Japanese with Manga

Only dodging and never attacking with 〜ばかり

Grammar Explanation: Nothing but with 〜ばかり

Yellow, riding Dodo, leaps clear of a jagged burst of ice and rock in the foreground.
ポケットモンスタースペシャル » Volume 4 » Page 80

Kanna of the Elite Four has Yellow and Masaki under attack with ice missiles fired by her Cloyster and Dewgong. Yellow hits Cloyster with Thunder Shock, which keeps it from firing, and the two escape on Yellow’s Dodo. When Kanna attacks again, Dodo only dodges. Masaki asks why Yellow won’t fight back, and Yellow says they should run. Masaki then realizes that Yellow is trying not to hurt anyone, friend or enemy.

マサキ:
「さっきの…パルシェンに〝でんきショック〟をあてる作戦(さくせん)も、パルシェンなら〝からにこもる〟防御(ぼうぎょ)があるから致命傷(ちめいしょう)に至(いた)らないとの判断(はんだん)やったんや。」
“That plan earlier, hitting Cloyster with Thunder Shock... he'd figured Cloyster could defend itself with Withdraw, so the hit wouldn't be fatal.”
「そして今(いま)も…よけるばかりで攻撃(こうげき)に入(はい)らへん…。」
“And now too... he's only dodging, and he won't go on the attack...”

Key Points

1よけるばかりで, nothing but dodging
  • After a verb’s dictionary form, ばかり says that action is the only thing happening. よけるばかり is “doing nothing but dodge”.
  • で links it to the next clause, which says what isn’t happening: 攻撃(こうげき)に入(はい)らへん. The same shape shows up in 言(い)うばかりで、何(なに)もしない, “all talk and no action”.
  • Masaki isn’t complaining here, even though ばかり often sounds critical. In the previous panel, he wanted Yellow to counterattack, but now he understands why Yellow holds back.
2入(はい)らへん is Kansai for 入(はい)らない
  • Masaki speaks Kansai dialect, where へん replaces the negative ない. 入(はい)らない becomes 入(はい)らへん.
  • 攻撃(こうげき)に入(はい)る means “to go on the attack”, that is, to switch from defense to offense.
3判断(はんだん)やったんや, so it was his call
  • やった is Kansai for だった, and んや is Kansai for んだ. 判断(はんだん)やったんや corresponds to standard 判断(はんだん)だったんだ, “so that was his judgment”.
  • との turns everything before it into the content of the judgment: “the judgment that Cloyster would not take a fatal hit”.
  • The んや sentence is Masaki’s realization. Yellow aimed the earlier Thunder Shock with Cloyster’s safety in mind.
4も ties the two moments together
  • In 作戦(さくせん)も and 今(いま)も, も sets the earlier plan and the current dodging side by side as two pieces of evidence.
  • Both back up Masaki’s realization in the previous panel, 敵も味方も傷つけまいとしとるんや, “he’s trying not to hurt friend or foe”.

Vocabulary

(A moment ago)

さっき is a short time before now.

(To hit)

あてる means to make something hit or touch a target, such as a ball, an attack, or a hand on someone’s forehead. It also means to guess correctly or to win a prize. It is often written 当(あ)てる.

(Strategy)

作戦(さくせん) means a plan for carrying out an operation. It often refers to military strategy, but it also works for everyday plans and schemes.

(To exist)

ある is to exist or be in a place, for things and plants rather than people or animals. It also means to have something, or for an event to take place.

(To reach)

至(いた)る means to reach a place, stage, or result, as in 結論(けつろん)に至(いた)る, “to reach a conclusion”. 致命傷(ちめいしょう)に至(いた)らない means an injury doesn’t go so far as to be fatal.

(Now)

今(いま) is the present moment, or these days.

(To dodge)

よける means to move out of the way of something, such as a blow, a puddle, or a passing car. It also means to set something aside. It is also written 避(よ)ける.

(To enter)

入(はい)る is to go into a place, or for something to be inside. It also means to join a club or school.

See Also

ポケットモンスタースペシャル © its respective creators. It is used here for educational commentary.