Natsume Yuujin Chou 38

Natsume Yuujinchou 38 – The Tale of the Deceitful Friend, Part 2

Code
N- Natsume
SH- Shibata
M- Nyanko-sensei
T- Touko-san
MS- Murasaki
U- Unknown

01-02
Mega Hit! Strange Tales of Ayakashi Contracts
Double Page Colour Title Spread
40 Pages
Even a strange darkness, if it is those two they can face it together
Natsume Yuujinchou
The Tale of the Deceitful Friend, Part 2
Midorikawa Yuki

03
SH- I knew you were just a liar
N- No Shibata, please believe me!
N- Shibata!
T- Welcome home Takashi-kun…
T- Oh, what’s wrong? You’re awfully pale
N- N, nothing
N- Its just a little cold out…

04
N- I wandered back here like an idiot…
SH- ‘…Natsume’
SH- Natsume
N- This isn’t the time to fumble
N- Just because I got called a liar
N- Gotta get a grip
N- I’ll do what I can!!
N- That idiot
N- Isn’t thinking of going to see that ayakashi girl now is he…
M- Calm down Natsume

05
M- They won’t be able to meet for a few days at least
h/w- Uwaah –
N- …Geez
N- I keep telling you not to scare me like that
M- I’m the one who should be saying geez! You left me behind from the shock and came home alone
N- Ah, sorry. You completely slipped my mind
M- What!?
N- …Anyway, what do you mean they won’t be able to meet for a few days?
M- Unlike a major youkai such as myself, for a weak ayakashi to show itself to humans it takes a fair amount of power
M- Its limited to the confines of that park too
M- It’s not an ayakashi that can come here and eat you
M- It seemed pretty weak, which means it needs to save up its strength for three days to show itself to humans

06
N- …weak…?
M- …Alright, that means
M- At any rate, there’ll be a delay
N- I have three days
N- I have to convince Shibata not to go see her anymore
N- I have to tell him
N- Not to see her…
U- Kyaah, a tanuki!?
U- What!?
U- Ah, that’s the boy from yesterday

07
U- You’re a friend of Shibata’s, aren’t you?
N- No, um…
U- Ahaha, he’s so cute –
U- Did you have a fight? He already left by the back gate
h/w- Didn’t he?
N- What!?
N- He ran away…
U- Hey, is this creature your pet?
h/w- What kind of animal is it?
M- Hey Natsume, where are you going?
N- The park, I’m going to look for that girl and keep watch
M- Pain in the ass!!
M- You have no obligation to go so far for that brat
N- He’s unpleasant but he’s not a bad guy… probably
N- I can’t just stand by and watch him get eaten, pretending I don’t see

08
N- Even if I have some things
N- That I can’t tell Nishimura or Touko-san
N- I don’t want to do shameful things
N- And it was Shibata who knew about that cake shop, sensei
M- Alright, let’s protect him
N- …this feeling
N- She’s close
N- It’s that ayakashi…

09
N- Uwaaah!
N- Let go
MS- …you again huh…
MS- What did you come here for>

10
MS- Did you come all the way here to get eaten?
N- No…
N- That’s right; I have to somehow convince her to give up on Shibata…
N- Unfortunately for you Shibata won’t be coming here any more
N- I told him you weren’t human last night
N- Even if you wait here hoping to eat him, he won’t come
N- Give up
MS- …You’re lying

11
N- It’s not a lie, I told him your identity!
MS- If you did
MS- He didn’t believe you, did he?
MS- If he believed you, that would be that
MS- It’s because he didn’t believe you
MS- You shamelessly came here to try and do something about it, is it not?
MS- Poor thing
N- You’re wrong!
M- Oi Natsume, did you go over there yet?

12
M- Uwaah…
MS- Get out of here
MS- Don’t get in my way
N- Ow…
M- This will all be settled if I just eat that small fry
N- Wait, sensei!

13
M- ! Natsume
N- …Sorry, sensei, please wait a little longer
N- Let’s think a bit more about what we can…
N- She’s an important person to Shibata
N- Ah
N- …Ow…
M- Natsume!
M- You naïve fool
M- Look, she got away, let’s chase her! Get up!

14
N- Yeah!
N- There, that way
N- Ah…
Sfx- Crash
M- Mu, it fell into the forest
N- What?
M- I told you didn’t I, that one has become quite weak
M- It doesn’t have much time left, that’s why I left it alone
N- It’s because she doesn’t have much time left
N- That she’s trying to regain her strength by eating fish and people isn’t it?

15
U- …Oh, Shibata
U- What are you doing in this dingy park?
SH- …Ah, I’m looking for someone I want to see
SH- I thought she might come if I wait here
U- Hm, so you have someone like that
U- Oh yeah, that boy who was at the gate
U- He looked really serious, why don’t you go and see him? He’s your friend right?
N- ‘Please believe me, Shibata’
SH- No
SH- He was a kid I never believed and used to bully
U- What…?

16
SH- …Saki
SH- Murasaki
N- This is it right?
N- …A mountain wisteria huh? It’s huge
N- It rotted and fell over huh
N- So this is your real identity

17
M- It doesn’t have much life left in it
MS- That’s right
MS- It just started decaying as soon as it fell over…
MS- Ugh…
N- ! Oi…
MS- Don’t touch me
MS- You low class human’s child
MS- If you touch me, I will eat you
N- …If you eat me, can you regain your strength?
MS- …Who knows?
MS- But disguising myself as a human and trying to eat one is better than waiting around to disappear

18
MS- I thought I might be able to prolong it just a little
MS- My power was already very faint
MS- I took human form, but it exhausted me, and I couldn’t do anything but sit…
N- Then Shibata talked to her?
MS- Haha, an easy target, I thought
MS- But I didn’t have the strength to eat him
MS- …I told him to come again in three days
MS- And when three days passed
MS- That foolish human came

19
MS- …But the boy who came
MS- Had such an excitable face, and he was so talkative
MS- I didn’t even get the chance to eat him
MS- So ‘let’s meet again’, I said
MS- …Whenever
MS- No matter how many times we met
MS- It was fun
MS- I never had a single chance to eat him

20
N- …So that’s how it was
MS- …The truth is
MS- Shibata came to the park that night
N- What?
MS- When I was about to go home
MS- Shibata barged in with a pale face, calling my name over and over
MS- …I
MS- Could still only materialise my arm
SH- Murasaki
SH- Are you there Murasaki!?
SH- Murasaki!
MS- Shibata

21
MS- Shibata, what are you doing here so late…?
MS- …What will you do if a monster come out?
SH- I’ll be fine
SH- Hey, how about we go for a walk? We can talk a bit
SH- Oh yeah… the wilted pampas grass on that hill near the river bank we went is really beautiful
MS- I want to go!
MS- …But I’m not feeling very well today
MS- I have a cold… could you come another day?

22
SH- ...okay
SH- It’s a promise, Murasaki
MS- Yes, a promise
MS- …But by then
MS- Shibata had already heard about my identity from you, hadn’t he…?
MS- Ugh…
N- ! Murasaki
N- …If you need fish, I can get them for you
M- Get away from her Natsume
M- Isn’t she going to eat you if you touch her?

23
MS- …I was going to
MS- But it seems that’s not possible
MS- This guy is Shibata’s friend
MS- …If I eat him, Shibata will hate me
MS- …ugh…
N- !? Mu, Murasaki…!?
N- …What’s happening? Murasaki’s presence is…
MS- …Honestly, I thought I could hold out until the morning
N- Is weakening, it seems like it’s about to disappear

24
M- Seems like the time is near
N- What?
M- Well she’s held on longer than most
N- Will she disappear?
MS- …The truth is
MS- I gave up on the idea of eating Shibata long ago
MS- …But
MS- I couldn’t stop going to see him
N- Hold on Murasaki
N- I’m going to get Shibata!

25
MS- Wait
MS- Wait
MS- …I’m sorry
MS- I’m sorry…
MS- But please, listen to my request
N- Shibata
N- …Thank goodness, you’re here…
SH- …Natsume!?
MS- ‘…Natsume, I’m sorry, but’

26
MS- ‘Please give this to Shibata’
MS- ‘I tried writing that thing they call a letter’
MS- ‘If I meet him, I’m sure I’ll still feel attachment to this world’
MS- ‘It holds my words of parting
MS- And my heart’
N- Wait Shibata
SH- …I’m sorry Natsume, it’s not that I don’t believe you now…
SH- But I want to talk to Murasaki properly first
N- Letter
N- ...I have a letter from Murasaki!
SH- …From Murasaki…?
N- Yes, for you…
SH- Why did you meet with Murasaki!?

27
SH- Where is she!?
SH- I looked for her at the park and everywhere we went together but I couldn’t find her anywhere
SH- Did you really see her!? Natsume
SH- Why can you see her, when I…
N- Shibata!
N- Shibata
N- This is from Murasaki; it’s a very important letter!
N- Just accept it!

28
SH- …What
SH- Is this?
N- …What?
SH- …Is it because I didn’t believe you when we were kids?
SH- Is it because I forced you
SH- To get involved?
SH- Is that why you’re teasing me…
SH- With this scribble…
N- Ayakashi letters?
N- That’s not it Shibata
SH- Just forget about it Natsume
SH- I’m sorry
SH- …So just leave me alone

29
N- It doesn’t matter if you believe me
N- But please
N- Keep that letter

30
SH- How am I
SH- Supposed to read this crap…?

31
SH- Natsume
SH- Natsume!
SH- Please tell me
SH- Where is Murasaki!?
N- Shibata… Murasaki is
SH- Please
SH- I have to see her
SH- I can’t read it; I don’t know what it says

32
SH- But Murasaki wants to see me
SH- That much I know
SH- Don’t, don’t laugh
SH- You think I’m full of myself don’t you?
SH- Hey, where are we going?
N- This way, in the depths of this forest
N- In the roots of a wisteria tree…

33
SH- Murasaki
MS- You shouldn’t have come
MS- I wrote that I was going far away and we couldn’t meet any more, didn’t I?
MS- …But
MS- I promised, didn’t I?
MS- Let’s go, Shibata
MS- Take me there
MS- Just like always
N- She was glowing
SH- Okay
N- And her silhouette was wavering
N- Shibata already knew

34
MS- Shibata
MS- Thankyou

35
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36
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37
N- Shiba…
SH- …I’m sorry
SH- Sorry
SH- I said
SH- Some awful things to you
SH- But you stayed with me till the end
SH- Thankyou, Natsume

38
N- And so
N- Murasaki ascended to some place far away
N- In silence, two and a half people saw her off
SH- …Oi, Natsume
N- What…?
SH- Don’t tell
SH- Anyone about this
N- …What?
SH- Don’t tell anyone I cried
N- …Yeah
N- Okay

39
SH- What’s with that reply you cheeky brat
N- When I was a kid
N- I really did want friends
N- Whether they are humans
N- Or ayakashi
N- They fill my heart
N- With such warmth