Episode 11 Synopsis
Mentor
(Original Airdate: April 9, 2000)
At the Kazahaya Elementary School in Tochigi-ken Mr. Kanzaki is looking at the flowers near the playground. The school's gym teacher asks him what's wrong. He says the flowers that the kids had promised to look after have withered, and wonders why they have become so indifferent to the beautiful things in life. The other teacher says it's not indifference, but before he can finish his thought a soccer ball falls into the flowers. The gym teacher kicks the ball back over to the boys who were playing with it. "Kids change so fast," he says. "Faster than I can handle," replies Mr. Kanzaki. After the gym teacher leaves, he continues to stare thoughtfully at the leaves. "I just don't understand," he says.
Opening Credits
Oya-san arrives at the Porepore to find Yuusuke finishing up a batch of curry sauce. He inspects, and finds no fault with Yuusuke's work. Oya-san comments that Yuusuke is working awfully late. Yuusuke explains that he wants to get all his work done today because tomorrow he has a very important appointment with a very important person with whom he made a very important promise long ago. Yuusuke tastes the curry himself, and give's it the thumb's-up.
Later that night on a road near Kawaguchi in Saitama-ken, a trucker is driving along enjoying his rock-n-roll when he sees someone standing in the middle of the road, blocking his way. Unfortunately for the driver, it's an irate Xu Zain Da, in humanoid form and looking highly irritated. The driver stops the truck and cusses out Xu Zain Da, but Xu Zain Da's in a killing mood. He yells and converts to Grongi form. The driver screams as Xu Zain Da charges the truck. He grabs the driver as he tries to escape and pins him against the grill. Then, after a few choice words in Grongese, he plunges his horn into the driver's chest.
Back in Tochigi-ken the next day, at the Kanzaki residence in Utsunomiya, Mr. Kanzaki is going through his belongings. He has just decided to give up teaching, and is in a pensive mood. His wife comes into the room, catching him daydreaming, and they chat briefly while looking through some old pictures. After she goes back to her work, he comes across a signature book from one of his classes long ago. Leafing through it, he finds a page with a large cartoon face giving the thumb's-up sign that says, "Your words have made a strong impression." Down in the corner of the page is a signature of a young Godai Yuusuke. Under this is written, "See you in the classroom, March 25, 2000." In the other corner it says, "I give you my word." Mr. Kanzaki thinks for a few moments, then gets up and calls to his wife, saying he has to go out for a little while.
At the Porepore Yuusuke tears off yesterday's date to reveal the proper one: March 25, 2000. Then he excuses himself to Oya-san and heads out of the restaurant. As he hits the door, a young girl is coming in. "Excuse me," he says, and heads out. The girl turns out to be Nana, and she pauses a moment at the door, looking after Yuusuke. "Ah, you've made it, Nana," says Oya-san. "Who was that?" she says dreamily. "Oh, him? That's one Godai Yuusuke. He works here sometimes. He's a big fan of Yoshiko Kuuga, the singer. Why?" "He's magnificent," responds a love-struck Nana. Oya-san is a little puzzled, and a little amused. "Him?" he says somewhat disbelieving.
At the police station Ichijou runs into Sugita, who asks him if he's heard about the latest news.
Sakurako is hard at work on her research, listening to the J-Pop countdown. (They're down to number 3 on the countdown, a song called "Speed Kick," apparently named in honor of the nation's latest hero.) She is pleased with the progress she's made. The phone rings then. It's John, calling from Nagano. She asks how things are going, to which he replies that it's been rather slow progress. Sakurako is concerned, but John reassures her that he will be alright, particularly since he's just hired himself a cute new assistant. Sakurako's curiosity is piqued. "Who is it?" she asks. "Here, I'll put her on," he says, and hands the phone over to his assistant as she arrives. "It's Sawatari Sakurako," he says. "Hello," she says, "Sakurako-san? It's Natsume Mika." "Mika?" replies Sakurako, surprised. Mika tells Sakurako that she wants to help out on the research her father was working on. "Well, good luck," says Sakurako.
On the JR Utsunomiya train Mr. Kanzaki is looking at Yuusuke's page in his book, lost in thought, as Yuusuke heads toward the rendezvous on the Trychaser.
A truck driver in Ibaraki-ken pulls up to a stop light and is about to check his map when he is knocked sideways in his seat. Someone has apparently rear-ended his truck. He gets out to see what happened, and finds the passenger side of the payload area has a huge dent in it. Suddenly he is grabbed and thrown against the wall of the underpass. Looking over his shoulder, he sees Xu Zain Da glaring at him with derision. The poor driver can only scream.
Ichijou and Sugita are discussing the Grongi problem and looking at the pictures of the items found in the raid when Ichijou's phone rings. It's Kameyama, the young officer in Nagano, asking if he's going to be in Tokyo much longer and when he's planning on returning to Nagano. Ichijou says most likely he'll be there for some time yet and the mysterious lifeforms continue to plague the city. A call comes in on the office phone, which Sugita answers. "What?!" he exclaims, then turns to Ichijou and tells him another incident has occurred. Ichijou excuses himself to Kameyama and hangs up.
Yuusuke in on a highway in Sedaya ward when a call comes across the radio from Ichijou telling him of the Ibaraki incident. Yuusuke turns the bike around and head in that direction, apologizing out loud to Mr. Kanzaki for having to break his promise.
Break
Yuusuke calls Sakurako from a phone booth and asks her to go and meet Mr. Kanzaki in her place, since he has to look into the latest attack from the mysterious lifeforms. Her gives her the location: the Tachibana Elementary School in Yamakita. He tells her to wait there and stay with Mr. Kanzaki until he can get there. Yuusuke hangs up and hits the road again. After Yuusuke hangs up, Sakurako wonders, "Why me?"
Under a bridge in Ueno in the Taito district of Tokyo Me Biran Gi meets up with the Me Garima Ba, and tells her Xu Zain Da's gone and stirred things up but good. The two seem smugly satisfied, knowing this will displease Rose. Just then Rose and Xu Gouma Gu arrive. Me Biran Gi asks her, "My turn, right?" "Not yet," she responds. "Why?" says Me Biran Gi. The two have been conversing in Japanese so as not to attract the unwanted attentions of the humans walking by. Xu Gouma Gu fouls it all up by snapping at Me Biran Gi in Grongese, which draws the stares of the passers-by. Rose shuts him up with a swat to the chest and says, "We will speak the human's tongue in public." She turns to Me Biran Gi and tells him, "Just a little longer." She turns and walks away with Xu Gouma Gu in tow. Me Biran Gi is displeased and impatient.
At Tokyo station Mr. Kanzaki boards the train on platform #7. As the warning song sounds, Sakurako rushes onto the platform and just makes it onto the train as the doors close behind her. "I made it," she says.
Ichijou is in contact with the local police, who have managed to run Xu Zain Da to ground at an underpass in the city of Tsukuba.
Xu Zain Da, looking back at the cops, sneers "Humans…" He works himself into a fury, then attacks the cops. Ichijou hears the fight over his radio. The cops are getting their behinds waxed.
Mr. Kanzaki looks pensively out the window of the train, as Yuusuke rushes towards Tsukuba. Ichijou arrives to find the police all but wiped out. One cop is still alive, and is just able to tell Ichijou that #22 is headed toward Takura. Ichijou calls Yuusuke on the radio and fills him in, and the two head to Takura from their respective locations.
Xu Zain Da is attacking several men at a factory, with the exhaust from the idling trucks fueling his rage. He lays waste to several men, and is about to throttle one man when Yuusuke hits the scene on the Trychaser. Yuusuke knocks Xu Zain Da down, and pulls the bike around, but Xu Zain Da punches him right off of the bike. Xu Zain Da goes verbal, then attacks Yuusuke as he is about to henshin. Xu Zain Da tosses Yuusuke around like a rag doll and then starts to crush his head.
The train arrives in Yamakita, and both Sakurako and Mr. Kanzaki get off and head for the bus stop. They both check the schedule for the next bus. Mr. Kanzaki, realizing with chagrin that it will be some time before the next bus, walks into a nearby noodle shop to wait. He chats with the hostess, noting that there are hardly any buses to Yamobe anymore. The hostess tells him it's because all the people have gone away. "Do you live there?" she asks. "No, but I worked there some time ago," he replies. He sips his tea. "I used to teach school there, and now I'm supposed to meet one of my former students there. I wonder if he'll make it…"
Back in Takura Yuusuke is being tossed hither and yon by Xu Zain Da. Xu Zain Da throws Yuusuke into a chain-link fence, and then charges. Yuusuke manages to duck out of the way before Xu Zain Da crashes through it. This gives Yuusuke time to henshin into Mighty Form. Xu Zain Da sees this, and yells "Kuuga!…At last I get my chance!" (a semi-educated guess) Xu Zain Da henshins into his Grongi form and introduces himself to Kuuga. The two then engage in a furious fight, but Kuuga is getting pushed around an awful lot. Xu Zain Da manages to toss him several meters into the air and against a silo wall. Kuuga falls to the ground and Xu Zain Da resumes the assault. The struggle continues, and Xu Zain Da manages to get Kuuga off the ground again and holds him over his head. Xu Zain Da then throws Kuuga vertically into the air, and as he starts back earthward Xu Zain Da prepares to impale him on his waiting horn.
End of episode
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