Vol. 4 Ch. 1 Ep. 10: Non-Possession and Yakiniku Bentos

You're finally awake.

I do apologize for the poor hospitality of my comrades.

We don't often deal with guests, you must understand.

Ah, where are my manners? I am Descartes.

I am the leader of this organization, the Pursuers of Non-Possessive Happiness, or the Pursuers for short.

You mean to say you've never heard of our organization?

You mean to say you've never heard of our organization?

We are well-known amongst those pursuing a lifestyle of minimalism and peace. To not have heard of us, you must lead an egregious life of excess.

Of course, I already knew that.

I already knew that you're a selfish human who orders your minions to rob poor folk of their food!

Don't play dumb! I have seen you and those rabbit-eared students plotting and scheming together!

It makes no difference what they're called.

It makes no difference what they're called.

We call them greedy pigs. You are sabotaging our path to enlightenment.

...Society calls us by many names.

Leeches, NEETs, Homeless, Good-for-Nothing Layabouts...

But such names are facetious. To call us layabouts...!

We are noble ones pursuing non-possessiveness!

The people of Kivotos today wish to possess everything they lay their eyes upon.

The newest tanks, expensive rifles, cozy bunkers that block missiles...

And so they buy more and more, wishing to fill the gaping hole within them with possessions. The more they purchase, the bigger it grows, until it consumes their very being!

True happiness comes not from having, but from NOT having...

One must be willing to release their attachment to worldly possessions, to let go of the shackles of society and only indulge in what we must to survive! To be free!

We are not leeches upon society. We chose this life: to not work, to not own, to not possess. We freed ourselves of material greed and instead feed our souls with our impoverished lifestyle.

But then, in the midst of our noble pursuit, a group of intruders arrived.

These intruders donned rabbit ears and the most expensive equipment on the market. Their insatiable appetite knew no bounds, plundering every bento they could lay their greedy fingers upon.

They're like a virus, devouring all in sight. They refuse to leave behind even a mung bean sprout bento...

Yakiniku bentos are so popular that they're rarely discarded as it is... To monopolize such a luxury solely for themselves...

This senselessness is a slap in the face to all we stand for!

I-I... Well... You see...

Don't change the subject! Either way, we cannot just stand idly by and allow this squad of rabbits or bunnies or what have you to carry on with their greedy acts.

Now, the reason I brought you here is to make a demand.

As the leader of these miscreants, you will tell them that from now on, all yakiniku bentos belong to the Pursuers!

Student or subordinate, what does it matter? As their teacher, simply make them listen to you.

Student or subordinate, what does it matter? As their teacher, simply make them listen to you.

Don't look at me like that. Are you truly so incompetent you cannot control your students?

I didn't want it to come to this.

Don't move an inch. I'll call them on your cell phone and make my demands.

Now, where is the RABBIT Squad in your contacts list?

Here it is.

Yes, Sensei? We're busy making dinner.

Am I speaking to the leader of the RABBIT Squad?

We are the Pursuers of Non-possessive Happiness, or the Pursuers for short, a collective of monks in this city in search of true happiness. We are noble...

They...hung up?

Ugh... This is why enlightenment eludes these deplorable students...

Hello? Don't hang up, this isn't a prank call.

We have your precious Sensei hostage. If you don't meet our demands, you'll never see Sensei again.

Oh, okay. Tell Sensei I said bye-bye.

They just hung up?! Again?

Are you really their Sensei? How could these callous students not show the slightest bit of concern for you? What is wrong with all of you?

Drat! I thought our plan was flawless! I was supposed to be rolling in expensive bentos by the end of this...

I didn't plan for their absolute lack of enlightenment!

You, personally?

I'll allow it. However, trying to call the police would end very badly for everyone.

The Pursuers are all very heavily armed, and not afraid to fight for our noble cause!

Ugh... Again, Sensei? I stayed up all night and I wanna go to sleep.

If you call us one more time...

Hah! Did you think your precious students would care if they heard your voice?

You got hung up on! Just like me!

Ugh. The only way to salvage this situation is to blackmail some other students with the Sensei.

SRT! Everyone, back up!

Saki, it's against protocol to use the academy's name when we're not on official business...

I-I want the top-quality wagyu bento, please.

I've n-never had wagyu meat before, even at SRT.

I promise, Sensei said there was some there.

I traced their cell right to where you are, so bring us home some meat!

Oh... Hi, Sensei.

Sensei, where's the top-quality wagyu bento?!

Rapid collection is the key to preserving the freshness of a bento.

Once a discarded bento passes its expiration date, every second counts.

So, as soon as Moe informed us of your call, we dropped everything and came as fast as we could.

Bahahaha! You completely fell for our plan!

You came here driven by your human desire and were led astray by it!

Imbeciles like you who are driven by greed are consumed by it until it leads them to utter ruin!

What's this weirdo saying? Where's the top-quality wagyu bento?

Of course there's no wagyu bento here. They always sell out immediately when they're in stock.

But what we do have here, is a lesson on the joys of non-possession.

Comrades, rise! Let us instill our noble cause in these greedy goblins!

Who the hell are these guys? They appear homeless, but all their weapons are state-of-the art!

W-We're surrounded...

Don't panic.

Lure them to a tight space. We'll funnel them through a choke point and pick them off one-by-one.

You think we're scared of your weapons? Small-fry are still small-fry.

Throw whatever you can at us. You're no match against SRT elites!

I-I can p-probably take down the snipers on the second floor.

All right, I'll help you with that and deal with the front. Miyako, you have our backs?

Always. Stay safe.

Watch out for my signal before the flash grenade. That's your cue to spread out in formation.

Well then...

RABBIT Squad, move!

Gyahh!

Th-They're too strong... Run!

C-Comrades? Where are you running? The enemy is still there...

These wimps don't even have the guts to get a job. Of course they hightailed it out of battle.

I'm going home.

I don't wanna be a hobo anymore!

Wait, no! You have to fight for me!

Oh no... My precious base... All my expensive decorations I worked so hard to collect... It's all burning...

Shut up! Shut up, you! Everyone likes nice, expensive things!

You... If it weren't for you...

Site A clear.

And I took out a-all the snipers, too...

Site B clear.

Besides those who escaped, all of the enemies on the first floor have been neutralized.

Nice and clean, everyone.

There might not have been a payload, but no one got hurt.

Miyako, come check this out. I think...this is a bunch of canned food.

Smoked salmon, bacon...

There's even scallops preserved in oil!

What a payload! Imagine eating our bentos with these delicacies!

Wait... Keep your greedy paws off that!

I've been saving that high-quality canned food from Gentsuma to have with a drink!

M-Miyako. I found a buncha other stuff too. Sleeping bags, tarpaulins...

We can put this under us when we sleep! The ground gets so damp when it rains.

Great job, Miyu.

Moe, please arrange for some transportation.

There's a lot more loot than we expected. We won't be able to carry it all.

Loot? LOOT?! That's my STUFF.

It's all mine! My things. My precious possessions. My everything! You can't have it!

You call all this trash your precious possessions?

I don't see your little minions anywhere anyways. I don't think you'll need any of this anymore.

Correct. And you were also the one who baited us with false information and attempted to kill us.

I don't believe this even begins to compensate us for our losses as a direct result of your actions.

Ghh... Arrrgh...!

You leeches! NEETs! You useless hobos! Why the hell don't you go out and work to earn your own food?!

If you're so strong, why're you scrounging over expired bentos anyway?! Go get a real job! Be mercenaries or something! I don't care!

We're not mercenaries. We're SRT agents.

Hmph! Well then you really shouldn't have stolen our bentos in the first place.

Citizens in poverty battle for survival every day. You think you can just flash your big, fancy weapons and bully everyone into doing what you want? Huh?!

You... You hypocrites!

Us? Hypocrites? Look in the mirror sometime, buddy.

Noble pursuit, this. Non-possession, that. Meanwhile, your supposed enlightenment is just a phony scam to hide the fact that you're a lazy good-for-nothing!

A real monk wouldn't care if they were eating wagyu or mung bean sprouts!

Shut up! I deserve to eat yakiniku bentos too!

...

We don't need your help, Sensei.

Neither do we need to listen to anything you say... But...

Weird, I don't have much of an appetite. Must've worked too hard.

I think I'll just eat a mung bean sprout bento at home.

M-Me too...

...Yes. I believe we may get stomachaches if we force ourselves to eat.

Camp RABBIT, this is RABBIT 1. Please cancel transport. Operation complete.

We're returning to base now.

What about the top-quality wagyu bento?! Sensei said it was there!

Regretfully, it looks like they're plum out of the top-quality wagyu bento.

Luckily, we have the mung bean sprout bentos from today. They're even a few days before their expiration.

Does no one appreciate me?! I already arranged transport!

Sorry, Moe. Think of it as non-possessiveness.

Didn't you see?! The glowering look of greed in their murderous little eyes...

It's just as I said. Attachment to material possessions blinds people with greed, which inevitably leads to violence!

Me?! Blinded by greed?

Nuh-uh! Not in a million years!

I am an enlightened one! I understand what true value is in this lost society!

I may have lost comrades today, but I can rebuild!

Actually...I just had a thought. Sensei, why don't you join the Pursuers yourself?

All you must do to join is prove your commitment to non-possessiveness and give up a very, very small portion of your things.