Hell Teacher Nube 124

Though one may have spiritual ability, that means nothing about if they can really take on the big troubles. When there's a problem Nube can't get to right away, someone with the power (but not the experience) may end up doing it for him...

#124: Bizarre: The Upside-Down School

29.
Man: What’s going on. (Haa…haa…) it’s upside-down. It’s upside-down!
Man: The school is upside-down!?
SFX: Oooooh…
SFX: Hita…hita…hita…
Man: Waa—
Man: !!

30.
Man: Waaaa

31.
Caption (and Sign): —Doumori Middle School—
M. Principal: I’m sorry that you’ve had to expressively come to Doumori Middle. The rumors of Nueno-sensei, the spiritualist teachers, are famous even here.
Caption: Doumori Middle Principal
(TN: I am using “M. Principal” here mostly to not get him confused with the Principal of Doumori Elementary)
Nube: I…is that so? Ahaha…
M. Principal: As you know, our phys-ed teacher went missing two weeks ago. And there has come to be rumors and uproar among the students about an incident when he was on night-watch.
M. Principal: They say he came across “The Upside-Down School”, one of the seven mysteries at our school, and died…
(TN: “Upside-Down School” is in Japanese “Sakasa Gakkou”)
Nube: Upside-down?
Nube: !?
SFX: Guru

32.
Nube: Uwaaa!!
SFX: Guooo
Nube: Guwa—guwa—I’m upside-down—
SFX: Jitabata jitabata
M. Principal: Um--…
Voice: Kyahahahaha!!
Izuna: What are you doing, zero-ability teacher!
Nube: Izuna-kun!
Nube: Right, you’re in this school. But why are Kyouko and Miki here?
Miki: Big sis Izuna called us due to an interesting thing.
33.
Izuna: Both Miki and Kyouko are my pager friends. I always call them when there’s an interesting things.
(TN: Alright, important aside for cultural reasons: this is a call-back to a period in the mid-90s many probably don’t know about anymore with the advancement of technology. Prior to the advancement of cell phones to allow everyone to have them, pagers were the main means of “contacting people”, usually through a subscription service where people can call you and either leave their number to call back or a text message. Some say that pagers are still used today, but only for those who need to give a message immediately in the “critical messaging” market or in places where cell phones’ can’t reach a person like in a hospital)
SFX: Pipipipipi
Nube: Hmph! You’re conceited in spite of being a girl!
Izuna: Because you’re pathetic, I’ll teach some numbers to you too, teacher: “I Love You” is 141064, “Go To Hell” is “2592026, “Bananas are Tasty” is 8770141.
(TN: Sadly I have little to no idea about translating pager codes, especially pager codes from Japanese, so we have to accept them as is…especially with a bit coming up later)
Nube: Hey—doesn’t this seem like a feeling that you should accordingly stop!?
Izuna: By the way—can’t you go around with me for the incident this time? I’ve been bored recently—and I am a splendid spiritualist—
Nube: You can’t! It’s dangerous! For a half-spiritualist like you!
Izuna: What’s that: I’m a thoroughbred Touhoku Itako!
Nube: We—ll, a thoroughbred? Now that you mention it, I do recall your great activities up to now.
“Izuna’s Incidents”: (counter-clockwise)
-Big Failure with Kudagitsune
-Great Strife with Necromancy
-The Human-Body Ignition Incident
Caption: Embarrassing pictures of Izuna

34.
Izuna: What’s that: you’re persistant with these past failures…those can’t be said by you, zero-ability teacher!
SFX: Ken ken gaku gaku
Nube: Bossy! At any rate, it’s still unreasonable to do an exorcism, you novice Itakogal.
Kyouko: …Nube and Izuna-san are
Miki: Really a bad relationship…
M. Principal: Um..uh~~so then, the exorcism…
Nube: Huh? Ah, that’s
Nube: Actually, I must go to Kyushu for a memorial service for my uncle tomorrow. When I get back, I’ll start this quickly. Until then, please don’t let anyone in among the school people at night.
(TN: As I may have mentioned before, memorial services for funerals are usually Buddhist in nature in Japanese culture, with “Houji” being the literal name of a Buddhist memorial service, which is what Nube told him he was going to)
Nube: Is that—fine? Until I return, don’t do an unnecessary thing.
Izuna: Ye—s.
SFX: Ni…

35.
SFX: Gooo…
Nube: Gatsu gatsu musha musha
Nube: Will it really be alright…?
Sign: Doumori Middle School
Kyouko: Wi…will this really be alright?
Izuna: Obviously.
Izuna: It can be done by Nube, so there isn’t a reason it can’t be done by me.
Miki: Right, right!
Kyouko: ………

36.
Kyouko: But it feels bad being in the school at night.
SFX: Shi—n…
Izuna: This is fine: I’m not leaking out urine. If I’m scared, then it’s because it’s what the youkai expects.
Kyouko & Miki: Eh?
SFX: Ga—n suta suta
Caption: Familiar with this
Izuna: Do…don’t go further ahead than me!
Kyouko: ?
Miki: Her movements are strange.
SFX: Giku shaku giku shaku
Izuna: If you’re scared, then shiver back there.
SFX: Suru…
SFX: Peron (lick)
Izuna: Kyaaa!!

37.
Kyouko: Wh…what was that now!!?
Miki: Yuck—that was like the devil’s tongue of a haunted house!
(TN: This is a weird pun that I picked up on that I had to use: Miki refers to what just happened as “konnyaku”, which is usually in reference to “konjac” as in “amorphophallus konjac”, a plant typically used to make a jelly substance used in Japanese meals. However, since the plant is known in English as the “Devil’s Tongue” and we…just saw that weird lick…I couldn’t let the “devil’s tongue” joke pass by)
Kyouko: Eh?
Kyouko: Up…upside down…
SFX: Ooooh…oooooh…
Miki & Izuna: We’ve become upside-down!

38.
Kyouko: Look, conversely the fluorescent lamp is dangling…the gravity has become inverted just for us…
Izuna: We’re caught in the black art of a youkai.
(TN: This is a weird bit: Izuna calls the technique the youkai performed a “youjutsu”, but compared to something like “youki”, which is harder to translate, “youjutsu” has an actual translation that comes out as “black magic”, “black art” or “sorcery”. Thus I actually translated it)
Izuna: It’s here...something…
SFX: Chuu…
Izuna: There…come out!
SFX: Hita…hita…

39.
“Youkai”: Shaaa~~~
Izuna: Te…Tenjouname…a youkai from long ago that lives in large mansions and castles. It draws in people that are on the other side of its ceiling and kills them; it’s a brutal guy…it has become a great wonder of modern schools…
(TN: Tenjouname is another youkai notable within the works of Toriyama Sekien)
(TN: “Tenjouname” has a simple translation of “Ceiling-Licker”, but I’m keeping its Japanese name for consistency)
SFX: Hita…hita…
Miki: Kyaaaa!
Kyouko: Izuna-san, save us!
Izuna: Leave this to me.

40.
Izuna: Anoku Tara Sanmyaku Sanbodai!
Izuna: Go, Kudagitsune!
Caption: Spirit-animals employed by Itako. (Refer to vol. 9)
SFX: Bashi doka
“Kudagitsune”: Kyu--!
Kyouko: No, they’re unable to compete at all!
Izuna: S**t—in that case…

41.
Izuna: Spiritual Power: Spontaneous Combustion!
SFX: Goo
SFX: Ju—juuu-- | Pero pero
Kyouko: Aaah, it’s licking it and putting it out!
Izuna: That’s insane~~even my special technique…
Kyouko: Kyaaaaa!
Izuna: We’ll disperse for the moment. Go out from the window…

42.
Izuna: Wa
Izuna: We’re falling…into the sky!?
Kyouko: Hii hii
Miki: How could it come to this!? We can’t run away!
Tenjouname: Shiyaaaa
Miki: !
Izuna: Hi…

43.
Kyouko: Nube
Izuna: Save us—
Nube: That strong energy…Izuna’s danger signal! That idiot, what exactly is she…
SFX: Pi—pi—pi—
Izuna: My pager?
SFX: Gasa goso
Izuna: 924000…Nero…no, Necronomicon…Necromancy!?
(TN: This is the main reason why I didn’t want to translate pager codes before, since I wouldn’t know one way or another how this would eventually translate into “Necromancy” Besides, I did have a bit of fun in translating Izuna’s screw-ups here in getting this: originally it goes from “Kuni” to “Kuchiyonsen” to ultimately the correct “kuchiyose”)
Nube: Right…that’s the only way. You don’t have leisure to be puzzled. This is your duty, Izuna!
Caption: Phone in the Plane

44.
Izuna: Necromancy!? What—can I do with that!? Whose spirit, exactly, can I call upon!?
Caption: Necromancy is a technique where an Itako is possessed by a spirit in her own body.
Kyouko: Izuna-san!
Izuna: !!
Izuna: Yeah, I don’t have the leisure to be puzzled anymore. The number of gods are the 98,007 gods of Shinto. The number of dead is on 12,004 spiritual grounds, surprise and present to me, wide Meidou.
SFX: Zuru…zuru…
Izuna: Necromancy!
Nube: Erethral-Body Separation!

45.
SFX: Don!
SFX: Kuwa
“Izuna”: Namu Daiji Daihi Kyuugu Kyuunan Koudai Reikan: Akuryou Taisan!!

46.
Tenjouname: Gyaaaa…
SFX: Gurun! | Hote hote | Gyu
Miki: Owow…ah, we’ve returned to normal.
Kyouko: Amazing! Izuna-san! Now you were strong like you were Nube.
“Izuna”: Fufufu, of course.
“Izuna”: That youkai won’t interfere with my students.
Kyouko: Eh? Your students?
“Izuna”: Well then, the exorcism is finished. Please kick my butt with all your strength.
Kyouko: Eh?
“Izuna”: It’s—fine, it’s an Itako custom.
Miki: You’re a masochist, big sister Izuna…

47.
Miki: Let’s—go.
SFX: Tatata…
SFX: Dokaa | Suu
Kyouko & Miki: ?
Izuna: Damn it—(to herself) I can’t win against him…
Nube: He—y, stewardess-san, another cup of tea—
Stewardess: Chi…he gets those for free…


28.
NUBE’S WEIRD FILES

#14: En no Odzunu

En no Odzunu (En no Gyouja) is the man who was said to be the founder of Shugendou, which has opened sacred mountains in every region of Japan starting in Mt. Kinbu in Nara’s Yoshino as a sorcerer of the 7th~8th century. Originally he appeared as Kamonoe no Kimiuji of the powerful Katsuragi Clan, as a practicer of both Zen and Jugon. Buddhism at that time emphasized being confined in a temple and researching sutras based on the protection of the state, where the tint was strong politically and scholastically, but Shugendou, which was opened by En no Odzunu in regards to this, went into the mountains and acquired psychic abilities by way of asceticism, in what is “outdoor-faction Buddhism” so you say. This clearly was suppressed by the government with the mixture of Buddhism and Taoism, but his devotees couldn’t endure this.

En no Odzuru when into Mt. Katsuragi and trained, pursuing spell methods. It is mentioned in “Nihon Ryouiki” that he comprehended mysterious techniques: he could ride on clouds of various colors and fly through the air and completed the spell method of the Kujakuou Jukyou. His pupil Karakuni no Murashi Hirotari was envious in not being able to equal his master no matter how much training he took, finally betrayed him and made false charges to the government (he made up false crimes) and En no Odzunu was arrested. And then he was exiled to Izu. (699)

Well then, the fierce gods who were said to be employed by En no Odzuru were Zenki and Kouki. According to opinion, those two were originally human, but they were expelled from their town for being too ugly and became oni through training in the mountains. Also, “Enno no Gyouja”, a play by Tsubouchi Shouyou, had these two (oni?) as husband and wife.
(TN: A few things:
1. Once again, we have a Weird File about a future chapter [next chapter] as opposed to this chapter. Something involving En no Odzunu [and likewise Zenki and Kouki] will be in the next chapter.
2. We have gone a bit into “En no Odzunu” previously, but there are many multiple names that seem to be also associated with him, including “En no Gyouji”, “En no Odzuki” (as I may have accidentally called him last time we mentioned him” or the easier to say “En no Ozunu”)
3. Yoshino is a town in Nara Prefecture stated as the base of Shugendou and the traditional start of the Mount Omine Pilgrimage Trail, even though many start in the nearby village of Tenkawa.
4. It’s really hard for me to find an actual “Mt. Kinbu” due to the mountain seeming to be Mt. Omine that is tied to En no Odzunu. But there is a “Kinbu Lake” in Kobe Prefecture.
5. The Katsutragi clan originally came to power in the area around Nara Prefecture around the period of En no Odzunu.
6. “Jugon” is a type of art used within Taoism involving the removal of evil energy by way of spells and weaponry.
7. “Nihon Ryouiki”, fully known as “Nihonkoku Genpou Zenaku Ryouiki”, is a setsuwa collection of the early Heian period, written by Kyoukai between 787 and 824. It is a three-volume collection that is the oldest collection of myths and folklore in Japan. All of the tales in the collection are connected by the Buddhist elements they all speak about.
8. The “Kujakuou Jukyou” (translation: “Spell-Sutra of the Peacock King”), is a spell of mystical protection tied to “Kujaku Myouou”, a female deity of India whom many consider the “mother of Buddhas”.
9. Izu either refers to the “Izu Peninsula”, which is now part of the Shizuoka Prefecture, or the city itself named after the same peninsula. Currently it is mostly known for it’s hot spring resorts and it’s approximation to Mt. Fuji.
10. “Enno no Gyousha” or “En the Ascthetic”, is a modern play written by Shouyou Tsubouchi in 1916. Tsubouchi is notable in Japanese culture in freeing and improving the view of regular plays and novels in Japanese culture and is also notable for translating all of the works of William Shakespeare in the old-fashion Japanese used in kabuki)

TN: After all that explanation that more has to do with the next chapter than this one, I think we may need this to redirect our attention and give us our theme for the chapter:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4GtyMeEcPPE
(Yeah...it's not really the best song and I'm not a Diana Ross fan but it fits the chapter...though it has a funky beat)

I think there's a major lesson in the chapter in this: never trust Izuna with anything. Well...maybe not that but considering that she couldn't even handle the Tenjouname without summoning the spiritual version of Nube proves that she is rather incompetent in handling spiritual and supernatural matters. Though...I do actually admit that I like that Izuna is starting to try and get a handle on what she wants to do and at least attempt to try and face the freaky stuff even if she isn't quite the best at it and even Kyouko and Miki are more tempered in handling the weird stuff than she is. Remember: Izuna has spiritual power but seems so much more material and using it for show and cash that doing what Nube does is really not something she is that use to at all. Having Izuna try to use spiritual abilities like this is still sort of new...but make sense considering that it was mostly her school affected by that weird youkai. Though...one thing I do have a slight complaint about is the whole usage of the page that lead to the final exchange allowing for Nube and Izuna to unite in power: sure it was a neat gimmick...but it really shows the period of the chapter and does end up dating it. Yeah, it's hard to say how it could have been done if the chapter was done today...but we're talkinga bout a series trying to be timely and hip so of course something like this would seem weird to us but appropriate to those reading it back in the day.