Kinnikuman 302

As the first battle at Nagoya Castle gets underway, The Ninja has taken an early offensive by preparing the battleground for his fight with Satan Cross! But can he take the early advantage in taking down the centaur-like opponent?

Chapter 302: Scramble for the Kinniku Throne (29): Ninja vs. Ninja!!

27.
Ninja: Waterfowl Feather Ring Jutsu---!!
Announcer: The Ninja’s waterfowl down is attacking Satan Cross---!!

28.
S. Cross: Uwa~~~
Announcer: Satan Cross in the ring is rapidly retreating in front of The Ninja’s dangerous feathers!!
Ashura: Kakakaka
Buffalo: Fufufu
Brocken: Fufufu
Soldier: Fufufu
Caption: HIMEJI CASTLE—

29.
Suguru: Hehe~~even that Soldier Team, who haven’t done a thing facing that champion Phoenix team, of course had to just take out many of it’s players from the Justice Choujin.
Terry: Our eyes have been taken back only to the champion candidate Phoenix Team, but with this team, perhaps, they may possibly…
Caption: NAGOYA CASTLE
Phoenix: Don’t falter, Satan Cross: what can he do with those bird feathers? They’re simply nothing more than Ninja’s diversionary tactic.
S. Cross: Ninja’s diversionary tactic…

30.
S. Cross: Uoo---!!
Announcer: Satan Cross is slipping through within the down swept over him, rushing towards Ninja—
Ninja: What do I do, Soldier?
Ashura: Fufufu
Buffalo: Hahaha
Soldier: Hahaha
Ashura: Fufufu
Buffalo: FUNU
Brocken: FUNU
Soldier: FUNU

31.
Suguru: What—is with the way Soldier’s group is sitting!?
Ninja: That’s the V-Formation!! Whenever Soldier’s team is sitting in the shape of a V, that’s the sign to get near him without rest!

32.
Ninja: Ninpou: Waterfowl Feather Ring Jutsu---!!
Announcer: Did The Ninja take some signal from that strange formation of Soldier and the others? Once again, a storm of down is hurling out towards Satan Cross---!!
S. Cross: You’re doing that child’s play again---!!
Ninja: Satan Cross, you don’t know it yet: the true terror of my Waterfowl Feather Ring………

33.
Ninja: Ninpou: Hellfire Feather Ring Jutsu---!!
S. Cross: Uwa—
Announcer: With The Ninja using the friction of his finger tips, the fire that he has raised is spreading to the waterfowl feathers, which is blowing in the shape of a spiral!!
Ninja: Hahaha, can you escape this? The feathers that are attached to your body have become a fuse and are now scorching your body--!!

34.
Announcer: The flames are spreading across Satan Cross’ body--!!
S. Cross: Uwa~~
S. Cross: Uwa~~
Ninja: It’s over---!!
Ninja: Ge—Satan Cross’ body is ---!?
Announcer: With the heat of the flames engulfing his entire body, Satan Cross is rising upwards like a ghost—

35.
Ninja: If…I don’t go after him!!
Announcer: Somehow Satan’s Cross’ body, which had continued to climb, has suddenly exploded in the air---!!

36.
Phoenix: Ooh~~how could this be—
Ninja: You personally blew up your own body…I was going to join you in going to hell but…what a misfortunate Choujin.
Announcer: Team Soldier has changed the positions of their seating again--!!
Ninja: Ooh, that’s the X-Formation!!
Ninja: The X-Formation is the signal to be careful of an opponent’s attack!
Ninja: So if Satan Cross’ broken-apart corpse is a trap…

37.
Announcer: Satan Cross, who seemed to have blown up his own body to pieces, is attacking The Ninja---!!
S. Cross: Kya—hahaha
Ninja: ……………
Ninja: Uwa

38.
Ninja: Satan Cross is alive…
Ninja: A puppet!
S. Cross: I, who had been covered in flames by your attack earlier, rose to the ceiling with the flame’s heated wind and quickly hide behind the ceiling lights.
S. Cross: There, I took off my flame-coated clothes
S. Cross: And then threw down a puppet with explosives in it that I had prepared since earlier.

39.
Ninja: That’s the Puppet Cicada Jutsu, a jutsu that cannot be mastered by an average ninja…are you a ninja just like me?
(TN: The Japanese name for the technique is “Ningyou Utsusemi no Jutsu”; “utsusemi” = “cicada” or “cast-off shell of a cicada”, it can also stand for “a man of this world”)
S. Cross: Fufufu…seems so: I have undertaken special ninja training alongside my wrestling skills so I could aim to be a perfect Choujin.
Announcer: So…somehow, Satan Cross’ true identity is a ninja! At any rate, this fight has become a battle between ninjas of Japan and the West---!!
S. Cross: Ha—hahaha
Ninja: That bracelet I thought was for decoration has become that big and wide…!?

40.
S. Cross: Miracle Sheet!!
Brocken: That large sheet with a pattern on it that’s being spread on the ring is the same as The Ninja’s Movement at Will Jutsu…
Ninja: My “Movement at Will Jutsu” is a technique where I draw in my competition opponent to the world of the drawing such as a water surface or a crater. However, what exactly is this sheet pattern?
Ninja: Wha…its water!
Announcer: Water is spouting from the innumerable holes drawn on the sheet---!!

41.
Caption: HIMEJI CASTLE—
Suguru: Hohou, those seem to be water tricks: how pretty.
Terry: Look: those small water particles gushing out from the holes are covering the entire area in complete white, like its fog.
Caption: NAGOYA CASTLE
Announcer: What is this fog---!!

42.
S. Cross: HI--HIHIHI
Ninja: Wh…what: Satan Cross’ form is going into the fog and he’s becoming unseen.
S. Cross: Ninpou: Escape Water.
Ninja: Aah!!
Ninja: He…Satan Cross vanished!!
Ninja: There—
Ninja: Uh.

43.
Ninja: I’m sure that Satan Cross should be here in front of my eyes.
S. Cross: Kekeke—
Announcer: Satan Cross has appeared from behind The Ninja---!!
Announcer: With the advantage of four legs, Satan Cross is throwing four Savates all at once on The Ninja’s face!!
Ninja: Guhe

44.
S. Cross: Escape Water
Ninja: He…disappeared again…
Ninja: Fufufu…that can’t deceive me anymore. That is also an illusion!
Ninja: I’ve finally solved the puzzle: well, a telephone pole in a place that it isn’t where it should be within a fog or a building that isn’t where it should be in a desert will suddenly appear before your eyes; but those always are all illusions: the real entity of the telephone pole or the building are many times far away from there or in a different place……

45.
Ninja: This is caused by the water vapor within the atmosphere becoming a giant lens: it’s an optical illusion to the eyes that’s called a “mirage”.
Ninja: In short: the Satan Cross in front of my eyes is in truth a phantom that was created by the fog lens…
Ninja: The real one I’m certain should be in a different place!
S. Cross: ……………

46.
(SCRAMBLE FOR THE KINNIKU THRONE ARC)
SPECIAL VTR XXIII
THE NINJA VS. SATAN CROSS

TN: Alright, a simple question to ask to begin this: was I the only one who got a major "Zabuza" vibe from this chapter? We all know by now that Kishimoto was a Kinniku-fan when he was a kid (well not as pronounced as Oda but he did mention reading the series and being a fan), but this and the next chapter with the usage of the literal "demon in the mist" bit and the creation of illusions and the usage of aspects such as "ninjutsu" (duh), "genjutsu" (the illusions such as the Escape Water technique) and "taijutsu" (actual wrestling moves) makes me think that this fight may have been a major influence or even a major key behind Kishimoto's early part of Naruto. Now OK, I personally admit to not be the biggest Naruto fan, but I do find the similarities interesting...though I also have to admit that Zabuza is one of the most epic characters in that series so having him homage Satan Cross a bit (yet in a more twisted way) is probably an honor.

On the other hand, the chapter was rather peculiar but fun...but also a tad weird. I've heard one of my collaborators mention before that "ninja techniques don't belong in Kinnikuman", but personally I say that whatever anyone uses in the ring is fair game as long as it abides by the rules set up by Harabote...so therefore, ninja techniques (as weird as they could be) are fair game. I really don't get though why they have to refer to Satan Cross as a "western ninja"...considering ninjas really don't exist in the West at all! Yeah there probably were some sort of similar spies and assassins in Greece and Rome (equating to the centaur motif), but they weren't exactly ninja! And speaking of ninja techniques: can someone explain to me how Satan Cross can float in mid-air with literally nothing to support him? I do get the whole scientific principal of "hot air leading to an object becoming lighter and lifting them up", but that would usually work more if there was something that would lift and support Satan Cross to be able to get away with this sort of thing (like a hot-air balloon attached to him). Merely just having hot air surround him and lift him up so he could pull the exploding doll/puppet bit...was weird. (and I've pretty much given up the whole "he can fly" bit since I've finally realized for some pathetic reason that Yude seemed to forget that Choujin can fly by this point...don't ask me why) But seeing those seating arrangement bits by Soldier and the Brigade...well, that will be explained later but it was effective in what it did: giving instructions without directly telling Ninja as to not give it away to Satan Cross (or Phoenix).

One last thought: considering that the battleground is a mattress...and Satan Cross has put sheets on there...all they need are some pillows or some pizza and it will turn into some weird Choujin sleepover. (but let's not go there)