#Mazu answers

[gavinom123]

Mishima x Keiji. I've seen it around a few times ;0

And Hatsugi if you've gotten that far into Cell of Empireo

Keishima

I've really only looked into this one a couple times, but I do enjoy it quite a bit! While I haven't played Mishima's YTTS route yet myself, from what I've heard it provides some really nice moments between the two! I think overall Mishima gets super overlooked, especially when it comes to shipping, so its nice to see him get some love from Keiji! They're quite silly together I like them a lot

Hatsugi

IM SO UNWELL ABOUT HATSUGI YOU DON'T GET IT AUAUUUU THEY MAKE ME SO CRAZYYY

I'm only halfway through DLC, so I haven't gotten to Noriyuki's record yet but I know it's going to be So Joever for me when i get to it its SOOOO JOEVEEEEER

Noriyuki is one of my absolute favorite characters in COE so it almost goes without saying that I'd be obsessed with how he feels about Hajime... It was so interesting to play Hajime's DLC and to have my interepretation of the scene where they die together completely turned on its head... Hajime wasn't even thinking of Noriyuki he was thinking of sticking it to Seodore and I go crazy every time i think about it !! I've been spoiled for his promise to Noriyuki too so it compounds all of it even more..... Promising to live even without Noriyuki but being all too willing to throw all of it away and finally die.... oauauuuuuuu he didnt even REMEMBEEEER

[quiveringdeer]

cyan and sage

Awww thank you babes!!! We shall frolic then relax in a wonderful field!🥰

[mazumikko]

no way are you my long lost twin.. /j

omg twinning!! /j

[boyjumps]

Don't think about problems you don't understand.

There is a Zen term called Maku-mouzou ('Don't be paranoid'). It is a term of the Chinese Tang dynasty Zen monk Fenzhou Wuye (760-821 CE). He was a student of Mazu Daoyi (709-788 CE).

It is said that throughout his life, no matter what anyone asked him, he simply replied: ' Maku-mouzou (Do not be paranoid)'. Delusion is thinking about problems that no matter how much you think about them, you cannot know.

Modern science has solved many mysteries about the universe and about life. So we have unwittingly come to believe that there is nothing that we do not understand. We asume that even mysteries that cannot currently be solved by science will eventually be solved in the near future, when science is more developed. As a result, we came to believe that there is no such thing as a problem that humans can't figure out.

But there are plenty of questions that cannot be answered, no matter how much you think about them. When will the global economy be doomed? No one knows that for sure. Or maybe there is no doom. Or maybe it is already doomed. We know nothing about the future. Only God and Buddha know the future, and humans have no right to know. So, is there an afterlife or is there not? Noone knows.

In other words, the term Maku-mouzou ('don't be paranoid') is a teaching of 'don't think about problems you don't comprehend'.

To know that you don't know what you don't know, that would be zen enlightenment. The zen monk Fenzhou Wuye called it Maku-mouzou ('don't be paranoid').

[ihavezeno]

hi, I'm the one who asked about the zeno dl sequel! thanks for answering :D (even if the answer wasn't what i had hoped for :') zeno....save me zeno....)

these were the tweets that made me ask if there used to be a daily life sequel planned btw!! I'm sending them to ask if you had any idea what it could be about? thanks!

Of course!! I’m happy to help, even if I can’t contribute much lol

FUCKK DUDE THESE GO SO HARD I really hope mazu works on it after L.OD is done.. I’d love to see more of the daily life cast… ESPECIALLY with a fuyu focus I would simply die

[nightlylaments]

SWOT | UPDATE NO. 3

date — 04/14/23 wordcount — 73.5k

so, I've come to terms with the fact that I don't think I'm gonna finish this draft by my deadline in May, but I'm ok with that. It was kinda unrealistic anyways, considering how busy I get during April and May due to school/finals. I have started writing again, so that's good, but I've still been busy. I only have 14 more chapters to write, and like three of them aren't supposed to be long. Also, since I've been procrastinating on writing, I've been thinking of what I want the book cover to look like, so I have an idea of that, and if it comes together the way I want, I think it will look amazing. Anyways hopefully, the next update will be better. For this excerpt, I'm just gonna let you guys read the opening to SWOT because I would really like some feedback on it.

TRIGGERS | n/a

(EXCERPTS + TAG LIST BELOW)

an excerpt from chapter 1

It wasn't strange to see it raining this far out into the autumn season,  yet the dark clouds casting thick shadows over the heights of Furon made me uneasy. It wasn't raining hard yet, just a slight drizzle, but I knew the weather would only get worse.

I sat between my friend's legs as her gentle fingers combed through my tangled hair. We had stayed up late into the wee hours of the night and woke early this morning to finish the style; now, there was only one patch left. I played with my fingers and chewed the dead skin on my lips, trying to sit still, but I couldn't help the antsy feeling that had crept into my bones overnight.

Mazu hummed softly in my ear, but it did nothing to calm me. I sat there for a few more minutes as she finished the last few braids and oiled my scalp. When she finished, I still did not move from my position. I leaned back, resting my head on her thigh.

“Do you think he will come?” I asked, pulling a few of my braids to the front to play with them. The prince had been gone for months fighting a war in the north, and there had been whispers in the manor that he would be returning home soon.

I glanced up at Mazu’s calm face as she took a moment to think, now brushing her shoulder-length dark hair. “When it comes to Prince Sadad, there is no room to assume,” she answered truthfully, rubbing the warm oil behind her own ears. Mazu was the definition of calm, but I had known her long enough to see the worry on her face.

tag list: @my-cursed-prince | @saltwaterbells | @amywrites256 | @wildswrites | @e-klair | @tragicbackstoryenjoyer | @hoerikwaggo-world | @surroundedbypearls

LET ME KNOW IF YOU WANNA BE ADDED TO THE TAG LIST.

[onemindzen]

The question in old dialogues is often posed, “What is Buddha?” Some answers have been “Dried shite on a stick,” or, “The Cypress tree in the courtyard.” These are both fine answers, if you happen to be in a Tang Dynasty latrine, or actually have a Cypress tree and you have a courtyard. Neither of these statements are appropriate for me, as I don’t have that tree, and I’m not in the latrine, and I don’t use a stick. We also say in our Zennie way to “Go drink tea,” or, “Go wash your bowls.” Again, unless I have a kettle on, or just had a bowl of Weetabix, not appropriate (and somewhat passive-aggressive when you get down to it). What does “Go drink tea” mean, when is appropriate, and why sink into using a cliche when more accurate and appropriate words are available? Bodhidharma said Zen is “Directly pointing to the human mind; seeing one's nature and become a Buddha; do not establish words and letters.” 

Words are all we have—what Bodhidharma had, Mazu, Huangbo, Seung Sahn, and myself. The Buddha had 45 years worth of teaching, and they went well beyond the words of Four Truths, and beyond the Flower Sermon for the wordless.When we attach to words we get in trouble, either by taking them literally in some cases, disregarding the ones we don’t like, and not knowing the meaning of them. When we have an aversion to them, using Bodhidharma’s statement about “Not establishing words & letters” as an excuse not to read a Sutra or quotations from the old Masters or not to listen to our teachers and others, we miss literally Millenia of teachings.Huineng and Jinul are both said to have had awakening experiences by reading, so it can’t be al bad. So it’s not the words that are the problem or the hindrance, it’s missing the other lines from Bodhidharma about seeing our True Buddha Nature and becoming buddhas by way of investigating mind.

So again the question pops up, “What is Buddha?” Mazu said “Mind is Buddha.” Huangbo taught, “All Buddhas and all sentient beings are nothing but One Mind, beside which nothing exists….It is that which you see before you—begin to reason about it (create conceptual thinking), and at once you fall into error.” Bodhidharma taught “Everything that appears in the three realms comes from mind.”Zen Master Seung Sahn said, “If you sincerely ask, ‘What am I,’ you will run into a wall where all thinking is cut off. We call this ‘Don’t Know.’” Zen is keeping this ‘Don’t Know’ always and everywhere….’What is this?’ One Mind is infinite kalpas.”One Mind, Zen, Buddha, all are what is in front of you. Right here, right now, what is it? 

When the concepts are gone, and even the words that led to their erasure, just this is it—Mind, Buddha, Zen, everything is it, nothing excluded, nothing rejected.Tell me to go drink tea or to wash my bowls, I’ll hit you with a stick 30 times…wait. No I won’t, but I probably would roll my eyes, mutter to myself under my breath, and sigh. That’s what’s here, right now.Myeong Jin Eunsahn gave the Dharma talk March 6, 2024

[solardee]

Just an Apothecary

Fourteen days, six hours, and 2 minutes.

That’s how long they’d been on this winding road for, painstakingly traveling from the city Dahlia called home. Fifteen days ago, she hadn’t even ridden a horse before let alone owned one! Still, the things one will do for family; Dahlia had hardly hesitated when word had come by that her younger sibling Mazus had been snatched up by a dragon with a penchant for demanding gold in exchange for loved ones.

Her… traveling companion was quiet, dressed in dark black clothes and armor that resembled scales in a rich violet color. A stock villain character in those heroic poems that her sibling adored so much, with the large broadsword to match. She hadn’t trusted him for a moment when he appeared on her doorstep in the midst of her frantic packing, offering his help.

“I was nearby when he was snatched. I can show you where he was taken,” he had told her, standing in her doorway.

How he knew who she was in relation to the random snatched teen he saw when he was clearly a foreigner was a question the other had avoided. That being said, Dahlia was no warrior, had no fighting experience, and certainly did not know where one began in hunting down a dragon.

So here she was, traveling miles away from her home, a stranger at her side with little more than a hunting knife as a means for her own protection.

“You know, you hardly needed to bring your entire Apothecary with you for a month long trek in the mountains,” her companion drawled besides her, hardly a stupid purple hair out of place despite the miles long hike in heavy armor.

“I am a healer,” she huffed in response, slightly out of breath, “you certainly will thank me should you decide to bite off more than you can chew, Darcy.” 

Oh, her Apothecary, how she already missed it dearly. She had never been one for great adventures, grand reveals, or large events. The quiet peace of the countryside and her shop were plenty of hustle and bustle for her thank you! However, her dear sibling heavily disagreed. Maybe they would see eye to eye a bit more after their terrorizing affair with that winged beast…

“There isn’t much that could get past me, mage,” Darcy responded, lazily waving his hand as their horses trotted along.

“Did you, or did you not get stabbed just a mere fortnight ago?”

“I was not stabbed, it was a mere flesh wound!”

“And yet you almost bled out in the dirt,” Dahlia ended huffily, “if the wound were so small, I don’t see why it would require such heavy amounts of regeneration magic.”

Darcy did not answer, his face souring under the shadow of his hood. Dahlia took a little satisfaction in wiping the semi-permanent smug grin off his face.

“Well,” he spoke after a few beats of silence, gathering his wit, “I highly doubt you would be much better. You went heralding off to face a dragon with a simple kitchen knife!”

Dahlia straightened her aching back as she turned her determined gaze at the other, “I am an Apothecary, not a coward.”

[fox-teeth]

It's one of the subtler themes of the comic but I hope it comes across is that "The Maker of Grave-Goods" is very much a comic about never having had a choice in who you were going to be.

It's intended for an audience of artists and people familiar with artists. I think a lot of us artists believe in our own cultures' versions of Mazu's astrology--something like we picked up a crayon as children and discovered our true passion and purpose, or we were blessed with innate talent.

This becomes more complicated when you look at the high percentage of disabled and chronically ill artists, who see arts self-employment--with all its instability and low pay--as their best or only chance to have a career that accommodates them. (I am convinced people outside the arts don't realize this phenomenon exists).

I personally have a life-disrupting chronic illness. Mazu is not me, but her illness is partially inspired by mine, and it went from a background element in the original 2020 outline to the fulcrum of her emotional journey after an emotionally shredding expereince where I walked away from a normal job that was making me physically miserable earlier this year.

Mazu is a true believer in her culture and her role within it as an artist. I think most of us artists, even if we have our criticisms, feel the same way. But did Mazu ever have a choice? Did most of us artists ever have a choice? Should we have? These are some of the final questions this comic asks, but does not answer.

It's Worldbuilding Week! All this week I am sharing worldbuilding notes and sketches for my sci-fi comic "The Maker of Grave-Goods" available October '24 through @shortboxcomicsfair

For the third entry, we're learning about Mazu's people's names and how they are related to divinatory practices.

[quiveringdeer]

I haven’t been on in a while simple due to lack of inspiration but I was watching Ghost Stories and never realised how similar the dad looks to Bertholdt

Like this???? This is just dilf Bertholdt

MAZU!!!!!!! First off, Hiiiiiii -sending you all the hugs and love!-

And second, you right. That does look like Bertie. And like Bertie and Nanamin had a lovechild, cause of them glasses and cheekbones lol

[mazuwii]

For your request thing, I’m thinking something with Porco that follows the story line x reader when in Marley (around like part one of season 4) because people always write Porco in AUs and I think we should have more in aot universe kind of story? (Sorry if this doesn’t make sense I’m pretty high right now. Tbh I’m happy with any story with a Porco x reader would just like some almost canon adjescent storyline

I get it, I don’t see it too often either and I don’t usually write in canon verse so once again apologies if the chapter comes out funky.

You weren’t usually this impatient. You’re friends would describe you as the calm one of the warriors. The one who would help out with a smile no matter how hard times get.

Yet at the moment, you were completely out of character, begging and pacing by the door of the medical room in which Porco was in. During the battles amongst millions, he got badly injured and it was taking a while for his healing to fix all his wounds.

“Ma’am, he needs to rest”-

“Can I just see him? I promise I won’t do anything- I just need to see him…”

At the sound of high boots clicking against the dusty hospital floor, you turned around to find Pieck limping towards you with a smile. “Hey, it’s fine, just let her in.” She reassured the nurse whom gave you a reluctant look.

Under Pieck’s kind and motherly gaze, she nodded silently, opening the door. You turned to her and held her hand in gratitude. “Thanks Pieck, really.”

“No problem, take it easy though, won’t you?”

“Of course!” You bowed to her and rushed inside the dark room. It was a foggy day today and it started to unexpectedly rain around the afternoon, so you were a bit dank from it all.

The door shut behind you, leaving only you and the unconscious man limp against the bed. He had stopped healing, his skin gone back to the smooth tan that you fell in love with. You sighed and sat on the edge of the bed, hunching your back in exhaustion. It took forever for them to let you in, and now that you’ve seen him you could rest.

His motionless hand was by his hip, inviting you to hold it. Upon wrapping your smaller hands around his, you realised how cold it was. So you sandwiched it between your two palms and massaged it, hoping to warm him up at least a little.

Due to the sudden warmth and movement, his eyes weakly fluttered open, his emerald eyes rolling to your leaning figure, his eyebrows softening as you rubbed at his knuckles.

The tingles you were giving him had overwhelmed him to the point he closed his eyes again, his worries coming out in a full exhale. “You’re awake?” You whispered, nudging closer towards him.

He hummed and worked up a smile for you. His eyes were softer during these moments, not having to keep his guard up. “Come here.” Hehuskily mumbled.

“I can’t. You’ve just woken up- what if I trigger something?”

“Shut up…” he grunted and propped himself up against the headboard, you pestered him to lay back down but he refused, saying nothing but opening his arms up. “Come on.” He twitched his fingers as a motion to say, hurry up.

You did so anyway, gently resting against him. “It’s bullshit.” You said, “Why do the people have to suffer for the shit the government does?” Porco only sighed as you continued on your words of hatred, his fingers threading through your hair.

“I hate this world.”

“I do too.” He kissed your head. “But I’m sure it’ll be fine if we focus on the present.”

“That’s the issue, they only focus on the past and the future.” You sniffled. Porco couldn’t really say or do anything. You were right. And until someone powerful steps in, this cycle of war would only continue and claim the lives of those who had dreams and plans to live.

[journeytothewestresearch]

@digitalagepulao I'm not Buddhist, but it does bother me when I see religious idols being desecrated. For example, I'm still not over the Taliban destruction of the Bamiyan Buddhas. However, I think that is sort of the point with Six Ears. His prideful need to take the place of the pilgrims just to win glory for himself is a subversion of Buddhism.

Also, I understand that idols go against the idea of impermanence. That's why I always have this riddle in the back of my mind:

I have a statue of Buddha, which nobody knows; He needs no molding or carving; Nor does he have any clay or color; No human can draw him; no thief can steal him; His appearance is originally natural, And his clarity and purity are not the result of cleaning; Though only one body, He is capable of transforming himself into myriad forms (Liu, 1994, p. 22) 我有一軀佛，世人皆不識， 不塑亦不裝，不雕亦不刻， 無一滴灰泥，無一點彩色， 人畫畫不成，賊偷偷不得。 體相本自然，清靜非拂拭， 雖然是一軀，分身千百億。

The answer is: “The Mind is none other than the Buddha” (ji xin ji fo, 即心即佛), a common Chan Buddhist expression associated with the Tang-era master Mazu Daoyi (馬祖道, 709–788) (Liu, 1994, p. 22). This is essentially saying that idols are not necessary because the Buddha is always in your heart-mind.

The riddle is used to open Later Journey to the West (Hou Xiyouji, 後西遊記), an anonymous 17th-century sequel to Journey to the West. 

Source:

Liu, X. (1994). The Odyssey of the Buddhist Mind: The Allegory of the Later Journey to the West. Lanham, Md: University Press of America.

not sure how many Buddhists i have on my follower count, but might as well give it a shot!

i'm working on my Six-Eared Macaque design, and I want him to be a comment of appropriation of aesthetics of Eastern beliefs (Hinduism, Buddhism, Daoism) without due respect or true understanding of said symbols and rituals. think tiktok and instagram yoga, the use of karma and chakras in New Age spiritualism, etc.

one of the ways i wanna show that in his concept is him wearing a necklace or belt of broken off Buddha heads, which is tied to colonialism and orientalism. but i also don't want to be offensive or inappropriate myself for the sake of a character.

reblogs are appreciated for bigger sample size! <3

[stcrdancer]

Me: I love the goddess. Jeanne: I love and want to break her. Me: STOP.

“You wouldn’t be disturbing me- I always come when people call for my help!”No- no that’s the wrong kind of break- 

[miss-steelmind]

“before I abandon the words that form noise in my head,

will you be so kind as to join me in dream-seeing?”

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info:

❥ since this is mainly a yttd blog, i don't tag spoilers for that game and i recommend not interacting until you've finished all the currently avaliable chapters. it's a game that's truly worth playing on your own, so make sure to do that before scrolling any further!

❥ if anything i say that can be misinterpreted due to poor wording please let me know! it's also completely okay (and encouraged) to correct my spelling or grammar mistakes, i'd like to improve my english and feedback is always appreciated<3

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❥ i curse quite a lot, so please watch out if you're not comfortable with that!

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games i'm into lately:

❥ witch's heart by IZ

❥ hello charlotte by etherane

❥ tomorrow won't come for those without [ ] by etherane

❥ your turn to die by nankidai

❥ omori by omocat

❥ zeno (remake) by umami mazu

❥ shtdn by umami mazu

❥ therapy with dr. albert krueger by dino999z

❥ vincent: the secret of myers by dino999z

^ feel free to recommend me stuff!! i'm not great at starting new games but if something catches my attention i'll get into it sooner or later :]

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my tags:

❥ original yttd posts -> #nine's turn to die

❥ original witch's heart posts -> #nine's wish

❥ asks -> #ask

❥ fanart i think is cool: -> #fanart rb

❥ other -> #personal stuff

i try to tag common triggers, if you need anything specfic tagged please reach out to me in dms or send an ask<3

spoilers are tagged as "[fandom name] spoilers", except for yttd which i don't tag unless talking about a recent update! (note: i usually use the entire name of the game in the tag, not just an abbreviation. but if it's really long (dino999z's games + tomorrow won't come for those without) i'll shorten them (twdak, vtsom, twcftw). also, i tag zeno spoilers as "zeno remake spoilers"!)

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about me:

call me nine or charlotte <3 i go by any pronouns, with a slight preference for she/they

i'm an autistic teenager that enjoys character-driven rpgmaker games, disturbing visual novels, looking at cool art and getting lost in surrealistic worlds. ask about my special interests if you want me to fall in love with you

my personal is @porszem, that's where i reblog non-fandom stuff, ramble about my life and overshare at night. i love making new friends, so please feel free to private message me or ask for my discord if you'd like to get to know me, talk about a mutual interest or just ramble to someone, i'd love to listen <3

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thank you for reading and i hope you have a nice day ♡

[tananansad]

"genuinely curious how this works, can you explain this to me?"

@doublecast-bayoen asked on Twitter but I wasn't gonna bombard him with a thread in replies so I'll answer it here instead!

But first, a quick cultural lesson on the Malayosphere: the non-pidginized Malay languages tend to have subtle registers (they're not as prominent as other languages in the region such as Javanese or Balinese) which shows itself mainly through pronouns. A good amount of pronouns are still common while others are pretty much obsolete beyond certain circumstances (i.e. a royal ceremony). I should also probably add that my HC would mainly resonate with Malayophones from Malaysia and Singapore ^w^

Now that's out of the way; the pronouns are formatted in the manner of their equivalents to I/you (singular) in English. Let's start with Mr. Tiger.

Linhu

In my headcanon (and in my snail-paced one-man translation project of Nekojishi), Linhu invariably uses aku/kau. This set can be used when you're talking to someone of equal (e.g. friends) or inferior (e.g. your employee) status. And since he is is pretty much superior to all of our main cast (cf. Liao his "child", Leopard Cat the yaoguai and Likulau the spirit), there's no reason for him to use anything else around them.

One exception is if he had lines where he explicitly talks to Goddess Mazu, (which he doesn't but) in which case he would use a deferent patik/tuanku common in royal speech, assuming traditional Chinese religion puts an emphasis on higher deities being akin to divine royalty. Next, let's talk about best boy...

Likulau

(do not @ me over this.) Like Linhu, Likulau invariably sticks to one set of first- and second-person singular pronouns, but this time, it's mainly because the way he uses Mandarin in the OG script implies he is an non-native speaker. His use of saya/kamu would remind a native speaker of the language you'd usually find in a beginner's textbook. To me, the use of kamu tries to avoid implying any level of social rank and intimacy (kau implies the speaker's superiority and awak implies intimacy, not really a visual thing for the stoic leopard), perfect for Likulau's way of speech!

Isn't he the cutest?!

We now move on to a slightly more complex case...

The Protag

[Artistic depiction of furry Liao from here!]

Unfortunately for Liao, he's pretty much just a college kid who got entangled in the midst of divine business. As someone who was pretty much a nobody up to the start of the novel, he mainly uses a more respectful but friendly saya/awak with the other cats. However, he has his moments of lamentation where he would use the more casual aku/kau. Oh, and he also refers to himself as aku or more precisely, ku in his monologues, reflecting the pronoun used in first-person POVs in line with the traditions of Malay fictional literature. :3

Last but not least...

Yan Shu-chi

(I have conflicted feelings about this creature.)

Shu-chi's middle position socially within the quartet (being spiritually lower than Guardian Tiger but above Liao academically) and his frank expressions lends to him having to freely choose between aku/kau and saya/awak. While his outgoing nature in the story dictates that he mostly uses the former, I can imagine him teasing Liao with the latter.

What a sly being.

And that's pretty much it!

nekojishi malay pronouns hc

is this fandom even alive anymore

[danganronpasurvivoraskblog]

Fukkireta.

Did you do it?

Yes, of course my lady...

Good work. I look forward to seeing how Ouma deals with this...

*From their high rise seat, Misako and Misuzu look at Kokichi frantically speaking to his band.

Ok, so this is the song that you’re gonna be playing now. A few things came up and we’re gonna have to work it out. Think you can pull it off?

Hanako: We sure can but...sir, what kind of song is this?

The hell if I know. Kurafto said that I should follow his plan and everything will turn out fine.

Also, he highly advised you that asking questions about it may not favor good results, so maybe just play for now, and he’ll answer whatever after the performance is done.

Hanako: Well, that is what we’re here for. Alright gang, let’s get to it!

*Hanako assembles the band together as Kokichi rejoins Iroha and the others in the audience.

I really hope Kuripa knows what he’s doing.

I have a few ideas as to what he’s plotting but...none of them are especially good ones...

Hm?

*Suddenly the lights dim and the spotlights shine down upon the stage.

It’s *cough!* ready!

*Kana hurries to join the others.

Kana, what’s going-

...Huh!?

*Iroha is cut off as suddenly someone runs onto the stage.

Th-That’s-!

Good EEEEVENING everyone!

Wha-

Wha-

WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAATTTTT!?!?!

*Kuripa rushes out on stage decked in makeup and a long sleeved dress, complete with hair extensions and blush.

That-! Is that Kurafto!?

Woah...this was unexpected.

Wh-What the actual hell is this...!?

What does he think he’s playing at? There’s no way this will work!

*Regardless of the audience complains, the band starts playing. Kuripa starts shaking his hips. The audience applaud him, none the wiser to the truth of the situation.

♩ itsudemo I love you. kimi ni Take kiss me! wasurerarenai kara boku no daiji na memorii! dorayaki wa shushoku ni narenai! naraba uwagaki shichaeba boku no omoidoori! ♩

*Couples with his unnaturally high pitched vocals, Kuripa starts doing a hyperactive dance routine as the band unknowingly plays Kasane Teto’s Mischievous Function.

♩ zutto soba de miteru yo bakkuappu wa makasete! hidari kara migi e to dekigoto ga acchi kocchi docchi! kimi wa koko ni iru no? baasudei mada saki desho? ii kagen ni koyubi kara mienai ito shuchou shinai! ♩

I-I’m honestly speechless. Is he insane or something!?

Insane or not, look! It’s working!

Huh?!

*Ryota nods towards the front of the audience. While at first confused as to the truth of the situation, a few people have now started nodding their heads to the beat or drumming their tables.

♩ kawaita shinzou no oto awai uwagoto shaku ni sawaru nante ki ni shiteru kara ni kimatten jan soredemo shinjite shiawase ni naru you ni reigi tadashiku mazu wa sasai na aisatsu toko kara Are you ready? ♩

♩ itsudemo I love you. kimi ni Take kiss me. wasurerarenai kara boku no daiji na memorii! dorayaki wa shushoku ni narenai! naraba uwagaki shichaeba boku no omoidoori yume kara pipipi samenaide samenaideeeee! nukumori nigenaide mada asa wa tappuri aru kara ato gofun iya juppun matasete! ♩

I honestly can’t believe this is working.

If anyone here finds out that’s a dude on stage, this comes crashing down.

Mr Ouma, are you head bobbing?

Why not?! He’s rocking it up there!

That is true...*cough!*

♩ hyakunengo tsuzuku nara yakusoku asshuku shite machigatta meeru kara kanchigai no tekipakiteki sutoroo no kuwaekata sukoshi wa chigau desho? miteminufuri sareta sekai ga bakuhatsu shichau!! choushi ni noridasu demo sugu ni hekomidasu karei na bousou dare ga tomete kuremasu ka beibee butsukareba mata atarashii chishiki hakkutsu demo chikara tsukite shimaeba soko made ♩

♩ OH! ♩

♩ MY! ♩

♩ GAWD! ♩

♩ itsudemo I love you. kimi ni Take kiss me. ohoshisama ni negaigoto kanaete kuremasu ka chikyuu no uragawa made boku o hakonde ichiban kirei na hana o sagashi ni ikun da mada kimi no atsui omoi wa omoi wa hoho ni tsutau namida shizuku wa mune ni tsutsunde todokeru yo sora ni ♩

C’MON KURIPA! YOU GOT THIS!

*The instrumental breaks out as s Iroha cheers, and now most of the audience by now are on their feet and clapping to the beat.

...

I see...so this is your answer?

Miss Rokuhana?

...

I shall wait until all is said and done...but it’s apparent to me now...

For someone to throw aside their shame to save their friends...I get it now...

!!!!

*Kuripa breaks out into pretend air guitar on stage as the guitarist breaks out into a riff of their own.

!!!

!!!

!!!

!!!

!!!

!!!

♩ itsudemo I love you. kimi ni Take kiss me.! ohoshisama ni negaigoto kanaete kuremasu ka! chikyuu no uragawa made boku o hakonde! ichiban kirei na hana o sagashi ni ikun da! mada kimi no atsui omoi wa omoi wa hoho ni tsutau namida! shizuku wa mune ni tsutsunde todokeru yo sora ni! itsudemo I love you. kimi ni Take kiss me.! wasurerarenai kara boku no daiji na memorii! dorayaki wa shushoku ni narenai! naraba uwagaki shichaeba boku no omoidoori! yume kara pipipi samenaide samenaide! nukumori nigenaide mada asa wa! tappuri aru kara ato gofun iya juppun matasete! ♩

*As the song ends, Kuripa struts backwards, and does a hell turn for dramatic effect as the final note is hit. The audience erupts into cheers.

WOOOOHOOO!

Yeah! Go get ‘em!

Hey, guys, look!]

Huh?

*Ryota suddenly points to the high rise seats.

...!

...

*Misako and Misuzu are on their feet and providing a heavy applause.

*pant* *pant* *pant*

*Kuripa pants with exhaustion, gives a cheeky wave, and skips backstage.