One Bowl of Tea on Rice
One bowl of tea on rice...
Pickled plums, slivered nori,
and leftover chicken from dinner...
All doused in piping-hot water,
then shoveled in with salted kelp...
That was so good...
All those bowls of tea on rice I'd sneak into the kitchen to make at the orphanage...
Ow!
Damn it...
I'm gonna die of hunger.
My name is Atsushi.
Episode 1: Fortune Is Unpredictable and Mutable
Due to certain circumstances, I'm about to die from starvation.
After being driven out of the orphanage,
I had nothing to eat, nowhere to sleep,
and, as one might expect, not a cent to my name.
Yet, I lack the courage to commit theft.
That is how I've arrived at my current predicament...
However...
If I wish to live,
I have no choice but to steal and take from others!
Get out, you good-for-nothing!
No orphanage would welcome the likes of you!
The world would be a better place
if you'd just die in a ditch somewhere!
Shut up...
Shut up!
Die in a ditch?
I'm not gonna die!
I'm gonna live, no matter what it takes!
Okay...
I'll rush the first person who comes along
and rob them of everything they've got!
Well, that was mission impossible.
I can't catch him on an empty stomach...
Next!
One, two, three, four!
I... I doubt military police'd be toting their wallets during training.
But the next person who comes along... for sure!
I've got this!
Well...
I can't possibly count him.
Y-Yeah, I'll pass, please.
I... I'll pass...
Fine!
In the end...
...I saved a life?
You were floating down the river...
Are you okay?
I made it.
Damn.
"Damn"?
Did he just say "damn"?
Are you the one who interrupted my submersion?
I was just trying to help.
Huh?
Submersion?
Submersion...
You don't know what I mean by that?
I was trying to commit suicide.
S-Suicide?!
...Suicide?
That's right.
I was trying to kill myself.
But you just had to interfere...
Why...
...am I being lectured?
Wait, is he scolding me for saving him?
Still, my priority is to commit a clean suicide
without being a burden to anyone.
Yet I did trouble you,
so the fault lies with me at this point.
I should apologize in some way.
Growl
Are you hungry, boy?
Well..
I haven't eaten in several days.
Growl
Ugh...
How odd.
I'm also hungry.
Then...
By the way, the river seems to have taken my wallet.
You've got to be kidding...
There you are, blockhead!
Oh, hey.
Nice work, Kunikida-kun.
Nice work?
And just who caused all this work,
you suicidal maniac?!
I've had enough of you disrupting my schedule!
Oh, right!
I have a great idea.
He's a colleague of mine from work.
Let's have him treat you to a meal.
Are you even listening to me?!
What's your name?
Huh?
Nakajima... Atsushi.
Well, come along, Atsushi-kun!
What would you like to eat?
Um...
Well, if it's not too much trouble...
Oh, there's no need to hold back!
I'd like to eat tea on rice...
So a boy on the brink of starvation wants to eat tea on rice?
Very well, let's have Kunikida-kun treat you to thirty bowls of that!
Don't get all generous with my money, Dazai!
Dazai?
Yeah, that's my name.
I am Dazai.
Dazai Osamu.
You're unbelievable.
Who goes "that's a nice river"
and jumps into it in the middle of a job?!
Thanks to you, look!
Look how off-schedule we are now!
You sure like your schedules, Kunikida-kun.
Ideal
This isn't a schedule!
This is an ideal!
My guide in life!
And nowhere in this book
is it written that my work partner is a suicidal maniac!
Shut up!
Nowhere on my projected expenses page will you find written
that I will buy a million bowls of tea on rice for a snot-nosed brat!
Like I said, it's a job!
Our job today?
It involves the military.
How are you two communicating, actually?
I'm so full.
I don't want to see another bowl of this for at least ten years.
Why, you...
How dare you be so shameless after eating on my dime?
You're a real lifesaver.
After leaving the orphanage and coming to Yokohama,
I've had nothing to eat and nowhere to sleep.
I thought I'd die of starvation.
You're from an orphanage?
Putting it one way, yes.
But they kicked me out.
That's some non-profit there.
Hey, Dazai!
We're not some philanthropists going around helping brats down on their luck, okay?
Let's get back to the job at hand.
Ideal
That reminds me, you said earlier that your current job involves the military.
What is your line of work, exactly?
Oh, we're just private investigators.
Private investigators...?
That's not to say we only handle lost pets and alleged extramarital affairs.
Perhaps you've heard of the Armed Detective Agency,
an organization with individuals possessing supernatural powers?
What?
I've heard of this Armed Detective Agency in rumors...
Said to be an agency specializing in objectives
that cannot be entrusted to the likes of the police or the military...
A twilight armed force positioned between the world of night and day...
I'm told many from the Agency possess supernatural powers...
but does that also apply to these two?
Check out that nice beam up there.
Don't analyze whether you can hang yourself in a random teahouse we just stumbled into!
Don't get me wrong.
We're talking the hanging health method.
What's that about?
What, you don't know?!
It's so good for shoulder cramps!
What?!
Such a thing exists?!
Hey, write this all down!
Hanging... health... method...
I'm messing with you.
A-Are these two seriously with the Armed Detective Agency?
My partner gets himself washed up in a river,
and a brat on death's door just stuffs himself with no shame.
My schedule for the day was just perfect,
but I have to start over from square one!
So, about your job today...
I'll ensure that the job will be completed on schedule, if nothing else!
Yeah?!
Sorry, I shouldn't have asked!
R-Right, of course your jobs are classified!
Today's job doesn't really require secrecy.
We're looking for a certain tiger on behest of the military.
A tiger?
A man-eater who's recently appeared in these parts.
Well, not that we know for sure it's devoured anyone,
but it's ransacked warehouses and eaten farm produce and the like,
doing whatever it wants.
It's been spotted around here lately.
What's wrong, Atsushi-kun?
I... I... I'll be leaving now.
G-Good-bye.
Wait, brat!
You know something, don't you?
You can't.
No one can take it on!
You know the man-eating tiger?
It's after me.
It almost killed me!
If it's been seen around here,
I have to run, now!
Hey, brat!
You'll either pay for the food with your arm or by telling us everything.
Now, now, Kunikida-kun.
Whenever you try to ask questions,
it becomes an interrogation.
The CEO's been talking to you about this.
And...
what do you know about this tiger?
My orphanage was trashed by that tiger.
It ravaged our fields,
it ravaged our chicken coop,
and even our warehouse.
No one died, sure,
but the orphanage was already on a shoestring budget.
I got kicked out so that they had one less mouth to feed.
Get out, you good-for-nothing!
The world would be a better place if you'd just die in a ditch somewhere!
Why me? I didn't do anything...
We don't need worthless louts!
You'll never find a place where you belong!
Just go! I hope you rot in hell!
Well, that's tragic.
So, boy, what's this talk about the tiger almost killing you?
The man-eater always shows up wherever I go.
Just a while ago, when I was walking around Tsurumi...
It's a tiger!
There's a tiger!
I'd seen it out of the corner of my eyes many times,
starting two weeks before I was chased out of the orphanage.
I'm sure it's come all the way to the city in search of me.
When was the last time you saw the tiger?
I think I saw it around Tsurumi
about four days ago.
It's true that its antics have been focused here for the past two weeks.
In addition, it was sighted around Tsurumi four days ago.
Atsushi-kun, are you free?
I have a really bad feeling about this...
You being the man-eater's target presents an excellent opportunity.
Huh?
Please help us find the tiger.
No way!
Kunikida-kun, please go back to the Agency and give this to the president.
Hey, don't tell me you plan to catch the tiger all alone with the two of you?
We should first confirm whether his information is accurate.
It's fine.
I'm not doing this, okay?!
This means you're going to use me as bait, right?
Who in their right mind would agree to that—
There's a reward.
Currently penniless.
What? Reward?
A reward?
Nah...
You're not gonna tempt me with that!
B-But just for reference,
how much would the reward be...?
About this much.
Dazai-san, what are you reading?
A good book.
I'm surprised you can read when it's this dark.
I have good vision.
Complete Guide to Suicide
Besides, I already know everything that happens in this book.
Why are you reading it, then?
A good book is always good, no matter how many times you've already read it.
Will the tiger really show up here?
It will.
Don't worry.
Even if it shows up, it's no match for me.
I may not look like much,
but I am an operative of the Armed Detective Agency.
You're really confident.
I'm kind of jealous.
They called me a good-for-nothing at the orphanage as far back as I can remember.
And now, I don't even know where I'll sleep tonight or whether I'll be able to earn my keep tomorrow.
Get out, you good-for-nothing!
You'll never find a place where you belong!
No one'd care if someone like me were to die in a ditch somewhere.
Yeah, I may be better off eaten by a tiger...
Well, then...
I think it'll be soon.
What?!
I... I just heard something back there.
Yeah.
I bet that's the tiger, Dazai-san!
No, I think the wind just knocked something down.
It's the man-eater!
It's come to eat me!
Calm down, Atsushi-kun.
Tigers don't show up from places like that.
How do you know for sure?!
Something wasn't quite right to begin with.
Just because their finances went south,
why would an orphanage banish a child?
It's not some farming village from a bygone era.
Banishing one or two mouths to feed would hardly put a dent in their deficit.
It'd make more sense to downsize
by transferring half of the kids to a different orphanage.
What are you talking about, Dazai-san?
You came to this city two weeks ago...
The tiger also appeared in this city two weeks ago.
You were in the Tsurumi area four days ago.
The tiger was also sighted there four days ago.
Remember what Kunikida-kun said?
The Armed Detective Agency is comprised of individuals with supernatural powers.
Though not a well-known fact,
there are quite a few individuals who possess supernatural abilities in this world.
Some use their powers to achieve great success,
while others fall into ruin as a result of being unable to control their powers.
I'm guessing that the orphanage staff knew who the tiger was,
but declined to enlighten you.
You were the only one who remained ignorant.
You also have supernatural powers.
You have the ability to transform into a wild beast in the moonlight.
This is impressive.
You could easily...
snap a person's neck.
It wouldn't be so bad to meet one's end
being eaten by a beast,
but you can't kill me.
My ability is...
No Longer Human
No Longer Human.
My ability allows me to render any other ability null
through simple touch.
I have no such tastes in men.
Thud
Hey, Dazai!
Oh, you're late, Kunikida-kun.
I've captured the tiger.
What, it's this boy?
He has the ability to transform into a tiger.
Jeez.
What was with this note?
"A tiger will appear in the warehouse in the fifteenth district."
"Secure the perimeter so that it can't get away."
It's an excellent, concise note.
You've left out the most important detail!
Next time, explain in advance.
Thanks to you, I had to bring in guys who weren't even on call.
Take them out for drinks later.
Hey!
Yosano Akiko
Ability: Thou Shalt Not Die
What, no casualties?
How boring.
Edogawa Rampo
Ability: Ultra-Deduction
You've come a long way, Dazai.
Though you still have a ways to go before you even come close to me.
Miyazawa Kenji
Ability: Be Not Defeated by the Rain
But what are we going to do with him?
He didn't know he was doing it, right?
Yeah, you're right.
Kunikida Doppo
Ability: Doppo Poet
What do you think, Dazai?
The ward's designated him as a major threat.
Dazai Osamu
Ability: No Longer Human
I've already made a decision.
They called me a good-for-nothing at the orphanage as far back as I can remember.
And now, I don't even know where I'll sleep tonight or whether I'll be able to earn my keep tomorrow.
No one'd care if someone like me were to die in a ditch somewhere.
Yeah, I may be better off eaten by a tiger...
We'll make him one of us.
Nice!
Are you serious?
Dazai, you are an idiot.
What gives you the right to decide that?
There, there.
Wake up, boy!
Here, in a city teeming with the supernatural...
Here, in a detective agency teeming with eccentrics...
A strange tale is about to unfold.
This is only a sign of things to come... A premonition, if you will.
Now...
Huh?
I...
Atsushi-kun.
Do you remember nothing at all from when you were transformed?
What are you talking about?
Oh.
But your right hand's still there.
Right hand?
What?!
Nakajima Atsushi
Ability: Beast Beneath The Moonlight
What the?
What's this?
What the hell?!
Nakajima Atsushi!
You'll become one of us.
From this day forth, you'll be a member of the Armed Detective Agency.
Huh?
It's been a long time since I've slept on a futon.
I feel reborn...
Hey, brat.
There's an emergency.
Hightail it over to the detective agency.
An emergency?
A bomber's taken a hostage and holed himself up in our office.
I don't want to go!
Next time on Bungo Stray Dogs, episode 2:
Episode 2: A Certain Bomb
"A Certain Bomb."
Ability: Doppo Poet.
Wire Gun