1. I must have fallen asleep.
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2. Looking for Darwin
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3. Miss?
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4. It's nothing.
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5. Let's go.
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6. Good morning, Nishino-san.
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7. Good morning to you, too!
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8. Good morning, Senpai!
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9. Thank you, good morning.
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10. There was a boy that I despised.
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11. Good morning, Kageno-kun.
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12. His grades were just below average.
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13. Athletically, he was just below average.
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14. His looks were exceedingly ordinary.
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15. Good morning,
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16. Nishimura-san.
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17. Excuse me, Kageno-kun.
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18. What is it, Nishimura-san?
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19. My name...
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20. It isn't Nishimura.
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21. What?
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22. My name...
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23. It isn't Nishimura.
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24. What?
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25. It's not Nishimura.
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26. Oh, I got it wrong?
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27. Yes, my name is-
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28. Oh, hold on, I remember now.
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29. You were technically a named NPC, weren't you?
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30. "Named" what?
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31. Sorry, talking to myself.
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32. I'm pretty good at remembering the names
of all the important characters.
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33. But I haven't been getting enough sleep.
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34. So I guess I got careless.
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35. A careless mistake, I see.
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36. You have been in my class,
sitting right next to me for three months.
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37. Three months!
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38. That's okay, everybody makes mistakes.
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39. Yeah, sorry...
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40. Nishitani-san.
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41. I ain't Nishitani, jerk!
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42. It's Nishino.
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43. I'm Akane Nishino.
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44. Oh, well, see you later, Nishimura-san.
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45. It's Nishino!
You went backwards!
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46. His most unforgivable crime was not
his failure to get my name right.
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47. He never looked at me.
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48. He turned his eyes in my direction,
but they were always distant,
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49. like he was looking at some different, far-off place.
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50. When I realized that about him,
my hatred was complete.
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51. Akane! You're playing the lead in the
upcoming Monday-night drama, right?
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52. That's so cool!
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53. How many shows have you done now?
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54. You're even busier than you were last year!
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55. Please! I'm so nervous about it, I could die!
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56. I'm definitely gonna watch!
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57. I had done everything in my power to
avoid associating with Kageno-kun.
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58. If I could have had my way,
I would have ignored him entirely.
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59. But there were reasons that I wanted to
avoid making a big deal of it.
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60. 20,553... 20,554... 20 thousand-
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61. When I was in middle school,
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62. I had to take a break from show business
because of a scandal.
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63. Stalker Scare
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64. Ever since the incident...
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65. I've been hiding behind a mask.
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66. Nuclear...
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67. The limits of living things...
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68. More power...
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69. Will anyone volunteer to tally up
the school festival survey answers?
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70. Oh, Sensei, I can-
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71. Oh, but Nishino-san,
you have makeup lessons right now.
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72. Because you've been so busy lately.
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73. This is what makes you so darn lovable, Akane.
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74. Come on, don't laugh so much.
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75. Then, um, you, sitting next to her.
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76. If you would?
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77. Yes, ma'am.
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78. Okay, time for club!
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79. Wanna stop by Mitsugoshi on the way home?
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80. I play the teacher's pet so the teachers will like me.
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81. I play the popular girl so the students will like me.
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82. I've been very careful to make sure no one hates me.
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83. That's how I've lived my life up to this point.
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84. The Young Miss
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85. He's not answering.
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86. I haven't walked home since the incident.
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87. Akane Nishino, I presume?
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88. Why? How?
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89. Not again!
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90. No!
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91. Come on, stop struggling.
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92. It finally kicked in.
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93. All right, get her in the car.
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94. Huh? Don't order me around, outsider.
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95. You know you shouldn't do that:
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96. The daughter of the head of the Nishino Zaibatsu,
wandering the streets alone at night.
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97. You might get caught by some unsavory characters.
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98. Just stay there and don't try anything.
We sent the ransom note.
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99. As soon as we get the money, you're free to go.
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100. Or that's the cover story, anyway.
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101. Seems like your old man's made a lot of enemies.
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102. Hey, shut it.
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103. Huh?
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104. You shut it, outsider.
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105. You think you can talk down to me?
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106. I said stop talking, you outdated gangster cliché.
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107. This is so annoying.
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108. I finally caught my lucky break, and now it's all ruined.
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109. Why don't you help me feel better?
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110. Gimme a little fan service.
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111. I'll start with that pretty little mouth of yours.
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112. Don't you dare fight me!
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113. This should be old hat for you.
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114. It's your second time being kidnapped, after all.
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115. And the last guy was a stalker? Right?
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116. I'll give you much better memories than that other guy.
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117. Stop struggling!
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118. You know no one's coming.
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119. What?
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120. I mean, who's there?
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121. Who the hell do you think you are?
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122. Me?
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123. I'm just a Stylish Ruffian Slayer.
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124. Stylish...
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125. Ruffian Slayer?
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126. Don't get cute with us, dammit!
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127. Too much pointless movement.
Your guard is way down.
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128. I see...
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129. It looks like you have some idea what you're doing,
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130. Stylish Ruffian Slayer.
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131. You know, I've been awfully bored
since I was booted from the army.
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132. Doing these little kiddy abductions,
partnering with a lowlife amateur...
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133. This country is too damn peaceful.
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134. I see, this is perfect.
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135. I've always wanted to fight a military man.
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136. I welcome the challenge, Stylish Ruffian Slayer!
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137. Welcome to my crazy, messed up world!
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138. I can't go back now that I know...
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139. how good this feels!
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140. Crowbars are great, Mr. Ex-Military.
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141. They're sturdy and don't break.
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142. They're easy to carry around.
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143. If you end up in police questioning,
you might be able to make excuses.
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144. And best of all...
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145. you can use them like tonfa batons.
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146. Dammit!
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147. You're definitely a good fighter.
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148. But you have a major weakness.
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149. And it's the fact that I'm big enough to crush you!
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150. I just have to protect my head and I'm fine,
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151. but if you take one hit from me, you're done.
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152. You make a good point.
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153. At my current level, an ex-military guy
is still a bit of a challenge.
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154. That's the reality.
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155. So I should get a little more serious about this.
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156. What?
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157. I discovered the real potential of crowbars.
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158. They're shaped very much like tonfa.
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159. They're heavy, sturdy, and portable.
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160. Everything about them has immense potential.
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161. Then I made it a regular practice to
beat up the motorcycle gangs
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162. that disturbed the peace night after night.
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163. You...
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164. You beat up bikers with a crowbar?
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165. You're the Balaclava Berserker?
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166. They recently started wearing helmets,
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167. so it wouldn't kill them if I hit them in the head.
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168. And...
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169. the solution I found to that problem...
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170. was to stop using the crowbars like tonfa.
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171. Because using it like a regular club...
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172. is more effective!
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173. That is the potential of a crowbar.
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174. The trick is to hit with the heel of the "L..."
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175. because it magnifies the shock.
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176. N-no, don't!
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177. Stop...
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178. Next time, be more careful walking home.
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179. What?
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180. It's no good.
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181. If that's how I do against an ex-soldier,
I'll never make it.
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182. I'll never be the Eminence in Shadow.
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183. After that, I called the police,
and things got pretty hectic.
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184. But Daddy pulled some strings,
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185. and the public never found out about what happened.
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186. In the end, I never did discover the true identity
of the Stylish Ruffian Slayer.
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187. Good morning, Nishino-san!
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188. Good morning to you, too!
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189. Good morning, Senpai!
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190. Thank you, good morning.
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191. Good morning, Kageno-kun.
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192. Good morning,
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193. Nishino-san.
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194. Okay, okay, my name isn't Nishino-
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195. He didn't get my name wrong.
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196. And I got the feeling his eyes
were looking directly at me.
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197. "Kageno-kun is like me.
He lives his life hiding behind a mask."
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198. That's the thought that crossed my mind.
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199. But now there's no way to ever know for sure.
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200. On to our next story.
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201. Just before dawn this morning, on a city road in Sakurazaka,
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202. local high school student Minoru Kageno-san was hit by a truck.
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203. He did not survive.
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204. The police have determined that the driver
was not watching the road,
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205. and have begun to investigate-
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206. I don't remember how it started.
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207. As far back as I can remember,
it's what I always wanted to be.
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208. Like how everybody dreams of being a hero
when they're a kid.
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209. That's what I wanted to be.
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210. But what made me different from other kids,
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211. is that my passion was far from a temporary phase.
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212. It kept burning, deep, deep inside my heart.
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213. The flame never went out.
It kept driving me forward.
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214. I did everything I could to master
every skill I needed to be stronger.
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215. At school, I was the stubbornly ordinary,
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216. never conspicuous, utterly harmless,
Background Character A.
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217. But behind the mask, I gave everything to my training.
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218. As everyone around me grew up and
forgot about the heroes they dreamed of becoming,
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219. I started to feel a little - just a very little - sentimental.
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220. But I kept going, I kept working,
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221. for the day I knew would come.
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222. But the time has come for me to face reality.
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223. None of this is going to mean anything.
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224. The world is overflowing with martial arts,
and I can learn all of them,
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225. but I'll never get the kind of overwhelming power
you hear about in all the stories.
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226. The best I can do is bust a few delinquent heads.
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227. If, for example, I was surrounded
by fully armed soldiers,
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228. that would be it for me.
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229. Well, if I became the
strongest martial artist in the world,
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230. there's a chance I'd be able to rough 'em up some.
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231. But then what?
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232. What if a nuclear missile fell from the sky?
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233. I can tone my muscles, I can hone my mind,
I can polish my skills all I want.
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234. But if a nuclear bomb hits, all I can do is evaporate.
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235. That's what it is to be human.
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236. I have to overcome those limits.
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237. The being that I want to be
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238. would not evaporate in a nuclear explosion.
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239. Compromise is not an option.
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240. Don't worry.
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241. We have them completely surrounded.
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242. They have nowhere to run.
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243. It's exactly as you predicted, My Lord.
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244. I have only words of admiration for
your foresight and meticulous planning.
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245. We haven't had a big hunt in ages.
I can't wait!
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246. I'll show no mercy.
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247. We're all waiting for your orders, My Lord.
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248. Excellent.
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249. I'm not sure exactly what's excellent,
but I'm sure that it is.
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250. I was blessed with a new life,
and in a new world, no less.
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251. And I was given...
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252. I need more power.
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253. magic.
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254. With this new power at my disposal...
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255. There is but one summit we aim to reach.
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256. Let's go.
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257. This time, I'm going to make it.
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258. I would give up everything to get there.
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259. No, I will give up everything!
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260. If that's what it takes to get there,
that's how badly I want it.
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261. I don't want to be the hero.
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262. I don't want to be the last boss.
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263. I want to be the one in the story who
operates from the shadows,
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264. showing everyone their greatness:
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265. The Eminence in Shadow!
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