Part 52: Juro Kurabe 5

Chapter 52: Juro Kurabe 5

Music: In The Doldrums (Rikako Watanabe)




Let me guess. Amiguchi-kun’s not there? I think he’s at the break area.
Thanks for makin’ my life easier, man. Cool, let’s grab our stuff and head over.



Consider Megumi Yakushiji

(I tried asking her about that talk she had on the stairs… But she just dodged the question. She had a sad look on her face… ……)



Well, let’s grab the papers again so we can ditch Shiba.





Use Stack of Papers on Kyuta Shiba



I have to drop off these papers.
Again? Geez. Well, just meet me at the front gate when you’re done. In the meantime, I’ll go hunt down Amiguchi.






As we’re leaving, we (literally) bump into Iori.




And then in the hallway, we run into Megumi.





About what you said on the stairs the other day…



Megumi tries to avoid the question and walk past…



…but Juro doesn’t let her.

Use Izumi on Megumi Yakushiji



But I couldn’t help thinking about what you and Gouto-senpai said. This “Juro Izumi”… Is that me? I need to know.
……






*sad chuckle*



And with that, Megumi runs away.











I heard terrible things. So… I thought…



My name is Kurabe. Juro Kurabe.
……





I remember…

Use Izumi on Ryoko Shinonome



Juro Izumi.
……



Music: Cognitive Dissonance (Rikako Watanabe)

But right now… You’ve been given a different personality.
Given? By who?
The two of us lost our memories after a certain incident. We suffered serious mental trauma. Especially you… I heard that you had it worst of all. But… I’m not so well off either. My memories keep disappearing. I’m not sure if I’ll even remember this conversation…



It happened in the future. But you received medical treatment here… Back in the past.
The future? No way.
It’s true. And you’re Juro Izumi.




Honestly, it’s really hard for me to believe…
I don’t blame you.

Consider Juro Izumi

(So, let me get this straight… Juro Izumi came from the future. He lost his memories due to some incident… And the damage was so bad, he needed a whole new personality. That’s how he became… me. Juro Kurabe. It’s so hard to believe. But if it’s true… that would explain why I kept feeling like something was off.)

Consider Terrible Dream

(That dream was awful. I was going around killing students… I shot so many. Like Fuyusaka-san… and Yakushiji… If that was a real memory… Does that mean I actually did all that…?)



Well, after that heavy shit, we almost forgot the pretense we came here under: returning the fucking papers for the eighteenth time!




I’m sure she’ll see them when she gets back.



Last time I was here, I saw those creepy documents about me.

Use Juro Izumi on Ms. Morimura’s Desk



They’re gone. Last time, she had documents on Juro Izumi here. I guess she put them away.



Ryoko has nothing further to say and will just stare at us until we leave, so let’s do that.



As we open the door, Shiba bursts through it!



Shiba-kun… What’s up?



I thought I’d come looking for you.



Let’s call it a day and go home.




You’re not getting away from me tomorrow!




All of that was a “Daily Life” segment. None of it was essential. Honestly, a little surprising. While there wasn’t anything too new there, you’d think Juro learning that information would be important.




Well, let’s jump back in. We have a real scene to see.

Music: In The Doldrums (Rikako Watanabe)



Pick up the papers…



Show them to Shiba…



The next step is waiting for Iori to arrive and say goodbye to Tomi and Miwako. Once she grabs her bag, Iori stops and stares at Juro for a second before she leaves.



We can actually talk to Iori during this window.



Well… Maybe not here. Let’s go out to the hall.








Well, um… You know that dream you were telling me about? The truth is…



What do you mean?



Music: STAGNATION (Yoshimi Kudo)

*gasp* You don’t… remember? You just mentioned it again last week. You know, the one about the shootout.
Shootout…?
Something about taking refuge in a harbor… But you ended up getting shot and captured. I was the only one who managed to escape…
Oh yeah… In order to prevent killer robots from being invented… A factory got blown up, right?
You remember now?
I didn’t know you were into action movies.



Haha, I almost forgot.
*sigh*



Of course I do! That movie is a masterpiece.
I’m not talking about a movie. This is something that actually happened… And it wasn’t just a dream, either.
……



It wasn’t…

Use Visitor from Another World on Iori Fuyusaka



There *is* a UFO. It’s beneath us.
…… No way. It’s just like the movie, isn’t it? We’re going to ride that UFO and fight off enemies…
No. That’s what the Sentinels are for.
Sentinels…?
Giant robots. They were created to defeat the kaiju.
……

Use Mighty Kaiju Deimos on Iori Fuyusaka



If the Deimos showed up in real life… I dunno, I think it’d be pretty awesome.



You’ll be seeing plenty of them soon.
…Huh?
Deimos is the general name for them… But there are many different types. Some as big as a truck… Some bigger than a whole building.
That series is really cool. It featured all kinds of different kaiju.

Juro, you fuckin’ nerd! This is real!

Use Visitor from Another World on Iori Fuyusaka



You should check out this drama series.
What’s it about?
It’s an episodic show where the story plays out in different ways each time. In this one, an alien seeks refuge on Earth. There’s a famous scene where he teleports onto a bridge. You’ve never seen it before?
That was a real event. It took place on Sumire Bridge in the year 2089.
Now that you mention it… that scene did look like it was shot at Sumire Bridge.
I was the only one there. You never made it, Kurabe-kun.



I was there. You and I were transmitted together.




Don’t you already know all this? You’re the one who told me about it… Remember when we were cleaning up the science room? You said you saw a shootout from the future in your dreams.
Cleaning up the science room…






Consider Science Room



(Now that I think about it…)



Be sure not to misplace it.



What a snob.



Then return the key to Ms. Morimura. Understood?
Yes.
Then if you’ll excuse me…
Sorry for the trouble.



Let’s get this over with. I’ll wash the equipment over there. Could you put the beakers back on the shelf?

Music: Forty Winks (Rikako Watanabe)



Cleaning duty sucks ass.
Shiba-kun… Stop complaining and get to work.
Did you say something? You were mumbling. Speak clearly, please.
Just… It’s Saturday. Kinda sucks to be doing cleaning duty.
Rules are rules. Just deal with it, okay?

Consider Renya Gouto

(Gouto-senpai is so mature. It’s hard to believe he’s just a high schooler like me.)




I’m getting to it.

Use Renya Gouto on Iori Fuyusaka



No wonder he’s so popular.



Well, let’s grab those beakers.



Beakers go in the big cabinet in the back.










All that’s left now is sweeping up.



What is it?



Is there something on my face?
Er… Sorry… I was just thinking about the woman from my dream last night. I think it was you, Fuyusaka-san.
Me? In your dream?
You were dressed in all black. Strong… Commanding… And honestly, pretty attractive.




What happened in it?




Come on, you can tell me.

Use Shootout Dream on Iori Fuyusaka



Music: Bittersweet Sorrow (Composer: Azusa Chiba, Arranger: Kikuchi Yukinori)

To prevent it, we had to go back in time… And blow up some sort of facility. But that got us in some trouble. Thanks to the bombing, the cops came after us. It came down to a shootout, and the two of us got separated.
Oh… So I was a criminal?
Well… Kind of. It was a just cause.
Uh-huh… Well, that does sound exciting. I’m curious to hear how it ends.
Oh yeah? I can keep going.



Show me.
It’s nothing.
I had a misstep too. I failed to kill one of the researchers.
The deed is done, though. The entire facility’s been destroyed. We did good. The interstellar development project was sent back to square one.
Do you think… we’ve changed the future?
Sure hope so. If not… then we’ll have killed all those innocents for nothing. I’d like to believe they haven’t died in vain.



Suddenly, light fills the hideout.




They’re onto us. I’ll handle this. You go on ahead.
This wasn’t part of the plan.
I can barely walk.
So what, you want me to abandon you here?
…You just need to make it through today. Remember?



Suddenly, the boat begins firing on their position.






The next plot block for Juro here is fairly demanding, but it’s still one we’ve already met.