"Kawazoe Family"
Mother, I'm going.
I like the air humming with energy
My quickening pulse expands outwards
Take in a deep breath
And all I see now is straight ahead
No one can take my place
A path only I can walk
Even those tears will all begin to sparkle
That's why when I raise my hand high, there's power in my palm
I'll head straight for tomorrow without hesitation
In just the blink of an eye
I'll make the story of my dream come true
Even if it's hopeless and far from my grasp
I'll never give up
Sounding the bamboo beat that's mine and mine alone
How do we get there again?
Don't you know, sensei? You said you came here before.
That's almost 10 years ago! You can't expect me to remember!
Sensei, over there.
Ah, that's it! That's the bus!
Let's go!
There are a lot of people headed for the tournament...
It's a pretty big tournament, after all.
I can already smell the scent of kendo!
So exciting!
Don't say that out loud. People are looking at us weird.
Sorry.
That's okay.
Tama-chan, are you nervous?
A little.
How rare for you to get nervous before a match.
I'm sorry, Dan-kun!
Don't worry about it, Miya-miya.
I'm always here for you to lean on.
Dan-kun...
Miya-miya, that hurts. That hurts.
- Carrie! - That hurts, Miya-miya.
- Next stop is Messe Yokohama. Messe Yokohama is the next stop. - I said that hurts, Miya-miya.
If you would like to get off at this stop...
"35th" "Shoryuki High School Kendo Tournament" If you would like to get off at this stop...
"35th" "Shoryuki High School Kendo Tournament"
We're finally here!
"35th" "Shoryuki High School Kendo Tournament"
All right, Yuuji!
"26th Shoryuki High School Kendo Tournament" All right, Yuuji!
"26th Shoryuki High School Kendo Tournament"
Let's get registered!
There's a lot of people here, so don't get lost!
Yes, sir!
Who the hell thinks about possibly losing before the match?!
You morons!
Be stupid!
Okay, say cheese!
Reminds you of the old days, eh?
Senpai.
It's no smoking here.
Take a good look. It's not real.
Where're your students?
They're registering in the individuals tournament.
Did you bring the Machido kids?
They're not participating this time.
I brought my other school.
Oh, that's right, you teach at two schools.
Please write down your name and school here.
"Reception" Please write down your name and school here.
"Reception" Make sure you take the flier of reminders.
Now that I think about it, since we're all participating this time,
if we advance, we're going to meet up with each other somewhere, right?
Well, of course.
In other words, it means we'll end up fighting Tama-chan, right?
If you can advance, that is.
What's wrong? Lose interest?
Nope.
I may have felt that way before,
but it gets my blood pumping now!
Just by getting to be in such a big tournament!
You said it.
As competitors,
let us fight with all our might, no matter who our opponent is!
That is high school kendo!
Ooh! Satorin's all fired up!
Please excuse me, senpai.
I'm going to go line up over there.
Miya-miya?
You've come again?
What?
I can sense your presence.
Why don't you give up already?
I've told you time and again, haven't I?
That you can never catch up to me.
You're right, I'm sick of hearing you say that.
But you know, even if I can't catch up to you,
it's just possible that I'm right on your heels.
So, did that issue with the boys get worked out in the end?
Yes, well, I suppose you could say that we got it worked out.
Wait, who told you about that?
You don't know anyone at my school except me...
Oh!
Could it have been Yoshikawa-sensei?!
She called me!
When in the world did you give her your number?
- Never mind. Listen. - You sure move fast.
Get real! I haven't met with her or anything!
So anyway, how are things? Is everything all settled now?
For the time being.
The school only wanted someone to pin the blame on.
Brings back memories, doesn't it?
Yes, it does.
Practice sure was fun back then.
I was always being put through the wringer.
But well, it was fun when I won against you here, though.
That's the one blemish on my record.
Care to fight another match someday?
What?
"Tamaki Kawazoe"
Don't forget to take a flier.
Yes, ma'am.
More fliers coming through.
"Suzuki" More fliers coming through.
"Suzuki"
"Rin Suzuki"
So cute! What's with this cat?!
Isn't this the gray cat that only shows up once in every 25 episodes?!
It's a pretty rare sighting.
Begin!
Men!
I know I said it wouldn't matter who my opponents were,
but I didn't have to get Tama-chan right from the get go!
Begin!
Men!
And she's gotten a lot stronger, too!
"Azuma (M) Kawazoe"
I feel bad for Azuma, but Tamaki's at the top of her form today.
"Satori Azuma" "Tamaki Kawazoe" If she continues to advance as expected,
"Satori Azuma" "Tamaki Kawazoe" she'll come up against Rin Suzuki in Round 5.
"Rin Suzuki" she'll come up against Rin Suzuki in Round 5.
She'll come up against Rin Suzuki in Round 5.
The question will be...
...whether she can bring the results of her training to bear against her.
"Miyako Miyazaki" "Carrie Nishikawa"
Matched up against me in Round One already.
You really have such bad luck.
I get to score my first victory against you, so I'd say luck's on my side.
Both with the competition and with men!
Whatever!
Miya-miya, go for it!
It's like a dream! To have Miyako-chan over at my house!
It's not like I came because I wanted to.
When you attack consecutively, your stance tends to become unstable.
That's why your strikes aren't deemed to be valid.
Reimi-san, do you have any video?
Oh, yes.
Personally, I'm lukewarm on the Miyako-chan in this video, though...
Carrie-san is primarily a two-sword fighter.
She will counter you, no matter how many strikes you execute.
What am I supposed to do then?
Just go for one point.
If you stick it out for the entire allotted time
and go for one strike that takes your opponent by surprise,
you might have a chance.
Body strike!
Take by surprise...
Men!
Doh!
Miya-miya!
Body strike!
Dan-kun, how's Miyazaki-san doing?
Match over!
So she won?
Yeah.
We did it...
It's Miya-miya's first victory!
We did it! I lost, but we did it!
We did it! We did it! We did it!
So this is... what it means to win...
This is what...
...everyone works so hard for.
You did it, Miya-miya! We'll have a party tonight!
"35th" "Shoryuki High School Kendo Tournament"
Oh, darn it! I wonder if Miyako-chan's already lost?
Oh, Miyako-chan?
I lost...
Good work out there. How far did you advance?
Round Four! My personal best!
Ooh, same here! We both worked hard, didn't we?
If this were a smaller tournament, I could've made it into the top 8.
By the way, how did everyone do?
Miya-miya won against that Carrie!
Really?! She did it!
She lost in Round Two, but well, that's fine.
It's a big step forward.
I lost in the first round.
Your opponent was Tama-chan, after all.
I'm sorry.
Oh, no, there's no need to apologize.
So, where's Miya-miya?
She was here just earlier...
Could she be in the restroom?
Right when the boys are in a tough situation, too...
"Eiga (M) Nakata" Right when the boys are in a tough situation, too...
Men!
Dan-kun, I'm sorry...
- Kote! ...but I can't lose against you just yet!
Out of bounds!
Dan-kun, I know you've been working hard.
I also know that you have talent.
Begin!
But I've got my pride, too!
My pride that's brought me this far!
Evading body strike!
That won't work against me!
Men!
Head strike!
He scored a head strike! Dan-kun got a point off Yuuji-kun!
He used his favorite evading body strike as a feint to create an opening!
This puts the score at one-one...
I guess these guys had made an awful lot of progress, too.
Yuuji-kun's fighting so fiercely...
What's this about?
I won't feel good until I've won against you fighting with two swords.
Are you sure?
You finally won against me. This will even things out.
My next win will make it two wins and two losses.
Then, we'll be even.
Why do you use two swords anyway?
It's useless in competition.
There was a two-sword fighter in a samurai movie I once saw.
I was smitten the moment I saw that.
I'll be able to use it in competition once I'm an adult, too.
I have no intention of changing my style.
Once I've made something mine, I never let it go!
Let us begin.
Yes, let's.
Men!
Aw, but I guess Yuuji-kun still won.
Dan-kun got pretty close, though.
He did, didn't he? Just a little more and he could've had it.
Dan-kun...
You've grown, Yuuji.
Huh?
Now that you've defeated me, there's no one to stand in your way.
Go win this thing.
I need to go soon.
Who are you up against next?
It's Rin-san.
Do your best!
Yes.
Don't worry! You can win!
Yes.
We'll be cheering for you.
Yes.
Relax, okay, Tama-chan?
Yesh.
Go have fun.
Yes!
It's finally time, huh?
Yes.
I hope you taught her good and proper how to deal with the high stance.
Begin!
Men!
It was at the same time!
Tama-chan's awesome!
Their difference in reach is so great. Talk about reckless...
Right now, there are no such calculated thoughts in Tama's head.
Men! Men!
She's not going to last at that rate.
Is she planning to go down fighting?
Don't be ridiculous.
She's having the time of her life right now.
- An opponent that she can test her limits against... - Men!
She's realized that Rin Suzuki is that kind of opponent for her.
For the very first time, Tama's experiencing the joy of a challenge.
Kote!
Wrist strike!
She did it!
She got a point!
You're late, Dan-kun! Tama-chan just got a point!
Where's Miya-miya?
You're 10 years ahead of yourself if you think to win against two swords!
What's that? Some kind of American joke?!
I was pretty well-known back in middle school, too, you know!
Awesome!
Miyako-chan's combative spirit bared for all to see!
It's seriously awesome!
Men!
Smile, Miyako-chan!
I have you!
Dan-kun!
What brute strength...
No!
"Dan-kun" "Miya-miya" No!
"Dan-kun" "Miya-miya" It's a...
"Dan-kun" "Miya-miya" ...power of love.
"Dan-kun" "Miya-miya" Awesome...
Doh!
Body strike!
Oh, they've each got a point now.
Back to square one...
This is where the match begins! Fight, Tama-chan!
Fight!
The opposition still has the high stance left.
This'll be the moment of truth.
Yes, this is where her kendo begins.
Tama-chan...
That's right...
Everyone here loves kendo...
Kendo is... kind of amazing.
She's become far stronger than she was before.
It makes me so happy, Tama-chan!
But that's precisely why I can't allow myself to lose!
The stronger the enemy, the more I get fired up!
That's my kendo!
Tama-chan...
It reminds me...
...of how you countered my high stance with a high stance of your own.
Will this be a reenactment of that?
Any advice of mine is of no use to her.
All I said to her was...
"If your opponent really were your mother,
"would you be fine with losing to her?"
No.
No matter who it may be, I want to win.
Middle stance!
Men!
Mother!
I...
...have come to love kendo!
Tsuki!
Match over!
She did it! She got the second point!
That was the Atomic Fire Blade!
Throat strike! One point! Congratulations, Tama-chan.
I lost.
Rin-san...
But this makes it one win and one loss.
Let's settle this next time.
Yes, I'll be looking forward to it.
Tama-chan!
You were so cool!
When in the world did you get to be so strong?!
Nah, Tama-chan's always been strong.
What happened to you, Miya-miya?!
A little overtime match.
This paves the way for a win in the individuals tournament.
I guess that'll save your neck, then?
It doesn't matter anymore.
Either way, I'm...
I told you, didn't I?
Unless they've got someone to pin the blame on,
the school can't be persuaded not to act.
H-Hey, Kojiro, don't tell me you're...
Sensei?
Here.
Thanks.
Nobu-chan, what's going to happen to me now?
Don't you worry.
I know of a lot of jobs where you can make money.
I'm calling the star rise
The wishes begin to sparkle in the twilight
Shooting stars, come down into my hands
Barefoot by my window, looking up at the night
Sleepless, alone with the moonlight
What I did during the day flickers before my eyes
I'm the only one spinning my wheels and I still feel impatient
I'm calling the star rise
I close my eyes, listening to my heart
I want to meet the me that I haven't gotten to know yet
I'm calling the star rise
The wishes are sparkling brilliantly
Shooting stars, come down into my hands
Nobu-chan, this job is rough!
Don't complain! The sweat of labor is priceless!
Nobu-chan, this thing rocks a lot. I'm starting to feel nauseous.
You fool! Swallow it!
These days, if you throw up in the sea,
they get on your case, ecologically and teuthologically.
Oh, Nobu-chan! It's a crab! It's scary!
Hey, Kojiro, they say next up for Bamboo Blade is the final episode,
"'Since Then' and 'From Here On Out."'
Will I get back in time for that?!