Sakigake!! Otoko Juku 5

Like all schools, Otokojuku has a hierarchy where the first to arrive are forced under the foot of the upperclassmen. Unfortunately, at a school where war combat is a way of life, this takes on a whole different meaning of rivalry!

Chp. 5: Meeting the Demons

107.
Announcer: Emergency order, emergency order!!
Announcer: This is for all Otokojuku first years.
Announcer: Today at noon, the second years will be holding a meeting celebration. All first years will gather in the auditorium. I repeat…………
Togashi: A meeting celebration with the second years…………!? Right, this school should have second and third-year upperclassmen above us first years, but I’ve never seen any of them.
Matsuo: I…I have some bad premonition again.
Momotarou: Fufufu, slave first-years, demon second-years and devil third-years…whatever demons they are, it should be fun.
(TN: A bit of an explanation both of the title of this chapter and Momotarou’s comment. While the “dorei” comment about the first-years is the obvious “slave” or “servant”, the second-years are called “oni”, which could either be “demon” or the term for the Japanese ogre-like demon. Likewise, he also calls the third-years “enma”, which either could just be “devil” or a term for the ruler of hell in Japan. Since it really didn’t feel right to have a generic term for the first-years and special for the upperclassmen, I ended up deciding to make them ranked as “slave”, “demon” and “devil”.)

108.
(Title page)

109.
Onihige: I always hate leaving people. But the time has come.
Onihige: I don’t know how many of you can safely end up physically safe from this meeting celebration but………I’ll worry about that later. I promise that I’ll tell your parents and siblings that all of you died splendidly.
Onihige: Now among the amulets you were given is a certain hair.
Tazawa: A certain hair…………!?
Onihige: When soldiers in ancient Japan go to the front, they were said to hold this amulet of a certain hair of the woman they loved.
Onihige: Here, for all you sweet boys, I will provide a special service of one for 500 yen.

110.
Tazawa: Qu…question!!
Onihige: What, Tazawa the dummy!?
Tazawa: Could these, perhaps, be yours…………!?
Onihige: You complaining, fool---!! I’ve thought of these for you!!
Tazawa: O…osu, thanks!
Matsuo: This is stupid, but what are these amulets…
Student: What will we do if we get ringworm holding these dirty things?
Onihige: I have one more thing. Even if there isn’t a difference between the years, defying an upperclassman is absolutely unforgivable under the absolute feudalism at our Otokojuku.
Onihige: When in there, steadily tranquilize your courage……………Momo!!
Onihige: Uwahaha, so Gentlemen, I wish you continued luck in the war---!!
(TN: Onihige’s “parting word” is an expression “Buun Choukyuu” or “continue to have luck in the fortunes of war”.)

111.
Momo: Isn’t it terribly quiet in there?
Togashi: Fufufu, what sort of welcome will those second-years give us…………
Momo: Let’s go.
Togashi: Right!!

112.
First-Years: !?
Left Banner: WELCOME, NEW FIRST YEARS OF OTOKOJUKU
Right Banner: MEETING CELEBRATION (Really welcome to our school)
Momotarou: What is this…………

113.
Second-Year: Yo.
First-Years: !!
Edogawa: You all actually came. I’m Edogawa, the acting-head student of the second-years.
Student: Well, come on in.
Momotarou: ……

114.
Banner: (CELEBRATE) OTOKOJUKU MEETING CELEBRATION
Left Banner: WE REALLY WELCOME TO OUR SCHOOL, NEW FIRST YEARS!
Mohawk: We—ll, will everyone take a seat? Please, make yourselves at home.
Maruyama: I think today that we’re terribly happy that all of you were invited to this Meeting Celebration organized by us second-years. I am Maruyama, the advance representative of council. I’ve switched with acting-second year head Edogawa to give my greeting.
Matsuo: Wh…what? They’re extremely different in how they appear.
Tazawa: Oh, well. Perhaps our thoughts may have been too much.
Momotarou: Look at their eyes. Only the muscles of their face are smiling.

115.
Maruyama: So first, in accordance to tradition of the etiquette of an Otokojuku Meeting Celebration, we’ll have the ceremony of “The Glass Bottle”. Can one of you come forth to drink sake?
(TN: “The Glass Bottle” = “Kamesakazuki”)
Matuso: O…osu, I’ll do it!!
Student: Ma…Matsuo--!!
Matsuo: If…you have to ask, I already am fond of sake, osu!!
Maruyama: Well, if you are, then come right here.
Matsuo: Wh…what is this………!?
Maruyama: Hahaha, well, we have many problems with this ceremony.

116.
Matsuo: GEE!!
Matsuo: Th…this is………!!
Maruyama: Well, please drink this quickly. If you don’t, you’ll stop breathing and suffocate.
Matsuo: URP. UO UOOPU----!!
Maruyama: Well everyone, yell together!!
First-Years: …………
Second-Years: DRINK DRINK

117.
Togashi: Damn. What is this Meeting Celebration? These are really sticky trials.
Momotarou: Fufufu, this is good medicine for Matsuo and his bad drinking habits.
Maruyama: Well, splendid. He’s really drunk. Everyone! A grand applause for Matsuo-kun!!
Tazawa: Ma…Matsuo, hold on---!!
Maruyama: We—ll, next is the ceremony of “The Dance of Agonizing Wrong”.
(TN: “Dance of Agonizing Wrong” = “Monja no Mai”)
Hidemaro: !!
Maruyama: You there, come here for a bit.

118.
Hidemaro: !
Maruyama: Mu—sic Start!!
First-Years: !?
Maruyama: Well, flashily dance the “Dance of Agonizing Wrong”.
Hidemaro: Hmph, what is this Dance of Agonizing Wrong? I’m not kidding. Who would dance that?
Hidemaro: You’re making fun of me for being tiny………as you see, I’m
Hidemaro: Wh…what……!?

119.
Hidemaro: Ouuuuch----!!
Hidemaro: Hotot--!! Ouchch---!!
Second-Year: Uwahahaha, great! How skilled!!
First-Years: …………
Second-Year: What he’s doing is unintentional due to the iron plate getting electricly heated.
Maruyama: Fufufu, our next pleasantry will be the ceremony of “The Mole Sword”. Doesn’t someone think they can take on us?
(TN: “Mole Sword” = “Mogura Ken”)
Togashi: Interesting, I’ll do this. This is for mocking us until now.

120.
Togashi: N!?
Togashi: What’s this premonition?
Maruyama: Fufufu, the rules are simple.
Maruyama: You should know well the mole-hitting game at the game centers. There you use a hammer, but for this game, we’ll use this.
Togashi: Wh…what……!!

121.
Maruyama: So start the game!!
Togashi: Ho…hold on there…!!
Togashi: Uo!!
Maruyama: Wow, admirable. So—then, which hole will he appear next?
Maruyama: The inside of the box is entirely filled with water. You must emerge so you can breathe.
Togashi: He’s…not joking.
First-Year: Mo…Momo……
Momotarou: I think this is really stupid.

122.
Togashi: PUOO---!!
Maruyama: RYAAA----!!
Maruyama: Noo--! He surprised me. But he won’t get away this time.

123.
Maruyama: We—ll then………
Maruyama: GOT YOU---!!
First-Years: To-Togashi---!!

124.
Maruyama: !! A “Shirahadori” with a real sword!!
(TN: “Shirahadori” is a technique where a person catches a sword with their teeth)
Togashi: What?
Maruyama: Uh
Togashi: The~~re.
Maruyama: Gue!?

125.
Momotarou: Osu! Momotarou Tsurugi, head of the first-years. I give greeting representing all the first-years.
Second-Year 1: Kukuku, what is this guy?
Second-Year 2: Do you know what will happen if you lift a hand to an upperclassman, based on the absolute feudalism of Otokojuku?
Momotarou: Fufufu, lifting a hand to them is being generous…………it’s enough to use a foot for bearing my senpai’s crooked guts.

126.
Momotarou: I’ve also heard a rumor. This isn’t the Otokojuku Meeting Celebration. This is like a woman who’s rotten. Shall we have a trial? Acting-head…
Second-Year 1: Kukuku, what is that first-year brat thinking?
Second-Year 2: It’s been a while since we’ve seen Edogawa-san’s Deadly Response-Face………
Momotarou: Response-Face……..!?

127.
Momotarou: You’re a big devil, senpai!

128.
Second-Year: Ooh. As expected by our acting second-year head Edogawa. Well, without a quiver, he brittlely stopped the kick with his face.
Momotarou: So there is a person with guts like a senpai among these rotten-guts second-years. So, will you show me the actual Otokojuku Meeting Celebration?
Edogawa: I can’t do that…………

129.
Edogawa: My…my legs fell asleep and I can’t move…………Can you wait a bit?
Momotarou: This isn’t what I expected from him at all. Do what you want already…………
Second-Year 1: What are you doing! Get the acting-head’s legs---!!
Second-Year 2: Do you think you’ve won~~!!

TN: It's sort of strange to say this but my respect of Togashi is continuing to rise after this chapter...while my respect for Momotarou is still there but more seems to be coming to grips with who he is and where he stands. I don't hate Momotarou as a lead, but somehow he always seems to have it too easy in the early on, akin to many of the big "already powerful" shonen heroes from Kenshiro to Goku. The good news is that Momotarou has his laziness and his honor to sort of keep him in line and make him interesting, but somehow he just seems there for the moment to sort of show the true power among the more interesting weirdoes of the first-years. On the other hand, Togashi's handling of the "whack-a-mole" variation was more interesting, showing that among many of the other first years, he has a lot of guts that he will use and demonstrate as needed. Just like the oil bath incident, Togashi probably is the true definition of an Otokojuku student...while Momotarou is a lazy but powerful idiot. Aside from the funny "relationship" developing between Onihige and Tazawa, this is the chapter that introduces the second years to the story in a dramatic but silly manner. (as is the case for this series) Of course, note that Edogawa is the "acting" head, meaning the real leader of the second years is still out there somewhere...