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And so, only after finishing our discussion on the street corner did I finally lift my head.
Outside, the sun had been swallowed by the horizon, and night was pouring down. Around the hospital, the faint shadows of people and the sounds of passing cars echoed tentatively, while my footsteps became intermittent. Ah, a police car just passed. They're really working hard, aren't they? Hats off to them for their efforts. It didn't seem like they'd catch up, so I maintained my own pace and proceeded along the sidewalk. With every step, a stimulus shot through the wound in my right arm, giving me the illusion that the bleeding had broken through its dam. In reality, beneath the bandages, it was dry and hot. What number would appear if I stuck a thermometer into the wound? What's that, you can't see because the LCD is sticky with blood? Think of it the other way: it's fine to just leave it in, that's what you should think. Since it seemed plausible, I made a point of strongly wishing it wouldn't happen. As the injury stabilized, my brain and vision gradually dimmed like the setting sun. By tomorrow, the outline of reality would surely be warped again.

If I had stayed quietly in that hospital bed and Koibi-sensei had come to visit again, I was certain that distortion would have been naturally corrected. Sensei would naturally fix me. That's why I ran away from the hospital. I have no desire to be someone who isn't false.
I won't resist being a crackpot. Rather, I affirm it, follow it, and become subservient to it. No, perhaps the erosion has already begun. Even though I managed to crawl back up by paying the price of my blood… But even having crawled up, the ground is covered in despair. Yet, that despair isn't an insurmountable height. Eight floors, or nine. That's all. If I climb to the top of a building that high, I can even look down on despair. High places were my hope, or rather, my haven of salvation. Mainly due to an encounter with a certain woman.
"..." I tried to recall at length how I first met that person.
But the impression of the jump was all that came first, piercing through, and other memories didn't seem like they'd catch up for a while. That wouldn't do. As per my routine, I had to reminisce, imagine, or fantasize about something while eating dinner. I thought it was perfect material, but if it wasn't going to be in time... then I guess today it's Misono Mayu.

As of today, I have lost Misono Mayu. I feel like I'm going mad. Putting it into words makes it sound cheap, no matter how you say it. I should search for Misono Mayu, and while I'm at it, the culprit. Get Misono Mayu back. What a wonderful hero-heroine relationship. Wholesome. Excessively wholesome, classic, a straight path down love lane. But the problem is, the process of searching for Misono Mayu doesn't exist in my repeating daily life. Wake up, go to school, meet someone after school, smash the phone, go eat dinner, sleep. If Misono Mayu happened to be out walking while I was on the move, having a turf war with a cat, I might be able to find her, but that would be difficult. If that's the case, it means breaking down my daily routine, and that's not allowed for me right now. I'm in a crazy loop, or "kloop" for short. I mustn't break it. I mustn't move forward.

No matter how broken things get, I will not move forward. ...I can't. I'm sorry.
"Hmm, but wait a minute." In the first place, my everyday life is predicated on acting together with Misono Mayu. Trying to carry on ignoring this is like, say, not being able to put rice in a bowl anymore and having to put it directly on the desk. It's an act that goes against my aesthetic sense, but if Misono Mayu isn't by my side, then "I have no choice but to do it." If the rice bowl I always used is lost, I can't just use something else as a substitute. This is a fatal breakdown. I guess this is the end. So be it.

If I'm going to break down like this, then that's quite all right with me. But actually, it won't go like that!
Misono Mayu isn't me, so if the novelization phenomenon progresses, eventually, both splitting and recapturing her will become easy. There's a Maa-chan who can increase Mii-kun, and a Mii-kun who can increase Maa-chan. If we're aiming for fairness, that's the best way. That way, we can forge ahead on the path of idiot-couples without being fixated on each other. Hmm, nice. Or rather, the real reason I'm against searching for my partner is that it's not very idiot-couple-like, you know? It's like, we don't even need to search, we're drawn together by radio waves or something... Ah, since we're both "radio waves" (eccentric), it's a double meaning, you see. Dub-Me, double meaning. Actually, I don't like katakana much, except when it's used for names of monsters and stuff. Because it stands out too much and doesn't blend into the text. It's like how even a plain guy like me would draw attention if his arm was torn open. Ah, I hate how this exaggerated bandaging stands out. Besides, if Misono Mayu found out, she'd probably get angry, like, "Aah! You're doing the easy diet Maa-chan came up with!! Grrr, don't copy me!! I'm so jealous!" Hahaha, it's just torn, not detached, so I haven't lost any weight. Mine's a failure. And it's not like I want to lose weight anyway.
If I get too thin, it'll be hard to catch Misono Mayu when she jumps on me. No, I'm not being sarcastic about Misono Mayu being picky or anything. Misono Mayu is, how should I put it, as ephemeral and wilting as a single flower, all floppy. The fact that I'd stumble just from her stem bumping into me shows how frail I am, but then again, even if I say plant, it might be a giant tree. Ah, that's no good, back to square one. I just wanted to use the phrase "back to square one" (元の木阿弥 - moto no mokuami, lit. "back to Mokuami") for once. So don't get mad, Misono Mayu. ...Hm? Oh, Misono Mayu was there. Of course, it's my hallucination. My eyelids are just showing her to my eyeballs when I blink. Misono Mayu is composed only of a green outline, like a light burn-in. Ah, she's floating in mid-air. She crosses my vision like those white, stringy floaters that sometimes appear in my eyes. Then Misono Mayu dashes out into the road, gets run over by a car but flies around unharmed, and disappears into a blind spot as if to mock me for desperately trying to follow her with my eyes. I stop in the middle of the sidewalk and spin around. Chasing Misono Mayu. Me, standing still and spinning in place, seemed to be recreating my confined current situation. Realizing this made me feel like I was going to vomit, so I stopped. My semicircular canals were in chaos, and my footing became unsteady. Even though I had stopped, the dark night was still spinning, and I dared to start walking, watching it. Stumbling along, with steps like Misono Mayu's, I could accept it if I darted out into the road at any moment. I prepared myself for various things and moved forward, treading the curb along the road.

But lately, I've just been losing things left and right. Surely, you're not going to tell me that up until now was the peak of my life, and I've already started my descent. How low is the ceiling of my life? Is it at a height where a baby's head scrapes it the moment it stands on its own feet? Are you saying that being born is the greatest happiness of all? But that's a big mistake. Are you saying that not being born is unhappiness? No, that's wrong. If you weren't born, there would be neither happiness nor unhappiness. So how can you compare and say, "Being born into this world is happiness"?! Argh, this is so annoying. What is it? What's so irritating? I don't know. Is this how fathers who harbor resentment towards the world feel? And do they drink to relieve it? Alright, tonight I'm drinking too! No, can't do that. It's not incorporated into my daily routine.
Therefore, I must, by all means, resolve my dissatisfaction through thought. I'm good at deceiving myself. "Ah, so basically, you know, hey." I tried consulting a passerby, but I was completely ignored. When I turned around, they were walking a little faster. Are they ashamed of openly fleeing? Are you a samurai?
And so, my irritation... yeah, let's just say it's dissatisfaction with important people.
Basically, people who say admirable things are admirable. They are admirable. So please don't think that applies to people who aren't admirable.
You, who can insist that life can be redone any number of times, have no particular need to redo your life.
"Ah, but still, you know." I tried talking to a parked car. There was someone inside, and our eyes met. It was a stranger, but they were looking at me like I was creepy. Why, you bastard, judging people by their looks. Man, this isn't turning into a beautiful reminiscence with Misono Mayu at all. But honestly, I don't have any memories with Misono Mayu worth reminiscing about. Our points of contact are only this past year and that time living in the basement. So, this was the limit of using her for recollection.
Both Misono Mayu and I are idiots.
Despite all this thinking and circuitously reaching conclusions, the conclusion I reached about myself, who was taking all sorts of detours down various roads, boiled down to one word: idiotic.
Today had unexpected events and couldn't be called smooth, but tomorrow, I'll do better.
Supported by such strong conviction, my eyes shone brightly.
Without ever investigating where that light came from.

Today too, someone important disappeared from my side.
But may there be happiness! May there be super-duper happiness!

Chapter Four: "The Prey Who Cried ×× at the Center of the World I"
"My Future Self"
Class 4-1, Amano XX-ne

I used to have a big family. But now,
it's just my dad, my little sister's mom, and me at home.
I think my future is one where happiness gradually drifts away like this.
I don't think I can be very normal, or rather, happy.

It's not that the people around me are bad; it's because I myself am strange. Because I'm strange, it feels like something around me is becoming strange too. I'm no good.
My little sister, who used to live with me, often said things like that. Also, I was called a worker ant, so maybe I'm insect-like.
I think I'll probably live more easily if I don't have any hope for the future.
I just wish that my remaining family won't disappear.
I think I have to be satisfied with just that.
...Still, if I could.
I wish I could find my own kind of happiness and somehow manage to live.
But it's probably impossible, so.
I'll just say, "Just kidding, though."

This is sudden, but there was a contradiction in the developments so far! Actually, Nagase is alive. In my heart...
...Wait, then it's not a contradiction, is it? That's strange. I prayed for happiness, so I was supposed to be saved by that kind of development. Development, catch up! Rather, I'm the one being developed, like a double-door cabinet! It happens all the time, all the time. Anyone who can't agree should prostrate themselves before Nimouto and ask her to chop them up. Nimou-tan will accept with a ready "yes." There's another one, a Mayumayu who has absolutely no restraint when it comes to making a mess, but she's on break right now, so leave her be. "Are you awake?"
*Snap!*
By the way, Mayumayu is sleeping next to me as usual. She's a replica, but of excellent quality. Not some shoddy copy. "Misono Mayu" and "Misono Mayu." See, you can't tell the difference, can you? The novelization phenomenon excels in areas like this. In a world without sound, no matter who speaks, "A" is "A." Letters are equal; they don't create superiority or inferiority. There's a world of difference from the humans who created them. Why is that? Why haven't we, until now, been able to become "A," "I," "U," "E," and "O"? That's why, I think. Perhaps this phenomenon began when it was realized that letters could create a society superior to ours. In other words, it's a scheme for letters to stand above humans. Because humans, basically, use letters like crazy when interacting with anyone. Just because they're copyright-free, they're always in high demand. Our thoughts are cultivated by letters. Our will is supported by letters. We are slaves to numbers and letters. It could be said that the representatives of Earth are those without physical substance. It's not insects, aliens. Don't you think that by negotiating with letters, a truly meaningful interstellar relationship could be established, hm, hm? Well, rather than such crazy talk, I promise you that by installing one Mayumayu per household, you can enjoy a life more comfortable than when convenience stores spread throughout Japan. Mayumayu's food is just one Mii-kun per day, so it's very reasonable, you know. The air Mayumayu exhales is teeming with Mayumayu-germs doing a little "Hana Ichi Monme" dance, so just by inhaling it, a warm exchange with Mayumayu begins. No words are needed there. In other words, the only hope to counter the novelization phenomenon is Mayumayu! By having all of humanity connected in series only with Mayumayu inside their homes, the future of humanity will be brilliantly illuminated, mini-bulb class! The day when Mayumayu's greatness is re-evaluated will surely be soon. However, there is a scoundrel of a man who stole that Mayumayu Original from the research institute. It's a foolish act, but an unforgivable one. Neither machines nor living beings have their origins as the most superior; as long as they evolve daily, it's clear that the Mayumayu Copy in the 【IIIII】 pose next to me is superior to the Mayumayu Original. So the thief is at a loss. I appreciate the anticipation for one Mayumayu per household to become widespread, but that Mayumayu Original is full of defects, a thing no one can handle! It's a common trope that prototypes with too much destructive power, etcetera, can only be handled by the protagonist! Well, if you're planning to become the protagonist and bring glory to your hometown room, I won't strongly detain you, but in that case, I want you to change the narrator. I don't want to lie to anyone anymore. I'm not lying! What's the point of telling lies! Who's going to be fooled by such clumsy lies! There's only Mayumayu. Only Mayumayu likes my lies. Mayumayu is too much of a癒し系 (iyashi-kei - soothing type). I'm glad there's a Mayumayu generator built into my brain. In modern times, isn't it more sophisticated to be drawn together by the wavelength of radio waves rather than a red string? I can always summon Mayumayu at a forty-five-degree angle to my upper right. It's Mayumayu's favorite angle. As for me, a latitude of forty-eight degrees is also preferable. The Mayumayu I see is born from my brain, but honestly, she's hard. Mayumayu is all *kachiin* (stiff/frozen). I guess I should think myself lucky she even has a physical form. Mayumayu Original is unnecessarily soft and squishy, so much so that when she jumped from the rooftop, she was used as a mat for rescue purposes. That's a lie, Mayumayu wouldn't be allowed to be used for something like that. Besides, Mayumayu's method of salvation, to save a falling person, is to choose to push them off – that's the true path. Because Mayumayu is the hero who opposes the dominion of letters.

"Does your stomach desire something called breakfast?"
There was someone who called an air purifier a "mist-eating machine"!
It's difficult for humans to beat a lion with their bare hands. But if they become a lion, there might be a chance of winning. The possibilities branching from humans are infinite,限りなく近い (as close as can be) to finite. In other words, Mayumayu is lamenting the foolishness of people who try to confront intangible existences like letters and numbers with their physical bodies. And she is trying to point out a new path. Yes, by falling from high above the despair that covers the earth's surface, people damage their flesh, and with the blood flowing from the gaps, they wash away their souls. And Mayumayu knows that only when that soul protrudes from the physical body can it finally reach equality with letters and numbers. She doesn't speak of it, but her instincts sense it. Because Mayumayu knows everything, due to the animosity of letters, she cannot articulate it and has no choice but to show it through her actions. Her eyes, overflowing with that sense of mission, are not the gaze of a human dominated by letters and numbers, but are supported by the pupils of a reptile, closer to the original form. Everyone pays respect to Mayumayu's noble spirit and her readiness to lose. Those known as murderers throughout the world are such companions of Mayumayu. The only way to fight the army of Letters, which she realized during an ordeal in a certain basement that triggered Mayumayu's awakening. It was the presentation of another world through the seemingly rough act of carving up the flesh to drag everything into Mayumayu's world. At that time, everyone present, including me, trembled at the pioneering of such an overly novel method. How Mayumayu must have lamented our cowardice. Mayumayu, who had already realized the dominion of letters, had sealed the use of words, but her demeanor, which seemed at first glance to be a castle of虚脱 (kyodatsu - prostration/lethargy) due to her overabundance of determination, exuded a corresponding resolve. And Mayumayu took up the ritual tool called "Kyouki" and first saved her own parents. Around that point, Mayumayu's deep compassion and family-oriented side are clearly shown, and it's deeply poignant how it conveys her youthful naivety at the time when she hadn't completely abandoned being human, as well as her helplessness. It was Mayumayu's first act of salvation, but it generally went well. By deliberately making her parents scream repeatedly, she perfectly wrung out the letters that dominated their bodies. By doing so, the flowing blood was further purified, and their souls were polished. I used to shed copious, unspeakable tears at Mayumayu's stance of giving special treatment only to her parents. Within those tears, I concealed a subtle throbbing in my chest. It was pride stemming from the fact that my otousann was involved in what triggered Mayumayu's salvation. My otousann contributed to the birth of the hero named Mayumayu. Who wouldn't respect a father who helped save humanity? Though it pales, melts, and vanishes before Mayumayu's majesty, I still carry the bloodline of such an otousann. If even a tiny piece of flesh was involved in the establishment of the overly great existence that is Mayumayu, I am satisfied. As a reward for that, I will now be granted salvation after Mayumayu's parents, so this is why Mayumayu is unstoppable. My contact with Mayumayu Original can be said to be the only past I can boast about in my life. Surely, Nimouto's mother and my otousann are also sharing it as a proud story, not with letters but with a heartfelt connection, to the point where the surrounding souls are fed up with it. However, perhaps I'm being designated as a caricature for comparison and drawing derisive laughter. Because I was rejected by Nimouto's mother, who jealously tried to monopolize Mayumayu's salvation, and I'm still dominated by my body and letters.

Mayumayu's salvation is not without its losses. Because Mayumayu tries to grant salvation to people trapped in their physical bodies, she couldn't completely discard her physical body needed for contact. Therefore, her flesh and blood were subjected to the domination of letters and became fragile. Moving it caused fatigue. So, it was unavoidable that the number of people who could be saved was limited. With the capacity of that basement room, only two people couldn't receive salvation and had to miserably be swallowed by the domination of the flesh. The moment it came down to the last three people, Nimouto's mother snatched away the right to salvation that should have been mine. Faced with her desperate expression, vividly showing her resistance to the domination of letters, I finally gave in to Nimouto's mother. It was due to my innate softness, or rather, patheticness, but Mayumayu accepted it and released Nimouto's mother. Mayumayu fulfilled her duty, Nimouto's mother floated in a sense of liberation, and I gained a minute sense of satisfaction by yielding my right. Of course, it's a fact that I obtained the cheapest emotion. I don't deny that. But while retaining my physical body, I gained the power to slightly resist the domination of letters. Yes, I have a strong resistance to those two loathsome, trite characters that express *that* feeling. Noise protects my eardrums, so I never accept them. This is the reward given to me from the heavens called Mayumayu for my act of hypocrisy. Mayumayu's compassion goes beyond admiration, pierces through respect, and even evokes exasperation. I say this knowing it's rude, but Mayumayu, you're too much of a softy! Showing mercy even to a petty villain like me... Ah, right, right. I got carried away trying to spread Mayumayu's salvation to the world, but what I want to say is, in short, murder is wonderful! Salvation of humanity through murder is not yet understood by citizens who haven't noticed the novelization phenomenon, but eventually, empathy will be gained through the spread of the ripples of truth. Murder corresponds to the Ripple training for creating a Stand; it's a noble process for carving out a new world. As long as we confront the army of Letters that dominates the novelization phenomenon, "death" (死) is no different from the character "shi" (し). Dying should no longer be dressed in sorrow but should float up to the far beyond. Mayumayu also wishes for that.
"Could you not make so much noise? The neighborhood auntie's lectures are as long as her gossip, you know."
...Hm? ...Hmm? Was I whispered to? Hey, was I just whispered to? By Gaia. That this isn't a novel. That our world isn't a paper medium. Whaaat. All that stuff I talked about so passionately, reduced to nothing by a butt-in from a total stranger. So embarrassing, I'm blushing super hard. Teehee. You liar! Earth is too much of a liar! I like a world where only information convenient for me is correct! Get lost, I'll expose the truth! I attempted telepathy! Nothing happened! Because there's no one there! Everyone's too normal, they don't receive my telepathy! In the first place, telepathy is the most pathetic superpower in modern, highly developed Japan, isn't it?

Because we have phones. Or rather, are phones too much like magic? Especially cell phones. What's with those, demanding to connect anywhere. Too-oo-oo co-onne-ect-ee-ed. A string? Are you guys red strings?
I am, with awe, connected to Mayumayu Original by a red string, you know. Even now, it's steadily being stretched, and the distance is increasing. By a red string so transparent it's invisible. Is it that the more transparent a red string is, the less visible it is? Or is it a string invisible because it's so transparently red? All incorrect, because it's a string of letters. Don't be dominated! Learn from Mayumayu! So says Mayumayu Copy. Well then, it's about time I acted according to my schedule. I've overcome difficulties to get this far. So from here on too, I'll tread on the ruined path, walking even as my soles are pierced. I can do it, only I can do it. Only I will do it. It's my path alone. Yes, I've escaped from being devoid of individuality! But compared to Mayumayu Original, I'm still far from it! Hey, Mayumayu Copy. Right now, in this town, a young person who has inherited Mayumayu's will is striving to grant salvation to people. He laments this world where life ends just by being depicted as 【Dead】. At the same time, he's probably afraid too. But he confronts it. Because he's an ally of justice, he has no choice but to confront it. What a man. Truly a man's man. I could never match up to him. Well, actually, that's not entirely true. The fact that he realized Mayumayu Original's value is praiseworthy, but other than that, it doesn't matter. His way of killing is merely an imitation of Mayumayu Original. I understand the feeling of being captivated by Mayumayu's charm, but he is still dominated by words. He's different from a chosen dead person like me, who has the ability to resist even a single word! Ah, right, right, I slept, dreamed, and woke up today too, so I'm going to school. Woooah! I run to the entrance. "Yes, yes, off you go. I shall accompany you for observation, or rather, protection, hohoho."
I'm off... Hey, who was it that just bid me farewell?
Tell meeee, Uncleeee!

Air Nagase is in the classroom. Since she was first, I quietly became the second to arrive. Air Nagase is translucent. It seems Nagase's clumsiness hasn't changed even after she started mingling with a different kind of air from us. Nagase's personality has been steadily inherited by Air Nagase. How heartwarming. The feelings that often welled up for this Nagase haven't changed even with Air Nagase as the subject. She must be something precious to me, surely. That's why I proudly gaze at Air Nagase's back. Though, since she's air, she has no back or front. Have you ever seen the other side of oxygen? Unfortunately, my current eyes can't see it. Is it because I'm unwell? No, I'm in top condition, yet for some reason, my eyes perceive Air Nagase two-dimensionally. You're square, Nagase-chan! Become a cube! Or a golden rectangle. I'll make you rotate infinitely. If I rotate Air Nagase, she'd probably turn into chemical water mixed with a blue solvent. Air Nagase is creakily refracting in the air, not reading the room's atmosphere. But that's what's good. That's the stuff.

"So this is what school is like. It's no different from elementary school, is it?"
How rude! Are you saying my brain is on the same level as an elementary schooler's! I live with much more humility, so being overestimated like that is nothing but an affront, you something-or-other!
Air Nagase is trying to turn towards me. But Air Nagase has no concept of depth, so she has no front. She's Paper-Doll Nagase. Piece-by-Piece Nagase can't turn to me. Air Nagase still seems to believe she has a front and back. That purity is too airy. But at the same time, her inability to adapt is also too airy. Right. Nagase Nagase was clumsy and unmanageable because even if you divided things by her, the result was zero! I realize this now. From Air Nagase's vacant behavior, I finally grasped her essence. Air Nagase can't grasp anything herself, yet she bestows truth upon me. She's a sprinkler. It's pouring from the top of Air Nagase's head. I learned many things from Nagase even before she was Air. In that sense, Nagase is my mentor. A mentor in human aspects. What Mayumayu could no longer teach me after escaping the domination of letters, Nagase taught me through interaction. She is Nagase-sensei. That's why I'm grateful to Nagase. I'm sorry for bringing you back to life and then collectively burning you to death. Hahaha, I haven't forgotten. Well then, it's still class time, but let's enjoy a chat with Air Nagase.
My heart's pounding a little. For me, who's usually thought of as serious, to chat with Air Nagase, who's four seats away, during class... I'm getting nervous. Besides, I have nothing to talk about, and Air Nagase, in addition to her refractive index, has a strained relationship with me, so this is unsuitable. I thought it might improve once she became Air Nagase. Air Nagase still seems to be hung up on words, mumbling and distorting. Even though she can't speak. If there were no air, there would be no sound on Earth, but Air Nagase, being air itself, is beyond the domination of letters. Yet Air Nagase fears that freedom and is here. You don't have to scream anymore, Air Nagase. It suits us now to scrape our hearts against each other through telepathy. So, right away, a wordless chat with Air Nagase. Air Nagase's transmission! Hard for me to understand. My transmission! Air Nagase let it pass through! Air Nagase's transmission! I doubted my heart. My transmission! It seems to have no effect on Air Nagase... I, with too much momentum, kicked myself off the chair and fell. I kicked myself and fell. My dexterity went up. *Twirl, flash!* Air Nagase's envious gaze is painful. No other gazes are painful at all. Aargh, Air Nagase's envious gaze is painful. No other gazes are painful at all. Aargh, no good. Air Nagase is no good. We're not clicking. Well, of course, Air Nagase has no place. To think she was this much "air," I'm disappointed. Have some moderation! That's why people think you're an idiot couple! Air Nagase, perhaps reflecting, drooped, and her head *shun-shun* disappeared. I did my best and sucked up Air Nagase's half-lost head with my nose. The distance to Air Nagase shortened by four steps. Mixed with my air, Air Nagase is in a good mood. Simple, isn't she? Just as you'd expect from someone so air-focused. If I also become air like that, can I truly escape the domination of letters? Or will I, like Air Nagase, drag along my lingering attachment to domination and struggle? The remaining part of Air Nagase tried to sit on a chair, failed, passed through the floor, disappeared somewhere, then broke through a window, reappeared from outside, and sat in someone else's seat. Bad manners. It seems that because her brain- Kwas sucked up by me, Air Nagase has gone a little crazy. Huh, wait, is Air Nagase flying? Is Air Nagase amazing? A thrill, this is a thrill! Air Nagase isn't clumsy at all! Because I can't fly sideways! Vertically, one way, well, somehow. I have some confidence and experience... (blushes). No, but Nagase is amazing. I guarantee this Air Nagase will rank as amazing.