Original subtitles

Honored VIPs gathered here tonight,

the Juni Taisen is a war for war's sake.

Those wars with such high economic, humanitarian, and environmental costs

are, once every twelve years,

focused into a battle fought by a mere twelve warriors.

A proxy war.

A fair and peaceful territorial struggle for the countries possessed

by you, our honored guests.

A high-minded gamble for control of the world.

When we reach the point at which half of the twelve fighters are gone,

we shall begin the formal betting.

Now, let us check the current performance of each warrior.

Running out to an early lead is the Warrior of the Ox, with three Juseki.

In second, with two each, the Warriors of the Rabbit and Dragon.

In fourth place are the others, who have only the one in their bodies.

Under these rules,

I'd assumed common sense would lead them to form teams early on.

But only Rabbit has done so.

You said we'd place bets when half of them remain,

but we can assume the corpse doesn't count, yes?

Indeed, you are correct.

But as for warriors who could face that team alone...

Ox.

Knowing that Genius, a team would only hold him back.

He might just slaughter them all on his own.

Monkey and Rat are also a team, aren't they?

We know about Monkey, but what about Rat?

There's so little information about him, I have no idea how well he can fight.

And in this fight,

her pacifism would be to her disadvantage in many ways.

But there's a strong chance these three will be the last ones alive.

Just three choices, eh?

It's so predictable, I doubt bets on any one would yield many returns.

Is there nothing that could shake things up?

For instance... Sheep.

He was the winner of the ninth tournament, to be sure.

He was the sole winner back then.

But he's far past his prime.

There's no way that old man entered the Taisen without some plan.

Besides, he's the most experienced of them all.

He's not to be overlooked.

The Sheep's actions may sway the outcome of this tournament, as well.

Is he a dark horse this time, or a favorite?

Moving on...

Now, it's showtime, everyone! Don't miss any moment!

The Juni Taisen is a grand war whose results will redraw the maps of the world.

After three more warriors die, we will begin the betting.

Do give careful thought as to which warrior you think will survive to the end.

Until then, watch carefully to see how these warriors fight.

I shall be awaiting your bets, honored VIPs.

Juni Taisen

Episode 5: A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing

Now, among the current participants,

there are three fine warriors I could call the clear leaders.

Sharyu, Warrior of the Monkey.

Usagi, Warrior of the Rabbit.

And Ushii, Warrior of the Ox.

When you bring twelve people together,

it's natural that some will be more talented than others.

But the imbalance in their favor is far too great.

Either way, I should avoid direct conflict with those three.

An old man like me, all skin and bones,

would no doubt crumple at a single blow.

But if I take a different tack,

and manipulate the situation so that those three crush each other,

even a powerless old warrior like me might stand a chance.

Excuse me.

You raised your hand at the start, right?

Why... Why?!

It's true that I won a Juni Taisen in the past.

But the past is the past.

If one were to rank the participants in this Taisen,

even the most favorable estimate would put me at tenth or lower.

Youth, in itself, brings great power.

Meanwhile, Taro was...

Still won't sleep for me, eh?

While I'm exhausted...

What a troublemaker.

Shall I tell you a story from my old days?

Long ago, when things were not as peaceful as they are now,

in a far-off land lived a lively weapons merchant.

It is a good product, but I'd like to put this on my tab.

I beg your pardon, but that wasn't our agreement.

I made it quite clear in advance that I'd only trade for cash.

We've been rather strapped for cash ourselves lately.

I'm afraid we can't take no for an answer.

You want to pay me in lead, then?

I see. Seems you leave me no choice.

Pleasure doing business with you.

Excellent work, taking out those pirates.

Well, I'd been feeling that things had run their course.

But to try to sell us the same merchandise...

I sell products to those who understand their value.

Hardly unnatural.

After all, new customers can be a gateway to newer customers.

It's all on the house this time.

I look forward to your future patronage.

As the young man waded through battlefields bathed in death and blood,

he made quite a name for himself as a warrior.

Before long, one of his close clients, the Tsujiie family,

accepted him as their son-in-law.

Then, one Juni Taisen,

he took part as the Warrior of the Sheep.

And so, he won that Juni Taisen, had his one wish granted,

and was able to see his grandson's face.

Hey, Grandpa, what's this?

That's my birthday present to you.

I lived on the battlefield. I thought I would die there.

Try pushing the button.

I never expected to live a long life with a grandson, like normal people do.

Life is akin to the best laid plans of mice and men.

Or of sheep, perhaps.

Grandpa! Thank you!

I win! Grandpa, you stink!

I'm so lost.

This is completely unlike the battles I've fought.

You probably wouldn't be able to keep up with battles these days, Grandpa.

I beg your pardon! I'm absolutely...

Father, are you certain about this?

I shall participate in the next Juni Taisen in my grandson's stead.

I've made up my mind.

I've had more than my share of happiness in life.

I won't let the family and children who gave me that happiness

bear a bit of the burden.

Perhaps I'll carry that burden with me to nirvana,

and bring the other Taisen warriors along with me...

How far is he going to run?

That came out of nowhere!

What the hell happened?

It's not too late. You can still work with us.

Remember what I said? I have a way that we can all survive.

If you'd set your weapons down and listen to me...

If you have a wish you're fighting for,

I'm willing to work with you to see it granted!

Usagi-san, what is your wish?

The question is how to close the distance between me and the higher-ranked warriors.

What do I have that they do not?

Experience and the knowledge that comes from it.

And if I have one other advantage...

I suppose it's this.

Life means approaching all things with due caution.

Survival means taking no unnecessary risks.

I must say, I found the cut of the gem to be awfully unnatural.

Though its dusky color was beautiful, there was no aesthetic sense to the cut.

However, I must request that you swallow only one of them.

The moment I heard those words, I knew the jewel was dangerous.

Huh? Swallow?

Yes.

That goes for the rest of you, too. Please swallow your jewels whole.

Now, which warrior shall I use this jewel to deceive?

The idea that I could dominate the Taisen by working with him...

I'm so ashamed!

Why did I get my hopes up?

Why?

I'm sorry,

but given the current state of the battle, the time for teamwork has passed.

That said, I have never fought an opponent I could not beat after so many attacks.

That ironclad defense must be your talent as a warrior.

That Genius...

He didn't catch me by surprise or exploit a moment's distraction.

He reduced me to this in a man-to-man duel.

Fourth would be Boar, from the family of the previous Taisen's winner.

Let's place Horse and Dog at fifth and sixth.

Both seem to be straightforward fighters.

And one can't underestimate Horse's defensive prowess.

Seventh and eighth... The twins, Dragon and Snake.

But that's only assuming they come in a set.

The early elimination of Snake inevitably reduces Dragon's ranking.

In ninth place, let's put Chicken.

I need to go after the ones in the middle of the ranking.

The top three are far too powerful for them to hope to face.

Of course, I'm sure they're making their own plans,

but they'd probably like something to help them seal the deal.

I'll offer that something.

On top of the pressure of the fight, there's the pressure of the poison.

It's enough to rattle even the most stoic of warriors.

I can exploit that agitation.

Exploit it ever so kindly...

That was close!

I doubt that little device can take out Ox,

but it'll serve as a distraction, at least.

Now, then...

Darn it. He's leaving me no choice.

He only pretended to listen to me so he could buy time

for his reinforcements to arrive from underground.

I feel a bit sick. Attacking animals, even if they are already dead...

"You see, my ability as a warrior

is to use quantum tunneling to pass objects through anything."

...I'll say. A bald-faced lie, tinged with reality.

"I would be happy to remove that poisoned jewel from you, in a non-intrusive way."

I won't actually take it out, of course.

I doubt they'd ask me to remove it right away, either.

They'll think it's safer to keep it in their belly for the time being,

rather than risk someone running off with it.

In that case...

"Well, if you would form an alliance with me, I'd be most obliged.

These old bones won't make it to the end of the Juni Taisen, anyway."

If I simply offer conditions they find hard to refuse,

then the offer to remove their jewel can be my final insurance.

After all, they may get smart and ask,

"Why don't you use your ability to steal the jewels from the other warriors?"

That's how I'll form an advantageous team for myself.

Of course, I won't offer myself to enough of them

to form a real team, even if it would be to my advantage.

I'll only make my overture to one of them.

After all, humans may not recognize that they're being deceived,

but they're very sensitive to it when it happens to others.

A team of two might still be a bit on the weak side.

But with the Dragon and Snake pair broken up so early,

the only one left in the Juni Taisen who would form a team is Monkey.

And Monkey's team would be composed of pacifists.

I have no need to fear mere numbers.

If it becomes necessary,

I can use my creation, the ultimate weapon...

Rather, I should call it art.

The grenade known as Old-Timer.

If I hadn't been interrupted then,

I could have finished it all in one blast...

I suppose three hours have passed since the Juni Taisen began.

Things should have settled into position by now.

How can that headless corpse follow me this far?

How is he looking at anything?

No, he's not looking.

In that case...

Meeting a warrior weaker than me won't do at all.

I need someone in the mid-ranks. Fourth, fifth, or sixth...

The warriors I can confidently say are weaker than me would be Rat and Tiger.

Tiger's so damn weak, I'm not even sure why she's here.

Of course, if she's been deemed worthy to enter the Juni Taisen,

she must have something to recommend her.

The Warrior of the Tiger...

Dead last on the warrior rankings.

It would be hard for me to say she's worth partnering with.

And look at her.

She's not even going after the other warriors.

She's just getting drunk off her ass...

Not a hint of threat from her.

Far from posing a threat, she inspires nothing but scorn from me.

I'd prefer to pretend I didn't see her, but...

I hear you out there, old man.

Quit peepin' and show yourself already.

"You can't judge a horse you haven't ridden, or a person you haven't lived with."

To ride a horse requires courage.

To live with another, even more so.

Next time: Even a Champion Racehorse May Stumble.

Episode Six: Even a Champion Racehorse May Stumble

Everybody, clap your hands!