Hell Teacher Nube 211

With how hard life can be, many wish for a shortcut to get what they have to done with minimal effort. But when Nube's class comes across something that could help them out, they may just create many creepy little problems...

#211: Youchuu: Tsunemotomushi
(TN: The "youchuu" in the title literally translates into "calamity insects", with "you" being the same "you" as in "youkai"; but since it doesn't really translate well, I chose to keep the name in Japanese)

156.
Narrator: Even winter break has gotten closer to ending, but has everyone completed their homework?
Sign: Doumori Library
Narrator: Nube's class is very excited.
Kyouko: Give it here a bit, I'll copy it!
Katsuya: Ah, that's--right--I have those drills too.
Noriko's Book: Math Drills
Kaneda: Uh~~this kanji practice notebook is small.
Kaneda's Book: Kanji Drills
Miki's Closed Book: Japanese Drill
Miki's Open Book: Pure White
Miki: Fu...

157.
SFX: Wai wai gaya gaya
Hiroshi: ......
SFX: Kiri
Hiroshi's Calligraphy: Happy New Year~~n
SFX: Pi
Kyoukos Book: Math Drills

158.
SFX: Guri guri guri
SFX: Gon!
Kaneda: Bu---
SFX: Doki baki | Don
Makoto: Wa
SFX: Bashi
Katsuya: Te
SFX: Gan!
Shizuka: Kya--
SFX: Dododododo
Noriko: No~~!!

159.
Kaneda: Hold on--you guy---
Shuichi: Uwa--save me--
SFX: Dota dota
Kyouko: Please stop, all of you.
SFX: Waa~~Kyaa
Katsuya: You--you did it----
Miki: Kekeke
Noriko: The notebook is ruined---
Librarian: Noisy people, please go out--side.
Everyone: ...
SFX: Hyu~~~~
Hiroshi: What do we do? Our homework isn't finished at all.
Kyouko: Each of us can only do it at home.
Miki: N?

160.
Miki: Dis--covery. That tree, what is it?
Sign: Tree of Tsunemotomushi
(TN: "Tsunemotomushi" is liteally "Tsunemoto Insects" or "Tsunemoto Bugs")
Nube: That's the "Tree of Tsunemotomushi".
Miki: Nube.
Kyouko: What is that here?
Nube: Haha, I'm investigating that thing for a bit.
Nube: "Tsunemoto" was a great thief who was in Shiga Prefecture about 1600; he was arrested, hung from a tree, was beheaded and buried at the base of the tree.
(TN: "Shiga Prefecture" is a prefectuer of Kansai within the interior, notable as the junction point between Nara and Kyoto)

161.
Nube: Thereapon that, thousands upon thousands of insects where the face of Tsunemoto emerged from the hole of the tree.
(TN: Nube actually says "Nan-sen nan-man" which is actually "thousands to tens of thousands" in English, but "thousands upon thousands" sounded better in English)
Nube: And thus when these insects, which spread out within the town, were hit by the rain, they raged with the signal and attacked the villagers...
Hiroshi: Bu...but this is a tale of Shiga Prefecture, what's with this?
Nube: Well the same tale is throughout the country; also called the Heishiroumushi and Yoshitokumushi.
Nube: ---In short, the grudge of the criminal is left behind and when it's buried, a Tsunemotomushi tree could occur anywhere.
Nube: By the way: your winter vacation is over in two more days. Enjoy doing homework. (Ku ku ku...)

162.
Miki: He's sarcastic~~ (Ke) He's having fun on that.
Miki: Ow.
Miki: No---good. I carelessly thrusted my finger into the hole of the Tsunemotomushi tree. And further blood that's like there was a splinter inside came out...
SFX: Paaa
Miki: !?
Kyouko: Wh...what!?

163.
SFX: Mushi mushi mushi
"Bugs": It's a great buggy-bug parade.
(TN: A weird thing to speak of here: when the insects speak here, they end up using the onomotopeia of "mushimushi", which is typically "hot and humid". But since we have a swarm of them coming out [and considering who they are...hint, hint], I ended up cutening it with "buggy-bug")
SFX: Wara wara wara
SFX: Wara wara wara wara
Okano: Please forgive me~~Makura-sensei. (The way I drew those became those bodies)
Makura: ...
(TN: I guess you're wondering who the heck those two are: well basically in the side-covers of every Nube volume, Makura and Okano have eventually drawn up "identities" when they speak that sort of tie to them: Makura's being a blue-haired ghost, Okano's being a simple face with a tongue sticking out. Occasionally from here on out you may see them in the story itself, usually Makura's, but this is the first that they do in story)

164.
Miki: Well, they're entirely like me...how charming...
SFX: Ozozo | Kasa kasa kasa
Kyouko: The mood is bad~~~
Kyouko: Those are Tsunemotomushi! I'll call Nube; he must exterminate these.
Miki: Are you dumb? They've emerged with great pains; it's more than we deserve.
Miki: They're going to do my homework! They're smart---
Miki Bug: Ke ke ke
Hiroshi: Oh, that's a good idea.
Katsuya: How great.
Hiroshi: I'll have some too.
Makoto: Me too.
Katsuya: It'll be good to have blood sucked by the hole of a tree.
Hiroshi: There's a splinter inside. You stab the fingertip here; ow
SFX: Chiku
Kyouko: Please stop
Katsuya: What kind will emerge...

165.
SFX: Wara wara wara wara wara
Hiroshi, Makoto, Katsuya & Kaneda: Waa---
Hiroshi: OK, do it.
Bugs: ? ? ?
Word: Stupid (Baka)
SFX: Hera hera (Frivolous)

166.
Hiroshi: Hey---don't play soccer---
SFX: Wa--wa--wa--
Miki: Really, Hiroshi's bugs, they're hopeless. Well, there's nothing we can do about the bugs that emerged from Hiroshi's blood. Compared to those, my Miki bugs are...N
Miki: Hey---don't chatter, work---
Miki: Hie~~this feels bad~~~

167.
Katsuya: He...hey you, this kanji dictation...
Book: Kanji Drill
Katsuya: Aah...
Katsuya Bugs: Ehe ehe~~
Woman: Kya~~what are these bugs~~
SFX: Mozo mozo mozo mozo
Makoto Bugs: Mushirangers--
(TN: Obviously "Mushirangers" isn't a satire of any team but literally "insect rangers"...though you'd wonder why they didn't go with a Kamen Rider parody instead here)
SFX: Bishi
Kaneda: Al--right, that's a true group bullying.
SFX: Gashi gashi gashi
Makoto: Wa---
Hiroshi: If they aren't ultimately insects of diligent, wise people, they won't do the homework.
Katsuya: Seem so.
Miki: Chi
SFX: Giro...

168.
Noriko: No---what are you doing!? (Kya~~~)
SFX: Jita bata jita bata
Hiroshi: It won't hurt, it won't hurt! Because you put in a bit of a point!
Kyouko: It hurts---!
Noriko: Hi~~~
"Creepy Guy": Please...please sell me one for a thousand yen. (Guhehe)
Hiroshi: Eh!?
Sign 1: Limited Beautiful Girl Figures
Sign 2: Dragonfly Girl
Sign 3: Butterfly Girl
Sign: Loli Characters
"Creepy Guy": Guhehe
Noriko Bug: Noo...

169.
Kyouko: The object was different.
Hiroshi: Seems so.
Hiroshi: Well, do our homework.
Kyouko: ...This is somewhat stomach-churning~~~
Hiroshi: Hey hey, can't you work?
SFX: Pishi | Pishi
Katsuya: Don't be idle, he he he.
Kaneda: We seem to be making progress with this.
Miki: They're convenient---
SFX: Para para
Noriko: Ra...rain.
Kyouko: It's a shower.

170.
Hiroshi: N...no good, if the Tsunemotomushi touch rain... They'll ferocitize
Katsuya: Ri...right.
SFX: Meki meki meki
SFX: Ooooooh...

171.
Hiroshi: Uwa...they're ugly...
Kyouko: Kya---
Noriko: Run.
Kyouko: No----
SFX: Zuwa zuwa zuwa
Hiroshi: Take refuge in the storage room!
Kyouko: They'll eat us!
SFX: Batan!
SFX: Va~~~~~
Hiroshi: No, they're eating the ceiling. They'll come to the inside!
SFX: Bari bori bari

172.
Katsuya: Wa----
Hiroshi: It's already too late---
Nube: Mu
Nube: Dummies, what have they done? They ferocitized with the shower.
Nube: Ku...there's an amazing number. How am I going to exterminate them...?

173.
Nube: ......
SFX: Zubo!
Nube: Well, an organization with an organization.
SFX: Wara wara wara wara
Nube Bugs: Namu Daiji Daihi
Nube Bugs: Kyuugu Kyuunan

174.
Nube Bugs: Namu Jobutsu!
SFX: Bashuu
SFX: Shuu
Nube: Alright, sorry for the trouble.
Nube: --So? What exactly was going on? Huh---

175.
Nube: Hmm hmm, understood. You were going to have your homework done by Tsunemotomushi...
Nube: You're idiots! What were you thinking!
Nube: But these bugs are, well, quite convenient...
Students: ?
Nube: Hey, do those lively! You have two days left!

176.
Nube -sensei's
(Useless) SUPPLEMENTAL EXPLANATION
#40: Hell

One of the Six Paths, it is a place where beings who commit evil deeds during their lifetimes descend to after death and receive punishment. In there are the Oni such as Gozu, Mezu and Abou Rasetsu; and they present cruel punishments to the people who come there. It is also called "Naraku", but that is the phonetic equivalent of Naraka (the general term for hell) in Sanskrit. (They say that those of despair "are thrusted into the depths of Naraku".)

Zekki also explained it within the volume, but Hell is divided into eight stratum; each of which are called "Hell of Sanjiva", "Hell of Kalasutra", "Hell of Samghata", "Hell of Raurava", "Hell of Maharaurava", "Hell of Tapana", "Hell of Pratapana" and "Hell of Avici". The bottom stratum of Hell of Avici is also called the "Hell of Agony"; the expression of "The Hell-Map of Agonizing Screams" which is a cruel, gruesome appearance, has this as it's origin.

Hell is within the depths of the earth. The first stratum, Sanjiva, is said to be 50,000km underground. Naturally since we've penetrated into the Earth, it may be in another dimension. The next hell, Kalasutra, is a further 10 thousand km from there. The next is further another 10 thousand km beneath.

There's a largeness in scale that's like it becomes distant, but prison terms of Hell (the time where you must undertake punishment) also are long to the extent of becoming distant. Sanjiva, the first, has a 1.62 trillion year sentence. Kalasutra, the next, is 8 times that. The next, Samghata, is a sentence 8 times further. The criminals in the midst of these hells that are repeatingly killed are revived and again killed and revived, continuing to take torture of literal hell. I think that when hearing these tales, no one would want to go to hell. People long ago were remonstrated as such where they wouldn't do bad things by doign as such.

Much furthermore is the appearance of the hell of Buddhism and the hell of Christianity also varies. That explanation will again be at the next chance.

(TN: A few things:
1. The mention of "Gozu", "Mezu" and "Abou Rasetsu" are in reference to Buddhist demons of the dead that have been adopted by the Japanese for their afterlife. Gozu Rasetsu and Mezu Rasetsu are two of the most notable, being guardians of Buddhist god Bishamonten and possessing the heads of cows (Gozu literally translates to "Cow Head") and horses (Mezu tranlsates to "Horse Head") and torture and eat the flesh of the dead. "Abo Rasetsu", another guardian, is said to have the head and legs of an ox and the hands of a human.
2. As I mentioned prior, "Naraku" is the Japanese term of "Naraka", the type of suffering in Buddhist theology that is tied to the various hells as mentioned here.
3. As I mentioned prior as well, the 8 hells have Japanese names but, in order to try and concentrate in giving off proper names, I ended up using the original Buddhist concepts. At this time, I think it probably would be worthwhile to give the original names and translations of the Japanese "Hells" alongside the original Buddhist terms so we could probably understand the Japanese versions better.
*Sanjiva = Toukatsu = Quality Ressurection
*Kalasutra = Kokujou = Black Rope
*Samghata = Shugou = Joined Masses
*Raurava = Kyoukan = Screaming
*Maharaurava = Daikyoukan = Great Screaming
*Tapana = Shounetsu = Scorching Heat
*Pratapana = Daishounetsu = Great Scorching Heat
*Avici = Mugen = Infinite
4. The main reason I bring up the translations here is that when referring to "Mugen Jigoku" or the "Hell of Avici", the Japanese actually refers to the alternate name as "Abi Jigoku" which I ended up translating as "Hell of Agony" here. The "Agony" part is actually translated as part of the Japanese expression of "Abikyoukan", which literally translates as "screams of agony" and can also be translated as "pandemonium" and was the "Agonizing Screams" when mentioning "abikyoukan no jigokuzu" or "The Hell-Map of Agonizing Screams" expression)

TN: I'm somewhat torn about this chapter I admit with this. In a way, the whole scenario was just one big "get what you deserve" and I did like the fact that the idiots who tried to screw around with the system by creating the Tsunemotomushi ended up being burned by them when they turned into devouring little monsters. Obviously the ones who deserve most of the blame are Miki (for being just lazy even if we know she has the brains to get things done since her grades aren't THAT bad) and the boys (who, unlike Miki, are mostly utter idiots trying to take advantage of someone else, even if it's bug clones of themselves, to do things...but just end up with...well...bug clones of themselves), who obviously attempted to cheated the system and end up burned in the process. The problem stems moreso from those who end up getting tossed into the fire in the process of their stupidity, mostly Kyouko and Noro-chan. They didn't want to create Tsunemotomushi clones, yet were forced to watch their insect clones become slaves for the idiots, love slaves for perverts, and, like everyone elses, monsters. In all of this, they were the ones who were the most against cheating using the Tsunemotomushi, yet they were forced to suffer due to the stupidity of their friends. And for that, I don't really think it was that fair that they were caught up in this and nearly got killed just for collaboration. (heck, we even have one or two panels showing Shuichi and Shizuka still with the group and even they could have been stuck with it...yet I didn't see them in the hiding place and they seemed to get away while Kyouko and Noriko got stuck becoming potential bug chow) The other thing that seemed a tad off was the solution: I like that Nube used the Tsunemotomushi clones of himself to try and destroy the other Tsunemotomushi...but isn't he just creating a bigger problem down the line? If the rain could turn the student's bugs into monsters, whose to say the same wouldn't happen to Nube ultimately would as well when it rains next time? And don't forget: these Tsunemotomushi have spiritual power like Nube himself, so if they become ferocitized, then the whole town is doomed! But since I doubt they'll be showing up again... (on the other hand, I did love the introductory scene in the library with the whole cause and effect of the students leading to them getting kicked out...and it's nice to remember minor characters like the librarian from the Hieronymus Machine chapter)