Sailor V Manga Translation

He jostles her bedcovers. "Mina!"

"Uh-uh..."she mumbles. She grabs her cat's hand and pulls it toward her mouth. "I'll have some more watermelon..."

"Mina! Summer vacation ended a long time ago! Now wake up!"

"What!?" she screams. "It's half past eight??" She jumps out of bed and runs out of the room. "Stupid Artemis! I told you to wake me up! Now I'm late!"

The white cat sighs."Patience, patience..." I'm Artemis. It's commonly admitted that I'm an intelligent cat. But every day I'm terrorized by my ditzy... excuse me, by my unreliable master. But I'm getting ahead of myself. This is the tale of Mina gradually turning into a soldier of justice. And this is the story of a pinch I found myself in one of those days...

A man speaks on stage in the auditorium. "And next week is the long-awaited athletics festival."

I'm Aino Minako. My motor skills are unrivaled. I'm a bit of a shy 13 year old.

"From our sponsor, the Shiba Shopping District Association," says the man, "the winning class will receive ten cardboard boxes of candy and game software!"

And right now I'm a seventh grader who loves junk food and games! "Victory is ours!" says Minako. "Everyone, leave it to me!" Of course, I'm the most popular person in class. It's the autumn of action!

After school.

"Wow! What a cute cat!"

Minako sits across from her friend at a tea shop. "That's great, Hikaru-chan," she says. "I wish I had such a cute kitty!"

Artemis enters the shop.That Mina... he thinks. Stopping off on the way home again...

"Don't you have a white cat at home too, Mina?" says Hikaru.

"Oh, you mean Artemis?" says Minako. "He's not that great a cat..."

Th- That Mina! Artemis thinks. Could her always being so terribly cruel to me be a sign she thinks I'm below a pet?

"All right, I've decided!" says Minako. "I'm going to get a new cat too! Since I've got my allowance!"

What did she say!? thinks Artemis. This is my ultimate crisis!

Minako enters her house. "So I said... But I went shopping, and now I'm broke! In fall, all sorts of desires come out. Oh well... I got new potato chips, and manga, and CDs, and video games, and... Hey, Artemis?" She sees him lying by the window. "Were you here?"

"Mina," he says. "I seem to be naturally lacking any sense of sympathy at all for you."

"What are you muttering about, Artemis," says Minako. "If all you do is scowl, you'll go bald." She looks at the yellow crescent moon on his forehead and laughs. "Oops, you're already going bald."

“Mina!” says Artemis. “I've kept planning to tell you this, but... You don't listen to anything at all! Do you understand? Your important mission--”

They hear a scream. They run to the window, and see a motorcycle speeding toward a small cat.

“Mike!!” a small girl cries.

“It's in danger!!” Minako runs out of the house in her sailor suit. “No need to worry, Artemis! I haven't forgotten my mission!” She holds out her compact. “Crescent Beam!” Holes pop in the bike's tires, and it crashes to the ground.

“Hey, hey!” says the driver. “What the hell you doing!?”

“Fighting the strong and helping the weak, I am the shopping district's ally of justice! Code name: Sailor V! I am Sailor Venus!” She jumps at him. “Sailor V Kick!!”

“Sailor V!” says the girl, holding her cat. “Thank you for saving Mike!”

“Take care of your pet!” says Minako.

“What are you talking about,” says Artemis.

“Leave it to me, Artemis!” says Minako. “The true mission of Sailor V is defending the peace of the shopping district. I will give my life to accomplish it. But still, that kitten was of good breeding. I want a cute pet like that.”

“Mina, do you mean that?” says Artemis. “Will that help you with your responsibility?”

“What, are you saying I can't have a new cat? It has nothing to do with you, Artemis!” She looks at her crescent moon compact. “Anyway... I'm getting tired of this compact. Since the season is changing, and it's fall now, how about a new item!”

“I give up!” says Artemis. “I'm leaving. I'm going back to headquarters.”

Artemis lies on one of the computer consoles in the basement of the Crown Game Center.

“Jeez,” says the voice from the magic pen. “Her wanting a new item is not something I was looking forward to. Artemis! Hurry back and give Mina some intensive training.”

“So tomorrow's the athletics festival...” thinks Artemis. “Damnit... I'm not going back until she comes to get me.”

Minako walks out onto the field in her gym suit. “All right, here I go! I'm going to win! I'm going to get that candy and game software!”

Morning events.

Minako takes first place in the relay race, the cavalry battle game, the ball catch, and the other events.

Lunch.

“Ahh...” says Minako as she eats. “After exercising, roasted sweet potatoes are wonderful!”

A light flashes in the sky, and a girl with feline features floats down. “Meow...” she says. “Why is it, in this season, that on all the sports fields I sense tremendous amounts of muscle consumption energy and hunger energy, mew.”

“And now will begin the afternoon events,” says the announcer.

“Especially over there,” says the girl. “This is not something I can overlook. I, Nyan-Nyan, will take this great energy power!” [“Nyan” is what Japanese cats say. (Meaning, “meow”.)]

The afternoon events.

“All right!” says Minako. “The last race is the scavenger hunt!” The starting gun fires.

Nyan-Nyan's eyes flash as she looks out from behind a tree.

The competitors run to the table where they pick up the papers naming the item they have to find.

Minako picks one up and reads it. “A cat...” she says. “Hey, that reminds me. I haven't seen Artemis since yesterday.”

She realizes that now... thinks Artemis, standing behind a tree. I got worried and came to see her, like the overprotective guardian I am...

Nyan-Nyan assumes the form of a cat, and meows.

“Hey, a cat!” says a boy.

“What!?” thinks Minako.

All the competitors run toward Nyan-Nyan.

“Did everyone get a cat on their paper for the scavenger hunt!? Hey! What a fraud!”

She runs for the cat.

“Mina!!” thinks Artemis. “Such a frantic mood! If she wants to win so much, I'll go out and...”

Minako runs around a corner, and sees a crowd of cats.

“Lucky!” says a girl.

“I've got one!” says a boy.

“Me too!”

“And me!”

Two boys pull on one of the cats. “This is mine! Let go!”

“Mina!!” calls Artemis, as he tries to push through the crowd of cats.

“Artemis?” says Minako. She looks around. “Huh? That's strange. I thought I saw Artemis. Must be my imagination... But now I'll survive! All right, I can do it!” She raises her compact. “Crescent Moon Power Transform! Turn me into a top breeder!” She takes the cat Nyan-Nyan from a boy's hands. “Yes, yes,” she says. “These kitties are going to appear in a super cat show. I'll take care of them.” She smiles. Lucky! While everybody's distracted, I've got an opening... Anyway, this is a cute kitty!

The cat meows with a smile.

Gas surrounds Minako, and she drops to the ground. “Uhh... My eyes are swimming... Feels good...”

“I finally snuck out after getting lost in the uproar,” says Artemis. “Why so many cats at an athletics festival...” He sees all the competitors lying unconscious on the ground with their cats. “All the people with cats!? Oh no, an enemy!? Mina!!” He runs to her. “Mina!! Pull yourself together!! Come on, Mina!!”

“Uh-uh...” she mumbles. She grabs Artemis's hand and pulls it toward her mouth. “I'll have some more sweet potatoes...”

He scratches at her face. “Wake up, Mina!!”

“Owowowow!!” She sits up. “These nails are Artemis's!? What are you doing!”

“Mina!! Look!! This must be the work of an enemy!! Transform!!”

“An enemy!? I've been waiting!” She raises her magic pen. “Moon Power Transform!!”

Nyan-Nyan changes back into human form. “Meow, that was easier than I thought. Humans are really weak against beautiful cats like me.”

“Hold it, you fake cat!”

“Huh?”

“Using the weak lives of cats as an excuse for cheating humans!! Victor Hugo and the animal liberation front may allow it, but I, Sailor V, will not stand for it!! Code name: Sailor V! I am the ally of lonely, weak cats! The soldier of justice, I am the sailor-suited beautiful soldier Sailor Venus!”

“Mina!” thinks Artemis. “'Lonely, weak cats'...”

“Meow!” Nyan-Nyan growls. “Ally of weak cats! I won't be persuaded by the calling voices of cats! There's no way you can beat me, Nyan-Nyan, princess of the cat world! Kill her, my servants!” The cats charge at Minako.

“What!?” Minako says. “I can't fight cats! What should I do!? All right, if I do this...” She holds out her hand. “Venus Sulfur Smoke!” Gas surrounds Nyan-Nyan and the other cats.

“Ugh!! This- This stinks!!”

“Mina!!” says Artemis. “Th- This smell...!!”

“Artemis!” says Minako. “Where did you go!? I was looking for you!”

“Oh no, could it be...” says Artemis. “Did you eat too many roasted sweet potatoes for lunch and...”

“Wh- What!?” says Minako. “No way! You're wrong, these aren't my fa*ts. This is the smell of the atmosphere of the holy planet Venus!”

“Ugh...” says Nyan-Nyan. “Such a strong stench... I can't take it...”

“Looks like you've learned your lesson!” says Minako. “The planet of the goddess of love and beauty makes even the smell of f*rts into wonderful justice! Venus Iron Muscle Punch!” She slams her fist into Nyan-Nyan, throwing her to the ground. She holds up her compact. “My finishing move! Venus Power! Love Crescent Shower! Pour down rain! Vanish with the dust of the scavenger hunt!”

Nyan-Nyan is destroyed, and all the cats disappear. The competitors wake up.

“Huh?”

“The cats?”

“My cat's gone!”

“Hey!! Sailor V!!”

“It's Sailor V!”

“Sailor V!”

“Oh, wow,” says Minako. “I'm so popular!”

“They're having a girl enter the costume play as Sailor V! What class is she in?”

Minako grimaces.

“There are five more minutes allowed for the scavenger hunt!” says the announcer. “No class has reached the goal yet! Please hurry!”

The competitors look at Artemis.“Hey!! There's a cat!!”

“Damn!!” thinks Minako. “My last resort! They took Artemis!?”

Results.

Minako sniffs as she takes ninth place.

“Minaaaa!” say her classmates.

“Oh, forgive me!” Minako says. “This wasn't supposed to happen!”

And the moral is, once stolen, you understand the blessing of autumn days and Artemis.

Days later.

“Mina,” Artemis says nervously. “So anyway... You know... About your getting a new cat...”

“A cat?” says Minako. “Oh, that... After seeing the rotten cats at that athletics festival the other day, I think I can do without a cat for now.”

“The idol of the cat world! The princess of the cat world! My comrade, my cute little sister! Defeating Nyan-Nyan...” The man with pointed ears, and a crescent moon on his forehead, stands up. “Damn you, Sailor V! I won't allow it!!”

I'm Aino Minako. I'm 13, and in 7th grade. I love to read. I'm a girl of letters, rich in culture. Minako laughs as she walks reading a manga book.

I'm the one rich in culture. I have no choice but to be stuck to this hero. I'm a cat of letters, Artemis.

“Mina,” says Artemis. “It's not proper to read manga while you walk.”

“Shut up, Artemis! Marie-sensei's super-popular series, Aurora Wedding, is right at its climax!”

“Aurora Wedding?”

“Don't you know?” says Minako. “It's a hit manga! There's even a TV series! It's an action love comedy starring the supermodel Linda Evangeligeli! When she's in trouble, she's saved by Swallowtail Kamen. He's so cool! He looks just like Ace!” She comes to the end of the chapter. “What, again!? Whenever it gets to the good part, it's always 'to be continued'!”

They hear a scream. “Huh? A scream!? An incident!? Let's go! Transform!” She holds up her magic pen. “Moon Power Transform!” She appears in her sailor suit. “Oh, is this a characteristic of a soldier of justice?” she says. “You should be happy, Artemis! You have a hero with quick reaction! Now, relax! Since Sailor V is here...”

“Look out!” Artemis calls.

“Huh!?”

Artemis runs into the street and grabs a small black feline animal out of the path of a speeding car. “Good! You weren't run over!” says Artemis.

“Artemis!” says Minako. “That was my job!”

He looks at the cat with a crescent moon shape on its forehead. “She's, she's so cute!”

“Luna-chan!” calls a woman.

“Yes, cute, cute Luna-chan...” thinks Artemis. “What!? Lu- Luna!?”

“Thank you, white kitty,” says the woman, as she looks down at him through her big, round glasses. “You saved my Luna-chan.”

Minako grabs Artemis. “Yes!” she says. “My pet Artemis did it!” She looks at him. “Hey, what's wrong, Artemis? Your face is kind of red.”

“Luna! Luna!” he thinks. “It can't be... It can't be...”

“Woof!”

“Oh, it's a doggie!” says Minako. “How cute!”

“What?” thinks Artemis. “A dog?”

“Cute, no?” says the woman. “I bought it at that pet shop over there. Luna means moon in Latin. These black dogs are popular around the city now.”

“Wow! A new pet shop?” says Minako.

“Sensei!!” a man calls. He grabs the woman. “I finally found you! You're not getting away from me!”

“Sensei?” says Minako.

“Oh, are you a friend of hers?” says the man.

“Unbelievable!” Minako thinks. “He looks just like Ace! He's so, so cool!”

“Yes!” she says. “I'm a close friend of hers!”

He bows. “I'm her boss, Baishaku Shinrou.” He clasps his hands together. “I beg you! Please become her copy assistant!”

“Boss?” says Minako. “Copy? Assistant??”

Minako enters a huge house. “Wow! It's so big! You've got a pool! This is your house!? A sensei who lives in such an amazing house... I wonder what kind of sensei she is. A teacher? A doctor?”

“Now, Marie-sensei!” says Shinrou. “The deadline is tomorrow morning! I need you to fill fifty pages tonight!” They walk into a cluttered room.

“Wow, amazing!” says Artemis. “This is ten times as dirty as your room, Mina!”

Minako picks up a piece of paper. “Huh!? Th- This picture! Marie-sensei, could it be... Creator of the hit manga Aurora Wedding, Marie-sensei!?”

“Yes, you!” says Shinrou. “Do the frame lines! And the tone too!”

Minako hurriedly sketches on a sheet of paper.

Artemis picks up a book from a stack of manga.“Hmm... So this is the hit manga, Aurora Wedding?” He starts to read. “Aurora Wedding. The romantic comedy saga of ten unlucky sisters working arctic nights at a bridal shop. By day, they're models at the bridal shop. By night, they're revolutionary soldiers. The nine heroines defeat enemies one after another, to marry, retire, and live in happiness. The remaining one is the star, Linda. Will Linda become Swallowtail Kamen's bride!? Linda's pet black cat works in the role of Cupid. Oh, I know, sensei! The role of cats is important!” Artemis looks at the tall stack of manga. “Wow, the comics go up to volume 108!?”

“It's been running without a break since I was in 8th grade,” says the woman. “I'm twenty now.”

“Sensei!” says Shinrou. “Good work! Get some rest for now! I'll be back tomorrow as scheduled!” He leaves with the finished artwork.

“A manga artist's assistant...” says Minako. “Such a hard job...”

“Thank you so much, Minako-chan!” says Marie. “I got the copy done thanks to you! Here's your assistant pay. Come visit again sometime!”

“Wow, assistant pay!” says Minako. “I get something like this!” She opens the envelope and takes out a stack of money. “What!? A- A roll of bills!”

“Give it back,” says Artemis.

“What!?” says Minako. “But Marie-sensei gave it to me...”

“You're a soldier of justice to help others,” says Artemis. “Taking money for it is not all right!”

“So that's why,” says Minako. “My brother-in-law Artemis told me to return it, so I came visiting to return it!”

“You two are interesting,” says Marie. Her dog barks.

“Oh, Luna-chan!” says Minako.

Artemis's face turns red.

“Luna-chan,” says Marie. “Looks like you've taken a liking to Artemis-chan. I wonder if you two would model for me next time. Minako-chan, Artemis-chan. Think of this house as your own. Come visit anytime!”

“What!? No way, no way!” says Minako. She runs through the huge house. “This house fit for a princess, I can think of as my own? Since you're so happy, you can write manga full of happiness!”

“That's not true,” says Marie. “Manga artists are usually the exact opposite of the stories they write.”

“Is that so, sensei...” Minako looks at the many posters of Ace hanging on the walls. “You're a big fan of Ace like I thought, aren't you!”

“Oh no...” says Marie. “How did you know!?”

“Come on! Linda's sweetheart, Swallowtail Kamen! He looks just like Ace!”

“That's right!” says Marie. “I've got a mountain of fan letters pointing that out. I have lots of readers who are Ace fans!”

The doorbell rings.

“Oh, Minako-chan, hey!” says Shinrou.

“Oh no!” says Minako. “Her boss, Baishaku-san! Oh, that's right! I thought I'd seen him somewhere before. He looks like Linda's sweetheart, Swallowtail Kamen, too! Huh, Marie-sensei??”

“She must be keeping to her room to do the plot,” says Shinrou.

“Plot?” says Minako.

“She may have finished the copy, but there's another deadline coming up in a week! To do a manga, first is the plot: the draft of the draft of the draft. Next is the names: the draft of the draft. Then the draft. Then the inking. Then the tone and the finishing touches.”

“Wow, all those drafts,” says Minako. “Manga is a real pain in the butt to do. And you read it in just one night...”

“Minako-chan!” says Shinrou. “When you're here, she seems to really get in the spirit. Please come and visit anytime!”

“Oh, come on...” says Minako, blushing. “If you say so, Baishaku-san...” Baishaku-san... thinks Minako. He's so cool...

“Luna-chan...” says Artemis. “She's a dog, but... She's so cute...”

“For once, we have the same opinions, Artemis! To get to know Baishaku-san!”

“To get to know Luna-chan!”

“With high spirits, we'll go to Marie-sensei's place again tomorrow!”

The next day...

Minako walks past a bridal shop. Two girls stare in the store window.

“Ooh, they're beautiful!” says the one with two long, blond ponytails. “Look, look, Naru-chan!”

Wow! thinks Minako. That looks just like the wedding dress in Marie-sensei's manga! Getting married and retiring... That's my dream! She sees the pet store she passed the day before. A crowd is gathered inside. “It's the pet shop where Marie-sensei bought Luna-chan,” she says. “It's really popular.”

“Speaking of which,” thinks Artemis. “All the people in the shopping district are carrying black dogs like Luna-chan.”

“Artemis, hurry, hurry!” says Minako. “Let's go to Marie-sensei's!”

“Oh jeez,” says Artemis. “Thinking all black dogs look like Luna-chan...”

“Welcome,” says Marie. “I've been waiting.” She buries her face in her hands. “I can't come up with any material! I'm in a slump!”

“S- Sensei!” says Minako. “Get a hold of yourself! What do you think about sketching Luna-chan and Artemis?”

“I'll do that!” says Marie.

“Wow...” says Minako. “Even big artists get slumps. Isn't Baishaku-san here yet? Well, I guess I'll read some manga while I wait.” She laughs as she reads a manga book. “This is great! Being able to read manga every day, and live in this huge house, and having a cute boss come to your house every day... Being a manga artist sure is a dream job!”

Marie draws as Artemis and Luna sit quietly.

“Cute Luna-chan,” thinks Artemis. “I don't care if you're a dog! Today I'm going to get close to you, and make an offer of friendship! And then, marriage...!” Artemis blushes.

Luna's eyes flash. A beam of light shoots at Marie.

“L- Luna-chan!?” says Artemis.

Marie collapses on the ground.

“Oh no! Marie-sensei!?”

Luna glares at Artemis, and a blast knocks him to the ground.

“Luna-chan... Luna-chan... Attacked me!? Damn... What's going on!?” He runs out of the room. He finds Minako asleep, holding a manga book. “Mina! Wake up!” he says. “Luna-chan, Luna-chan! She suddenly attacked me!”

“What!?” says Minako. “Luna-chan and Artemis got married before we did!?” She jumps up. “Why did Luna-chan attack you and Marie-sensei!?” She runs back, and sees a crowd of black dogs gathered around a man with pointed ears and a crescent moon on his forehead.

“Wan-Wan-sama!” say the dogs. “The pet shop strategy is a great success! Our servants have scattered and are soaking the energy from the people of this city, woof!”

“Yes, you've done well,” says the man.

What!? thinks Minako.

“But I can't stand the form of a dog,” he says, “being called by a girlish name like Luna, woof!”

What!? thinks Minako. Oh no, is that Luna-chan!?

“Mina! Look!” says Artemis.

She looks outside and sees people lying unconscious on the ground, next to black dogs. “What!? Oh no! Baishaku-san?” She grabs her compact. “I won't allow this! Crescent Moon Power Transform!”

“Now, you all!” says Wan-Wan. “Sailor V should be losing her energy and dying by road somewhere! Find her! Rip her corpse to pieces!”

Minako appears in a black wig and kimono. “Rude one, doing inexcusable things! Attacking beautiful young men, and working dogs as henchmen! Such decayed structure of the shogunate! The shogun will punish you with beheading!”

“Wh- Who are you!?”

“Moon Power Transform!!” She appears in a sailor suit. “Confucianism and the law of pity toward life may permit this, but I will not!”

“Hmm,” says Wan-Wan. “You have the scent of Nyan-Nyan on you! Then you must be...”

“Code name: Sailor V! I am the ally of tender little doggies, and the heroine of manga! The messenger of justice! The sailor-suited, beautiful soldier! The Sailor Venus of romantic, moving, heartwarming comics is me!”

“Your speech is so long!” says Wan-Wan. “Sailor V! This is revenge for my cute little sister Nyan-Nyan! I'll choke you to death, woof!”

“Whether it's Wan-Wan or Nyan-Nyan,” says Minako, “I am the pioneer of sailor-suited pretty girl action, Sailor V! As revenge for getting in the way of my plans for second house marriage and retirement, with my V-chan Striking Sword, I sentence you to seppuku!” She slices him through the stomach with a sword.

“Mina...” says Artemis. “Seppuku is cutting your own stomach...” The crowd of dogs vanish, and the pet shop disappears.

Shinrou wakes up on the street. “Uhh... Oh no! I overslept! Sensei, the copy!?” He sees Marie lying on the ground, covered by papers. “Oh no! Sensei! The copy!” He grabs her. “Wake up, copy! I mean, sensei!”

“Uhh...” she mumbles. Her glasses drop to the floor, revealing her beautiful face. “Baishaku-san?” she says.

“M- Marie-sensei!” They stare into each others eyes.

“Baishaku-san... I- I...”

“M- M- Marie-sensei... I- I...”

“What!?” says Minako, back in her normal clothes. “That's Marie-sensei!? That liar! She looks just like the Linda in her manga! She's so pretty!”

“Ohh...” says Artemis. “Luna-chan wasn't just a dog, she was a man!”

The bell of the church rings as Marie and Shinrou walk down the aisle.

“I get it,” says Minako. “So Marie-sensei loved Baishaku-san. And she was a fan of Ace because he looks like Baishaku-san. And Swallowtail Kamen in the manga looked like Baishaku-san too!”

“In Aurora Wedding, Linda got married too,” says one of the women at the ceremony. “Now it's finally ended.”

“That Marie,” says another. “Her work was a big hit!”

“She has her own house, and has made her parents proud.”

“And in the end, she made it with a sweet, handsome, elite younger editor!”

“That's the royal road of a shoujo manga artist!”

“Artemis!” says Minako. “I'm going to become a shoujo manga artist, then get married and retire! Oh, my future editor... Where is my destined partner now?”

“You're so girlish,” says Artemis.

Artemis stares at the moonlight through the window, as Minako sleeps in bed. “Luna?” he says. “That's a familiar name. I wonder how she's doing now... Sorry, Mina. Just for one night, can I think of the secret allies I can't tell you about yet? Yes... Telling you that is still a little while off in the future.”

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