Sakigake!! Otoko Juku 207

As if Otokojuku hasn't been through enough already, the finals of the Daibukai has them facing the home team: the best Hyoue Toudou can buy! Can Momo draw first blood against their first opponent: a powerful Native American warrior!?

Chp. 207: Red Thunder

49.
Momotarou: The Meiou Island 16-Warriors……!! To what extent is their power……!
Momotarou: I’ll go out as the advance guard first!!

50.-51.
(Title page…Momo fighting first…that’s just…shocking)
Togashi: We…we ask of you, Momo~~~!!
Toramaru: Du…dumbfound those guys with the number one force of Otokojuku~~~~!!
Red Thunder: Pathetic………!!

52.
Momotarou: General of Otokojuku: Tsurugi Momotarou!!
Red Thunder: Red Thunder, one of the Meiou Island 16-Warriors!!
Voice: Fufu: the general is sent out from the start of the match.

53.
Momotarou: !!
Gouki: Let me make a self-introduction before we fire the gun for the Tenchou Gorin Daibukai Finals. My name is Toudou Gouki!! The man who administers the Meiou Island 16-Warriors, the strongest group of soldiers in history!!
(TN: Gouki uses an expression of “hibuta wo kiru”. This is a variation of the expression “kuchibi wo kiru”, or “to light the fuse”; after the introduction of guns by the Portugese, a similar expression was created using “hibuta”, which is Japanese for “the apron of a gun”. Thus to keep with the concept of using a gun instead of a fuse, I went with “fire a gun” for this scene to keep the basic concept of “starting the match”)
Momotarou: …………Toudou……!?
Toramaru: Wh…what---!! Th…that guy is the head of the Meiou Island 16-Warriors---! E…even so, he said he’s Toudou!! That’s the same family name as the organizer of this Daibukai---!
Gouki: Hou, you know the name of my father?

54.
Gouki: Slop, know well of my social standing. Indeed, I am the only son of Toudou Hyoue, the Don of Japan……!!
Gouki: At any rate, I will come to take over all of my father’s authority and assets. Even participating in this Daibukai is a thing that should even speak as a link in Emperor Study imposed on me by father……!!
(TN: “Emperor Study” is “Teiougaku”, a class taken by potential emperors in learning how to be a good leader and emperor over their domain)
Gouki: Red Thunder, descendent of the high-prided How tribe, the most valorous of the numerous American Indian tribes, you should make him realize your power!!
(TN: Before you ask: no, I don’t know if there really is a Hou/How tribe of the Native American tribes…so until someone can prove it, I’ll treat them as an Otokojuku-only tribe)
Red Thunder: That’s needless to say!!

55.
Gouki: I leave it to you.
Gouki: !!
Momotarou: ………!!
Voice: How could you do that, commander?
Gouki: No, it’s nothing!!
Momotarou: Nu!!
Red Thunder: We will undertake this admirably!! The Brave Bloody Chain!
(TN: “Brave Bloody Chain” = “Yuusha no Chikusari” = “Brave Chain of Blood”)

56.-57.
Red Thunder: This is the ultimate dueling method handed down by my glorious tribe!! Its life or death: with this, we mutually can’t run from whatever circumstances we fall in until it’s brought to conclusion.
Togashi: Wh…what: th…that guy suddenly has a strange pretension---!!
Toramaru: No…now you mention it, look at it!! It’s…a scene from a western!
Red Thunder: What will you do? With this challenge from me? You’re free even to not take it now.
Momotarou: Fu: excellent. But the one who will come to cry with this is you!!
Red Thunder: Those words I anticipate as not merely conceitedness!!

58.
Red Thunder: How!!

59.
Togashi: Ooh!! He…he’s doing it, that Indian guy---!
Toramaru: He…he’s fa…facing evenly with Momo with tremendous close combat---!!

60.
Red Thunder: It seems your words earlier weren’t just conceitedness. I shall be enjoying this a bit.
Momotarou: Fu, I honor your pleasure.
Red Thunder: But this will be taken by you!!

61.
Red Thunder: MEIOUTOU OUGI: WING OF THE DEAD!!
(TN: A couple things:
1. As mentioned at the start of this phase, “Meiou Island” is “Meioutou” in Japanese. Considering that this is going to be a style of kenpou here and not just a name of the island and the team, I will be using “Meioutou” for the battle style to keep with the past…but just for the kenpou: the team and the island will remain “Meiou Island”
2. “Wing of the Dead” = “Sousha no Hane” = “Wing of the Buried Man”)
Momotarou: Mu!!

62.
Momotarou: ………….!!
Togashi: Wh…what: the feather decorations from the head of the Indian guy flew out---!!
Toramaru: Fu…further, sh…sharp needle like things are attached to…to the tip of the feathers---!!

63.
Red Thunder: You should be relieved: they’re not plastered with poison!! That contradicts my battle honor!!
Red Thunder: But if they hit your vitals, then I’m certain you’ll instantly die!!

64.
Red Thunder: It’s useless: there isn’t a means you can escape in this very-close range!!
Momotarou: Ku!!
Toramaru: Uoo: Mo…Momo has dropped his sword~~~!!

65.
Red Thunder: With that, it’s match. That hand will be paralyzed for a short while and you can’t even grab onto your sword.
Momotarou: Fu, he’s done that somehow. I won’t have any restraint!! How about if you test that?
Red Thunder: There’s an old Indian proverb: a buffalo that goes to death does so without raising a cry………so it is.
Red Thunder: It says when they die, they die bravely---!!
Momotarou: Didn’t you notice it!!

66.
Momotarou: I didn’t drop my sword, I put it there!!
Red Thunder: Nu!!

67.
Red Thunder: Gu!!
Momotarou: There’s an old Japanese proverb! You want to live when in the midst of death!!
(TN: The Japanese version of the proverb is “Shichuu ni Katsu ari”, which is a short version of “Shichuu ni Katsu wo Motomeru”, which is fully “You seek to live when in the midst of death”)
Red Thunder: Brave man, you’ve boiled my blood after a long time!!

TN: I'm still a tad confused about Momo dropping the sword: we saw his hand getting hurt, yet while I get the strategy in using it somehow I don't know if it was intentional or just quick thinking. Aside from that nitpick, I can't really say too much about this chapter. While I did like Momo's battle with Red Thunder so far (aside from the weird stereotypical Native American bits...but then again at least he is treated with more respect than, say, Geronimo from "Kinnikuman"), it is obvious that he is more interested in Gouki, considering their little interchange before the match. Seeing those two together just felt more like sparks flying...and Red Thunder is merely a powerful inconvenience in getting to that final clash of leaders. (well him and anything else this team throws at them being it's the finals and all)