Submarine: Nirai-kanai - 1

[verdantgrove]

 

<About 10 days since the beginning of the preliminary rounds, on a certain beach in Okinawa>

Kuro: —A-one, a-two, a-three four ♪ 

(Nice. Finally back to normal for the most part. It’s been a minute since I’ve held on for this long; kinda feels like I’m an old man.)

(Nah, it’s probably just that all the fatigue I’ve been holdin’ on to up to now is all rushin’ out of me at once. Now that I think about it, I’ve been doin’ nothin’ but bitin’ off more than I can chew since high school.)

(Gotta try and look nice and stand up tall, just like a good kid would, after all.)

(I just kept pushin’ out my chest so I’d be able to face my ma in heaven.)

(I wanted to be a decent human being so people wouldn’t look down on me.)

(At this point, though, no matter how well I put on the “good kid” act, it just seems like it’s not gonna make up for all the times I screwed up in the past.)

(Still. I’m never gonna do it again.)

(.......)

(But you know what? Not too long ago, durin’ the Unification by Force live, I got recognized and praised by the big shots, and it felt like a reward.)

(Made me feel like all this effort I’ve put in up till now hasn’t been in vain. I felt like I was on top of the world, like some brat who’s bein’ praised by his parents.)

(I finally let loose, and it’s like all that fatigue and pain I’d been actin’ like wasn’t there up to that point came pourin’ out all at once and left me drowning.)

(That, combined with the fact that I’m prone to motion sickness, led me to be in some seriously bad shape—I’d say.)

(So that’s it, huh? Probably.)

(These circumstances aren’t helpin’ either. It’s too damn pretty, Okinawa—this place is paradise on earth. Bein’ here, I just let my guard down without realizing—)

(I won’t have the guts to push myself to my limit.)

(My legs have gotten all limp ‘n squishy, and I can’t do jack about it. ‘S not like we came here on vacation—and still.)

Souma: Kiryuu-dono~!

Kuro: Hm? Oh, Kanzaki, what’s wrong?

Souma: I should be the one asking that question. You had suddenly disappeared, and so I was quite worried.

Though unlikely, I had begun to think you had been kidnapped by an adversary.

Kuro: Kidnapped? What am I, some damsel in distress? If anyone’s kidnappin’ anyone, I’m sure they’d go for someone a little easier to carry.

Besides. People talk about this like it’s war or somethin’, but we’re really just doin’ a live showdown. No one’s gonna do anything illegal like kidnapping or stuff like that. Probably.

Souma: Nay, you must not be negligent. I have heard rather suspicious rumors from all throughout the country.

Kuro: Ah, must be from Mikejima. Plus, there’s Trickstar and all them—seems like they’re causin’ a lot of trouble for nothin’ again, huh?

Seems like those guys have been talkin’ about makin’ a tour of the whole country. There’s no way they’d fly from Hokkaido to Okinawa, straight through the islands, right?

Souma: If that were the case, it would become quite a nuisance indeed. Even so, they cannot decipher the meaning behind words or actions.

Nevertheless, they, too, have surely become aware of the fact that they, as previous victors, have been shunned—

I doubt that they would resort to such bothersome behavior as rampaging throughout every nation of the country. If they were to repeat the same mistake, they would be but simple fools.

And those who are mere fools will certainly never once be able to achieve the incredible feat of standing atop the industry.

Kuro: Haha. To be honest, I wouldn’t be surprised no matter what those guys do.

Souma: Mhm. Even so, it is no use talking about them now—they are not here. We should devote ourselves entirely to our own competition.

Kuro: We should, yeah. Just did some light jogging to make sure, but it looks like I’m mostly back in shape, so… Keep me busy from here on out.

Souma: Understood. Although, if I am to be honest, I do not wish to overwork you—even though you have regained your good health, Kiryuu-dono, you are still in the process of recovering.

Kuro: Hmm. But I’ll get even sicker if I just keep layin’ around doin’ nothin’. I gotta get some exercise in.

Plus, I feel like the burden’s all focused in on you guys ‘cause I couldn’t move right. Somethin’ like that will make you run outta steam by the time you get towards the end.

Souma: Hmm… I am a disciplined person, but setting myself aside, Hasumi-dono does seem to be quite drained.

Nevertheless, this is an essential undertaking. It is precisely according to plan—we continue to fight on successive fronts, at every beck and call of the veterans at RhythLin—

That alone would have been quite a difficult task—however, our opponents have all been extremely powerful people—such as the elites of CosPro. Even having earned the support of the veterans, not a single battle has been easy.

We have always approached the scene of carnage with the intent to emerge victorious at any cost.

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