Hell Teacher Nube 208

With his friends, his allies and even his students ineffective against the horror of Zekki, Nube is the only one left to stand against the Oni. But to defeat him, he may have to dive into the madness...and unleash the ultimate forbidden power...

#208: Doumori Town's Ultimate Decisive Battle!
The 6th: Conclusion

95.
Nube: Ah...ah...ah...
Zekki: The youko's Megiddo Fire was indeed an amazing technique. As expected, I too was uneasy on whether I would avoid it or not.
SFX: Za
Zekki: But
Zekki: Nyari

96.
Zekki: N?
Zekki: You've finally recovered consciousness.

97.
Zekki: What's wrong? There's no ambition. Isn't this impossible? Since it is strange that you're alive.
SFX: Zushin zushin
Katsuya: Aah...Nube.
Miki: It's already hopeless. Everyone's been defeated and
Kyouko: There already isn't even the power for Nube to stand up.
Zekki: Kukuku
SFX: Ni
Nube: ......You...ha...ve...
Nube: ...Taken them...

98.
Nube: You've...taken many valuable ones...from me.
Nube: You've taken them~~~~~
SFX: Guaaaa
Zekki: Wh...what~~~!?
Zekki: His spiritual power is...A hundred times...two-hundred...it's...it's rising into a different league than it has up to now. What exactly is that human...

99.
Nube: Haaaa
SFX: Bari bari bari bari
Zekki: What exactly is he doing? The Oni no Te!? Is he releasing the sealed power of the Oni!?
Nube: To surpass your power as an Oni, I can only become an Oni!
Minako: Please stop, Nueno-kun, doing that is impossible! Even if it's suppressed with all the power of you and I, the Oni's power with it's seal undone can't be ccontrolled. Your heart will just be controlled by the Oni!
Kyouko: Nube is becoming an Oni!
Miki: Noooo~~~~~
Nube: Gaaa
SFX: Katsu

100.
Nube: Guooooh!!
Kyouko: Nube!

101.
SFX: Zushi~~n!
SFX: Shuuuu--
Kyouko: Nube!
Zekki: Kukuku...
Zekki: Stupid! You're controlled by the Oni! I planned to kill you and release my big brother, but you've econimized the effort.
Zekki: That's good, big brother Baki. Well, let's recklessly kill humans together.
Kyouko: Aah...Nube...
SFX: Kuwa

102.
SFX: Do
Zekki: !?
SFX: Goooooooh | Baki baki baki baki
Zekki: Guhaa
Zekki: Wh...what are you doing, big brother! Is your energy different...
SFX: Gara gara
Zekki: ! Wh...what? It can't be...
Kyouko: That...isn't the Oni. That's
Miki & Katsuya: Nube!
Makoto: Eeh.

103.
SFX: Gogogogogogo
Zekki: Stupid...is he controlling the Oni with his force of will!? How could that be done as a human...
"Nube": Yukime...loved indecisive me...
SFX: Dogaa
Zekki: Gebbu

104.
"Nube": Tamamo was my enemy, but was a good comrade in arms that we've mutually saved each other many times...
SFX: Bakii
"Nube": And...and these students...I value more than life...

105.
Zekki: Don't get caught in the moment, human~~~
SFX: Gushaa
Zekki: Ugyaa!
Kyouko: Amazing! He's surpassed Zekki's power!
SFX: Gatsu gatsu Baki
Katsuya: Stand firm, Nube!
Makoto: Drop him into the Kimon at once!
Zekki: Wh...what is this power...it's different from an Oni's power...what is...this greater power... (out loud) Hiii...
SFX: Su

106.
Nube: I...love everyone. Everyone who lives in this town.
Nube: I can't forgive you for those you've hurt. Even if my body rots away or if my heart is smashed

107.
Nube: I...
SFX: Giro
Zekki: Th...that's...the strong feelings to the extent of surprising towards many people...his bonds...this wounded anger...it's...terrible. A power that's been born to this extent...have I touched on a thing I must not touch...

108.-109.
Nube: Go back to hell!!

110.
Zekki: Guooo, this is the power of a human...Scary...it's scaaary.
SFX: Goooo
Zekki: Hiiiii....
SFX: Shuuu...
Nube: Haa...haa...

111.
SFX: Pari pari...pari...
Nube: (Haa...haa...) I've won...but...
Nube: I've lost too many...
Voice: ...Nube, Nube

112.
Voice: Nube.
Nube: ?
Nube: !!
Nube: A...all of you, wh...what happened to your injuries!?
Kyouko: Hayame-san healed them. Mermaid blood has the power to heal injuries...
Nube: That's good.

113.
Nube: By the way, Tamamo, what's 96 + 152?
SFX: Kuru (turn)
Tamamo: Adios, Nueno-sensei
Caption: When using mermaid blood, your head becomes dumb for a short while.
Yukime: Well--everyone, even if we've become stupid, let's celebrate.
Nube: Alright, shall I treat you to ramen? (I've come to not have wages again but)
Nube: Everyone, thank you.

114.
HAYAME
Hair - Eyes: Olive (Strong Green); Flagstone Green (Strong Green)
Tail - Fins - Etc: Chrome Orange (Bright Orange); Cadmium Orange (Strong Orange)

TN: Wow...now that was a feel-good chapter. Sure some of it really didn't make sense and I have a couple minor complaints, but the Zekki arc definitely ended with a major delivery regarding the ultimate defeat of the boy Oni and Nube's final, ultimate victory. For the most part, the main reason this chapter delivered was essentially due to it being a culmination of the previous five, where Nube was ripped apart physically, mentally and emotionally to be forced into drawing on the power of Baki himself in order to destroy Zekki with that "greater power" that his little brother previously mentioned. The final two-page spread really drove the battle and the conclusiveness across: Zekki was a monster doing everything he did and Nube had no qualms about ripping him apart in order to throw him back into hell to face his ultimate judgement in the bottom depths. Though once you get the emotion out of your head regarding how awesome Nube letting loose and defeating the enemy was, there are a few things in my mind I have to let out regarding the chapter and some slight weird thoughts that went through my head.
-First of all: how was Nube able to overwhelm Baki's mind and take control of the Oni? Minako-sensei did say that the power of herself and Nube together would not be enough to sustain the Oni from going wild, yet somehow Nube was able to mentally "become" the Oni in the fight to use against Zekki. I guess the only real explanation I have is simply "he was just so angry at Zekki and so driven to win that his emotional force overwhelmed Baki and allowed for him to dominate the Oni just this once." I highly doubt Nube is going to use the Oni's power like this again...I mean it's not like the opening of the anime where it suggested Nube becomes the Oni all the time. (BTW: this chapter is essentially the last Nube story animated...even though those stories were for the most part not even touched outside a couple here or there since Vol. 16)
-Second: So...did Hiroshi die when Zekki hit him last chapter or not? When he was struck by the Oni last time, it seemed like he was just majorly wounded...yet during Nube's rant when destroying Zekki, he seemed greatest of all angered by Hiroshi's "death" even more than Yukime or Tamamo. Obviously that makes sense...but what happened to Hiroshi in the previous chapter really wasn't obvious enough to really work. I mean you could have Hiroshi "presumed dead", but even then he seemed merely knocked out last chapter and, unlike seeing Yukime and Tamamo nearly dead after the Megiddo incident, Nube didn't even directly see Hiroshi and was essentially knocked out when he and the other students tried their attack on Zekki. Heck, we even saw Kyouko and Miki yelling at Nube during the final battle, so it's not like he would have been purely driven by his students outside his creed...it just felt like it should have made sense but didn't quite in my head.
-Third: if Nube gained power from the people and town he cared about, then why the heck did it only feel like it was "everyone involved in this storyline"? When Nube gained the final power to destroy Zekki, it only flashed characters directly involved in this, including Izuna (who obviosuly was also hurt and not even part of Nube's rant) and even Oshou (who...just gave Nube the Gyokirin). Yet...what about Ritsuko-sensei...or the other students in his class...or the many others of Doumori who have mattered so much and been so bound to what Nube has done? If he was fighting for them, why the heck weren't they part of Nube's final power to destroy the Oni child? Sure we can assume they were from the way Nube was talking, but it just felt like "you don't matter unless you're part of the war"...it just felt sad and screwy though and unfair considering that Nube was fighting for so many in stopping Zekki...yet so few were shown.
-Finally...so what was Hayame's reason for being there? Essentially the only purpose she had was to prevent everyone from dying after several characters gave their lives to stop Zekki. Yeah that's extremely important but it felt like she was mostly just there for that to merely be a healer...as if she was Dende from Dragonball...or Yanagi from Flame of Recca. Sure I like Hayame but I sort of wished she was more than a glorified babysitter/healer of the group. (sadly this really is one of her last appearances before...well, that would be telling)

Even with the nitpicks, it was a satisfying conclusion to a good arc that expanded the reaches of the series. I can't say if it is my favorite "longer story" of Nube...mostly because there is another one I'm anticipating coming up in a couple more volumes. But it was satisfying (even with some of the things that bugged me) and sort of a prelude for some of what's to come in the final quarter of the series. These stories won't overwhelm the other stories...and they aren't all going to be as grim (heck I think the Zekki arc is the most grim of all the multi-parters), but it is something to keep an eye on as we return to our typical one-shot schedule next time!