Spy THE Mission - Chapter 3

[haranami]

Location: Dormitory Library

 <Noon, in the library.>

Kuro: …It’s almost time, huh.

Eichi: It would be oddly considerate of them to arrive at noon exactly.

They stole Keito’s douji— “D” and even went through all the trouble of leaving a note. I doubt that they're of sound mind, so their punctuality would serve as a rather interesting dissonance in character.

Wouldn't you agree, Kiryuu-kun?

Kuro: You’re askin’ me? Nah, I haven't really thought about it. But doin’ flashy things for no reason is one of your specialities, ain’t it?

Maybe they're tryin’ to use your own modus operandi against you, Tenshouin — I wouldn’t put it past ‘em.

Eichi: Hm... Keito mentioned something along those lines as well. Have I truly done such terrible things?

I’m quite sure the leaders of the world have been significantly crueler, but…

Kuro: In the first place, I’d say it’s kinda weird to go around sayin’ stuff like, “My crimes aren’t as bad as everyone else’s.”

Eichi: I suppose so. Though I can’t help but feel that you’re all too pure to live in this world of ours.

Madara: Oooh? This sounds like an interesting conversation! What’re you discussing, Eichi-san, Kuro-san?

Just taking a stab at it, but… Could you pooossibly be talking 'bout this doujinshi?

Eichi: That cover… There’s no mistaking it, that’s Keito’s. Could I have you return that D to me?

Madara: “D”?

Kuro: It’s a secret code we came up with. We’d stir up some real trouble for Hasumi no Danna if we talked ‘bout this in the open.

Madara: Hm, should I play along with you, then? Maaaybe not. I’m tryna expose this, so I guess I should call it by its actual name—

Eichi: Quite frankly, I couldn’t care less. I’d rather you simply tell us the reason why you’re doing all this, Mikejima-kun. Why did you steal his D?

Madara: You sure are a barrel of laughs! If I told you the reason without putting up a bit of a fight, there’d be no point to me leaving a letter and stuff, right?

Well, I’m tryna make sure this doesn’t blow up, too. We don’t get this kinda chance too often, so how ‘bout you take a guess, Eichi-san?

Eichi: Hmm. Considering the fact that you’re the culprit, I can only suspect that you did this to revel in the joy of tormenting me.

Madara: Oho. Unfortunately for you, that’s the wrong answer!

Eichi: In that case… Could this possibly be a prank targeted at Keito?

Madara: Hahaha! My answer’s pretty much the same!

Kuro: Oi. I’m not gonna let you and Tenshouin get all worked up on your own. Stop wastin’ time and tell us your terms, Mikejima.

Madara: Whoopsy daisy. I really do talk in circles too often.

I’ll get straight to the point, then! To put it simply, I accepted a personal request from a certain someone.

An anonymous client who identified themselves as one of Mizuhanome-sensei’s fans came in yesterday evening, y’see?

And it looks like this person wants Mizuhanome-sensei to write a new work.

Eichi: A new work…?

Madara: Yup. Previews of his past works have been put on a buncha posters in Yumenosaki for a while now, right? So it looks like this mysterious person saw those and decided that they wanted him to make more no matter what.

But as I was investigating, I discovered that Mizuhanome-sensei’s been absolutely swamped with work; he hardly has the time to draw something new.

That’s just how Keito-san is, huh? He always ends up prioritizing the people around him more than himself. At this rate, my client’s gonna end up waiting till the end of eternity.

And that’s when it hit me! If I take this D and show it off to everyone — if I make Mizuhanome-sensei more well known — he might feel more duty-bound to create some new stuff!

Eichi: Do wait a moment, that’s far too hasty of a judgment.

If people could simply produce art whenever they were told to, they would never struggle. But that isn’t what producing doujinshi is like.

I’m quite sure Keito said something along those lines in the past once, but anyways… Is there a reason why you’re going to such lengths to expose Mizuhanome-sensei’s identity?

Kuro: I was wonderin’ the same thing. I don’t think you’re a bad guy, but you're not gonna get away scott free if you cause trouble for Hasumi no Danna.

There’s gotta be a reason why he’s hidin’ his identity.

Madara: Fufu. If you want me to confess, why don’t we have a showdown?

Eichi: A showdown…?

Madara: Yup. If I manage to keep the D in my possession till the end of the day, I win. And if you two manage to take it away from me, I’ll let this whole issue with Mizuhanome-sensei float away — water under the bridge.

How ‘bout that? Sometimes I wanna try getting chased instead of doing all the chasing, so why don’t we have ourselves a fun lil’ game of tag?

Kuro: Hah, I was wonderin’ what you’d suggest. You’re really having the time of your life, ain’t cha?

Madara: Hahaha! If you don’t manage to take the D away from me somehow, you won’t be able to protect his secret, yanno?

Eichi: That’s true. There’s a sliver of reason in what Mikejima-kun is saying.

And if I wasn't capable of sinking to the level of an outlaw like you, I’d be a disgrace of a president. As the person who holds full authority over StarPro, I’ll accept your challenge.

Kuro: Oi. Don’t go addin’ weird layers of meaning to this.

Well, whatever. I guess I don’t have the right to refuse… Let’s take care of this real quick.

Come at me! I’ve blocked off your escape route — even you won't be able to get away, considerin’ the position you're in now.

Madara: Oooh. I’d expect no less from you, Kuro-san. Your movements are as agile as always!

It was a smart decision to chase me into a corner — a dead end — like this. Your knowledge of martial arts really isn’t just for show, huh ♪

But don’t cha know I’m not the type to quiver in fear after seeing a lil’ display like that?

Here we go, “Jump of Eight Ships!” Take that! [1]

Eichi: He’s gone…!

Madara: Hahaha. Jumping off a wall’s a cakewalk for me.

Now watch this: I’m gonna escape through this very windoooow! If you don’t catch me soon, I might just expose the existence of this D to eeeveryone in Starmony Dorm!

Kuro: Tch, I didn’t think the bastard would jump outta the window like that. His physical abilities are definitely nothin’ to sniff at.

We gotta chase after him, Tenshouin. If he makes a mess outta everything, all of Hasumi no Danna’s hard work’ll go to waste.

Mikejima’s a real menace, but we should be able to corner him if we work together. Let’s make a temporary alliance.

Eichi: But of course, Kiryuu-kun.

After all, I’m the only one who’s allowed to play around with Keito.

Kuro: …Geez, how do I put this? It kinda feels like I’ve joined the wrong side.

Previous Chapter | Next Chapter

Translation notes:

1. Madara’s referencing the story of Yoshitsune, who allegedly jumped over eight ships in the Genji-Heishi war. He plays Yoshitsune in Wisterias, his debut story.