: dialogue
: [translator's notes]
56. The rooftop
Araragi: It often features as a setting in manga and stuff, but in real life, the school
rooftop is out of bounds, right?
Hanekawa: Because it's quite dangerous. Not to mention hard to clean.
Araragi: Pity, since getting called to the rooftop for a confession is a guy's dream.
Hanekawa: Aren't you passive... Why don't you just try calling someone out and
confessing yourself?
Araragi: What...you mean it's better if I get up some courage myself?
Hanekawa: To someone other than me.
57. Classes
Sengoku: Koyomi-onichan, why do we get so sleepy during classes?
Araragi: Ah...that's especially true for middle schoolers. And it's not like we weren't
sleeping at night - perhaps it's because of puberty.
Sengoku: But thanks to my long fringe, I don't get caught napping, so it's all ok.
Araragi: You're rather brazen, aren't you?
58. Changing seats
[Note: Araragi and Nadeko talk about eyesight here. Since notation differs even in English speaking countries, I have left the figures in the metric system, which Japan uses. 20/20 or 6/6 vision corresponds to 1.0 in Japan. Larger numbers (e.g. 1.6) mean even BETTER eyesight.]
Sengoku: The pressure of changing seats...I can't take it.
Araragi: The pressure of changing seats? What's that?
Sengoku: It's just that everyone seems so happy before they draw their seats, but then most people don't get what they want. The whole classroom becomes quite gloomy and I can't stand that.
Araragi: ...well, if we look at the statistics, it's an event where students end up
disappointed more often than not. And with how excited they are before drawing, the fall is pretty rough.
Sengoku: That's why I pretend that my eyesight's bad so that I can sit at the front. I
get them to leave me out.
Araragi: On that topic, what's your eyesight really like?
Sengoku: 2.0. I can see through my fringe just fine.
Araragi: So if you cut your fringe, won't it be something like 5.0?
[Quick medical lesson. When we have our eyesight checked, what they're examining is our visual acuity. "20/20 vision", which is used by most English speakers to refer to "perfect vision", is a term based on the "Foot" system, which is used in the US (source). I would have used 20/20 instead of 2.0 (or its actual corresponding value, 20/10), but I'm not sure if Japan has a similar hold-up about perfect vision. Also,Sengoku having 20/10 vision is supposedly impossible, because the maximum acuity of humans eyes is ~20/16 to ~20/12, according to wikipedia. Learnt something new: 20/20 isn't actually "perfect vision"!]
59. Textbooks
Araragi: I've heard something pretty amazing about geniuses...
Hachikuji: Go ahead.
Araragi: People like Hanekawa and Senjougahara, once they collect their textbooks
at the start of the school year, the first thing they do is to skim over everything.
Hachikuji: ...why do they do that?
Araragi: To get an overall idea of the entire subject perhaps. They're just on a whole
other level, those guys.
Hachikuji: So to those people, I take it lesson preparation would also be a form of
revision?
Araragi: They'd never ever scribble or draw on their textbooks, huh?
60. Game arcades
Araragi: If we're talking about a game arcade in our town, then it'd be what we have in
the toy section of our department store, huh?
Sengoku: Yes. I often see Kanbaru-san playing there.
Araragi: What kind of example is she setting,* that underclassman...! Is she being a
pain in the neck for all you grade-schoolers?
Sengoku: No no, rather, she's our hero. It seems that she goes by the name of
"Kanbaru the Game Master".
Araragi: Why in the world does she spread her name so far and wide?
[* lit: you shouldn't be letting them see that!]
