Hell Teacher Nube 157

The fame of the powerful spiritualist teacher has spread far beyond the means of Doumori. But can this fame help defeat a bizarre youkai phenomenon that a girl from the next town wants to take down in the name of a lost friend!?

#157: Hard Race! Jet Babaa

157.
Narrator: Doumori 3rd Chome; Intersection – 2:00 AM
Truck Driver: Ah~~the wheel in one hand~~the spirit of~~a man~~I am~~a Truck Guy~~of Naniwa~~
(TN: “Naniwa” is the former name for the city of Osaka)
Truck Driver: N? Someone is chasing me from behind.
Truck Driver: ……
SFX: Guooooo
Truck Driver: !!

158.
Truck Driver: Uwaaaa~~~!!

159.
Truck Driver: Sh…she’s fast. What a fast granny!
Truck Driver: ! I…I can’t return my head…ah…ah…
SFX: Dogagaga~~~
Voice: The Jet Babaa. Recently accidents were frequent in the next town and there were a full amount of eyewitnesses. She’s finally come to Doumori Town. The Jet Grandma runs and chases at a speed of 100km/hr.
(TN: Strangely enough there is a legend regarding the emergence of a super-fast old woman that is known as a modern-day legend of cities, typically involving her appearing in tunnels leading to accidents. The general name of the youkai that’s generally found is “Turbo Baa-chan” or “Turbo Grandma”. While it is easy to translate, I kept it in Japanese instead mostly because it is the name of the youkai)

160.
Miki: And when you look at it’s form, your head won’t be able to return inside and you’ll crash.
Kyouko: When you stop, your throat gets cut. It’s become one of the great mysteries of the entire nation.
Nube: N~~can’t they do something about that terrible name? It’s…what about this…
SFX: Jet
Kyouko: Whatever school you go to throughout Japan, its Jet Babaa.
Voice 1: No, she’s called 100-kilo Babaa.
Voice 2: Wrong, the 120-kilo Babaa.
Voice 3: Jet Baa-chan.
Voice 4: Dash Babaa.
Voice 5: Turbo Baa-chan: she has written “turbo” on her back.
Nube: Enough of that.
Nube: But the youki is buzzing…clearly this is…
Voice: Um

161.
Pizza Girl: Are You Nube-sensei?
Scooter: Domiso Pizza
(TN: Obviously “Domiso Pizza”, which is named after scale notes, is a parody of notable chain “Domino’s Pizza”, which does have a notable presence in Japan among other chains.)
Nube: I am but…you are?
Hikaru: Senta Hikaru, a high-schooler working part-time at a pizza shop in the next town.
Hikaru: I’ve heard rumors; tales of the super spiritually-powered teacher who saves with good intentions people who are troubled…
Nube: Um, ahaha, noo.
Hikaru: Tales that you’re always hungry and that you’ll do tricks when presented food when it’s before payday…
Nube: Ha ha ku—n ku—n
(TN: This is a funny scene considering what Hikaru says…and what Nube does in return. Hikaru refers to Nube as being “gei wo suru”, which is the beginning of the expression “gei wo suru inu” or “a dog who does tricks”. Of course, even though she doesn’t say he’s a “dog”, Nube immediately becomes a dog when presented the pizza…so it all works out)
Kyouko: Nu…Nube…

162.
Hikaru: In truth…I earnestly have a request for you, teacher.
Hikaru: A few days ago…my valuable buddy was killed by Jet Babaa.
Hikaru: The woman bore serious injury in an accident while working. She continued to appeal that the criminal was a youkai.
Hikaru: But her story wasn’t believed by anyone. She died…I have to clear that woman’s regrets…
Hikaru: With that…I heard the rumors of the spiritualist Nube-sensei.
Hikaru: Please, teacher, Do away with Jet Babaa! I want to destroy that woman’s enemy!

163.
Nube: Please be calm: I intend to ride that large boat. I’ll teach traffic manners to it.
SFX: Don!
SFX: Furororo…
Nube: According to the fuuchi, an evil energy is drifting in this vicinity. It’s best that we put up a net in this area.

164.
SFX: Toppuri
Kyouko: Hey~~are we still~~?
Nube: You two have homework. Go home already.
Nube: Mu…
Nube: It’s coming…
SFX: Gooooo

165.
Hikaru: Is…is that it!?
Nube: Usually its form disappears and it seems like it would lurk in the road.
Nube: But that speed…it isn’t a mere Jibakurei. A youkai…and a quite old one…
Nube: …A shadow…?
SFX: Pupu—
Nube: Ha!!
SFX: Shuba

166.
Nube: Ku, it ran off? It’s form disappeared…for the moment, I did save the car but…
SFX: Burororo…
Hikaru: What are you doing? Chase it! Is it still in this area!?
Nube: Eh? No, actually…
Hikaru: I’ll loan you my bike! Quickly!
Hikaru: Well!
SFX: Don! | Buon!
Nube: Uwaaaa!!
SFX: Buoo | Doka | Gasha—n! | Baki

167.
SFX: Shu--… | Kara kara kara
Kyouko: Don’t—do that. Nube is super-poor at driving cars. (Ha ha ha)
Miki: So, naturally, even a bike
Hikaru: Eh
Nube: In this~~area~~
Hikaru: That was an intense joke. So then can’t you chase it!
Nube: No…well, I’ll do something.
Hikaru: It’s a monster at a 100km/hr!! Fight it with whate—ver it takes!!
Hikaru: Really! How are you riding on this large boat? You’re merely just words! I can’t rely on you at all!
Hikaru: That’s enough. I can’t beg to someone like you. With that, you’re paying for the costs of repairing the bike.
SFX: Kyururu…
Nube: He…hey…

168.
Kyouko: A—ah, her degree of reliance is zero.
Miki: You’re bad at complicating it—
Nube: Hahaha; it’ll be fine. Due to earlier, I know the true identity of Jet Babaa.
Nube: Miki, is there a youkai that follows behind a person on a street at night and threatens them?
Miki: There’s Betobeto-san, Sunekorobi, Tsukitaoshi…all of them together are called Atobikigami.
(TN: Several youkai are mentioned here that all are collected together, which leads to various terms and beings that I have to clear up here:
-Atobikigami: a type of “Ushirogami”, also known as “Back-God” and literally translates as “Dragging-Behind God”
-Betobeto-san: A youkai known in Nara and Shizuoka Prefecture in seeming to “follow” behind, with no trace found when turned around. It is said that by standing on the side of a road and asking for the youkai to go ahead, you can have it move along ahead of you. Incidentally, “betobeto” is an onomotopeia for “footsteps”.
-Sunekorobi: Unfortunately I couldn’t really find anything about this youkai, though it is possible it could be connected to “Sunekosuri”, a youkai notable for randomly tripping people and with the appearance of a cat.
-Tsukitaoshi: Even harder to really find any able information, it usually is more used in connection to sumo wrestlers, where it is a “frontal thrust down” where an attacker thrusts an opponent onto their back or side after a heated exchange of slaps.)
Nube: Right…a youkai that threatens people in the darkness since long ago…Atobikigami as commonly called…if it does such, then its weakness is…
Hikaru: …Really…counting on that guy was a mistake!
Hikaru: If it’s come to this, then I can only do this on my own. Tomoko, I will take your enemy.
(TN: Just to sort of sort it out, this isn’t the same Tomoko as the freckled friend of Izuna…its Hikaru’s work partner)
Hikaru: That’s why I thought as such and came to gather charms from the shrines here and there.

169.
SFX: Hyuu~~
SFX: Bo
Hikaru: !
Hikaru: It’s appeared…but it’s no good to turn around. Even stopping won’t work…then I’ll fight.
SFX: Ba
Jet Babaa: Gya!!
Hikaru: Akuryou Taisan!

170.
SFX: Kuwa!
Jet Babaa: Shaaaa
Hikaru: Th…this is bad. It seems I’ve angered it too much!
Nube: It’s useless even if you do that; you’ll just anger it!
Hikaru: Nube-sensei!
Car: Doumori Taxi
Nube: There are two tunnels ahead: a new one and an ex-tunnel that presently isn’t being used.
Nube: Enter into the old tunnel that isn’t being used!
Hikaru: Hiii, it’s chasing me.
SFX: Bii—
Sign: Danger, do not enter!

171.
Hikaru: Hiii, it’s completely dark!!
Nube: That total darkness is fine.
Nube: Whatever speed its opponent reaches, that being follows. That’s because the being is riding on top of the shadow.
Nube: That youkai is called Atobikigami, which threatens people from behind. A person who walks on a night road is frightened by their own shadow; they dread what isn’t the something that is there. It’s a youkai born from fear.
Nube: That’s why Atobikigami can only exist on top of a person’s shadow. Therefore…if a person’s shadow were to naturally disappear

172.
Nube: Alright, now: cut the engine, turn off your light and stop!
Hikaru: Eeh, that’s dangerous!
Nube: Since it’ll be fine, do it!
SFX: Fu
Hikaru: !!
Nube: True darkness. A shadow created by a person isn’t anywhere.
Nube: An Atobikigami, who rides on top of shadows, will search for a shadow which it will ride on top of desperately.

173.
SFX: Ka
Nube: The shadow is here, Jet Babaa.
Jet Babaa: Kieeee!!

174.
Nube: Return to nothing!!
Nube: A youkai born of a person’s fear…a youkai born just due to a person being wounded…

175.
Hikaru: Thank you…with that, Tomoko can rest in peace. You’re an amazing teacher as in the rumors.
Hikaru: As thanks, I’ll deliver pizza to you every day for a month.
Nube: Ooh—
Miki: This man: he can live on just pizza for a month…
Kyouko: Eww--…

TN: Let me be honest: I really had a hard time scoping Hikaru with how the chapter depicted her. She did seem like an honest, nice girl who had intentions for wanting to take down Jet Babaa, but at the same time she seemed rather easily irritated and aggravated in not knowing the full story regarding how Nube works. How the heck would she know about his terrible time with money pre-payday and not know that, as powerful and skilled as he is, he has many weird and awkward moments and can't drive even if his life depends on it? Aside from that (though I did love the moment she tempted Nube with pizza early on), I sort of did really like the concept of the Atobikigami and the mere concept of what it really was: a faked youkai that you think exists but in reality is tied to what's behind you in the unknown that can never be seen or taken down without knowing the trick regarding its shadow. The mere factor that it essentially is a shadow and that the usage of light gives it the "intended" speed it has was just a cool concept as simple as it was. And BTW: I don't really hate Hikaru...but some of what she does did feel like a lot of the non-believers usually do, especially for a girl who claims to know so much about Nube. (though the fact that Nube is helping people who aren't just kids...well, there is something I really want to say about this but...I don't want to do "that rant" until I get to a certain chapter that's going to really peeve me off for a particular reason)