My Little Sister Can Read Kanji: Volume 1

by Takashi Kajii

  “Oh, is that what you meant? Um... You have all travelled through time, I think.”

  Travelled through time?

  “Here, look at this,” she continued, taking a boxy cellphone out of her apron. It looked like it had a very old-fashioned design. She turned the screen so we could see it.

  201X/5/14

  “This is today’s date.”

  “That explains it.” I nodded. It seemed like we had travelled back in time.

  “Onii-chan! You’re just going to believe it so easily?!” exclaimed Kuroha, approaching me with an exasperated expression.

  Why shouldn’t I believe it? “That’s what the date says, right?”

  “Come on, you can easily change the date on a phone!” Kuroha cried.

  “Oh, you can?” Yuzu-san asked with a surprised look on her face. She stared intently at the phone, and happily announced, “You learn something new every day!”

  “Besides, how does she know that we travelled through time? Isn’t this the first time we’ve met?” Kuroha asked me, but Yuzu-san was the one who responded.

  “The person who came here earlier told me about you.”

  “The person who came earlier? Who was that?” asked Kuroha.

  “Odaira-san.”

  Odaira?! I ran up to Yuzu-san. “You know where Sensei is?” I asked, raising my voice despite myself.

  “Sensei...? For someone that young to be called ‘Sensei,’ they must be really impressive.”

  Someone that young? She must have meant someone so “young at heart.” Sensei’s sensibilities were always so young and fresh, after all.

  “Odaira-san said there were three others, and showed me pictures,” continued Yuzu-san.

  Odaira-sensei must have shown Yuzu-san photographs of us. ...But I didn’t recall ever giving him any pictures.

  “Pictures of us?” I repeated.

  “No, just pictures of Miru-chan,” replied Yuzu-san. “Odaira-san said ‘This is my special friend Miru-chan’ and showed me a bunch of pictures really happily.”

  “...Were those pictures taken with her facing the camera?” asked Kuroha, emitting a dangerous aura.

  “Now that you mention it... she wasn’t looking at the camera in any of them.”

  “When did he...?!” cried Kuroha, the veins popping out on her temples.

  “Where did Sensei go?” I asked, and Yuzu-san turned to look at the house.

  Just then, the front door opened, and a blonde-haired little girl appeared from inside. She looked to be about ten years old. She must be the same age as Miru.

  She was cute and puffed out her cheeks. Her hair was tied up with two ribbons, and hung down on either sides of her face. In other words, she had twin-tails. She was wearing a frilly black one-piece dress that looked more like a costume out of an anime.

  “Ah, Onii-sama...” said the girl when she saw me, in a pretty voice, her eyes looking up at me mistily.

  Onii-sama? I was pretty sure I had never met her before.

  “Onii-sama, you came for me, didn’t you?” she continued.

  Huh? Huh? I was confused.

  “As long you have me, you don’t need any other little sisters,” the girl began, but Miru cut her off.

  “Who the hell are you?” Miru demanded, as if speaking to an enemy. The cat ears on her beret usually flopped down, but they were now standing up rigid and tall. It was like she was trying to intimidate the other girl.

  The little girl turned to look at Miru. And as she did, her eyes turned to a loving gaze...

  “Ahahaha, I was just making a joke, Miru-chan,” said the girl, putting her hands on her hips and puffing out her chest. “It’s me!” she announced.

  Her attitude rang a bell in my head... Wait, could that be... But such a thing was ridiculous to even consider.

  “Are you Odaira-sensei?” asked Kuroha, saying what I didn’t dare to.

  The girl spun around, closed her eyes, and said, “Bingo!”

  “I’ve become a blonde, twin-tailed, beautiful little girl!”

  “Ehhhhhhhhhhh–?!” This was a level beyond shocking. It was astonishing beyond belief.

  A 70-year-old gentleman had been transformed into an adorable little girl! His instincts for his profession are at a whole other level! In order to write the most realistic young girls, Odaira-sensei had overcome even the boundaries of age and gender. Sensei, you are truly impressive!

  “Geezer, how’d you pull this trick?” asked Miru.

  “When I came to, this is how I was, Miru-chan. I bet you have even more appreciation for me now, yes?”

  “No, you’re creepy.”

  “Miru-chan, I hope you never change!”

  Hearing the two of them go back and forth made it all the more clear it was him. I went to get closer, but Kuroha interrupted me.

  “Wait. Let me test whether it really is Odaira-sensei,” she said, putting out her arm to block me.

  “He had pictures of Miru-chan, so it must be him,” I said.

  “We shouldn’t be so sure with just that. Maybe she’s some kind of kidnapper. Onii-chan, ask her some question that only Odaira-sensei would be able to answer,” asked Kuroha, seeming very defensive.

  I reluctantly decided to ask a question so the girl could prove she was actually Odaira-sensei.

  “Sensei, sorry about this. Can I ask you a question?”

  “Sure, no problem.”

  “What is the name of the heroine in LILSIS ☆ STAR?”

  “Rin,” answered the girl immediately.

  See, I knew it was him! I was glad to be proven right, but Kuroha didn’t seem like she was convinced.

  “Onii-chan, is there something wrong with you? That book is a bestseller! There are tons of people who know the name of the main heroine!”

  “Oh, now that you mention it...” I started to think of a better question. Questions about his books were not going to work. They were all too widely read. Questions from interviews he had given were also something I should avoid. I needed to ask something that only I knew about Odaira-sensei... Let me see...

  “What are Miru’s birthday and blood type?”

  “April 9th, 2192, and AB.”

  “What are her height and measurements?”

  “She is 135 centimeters tall. You said that you didn’t know her measurements, so you couldn’t tell me. Even though I begged you for them, jerk.”

  “The last time Miru wet the bed, what did she say to me when she came to my room?”

  The girl bent her knees and rubbed her thighs against each other fidgeting, acting it out. “‘Nii, wake up. Come to my room.’”

  All correct. There was no more doubt. It’s you, Sensei!

  I bounded up to Odaira-sensei, embracing him in my arms. He was squeezable and soft. “I’m so moved. You turned into a little girl all so that you could write little girl characters all that more realistically!”

  “Fuwahaha. If you live a pure and righteous life, your wishes really do come true, it seems!” Odaira-sensei smiled and laughed.

  How adorable! He spoke like Odaira-sensei, but his voice and body were that of a young girl. I doubted that anyone would be able to realize that he was actually a 70-year-old man on the inside.

  “Hold it, Onii-chan,” an oddly furious voice came from behind as I emotionally reunited with Odaira-sensei. You can probably guess who the voice had come from. “Sorry to interrupt your tearful reunion there.”

  “Uh... Well...”

  “You seemed to have given out quite a bit of Miru’s personal information.”

  “...Should I not have done that?”

  “Miru must be pretty upset,” said Kuroha, calmly. “Aren’t you, Miru?”

  “I am a little vexed,” said Miru.

  Oh crap, I made Miru angry. Better apologize.

  “Miru, I’m sorry! I wasn’t being fair, was I?”

  “Fair?”

  “Yeah. I told Sensei about you, so it’s only fair that I tell you stuff about Sensei. It was r
eally silly of me not to realize. Sensei’s measurements are...”

  “Who would want to know that?!” Kuroha interjected.

  Scary! There were plenty of passionate fans who would be interested, I thought.

  “Um, maybe we could all talk inside?” Yuzu-san must have noticed the fear in my voice, as she kindly diffused the situation.

  Phew, thanks. Maybe she was the reincarnation of a goddess.

  We entered the house, and were led into the den. We sat down on the sofa in the room, and I looked around. The room was filled with antique Western furniture, and there was a grandfather clock that caught my eye.

  “I’ll make some tea for everyone,” said Yuzu-san as she left the room.

  Kuroha stared at her as she left.

  “What is it?” I asked.

  “I’m still not sure why she is treating us this nicely.”

  “Isn’t it because we are time travelers in trouble?”

  “That’s just it. Is this really 201X? I still don’t believe it,” replied Kuroha.

  “Kuroha-kun, this is without a doubt the Heisei era. For I saw with my own eyes a holy relic from the ancient past,” said Odaira-sensei.

  A relic?

  Odaira-sensei grinned, and told us the story of what had happened when he woke up.

  He told us that he had woken up on the grounds of a nearby elementary school, and found himself in the body of a little girl for some reason. Just as he had decided to inspect the surroundings of the elementary school, Yuzu-san had walked by. After he had spoken with her, they had found a kindred spirit in each another, and she had taken him back to her house. It seems they had bonded over their blonde hair.

  “So then, what was this relic you mentioned?” I asked, curious.

  “Right before I met Yuzu-kun, I saw a randoseru when I looked into the elementary school.”

  “Randoseru? What is that?”

  “The randoseru is an ancient style of book bag for elementary school students. It was created by the military, so they were extremely rugged. The image of young, tender-aged girls wearing them on their backs was the pinnacle of fetishism.” As Odaira-sensei finished his explanation, he turned his eyes passionately toward Miru, who was fiddling with her hat’s cat ears and looking bored. “When I imagine you wearing that big, rugged randoseru on your back, Miru-chan, I... Oh, I’m already...” He started to breathe heavily.

  Kuroha shot him a dagger-like glare. “So you think we’re in the Heisei era just because you saw a randoseru?”

  “There are also the calendars in this house, and the date they said on the TV news report... They all say that it’s the year 201X,” he replied.

  “But that’s still just...”

  “Kuroha, doubting everything isn’t going to get us anywhere,” I said, cutting her off. “This is the 21st century. Just accept that for now.”

  “...Fine.” She didn’t seem completely convinced, but she nodded reluctantly.

  “Sorry to keep you waiting.” Yuzu-san called out from the entrance to the den, bringing tea with her. The aroma of freshly brewed herb tea wafted over us.

  Yuzu-san had taken off her apron, revealing a deep red jersey underneath. She looked exactly like Homyura from the neck up, but her fashion sense was completely different.

  Yuzu-san began to place teacups on the table. When I looked at her from the side, she noticed and looked back, giving me a smile.

  After setting out the teacups, she plopped down on the sofa with us. “I don’t think I’ve learned everyone’s names yet. If you don’t mind, could everyone please introduce themselves?” she asked.

  Now that she mentions it, yeah... How rude of us.

  “I’m Gin Imose. And these are my sisters, Kuroha and Miru.” I introduced us all to her once again.

  “My, what unique names you all have! What kanji do you use to write them?”

  “Kanji?” I asked.

  “My name is written with the tree radical 木 combined with 由. It’s written like this: 柚.”

  I was very confused. I didn’t understand what Yuzu-san was saying.

  “All our names are spelled using katakana,” replied Miru quietly, since I couldn’t answer.

  “You all write your names using katakana?” asked Yuzu-san.

  “In our time, no one uses kanji anymore,” replied Kuroha.

  Yuzu-san let out an “Eh?” Her eyes grew wide.

  “People’s names and places are now all commonly spelled using katakana,” Kuroha explained. “All that’s left is the ruby.”

  In the later half of the 21st century, all kanji had started to have their readings written above them using katakana. These readings were called ruby. As the years passed, eventually only the ruby remained. That was why people’s names and places were now all written in katakana.

  “So then none of you can read kanji, I see. If you have any problems, please just ask.”

  “It’s fine. I can read them,” said Kuroha, writing something in the air with her finger. It seemed like it was a kanji. “‘Yuzu’ is written like 柚, right?”

  “Yes, that’s it!” exclaimed Yuzu-san, nodding happily.

  “Odaira-sensei, Miru, and I can all read kanji,” said Kuroha. Yuzu-san beamed at each person in turn.

  Kuroha, Miru, Sensei –

  Her gaze stopped at my face.

  “Um, and what about you, Gin-san?”

  “Kanji is way outta Nii’s league!” said Miru.

  “Oh, my.” Yuzu-san stared at me intensely. I was embarrassed in any number of ways. “Gin-san, you’re cute.”

  “Huh?”

  “You’re the older brother, but you can’t read kanji. That’s cute.”

  “O-Okay...” It was the first time in my life that a girl had called me “cute.” I was oddly embarrassed. I averted my eyes from Yuzu-san. But when I did, Kuroha’s glum face came into view. Her mouth was making an odd shape. Compared with Yuzu-san’s caring smile, it was like night and day.

  “So lame,” whispered Kuroha to herself. She said it softly, but I felt like she really said it with a strange conviction.

  Why do you have to make people so uncomfortable? You should learn a thing or two from Yuzu-san.

  A big smile came over Yuzu-san’s face. “Ah, yes! Everyone will be hanging out here for a while, right?”

  Did she mean, like, in this time period? We weren’t hanging out, exactly. We just had no way to go back.

  “You probably didn’t make reservations at a hotel, did you?” she continued.

  “Not like we had any way to...” Kuroha sighed.

  “In that case, please stay here in my home!”

  Boy, am I happy to hear that! I was about to thank her for the offer, when...

  “We couldn’t impose on you like that,” said Kuroha, shaking her head no. The words were just being polite, but her expression was quite serious. “Why are you going so far out of your way for us?” she continued.

  “Wouldn’t you want to have guests that came from the future? It’s amazing! I feel so blessed!”

  “That’s your reason?”

  “Do you find it odd?” Yuzu-san replied, genuinely curious.

  “It’s not that it’s odd, it’s just...” Kuroha didn’t seem to be able to find it in herself to trust Yuzu-san.

  “Nee, I wanna stay here...” Miru said, tugging on Kuroha’s blouse.

  “Kuroha-kun, you do realize that we aren’t carrying any money from this period, yes? Are you going to tell Miru-chan she has to sleep outside?” Odaira-sensei chided.

  “That’s not what...” Kuroha trailed off.

  “Well, I’m fine with camping out. Nothing but me, a defenseless Miru-chan, and the open fields. With this body, I’ll make those fields blossom with fresh blue lilies... How fun!”

  “Blue lilies? You mean you and Miru-chan will appreciate the flowers? Just imagining it makes my worries go away,” I said.

  “Gin-kun, it seems you don’t understand my meaning.”

  “N
o, I understand. ‘Blue’ is a symbol of youth, and also means ‘under the blue sky.’ It’s a double meaning.”

  “Well you aren’t wrong about that, but you’re missing the main part,” he replied.

  “The main part? Kuroha, do you know what he’s talking about?”

  “Honestly, how did we even get on to this conversation?! Fine, whatever! We’ll be happy to stay here! I have to protect Miru...” responded Kuroha in exasperation.

  What? Did she know what Sensei was talking about or not? I’m not following.

  “Yes, then it’s settled. We will be staying here,” concluded Odaira-sensei.

  Yuzu-san was just watching us talk back and forth with a kind little smile.

  And with that, we were allowed to stay in this giant house. Yuzu-san told us we could borrow three rooms that apparently weren’t being used.

  After consulting with us, we split up the rooms into one for myself, one for Odaira-sensei, and one for Kuroha and Miru. Odaira-sensei had proposed that the two “youngest” share a room together, but Kuroha shut down that idea immediately.

  My room was on the second floor. And for the record, all the girls’ rooms (including Odaira-sensei’s) were on the first floor.

  “You’re the only one on the second floor, Gin-san. I’ll show you the room,” said Yuzu-san.

  “Thank you very much.” I followed Yuzu-san up the stairs, and my vision filled with the sight of her back and legs...

  Wow... Her butt is so cute, and she has such ample thighs.... The lines of her body were extremely feminine. I was looking at her from behind so I couldn’t be sure, but I suspected that her breasts were of considerable size, as well. My male instincts took over and I started to become excited.

  Yuzu-san had so much style to her. Her blonde hair looked all-natural, so perhaps she was not 100% Japanese. I wonder...

  “Um, Yuzu-san...”

  Right as we came to the top of the stairs, Yuzu-san turned around and replied, “Yes?”

  “Are you only half Japanese?”

  “Yes! Probably,” she answered.

  Probably?

  “As you can likely tell, I’m not fully Japanese. But I don’t know what other kind of blood runs in me.” She said that with a smile on her face, but somehow, I noticed a hint of loneliness.