Chihayafuru 29

*Only for use by Lazy Ass Scans

tl by JinHea

159
- The long-awaited main event for the second half of the Mizusawa High School Athletic Festival is about to begin.
- Let’s introduce the 6 teams that made it to the final round of the team relay.
Sign: Mizusawa High School Athletic Festival
Logo insert: 29th song

- As expected, it’s the track and field club, our favourite for this event!
- The soccer and baseball clubs have also assembled their best players!
Arrow: baton

- Playing their way into the Nationals, it’s the tennis club! They’re not bad at running either!
Arrows: baton / baton
- Running in basketball shoes with a basketball as their baton, the basketball club is a sight to see too!

- But! The most eye-catching of them all…
Arrow: baton
- somehow squeaking by at number 6… / it’s the star of the cultural clubs – Karuta Club!

160
- Assume positions!
Armband: referee

Shirt: Karuta Club
- Ready…

161
- Why!?
- The Karuta Club made the smoothest launch from their crouching start out of all the teams! / They’ve dashed forward and closed the gap!

SFX: ohh—!

- Now, pass that baton! / The track and field club and the Karuta club hand their baton over almost simultaneously!
Chihaya: Taichi!

SFX: grab

SFX: kyaaah

162
- The Karuta Club’s second runner is another fast one!
- They’re keeping pace with the track and field club!

- Uh-oh! The basketball club and soccer club slipped up on their baton hand-over!
- The tennis club and baseball club are also in trouble! Taking this opportunity…

- The track and field club and the Karuta Club take the lead, making their way to the third runner—

SFX: Ohh!

- Here we have an extremely big cheer from the crowd! / you can do it!
- You can do it, Karuta Club!

163
- Uh-oh! With the hand-over to their fourth runner, the track and field club takes the lead!
Aside above bat: so hard to run—
- The soccer club and the baseball club are also catching up—

- Each team hands over to their last runner!

- So fast! / this is unexpected
- Who said the Karuta Club was a cultural club?! / This is a bona fide athletic club!!

- Huh!?
Armband: Broadcasting club

- Ahh! / The track and field club’s baton flew off when they turned the corner!!
- Our favourite to win drops out at the final moment—!!
Bold text: Ahh—! / Idiot—

164
- A surprising development! / It’s a neck-and-neck battle between the Karuta Club and the baseball club!!
SFX: ooohh
- They turn the last corner… / And the first one to arrive is—

SFX: bam
- I don’t believe it! / It’s the Karuta Club!!
Shirt: Looking for new members

SFX: cheer

165
- No one’s coming…

- Even though we worked so hard… / and stood out so much…
Aside: Chihaya-chan, you’ll get scolded for lying about like that.
Kana: There were people who came to observe our activities, weren’t there? / Though they did say it was impossible after watching us play and left.

Komano: We only got first place by luck. / I was really slow, after all.
Kana: What are you talking about? You were fast, Desk-kun! / It’s thanks to the running we did over summer!
Komano: You think so…?

Taichi: Guys, / I did some research.

166
- Karuta Tournaments are held around the country all year round, but… / noteworthy tournaments held in districts you can get to from Tokyo are…
- the Saitama Tournament held in the last 10 days of September, and… / the Kawaguchi Tournament held in the first 10 days of October.

Taichi: Also, / there’s the East Japan qualifiers for the Meijin and Queen Tournaments held in the last 10 days of October…
Taichi: but only players at A-Level and above are allowed to participate.

- The East Japan qualifiers.

- Where the one with the right to challenge the Queen next January –
- the East Japan representative will be determined!

167
- The most important tournament of the year.
Kana aside: Hot!
Taichi: Oookay / In any case, / Chihaya, you’ll be accruing match experience and improving your playing ability.

Taichi: Me and Nishida will be aiming to take first place in B-Level matches at tournaments somewhere…
Bold text: roger!
Taichi: and advance to A-Level.

- Ooe-san and Komano, you’ll be aiming to take first place in the D-Level matches… / and qualify for Dan-ranking.
- You can advance to C-Level and B-Level as long as you work hard.

Taichi: Let’s do our be…
SFX: riiing riiing

- Ah. / Time out.

Taichi: Yeah… / Yeah…

Taichi: I get it. / Let’s break up.
SFX: Eh

168
Taichi: Now then, let’s each do our best to achieve our goals!!
Phone: click
SFX: Eh—!
Komano: President, just now!?
Chihaya: So quick!
Nishida: He said “break up” like it was nothing!?
Kana: You had a girlfriend?

Chihaya: That was cold—
Aside: The girl that was calling you Taa-kun…
- My head…

- is completely filled…

- Arata…

- I wonder…
- if he’ll play in the West Japan qualifiers...

169
- I want to make it in time.

- I want to advance to A-Level by October…
- and play in the East Japan qualifiers.

Komano: …

- The practice over summer break…
- was hard work, but it was fun.

170
- Much more fun compared to last summer break, when I did nothing but study all by myself.

- But…
- despite having done the same amount of exercise…

- despite that…

- I’m small…
- and it’s hard for me to build muscle…

171
Chihaya: Kana-chan, / when you’re at home, if you have time, you should hone your abdominal and dorsal muscles.

Kana: Eh?

Chihaya: It’s something I noticed after watching all those matches at the National Tournament. / The girls and guys with slight builds…
Chihaya: their waists tend to droop after getting into position.

Chihaya: It’s like they’re playing Karuta using only their upper bodies…
Komano aside: Eh… / I guess it’s like that for me too.
Chihaya: I think it’s cos they don’t have enough muscles to support their body…

Kana: I have been doing muscle training at home, but… / I have not been able to see much change…
Chihaya: I see— / you might be the type who finds it hard to build muscle. / It’s okay, it’s okay! Be patient and keep at it. / Toilet break.

SFX: phew

172
Kana: What is it, Desk-kun?
Komano: Ah, um…
Komano: I just thought that you’re practicing swinging really diligently…

Kana: I thought a lot about it! / I may not be a match for Chihaya-chan and the others when it comes to cards placed far away, but…
Kana: for cards placed close to me, if I do this… / by recoiling in a compact motion, even I can get them.

173
Kana: Since it’s not like I can’t reach cards placed further away, as long as I aim in a straight line… / and take advantage of my opponent’s fault to get the card…
Kana: Even if athleticism isn’t my strong suit…

Kana: After the athletic festival… / everyone was saying how the Karuta Club is like an athletic club, but…
Kana: in my view, we are a cultural club.

Kana: With one body, males and females are able to engage in competition together. As such, it is culture.

174
Kana: I will not lose, Desk-kun.

- It really is impossible. / I don’t get it.
Aside: though they have cute girls…
- Karuta, schmaruta—
- Saying “Karuta, schmaruta”…

175
- and passing it by – I’m glad I didn’t do that.

- I can change. I’m sure of it.

- Not just my body…

- Not just my heart…

176
SFX: clap / woosh / clap / woosh

Taichi: Hey. / Is there a point to this exercise?
Chihaya: Dunno, but I’ll do it anyway!
Chihaya: An exercise to move the body in response to sound!!

Chihaya: Once the “perception” is honed, it’ll become a reflex like thi—
- Clap

SFX: woosh
Taichi: Too slow.

177
Taichi: You know…
Taichi: I’m… / thinking of participating in the Kanazawa Tournament that’s held over the weekend.
Taichi: You coming?

Chihaya: Eh?

Chihaya: Huh? What about the one in Saitama?
Taichi: That one’s next week. / Since a tournament for A- and B-Level players before that is pretty hard to come by…
Chihaya: Uwaah— I’m going!

Chihaya: Ah!

Chihaya: Is Kanazawa…
Chihaya: really far away…? / What’s the travel cost?

178
Taichi: The trip by overnight bus is 8000yen one way. / Including the entry fee, it’ll cost a little under 20,000yen.

Taichi: Well, it’s pretty far, and it’s probably impossible for the others, so… / I’ll go by myself.
Aside: That’s so sneaky— / Taichi’s sneaky—

Chihaya: How nice…
Chihaya: Kanazawa, huh…

Chihaya: It’s close…
Chihaya: to Fukui…

179
SFX: clatter

180
- clap
SFX: woosh

Taichi aside: Awesome!!
- Sneaky and detestable…

- that’s me.

181
- Be it one step or two, even if I have to steal a march on them…
- I want to get stronger before everyone else…
- and, I want to go somewhere with Chihaya, just the two of us.

182
- Ishikawa Prefecture, Kanazawa City / Hokkoku Karuta Tournament

Taichi: Phew—
Taichi: Although it’s nervewracking being in an unknown place… / match venues have pretty much the same atmosphere wherever you are…

- Ah! / Sorr…

183
- Here’s another sneaky one!!
Taichi: What are you doing, Nishida?
Nishida: A senpai from my Karuta Meet invited me to enter the Hokkoku Tournament with him... / We took a chartered ride last night to get here.

Taichi: A chartered ride!? Quit messing with me!
Nishida: How did you get here, Mashima?
Taichi: By plane. [arrow] Being by himself, he had more freedom with spending money and so changed plans
Nishida: This bourgeois guy / So you were plotting to get to A-Level first by yourself, huh!!
Taichi: Right back at you!

184
- Municipal Cultural Center

- Chihaya-chan… / she’s made progress.
- It was a good stimulus for her to have been able to play the Queen.

- Play her and you’ll see. / She’s gotten extremely fast.

- Chihaya buru—

185
- You can’t even get near the cards she’s good with.

- If it’s with just those cards, she’d be a match for the Queen.

- Like seeing a dream…

- That speed…
- That sharpness…
- I want to catch up to it.

186
- I won’t lose in a battle of “perception”!

- Chigirio kishi—

- Ah!
- Oh no!

- Ah~~
- That fault just now, she aimed at where “Chiha” used to be.
- So she still makes those kinds of misses, huh… / “Chiha”’s presence is too fresh in her mind.

187
- Thank you very much.
- Thank you very much.

Chihaya: Unhhhh… / And I was doing so well up until halfway through…
Chihaya: I got slaughtered by Hiroshi-san in the end…
Hiroshi: Haha!

Hiroshi: No matter how fast you are…
Hiroshi: you don’t scare me, Chihaya-chan.

- Eh…

188
Harada: Chihaya-chan.
Harada: Stop going for fast captures.

189
- Bonus 4 panel comics
Sudou: Those who haven’t memorized the entire Hyakunin Isshu are insects to me.

- The fate of the team t-shirts

- Leading the Karuta Club…
- to victory at the athletic festival’s team relay, it’s the…
- made-to-order team t-shirts
Nishida’s shirt: Karuta Club

Taichi: It’s good, / but, you know…
Shirt: Ka
Chihaya: I really like it! The “Go!” and stuff.
Kana: The words “Karuta Club” on the back help promote the club too.

Taichi: But when we play in tournaments, everyone there are in karuta clubs, you know?
SFX: Ah!

Chihaya: A… annoying!!
- At this point, even if you say you’re the Karuta Club…
Back of shirts are all: Karuta Club
Kana: The promotion is pointless!

190
- Voice from the heavens

- Having consigned the t-shirts from earlier to event and practise use, they decided that each of them would think up a new design.
Chitose: What are you doing, Chihaya?
Aside: Umm / Umm
Chihaya: Homework… / A design for our team t-shirts…

Chitose: Silly girl. There’s no way you’d be able to think up a design. / Let me take over for a bit.
Chihaya: Eh!?

Chihaya: Sooo cool!!
Chihaya: Big sister, this is perfect!!
Chitose: Heh / Being a talento’s all well and good, but I could be a designer too, no?

SFX: Ah!

Chihaya: I’m… / I’m hearing a voice from the heavens.
Aside: sharp ears
Chihaya: It’s saying “Those are a pain to draw so no thanks.”
Chitose: Whaaat!?
Below panel: Those are a pain to draw so no thanks.

191
- Finally a decision is reached

Box: The designs each of them brought along… / among them… [aside] Chihaya’s having been rejected by the voice from heaven…
Top down: Taichi / Meatbun-kun [shirt] victory / Kana-chan [shirt] Mizusawa / Desk-kun
Big sister: Geez, you’re all just hopeless without my help!
Big sister: But this is the last time, alright?
Box: having said that, Meatbun-kun’s big sis chose…

- Desk-kun’s simple t-shirt design!
Komano: Eh?
Komano: For real!?
Arrow: It’s just the school emblem.

Chihaya: Ohh— that’s great! Desk-kun, it’s really cool!
Komano: Y-you think…?

- Desk-kun’s been marked by big sis!

- Lock on to volume 6!