March Comes in Like a Lion (３月のライオン)

Chaos

SHOGI HALL

Why?!

Unbelievable!

B BLOCK

FINALS

A BLOCK

I clawed my way up to C-1, the same as you,

driven by desperation and thoughts of the day I would play against you.

TREMBLE TREMBLE

So why can't we play against each other?

ZA-BAM

Are you being shy, Kiriyama?!

Ugh, so noisy.

Why does he blame me?

BRISK WALKING

We had more matches together at the kids' tournaments back in elementary school!

There was no point in becoming a professional!

Then, we'll just have to...

become the winners of the Newcomer Tournament's A Block and B Block,

and go up against each other in the finals, otherwise we won't have

a single match together this year!

BRISK WALKING

STOMP STOMP

Kiriyama, don't tell me you're thinking,

"After all, the Newcomer Tournament is full of newbies, so this'll be easy."

It's called the "Newcomer Tournament," but don't underestimate it!

I am not underestimating it.

"KATSURA" ROOM

He made his move. Kumakura 9th-Dan, Pawn to 2-7.

Um, Kishou Yanagihara, at this current point,

who would you like to support, Meijin Souya or Kumakura 9th-Dan?

Well, I don't want to support either of them.

Be serious, Kiriyama!

- Arrogance leads to self-destruction! - Pardon me.

- Hey, Kiriyama. - Yo.

Yes, you're arrogant!

If I had to sum it up in one word, it would be "chaos."

I'd go so far as to say you're both arrogant and pompous!

I don't even know which of them is superior.

Where do you get that from?

But I need something! A headline for the internet!

From everything!

The prodigy who turned professional in middle school, destined to become Meijin!

Okay, how about, "The Meijin Battle's final game is a close contest."

You've been relying on that reputation!

But Mr. Yanagihara...

Ugh, it's so noisy.

Issa, Smith.

Throw those two out.

Yep. At once.

Yes, sir. Right away!

Me too?

COMPACT...

Sheesh. That's what I hate about youngsters.

Don't use words to fight. Settle it with shogi.

Geez.

Whoa. Souya moved his Rook to 3-7.

Well, it's nice to see some enthusiasm, don't you think?

I wish they would share a little with their mentor.

You mean Mr. Shimada?

Recently he's been lacking ambition, right?

It's like he's lost or something.

Like you know, what happened to him?

In the Kishou Tournament qualifiers,

he kept making moves that were unusual for him.

Maybe Mr. Souya sucked the soul right out of him?

It looks like even his shadow has become lighter, you know?

In fact, his shadow's not the only thing that's been thinning out!

Whoa, calm down a little!

Guys who'll never get close to a title match are so happy-go-lucky.

Gotou.

Instead of worrying about another player's mental health,

you should worry about your own life, and the possibility that it could end

without ever being in a title match.

Gotou.

That's a bit harsh.

Oh, Kumakura moved his Silver to 3-6.

As expected. I thought he might do that.

This is also...

...a good move.

Dammit!

Let it go. Come on.

There, you see? They left.

Who cares. Probably went to the can.

What are you going to do about this mood?

It's colder than ice in here now. Geez...

Everyone who's gotten their butts kicked in a title match

will always lose their composure for a bit.

That's just...

...how it is.

"At this rate, I'll just lose."

That's what they come to realize in between matches of a series.

They have to break themselves apart, and then reconstruct it again from the shattered pieces.

They start over from square one.

It's the same for everyone.

Well, by "everyone," I mean players who've experienced that.

I'm sure if you leave Shimada alone, he'll just start winning again.

It just disgusts me...

to see people heckling others when they themselves haven't even climbed into the ring.

And so, you're always slashing up everything like a knife itself.

You're always so touchy. What are you, a middle school student?

Geez, act like an adult already.

GLOOMY

Excuse us.

We haven't been in a title match at all.

So how much time is left? Is this Souya's side?

Sheesh. You don't listen, do you?

Kuma just passed the one hour mark.

Tell me, Rei. What should I do?

I'm...

...scared.

Stay away from my sister for now on!

You're married, aren't you? What are you thinking?

People who can't cherish their family are trash!

Trash, huh? And also unforgivable?

What are you?

Who?

A god?

This is good. This is bad.

Are you the one who decides all that?

I see.

I don't know.

To me, humans are the embodiment of chaos.

The person who got mad on Mr. Shimada's behalf

and the person who makes my older sister suffer

are living in the same body.

How should I...

Oh, he made a move.

Souya moved his Pawn to 3-9, and promoted it.

What? Does he have time for that?

In that case, Bishop to 8-3. And then, after that...

Should I hate him?

Or...

What is it, Gotou? You're leaving?

I have a match tomorrow.

Don't make Kouda cry too much.

Why do you always have this fierce stance?

Fierce? Are you saying I look like an ogre?

Then you're already aware of it.

ANGER ANGER ANGER ANGER

What's wrong, Kiriyama?

Oh, uh...

It's nothing.

For some reason, I suddenly had the feeling she was near.

The last time I saw her was in March.

I thought about calling her after that,

but I stopped when I reached for the phone.

What should we even talk about?

Even if she were close to me, the one standing next to her is...