recall making a wrong decision in my life. The enormous wealth I've acquired is proof enough!

I've done nothing wrong!
I am right!!
I am perfect!!
[x3]TREMBLE
=Lemme guess, blood type O?

=Why are you still here!? Get lost, you dirty scoundrel!
TURN
=You haven't paid me yet.
Don't take it out on me

=100,000 yen, gotcha... Here's your receipt.


<48>
=Someone's coming. 5... No, almost 10 of them.
=Wha! What!?
=I see some too. We're being surrounded.
=Whaat?

=It's Tamo-san! He's got his friends to come save me!
=Why didn't you kill them!?
=Because... It wasn't part of the deal.

=Umm—I can go take care of them if you want.
GRR
=How dare you even imagine yourself defeating Tamo-san again!//Stupid! I hate you!

=Take a look, these a topflight combat professionals! You're nothing compared to them!
=We were forced to hire someone like you for the job because we aren't familiar with this desert,

=But now that my daughter is back, we don't help from a desert turd! So hah!
HMPH


<49>
=Alright, let's get that path open!
=Take it cool like we always do!
=Yeah!!

=Formation B!

=There they go.
=Hmph, I can just see the terrified looks on their faces.
*explosions*
*gunfire*

=Looks like they lost.

=You guys are expensive, you know—!
=We're not used to fighting here!

=Experts are the only ones that can handle this kind of terrain...
[sign]Desert Expert
=GRR...

=Daikichi Tagame!


<50>
=I'm come to take back my woman.
ZWUP

ARR—GH!!
Handsome guy!!

[x5]My woman


<51>
Ahh—! Tamo-sa—n!
I'm over here—!
=RRR—!

=MMM—!
=Heh-heh-heh-heh

=Daikichi Tagame, land mogul of the West Oasis!
RAAGH
=Will never lose to a piece of garbage like that—!

=Hey, Desert Punk! I've got some work for you! How much do you want!?
=Go take care of them like you said before!

=...Huh?

=Oh—
=Lemme see—
=RRGH


<52>
=I didn't prepare for a fight with a bunch of bandits—
WHAP
=So that's serious technical expenses right there—//Plus, you hurt my feelings a lot, so...
PSHHHH

=500,000.
BOOM
=Too high!

=AHHHH—

=RAAAA—

=I'm not paying for your hurt feelings! Make it 100,000!
=Your face is weird, so it's 600,000!
*explosions*
*gunfire*


<53>
GU-GU-GU-GU
=EEK!

=Oooh—They're getting pretty close—
WA—
GU-GU
BWIP

=You bastard—You're really, really going to kill each and every one of them, right?
=I didn't prepare for this, so I can't promise each and every one. But just getting rid of them would be easy as pie.

=Alright, fine! I'll make you a deal at 300,000!

Beautiful as always, Hanako.
[x2]WIPE
=Why you...

THUD
=AAACK—! We're done for—!


<54>
=AAA—
=AAH—
GU-GU

=AA—
GU

WHUCK


<55>
=EEK
=EEEE—K
THUD

=...Well?
=How much are you gonna write on that contract, mister?

=Huh!? Uhh—Then how about that 500,000 from before...
S-SWUSH
=You mean 1,000,000, right?

=Wh-What!!?
=...Oh.
=...Okay.


<56>
BOOM

TH-THUCK
KU-KU-KU-KU

*explosions*
*gunfire*

=Damn—What's taking so long—
=We should've taken 'em out right off the bat. We've got to get Kichiko out of there alive.
[x2]*impatience*

=This isn't what we signed on for, Tamo-chan.
TICK
=We already have 5 men injured, and our ammo's running low. We're gonna lose a lot of money if we don't win this.


<57>
=Damn, everything would've worked out if it weren't for Desert Punk.//And that guy's still in there with them, right?
=That's one pesky rat we gotta deal with now—
KU-KU-KU
RA-TAT

=Desert Punk is real trouble. I heard he's busted up a lotta the gangs around here.
=Some top-notch guys, too.//We might've bitten off more than we can handle. They got to us real quickly—
ZZZ—TT

=Just get Kichiko back no matter what!

=That way we can just demand whatever we want from Tagame!
=There's no fucking way we'll lose money!

=Which means you just hooked up with Kichiko-san to get some ransom money, eh?
=Of course. That's what I always...


<58>
=Desert Punk!!
=How the hell!?
POMP

=No way! You're still supposed to be in...
GU-GU-GU
RA-TA-TA-TA

=I'm a demon.
=And demons strike everywhere at once.

=Huh!
=Little fucker...!
GRIT


<59>
[x3]GACHUK

=How's this! Now try pulling one of your little tricks!
=Serves you right for underestimating us like that! Moron—!
=Hah-hah-hah-hah-hah

=Don't be so sure.

=Kill him!

POP
=Whoa!


<60>
=It's a balloon—

GU-GU-GU

BAM

BOM


<61>
[x2]PUFF
GU-GU-GU
=Whoa—Idiot! Don't shoot! You're gonna hit your own pals!
=It's just a smoke screen! Don't be such a wuss!

=Whoaaa!//Mmgg...!

=Ahh!!//Tamo-chan!
=UBBWOE!

=Don't move.
=Or else Tamo-chan here gets his face blown to bits.
=Uweck!

=You guys've been making easy money off this hunky guy's sweet-talk, right?
=GRR...
=If Tamo-chan here goes bye-bye, you've got a re—al hard life ahead of you in this desert—


<62>
=So I've got a nice little proposition for you guys.

=W-Watch out! He's trying to trick us!
EEE—K
=W-We're done for.

*silence*

=Hmm...? It's suddenly grown quiet.


<63>
=Huh!?

=Ohhh—!

=What happened!? Did you get rid of them!?

THUCK
=DOH!

=What about Tamo-san!?
=You'd better not have done anything horrible to Tamo-san!
THUP

=Yes, about that.

=Have a listen.
CLICK
KWEEAK
=I was awesome enough to tape this conversation before I beat them all up.


<64>
=No sweat.
=Ah! That's Tamo-san's voice!
HOP

=She's got an idiot like that for an old man.
=All I had to do was be a little nice here and there and she gets all jumpy and comes crawling over.

=It's just a matter of time. Once we get Kichiko back,
=We'll squeeze all the ransom money we can outta that old idiot and sell her to a slave-trader in the South Oasis.

=So, I caught the runaway girl and got rid of the bandits. Any complaints?
SHO—CK
NOPE


<65>
What Desert Punk did today
[arrow]Continued from frame #2 on page 62

=I've got a nice little proposition.
EE—K
=W-Watch out! He's trying to trick us!

=Here's 100,000 yen if you guys just go away.//I'm feeling kinda lazy today—
PWIP
=...Huh?

=This would balance out the checkbook.
=Hey... These are real.
=Well—The ransom money would turn a bigger profit...

=Fine with me.
ZWOOOP
=I can go all out if you really want me to.

=...No, thank you.
=Okay, then there's a little something I wanna have you guys record—

=Phew—Close call. I brought like, zero ammo with me today.
=Thank goodness for impoverished bandits.
Desert Punk's profits for the month:
1,000,000 yen


<66>
And what of Kichiko-chan?

WHOOSH

I can't trust anybody.
I can only rely on myself, and my money.

=Oh, what's wrong with the master?
[x2]*whisper*
=The young lady's run away again. And she took all the money in the safe with her.
=Oh dear.

Kichiko—
Why—?