Takako (After) - I'm Not Exactly Against Kicking My Brother
I[1] can't stand how stupid kids my age are[6].
It's even worse that they're not malicious, but simply insensitive.
That was why, that one time, I decided to go on a journey... And by that, I mean I took a walk in the neighborhood. I didn't have enough money to hop on a train to another town or anything like that.
Ashihara Nakatsu is pretty much the best place to be anyway, considering there's never been a Kegai attack here. Yeah. No, I'm not being a sore loser, I swear.
As I wandered around, I ended up checking out the high school.
There, I found a teacher[2] standing perfectly still like a statue[7], her back against a wall.
Everyone was ignoring her -- terrible, am I right? Sure is scary how heartless modern society can be sometimes.
Then she suddenly started moving again, so I asked her if she was alright. We became friends, and sometimes she would teach me stuff.
Yeah, that's pretty much how the story went.
"...Say, are you even listening?" I ask the boy[3] facing away from me -- a big boy, round like a barrel.
It's August, and the heat of summer is at its peak, so we're resting under the trees at the shrine.
"Hello!? Ground Control to Nanachi!?"
"Yeah, yeah, I'm listening. So, you were late for school or something?"
"I never said anything about that! See, you weren't listening at all!"
With me starting to show my annoyance, Nanachi turns around and laughs... and smacks himself in the belly. Okay, that sounds pretty nice, actually... but what makes him think it's appropriate to do that in front of a little lady like me?
"You sure you wanna be doing that, Nanachi?"
"Doing what, Takako-chan?"
"You know, drumming your belly when you don't know what to say? Seems inappropriate to me."
"No way. Belly drumming is a big hit with the hip young folks these days. Everyone in Harajuku does it!"
"Really!?"
"Yeah, really!"
At first, I thought I'd stick around until he inevitably embarrasses himself with his jokes, but that smug look on his face annoys me so much that I can't help but kick him. Just a little nudge; I don't intend to actually hurt him or anything.
Nanachi staggers, though he makes no effort to hide the fact that he's faking it.
"You kicked me!" he exclaims, getting all dramatic, "You've got no right! Not even my own father has ever kicked me before!"
"Nah, pretty sure he has -- he gets angry at you just about every week!"
"Tch, this is why I don't vibe with normies..."
"So, was that a line from a cartoon or something?"
"Anime. It's called anime."
I kick him again.
"Oh, now you're suddenly not trying to fool a kid like me with your jokes, huh!?"
"Hey, a kid this violent counts as a criminal, you know."
Huh... so Nanachi can come up with good comebacks sometimes. Really, that was a nice one. If we could have conversations like this all the time, I would make him my brother, but he's just too inconsistent. Well, I guess he's still a lot better than Saru[4], who would just never stop treating me like a toddler -- like, he speaks to me in baby talk! Seriously!
"Uh, sorry. Did I go too far?"
"Nah. Your comeback just now was good -- quick and convincing delivery. So I was wondering why you're not that witty all the time, you know?"
"People like me can speak quickly when it's about things we're interested in. And if not, well, it's a whatever for me."
"You know what's funny about that, Nanachi? Your best one-liners don't have anything to do with anime at all!"
"Hey, have your parents never taught you not to say mean things!?"
"Yeah, that's it -- you would've been my best bro if you could talk back like that all the time!"
"You're expecting too much from me. I like myself the way I am now."
"Yeah, yeah..." I sigh.
It's disappointing, really. Nanachi is close to perfect -- he's not one to judge people based on their age, and doesn't get angry whenever I get smart with him. But he prioritizes his hobbies too much. Yeah, that's it -- I want to be someone's top priority! They've got to put their undivided attention on me!
"Ahh, I wish I had a personal big brother..."
"That doesn't sound quite right, Takako-chan... I mean, having a personal mecha is romantic and all, but why a brother?"
"Because it's romantic."
"Oh. Well, I can't argue about that. You got me."
To me, though, Nanachi sounds like he's just not interested enough to argue, rather than not being able to do so.
And he's still drumming his belly. What does he think he is, a tanuki?
"If you stop doing that, maybe you'll be more popular, you know?"
"And what's the point of that?" he asks back, looking perfectly serious.
Nanachi, man... you're still in high school; you're not supposed to give up on your social life now!
"You know, I think I'd be fine with a big sis as well, but I get the feeling that anyone I'd find would be preachy..."
"Maybe because she'd be worried about you as a fellow girl?"
"I guess that'd be the intended message, but it's kinda... You know..."
"What, you can't shake the feeling that she'd do it just to spite you or something?"
"Yeah, that's it. Nanachi, man... we're really talking on the same page today!"
"You think? Well, I'm hanging out with you because you seemed more gloomy than usual, just saying."
"You could tell!? What are you, a psychic!? You should become my brother and stay sharp like that all the time![8]"
"I'd rather not."
"You didn't have to refuse that so quickly! You'll regret brushing me off when I grow up all pretty and stuff!"
"Okay, I'm not one to lecture you about stuff, but listen -- A guy who changes his attitude just because you're prettier should be kept at a distance. For real."
"Thanks for the advice. But just saying, I'm not exactly against kicking my brother... if he's someone stupid who judges me based on how I look, that is!"
"Didn't you just kick me?"
"I kick people for many reasons."
"What do you think you are, a queen?"
"Yeah, yeah. If I was actually a queen, you'd probably be a rebel..." I sigh. "Speaking of lecturing, remember the teacher I mentioned earlier? Well, she'd always start giving a lecture two words into a conversation. She's smart though, so I usually would let her talk..."
"Right, because Kuni-sensei thinks going to a good uni through sheer effort is what makes a student happy... which isn't necessarily wrong, but it's not everything. The way she forces that idea on others makes them feel like they're being denied their own selves, their community, and their homeland... that kind of stuff."
"Sounds like she needs to be a tiny bit more considerate. And speaking being considerate... that's one of the most important things I'm looking for in my ideal brother, actually."
"Oh yeah? Let me introduce someone, then -- he's a real promising rookie!"
"You better not bring me someone stupid again."
"What happened to that the worse, the better thing you used to say? Well, how about Starman, then?"
"Nini[5]? He's cool -- needs to work out more, though."
"Well, what're you hanging around here for? Go see him."
"I mean, I do want to, but you know... Sometimes he's just too nice. So nice that I feel bad about myself[9]."
Despite me saying that seriously, I can't seem to get the point across. Nanachi starts saying something difficult, like I could just be as nice to Nini as he is to me or something.
So I kick him again. And that should be enough kicking for now.
===
Chapter 20 Character Profiles
↩[1] Takako (Takako Wakakuni)
Self-proclaimed "everyone's little sister." A prodigy with an IQ of over 180.
Unfortunately, in this time period, Japan does not have a system for educating gifted individuals like her. As a result, she is considered an outcast by her peers at school and is unable to make the most of her potential capabilities.
The country's policy at this time is to improve the average grades rather than the grades of a few prodigies.
First-person pronoun used: Watashi
↩[2] Kuni (Kunie Enan)
Japanese language teacher.
Known as a "problem teacher" behind the scenes.
Despite her motivation, she lacks effective teaching skills. Unfortunately, those like her aren't uncommon in this era.
↩[3] Nanachi (Nanachi Suhisa)
Descended from a wealthy long-standing family of farmers, so he was raised well, and in turn, he takes good care of the community. He's also what people nowadays would call a passionate "otaku."
The modern definition of the word "otaku" has not yet been established at this time, so it will not be used to describe him in this novel's main text.
In the game, however, the word "otaku" will be used for the sake of conciseness. Apologies in advance.
First-person pronoun used: Boku
↩[4] Saru (Kunihiko Sawada)
Member of the baseball club. Quite good at looking after others.
When he was in elementary school, he was called "Saru" or "Saruta" because of his tree-climbing skills. Sometimes he is still called by those nicknames.
He is not keen on studying because he wants to find a job to ease the burdens of his widowed mother.
↩[5] Nini (Novus Nemo/Taichiro Oyama)
The game's protagonist.
Born on the Hope International Space Station as Novus Nemo, and raised outside of the Japanese linguistic sphere despite his ancestry.
Due to the unique location of his birth, some people treat him as effectively an alien.
His nickname, "Nini," is short for "nobody" or "new" in the International Space Station's standard language.
Being Teruko's grandson, he goes by Taichiro Oyama, his Japanese name, when he comes down to Earth. No records of his father and grandfather exist in Japan.
===
Chapter 20 Footnotes
↩[6] "I can't stand how stupid kids my age are."
Takako doesn't get along with kids her age because they can't keep up with her.
↩[7] "Standing perfectly still like a statue"
A result of Beni's divine sorcery.
↩[8] "Stay sharp like that all the time!"
At the end of the day, what Takako wants is someone to talk to.
The catch is that they must be someone smart enough to keep up with her.
↩[9] "So nice that I feel bad about myself"
Nini, being a straightforward guy, does not quite fit Takako's idea of "unreliable."
===
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