Original subtitles

A superb wielder of power who was himself a first-rate poet:

Emperor Wu of Wei, Cao Cao.

As a lover of poetry and music,

he championed eminent writers and poets of his day

while also leaving behind numerous works of his own.

In particular, "Short Song Style" expresses his thirst for individuals of world-class talent,

Short Song Style

Short Song Style

With drink in hand I heartily sing

Short Song Style

With drink in hand I heartily sing

For who knows what life will bring

Short Song Style

With drink in hand I heartily sing

and the poem came to be passed down through the ages.

For who knows what life will bring

Like the morning dew it could be fleeting

Short Song Style

With drink in hand I heartily sing

For who knows what life will bring

Like the morning dew it could be fleeting

The days pass too soon, ever receding

Short Song Style

With drink in hand I heartily sing

For who knows what life will bring

Like the morning dew it could be fleeting

The days pass too soon, ever receding

Full of emotion, my lament swelling

Short Song Style

With drink in hand I heartily sing

For who knows what life will bring

Like the morning dew it could be fleeting

The days pass too soon, ever receding

Full of emotion, my lament swelling

Oh these heavy feelings, ever dwelling

Now, back to the present.

Kongming's next plan is to secure a highly talented individual,

just as Cao Cao sought to do with Short Song Style.

Sure enough, the most skilled man...

was the rap-battle champ for three years running.

However, unable to cope with the mounting pressure, he stepped away from performing on stage.

Ever since the day I collapsed due to an acute stomach ulcer, I swore...

I'd never again rap in front of people.

Kongming, who hopes to bring that man into his camp, challenged him to a rap battle.

If Kongming wins, Kabe will join up with them.

But if he loses, he will grant Kabe a wish.

With those conditions set...

the day of the showdown arrived.

I'll just pop in.

One peek inside and that's it.

Chan x Chan, Ai!! Chiki chiki ban ban

ya Boy KONGMING!

Ai?! Chiki chiki chan chan

Aa! Chiki chiki ban ban

Ai!! Chuki chuki chuki ban ban

High chiki chiki ban ban

Ai?! Chiki chiki chan chan

Aa! Chiki chiki ban ban

Ai!! Chuki chuki

Neko mo shakushi mo minna kimagure de tsuraaaaai

Yoeba tequila

Aranu mousou renzoku de pikaaaaaan

Yume wa Pandora

Hora, aketakunaru

Minna kitaishite, party people

Konya Fujiyama noboranya wakaranaai

Kessen wa shuumatsu no shukumei

Chan x Chan, Ai!! Chiki chiki ban ban

Nanimo mottaiburazu tanoshime

Fever tonight

Chan x Chan, Ai?! Chiki chiki ban ban

Nando mushakushashitatte, party tonight

Chan x Chan, Aa! Chiki chiki ban ban

Orokamono hodo high to kasu kanzen shakai

Chan x Chan, Ai!! Chiki chiki ban ban

Minna superstar no tamago sa, diva tonight

Kongming's

Kongming's Freestyle

And now, Rapper 2: Borg!

The winner is:

Hey, isn't he... Rapper 1, Atama!

What? For real?

A round of applause for these two, please!

I don't see the guy who was dressed like Kongming. A round of applause for these two, please!

Next, EIKO will perform, so chill out for a bit!

Hi, EIKO here!

Well, tonight I'm gonna sing a beloved older song.

That reminds me,

been a while since I've even been in a club. It was a hit, so I bet all of you guys know this one.

Chiisana koro ni egaita risou o The ideal we painted when we were little

This song...

Jibun shiru tabi Whenever we know oneself

Nurikaeteyukou Let's repaint it

Daremo gakitto kagayaku Everyone surely has

Tokubetsu o motteru A special something that shines

Taisetsu ni migakeba If you polish it with care

Hiya, Kabe!

Hey, Kabe!

So, whatcha listening to?

Um, uh, well...

What does she mean by that?

Kabe?

What's the right way to answer that?!

What's the right way to answer that?!

What's the right way to answer that?!

THE SONG TITLE...

The song title? No, no, no, no, no.

THE SONG TITLE...

No, no, no, no, no.

No, no, no, no, no.

Maybe the genre?

Maybe the genre? The artist's name?

Maybe the genre?

The artist's name? Wait!

Wait! Isn't it best to say an artist popular with girls?

Isn't it best to say an artist popular with girls?

But who do girls like in the first place?! What's right?!

BUT!

BUT!

Who do girls like in the first place?!

Ahhhhhhh...

Who do girls like in the first place?!

Ah, I have no idea!

I HAVE NO IDEA!

Well, uh...

...to sound.

Uh, yeah.

Yep, there's just no talking to him.

Too bad 'cause he's pretty cute.

I blew it again...

Why the hell did I say "sound"?

I always overthink it, lose track of what to say, and then blurt out something weird.

Aw, if only I could put what I'm thinking into words...

Hey, Sasaki! Aw, if only I could put what I'm thinking into words...

We're gonna hit the school store, so give us 1,000 yen.

N-no, I have no money on me today.

A-also, it's my policy not to lend people money.

Gross, dude!

What's your deal?!

Sasaki is on the bottom of the social ladder like me. You make it sound like we're bullyin' ya!

Sasaki is on the bottom of the social ladder like me. Sorry, sorry, sorry!

Well, I can at least document this. Ouch! That hurts!

Sasaki?

Damn, this looks bad.

I-I better report it.

Huh?

Looks like he's having fun.

Oh, that's called a cypher.

We all circled up and freestyle rapped.

Rap? You, Sasaki?

Wanna listen? Here's some rap.

Red... Horse...

Kimi dake no unmei o terasu kara You'll illuminate a destiny that is yours alone

How do you read these kanji?

Sekitoba Kung Fu!

He's mad cool!

Itsuka kanau hazu It is bound to come true someday

Shinjita michi o susume! Head down the path you believe in!

Kuijikesou na hi wa On days it seems you'll lose heart

I'm average academically.

Itsu demo kimi no soba ni iru kara Know that I'm always by your side

Average at sports.

My home life is ordinary, and I'm average-looking.

I've got no special talents.

Dakara gyutto tsuyoku So, strongly and firmly

I was just the gloomy guy in class.

I thought I'd lead a boring, crappy life.

Kono te o nigitte Grasp this hand

But...

Sekaijuu de tatta hitotsu no The one and only in the whole world

with rap, I was able to put my thoughts into words.

Jibunrashi mirai e Toward that future worthy of oneself

And that won me everyone's approval.

Fumidasou Let's set forth

I got crazy about rap.

Kokoro-goto uketomeyou Let's accept each other, heart and all

Ah hell...

This girl's singing hits like a ton of bricks.

Saa doko made me ikesou sa Come, it feels like we can go anywhere

Atsui kimochi ga aru We have a passionate feeling

Find the way

Ungh....

No! I've decided I won't do rap battles anymore.

Thank you!

The wait is over!

Time for tonight's special match! Think I'll head home.

A time-transcending rap-battle between two legends!

On one side, a current legend of legends!

He has three straight DRB titles!

Kabetaijin!

Ah, so that really was Kabetaijin?!

Damn, he's really here!

And his opponent is...

A man summoned here by fans' spirited vibes...

The confuter ghost from the Three Kingdoms...

Kongming, when'd you get that thing?

...Zhuge Kongming!

Kabetaijin, I greatly appreciate you coming tonight.

However, if you intend abandon rap for good and live like you're already dead,

then allow me to perform your last rights here and now!

Kabe! He's callin' you out!

You gonna let him get away with it?!

No, I'm through with rap battles.

This may be my first rap battle,

but in a contest of tongues the idea of me losing is downright unthinkable.

What?

Did you fail to hear me?

Then, I'll say it again.

This may be my first rap battle, but the idea of me losing is down-right...

un-think-able.

Your first time...

and you won't lose?

Don't mess with the best!

Gimme the mic!

I'll give ya your damn rap battle!

Wow, they're seriously doing this.

To be honest, I don't know how the winner of a rap battle's decided.

The outcome depends on the cheers of the audience.

Wh-who're you?

The one who grabs the crowd's hearts with the vibes of their spirit is the victor.

Well, against a beginner, Kabe's the sure winner.

Oh...

All right, let's get his rap battle started!

There will be three rounds of 16 bars each!

Up first, Kabetaijin!

DJ Satori, drop the beat!

Yeah!

In this rap battle, we have a rap rookie

It's my style to flatten ya like a cookie

Just for tonight, listen up, child

Kabetaijin gonna make you go wild

From the Three Kingdoms you awoke?

All BS, seriously a big sham

Country's closed, your status I revoke

Go home, back to Shu Han, scram

My rhymes will shock, send ya flyin'

Gonna leave that Zhuge Liang cryin'

Kongming the loser nobody is hirin'

So he better hurry and get to retirin'!

Uh!

Yeah! I live for my banter

Mic in hand, I'm an enchanter

Now, let's hear it, your answer!

Zhuge's the family, Liang the name

Kongming for courtesy, I do proclaim

If to Shu Han you wish me to retreat

A time machine, Kabetaijin, lay at my feet

If this is the extent of your verbal attack

Then you're just one more oni to whack

The heft of an ambition, you do not know

The grit to stake your life, you do not show

If you truly do so insist

I shall show you the depths of defeat

If your stomach is in a twist

Go ahead, from the stage, retreat

Kongming, you can do it!

Depths of defeat? Don't know it

Belief on stage? Don't owe it

In this moment, what’s needed now

Is sincerity in freestyle, I vow

I'm a straight rap OG

More titles than anyone, three-time MVP!

Three-time MVP! More titles than anyone, three-time MVP!

Remember, I'm the defender

Gonna beat ya like a blender

I hit the memory button, enter!

Boom!

Boom! Ugh, Kongming's up against this crowd!

Ugh, Kongming's up against this crowd!

This is real rhyming, yo Ugh, Kongming's up against this crowd!

This is real rhyming, yo

Now, if I'm Mother Teresa

You're a damn motherfu**er

With my rhymes, flow, and answers, I conjure

Shouts of joy!

Kabetaijin's hip-hop time machine

Ready to destroy! Ready to destroy!

If your faith is the strongest of all

From the stage there can be no descent

Wh-what's behind Kongming? If you desire a game of word recall

Wh-what's behind Kongming? I'll let you spar with me, 100 percent

Wait, is that... I'll let you spar with me, 100 percent

Art of war, yo

Hey, ho! Art of war, yo

Art of War

Come on, art of war, yo

Hey, ho!

The saints have heaven as their model

Are my eyes playing tricks on me? The saints have heaven as their model

Are my eyes playing tricks on me? The sages have earth as their model

The sages have earth as their model

The wise have antiquity as their model

Success or failure, I have here the toggle

Terrorized by your past experience

You run and shun it, notorious

If your dealings, are controlled by feelings

On the road to ruin, you'll egress

Amid the hustle and bustle, forsaken

And mistaken, lies Kabe's process

Whoa, those last two bars were wicked rhymes, huh?!

That's the way, Kongming!

Belief! Reef! I've run aground, good grief!

Though I've quit, still rhymes I spit

A rap otaku, representin' JPN

My last battle, the ace in this rigged race

The Three Kingdoms, my favorite?

No doubt: Guan Yun Chang

Zhuge Kongming: he's simply

Performing, Best Actor Gang

Hell, if you're Kongming

Then I'm Gautama Sid-dhar-tha

Don't get all cocky and casually

Pretend to know the de-part-ed

Hey!

Kabe got up on stage...

Or did that guy draw him up there?

If I were pretending, consider me dead

Above all, nescience fills me with dread

With a mentality of ignorance is bliss

You can't compete, you're misled

Whenever the enemy falls silent

Relying on defense is their game

Whenever the enemy picks a fight

Tempting an invasion is their aim

As you provoke me, such is your design

You hope to outwit? How about it?

Is this new rapper divine?

Time to end this, before I get bored

With this mic, I strike a chord

The thing that I give to you is

Through punishment and reward!

I don't fully get it, but he's super convincing.

Who the hell is that guy?

He's my tactician!

All right, it's time to pick a winner.

Rapper 1, Kabetaijin!

Rapper 2, Zhuge Kongming!

Seems pretty even.

We have a draw!

This one's going extra innings!

This time I'm taking you down!

So you've finally awakened from your slumber.

Ya Boy Kongming!

ya

ya Boy

ya Boy KONG

ya Boy KONGMING!

Overtime!

Again, three rounds of 16 bars!

First up is Zhuge Kongming!

Second up is Kabetaijin!

Kongming, don't let him beat you!

In terms of technique, he can't beat Kabe.

But this battle's entered territory known only to them, I suppose.

As for who will win, God only knows.

BB Lounge owner, Kobayashi, would later go on to say:

"It was just as if Jiang Wei and Zhao Yun were facing off one-on-one."

DJ Satori, drop the beat!

Ingenuity fostered over years of war

The doubts people have, I can't ignore

My stratagems make jaws hit the floor

Because I can read minds, you see

Claiming to quit, you still battle and spit

Why in the world is that?

Answer me, I'll give a drink for free

How about a shandygaff, stat?

If you continue to fail to answer me

A posthumous work, your rap will be

Check it out!

You are off base

I've got no plans or way to leave this place

Back home, there's no longer one familiar face

I fear nothing at all, I just embrace

Who will be the winner of this affair?

thud

thud

JIANG

WEI

thud

thud

All you ever do is fear

The result, it's crystal clear

Uh! A shandygaff? Don't need one

Instead, I'll give ya a bullet from a machine gun

The reason I do rap battles?

I'll tell ya real quick

So listen to me sing, fake-Kongming

You pretend to be a rap newbie

Stop defiling hip-hop

It's horrible, you're deplorable

Representin' rap, with justice's mallet

I bash your palate, damage in your brain

With that in mind, I got up on stage

But your rap made the crowd engage

So it's time to earn my fame

Bring it on, in this freestyle game

All know the guy, "Slay Ma Su as you cry"

Muscle? All know the guy, "Slay Ma Su as you cry"

Muscle...

With my friends, I don't kill

The fake-Kongming, conventions does bring

But my consistency boasts persistency!

thud

ZHAO

YUN

thud

thud

You know your enemy but not yourself

To me, that's you and Ma Su, you see

It was no play, Ma Su I did slay

That sorrow, do you understand it?

Kabe ran away, couldn't keep stress at bay

True chagrin, do you understand it?

You both had talent in your profession

But also showed overly smug discretion

Ma Su took the high ground

Jiang Wei! Zhao Yun! Ma Su took the high ground

Kabe fled the battleground

Those tactics need practice

By seeing only your nose, you can't see your toes

Don't be shy, open your mind's eye

I'll be clearer, take a hard look in the mirror!

You're here now, still in life's dance

You can still advance, this is your chance

You think you’re all that, Kongming the Fake

Time to awake, before my foresight quake

You haven't been able to get into swing

I mentioned Ma Su, oh, did that sting?

You gotta ride the beat and go surfin'

BB Lounge got the highest water surgin'

Kabe makes waves and serves 'em up neatly

But Kongming alone is drownin' completely

It's my own choice to end my rap tenure

Don't you remember?

Other's opinions, I do not respect

To your self-righteousness, I do object

What's an upstart like you comprehend?

Every beginning has got an end

I'm a three-time-champ destroyer

So I make and break like perestroika!

That seals the deal.

This isn't over yet!

Those departing become more distant by the day

Those coming become more familiar by the day

If one exits the castle gate and looks dead ahead

He will see but knolls and burial mounds

Those departing become more distant by the day

Those coming become more familiar by the day

If one exits the castle gate and looks dead ahead

He will see but knolls and burial mounds

The old tombs are tilled, becoming rice fields

Those departing become more distant by the day

Those coming become more familiar by the day

If one exits the castle gate and looks dead ahead

He will see but knolls and burial mounds

The old tombs are tilled, becoming rice fields

The conifers are felled, becoming firewood

Those departing become more distant by the day

Those coming become more familiar by the day

If one exits the castle gate and looks dead ahead

He will see but knolls and burial mounds

The old tombs are tilled, becoming rice fields

The conifers are felled, becoming firewood

Huh? What?

What's Kongming saying?

Unlike the living, the dead are soon forgotten.

Even if you go outside, you can see nothing but hills and graves.

So that people may live, graves are plowed over and turned into fields,

and trees are chopped down and turned into wood.

An old Chinese poem, huh?

Amazing!

A mournful wind buffets the white poplars

A mournful wind buffets the white poplars

The dreariness of it wrenches the heart so

A mournful wind buffets the white poplars

The dreariness of it wrenches the heart so

Though I wish to return to my native land

A mournful wind buffets the white poplars

The dreariness of it wrenches the heart so

Though I wish to return to my native land

To my regret, there is no path by which to do so

A mournful wind buffets the white poplars

The dreariness of it wrenches the heart so

Though I wish to return to my native land

To my regret, there is no path by which to do so

The sound of the wind is lonely,

and even if he wished to head home he has no way returning there.

Kongming...

So, you're not able to head home...

I can't go back either, you know!

To those days when I innocently enjoyed rap...

However, I no longer wish to return home.

Reason being, I met a certain songstress.

Do you not wish to behold it together?

I speak not of the past, but the future.

The future...

The future...

What's wrong, Kabe?!

Answer! Answer 'im!

What's the matter?

It's your turn, Kabetaijin.

I...

I was cheered on and picked it up, that microphone

I felt it well up from my heart, that red flame

Hah...

I'm spouting baloney, but I'm not phony, no

Endlessly emerging, my rhyme and flow

I thank you, please know

I'm grateful to you! My days had been blue!

If I'm not careful here, I'll be through

I'm grateful to all you! Sing in praise, I do!

I've found it, an answer that rings true!

The sunset in town, its luster was lost for me

Deserters alone try to lick blood, ya see

I may have stayed holed up, that is true

One day it cut to the bone

A homesickness that would not heal

But I came back home

Yeah, I'm rappin' in this hood!

Gonna keep on rhymin' for good!

This is all biographic, it's my new classic!

Welcome back, Kabe!

We've been waitin' for ya, buddy!

Kabe! Kabe! Kabe! Kabe!

Ah, so that's your classic.

Classic...

In other words, it had already been written.

Kabe! Kabe! Kabe! Kabe!

K-Kongming, the crowd is...

All right...

The winner is Kabetaijin!

No, wait! On my last turn I flubbed my answer!

Incidentally, Kabe...

How is your stomach feeling?

Huh?

It doesn't hurt at all.

In fact, it's like spirited vibes are welling up from deep inside me.

Everybody in the house!

Tonight was one for the books!

Come back again sometime!

Oh, this girl is...

What're we gonna do?

This rapper won't join us now that you lost, right?

I did what I could.

He trounced me with that last rap.

Well then, as promised, I shall grant you one wish.

A wish...

I wish for...

One hundred million yen.

O-one hundred million?!

That's a big ask.

Can't you lower that a bit?

Understood.

Huh?!

I shall pay you one hundred mil-

Aw, sorry! Hold it right there!

I thought it was worth trying...

But sure enough, that's not it.

My true wish...

has already come true.

Huh?

I've been wanting to come back...

to the stage as a rapper.

Eiko, was it?

It was your siging that made me remember

the passion I had when I first started rapping.

So, forget about it.

I already got what I wanted most!

Well, you've got me there.

Your impressive performance up on stage...

Your unshakeable belief...

So, you've obtained it at long last,

that inner steel.

Y-you think so?

On the other side of that door, stood a man.

He was Eiko's number one fan and Kongming's spy.

And that nameless man knew...

He knew Kongming had visited clubs night after night collecting intel on Kabe.

Plus, he knew Kongming had pinned down the song that evokes memories for Kabe and had Eiko sing it.

Goodnight!

Furthermore, there was this man.

BB Lounge's bartender who isn't familiar with the Three Kingdoms knew...

He knew that when Kabe ordered a drink,

he mixed in the stomach-soothing decoction that Kongming requested.

Then, this man,

feigning complete ignorance, spoke thus:

You may find this shameless of me after losing,

but allow me to say it this once:

Join us in realizing peace throughout the whole world via music!

Huh?! What?! The whole world?!

"The whole world," you say?

You really are a strange one.

But...

I've come to like ya!

I'll join up with you guys.

I look forward to our partnership, Kabetaijin.

Hooray!

Sun Tzu's Art of War: Hooray!

Oh, we got ourselves a general!

To get the enemy to move as you wish, show them something to their benefit to entice them. Oh, we got ourselves a general!

To get the enemy to move as you wish,

show them something to their benefit to entice them.

To get the enemy to move as you wish, show them something to their benefit to entice them.

More simply: If you offer the thing the other party is seeking,

despite being the enemy they will come to you of their own accord.

Kongming's

Kongming's Freestyle

Freestyle

Art of War

Hey DJ

Kamase, yeah yeah yeah, kibun joujou no

Hari otose, otto narase, party night

Nomou, rai rai rai, minna de odore!

Hip-pop people, kakete yo miracle number

Yo! Konna jidai ni wakachiau music

Sagashitakute, mawasu chikyuugi

Guratsuku fuantei seikatsu

Sore dakara balance juushi

Yoi koto bakari janai kara ganbareru!

Saiaku na hi ni kick

Sakidou no button click!

DJ, kakete!! Ima trip

Shareteru beat ni notte kanjiru karada yurasouyo

Hey DJ, shashare, yeah yeah yeah, kibun joujou no

Nami ni notte hajiketobe, funky night

Nomou, rai rai rai, minna de odore!

Hip-pop people, asa made miracle number

Hey DJ, kamase, yeah yeah yeah

Nomou, rai rai rai

Hey DJ, kamase, yeah yeah yeah