#korosuu

[fumiko-matsubara]

Speaking of Hinatsu,

Here's a picture from last year of the very first time I drew her and decided on her colour palette 🧡💜

[nagisasstunningpersonality]

Korosuu Translation - Chapter Five

More parts here

Shopping District Time

At any rate, why the shopping district? It wasn’t a bad place to target Korosensei. Korosensei’s five senses were all terrifyingly sharp, but his sense of sight and smell were especially outstanding. Inside, his sense of sight was largely obscured thanks to the crowds of people, and with regards to his sense of smell, he would likely be dazzled by the scent of food that flooded the shopping district in the evening.

There were many obstacles in the narrow shopping arcade, so it was the ideal environment to make use of ricochets.

When they rushed out of breath into the shopping district, they saw an unusually large crowd. Many vans with food stalls were parked in the already narrow pedestrian zone, and the scent of crepes and coffee filled the air.

“Hey, what’s that strong smell?” Hayami muttered like a groan whilst pinching her nose. An intense stench was wafting from somewhere.

“Pork belly ramen. It’s said the authentic ones are simmered, so it can be tough if you don’t get used to it.” Chiba answered with a frown. “I guess there’s a stall somewhere. It’s the first time I’ve smelled something like this in the shopping street.”

Chiba surveyed their surroundings. And, at the same time, he heard a familiar voice.

“Oh, how exciting!”

Hearing that slimy mucus-filed voice, the two reflexively hid themselves in a nearby alleyway.

Just a few metres away, Korosensei was standing in disguise. The product exhibition was booming, and a small line near the entrance was being formed. Korosensei was lined up at the very back.

“Certainly, I never thought I’d be able to enjoy these manju buns right here in Kunugigaoka. They’re good no matter how many I eat!” There was a two metre radius left around the suspicious person who stood two heads taller than the other customers and didn’t even attempt to hide the grin on his face as he narrated to himself. “…I’m grateful for the pork belly ramen. They definitely would have found me without that stench.”

The two students quickly left their hiding place and started to walk down the street pretending to be shopping.

So that they could assassinate Korosensei anywhere, the students of 3E had secretly researched the areas surrounding the school. The shops are naturally also one of them, and so checks of buildings that have been vacant for a long time and general floor plans had been converted digitally with the help of Ritsu.

Chiba and Hayami pulled up the blueprints on his smartphone and compared it with their surroundings. They’d kept the data up to date, but it wasn’t perfect. Since the events within the shopping district change day by day, in such cases, they were unable to do an advance check.

“Hey, where’s that sniper? He’s already lurking somewhere.”

“Probably. Karasuma Sensei said that, so I’m sure the preparations are already complete. But, maybe it’s still okay.”

Hayami tilted her head at Chiba’s words. “How come?”

“If you’re aiming at Korosensei, the best time is right now he’s standing in line, right? Yet, nothing has happened yet.”

“I see.”

“Is this a place even the legendary sniper can’t aim at, or maybe there’s some other reason…? Either way, we still need time to prepare. Let’s hurry.”

Right then, Chiba noticed the wall of the old wooden building slightly ahead of them had a dreamy sheen.

“What’s this?”

When he tried touching it, the surface was hard and flat. It seemed like an acrylic board, but rather than affixing something like that, it stuck firmly to the wall more like it was smeared with some sort of liquid substance that solidified. They found these walls all around the building. This kind of measure had been routinely applied to the uneven walls and areas that seemed weak.

“Come to think of it, there are less billboards, right?” Hayami murmured whilst comparing the phone with their surroundings.

Many of the billboards and small decorations attached to the walls and streetlamps were missing from the area. There were not even screw holes left from where the billboard was originally attached, and it looked like the surface had been smoothed and repainted.

“It looks like they’re trying to make the wall as flat as possible. They’re certainly here, close by.”

That evidence was concentrated in the centre of the arcade street. In other words, the legendary sniper had chosen the place for his assassination.

“If that’s the case, it’s definitely difficult to aim for Korosensei in his current position. The Korosensei BB bullets are light, so they won’t reach very far.”

The line for the exhibition was more than 30 metres away from the ricochet location. It would be sufficient if shooting normally, but it was better to think of the distance as being more than double that if you wanted a ricochet shot to reach it.

[illustration] Kunugigaoka shopping street in the evening. Even though it’s a weekday, there are many people and many stalls are open.

“But with such meticulous preparation, why would they choose a place where Korosensei’s so far away?”

Chiba replied after thinking for a moment. “They didn’t expect the monster who exploded the moon into a cresent to be waiting in line at an exhibition?” After he said it, Chiba’s mind turned back to what Karasuma had said during the lunch break. “Is it highly unlikely that someone who doesn’t know Korosensei well enough would be able to assassinate him?”

Hayami nodded. “Right.”

Not long after, the two of them took up their positions on the second floor of the ruined dining hall. The building was facing across from where the legendary sniper had chosen for their assassination. Korosensei couldn’t be shot from there as he lined up for the exhibition. They could see him, but it was too far away.

Despite that, the two of them chose that place because there was no building that could be used for sniping within range of Korosensei, and they based it on their judgment that the place set up for ricocheting was more reliable. It still wasn’t an easy task to fire bullets as they desired downtown. Unlike in the classroom, there were an overwhelming amount of walls that would cause the bullet to bounce against their calculations in the wind.  The legendary sniper who had many successes in these conditions was certainly not a normal person.

As soon as Chiba entered the room facing the street, he spread his graph paper out on the table and made a sketch using his drafting tools. It was supposed to be a very precise drawing, but Chiba finished it in a few minutes, including the mirrored copy.

[Illustration] The store across from the abandoned dining hall where Chiba and Hayami are. There are several walls with different depths like this in the store. In reality, it’s necessary to use an elevated floorplan which actually fits the depths of the walls.

[Ground view] A view of the building from above. Multiple lines indicate the depth of each wall. Although it is actually more detailed, irregularities such as window frames are ignored.

[Elevated view] A view of the building from the side. Similar to the floor plan, multiple lines are drawn according to the depth of the wall.

In the meantime, Hayami got the air rifle she’d brought into position, and installed the rangefinder to measure the position of the target.

[Illustration] Using the floor plan of the building and actually aiming. In this way, the position of the limit of the reflection changes depending on which wall is used, so it is necessary to draw multiple target positions.

“What about Korosensei?”

Hayami, who was peering into the rangefinder, looked back at Chiba who had finished drawing. “Right now, he’s coming out of the exhibition. But it doesn’t look like he’s coming straight this way.”

When Chiba took the place of Hayami and looked into the scope, Korosensei was staggering down the street, and he couldn’t determine his direction.

“Nyuyaa… I want to eat that, and that too, but there’s not enough in my wallet… I have to choose carefully… No, but I can’t leave it out…”

Apparently the smells coming from the food stalls lining the street had drawn him in, and he’d lost control of his direction.

“The legendary sniper must be pretty irritated,” Chiba muttered with a wry smile.

Bang.

Sensing a strong impact nearby, Chiba jumped up.

“What?” Hayami, who was away from the window, called out.

“There was a shot… I think.”

At Chiba’s words, Hayami handed over a small mirror meant for makeup. Chiba took it and looked out of the window whilst hiding his body. He could see a thin layer of smoke around the window frame. It was probably a live bullet that was shot.

 At the same time, Chiba’s phone started to vibrate. The display showed ‘withheld number incoming’.

When he answered, a monotonous voice reverberated. “I told the person in charge that I should not be disturbed. Didn’t he tell you?”

Chiba pulled the phone away from his ear and turned the speaker on.

Hayami signalled a nod.

“I had no intention of interfering with you at all, so it’s no problem for you to shoot first. However, it’s normal for us in class 3E to aim whenever there’s a chance.”

“Okay.” There was a clear hint of frustration in his voice when he answered. “Get out of there and go straight home. You students are just a hinderance. Harming children isn’t a hobby, but excuse the warning if you stay here."

The call hung up.

[zanadux]

Assassination Classroom 10th year anniversary, some thoughts and speculation.

This post is not official info (as there isn't any more at the moment), this is just my thoughts + speculation. If anyone wants to speculate or theorize, now it's the time. For those who are wondering "Will X (my favourite character) show up?" the answer is yes. AssClass has never really "excluded" characters in any of their media. Sure, some have far more prominence (Nagisa, Karma, Kayano) than others, but that's just obvious given that they are the protagonist/narrator + the two deuteragonists. Your favourite character will certainly show up at some point. If the question is instead "Will X (my favorite character) be relevant?" then, the answer is very dependent on which character you're referring to. Karma, Nagisa, Kayano, Irina, Karasuma and of course, Korosensei (unless it's a time skip, then no Korosensei sans flashbacks) have a very high chance of being featured due to being crucial to large parts of the plot and overall (except Kayano, who while not unpopular and well liked, is nowhere near the other 5 in terms of popularity), are very popular characters and thus the audience really wants to see them. For the rest of the cast, it really depends on a lot of factors. Even back in merch runs and non-manga events during AssClass run (like the gacha game, light novels, etc.), characters that had popular ships or were part of one, such as Okuda or Hayami and Chiba, featured from time to time more prominently than their roles in-series would suggest. Both snipers got main roles in the Korosuu novel, and you're bound to see Okuda being relevant or mentioned in anything that features Karma post/non manga. The only exceptions to the norm were Isogai and Gakushuu , who have been featured in merch and were also relevant in the Korotan light-novels, being main characters in their respective ones, and Kurahashi, who popped up in some events (gacha game, novels, etc.) from time to time due to being an individually popular character during the early-middle run of the manga. The rest don't really feature much and it would be surprising if they did much. It's kind of inevitable, given that the series has 31 regular characters in its cast.

[lindygale]

Idk if this is just a gag, but there’s no way that these two - Chiba and Hayami - would be the type to reply to a text message one day later. Sure, they can be the sort who don’t use their phones for socializing and entertainment, but that that doesn’t mean that they would be negligent when it comes to receiving messages especially if it could be important. 

First of all, Chiba and Hayami are actually conscious of what other people think. They let others in their previous class to push them over to do homework and other tasks for them. Also, Chiba grew out his bangs just to hide his eyes that make other people uncomfortable. That means that they wouldn’t be too crude so as  to not reply quickly to anyone’s message particularly if it’s from their classmate or their PARTNER. 

I would understand if this is just part of a gag although, for me, it’s a poor set-up for this Korosuu comics. A different argument could’ve been used to counter Maehara’s assumption of them dating, while still retaining the comedic aspect of the story. 

[blazardragon]

The Mini-Comic at the End of Korosuu

I didn’t have enough time to start translating Korosuu over Winter Break, but I do have the book now, and I figured I’d at least translate the mini-comic on the back!

Please note that since this is a book for teaching English, you’re meant to read the pages from left to right, even though this is a manga! The reason is that Korosuu is related to the Korotan series of books, which were made to teach the reader English. Korosuu itself is meant to teach Mathematics, though.

Also, since the text may difficult to see depending on where you’re viewing this, I have the translation typed out below:

Page 1:

Korosensei: Congratulations on making it through the test!

Korosensei: Through Chiba-kun’s and Hayami-san’s sniping… do you now understand the value of mathematical and logical thinking??

[The label on Korosensei’s apple: Gravitational attraction]

Maehara: Speaking of logical thinking…

Hayami: This gives you a wider range of vision than a normal scope.

Chiba: Really? Show me.

Maehara:  Those two…

Maehara: Are definitely fishy!

Chiba: Woah~

Hayami: Right?

Megu: Again with your trashy suspicions

Maehara: But it’s true!!

Maehara: One - They’re always together at school!!

Page 2:

Maehara: Two – They do special firearms training together – just the two of them!!

Maehara: Three – No matter what they do, they have some kind of telepathy between them!!

Hayami: Rice.

Chiba: OK.

Hayami: Yum

Hayami: Side dish.

Chiba: OK.

Hayami: Yum.

Maehara: Four – If one is lacking in any way, the other makes up for it!  When a boy and a girl satisfy these conditions, they will…

Hayami: Teach me.

Chiba: Me, too.

[Label on Hayami’s book: Mathematics]

[Label on Chiba’s book: Contemporary Writings]

Ritsu: Counterpoints:

Ritsu: One – Their way to school is completely different.

Ritsu: Two – Their talks on the phone are almost always about assassination or studying.

Ritsu: Three – Their response time to each other’s text messages is one day later.

Ritsu: Four – There are no measurable changes in their heartbeat and body temperature when they are alone together.

Maehara: I don’t get it… the answer between boys and girls can’t be solved with logic.

Chiba: See you tomorrow.

Hayami: Yeah.

 ----

I like how Hayami is asking Chiba to teach her Math, which is Chiba’s favorite subject, and how Chiba is asking her to teach him Contemporary Writing, which is Hayami’s favorite subject ^__^

All I can say when I see the top-right panel on the second page is “Why?”. I need context for why they are doing this.

I’d hate to have a crush on anyone with Ritsu around… The ability to read body temperature is too OP. At least she’d probably keep it to herself.

[ao3feed-assassin-class]

Korosuu - English Translation

Korosuu - English Translation by livixbobbiex

A translation of the short story found in the Korosuu maths book (originally Japanese). Canon content.

Chiba and Hayami use maths to help them use clever angles to snipe Korosensei.

Words: 1265, Chapters: 1/6, Language: English

Fandoms: Assassination Classroom

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Categories: Gen

Characters: Chiba Ryuunosuke, Hayami Rinka, Korosensei, Class 3-E

Relationships: Chiba Ryuunosuke/Hayami Rinka

Additional Tags: Translation, Huge sniper content, Lots and lots of math diagrams, Chibahayami is very ship coded in this but it's not explicitly romantic

Read Here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/40795971

[fumiko-matsubara]

I only know pain :')

Haven't y'all wondered where tf most of my Chiba headcanons inspired from??

Yes, from the manga, korotan, and korosuu. The moment I picked out and saved his colour palette, I have completely ignored and erased anime Chiba's existence from my mind, because what Lerche did to him HURTS😭😭

here’s my controversial statement for today

[fumiko-matsubara]

ok this is gonna sound crazy but do you have the panel/chapter/anything of hinatsu kaiga because me and my friends are going insane over who she is right now and im getting desperate... :(

Uhh...

She appreared in chapter 2 of the Korosuu novel, which makes her canon since the novel took place in between canon events of the main series.

She had speaking lines, mentioned a couple times, and you could see her in the background with Maehara in the official art.

...she didn't have a name though. She's a background character 😩 I gave her a name (Hinatsu Kaiga) because I was invested at the idea of her possibly knowing Kanzaki 👀

Especially since I remembered this bit!

That last summer in Tokyo, she apparently always goes out with a woman that Ryuki (the high school delinquent) knew.

Hinatsu lives in Shibuya, got Maehara to take her out on a date at a game center/arcade, and expressed disappointment when Kanzaki had to turn down her invitation to play games together at her home building (to a point that she was still looking at her while walking away).

At that realization, my brain was telling me nothing else but "That HAS to be her, right? Hinatsu has got to be the woman that Kanzaki always goes out with all throughout summer last year, RIGHT??"

Kanzaki has most definitely had gone to Shibuya during her rebellion because she is not stupid enough to let loose at an arcade in Kunugigaoka town where people there could put two and two together if they saw her, when her main point was to completely get away from a tightly controlled life forced onto her.

Hinatsu's from a yakuza family. Her father was the boss who was recently assassinated by the hired sniper assassin who later made an appearance in the novel (and by 'recently assassinated', the novel pertains to the previous year). Hinatsu might have gone astray in the midst of her grief within that period, and likely had met a lot of people along the way, good and bad.

Maybe that's how she met Kanzaki. Maybe that's how she knew Ryuki.

Anyways, I'm very invested in the idea of two girls finding each other during the lowest points of their lives 🩷🧡

[fumiko-matsubara]

Korosuu English Translation - Chapter 6: Sniper Time

Previous Chapter: Shopping District Time

Note: Although this was directly translated from Japanese -> English, I didn't write it word for word, and instead went with variants that flow better in the English language for a much easier reading experience. Raw scans were provided by the amazing @blazardragon, so a big thank you to them!

Along with Chapter 5, I actually finished translating this last year's summer. The initial plan was to wait for Nao to finish translating Chapters 3 and 4 before I post mine.

This is the chapter that birthed the joke that is Evil Enabler Chiba because... he is such a MENACE here, oh lord. Right up there with Karma provoking Grip at the hotel raid arc 😭

"Well sorry for the warning…"

After muttering that under his breath, Chiba leaned out of the window sill and looked around to see that there was a brand new round hole in the window frame.

"So, what should we do then? Should we still proceed with what you said earlier?" Hayami asked.

Chiba kept silent for a while and shook his head.

"Thinking from the trajectory, I'm going to need you to stay close. No matter how good I am, I wouldn't be able to shake it off if I were to make a mistake even by a few centimeters in a place like this… But even so, I would like to be able to give back the same "warning" to that man, at least."

Hayami swore she could almost see a quiet flame being lit through Chiba's bangs. It was an expression she had rarely seen from him.

[Illustration]  A hole was made as a result of sniping work by the Legendary Sniper. A mechanical pencil was inserted into the window frame hole to measure the angle at which the bullet flew.

"If you follow the trajectory with this-"

While saying that, Chiba took pictures of the mechanical pencil from directly above and the sides using a smartphone camera with a grid display on the screen. Then, taking an angle from the photo, he drew a straight line onto the prepared drawing.

Chiba's hand then stopped.

"What happened?"

Hayami immediately understood the reason for the sudden pause. Following Chiba's line of sight, what she saw was a pillar supporting the roof of the arcade. The problem was that the pillar was circular.

"Shit, that's right… We wouldn't know where the shot came from." Chiba realized.

The method that Chiba and Hayami came up with cannot be used if the ricochet location was slanted or curved.

"But you do know where the pillars would hit, right? And what about the vertical rays? Is that no good?"

Chiba pulled the elevation drawing map closer and quickly placed a ruler on it. 

"Nah... It looks fine. We can follow it."

Fortunately, there were no curved objects like sloping walls or cylinders there.

"I wonder if we bounce the bullet from the ground or shoot it from the ground. There's no doubt that it'll hit the left side of the pillar… but that also means knowing that the bullet came from the left."

Chiba looked at Hayami while still following the drawn line with his finger.

"But if you bounce from somewhere else before that, then you wouldn't know where your opponent is anymore."

Hayami turned to the window sill. "The bullet that was shot into the window frame was quite powerful, wasn't it?"

Chiba followed along Hayami's line of sight. It was an old piece of wood, but as long as the rounded bullet had penetrated through it, it should be powerful enough to hit a human.

"That's right."

"If so, then I don't think you would need the bullet to bounce so many times. If you just wanted to give a little scare, I think all you need was to be pretty accurate about it."

Chiba reviewed the illustration.

"I see."

"And the bullets would pass through the feet of people walking around the shopping district. But is there any reason to go through such length if it's just to give back a warning?" 

Chiba crossed his arms and pondered deeply.

It was exactly what Hayami said. There should be no reason to risk aiming at the feet of pedestrians who do not know where they are going. Regardless of aiming for the ultimate goal that is Koro-sensei, if an accident were to happen here, then everything they had prepared for would be ruined.

He has a reason to take such a risk, however. But he would rather avoid going through that length at all costs.

Hayami pressed a fingertip against a point on the drawing.

"This. Isn't it suspicious?"

Hayami was pointing at a box stationed just to the left of the building where the two of them are. It's the tonkotsu ramen stall that smells awful.

In the beginning, it was a prominent awful scent that made them want to pinch their noses. But as they checked the shopping district and began looking around, the two were so engrossed in what they were doing that they had forgotten about its existence.

"Well, imagine if you shoot from here."

"Huh?"

Now that he thought about it, there was something suspicious he noticed. A tall car model was used for the stall. But for some reason, it was fully wide open, and the old man inside was sitting cross-legged while preparing ramen, though a bit clumsily, and Chiba remembered that the man was in a sour mood the entire time they had been watching.

But earlier, it wasn't particularly on Chiba's mind.

"The food stall could also be helpful for us to move freely. Since the scent of tonkotsu ramen can cover us from Koro-sensei's strong sense of smell if it's a concern."

Chiba glanced at the ramen stall from the window.

"...No doubt about it. Except that car would be moving before you know it. So you wouldn't be able to see anything inside."

"That's true…"

Chiba clicked his tongue. "There's nothing we can do about this. Damn it, is there no better way to deal with that man?"

At that moment, the smartphone on the table began vibrating again. Chiba frowned a little and picked it up and thankfully, it wasn't an unknown number this time.

"Okajima?!"

"Yeah, I got a call from an unknown number earlier telling me that the sniper was working. So, I thought I'd try to assassinate Koro-sensei first because I'm a sniper too, you know?"

"Where are you right now? At a dining place?"

As soon as Chiba looked out by the window, he could see a shadow waving at him from his peripheral vision.

"Wait, is Takebayashi with you? I'm gonna need some help."

When Chiba shortly explained the situation, Okajima briefly laughed from the other line. "So in short, you wanna know what's going on with that stinky ramen shop over there?"

"Yeah, if that's alright with you. Also, if the distance is good enough, can the two of you guys show me the old man at the ramen stall through a video call?"

"I see, so you're going to triangulate."

At the same time Takebayashi's voice piped up from the other line, the phone screen was split into two, and the ramen stall was projected on them at different angles.

"Would this be fine?"

Chiba went to grab the rangefinder, answering yes. He measured the positions of where the two guys were and the position of the man making ramen using what was projected on the smartphone. Then he pulled the table with the illustration towards the window so he could determine the angle of where the two points would meet.

"Hayami, can you shoot as instructed?"

Hayami, who was already heading for the rifle, gave him a thumbs up in response.

"Horizontally: 12 degrees 22 minutes and 52 seconds. Vertically: 24 degrees 7 minutes and 21 seconds."

The moment when Chiba just finished talking was when the sound of firing echoed. Beyond the screen of the smartphone he's holding, Chiba saw a BB bullet graze a figure.

"Horizontally, you're about 30 centimeters off to the right. But vertically, it's fine. Do it again."

The instruction he gave was more of an estimation based on what he saw through the screen, but Chiba was convinced that Hayami had an accurate grasp of it. 

Another sound of the gun firing.

"This time, about 10 centimeters to the left. The rest is fine."

Though the screen of the smartphone was a bit delayed by the firing sound, Chiba saw the BB pellet bouncing on an old man's shoulder.

The said old man, who was trying to calmly present a ramen to a customer, suddenly dropped the bowl in surprise.

From outside the window, the duo heard a small yet heavy noise… then immediately followed by screams and yelling. One of which they cannot make out what the word is as it was certainly not Japanese.

They saw a figure who appeared by flipping up the floorboard and was caught by the old shop owner who looked like a mess.

"Is it a hit?" Hayami looked back at Chiba with a relieved face and he smiled at her. Then she turned back to the rifle again, and after a short while, pulled the trigger.

BANG.

Beyond the screen, the foreigner-like man's face, perhaps the Legendary Sniper himself, was stuck in a surprised expression. The BB bullet that was shot by Hayami is firmly digging into his forehead. Chiba raised a small right hand. Then Hayami matched the lifted hand with her own.

Then, when he turned to look back at his smartphone, the sniper was stunned and wasn't even looking at the screen. He wouldn't have thought that he would be shot this way.

Chiba turned back to Hayami in delight. "Hey! There's no target we can't hit, right?"

Hayami laughed with a pleasant expression.

Okajima's voice suddenly echoed from Chiba's smartphone.

"I'm happy for you guys and all, but sorry. Koro-sensei's heading over there."

Tension returns to their facial expressions. Chiba, who was attached to the scope of the rangefinder, found Koro-sensei, who had just left the product exhibition, and was about to return through the arcade.

Chiba had set a target shortly before Koro-sensei arrived and determined the angle of the incidence from the drawing. Then he raises his face to give Hayami instructions.

"It's your turn this time." She interrupted, however.

Hayami's hands lightly touch his shoulders. Chiba, who changed places as prompted by Hayami, shut his mouth tightly and sat down in front of his rifle.

This time, I would have to finish it in one shot. The second Koro-sensei notices me, I know I wouldn't be able to hit him anymore.

Chiba could hear his own heartbeat from the back of his ears. This was not just a sniping assignment. It was a situation he created by working with Okajima, Takebayashi and others, and Hayami.

As he held still, he felt that the ambient noise disappeared.

He could hear Hayami's breathing, which helped him measure the time. As she unconsciously breathed in, Chiba felt like he could truly see what he was seeing through the scope.

He could see Hayami's right hand going up high. 2 meters left… 1 meter. It was as if Hayami was speaking out.

The arm swung down exactly the same time Chiba pulled the trigger. It was a feat that could have had absolutely impossible timing if he had instead reacted visually.

BANG.

The BB bullet released from the rifle reacted exactly as Chiba expected it to be and attacked Koro-sensei diagonally above from his left.

It was at that moment.

Hayami, who was looking through the scope of the rangefinder, suddenly withdrew. "Eh?"

"...He saw it."

Startled, Chiba instinctively leaned out the window and looked down at the street.

=0=0=

"Aww too bad."

Among the crowds in the shopping district, Chiba and Hayami stood in front of the usually smiling Koro-sensei.

The confidently deadly bullet was evaded by Koro-sensei, who withdrew his neck right on the verge of being hit.

"Sensei noticed that you were planning something."

Apparently, looking at Chiba's expression who was inspired by Okajima's failed mirror technique, Koro-sensei immediately knew that he would be aiming for a ricochet.

"It's a great pleasure to see my students voluntarily attempt to assassinate, let alone, look up, and come up with their own methods from what little information available they could gather." When Koro-sensei noticed the Legendary Sniper's gaze, the man stiffened then immediately jumped into the driver's seat and sped from the shopping district.

"Maybe I don't have to tell you this, though. You can only realize the growth of your students when you're a teacher."

After a deep emotional smile, Koro-sensei turned to the two again.

"This was your homework. Complete this sniper technique. While there wasn't a deadline, you weren't given any hints instead. This was something that you all would have to work on your own. And this isn't just only useful for assassination. What you get in the process of this homework will probably broaden your knowledge and ideas far more than you can imagine."

Then, with a smile on his face again, Koro-sensei lifted the manju he grabbed with the tip of his tentacles.

"Nurufufufufu~ Today is a really happy day. This way, you can feel the growth of your own students and taste the manju that you have been longing for. I thought I could relax today in the staff room while enjoying green tea, but it would be a waste if I couldn't enjoy it at such a wonderful moment."

Chiba felt uncomfortable at the sight of the light-coloured steamed bun. It looked like something round was digging into its surface. By the time he realized that it was the BB bullet he had shot earlier, Koro-sensei had already chomped down the steamed bun.

Koro-sensei's high-pitched screams echoed throughout the narrow shopping district.

The class of year 3-E is an Assassination Classroom.

Tomorrow, the morning bell will ring once again.

Notes:

My boy is a fear-inducing risk-taking menace and he ENABLED Hayami to do his bidding (aka get revenge on the legendary sniper) only because he didn't like to be called a hindrance. If that doesn't scream petty then I don't know what to tell y'all... 😭

I love how we got a great callback to chapter 4 where Chiba and Hayami talked about combining their contrasting efforts to make things possible. Because we first have Hayami with her great timing being meticulously instructed by Chiba so she could aim accurately. And then our ever so accurate Chiba, whose overthinking tend to distract him but Hayami was there to keep him grounded and get his timing on point.

Also, this kinda proves that Koro's unpredictably was what caused Class E to ulttimately fail their Island assassination attempt, not the snipers' own mild mishaps. With the support of Hayami's timing, Chiba's perfect shot should've done him in. But it didn't so... Blocking the bullet with the snack he's holding, it's exactly what happened to Red Eye's attempt on him during the Kyoto trip 😭

And the remaining bits of official content we have left has now come to an end! I hope you all have a good read because... we won't be getting any new official content any time soon, I fear 😭

[fumiko-matsubara]

Korosuu English Translation - Chapter 3: Mirror Time

Navigation: Chapter 1 || Chapter 2

Consider this as a placeholder continuation of @clownao's translations of the previous two chapters until further notice. I've been mentioning Korosuu more often these days with my recent Chiba analysis and I think it's unfair of me to just claim certain things as factual when not everyone has similar access to the Korosuu novel like I do. So here we go.

I've actually finished translating the remaining chapters. The second I get this out in the open, I'll be pumping the rest out in one go.

Note: Although this was directly translated from Japanese -> English, I didn't write it word for word, and instead went with variants that flow better in the English language for a much easier reading experience. A big thank you to the lovely @blazardragon for providing us with the raw scans.

“Yeah… it seems possible.”

Chiba returned to his desk and took out a notebook, writing materials, and a triangular ruler.

Hayami stood before him and looked down at his notebook, and Chiba began to explain while drawing diagrams.

“If you hit the wall, it’s gonna mirror the angle it came from when it bounces off. Just like this.”

[Illustration] A diagram of a spherical bullet bouncing off a wall. The angle between the bullet and the wall before it hits the wall (angle of incidence) is the same as the angle between the bullet and the wall when it bounces off (angle of reflection).

“If you want to aim without Koro-sensei noticing, it seems impossible with just one ricochet.”

Hearing Hayami’s words, Chiba nodded and added more lines.

“That’s right. At least two times, preferably three times or more would be good, but if you ricochet too much, the chances of missing will increase and the momentum will soon drop. Experiments would be necessary to see how many times a ricochet can bounce until it becomes impractical.”

“So, how do you aim for that?” Hayami asked. “I can understand if it’s once, but if it bounces more than twice, I find it hard to imagine it.”

With his mechanical pencil still in his hand, Chiba rested his back on the chair and crossed his arms.

“That’s the problem. For example, to hit the target written here with two ricochets, you have to calculate the points that will satisfy this diagram.”

[Illustration] As guessed from the article, Chiba conducted another experiment to see if it was possible to snipe. By solving a graphical problem like this one, we can derive the point on the wall to aim at to hit the target with the bullet.

As he said this, Chiba drew several right-angled triangles in the diagram.

Hayami looked at the illustration and frowned slightly.

“What is this? Do I have to solve this every time?”

“Yeah, it’s necessary.”

After Chiba replied, he slowly began to calculate the position where the first bullet would hit. Looking at it sideways, Hayami turned to face the very back of the classroom, where a black metal box usually stood.

“With this kind of problem, if Ritsu were here, I would understand it right away.”

Autonomous Thinking Fixated Artillery – The AI (classmate) called Ritsu by the students of Class E has been temporarily removed since the beginning of the week for maintenance. It was only for two or three days, but it was the first time the main unit was removed for maintenance.

“Even if she was here, I don’t feel like relying on her.”

After confirming the problem he had solved over and over again, Chiba took out an airsoft pistol from his bag and stood up. 

“This is an assassination to test how far you can go as a sniper. I feel like I have to think about this myself.”

“Huh. Well, I don’t know.”

“So, Hayami, I want you to place the target exactly where it is written on this diagram.”

Chiba said it like it was so simple, but actually placing the target turned out to be quite troublesome. After accurately measuring the distance with a tape measure they brought from the storage room and positioning it, Hayami puts her desk there and sticks a yellow balloon that looks like Koro-sensei.

[Illustration] Objective: To break a Koro-sensei balloon with ricochet…

Chiba himself had to do the same to determine where he should stand and where to hit his first shot.

“Sorry everyone, but can you all move to the window?”

When all the prep work was finished, Chiba called out to his classmates. After making sure that everyone moved to the window as they were told, but not without a look of curiosity on their faces, Chiba pulled the pistol’s trigger at the cross mark written on the blackboard with chalk.

The bullet hit the blackboard, bounced off with a dry sound, and then reflected off the wall on the corridor side, heading towards the target in the back of the classroom. 

The first shot missed by more than a meter. The second shot was about 30 centimeters off. The third and fourth shots were not as bad as the first two, but they missed the target greatly, and finally, the fifth hit the target.

“You did it!”

When the balloon broke with a pop, the classmates who were watching the whole time began cheering for him. However, Chiba’s expression didn't match the atmosphere.

“What’s wrong? Is it because you can get more accuracy if you aim with a rifle from a vantage point instead?”

Chiba shook his head slightly at Hayami’s words. “No, that’s not it. I knew that this method would work, but… the problem is that.”

He pointed at the cross mark on the blackboard.

“With the current method, it’s gonna take too long to figure out that point. And there is also a difference in height to consider as well, so we have to do the same calculation in the vertical direction.”

[Illustration] In actual sniping, it is important to consider height differences. If the target and the shooter are of different heights, the ricochet snipe will then follow a trajectory as such.

[Plan view] A view looking down on the room from above.

[Elevation] View from the side. A three-dimensional trajectory that seems complicated can be simplified like this if you break it down into a plan view and an elevation view.

Takebayashi, who had been listening, sighed.

“That’s double the effort. Wouldn’t that make it even more unrealistic?”

“Hey. Why don’t you do the calculation first and then the rest of us guide Koro-sensei together?” Nakamura proposed. 

Chiba shook his head. “We’ve got two problems with that. One is that you just can’t guide the target wherever you want. Especially when it comes to shooting with this much constrain, even the slightest shift in position is bad enough.”

Hayami nodded.

“The fact that Chiba misses so much at this distance means that you can’t easily make fine adjustments. What is the other problem?”

“That I want to do this assassination alone without using anyone’s help,” Chiba answered. “I’ve already said this before but it’s like a stubbornness thing on my part.”

“Is that so?”

Chiba looked down at the notebook on the desk. “The Legendary Sniper has actually taken down quite a number of moving targets, which means they should barely have enough time to aim. I wonder if there’s a trick to that.”

As he said that, Chiba was hit on the shoulder and flinched. He looked up and saw Okajima standing there with a grin on his face.

“Hearing you talk, I feel like something just came to me!” Okajima said with a fearless smile and flashed Chiba and Hayami a thumbs up, looking extremely suspicious.

 =0=0=

“Come on, boys! Time to get out!”

The fifth period of the day was gym class. The girls currently occupy the classroom to change clothes, and the boys were forced out into the corridor to wait for their turn.

“Sometimes, I wanted the boys to go in first. We always have to change at the last minute.” Shiota Nagisa complains while holding his rolled-up gym clothes.

“What are you talking about, Nagisa? Listen, this is the time for our most fated challenge to date!”

“Okajima-kun, don’t you think it would be better if you just don’t do anything at all?”

Ignoring Nagisa’s wry retort, Okajima took out a small mirror from his pocket with a strangely calm expression… and a selfie stick.

“Hey. Weren’t you just beaten up by the girls the other day for doing exactly that?”

While a dumbfounded Terasaka Ryoma was looking at him, Okajima took out an adhesive tape and tore it into small pieces, taping the compact mirror to the tip of the selfie stick.

“Well, look. Last time, I made a mistake by holding this guy up where the girls could see it. This time, it’ll be perfect.”

“Aren’t you just adding more holes to a plan that’s already full of holes?” Kimura Justice deadpanned.

“Hehe, well take a look at this.” Okajima stretched out his selfie stick and started explaining with a relaxed expression. “Listen, whenever the girls are changing, the windows on the corridor side are always covered up with blackout curtains. That makes it difficult to see-”

“More like they specifically put up those curtains so that you can’t peep inside.”

Okajima ignored whoever pointed that out and continued. “Miraculously, there’s a tiny gap in the top window thanks to a slack in the curtain. The other day, they saw me because I was foolishly holding out the mirror directly here. But the Okajima today will no longer make the same mistake.”

“Then what are you going to do?”

After giving a fearless smile to an exasperated Terasaka, Okajima bravely held the selfie stick in his hand over his head.

“A little while ago, when Chiba and the others were shooting test shots, I secretly set up a mirror in the classroom. The ricochet thing gave me a plan. If it’s just one mirror, it’s easy to spot it. But no matter how cautious the girls are, they’re not gonna notice a thing if you’re peeping through multiple mirrors that are casually placed around the classroom.”

[Illustration] Reflecting on the experience of being discovered using a mirror for voyeurism, Okajima’s new voyeurism method was devised in order not to be noticed by relaying it with multiple mirrors. In principle, no matter how many mirrors you use, what you can see from your side can also be seen by the ones from the other side.

“Ah… I thought that would be the case.” Kimura forced a smile.

“According to my calculations, it’s probably around here- huh?”

Looking at the mirror, Okajima frowned and moved the selfie stick around.

“Okay, I saw it!”

Okajima gave a small fist pump with a satisfied smile, then slowly took out a compact digital camera from his pocket with his free hand.

“What is that.” 

An embarrassed Nagisa pointed at it. Okajima grinned and answered.

“Because I couldn’t bring my DSLR out, obviously. That’s just like announcing for the world to hear that I’m going to peep some pics from the hallway. And that is why I always carry a compact digital camera with me in case of such a situation. Notice how we don’t compromise on smartphones.”

Everyone pretended they didn’t hear anything, but Okajima completely ignored the atmosphere of the place and released the shutter.

Click. The strobe emitted a flash with a small shutter sound.

“Oops, I usually don’t screw up like this,” Okajima said as he turned off the strobe, releasing the shutter once again.

“O-KA-JI-MAAA-!!”

The door of the classroom banged open, and the girls in their gym clothes all came out rushing at once.

“Waah-!”

With well-coordinated movements, the girls were blocking Okajima’s escape. Okajima yelped out a half-cracked voice while being pulled down on the spot and kicked with such terrifying skill.

“H-how did you find out?! The plan should have been perfect!”

“Your camera flashed AND WE SAW IT!!!” Kataoka looked down at Okajima with a murderous expression on her face.

“That’s forbidden, Okajima-kun.”

At that slimy voice, the girls sharply turned around.

Standing in front of the opened door was Koro-sensei, holding a steaming paper bag from his open mouth.

“It’s not a bad idea. It’s not bad, but don’t forget that if you can see it from here through the mirrors, you can also see it from the other side. And if you use a flash or something like that, you might as well be asking to be caught.”

The girls all shouted at once over the voice. “Acting so proud are we, you shameless teacher!”

“What’s wrong with you, suddenly coming in through the window while we’re changing clothes?!” Kataoka pulled out an anti-sensei knife and glared at Koro-sensei.

“Nyu, nyuyaa?! You misunderstand me! I was just trying to educate distorted people like Okajima-kun!”

“Excuses, EXCUSES!!”

With well-trained movement, the girls all readied their weapons against the teacher. The frightened Koro-sensei was attacked by a barrage of BB bullets and anti-sensei knives.

“It really is a misunderstanding – Heeee! The bag tore – oh no the xiaolongbao buns* I went all the trouble to buy are -!”

Koro-sensei suddenly blasted off at Mach speed, escaping from them.

“Xiaolongbao buns..? Ah, Koro-sensei must have been in Shanghai today.” Nagisa muttered.

Behind him, Okajima, who had footprints all over his body, was looking at the digital camera monitor and frowning.

When Terasaka, who was nearby, peered in, he saw Koro-sensei holding a paper bag containing bao buns and making a peace sign.

Next Chapter: Chiba and Hayami Time

Notes:

*Xiaolongbao buns (小籠包) - is a type of small Chinese steamed bun that is traditionally prepared in a xiaolong, which is a small steaming basket.

I need Terasaka to punt Okajima's ass to another dimension 💀

I've talked about this before in the mbti analysis post with the snipers, but Chiba. Loves. His. Details. Every information he perceives using his senses must be absolute. Completely factual. And that makes him prone to overcomplicating things the more he thinks about the details to the point that it stresses him out when he can't just get it right. The beginning of this chapter just makes this prominent part of his personality very clear.

Another prominent part of his personality that this chapter made clear of, was that the only reason why he deliberately refuses receiving help from others is because he's simply stubborn lol. It's not that he doesn't trust his friends, he just simply wants to see if he can do it by himself and nothing will stop him from trying to achieve that 😂

I also love how we were shown how big of a presence Chiba really has among his classmates, especially since the role of an accurate sniper is deemed important when it comes to assassination. That potential in his leadership skills according to Karasuma's assassination aptitude test wasn't just a bluff, after all.

Although Hayami didn't have a big role here, her encouraging presence has been quite prominent! Being someone's support has consistently always been her thing, and people (both characters and readers alike) tend to overlook that prominent part of her character.

Except for one person. And the next chapter will be exactly about that!

[fumiko-matsubara]

Korosuu English Translation - Chapter 5: Shopping District Time

Previous Chapter: Chiba and Hayami Time

Note: Although this was directly translated from Japanese -> English, I didn't write it word for word, and instead went with variants that flow better with the English language for a much easier reading experience.

Funnily enough, this was the chapter (and the next one) that I was meant to translate after Nao finished all of hers because the Chinese translation that she was basing her translations on supposedly stopped at chapter 4.

That's when we, out of pure desperation, seek out @blazardragon to provide us with the raw scans because we recalled them having a copy of the Korosuu book but never got around to translating the novel. I can never thank them enough for providing us with the raw scans!

But why at a shopping district, you ask? Because it wasn't a bad place to target Koro-sensei.

All of Koro-sensei's five senses were terrifyingly sharp, but his senses of sight and smell were especially outstanding. But in the meantime, eyesight will be obscured by the crowd and any senses of smell will be dazzled by the overflowing scent of food that flooded the shopping district.

There were enough obstacles in the narrow street and it was the perfect environment for using ricochets.

When they rushed into the shopping district, it was unusually crowded with people. Many vans with food stalls were parked in the narrow pedestrian zone, and the scent of crepes and coffee filled the air.

"Hey, do you smell something terrible?"

Hayami groaned and pinched her nose. A strong odor was coming from somewhere.

"It's tonkotsu* ramen, I think. Apparently, the authentic ones would have their broth come from boiled pork bones, so it's pretty tough if you're not used to the smell."

Chiba, who answered, was also frowning.

"I guess it's from a stall somewhere. It's my first time smelling something like this in a shopping district." Hayami said.

As he was looking around, Chiba then heard a familiar voice.

"Well, I'm looking forward to it~"

Hearing that slimy voice, the two reflexively hid themselves in a nearby alleyway.

Just a few meters away from them, was a disguised Koro-sensei. The Iruma product exhibition seems to be quite successful, seeing that there was a small line by the entrance. Koro-sensei was lined up at the very end.

"I never thought I would be able to enjoy manju** while staying in Kunugigaoka. It never gets old no matter how many times I've done this~"

Nobody within a two meter radius dared to approach the suspicious looking figure, who not only was abnormally much taller than any of the guests, but was also speaking to himself without his wide grin moving.

"Thank god for the tonkotsu ramen…" Chiba breathed out in relief.

"If it wasn't for that stench, he would have caught us." Hayami agreed.

The two hurriedly left the place and started walking through the shopping district, pretending to be shopping.

To be able to assassinate Koro-sensei anywhere, the students of Class 3E had been secretly researching areas surrounding the school and, of course, the shopping district is one of them. With the help of Ritsu, they checked a building that had been vacant for a long time, along with its overall floor plan, and etc.

Chiba and Hayami compared the layout from their smartphones to their surroundings. The data is kept up to date, but it wasn't perfect. Since the state of the shopping district changes everyday, in this case, advanced checkups are absolutely necessary.

"Hey, where is that sniper? Is he already hiding somewhere?" Hayami asked.

"Yeah. That's what Karasuma-sensei said, so I'm sure everything is being readied by now. But maybe, it should be okay to do it…"

Hayami tilted her head at Chiba's words.

"Pardon?"

"If you're aiming for the kill, now should be the best time to stand in line, right? Yet for some reason, nothing has happened yet." 

"I see."

"I wonder why though. Is it a place that not even a legendary sniper can aim for, or is there another reason..? Either way, this one still takes time to prepare. We better hurry."

From there, Chiba noticed that the walls of an old wooden building a little ahead from them had a strange sheen to them.

"What's this?"

When touched, the surface was flat and hard. It looks like an acrylic plate, but rather than pasting something like that, it sticks firmly to the wall as if it was smeared with a liquid substance and solidified.

These walls were found in many places. This treatment was routinely applied to unevenly finished walls and places that seemed soft.

"Come to think of it, there aren't many signboards, right?"

Hayami whispered while comparing the smartphone with their surroundings. Small signs and decorations fixed to the walls and street lamps were missing in many places. There weren't even any screw holes left where the signboard was originally attached to and it looks like the surface has been smoothed and repainted.

"Looks like they're trying to keep the walls as flat as possible. Here and there."

Such traces were concentrated near the center of the shopping street.

In other words, the legendary sniper chose that area as the execution location.

"If that's the case, it's certainly difficult to aim at Koro-sensei's current position. The anti-sensei BB bullets are light, so they can't reach that far."

The product exhibition line was more than 30 meters away from the ricochet work.

It's enough to shoot normally, but if you want the bullet to bounce and reach the target, then the current distance would be twice too far.

[Illustration] Kunugigaoka shopping district in the evening. Even though it's a weekday, it's busy and many food stalls are open.

"But why would the sniper choose a place quite far away from where Koro-sensei is, even though he had seemingly prepared so thoroughly?"

Chiba thought for a moment before answering.

"You would have never thought that the monster that blew up the moon into a crescent would be lining up at the Iruma Product Exhibition, right?"

Just as he said that, Karasuma's words during lunch break rang in Chiba's head.

"Wouldn't you think it's possible for someone who doesn't even know about Koro-sensei to assassinate him?"

Hayami gave him a nod.

"I agree."

=0=0=

Before long, the two of them took up positions on the second floor of the abandoned cafeteria. The building is facing the lot that the legendary sniper chose to execute.

It's impossible to shoot Koro-sensei from where he was lined up at the product exhibition. While he could still be seen, he's too far away.

Despite that, the two chose that place because they couldn't find another building that could be used where Koro-sensei is within sniping range, and that place is simply more reliable for ricocheting. They based their judgement on how high the certainty was.

It was still not an easy task to fire bullets as desired in the city. Unlike in the classroom, there are overwhelmingly many walls and bullets wouldn't bounce as calculated when you took the wind blowing into account. The legendary sniper who has successfully assassinated many times in that kind of setting was probably not an ordinary person.

As soon as Chiba entered the room facing the street, he spread a graphing paper onto the table and made a sketch using drafting tools. Supposedly, it was a very precise drawing, but Chiba still completed the draft in a matter of minutes, even including the mirrored drawing.

[Illustration] The store is across from the abandoned cafeteria where Chiba and Hayami are. The store has several walls with different depths like this. In reality, it is necessary to create a plan and an elevation according to the depth of these walls.

[Floor View] A view of the building from above. Multiple lines indicate the depth of each wall. Although it is actually more detailed, irregularities such as window frames are ignored.

[Elevation] A view from the building from the side. Similar to the floor plan, multiple lines are drawn according to the depth of the wall.

In the meantime, the air rifle Hayami brought was placed on the turret, and a rangefinder is installed to measure the position of the target.

[Aiming image on plan view]

[Illustration] Using the floor plan of the building to actually aim. In this way, the position of the boundary of the copy changes depending on which wall is used, so it is necessary to draw multiple target positions.

[Image of alignment in elevation view]

"What about Koro-sensei?"

Hayami, who was peering into the rangefinder, looked back at Chiba who had finished drawing and looked up.

"He's just coming out of the product exhibition, but I don't think he'll come straight here."

When Hayami looked through the scope again, Koro-sensei was wandering around the streets, unsure of where he was headed.

"Nyuyaa… I want to eat that too, this too, but my wallet can't afford it… I have to be very selective… No, but I can't leave this one out…"

Apparently, the smell of the food stalls lining the street was attracting him and thus, he was unsure where to go.

"I'm sure that sniper must be really annoyed by now."

Chiba muttered with a wry smile.

BANG.

Chiba jumped up from sensing a sudden strong impact near him.

"What was that?!"

Hayami, who was away from the window, called out to him.

"I think you almost got shot…"

At those words, she handed him a small compact mirror. Chiba took it and carefully brought it out the window while hiding from view.

From the mirror, he could see a thin layer of smoke around the window frame. It was probably a live bullet that was shot.

At the same time, Chiba's smartphone began to vibrate. The words "unknown incoming call" were displayed on the screen.

When Chiba picked up the phone, an unknown voice echoed.

"I'm sure the person in charge had told you all not to get in my way, right? Or was it not communicated well?"

Chiba takes the smartphone away from his ear and switches to speaker mode. Hayami nodded at him.

"I have no intention of interfering and I don't mind if you shoot first. However, if there is a chance, it is normal behaviour for us, Class E, to take it."

"Listen, kid."

There was clearly a hint of irritation in the voice that answered Chiba.

"Leave and go straight home. You students are nothing but hindrances. It's not my hobby to hurt children, but if you don't stop what you're doing, I'm sorry, but next time won't be a warning anymore."

After saying that, the call was cut off.

Next Chapter: Sniper Time

Notes:

*Tonkotsu Ramen - from the word "tonkotsu" (豚骨/とんこつ) meaning "pork bones", is a ramen dish that originated from Fukuoka, Japan. Its soup broth is prepared by boiling pork bones in water for a significant amount time up to 18 hours.

**Manjū - (饅頭) - a traditional Japanese confectionary. Most variants of manju are typically made from flour, rice powder, kudzu (Japanese arrowroot), buckwheat, and a common filling of red bean paste. Sometimes, other fillings were used for manjū such as purple sweet potato, chestnut jam, and etc.

This is where my friends and I began joking about Hayami being Chiba's common sense filter.

Because what do you mean he's asking Hayami what was that loud bang that he heard RIGHT NEXT TO HIM, when he is literally within the area where the hired sniper could be at 😭

And the fact that he just blatantly ignored Karasuma's warning from last chapter?? Trying to find a loophole in that warning by doing his own thing while the hired sniper operates... DUDE YOU ARE LITERALLY ATTEMPTING AN ASSASSINATION. You are still interfering with the sniper's work 😭

I guess both Chiba and Hayami are now even with the whole nearly being shot with a live bullet by a professional assassin thing...

[fumiko-matsubara]

Korosuu English Translation - Chapter 4: Chiba and Hayami Time

Previous Chapter: Mirror Time

Note: Although this was directly translated from Japanese -> English, I didn't write it word for word, and instead went with variants that flow better in the English language for a much easier reading experience. A big thank you to the lovely @blazardragon for providing us with the raw scans.

The amount of braincells I've lost trying to break down Chiba's illustrations into simple terms in this chapter... 💀

It was after school.

Chiba, who typically returns home at this time around, is moving many large mirrors into the classroom.

“What’s going on?”

It was Hayami, who was about to leave the classroom, but instead ran into Chiba.

“Say, can you keep me company for a minute?”

After he said that, Chiba continued his way into the classroom without waiting for Hayami’s answer.

“What are you doing?”

Using adhesive tape, Chiba began sticking the mirrors onto the walls of the empty classroom. “I’m continuing where I left off during lunch break. I’m sorry, but can you help me set up another balloon? We’re still placing it on the desk just like before.”

“Is it okay if I don’t have to measure it properly?”

“Ah, yeah.”

Earlier during the practice at lunch break, it was a must to determine the position of the target and the shooter with accurate measurements. But this time, that doesn’t seem to be the case.

Hayami blew up the balloon that Chiba handed over and taped it to the same desk she was pointed to.

“Thank you.”

[Illustration] Chiba used Okajima’s earlier actions as a hint to come up with a way to directly snipe without needing to solve the problem figure that he was having trouble with. Mirrors are set up on the walls that the bullet is set to ricochet from and one can snipe the target reflected on the mirrors. 

Chiba turned to the mirror taped on the blackboard and slowly moved to where he should be standing. He then faced the mirror, held his gun up, and pulled the trigger.

BANG!

The sound of a balloon popping immediately echoed after the gunfire.

The BB bullet that Chiba shot first bounced off the blackboard mirror, then bounced again off the mirror taped on the wall on the corridor side, before finally hitting the balloon.

“Sorry, but can you set up another balloon?”

Hayami nodded and replaced the old balloon with a new one.

Chiba changed his position just a little and quickly raised the gun and shot. The balloon burst again. Hayami clapped her hands. “Oh, I see. You’re aiming at the reflected image of the target in the mirror.”

[Illustration] A balloon with Koro-sensei’s face drawn on it was reflected in the mirror. Chiba aimed at the balloon and succeeded at hitting it perfectly.

“Yeah. I realized that whatever Okajima was doing earlier can be applied the same way for sniping.”

As Chiba answered, Hayami changed the balloons.

As soon as Hayami moved away from the target, Chiba aimed through the mirror and fired for the third time. Right in front of Hayami’s stare, the balloon popped as intended.

Even though the guns they use are strengthened to assassinate Koro-sensei, it is difficult to pop the balloon if its center isn’t grasped well. But despite that, all three shots hit the targets perfectly, and Chiba showed that.

“If the BB bullet flies in a straight line and can bounce back in the same manner, it should be no different from the reflection of the camera flash. With this distance, I can hit the target as I expected. There’s a bit of a knack to it, though.”

[Illustration] The actual trajectory of Chiba’s sniping. Ideally, a ricocheted bullet should follow the same trajectory as the reflected camera flash. With this method, Chiba was able to hit the target without having to calculate or measure both his position and the target.

“But…”

Hayami pointed out a problem to Chiba who lowered his gun. “To do that, wouldn’t you need a mirror everywhere?”

“I know.”

Exactly that. While yes, hitting the target fairly accurately without any calculations is possible using this method. The problem was that there was no way a mirror could be so conveniently placed in a real-life setting, and even if there was a mirror, the other party would be able to see completely from their side.

“But I feel like I’m getting closer to the answer.”

“Yes. I think so too.”

Hayami smiled, her teeth showing. Chiba softly returned the smile.

“Though, the problem is that I don’t know how to proceed from here.” As he said that, Chiba sat down on the chair he pulled out, opened the notebook he took out of his bag, and his gaze followed it.

“I wonder if there’s a way to get rid of the calculation somehow…”

Sketching designs and surveying have always been something Chiba liked doing. Sniping with the use of ricochets this time can also be done more efficiently in the same way. It was something that felt natural for him to do, as he had been doing this for so long.

“Speaking of which, Hayami. What did you just say earlier?”

Having an epiphany, Chiba looked up and asked Hayami, who was standing nearby and peering into his notebook.

“I said something?”

“Yeah, something about the target in the mirror.”

“Oh, I meant that you’re aiming at the target that you see through the mirror.”

Chiba covered his mouth with his hand and deeply contemplated.

“What’s wrong?”

Suddenly, Chiba stood up and took down two mirrors that had been set up. Then, he sets them in places where the blackboard and corridor wall were exactly drawn in his notebook. He brought his face close to the notebook and peered at it intently.

After a long time passed, Chiba raised his head and turned to face Hayami with a beam.

“Hayami, you’re amazing! How come I didn’t notice such a simple thing?!”

“W-What?”

Hayami was bewildered by Chiba’s sudden rise in tension. She’s seen him in Class E for a long time, but she doesn’t remember seeing such an excited expression on his face.

Chiba put down the mirror, sat down on a chair, and turned to his notebook.

“If the blackboard and the walls were all mirrors, it should look like this, yeah?”

[Image of the classroom reflected in the mirror.]

Next to the floor plan of the classroom, Chiba uses a triangular ruler and compass to precisely draw two mirrored copies of the map, including the target.

“And between these two mirror images, you can see the classroom like this.”

Chiba drew a diagram of the classroom that is rotated 180 degrees around the corner between the blackboard and the corridor wall, which was used as the center of the diagram.

“And if I extend the trajectory of the shooting through the blackboard-“

Using a ruler to draw a straight line from the shooter to the blackboard, the line pierced through the target in the 180-degree rotated classroom diagram.

[Floor plan of the mirrored classroom]

[Illustration] This is a diagram to verify the principle of sniping using a mirror by placing them on the floor plan of the classroom. When you add the reflected classroom in the mirrors into the illustration, it becomes like the one shown above. If you aim at the reflected image of the target that forms a straight line from the firing point, the bullet will ricochet and hit the real target.

“How’s this?”

While poking his notebook with the tip of his mechanical pencil, Chiba turned to Hayami, the corners of his mouth lifting into a proud grin. 

“That’s amazing!”

Hayami, who was looking at the illustration, answered with an excited tone.

“If it weren’t for Hayami’s words earlier, I wouldn’t have thought about this. It turns out to be such a simple thing the second you realize it…”

At his words, Hayami smiled back in reply.

=0=0=

The next day.

As expected, Chiba still stayed behind after school ended to continue working on his calculations.

When Hayami peered at him, the look of melancholy on his face was a drastic contrast to yesterday.

“What’s wrong?”

“There’s nothing wrong with the idea we came up with yesterday. But the problem is what comes afterwards. Sniping outside in a real setting with the use of ricochets isn’t as simple as the classroom and the blackboard.”

Chiba’s notebook was filled with scribbles of various what-if scenarios. Hayami was astonished at how much he had accomplished in just one day. The attitude of thoroughly investigating until reaching the bottom of the problem under a single theory the way he does is something she can never imitate no matter what.

“The location of the sniper, the shape of the wall that ricochets the bullet, the weather and air currents, the damping and repulsion of the bullet… Ugh, the second I start thinking about uncertain factors, I just can’t stop worrying.”

Once he starts planning out the official attempt, even a person like Chiba would feel uneasy. 

“Relax. If Chiba thinks it’s right, then there is nothing wrong with that theory.” Hayami encouraged him.

“As happy as I am hearing those words… well…”

Hayami looked at Chiba who was unable to ease his worries.

“I think uncertainties should be filled with intuition.”

Chiba looked up and gave Hayami a look of doubt at what she nonchalantly said. After all, “intuition” also refers to things that clash with the theme of his calculated plan.

Hayami then glanced around the classroom and began uttering to herself. “Vase, adhesive tape, Koro-sensei…”

Before Chiba could ask what she was muttering about, Hayami suddenly pulled out a small pistol that was strapped around her leg and fired three shots at a dazzling speed.

In the first shot, a BB bullet bounced off from the vase on the table.

In the second shot, the bullet bounced off from the gum tape that Chiba had forgotten to peel off.

And in the third shot, the bits of what was left from the Koro-sensei balloon were blown off even further.

The distance between Hayami and the three targets was less than 10 meters. However, being able to instantly shoot all bullets without needing to aim is a divine feat.

Even Chiba, who had hit the target with far more accurate calculations and greater distance, could not replicate her kind of shooting that is intuitive.

Hayami smiled at Chiba, who was looking rather dazed at her firing display.

“If Chiba isn’t confident in his theory on the spot, I will shoot with intuition instead. You and I can cover up what the other was lacking. If we combine our strengths, then there is no target we can’t hit. None.”

Chiba stared at Hayami’s face for a while, then smiled  and replied:

“Thank you.”

After that, Chiba brought out his drafting tools and graph paper, and began to seriously work on the final stage of proving his theory.

The more details he carefully considers, the more the theory tends to overcomplicate in its later stages. But thanks to Hayami, he was able to decisively simplify the details.

An intricately formed theory that was elaborated on the desk and a cultivated intuition based on the experience in the life of an assassin.

If they can combine those two factors, it will probably work out. Chiba’s heart grows with confidence.

=0=0=

Before they knew it, the classroom was dyed red by the setting sun shining through the window.

“Are you two the only ones left on the campus?”

Chiba and Hayami raise their heads at the sudden voice.

It was Karasuma.

“It’s my business to contact the remaining students that are staying behind. The sniper I mentioned earlier has already arrived nearby, and it seems that they are about to carry out the assassination. Please don’t get in his way.”

“Eh, already?”

When Chiba stood up, Karasuma raised an eyebrow.

“There’s nothing to be surprised about. Top-notch assassins act quickly. After all, there’s nothing good to be done with clumsy pauses.”

Chiba and Hayami looked at each other and nodded.

Sugino and Kimura, who were playing catch in the schoolyard, knew where Koro-sensei was. It looks like he was talking about going to the Iruma product exhibition that will start today at the Kunugigaoka shopping district.

From the staff room, the two of them took out large sheets of graph paper, drafting tools, and a set of air rifles for shooting, and rushed out of the school.

“You are free to do whatever you want, but don’t get in the way of the sniper. Your opponent is a professional, and if you interfere with their work, I don’t know what will happen.”

Karasuma’s voice flew toward the backs of the two.

Of course, the two have no intention of disturbing the hired assassin. However, if given the chance, they wanted to try out the assassination method that they created with their own hands and everyone’s cooperation. Even if the legendary sniper is one step ahead with their skills and Koro-sensei is assassinated first, they will have no regrets for trying still.

Next Chapter: Shopping District Time

Notes:

I wonder where these kids get their seemingly infinite supply of mirrors from...

Like I said in the previous chapter, Chiba is prone to overcomplicating his plans the more details he considers. Meanwhile, Hayami's intuitive way of perceiving information allows her to see the bigger picture instead and thus, things that are more simple easily crosses her mind.

And breaking down details into simple terms proved to be extremely helpful and I am SO GLAD that Chiba appreciates that vital part of Hayami.

I find it rather comical that Karasuma had to warn them twice not to interfere with the hired sniper, considering what's gonna happen in the next few chapters... 😭

[fumiko-matsubara]

Sensing vs Intuition: Explaining the stark differences in Chiba and Hayami's sniping methods using MBTI

I'm back at it again with another essay :D

To put it simply, these two cognitive functions basically determine how each person chooses to absorb and process information. And for Chiba and Hayami, out of all the countless differences that they have, this is by far their biggest.

Sensing is when a person heavily relies on their five senses to absorb as much information about their surroundings as they can. They are extremely observant, sensitive, and they tend to have a wide field of vision, noticing details around them that a lot of people tend to miss. They rely on solid facts and prefer to live in the moment, rather than anticipating the unseen future.

Chiba is a strong sensing type. He has superior spatial awareness, which he uses to accurately determine the distance between point A and point B based from what he could see. He uses his sense of touch to determine the direction and strength of the wind blowing, while taking the light weight of the BB pellets into account.

Hence, he was able to easily take out Kataoka during the 3E civil war even though she was hidden from view and was over 300 feet away. This makes his long distance sniping terrifying, as he almost never misses.

Intuition, on the contrary, is when a person see patterns everywhere and uses that to speculate (guess) what was going to happen next. They can easily make instant decisions because they tend to jump into conclusions immediately after connecting bits of information together.

And because they've been doing this for most of their lives that it comes naturally to them, they're pretty good at guessing what was to come, or at least they feel good about making that guess... even if they have a track record of being wrong.

Hayami is an intuitive type. It might not be most suitable for a sniper to perceive information that way, but it's her superior kinetic vision that makes her pattern recognition ability extremely reliable when it comes to hitting moving targets or hitting targets while in an unstable position, at a near perfect timing.

Basically, Hayami's entire thing is:

"It doesn't have to be extremely accurate like Chiba's. As long as I can shoot and hit at any given moment, it's should be good enough."

A little bit to the left, a little up here, around there, and etc. ー unlike Chiba who takes his sweet time making a bunch of detailed calculations in his head so he could accurately shoot, Hayami doesn't think much about these details. She only estimates where she thinks her bullet will hit and just shoots from there. If it hits, then that's that. If it doesn't, she can just find another opportunity to try again.

Like I said, not really a fitting method for a sniper. Her lack of range and accuracy has been pointed out by people. But it's her "shoot and go" method that allows her to move freely in a specific battlefield like the 3E civil war.

And that covers it!

I could honestly talk more about how Chiba and Hayami's Sensing vs Intuition way of absorbing information isn't just exclusive to their contrasting sniping method, but also extends to their daily lives, how they interact with people, and how they face their problems.

To put it simply, Chiba is a realist while Hayami is a visionary. But this one is a topic I could talk about in another time.

[nagisasstunningpersonality]

Comprehensive Guide For Assassination Classroom Content

Because it's pretty hard to find a straight up list of it all. Please note that whilst I believe this is accurate, I was not involved in the fandom whilst the series was active and so could reasonably miss something.

Core Content

Assassination Classroom manga as serialised in Shounen Jump. If you buy the physical volumes, there's a bit of additional content between chapters, most notably introductory character profiles.

Assassination Classroom anime (some count seasons 1 and 2 as separate entities)

Assassination Classroom Meeting Time - an animated short featuring Korosensei and Karasuma's first meeting.

Assassination Classroom Extra Curricular Lessons - adaptations of a couple of manga chapters that weren't in the show itself. I'll just link a playlist here. Fun fact this is where Nagisa gets hit by a chair (lowkey he deserved it)

Additional Content

365 Days Movie. This isn't 'canon' as it's an anime original thing. There's no official English release that I know of. Honestly the movie is mostly a series recap, and only features Karma and Nagisa in new scenes. It's only really worth watching if you especially ship them as there's only maybe 10 minutes of actual content (and most of that is just montage, you can get the gist with this)

Roll Call Book - this was published mid manga run. It's mostly just a bunch of bonus content particularly character based. No official English translation exists, but snippets are easy enough to find online.

Graduation Album - as the name implies, it accompanies the end of the manga. About half of it is an art book, but there's extra character information especially about their post graduation lives. Crucially it includes a few manga shorts which extend past the actual canon ending.

Korotan A, B, C, and D plus Korosuu. They're mostly just Assassination Classroom themed text books (Seriously. My actual university book store sold them.) Korotans are for English vocabulary, Korosuu is for maths. Notably each book also contains a light novel (sometimes these are just referred to as 'the light novels'). It is debatable how canon these are as Matsui didn't write them, but he was involved through illustrating and overseeing the writing. Korotan D is especially debated because it's post canon content set when 3E are 18, but there's a small 'it was all a dream' implication right at the end of the book. Personally speaking I take them as full canon.

Official Spin Offs

The live action movies (part one and two). They change a lot of plot so I place them more in the spin off area. Easily skippable.

Korosensei Quest Manga (otherwise known as Koro Q) - a spin off gag manga set in a fantasy/video game inspired universe. This is not canon (unfortunately) and as far as I understand Matsui isn't involved in it. There's an implication of the idea it's Fuwa's own manga creation. Overall there are four volumes but there's no official English version (though fan scans aren't hard to find).

Korosensei Quest Anime - lightly based on the Koro Q manga. This is only a short 10 episode series though, and was complete long before the original, as such only the first few episodes are actual adaptations and it starts doing its own thing. All voice cast return so that's neat.

The OVA - basically an early adaptation of the Kyoto arc. Link here. It was released in 2013 so predates the actual anime, and a lot of the voice cast are different.

White day shorts featuring Karma, Maehara, and Nagisa - posted on official website as an otome game parody for promotion. Included because they're voice acted.

The 3DS games. They're region locked as far as I understand, and there's no translation of them. You can find it dumped if you know what you're doing with emulators, I've only played a few minutes of it myself.

The app game - no longer available. It was a gatcha tie in game featuring a variety of character illustrations.

Various merch lines and related illustrations. There are far too many to list and new ones still come out sometimes.

As I said, I hope I covered everything but there's a good possibility something slipped my mind.

[fumiko-matsubara]

Describing Chiba's personality like he's a main character on a well-written wikia page

Because way too many people mischaracterized him for my liking and enough is ENOUGH!

Note: I am ignoring the anime adaptation because the changes they made completely ruined Chiba's character.

Chiba generally appears to be a calm and serious boy whose maturity and professionalism for his age was always noted by others during missions. He always gets the job done with little to no complaints, simply allowing his results to speak for his high skills. Along with his fellow sniper Hayami, Chiba tends to be compared to a working adult.

But outside of assassination, Chiba is surprisingly fairly social and bubbly, often seen wearing a wide smile on his face and is rarely alone. He seems to enjoy the company of others and is always present whenever his classmates gather to do an activity together. Because no one can see his expression with the way his hair covers his eyes, Chiba becomes frequently misunderstood by strangers, but his close classmates described him to be a very gentle and soft-hearted person.

Chiba is very tolerant and tends to be a little bit of a people pleaser, always putting other people’s feelings over his own even at the risk of possibly wearing himself out. The reason why he hides his eyes is to accommodate his peers when he was younger since his intense gaze made him appear to be always on guard. Similarly, he dislikes letting others down. It’s why he never complains when his classmates began putting their faith in his skills when he was assigned the most important role in the Island Assassination attempt. He fears that letting his concerns be known before the attempt was made might shake his classmates’ confidence and he doesn’t want that. Hence, he swallowed his feelings and continued on with the job. Later, Chiba outwardly admits that he felt so pressured by the amount of faith his classmates had in him that it inevitably affected his usually near-perfect performance. 

Chiba is notably keen on logic and prefers to only rely on solid facts when taking in information. He is a realist who lives in the present, using his five senses to quietly observe the world around him, thus noticing details that most people tend to miss. After the announcement of their final exam results when he noticed the dejected Karma despite the nonchalant front, he knew exactly what to do to cheer him up. Another example was when he decided to check on Kurahashi who was feeling down after Takaoka began taking over their PE classes, aware of her interest towards Karasuma.

His spatial awareness was what makes his sniping accuracy be of high level, easily being able to determine the distance between point A and point B while taking account of outside factors such as wind direction and trajectory of the bullet. In the Korosuu novel, he even shows his disinterest towards Hayami’s suggestion of using his “intuition” to shoot because it clashes with his extremely calculated sniping method.

Although he never brags about it, Chiba is rightfully proud of his skills and despises it when his abilities gets undermined and ridiculed to the point that he becomes very petty about it. When the Legendary Sniper called him a hindrance after giving him a warning shot in chapter 5 of the Korosuu novel, Chiba meticulously instructed Hayami to shoot back at the sniper out of pure spite.

His learned tendency to swallow his concerns when in the middle of a job makes other people mistake him for someone who always hides what he feels. But the surprising truth is that Chiba finds it easy to be completely transparent about his feelings, especially with how self-aware he actually was. Right after the Island assassination attempt was deemed a failure, Chiba wasted no time asking Ritsu to confirm what he had observed during the assassination attempt. He did not hesitate to express the pride and confidence he always has in his skills from how extremely well he typically does in rehearsals and practice sessions, as well as the growing pressure he felt from not wanting to let others down finally dawning on him the second he was about to pull the trigger.

By the time he returned to the hotel, Chiba was able to navigate through his feelings and let them out in the open for Ritsu and the others nearby to hear. Throughout the entire infiltration, Chiba did not once think back to his prior failure, more concerned with what is currently happening around him, like Korosensei entrusting him and Hayami to use real guns, which he finds to be an absurd thing for a teacher to do. Chiba’s method of instantly facing his feelings after the concerned matter is done with is what allows him to move forward without regrets.

Ever since the pep talk Korosensei gave to them, Chiba slowly began to voice out his concerns and share the details he had observed more often. It later turns out that he deeply respects Hazama because the ease she has to string her words together outloud with hardly any care about what others may think was something he couldn't replicate himself.

In Korotan B, Chiba noticed the direction of the conversation he and Puey were having and thus tried his luck to ask about the boy’s backstory while he was still being talkative. When the class became divided in whether they wanted to continue the assassination or not after learning the truth about Korosensei, Chiba volunteered to be the first to pick his side with no hesitation, which was the Kill Team. He expressed that he had long decided on what he wanted to do and will go through with it.

A rather hidden side of him was that he is an adrenaline junkie who gets very excited at the notion of doing something fear-inducing and borderline dangerous, like going to space or riding intense amusement park rides. He has a liking towards intense things in general, given his love for hardcore punk and metal bands.

Navigation

Chiba Ryuunosuke Masterlist

Differentiating Chiba and Hayami's sniping methods using MBTI

This panel of Chiba and Nakamura I found interesting

[zanadux]

Assassination Classroom 10th year anniversary, current info + some thoughts.

The FujiAni 2025 broadcast is/was to be reuploaded to FujiAni's Youtube channel today. Assassination Classroom was the second to last series to be announced on-stage (the last one was the preview to the remake of Rose of Versailles). Fukujama Jun (Korosensei's VA) and a man in-character as Korosensei's represented the series. They thanked the audience (past and present) for these 10 years, stated (on-stage and on X) that the cast that worked in the anime is rather tight-knit, some of them reunite from time to time to reminisce about the series and asked the audience to look forward to updates about the 10th year anniversary project. The project has a foreword from Matsui. WSJ, Shueisha, FujiAni and Matsui are in the project. Many past VA's that worked in the anime (Karma, Nagisa, Kayano, Fuwa, Ritsu and Megu's, to name a few) have publicly expressed their delight with the project. As of December 11th in Japan, no new info has been released. The closest event in part 1 of the project is the reopening of the Korosensei shrine in Odaiba, at FujiTV's HQ, which opens in December 28th for a limited time. The anime (the full 2 seasons) starts rebroadcasting in April 2025, and will last for all of 2025. The project is meant to be a long one. The old Assassination Classroom official anime website, last updated in 2017, has been archived, and FujiAni has made a brand new website, where updates and information are posted (in Japanese). The X account for the series, which remained active long after the last piece of media from the series (Korosuu) was released in 2016, is actively posting information as well, although, all social media and websites of the series posts the same information. Reception in Japan has been great. The series is well liked, and Matsui is a popular mangaka, as his 3 series (Neuro, AssClass and Elusive Samurai) so far have been hits, so his track record is good. As to what parts 2 and 3 of the project might be, nobody knows, and there's no real way of knowing. Some things are more far likely (a stageplay, some light novel format-type work) than others (anime or an OVA), and all are dependent on how long the project intends to run. All parties seem very invested in it.