Sakigake!! Otoko Juku 54

With the formalities completed, the Otokojuku First-Years are ready to take on the Third-Years in the Daiishin Paaren Seiha...but with all they know, there is still so much they still hasn't been revealed to them in this do-or-die match!

Chp. 54: The Legendary Paaron Long Castle

139.
Onihige: At this moment, we will celebrate a rousing departure ceremony for the eight First-Year warriors being sent to Otokojuku’s Daiishin Paaren Seiha!!
Caption: THE MORNING OF THE THIRD DAY HAS COME—
Onihige: Will the departing eight warriors come forward!!

140.-141.
Onihige: GENERAL: TSURUGI MOMOTAROU! BRIGADEER GENERAL: DATE OMITO!! TOGASHI GENJI, J, TORAMARU RYUUJI, RAIDEN, HIEN, GEKKOU: THOSE ARE THE EIGHT!!

142.
Hidemaro: But it’s surprising: those four have enrolled in Otokojuku and become our allies.
Matsuo: Disturbing that they’ve joined us.
Tazawa: No, with them as our allies, they really aren’t reassuring guys.
Onihige: A FAREWELL FROM THE PRINCIPAL!!
First-Year: It’s another instance of “I am Edajima, that’s all”.
Tazawa: My ears continued to ring for a week with one shot of his loud voice.
Edajima: ……………………

143.
Edajima: You all have fine faces. These are truly appropriate appearances facing the Otokojuku Daiishin Paaren Seiha.
Edajima: I don’t know who among you will live and step on the soil of Otokojuku once again. However, I will never forget the faces of you eight.
Edajima: That is all. I pray for continued luck during your war.
(TN: Edajima’s line here includes “Buun Choukyuu”, which fully translates as “continued luck during the fortunes of war”)
First-Years: ……………!?
Togashi: What? His seems different than usual.
Toramaru: He’s out of character; that was a terribly sentimental speech he said.
Edajima: Wait, I forgot to say my most important thing.
Tazawa: Huh!!

144.
Edajima: I AM THE PRINCIPAL OF OTOKOJUKU, EDAJIMA HEIHACHI
Matsuo: Ugugu, he…still did it……………
Onihige: So…so, next we will hold the “Victory Jaitsu” ceremony to encourage our departing eight. Pay close attention.
(TN: “Victory Jaitsu”, or “Shouri Jaitsu” = “Children’s Victory Dice”)
First-Year: Victory Jaitsu………!?

145.
Commentary:
Victory Jaitsu…an idea brought down from Takeda Shingen, who was admired as an uncommon famous commander in the Sengoku era. A die written upon each of it’s six sides six characters of “Ju” (Longevity), “Kichi” (Good Luck), “Shou” (Victory), “Shuku” (Congratulations), “Ki” (Rejoice) and “Sei” (Life) is thrown high over your head and it predicts the results of the battle based on the character on top. However, with them having written characters that predict victory regardless of the side, it is a ritual that is done during a departure.
-From “Customs and Superstitions in a Warrior Society”, Eigaku House.
Onihige: Fuffufu, this is because we suffered with that Battle Omen Forecasting Board during the “Kyoura Daiyon Kyousatsu”. With this, there are a 100% of no mistakes. This has my parental heart that feels for my students…I’m grateful.
Onihige: Soryaa!!
Tazawa: Ossu, a question to the teacher!! What will happen if in there is a case where the die doesn’t come back down---!?
Onihige: Wahhahaha, stupidly there are no obstacles for it. With this wide ground, do you think that will happen? This is due to Newton. If there was a chance it happened, then there’s no mistake they’ll all go down to their death!!

146.
Onihige: ……………………………!!
Matsuo: Th…that’s………!!
Date: Fufufu, so we’re all going to die……………
Hien: HA--!!

147.
Crow: Gua
Onihige: Ooh—he did it!! What will be the fortune of the die!?
Onihige: ………………………………!!
Hikouboshi: Wh…what…!! Bad luck…
Date: Fufufu, whatever that is, it seems that’s our destiny along this path.

148.
Onihige: Wahhaha, do…don’t worry. This is good. This is a superstition, just superstition--!!
Matsuo: It’s not ominous to that idiot; he’s not paying attention.
Onihige: UOO!!
Toramaru: Wh…what? A hearse is suddenly on campus…!!

149.
First-Year: That huge hearse is like a truck.
Onihige: It’s come………the bus that will take you to the Daiishin Paaren Seiha.
First-Years: Oh, the doors have opened.
Onihige: Wherever you all go, this bus will take you there. ALL OF YOU BOARD IT QUICKLY.
First-Year: This is eerie…………
Tazawa: There’s some intense incense smell.
Date: Isn’t this extremely great service?

150.
Edajima: Warriors in ancient times were given three rounds as their ultimate honor and encouragement when the soldiers were sent to the front line.
Edajima: For what you’re all doing, I now will do this. COME BACK ALIVE……!!
Hikouboushi: Principal, will this be alright? Aren’t we making a mistake with live ammunition?
Edajima: What, are you kidding? Last night it was steadily loaded with blanks.
Onihige: O—SHI, THEY’VE ALL BOARDED---!!

151.
Onihige: Now set out--!! We’ll go from behind---!!
Edajima: FIRE---!!
Edajima: Ah.
Hikouboshi: Principal---! Was that a blank? What’s with the “Ah”---!! What exactly do you intend to do!!
Edajima: I am the principal of Otokojuku, Edajima Heihachi.

152.
Toramaru: Where exactly are we going? This bus has been driving this and that for five, six hours already.
Tazawa: Well wherever we’re holding the Daiishin Paaren Seiha, we haven’t heard anything of the place.
Tazawa: Even if you look outside, there’s nothing through the window…………so then it’s as if we’re in a hearse going to crematorium.

153.
Hien: Togashi, are your wounds fine already?
First-Year: He’s knitting………
Togashi: Heh, those were nothing compared to the injuries I took from you in the Daiyon Kyousatsu.
Hien: Fufufu………
Date: Fuffufu, it’s bizarre. The warriors who just fought in the Daiyon Kyousatsu are…this time allies challenged to fight the same enemy.
Date: It seems the 3rds set out last night.
Momotarou: If you know anything about the Paaren Seiha, tell me. You yourself seem to know a bit about Otokojuku.
Date: I do know just one thing. The Paaren Seiha is a tag match, as they call it in pro-wrestling………it’s not just personal ability; it seems to be a match where teamwork is a big factor.
Date: Want some?
Momotarou: Alright.

154.
Matsuo: Oh, somehow we’ve seemed to have arrived.
Toramaru: Driver, can we get off--!!
(TN: Toramaru actually calls the driver “un-chan” as in “untenshu”, but it really is not easy to translate so I went with the straight meaning)
Toramaru: What’s with this driver? He’s unsociable.
First-Year 1: Ooh—there’s a lot of fog. I can really feel this.
First-Year 2: So then it seems like we’re really on top of something!!
Toramaru: N~~!? There’s something there.

155.
Toramaru: UWAAA---!!

156.-157.
First-Years: !!
Toramaru: What is this? A dragon carved out of stone…
Tazawa: …………………..Somehow it seems like a gate.

158.
“Dragon”: I’ve waited for you. This is the departure point for the Daiishin Paaren Seiha: The Kiryuu Gate.
(TN: “Kiryuu Gate” or “Kiryuumon” = “Gate of the Waking Dragon”)
Tazawa: The…dragon talked---!!
“Dragon”: This is the Yatsugatake range, two-thousand meters above sea-level in Shinshuu, Nagano. You will continue from here: starting from the Kiryuu Gate, the Paaron Long Castle shall goose-neck you upwards through the 8 “Ryuumon” where you will be received.
(TN: First: the Yatsugatake range is a range of volcanic mountains between Nagano and Yamanashi Prefectures. Meanwhile, “Shinshuu” is an old province of Japan stated to be “the land of the gods” in current Nagano Prefecture. Next, “Ryuumon” = “Dragon Gate”. And finally, “Paaron Long Castle” or “Paaron Choujou” = “Long Castle of Eight Dragons”)
Date: The long castle of Paaron……I didn’t think it existed in reality………!!

159.
Commentary:
Paaron Long Castle…Paaron Long Castle was said to be a headquarters for studying all military arts including swordsmanship, judo and karate, constructed to propagate kenpou throughout Japan by the great teacher Rakuhyou, who came over during China’s Sung Dynasty approximately a thousand years ago. Always holding an honorable secret doctrine, its form was never revealed across the surface of history, but many warriors whose names were left to history tempered through the study areas within this legendary long castle. It hasn’t appeared in references during the 20th century, but a sect of scholars has theorized that it still exists even today.
-From “Secret Marks in the 20th Century”, General Surveyor Nakatsugawa, Famed and Virtued Teaching Professor of History at Kouyou University, Jigenshutsu Publishing
(TN: This is probably one of the longest and hardest “publication notes” in the series, I really hope I got it right...particularly the publication information)
Tazawa & Matsuo: L…Look, there are people emerging from the dragon’s mouth!!
Wan Taaren: I AM THE PRIEST OF THE DAIISHIN PAAREN SEIHA: WAN TAAREN. FROM HERE, I WILL GUIDE ALL OF YOU THROUGH PAARON, THE DEMONIC PATH TO HADES!!
(TN: At this point, Wan Taaren speaks in Chinese with “Japanese furigana” for translation…luckily Miyashita makes it all Japanese a bit later on)

TN: I really need to start off with this: I nearly went crazy translating something in this chapter. You'd probably think that what drove me mad was the arrival of Wan Taaren, who I may or may not have mentioned regarding his peculiarities of language from his first appearance. Well...no, to tell the truth, Taaren wasn't that bad yet, though considering he essentially speaks Chinese at this point, I did worry a bit and still do for upcoming chapters. You may also think it was the translation of the "cultural commentary"...but for the most part they were crazy but manageable...but you're close. No, what drove me crazy this time around...was the tab at the end of the second cultural commentary regarding the source! Usually, Miyashita just gave out until now the book and a brief publisher comment (Minmei, Eigaku House). But this time...we get a whole list of stuff that I know I screwed up somehow, including who wrote the book, where they're from and so on and so forth! I know that a lot of times there are authors who write books or reference articles, but the detail of who wrote the article of the Paaron Long Castle nearly drove me nuts! Other than that...Edajima just stole the chapter with the usage of his infamous quote (both with the speech to the First-Years and the "cannon incident")...whenever the "Principal of Otokojuku" bit is done correctly, whether as an affirmation (the intro speech) or "it's not my fault" (the cannon incident), it's hysterical. Oh, and somehow it was weird seeing the Gougakuren characters acting so normal...OK, Date drinking was cool...but Hien knitting was just disturbed.