Sakigake!! Otoko Juku 22

Has Momotarou finally met his match!? Facing the unbeatable force of J and his Mach Punch, the first-year head has begun a measure to attempt to master the all-seeing power of the minds' eye...but can he really do so quick enough to win?

Chp. 22: Seeing All in the Heart

90.
Edajima: Fufu, so this is “Shingan Fist”, selected from his swordsman secret Shinganken……It was done by master swordsman Fujii Itoousai Munesada, the only one who has mastered Shinganken in history. It took him ten years of studying from when he sealed away his own eyes.
(TN: I know “Shingan Fist” sort of feels awkward but basically the actual name of that technique is “Shinganken”, which is the exact same as the “Shinganken” or “mind’s eye sword” only with a different reading due to a different kanji for both. Since I didn’t feel right saying “Shinganken, selected from swordsman secret Shinganken”, I made the adjustment to show that this ‘fist’ Shinganken is different from the actual sword ‘Shinganken’. Thus, the fighting technique here will be “Shingan Fist” while the actual sword technique will remain “Shinganken”.)
Edajima: Fufufu, can he become as skilled in a day?

91.
J: That joke is intense. I don’t know if you have mind’s eye or anything, but do you think you can use that bluff on me?
Momotarou: Fufufu, I don’t know either. I’m merely doing this just to do it.
J: To see every movement of the heart…………Fufufu, if it is, then this boxing ring will overflow with a champion who hides his eyes.

92.
First-Years: Mo…Momo--!!

93.
J: Somehow you’re escaping having me avoid just your vitals. If you are, then you won’t escape me.
Togashi: Wh…what’s with that guy? Now he’s starting to use footwork.
Keith: Fufufu, float like a butterfly, sting like a bee. It’s J’s special Hell Dance.

94.
Momotarou: ……………………………………
Matsuo: What speed! That’s speedy footwork.
Tazawa: Is…isn’t this just like a ninja’s Bushin Jutsu?
Edajima: Fufufu, this suddenly improvised Shingan Fist…Is this his limit?

95.
J: What’s wrong? Is your mind’s eye not awakened yet? But then it was all talk.
J: Where will I come at you? From here or from there?
Momotarou: Uh!!

96.
J: Hey—are you asleep!!
J: You don’t have this mind’s eye. I’ll rightly awaken you.

97.
Matsuo: Mo…Momo--!!
Matsuo: You’ve..done enough, give up Momo--!! Your Shingan Fist is just talk, you really don’t have it!!
Tazawa: Right, you’ve done enough already. Hold on to your honor--!!
Momotarou: Fufufu, I don’t have reason to do that.
Voice: Naturally, he’s going to expose the unsightliness of this foreigner.
Togashi: Wh…what!?

98.
Togashi: Yo…you’re Akashi--!!
Matsuo: Akashi……!?
Akashi: Do you think you will master the mind’s eye using that incomplete pretense of your headband?
Akashi: Don’t mock of a battle of men
Momotarou: !!

99.
Momotarou: Uh!!
Matsuo: Huh…!!
J: ………………

100.
Akashi: Mind’s eye allows for things that can’t be seen by the eyes to be seen by the heart……since you think you have eyes, you will see with your eyes, no matter how much you use your bandana.
Akashi: Thus, it’s better to not have your eyes. This is to win. Your two eyes are cheapening things.
Hidemaro: Ho…how could you say that without knowing your reasons--!!
Togashi: What are you planning? Do you know what you did---!!
Togashi: Mo…Momo……!!

101.
Momotarou: Ossu, understood senpai!

102.
J: What exactly are you two thinking…………!? Is this school a collective of madness……
Momotarou: Right. Mastering madness is our duty………fufufu, none of you will understand this…

103.
J: We’ve finally reached the end of this game. This is a one-blow match. Take my strongest…no, the world’s strongest punch.
J: Let’s go!!
First-Years: Mo…Momo--!!
Edajima: Fufufu………

104.-105.
J: HAAAU!!

106.
J: !!
Momotarou: It’s useless. Don’t you get it yet? I see everything with my mind’s eye.
J: Wha…………!!

107.
Akashi: Fufufu, have you mastered the Shingan Fist………Momo……he solved it by my loan.
Onihige: He…did it, Momo won--!! The Japan-US Friendship Boxing Tournament is our victory, 2-1---!!

108.
Narration: One week later, the overseas students from America went home……
Americans: Hey you, we’ll meet again if you still have the guts--!!
First-Years: Shut up all of you. If we come to America, we’ll tear you up.
Togashi: Fufufu, see ya.
Kong: Shall we?
Momotarou: Want to be crushed again?
Keith: It’s been short, but we won’t forget your faces.
Momotarou: Yep, us neither. We won’t forget the faces of allies who ate from the same pot as us.
Keith: ……………………Ah, we are allies.
Edajima: The ground hardens where it rains…………Fufufu, I am the principal of Otokojuku, Edajima Heihachi.

109.
Voice: Have your eye wounds healed yet, Momo?
Momotarou: Yep, as expected of Zanganken Akashi…he just nicely cut the skin on my eyelids in a slice.
Togashi: But there was that J, whose face seems like it has a disorder of his face nerves…………
Matsuo: S**t~~I wanted to do it. If I had confronted him, I would have done some serious s**t.
Voice: Well, I’ll be your opponent anytime.
Matsuo: Yo…you’re J!! What’s…with that appearance!?
J: I’m going to master the madness of this school too. Nice to meet you.
J: While we’re at it, who has a face-nerve disorder?
Matsuo: He’s truly a foreigner.

TN: And thus we have another student in our cast...and weirdly enough, one sort of predicted from vol. 1. OK, it probably came out just after the chapter J enrolled at Otokojuku (there was a letter in the back of the volume referring to him), but it does seem rather obvious that he was probably going to be part of the cast from the start in Miyashita's head. At least this should improve US/Japan relations...for the moment. As for the chapter itself, I know some would say the way Momo mastered Shinganken could be considered cheap but...to tell the truth, Akashi did the right thing in a cool way. Even with his bandana, Momotarou probably still had the means of using his eyes in order to attempt and see J's fist. It was only by temporarily losing his eyes that he was able to further his instinct to be able to avoid the Mach Punch just like he knew how to avoid Zanganken...though the two matches were actually sort of different in it's usage. Whereas Momo nearly needed to discover the way Akashi moved as a swordsman to defeat Zanganken, he had to realize how to avoid a fighter in order to read his moves...and while Momotarou does know how to fight with his fists, facing a high-level like J is different from facing merely a swordsman such as Akashi. Though now J is on their side, it probably is for the better...and they're going to need him too, because some more really rough warriors are about to emerge...as our first really, really major arc gets underway next time!