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Tenipuri Party: Echizen Ryouma profile translation

TN:

In the absence of an official English version, this translation is intended to help those who can’t read the material in the original language. Please support Tenipuri by getting your own copy of this book - it is worth it! There are various ways of purchasing it even for those not living in or visiting Japan.

The pictures I have included in this post do not show full pages.

On Echizen’s style of speech: he uses boyish style with pretty straightforward and brief sentences. In Japan it wouldn’t be considered exactly polite in style, even if the content is not exactly rude.

I’m still working on Japanese, so there might be mistakes. Please let me know if you spot any translation errors so I can fix them here!

U-17 Japanese representative, middle schooler Seishun Gakuen tennis club player 33,432 votes

Leading to the stars, going beyond Tenimuhou - the samurai that conquers any heights!

Message

You’ve always been looking at me, haven’t you. I’m grateful for that. Thanks. Regardless of the ranking, I’m your number one. Right? Cheer for me more and more. Because I’ll take you along and go even higher.

Profile

Middle school 1st year / December 24th /  Capricorn / O type / 151 → 152.5 cm / 50 → 47 kg / Left handed

Special techniques: Twist serve, Drive A, Drive B, Drive C, Drive D, Cool Drive, Muga no kyouchi, Tenimuhou no kiwami, Samurai Drive, Hope (kanji: Hikaru Dakyuu)

Play style: All-rounder

Family: Father, mother, female cousin, cat (Karupin)

Father’s occupation: A temple’s substitute head priest

Hobbies: Clearing borrowed games, watching cat videos

Favourite saying: All or Nothing

Favourite color: Silver

Favourite foods: Fried fish (the type with not much bones), Chawanmushi, famous sweets

Favourite book: TENNIS LIFE (an American tennis magazine)

Favourite music: J-pop

Preferred type of person: Someone who looks good in a ponytail

Preferred date spot: Santa Monica Pier Pacific Park

Most wanted thing right now: A smart watch

Weakness: Early wake-ups, paparazzi

Elementary school: Los Angeles State Saint Youth Middle-school 

Committee: Library committee

Strong subjects: English, chemistry

Weak subjects: Home-ec (cooking), Japanese 

Often-visited place in school: Under the big tree behind the school

Uses allowance on: Fanta

Skills beyond tennis: Being liked by animals, peeling fruits cleanly, horseback riding(?) 

Routines during tournaments: Soaking in an open-air bath

Favourite anniversary: Any day as long as there’s tennis

Preferred travel destination: Snow viewing onsen

Present for a special person: Just tell me what you want

Interview

“As long as I can play tennis, I don’t care which team I play for”

Congratulations on being reinstated as Japan’s representative! For Echizen-senshu, what was the experience of fighting as an American representative like?

What was it like…? Normal. As long as I can play tennis, the country is irrelevant.

Did you have a strong desire to play on the same team as Ryouga-senshu?

No, I wanted to play against him. But in the end, he was being evasive and escaped.

Where there any impressions you had looking at the Japanese team from the outside?

They’ve changed a bit, somehow. Fuji-senpai, Atobe-san, that person called “the child of god”. And… Akutsu-san too. Not bad, everyone.

Is that the reason you returned to Japan’s team?

Not really. It’s just that when I thought about who were the people that made me strong… If you’re fighting together with someone, I guess I’d do it here.

Sometimes, a samurai-like aura can be felt around Echizen-senshu.

Hmm… I don’t know since I can’t tell myself. When I was fighting the French prince, I guess it was said that he was a knight and I was a samurai. He was a troublesome guy, but the match with him was fun. Well, I’ll win next time too. The horseback match was a tie, but next time I’ll win that one too.

Party Talk

Q: Is there any table with players you’re interested in? A: Not really… But I guess there are strong looking guys at the German table. Well, I’d beat all of them.

Q: You offered Fanta to Tokugawa-san, didn’t you? A: He drank it in one go. I wonder if it was that good.

Q: Could it be you’re having taiyaki for the first time? A: Yeah. Why is it shaped like a fish? I’ll eat from the head side.

Q: Your suit is wonderful. Did you tie the necktie yourself? A: …How about not treating me like a kid? Well, I had it tied for me.

Q: Ah, suddenly a cat is clinging to Echizen-kun...! A: The Australian rep’s cat? There, there…

Fashion

“When we met by coincidence the other day, you were wearing a T-shirt with a strange design. What country’s brand was that?” (Yukimura)

“I’ll give you some hand-me-downs next time. But maybe they’ll be too big for you, Chibisuke?” (Ryouga)

“Koshimae is always wearing a cap! Lend it to me too!” (Tooyama)

“Basically I like clothes that are easy to move in. I guess I wear half-pants and shorts a lot.” (Echizen)

“Heeey Echizen! Are you wearing the socks we bought for color variation when we went shopping?” (Momoshiro)

Album

This is an album that happened to be in my backpack when I came to Australia. I think I got it after the nationals when I was leaving for America. Look at this and remember, they said. …But email and phones exist. Mada mada ne. 

Room

Looks like stuff from America has increased While I was gone, mom and the others have rearranged my room, and exchanged stuff like the TV for a new one. The stuff I was made to take to the camp has also increased. I always play tennis at home too, though, so I’m only in the room when I sleep.  

History

Age 0 December 24 Birth

Age 5 Eats his beloved dried kombu at home Lives together with Ryouga for a short while in Los Angeles During elementary school, wins American Jr. tournament 4 times in a row

Age 11 September Graduates from Los Angeles State Saint Youth Returns to Japan with his family Goes to an onsen for the first time, likes it too much, sticks to using a bathtub (*1)

Age 12 April Enters Seishun Gakuen's middle school department, becomes a regular in the tennis club At a family restaurant, orders a kid’s meal recommended by Momoshiro Victory at district preliminaries finals (Fudoumine), wins against Ibu in S2 Loses to Tezuka at the courts under the overpass

June In Tokyo prefectural quarterfinals (St. Rudolph), wins against Yuuta in S3 Victory of the tournament (Yamabuki), wins against Akutsu in S2 Struggles with classics at the end of term tests, study session at Fuji’s house

July In the first round of the Kantou regionals (Hyoutei), wins against Hiyoshi as the reserve player Second round (Midoriyama), wins against Kiraku in S3

July 24 Wins against Kirihara at a tennis club in Kanagawa

July 27 Tournament victory (Rikkai), wins against Sanada in S1

August 17 Nationals tournament second round (Higa), wins against Tanishi in S3

August 19 Quarterfinals (Hyoutei), wins against Atobe in S1 Semifinals (Shitenhouji), has a one point match with Tooyama that ends in a draw Drinks “Cola” in the yakiniku battle

August 21 Loses his memory during the training with Nanjirou in Karuizawa 

August 23 Nationals finals (Rikkai), arrives at the stadium by Atobe's helicopter Regains his memory through playing against his past rivals Wins against Yukimura in S1, wins the nationals championship

August 26 Goes to America

November Returns to Japan, participates in the U-17 camp Doesn’t play against Minami in the friendly-fire matches, loss Participates in the mountaintop training With Tanishi and Kenya, finds a secret passageway at the depths of the cave Protects Tokugawa, has to leave the camp; goes to America together with Ryouga Beats 24 American representative contenders, becomes an American representative Does BBQ with Kiko and Dudu, fries fish

December U-17 pre-world cup begins Faces Tube Republic, wins the first match U-17 world cup begins Match against Sweden, wins against their captain (*2) Calms his worries, returns to Japan’s team and becomes a representative Beats Aramenoma in an unofficial match Gets lost with Tooyama in the athlete village (*3) Quarterfinals (France), wins against the Prince in S3

TN:

*1 I don’t really understand the sentence fully, so this is a bit of a guess.

*2 In the magazine release, this match was against Denmark, but was changed into Sweden in the volume release. 

*3 Literally “becomes a lost child”.

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Best Games ep 3 Fuji vs Kirihara report

The movie theatre screenings started on November 15th. The two shows at Shinjuku Piccadilly included a talk session with Fuji and Kirihara’s voice actors. I was lucky to get tickets to both two shows, so here is my report.

Unfortunately, there hasn’t been a change in quality, so we’re getting the same as before: some very pretty pictures, some awkward ones, and mostly stiff animation. Voice acting was good though.

The episode is not strictly chronologic, and I wasn’t sure if I liked the order in which they presented things. In any case, before we get to the main match, we see (not necessarily in this order) Sanada calling Yukimura about how everything is going well, Inui winning his match, Seigaku watching Rikkai on video, Fuji reflecting on it further at home, and Echizen’s match against Kirihara.

About that match. For those who are focused on the musicals, it might be a surprise that the only one observing that match is Jackal, not him and Marui. Personally I am happy for this screen time for him - his voice actor is doing a great job and he comes off very cool.

The quality kind of made some parts of this match awkward, but still, seeing Kirihara constantly hitting Echizen’s knee was quite impactful. For most of the time, Echizen doesn’t even make a sound, but at some point he yells out in pain, falls to the ground and holds his leg.

Eventually, we get to the point where Echizen reaches Muga. In this version, the character becomes surrounded by a bright red aura and wind like gusts of air. I guess it’s up to everyone’s taste whether it looks good or not, but I thought the overall impact of the visuals, sounds and how this part was presented in general was pretty good. I could say Echizen going all out in Muga was one of my favourite parts of this episode. I happen to love the image of Echizen in midair with the sun at his back, and this episode definitely played it well.

One detail I’m curious to hear about though is the impression people have about the blue light in Echizen’s eyes in this part, against the red backdrop. Personally I always imagined this scene in reds and blacks, giving Echizen this almost demon like aura that comes from pure strength instead of violence. The blue they added in his eyes kind of feels like they’re saying “this is still the good guy”. Aesthetically I might have preferred not to have that, though if that was the message they were going for I think it’s fine. But curious to hear how others read these visuals.

When the match ends, Rikkai comes around. I should mention that some of the dialogue has been slightly changed (compared to musicals), so people can look forward to a few new lines in multiple scenes.

At some point we get to the main match.

About Fuji. Kaida-san is doing a great job with his voice - he sounds very strong and scary in the right parts, and sensitive and insecure in others. My favourite line is the “So it was you behind Echizen’s knee”. He sounds so quietly angry and protective - you don’t mess with Fuji’s kouhai without consequences.

As for the design, as people have seen in the trailers, his hair is really long and thick now, and they really play with it in several scenes. If a more boyish Fuji is your thing, this episode will not provide much of that - it’s all pretty and beautiful.

A scene they went all out with the prettiness is of course the scene with Tezuka in the rain - finally animated the way it was in the manga. When the episode comes out, you might want to pay attention to the drops of rain on them - they have this subtly shifting shimmer that makes them look like small crystals. But the best thing for me about this is the evolution of both Fuji and Tezuka’s expressions as the discussion proceeds. It really brings back the feelings of when the series was still younger. These two had a lot of complicated feelings going on.

Another scene that was great was the flashback Fuji had into Tezuka’s match against Atobe. There is this one brief closeup of Tezuka soundlessly crying out in pain, and the scene really conveys just how big of an impact seeing that had on Fuji.

Without going deeper into the TezuFuji feelings for now, back to tennis. Same as with Echizen, we get to see Fuji hit by the ball a lot. He reacts a lot more than Echizen, with both expressions and voice, so expect to see him in pain.

One thing I found a little bit unfortunate was that they didn’t visualise Fuji finding his strength and going beyond his limits in a more clear way. After all the effort they put into Echizen’s Muga, I felt they should have tried harder to present Fuji’s strength. Especially since Ryuuzaki-sensei has the line about Fuji surpassing Tezuka, I thought that should have been supported with the presentation more than it was here.

Overall, I think the one of biggest impressions this episode had for me had to do about the dynamic between Fuji and Echizen, and both of their connection to Tezuka. Fuji and Echizen are shown lined up when Seigaku are watching the Rikkai videos, and that is followed up with the both of them preparing for the match in their own ways. The both of them have flashbacks to Tezuka during their matches. Like I mentioned already, Fuji has this very heavy tone when mentioning Echizen’s knee during the match. Of course we also have Echizen shouting out advice to Fuji, Fuji thanking him, and at the end, Fuji watching Echizen when he steps on the court. All of this is really heightened by the fact that Tezuka is not even there at the moment.

Conclusion: I love Seigaku’s internal dynamics.

There could be more to say, but this is getting long so I’ll leave it at this.

A few words about the voice actor talk:

First of all, Kaida-san is so cute and funny. It was my first time seeing and hearing her live, and it was a really good experience.

The talk had some TezuFuji tone to it, haha. Kaida-san was all “Fuji, what are you thinking about in the middle of a match? Focus, focus!” When they put a picture of Fuji in the rain scene on the screen, they went all “Hmm, who is he talking with here… A certain someone… Well, it’s the guy you would expect, isn’t it.” about it.

They also talked about the new song, Dispect, for a bit. Kaida-san said it was quite a challenge to sing. They described the song as kind of a rally, with a lot of back and forth going on.

Both voice actors also talked about their gratefulness of Tenipuri reaching 20 years, the support from fans, and how happy they were to have a chance to do this part of the story again. Kaida-san made the following quote in Fuji’s voice: “As if we would lose… The winner will be… Tenipuri!”

That’s it for now. The DVD of the episode will come out in January, so looking forward to hear what others think then. I’ll try to go see the screening again when they do the ouen version where the audience is allowed to cheer and shout - the voice actors gave some instructions yesterday so I will look forward to participating.

Feel free to ask if you have any questions about the episode!

PS. Me and my boss pulled these coasters as our gifts. I knew we were meant to be. In the professional sense.

[imperfekti]

My 9/2019 favourites in Shinteni

I tried out the Shinteni character sorter. I had some cases of “who was this again...?”, but this is what came out for now. It will be fun to try again and compare once we’ve seen the semis and finals.

1 Alexander Amadeus 2 Tokugawa Kazuya 3 Osval Delon 4 Suzuki Shun 4 Washio Issa 6 Tamagawa Yoshio 7 E. Siegfried 8 Yamato Yuudai 9 Prince Ludovic Chardard 10 Sugi 11 QP 12 Leopold Camus de Charpentier 13 Oni Juujirou 14 Michael Bismarck 15 Camus' Racket 16 Siegmund Pupke 17 Taira Yoshiyuki 18 Duke Watanabe 19 Byoudouin Houou 20 Miyako Shinobu 21 Jürgen Borisovic Volk 22 Matsudaira Chikahiko 23 Hara Tetsuya 24 Noah Dorgias 25 Milky Millman 26 Mac McGregor 27 Chris Hopman 28 Jean Fitzgerald 29 Medanore 30 Sumiregou 31 Mitsuya Akuto 32 Ralph Rhinehart 33 Ochi Tsukimitsu 34 Echizen Ryouga 35 Kaji Kazena 36 Koala 37 Tanegashima Shuuji 38 Timothée Moreau 39 Tristan Bardot 40 Edgard Delacroix 41 Jonathan St. Georges 41 Blanche Neige 43 Kimijima Ikuto 44 Kurobe Yukio 45 Saitou Itaro 46 Mouri Jusaburou 47 Irie Kanata 47 Hirari Tonpei 49 Mutsu Yuuho 49 Mutsu Yuuma 51 Tsuuge Ryuuji 51 Alan Hopkins 53 Kiko Balentien 54 Dodo Obando 55 Chloe Watanabe 55 Bertie Borisovich Volk 55 Geisel Jackson 55 Clive Miller 59 Dankmar Schneider 60 Bill Hewitt 60 Henri Nouvel III 60 Kuraraga Tatsuta 63 Ramon Crawford 64 Apollon Stephanopoulos 64 Orion Stephanopoulos 64 Evangelos Papadopoulos 67 Vulcan Lartius 67 Hermes Kounellis 69 Oliver Philips 69 Jin Onojiiha 69 Eric Paddington 69 Charlie Palmer 73 Zeus Iliopoulos 74 Thalatta Heracles 75 Greek Coach 76 Akiba Kouyou 76 Kiritani 76 Sasabe Junichi 76 Date Danji 76 Todoroki Goro 76 Nakagauchi Sotomichi 76 Hakamada Izou 76 Ban Rikiya 76 Matsudaira Chikao 76 Leon Wakefield 86 Kaburiel 87 Oomagari Ryuuji 88 Tenjin Kousuke 88 Fuwa Tetsuhito 88 Migihashi Itarou 88 Murata Hiramasa 88 Mifune Nyuudou 88 A. Frankensteiner 88 Don Pacino 88 Rocky Meredith 88 C. Lidell 88 S. Trueman 88 Maxwell 88 Peter Lambiel 88 Randy Pug 88 Timothée's Father 88 M. Haruhata 103 Albert Federer 104 Aramenoma 105 Siyabonga Ngoepe 106 J. J. Dorgias 107 Takei Toshio 107 Toono Atsukyou 107 M. Nobuteru 107 Usainu 107 FuuRinKaZan 112 Kaede 113 King of Satan

[imperfekti]

Tenipuri Party: Fuji Yuuta profile translation

TN: 

In the absence of an official English version, this translation is intended to help those who can’t read the material in the original language. Please support Tenipuri by getting your own copy of this book - it is worth it! There are various ways of purchasing it even for those not living in or visiting Japan.

I’m still working on Japanese, so there might be mistakes. Please let me know if you spot any translation errors so I can fix them here!

Fuji Yuuta

St Rudolph Academy Middle-school player Place 45 3,135 votes

[DATA]  Middle-school 2nd year / February 18th (Gemini) / Blood type O / 170 -> 172 cm / 56 -> 57 kg / Left-handed

Special techniques: Twist spin shot, Rising, Double twist spin, 

Play style: Aggressive baseliner

Family: Father, mother, older sister, older brother

Father’s occupation: company employee (foreign company)

Hobbies: Action RPG, frisbee

Favourite saying: Flowers will bloom from a tree that persists

Favourite color: Silver blue

Favourite foods: All sweets, pumpkin curry, the dormitory’s omurice

Favourite book: Manga (especially gourmet manga)

Preferred type of person: The person he likes

Weakness: Older sister, mediating between his older brother and Mizuki

Committee: None

Skills beyond tennis: Climbing trees, games (can get a high score even at the first time of playing)

Favourite anniversary: Halloween

Preferred travel destination: Touring sweets shops in Paris

Present for a special person: Can’t think of anything now, but will definitely make them happy

Q: There’s cream on the side of your mouth. A: Hey, aniki, I can do it myself! Mizuki-san, too!

Q: Are you concerned about Krauzer-kun? A: Well, because he’s making a troubled face… What is it?

Q: You talked with Alan-san, didn’t you. A: He was all smiling, but I was asked about my shoulder… He’s a scary person.

Message:

“(Chewing) (Gulp) M, me!? Ah, ahem, thank you very much! I might still be immature, but I’ll definitely become strong, so please watch me!” (*1)

History

0 years February 18 Birth

11 years Gains first place in a game tournament

12 years March Graduates from Seishun Dai Daisan Elementary School

April Enters Seishun Gakuen Middle School Division Attends a tennis school that is a bit farther away

Autumn Meets Mizuki, transfers to St Rudolph Is given the dormitory’s welcome party 

13 years April Proceeds to 2nd year

June Tokyo Prefectural Tournament

October Buys a knit toy oni from a bazar (*2)

November Participates in the U-17 camp Hands a chestnut from the special training at the cliff to Akutsu

December Goes to Australia as part of the support team Shares with Jonathan at a cake shop

TN:

*1 Unripe, green; inexperienced, immature

*2 Google 鬼のあみぐるみ for pictures.

[imperfekti]

FFVII - TGS INFORMATION

Square-Enix and Sony have announced they will be doing a 45-minute live stage event for FFVII Remake. Here is the information on it:

Famitsu and Dengeki will be live streaming FFVII Remake’s TGS 2019 demo “Advance Gameplay Special” on September 12th at 11AM Japan time. Links to watch it on the day:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lamp374ENUQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PdOW0TmA0HY

(VIA: Twitter)

[imperfekti]

Tenipuri Party: Fuji Shuusuke profile translation

TN:

In the absence of an official English version, this translation is intended to help those who can’t read the material in the original language. Please support Tenipuri by getting your own copy of this book - it is worth it! There are various ways of purchasing it even for those not living in or visiting Japan.

The pictures I have included in this post do not show full pages.

On the translation: I’m aiming for a more direct, “Japanese-sounding” translation to share the mood of the content more as it is. This will probably cause some sentences to appear weird in English.

On Fuji’s style of speech: he uses a lot of little additions that soften the tone, and most of them are pretty hard to include in English. In general his style of speech is a balance of casual but polite.

I’m still working on Japanese, so there might be mistakes. Please let me know if you spot any translation errors so I can fix them here!

Fuji Shuusuke

U-17 Japan representative player, middle schooler Seishun Gakuen Middle-school player

Towards the distant sky, reflected in the mind’s eye --  A noble youth, soaring like a refreshing breeze

Message

“This kind of wonderful placement… it’s rare to get to taste it. Everyone, thank you so much. I’ll have to meet those expectations. (*1) Following the guidepost that I have made myself… I swear I’ll advance to greater heights. I’ll definitely show a new scenery to you too.”

Extra prize: a surprise box decorated with memorable photos “There are even balloons attached to it. An exciting, heart-warming gift. The music box’s tune was to my liking, too.”

Profile

[DATA] Middle-school 3rd year / February 29 (Pisces) / Blood type B / 167 cm / 53 kg / Right-handed

Special techniques: Tsubame gaeshi, Higuma otoshi, Hakugei, Kagerou tsutsumi, Houou gaeshi, Kirin otoshi, Hakuryuu, Hecatoncheires no monban, Hoshi hanabi, Closed eye (*2),  Aoi fubuki, Hikari kaze 

Play style: Counter puncher

Family: Father, mother, older sister, younger brother

Father’s occupation: company employee (foreign company)

Hobbies: Collecting cacti, photography

Favourite saying: What is important is invisible to the eye 

Favourite color: Beige

Favourite foods: All spicy foods, 100% apple juice

Favourite book: Travel journals, travel photo books

Favourite music: Celtic music

Preferred type of person: A person who smells like flowers

Preferred date spot: An observatory where you can see stars clearly

Most wanted thing right now: Stimulus (*3)

Weakness: Sour things

Elementary school: Seishun Dai Daisan Elementary School

Committee: Graduation album committee

Strong subjects: Classics

Weak subjects: Science

Often-visited place in school: Photography room

Uses allowance on: Taking care of cacti

Skills beyond tennis: Winter sports, recognising constellations

His routines during tournaments: Drinking coffee from all over the world, contacting his brother

Favourite anniversary: Birthday of the person he likes

Preferred travel destination: Salar de Uyuni on a night with shooting stars

Present for a special person: A ring made of flowers

Scenes

For Fuji-senshu, who had specialised in counter tennis, a certain incident at the U-17 camp became an impetus for an awakening. (*4) Making the Critical wind ‘Aoi fubuki’ his new weapon, he changed his style greatly into offensive tennis.

(Quotes on pictures:) “Tensai Fuji Shuusuke.” “Now, shall we go one more time…” “Was there this kind of an tensai sleeping in Seigaku?” “This team reaching the nationals championship, that’s my wish!” “Game and set… won by Fuji Shuusuke…” “Critical wind ‘Aoi fubuki’” “One of the Critical winds, ‘Hikari kaze’” “I’ve already stopped playing just defensive tennis.”

Sparked by a certain oath, I began to aim for my own guidepost

Currently, both among fans and people involved, Fuji-senshu’s change to offensive tennis has become a topic of discussion. Was there some impetus for this?

An impetus? Well… I exchanged private oaths with a certain person - is all I think I’ll say here. Fufu.

An oath...? Please give us at least a hint!

Well, just a little, then… Before, I used to draw out the opponent’s strongest skills, felt the thrill of defeating them with a counter, and enjoyed myself like that. But in the end, that depended on the opponent. The guideposts you need to traverse on mountains, you have to find by yourself - that is what I understood.

About Fuji-senshu’s new technique, “Hikari kaze”. How are you able to react like that?

By ascertaining the opponent’s muscle movements and breathing, the moment that information is intracerebrally linked as an image, it’s as if time stops and all noises and the scenery of your surroundings disappear - only the trajectory of the shot the opponent has hit emerges as an signpost of light. So, from now on too, I will follow the guidepost I’ve found by myself, and am aiming to go beyond my limits.

Then, to finish, your objective from here on out is… eh, you already talked about that just now, didn't you?

Yes. I determined the next question before it was asked, and responded to it.

As expected of the prodigy Fuji. You got me there.

Message for Fuji Shuusuke

I thought you seem like you’d be popular with the girls. Alles gute! (Bismarck)

Congratulatiooons! By the way, show me your homework for the report next week ☆ (Kikumaru)

I made a lot of wasabi sushi as congratulations, so please eat them. (Kawamura)

I need to update my data. Congratulations. (Inui)

As expected, Fuji. Next time, let’s play until we are satisfied. (Tezuka)

It’s not something anyone can do. My respects. (Kaidou)

Congratulations Fuji-senpai! I won’t lose next time! (Momoshiro)

Not bad. But, please be prepared that I’ll snatch that from you one of these days. (Echizen)

Hooray! Should we take a memorial photo with everyone! (Ooishi)

I’m amazed. I feel like I’ve caught a glimpse of your hidden inner strength. (Duke)

Congratulations, you are the pride of Japan. (Noa)

Party talk

Q: What was your family’s reaction to the placement this time? A: I think my sister said ‘as expected of my little brother’. Yuuta… He was here, so I’ll ask right now. Hey, Yuuta --!

Q: Th-that bright red food…? A: I wanted to taste even more wonderful, stimulating foods. What about you?

Q: The singing performance just now was lovely! A: Being the first to go on the stage… it was thrilling and fun. (*5)

Q: Who have you talked with, and what was the topic? A: Member of staff, Oliver-san taught me about places near the tournament venue where you can see the starry sky well.

Q: During the sideshow, you took a picture of the audience, didn’t you. A: Because it’s rare to see Tezuka making that kind of an expression.

Q: Is there anything that has piqued your interest in the venue? A: That flower stand with cacti, I wonder which country it’s from… Tube?

History

Age 0 February 29 Birth

Age 4 After napping with Yuuta, is frightened by Yuuta who saw a bad dream and tears up

Age 8 Goes out sea bathing with Yuuta and Saeki

Age 9 Gets a camera from grandfather, starts taking pictures Is deeply impressed by the form of a swallow (tsubame) found in an aquarium

Age 12 March Graduates from Seishun Dai Daisan Elementary School

April Enters Seishun Gakuen Middle School Division Plays against Tezuka, is not satisfied

August Goes to Kawamura's house for the first time, wasabi sushi is made for him

December After Yuuta ran away from home, searches for him all through the night in the snow

Age 13 March The extremely spicy food he makes at gratitude-party is unpopular

April Proceeds to second year in middle school

June During the athletic festival cavalry battle, has a showdown against Tezuka (unsettled)

July Is scouted at his older sister's commemorative publication autograph signing party

February Succeeds(?) in a triple spin jump at the neighbourhood skating rink

Age 14 April Proceeds to third year in middle school Kikumaru, now in the same class, comes over to play for one consecutive week

May Start of the Tokyo Prefectural District Preliminaries Plays against Gyokurin in the quarterfinals, wins against Nakano in S1 Advances to the Semi-Finals November Plays against Mizunofuchi in the semifinals, wins against Egawa, Yamanishi pair in D2 Plays against Fudomine in the finals, defeated by Ishida-Sakurai pair in D2 by forfeit Wins the Tokyo Prefectural District Preliminaries championship, has a celebration at "Kawamura Sushi"

June Start of the Tokyo Prefectural Tournament Plays against Kamata in the Third Round, wins against Ishizaki in S3 Plays against Akiyama Third in the Fourth Round, wins against Morishima-Nishikawa pair in D2 Plays against St. Rudolph in the quarterfinals, wins against Mizuki in S2 Plays games with Yuuta who came to stay at home, loses Plays against Yamabuki in the Finals, defeated by Nitobe-Kita pair in D2 Wins the Tokyo Prefectural Tournament championship

July Start of the Kantou Tournament Plays against Hyoutei in the first round, wins against Akutagawa in S2 Bowling tournament with the Regulars Plays against Rokkaku in the semifinals, wins against Saeki-Itsuki pair in D1

July 27 Plays against Rikkai in the finals, wins against Kirihara in S2 Wins the Kantou Tournament championship Beach volleyball tournament during the joint training camp with Rokkaku

August 11 During a practice match with Tachibana, his Triple Counters are broken

August 17 Start of the National Tournament Plays against Higa in the second round, wins against Hirakoba-Chinen pair in D2

August 19 Plays against Shitenhouji in the semifinals, defeated by Shiraishi in S3 Participates in the yakiniku battle, drinks Aozu and drops out

August 23 Plays against Rikkai in the finals, wins against Niou in S2 Wins the National Tournament championship Is inspired when visiting a hollyhock gallery with Kawamura

October Is invited to an amusement park by a student whom he saved from groping, but declines

November Participates in the U-17 training camp Wins against Yuuta in the “friendly fire” matches The restaurant’s tabasco runs out, a restriction for use is put in place Plays against Tezuka who is leaving Japan, swears three things

December On the overseas training camp right before the U-17 world cup, faints from eating Akuto meshi at the pick-up tournament In Australia, enjoys coffees from all countries with Jackal U-17 pre-world cup begins Plays against Germany in the first match, wins against Bismarck-Siegfried pair U-17 world cup begins Plays against Australia on the second round of the qualifying league, wins against Mac-Milky pair in D1 Japan is qualified to play in the championship tournament

What I most want to photograph now is Australia’s starry night sky

During the camp and on off days, what do you do for a change of pace?

I guess the main one would be taking pictures. Especially on an overseas trip like this, taking a lot of pictures of sights I don’t usually see arouses my creativity.

Since coming to Australia, what kind of pictures have you taken?

When you go a bit outwards, there’s a desert, so I’ve taken a lot of pictures of cacti. But though you may say “cacti” in one word, there are tall ones, types that have a form that is round like a tennis ball, and so on - there are many different kinds. Besides that, I took pictures of koalas. Tanegashima-san recommended a good place to me… I could even hold them in my arms, so I had fun. What I’m thinking I most want to photograph next is the starry sky. Since it’s the Southern hemisphere, the scenery of the night sky totally differs from the sky in Japan. The Southern Cross, or capturing the Milky Way - I’d really like to take such pictures.

Do you show the pictures you take to someone?

I often send them to family and friends. I sent a lot of pictures of the koalas to my brother Yuuta, fufufu. It seems my sister likes cacti of weird shapes.

I think the fans also really want to see Fuji-san’s pictures.

I brought many with me today, so sure. I’d be happy if people would like them.

Photo

In Australia When I find the time within the U-17 tournament, I take pictures little by little. Don’t you think this koala looks like Yuuta?

Cacti We often go for walks together. Even if it’s a familiar scenery, it becomes fun when cacti are around. 

Family trip A camera is a magical tool that can cut out a scene that will not happen again. I can’t miss doing that when I’m traveling.

Fashion

Fuji really likes knits! Are you wearing the hat with ears that I gave you? (Kikumaru)

I’m not that interested, but protection against cold is important. It’s good to warm your body properly with a stole. (Ochi)

“I guess I wear a lot of clothes in white or beige. Especially in winter, I choose clothes that don’t clash with the snowy scenery.”

“After all, the feel when wearing something is important. Clothes with natural, smooth feeling materials are to my liking.”

Before, he used to wear things like shorts a lot, but it seems that’s not the case anymore. (Saeki)

Room

I’m aiming for a room with a Nordic taste Since around autumn, when I’ve had the time I’ve been changing the design little by little. I found an antique lamp, and I think I want to establish unity by using Nordic furniture. Next to my cacti, plants I got from Yukimura and Shiraishi have joined the group.

TN:

*1 Or “respond to those feelings.”

*2 Furigana says “closed eye”, but the kanji is actually for “kokoro no hitomi”, mind’s eye.

*3 "Shigeki": stimulus, impetus, incentive, encouragement, motivation, provocation, excitement, thrill.

*4 Literally enlightenment, spiritual awakening, opening one’s eyes to the truth.

*5 It’s not clear whether he is talking about himself, and I haven’t read the overall story yet, so this is my assumption.

[imperfekti]

Fuji Shuusuke - Bokura no kiseki lyrics translation

As far as I’m aware, a direct translation from Japanese didn’t exist before, so I tried my hand at it.

Bokura no kiseki (Youtube)

I saw a nostalgic dream of the spring with cherry blossoms dancing down... Still young, you stared without smiling Because even without words, we understood That surely we met to make one wish come true

It’s connected, the continuation of the dream we painted See, it’s here even now Going around, on the courts where seasons changed Our definite miracle

To confirm the feelings budding in the depths of my heart… Just wanting to meet you, the long shadows of the evening hurry me along 

Without wavering, just aiming higher Higher than anyone else, gazing at the distant, faraway sky

Fighting, winning, losing I was able to become serious because you were here Now, once more before the wind dies down I’ll go Towards the future’s distant miracle

It’s connected, the continuation of the dream we painted See, it’s here even now Now, once more before the wind dies down I’ll go Towards the future’s distant miracle

懐かしい夢を見たサクラ舞い散る春の… まだ幼い君が 笑いかけることもないまま見つめ 言葉なくてもただ分かりあえたから 一つの願いを叶えるためにきっと出会ったと つながってくぼくらが描いた夢の 続きはほら今もここにあるから 巡って行く季節を着がえたコートにはそう ぼくたちの確かなキセキ 心の奥芽生えた思い確かめるように… ただ君に会いたくて夕暮れ長い影が僕を急かしてる 揺るぐことなくただ高みを目指して 誰よりも高くずっと遠くの空を見つめてる たたかうこと勝ち抜くこと負けること 本気になれたのは君がいたから さあもう一度風が止む前に僕は行くよ 未来への 遥かなキセキ つながってくぼくらが描いた夢の 続きはほら今もここにあるから さあもう一度風が止む前に僕は行くよ 未来への遥かなキセキ

Natsukashii yume o mita sakura maichiru haru no… mada osanai kimi ga waraikakeru koto mo nai mama mitsumeru kotoba nakute mo tada wakariaeta kara hitotsu no negai o kanaeru tame ni kitto deatta to tsunagatteku bokura ga egaita yume no tsuzuki wa hora ima mo koko ni aru kara megutte iku kisetsu o kiga eta kooto ni wa sou bokutachi no tashikana kiseki kokoro no oku mebaeta omoi tashikameru you ni… tada kimi ni aitakute yuugure nagai kage ga boku o sekashiteru yurugu koto naku tada takami o mezashite dare yori mo takaku zutto tooku no sora o mitsumeteru tatakau koto kachinuku koto makeru koto honki ni nareta no wa kimi ga ita kara saa mou ichido kaze ga yamu mae ni boku wa yuku yo mirai e no harukana kiseki tsunagatteku bokura ga egaita yume no tsuzuki wa hora ima mo koko ni aru kara saa mou ichido kaze ga yamu mae ni boku wa yuku yo mirai e no harukana kiseki

TN: There’s some unclarity for me about this line: “It’s connected, the continuation of the dream we painted See, it’s here even now” It seems that another reading would be something like: “Continuation of the dream painted by us who are connected, See, it’s here even now” “Continuation of the dream painted by us, connected, See, it’s here even now”

But since I’m not so confident about this, I opted for what I thought was the less romantic translation, just to be safe. If anyone has an opinion about this part, or any other corrections, please let me know! In any case - isn’t TezuFuji the most beautiful thing?

[imperfekti]

He really seems to be enjoying himself, and he if anyone has deserved it after everything he’s been through and all the earnest work and feelings he’s put into tennis. I’m so happy to see him doing so well! And yes, all the small things pointing at TezuFuji are so sweet, aren’t they.

Tenipuri Party: Tezuka Kunimitsu profile translation

TN:

In the absence of an official English version, this translation is intended to help those who can’t read the material in the original language. Please support Tenipuri by getting your own copy of this book - it is worth it! There are various ways of purchasing it even for those not living in or visiting Japan.

The pictures I have included in this post do not show full pages.

On the translation: this time I’m aiming for a more direct, “Japanese-sounding” translation to share the mood of the content more as it is. This will probably cause some sentences to appear weird in English.

On Tezuka’s style of speech: his word choices and sentence structures are mostly polite and serious.

I’m still working on Japanese, so there might be mistakes. Please let me know if you spot any translation errors so I can fix them here!

Keep reading

[imperfekti]

Tenipuri Party: Tezuka Kunimitsu profile translation

TN:

In the absence of an official English version, this translation is intended to help those who can’t read the material in the original language. Please support Tenipuri by getting your own copy of this book - it is worth it! There are various ways of purchasing it even for those not living in or visiting Japan.

The pictures I have included in this post do not show full pages.

On the translation: this time I’m aiming for a more direct, “Japanese-sounding” translation to share the mood of the content more as it is. This will probably cause some sentences to appear weird in English.

On Tezuka’s style of speech: his word choices and sentence structures are mostly polite and serious.

I’m still working on Japanese, so there might be mistakes. Please let me know if you spot any translation errors so I can fix them here!

Tezuka Kunimitsu

U-17 German representative player Seishun Gakuen Middle-school player

Beyond the imagined future - the released challenger!!

Message

“For the support every day, I’m grateful. For the sake of becoming a professional, and for the sake of my tennis, I intend to earnestly keep confronting myself. I think you are the same. In the future as well, together. Let’s go without carelessness.”

Extra prize: A voucher for two at a high-class mountaintop hotel “An undeserved honor. I’m focusing on tennis right now, but… If I can make the time, I will gratefully use it. For two, huh…”

Profile

[DATA] Middle-school 3rd year / October 7th (Libra) / Blood type O / 179 cm / 58 → 61 kg / Left-handed

Special techniques: Drop shot, zero shiki drop shot, Muga no kyouchi, Hyakuren jitoku no kiwami, Saiki kanpatsu no kiwami, Tenimuhou no kiwami, Tezuka zone, Tezuka phantom, Zero shiki serve

Playstyle: All-rounder

Family: Grandfather, father, mother

Father’s occupation: company employee (business) (grandfather is a judo instructor for the police)

Hobbies: Mountain climbing, camping, fishing

Favourite saying: The enemy is within yourself

Favourite color: Green or blue

Favourite food: unacha (a dish with eel carefully broiled in soy-based sauce), Räucheraal (TN: smoked eel)

Favourite book: German-Japanese-German dictionary (to carry with him)

Favourite music: Classical (Beethoven)

Preferred type of person: Trying not to think about it at the moment.

Preferred date spot: Zugspitze

Most wanted item: A mountain model kit

Things he’s bad at/with: Being idle, colourful cakes

Elementary school: Seishun Dai Daiichi Elementary School

Committee: Student council president

Strong subjects: World history

Weak subjects: None

Often visited place in school: The library

Uses allowance on: Books

Skill outside tennis: Woodworking, preparing fish for cooking

Routine during tournament: Keeping a diary in German, watching foreign comedy-dramas.

Favourite anniversary: 23rd August

Preferred travel destination: Macchu Picchu ruins and Huayna Picchu

Present for a special person: Writing a letter of gratitude

Scenes

Injuries, seizing the nationals… Tezuka Kunimitsu overcame numerous challenges that waited for him and seized glory. But he is not a man who would be satisfied with that. From now on too, I want to pay attention to the steep path of him who moved over to Germany.

(Quotes on pictures:)

“I will not lose.”

“Saiki kanpatsu no kiwami!?”

“And then Seigaku’s era will begin once again!”

“Now, let’s go without carelessness.”

Indeed, it should perhaps be called a “Tezuka zone”.

“Hyakuren jitoku no kiwami!?”

This boy’s tennis is certainly Ten’imuhou no kiwami!?

“No matter who I will end up fighting… I will win!”

The German representatives’ strained atmosphere connects to rapid development (*1)

Tezuka-senshu (*2) becoming a German representative was a shock. Did you not have worries about this decision?

If I said no, it would be a lie. However, as to what is important for me as someone aiming to become a professional, I judged it to be fighting as a German representative and based my decision on that.

Specifically, the currently important thing for Tezuka-senshu is…?

Most of all, it is actual experience of fighting at a higher level. At the German training centre, I have the fortunate chance to rally with top pros like Volk-senshu. Even in practice, they are always making hypotheses as to which shot they should hit, what kind of a play they should make in any kind of match circumstances when they are standing on the court. Having put myself in such a strained atmosphere, I can truly feel my level of experience rising rapidly.

Any bewilderment at facing your former comrades…?

Whoever will become my opponent will not be a problem. But, at first, I thought I was feeling sorry. However, at the time of fighting Japan in the exhibition match, I came to realise my heart was throbbing about competing against them. But just fighting as sworn friends, it is not to elevate ourselves. Rather, by putting a net in-between and confronting each other, the light can come from a new angle and hasten growth - that is what I believe right now.

Then, what is Tezuka-senshu’s current objective or dream?

Upon seizing the world, to hold up the flag of Germany that showed in me, a foreigner. If the opponent for that match were to be Japan, there would not be higher joy.

In a well-ordered and non-negligent environment, pleasant days go on

Have you already grown accustomed to life in Germany?

Yes. Everything proceeds very systematically, so in that sense, it sometimes feels like it is actually even more pleasant than in Japan.

What things for example are like that?

Everyone is already gathered around 15 minutes before the set meeting time. The notion of ecology is growing, so most customers carry eco bags for their shopping, and the separation of waste is enforced thoroughly. Everything is done logically, and it’s an environment without negligence.

I see. It suits the serious Tezuka-senshu perfectly. Then, how do you spend your days off?

Touring antiquarian bookshops is currently my biggest enjoyment. From Goethe to Ende, I have been able to acquire several original texts that I couldn’t in Japan. Also, when time and money allow, I try to go to classical concerts.

What about the German language?

The German language too is a very systematic and logical language. There are very few exceptions, as long as one memorises the basic grammar and idioms, it is quite effective to use. Of course I still lack study, and there are many points where I lack experience, but words are not the only means of communication. Rather, sometimes it is facial expressions that speak more eloquently.

Facial expressions…?

Yes. Facial expressions.

Message for Tezuka Kunimitsu

As expected… should I say. Congratulations. (Inui)

YEEES! CONGRATULATIONS!! (Kawamura)

You should still be able to grow one rank higher. Put effort into your training. (Volk)

I will definitely not forget the thing that you taught me. Let’s meet on the court. (Fuji)

I’m glad you seem to be doing well in Germany too. Eat your meals properly! (Ooishi)

Tezuka-buchou-senpai, congratulations. We are protecting Seigaku. (Kaidou)

I’ll win one day, both in popularity and tennis! (Momoshiro)

You’re not planning on ending it at this? I’m waiting for the next opportunity to fight you. (Atobe)

Congratulatioons. But I’ll overcome you soon. (Echizen)

Are you doing well Tezuka? Send something tasty from Germany! (Kikumaru)

This guy is in 4th place!? Gimme a break! You can go higher than that! (Siegfried)

Party talk

Q: Who would you like to inform about this time’s rank and feelings? A: My family. My grandfather too is always supporting me.

Q: You are being served a lot of food. A: Ooishi. I’m grateful, but it’s already enough. I’m eating sufficiently… I tasted Japanese unacha for the first time in a while.

Q: You can also take part in an improvisation skit competition. A: … No, thank you. I was able to enjoy it quite a lot just by watching.

Q: You got excited with Bismarck-san, though... A: … I was merely unilaterally lectured about how to flirt with women.

Q: Who did you come to the venue with today? A: With the German representative senpai. In addition to training, we measured the time and ran to the venue.

Q: Oh? Is there something the matter with Echizen-kun? A: No. I just thought he seems to have gained experience and grown somewhat.

History

Age 0 October 7 Birth

Age 5 Makes a mistake in dance moves in a kindergarten’s play

Age 10 June Climbs Switzerland's Matterhorn with his father

Age 11 Summer Meets Yukimura and Sanada after the Jr. Tournament, has a match Goes fishing with grandfather, catches a sea bream

Age 12 March Graduates from Seishun Dai Daiichi Elementary School

April Enters Seishun Gakuen Middle School Is hit on the elbow with a racket by a senpai in the tennis club Is told to become "Seigaku's pillar of support" by Yamato

Age 13 November Displays a sketch of mountain grass in the culture festival

January Goes to the first shrine visit of New Year with the club’s 1st year members, makes a vow of conquering the nationals

April Becomes a 2nd year Becomes the vice captain of the tennis club

June Participates in a bread eating race in an athletic festivals, places second

September Gets lots of recommendation letters and becomes the student council president

Age 14 Declines the Jr. Senbatsu invitation Around autumn Has an uncomfortable feeling in his arm

October On the field trip (Taiwan), buys tea utensils for souvenirs

November At the Allied music festival (*3) , participates in the class chorus as a musical conductor

February For the first time in his life, forgets something

April Becomes a 3rd year Becomes the captain of the tennis club

May Wins Tokyo preliminaries championship Is mistaken for a teacher at Kawamura Sushi Has a match with Ryoma on courts underneath the railway

June Wins prefecturals championship Declines offer from the special overseas JFH program Goes to the drawings for the Kantou tournament

July Is invited to Hyoutei’s opera appreciation party as the student council president but declines Start of Kantou tournament In the first round against Hyoutei, loses to Atobe in S1 Goes to Kyuushuu for rehabilitation

July 27 Wins Kantou tournament championship

August 14 Drawing for the nationals, returns from Kyuushuu

August 17 Start of nationals Faces Higa in the 2nd round, wins against Kite in S1

August 19 Quarterfinals against Hyoutei, wins against Kabaji in S2 Semifinals against Shitenhouji, wins against the Chitose-Zaizen pair in D2 Yakiniku battle, is one of the last members remaining

August 23 Finals against Rikkai, loses to Sanada in S3   Wins nationals championship Goes to the victory celebration at Kawamura Sushi

Age 15 (*4) September Is invited to Rikkai’s ocean festival, makes guest participation in a play

October 12 Climbs Kitadake with father

November Participates in U-17 camp Wins against Kaidou in the “friendly fire” matches Learns about a fishing mobile game from Marui and Kirihara In the court shuffle between 3rd and 5th court, wins against Yamato Abandons the match against Fuji midway, departs for Germany Aiming to become professional, participates in the German representative team

December Participates in the U-17 Pre-World Cup drawings U-17 Pre-World Cup starts In Vs Japan, wins against Irie-Atobe pair in the second match U-17 World Cup starts Is drawn into a fight about food by Siegfried, eats Japanese food together Wins against South Africa and Canada

Plan

(Pictured: two documents of mountain climbing plans, including itinerary, packing list and map.)

“This is from when me and father climbed during consecutive holidays. When climbing mountains, let’s make plans properly and climb without carelessness.”

Fashion

It seems he didn’t bring much clothing with him from Japan. I will give you something next time. (Volk)

With Kunimitsu’s hair style, clothes from any country would suit him. (QP)

Wearing clothes you received just like that. That’s like you. (Fuji)

Whether the person in question is aware of it or not, wearing a waistcloth is quite stylish. (Kite)

“I am not a person who is particular about clothes, but only when it comes to shoes, I make it so that I can play tennis in them.”

Room

Bedroom of the room I’m staying in in Germany There’s only bare minimums like the bed and desk that were part of the furnishings. But I’m thankful that letters and daily necessities have been delivered from Japan. Overall, I like the things made from wood and seeing the townscape from the window.

TN:

*1 張り詰めた, haritsumeta. Strained, stretched, tense. Not strained in the sense of anxious or having problems. It seems more like everyone is ambitious and focused.

*2 選手, senshu: player, athlete. I chose to leave this as it is since the interviewer uses it all the time as an honorific, and couldn’t figure out a natural expression in English.

*3 連合音楽会, rengou ongaku kai. This seems to be some kind of an annual music event that at least schools participate into.

*4 It seems like a mistake that age 15 is placed at September, not October.

[imperfekti]

Inspired by Shinteni's July 2019 chapters (270-272). Tezuka and Bismarck talk on the night before the semifinals.

[imperfekti]

Pair Puri 6 - Next Generation

[imperfekti]

Tenimyu 3rd Season Nationals Rikkai First Half Review

In short: I love it.

This commentary is based on seeing it three times: the show started on a Thursday, and I saw in on Friday and Saturday evenings and Sunday day. I will not try to give an overview of everything that happens, just some things that were interesting for me. Includes spoilers.

The first big surprise was the addition of a new, unannounced character: Liliadent Krauzer is shown playing against Kirihara. I really liked that part - it’s a short scene, but always great to see rival schools playing against each other. I thought Lili looked pretty good, and he’s very tall so he really seemed like a foreigner against Kirihara, though the English was pretty awkward.

The beginning songs are really strong. I was also positively surprised by Echizen’s new opening song, and the current version of Winning Road, which I already loved before. The Rikkai teams songs are crazy strong in general. I was also happy for small ChitoKura and KenZai moments in the Shiten song, though some of them seemed to vary in shippiness level day by day.

One TezuFuji detail from the beginning: I don’t remember if this happened in previous seasons, but when Fuji is trying to predict a match result by using his cactus, he imagines it saying “yudan sezu ni ikou” to him.

Tezuka vs Sanada. I’ll be honest, I like Aoki in many ways as Tezuka, but it’s a problem for me that his delivery of lines is so soft and lacking in intensity. It’s especially noticeable against Sanada, who is very, very intense. That said, overall the match is great. Sanada’s shots all look like strikes of a sword - I’ve practiced the same Japanese swordsmanship as him, and it’s surprisingly similar. Very happy to also have a longer version of Tezuka Phantom now, and the new Shiten song about Tezuka is good too.

There’s a problem at the end of this match, namely the fact that after the match, it’s not only Fuji who goes support Tezuka, but him and Ooishi. I don’t know why they would diverge from the source material in a thing like this. After Tezuka sits down, Fuji stays close to him. Fuji gets Tezuka’s jersey to put it on his shoulders, settles to stand in front of him, and Tezuka looks up at him while they talk something inaudible by the two of them while the others get busy with Echizen. Fuji touches his right shoulder before going back to the seats.

Inui-Kaidou vs Yanagi-Kirihara. This match is very well done, I have no complaints. It could only be better if Ore no senpai and the InuKai songs in general were longer - I love their signing, and their connection as team members and doubles pair comes across so well. Kaidou especially is so cool in this match. One interesting thing I noticed within the three performances was a significant change in the way Kaidou delivers one specific line after he’s accidentally hit Kirihara in the face with a laser. In the first two performances, he said it in a calm and cool way. I thought it was very surprising, but liked it a lot. But then today, it was like his usual tough guy, bark-like style. I wouldn’t be surprised if people gave feedback on that part and it was changed. Anyway, Yanagi and Kirihara are doing a very good job in this match too. Their new song is good!

After some songs it’s time for break. The Shitenhouji gags after it have been funny on all days - they’re selling food and other things to the audience but start talking about other things, for example what they have been doing in Tokyo as tourists. There’s a funny bit about Shitenhouji vs Rikkai matches in last year’s nationals. Also, the new version of Pinch is great.

Fuji vs Niou. First of all, I know not everyone likes Minaki as Fuji, but I love him. This time, I thought his singing was the best yet. The first we hear it is during a new ballad-type song in which he reminisces about Tezuka and their promise. The lyrics are not all directly from the lines in manga, so we’re getting new content here. I’m still trying to figure out the full meaning of one key line, but I think this is something shippers will have reason to be happy about. Looking forward to seeing the kanji lyrics of this. The second song is Closed Eye. I love both Taito and Yata versions so I was a bit worried what would happen with this one, but somehow it gives yet another new and interesting tone for the song, so I love it this time as well. One really interesting thing here is that while Aoki is on the court, a double for Tezuka is clearly seen sitting on the benches. To me he looks great, and indeed surprisingly similar to Aoki. I’m super curious about this second Tezuka! I wish we could get some of him (and Lili’s actor) on the backstage eventually.

Niou is also good in this match. People had been wondering how he would do in the centre of the attention. I watched this part through binoculars on one day, and I’m happy to say he looks to be pretty comfortable! He has great expressions, including a somewhat mischievous/ominous smile that comes through several times through the song. I’m getting really attached to his tone of voice as Niou.

Then, when the match ends, comes my biggest complaint of the whole musical. They have changed the scene where Fuji asks Tezuka for a match. Unlike in the manga and previous musicals, where Fuji walks close to him and they grab each others hands, here Fuji stays in front of the benches while Tezuka stands on the upper stairs. They just say the lines, no touching takes place, and the scene is over. I really hope they will change it back to the real thing if enough people will give them feedback.

After that, the focus shifts to a quiet Yagyuu/Niou moment, and it seems to change slightly daily. I saw a serious one with Yagyuu encouraging and helping Niou get up, a funny one with Yagyuu literally lifting him up, and another funny one with Yagyuu making a silly pose apparently to make Niou laugh. After, they go to the seats in silence, gesture at each other and talk, and some mutual shoulder touching is happening.

Golden Pair vs Jackal/Marui. After the previous match, this one is a bit hard to focus on, but I have no complaints about anything. GP is cute as always, and it’s nice to have a doubles song rather than a Marui song from Rikkai. On the benches, Niou and Yagyuu have something going on that differs slightly daily, but they have been gesturing and talking something through the game, and sometimes also taking part in some dance moves. Seigaku benches are really empty by this point - only Tezuka, Fuji and Kawamura are watching the match.

The rest of the musical is about helping Echizen getting his memories back, and team songs, which, again, are really good and strong.

All in all, this is really a great musical with some of the strongest singing and dancing until now. I’ll be going to see this a couple more time while it’s in Tokyo, and then again in September. Looking forward to see how they will have evolved by then.

[imperfekti]

New Prince of Tennis Monthly Fic Challenge

Following Shinteni and like to write? Join the monthly fic & drabble challenge!

The concept:

Each month, participants will write fics and drabbles related to that month’s Shinteni chapters.

“Related” can mean anything. Whatever you are inspired to write - filling in the blanks of canon, predictions, AU, anything - is fine.

Word count can be as small or big as you like.

The aim is to post the resulting text each month between the dates when new chapters are come out, and before the next ones are published - that is, starting from 4th of each month and latest on 3rd of the following.

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[imperfekti]

Last week I had the chance to make a quick visit to Osaka. I was there for work so the time to do sightseeing was very limited, but I did manage a little bit. Sharing this mostly for the sake of fellow tennis & Shitenhouji (四天宝寺) people.

1st picture: detail at a nice vegan restaurant (link) a few stops away from the main station, walking distance away from Dotonbori.

2-3: Around Osaka castle.

4-5: One of the stations around Shitennouji, along with a random geta wearing mascot.

6-9: Shitennouji (四天王寺)

10: Random street near Shitennouji and the school named after it.

To be honest, my impression of the centre of Osaka wasn’t that memorable - it just seemed quite urban, with not much green or personality. Both me and my Japanese colleague struggled with google maps and the lack of proper signs, and had some trouble finding our way around quickly. We also happened to be there in the lead-up to the G20 Osaka Summit, so it was a bit inconvenient with coin lockers out of use etc. I didn’t even take any pictures of the areas close to the centre.

That said, with local recommendations, we found good places, including a lovely restaurant with a nice bohemian atmosphere. Among the more obvious sightseeing places, Osaka castle was a bit of a mixed experience; the surrounding area is nice with water and trees, and the castle itself is beautiful. However, the inside has been renovated as a museum, and though some of the contents were even tennis relevant (including a story about Sanada Yukimura’s army battling against Echizen soldiers near Shitennouji), it was a bit of a shock compared to other castles where the interior is still remaining.

A few stops away from the castle on the loop train, you can get off at Teradacho and start walking towards Shitennouji temple area. There seem to be a lot of schools around this area, as the streets were full of school boys. Also interesting here and elsewhere in Osaka was how the streets are a lot wider than in many other cities, so it feels spacious everywhere. On the other hand, that made the atmosphere feel a bit less homely compared to some other cities.

The Shitennouji temple area was, however, quite different from its surroundings. As soon as you enter the temple area, you see it’s not just the usual quiet type of temple, as the grounds are full of little flea market style tables and little tents. They had pretty much everything there, including cacti. I can already see Shiraishi showing that to Fuji, or Koharu and Yuuji and the rest of the Shitenhouji crew shopping outfits and props for their gags. In front of one of the temples, I can imagine Chitose skipping class to just watch the turtles stay still in the sun. Of course, there were also spots with a more quiet and spiritual mood, so all in all it was an interesting mix. (My pictures of most of the ain temple buildings are were not so spectacular, so recommending to just google if you want to see what they actually look like.)

I loved the hippie vibe of this area, and as it was bigger than expected, didn’t even have the time to go through everything and find the legendary gate. If anyone is planning go, I recommend going with decent time - 30 minutes is not enough.

Something I haven’t done yet but am planning to is to read more about the history of this area. After visiting, I was told by a local friend that previously the lowest “caste” of Japanese people used to live around here, and this friend of mine was still warned by her parents against going there. She had never been there, but had read it had become nicer in the recent years. To me, it all seemed very safe and normal.

I also made a quick visit to the Dotonbori street to take a picture at Glico since that’s apparently what you do in Osaka. But all the other tourists as well as the locals where there, so the amount of people was just too much and I got out as soon as I could.

In hindsight I wish I had reviewed the Osaka episode before going to try to figure out more places to go to, but that will have to wait for my next chance to visit. But after this very brief trip, I think my overall impression was that I could feel the Shitenhouji mood at the Shitennouji temple, but not so much in the rest of the city. 

[imperfekti]

Cloud Strife & Tifa Lockhart aka. Battle Couple Goals

Final Fantasy VII (1997) // Final Fantasy VII: Remake (2020)

[imperfekti]

Translation: Tezuka & Atobe discussion in Shinteni 267-269

267

Narrator: Before the semifinals, confrontation of ice and blaze…

T: Just what are you here for, Atobe?

A: Aan, practising all alone, Tezuka?

A: Looks like the German bunch is off today?

A: Che, so they’re disregarding Japan, huh?

A: Well, it’ll finally be the semi-finals against Germany (you guys) next.

T: And so you came to spy on the German team’s camp?

A: Stuupid, as if ore-same would do something cheap like that.

A: I’ll borrow this…

A: I’ll be your self-training opponent.

269

A: Here, freeze!

A: Koori no Sekai - those icicles are your weak points!

A: The Tezuka Zone is tiresome already!

T: (The ball’s trajectory returned to the previous..?!)

A: In the match against Germany… There’s a lot of people who want to fight you.

A: Just watch out or you'll fail to become a pro!

T: No matter who I’ll end up fighting… I’ll win!

A: Those words… You’re fighting for your self, aren’t you. I’m looking forward to tomorrow.

Narrator: The inevitable life-or-death struggle - the fated battle draws near.

[imperfekti]

Musical Prince of Tennis 3rd Season - Seigaku vs Shitenhouji