A Letter from the Past, Part 1 (Chapter)

A Letter from the Past (1), originally A Letter from the Past in the WSJ release, is the sixth chapter of the JoJo's Bizarre Adventure manga. It is also the sixth chapter of Part I: Phantom Blood.

Summary
Seven years have passed since Dio came to the Joestar mansion; and in 1888 the mysterious Jack the Ripper has begun his murders. Elsewhere, a new battle between Jonathan and Dio begins.

A rugby match takes place at Hugh Hudson Academy, and the team hero is none other than Jonathan Joestar. He runs with the ball and does not stop even as several members of the opposing team try to tackle him. Jonathan drags them all with him towards the goal until a forth player finally unbalances him. With that, Jonathan passes the ball to Dio, who is able to score and win the final match before their graduation. Dio is graduating as the top law student, while Jonathan has written a thesis intending to pursue a career in archeology. Jonathan notices that Dio is referring to George as "Father" instead of "Lord Joestar", as he used to call him; he wonders at what point that change had occurred. While the two of them appear to be close, Jonathan still can not feel any real friendship towards his adopted brother. The reality of the situation is that Dio has been only acting favorably to leave a good impression on others before he reaches the legal age to gain the Joestar fortune.

Back at the Joestar Mansion, George is sick and in bed. What first appeared to be nothing but a common cold had developed into something worse and none in the house knew what. Despite his condition, George congratulates Jonathan and Dio on their rugby victory and is very proud of his two sons and their accomplishments.

That night Jonathan experimentally drips his blood onto the Stone Mask. Just like seven years ago, talons sprout from the mask, but it soon goes back to normal. While looking through some books, Jonathan accidentally drops a case. Inside the case is a letter from seven years ago that was sent from Dio's father, Dario, while on his death bed. To his shock, Jonathan realizes that the symptoms of the fatal sickness that Dario describes are the same that are currently afflicting George. Jonathan goes to confront Dio concerning this revelation.