Submarine | AKATSUKI
Partial Translation Disclaimer: This is a partial translation of main story SS2 Submarine.
Nirai Kanai 1
― One, two, threee, four– Hup~♪
(Alright. I’m startin’ to get back on my feet, finally. Haven’t been this sick ‘n for this long in a long time. Guess it means I’m not young anymore.)
(Nah, all that exhaustion that’s been stored up an’ collected for ages burst out in one go. Come to think of it, I’ve always had my guard up since high school.)
(Look cool, stand up straight, ‘n be a real good boy.)
(I kept my chest up ‘n out so I could face my mom in heaven properly.)
(I wanna live my life on the straight ‘n narrow, ‘n become a guy that doesn’t get looked down on by the world)
(But no matter how good of a guy I try to be now, I’ll never get to undo all the awful things I’ve done before.)
(Still, I’ll never be that version of me ever again.)
(…）
(But, recently at Unification by Force, I was recognized ‘n appreciated by the agency big shots, and it felt like I’d been rewarded.)
(It felt like all the work I put in up ‘til now wasn’t for nothin’. And then I got all happy ‘n pleased, like some brat that got praised by his parents.)
(I lost all that steam, and all the fatigue and pain I stuffed away caught up to me ‘n hit a tipping point.)
(That, with the motion sickness, did me in, and got me real sick.)
(... It went somethin’ like that probably.)
(This place isn’t helpin’ either. Okinawa’s so beautiful, it's like paradise on earth. When I'm here, I can't help but relax…— )
(Even if I force myself to, my edge is completely gone.)
(My legs have turned to jelly and there’s nothin’ I can do about it. It’s not even like we’re on vacation or anything.)
Kiryu-dono~!
Hm? Oh, Kanzaki, what’s the matter?
I should be the one asking you that. You suddenly disappeared, Kiryu-dono, I was so worried!
I was afraid you had been kidnapped by the enemy, as unlikely as that sounds!
Kidnapped? What am I, a princess? If they were lookin’ to kidnap someone, they’d probably wanna pick someone easier to carry off.
Besides, we keep callin’ it a somethin’ like a war, but they’re just live battles. No one’s gonna pull a crime like kidnapping, probably.
No, we mustn't let our guard down. I've been hearing some rather alarming rumors from all over the country.
Ah, Like Mikejima. It’s things like Trickstar causin’ a fuss for no reason, too.
Those guys are goin’ on somethin’ like a tour ‘round the country, but there’s no way they’re actually flyin’ all the way from Hokkaido to Okinawa, right?
If they did, it would be quite a problem. The way they act is unpredictable.
Naturally, people are keeping them at an arm's length because they were last year’s champions, and they probably know that―
So they likely won’t be such a public nuisance as to go rampaging across the country. If you make the same mistake twice, you are simply a fool.
Then again, if they were mere fools, they wouldn’t be able to reach the peak of the industry even once.
Haha. Honestly, if it’s those guys, I wouldn’t be surprised by anything they did.
Yes. However, there is no point talking about them when they’re not here with us. We should focus on our own battles.
You're right. I just went for a light run to check how I was doin’, and it seems like I'm gettin’ back in order… From here on out, keep usin’ me as much as ya need.
I understand. To be honest, I do not want to force you to push yourself. Even if you are recovering, Kiryu-dono, you are still in poor shape.
Hmph. Lying in bed without moving is what’s gonna make me sick. I need to get a good amount of exercise.
Since I couldn't move properly, I feel like I put all the burden on you guys. If that kept up, we’d be draggin’ ourselves to the finish line by the end of it.
Right… Myself aside, since I am well-trained, it seems to be draining Hasumi-dono.
However, this is exactly how we have to go about it. As planned, we are at the beck and call of the Rhythm Link veterans―
That alone is a challenge, but on top of that, COSPRO’s forces are considerably formidable. Even with the aid of the veterans, each battle we have won was not easy.
We are constantly thrown into brutal battles where you have to be quick-witted just to survive
Nirai Kanai 2
And so, our hard work has begun to pay off. We are steadily seeing results.
That’s right. COSPRO had such a big presence when they first got to Okinawa, but now they’re reduced to nothin’ but groanin’ while we trample all over ‘em.
Well, morale will drop if they lose battle after battle. They were probably only picking off weaker opponents in easier battles until we came in.
If everything suddenly stops going their way, it will bend them out of shape and make them sulk about it.
They never had a reason to fight desperately in the first place. They will not fight hard enough to endure all of the defeats, or the wounds and shame that come along with them.
Well, fightin’ for somethin’ like the glory of ES is too flimsy a motive to fight for your life with.
All these pampered guys here in Okinawa aren’t the type that’re gonna be able to get over setbacks.
Back in the old Yumenosaki, we had guys like that by the dozen. Come in all ready to be pampered ‘n spoiled, and you’re gonna hate having to drink muddy water.
To be honest, it’s sad to compare the old students of Yumenosaki to them all. It seems that COSPRO’s superiors are ordering their forces to retreat if they find themselves at a severe disadvantage.
It’s a rational, or rather, a “bujinesu-raiku”1 way of going about it.
Because COSPRO cuts their losses quickly, I expected a quick retreat from them from the very beginning if they were dealt a harsh enough blow.
(That’s right… Just about everything’s been goin’ Kanzaki’s way now like he expected it to.)
(He won over the veterans’ trust with all his incessant service, ‘n got promoted to comin’ up with strategy for Rhythm Link. And then, he started producing results one after another, smoothly and without a hitch…)
(Kanzaki made them think that if they left everything to him and AKATSUKI, it’d all be fine. Somethin' like that's as good as it gets.)
(Now, they’re leavin’ all the “playin’ soldiers” stuff to us, and enjoyin’ their Okinawan vacation. The fuckin’ nerve of ‘em.)
(Well, guess it’s a hundred times better than havin’ to kill each other on the battlefield.)
(It’ll be easier to rob ‘em blind if they’re completely unsuspecting.)
(Connin' ‘em into entrustin’ all the SSL$ they've earned so far with us with a silver tongue, sayin’ we’ll use it as war funds...)
(If we run off with it, AKATSUKI’ll be the ones at the very top. No one could even dream of bein’ able to surpass us.)
(Even if we got accused of runnin’ away with the money, we could just lie and say we had no choice, our orders made us do it.)
(If we can just talk our way outta it, we can get away with it clean.)
(That was the plan, and so far it seems to be goin’ smoothly.)
(What we’re doin’ feels kinda like one of those bank transfer scams that go after the elderly…)
(But for us to survive in the ruthless battlefield of Okinawa, we‘re gonna hafta do some real underhanded stuff like that.)
(I'm pretty surprised. Maybe I should say I’m shocked. I never thought Kanzaki was capable of acting to that extent.)
(This is an experienced warrior. The moment he decides he wants to do somethin’, he sees it through to the very end.)
(I hafta wonder. This guy got shoved into the background during the War. If he had gotten the chance at usin’ the talent for battle he’s showin’ now―)
What is it, Kiryu-dono? Do I have something on my face?
(Haha. He’s got the nerve to play dumb. He’s got a look about ‘im that makes him seem harmless, but no doubt, he’s a cocky guy.)
(This guy's clan was one and the same with violence in this country― he's the descendant of samurai)
(And even now in this day and age where violence is avoided, he polished his sword and never let it rust.)
(He's a warmonger through'n-through. He musta been forced to study and train for that sole purpose since he was a kid.)
(Everyone, AKATSUKI included, underestimates Kanzaki, or just thinks of him as a silly samurai idol who carries a sword for whatever reason)
(He's just never gotten the chance to use the talent for war his ancestors passed onto him, until now―)
Kiryu-dono.
Eh? Wh-... What?
Nothing, it just seemed as if you were dazed so I started to get worried. I suppose that means you’re not feeling much better.
Nah, it’s fine. And even if I weren’t fine, pushin' through it is the kinda thing a delinquent does.
Mmnm. Then if that’s the case, I truly can’t figure out if you’re okay or not.
(Haha. The way he pouts is cute, but it’s that kinda thing that makes him look like a kid.)
(The more innocent a brat is, the more capable of remorseless cruelty he is. I needta keep an eye on ‘im so he doesn't go down the wrong path.)
(I don't want him to mess up and end up full of regrets, like I did.)
Translation Notes
- ↑ In Japanese, words from other languages (such as English) are typically rendered in katakana. However, when Souma uses katakana words, they are all written in hiragana instead, likely to emphasize how he struggles with foreign words. These words are kept as written in hiragana, and put in "quotes".