Darker Than Black - Shikkoku no Hana - 1

This is for Nereidaia's use only.



page 1

b1) The flower withered away...
b2) Why is it... // why can't people stay rational?
b3) What do you think?
next to panel) Irrational deaths capsize our world...

page 2

title) Dark Clouds

page 3

panel) Do people still wander under the lost 'sky'?

page 4

b1) Get back please.
b2) Get back.
b3) ump
b4) bluerghh
b5) Metropolitan headquarters, public safety division 4, // Kirihara.

page 5

b1) ...Kirihara?
b2) You know, the chief of police's daughter, Kirihara Misaki!
b3) Oh, you mean who's lauded as a genius? // ...But if division 4 is here, then that means...
b4) Take me to the scene of the crime please.
b5 Prepare yourself, its pretty gruesome..

page 6

b1) For now we know there are more than 2 deaths...
b2) 1 was crushed to death by paper, // the other...
b3) This thing spread out on the floor here is what's left of the body, but I doubt we'll be able to identify it like this...
b4) I see...

page 7

b1) How deep does this hole go?
b2) It goes through the underground parking lot into the sewers.
b3) This is way beyond what a weapon or machinery can do... right?
b4) You're right.
b5) There's no mistaking it,
b6) this was done by a contractor.

page 8

b1) Right...
b2) A contractor.

page 9

panel1) It was 11 years ago that it appeared here in Tokyo. // We called it "Hell's Gate". // Within that area, the laws of physics meant absolutely nothing. // The only thing we could do was build a huge wall to hide the fact that our world was being turned upside down.
panel2) And at the same time, // people without prior signs of it, // lost their emotions and woke up to super powers.
b1) Its here.
panel3) That's what a contractor is.
panel4) ...And those who awaken to their power but can't control it, we call "Moratorium". // And those who totally lose themselves and become like puppets, we call "Dolls".
b2) This mark was left by a knife or something like that...
b3) Were contractors fighting each other?

page 10

b1) He is Ishido Tatsuya, he was killed here on the 6th floor...
b2) He was the KRC's senior managing director. // And as you can see...
b3) He was crushed to death by his documents.
b4) After hearing he was crushed to death, I was expecting a lot more than just this...
b5) I'm sure you would... // but as you can see, he only has 30 A-4 letters on him.
b6) And this broken desk is also because of this single flier huh?

page 11

b1) That's a pizza flier right?
b2) I didn't know a single flier could be so heavy... hahaha
b3) I positive now, there's a contractor who controls gravity.
b4) His skin is peeling like it was paper...
b5) Thanks for your help, you can leave the rest to us.
b6) Yes ma'am! It's all yours.
b7) There was at least 1 person who was turned into mush, a hole in the floor... // that slash in the wall...
b8) And a contractor that can control gravity...

page 12

b1) We're dealing with 3 contrators...
b2) No...
b3) Are the ability that turned a person into mush, and made the hole in the ground the same?
b4) Capt. Kirisaki.
b5) Kouno.
b6) I went and checked out the bottom.
b7) You mean the base of that hole?
b8) Yeah.
b9) There was a mountain of sand there.
b10) According to the forensics its the concrete and wood used in building the building.
b11) A centrifugal ability!?
b12) And on top of that mountain, this was left there.

paeg 13

b1) What's that?
b2) It looks like a withered dandelion... // But the color is a little odd...
b3) After talking with the local botanist, // I found out a dandelion with this color does not exist.
b4) ...Okay, send it to the lab, and have them analyze it.
b5) Its likely somethng from inside the gate. // Its not too odd that something like that exists over there.
b6) Ah... // there's one more thing...
b7) We have a report coming in,
b8) that due a super electric current, this building's electric equipment is all fryed.
b9) Isn't the only one capable of doing this...

page 14

b1) The masked contractor...
b3) Hei?
b4) It's nothing.
b5) Let's go, // Ihn.
b6) Next time, he's a dead man!!

page 15

b1) This shape!!
b2) Captain, what's wrong?
b3) Captain!
b5,6) haa
b7) The one feared as the dark reaper...
b8) 1 of the strongest contractors...

page 16

panel) Also...
b1) Is he..
b2) in Tokyo again...
panel2) He's in under the same sky as I am...
b3) Captain!
b4) Was somebody there?
b5) No, // I was only seeing things...
b6) Really... But it's still surprising.
b7) That he might be in Tokyo again.
b8) Especially after what he did here...

page 17,8

b1) Tokyo Explosion.
b2) The one who destroyed Hell's gate
b3) Was BK201 right?
b4) That's right.
b5) After destroying the wall, he made most of the world his enemy. // There are a lot of people and underworld groups after him.
b6) Why would he be out in the open, and here of all places?
b7) We'll find out soon enough...
b8) But first, we need to finish our job, // lets go Kouno!
b9) Ah, yes!
b0) Whenever the subject turns to BK201, you always get like that...

page 19

b1) I didn't think our opportunity would come around this quickly!
b2) If we follow this case, we'll eventually get to BK201!
b3) Contact Saitou and Matsumoto-san, and have them investigate those close to Ishido Tatsuya!
b4) Have Ootsuka check the abilities to see if we have them on file or not. // You'll stay here with me.
b5) There might be some clues we've overlooked.
b6) Do you mean the payment?
b7) That's right. // Whenever a contractor uses his ability, he has to 'pay' for it somehow.
b8) I want to find out who it was that was fighting with BK201!

page 20

b1) Don't overlook even a pin hole, you hear me!
b2) Yes ma'am!
b3) Ah, captain!
b4) What now?
b5) You'll catch a cold like that.
-I have no idea what to make of those 2 sound effect bubbles. There are 3 more on the next page too-

page 21,2

b1) Yeah,
b2) let's get going.

page 23

b1) Let's get going...
b2,3) To the next harvest...

page 24

b1) beep
b2) No Way!
b3) I've gained 2 pounds!!
b4) You've failed...
b5) Kirihara Saki...
b6) beep
b7) Better.

page 25

b1) Hello, Saito? // How'd it go?
b2) We have all we need.
b3) The man who was crused to death, Itou, was very overbearing, and had a lot of enemies within the company. // But,
b4) there's no evidence at all that he was a contractor.
b5) He wasn't a contractor... // Is there any evidence that he was involved with people from the gate?
b6) No evidence of that either... // This is starting to look like a plain old gurdge.

page 26

b1) A grudge?
b2) I'm sure you already know that contractors don't act based on sadness, they don't understand it, // so killing a person because of a grudge is...
b3) Yes, I know...
b4) But we found it.
b5) Found what?
b6) A letter from the killer stating that he's going to come kill him.
paper) I'm coming to kill you.
b7) At the house of the man who sent the letter, were the corpses of his family.
paper2) I'm sorry, I can't take this anymore. I'm going to kill him! I'm a terrible father. I have no other option than to do this, I'm truly sorry. // Forgive me.
b8) This is a forced double-suicide case.
b9) What do you mean...
b0) On the paper that killed Ishido there's that man's fingerprints, and from the person turned to mush, we found the mans' wedding ring.

page 27

b1) Judging from the mans body weight, that seems to be him.
b2) Captain?
b3) What's the man's name?
b4) How was the family killed? // By a contractor's power?
b5) The man's name is Mazaki Ichirou... his family... // was killed normally, by a knife... the knife used was still on the scene...
b6) ...It's pretty strange that a contractor would use a knife right...
b7) I got it...
b8) Tell everyone to meet at headquarters, I'll be there soon.
panel1) Contractors only act on reason. // So a forced double-suicide, and leaving evidence is out of the question.
panel2) But the cause of Ishido's death is obvisouly that of a contractor...
b9) beep

page 28

panel) Then did Mazaki become a contractor after he wrote that letter and killed his family? // Get serious! Contractors don't become one because they want to! // There are no reported cases of it either.
b1) Something very different from what we've experienced so far,
b2) is trying to stir up, // underneath these skies.
b3) What awful weather...
b4) If I could at least see the stars...

page 29

b1) For now, I can only follow this case
b2) using my own power.
b3) And you too,
b4) BK201!

page 30

b1) Ihn, what's happening?
b2) What's he doing?
b3) He's on the move.

page 31

b1 Azusa, let's go home...
b2) Azusa?
b3) What's wrong?
b4) You know...
b5) hm?
b6) I...
b7) want to be a contractor.