THIS IS A MANGA ONLY DISCUSSION POST. DO NOT DISCUSS ANYTHING BEYOND THIS CHAPTER.
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The epilogue... or perhaps the epilogue part 1 as the final, final chapter is supposedly in next month's issue out September 9th. I guess I'll believe it is the last one when it says so... for now, here is the epilogue, part 1? Kuchisake Onna 1 / Mouth Torn Woman 1 / Oral Fissure Woman 1... doesn't sound nice.
'Is no one using the rear most seat in class?'
If you say so... Why do you ask? Isn't it just a spare?''
'Over there... don't they call that "Yuuko's seat" !'
'It really looks like Yuuko is taking part in class... eh! Scary...'
Teiichi turns back to the seat and says, "Good morning. ... Yuuko san."
It has returned. Her smile.
She sits in her desk, smiling indeed. Yuuko san has returned.
"Morning, Teiichi kun," she says.
"Hey Niiya... Quit joking around about what isn't a laughing matter..."
"Ohhh... sorry."
As always, no one else can see her.
Yuuko san really is here and is laughing along. Yuuko san is stuck in this world.
'Teiichi-kun! Teiichi-kun!" She smiles lovingly at him. He turns around and smiles back. She pokes him in the back.
She falls asleep and her head hits her desk with a bang! The other students turn to see what made the sound.
'That startled me!'
'What was that sound?!'
Whispered, 'Yuuko san...?'
'Wasn't it from Yuuko-san's desk?'
She is holding her head with a red mark on her forehead. 'There's a mark... I'm so embarassed...'
'As expected, a second year class lesson is boring!' Yuuko san says to Teiichi kun out in the hall.
'You say that and yet you attend class every day.' replies Teiichi kun.
'That's because I enjoy being by your side!' she says back, laughing. 'But I fell alseep.'
She hugs him, 'But that's that!'
'Hold on Yuuko-san, it's hard to walk like this!' Another student looks at him, '?'
'Isn't it nice? It's for this sort of thing that I came back,' Yuuko san says, laughing again.
'You don't say,' replies Teiichi kun.
'But the long awaited togetherness, the possibility of being a couple is an enjoyable thing... or so they say, and I wanted to find out." she says.
'Is that so?' he asks.
"Isn't that so?" she asks, laughing once again.
In the club room, it's Momoe holding up a flyer, 'Please look Niiya san!'
It's an ad for the club on which Kirie is holding up a talisman. 'Let us take care of your hauntings!' 'New members apply!'
'Really everyone, we created this ad poster in top secret!' says Momoe.
'That's... awesome, eh!' says Teiichi kun.
'I want to meet the first years early in the first month! I feel like I got a late start but with this request for new students there's no reason we shouldn't get new club members!' says Momoe. She continues, 'With Yuuko san's return, the Apparition Research club has started back up again.' 'FYI, today's offering to Yuuko san is a brown sugar bun...’
Yuuko san pops it in her mouth and gulps it down in one bite.
'Hey, it just disappeared!' exclaims Momoe.
'One of the seven wonders of the world,' explains Teiichi. 'From now on I'm not going to think about how this happens. Hey...'
'This is... what is this all about?" asks Kirie as she enters the club room holding one of the flyers.
'Kirie san! Ya! Speaking of which, we're scattering these things we made all over! Okiura sempai drew this illustration for us. Did a really great job, don't you think?' says Momoe.
'That's not the point!' says Kirie.
'Doesn't everyone want to talk about all the new activities first?' asked Momoe trying to change the subject.
'Hey!!' shouted Kirie.
'Yes!'
'While they were cleaning up, the newspaper club found this,' Kirie holds out a page. 'Evidently, at the nearby elementary school this handout has been going around...' 'Warning: suspicious character, 20-30 year old woman, long black hair, long coat, mask, a sickle. Suspicious person waiting in the tunnel... don't you see something wrong with this?'
'No! It sounds like it's really some sort of monster!' says Momoe.
'What's written inside is this...'
'On the way back from school in a tunnel beside the way to school an elementary school student saw the suspicious woman. Even though it is already warm she is wearing a pure white coat and has a cold mask looped around her hears covering her mouth and nose... With an eerie feeling they sought to hurry out of there. This individual was clowing getting closer... Took off the mask and asked "Am I pretty?" but under the mask was a torn open mouth from ear to ear.'
'Was that the Kuchisakeonna/Torn mouth woman?' asked Teiichi.
'Yes, that's the famous "Torn Mouth Woman"! I've heard about it from time to time until now to what degree, chanting 'hair oil' if they escape or tortoise shell candies if they like them or if they hate them...' says Yuuko san.
Momoe says, 'This child said they ran and escaped. Afterward when they looked in the mirror they say they had cuts on their cheeks... If we have any more questions...' 'What do you think? That's an eerie apparition! I think this is appropriate as the club's first activity!'
Kirie says, 'About this... should we go do this outside the school? It's a bit outside the club's activities.'
But Teiichi says, "Shouldn't it be alright, from now one this is the sort of thing we should be investigating. Let's go!'
'Ehh?'
And off they go to the school gate. The four of them! Yuuko looks back as the three of them continue. She smiles. 'Yuuko san, we're going!'
'...Yeah!'
A pigtailed girl is holding one of the flyers for the club. She looks at them as they go, all four of them. Yes, Yuuko leaves the school ground. They go to the tunnel.
'Here is the "Torn mouth woman" tunnel eh?' They enter the tunnel, Kirie hanging back a bit.
'I don't get a particularly scary feeling looking at the entrance,' says Kirie.
'Come on, Kirie san,' says Teiichi.
'Hey, over there. Who's that?' asks Yuuko.
'Eh?' exclaims Teiichi.
'Good evening!' yells Momoe to the pigtailed girl in the tunnel.
'What? Who?' asks the pigtailed girl who is holding a Nekon Goodpix camera.
'Hey! That's a surprised voice guys!' yells Kirie.
'I'm really sorry, uh... What are you doing here?' asks Teiichi of the girl.
'This tunnel is dangerous. The Torn Mouth Woman comes here.' says Momoe.
'I know...' says the girl.
'That camera... by chance have you captured the Torn Mouth Woman on it?'
'...yes.'
'...scary, isn't it?'
'Scary... Scary but... without these things...' the girl said. 'You guys are also looking for the Torn Mouth woman?'
'Yes, that's all...' replies Teiichi.
'Then... why do they sai this sort of thing doesn't exist!!' yells the girl.
Another pigtailed girl, the one who was waiting at the school gates holding the club flyer appears at the other end of the tunnel. 'Onechan...' says the girl they'd been speaking to.
The angry looking girl says, 'If I get mad because you're doing what you want going out with the camera eh?'
The girl with the camera runs out of the tunnel.
'...you're going to be one of the students at our school? Did you follow after us?" asks Kirie.
'I _am_ a first year student at your school.' says the pigtailed girl holding the flyer. 'This is your Apparition Research club request. Please show me proof of something that can't exist, the "Torn Mouth Woman".'
Continued next month...
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So...... aside from the fact that it seems like Yuuko can leave the school grounds this was an old ghost buster story... mostly. Teiichi apparently didn't commit suicide and they didn't disappear either. Not really an explanation just, I'm back!
So not really an ending? But I'm happy all the characters are having fun together anyway. Now I just wonder why it is ending at all... |