< Light Up the Fire | Story
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Vivid Street
Running footsteps
Townsperson
Was that Taiga-san singing just now!?
Townsperson
Yeah! It was so intense...! Could it be that he's singing over there!?
Townsperson
Wait, why are Vivid BAD SQUAD and Touno and the others there too...?
Townsperson
Ah, this atmosphere...no way, are they going at it here...?
Townsperson
Against THE Taiga-san!? That matchup is impossible! Even if they're all together, they don't have a chance of beating him!
Townsperson
But, if it's them, they might have a shot! They're the ones aiming to surpass RAD WEEKEND, after all!
Taiga
...Hah. To think I only sang a little bit. This town's quick to get involved, as always.
Taiga
Well, the stage is set now.
Taiga
In that case——let's get going.
Kotaro
Th...There's no way...!
Tatsuya
...Ugh.
Arata
(...This is bad. Everyone got overwhelmed by just one phrase.)
Arata
(...Not that I'm one to talk.)
Akito
...We can't back down.
Toya
Akito...!
Akito
What happened to Nagi-san, everything that's happening in this town...I can't make sense of it, and I have no idea what Taiga-san's thinking. I don't understand, but——
Akito
But, I know this...!
Akito
This isn't a fight we can run away from. If we turn our heads from this, we'll never be able to surpass RAD WEEKEND...!
Arata
...You're right. That...I feel the same way.
An
...Kh.
Taiga
Come on...is your strategy meeting gonna take much longer?
Taiga
You're making your audience wait too long. ...I'm deciding for you.
Taiga
Then——EVER, you're up first.
Tatsuya
...!
Arata
He's not giving us any time to clear our heads...
Toya
...Can you all manage this?
Tatsuya
...Honestly, I don't think we can... I'm more frightened than I've ever been...even in a fight.
Tatsuya
But...Shinonome's right. We can't back away from a fight that's on our doorstep..!!
Tatsuya
——Let's go, guys!! Get pumped!!
EVER Members A & B
Yeah!!
Tatsuya
...We're taking this seriously...with the intent to win. We've had that resolve pushing us along all this way.
Taiga
...Resolve...
Taiga
——Well, you've got spirit at least. Let's get this started, then.
Taiga
For rules, well, whoever can pump up the crowd more wins. With a gallery like this, it'll be easy to tell.
Taiga
I'll let you go first. Go ahead and let loose.
Tatsuya
...Shit! Quit underestimating us!
EVER
♪————!!
Townsperson
Oh! EVER's going first! Those guys are a step above your average team!
Townsperson
You've got this! Let him have it!
EVER
♪————!!
Audience cheering
Tatsuya
...*pant*...*pant*
Taiga
...Well, that's about what I expected.
Taiga
In that case——it's my turn.
An
...Kh!
Kohane
(...! This is...Taiga-san when he's serious...!?)
Akito
(This is totally different from when he went up against Touno...!)
Toya
(Such intensity...! It's almost as if we were swallowed up by a torrent in a moment——)
Arata
...Seriously, it makes me nauseous...
Audience cheering
Tatsuya
(You've gotta be kidding me... We didn't stand a chance...)
Tatsuya
(No matter how much we struggle, we can't...)
Taiga
Well, that's that. Then, next is——you.
Kotaro
Eep...!
Kotaro
I...I decided! I'm gonna surpass RAD WEEKEND!
Kotaro
I can't be the only one getting all scared at a time like this...!
Taiga
Haha, you've got guts. In that case, prove you're not just talk.
Kotaro
...Ngh!!
Kotaro
♪ ~ ~ ~ ~ !
An
Ah...!!
Townsperson
Uwah...! That guy totally sucks shit!
Townsperson
That's Mita, right? I thought he could do better than that...
Toya
It's no good...! He's overwhelmed by Taiga-san, and he's not singing to his usual standard...!
Akito
...Mita! Don't panic! Go at your own pace——
Taiga
Remember this. The strength of your heart is part of your skill.
Kotaro
...!!
Kotaro
Ah...ah...
An
Kotaro...
Taiga
Your singing was so bad, I sang over you without thinking.
Taiga
Well, there's no helping it. I can't let an audience hear something that sucks.
An
...Kh!
Arata
——With a flow like this, I'm probably up next.
Townsperson
Oi, Touno's up next!
Townsperson
Hey. Last time he went up against Taiga-san he lost. That means——
Taiga
Yo, Arata. This is a revenge match for you.
Arata
...Yes, you're right.
Arata
Honestly, I was hoping that when I finally beat you, it'd be on a proper stage——
Arata
But today I found out the reason behind RAD WEEKEND's unusual fever, so I'll disregard that for now.
Taiga
Hah. Jeez, you're never cute, y'know that? You always look so smug.
Arata
I don't feel very smug today. Nagi-san's story...came as a shock to me.
Arata
——But now that I know the truth, I won't say "surpass" so halfheartedly.
I'll say it with determination. "You'll see that I will surpass it".
Taiga
...
Arata
...You said it was impossible, Taiga-san. But I have something I can't give up on, either.
Arata
For Souma——carrying his dream to make it come true...!
Arata
With that single point of resolve, I'll aim to win!
Toya
Touno-san...
Arata
♪——————!!
Akito
(...!! Touno, you bastard, that's some insane drive...!!)
Toya
(He has more momentum than our previous event...! Not to mention, he hasn't been overwhelmed by Taiga-san or the circumstances!)
Toya
(And yet...)
Taiga
——Is that all you got? Arata.
Audience cheering
Arata
...Kh!
Kohane
...No way...!
Arata
(He can still go farther——!?)
Arata
(Ever since that day——ever since the day I lost to Taiga-san, I've been gaining more strength. But even with that...)
Arata
(I'm getting overwhelmed...!! He's crushing all of the effort I've put into this up until now...!!)
Arata
♪——————!!
Audience cheering
Townsperson
W-What the hell's happening to Taiga-san's singing...!!
Townsperson
Amazing...!! I've never heard anything like this before!!
Townspeople
Taiga! Taiga! Taiga!
Arata
*pant*, *pant*, *pant*, *pant*...!
Arata
Fuck... Why...can't I close that gap...!
An
(Arata...)
Taiga
——Arata. Are you really carrying it properly?
Arata
...Eh?
Taiga
I'm asking if you're really carrying Souma's dream with you.
Arata
...Kh, of course I am! For him, I——
Taiga
For me, Nagi——I lost an important teammate. That's why I can understand how you feel.
Taiga
No matter how much you cry and wail, you can't get them back...I understand that grief, too.
Arata
...
Taiga
Your ability is a cut above the rest in this town. No, no matter where you look, there aren't many who can sing as well as you.
Taiga
But y'know, your singing is still closed off. This town——nor the audience, you're not facing them.
Arata
...Eh?
Taiga
Hey, Arata. Aren't you...just singing for yourself?
Taiga
You're not carrying your partner's dream. You lost Souma, and because you couldn't deal with that pain, you're clinging to his dream.
Taiga
...Am I wrong?
Arata
...!
Arata
...You're wrong...You're wrong!!
Arata
I'm chasing this dream for Souma's sake...!!
Taiga
...That's...a path I've suffered through in the past.
Taiga
I'll ask you one more time, Arata. You——aren't you singing for yourself?
Arata
You're wrong! I'm...I'M...!!
Arata
I'm...
Taiga
...
Taiga
I told you...to look at this town before, but to do that, you've gotta look at yourself, first.
Taiga
No...you've gotta start by taking Souma out of the equation, and ask if you actually want to surpass it——yourself.
Arata
...Kh.
Taiga
Now then——
Taiga
This'll be the last of it.
An
...Uncle, what're you...what're you even trying to do...?
An
Saying "Nagi-san's not here anymore" all of a sudden...! Then beating everyone up like this...!
An
What the hell do you want——!!
Taiga
...You have to understand, An.
Taiga
If nothing else, the guys behind you look like they do.
An
Eh...
Akito
...I'm sorry, An.
Akito
But——we have no choice but to do this. No matter what.
Toya
...Yeah.
Toya
This is necessary, to surpass RAD WEEKEND. We can't back down now.
Toya
I——want to know. How much of a gap there is between RAD WEEKEND and me...between us.
Kohane
...Kh.
Kohane
I...have to go too.
An
Kohane...
An
I...
An
I'm...
Kohane
An-chan——We'll go on ahead.
Townsperson
Huh? Only three members of Vivid BAD SQUAD?
Taiga
...
Taiga
...You three ready to die together?
Akito
I've got no intention of dying here.
Akito
And An...she'll definitely join us.
Toya
Yeah. ...Let's go!
Kohane
——Yeah!!
Akito & Toya
♪————!! ————!!
Kohane
♪————!! ————!!
Taiga
...Well, I should've expected something like this.
Tatsuya
(Shinonome and Aoyagi don't have the same edge they usually do. Azusawa, too...her voice is cloudy.)
Kotaro
(...It's no good. Even they can't——)
Kohane
♪————!! ————!!
Akito & Toya
♪————————!!
An
(...Everyone...)
An
...Kh.
An
(I don't...understand anything...)
An
(Nagi-san's gone...and I can't see her anymore...and everyone in town has been hiding it from me this whole time...)
An
(There's so many things I don't understand that my mind's gone blank, everything's spinning...it feels awful...)
An
(I have to sing feeling like this...!?)
An
(But——)
An
(...I don't want it to end like this...)
An
(...Everyone's fighting so desperately.)
An
(Against Uncle Taiga...even if they know they can't win, they're still fighting on.)
An
(Just...to know...)
An
(To know...that someday, they can surpass RAD WEEKEND...)
An
(...I'll...)
Kohane & Akito
♪————!! ——————!
An
I'll...!
Running footsteps
An & Toya
♪————————!!
Toya
(...! Shiraishi...!?)
Kohane
(An-chan...!)
An
(——Sing.)
An
(My head feels like a mess. I can't understand anything, even if I think about it. In that case——don't think at all.)
An
(Because I don't know how to do anything——but sing!!)
An
(...It's weird.)
An
(When I sing...all of my messy feelings, they feel just a little calmer——)
An
(I can focus more than usual. I can hear everyone's voices well. Just like when we sang at Crawl Green——)
An
♪———— ~ ~ !!
Tatsuya
Shiraishi...Even though she was falling apart until just a moment ago, she's back to usual...no, she's singing even better than usual...
Kotaro
A-Amazing...!
Akito
(...Not bad, An!)
Toya
(We can't lose, either. Shiraishi's resolve——I'll dig into it as hard as I can!)
Kohane
(...An-chan...!)
Kohane
(I can hear An-chan's singing voice next to me... Just with that, I feel so much stronger...)
Kohane
(Right now, I feel like I can do anything. ——Even I...I can do more!)