The 2nd episode of Deep of Muscle.
The following is a fan-translation of the Japanese content.
Credit and thanks go to Gunnar Iron.
Summary[]
The past of the new Kinnikuman Soldier (Soldierman) and the revelation of the unknown battle of the New Soldier Team.
Story[]
Chapter 1[]
Part 1[]
【Prologue】
"History" is the genealogy of the winners.
The winners of each era always wrote down only the convenient parts, and conversely, the inconvenient parts continued to be buried in the darkness. It's just an accumulation of such artificial stories.
Although this view of history, which remains deeply rooted in some parts, is a slightly twisted view, it cannot be said to be a mere ridicule.
"If you win, the government army, if you lose, the enemy army"
The winner will leave a brilliant name for posterity as a hero, while the loser will be stigmatized as a villain who has shielded the winner, and at one time even made it nonexistent in black history. There must have been many.
The lost record will eventually follow the fate of weathering with the passage of time.
With that in mind, there must have been many great unrecorded figures in human history over the years.
And in the history of the chojin world, there must have been a chojin buried in the darkness. And there are chojins who are currently in the process of disappearing from the record...
For example, a chojin called "Kinnikuman Soldier".
He participated in the survival match for the planet Kinniku, and formed a chojin army by advocating true friendship power. That Kinniku royal eldest brother, real name, Kinniku Ataru who left many famous scenes.
This is a historical record, but there is one truth that is often forgotten. Kinniku Ataru was just playing a "fake" Soldier.
In other words, Kinnikuman Soldier certainly had a "real thing" that was about to be buried in the darkness of history.
Here's the real Soldier... the sad life of the True Soldier that everyone has forgotten, and about the real Soldier team that was planning to compete for the throne.
I want to scoop out from the edge of history that was about to be buried and secretly record it here.
Part 2[]
On a planet near Planet Kinniku...
Deep in a secluded, quiet forest, there are three men who hide in the shade of a tree and hold their breath to see what is happening in the distance.
They wore helmets and camouflage uniforms, all had a threatening look and were devoted to listening.
It's coming. The sound of a jeep running down a forest path is gradually approaching them.
The youngest of the three was so nervous that he spoke to the man next door in a whisper.
"Lieutenant! The pursuit is finally here!"
"Be quiet. Hold your gun down. They won't notice us. It would be a while until they will pass by. But if it get closer... shoot mercilessly."
"Yessir"
Yes, this is the battlefield. The three were the defeated soldiers of a platoon that was destroyed on the front line. It's just a short distance to the front base of the army. However, during the rout, the enemy's pursuit was approaching.
The pursuit jeep stoped about 30 meters in front of them. There is only one crew member...
The young soldier who saw it suddenly regained his temper.
"Lieutenant, we’re three! I think it will be faster to do this..."
"Um, that's right. No, wait... oh... is that guy!"
The man getting out of the driver's seat has two big scars on his face. However, the moment he saw his face, the man called "Lieutenant", who should have kept his composure suddenly began to tremble.
"Why... why is he here!"
Recognizing the incident, the other young soldier asks his superior.
"Does the lieutenant know that man...?"
With his eyes wide open, his boss replied with a desperate look.
"The Chojin Weapon... Soldierman..."
"Wait, a Chojin Weapon...?"
Before the words ended, a gunshot echoed in the forest. The head of the soldier who asked was already punched out. It's an instant kill!
"...!?"
The lieutenant and the other young soldier heard the words spoken out loud.
"Hyahaha! It looks like three mice got lost around here. It smells, it smells like blood! That's it!"
Dokan!
This time a grenade was thrown. But by that time, the two soldiers had already retreated. The lieutenant was the first to order an escape.
While running with all their might, the conversation between the two continued.
"Why is in our place!? Lieutenant! What is that guy?"
"The Chojin Weapon Soldierman! The number of soldiers killed so far is over 1,000! The ultimate mercenary and murderer!
"Well, more than a thousand people?"
"Oh, it's an incredible murderer who searches for the whereabouts of an invisible enemy with the smell of blood. What survives being targeted by him..."
Turn!
With the gunshot, the lieutenant brilliantly collapsed in front of him. His left foot was punched out.
"Lieutenant!"
The young soldier stopped, but the lieutenant rebuked it.
"Stupid! Run away! Go back to the base and report his existence!"
"I can't! I can't leave lieutenant here!"
Dokan dokan!
He shoots a gun behind him, but the murderer was no longer there.
"Where, where did he hide?
"Here!"
A man in camouflage uniform fall from the top of the tree with the voice heard from above!
"Wow, ah, ah!"
Guki!
It was a momentary event. The young soldier had his neck broken from behind and died instantly.
The fallen lieutenant slammed the ground and stared at the murderer in front of him.
He laughs calmly when he kills the soldier, as if he was enjoying the murder. Two dear subordinates were slaughtered in front of him in such a rotten outer road. What a blunder. The lieutenant cursed his powerlessness.
"Hyaha! This is no good! I would have enjoyed if you had ran more desperately to then kill you.”
Soldierman's crazy eyes were slowly turned toward the lieutenant, pulling a large survival knife from his waist and licking its cutting edge.
Part 3[]
The Lieutenant didn't look away and continued to stare at the murderer in front of him.
This man, Soldierman, is a well-known figure on the battlefield. He is, according to some, an excellent marksman. He is also an expert in military combat, and his well-trained body is said to be able to hold its own against the best fighters in the world. He has no political agenda and will join any unit as long as they pay him. In this sense, he is the ultimate chojin mercenary.
However, his fame is not the only thing that makes him famous. What made him even more famous, and frightened many soldiers on the battlefield, was his excessively cruel and bizarre tastes, as well as his mental torture.
Even when the war was almost over, his fight doesn't end until he has "annihilated" the enemy troops. Massacres of defeated soldiers are common place. There is no thought of capturing prisoners of war, there are always two choices: kill them or let them go.
And when he does, he skin their heads, cut their ears, pick off their heads, and display them as "trophies of war". It is said that there is no end to the number of friendly soldiers who become nauseous at the sight of the Reaper's triumphant return.
So no one wants to be in the same unit as him. Above all, it's disgusting, and no one wants to push too hard. As the saying goes, "a rat will bite a cat if cornered," so no matter how much you have the upper hand, and if you push too hard, you might get a fatal counterattack from the defeated soldiers. This means risking one's life. That is why, normally, once the battle situation is decided, no one goes after the enemy unless there is a serious problem.
But in general, the concept of "respect life" is completely absent from his thought process. This is true not only for the lives of his enemies, but also for his own.
That is why he prefers to ignore orders and continue to pursue the enemy alone.
Just to continue the "game" of war...
And who would thought that they would end as the object of such a game? The lieutenant could not stand the fact that he was the one who had put his unit in such a situation, and above all he could not stand himself.
At one moment, when his anger had reached its peak, the light of hatred suddenly disappeared from his eyes.
"'Yes,” he said. “I am the only one in command here, and I'm ashamed to be alive. How could I allow this to happen? To be slaughtered by him here is my punishment for being so pathetic!"
The lieutenant, who had accepted death, spoke to the soldier:
"Now kill me quickly. This is my crime for getting my unit killed. You can torture me or whatever you like, you can beat me to death until you're satisfied.”
But as soon as Soldierman heard this, he put his survival knife back in its sheath on his hip and, with a look of disinterest in his eyes, said:
"No. No, no, no!”
"What?"
"Killing a man who wants to die is no fun at all!"
"What?!"
The lieutenant was a little perturbed by the killer's unexpected reaction.
Soldierman sat down and pulled his knife from his waist again. He then deftly ripped the scalp off the corpse lying next to him, whose neck he had just broken, and began to make a strange confession to the man he had called "Lieutenant".
"You see, old man, murder is a wonderful thing. The most thrilling part of murder is when you take the life of someone who wants to live. What's the point of killing a man who just wants to die?”
"I don't care about your taste. I have no right to live. I don't deserve to live. That's what I feel in my heart.”
"Oh, no. You're still in your mid-thirties and you've withered away. Don't you have any more desires, any hopes of getting married in your hometown after the war?” Soldierman asked him fluently, while skinning the corpse.
"I'm already married and have two young children, but I'm separated from my wife. My children don't like me because I have a bad drinking habit, and they don't like me either when I go to see them sometimes. Well, as a lonely man, this unit was like a family to me, but now you have destroyed it. I don't have any regrets in this world anymore.”
"Huh. It's a lonely life. But it's important to keep the flame of life burning, because living it's beautiful!”
"You're a murderer and I'd rather not hear you say that.”
"I'm a murderer and I know how it shines. Listen, life is like a candle flame. The moment it goes out, it shines very brightly. It's the last glow of the soul in the face of death. I want to live more. I've got things to do. When you think that, your emotions explode. And that burst of emotion is a moment of tremendous energy.”
"You're an unfeeling devil in human skin, you know that?”
"No, not everyone is born a demon, and I'm obsessed with that glow because I've been there myself.”
As he said this, soldierman began to look distantly at him, waving the skin of his scalp around.
For some reason, the lieutenant was very curious about his eyes, because they were the only ones that didn't belong to a murderer, at least not at that moment...
Soldierman began in a calm tone.
"I was a war orphan.”
──To be continued
Chapter 2[]
Part 1[]
The confession came out of nowhere. There was a moment of silence, during which the lieutenant did not know how to react. Then Soldierman spoke again.
"I was five years old when my parents were killed in front of my eyes by a professional soldier like you.”
Before long, the lieutenant's face became sombre and began to listen to him.
"'Tragic, isn't it? My parents kept calling my name until the moment they died. Please spare his life! It was the worst experience of my life at the age of five."
“…………”
"And in that moment, I saw it. I saw the glow of my parents' souls with my own eyes. They were both really shiny, beautiful colours. Of course I was crying and screaming when I saw it, and the reflection of my tears made them shine even brighter. The light was telling me that it wanted me to live. It's not coming from my ears, it's coming from my eyes, it's coming directly to my head. You'll never know.”
Indeed, the scene is unimaginable. It was a scene so horrific that the lieutenant had no words to reply.
"That's what I'll always remember. Fortunately I was saved, but ever since then I couldn't get rid of the memory of that beautiful glory, and the resentment against the soldiers. No matter how hard I try to forget it, I can't."
Soldierman had already skinned the head, and now began to remove the ears from the corpse.
"That's why I became a soldier, to kill all the soldiers in the world! It's revenge, yes!"
The murderous Soldierman's fingertips twitched in his ears.
The man before him was one of the victims of war's psychological toll. The lieutenant listened to the confession of the man before him, thinking vaguely in his fading consciousness of the pain in his leg.
"So I've been in all kinds of wars and killed all kinds of soldiers, in atrocities that would have frightened anyone. But when the fear of death gets the better of them, they shine just as brightly as my parents did."
"Do you see it?
"Oh, they shine so beautifully! You're a dirty soldier who has killed a lot of people in his life. The only time they have to die is when they say they want to live. I used to get so angry with them in the beginning.”
"Yes, they are selfish. But as a soldier myself, I can tell you that no one in the army kills for the sake of killing. It's our duty to protect our country, to protect our loved ones, and to attack those who don’t. And that is the consensus of our country and that is what war is all about."
“Shut up! So you're willing to do anything for your country? And what about the children whose parents are killed?”
In a fit of rage, Soldierman grabbed one of the ears he had just removed from the corpse and squeezed it tightly. Blood dripped from his fist.
"I'm sure he's the same man you once knew. I'm sure he'll curse you just as much as you did him..."
As he said this, the lieutenant thought back to himself at the same time. He wondered if he was killed, his two sons and daughter would hate him as much as he did the man who had killed them. He wasn’t sure. At that moment the lieutenant saw a little of the truth of the man before him....
"'Oh, yes. I've been calling you an emotionless murderer for years, but you've still been fighting over your parents since you were five years old, haven't you?”
"I don't know."
"In the meantime, I am ashamed of myself. I'm ashamed of myself," he said. "I justified killing people as a soldier, I said it was for the sake of my children, but in the end I didn't do anything for my family, my children don't even love me.”
"You don't want to die yet, do you?”
The lieutenant smiled faintly.
"Yes, that's true. Thank you... I never thought I'd be reminded of that by you, a murderer. I should try to live a little bit longer, and at least try again to be the kind of father my children will cry for when I die. Yes... I can't die yet!"
At that moment, Soldierman's eyes clearly saw a beautiful light begin to shine from the Lieutenant's chest! At that moment...
"'Ha-ha-ha! Alright! Now die!"
"Huh?"
He smiled, and before the lieutenant knew it, a gun was clutched in his hand.
Boom!
"Ki...ki...you...na, why.........?"
"Aahahahahaha! It is much more pleasant to kill someone who wants to live than someone who is ready to die! Don't think for one second that you soldiers are going to get back to a decent life now, you bastards!”
Boom! Bang, bang, bang!
"It's a shame...”
The only thing that doomed him was that, in his last moments, for the first time in years, he was able to regain his fatherly spirit. Shortly afterwards, the Lieutenant went to his eternal rest. A single teardrop of regret remains on his cheek.
The Chojin Weapon, Soldierman. Once you fall into the way of the devil, you stay a devil.
After that, he skinned his head and shaved his ears. The usual inhumane rituals of the devils were being performed by the hand of Soldierman without delay for three people deep in the forest...
Part 2[]
It was 16:00 in the evening when Soldierman returned to the base camp after driving the jeep in a good mood. From the back seat of the jeep, he had erected a hideous skull flag, to which three heads had been tied. One of the recruits who had been guarding the gate while preparing for the night camp was nauseated by the sight, but understood everything and invited the vehicle into the grounds.
"Sergeant Soldierman! Thank you for your service!”
"Yeah, you're the only one who ever gives me any attention. I'm used to it. So, what do you want?”
"Sir, your company commander has asked me to report to you as soon as you returned!"
"Oh, no, it's just another one of his little complaints about violating orders. The old man never gets tired of it."
"Anyway, I've given you my message, so I'm counting on you!"
"Yeah, alright."
When Soldierman went to the company commander's office, a large man with a beard was waiting for him, and shouted.
"You're late! Why were you so late in returning?”
“I was caught by the enemy on the retreat, but I beat them back. Hahaha! If you don't mind, would you like to see the heads of the evidence?”
"No, that's enough. It makes me want to vomit."
“What more do you want?”
"I've just received information from a reconnaissance party that two or three new enemy platoons have been deployed about five kilometres east of this base. I've paid you a lot of money and allowed you to act independently to a certain extent, all because of your skills. I expect great things from you.”
"Yessir"
"Go on then”
"Sir, yes, sir!”
"Are you kidding me?"
"Sir, yes, sir!”
"Get the fuck out of here, you idiot!”
"Sir, yes, sir!"
Soldierman reluctantly unloads the heads from the jeep and hand them to recruit of the gate. As usual, the new soldier who had received the disgusting trophies and felt like throwing up, called out to him in a loud voice as he watched his dirty hero go off to war.
"People say a lot of things about you, Sergeant Soldierman! I don't think you're such a bad person!”
"Sir, yes sir..."
Soldierman replied without turning around, raising one hand as he drove his sheep.
He arrived at the battlefield at about 16:45. The Reaper's arrival was greeted with a flurry of activity from the allied units. They were not exactly welcoming him with open arms.
"Hey, we've been waiting for you, chojin! I'm sure you'll be pleased to know that I'm not the only one who's had a bit of trouble with the whole thing."
"I'm going to kill a lot of people today..."
In a somewhat jocular tone, the man, who was unconcerned about the tense atmosphere of the battlefield, said something horrible in a light tone. It was an ordinary scene.
But then it happened. Soldierman let out a slight groan. For a moment, no one - not even himself - was sure what had happened. He just felt a terrible pain in his chest. Blood gushed out of his chest. His heart... stoped!
"What? Did I just get shot?"
He was right. He was unlucky enough to have his heart pierced by a stray bullet that flew by accident.
"No way... I can't believe I'm going to die from something like this. I wonder if this is really possible. I've been through countless battlefields and death lines, but to be killed by a stray bullet in the middle of my own army area?”
But perhaps the end of life is not always so simple as that.
"Oh, it's getting dark. I can't hear a sound. My consciousness is disappearing.”
Just as Soldierman was about to give up, a flash of light enveloped his entire body! He was filled with power! And his consciousness became clearer and clearer! This is the afterlife... No.
"Oh, Soldierman! The God of Brutality is here to help you!”
But at the same time a great question rang out in his consciousness!
"Huh? Who's the God of Brutality?"
This was the moment of birth of "Kinnikuman Soldier.”
Chapter 3[]
Part 1[]
"From now on, you will be known as the Kinnikuman Soldier!”
Suddenly, he receives such an order in his consciousness, but he has no idea what it means.
He felt as if he had been caught by a fox, so he spoke to the God of Brutality in his mind.
"What the hell are you? You come into my body without my permission, and you can't give me orders!”
"Don't you dare! You should have died here, but I brought you back to life. You should be grateful.”
"Damn it! I thought I could lose my life any time I wanted to. Leave me alone!”
“Oh, what an impudent way to treat a god! But that's alright.”
Soldierman was back to full strength. The God of Brutality was surprised and impressed by his lack of gratitude.
"'Hmph. I like you. I like you."
"I don't care. What do you want?”
"What do I want? I don't know what you mean.”
"Don't be silly. If a God gave such a charity for free, the Chojin graveyard would be out of business. It's a weird thing that the God of Brutality is the one who saved the life of a murderer like me. The story is too good to be true. I think it's obvious that there's more to it than that, isn't it?”
"You are very perceptive, and your mind is very sharp. I like you more and more. All right, now I'm going to tell you the whole horrible plan the Evil Gods have hatched.
"Shut up and get on with it!”
The God of Brutality, smiling inwardly, spoke the following words.
"In a nutshell: Wouldn't you like to be the king of the planet Kinniku?”
Upon hearing this, Soldierman's expression suddenly changed for the first time.
"That's my home planet, isn't it?”
This was the expected reaction. The God of Brutality grinned.
"That's right, it's your birthplace, your home planet. The planet where you spent your childhood with your beloved parents. And the planet that you and your family abandoned when you ran away in the night... or was it?”
"You seem to know a lot of rubbish, don't you? Yes, I was born in a very poor family, and naturally I had to work very hard from an early age, so I didn't have much time to go to school. But in the meantime, the rich man's son is happily going to school, gaining knowledge and education, and starting his journey to the elite. How can this be fair? The harder you work, the wider the social gap becomes. It's like if life itself was a race! We were so fed up with our life of poverty that we moved to another planet. We had a lot of dreams. And now we're at war on that planet. I thought to myself, "How unhappy can we be?” My parents were killed before I knew what was happening, and I was left alone on the battlefield. I had no choice but to become a soldier, and that's what I've done.”
The God of Brutality nodded broadly and admonished him:
"That's why you hate the royal family. If the planet had been more friendly to the downtrodden, you and your family would not have had to leave it.”
"'Yes, that's right. They are the ones who made me this way. That's why I'm interested in what you've said. Can you repeat it for me?”
"Ha ha ha, I'll say it again: I, The God of Brutality, is going to make you the king of the planet Kinniku. Wouldn't you like to be?”
"Yes, I want to be king! I want to be king! And then my dead father and mother will be very happy!”
"Hmph. That's right, that's right. Then, lend me your ears..."
So Soldierman changes his name to "Kinnikuman Soldier" and agreed to gather four chojin to compete in a survival match for the throne. He also agreed to fight with the other four Princes of Destiny to defeat Kinnikuman...
After all the explanations, the new Kinnikuman Soldier declared in a high voice: "My enemy is Kinnikuman.”
And with great enthusiasm, he set off on a journey to find his team members.
In the battle for the throne, the team was allowed to consist of five members: the Second-in-Command, the Advance Guard, the Second-Guard, the Centre Guard, and himself as the captain. And The God of Brutality told him that he had already choosen each member, so they will save a lot of time.
“I'm sure you'll be pleased to know that I'm not the only one who has had a bit of trouble with this.”
First, the Advance Guard. According to the God of Brutality, the best chojin who could be a perfect addition to their ranks is in a live music club in the Netherlands. Soldier left for Earth as soon as posible and flew to the Netherlands.
"But is there really a chojin with such skill in this place? I mean, if it was a fighting arena like the Nippon Budokan, this is just a live music venue."
The God of Brutality enlightens the bewildered soldier.
"Don't panic, there will come a time when you will see a chojin who will show you what it's all about. Don't miss him..."
"Yes. Okay.”
So, what kind of shining star will appear in front of them? Soldier couldn't contain his excitement at the prospect.
Just then, the lights went out. For a moment, all the lights in the auditorium went out, and the stage began to glow brightly!
"Whoa! The glare! I can't see the light source, let alone the stars!"
When his eyes finally adjusted, Soldier saw a giant light bulb-shaped figure on the stage. It was dazzling. After all, the bulb was almost a metre long!
He quickly flipped through the book and found the profile page of the chojin.
"I'm pretty sure that's... Tail Lamp, the Dutch lightbulb chojin! He's the advance guard!”
Just as Soldier was about to let out a roar of joy with conviction, the God of Brutality denied him.
"What? No, no. He's not.”
Soldier, thwarted, turned on the God of Brutality in disapproval.
"What? It's not just that he’s glittering, he’s glowing."
“It looks like it would break if you hit it.”
"No, I like him. I like him. He's one of us.”
"What?"
Soldier was surprisingly stubborn.
"Wait, wait, wait! Do you really think he's a force to be reckoned with? What happens if he takes a punch? He'll break right in the spot. If he cracks, he’s out of the fight... You know what I mean?"
"No, it won't. He's made of toughened bulletproof glass. It'll never break.”
"Oh, you're the one who said it would hurt if it broke.”
"Well, what time did you say that? I never said anything like that.”
"Gmoo, how dare you! Gmoo, you're a cruel man. But that's not the point..."
Suddenly, a big chojin dressed with black-leather pants, boots, and a pair of shoulder-pads, also of black, hard leather, and with two chains crossed over his chest, appear right in front of them.
"My name is Heavy Metal. I've received a message from the God of Brutality that I should work as a advance guard. I'll fight as hard as I can, so please give me your support. And... are you even listening?"
"Look kiddo, we already have a strong chojin named Tail Lamp, who’s sitting over there, as our Advance Guard. But if you really want to be one of us, you'll have to fight him and win first."
"Yes, I understand, I'll do my best!"
Part 2[]
Ten minutes later, the shattered Tail Lamp was on the verge of death.
"Boss, you told me he was made of toughened bulletproof glass. I didn't expect it to break him so easily... I'm really sorry."
Soldier and the God of Brutality murmured to each other as if to confirm.
"He cracked..."
"Yeah, he was too weak..."
And so, in Holland, the reassuring Advance Guard chojin, Heavy Metal, joined the team.
***
The next objective was to find the Second-Guard. According to the revelations of the God of Brutality, the best candidate can be found in the open sea.
"But the ocean is a big place. Do you know it covers about 70% of the Earth's surface?"
Again, Soldier complained to the God of Brutality, but the God replied confidently:
"The next time you see a chojin on this ocean, you'll know who he is. He Will be our Second-Guard."
"I hope he's strong!”
"Hey, Heavy Metal. Please, don't talk like that, it's not dignified. We call ourselves the Brutal Team and we need to sound a bit more devilish, don't we?
"Oh, really? From now on, I will refer to myself as the "Lord Heavy Metal". Hahaha!”
"Yeah, but you don't have to change your voice, you know. Hey! There's a group of about four people swimming over there!”
As they approached, they could see that there was indeed a swimming competition taking place in a special pool set up on the sea. As if in response to their curiosity, they hear the announcement of the competitors.
"The first course, Eelman, the second course, Sazae King, the third course, Squid Devil, and on the fourth course, The Danshaku.
"Hee-ha-ha-ha! Eel, shell, squid and potato chojin!"
Heavy Metal laughed at the top of his lungs, but the God of Brutality didn't react in the slightest, he just ignored them. It seems that he wants to pretend that he didn't see that.
Having read the situation and reflected on his earlier remarks, Soldierman does his utmost to be kind.
"...Yes. We didn't see anything. Come on, let's go over there, Heavy Metal.”
"Well, because eels, turban shells, squids and..."
"No, we didn't see anything, we didn't hear anything! Now, let’s go!
"Okay, okay.”
"Come on, let’s find our Second-Guard!” Soldier said slowly, holding his head against the airless Heavy Metal. But there was one more loud voice to stop them!
"Hold on! I’m the fifth course, The God Shark!”
"Oh, shut up! Just staying here makes me feel sick! I don't know who you are, but if you keep playing like that, you'll end up like them, burnt and devoured in no time. So goodbye forever and good luck!"
"No, no, I'm the next in your team, aren't I? The God of Brutality told me about you and your team."
"Huh? For real?"
The God Shark, a shark-shaped Brutal chojin, has joined the ranks.
***
"So now it's time for the Centre Guard! I can't wait to see what you've got in store for us!"
Soldier was half in despair.
But this time the God of Brutality was confident on the revelation.
"The next chojin will be a sheep.”
Never before Soldier had heard a revelation been so specific. The three men, Soldierman, Heavy Metal and The God Shark, were so relieved that they decided to have a smoke in a café.
But there was a new trap waiting for them...
They end up in a trendy French-style open-air café. It was a mistake to choose this place in the first place.
"Bonjour, monsieur!"
The three of them were seated in front of the famous French chojin, Lupin, who appeared in front of them.
"Hey, I thought you said he was a sheep. Why is that guy coming?"
"Why would I come? This is the kind of café that the French like. It must be a coincidence!"
In the midst of this conversation, The God Shark said something unexpected.
"Maybe he's not a sheep, but a butler?”
The faces of the other two men suddenly darkened.
"...No way."
"No way! No, but his fashion is vaguely butler-like."
"So why don't we just ask him?"
The three of them stood in front of Lupine, who looked at them suspiciously.
"'Hee-ha-ha-ha! Would you like to be our butler?"
Just as Lupin and Heavy Metal were about to begin their impromptu 30-minute street wrestling match, a fluffy, shaggy sheep of a chojin was smiling in the front row of the audience.
"Oh, hello. I'm Woolman, and I've been told I'm the Centre Guard candidate. You may think I'm calm, but I'm still a brutal chojin, so I hope you don't mind!"
"Yeah, you're a pretty brutal guy if you want to watch this fight like it's nothing."
And so the wolf in sheep's clothing, Woolman the Cruel, joins the Soldier team.
The only remaining member of the team is a potential second-in-command who should be Soldierman's right-hand man. Shivering with excitement and cold, they flew to the mountains of Canada, the promised land where the God of Brutality had given them a revelation.
──To be continued
Chapter 4[]
Part 1[]
The four confirmed members of Soldier team arrive deep in the Canadian mountains. Here they have the last of their team members. According to the revelations of the God of Brutality, who is notoriously unreliable, the potential second-in-command is a very big man. They were also told that he was involved in forestry work in the mountains.
This information brought to the minds of the four of them, coincidentally and worst of all, the face of the same famous chojin.
"'No, no, no way...”
"This must be a joke… it has to be a joke…”
"No way! I swear to the devil, it's imposible!”
"I can't believe such a famous person is the Second-in-Command of our team!"
"It's Kahnadah! Ore-sa-ikyo!"
“What kind of song was that?” Everyone thought.
If that chojin, who has no real accomplishments to his name despite all his big talk, was going to be their vice-captain, this team would already been flagged for defeat before they even entered the tournament!
The silhouette of the man in the distance suggested that he was about 265cm tall. The two-tone red and white colours of the Canadian flag gradually became clearer. Just as he was getting close, they saw the red maple leaf emblem on his forehead and chest. The our of them became frightened and dashed off at once!
"'Whoa, whoa, whoa! If we all run away together, we won't even know if he's really K?”
"Of course not! There's no one else like him! That's not a K, that's a C in English initials!”
Woolman was quick to respond to Soldierman comment. Woolman, by the way, was from New Zealand.
"No, but the Second-in-Command is the right-hand man, and there's no room for Specialman on the set as a left-hand man, is there?”
"'Hahahahahaha! It's as if the second-in-command is Canadianman...”
"You're an idiot! Don't say that, it's horrible!”
A huge bulldozer suddenly stopped next to where we were all struggling.
"Hey you, the one in the camouflage uniform! You are Kinnikuman Soldier, right?”
"Yes, that's right. What is it?"
"I am Bulldozerman, choosen by the God of Brutality. I'm confident in my strength and power, and I'd like to join your ranks if I may..."
Before he could finish, the four chojin, led by Captain Soldier, tearfully embraced Bulldozerman one after another.
"I'm so glad it's you! I'm so glad it's you!”
"Bulldozerman! Bulldozerman!”
"All right! To celebrate our meeting, we're going to lift the vice-chief up in the air!”
"Hooray! Hooray! It's a festival!”
The four chojins started lifting Bulldozerman's huge body. It was an emotional moment. Bulldozerman shed tears of joy at their hospitality, but it will forever remain a secret between the four of them that their true intentions lay elsewhere.
"I'm so glad it wasn’t Canadianman..."
And so, after many twists and turns, the much anticipated true soldier team was finally complete. Let's have another look at the whole story!
- Advance Guard: Heavy Metal (Netherlands)
Aggression and speed are at the forefront of this brutal chojin team.
- Second Guard: The God Shark (Cuba)
Once it bites, it won't go away! A Cannibal Caribbean Pirate!
- Centre Guard: Woolman (New Zealand)
The wolf in sheep's clothing! He may look mild-mannered, but he's all black inside!
- Second-in-command: Bulldozerman (Canada)
The man who returns everything to its original state! The Super Powerful Reset King!
- General: Kinnikuman Soldier (Planet Kinniku)
The undisputed chojin weapon! The king of brutal fighting, here he comes!
This is the supreme team, united by fate. From now on, these five will create a new big wave in the chojin world!
The heart of Soldierman, the team leader, trembled with such a premonition.
A few days later, they arrived to Japan for the survival match.
"Now that we've got all the members, we're going to start a training camp to prepare for the survival match for the throne!”
"Whoa, whoa, whoa!"
At the words of Captain Soldier, all the members of the team went into a frenzy. He was going to start a training camp to prepare them for the match.
"The camp will be held at the top of Mount Fuji, Japan's highest mountain, where there is always snow! Of course, there is no such thing as a training camp in such a place. We will be training in the field, sparring with other people. It's going to be very tough training, but I believe that you will overcome this ordeal and transform yourselves into first-class brutal chojin. That's it!"
There was a round of applause from the members, but none of them knew at the time that there was an extra round of applause in the background.
Part 2[]
Fuji in a blizzard. It was the day after the order that the five members of the group gathered there. Climbing to the top of Mt. Fuji is easy enough for a superhuman to do in a day. Naturally, there was no sign of fatigue among the five who had gathered there.
The main reason why Soldier chose this place for their training camp was to establish their identity as a brutal team, and to give everyone a chance to learn about the "spirit of ice", which is the same as this landscape.
He had done a lot of nefarious things in his time as a mercenary. However, the God of Brutality has given him the feeling that there are too many mild-mannered people in the group. This is the reason why it is so important for soldiers to be aware of this.
***
The following is an excerpt from a conversation one day at the camp:
"Hey, Heavy Metal! Are those chains for decoration? Why don't you try strangling your opponent with it?"
"No, my costume is just a pose."
"You're the Advance Guard, the cutting edge! If you think you can do it with such weakness, get down the mountain now!”
"But don't talk to me like I'm a high school kid."
"Yeah... yeah, I got it..."
On another day, we had this conversation.
"Hey, Woolman. You've got two magnificent horns on your head. Why don't you use them like Buffaloman and develop a new technique, like the Hurricane Mixer?"
"No, no. If I do that, I'll break both my horns at once... I never used them in a match because they will break, but sometimes at parties I use them to pretend to be a cow. It's called 'Buffalo' and it's mainly used in the King's Game..."
"Shut up! Don't you ever speak to me again, you bastard!”
***
Soldier was becoming increasingly annoyed. They are all very nice people. He didn't know what the God of Brutality was thinking when he put these guys in his charge.
As for their martial arts skills, well, they're all at a reasonable level. But especially when it comes to the most important aspect of the team's policy - brutality - it's not something that can be explained by mouth.
Soldier's stress was reaching a critical point. He had no choice but to go back to his old days as a chojin murderer and show them the real-life examples of cruelty.
Just as he was thinking about this, a suspicious man appeared...
"I'm just a mountaineer passing through... but I wonder if you'd like to accept my challenge?”
"What? What are you doing here? I'm busy!”
At first Soldier tried to turn him away, but he must have been a little irritated. He was a little offended by the man's next words and reacted in an unexpected way.
"I'm not sure if you've heard of it, but I'm pretty confident in my skills."
He was tempted to kill him, as he wished, but then he thought better of it.
"On second thought, isn't this exactly what the summer worm does when it flies into the fire?”
He'd like to go back and show the essence of my brutal fighting style, but I'm only here with my team-mates, so I can't do anything crazy in sparring. But against this unpredictable, confident man, I can really go for it! Soldier decided to accept the man's offer.
And that was the beginning of the tragedy.
***
It was only ten minutes later that all four members of the Soldier team, except for the captain, were KO with a large "A" bruise on their chests.
None of them, not even Heavy Metal, God Shark, Woolman and Bulldozer Man, were able to even wound him.
After all, in only two minutes and thirty seconds each, it was just too much. Were they that weak? No, not even the four non-soldiers were that weak. This told him that this man was not all talk at all.
His finishing hold, the "Napalm Stretch", which left a bruised "A" on each of their chests, was something to be reckoned with. This is a completely original hold, the likes of which have never been seen anywhere else. It must take a great deal of fighting sense to master this technique.
In other words, he's no ordinary fighter. Who the hell was this guy?!
Part 3[]
However, until the actual fight, Soldier thought that there was no way that he, too, could be completely beaten by such an unpredictable person.
He was once a feared warrior on many battlefields. He has killed over a thousand men. He wasn’t proud of it, but he've never lost a one-on-one match in his life.
And now, under the protection of the God of Brutality, he have been given the incredible superhuman strength of 100 million power. He'll say it again, there's nothing to lose.
But the moment he teamed up with the man, he realized that even that pride was just hubris. He was a different kind of fierce. For the first time in his life, he was terrified.
And yet, as he stood there with Soldier, the mysterious man spoke to him in a low voice:
"You are indeed a man of some power.”
"You certainly seem to have some strength in you. If this battle was on the level of the Chojin Olympics, you could probably do well. But the level of the Survival Match for the Throne that you're about to enter is far beyond your imagination... or anyone else's for that matter!"
"What? But we've been informed that the Big Body Team, the team that will take part in this year's tournament, already includes Golemman, the megalithic soldier, and Leopardon, the German gunslinger! They are formidable opponents, to be sure, but if the unknown powerhouses are of that calibre, our team will be in good hands, won't it?"
It's a good idea to have a good idea of what you're doing.
"But that's still not enough information. I'll make a proposition. I have found that the level of the Big Body team you mentioned, for example, would be no match for the other teams, at least the ones recruited by Phoenix and Zebra.”
"Do you know that? Leopaldon is pretty powerful!”
"He's no match for them! And now your team is as good as or worse than Big Body team!”
"I'm sorry, but there's no denying..."
“I'll tell you something else: Mammothman is a confirmed member of the Phoenix Team. He's got a superhuman strength of... 78 million.”
"What?"
"That means if you enter this tournament, you will all die in battle! In other words, you will lose the war...”
Soldier, whose pride had been tarnished, retorted angrily.
"What do you know about us? Don't tell me what you know!”
"No, I've worked with all of you and I'm convinced that you will not be able to win this war. That's why I'm going to take your place!”
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, shut up! Don't underestimate the power of 100 million!”
"I'm not sure what to make of this. I'm not sure what to make of it.”
In addition, the man continued to clutch the Soldier's hands and feet from behind. He spins around and rises to the sky. The moment it stopped rising, it began to plummet at an overwhelming speed.
"Sleep in peace! Napalm Stretch!
"I'll be back!”
Boom!
"I'm sorry, but I have to take this mask. I'm not going to let your feelings go to waste if you allow me to participate in the tournament on your behalf. I'm sure you'll agree. You can sleep in peace.”
In the fading consciousness of a soldier who has suffered near-death damage to his entire body, the unmasked Soldierman seems to have heard these words. And strangely enough... it's very strange to feel that way about someone you've just defeated... but somehow it felt like a very gentle voice.
"'Fuck! If you mess up my name, I won't be happy... you son of a bitch..."
"Yeah, I'll take care of it."
And with the footsteps of the departing man as a lullaby, Soldier fell into a deep sleep.
The mysterious man put on his new mask and muttered to himself.
"I'll never forget my promise to you, Kinniku Ataru.”
──The End