Skip to main content

E22 - Scavenger

Source: Crunchyroll
Translator:
Editor:
Timer:
QC:
(Please feel free to edit the speaker names if incomplete or inaccurate. Names are handled on a best-effort basis depending on the info on the source file. Dialogue is left as is.)
[00:00] ---
    "Shinasame University DNA Map Analysis Lab"
[00:01] ---
    I'm just saying,
[00:03] ---
    I want to forget all about
    our earlier screw up right away.
[00:06] ---
    And that's the reason why we're
    doing this detail-oriented job, right?
[00:10] ---
    I don't mean little contracted-out jobs
    like this one, but bigger jobs,
[00:13] ---
    where we can boost
    our reputation with a real bang!
[00:15] ---
    Then maybe we can get
    the team name I've been hoping for!
[00:19] ---
    Team name? You mean like ITEM or SCHOOL?
[00:23] ---
    That's right! How does "HYENA" grab you?
[00:25] ---
    Yuck. That's repulsive.
[00:27] ---
    Is that even something you can give yourself?
[00:29] ---
    Quiet.
[00:32] ---
    The puppet isn't here.
[00:34] ---
    It's Naru's fault for
    wanting to get popsicles.
[00:37] ---
    Me?! But everybody bought one!
[00:39] ---
    No matter. No mere puppet
    can escape from my Predator.
[01:17] ---
    "A Certain Scientific Railgun T"
[02:25] ---
    The risk the Doppelganger poses?
[02:28] ---
    Yeah, or more accurately,
    I should say the risk posed by her "soul."
[02:33] ---
    Soul?
[02:34] ---
    Kuriba Ryoko, do you,
    a scientist, believe in such a thing?
[02:40] ---
    It's hypothesized that what
    we call a soul is linked to the body.
[02:45] ---
    When the body ceases to function,
    the soul also goes away.
[02:50] ---
    But if the Doppelganger
    has a soul dwelling within her,
[02:53] ---
    it is only temporarily stuck
    within the machinery.
[02:57] ---
    Even if the vessel is broken, it does
    not go away, it just becomes untethered.
[03:03] ---
    An untethered soul will spread out
    from the vessel into its surroundings.
[03:07] ---
    This ordinarily impossible "free soul"
[03:10] ---
    could then possess any material
    and control it as it pleases.
[03:14] ---
    Worst case scenario, I think that it
    could even swallow up Academy City itself
[03:19] ---
    and take control of it.
[03:21] ---
    Swallow up Academy City?
[03:23] ---
    In other words, you're saying
    that it would be highly risky
[03:27] ---
    to physically destroy the
    Doppelganger's body or "vessel"?
[03:32] ---
    Have you mentioned this to the laboratory?
[03:34] ---
    Yes, I have. But the chief and the others
    are so caught up in their success,
[03:38] ---
    they couldn't accept any negative views.
[03:40] ---
    Still,
[03:42] ---
    what can they do if the
    Doppelganger decides to harm itself?
[03:47] ---
    That probably won't happen.
    No, I should say it can't happen.
[03:52] ---
    The artificial body that started out
    being a cyborg has a safety--
[03:56] ---
    a self-preservation function built into it.
[03:59] ---
    Because of its cyborg nature,
[04:01] ---
    shutting down any mechanical functions
    would directly affect the biologicals,
[04:05] ---
    so it is programmed not to perform
    any action that would cause more than
[04:10] ---
    a certain level of damage to itself.
[04:15] ---
    That safety was your doing?
[04:17] ---
    Yes. The Doppelganger employs artificial muscles
    that contract through chemical interaction,
[04:22] ---
    immunosuppressive agents that inhibit the
    body's rejection response where it makes contact
[04:26] ---
    and a number of other
    technologies that I developed.
[04:31] ---
    Your circulation of Indian Poker has
    to do with the Doppelganger, doesn't it?
[04:37] ---
    What makes you think that?
[04:39] ---
    Because the time when you learned
    about the Doppelganger's existence
[04:42] ---
    overlaps with the time when
    those cards started going around.
[04:45] ---
    It's only natural to assume
    the two are connected.
[04:49] ---
    Yeah, you're right.
    Indian Poker allows someone else
[04:54] ---
    to acquire a person's experiences
    and skills through their dreams.
[04:58] ---
    By exchanging through dreams the insights
[05:00] ---
    that people are unlikely
    to come across in real-life society,
[05:03] ---
    we would expect there
    to be radical leaps of thought.
[05:07] ---
    While I might be unable
    to work out a solution myself,
[05:11] ---
    those cards might come across
    someone who can reverse the situation.
[05:14] ---
    By creating a fad that boosts
    the common denominator,
[05:16] ---
    it becomes a matter
    of probability and statistics.
[05:19] ---
    Maybe you think it's kind of
    a roundabout way of doing things.
[05:21] ---
    But after pursuing what I could do myself,
    this is what I came up with.
[05:25] ---
    I don't care if you think
    any less of me for it.
[05:28] ---
    Now excuse me, but I have to go.
    You interrupted me in the middle of my work.
[05:33] ---
    I'll make sure to do something
    about the Doppelganger.
[05:37] ---
    You don't need to get involved.
[05:42] ---
    You don't seem to like her too much.
[05:46] ---
    I know that Kuriba Ryoko
    is a victim in this weird situation,
[05:49] ---
    --and I don't have any right to say
    anything about her in all of this,
[05:53] ---
    --You're free to leave now.
    --and I don't have any right to say
    anything about her in all of this,
[05:55] ---
    but I don't care if this was
    all too much for her alone,
[05:57] ---
    using Indian Poker to rope a bunch
    of other people into the middle of this
[06:02] ---
    kind of bothers me, I guess.
[06:05] ---
    Well, everyone has their own circumstances.
[06:12] ---
    Should I have entered into
    a partnership with Misaka Mikoto?
[06:18] ---
    No. I doubt the chief and
    the others will do anything as foolish
[06:21] ---
    as destroying the Doppelganger.
[06:24] ---
    I shouldn't ham-handedly
    disrupt the current situation.
[06:27] ---
    Time will sort everything out.
[06:29] ---
    Miahilin--a drug used for the
    aftereffects of cyborg treatments.
[06:33] ---
    Easy to obtain, but not many people
    order the high-quality version.
[06:38] ---
    I just had to access the
    pharmaceutical company's database
[06:42] ---
    and narrowing it down from there wasn't hard.
[06:44] ---
    Me? The Doppel!
[06:53] ---
    You're slow.
[06:55] ---
    Maybe you're too much of a shut-in
    and need some more exercise.
[06:58] ---
    You also look like you're overworked
    and not getting enough sleep.
[07:01] ---
    You need to make sure
    you're eating right, too.
[07:04] ---
    You know, maybe it's
    the medical equipment talking,
[07:07] ---
    but I can't help but be concerned.
[07:09] ---
    What are you after?
    Are you here to take my place?
[07:14] ---
    Or have you found a procedure
    to drive my soul out of me?
[07:19] ---
    Could be.
[07:20] ---
    Either way, you end up no longer existing.
[07:25] ---
    Sorry,
[07:26] ---
    but I'm not ready for that yet.
[07:35] ---
    She had a contingency plan in place.
[07:38] ---
    But one that didn't hurt me and
    was meant to keep me here, which means...
[07:45] ---
    What was that?
[07:47] ---
    A truck came sliding toward me?
[07:48] ---
    You've got good reflexes, don't you?
[07:51] ---
    I was thinking of turning you
    into a wax figure sandwich.
[08:00] ---
    Reducing frictional coefficient
    of these fixtures to zero!
[08:03] ---
    Take this!
[08:08] ---
    O-O-Oh, crap!
[08:11] ---
    Yeah, right!
[08:22] ---
    Well? Your limbs may be one thing,
    but when your whole body has been caught,
[08:26] ---
    it's pretty hard to pluck off
    any parts to escape, isn't it?
[08:28] ---
    Well, come on! If you just stand around,
[08:30] ---
    the affected region is
    just going to keep expanding!
[08:38] ---
    Paper?
[08:44] ---
    Capture complete!
[08:45] ---
    That was a piece of cake, all right.
[08:47] ---
    Seike,
[08:48] ---
    just before we made contact,
    there was a woman who looked just like this.
[08:52] ---
    The possibility that they switched places,
    while low, is still not zero.
[08:56] ---
    Just to be safe, go and check it out for me.
[08:58] ---
    You're always such
    a slave driver. All right, I will.
[09:04] ---
    Now...
[09:05] ---
    all that's left is to take this thing
    to the designated location.
[09:09] ---
    Hmm, you look quite a bit
    different than in the report.
[09:13] ---
    Must have thought it would be easier
    to blend in on the streets like this.
[09:16] ---
    Scrap iron trying desperately to be human...
[09:20] ---
    But doing this only approximates
    the look on the outside,
[09:23] ---
    and just serves to remind you
    that you're an artificial creation inside.
[09:28] ---
    You poor thing.
[09:31] ---
    As if. Was that a little too occult there?
[09:34] ---
    You watch too many dramas.
[09:35] ---
    Leader, you're such a poet.
[09:37] ---
    Incidentally...
[09:39] ---
    ...as an artificial creation,
[09:41] ---
    my perception of pain is
    represented digitally.
[09:45] ---
    For my own information, would you
    show me what reactions are correct?
[09:50] ---
    Why are you letting up on her, Naru?!
[09:52] ---
    I'm at full power! Except the paper
    isn't responding to me! But why?!
[09:58] ---
    Impossible! According
    to the specs in our materials,
[10:00] ---
    she shouldn't be able
    to break free from Naru!
[10:03] ---
    Even your extremities make bizarre motions.
[10:06] ---
    I wonder if, in human terms,
    this would be expressed as being "comical."
[10:12] ---
    Why, you!
[10:13] ---
    Let go of Leader!
[10:16] ---
    I think I'll gouge out her eyeballs next.
[10:20] ---
    Stop that!
[10:26] ---
    The artificial body that started out
    being a cyborg has a safety--
[10:30] ---
    a self-preservation function built into it.
[10:33] ---
    It is programmed not to perform
    any action that would cause more than
[10:38] ---
    a certain level of damage to itself.
[10:45] ---
    Who... are you?
[10:49] ---
    Hmm, if she's bleeding, I can assume
    that she's well and truly human.
[10:56] ---
    If the other three see her as being
    an honor student, they might kill her.
[11:01] ---
    I've confirmed who she is,
    so I could just let her go...
[11:07] ---
    What are you doing there?
[11:09] ---
    Uh... picking on a wimp.
[11:12] ---
    For that matter, who do you think you are?
[11:15] ---
    Some kind of hero that arrives
    when a girl finds herself in trouble?
[11:21] ---
    Where did you...?
[11:24] ---
    Wha--?!
[11:27] ---
    Are you okay?
[11:29] ---
    "#22 Scavenger"
[11:30] ---
    Why...?
[11:34] ---
    When I was little,
    I was involved in a building collapse.
[11:38] ---
    My life was saved by a
    lung transplant from my mother.
[11:44] ---
    But afterward, my mother,
    who wasn't very strong to begin with,
[11:47] ---
    carried on in what no one
    would call good health,
[11:50] ---
    and as I grew up,
    I devoted myself to Academy City,
[11:54] ---
    to learn about cyborg technology
    in order to treat my mother.
[11:59] ---
    After putting in my effort
    and starting to see some results,
[12:03] ---
    I learned that my mother
    had taken a downturn.
[12:06] ---
    Pulmonary edema and an associated infection.
[12:09] ---
    My mother's body was nearing
    the breaking point.
[12:13] ---
    The doctor said that administering drugs
    could slow her decline temporarily,
[12:17] ---
    but after a year, or two at the most,
    we couldn't expect to see any results.
[12:23] ---
    I would have to develop cyborg parts
    for all of the affected areas.
[12:28] ---
    But I was profoundly short on data.
[12:32] ---
    With the absolute number of
    cyborg treatments being so low,
[12:35] ---
    I was extremely hard pressed to collect
    the data for all the necessary regions.
[12:41] ---
    I wasn't going to make it
    the way things were headed.
[12:45] ---
    Chief,
[12:46] ---
    what is the word on that plan I proposed?
[12:49] ---
    Hmm? Oh, that one?
    It would be an unprecedented experiment,
[12:54] ---
    so we can't find any volunteers--
[12:55] ---
    I'll do it.
[12:59] ---
    By dividing myself in half,
[13:01] ---
    we would gather exhaustive
    data on my whole body,
[13:08] ---
    and I would be both
    the observer and the subject.
[13:12] ---
    In a sense, one could call it
    the most ideal circumstance possible.
[13:17] ---
    I swear...
[13:19] ---
    That seems to be the shape of things,
    as far as I was able to investigate.
[13:25] ---
    Why didn't she say anything about that?
[13:27] ---
    She's probably just not gullible
    enough to trust anyone
[13:31] ---
    who suddenly forced themselves
    into the picture under a false identity.
[13:34] ---
    Okay, but even so...
[13:36] ---
    Maybe she feels responsible
    for the creation of the Doppelganger
[13:40] ---
    in the course of her pursuing
    her personal goal of treating her mother.
[13:46] ---
    I believe that's a feeling
    you aren't entirely unfamiliar with.
[13:51] ---
    Incidentally, by her calculations,
[13:54] ---
    if Indian Poker keeps
    spreading the way it is currently,
[13:57] ---
    then statistically speaking,
    in two more months,
[13:59] ---
    a method of obliterating
    the so-called soul will surface.
[14:03] ---
    So, until then...
[14:05] ---
    She was probably planning
    to keep the secret all to herself.
[14:11] ---
    All to... herself...
[14:17] ---
    Yes?
[14:18] ---
    Kuroko, how are things there?
[14:20] ---
    The head resident was in a sour mood,
[14:22] ---
    and I had an awful time pulling
    the wool over her eyes.
[14:26] ---
    She might come knocking again,
    so please come back right away, okay?
[14:30] ---
    Actually, it looks like this is going
    to take a little while longer.
[14:33] ---
    I think I can make it back before
    today turns into tomorrow, though.
[14:37] ---
    Aww... Very well, I will come up
    with something else, then.
[14:40] ---
    Honestly, this is turning
    into a thankless job.
[14:43] ---
    Look, I promise to make it up
    to you sometime soon.
[14:46] ---
    Do you really mean it, Sissy?!
[14:48] ---
    --Then we can share the
    same bed until morning--
[14:49] ---
    --Something other than that. Bye now.
    --Then we can share the same bed until morning--
[15:00] ---
    This must be quite the
    ordeal for Miss Misaka.
[15:04] ---
    Is that...
[15:05] ---
    ...an Electromaster?
[15:08] ---
    Who's that?
[15:09] ---
    I don't know. I just ran into
    the Doppelganger, though.
[15:13] ---
    I think the two must be related.
[15:16] ---
    Earlier, I think I might have
    come across with a poor attitude.
[15:20] ---
    That was all on me.
[15:23] ---
    I know you must have your
    own reasons for what you're doing,
[15:27] ---
    but for whatever you
    can't handle on your own,
[15:29] ---
    I hope you'll turn to me.
[15:31] ---
    So let me take care of this.
[15:38] ---
    I'm grateful.
[15:41] ---
    All done?
[15:44] ---
    I'm not actually planning on going
    after Little Miss Patchwork there anymore.
[15:48] ---
    Not now that I know
    she isn't the target I'm after.
[15:52] ---
    But never mind her,
[15:53] ---
    are you going to amuse me now?
[15:57] ---
    If you're not after her, then there's
    no reason to mix it up with you.
[16:00] ---
    What's wrong? Don't hold back for my sake.
[16:03] ---
    I may not look it, but I'm carrying
    the same package as you.
[16:07] ---
    Huh?
[16:08] ---
    Or is the hero going to chicken out on me?
[16:13] ---
    I'm not exactly a hero.
[16:15] ---
    I just don't like picking
    on those weaker than me.
[16:20] ---
    O-ho...
[16:23] ---
    ...pretty big talk.
[16:25] ---
    Then let me show you just how much I've got!
[16:30] ---
    Sorry.
[16:31] ---
    I know we were told to
    capture it in one piece.
[16:33] ---
    Mm-mm, if you hadn't done it,
    Naru, I would have.
[16:38] ---
    Ugh, it really hurts...
[16:40] ---
    Just a moment. I'll mix up
    a painkiller for you right away.
[16:53] ---
    If that thing's still running,
    then we can still accomplish our mission!
[16:57] ---
    Both of you, get back!
[16:59] ---
    Better to take that thing...
[17:01] ---
    ...and deliver a nice, thorough...
[17:02] ---
    ...crushing blow, right here and now!
[17:07] ---
    Wh-Why is my paper protecting that thing?
[17:17] ---
    Naru's...
[17:18] ---
    My...
[17:19] ---
    ...paper got taken away!
[17:20] ---
    How mean. I made proper skin and everything.
[17:24] ---
    Well, this is a bit unwieldly,
    but that doesn't hinder its movement.
[17:35] ---
    Being able to freely adjust
    the friction coefficient like I can,
[17:38] ---
    I'm not hurt by these steel beams.
    Bullets and blades are also pointless.
[17:43] ---
    Sure, I might not be able
    to deflect your electric shocks,
[17:47] ---
    but the beams that are
    scattered about so nicely
[17:49] ---
    will serve as grounding.
    If the falling debris crushes you, so be it.
[17:55] ---
    But if you're lucky enough to deflect all that,
    I'll take you down directly...
[17:59] ---
    Huh?!
[18:00] ---
    Why are the beams coming this way?!
[18:03] ---
    Your ability, huh?
[18:04] ---
    So you're not an Electromaster,
    but a psychokinesist?
[18:07] ---
    Or no, a magnetism manipulator?
    How can you control so much mass at once?
[18:11] ---
    This is bad. Even if I take no damage,
    my grounding shielding is disappearing.
[18:16] ---
    You leave me no choice!
    I've underestimated you!
[18:20] ---
    This is going to cost me a finger,
[18:22] ---
    but you won't have time to dodge this.
[18:24] ---
    Even if you shock me unconscious,
    my momentum will still jab you!
[18:29] ---
    Looks like I'm the one...
[18:31] ---
    ...who underestimated you.
[18:34] ---
    You're a girl? Wait a minute, you're...
[18:39] ---
    Hey, look at this!
[18:40] ---
    It says I'll have a super-successful week!
[18:42] ---
    Horoscopes? How many people in Academy City
[18:45] ---
    even believe in anything as occult as those?
[18:48] ---
    Well, I didn't believe in
    them either, until just recently,
[18:52] ---
    but the week we got trounced by that guy...
[18:55] ---
    ...it said that the greatest encounter
    of my life would happen,
[18:57] ---
    that I would have a terrible failure
    at work as a result, and I'd lose credibility!
[19:01] ---
    My unlucky colors were red and white!
[19:04] ---
    Wow, they really got your number there.
[19:07] ---
    I know, right?
[19:08] ---
    Incidentally, it says that this week,
    I'll have a great encounter,
[19:10] ---
    a possible catalyst for work
    to take a turn for the better,
[19:13] ---
    and that I should be positive
    toward those I care about.
[19:17] ---
    Well, horoscopes notwithstanding,
[19:20] ---
    we really did draw the
    short straw on that one.
[19:23] ---
    Of the 2.3 million people in Academy City,
    only seven of them are Level 5s.
[19:28] ---
    It was simply a rare case of
    encountering one out of all those people.
[19:32] ---
    But there's no way we'll run up
    against another one any time soon.
[19:38] ---
    The third-ranked Level 5, Railgun...
[19:42] ---
    I guess the occult really is...
[19:47] ---
    ...pretty unreliable...
[19:52] ---
    Well, that's not enough to kill you.
[19:56] ---
    Then again, I can't ask you
    any questions now, either.
[20:06] ---
    That just leaves one of you
    who's still able to move.
[20:09] ---
    Naru!
[20:10] ---
    What do I do? There's no way
    I can run away while carrying both of them.
[20:14] ---
    Okay, then...!
[20:19] ---
    Oh, you're just going to leave
    your friends here and run?
[20:25] ---
    Blasting won't work.
[20:27] ---
    Assuming it can compensate
    for any damage using other material,
[20:29] ---
    it would be pointless.
[20:30] ---
    So then...
[20:32] ---
    ...if I can freeze it...!
[20:37] ---
    I did it!
[20:38] ---
    Yakumaru!
[20:40] ---
    Wrong one.
[20:41] ---
    Huh?
[20:45] ---
    Paper?!
[20:49] ---
    Now we're even for before.
[20:51] ---
    This scrap iron can imitate more than
    just outward appearances, you see.
[20:57] ---
    No...!
[21:00] ---
    Huh?
[21:05] ---
    Give those back.
[21:07] ---
    I'm gonna catch a cold!
[21:10] ---
    Yakkun!
[21:18] ---
    I was originally planning to let you
    return alive, so you could give a report...
[21:24] ---
    ...but I guess I'll need to press
    my point even deeper.
[21:31] ---
    We should be okay,
    now that we've made it this far...
[21:34] ---
    You saved us, Naru.
[21:36] ---
    Huh? Heh-heh, as Scavenger's ace,
    I'd say that's only natural.
[21:42] ---
    But now what do we do, Leader?
[21:44] ---
    First thing we do is rendezvous with Seike,
    who should be back by now.
[21:48] ---
    If you mean the one in the sailor uniform,
[21:50] ---
    the kid is laid out on the ground back there.
[21:52] ---
    When someone messes with me,
    I take them down. I take it you're all together?
[22:00] ---
    Railgun?!
[23:24] ---
    "Next episode preview"
[23:25] ---
    This is bad, this is bad, this is bad!
[23:26] ---
    "Next episode preview"
    "#23 Possession"
[23:27] ---
    We're still traumatized by the memory
[23:28] ---
    of Academy City's first ranked
    beating us to a pulp,
[23:31] ---
    and now we're facing the
    third-ranked Railgun?!
[23:33] ---
    No, wait a second! If we can pull this off,
    we might just make our comeback!
[23:38] ---
    And all of that just took 0.1 seconds!
[23:41] ---
    
[23:43] ---