Editing Ghost Hunt:Volume1 Chapter3 (section)

=== 3 ===

The whole situation was so chaotic. 

For now, it's best not to get involved with Bou-san and Miko-san. Or maybe I should just not have anything to do with these bad people. 

Then.. 

"That's right. Naru-chan, what do I have to do today?" 

Naru-chan looked at me, a hint of shock behind his eyes. 

"What did... You just say?" 

"What's wrong?" 

"You just called me 'Naru-chan'." 

Ah, I'm in for it now. That was a slip of the tongue. 

"Sorry, I said it wrong." 

"Where did you hear that?" 

"Huh? Is that your nickname?" 

Naru-chan wore an indescribable expression. 

"Seems like everyone thinks the same way as me then, narcisstic Naru-chan." 

Hee hee hee. That was a good comeback. 

"Huh?" 

"Forget about it, forget about it... Is there something you want me to do?" 

"That's right... Just then, when I called him that, he didn't have the reaction I expected; it didn't seem like he was gonna give me a clever retort..." I pondered to myself. 

"Mai's senior..." 

"Ah, you called me by my [[Ghost_Hunt:Volume1_Translator's_Notes#First name|first name]]—" 

"...Didn't you just do the same thing to me?" 

"But—" 

"Which classroom did Mai's senior see the shadow?" 

"She's not... My senior. She's... Michiru's senior’s friend" 

I complained, to which I was given a stern look by Naru. 

"It's the same regardless of whose senior she is. Which classroom was it in?" 

"It's on the second floor in the far west wing. It's the classroom that's practically stripped of everything. 

"Got it. Go install the equipment there. It would be good if paranormal activity is found there."
 
Naru-chan said as he rose and jumped off the van. When he started walking towards the old school building, a silhouette started coming this way. 

Ah... Now what is it... 

When I think about the culprit that way... The principal advanced towards us. 

Typically the principal is sly like a [[Ghost_Hunt:Volume1_Translator's_Notes#Tanuki|tanuki]], while the head instructor is like a fox. This is true in our case, as the principal really does look like a tanuki. 

Since the principal is coming here, does that mean he has some business with us? An indistinct figure walked beside him. 

"Hold on a moment, who's that person by the principal?" Miko-san whispered. "It can't be... Is it another psychic..." 

The moment I saw the shadow, I started to get a bad feeling in my stomach. I'm totally leaving if another nasty guy comes. The principal was chatting amiably with the other person. 

He's short. Is he a student... He seems young. Also... Oh? Blonde hair. What, it can't be a foreigner! 

As the principal noticed us, he wiped off his tanuki-like smile. 

"Ah, everyone is together." 

A kind voice. 

He quickly stepped this way. 

"Here's the other guest. Let me introduce you guys." 

...What, so it is another psychic... 

Usually foreigners look old, but... I looked at the foreigner again. He's probably twelve or thirteen. I can't tell if this person is male or female. He's short for a foreigner. He's practically the same height as me. He must still be a kid. 

The principal smiled warmly. 

"This is John Brown-san. Please welcome him, everybody." 

...He's not a transfer student. You sure can't make a proper introduction. 

Speaking of names, John is a boy's name. So this person is a "he". Ah— He's cute. 

Brown gave us a deep bow. "[[Ghost_Hunt:Volume1_Translator's_Notes#Kansai-ben|How y'all doin]]?"  

…………? 

J...Just now, was that English? My English sucks. I can't understand at all— 

Miko-san, Bou-san, and even Naru-chan became dumbstruck. 

"I be Brown. Glad ta meet y'all. 

...Str-... Strange. It sounds like Japanese...but it's a dialect... 

The principal forced a smile onto his inevitable expression. 

"Um... Brown-san learned Japanese in the Kansai area..." 

Monk-san bust out laughing, followed by Miko-san. You shouldn't laugh. He's a foreigner. To be able to say this much is still amazing... Haha. 

Brown seemed a bit lost. His confused look, his blonde hair, his blue eyes, and the fact that he's a foreigner just made him look even more ridiculous. So-... Sorry. Ahahaha. 

The principal gave us a puzzled look, then said: 

"W-Well then, I'll just leave it at that," before running off. 

Brown turned towards the principal's figure, then said: 

"Thank ya." 

When he said it that way, we all burst out laughing again. 

Instead of laughing, Naru-chan wore a stiff expression on his face. 

"Brown-san, where are you from?" 

"I be comin' furm Australia." 

...Wow. The way he talks is really hilarious. 

Sorry, I can't stop laughing— 

Brown looked at us in bewilderment. 

"Is my Jabanese really strange?" 

Naru-chan smiled wryly. 

"It's pretty strange." 

Brown took a deep breath. 

"Jabanese be so dif'cult!" 

"Hey, [[Ghost_Hunt:Volume1_Translator's_Notes#Bouzu : kiddo|kiddo]]!" 

Bou-san shouted aloud. Bou-san saying "kiddo" sure seems strange— 

"I'm begging you, please don't speak in that weird Kyoto accent." 

Bou-san implored. 

"Still, there ain't no other talk thaz mo' polite than this here Kansai-ben talk." 

"Who?! Who taught this guy Japanese!" 

Bou-san exclaimed, his breathing becoming more and more difficult. 

"Listen carefully. Kansai-ben is a dialect. I suggest you not speak it anymore, got it? Otherwise it'll seem like you're speaking comic-talk." 

"Ah," Brown nodded, "If I don' speak, then ever'body can jus' get 'long. Y'all are psychics?" 

...It's still very strange... 

Naru-chan responded:
 
"Well, more or less. She's Matsuzaki-san, a miko. And he's Takigawa-san, a former monk on Kouya Mountain." 

"An' you?" 

"I'm a ghost hunter." 

"Oh, then this here equipment in da car is all yors? Impressive." 

"What about you?" 

"Ah, I be an exorcist." 

"Exorcist?" 

In an instant, Miko-san and Bou-san stopped laughing and started staring at Brown, with gazes that suggested they were looking at a powerful enemy. 

"About that, I thought in Catholicism you can't be an exorcist unless you're ranked higher than a priest... You seem really young to even be a priest." 

"Thas' right. You, my fella, is very knowledgable. Howeva', I'm 19 already. I jus' look like a young 'un." 

Oh no, I can't hold in my laughter. 

Nineteen... Then that means, he's Naru-chan's senior? This foreigner really does have a baby face... 

"It's best if you don't say '[[Ghost_Hunt:Volume1_Translator's_Notes#Wate|wate]]'." 

Naru-chan advised, smiling wryly again. 

"If you say boku or watashi, you shouldn't say 'ansan'; otherwise, you'd be changing the meaning to 'you.'" 

Brown... No, Brown-san nodded his head. 

"Okay, thanks. What be ya name?" 

"Shibuya Kazuya." 

"Shibuya-san, hope ya don' min' takin' me aroun' the place first." 

Shibuya-san nodded slightly, then turned towards me. 

"Mai, time to work." 

"Okay." 

When Naru-chan headed towards the old school building, I wondered why everyone else followed. 

The equipment in the lab room had recordings. The sound of the machinery echoed throughout the classroom. 

"These are..." Monk-san mumbled, apparently at a loss for words, "I can't believe you brought in this much equipment." 

Naru-chan ignored him.
 
Miko-san snorted in contempt. 

"This is all useless. Little boy, your little show is finished. It's time to pack all your things up." 

Naru-chan ignored Miko-san. 

"Bringing all this equipment in is such a waste. That must've been exhausting for you," she taunted. 

Monk-san said, "That's rude. Ah— I have high hopes in you. Since you have this much equipment, you must be very capable." 

His tone was ironic, mocking. 

Naru-chan turned around, a hint of coldness behind his eyes. "...What about you two? Did you come here to exorcise spirits? Or did you come here to play?" 

Embarrassed, Miko-san instantly turned around. 

"That's why I said I hate kids. Well, it must be an earth spirit, as it seems to be showing off a lot," she purposely ranted aloud, then left. 

Monk-san followed, his arms crossed in front of his chest. 

"Now what are you going to do?" Naru-chan asked, facing Brown. 

Brown looked embarrassed. "...Do you want me to help you?" 

"I don't care." 

"Um... I, I don't really know what to do in this situation. Is it alright if I stay here an' help ya out as much as possible?" 

"That's fine. Just do what you want," Naru-chan answered calmly, his eyes still glued to his computer. 

After nearly ten television sets were stacked on top of each shelf, the TV screens changed. Now they were showing a view of the corridors. Digital numbers and letters flashed incessantly on the screens. A view of the first and second floor could be seen from the TV placed in the entrance hall. All the screens were immersed in blue and green speckles. 

"What's this?" 

Naru-chan flashed an impatient look at me. Would it kill you to answer me? 

Brown-san answered instead, "It's Thermography... It indicates the temperature." 

"Oh—" 

Hey, he's pretty nice despite being psychic. (I'm already starting to think that all psychics have terrible personalities—) 

Brown-san pointed at the screen. "Orange indicates hot temperatures; on the other hand, blue indicates cold temperatures." 

Ah— Colored speckles, how strange. 

"Thank you, Brown-san. You're so kind," I said in a tone that will hopefully taunt Naru-chan. 

Brown-san blushed. "It's nothing... That's right, I didn't ask you what your name was. Are you Shibuya-san's assistant?" 

"Yeah, pretty much. I'm Taniyama Mai." 

"You can jus' call me John." 

...It's that.. Strange Japanese again— 

Turning back, I saw Monk-san in the middle of the TV screen. While examining his surroundings, Monk-san walked into the depths of the hallway. Miko-san was in another screen. 

And in the other screen... 

I could see the dim classroom deep in the entrance hall. Inside, the shoe cabinet cast off a shadow. And in the middle of the shoe cabinet was a ghost. 

"Naru-chan!" I screamed, pointing at the TV screen of the entrance hall. 

Right in front of the shoe cabinet was a doll-like girl wearing a pink sakura kimono, trying to see what was above the shoe shelf. 

She looked just like a living human, with that jet-black hair of hers. She was also about the same age as me. 

The girl looked at another direction, then turned and left. She was no longer in the screen. 

"Wh-... What was that, just now?" 

Not acknowledging my question, Naru-chan rose and headed towards the door. His expression didn't change at all. 

The door opened. 

The doll-like girl stood in the middle of the darkness, 

"......!" 

I screamed. 

John softly patted my shoulder. 

"It's okay, Mai-san. She's not a ghost." 

Huh? 

Naru-chan forced a smile on.. 

"The principal must really want us to finish the job quickly since he went as far as inviting you..." 

Her expression didn't change. 

"Do you two know each other?" I asked. 

"No. I only recognize her face because she's very popular," Naru-chan replied. 

"Who is she?" 

Though I was obviously asking Naru-chan, the girl opened her cherry-like mouth and answered me instead. 

"If you're talking about me, then I'll introduce myself. I'm Hara Masako." 

"Who?" 

I don't know... 

Naru-chan sighed. "She's a very famous psychic medium. She's great at summoning spirits, probably the best in Japan." 

"Summoning spirits?" 

"Ignorant, aren't you?" 

"I'm talking to you—" 

This time John answered my question again. "It's like calling spirits out and letting them possess your body and speak." 

"Huh? Oh, like the kinds on TV, right? Like when a psychic speaks in place of the ghost, right?" 

"Yup." 

Naru-chan looked at the spirit medium. 

"What is your evaluation of this building, Hara-san?" 

The psychic medium cocked her head. 

"I'm not sure... Who are you? You don't seem to be a psychic..." 

"I'm a ghost hunter, Shibuya." 

...What was that, Naru-chan. Do you just go for pretty faces? You don't speak to us with *that* kind of attitude. 

The psychic medium looked at Naru-chan with a surprised expression. 

"Have we... Met before?" 

Oh. What an old pickup phrase. 

"I think this is the first time we met." 

"...Really...?" she said, turning around to face the pile of equipment 

"...I don't think there're ghosts here. Even though the principal was in a panic over it, there's nothing here. I also don't feel the presence of any spirits." 

"Really..." Naru-chan said, contemplating her words. 

...Does the principal want to tear down this building that much? Is the old school building really that scary? 

A ghost hunter, a priestess, a monk, an exorcist, and even a psychic medium. He makes it seem so serious by inviting so many people. Just because of the old school building rumors. But, these people... Do they really have that kind of ability?
 
It happened at that time. 

A loud, knocking sound and a woman's scream echoed through the building. We were fightenened for a moment. 

"Is that Matsuzaki-san's voice?" John asked. 

Naru-chan rushed out of the room and we followed. We bumped into Bou-san right after we left the lab room. 

"That sound just now..!" Bou-san exclaimed. 

"I'm not sure, but it seems to be on the first floor," John replied. 

Matsuzaki-san's scream echoed through the hallway from the west side of the first floor on the other side of the lab room. 

"What happened?!" Naru-chan was the first to reach the door, but he couldn't open it no matter how hard he pulled. 

Miko-san banged on the door from inside. 

"Open the door! Hey, open the door!" 

Both Naru-chan and Bou-san pulled with all their strength. The door started to bend, but it still wouldn't budge. 

"Let's kick it open," Bou-san suggested as he faced the door. "Ayako! Move away!" 

"What! Don't just call me by my first name like that!" 

...You don't seem that worried. 

Bou-san kicked the door, causing the door to emit a snapping sound. Bou-san kicked the door again, this time knocking it down. 

Miko-san's face looked blue. 

"What happened?" Naru-chan asked calmly. 

"I don't know... After I came in, the door shut by itself. I couldn't open it." 

"You didn't lock it then?" 

"No!" 

Right when they were about to argue again, Hara-san intercepted. 

"How embarrassing." 

Miko-san stared at Hara-san. 

"What do you mean?" 

"How can you say you're a psychic? You start hollering like crazy when the door locks on you. Don't you think that's sort of embarrassing?" Hara-san taunted, her tone cold like the wind. 

Bou-san whistled softly, then turned towards the raven-haired girl. "You there... Are you Hara Masako-san?" 

"Yes." 

"You're prettier in person." 

Hara-san looked at Bou-san as if he were something dirty, then turned around. 

This person has a bad personality too—